Book picks similar to
Icing the Competition by April Cronin


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A Secret Hood Love Affair


Patrice Balark - 2018
    My father, Quincy, alongside his twin brother Quintin is known to the world as the leaders of the Taylor Cartel. Expensive cars, designer bags, shoes, and clothes, don’t excite me. That’s probably why I haven’t met a man yet who could hold my attention. Most think because I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth that I’m one of those prissy broads. But I’m far from it! I just so happen to run two of the most lucrative businesses, Daddy’s Girl, a Gentleman’s Club, and Taylor Made Constructions. Life is good, but it hasn’t always been sweet for me. I’m no different from the rest of the women in the world when it comes to these men and their games. Pierre was my first everything, he was my first love, and my first heartbreak. Even though I lost at the game of love, I still won a prize, and her name is Harmony Taylor. That’s right, the first time I had sex at the tender age of fourteen, I got pregnant. I know it sounds bad, but it is what is. I made a vow to myself to never fall in love again until I met a man that could live up to my father’s standards… JA I got the typical hood story. Grew up with a single mom. My pops died in a shootout when I was young. Word is, he was the toughest man alive and the right-hand man to the Taylor Twins. After my pops were long and gone, the twins looked out for us, they practically raised me and they are the reason I’m a young, ruthless, and rich now. Growing up protecting my OG and little sister Skylar, you’d think I’d be better with women, but the truth is told, it’s the opposite. I’m emotionless and simply unlovable, or so I thought… In this Urban Fiction Romance, you’ll take a ride with Princess and JA through the world of love, heartbreak, and broken promises.

Frost Bite: A Cold Love After All


Tyanna - 2021
    

When Kindred Spirits Unite


Carol Colyer - 2021
    But the time when she wants to make peace with her past comes, leaving her no other choice but to dig in the ashes. Danger lurks in the shadows, but she is committed to do what it takes to uncover the truth. What she doesn’t expect, though, is to find a valiant man that will kindle fires unknown to her.Will she be able to overcome her doubts and follow her heart?Theodore Anderson is looking for yet another job that would satisfy his sense of unfulfillment. Joining his uncle’s ranch would be his salvation, but his meeting with Nora gives him a whole new purpose. With her fiery spirit leading the way, he comes to question his own beliefs and family. Afraid of what he might discover, but even more terrified in the thought of losing her, he is determined to shed light on the dark secrets that torment her. This will prove to be a great challenge...But the heart fights for what it wants, no matter the risks…Even though they are both suspicious of each other, their paths begin to entwine more than either of them could have ever foreseen. As the twisted truth is slowly untangled, the two of them will have to join forces to face it. Yet, can they even trust themselves enough to listen to their hearts? Will they be able to face the past and come out unscathed, or will they be dragged in the heart of its maelstrom?

Loving a Forbidden Bride


Cassidy Hanton - 2019
    As the vendetta between the Wagners and the Paytons is reignited, the town prepares for yet another war. With his parents’ death still heavy on his shoulders, Marc Payton must take care of his sister and family ranch. Danger lurks around every corner, but things change the minute he lays his eyes on the beautiful Olivia Wagner. Their love is forbidden, transcending the decades-old feud... When a terrible “accident” occurs, Olivia and Marc must set their differences aside and unite forces. Racing against a ticking clock to rescue a helpless family from certain doom, their love will be tested...twice. A terrible storm is brewing extremely close to them and they don't even know it. *This is Cassidy's 2nd novel, a Western historical romance novel of 80,000 words (around 400 pages). No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a strong happily ever after. Pick up "Loving a Forbidden Bride" today to discover Cassidy's fantastic new story!

Workhouse Girl and The Veiled Lady: Victorian Romance


Dolly Price - 2020
    It also swallows her voice.Who could ever love a mute and broken girl like Olivia? Franklin Slater wants nothing more, but society slays his advances and Olivia is forced to flee once again.It seems that even the prayers of the voiceless fall on deaf ears.Is there no voice to speak up for this hidden heroine of the dark, Victorian streets?Can Franklin muster courage to find the woman he once desired and forsake his fears and family? And does the mysterious veiled lady he meets hold secrets that will lead him back to the heart of his one true love?If you love historical Victorian sagas that celebrate the resilience of the human heart in the face of insurmountable challenges you will love the deep and moving story of the Workhouse Girl and The Veiled Lady.

