A darkly funny and heartfelt debut novel about what it means to grow up young and black on the south side of Chicago when it feels like your choices are slim to none.

"Charly St. James takes on her biggest challenge yet when her television show goes for a ratings sweep by making over the life of a not-so-willing small-town teen with a big secret..."--P. [4] of cover.

"As a painter travels the world, he mourns the death of his wife, but finds an escape through his art. Until an unexpected knock at the door takes his otherwise secluded life on a dramatic turn. The guest presents a problem that traps them inside of a home for 72 hours, and the quiet suburban estate becomes the devil's playground. The painter is then thrown into a psychological game with twists and turns that lead to an unforeseeable ending..."--

Falling obsessively in love with Sincere Lewis, Kamiyah Nicols begins watching Sincere constantly, hacking into his online accounts and straining her own relationships with friends and family to assuage her growing anxieties.

Isis Carter learned early about surviving in the streets. When she was robbed, she took back what was hers. When her brother was killed and her mom left, Isis fought to stay strong. After her dad abandoned her for his new family, 16 year old Isis was on her own--until a run-in with the law shattered her world.

Maverick feels strongly about family ties, making choices he feels necessary to help support his mom while his King father serves time, and leave him literally holding his son in a doctor's waiting room after he gets paternity test results back and his baby momma ghosts. Now the child he's raising is impacting the lives of his family and his girlfriend, and the gang life he led to support them all financially could leave them all bearing his responsibilities...

"In a world of magical motorcycle gangs, eighteen-year-old Jemmie Carmichael taps into her magical abilities to stop an evil spell before it can be fulfilled"-- In Jemmie Carmichael's Hawthorne, New York, magic users are called "kindled, " and Jemmie would count herself among them if only she could cast a simple spell without completely falling apart. And she's been snubbed by Crowe, the dangerous and enigmatic leader of the Black Devils kindled...

"Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters...

Tyrell's life is spinning out of control after his father is released from prison, his little brother is placed in foster care, and the drug dealers he's living with are pressuring him to start dealing.

"Xavier Hunter hoped his senior year would be bad news-free. His old enemy is finally in lockdown and Xavier is out from under one mad-crazy relationship disaster. And he's cool with his dream girl, Samantha Fox, dating other guys because fair is fair--he hasn't been a saint. But he's not hearing anything good about her new man, Sean. And showing Samantha the truth could be the one game Xavier can't win. . With graduation and college coming up fast,...