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Maintenance Man II by Michael Baisden


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Moth to a Flame


Ashley Antoinette - 2010
    With reign over the city's drug trade, Benjamin Atkins made sure that his precious daughter, Raven, was secluded from the grit that the city had to offer. But when Raven's young heart gets claimed by Mizan, a stick-up kid in search of a come-up, there's nothing Benjamin can do about losing her to the streets. She chooses love over loyalty and runs off with Mizan, but her new role as wifey soon proves to be more than she can handle.Puppy love always feels right, but things turn stale, and she soon finds that everyone she loves has disappeared. All she has is Mizan, but when hugs and kisses turn to bloody lips and black eyes, she realizes that Mizan is not who she thought he was.Raven becomes desperate for a way out, but this time, Daddy can't save her. Every time she finds the courage to leave, fear convinces her to stay. Like a moth to a flame, Raven is drawn to Mizan, even though she knows he'll be the death of her.When the hood life she chose becomes unbearable and the only way out is in a coffin, what will she do?

The Reason Why


Vickie M. Stringer - 2009
    The hottest spot was Jazzy Jay's, and that's where one of the guys slipped his gun into her pocketbook, knowing that the police who had just descended on the club wouldn't check the girls for weapons. She didn't know his name or anything other than he was cute and charming. But when she tracked him down to return his property, she found out his name was Chino; his game was hustling; and his plan was to make her his woman, his wifey, and give her more than she ever bargained for out of life, love, and the pursuit of money.

Grand Opening: A Family Business Novel


Carl Weber - 2015
    From the minds of New York Times bestselling authors Carl Weber and Eric Pete comes the game-changing prequel to their blockbuster Family Business saga. Travel back to a small Southern town where, before there was Duncan Motors, there were the Duncan brothers: Louis, aka Sweet Lou, a lover of ladies and life . . . and a man you did not want to cross; Lawrence, aka Larry, a screw-up as attracted to trouble as it was to him; and Lavernius, better known as LC, the soft-spoken college boy who simply wanted to sell cars. But the Duncan brothers weren’t alone at the crossroads. There was also the mysterious and seductive Chippy, a woman who saw a way out of her circumstances and dared to take it. Witness what changed the course of their lives when ambitions intersected with opportunity that came calling one day in the form of a man named Alejandro Zuniga. Welcome to the familiar, but as you’ve never seen it before.

Maneater


Mary B. Morrison - 2009
    A too-hot-to-handle pair of novellas that prove there's nothing more powerful than a woman bent on seduction and revenge.

Dutch


Teri Woods - 2004
    James, also known in the streets as "Dutch," is noted to be the most dangerous criminal to come up in Jersey in the last 30 years. From his experience and skill as a young car thief, Dutch recognized the opportunity to become the ruler of the streets and seized it. Feared by all, and completely fearless, Dutch and his dangerous clique take over the lucrative heroine trade from the clutches of Nigerian drug lord Ojiugo Kazami. With both the respect and protection of the Italian Mafia, Dutch becomes the most terrifying force on the streets. Now he's on trial for allegedly masterminding what the press has dubbed "THE MONTH OF MURDER," a brutal, thirty day, killing spree where none were spared. With Dutch facing multiple life sentences and a possibly death penalty, the streets are in a mixed uproar of celebration and dread. Will this be the end of Dutch's reign of terror or just the beginning?

Sleeping with Strangers


Eric Jerome Dickey - 2007
    With a supporting cast of grifters and killers, broken-hearted squares and streetwalkers and three very different women who each want to become bad-boy Gideon's leading lady, this is a world that thrives on the darker passions of revenge and desire.

Side Chic


La'Tonya West - 2012
    She's always played by the rules but can she continue to stay in her lane after falling in love and becoming pregnant by her young boy-toy? Or will her feelings for him and the fact that she is pregnant cause her to want to change the game and become more than just his side chic?

G-Spot 2: Pride: the 1st Deadly Sin


Noire - 2011
    In the aftermath, not only has G’s massive cache of doe gone missing, but Juicy has skipped town with Gino…G’s very own son!And now Ace and Pluto, two of G’s most gutter henchmen, are hell-bent on finding the enormous pile of greenbacks that G stashed away while building his grimy empire. To make things worse, Money-Making Monique, the G-Spot’s top stripper and Juicy’s sexy, conniving rival, is hell-bent on getting some payback of her own. Can Juicy and Gino find happiness as they try to build a new life together? Or will mayhem, murder, and the bitter wrath of the streets track them down to get what’s due?Find out more in…G-SPOT 2: THE SEVEN DEADLY SINSPride: The 1st Deadly SinThe Urban Erotic Serial Saga Begins!From Pride: The 1st Deadly SinWARNING!This here ain’t no romanceIt’s an urban erotic taleWhen things got hot in HarlemGino and Juicy had to bailThey headed west to CaliWhere the sun shines everydayBut back at home a plot was brewingTo send their plans astrayThey dipped real quick, but they weren’t slickThey could run, but they couldn’t hideCheck your ego at the door’Cause the 1st Deadly Sin is PRIDE!

