The Blackbirds

Destiny, Indigo, Kwanzaa, and Erica are L.A. besties, celebrating birthdays by crossing off bucket-list items and searching for a nickname for their tight support group. They shudder at the b-word, c-word and "bimbos," but a chance hearing of Nina Simone's song "Blackbirds" gives them their identity. The four women—all sizzling hot—alternate trash talk with firm emotional support as they deal with relationships gone bad, cancer, and the question if dinner has to be included to qualify as a date in Los Angeles. At times their repartee is reminiscent of an adolescent truth-or-dare game (e.g., when quizzed about the oldest guy they hooked up with or if they have ever had a lesbian encounter). It takes some time, but the novel's focus eventually comes back to men who cheat. The mother of one of the Blackbirds offers sage advice: "There are two kinds of men. Those who cheat and get caught, and those who don't get caught." Little do the Blackbirds realize, but unfaithful acts are happening way too close to home.