Back in the 80's, a female rapper named Chilly C and her all female crew "Paradise Exquisine" were experiencing the Hip Hop explosion! The Hip Hop explosion was a movement created by blacks for blacks to artistically express themselves through: Music (DJing), Spoken Word (MCing/Rapping), Movement (Break Dancing) and Urban Art (Graffitti). For Paradise Exquisine, it was a celebration of music, black culture and life! Chilly and her girls all desperately wanted to be a part of the explosion by becoming the top dogs in an all-male dominated rap game. Everything was going according to plan up until "it" came along! Unfortunately, the movement was overshadowed by a dangerous and envious enemy! One so powerful, it threatened the very existence of Chilly and her beloved friends. They find out the hard way that in a selfish world where the enemy is king and reigns disastrously supreme innocence, morals, pride and life itself are all sacrificed for an enduringly tragic love affair. They become whores in a destructive relationship with a Powerful, Illegal, Mind, Pollutant (PIMP) called Crack! After falling victim to their adversary, family, friendship, love, life and self-determination are all tested, questioned and challenged in an antagonistic battle of the wills. Will the powerful embrace of King Crack pimp everything that Chilly and her friends value and love? Will the group discover that King Crack has many other mistresses and that they are just another notch in its glass pipe? Or, will they find a way to escape the evil, adulterous grip of their illicit lover?
About the Author: The author, Cheryl Spikes, moved to Farragut Houses in the spring of 1973. Most people would classify Farragut as a ghetto but to Cheryl, it was her home; a place where she dared to be herself! Life in the projects was fun for Cheryl especially when the 80's Hip Hop era began! Cheryl had always enjoyed writing poems, short stories and rhymes for her public, junior and high school friends; so becoming an emcee/lyricist was an easy transformation for her. The excitement of the rap explosion had Cheryl and her close friends create the Hip Hop group, "Paradise Exquisine." Together they worked diligently at their craft in an effort to become famous in the all-male dominated genre. Cheryl and her group received praise and glory from their neighborhood peers and were considered local celebrities. However, they never received the outside fame they were seeking. Becoming depressed after years of struggling, they realized their quest for fame may never materialize. Amidst their anguish, Cheryl and her crew continued to create music up until becoming introduced to the disastrous Crack epidemic of 1986. Now older, Cheryl struggled to regain her life! She concentrated on her education. Cheryl enrolled and then graduated from New York Technical College's Office Technology course. She was later employed as an Executive Secretary for one of the Assistant Commissioners at The City of New York and was happy to be making money but, for some reason she felt empty inside! Cheryl realized that she missed the excitement and the challenge of writing. Since she had matured, her penchant for writing was now geared towards song writing and novels. She decided that since her career in rapping and singing didn't work out, that maybe she should now try her hand at using one of her other God given gifts; writing professionally. She had always envisioned herself as a published writer. According to Cheryl, "You'll never know until you try!" This book is her first try!