31-year-old Nancy Trejos was supposed to be an expert on handling her money - after all, she's the personal finance columnist for one of the nation's leading newspapers, The Washington Post. But a few months ago, she found herself in her own dire financial straits. Faced with a mountain of bills, debt, and no way to pay her rent, she was forced to call her parents to ask them for a loan. That night was a wake-up call - she vowed to get herself out of debt and into financial solvency. In Hot Broke Messes, Trejos takes readers along with her on her journey. She meets with a financial planner and a therapist to deal with all the issues young people face today - from credit card debt and student loans, to impulse buying and emotional spending, to the cost of having a social life, to buying a house with someone during a potentially impermanent relationship and more. Trejos learns what causes these problems in herself, how she can fix them, and how she can pass that advice on to other young people going through the same experiences. Even better, she shows readers how they can address these problems without completely giving up their lives - no "give up your latte a day" type advice here! Trejos' personal and unique voice, along with her experiences that everyone can relate to, will lead readers to relatively painless financial security.

“[E]very bit as juicy as the dishes it describes.” —SPLASH Twentysomething Allie Simon is used to playing by the rules—until Chicago’s most sought-after, up-and-coming culinary genius, Benji Zane, walks into her world and pulls her into his. The only thing more renowned than Benji’s mouthwatering masterpieces and equally luscious good looks? His struggle with addiction and his reckless tendency to live life on the edge, no matter the havoc he wreaks along the way. But loving someone means supporting him no matter what, or so Allie tells herself. That’s why, when Benji’s offered the chance to light up foodie hot spot Randolph Street with a high-profile new restaurant, Allie takes the ultimate risk and invests her life savings in his dream. Then one day Benji disappears, relapsing to a place where Allie can’t reach him. Left with nothing but a massive withdrawal slip and a restaurant that absolutely must open in a matter of weeks, Allie finds herself thrust into a world of luxury and greed, cutthroat business and sensory delight. Lost in the mess of it all, she can either crumble completely or fight like hell for the life she wants and the love she deserves. With razor-sharp wit and searing insight, Emily Belden serves up a deliciously dishy look behind the kitchen doors of a hot foodie town, perfect for fans of Sweetbitter and The Devil Wears Prada.

EMMA FREEMAN IS waving buh-bye to her standard summer of stationwagoning around the suburbs. This summer she’s heading to the big city. Emma’s totally prepped for days at a fabulous internship and nights of socialite-ing around town. But when you’re 17 and not an heiress, reality is far from pink fizzy drinks and red velvet ropes. As the summer heats up, Emma learns that glamour is hard to come by when your only friend is too boy-crazy to hang, your budget is more H&M than D&G, and you spend 8 hours a day working for a man who proves that the devil wears Dockers too. Add one little white lie told to one very hot coworker and a roommate who makes Paris Hilton look junior varsity, and this summer in the city is starting to turn into one hot mess.

Tanner is a hot mess. In the words of his sixth-grade teacher: “You destroy everything you touch and you’re terrible at everything you do.” Call it clumsiness. Call it bad luck. Call it a curse. Whatever you want to call it, Tanner has it. He’s never been able to hold down a job for more than a week before something terrible happens. He’s always accidentally getting people hurt, costing companies thousands of dollars in lawsuits and insurance claims. On more than one occasion, he’s accidentally lit his place of work on fire. He’s on the brink of giving up, but figures he’ll give working one last go, at a department store. What could go wrong in a department store? Well, one week into his new gig, something goes very wrong. Actually, lots goes wrong, but it’s an accident involving a children’s toy that leaves Tanner burned and without clothes in the staff bathroom. Now, Tanner has to sneak away before his boss finds him bearing it all in the staff bathroom. So he puts on the only thing within reach: a dress, and the wig from a nearby mannequin. The disguise is just supposed to get him home so he can grab a new work outfit, but his short time dressed as a woman is curious to say the least. While dressed like a girl, nothing bad happens to Tanner. People are nice to him. He gets a free bus ride, a free dinner, and someone even hands him some cash as an act of kindness. It’s a streak of good luck that Tanner isn’t used to… but it’s something he could get used to.

"I came for the recipes and stayed for the funny, personal writing. How could you not love a book with recipes like 'Fuck It, Let's Just Get Stoned Nachos' and 'All My Friends Are Married Mud Pie'? Surely there is not one among you who has not felt both sentiments. You could buy this book and enjoy it without ever taking out your oven mitts." --Mindy Kaling, from the foreword Decades ago, every young woman left home knowing how to cook, but now, well, not so much. And while they're happy times have changed, authors Gabi Moskowitz and Miranda Berman want to save millennials from the perils of takeout and take back the kitchen with their new book, Hot Mess Kitchen. These ladies aren't serving caviar and champagne; they're making Quarter-Life Crisis Queso. They're not giving you a plan for the perfect dinner party, but suggesting How to Throw a Fabulous Dinner Party Without Having an Anxiety Attack. And they're going to be there each step of the way with easy, delicious recipes and personal stories that make it feel like they're right there in your kitchen with you, showing you which knife to use and wiping the mascara from your face as you cry from onion chopping. They're going to be your friends. Your kitchen friends, your Hot Mess Kitchen friends. Your best friends? No, no, this isn't like a Her type of scenario. Have real friends. Read this book and all their stories, and let Gabi and Miranda show you how cooking has helped, or how it could have helped them, in their messiest moments!

Jealousy's a real bitch, but so is his ex-girlfriend. Maxwell Penn is my lover, my boss and my Dom. He pushes me emotionally as well as sensually, in all the ways a girl should be pushed by the man she loves. Sure, some days, I still swing back and forth between wanting to strangle him and wanting to straddle him, but I wouldn’t give him up for the world. Oh, did I mention there’s talk of him taking me to a Swingers' Ball at a local lifestyle club? So yeah, our relationship is positively sizzling. At least, it is until Boudoir Fashion Week, when Max’s college girlfriend explodes back into his life, and everything goes south. Giselle Dubois is tall, svelte, and so stunning that I feel the need to wear sunglasses whenever she’s around. Using her sensuality and intimate knowledge of Max's past, Giselle embarks on a mission of manipulation to acquire something Max "took" from her years ago, but it’s not just knowledge of his past she has in her arsenal. She knows my past. My family's secrets. The dark stain that has marred my family since I was a child. But Giselle isn’t the only threat facing us. There is another monster in our midst, one far more cunning and deadly. Publisher’s Note: This steamy contemporary romance contains elements of power exchange.

Dare to Believe Every woman struggles to believe she is who God says she is and to believe the stunning promises He whispers to her heart. But when you're a hot mess (and we all are to one degree or another), it's hard to imagine things can be different—that you can be different. Author Julie Gillies has experienced broken dreams, trauma, and plenty of drama, but she has also encountered the holy hope and promises of God. She longs to help you... understand your identity in Christ instead of believing "I'll always be this way" embrace your true significance instead of feeling less-than hold on to peace instead of freaking out when hard things keep happening grasp your God-given destiny and begin walking in it It's not that God doesn't bless hot messes. (If that were the case, where would any of us be?) But you don't have to remain a hot mess. It's time to receive and experience God's hope and promises in a fresh way! Includes questions for group study or personal reflection.