RIM's Reviews Raising Kane By Darrien Lee

RIM's Reviews

Raising Kane

By Darrien Lee

 

Raising Kane By Darrien Lee  

Everyone deserves a second chance.

Denim is back and she has crossed the path of someone else that needs her help. Denim meets her new neighbor in the weirdest way. Kane is a sixteen year old student at a private school. She has a father cares who for her deeply and a mother that is addicted to drugs. The paths of Denim and Kane cross as Kane decides that she is going to run away from home. Drama at McDonald’s between Kane’s mother (Yolanda) and her gets so out of hand that the police are called and her father has to place a restraining order to protect his family. Kane is frustrated with having to be a second mother to her two younger brothers. She tells her father that she wants a normal teenage life but that is impossible with all the responsibilities that she has. This is where Denim comes in. Denim starts to spend time with Kane and her brothers. At this time Kane’s father notices that she is growing up and that she needs to be around others her own age. Yolanda sees the damage that she has caused her family and really wants to overcome her addiction. Devin sees all the pain and beatings that Yolanda is taking from the hands of Leon and decides it is time to help her overcome her demon. With the help of Devin, Yolanda overcome the drugs but also falls in love with him.

Will the relationship between Kane and her mother be mended? Does overcoming an addiction means a happy family? Will Kane be able to have a teenage social life or will she always be a second mother? 

With this novel Darrien Lee deals with the subject of addiction and the dynamics of the family. She nailed it on the head with making sure she includes the feelings of the whole family. The handling of the subject matter was very much at a level that many teens can understand. Lee places words in a way that the teenage reader is not feeling like a young child but as an adult that they are growing into.

Raising Kane by Darrien Lee receives 5 stars.

Reviewed by Patrice Smith

Readers in Motion Book

RIM's Review of Black Beauty by Elaine Flowers

RIM's Review of Black Beauty by Elaine Flowers



Terri is as close to a saint as you can get. She is what everyone wants in life, a loyal friend. To Terri she has never really felt complete. She has always had the feeling she was missing something in life. That missing link is her real family. She is there for everyone else but who will be there for her? Will she ever meet her real family and learn about herself or will that stay a mystery to her?


Wendell is a male stylist with sex appeal. He is what many call a ladies’ man. He has a secret love with someone. With all the women that want Wendell he has his eyes on a prize that is very close to him in more ways than one. But how long can his secret stay a secret from his coworkers.

Naomi is the chick that is not to be messed with, a hothead. She is all about the money and she does not handle it correctly. For every hothead there is a chiller, and the chiller for her is the person that she will need when things get a little too hot for her to handle. Will the “chiller” be there for her or will she go through this one alone?


Elaine Flowers does a great job when it comes to the descriptions in the book. I wish there was more dialogue between the characters to keep the reader interested. At times it feels like the author takes away from the book with all the illustrations that are given. On the other hand the Flowers does a great job with combining all the relationships in this book. Reading this book has given me a real feeling of the actual beauty shop. This is great book for those that are into descriptions.


Book Rating: 3 Stars

Reviewed by Patrice Smith

For Readers In Motion Bookclub

RIM's Review of Inner Journey Home Letters to My Son, Love Dad by Malcolm Baptiste

Inner Journey Home Letters to My Son, Love Dad by  Malcolm Baptiste

As any parent that has a child you want what’s best for him or her, even when that means neglecting yourself of things or pushing past your own capacity. However some parents’ capacity is small because their own parents couldn’t get past generational issues, which then get passed on until someone can break the pattern.  In this story a father reaches out to his son that is now incarcerated and tries in his own way to encourage him and yet explain to him why things are they way they are.

Correspondence between father and son is a series of letters from the father’s prospective starting with the son’s court appeal trail date until the day they take a family photo.  In efforts to ease the son’s time in jail, the father starts from the beginning, his beginning, describing to his son the relationship with his parents, mostly his mother.  In efforts to make a son a better man she teaches him in a cruel way how to be man, talking negatively about him and worse yet to him, telling him things like he is worthless and will never be anything.  Later in life when the father becomes a drug addict he hears all the things she told him like a tape player and fights daily to prove her wrong and prove to himself he is worthy of all the good things life has to offer.

In need of help to get clean and stay clean the father enters rehab. In rehab he addresses all his issues from the negative tapes of his mom, the need of the drug, dating, and his own mental state.  Through some of the exercises in group therapy the father finds salvation and journaling. He begins to journal his life’s experiences in and out of rehab, in efforts to connect to his son he sends him excerpts of what he has written and what he feels about life and most importantly he constantly conveys his love for his son.

