The Right Kind of Woman by Voss PorterThe Right Kind of Woman by Voss Porter is a wonderful read, full of a Southern charm that makes it difficult not to fall for the whole Holloway clan. Dre Martin feels stuck in a rut, which is made more difficult by the happy vision her best friends present, with the seemingly perfect marriage, and a great child with another on the way. After deciding to take her dog on a road trip to Florida to visit her Dad, she stops along the way and finds the Holloway Hurricane. The Holloway brothers use that moniker to describe their sister, but it could very well describe the whole bunch of siblings, as the brothers roll right over Dre in an attempt to help their sister find happiness. Cara Spencer Holloway is stuck too, but she’s stuck in the closet. Living in a small rural Southern community isn’t easy when you’re different. Dre is her brothers’ attempt to help her out of the closet. But Dre is only passing through, and Cara can’t even consider leaving. Both women need to find the courage to step beyond the lives they’re living, and into everything they’ve ever wanted.

The Characters

Andrea ‘Dre’ Martin can’t quite understand why she’s still single in South Waterton, the lesbian mecca of the Greater Boston Area. After all, she’s reasonably attractive, visibly butch, with a good job and a decent roof over her head. But for whatever reason, she’s alone and lonely. The endless blind dates set up by her two best friends, Sam and Tris, are wearing her hope down. Something just isn’t right. She decides what she needs is a change of scenery, and heads out to visit her Dad, his new wife, and her two 6 year old brothers down in Florida. On the way down, she stops to eat at a bar in a tiny town in South Carolina, cautious about her reception since she’s obviously gay.

Cara Spencer Holloway has been in the closet her whole life. Living in the small community of Greentown, South Carolina doesn’t imbue her with hope that her sexuality will be readily accepted. Not only is the town pretty conservative, but there are only two out lesbians in the area, and nobody talks to them, or about them. So Cara Spencer has been making do by sneaking around, having trysts with women who aren’t really gay, and who eventually go back to their husbands, leaving her alone and broken-hearted. It’s driving her deeper into depression and hopelessness.

The Holloway brothers get a mention here, because they’re the crazy, meddlesome, loving, irritating, obnoxious kind of family that exasperate us even as they remind us of how important family is, and how great it can be. Even when we want to throttle them.

The Writing Style

This book was a delight to read. The dialogue is smart, and witty, and sarcastic, and humorous. The characters are quirky and charming, and really make us fall in love with them. Although the pace seems a bit slower, you get the feel that it’s because it’s the South, and they have a different rhythm to life, where everything happens in its own time – even if that time might need a nudge now and again. And yet, the story was engaging, drawing me in and making me turn page after page, not wanting to put the book down.

The Pros

I love that this is a great butch/femme story. And the sex scenes sizzled, making it necessary to fan myself when I took a break.

The Cons

Can’t think of a thing.

Amy's favourite booksThe Conclusion

There is absolutely no reason not to buy this book. Not only is this book amazing, but it’s the first of several by Porter that will keep you busy for quite some time.

Excerpt from The Right Kind of Woman by Voss Porter

Cocking her head, Samantha let her long hair fall in Will(ow)’s face and rubbed her lips over her daughter’s forehead as her tubby hands fingered the safety of the strands. “Are you insinuating that we ostracize women who don’t meet a gay standard?”

“Yes,” the other two women said, in unison.

“Who’s running up the rainbow the fastest?” Tris contributed, spearing more sustenance.

“Who holds the rainbow flag the highest?” Dre giggled, pushing more leaky clumps of frittata, casually. “I’m not in high school. I’m not trying to fit in with the cool kids. I was born a part of this. I’m gay. That should be enough.”

“It is enough,” Sam held her hand up, obviously annoyed with the banter.

“Oh, for the basic membership, sure,” Tristan’s voice was collected, “but for the premier membership, you’ll need to stop eating all meat and refer to yourself as an it.”

“Tristan, be serious,” snapped Samantha. “There is no enough, Dre. We’re all in this together.” Clutching her offspring in her arm, draped in flowing cloth, hair all askew, she seemed the consummate Earth Mother; calm, open-hearted, and doe-eyed, staring out at the world, waiting for someone to save.

“But that’s what you don’t see.” Andrea refused to let it die, more out of a need to be heard and understood than a desire to rock the boat of their familial relationship. “We’re only together as long as we agree. Step out of line, miss a Pride meeting, visit a Chic-Fil-A, buy a deep fryer, vote Republican – you’ll see how quickly ‘enough’ fades away.”

As a silence bloomed between them, Dre felt it fill only by the untapped anger that had begun to take up residence in her heart, festering in the locked down corners that should be full of hope and love. She was tired of the stares. They were bad enough coming from the hetero nation. She did not need them from her own people, and that was ironic given that two members of the LESBO NATION were staring at her now

“Andrea,” Samantha whispered, covering Will(ow)’s ears with her delicate hands. “Are you a Republican?”

Unable to contain herself, Tristan cracked up. “And where can we get a deep fryer?”

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Bits and Bobs

  • ISBN number: 9781522856924
  • Publisher: Dark Hollows Press

Voss Porter Online