Book Review & Giveaway: Mahogany Slade

Mahogany Slade 

by Stephen Robinson

Length: 262 pages

Publisher: Black Saint Records (September 19, 2012)

• ISBN-10: 0615680216
• ISBN-13: 978-0615680217

Synopsis: Beautiful, sophisticated, and unpredictable, Janet Tomalin represents every fantasy Brad Carlton grew up having -- and more than a few he never realized.

When they meet on their first day of college in Athens, Georgia, the stylish New Yorker completely upends the staid Southerner's ordered universe.  They fall for each other intensely and completely. It's the all-consuming passion of a natural performer and her adoring audience.

There's just one problem: Mahogany Slade, the woman from Janet's not-so-distant past... and inescapable future. Janet knows once Brad meets the dangerous Miss Slade and learns the truth, their once-in-a-lifetime love is doomed.

Mahogany Slade is the romantic yet acerbic story of young people escaping themselves in a town where your identity is everything. It's as sweet as Janet finds Brad and as irresistible as he finds her.

My Review: This book is about first loves, first experiences, and first heartbreaks. The characters in it are a wonderful mixture of everyone you might expect to meet in your first year away at college. There are so many different personalities, and I enjoyed getting to know them throughout the book. The fact that the story took place in Athens, GA--a place I’ve visited many times in the last few years--was intriguing to me. I got to picture how the town looked in the early ’90s. 

Brad Carlton was a studious young man who opted for books over playgrounds when he was a child. Going to the University of Georgia for college was the first time he’d really be away from home. He meets a cast of colorful characters, including Heather Aulds, Andy Razinski, and Janet Tomalin. Heather and Andy would be his friends, the ones he can rely on, even if they had their ups and downs. 

Janet was Mahogany Slade. Throughout the book, her personality reminded me of Holly Golightly. I think the book may have referenced the Audrey Hepburn character at some point as well. She is almost whimsical in her ways. She sees everything through a different lens than everyone else. I found myself frustrated with her at times, but ultimately came to understand her better as Mahogany Slade. 

About the Author: Stephen Robinson graduated from the University of Georgia in 1996. He has lived in many places but feels at home somewhere else. He’s written for newspapers and magazines. Mahogany Slade is his first work of fiction.

You can find Mahogany Slade on Amazon for $14.95.

Author’s website: http://mahoganyslade.com/

Giveaway Info:

"Mahogany Slade," by Stephen Robinson, is about first love, that moment when your favorite songs suddenly make sense because they're now about someone else. 

Post a note on the wall of the "Mahogany Slade" Facebook page telling us what song or movie will always remind you of your own Mahogany Slade... even if it's been years since you met.

The author will give a copy of "Mahogany Slade" to his 10 favorite posts.