Forging the Shilling Girl (The Hudson Sagas Book 1)


Emma Hardwick - 2020
    Young, widowed Clare Byrne, is escaping the famine in Ireland. On the coffin ship from Dublin, in the final hours of the journey to England, Clare goes into labour. Weakened and alone, the young, beleaguered mother gives birth near the quayside. Unable to look after the newborn, the child is bought for a single shilling by a curious gentleman, the industrialist Samuel Hudson. What will happen to the young girl? What plans does Mr Hudson have for her? Will the child thrive, or merely survive? Also by Emma Hardwick ----------------------------------- The Urchin of Walton Hall

Princess


Holly J. Martin - 2017
    She had a gang of brothers who positively adored her. She led an affluent life at her family’s home in Maine. She even had an ongoing flirtation with the charming Jared Ross.He would prove to be her doom. After her father catches her with Jared, he virtually disowns her. Jack is forced to live in a halfway house for wayward teens run by sadistic guards. There, she experiences an assault that changes her life forever.When Jack escapes, she takes to the streets in search of a place to belong. She finds friendship in Sam, a former special forces POW determined to help anyone in need, and Noah, a young gay model with dreams of stardom. As Jack begins creating a new life with Sam and Noah, she still faces the unbelievable pain of her family’s betrayal. Jack doesn’t know the whole story. As she follows her dream of owning a recording studio, her brothers and Jared are all desperately searching for her. Their reunion will be more difficult than any of them expect. Jack has found a new family. Is there room in her heart for anyone else?

Hot Chocolate This Winter (Sag Harbor Black Romances Book 2)


Lula White - 2021
    

Because Love Said So


Aubreé Pynn - 2019
     Avion has the weight of the world on her shoulders. Everyone relies on her to hold it together and keep the family moving. But when she seeks a much-needed break, she finds herself stumbling into something that isn't easy for her to get out of. Samson has the world at his fingertips and isn't looking for a soul to share it with. When his best friend drags him out for a night of relaxation, he spots his forever. But when Avion runs off to return to her reality he stops at nothing to find her. Relinquishing themselves to love is easy, staying in love is the hard part. Can Avion and Samson climb the mountain and let love have the final say so, or will they falter and give up on everything love has to offer? Find out in Because Love Said So.

When A Thug Has Feelings


Senoj - 2017
    When her parents found out, they decided to uproot them to another city. After losing contact with Dreon, she experienced her first heartbreak and decided to shift her focus back on her education. Now twenty-three, Niya is in her final year of law school, but over the years she continued to experience the short end of any relationship she was in, including the relationship with her parents. She finally accepts that her heart has never fully healed, but that all changes once she sees Dreon again. She doesn’t know how he will feel about the secret she’s been keeping from him. Dreon Carter was known for the havoc he wreaked growing up. But after being abandoned by his mother on his grandmother’s steps, he was angry and released that anger on other kids. Sometimes, even letting Niya tag along. Barely graduating high school, due to poor attendance, he went into the streets full time and was now known by the street name Menace. He ended up serving some time in prison, but now at twenty-five, he is the king of the dope game in Cleveland, running the streets with his right-hand man, Renzo. He has a two-year-old daughter by a crazy baby mama who’s set on being a pain in his ass and causing friction between him and Niya. Along with running the streets, he’s trying to run his home, but with the streets and his home life trying to cross, he runs into problems. The bond of Menace and Niya is undeniably unbreakable, but is Niya strong enough to be the woman of a thug, going against everything she’s about, and dealing with the drama that comes along? Can Menace avoid the pressures of the street life and be the man Niya wants him to be, while also not giving up his streets, or will it all be too much?

Tales Ablaze of a Sinless Lady


Ava MacAdams - 2020
    And while her only way out is to marry above her station, true love is what she desires. Until she is caught in a compromising situation.When Leonard Whitfield, the Marquess of Cunningham, is caught alone with Lady Juliet while being betrothed to another, the scandal rocks London. However, the fire she ignites inside him makes the prospect of salvaging her honor all the more intoxicating.After a terrible accident costs Leonard his memory, Juliet is determined to help him remember the passion they shared. However, a single letter plants the seeds of doubt in his mind and threatens their very own lives: a sinister letter that promises death written in Juliet’s own hand...

Captivating a Highland Warrior


Maddie MacKenna - 2020
     Lady Marion Bewforest has been living a lie. When on her twenty-first birthday her parents confess that she was found in a barn as a babe, she vows to uncover the truth behind her identity. Even if it means embarking on a dangerous journey to the Highlands with no return. Trapped in a betrothal he never wanted, Fionnghall MacIosaig, Laird of Gille Chriost, longs to be free. When an English lady of unknown descent appears on his doorstep, he is forced to face his greatest foe yet: his own self-control. Desperately in love with a man she can't have and with no solid leads to aid her in her quest for answers, Marion is left with one choice: to flee. With more enemies than friends, Marion and Fionnghall's future hangs by the threads of the blanket her parents found her in all those years ago. Until a life-threatening accident opens their eyes to a clue right under their nose: a pair of woven initials and a secret ancestry... *Captivating a Highland Warrior is a steamy Scottish historical romance novel of 80,000 words (around 400 pages). No cheating, no cliffhangers, lots of steam and a happy ending. Get this book for free with Kindle Unlimited!

