SOMEONE TO LOVE ME

Author: Francis Ray ISBN:0312986777 12/2003 CONTEMPORARY/AFRICAN AMERICAN Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Nine years ago, Michelle Grant was at rock bottom--until a chance meeting with a stranger gave her hope...and her first delicious taste of passion. Now a successful businesswoman, Michelle still remembers the man she knew only as B.J.. And when fate brings them together again, the feelings she had for him come rushing back. But as soon as Brad Jamison speaks, Michelle realizes that the caring man she once knew is now a hardened businessman without warmth or tenderness, and he doesn't remember her... Brad has heard the rumors that Michelle's success may be die more to her looks than her brain--but he doesn't believe them. He knows how hard it can be for a black woman to get ahead in business. Indeed, when Brad finally meets Michelle, her head for business impressed him--while her almond skin and smooth curves send his mind reeling. She seems so sweet...even familiar. But if he discovers the shared past that only she remembers, will it tear them apart forever?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

What better way to start out the New Year than with a new book, written by a new-to-me author.

In SOMEONE TO LOVE ME, Michelle Grant is a career-oriented real estate agent, and a very successful one at that. She has had to traverse a long hard road to make it where she is, enduring a difficult childhood, the loss of both parents, foster homes, poverty, and a near-disastrous encounter - when a love-struck teen - with a former boyfriend. Luckily for her, she'd been saved from violence by an "angel", a handsome man known only to her as B.J. It's not until nine years later that she and B.J. are thrown together again, Michelle remembering him immediately, while B.J., or Brad Jamison as he's known in the business world, doesn't have a clue that this is the same woman who has haunted his memory off and on for years. Estranged from his own mother, Brad is also carrying the memories of a tormented and neglected childhood, fighting off demons in his own way. Throw in the high-pressure world of business, money and real estate dealings, and this couple have a lot on both plates to deal with before either can commit to any sort of long-term relationship.

This is my first book by writer Francis Ray and my first foray into the African American line of romance books, and even though this is a contemporary tale (I'm not big on contemps, you know *G*), I really did enjoy this book. The story flowed evenly from page to page, thanks to Ms. Ray's skill at word weaving, even though I found the plot to be somewhat predictable. The attraction and sexual pull between Brad and Michelle sizzled and sparked from the very start, and I found their characters well-drawn, believable and interesting. The sexual scenes between these two were less explicitly written than what I normally read in romance books, but they were so emotionally charged that the not-so-graphic love scenes worked to the story's advantage.

I should point out that this is a reworked and retitled version of a previous book by Ms. Ray, FALLEN ANGEL (now out of print). Since I haven't read the first book I can't compare SOMEONE TO LOVE ME with its previous edition. However, I give kudos to Ms. Ray for owning up to the reprint issue at the beginning of the book, as well as including a new short story as a bonus for her readers in this reissued and updated version.

SOMEONE TO LOVE ME is a story I have no qualms recommending to anyone, though readers who are specifically looking for a fulfilling and worthwhile African-American themed romance will definitely want to add it to their collections, as well.

Nancy Davis