3 out of 4 stars
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Beauty Secret Blues: Uncensored is a unique urban fiction novel that ties in supernatural science fiction elements. The author sets the dark tone for the book in the first chapter: “Between the fights, killings and drug overdoses, no day was promised.” The book is split into four sections. In each section, a girl shares her part of the same story. The overall story is complicated and confusing at times, but the different viewpoints help make it easier to understand without getting repetitive or boring.
In the first section of the book, Joyce describes growing up and the real-life nightmares she has to live through each day. Joyce, Mindy, and Annie, are each born into poverty in a housing project called Loving Holms. Everyone who lives in the housing area knows it as the hood. By day, it is a seemingly respectable neighborhood with ten houses, two blocks, and five kids. By night, it is a single-entry red light district, where no one is safe. From an early age, the three girls are taught that their lives are worth only the money they can bring in with their bodies. The two boys—Henry and Rodney—learn pimping, the family trade, from the four “daddies” of the hood. As a young girl, Joyce suffers an unspeakable tragedy. It is so terrible that it takes her voice away. She can only communicate with people she is very close to by letting their hearts speak to each other. As Joyce grows older, she learns that things are not always what they seem in the hood, and there are more forces at play than she previously understood.
The second and third sections are from the points of view of Mindy and Annie, respectively. They give their versions of growing up in and finally escaping from the hood. They also interact with supernatural forces of evil in their struggles for money and power. Synthia, or Syn, story brings the novel full circle and brings all to light in the last section. Her story, like those before her, reveal great hardship, but she also brings in some uplifting elements.
This book is rife with struggle, and it contains some very graphic scenes, as you might expect with a book focused on prostitution and hard living. These situations throughout the entirety of the book make it an emotionally taxing read. However, there are moments where people are turning away from evil, making their lives better, and helping others. These moments give you a mental break, and they make the book feel less heavy as a whole.
The writing is very detailed, and you can picture each character, each place, and each scene. Mechanically, the writing is acceptable, but there are a few repeated errors that sometimes interfere with reading the book. For example, in some places, there are periods where commas should be, breaking up the thoughts. There are inconsistencies with names (Rubert switches to Rupert; Mama interchanges with Mamma), and occasionally, words are slightly incorrect (worst instead of worse; patient instead of patience). Overall, these errors are minor, and they are only slightly distracting.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. Technical errors and the graphic nature of the book make it difficult to completely enjoy, but the story is told well. It is interesting, and the deeper I got into the book, the more I wanted to read! I would recommend this book to someone who likes urban fiction with a twist. It is a good crossover book between science fiction and urban fiction, so it would also be good for readers of either genre who are looking to expand their reading into other genres.
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Beauty Secret Blues
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