Written by an incarcerated author, Slave to the Trade is a gritty, realistic urban novel that digs deep into the intricacies of street life. The two main characters, a police officer and a pimp, are the primary movers and shakers in the book; however, the gang members, prostitutes, and drug addicts who make up the rest of the cast are equally important when it comes to painting this colorful urban portrait. Upon his release from prison, a pimp (AD) returns to his old stomping grounds to find that the power structure of the game has changed dramatically. Gangbangers now run the streets and one in particular—who fancies himself as an aspiring young pimp—attempts to make things very difficult for AD. AD feels overwhelmed as he is forced to hesitate at every prospective turn. In one direction, he is confronted with an aggressive, vengeful-minded cop; while in the other direction he is forced to deal with the threats of a cowardly yet dangerous gangbanger. Although violence is not normally part of AD’s style, he has no problem adapting to circumstances—after all, he will always be…a Slave to the Trade.

SYNOPSIS OF URBAN LOVE Urban Love is the story of Tamika and KK, two young African-American youths navigating the hazards and pitfalls of inner-city urban America while trying at the same time to fight against the cruel hands of destiny that seem intent on pulling their relationship apart. Although KK and Tamika grow up next door to each other in the same poverty-stricken, violence-ridden neighborhood, their experiences within their individual homes are dramatically different—Tamika’s mother being deeply religious, loving, and sober, while KK’s mother is an abusive, spiteful alcoholic mess. So, while both Tamika and KK face the same negative influences around them [poverty and its accompanying train of ill and emotional pain], only Tamika has the intestinal fortitude to overcome the temptations of a gang-plagued, fast-money lifestyle. Although this is an urban/street lit novel [intended to be gritty and realistic], it does contain beneath its surface a socially conscious look into the many substantive issues confronting inner-city youth of today. Although Urban Love is a book that ultimately exposes KK’s many wrong choices, the book’s real goal is to take a frank and honest look into the circumstances and dynamics surrounding those choices.