Saturday, January 23, 2010

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU PRAY FOR: REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

GIVEAWAY ENDED
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU PRAY FOR

BY KIMBERLA LAWSON ROBY

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Alicia Black is back! The pampered, privileged daughter of the irrepressible scoundrel Rev. Curtis Black and protagonist of Kimberla Lawson Roby’s New York Times bestseller The Best of Everything, Alicia makes her triumphant return in Be Careful What You Pray For. Alicia is newly remarried, to a man of the cloth who unfortunately mirrors far-too-closely her rascally dad. The Reverend Black himself, star of Sin No More, Too Much of a Good Thing, and other popular Roby novels, co-stars in Be Careful What You Pray For—a tale of love and ambition that once again deals with important issues as it tells a witty, moving, page-turning story, a bestselling combination that is a Kimberla Lawson Roby hallmark.

New York Times bestselling author Kimberla Lawson Roby returns with this delightful sequel to The Best of Everything, in which the infamous Reverend Curtis Black's beautiful daughter, Alicia, is all grown up—and headed for trouble of her own

Her first marriage didn't work out, but that isn't going to stop Alicia Black, the privileged daughter of the charismatic Reverend Curtis Black, from getting what she wants. One month after her wedding to her second husband, she can't believe her good fortune. God has heeded her prayers, blessing her with Pastor JT Valentine, a handsome, dynamic man of the cloth with his own large congregation, just like her father.

Unfortunately, Alicia doesn't understand just how much like Curtis her new husband truly is. She doesn't know that JT has been sneaking around town with other women—or that he only married her to get close to her father's money and fame. But while Alicia is blinded by love, her dad certainly isn't. He warned his little girl that JT simply can't be trusted. After all, it takes one to know one, and who better to see into the darkness of a sinner's heart than Curtis?

It will take a miracle to save the day. But God acts in mysterious ways, and soon a host of lies, longtime secrets, and acts of betrayal comes to light, and Alicia must face some very crucial and life-changing decisions. This time, she's got to be careful what she prays for. . . .

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

New York Times bestselling author Kimberla Lawson Roby has published 12 novels, which include The Best of Everything, One in a Million, Sin No More, Love and Lies, Changing Faces, The Best-Kept Secret, Too Much of a Good Thing, A Taste of Reality, It's a Thin Line, Casting the First Stone, Here and Now, and her debut title, Behind Closed Doors, which was originally self-published through her own company, Lenox Press.

Her novels have frequented numerous bestseller lists, including those in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, Essence magazine, Upscale magazine, Emerge Magazine, Barnes and Noble, Amazon.com, Wal-Mart, The Dallas Morning News, and The Austin Chronicle to name a few. Both Behind Closed Doors and Casting the First Stone were no. 1 BlackBoard bestsellers for four consecutive months in both 1997 and 2000. Behind Closed Doors was the no. 1 BlackBoard bestselling book for paperback fiction in 1997.

In addition, Roby’s first novel was nominated for BlackBoard’s 1998 and 1999 Fiction Book of the Year Award, and she received the BlackBoard Fiction Book of the Year Award in 2001 for Casting the First Stone. She is also the 2006 and 2007 recipient of the Author of the Year—Female award presented by the African-American Literary Award Show in New York, the recipient of the 1998 First-Time Author Award from Chicago’s Black History Month Book Fair and Conference, and her fifth novel, A Taste of Reality, was a 2004 finalist for the Atlanta Choice Awards sponsored by the Atlanta Daily World. Additionally, Too Much of a Good Thing received a 2004 Patron Choice Award from the Central Mississippi Regional Library System.

Each of Roby’s novels have dealt with very real issues—in Behind Closed Doors, social status, gambling addiction, and infidelity; in Here and Now, single motherhood, infertility, and sibling rivalry; in Casting the First Stone, the first of the Reverend Curtis Black series, corruption within the church; in It's a Thin Line, domestic violence, sexual abuse, and caregiving of a parent; in A Taste of Reality, racial and gender discrimination in the workplace with subplots exploring sexual harassment; Too Much of a Good Thing and The Best-Kept Secret, continues with the issues in the Reverend Curtis Black series; in Changing Faces, issues about being overweight, a female illness, damaging secrets, and a devoted friendship between three women; in Love and Lies and Sin No More, issues in the Reverend Curtis Black saga are revisited; in One in a Million, a woman learns the best news and the worst news of her life all at the same time; and in The Best of Everything, the Reverend Curtis Black's daughter, Alicia, deals with a serious shopping addiction, which causes major marital problems.

