Pastor Needs a Boo

May 5, 2014
This sprawling novel full of Christian hijinks, scandals, and steamy passion from Bowen (Church Folk) follows New Jerusalem Gospel United Church Rev. Denzelle Flowers and his “boo,” Marsha Metcalf, as they fight their feelings for one another for more than 300 pages. In the backdrop is Flowers’s run for bishop, which is threatened by political infighting, his treacherous ex-wife, and a potentially disastrous dance competition a la Dancing With the Stars. The women are all gold-diggers, except for Metcalf and Dayeesha Mitchell, Flowers’s secretary. The men are generally recovering gigolos, or worse. The dialogue is often stilted and repetitive, the language is trite (“She felt the touch of his hand all the way down in her heart”), descriptions of material possessions—shoes, cars, and suits—go on and on. Bowen has written a Tyler Perry movie in novel form. Just as Perry has his fans and detractors, some readers will be amused by Bowen’s novel. Others will find its entertaining moments eclipsed by sloppy writing and banal characterization. Agent: Pamela Harty, Knight Agency.