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POPI'S PLACE

ISBN-13-978-0615838670

ISBN-10-0615838677

A popular R&B/jazz club and restaurant, situated in a busy block of Melrose Avenue, Popi's Place has been a Hollywood hot spot for over sixty years, providing live music, seven nights a week, to loyal regulars and a nightly sprinkle of cool celebrities. Every Saturday night, six girlfriends gather to dish dirt, compare love notes, and kick up their heels at their favorite night spot. They are each different in their personal and private lives, but somehow they all blend together to create relationships that survive all kinds of hell.

SNOOKIE WATSON is a loud, obnoxious country girl who loves sports and loves jocks.  She’s divorced with one child and works as a social worker for the City of Los Angeles.  She’s the “ugly duckling” of the group, is barely tolerated, and covers the pain of that knowledge by being funny.  She is silently bitter towards men and likes to have one-night stands, preferably with sports celebrities.

 

AURORA DUNCAN appears to be well put-together.  An executive for a hip-hop record label, she’s always “on” and spends her money well.  She’s a commitment phobic in a love/hate relationship with her rapper boyfriend.  She’s corporate, he’s thug.  Though she’s whipped, he’s the very kind of bad boy she needs.  One who will never commit, giving her an excuse to run each time he screws around, which is often.  It’s her only apparent weakness.

 

PORTIA TAYLOR-ADAMS is a big, beautiful woman who’s flashy and loves to shop.  She’s married to a handsome hunk, several years younger.  They have no children.  She works as a receptionist for a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon.  On the surface, she’s happy and satisfied, and sometimes even feels that her life is better than that of the other women, but deep down she’s insecure and hides it by talking about other people’s business.  She’s a perfect bubble about to burst.

 

DEBBIE MARSHALL, an up and coming fashion designer, has a fear of success that she won’t even share with her best friends, and a crush on a married man.  She’s single, strong and ambitious, but covers feelings of inferiority with a tough exterior.  She wants a handsome prince to come and whisk her away to stardom or freedom, which is all the same to her.

 

CANDY MARTIN is a dark-skinned, former beauty queen who only dates rich, white men.  She has serious self-esteem issues and doesn’t really see her inner beauty.  She’s artificial and escapes reality with drugs and alcohol.  She’s successful in the high-end real estate business, but craves attention and spends a lot of time looking for a white man to validate her.

 

MELISSA MURDOCK is bi-racial, but looks white.  She doesn’t fit well in either camp, but has tried so hard that it hurt.  A talented hip-hop/R&B singer, she is willing to do whatever it takes to be a star, but constantly has to prove herself.   She dates black men, has a black soul, and uses sex as a means to calm her demons and make her feel good about herself.  It rarely works.

 

It’s a mystery how these six women find anything in common, but on Saturday nights, they can come together as a well-oiled machine, giving each other the support and love that is so elusive in their daily lives.  Here they can live the illusion of perfection and unconditional love.  That is the magic of their friendship.  That is the magic of Popi’s Place. 

"Muy caliente, sassy, classy, authentic and, most importantly, a spiritual journey that gives the story more substance and depth. Definitely a book I couldn't put down and kept my attention from beginning to end."  Charles Benson, Musician

"The storytelling is amazing, the characters have substance, and I was pleasantly surprised at how this chapter of their lives ended up. I kept thinking "this would make a great movie."  Highly recommended, just make sure you don't have an otherwise busy schedule before you start reading."  Regina Knows! Talk Show Host

"I found this book to be both thought provoking and entertaining.  The depth of the characters makes them seem real and after you get to know them, you find yourself experiencing their pains and emotions as though you were one of their friends.  I recommend this book highly."  Craig Cochran, Dreamworks Animation

 

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