Monday, July 19, 2010

Book Review: "Diamond Dreamz" by LaVon Hayes


 Diamond Dreamz by LaVon Hayes
Reviewed by A. Jarrell Hayes

There’s an old saying that goes, “life never gives you more than what you can handle,” and another one that goes, “when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade.” How we handle life’s problems and how we go about squeezing those lemons is all up to the individual. In LaVon Hayes’ book Diamond Dreamz, readers meet Madison Lee, a woman who ruthlessly handle’s life’s down spells and pistol whips the lemons placed in her path.

The story starts off with Madison as the sweet girl-next-door lady with the perfect job, a handsome boyfriend, Xavier, and a great best friend in Jordan. Madison has a job as a web designer that allows her to indulge in her expensive tastes, and she is fiercely devoted to her long-time boyfriend and loyal to Jordan.

However, Madison’s perfect life comes upside down when she suspects Xavier of cheating with one of the neighborhood loose women. Not to mention she and Jordan end up on the cutting block at the web designing company where they both were employed. Xavier ends up losing his job, too, and doesn’t seem in a hurry to find another one, so everything falls upon Madison’s shoulders to support her lavish lifestyle and her do-nothing boyfriend.

That’s when Jordan approaches her with the idea of running a high-class escort business. After a night at the club, Madison and Jordan meet two rich plastic surgeons, Brian and Yo, and they become business partners. Brian and Yo are flying Madison and Jordan from Hampton Roads, Virginia to New York and getting them jobs with basketball players and other wealthy elitists for thousands of dollars.

At first Madison is reluctant to prostitute herself, although the money is good. Jordan pushes her to “woman-up” and get paid; that’s when Hayes’ skill at character development propels the reader into a compelling story full of sex, lies, videotape, and murder. The allure of the fast lifestyle and her obsession with Xavier transforms Madison from the nice girl into a ruthless woman capable of using murder and blackmail in order to maintain her position as head madam of the escort service.

There are issues with spelling, consistency, and grammar in the book – and the lack of page numbers is annoying as well. Hayes does an outstanding job of slowly building into the story, without boring the reader, and having the drama and conflict evolve from the characters’ actions and not simply from coincidence. There are plenty of hot and steamy sex scenes to keep the reader tantalized and titillated.

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