'Cosmopolitan Girls' inspire readers to exhale and breathe again.

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Author: Moorer, Talise D.1

Move over "Sex in the City"; the wait to exhale is over. First time novelists Lyah Beth LeFlore and Charlotte Burley are painting the literary world with "Cosmopolitan Girls," a refreshing page-turner with television- and screen-friendly antics that will inspire African-American women to breathe again.

At least that's the feeling you get from this fun, quick read that may even resurrect nostalgic moments when girlfriends get together to boost one another's courage to set a brother "straight," face a sketchy boss and, yes, take the world by storm.

The authors were recently in the Big Apple to host a launch party, and make several guest appearances on the first leg of their promotional tour. The novel is published by Harlem Moon, an imprint of Broadway Books, a division of Random House Inc.

The story line revolves around characters Lindsay and Charlie, two small-town African-American girls who are complete strangers but on parallel paths, toiling with big dreams and taking the leap of faith to make those dreams happen in the "big city." Besides, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.

Lindsay is a successful television executive out to make a name for herself despite winning a vote of confidence from her boss, the perfectionist. And while she manages a demanding juggling act on the job, she believes she has snagged love with a fine, high-powered video director.

Devoted Charlie pledges to become a successful screenwriter. She is happily engaged to a fiancé who offers her "stability," a ready-made family with two kids, great sex, and a will for his lady to pen and purge her gift.

On an average day, Lindsay and Charlie each could sport the proverbial "S" on their chests, being the superwomen that they are. When things get tough, they still manage heroic accomplishments.

While seeking refuge at a favorite watering hole, by happenstance Lindsay and Charlie's lives collide, setting off a friendship that would ultimately stick like glue, despite getting mush-faced on Friday nights. Be it baby mama drama, taming an aloof love interest, meandering power plays on the job, or checking sistahs with an attitude, the two have their share of emergencies to cope with. Though each originally thought the other's grass was greener, the friendship bred a cosmopolitan girl's "Code of Arms" that was guaranteed to soothe an aching heart.

LeFlore and Burley artfully introduce characters that remind the reader that there is no shame in being vulnerable, so long as there is a healthy balance. Working hard and playing hard is not something just for the "brothers." It is okay for sistahs to be mavericks in the "paper chase," and let their hair down too. Most auspicious is the message of grasping the priceless value of having "girlfriends," given that all are growing on the same wavelength. The authors also do a fine job of personalizing favorite places where jet-setters are known to "rejuvenate." Kudos for doing their homework.

Burley is an award-winning writer/producer at the Sci-Fi Channel and lives in New Jersey. LeFlore is a television producer, and a vice president of Alan Haymon Productions, a leading entertainment production company, and lives in Los Angeles.

In an interview with the AmNews, LeFlore explained that she was initially interested in a script that Burley had written, which led to development meetings over a six-month span. Through working closely together, they had built a friendship. The idea for the book came about following a long day of meetings when they decided to end the evening with cocktails. They met up with a few of LeFlore's friends at a local eatery and began to share male drama. The discourse was so enlightening and therapeutic that they each felt there was a story to be told.

LeFlore and Burley's clever idea to embed a written Code of Arms allows readers to literally come away from the "Cosmopolitan Girl" experience with a new attitude, and heart-fixin' revelations about love, life and a quest for a new man. Let's face it, girlfriends, or shall we say sister-friends, have traditionally resonated with the unspoken canons of handling male drama. For the disillusioned, finding a method of sifting the madness is difficult when your heart hurts too much to think straight. Burley said it best: "'The Cosmopolitan Girls' Code of Arms is really like our conscience, things that you want to tell your sister or girlfriend that you know are going through the drama. And sometimes you don't want to tell them because you don't want them to feel that you're comin' down on them or being too hard on them. But if you're engaging a real girlfriend, she's going to give you true, hard advice. So, we decided we wanted to do that for every woman reading this book, give them advice."

On the value of female bonding LeFlore said: "There's a bond between Black women that we have got to have and hold on to, especially since we are always under the grind, and subject to how much society puts on the pressure. With life moving so fast, I think we've gotten away from how women have the power to heal each other."

Having said a mouthful, the authors are now off to promote the book across the country. Their next stops are Washington B.C., Atlanta, Los Angeles and other major cities. They anticipate a return to New York in April. And it would not be a surprise if "The Cosmopolitan Girls" lands a film option or turns up as the next hit series since "Friends" or "Sex in the City." It would be a mistake to dismiss that idea as too simplistic. Have fun! The Code alone is worth the investment.

PHOTO (COLOR): Authors of "Cosmopolitan Girls" Charlotte Burley (left) and Lyah LeFlore are shown during their New York reading and book signing at the Barnes & Noble bookstore.

PHOTO (COLOR): Sisters are definitely in charge. Charlotte Burley & Lyah LeFlore, two gifted women of color, read their book to a standing-room-only crowd gathered at Bames & Noble bookstore in Greenwich Village. Pictured with her star writers is literary agent Marie Dutton Brown (left) and Janet Hill (far right), the exceptional executive editor (Doubleday, Harlem Moon).

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By Talise D. Moorer