He Was My Man First by Flowers & Parker

He Was My Man First

By Nancey Flowers & Courtney Parker

pgs 338
rating 4stars

From Goodreads:

     Valentine Daye is a product of the streets. Raised in the projects, she lost her father and her mother young. By fifteen, she was living the life with drug lord Colombo. But when Colombo and his crew are murdered, Richard Washington, one of Colombo’s many street runners, swoops in and wastes no time making Valentine his queen.
     Nine years later, Valentine and Rich are a happy couple who have weathered some “minor” problems. Valentine is well aware that Rich steps out on her. But doesn’t every man? He always finds his way home. Or at least he did before Vanessa Knight.
     Vanessa Knight is a woman who has everything . . . except Richard Washington. An heiress to a multimillion-dollar company, Vanessa is willing to forgive Rich’s flawed background. However, she wants him for herself, and tells him that he must decide what’s important to him—a flourishing career at clothier Jorge Jacobs, where she can make him a VP, or a life with his street past, Valentine?.
      When Daye meets Knight, each woman plots and schemes to steal Rich’s heart. Rich must make a decision. Does he gamble and start a new life with the beautiful and cunning Vanessa, or does he stay with his around-the-way girl Valentine, who has been with him through thick and thin?

My Review:

     He Was My Man First is a fast paced book about love, lost, and lies. I had a problem with all the characters in this book. Let’s start with Vanessa. She comes from somewhat old money though in my opinion having your great grandfather make a fortune doesn’t count as old money to me. To those who have “real” old money 3 generations of wealth is still new damn money so what her and her family really is just a bunch of siddities who have forgotten where they come from. Anyway…she lost her love to a car accident which she blames herself for. Since then she has become all about using people to get what she wants. At first, Richard was just a means to get herself a higher position in the company but then she starts to catching feelings. All the while, she enjoys what they affair is doing to Valentine. I have no sympathy for Vanessa. The back story of how her fiancée died was suppose to stir up some empathy for her character but it didn’t not work for me. No she wasn’t exactly responsible for his death but her actions were insensitive and added to the circumstance of his death.

            On to Richard, like some many men out there he enjoys having his cake and eating it too. Unfaithful and selfish are the two words to describe his character. He’s the type that likes to have his main chick and have a girl on the side. He says and does whatever he has to to get over on them including using the word love. What is sad about men like him is that they usually do have love for the woman they are dogging out but they love themselves and their wants more.

            Now to Valentine, having a abusive relationship with her first man does tend to make any relationship after that seem great but her rationale for Richard was pathetic. She never blamed him for any of the cheating that he did. It was always the chick fault because hey…men cheat. Even if that is true, one doesn’t just go along with the program. Men cheat because the main woman tolerates and the side chick(s) don’t care. If women refuse to deal with infidelities there would be a lot less of it. Valentine annoyed me to no end. I do like how she finally got a clue though she had to be put in a situation in order to get it. I also like the ending. I can’t speak on it without giving it away but there is never one way to do things and I don’t disagree with the path she chose. TBR list 2

Challenges:
2012 50 State Reading Challenge
2012 Romance Reading Challenge

Fun and Games 2012:
Bunnita Reading Travel Buggie