IT’S ALL GOOD

Gia and her girls from the Hi-Steppers dance squad are back, and junior year of high school holds such promise. There are big events connected with their support of the football team as well as the possibility of her long-term friendship with Ricky becoming something more. Gia has settled into her new family configuration with her stepfather and stepsister. When her mother and aunt establish a club at church to promote sexual abstinence and expect Gia and her cousin Hope to recruit their friends, however, life gets complicated. The usual relationship drama within their group takes a nasty turn with a ripped-from-the-headlines subplot featuring a mother posing as a teen on a social-networking site. This series improves with each episode. Gia continues to be an engaging, lively teen full of sassy good humor. Other character portrayals are much more complete than in earlier entries, and the story keeps a steady pace as it moves through the school year. Carter portrays a rounded picture of African-American teen life anchored by school, church and family. (Fiction. 12 & up)