Afterburn


Zane - 2005
     When Washington, D.C., chiropractor Yardley Brown goes to his local bank, it isn't only to make deposits into his account. He has long since accrued some interest in Rayne Waters, a bank employee who's too beautiful to be true -- and too beautiful to be single. At least that's what Yardley believes, which is why he has never approached her. Little does he know that Rayne is anything but taken. Not for want of trying, of course. But after barely surviving a dating disaster with her hairdresser's brother and then falling for a member of her church band who, it turns out, is celibate, she's on the verge of giving up. That is, until Yardley -- discouraged by his own slew of dead-end romances -- finally works up the courage to give her a try. The true craziness, however, is just beginning, thanks to a cast of characters who seem bent on botching the young couple's relationship. There's Rayne's erratic mother, who constantly boasts about being a "good whore"; Yardley's playboy buddies, always trolling for sex; and, worst of all, past lovers who make a habit of popping up and ruining things as only old flames (or previous mistakes) can. Weaving the carnal and the comical in true Zane fashion, Rayne and Yardley's struggle to find love in a world gone mad is a timeless talk about everything that can go wrong in the dating game -- and a few things that can go right.

Project Queen


Teresa D. Patterson - 2010
    Using her body and beauty has earned her the title, “Project Queen”. She’s got it, and was born to flaunt it! She’s determined to break away from her abusive mother, and leave her impoverished lifestyle far behind.When she begins dating a notorious drug dealer, she assumes all of her problems are over. She couldn’t be further from the truth. She finds out that beauty is only skin deep, and all of the money, spinning rims, and glitter, can come at a violent price.

The Hypnotist's Love Story


Liane Moriarty - 2011
    It’s a nice life, except for her tumultuous relationship history. She’s stoic about it, but at this point, Ellen wouldn’t mind a lasting one. When she meets Patrick, she’s optimistic. He’s attractive, single, employed, and best of all, he seems to like her back.Then comes that dreaded moment: He thinks they should have a talk. Braced for the worst, Ellen is pleasantly surprised. It turns out that Patrick’s ex-girlfriend is stalking him. Ellen thinks, Actually, that’s kind of interesting. She’s dating someone worth stalking. She’s intrigued by the woman’s motives. In fact, she’d even love to meet her.Ellen doesn’t know it, but she already has.

Confessions


Sasha Campbell - 2010
    . .For almost ten years, radio talk show host Nikki Truth has shared life's ups and downs with her husband Donovan while doling out in-your-face relationship advice to her listeners. But lately it seems the good times in her own relationship--including the sex--are few and far between. Then she meets widower Kenyon Monroe, whose sizzling touch is too tempting to resist. But not everyone is under Kenyon's spell. . .Nikki's best friend, Trinette Montgomery, can't deny Kenyon is hot, but she never trusts a man who seems too good to be true. And she should know. Married to a successful CFO who travelsa lot, Trinette likes to indulge in all of life's pleasures--including the fine men of St. Louis. But when her game goes too far, Trinette stands to lose everything. . . "These characters leap off the page and make you want to join in."--Lutishia Lovely, author of Heaven Forbid

The Forgotten Hours


Katrin Schumann - 2019
    Katie’s life fell apart almost a decade earlier, during an idyllic summer at her family’s cabin on Eagle Lake when her best friend accused her father of sexual assault. Throughout his trial and imprisonment, Katie insisted on his innocence, dodging reporters and clinging to memories of the man she adores.Now he’s getting out. Yet when Katie returns to the shuttered lakeside cabin, details of that fateful night resurface: the chill of the lake, the heat of first love, the terrible sting of jealousy. And as old memories collide with new realities, they call into question everything she thinks she knows about family, friends, and, ultimately, herself. Now, Katie’s choices will be put to the test with life-altering consequences.

The Coldest Winter Ever


Sister Souljah - 1999
    Ghetto-born, Winter is the young, wealthy daughter of a prominent Brooklyn drug-dealing family. Quick-witted, sexy, and business-minded, she knows and loves the streets like the curves of her own body. But when a cold Winter wind blows her life in a direction she doesn't want to go, her street smarts and seductive skills are put to the test of a lifetime. Unwilling to lose, this ghetto girl will do anything to stay on top. Featuring a Special Collector’s Edition Reader’s Guide—including an author Q&A, detailed character analyses, and the author’s own remarks about the meaning of her story.

Whisper Me This


Kerry Anne King - 2018
    The only thing Maisey’s sure she’s gotten right is her relationship with her twelve-year-old daughter, Elle…until a phone call blows apart the precarious balance of their lives. Maisey’s mother is in a coma, and her aging father faces charges of abuse and neglect.Back at her childhood home, Maisey must make a heartrending life-or-death decision. Her confused father has destroyed family records, including her mother’s final wishes. Searching for answers, Maisey uncovers one unspeakable secret after another when she stumbles upon a shattering truth: a twin sister named Marley.Maisey’s obsession with solving the mystery of her sister forces her to examine her darkest memories and triggers a custody battle with Elle’s father. Will Maisey’s love for her daughter be strong enough to break a cycle of abuse and create a new beginning for them all?