Book picks similar to
Mama's Lies - Daddy's Pain by Brian W. Smith


fiction
black-diamond-s-book-reviews
aa-romance
adult-fiction

Essence of You


Tiye Love - 2018
    When she is dumped unceremoniously by text three years ago, she decides to only focus on friends, work, and law school and not necessarily in that order. But that suddenly changes while on her first girls' trip to Essence Festival when she literally bumps into Montana Keyes, a handsome, charming, and wealthy professional basketball player. There is instant chemistry between them and they enjoy a no-strings attached, passion-filled weekend. While she is content to leave their weekend as a pleasant memory, Montana wants more and promises a future. And although she finds herself irrevocably drawn to him, she decides not to risk her heart on a man who has left a trail of broken hearts. As time passes Jasmine is unable to forget Montana and when they meet again she is surprised to discover he still feels the same. She now must make a choice to remain in her comfortable world or explore a new one full of passion and romance where the stakes are higher than she has ever known. Will she trust Montana, and more importantly herself enough to take a chance on love? (Revised and previously published)

Daughter of the Game


Kai - 2010
    Her poem, Pre-Destiny was featured in the April 2008 issue of Essence Magazine and she was a Featured Poet in A Place Of Our Own (APOOO) national tribute in April 2008 and RAWSISTAZ Author Showcase, April 2007. She is a contributing poet in Step Up to the Mic: A Poetry Explosion, by Poetic Press (Xpress Yourself Publishing). A winner of the No Candles Infinity Contest, hosted by Osbey Books, Kai is credited for writing emotionally raw and thought provoking works. Her short story featured in If It Ain't One Thing..., by Diva Books, Inc., received praise for its originality and realism. Similarly, her tribute to mothers, entitled Soften My Soul, featured in APOOO's Mother's Day Tribute, has resulted in an outpouring of praise and personal testimonies. Additionally, Kai's poem My Baby Girl, was featured in the Fall 2008 issue of The Write Vibe, and her poem The Other Women is featured at Tribute to Black Women. Kai also serves as a Guest Reviewer for RAWSISTAWZ Reviewers. An alumni of Hampton University, SUNY Brockport and Georgetown University Law Center, she is a licensed attorney and proud parent.

The Golden Lie


B.M. Hardin - 2017
    She loved her husband with everything in her, but everything isn't always enough. She'd thought that she'd married the exception. Needless to say, she'd thought wrong. Her husband, Dakota, isn't the man he portrayed to be and after finding out a few of his heartbreaking secrets, Yaya is forced to come up with a plan. What do you do when the person that you love the most, no longer loves you back? You tell a Lie! Hurt and full of rage, Yaya wants revenge and she becomes apart of a Lie that changes life as she knows it and things for everyone around her will never be the same. She'd forgotten to consider one little thing... What if the Lie actually worked? Twists and turns, sex and deceit, Yaya's world is turned upside down, and she learns a cold, hard truth, that isn't always the easiest to accept and that is: No matter how well you think you know someone, the truth is...you just don't know everything! Even if it's about your husband!

Daughter of Providence


Julie Drew - 2011
    summer, 1934: Anne Dodge, raised by her old-money father in a small Rhode island coastal town, has always been told that her mother abandoned them. But then Anne learns that she has a half- sister, Maria Cristina --and when Maria Cristina comes to live with Anne and her father, ugly truths begin to surface about the family.Within a context of jazz, the end of Prohibition, and stifling gender expectations, Daughter of Providence is a gripping and seductive summer read. this story of loss and rediscovery will resonate with readers long after the final page.

The Last Day I Saw Her


Lucy Lawrie - 2016
    But they lost touch after Hattie's family suddenly moved away in mysterious circumstances.Janey's instincts tell her that she must finally find out what happened to Hattie, but life is already complicated enough: she’s struggling with motherhood, a custody battle over her toddler son Pip is looming, and she finds herself falling for intense art tutor Steve. And when writing appears on the walls of her flat and Pip starts playing with an invisible friend, Janey fears she's losing her mind. Is it really a good idea to go digging up the past? As dark secrets come to light, she can't be sure what's real any more - or who to trust…Moving and suspenseful, The Last Day I Saw Her is a richly emotive story of friendship lost and found, and how facing up to the past can help you find a better future.

