Book picks similar to
Ride or Die by Solomon Jones


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african-american
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Diva Diaries


Janine A. Morris - 2006
    She's a successful marketing executive who still believes in sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.

My Love Ain't Meant For A Thug : The Beginning Of Us


A'zayler - 2015
    He’s been living his life on the grind for as long as he could remember. Dominating the streets, and every other small time hustler in quest of his position at the top. Showing no mercy to the men and disregarding the women Congo was on a power trip until the murder of his oldest brother. Everything he’d worked for came to a screeching halt and he’s left with nothing. Now he’s forced to live a regular life working a regular job. The dope game having always been his first love, he now has nothing left that’s appeasing to his heart. A unique beauty dumbed down to nothing more than an extra source of income, Honey, is desperate and lost. She desires a way out of her current situation but with the only family she has locked away forever, she’s all alone. Getting to the money day in and day out, Honey shuts herself away from any and everything not aiding in her success. Having been used and taken for granted in her past relationship, she’s a little more resistant to the advances of the handsome young thug that’s captivated her truest feelings. She’s determined to ignore him and his efforts until there’s no more reasons to run. Here in the moment with this totally perfect stranger Honey decides to give it a chance. Both needing security and someone in their corner they embark on this new journey together. Struggling but determined to make it, Congo and Honey stick side by side, loving one another past their current situation. Believing in the visions he has for them and the passion filled relationship they’ve started, Honey promises to stay down until he makes it. Congo’s life was going nowhere fast until his heart took to Honey, so now that he has her he’s going above and beyond to show her that as much as she believes that it isn’t, her love is indeed meant for a thug.

Hunger


Erica Simone Turnipseed - 2006
    His former identity as a successful investment banker and eligible bachelor has disappeared. A beleaguered graduate student, she's got no money, no man, and no Ph.D., yet. A year of predoctoral research in Haiti leaves Noire drained. And a trip home to Côte d'Ivoire offers Innocent little more than intermittent sexual gratification. In the aftermath of 9/11, Innocent and Noire are back in New York City and find solace in each other's bed. But even that arrangement collapses under the weight of Innocent's revelation that he has unfinished business in Africa. For Innocent and Noire, patching together their unraveling lives becomes an exercise in hope and humility. With Hunger, Turnipseed lives up to the promise of A Love Noire and has matured into a writer who fearlessly explores the intersection of sex, love, identity, and loss in a cross-cultural context.

A Down Chic


Mallori McNeal - 2005
    For a 17-year-old, Amina has a decent life. But after meeting her father and 23-year-old brother for the first time, things take a turn for the worse. Amina ends up alone, trying to fend for herself and save her boyfriend, Kayne, from 3 years in jail. Amina must prove her loyalty to Kayne, but can you be a Down Chick without being locked down yourself? This is a question that never crosses Amina’s mind, leading her to make the ultimate mistake of her life. Author Mallori McNeal began writing Down Chick at age 14, during the summer before she began her first year in high school. She completed Down Chick and was accepted for publishing at age 16. Mallori currently lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Night of the Party


Rachael English - 2018
    By the end of the night, the parish priest, Father Leo Galvin, is dead.The lives of four teenagers - Tom, Conor, Tess and Nina - who had been drinking beer and smoking in a shed at the back of the house, will never be the same. But one of them carries a secret from that night that he has never shared. The friends go on to lead very different, separate lives - some quiet, others in the media spotlight - but the four remain connected by what happened during the time of the big snow.As the thirty-fifth anniversary of Father Galvin's murder approaches, Conor, now a senior police officer, becomes obsessed with the crime his father failed to solve. He believes that Tom can help identify Father Galvin's killer. But does Tom wish to break his silence? His dilemma draws the four friends back together, forcing them to question their lives and to confront their differences. But only Tom can decide whether Kilmitten's secret will finally be revealed.

Never Go Home Again


Shannon Holmes - 2004
    And yet, like so many others in Corey's neighborhood, he finds the temptations of the lucrative drug trade too great to resist. While he makes fast money for a while, it is inevitable that it is he who has to pay, with his time and maybe even his life: by the age of sixteen Corey is locked up. Incarcerated in Riker's Island and then in prisons upstate, Corey lives through experiences that threaten to destroy his body, his mind, and eventually his spirit. But in the midst of his horrific imprisonment he discovers new strength to keep himself together and survive. Corey meets a few kind souls who mean him well, including a teacher who encourages him to get out of prison and make something of himself. The teacher also advises Corey to "never go home again." Though the homesick Corey does not immediately understand, he ultimately realizes the wisdom of his mentor's words. Unflinching and riveting, this story is the firsthand account of the brutal, unforgiving inner-city streets and prison life, as well as a difficult lesson in accepting responsibility and moving on.

