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 Location:  Home » Short Stories » General » Just Too Good to Be True: A NovelOctober 13, 2008  


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Just Too Good to Be True: A Novel
Just Too Good to Be True: A Novel
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Author: E. Lynn Harris
Publisher: Doubleday
Category: Book

List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $11.50
You Save: $13.45 (54%)
Buy New/Used/Collectible from $11.50

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars(72 reviews)
Sales Rank: 2815

Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 336
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.6

ISBN: 0385492723
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780385492720
ASIN: 0385492723

Publication Date: July 15, 2008
Release Date: July 15, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Editorial Reviews:

Product Description

Harris serves up a treat that will capture and enchant audiences everywhere?a big, bold, and irresistible novel about football, family, and secrets.

Brady Bledsoe and his mother, Carmyn, have a strong relationship. A single mother, faithful churchgoer, and the owner of several successful Atlanta beauty salons, Carmyn has devoted herself to her son and his dream of becoming a professional football player. Brady has always followed her lead, including becoming a member of the church?s "Celibacy Circle." Now in his senior year at college, the smart, and very handsome, Brady is a lead contender for the Heisman Trophy and a spot in the NFL.

As sports agents hover around Brady, Barrett, a beautiful and charming cheerleader, sets her mind on tempting the celibate Brady and getting a piece of his multimillion-dollar future?but is that all she wants from him, and is she acting alone?

Carmyn is determined to protect her son. She?s also determined to protect the secret she?s kept from Brady his whole life. As things heat up on campus and Carmyn and Brady?s idyllic relationship starts to crumble, mother and son begin to wonder about the other?are you just too good to be true?

A sweeping novel about mothers and sons, football and beauty shops, secrets and lies, JUST TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE has all the ingredients that have made E. Lynn Harris a bestselling author: family, friendship, faith, and love.




Customer Reviews:   Read 67 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars E. Lynn Harris does it again!   October 9, 2008
My book club chose this book and I am glad. I really liked the book.


5 out of 5 stars Oustanding Read!   October 9, 2008
I'm glad to see E.Lynn step out from his norm and go in a different direction. I love his writing style but I have never been a big fan, until now. This was an excellent read. I highly recommend it. A great book club discussion book.

Reviewed by
Dawnny



3 out of 5 stars OK, maybe another half-star for his intentions...   October 6, 2008
  1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This is my first book by this writer, and I picked it up because the dust jacket promised a "read" about family, faith and football...a winning combination, I thought. This story was good enough to stick it out to the end, but frankly, I found the main characters fairly unlikeable. The mom of one of the most talented major college football stars of 2005 has a public image of perfection and success. She has hidden a less perfect past and present from her son, and some of her secrets and deceptions seem quite unfair to him. The son, who has promised to be pure, has given in to a couple of temptations, which he hides from mom and the sports world which has taken an interest in him. The family's best friend spills a couple of their secrets foolishly to his new lover, and that gives an unscrupulous sports agent real leverage against the player. Kind of caught in the middle of all this is an overage hooker/cheerleader sent to seduce the player into signing with her adulterous boyfriend/agent. If you are interested, as I was, in learning some things you hadn't known about the pressures in big time college football, you may like the environment in which this novel is set. However, I just didn't really root for the characters I think the author wanted me to support. They are not evil, but it is hard to equate hypocrites with "heroes" either. And the final few pages seem rushed and inadequate to wrap up the story lines. The character I cheered for the most was a guy that mom dated, who ran a sandwich shop, and a man from her past who made a non-hypocritical success out of his life. The football presented here, while bearing little resemblance to reality, was more interesting than either this family, or the faith its members were supposed to possess.


5 out of 5 stars Another Awesome Book !!!   October 6, 2008
As usual Mr. Harris has provided the perfect entertainment on paper. I love his books and there is always that bittersweet moment when I get to the end. I read them like I'm studying for a test, savoring every word and am crushed every time I turn the last page. Until the next book rolls off the press, I'll be recommending this book as well as all his others.


5 out of 5 stars Great Read   October 3, 2008
I was a little apprehensive about reading an E. Lynn Harris book that had mostly straight characters. This book was Great!!! Once I started reading this book I could not put it down. The mother Carmyn touched my heart. I had to stop reading the book for a minute to think out her situation and how I would have dealt with it. E. Lynn showed the love of a black mother for her son. I am very proud of E. Lynn and how he was able to tie in the drama and still show the importance of love for family.


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