Raven's Black, Robin's Not
By Jay Hughes
ISBN # 1-929670-97-4
Reviewed by Kevin R. Tipple
(http://www.renebooks.com)
Rating ****

"When you win the lottery and tell your boss to fuck off, you look around for things to do." So opens the latest Jay Hughes e-novel from Renaissance E Books. The read is enjoyable and a pleasant change from some of his other works.

As the novel begins, Jay Hughes has won thirty million dollars. With plenty of time on his hands, he meets Amy Beebe in the lobby of the local Civil Defense building. Amy is 23 and quickly takes a liking to the 47-year-old Jay. They seem to have a connection and the money has nothing to do with it.

As he begins seeing Amy, his ex-wife, Ruby, shows up at his small home. Ruby was convinced he was cheating on her before the marriage and divorced him. Later, after he won the lottery, she felt like she was cheated out of her rightful share. They have a love/hate relationship, but right now she needs his help. Susan, their daughter, is missing.

Susan has her own problems and then some. Susan ". . . grew up, ran off with a guy from Denver, got pregnant, became a mother at seventeen, turned into a junkie at eighteen, and, at nineteen proclaimed with pride that she had made her first adult movie." Soon after, Ruby and Jay were divorced. Jay still loves Susan, but she chose her own road, and does not think he can do anything more to help her.

Ruby prevails on him to begin searching for his daughter. On one hand he wants to do so and at the same time he resents her for wasting her life as well as becoming a problem when he wants to focus on his possible relationship with Amy. As he deals with Amy and their growing relationship, Jay must also prowl the strip clubs, fighting back temptation, as he searches for his daughter. The stakes steadily rise as he wonders more and more; just exactly whom he can trust and whether they just want his money.

This is an enjoyable novel and an interesting mystery. It is a very erotic adult novel combining complex character development, relationships, and sex to create a very good read.