Strong Ambitions


G.P. Hutchinson - 2018
    Former Texas Ranger Emmett Strong seems to be just the man Benficklin’s town fathers are looking for, once they’re satisfied that his Chinese wife, Li, is “sufficiently civilized.” But Benficklin doesn’t want to pay a deputy. That leaves Emmett’s sidekick, Juanito, with little choice but to take his own bride, the former saloon girl Geneve, up the road to Santa Angela, looking for honest work in a crooked town.Reputations aside, it turns out that Benficklin—not Santa Angela—is the town with the next scandal on its hands. Only days after Emmett’s arrival, he steps out first thing in the morning to find a dozen men standing in the middle of the street, all in a dither over the ravaged, scantily clad body of a young, murdered Mexican girl who’s been left lying there in the dirt. Initial indications suggest hard-drinking cowboy Quirt Langdon may have done the dirty work.It doesn’t take long, however, for Emmett to sense that things aren’t exactly as they appear. Fort Concho’s Captain Roderick Prentiss seems peculiarly interested in what is clearly a civilian case. The debonair—if somewhat eccentric—gambler Nate Chaffin, who has taken up residence in Santa Angela, gives the impression that he knows things he’s not telling. And to top it all off, Benficklin’s mayor and first lady end up assassinated in their own backyard.While local officials pressure Emmett to hastily hang either a suspect or a scapegoat, honor drives the former Ranger to seek true justice for the poor murdered girl, as well as for the mayor and his wife. Ill-tempered townsfolk, pilfered evidence, and somebody taking potshots at him and his wife make Emmett wonder whether he’ll live to unravel the mystery or become the next corpse folks find in the dusty streets of Benficklin

Cranes In The Sky


Keisha Ervin - 2017
    She’s tried to work, pray, sex, sleep and smoke her problems away but she can’t escape the gloomy, grey clouds hovering over her head. Just wanting to be happy, she's blinded by love; Messiah only sees what she wants to see – always building up to be let down and ultimately crashing. She craves love and admiration but doesn’t love herself enough to know when it’s time to let go of an old flame. Directionless, she coasts along through life numb, until she meets Shyhiem, the man who will change her life forever. He’s everything she never knew she wanted, but everything that she absolutely needed. Without permission, Shyhiem marches into her life and turns everything upside down. He’s rude, cocky, angry and devastatingly handsome. To the world, he’s nothing but an ex-convict with a chip on his shoulder; but to Messiah, he’s an angel sent down from heaven who teaches her how to love again. When Messiah finds herself wasting time, daydreaming about when she’ll see or speak to him again, she knows she’s in trouble. Love wasn’t in the equation for her - especially since she still has feelings for her ex - and Shyhiem has a ghetto baby mother and two kids… Will their love prevail or will self-doubt, self-pity, and a sense of emptiness stop everything before it starts?

Q and Sade


Jade Jones - 2017
    She's sweet as brown sugar with candied yams... Honey-coated complexion... Music camay... Let's hear it for the girl... She's from around the way... Sade is not your typical around the way California girl. Coming from a good family, in the rough part of Compton, the senseless murder of her mother at a young age leaves her family in shambles, and Sade forging a way as a woman without the gentle guidance that only a mother can provide. With her razor sharp tongue, and free spirit, Sade is trying hard to blaze her own trail, despite the wishes of her controlling father and bougie ex boyfriend. Q is the Robin Hood of Tree Top Piru. Under the hardened, heartless exterior that he puts up, is a man longing for the stable love he’s been missing from his baby mama Camari. With enemies lurking around every corner, and treacherous women always trying to claim his heart, a chance encounter on a doomed night sets him on the path to finding the sense of calm that he’s been longing for in his chaotic life. Is Q even capable of loving someone that needs to be loved? Or has his heart been entirely shut off from love because of the ways of the women in his past? Will shared experiences create unbreakable bonds between Q and Sade? Or will secrets, lies, and jealousy rip them apart before their love affair even begins? Get into the story of Q and Sade, two star crossed lovers from Compton. Romeo and Juliet ain’t got nothing on this real hood love story!