Book picks similar to
Welfare Grind by Kendall Banks
urban-books
borrow-it-but-dont-buy-it
street-fiction
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Exposed:: When Good Wives Go Bad
Anna J. - 2013
When the other 20 percent is too tempting to turn down, do you decide to go with your family life, or do you take advantage of a once in a lifetime opportunity? Simone, Te'Nae and Shay are picture perfect wives and career women. All three juggle prestigious jobs, motherhood and wifely duties with ease, but they share a dark secret that, if exposed, could ruin everything they've worked hard to maintain. They only get one chance to decide if their marriages are worth more than the risks they take.
Baller Dreams
Tasha Macklin - 2012
He is forced to make a number of decisions that will change his life. Choosing school over the mean Detroit's Eastside streets, the sudden reality of his poor circumstances make him painfully aware of the fortunes that can be made if he embarks on the career path of a hustler. Deciding that he wants to be a baller, Dre meets and forms an alliance with an older, very beautiful female named Destiny. Unbeknownst to him, she had a secret and motive that draws her to him, which causes her to assist him in making all of his plans reality. Dre and his closest friends will create a clique called the Eastside Syndicate and set a hustle in motion like Detroit has never seen. No one else in the city will be able to compete with the murder and muscle game that they release upon the streets. However, when he falls in love with another and finds himself at odds with Destiny, the beautiful temptress who helped to make his dreams come true will stop at nothing to bring Dre and the organization that he created to its knees. Dre has everything that a hustler could ever want. Only when the tide turns, he will quickly realize that the dream life he once lived was no more than a nightmare in disguise.
Sugar Walls
Brittani Williams - 2007
In this sexy, suspenseful slice of urban fiction, an ambitious womans love ofeasy money and fast living leads her to the brink of destruction.
View Park
Angela Winters - 2006
Los Angeles-based cosmetics tycoon Steven Chase has come a long way from his humble beginnings. Steven's family, including socialite wife, Janet, and four grown children, live a life of privilege in exclusive View Park. But when Steven wants to expand his empire by adding a chain of hair salons, one woman stands in his way. Once Steven realizes he can't seduce her with money, he tries a different approach: his handsome attorney son, Carter... Meanwhile, spoiled debutante Haley Chase is busy getting into high-profile trouble on her lover's yacht, pediatrician Leigh Chase is determined to start a free clinic—against her parents' wishes—and Michael Chase is busy doing Daddy's dirty work. His only soft spot is for his wife, Kimberly, who has her own ambitions—plans that may one day shake the very foundations of the Chase dynasty—and change their view from the top forever...
Dime Piece
Tracy Brown - 2004
On one hand, she has found happiness with the love of her life, Raheem "Rah-Lo" Henderson. He is unhappily married with children, and Celeste is his well-kept secret. He loves Celeste without question, proving his affection for her by financing her dream- a beauty salon called Dime Piece. But when Rah-Lo is incarcerated for his part in a brutal crime, his right hand man Ishmael Wright is left to hold down the fort. This causes him to come face to face with the feelings he has secretly harbored for Celeste for far too long. While Rah-Lo's away, will Celeste and Ishmael give into their passion for each other, or will their loyalty to Rah-Lo stand in their way? Meanwhile, Dime Piece is the setting for tons of drama between hairstylists Charly, Nina and Robin. The ladies vie for one man's attention and the fireworks begin. Dime Piece is packed with drama, love triangles and passionate encounters. The question is, which of the ladies will ultimately be the one and only Dime Piece?
Chocolate Star
Sheila Copeland - 1997
Then the way to fame was leading him toward a mistake that could send him straight to hell...She never looked back.Lies, drugs, too many men-- golden skinned singer Topaz Black would do anything to get a hit to the top of the charts, even walk away from her friends and family. But surrounded by greed and lust, the love the longed for seemed to be slipping away forever.He broke all the rules.Brought up in South Central L.A., movie producer Gunther Lawrence learned early how to get the wealth and women he wanted-- and to turn his back on his roots. Now, blinded by Hollywood's glitter, his illusions may shatter when he discovers who really controls his career.As their lives touch, ignite, and explode, three talented African-Americans pursue fame at any cost...and the price may be their happiness...or their lives..An alternate selection of the Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club
Spoiled Rotten
Brandi Johnson - 2008
She thought she was better than everybody, or rather you thought it. But remember the day you found out that she lived in the projects/ghetto/hood just like everybody else? You were shocked, and now less envious of her, knowing she came from exactly where you did. Well, Trouble is that chick! Spoiled rotten by her brother, who has a complex occupation, and her boyfriend, the star B-ball player at their high school being sought after by colleges across the map who don't mind lacing him with SUVs and putting money in his pocket to sway him towards attending their university to play ball--Trouble seems to have it all. And what she doesn't have, she manages to get. But unlike some of the chicks in these other street lit tales; she doesn't have to use her body to get things. She uses the ghetto diva attitude that makes people believe she deserves the best and therefore they do back flips trying to provide. This urban novel has a completely different twist than any other written thus far. In Trouble's journey, she loses her brother, who she is closer to than bark on a tree, and feels as though it's the end of the world. But when she finds out that the person who murdered him had once tried to get with her, a huge scheme comes to mind in order for her to seek revenge. She pretends to like her brother's killer in order to get him right where she wants him, but her plan backfires when something happens that she never saw coming. She falls in love with her brother's killer.