Roby resides in Illinois with her husband, Will. Her thirteenth book, A Deep Dark Secret, will be released in the fall 2009.


REVIEW:

For those of you who read Kimberla Lawson Roby's CASTING THE FIRST STONE, you will be familiar with, and pleased to see Rev. Curtis Black and his daughter Alicia, are back. If you didn't read the first book (I did not) this is still a good stand alone book that doesn't require you to have read the first one in order to enjoy this one. Alicia has recently divorced her first husband Philip, also a preacher, because he found out she had an affair with a drug dealer of all things and it became public knowledge.

BUT, in BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU PRAY FOR, Alicia remarries and starts a new life with the Rev. J. T. Valentine, much to her father's distress. She is also happy as she has finished her first novel and is trying to get it published. She absolutely won't let rumors about J.T.'s infidelity and the strange way that his first wife died spoil her happiness this time...or so she thinks!

J. T. has big ambitions and wants the over 5,000 members of his congregation to grow even larger and hopefully he can get into the TV market. He wants all this as well as to publish best selling books so he can be just like Rev. Curtis Black! He figures by marrying J. T.'s daughter, he is one step closer to his dream. Of course, his dream doesn't preclude his dalliances with many different women but dreams don't always come true! When J. T.'s unfaithfulness comes to light, Alicia is livid. How could this have happened? I guess she didn't look at her father to get an idea about these things since he was so like J. T.

Roby's writing is easy to follow and although her characters aren't really deep, they do grab your attention. The plot moves along almost predictably but quickly. I think I would have liked a little more knowledge and depth to the characters so I could have cared about them more than I did, but the storyline kept me reading and I am glad I did as it was a cute book with a satisfying finish. The fact that J. T. turns out to be a high class pimp was a twist I didn't expect but I also don't think a pimp would allow "his girls" to handle him rudely and push him around...well, not from the little I know about pimps---NONE from personal experience thank you!

I did like the fact that Roby writes short chapters as I like my books that way because it gives me a stopping point to aim for as well as allows me to find out what happens rather quickly. Overall, I think I would read another book by this author mainly because this one was a quick, light read that was entertaining and didn't drag on and also didn't tax my brain but rather let me just glide along with the story. With all this said, what happens to Alicia and J. T. you say? Will Alicia's prayers be answered? Well, you will have to read the book to find out. I suspect that Rev. Black and his family will very well become a series, especially since the first book was so popular with Ms. Roby's many fans.


GIVEAWAY

THANKS TO SHAWN AND THE GOOD PEOPLE
AT HARPER COLLINS PUBLISHING,
I HAVE FIVE COPIES OF THIS FUN
BOOK TO GIVE AWAY. HERE IS WHAT
YOU NEED TO DO TO WIN A COPY!


RULES:

--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES
---INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
IN CASE YOU WIN!
--ALL COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE TO
COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE!

HOW TO ENTER:


+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FOUND INTERESTING FROM AUTHOR KIMBERLA LAWSON ROBY'S "FUN STUFF" PAGE ON THE HARPER COLLINS WEBSITE ABOUT HER HERE

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND LEAVE A LINK I CAN FOLLOW IN THE ENTRY

+5 MORE ENTRIES: FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK BY CLICKING ON THE WIDGET IN THE LEFT HAND COLUMN...PLEASE ENTER THE SAME COMMENT 5 TIMES IF YOU DO THIS AS IT MAKES IT EASIER TO COUNT (TRY CUT AND PASTE AS IT MAKES IT GO FASTER)...THANKS!

DEADLINE FOR ENTERING IS
6 PM, EST, FEBRUARY 11

GOOD LUCK!

105 comments:

Renee said...

find it interesting that her fav animal is an elephant

reneesuz82(at)msn.com

Rebecca Orr said...