In My Hood


Endy - 2006
    As a once successful businesswoman, Desiree "Rae-Rae" Johnson use to avoid driving through that section of the neighborhood--until she fell on hard times. After becoming a crack addict, she starts living with her soul mate Bilal "Bunchy" Wilson, the man who introduced her to cocaine. After witnessing a double murder and struggling to survive the everyday dramas to support their drug habits, they manage to pull off one of the biggest robberies in New Jersey's history. Bilal is sentenced to life for murder and armed robbery and meets his sudden death in prison, leaving Desiree to face the demons of her past alone. After turning her life around, she meets one of the top men in the game, Ishmael Jenkins, and falls for him, not knowing his secret past. Ishmael is comfortable in his position in the hood and falls for Desiree just as hard. All hell breaks loose as Ishmael's loyalty is tested and Desiree struggles to maintain her sobriety. Between love, murder and a possible relapse, will they survive? Or will they be another statistic in this society in which we live? Have you seen this in your hood? Well, this is what happened In My 'Hood.

Saved by A Billionaire


Miss J. - 2021
    

The Cartel


Ashley Antoinette - 2009
    The Diamond family is a force to be reckoned with, but all hell breaks loose when they lose their leader. The most ruthless gangster Miami has ever seen, Carter Diamond leaves behind a wife, twin sons, a daughter, and a secret. The secret is his illegitimate son, Carter Jones. When Young Carter learns of his father's death, he comes to town and is introduced to the legacy of The Cartel. Miamor is a woman who uses her beauty to enhance her skill as a contract killer. She is the leader of The Murder Mamas. When her crew is hired to take down The Cartel, they get caught slipping, and Miamor loses her sister in the process. She is determined to get revenge from The Cartel. Unknowingly, she meets the son of Carter Diamond, and he immediately catches her heart. She is sleeping with the enemy, and when she finds out, she is torn between love and revenge. Young Carter and Miamor lead two different lifestyles. They are on opposing teams, and when their worlds collide, the truth will be unveiled in an unpredictable ending.

The Lifers' Club


Francis Pryor - 2014
    Most of the sites he dug were ahead of industrial development or new housing estates, gravel quarries, roads, etc. The people who did the work were down-to-earth. Some were students, others were professional diggers – but they all knew what they wanted from life and were prepared to work long hours, for very low pay. In the seventies to nineties, Alan and his colleagues lived in abandoned houses or camped out on the edges of industrial estates. They were always covered in mud, were deeply suntanned and drunk (or stoned) on their days off. They were feared by respectable citizens. They were known as Circuit Diggers because they worked the 'circuit', moving from one excavation to another, as new sites were opened, right across Britain.Like others on the circuit, Alan Cadbury is obsessive: he won’t let problems lie, even when he’s slumped drunk in a lonely bedsit, somewhere in the Fens. But there’s another side to him, too: he enjoyes solving mysteries. In the late ‘90s he helped to give a forensic archaeology course and there met Richard Lane, now a senior detective in the Leicestershire force. DCI Lane helps him tackle new cases. But this is his first big one: it involves an 'honour killing', which happened eight years ago in Leicester. Most of the action takes place in the Fens, where Alan has lived all his life. It’s a dark tale of past wrong-doing and modern criminality – on a very large scale. And it’s not without violence and rapid action. Alan’s life may be harsh and at times unpleasant, but it’s not likely to be very long, either.

Multiple Me's


Sasha Wright - 2013
    Living the fast life way before her adult years, she finally met her match when she fell in love with Rex. Although she thought he was everything she’d been missing, she soon learned Rex was not the man she thought. Now over twenty years later, she’s desperate to find her long lost daughter who she was forced to abandon all those years ago. Oneca Alvarez has always tried to live her life as a good girl. Growing up as a self- proclaimed daddy’s girl, she always did everything in her power to make her daddy proud. Despite her efforts, trouble is always near, and no matter how far she runs, there’s nothing this timid twenty-five year old virgin can do to escape it. Ocean Robinson has never been the type to let anyone run over her. A self-certified bitch, she constantly leaves a path of destruction behind her. Ocean, always the one to be in control, feels she has the best of both worlds as she can manipulate any situation she’s involved in. Soon, Ocean will realize that everything she thought was real just can’t be, and she actually never had any control at all. When life hits them with full force, they learn that the past will always come back around. These 3 ladies will all have to face the truths in their lives all while discovering the connection they all share.

