Buzzcut, doll face, secret prude and healthy snacks brand ambassador, Theana Green, loses her money, boyfriend, and reputation in a matter of days. She thought her ‘rags to riches’ story would stay on “riches” for a long time. But the discovery of illegal additives in the snacks she promoted kicked her back to the bottom of the pit. The once-beloved doll was now a disliked troll. Even an escape … escape to a distant village in Nigeria couldn’t hide her from mistrust and scheming of the villagers. Her plan to reinvent herself wasn’t working…and a sexy crooner with a face that could melt even the strongest of icebergs refuses to leave her alone!
Heartthrob and talented musician, Ramsey Edet makes women lose their cool. Despite his success and fame, his bad reputation kept catching up with him. One sight of Theana looking like a chocolate beauty that walked out of an Afremov painting was all it took to get him interested in what life had to offer after all.
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‘The Place That Gave’ by Emem Uko was such a page-turner that I read it in a single weekend. Easy-to-read, the novel focuses on Theana Green, a woman who lost everything in the space of a few days. Her plan to reinvent herself in a village in Nigeria is not exactly going to plan, and then she meets ladies man Ramsey Edet. Meeting each other will make them both re-evaluate what really matters in life, but will they end up choosing each other or a new path entirely?
This is a great story, which doesn’t just focus on romance, it has a real focus on self-discovery and finding out what really makes you happy.
The Place That Gave by Emem Uko
Book starts out with a dedication and acknowledgement sections and list of chapters.
Story starts out with Theana and about her job. She loves it by helping others to get healthy and active.
She loses her job at Health Trix because it was found out the ingredients included in with the food was not legal and quite harmful.
She then loses her boyfriend and she has no money for rent. She takes a vacation to Nigeria where she hopes to find a new life for herself and be able to remake it.
Story also follows Ramsey and he is a rock star and he comes with many attachments.
Their paths cross and she seduces him for a night and then walks away from him. She knows he’s a rock star. They meet up again and she ends up at the castle but his wife is there, well not really his wife…
They become close because they are trying to avoid the kids but love playing with them as their mom is 8 months preganat. He tries to keep low under the radar of news reporters. He is also on the trail with clues of where to locate the Mkpo-ebot.
Love ending, leaving it open for more of the same characters.
Adult scenes are present. About the author is included at the end.
Wish there was a glossary of words, mostly food as I am not familiar with anything but American food.
Received this review copy from the publicist and this is my honest opinion.
The Place That Gave is a romantic and equally inspirational story. Starting with Theana losing everything she has worked for and idolised her whole life. The journey from loss, in the material and identity, to the discovery of much greater things makes this book so easy to love. The struggles of finding her place in a new world and life style changes teamed with a love story makes this book a must read for young audiences that will identify with the underlining challenges of the modern age as well as timeless human afflictions.
The Place That Gave is the second book I’ve read by Emem Uko and once again I really liked it. I loved the modern social media elements of the story and how fragile the industry is. The impact made to her life, whilst enjoyed, doesn’t last long and Theana ends up back at the being trying to create a life she loves. The ups and downs of her life, the challenges she faces, make for an easy read that you won’t want to put down. I really liked the characters and the plot, and the message behind the whole book.
Nigerian author Enem Uko has published five books to date – HERS TO TELL, FAÇADE, JANUS, NOTICE ME, and now, THE PLACE THAT GAVE. In addition to her well-received books, Enem writes blogs on fashion, book reviews, and television series.
There are many clever aspects to this young adult contemporary romance novel, ideas in writing style that cue attention to the imaginative technique Enem uses to enhance her story. An example, each of the twenty four chapters is titled with a word beginning in ‘E’ – Exploded, Escaped, Enraged, Excuses, Enamored, Enmeshed, etc – and that is but one technique that perks up the reader’s attention. The writing style itself is very contemporary, taking advantage of current terms and trends that push the story forward.
Introducing the well-depicted main character begins with the following entry – ‘Theana Green, just like her name, loved color. During the day, she wore bright colored outfits with sky-high heels that were usually studded and at night, she favored anything with sequins. She has a buzz cut, red dyed hair, with exposed a perfectly shaped rounded head on a long neck. She was gorgeous and her symmetrically spaced brown eyes, paired under a nicely arched full eyebrows…Her full lips were always clad in different shades of pink and red, colors that have grown accustomed to her dark cocoa complexioned face…’With that very visual description we meet Theana and her story begins.
The author distills the romance that follows – ‘Buzzcut, doll face, secret prude and healthy snacks brand ambassador, Theana Green, loses her money, boyfriend, and reputation in a matter of days. She thought her ‘rags to riches’ story would stay on “riches” for a long time. But the discovery of illegal additives in the snacks she promoted kicked her back to the bottom of the pit. The once-beloved doll was now a disliked troll. Even an escape to a distant village in Nigeria couldn’t hide her from mistrust and scheming of the villagers. Her plan to reinvent herself wasn’t working…and a sexy crooner with a face that could melt even the strongest of icebergs refuses to leave her alone! Heartthrob and talented musician, Ramsey Edet makes women lose their cool. Despite his success and fame, his bad reputation kept catching up with him. One sight of Theana looking like a chocolate beauty that walked out of an Afremov painting was all it took to get him interested in what life had to offer after all.’
Refreshing and well written, THE PLACE THAT GAVE shares more that just a fine romance: there is much social commentary that makes the novel impressive. Enem Uko serves close attention.