C. Michelle McCarty

I read The Jewel Box last week mainly because it was set in Houston and was impressed that the author made my city a character in the book as well as a Clark Gable look-alike, a reluctant topless dancer, and an obscenity spouting loud-mouth just to name a few.

This wasn't a quick read for me but it was enjoyable and it did give a true depiction of the city and the mindset of the 70's and 80's.

The main character, Cherie, was a single-mother and it was told from her point of view. This was her story of love, loss, life, party, and living the a life in the cow-town turned boom-town of Houston. It wasn't a story-book romance, there was heartache, poor choices, hard decisions and drug and alcohol escapism.

There were several supporting characters in the story that I truly enjoyed, my favorites were Delilah, Cherie's obnoxious friend, and Beau her life-guru. This book had some snappy dialog - horny hyenas and all-inclusive Peruvian powder excursion were just two of the humorous lines from the story.

*DISCLAIMER: I formatted this book for the author and found as I was making the ebook I would no longer be skimming the paragraphs but actually reading them. Once I had finished with the final edition of the book, I uploaded it to my Kindle Fire (with the author's permission) and read the book from start to finish.… (altro)