Tag Archives: S.A. Cosby

Friday Book Whimsy: Razorblade Tears

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It’s clear that author S.A. Cosby isn’t afraid to tackle the difficult issues of the day. His 2020 novel Blacktop Wasteland made many readers like me squirm while looking at what it’s like to be poor and black in America, especially the south. The protagonist in that book wanted so much to escape his life of crime, but didn’t know where to go. That novel was one of my favorite reads of 2020.

Razorblade Tears will be one of my favorite reads of 2021. The protagonists this time are the unlikely combination of a white father and a black father whose gay sons were killed. The police haven’t found the killers, and Ike Randolph and Buddy Lee are pretty sure nobody is trying too hard.

Like the protagonist in Blacktop Wasteland, Ike served his time and has kept a clean record since being released from prison. Buddy served time too, but he isn’t too worried about staying out of trouble because he is poor and uneducated and has very little to lose. Each man suffers acutely from the memory of how he reacted to learning their son was gay.

They intend to make up for their sins by finding out who murdered their boys, leaving a daughter behind.

The story is told in measured tones. The author paints such a wonderful picture of the anguish felt by each man for the way they treated their sons, and how they intend to make up for their shortcomings, no matter what it takes, no matter how much they have to lose.

Razorblade Tears is not a cheerful book, but it is a rewarding read. I loved watching the two men develop throughout the story. The ending, while not what I would call lighthearted, was entirely appropriate and satisfying.

Don’t miss this wonderful book, and this amazing writer.

Here is a link to the book.

Friday Book Whimsy: The Authenticity Project

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One of my favorite books from 2020 was Blacktop Wasteland by S. A. Cosby. I reviewed it here. Based on my strong recommendation, my sister Bec read it. I asked her what she thought, and she told me, though she thought the writing was amazing, the story was too depressing for this period when life itself is difficult. Fair enough, I told her. But I went on, I have a book recommendation for you that will be perfect.

I had just finished reading The Authenticity Project, and the delightful story of friendship and, well authenticity, left me feeling good about the world. I knew it would strike the perfect cord for her and anyone else who needs cheering up during this difficult period. The Authenticity Project, by Clare Pooley, is story of unrelated people with secrets to share who find each other through a notebook,

Septuagenarian Julian Jessop is an artist who has been driven crazy from loneliness since his wife died. Even after five years, he mostly stays in his junky apartment and has pushed away all of his former friends. He is convinced that everyone is living a false life what with Instagram and Twitter and Tik Tok. So he decides to create the Authenticity Project. Using a plain lined spiral notebook, he explains that whoever finds the notebook should write the TRUE story of his or her life. He starts it off by writing about his own sadness at the loss of his wife. He drops it off in a nearby coffee shop.

Monica — the owner of the shop — finds the notebook, and decides to participate. She writes her truth, and leaves it out on a table. From there, the notebook begins its journey that ends up changing people’s lives.

The book’s premise is interesting, and the author’s characters are quirky and unforgettable. There is a drug and alcohol addict who is determined to change his life by sobering up. There is a new mother who is exhausted from caring for her baby, but paints a perfect life on Instagram. You get the picture. The notebook encourages honesty.

The Authenticity Project was a pleasant read, and left me thinking about characters in a way I normally don’t.

Here is a link to the book.

Friday Book Whimsy: Blacktop Wasteland

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I waited a long time on the library ebook hold to finally get Blacktop Wasteland, by S.A. Cosby. I’m not even sure why I put it on hold. It must have come up in one of the reading blogs that I get each day. But then I noticed it was one of Goodreads’ finalists for best mystery/thriller book of the year and I became more interested.

Book reviewers call this book a thriller. I wouldn’t, however, want to put off people who aren’t into books that keep you up at night. Unless you want to be kept up at night reading this book. Because Blacktop Wasteland is so much more than an exciting thriller. It is the story of being Black and poor in the southern United States, and how difficult it is to reach the American Dream that we all hope for.

Beauregard Montage is known throughout the southeastern United States as the best getaway driver around. He knows everything about cars, and can drive like an Indie car driver, cleverly escaping cops.

But now he is married and has children and obligations. He wants to play it straight. He owns a car repair shop that is barely scraping by, and he is unable to keep up with his financial needs. His mother is in a nursing home. He has a family to feed. He wants to send his daughter to college and get her away from the abject poverty and racism they face each day in the small Mississippi town in which they live.

He gives in to the temptation offered by someone still in “the life.” He agrees to be the wheelman for one last robbery — that of a jewelry store getting a shipment of priceless diamonds.

Unfortunately, there are things that Beauregard doesn’t know about this store and this diamond shipment. The result is a complicated mess that changes his life altogether and makes him realize just how hard it is to go straight.

Blacktop Wasteland is dark and gritty. But Cosby’s story made me want to pick up the book to read even in the middle of the night. In the midst of what is happening today in the United States, it hits very close to home.

Blacktop Wasteland might end up being my favorite book of 2020.

Here is a link to the book.