Sugar Rush

Not only has Kim's mum run off with a toy boy but now her dad says she has to leave her posh school and go to the local comprehensive. Luckily she is taken under the wing of the Top Girl herself, Maria Sweet, otherwise known as Sugar.

Kim finds herself overwhelmingly attracted to Sugar and the two embark on a passionate lesbian affair. For Kim, this is true love but she soon suspects that Sugar may not be as committed.

Despite a warning about explicit content, the sex scenes are mild and inoffensive, focusing on the psychological rather than the physical. The casual attitude to drugs and alcohol abuse is far more worrying but, disturbingly, probably paints a realistic picture.

Shortlisted for the 2005 Booktrust Teenage Prize, this is a controversial and daring look at the gritty reality of teenage experience.