Bad Boys Do It Better: In Love With an Outlaw


Porscha Sterling - 2016
    The oldest of four girls. Graduate of New York Law School, two years earlier than expected, at the top of my class and apple of my father’s eye. After years of hard work and dedication, I’m finally rewarded by being able to sit in on one of the biggest trials in the city, being handled by the district attorney himself. I’m excited and terrified about working with him. After all my years of dreaming, the time has finally come. But then I met him... Luke “Outlaw” Murray. The youngest of six boys. Graduate at the top of his class at hood university where he got his degree in the streets. Certified in Street Nigga-ology. He’s rude. He’s arrogant. He’s abrasive and he’s… did I say he was rude? He’s everything I don’t want in a man. Everything I shouldn’t want… until I do. And this... this is a story about us. But beware, because it's not your average love story.

Love and War 3: A Hoover Gang Affair


Latoya Nicole - 2017
    Blaze is back and ready to set fire to anything moving. With the family questioning his motives and where he has been, it seems he is now the enemy and can't be trusted. In the midst of him trying to clear his name, will he be able to handle the secrets that lies between Drea and Babyface With Quick in jail for murdering a cop, his life hangs in the balance.. unbeknownst to him, that is not the only thing waiting to tear him down. Life as he know it will never be the same... Shadow now knows his girl can't be trusted. But do she hold a trump card that will allow her to solidify her place as a Hoover and will Shadow risk his brother's lives in order to be happy They say if you chop off the head, the body will fall. With Babyface's loyalty in question, will he be able to lead the brothers and clean up the mess that surrounds their life? Or will his one mistake tear the brothers apart forever? These four brothers are going through it all and can't catch a break. With so much turmoil, secrets, and lies within the crew is The Hoover Gang as we know it done for good

Keisha & Trigga : A Gangster Love Story


Leo Sullivan - 2015
    So when she meets Lloyd AKA Black, a rich street king who ruthlessly runs Atlanta and everything in it, she has no problem shedding her good girl image to be his coke-addicted ride or die. But there is one problem---his wife Dior who Lloyd is NOT divorcing although he tells Keisha a different story. After a turn of events that almost ends in bloodshed for Lloyd and Dior at her hands, Keisha swears to never do coke again, goes back to the stripclub, and takes back her job as a bartender. And it is there that she meets Trigga...Trigga is a boss nigga with an attitude. He's all business and making money but he has a mean, sexy swag that makes him effortlessly attract women. One night, he's in Pink Lips when he sees Keisha, but he's not there for pleasure...he's there for business. And his business involves putting a bullet straight through Lloyd's skull. What he soon finds is that Lloyd won't be an easy mark and one mistake ends up placing him and Keisha in the hospital fighting for their lives. When Trigga wakes up, the first person on his mind is Keisha--the woman he met who he now feels obligated to protect. And Kiesha is all too ready to allow him to do so as long as she can keep her best kept secrets regarding Lloyd underwraps.Dior Mitchell-Evans has been cheated on one to many times by her husband, Lloyd, and she decides once and for all that she won't continue to take it lying down. So she enlists the only man she knows just might love her more than Lloyd to help her with her plans...Lloyd's cousin, Kenyon. Although Kenyon and Lloyd were raised like brothers, Kenyon can't hide the fact that he's loved Dior throughout the years and he won't stand by idly any longer as Lloyd continues to use and abuse her.Love and betrayal sometimes fall hand in hand. But when you fall in love in the streets, you can guarantee that betrayal will soon come. This isn't the typical 'good girl meets thug' tale. This is classic romance meets thug love and it will leave you wanting more.

Kaine and Karma: Luvin' A Savage


Sha Jones - 2016
     The physical and mental abuse along with the lack of love that she receives from her evil mother at home sends her stumbling into the troubled street life. When she's not being her mother's own personal punching bag, she's laying on her back or sliding down the pole for a few dollars. To hide the embarrassment and pain of the abuse she subconsciously finds comfort in the men that only want to get between her legs, hit it raw then leave her feeling lonely, but that soon changes when she runs into a real man, a true boss. Kaine is sexy, savvy and rich. His aura is so strong that when he walks into a room, time stops. The men cheer his name and the women lust over him, but the only one that he has eyes for is Karma. Karma has been mistreated by so many men she can't help but to think that all of them are the same but is unexpectedly swept off her feet by Kaine, who shows her that there's so much more to life than being bullied by her mother and spreading her legs for chump change Kaine turns on his charm, reminds Karma that she's a queen and shows her what a real man is like. He comes into her life, digs deep inside of her soul and pulls out all of the pain that she buried deep within herself since she was a child. Karma's heart suddenly goes from cold to warm, and she now has a burning love for Kaine that she just can't put out. But now, there's a problem... While Kaine is helping Karma through her struggles, he has a few of his own. With the strength that Kaine has instilled inside of Karma, will she use it to be Kaine's backbone and help him overcome his own problems? Will she be woman enough to hold her man down the same way he's been holding her down? Will they be able to stick together and fight off the demons that are trying to pull them apart? In this latest steamy romance, Karma's new found strength will be put to the test in ways that she could never imagine.