Black & Ugly (Triple Crown Publications Presents) [Paperback]

T Styles (Author)

Book Description

Series: Triple Crown Publications Presents | Publication Date: January 1, 2007

Parade Knight hates her complexion. As a result, she considers herself to be unattractive and condones the misuse of her body. Sky Taylor is beautiful, fly and wanted, and loves reminding Parade of her imperfections especially after suspecting that she may be sleeping with her man, Jay Hernandez. Miss Wayne is hilarious and a self-proclaimed girlfriend who enjoys the attention his friends bring. If you let Miss Wayne tell it, he s not a gay, he s just one of the girls. Daffany Stans uses her body for profit and hides a health secret so serious that it could endanger the lives of her friends, considering their sex partners are so closely related. Black and Ugly is a tale of four totally different friends from the same block, whose friendship is tested during a seemingly innocent game of Truth or Dare. When fatal secrets begin to surface, will Parade give up the friend whose shadow she has walked in all her life? And will Miss Wayne and Daphne abandon their friends to save themselves?

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

With a goal to become one of the world s greatest multi-genre African American female authors, T. Styles takes her swing at her true love, Urban Lit writing. Born in Southeast Washington, D.C, and raised in Houston, Texas, she now resides in Baltimore County, Maryland with her son. She credits her creativity to God, the hundreds of DVDs she has in her collection and trailblazers such as Sister Souljah, saying that, In order to be blessed, you have to pay homage to those who ve paved the way. Although writing is her love, she is certainly multi-talented. Having worked as a Certified Massage Therapist, Model and Public Speaker for major companies/organizations such as The Office of the US Supreme Court, Marriot, Carefirst Blue Cross and Blue Shield and Eduserc, she has discovered that her true passion is writing. In addition to working with companies and individuals regarding Health and Wellness issues, T spends her time speaking honestly about the issues she s experienced with the law as a juvenile. She is no stranger to the complexities and issues of the street. I believe urban writing doesn t glorify crime, it brings to light what really exists. It is my hope that through writing, I can steer as many young people away from this lifestyle as possible. To me, there s no harm in that. With an excellent support system, including her son and best friend, she plans to use all of the tools at her disposal, as she strives to create the next great novel.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Triple Crown Publications; 1st edition (January 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977880419
• ISBN-13: 978-0977880416
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #353,240 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Darkness and Deception, March 21, 2007

By 

Jennifer Coissiere "The Tough Critic"... (Georgia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Black & Ugly (Triple Crown Publications Presents) (Paperback)

Every word we say to people, if we hear it enough it starts to ring true. If you are someone's friend will you continuously bring them down with your insults or lift them up with your compliments? T. Styles weaves a story of an unusual type of friendship in Black And Ugly.

Four friends that have been together from early childhood, have their friendship tested by jealousy, lies, cheaters, and secrets. Parade Knight is dark-skinned, and because her mother and Sky Taylor, who is supposed to be her best friend, tell her that she is black and ugly, she believes them. No matter who tells Parade that she is beautiful, she still thinks that she is not because that is what she has heard her entire life. Even though Sky belittles Parade, Parade would do anything for Sky.

Sky is light-skinned with pretty hair and clothes to die for. She thinks that she is better than everyone, and even though she is pretty, it makes her ugly inside. Sky's "I am better than you" attitude goes too far at times. She goes so far that she does the unthinkable, but a simple game will bring the truth to light.

Daffany Stans is the resident prostitute, and though her friends know that this is how she funds her lifestyle, they do not know much more. Daffany keeps all her business to herself. One of her secrets almost costs her her life.

Miss Wayne is their self-proclaimed girlfriend, but do not call him gay. He is the comic relief in this circle of friends, and he keeps it real with them. He knows just about everybody's secrets and he has his own opinion on them, but he cares for them all just the same.

This story is told from the first person and third person's point of view. The first person was when the main characters were telling the story and then there was the subplot where the supporting characters were told in third person. There were a few editing misses, but other than that the story was a quick read. I would recommend this to anyone that is tired of reading the usual type of urban fiction that deals with drugs, prostitutes and drive-bys. This book offers a little more substance.


Jennifer Coissiere
APOOO BookClub

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't judge a book by it's cover, June 1, 2007

By 

Grown and sexy (Fort Washington, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black & Ugly (Triple Crown Publications Presents) (Paperback)

When I first saw this book on Amazon I immediately thought this was just another "ghetto, thug, all about the game" book. To my surprise this book was a great read. This young author has a great talent as she is able to bring the reader into the lives of three friends. My only problem with this book is the cover and title as it is very misleading as those of us who are mature and enjoy reading books with substance. The cover and title gives one a preconceived idea of its works.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars dj{ new jersey}, March 17, 2007

By 

DJ - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Black & Ugly (Triple Crown Publications Presents) (Paperback)

this book was so well written and such a great read. I loved all the characters including sky because we have all come across a "Sky" sometime in our lives. Any one reading this book will not be disappointed