Illegal Affairs

I am Georgia Madison, author of Gettin' Down to the "Real" Nitty-Gritty. I am an author who is very realistic, humorous and direct, not only in my writing but also in my life, and I would like to submit my honest critique of "Illegal Affairs" from my point of view as a woman with the aforementioned attributes. I would like to congratulate Shelia Dansby Harvey on a job well done. Her story line and characters are realistic, very interesting and all have substance, which is something I value in reading. At that point in her book where intrigue first rears its head, each chapter thereafter flows with a constant rhythm of intrigue, which impels the reader to want to continue reading on and on in anticipation of what intriguing events will occur next. I have not watched a soap opera since 1980, but I remember how I was when I used to watch, and "Illegal Affairs" reminds me of a soap opera in a book. Just as I hear my family members and coworkers carrying on and anxiously anticipating what new intriguing events will occur from day to day on their soap operas, so will the readers anxiously anticipate what will occur from chapter to chapter in "Illegal Affairs."

Shelia Harvey does an excellent job developing each of her four protagonists, who are first year law students. While using a historical black law school as her setting, Ms. Harvey masterfully examines and disects the complexities of their disparate personalties. Each student, despite their sometme despicable actions, has qualities worthy of admiration, respect, sympathy, and/or pity. As the lives and stories unfold, Ms. Harvey very skillfully weaves these contradictory personality traits into her storyline, subtly inviting the reader to examine their own innate character. She also entertains and titilates the reader with tasteful sex and romance. She appropriately leaves something for one to imagine.Illegal Affairs exposes the good, the bad, the best, and the worse of four young black professionals pursuing their love of the law. And yes, it does get ugly. I did not want to see it end. I look forward to the sequel.

This book doesn?t aim to do much more than entertain the reader. It does this quite well, and then some. The book opens with a conversation between a police detective and an unnamed mother, in which we learn that the mother?s daughter is in trouble now because the body has finally been found. Whose mother and whose body are left unanswered, although one of the questions is quickly answered and the other doesn?t really set up a plot-driving mystery. Still, it?s a very effective beginning. Then Keith, Omar, Callie and Raven show up at Monroe Law School, a historically black law school in Dallas. They develop friendships and rivalries in that hermetic environment. Omar has little conscience; he lives off the guilt money his boss pays his own wife (with whom Omar is having an affair). Keith appears solidly together, but lives with the guilt of having effectively abandoned his family. Callie is naive, sweet and achieving, yet discouragement dogs her: she entered law school shortly after finding out that her father?s life was not as upstanding as she and the rest of the world had thought. The plot revolves around Callie, who needs to fight with steely determination to earn the fruits of her labor and talent. She fights mostly against Raven, who supplies the book with mystery: who is she, and why is she so evil? While Raven may seem to be over-the-top in her actions, she is true to life in the manner that one cannot stop thinking about her, and what motivates her. Anyone who has been betrayed by a friend will find her a fascinating character, in the same way that Satan is the most interesting character in Paradise Lost. There is redemption: each of the friends (except Raven) overcomes their psychological obstacles, some with a great deal of backsliding, and some at the expense of their lives. Ultimately, it?s an optimistic book; people who make good decisions find peace (if not always reward) as a result of those decisions. We do not know, however, if Raven suffers consequences for her perfidy; justice does not prevail with respect to her by the end of the book. Many of this book?s reviews focus on the sex and seduction. There is quite a great deal of it (I went to law school in my 30s, and didn?t notice so much of it as is in this book). But the book is a good lesson in the relative moralities of various sexual actions. Some of the most immoral actions have nothing to do with sex, and much of the sex isn?t nearly as immoral as what the people do afterward. I didn?t find the sexual narratives to be ?spicy? so much as a necessary element in advancing the plot and setting up people?s vulnerabilities. Overall, I found it a masterful story; very satisfying, yet it leaves enough questions and mystery to have me looking forward to the sequel.

This story hit me everywhere, my heart, my head, and my funnybone. I was hooked from the first page, which starts with a detective finally tracking down a body that he's been looking for for quite a while. The detective tells a woman that he can't wait to talk to her daughter about the dead body, but since no names are used, I couldn't tell who the detective suspects. Then the book goes back about three years to the first day of law school and all of these really interesting characters show up. Raven is my favorite, that scene with her in the men's restroom had me laughing out loud and feeling like I know nothing about real sex! And the part with her and the doctor took me completely by surprise. Callie's situation with her father broke my heart, and the senator teed me off with his superior attitude. I laughed when I saw how he ended up. Omar simply defies description.I wish that there had been more about Keith, his ex-wife and his lover. That part was almost too painful for me to read (for personal reasons) but I still wanted more of it. The book is really a page turner and I was blown away by the ending. The writer deliberately left some provocative questions unanswered, so I'm on the lookout for part two.

This is a wonderful story. The writer weaves a fascinating tale and draws you in from the first page. Having experienced law school provided me some familiarity with the story, but anyone would enjoyed this sexy story. It has suspense, it is exciting and has a strong sensuality. It is told in a way that allows you to feel as if you know the characters. I highly recommend this sexy, intelligent, suspenseful story.