Literature:

Girlz Night Out
Lucio Dutch

This cleverly masked novel, marketed with the tagline “five women plus a temporary fix equals murder” is anything but your average contemporary murder-mystery. Girlz Night Out by Lucio Dutch is rather a study on the theme friendship and trust. This adeptly written novel follows the story of five female friends Tabitha, Ingrid, Deanya, Debbie & Jessica who help each other cope with the ups-and-downs of their respective personal relationships. To say that these relationships are turmoils waiting to earn the moniker status of full-fledged hurricane may just perhaps serve as the understatement of the year. And having witnessed the very calm-before-the-storm unfold as brilliant story line with expertly crafted dialogue, I can truly say that I’ve enjoyed seeing this natural Mother Earth inspired vision come to fruition. From the very first pages of Girlz Night Out the obvious turbulence of the story line is intense and intimate; 207 pages of well-written fiction that mimic's the rockiness that is want to develop in any relationship.

Dutch has indeed introduced to the reader a very special read! The individual introduction of the main characters makes for a warm surrounding that continues to build on the common theme of what each lady has to bring to the table of friendship. A love for independence, the respect of freedom & true loyalty for the bond of sisterhood. And with each intro you see that the moral fabric of each lady (though often clashing) is sensual, yet sturdy and resilient, unbreakable. It’s as if you identify with their individual strengths and know of their unique colors… You relate.

The dialogue rings of truth and humor, and though at times “ghettoish” is continually provocative without being overly cliché. It has been said “men are from Mars & women… Well – are from somewhere else entirely…” And Dutch states this theme very creatively throughout Girlz Night Out. One of my favorite passages illustrates this fresh approach with the subtle and laughably obvious humor that is seen to the very last page:

[pg. 96]
No matter how strong a man acts, the thought of another male enjoying his lady cuts a deep gash in the armor that surrounds his heart, and when it came to making incisions, Ingrid was a professional.
“Relax, damn.”
“Relax? – yeah whatever, I don’t believe you. I just didn’t want to treat my girl like I’d treat a bitch off the street. I thought that you would respect that, but I see that you don’t.”
“So what are you going to do?” Ingrid spoke the way she did because she was confident in the fact that her man wasn’t going anywhere. She knew that she was the best thing to ever happen to Chris, she also knew that he knew it too.

Several troubles (other than the obvious “boy” problem) seem to plague the five ladies of Dutch’s novel. They take the form of questions: Is your loyalty in the right place? Can you be trusted to be my girl for life? Are you down with me through thick-and-thin?

I have come to the conclusion that one thing will always remain certain; It’s good to have friends even in low places. If only Tabitha, Ingrid, Deanya, Debbie & Jessica could have realized this, perhaps we could each learn from their mistakes and have our own happy ending…

4 out of 5 Stars - provocative, funny & a pleasurable read!

Copyright © 2006 Jacquii Cooke

Available at Amazon.com