Louis, Missouri, and rural Mississippi. As the fifth born of eight children, Odessa loses her innocence at first when her drunken father sexually abuses her, and then again when she alone witnesses her father taking the life of his own brother. Fifth Born is Zelda Lockhart's debut novel, lyrically written and powerful in its exploration of how secrets can tear apart lives and families. It is a story of love, longing, and redemption, as Odessa walks away from those whom she believes to be her kin to discover the true meaning of family.

    She was the pampered daughter of a prosperous rural preacher when she came to Philadelphia in the seventies -- and he was a conservative professor at the university she was attending, the man who rescued Verdi from an ugly addiction, and left his sophisticated wife for her when he fell in love with the confused young southern girl. It was another student, a poor and militant city boy named Johnson, who awakened Verdi's passionate heart and taught her to love heroin. But Johnson was an obsession Verdi closed her eyes to but never got over, and now he has come back into her life -- rekindling with one look the fire that still smolders in the ashes of the past, sending them both skidding dangerously and uncontrollably toward the mad desires of their youth.

    

    Jolene is half of P.G. County’s number-two couple–and she desperately wants what she doesn’t have: namely Barbara’s husband. Pearl owns a hair salon and lives on the outskirts of the posh community with her son, Kenyatta. She’s not only juggling a growing business and a bad divorce, but now she’s has to cope with Kenyatta’s less-than-ideal girlfriend. Candice is white and liberal, but her daughter’s new beau tests her beliefs–and opens a can of worms she never knew existed. Lee is a runaway teen, a girl whose only connection to her father is an old photo and the belief that he’s well-off and waiting for her in . . . P.G. COUNTYFrom the Trade Paperback edition.

    THE LONELY POLE - A TWO PART MEGA NOVEL BY TAKERRA ALLEN! We’ve all got dreams… How far are you willing to go for yours? Baby, Nyema, Portia, and Rocsi couldn’t have any less in common than what meets the eye. But under dire circumstances and through different walks of life, they all end up in the same place. Dreamz, a seedy strip joint in the backstreets of Dirty Jerz, conceals some of the darkest secrets and holds captive the souls of many pretty girls lost. In a day and age where the strip life is glamourized and celebrated, take a walk with four women who will tell the tale a bit differently. Lost loves, broken hearts, dreams deferred, all in the name of the almighty dollar and it’s only a pop, twerk, and grind away. But how far is too far, and when do you know you’ve gotten there? And even more important, how can you find your way back? At the sad realization that the pole has no mercy, these women must come to grips with their reality. The pole is cold, the pole is greedy, the pole is wicked, the pole is deceiving, the pole… is lonely.

    Now, ten years later, they seem to have it all. Jessica is in the limelight, a TV personality whose star is on the rise. Ellie is an optimist, happily engaged in the quest for love. Shereen is a stunning and powerful executive, and Yolanda, the strong-willed leader of the group, has defied her roots to capture her vision of the American dream. But years before, these four women banded together to keep a devastating secret-and now, ten years later, someone will do anything to see the secret brought to light. None of them anticipated the consequences of keeping the secret-and now, someone is trying to shatter all their lives. Intense, powerful, page-turning, and emotional, The Sisters of Theta Phi Kappa will keep you guessing and will make you think about the depths of friendship, the price of loyalty, and the bonds of sisterhood.

     Twenty. Twenty-one. Twenty-two. What really happened? No one has a clue. Twenty-two people are questioned, but nothing is found. So one by one, Pepper narrows the suspects down. It becomes clear that everybody has something to hide. The closer Pepper gets to truth, the more everyone lies. Somebody saw something. Someone knows the truth. Someone is a murderer. The question is…who?

    But when her husband’s thirst for high-priced sex leads them down an explosive path of passion, murder, and lies, she has to decide if her marriage is worth saving, and at what cost.Collyn Bazemore, a Manhattan madam, deals with an elite clientele, and they pay big for the best sex in the city. One of Collyn’s most important customers, the mayor, has planned an erotic extravaganza in the Hamptons, but when he sends one of his associates to seal the deal, Collyn grows suspicious of this replacement–and yet her attraction to him is undeniable. While her mind tells her no, her body aches to say yes, and just when he melts her in all the right places, it turns out he has a few secrets of his own.These two women are bound together by an erotically charged past, and when their carefully crafted facades start to crumble, neither will ever be the same.

     Tony was an unredeemable ladies' man until Tracie caught his heart. But will his conniving ex, Valarie, let them live happily ever after? Any woman would be lucky to have Benjamin. But his weakness for young women has only made him a target for gold diggers in search of a sugar daddy. Will he ever find true love? And, finally, there's Mark. Still bitter from being rejected by black women when he was young, he seeks acceptance in the arms of a white lover. But will his friends and family accept her?