YOUR HUSBAND MY MAN
K.C. Blaze - 2014
Her definition of the perfect man is the one with long pockets and a wife. She only dates married men with limited time and lots to lose. Her latest sugar daddy, Arnold Blake happily funds her business ventures until she finds herself sucked into a truly forbidden love triangle with Tori, her best friend's husband. Tori is the only man she dates for fun. He's gorgeous, well-hung and more romantic than anyone else she's been with. She convinces herself that she is saving Tori from the neglect he's receiving from her best friend. Lauren's choices will lead her down an almost deadly path too difficult to recover from.
Loyalty & Respect
Drea Delgado - 2013
Tania, fifteen years old being raised by her heroin addicted mother and being beaten on a regular basis meets Nico, the biggest drug dealer on the south side of Chicago. Realizing how she is being treated, Nico takes Tania under his wings and shows her a better life. When forced to separate due to the betrayal of a mutual friend, will they be able to maintain their relationship?
Complicated
Chenell Parker - 2017
Mekhi knew from the first moment he saw Rylee that she would be his wife. He doted on her and placed her on the pedestal that she deserved to be on. He cherished her. Or so Rylee thought. Rylee’s picture perfect life became a cracked glass frame when Mekhi’s true intentions were revealed. As fate would have it, Zyra’s brother Zyrian is standing in the wings preparing to put the glass pieces back together again. Will Rylee be willing to walk away from all that she has ever known with her husband Mekhi? Will she be willing to swim in new uncharted waters with Zyrian? Will Mekhi fight for who he believes rightfully belongs to him and only him? Will Zyrian’s persistent interests complicate Rylee’s thoughts? With a host of supporting characters and Mekhi’s extreme disdain for Zyrian, the situation gets more complicated at every turn. Will Mekhi be able to stop Rylee from committing what he considers the ultimate sin with Zyrian or will his secrets run her right into the arms of the man that he despises the most?
Why Me?
Aleta L. Williams - 2013
She blames her for the lost of the only person she's ever loved; her pimp Cobra. Popsicle feels that Monica owes her her happiness and her body. Monica respects Popsicle's hustle, but there is no way that she'd willingly sell her body for a living. Monica has plans to move down south with the love of her life and become a fashion designer. Popsicle isn't having that. She thinks it's time for Monica to pay her dues. Either she was going to do it willingly, or by force. Why Me is a novella of pure evil, revenge and undying love
My Husband's Other Women
Regina Swanson - 2014
There were too many beautiful women in the world to choose from and he was too greedy to settle down with just one. The longest he'd been in a serious relationship was two weeks. But that all changed when he met Stacy who finally snatched up his heart… and all his other drama.What he didn’t know was that Stacy, the self-proclaimed good girl, could get down and dirty when pushed to her limit. Dealing with her husband’s other women causes her to pull a few tricks from her own bag and sends everyone into a tailspin of confusion. In a story of sex, lies and cheating who does it best Rayvon or Stacy?
Bitchery(Treachery and Deceit)
Karmel Divine - 2013
Moonie Carson will take you into her life a teenage girl that has seen too much, been through hell and back. She’s suffered countless lost in her young age you’d wonder what took her so long to stand up and become cold, malicious and spiteful that she begins to show people who she starts to become because of all the hurt and pain that makes her change into that bitchery girl. With everyone she loves disappearing she attempts to keep her hopes up, but when she steps into a house that’s run by the devil, Moonie’s world continues to crumble below her feet. More bad news is reveal and Moonie has had enough and wants revenge. Will Moonie become that bitchery chick and start fighting back or would it be too late for her?
My Man, Her Son
J. Tremble - 2010
Known for having flirtatious behavior, along with an out of control sex addiction, Ko-Ko goes after every man who crosses her path. However, she will ultimately cross the line when she uses her playful seduction to catch her best friend, Lynn's only son Rayshawn. Rayshawn, a young handsome man who's never had a problem attracting the opposite sex, is too much eye candy for Ko-Ko to resist. In order for their secret relationship to progress, they must maneuver around an angry single mother, Ko-Ko's jealous daughter and tons of prying eyes. Just when things start to heat in their hush-hush love affair, Felice, the stacked and attractive owner of Fantasy Girlz Magazine throws herself in the burning fire and heats up things even more. The only problem is, Ko-Ko refuses to share and spins a web of intricate lies, cover-up stories and false alibis to have Rayshawn all to herself. Unfortunately, when all their emotions hit a boiling point, the drama intensifies and a shocking secret from the past threatens to ruin it all.
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