This series is a little off beat and I haven't read anything quite like it before. This is the story of Saint Aknaten, a sex therapist and man with a very unique social agenda, and Xenia Donnellson a talk show host with a very Afro-centric bent, and who has the whole tough "sister girl" attitude down. Xenia is single, independent, opinionated, and successful in her career. Saint is also a public speaker and leader in an organization called the "Rainbeau" men. These are a group of men of all races and cultures who want to have permanent relationships with black women. Saint himself, is on the quest to find his black "queen" and Xenia is the one.
Saint has a metaphysical, new age thing that he both embraces and grapples with. This isn't a true paranormal story, but it does have a mystical element.The two books in the series that I have read are pretty well written and I did get pulled in to the story, but I have mixed feelings about them. If I were of a different race other than African American I don't know that I would enjoy these books. This series has a very targeted audience and I'm not sure if that is good or bad. Saint has very definite ideas about black women and their role in the world and since I'm black it works for me, but it almost feels at the expense of others. There are a few passages that deals with that, but it still feels uncomfortable for me at times. Maybe I'm over thinking it, this is after all, just a work of fiction and should be more entertaining than anything else. There's lots of sex in these books so if you're a delicate flower this isn't for you.
Tiana Laveen gives her readers a no holds barred story and I admire her for that. Despite some misgivings I enjoyed the books in the series and will continue to read more as they are released.
Happy Reading!
Monica
The reading order for this series: (Updated 4/2015)
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