Craft, Francine 1929–

(A pseudonym)

PERSONAL: Born January 28, 1929, in MS; daughter of William and Bettie Holtzclaw. Ethnicity: "African American." Education: Attended Alcorn College and Hampton Institute. Politics: Democrat. Religion: Unitarian. Hobbies and other interests: Reading, photography.

ADDRESSES: Agent—James B. Finn, P.O. Box 28227A, St. Louis, MO 63132.

CAREER: Freelance author. Has worked as a legal secretary for the federal government, as an elementary school teacher, as a business school instructor, and as a research assistant.

WRITINGS:

ROMANCE NOVELS

Devoted, Arabesque (Washington, DC), 1995.

Black Pearl, Pinnacle (New York, NY)/Arabesque (Washington, DC), 1996.

Lyrics of Love, Pinnacle (New York, NY)/Arabesque (Washington, DC), 1998.

Still in Love, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 1999.

(With Gwynne Forster and Niqui Stanhope) Wedding Bells, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 1999.

Star Crossed, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 2000.

Betrayed by Love, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 2000.

Forever Love, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 2001.

Haunted Heart, BET (Washington, DC), 2002.

What Matters Most, BET (Washington, DC), 2002.

Born to Love You, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 2003.

Give Love, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 2003.

The Best of Everything, Arabesque/BET (Washington, DC), 2004.

Wild Heart, 2005.

Also author, with Linda Hudson-Smith and Janice Sims, of Love in Bloom.

WORK IN PROGRESS: Dreams of Ecstasy.

SIDELIGHTS: Francine Craft is the pen name of a popular author of romance novels featuring African-American characters. Sometimes set in the past, other times in the present, her novels typically feature complex and entangled relationships, characters deal-ing with tragedies in their pasts—such as death or divorce—and, in many cases, a murder mystery and hidden, personal secrets.

In one of her early novels, Black Pearl, Craft sets her tale in Louisiana just after the U.S. Civil War. In what Cheryl Ferguson, writing in RomanticTimes.com, called a novel that "sweeps the reader into a story rich with culture, history and romance," the tale features herbalist Katherine Keyes, who is forced to marry a West Indian named Martin Dominguez. Despite being wed against her will, Katherine eventually falls in love with Martin, even as his troubled past eventually catches up with him.

Lyrics of Love and Still in Love have both been praised by reviewers. The novels center on tragic situations between husbands and wives. In the former, Gina Campbell's husband, Joe, is accused of killing Gina's brother after the couple's marriage has broken up. When Joe returns to Gina, he tries to explain why he had to leave her and why he has to take the heat for the murder in order to protect her. While he cannot resist his love for Gina, it is a passion that could be dangerous. Enjoying the lush island setting, RomanticTimes.com reviewer Ferguson praised Lyrics of Love as "reality and fantasy in their purist forms." The same critic also lauded Still in Love, in which Raine Gibson's ex-husband, Dan, kidnaps her daughter, Kym. Kym is actually the daughter of Raine's true love, Jordan, a divorced man whose ex-wife is trying to take him back. Together, Raine and Jordan team up to rescue Kym, even if it has to be at the cost of their love. Ferguson praised Still in Love for its "suspense, sensuality and romance woven into a comfortable literary quilt."

Star Crossed and Betrayed by Love are both set in the town of Crystal Lake, Maryland, and although they feature different main characters, both offer complicated plots and entangled character relationships. In the former, Fairen Walker's life has been marked by repeated tragedies, including the death of her parents, the loss of her toddler son in a car crash, and the murder of her sister. Now the man accused but later acquitted of the murder, Lance Carrington, is back in town. Fairen believes in Lance's innocence; even more, she is falling in love with the man, and she decides to use her skills as a journalist to help Lance find her sister's real killer. Although Gwendolyn Osborne, writing in Romance Reader.com, complained that the author sometimes is guilty of "prose [that is] a bit purple," she asserted that "the narrative and the suspense are tighter than in the author's previous romances." RomanticTimes.com contributor Chandra Y. Sparks cited Star Crossed as evidence that "Craft is a master at storytelling."

In Betrayed by Love Josh, a man made bitter by divorce, makes an unusual deal with Maura: If she will agree to marry him for the purpose of bearing him the child he desperately wants, he will help pay for the cancer treatment her grandfather needs. Maura agrees to these terms, but it may be that neither one of them realizes what they are really getting into. Osborne, writing again in RomanceReader.com, found the romance between Josh and Maura "stiff," but concluded that Betrayed by Love is a "pleasant read."

Forever Love is a tale about a radio talk-show host who hires a detective in response to threats from an apparent stalker. While RomanticTimes.com writer T. L. Burton enjoyed the book's "intrigue and suspense," the reviewer remarked that the main characters "lacked passion." The same reviewer repeated this view regarding Craft's Haunted Heart. Burton craved "more interaction" between the book's characters, while in response to The Best of Everything, the critic expressed disappointment that "nonsensical dialogue and a lack of structure" mar a romance that was otherwise "ripe with potential."

Craft told CA: "I love to write and I write in anticipation of giving joy to others. My favorite writing is historical. I also enjoy detective fiction and true crime. I also bake wonderful chocolate chip lace cookies and regulars and probably make the best oatmeal cookies on earth."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Publishers Weekly, June 8, 1998, review of Lyrics of Love, p. 58.

ONLINE

Francine Craft Home Page, http://www.francinecraft.com (February 18, 2005).

RomanticTimes.com, http://www.romantictimes.com/ (February 17, 2005), Debbie Sims, review of Betrayed by Love and Born to Love You; Cheryl Ferguson, reviews of Black Pearl, Still in Love, and Lyrics of Love; T. L. Burton, reviews of Forever Love, The Best of Everything, and Haunted Heart, Chandra Y. Sparks, review of Star Crossed; Pamela Tullos, review of What Matters Most.

TheRomanceReader.com, http://www.theromancereader.com/ (February 17, 2005), Gwendolyn Osborne, reviews of Wedding Bells, Star Crossed, Betrayed by Love, and Lyrics of Love.