Have you ever wondered where an author gets the materials they write? Author, Taisha Ryan has an interesting way of telling a story about ordinary people in an engaging manner. The titles alone capture my attention and pull me into the storyline with each page turned. Yella was a vibrant and nearly mystical character in this story. Mystical is the best way to describe the way in which she interacted, dialogued and parlayed her role In the story. Yella was emotional and aloof, yet she was likable and uniquely portrayed in this novel. The story began with an event that’s prevalent in society today. A black man is facing a grave circumstance at the hands of a Police Officer. That event colored the rest of the story and how Yella managed the hand dealt. The second phase of the tale maneuvered Yella into coping with her self-imposed aloneness. Then, there was Lorenzo, and her world changed from that day forward.
After she met Lorenzo, the first thing that came to mind was the way Yella visualized his nerdy, artsy style and the fact that it was sexy in a strange way. I liked the way the author described his artistic attire and the ever-present Fedora. That was a clear vision that made me think of Pharrell, the singer, and entertainment guru. Lorenzo was intelligent and independent-minded and marched to the beat of his own drummer. Yella called to me, and I wanted to give her a huge hug. Her spirit was calm and chaotic at the same time. She always fought for the underdog; she was small in stature, yet her need for a safe place in her psychological and emotional state loomed largely. She struggled with the magnitude of her passion for feeling normal again. She fought for others to have a place to be whoever they were.
The two people together had a lot of baggage to sift through to realize their paths ordered. Lorenzo had some family dynamics issues which added to the lists of distractions for him. Yella Cooper was the other piece of the puzzle he tried to fit into his life. Lorenzo, the tattoo artist by day and artist (painter) by night became the vision that would become a large part of Yella’s healing and the mastery of her long-suffering demons. Lorenzo was both complicated and a comfort in her life. I liked this couple and the way their relationship evolved.
I wanted the chemistry between Lorenzo and Yella to explode and expand. His love was natural to conform to relationship goals. Yella’s fear of commitment was understandable given the circumstances she’d encountered in the past. Happily, they overcame adversity. Their sensual connection in the story described nice and comfortably by the author, and the stories plot flowed magnificently. My rating for the story was 4.5 stars.
