The Ex Factor

October 9, 2006
Three half-sisters whose mother made some questionable choices suffer endless drama via the repetition compulsion in Whitaker's raucous, Jerry Springeresque third novel. Celeste Winston, a spiteful, self-pitying shrew, spends every waking moment fretting over whether her husband, Sharief, is being unfaithful. Monica, the only sister with a job and no children, sleeps with other women's men—including Sharief. Imani, a single mother who lives for her next welfare check and her next high, has a six-year-old wannabe thug and can't let go of the cheating, low-life father of her son. Starr, the matriarch of this highly dysfunctional clan, has finally found a man she considers worth marrying (and it isn't any of her daughters' fathers). Whitaker (Flip Side of the Game
) effectively infuses humor with wildly animated supporting characters and creates some tension around the revelations (early) and resulting fallout (extended) of Monica's up-to-no-goodness. In the end, lots of sex and self-destructive behavior, and frank scenes during which the characters discuss their mother's many boyfriends, or ex-factors, can't patch over the lack of plot and character development.