Dating Games: A Novel
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010 at
10:17 am
Product DescriptionThough both gorgeous, the two Rodgers sisters couldn’t be more different. Hennesey, a brilliant straight-A student, is soon off to college on a full scholarship. She’s in a strong relationship with Rafe, a recently released convict who’s trying to turn his life around after being unjustly jailed. He took a drug rap for his old friend Smoke, who has since become the most ruthless drug dealer in Chicago. Rafe wants nothing more to do with his old friends — especially. . . More >>
Tagged with: Dating • Games • Novel
Filed under: Dating Books
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I WOULD HAVE KICKED MY TWIN SISTERS ASS EVERY WHICH WAY FOR THE GRIMEY SH@T SHE IS CAPABLE OF. GOOD BOOK
Rating: 4 / 5
Livvy Rodgers is the thirty three-year-old mother of twin girls, Alize and Hennessey. She works as a nurse’s assistant but dreams of becoming a nurse. She makes sacrifices to provide the best for her daughters. Hennessey is very appreciative of all her mother has done for them and plans to attend college to become a doctor. Alize, on the other hand, is lazy, would rather party all the time and she feels her mother is hard on her and shows Hennessey preferential treatment. She also resents how weak her mother is where it concerns her relationship with her boyfriend, Carlos.
Livvy realizes the long time relationship she has with Carlos is going nowhere. She meets a new man, Wade, after going out to a club with her best friend and Livvy and Wade connect. Wade, her new man, encourages her to apply for a scholarship to enter nursing school. She makes the decision since her girls are grown and feels it is time for her to develop in her career. With the decision, she has to move to a smaller apartment, which causes a dilemma for Alize. However her relationship with Wade is put to the test when she finds out he deceived her concerning what he does for a living.
Being told she has to find a job to support herself, Alize and herfriends devise a scheme to make fast money. The scheme required that all four girls work together as a team to swindle big money ballers out of the money. But when Alize and only one of the girls attempt to play their “little game” one last time, the consequences play out with very dramatic results.
Both twins meet Rafe, an ex-con who was put away on drug charges. Rafe chooses good girl Hennessey, over Alize much to her dismay. Livvy is not approving of Rafe when she meets him. She feels he is no good for Hennessey and wants the relationship to end. Rafe is trying to get his life back in order after his incarceration but he can’t seem to escape the ties he has with an old friend, Smoke. The drama starts to unfold as the lives of Livvy, Wade, Rafe, Hennessey, Alize and Smoke are intertwined. After the smoke clears, relationship between Livvy, Alize and Hennessey are strengthened.
RM Johnson has done another excellent job with his fifth novel, Dating Games. I have a feeling we may see these characters again. This is a real page-turner. The reading is fast paced. I couldn’t put the book down. Kudos, Mr. Johnson!
Reviewed by Esther “Ess” Mays of Loose Leaves Book Review
Rating: 3 / 5
Poverty and crime set the stage for this urban soap opera as five characters seek nirvana from the mean streets of Southside Chicago but instead wind up in an abyss of lies and tragedy. From the author of three successful contemporary novels, RM Johnson’s DATING GAMES is the gritty urban story readers have been waiting for. Livvy Rogers and her identical twin daughters Hennessy and Alize live a less than grandiose life in the projects of Chicago. Livvy, a thirty-three year old nurse’s assistant is at the end of her rope with her dead end job and raising her seventeen-year-old twins. Not to mention her on again, off again relationship with Carlos is beginning to wane when she meets used car salesman Wade. Before long, Livvy is head over heels in love until she stumbles upon evidence Wade tried desperately to withhold from her. Hennessy and Alize have such divergent approaches to life; if it were not for their uncanny resemblance one would never believe them to be sisters. Hennessy has plans of becoming a physician while Alize is more concerned with who will become her next conquest. But the one thing these sisters have in common is former felon, Rafe. Having served a three-year bid of a five-year sentence, Rafe, is focused on living the straight and narrow and avoiding the one man responsible for his incarceration – Smoke. With a guilty conscious Smoke becomes Rafe’s Svengali in hopes of renewing their friendship. Quickly Rafe finds himself entangled in a life he vowed never to live again and this time it will implicate an innocent bystander with Hennessy or Alize. DATING GAMES is every indication that urban fiction is on the rise by popular demand. RM Johnson has given readers a glimpse of his versatile writing ability by incorporating youthful characters with a street life setting, deviating from his customary writing style. There is always the chance this may serve as a deterrent for readers who prefer a more mature storyline as is his previous works. This reviewer prefers the latter and at times grew weary of the sophomoric antics of Hennessy, Alize and sometimes, Livvy; however, I must admit DATING GAMES is one the best well-written street life fiction novels to date. One thing fans can rely on is Johnson’s compelling characters who experience a gamut of human emotions as they struggle to free themselves of one another and their environments. I recommend DATING GAMES to individuals who enjoy urban fiction and look forward to reading more from RM Johnson. Reviewed by Nicki LancasterAPOOO BookClub
Rating: 4 / 5
In Chicago, with her twin daughters now seventeen and sick of depending on loser males, nurse’s assistant thirty-three years old Livvy Rodgers decides to take care of herself for a change after years of struggling to put food on the table by returning to school to become a registered nurse. Her daughter Hennesey, an honor student with a college scholarship supports the decision; her other daughter street wise Aliz, who is going nowhere, detests the decision because she will have to earn a living instead of sponging off her mom.
Rafe Collins spent three years behind bars for a crime he did not commit as he protected his friend Smoke. Rafe works as an auto mechanic at Smoke’s car dealership, which the latter uses to traffic in drugs. Rafe meets Livvy and they begin to fall in love while mom Livvy meets nice Wade Williams; besides trying to steal Rafe from her sister, Aliz and her street pals make money rolling drunks. However, they chose the wrong target when they mugged Smoke, who takes this as an affront to his manhood and plans vengeance on Aliz and anyone she might hold dear.
This is an interesting look at the mean streets as readers compare the twins’ diametrically opposite ways out of the slums. Though Hennesey works at it while Aliz seeks shortcuts to the good life, fans will understand the attitudes of both even the latter’s selfish yet realistic outlook. Thus the strong story line provides varying perspectives through its solid cast though the ending seems sappy after the flow of blood.
Harriet Klausner
Rating: 5 / 5
This was an excellent book. The characters were very realistic and the differences between the twins were unique and interesting. The book kept my attention and needless to say, after Love Frustration, I didn’t know it could get better but it has. Very good read.
Rating: 5 / 5