I like that She dreamsz about...
seeing her Curtis Black series turned into a television series on Showtime or HBO. I would watch.

bekki1820cb at gmail

Rebecca Orr said...

I am now a Facebook fan/follower: Bekki Orr #1
bekki1820cb at gmail

Rebecca Orr said...

I am now a Facebook fan/follower: Bekki Orr #2
bekki1820cb at gmail

Rebecca Orr said...

I am now a Facebook fan/follower: Bekki Orr #3
bekki1820cb at gmail

Rebecca Orr said...

I am now a Facebook fan/follower: Bekki Orr #4
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Rebecca Orr said...

I am now a Facebook fan/follower: Bekki Orr #5
bekki1820cb at gmail

Ann Diana Dinh, said...

Her least favorite food is avocado!

behapppppppy(at)hotmail(dot)com

Ann Diana Dinh, said...

I follow you on facebook

behapppppppy(at)hotmail(dot)com

Ann Diana Dinh, said...

I follow you on facebook

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Ann Diana Dinh, said...

I follow you on facebook

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Ann Diana Dinh, said...

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Ann Diana Dinh, said...

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brokenteepee said...

I also like a hot stone massage...
thank you
kaiminani at gmail dot com

brokenteepee said...

I am now following on facebook
you will see a crazy lady and a goat
thank you
kaiminani at gmail dot com
1

brokenteepee said...

I am now following on facebook
you will see a crazy lady and a goat
thank you
kaiminani at gmail dot com
2

brokenteepee said...

I am now following on facebook
you will see a crazy lady and a goat
thank you
kaiminani at gmail dot com
3

brokenteepee said...

I am now following on facebook
you will see a crazy lady and a goat
thank you
kaiminani at gmail dot com
4

brokenteepee said...

I am now following on facebook
you will see a crazy lady and a goat
thank you
kaiminani at gmail dot com
5

Tea said...

I would love, love to win "Be Careful What You Pray For."

teakettle58atyahoodotcom

Tea said...

I love the author's Fun Page. I think it's fun knowing she would love to eat lunch with James Patterson. I am reading my first book by James Patterson. The title is Judge and Jury.

Linda Kish said...

She likes Golden Girls reruns...who doesn't?? They were so funny.

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

Tea said...

I have blogged about Kimberla Lawson Roby on my blog link.

http://readwithtea.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-careful-what-you-pray-for-by.html

Tea said...

I follow you on facebook.
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I follow you on facebook.

Denny, Alaska said...

I found it amusing that she complimented someone on being pregnant, only to find out that the person wasn't! I've done that, too!

denny(dot)gill(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

She likes raspberry lemonade from The Cheesecake Factory. So do I!

Wendy
ebeandebe at gmail dot com

holdenj said...

I think it's fun and unique that her favorite animal is an elephant! I wish I could ask why! Wonder if she loved the Babar books as a child. Thanks for the chance to win.
JHolden955(at)gmail(dot)com

rubynreba said...

Her favorite food is pecan pie which is also one of my favorites!
pbclark(at)netins(dot)net

justpeachy36 said...

justpeachy36@yahoo.com

Please enter me in the giveaway.

I thought it was funny how she congratulated someone on being pregnant who wasn't.

Once someone congratulated my sister for the same thing, funny thing was... she didn't know she was pregnant yet. LOL...

justpeachy36 said...

justpeachy36@yahoo.com

I follow you on facebook.

justpeachy36 said...

justpeachy36@yahoo.com

I follow you on facebook.

justpeachy36 said...

justpeachy36@yahoo.com

I follow you on facebook.

justpeachy36 said...

justpeachy36@yahoo.com

I follow you on facebook.

justpeachy36 said...

justpeachy36@yahoo.com

I follow you on facebook.

Martha Lawson said...

I found it interesting that she likes pecan pie!! So do I..

mlawson17 at hotmail dot com

traveler said...

Thanks for this giveaway. Her favorite animal is an elephant. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

annies home said...

one of her writing tips is to write every day even if it is only a few lines
shopannies@Yahoo.com

annies home said...

tweeted http://twitter.com/shopannies/status/8160151618

shopannies@yahoo.com

annies home said...

facebook fan
shopannies@Yahoo.com

annies home said...

