Drop — Lisa Papademetriou

DON'T WE ALL harbor the secret wish that we won't have to work for it? That luck--be it a spin of the wheel, a hop of the dice, the right card at the right moment--might just choose to favor us, whether we deserve it or not? That universal desire, along with many others, is played out in the lives of three teens who hope to beat the house, and control their futures. Come meet:

• Sanjay, who wants to be much more than the dutiful, hardworking immigrant's son
• Kat, who wants enough cash to run as far as she can, from her past and who she's afraid she might become
• Jerrica, who thinks she can foresee the cards, and maybe make them be what she needs them to be.

Each is irresistibly drawn to gambling's alluring flirt, and to entanglements with each other, and within themselves. Themes of obsession and other risky business fuel the pages of this fast-moving, provocative tale.