Candice Dow, A Hire Love

A Hire Love

Candice Dow

Kensington Dafina, Feb 2007, $14.00

ISBN: 0758219385

Alabama native Fatima "Fatty" Mayo was a country bumpkin when she came to New York to attend school at NYU and obtained an internship at Vibe where she met Derrick and fell in love with him; he reciprocated. They married and she became a romance editor. All seemed perfect in her world until Derrick suddenly suffered a heart attack and died.

Three years later, she still mourns her loss, but decides being young she needs to start dating. Her best friend casting director Mya, known as C2 (country girl 2 as opposed to Fatty being C1), reminds her she never dated as Derrick just saw her cute butt and the rest is history. After Fatty flunks dating service 101, Mya facetiously recommends that Fatima write a script focusing on what she wants in a hunk and hire an actor to play the role. Fatima loves the concept and writes her script while Mya sends five actors to try out for the role of leading man with Ms. Barnes the name Fatima is calling herself for this endeavor, choosing the perfect player. One of the five actors, Rashad Watkins, recognizes the widow of the late CEO of Droppin' Dimes magazine and needs the money, but quickly feels the role as he falls in love with the "director", who assumes her companion's passion, is Oscar worthy.

Though the initial concept of writing a script seems to farcical, readers will enjoy this amusing second chance at love due to the reactions of the lead couple especially the actor. Rashad knows he is in love, but feels he must somehow climb an emotional Mt. Everest to overcome his profession, her paying him to play the role, and the ghost of her larger than life late husband. His efforts and Fatima's reactions to them with the assistance of C2 make for a fun urban romance.

Harriet Klausner