A woman with connections. . . Thanks to her elite Miami matchmaking service, Jasmine Croft is financially secure—and much too busy finding love for others to settle into a relationship of her own. But when a successful—and skeptical—crime author becomes her client, Jasmine finds herself up against the greatest challenge of her career—and maybe her life. . . A man of mystery. . . Handsome widower Robert Rankin would rather be working—but he needs a woman to accompany him to his brother's four day wedding celebration. His expectations are low—until his date arrives: Jasmine. A twist of fate brought her there, into the arms of a man far more intriguing and irresistible than she ever imagined. But as the days extend into a relationship, will meddling friends, scheming relatives, and Robert's own ghosts ultimately tear them apart?. . . Praise for Sophia Shaw ". . .(an) entertaining story." --Romantic Times on Tempted to Touch "The passion between the main characters heats up the pages, and a stellar supporting cast makes for a page-turning story." --Romantic Times on What Lies Between Lovers

She's All Caught Up is a cautionary tale for young people enamored by the fast life and the older folks that love them. This memoir tells of the negative influences that swayed the early life of author Jamila T. Davis (creator of the Voices of Consequences Enrichment Series). She is currently serving a 151 month sentence for her role in a multi-million dollar bank fraud scheme. Young Jamila grew up in a loving, middle class home. Her hardworking parents, the Davises, overcame the barriers of poverty and racism faced by African Americans in the segregated South. From the back wood shacks of the rural south, the Davises migrated north, making Jamaica Queens, New York their new home. They drove themselves relentlessly. By education and endless hard work, they attained their portion of the American dream. Determined to afford their own children the opportunities they themselves never had, the Davises provided their children with a good life, hoping to guarantee their children's success.

School's out and sixteen year-old Kennedy Simms is bored. That could be a recipe for disaster. . . Good girls don't go to real parties, like the ones in the hood. Or rock bangin' clothes. Or stay out as long as they want. But I'm sick of my parents' rules and being the perfect little boring suburban princess. It's my life, right? I've decided to have some fun for a change, hitting the streets with my new bestie, Sasha. Best of all, my new gangsta-fine boo, Malik, knows how to treat me right, spoils me like I deserve, and is someone I can finally call my own. Sure, living the life and being with Malik is getting me into mad-crazy trouble. And if I don't tell the truth about him, I could go to prison. But a good ride-or-die girl never snitches. And as long as my friends and my man stick by me, nothing can go wrong, right? "A drama-filled cautionary tale about getting in too deep." --Publishers Weekly on Crazy Love "Abrams again tantalizes us, getting into the mind-set of the young, gifted and beautiful." --RT Book Reviews on The Girl of His Dreams

In Lauren Blakely's latest novel, Kat Harper, a jewelry designer and graduate student, unexpectedly gets a second chance at love and romance.

The girl who has spent her life running is about to be caught . . . by love After a shaky past, Kelsey LeBreck’s future is looking good. She’s been saving money for culinary school with her earnings from The Ranch, a private BDSM resort. Even better, she’s landed a day job where she can practice baking and flirt with her favorite customer. However, having secret fantasies about Wyatt Austin is where it has to end. If there’s one thing Kelsey knows can derail her, it’s a relationship. But when a danger from her past threatens to steal her fresh start, the intense executive may be the only one who can help her. Wyatt doesn’t have room on his agenda for dating, but something about the pretty young waitress stirs desires he thought were long buried. So when he needs someone to pose as his girlfriend at an important business retreat and finds out Kelsey needs to go off the grid for a while, he can’t resist making her an offer. Soon, Kelsey learns that Wyatt’s power in the boardroom is no match for his power in the bedroom, and she wonders if her heart will survive. Because Wyatt Austin is a man who gets what he wants, and now he wants her.

From home, to school, to juvenile detention center, and back again. Follow the lives of fifty Latina girls living forty miles outside of Los Angeles, California, as they are inadvertently caught up in the school-to-prison pipeline. Their experiences in the connected programs between “El Valle” Juvenile Detention Center and “Legacy” Community School reveal the accelerated fusion of California schools and institutions of confinement. The girls participate in well-intentioned wraparound services designed to provide them with support at home, at school, and in the detention center. But these services may more closely resemble the phenomenon of wraparound incarceration, in which students, despite leaving the actual detention center, cannot escape the surveillance of formal detention, and are thereby slowly pushed away from traditional schooling and a productive life course.

Fresh new ways to create fabulous paintings with mixed media techniques! Acrylic Solutions provides the "hows" behind a multitude of effects you've admired in other artists' works--and then some! Based on the popular online teaching collaboration of Chris Cozen and Julie Prichard, this book illustrates a wealth of layering methods and techniques. Mix and match to achieve countless variations, building layer upon layer to create unique and wonderfully complex abstract art. • Learn more than 30 step-by-step techniques for developing texture and visual interest, including collage, monoprinting, carving, color blocking, paint skins, raised stencils, glazing and so much more. • Chapters explore the phases of a multi-layered painting, from surface preparation through adding structure, developing complexity and adding finishing touches. • Follow the development of two paintings as each layer adds to the finished result, with tons of additional artwork throughout. • Gain insight on how to make paints, mediums and grounds work for you. Embracing a spirit of freedom and spontaneity, Acrylic Solutions is a stimulating guide for contemporary artists of any skill level. Beginners will learn how to make visually compelling paintings from start to finish, while more experienced artists will find the tools and inspiration to take their work to the next level.