That Church Life


Teresa B. Howell - 2018
    Zion Holiness Church. Feisty Natalia Freemon is the "head" of the crew. Rebellious and outspoken, she has no problems challenging the church status quo. Years later however, her loss of faith will tragically impact her life. Michelle Hanks, a country girl from a hardworking farm family is the peacemaker and "soul" of the crew. Although struggling with self-confidence she is wise beyond her years and can't wait to escape the farm life and find success; even if it costs her soul. Missy Jones, the "heart" of the crew, has the face of an angel and a voice sent from heaven. A pastor's daughter raised in the church, Missy loves the ministry and her place in it. But the flesh is tempting, especially when it comes in the form of sexy church musician and Mt. Zion playboy Tommy. In spite of her dedication to the word, Missy falls hard for Tommy, and then falls out of favor with the church. Trapped in a cycle of relationship abuse, Missy's world is falling apart until Beanie, a reformed stick-up man turned Deacon, shows her real love. But when tragedy strikes, Missy is torn between the truth, that could jeopardize every-thing she loves, or a lie that could be her damnation. These three best friends drift away from each other and the church but come back together through spiritual downfall, relationship crises, drug addiction, and even murder. Can the crew survive the drama involved in That Church Life?

Best Seller


Terry Tyler - 2016
    A twenty-three year old with model girl looks and a book deal with a major publisher, she's outselling the established names in her field and is fast becoming the darling of the media.Becky Hunter has money problems. Can she earn enough from her light-hearted romance novels to counteract boyfriend Alex's extravagant spending habits, before their rocky world collapses?Hard up factory worker Jan Chilver sees writing as an escape from her troubled, lonely life. She is offered a lifeline—but fails to read the small print...In the competitive world of publishing, success can be merely a matter of who you know—and how ruthless you are prepared to be to get to the top.BEST SELLER is a novella of 40k words (roughly half as long as an average length novel), a slightly dark, slightly edgy drama with a twist or three in the tale.

My Heart Is Your Secret


Chelsea Maria - 2020
    With each passing day that went by without touching her… kissing her… I became more ill.Atlas fell in love with me when he thought it was impossible… I fell in love with him knowing it was guaranteed.I wanted Keatyn to be so in love with me that I became a second pair of skin to her. So engraved in her that she was unable to breathe unless I exhaled first… But I had secrets. And she had silent insecurities. With everything combined, we were a disaster waiting to explode…

The Season of Open Water


Dawn Tripp - 2005
    The Season of Open Water is the passionate, searing story of a young woman coming of age in a New England seacoast town that is swept up in the dangerous trade of rum-running.It is October 1927. Bridge Weld is nineteen, headstrong and beautiful, working in her grandfather Noel's boatbuilding shop. When Noel is approached by a local bootlegger to refit a boat for smuggling, he feels in his gut that he should not accept the work, yet he takes the job for the money it offers and for the chance it gives him to build a future for his beloved granddaughter, Bridge, and her brother, Luce. What Noel doesn’t count on is that Luce will be lured into the rum work himself and will try to pull Bridge into it with him. But Bridge has embarked on a different course. Caught up in a passion for Henry, a veteran of World War I, Bridge is propelled beyond the confines of her known world, and ultimately she must choose between the man who loves her and the brother to whom she has been loyal all her life. As Bridge strikes out on her own, Luce's fierce attachment spirals out of control.Exquisitely written, haunting in its rendering of place, The Season of Open Water is a superb novel about a family and the lawlessness of the heart, a love story that explores the often inescapable connections between violence and desire.

The Bewildered


Peter Rock - 2005
    There is only one adult they admire, whom they suspect might hold secrets worth knowing. Natalie lives alone in a decrepit trailer, yet seems happy, and to have few concerns. As they befriend her she persuades them to harvest copper wire from the high tension electrical lines in the countryside around the city, until one day when there is an accident in which Leon is electrocuted. He appears to shake it off, yet soon?despite his denials of anything being wrong?his behavior comes to resemble Natalie's in many ways. The mystery of what has happened to Leon (and to Natalie) leads Kayla and Chris on an adventure that takes them into the world of a remarkable group of people. These people live among us and are almost impossible to recognize, yet they possess different needs, and different powers. What they do not possess is insight into their condition, or any awareness that they are different. Others are left to wonder at?and attempt to profit from?the possibilities these people contain. Chris and Kayla are not alone in attempting to study, to use, and perhaps even to join their ranks.

Sweet Pastries & Sourdough: (Little Duck Pond Cafe, Book 15)


Rosie Green - 2021
    But when Katja's ski-ing holiday ends in disaster, a new teacher must be found very quickly. Anita is up for the challenge, but - fresh from a break-up and an operation that's left her feeling physically and emotionally vulnerable - the last thing she's looking for when she moves to Sunnybrook is a new relationship. So it's Sod's law that she should find herself with not one but two guys vying for her attention. Sven, from Denmark, is a bit of an enigma - but maybe passion lurks beneath his cool reserve? And as for twenty-five-year-old football coach Ross - surely she'd be asking for trouble getting involved with a gorgeous man a decade her junior? (Although her football-mad son Rufus seems to love him.)Moving in with Bertha proves a real comfort - but can Anita get to the bottom of what's troubling the older woman?Anita's job at the True Loaf Bakery is only temporary, but she finds herself drawn ever deeper into life in the village - especially when she finds a child's bracelet from long ago, in the rubble of the newly-renovated building. Solving the mystery of who it belongs to takes Anita on a journey of discovery - a journey that might just help her discover what her own heart really needs...

