SBF Seeking by La Toya Hankins (June 2012 Pick of the Month)

Publisher/Date:  JMS Books/CreateSpace, Jan. 2012
Genre:  Romance
Pages:  234
Website:  http://www.latoyahankins.com

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

“Goin’ to the chapel and we’re gonna get married…”

Wait, not so fast.

That’s what Yvette Thurman said to herself before walking down the aisle to her longtime boyfriend, Martin in SBF SEEKING. by La Toya Hankins. She comes to this decision after much thought – and after placing a personal ad seeking a white man to fulfill a secret fantasy.

Ironically, it leads Yvette to a woman.

Yvette knew she was choosing the wrong path in marrying Martin, only saying yes because she “didn’t know what else to say.” Her relationship with Martin began when she was a college freshman; now a 25-year-old magazine writer, it doesn’t suit her needs physically or otherwise. Something is missing.

In her attempt to find it – and at her friends’ and family’s insistence – Yvette breaks up with Martin. The only thing they didn’t expect was that Yvette would happen upon love with a woman. Her first female relationship, it’s full of all the affection and chemistry she was sorely missing – and provided her something she didn’t even know she could have.

Now her inner circle – best friend Danita, mom Lena, twin sister Yolanda, and close pals – has something to say about this new love Yvette’s found with Jasmine. It doesn’t faze her as she charges ahead without any qualms. She’s doing her for the first time.

Hankins debut novel is funny, and sensitive, and while Yvette is naïve to the pitfalls of coming out, she’s a sincere character with a distinct voice. So are her family and good friends who add a greater dimension to the first-person story. In SBF Seeking, Hankins creates a woman you’ll be happy for when she finds her first love, but want to wake up to the realism of first love.

But who are we to begrudge Yvette’s happiness? Shoot, I’m rooting for her next adventure.

Reviewed June 2012

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