While dealing with her friend Mickey's possible pregnancy and her conniving rival Misty, Jayd is torn between her ex Jeremy, who is trying to get on the basketball team, and Rah, who is on the rebound, and must reconnect with her powerful lineage to

After a summer of bliss with boyfriend KJ, Jayd Jackson returns to South Bay High (aka Drama High) to discover that she's been dumped, her former best friend is out to get her and KJ's new girl is looking to knock her out. With drama at an all-time high, Jayd, with a little help from Mama and her mystical bag of tricks, is about to get some lessons in who's really got her back - and, more importantly, when she's got to watch it.

As the holidays approach, Mickey has a secret, Nellie is attempting to cause trouble, Laura is trying to undermine Jayd's performance in the school play, and the mother of Rah's baby does not want him to see his daughter anymore.

In the first book of a fierce new series, meet Memphis's hardest ride-or-die chicks as they fight along with their infamous men to lock down the Dirty South. Memphis is the crime capital of America, and no one knows that better than the women born and raised on its mean streets. It's put sisters Ta'Shara and LeShelle on opposite sides of the street game, where blood means nothing and loyalty doesn't last long. It's also got Yolanda, an ambitious drug mule, and Melanie, a police detective, caught up with the same man--the notorious hustler Python. These four women think they've got the game figured out, but the one man they have in common will have them living double lives and wondering who will come out on top. Forget what you heard about East Coast/West Coast, 'cause real vendettas are born in the Dirty South. "Diamond's ear for street talk comes across loud and clear. . .a violent and profane tale, which launches a gritty new series. The divas here are realistic characters, and the pacing zooms. . .one of the best constructed street lit stories of 2010." --Library Journal "A nonstop, hard-hitting page-turner." --Tu-Shonda L. Whitaker

With keen insight into teenage life, Ellen Wittlinger delivers a story of adolescence that is fierce and funny -- and ultimately transforming -- even as it explores the pain of growing up. Since his parents' divorce, John's mother hasn't touched him, her new fiancé wants them to move away, and his father would rather be anywhere than at Friday night dinner with his son. It's no wonder John writes articles like "Interview with the Stepfather" and "Memoirs from Hell." The only release he finds is in homemade zines like the amazing Escape Velocity by Marisol, a self-proclaimed "Puerto Rican Cuban Yankee Lesbian." Haning around the Boston Tower Records for the new issue of Escape Velocity, John meets Marisol and a hard love is born. While at first their friendship is based on zines, dysfuntional families, and dreams of escape, soon both John and Marisol begin to shed their protective shells. Unfortunately, John mistakes this growing intimacy for love, and a disastrous date to his junior prom leaves that friendship in ruins. Desperately hoping to fix things, John convinces Marisol to come with him to a zine conference on Cape Cod. On the sandy beaches by the Bluefish Wharf Inn, John realizes just how hard love can be.

Jayd's best friend Nellie's got an attitude problem. Ever since she was named homecoming princess she's been avoiding Jayd and hanging out with Tania and her crew. It's amazing the girl can fit her new crown over that big head of hers. And then there's Jayd's boyfriend Jeremy. His aloof attitude is really getting on her nerves. Jayde's starting to question his commitment, not to mention her own. Especially since lately all she can think about is Rah and that surprise kiss he planted on her the other day... Another day another problem in Drama High!

The deadliest ride-or-die chicks in Memphis have a new rival. But when all’s said and done, only one gang can reign supreme... The streets of the Dirty South have never been meaner as the ruthless women of warring hoods are just a few body bags away from total domination. Determined to rain bullets on Shotgun Row, lieutenant Lucifer teams up with Profit, head gangsta of the Vice Lords and a man bent on revenge. Good girl gone bad Ta’shara sets her sights on knocking her evil sister off the throne—but she’s unprepared for what’s ahead. Qiana’s deal with the devil to take ambitious Yolanda out of the picture plants her at the center of a manhunt that will jeopardize her own position. And as Queen G LeShelle’s list of enemies multiplies, the final knockout may come from the last person she expects. While the war zone expands, these gangsta divas take no prisoners for the chance to rule it all...

In the second installment of the Desperate Hoodwives trilogy, hearts break, lives shatter, and lies prevail at Bentley Manor, where no one can escape their sins. Four very different women find themselves caught in the web of Bentley Manor, one of the hood’s most notorious projects, where no one has ever left unscathed... There’s Keisha, who married the high school basketball star. Everything seemed fine, until Smokey got addicted to crack, and now she’s desperate just to feed their kids. Takiah needs to get away from her pimp husband so bad that she’s willing to go back to church, but what if the pastor’s eyes stray from the heavens? With a voice to rival Mary J. and Whitney, Princess might just have the ticket to escape the projects, if only she could find her courage, while Woo Woo has escaped with her suburban husband—only to find herself sneaking back for steamy sexcapades with her drug dealer ex. And you can bet Woo Woo’s not the only one with secrets to hide... From two critically acclaimed powerhouses in urban fiction, this is a gritty, passionate, and straight up real series that is not to be missed.

Jayd Jackson's about to take the most important test of her life. . . With the Advanced Placement exams coming up, Jayd can't afford any distractions. Enter Rah's baby mama, the master of stirring up trouble. Despite her best intentions, Jayd gets entangled in the drama and fails her pre-test exam. Knowing it's time to get her act together, she joins a study group on campus, sharpens her skills--and meets a whole new crew. Unfortunately, Jayd's the only one who's happy about her newfound study habits and newfound friends. Her old crew is suddenly full of haters--and even Mama's giving her a hard time. Just when it seems things can't get any worse, Misty starts talking smack, hoping to destroy Jayd once and for all. Now Jayd's wondering if the real test is whether she's ready to say goodbye to the old and move on up and out. . .

A YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers Between Christmas, the annual Fall Festival, and baby-mama issues, South Bay High is vibrating with activity, excitement, and drama. . . The holidays are coming, along with all the madness and materialism that comes with them. As usual, Jayd is just trying to stay sane while everyone around her is losing it. Mickey's got a major secret and Jayd's girl Nellie is trying to stir up trouble with her loose lips. Vengeful Laura is trying to undermine Jayd's performance in the school production of Shakespeare's Lady Macbeth. Rah's baby mama, Sandy, is trying to keep him from seeing his daughter. And that's just for starters. Worst of all, Jayd's grandmother warns her that serious trouble is on the way. Between a spiritual cleansing, a potion, and the mystical support of her gifted ancestors, will Jayd be able to stop all this homegirl drama in its tracks?