Playgroups and Prosecco: The (mis)adventures of a single mum


Jo Middleton - 2019
    Readers of Why Mummy Drinks, Unmumsy Mum and The Single Mum's Wish List will love this debut novel from parenting blogger Slummy Single Mummy.'You'll end up warming to Frankie so much that you'll be wishing you could crack open a bottle of prosecco with her in real life!' MIKE GAYLE, bestselling author of The Man I Think I Know________________________________ January 3rd Jaffa Cakes - 7. Times I was forced to watch a small child do a dance involving a dusty piece of ribbon found under the sofa - 4. Inappropriate thoughts about Zac Efron - undisclosed. Single mum Frankie’s whole life revolves around her kids. But when your toddler has a more active social life, something has to change. Forget ‘me-time’, Frankie would settle for some adult conversation, and watching something other than the Disney channel. The local playgroup may be ruled by Instagram mums with perfect husbands but Frankie accidentally forms a splinter group of single parents. After all, Mummy really needs a playdate of her own. (Now pass the prosecco.)________________________________WHAT READERS ARE SAYING'As a mum of three I could totally relate to this novel on so many levels' - Titian'Hilarious - made me laugh out loud' - Dominique'Lots of funny anecdotes parents will recognise!' - Claire'With shades of Bridget Jones, Frankie stumbles through life as a single mum' - Ann'A very funny and realistic look at motherhood' - Katrina

Rocking the Babies


Linda Raymond - 1994
    Martha Howard is prim, educated, and middle class. She's had many advantages in life, but she's stuck in the past, ruminating about the death of her infant son. Nettie Lee Jones is fat, poor, and caustically outspoken. She's raised five children and two grandchildren, including her daughter Yolanda, who's addicted to crack and who, as the novel opens, has just given birth to, then abandoned, her premature daughter. Although these women at first view each other with suspicion and contempt, they soon discover a profound mutual need. What begins as animosity ends in understanding.

One Endless Summer


Laurie Ellingham - 2017
    The perfect summer read.’ Brew and Books Review Three best friends. Three continents. Three months to live. How long can you keep a secret? Three best friends are embarking on an all-expenses paid trip of their dreams. The only catch? Every moment will be documented on film.Lizzie is finally ready to embrace adventure for the very first time. It’s their last three months together, but it is Lizzie’s time to finally start living!Jaddi is known for her stunning looks, flirtatious attitude and many conquests. But Jaddi has a secret and on this last trip together she needs to decide whether her best friends will ever know the real her.Samantha has always been the ‘grown up’ of the group, the one with a five year plan. What Lizzie and Jaddi don’t know is that Sam is trapped, and her perfect life isn’t quite what it seems…As they trek across the globe Lizzie, Jaddi and Samantha must come to terms with loss, love and trusting one another. But will it all be too late… ‘Speechless at just how breathtaking this book really is.’Rachel Gilbey ’Mind-blowing, enchanting, heart-breaking, moving, spell-binding and emotional.’The Writing Garnet

Platinum


Aliya S. King - 2010
    Alex has been interviewing celebrities and hangers-on long enough to know all that glitters isn’t gold, so she’s determined to get the real scoop. Still, it’s not going to be easy to get past the wives’ gilded cages... Beth Saddlebrook, wife of aging rapper Z. They have three beautiful boys and a seemingly endless supply of cash. But Beth spends her days trying to keep Z off drugs and fielding calls from women hollering she’s just a “small-town white bitch” and claiming to be carrying Z’s baby. Only one person understands what she’s going through... Kipenzi Hill, multiplatinum-selling R&B artist and Beth’s best friend. Her relationship with rap star and record label president Jake is an open secret in the industry. She knows Jake loves her, but he’d rather break up than publicly acknowledge it. Now she has learned that the newest (and much younger) R&B sensation Bunny has been signed to Jake’s label. Josephine Bennett, wife to Jamaican singer and Überproducer Ras Bennett. Josephine doesn’t just want to spend her husband’s money, she wants to contribute. Her fashion company is finally starting to get media attention when her husband admits to something she’s suspected all along — he’s fallen in love with another woman. Cleopatra Wright, every man’s dream girl, a video vixen with a story to tell and scores to settle. Cleo’s got that thing no one can put a finger on and no man (or woman) can resist. Some would call her evil or misguided or both, but Cleo always moves with a purpose and she’ll stop at nothing to get what she wants...Alex realizes she may have more in common with these women than she’d like. What if this is a glimpse of how her life will be if Birdie finally gets signed to a major label? Stuck between her loyalty to this newfound sisterhood and her obligation to write the truth, Alex is forced to rethink everything she knows about work, friendship, and love.