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annies home said...

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annies home said...

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annies home said...

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annies home said...

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Beverly said...

Her fav drink is Raspberry Lemonade at The Cheesecake Factory - that is also one of my favs

beachlover20855@yahoo.com

Angie (By Book or By Crook) said...

She looks so slim I thought it funny that her worst habit was eating too many sweets

aksimmo at brainerd dot net

Angie said...

I'm a facebook follower #1

Angie said...

I'm a facebook follower #2

Angie said...

I'm a facebook follower #3

Angie said...

I'm a facebook follower #4

Angie said...

I'm a facebook follower #5

Unknown said...

I love that her favorite show is the golden girls!

ashleymaymott(at)aol(dot)com

Unknown said...

I follow on facebook:

ashleymaymott(at)aol(dot)com

Post 1

Unknown said...

I follow on facebook:

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Post 2

Unknown said...

I follow on facebook:

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Post3

Unknown said...

I follow on facebook:

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Post 4

Unknown said...

I follow on facebook:

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Post5

bison61 said...

writing advice-Never mimic another author's style, as your own style is the best one for you.

tiramisu392 (at) yahoo.com

Lacey said...

Kimberla Lawson Roby was in Atlanta today at the Fulton Public Library.

Lacey914 at sbcglobal dot net

Lacey said...

http://twitter.com/HtxAstrosFan/status/8218060304

tweet

Lacey914 at sbcglobal dot net

Lacey said...

I follow you on facebook

entry 1

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Lacey said...

i follow you on facebook

entry 2

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Lacey said...

i follow you on facebook

entry 3

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Lacey said...

i follow you on facebook

entry 4

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Lacey said...

i follow you on facebook

entry 5

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Libby's Library said...

She loves Golden Girls reruns!
Thanks for the giveaway.

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

Libby's Library said...

Became a FB follower - entry #1

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

Libby's Library said...

Became a FB follower - entry #2

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

Libby's Library said...

Became a FB follower - entry #3

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

Libby's Library said...

Became a FB follower - entry #4

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

Libby's Library said...

Became a FB follower - entry #5

libneas[at]aol[dot]com

enyl said...

That she advises new writers to develope their own writing voice as opposed to adopting one of a writer that they admire.
enyl(at)inbox(dot)com

enyl said...

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enyl said...

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enyl said...

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enyl said...

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enyl said...

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Aik said...

Her greatest love is… her husband.

aikychien at yahoo dot com

Aik said...

FB fan. #1

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Aik said...

FB fan. #2

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Aik said...

FB fan. #3

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Aik said...

FB fan. #4

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Aik said...

FB fan. #5

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debijackson said...

I learned she'd like her series to be bought for tv. jacksond@nhr3.net

debijackson said...

follower

debijackson said...

facebook 1

debijackson said...

facebook 2

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facebook 3

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facebook 4

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facebook 5

debijackson said...

follow on networked blogs

Benita said...

In her fun stuff, I found out that the author would like to have lunch with James Patterson.

bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com

Karin said...

I saw that Chicago is her favorite city.

karin56381 (at) gmail.com

Sue said...

This is SPEED WEEK at Daytona Beach!

s.mickelson at gmail dot com

Mitzi H. said...

Her greatest love is her husband....mine too!!!

mitzihinkey at sbcglobal dot net

Mitzi H. said...

I'm a follower on google friend connect.

mitzihinkey at sbcglobal dot net

DarcyO said...

We share a worst trait: procrastination!

dlodden at frontiernet dot net

DarcyO said...

This is SPEED WEEK
in Daytona Beach

dlodden at frontiernet dot net

Nancye said...

I think this was interesting and funny when she wrote: "My most embarrassing moment was…...when I congratulated someone on being pregnant and then learned that they weren't!"

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Nancye said...

Facebook Fan

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

#1

Nancye said...

Facebook Fan

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#2

Nancye said...

Facebook Fan

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#3

Nancye said...

Facebook Fan

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#4

Nancye said...

Facebook Fan

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#5

Nancye said...

Tweet! Tweet!

http://twitter.com/NancyeDavis/status/8980883040

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

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