Wanda's Girls

Book excerpt: Raven, Leila, and Brooklyn Cartel have each found joy and success in the lives they have dedicated to the memory of their mother, Wanda. Referred to as "Wanda's Girls" for their entire lives, the Cartel sisters struggled to find the comforts they now enjoy—comforts their single mother pushed them to attain. They each want to be happy, but there's something in their way. Their father's negative actions in and subsequent absence from their lives affect each sister differently, but all three share a desire to have nothing to do with him or that side of their family. Enter Brandice Cartel. Younger than the three sisters she has just learned of, Brandice is mourning the death of the father she's admired and adored. She is happy to honor his dying wish: to locate her sisters and give them a special message from him. That is, until it becomes painfully clear that the older Cartel women want nothing to do with her. In a devastating turn of events, the sisters are forced to face the pain, heartache, betrayal, and love they share in an effort to attain true happiness. The Cartel women must ask themselves if happiness is what they really want ... or if bitterness provides them more comfort than they had realized.