    Still having male organs, Candy is housed with strong, masculine, handsome male inmates who haven't been around or touched a woman in years. Candy soon finds herself being caught in several love affairs with men with families, girlfriends and wives at home--waiting for them to be released. But Candy doesn't kiss and tell; she understands the code of silence: what happens in prison stays in prison... . CONVICT'S CANDY deals with sexual identity, prostitution and homosexuality within the prison system, the interactions and relationships between the inmates and officers, infidelity and most importantly, explains how the HIV virus spreads rampantly within the prison. It also reveals how the dangerous and deadly disease is transmitted within society, when infected inmates are released to go home.

    Original. 20,000 first printing.

    Nestled in his lavishing home in Chesterfield, Missouri, he captures women with his wealth, charm, nine-plus inches of goodness and amazingly good looks. Although his bed is never empty, his heart is. He feels nothing for the women who love him dearly and continues his search for the perfect one. When Scorpio Valentino, an attractive, seductive and charming woman saunters into his view, she offers Jaylin a life of altering changes. Her intention is to make his life a living hell, however, Jaylin is not about to take the fall. Surprisingly, soon, love presents itself. Not for the women in Jaylin's life, but he experiences love through becoming a father to Scorpio's five-year-old daughter, Mackenzie. She's his guardian angel and is there for Jaylin through the tough times he's bound to face.

    Their loyalty to each other has no boundaries, until it starts to affect India's relationship with her boyfriend. Will she have to choose between her friends and her man, or will he chose for her?

    . . Tight, terse prose harkens back to pulp fiction of the 1950s . . . The work is a breath of fresh air from lengthy, trying-too-hard-to-shock street lit and is an excellent choice for all metropolitan collections."--Library Journal (starred review, Pick of the Month)“The urban setting is unnamed but familiar in this brief, bloody tale of wasted lives lived short and hard.”--Publishers Weekly“Simultaneously a fast-paced crime drama and an engrossing, unsentimental moral tale, H.N.I.C. peers into the dark heart that underpins the codes of loyalty and friendship, betrayal and vengeance.”--Brooklyn Daily Eagle"In a genre that too often places incorrect ebonics in the mouths of black characters and fails to cross the empathy gap to get into their heads, Savile and Prodigy arrive at a seamless voice that is a refreshing take on crime fiction tropes…if tone and texture are what you’re looking for in your hardcore literature…H.N.I.C. delivers the goods."--Okayplayer"If you don't have this novella in your library collection already, please be on the lookout for this 2013 release, H.N.I.C., penned by Hip Hop artist Prodigy of the group, Mobb Deep."--StreetLiterature.com"H.N.I.C. is written by Prodigy himself and shows the extent to which good rappers can make good storytellers."--Brooklyn Based"The strength of this novella, in addition to its straightforward prose and rapid pacing, rests on the universal theme at its center: loyalty. Loyalty and the bullshit our friends put us through…Like any good work of crime, H.N.I.C. is grounded in such common experiences and, like any good work of crime, it speaks to all of us, despite the fact that very few of us can bypass an alarm system through some computer trickery."--Nerds of a Feather, Flock Together"It tells the…urban tale of deceit, greed and questioned loyalty with just enough drama to keep you turning the pages."--Literary Jewels"A brutal and quick read…custom-made for the big screen."--Charles Tatum's Review ArchivePappy tries to break out of the game before the head of his crew, Black, gets them all killed. Against his better judgment Pappy agrees to do one last job, but only because it's the price of his freedom. He knows his "brother" Black would rather see him dead than let him walk away. Yet he still agrees to do the job because Black isn't the only one who can't be trusted.Further developing the stark realism and uncompromising streetwise narratives of his lyrics, H.N.I.C. cements Prodigy's position as one of the foremost chroniclers of contemporary urban life. Simultaneously a fast-paced crime drama and an engrossing, unsentimental moral tale, H.N.I.C. peers into the dark heart that underpins the codes of loyalty and friendship, betrayal and vengeance.With H.N.I.C., Prodigy inaugurates Infamous Books, a revolutionary partnership that pairs the Infamous Records brand with Brooklyn-based independent publisher Akashic Books. Infamous Books' mission is to connect readers worldwide to crime fiction and street lit authors both familiar and new.

    That's exactly what happens when the beautiful, plus sized British Bryant crosses paths with the Boss of the Demonte Crime Family. Don Corleone is ruthless yet gentle when it comes to British. From the moment he laid eyes on her he became obsessed with getting to know her better and bringing her into his world. Meanwhile, British can't accept that he wants a girl like her. In her opinion, men don't go for big girls like her but Corleone will show her why she's the chosen one and weight don't mean nothing to him. Corleone's brothers Dominic and Lucciano stand beside him through thick or thin and take their family business serious. They live by their own code "Loyalty or Death. Not even family is exempt from losing their life when it comes to crossing the Demonte Brothers. With so many enemies out to kill them they'll need strong women to hold them down while they take care of business. British, Katera, and Chloe have all been thrusted into the Black Mafia lifestyle and have proved that they are more than worthy of being the Mob Wives that Corleone, Dominic, and Lucci need. However, they never knew loving this men would be such a hard job before they became Married to The Mob.