Divalicious by Darrious D. Hilmon



Can you judge a book by its cover? Okay, try this one. The cover of this novel is Lipstick Red, with a sketch of a sexy, curvaceous black woman in stilettos and wearing what I assume is a very, very long hair weave. If anybody every looked “divalicious,” it’s this woman. But I have no idea which of the three main characters in the novel Divalicious she is meant to represent.


Maybe she represents Angel Hart, the beautiful, talented young actress who is one of the stars of the hit television show, Brave New World. Though she has an enviably successful acting career, Angel struggles to find her way in her personal life. After a painful childhood, she shies away from having anything approaching a “relationship” with a man. Instead, she has great sex with whoever strikes her fancy, while her closest friend urges her to give a handsome new guy (a writer for her show) a chance to be a part of her life. Her real life, not just her sex-life.


But, overall, Angel seems like a nice but troubled girl. So, it’s more likely that the woman on the cover represents Erika Bishop (it’s the scheming, mischievous look in the eyes of the mystery cover girl). Brave New World was originally intended as Erika’s Vehicle for Stardom, but the producers were compelled to give her costars bigger, more central roles when they discovered that Erika possessed neither the talent or the personality to carry the show on her own. But Erika hasn’t forgotten that its really her show, thanks to her overbearing, pushy, and bitchilicious (my own word) mother, Victoria Steinberg. Erika is successful and beautiful, but never happy or satisfied, and her mother runs her life, both personally and professionally. Erika struggles to remain in the forefront on her show, and in the life of her paramour, the married, womanizing and Caucasian, vice president of the network, Randall Hunter.


And I am pretty sure that the Diva on the cover is not supposed to be blond, blue-eyed Faith Molaney. A Marilyn Monroe look alike, Faith is the newest star on Brave New World, brought in to replace a black actress on the show who left quickly after a disastrous affair with the not-so-monogamous network vice-president, Randall Hunter. Faith is a shockingly beautiful girl taking Hollywood by storm, but she hasn’t lost her small-town, midwestern attitude – a combination that makes her especially attractive to Hunter. After a rough life (for a beautiful girl, anyway),Faith has finally made it, but she still has a lot of drama to contend with, from Erika and her mother, who are out to destroy her, to the unwanted attention of a desperate fan, to being wooed by a powerful married man who has been known to sleep with the women who work for him.


The three woman all come from different backgrounds, and want different things in life. And they would seem to be unlikely friends. But on the set of the show, their world is small and connected, and they are forced to rely on each other as they make some important, difficult decisions about life, love, boundaries, and trust.


Okay, so I don’t really understand the relationship of the cover to the book. But what about the title – does the book live up to its name? Well, I can’t say whether its “divalicious,” because I am still not sure what that word means. But the book was definitely a pleasant, page-turning read. The women have personality and problems, and even at their worst, Hilmon writes in a way that allows you to empathize with them.


Unfortunately, there were a few annoying things about the book. Like, why does Ernesto Zolero, makeup artist for the show, call everyone “Mommie” and “Papi”? And why is he always cooing and purring his sentences? Was that the only way that Hilmon could show that the guy was gay? Well, he was a memorable character, but it got pretty annoying. And I still can’t figure out why African-American chick lit is so populated by young divas. Is that what black women fantasize about – we all want to be divas? Not me! In fact, I have always associated the word “diva” with negative behavior. To me, a “diva” isn’t just rich and beautiful. She is also demanding and spoiled and unappreciative. None of the characters in the book were really like that anyway. Even Erika was more miserable than purely selfish and bitchy.


Those things aside, I recommend the book as a fun, light read. It doesn't have the deepest plot or the most innovative dialogue, but Divalicious is certainly an entertaining read. It’s set in a superficial place that most readers will never know, but we can still all relate to their stories and their problems.