Readers probably would like to have liked to see more dialogue between the father and son. All the reader knows is that the son does respond to the letters but not aware of what he says. However readers can appreciate the honesty of the father, because most parents want to protect their child or children by not telling them what could essentially keep them from harm’s way.  So often we need help but to afraid to reach for it. A father’s love versus his attendance seemed to be an issue but in this case his love superseded his lack of attendance and a son sees a life outside of the 8 by 10 he is in.

My Rating 3 ½ stars
Review by Karen Reynolds
Review for Readers In Motion Bookclub

RIM'S Review of COVETED by Mychea

RIM'S Review of Coveted by Mychea

Keep your friends close because they can become your worst enemy.

Namia has everything that any woman can ask for: money, clothes, cars, and two beautiful kids. She has everything but the true love of her husband. Because her husband cannot be faithful, she feels she has to seek love elsewhere. Will she rethink her decision or will she be forced in the hands of another?


Kaden is the husband of Naima. This sexy NFL star feels that he is God’s gift and can have anything or anyone he wants. He is cheating with someone that is a little too close to home. When Kaden is caught will he and this mystery person receive the forgiveness that they need and want?


Amber and Damir have been in a rollercoaster relationship for quite some time. Damir is at a point where he wants to let it all go and find true love. Amber has invested a lot of time into Damir and will not let him go without a good fight. A huge change is in store for this couple. Will this change force Damir to rethink his decision or will Amber lose the love of her life?


Will any of these relationships work out despite all the problems that are around? Who is Emeri and what does she have to do with everyone?


Covented is drama from the first page. To be a debut novel, the storyline, details, and interaction of the characters are on the level of a seasoned, certain, author. At times, you will get confused but the author makes sure that the reader understands the relationships and all the connections of the character. Mychea also is very talented to keep the readers wondering about the next action.

Rating: 5 Stars
Review by: Patrice Grimball
For Readers In Motion Bookclub

RIM's Review of Why "We" Didn't Choose You: You: A Relationship Handbook for Women (and Men), Vol. I By William T. Hoston Ph.D

RIM's Review of

Why "We" Didn't Choose You: A Relationship Handbook for Women (and Men), Vol. I

By William T. Hoston Ph.D

Not all men are dogs. There is a reason for their actions.

     Why “We” Didn’t choose You by William T. Hoston Ph.D shows different views of men on the topic of relationships. The author asked questions to everyday men. These were questions that almost every female has asked at one time or another. The questions ranged from, why men cheat, to what is the difference between making love, and having sex. The men in this novel confessed in some instances the roles (good or bad) that they played in relationships. These gentlemen give the female reader a look into the male thoughts and offer different opinions to females.

     The views at times can be very frank, and most times not what the average woman wants to know or hear. This book also gives a glance into the reasoning of the opposite sex; from playa, to all American man. This book contains letters written by the men to their ex- girlfriends as well as poems written at the end about their thoughts.

     I am not a fan of non- fiction but I am truly a fan of this book. This is not a book for both women   and men. I feel that is it a breath of fresh air to get an insight into what other men are thinking and saying about the same topic or topics that might be causing problems in your relationships. When reading this book I had mixed of emotions. I would try to when compared, to another proclaimed self help novel by Steve Harvey; I would say this one is better because this book shows that not all men think alike. This is truly a five star read.

Rated 5 Stars
Reviewed by Patrice Smith
For Readers In Motion Bookclub

RIM's Review of Chocolate Ain't Always Sweet by Jas Jamieson

RIM's Review of

Chocolate Ain't Always Sweet by Jas Jamieson

One night can change a lifetime.

     Ervin McNair is a successful businessman who  is known to have his way with women. Sarah Prescott has moved to California to start a brand new life with her Aunt Etta.

     After a one night encounter, the lives of Sarah and Ervin will never be the same. Sara has a secret that she is determined to take to her grave, but after an attack at work that dream almost stays true. Now the secret that she is supposed to take to her grave is out in the open. How long will this secret stay a secret? And what does Mr. McNair and this one night encounter have to do with Sarah.

     The synopsis on the back of the book has very little to do with the book. It was very misleading. In a way to me the book seems incomplete. It was very hard to pay attention. I felt like it was long and drawn out on the parts where it could have been straightforward and to the point. On the flipside it was very short were it would have been better if more information was given on that section or part.  There were clues that were missing and if they had been included in the novel I would have given it a higher rating.


Rating  2.5
Rated by Patrice Smith
For Readers In Motion BookClub