Beach Thing


D.L. White - 2018
    But the day he meets Ameenah, he becomes consumed by an entirely different and more attractive distraction--his bold, beautiful, sexy neighbor with the "glorious hips" and a penchant for ice cream. Ameenah Porter, daughter of successful New York restaurateurs, moves to the beach town of Black Diamond to fulfill her dream of opening a smoothie shop. She doesn't need the distraction of a new man but the tall, dark and handsome Wade, who's staying in the giant sized home at the end of her block, is irresistible. Ameenah's days at Tikis & Cream are spent cooling off her customers with her gourmet smoothie blends. Her nights on the shores of Black Diamond Bay are enchanting and romantic, and soon Wade and Ameenah find themselves in the middle of a Beach Thing... a fun, meaningless tryst that will end when the summer is over. Or will it? Wade is returning to Brooklyn at the end of the summer. Ameenah lives on Black Diamond. Neither want this Beach Thing to end... so is this fling really a fling or is it the beginning of something real... and will they realize it in time?Indulge in a fun, steamy #beachyblackromance and join me on Black Diamond.

The Fame Game


Lauren Conrad - 2012
    You just have to know where to look for it. Nineteen-year-old Madison Parker made a name for herself as best frenemy of nice-girl-next-door Jane Roberts on the hot reality show L.A. Candy. Now Madison's ready for her turn in the spotlight and she'll stop at nothing to get it. Sure, she's the star of a new show, but with backstabbing friends and suspicious family members trying to bring her down, Madison has her work cut out for her. Plus, there's a new nice girl in "reality" town—aspiring actress Carmen Price, the daughter of Hollywood royalty—and she's a lot more experienced at playing the fame game... When the camera's start rolling, whose star will shine brighter?Filled with characters both familiar and new, Lauren Conrad's series about the highs and lows of being famous delivers Hollywood gossip and drama at every turn.

Who Does She Think She Is?


Benilde Little - 2005
    At twenty-six she is still the "baby girl," the indulged only child of Camille and the only grandchild of Geneva. As the wedding draws closer, the Branch family is turned upside-down -- a $7,000 designer wedding dress? A fiance who's a "white boy"? But that turmoil is nothing compared to what happens when Aisha falls hard for another man.All the excitement stirs up old feelings in the Branch women, and they reflect separately on their own lives and relationships, and the things they wish had turned out differently. Geneva, a seventy-year-old powerhouse who always strove for "Negro respectability," has never approved of Camille's decisions -- single motherhood, a career in social work, dreadlocks. Aisha, the light of Camille and Geneva's lives, is a bright, beautiful, impulsive woman who is used to getting what she wants, even if she has to fight for it. Her real father's absence still looms large in her imagination, but her stepfather, who came into her life early on, has always treated her like a princess. Now Aisha has to choose between marrying her staggeringly wealthy fiance and pursuing an elusive older man. For her part, Camille grapples with watching her adored daughter live the kind of life she didn't dare to dream of, and is just a little bit resentful of Aisha's ignorance of how hard Camille worked to make it possible. As the drama of Aisha's love life unfolds, the three women take turns narrating their own stories inLittle's most expansive novel yet.Stylish and smart, "Who Does She Think She Is?" tackles difficult questions about close family ties -- relationships characterized by abiding love but often fraught with regret and resentment. With her signature dry wit, quietly resonant insight and sharp yet compassionate eye, Little deftly explores one family's expectations and anxieties against the frenzied backdrop of wedding planning. The result is a wise, funny and beautiful book about three generations of irrepressible women.

Happily Ever Before


Aimee Pitta - 2012
    HAPPILY EVER BEFORE is best described as the comedic literary love child of the hit film’s Bridesmaids and Baby Mama. It is the story of two sisters, who while watching a Lifetime movie marathon (of course!) make a drunken pact that has more unconventional consequences than anything Lifetime could program.HAPPILY EVER BEFORE, a fractured fairytale, tells the story of Grace, the free spirit older sister, who promises Clair, her wound-too-tight younger sister, that she’d have her baby, should the need ever arise. But she certainly never thought she’d have to “deliver”. Now everyone, from Clair’s WASP-y in-laws to Diane, Grace and Clair’s mom, who has put her own life on hold, to Clair’s husband, Henry, who has a compulsive need to give Grace bizarre and overly personal pregnancy gifts, to George, Grace’s best friend who now needs to find a new drinking buddy, are dealing with situations they never dreamed of. As the sisters are faced with hormonal surges, new romances, and a calcium enriched diet, they are forced to navigate this new family dynamic and test their sisterly love in ways that keep the reader laughing out loud.Early reviews say HAPPILY EVER BEFORE: “…is a fractured fairy tale with a bushel of wit and a side of pizzazz. It’s a laugh-out-loud comedy that will keep readers enthralled from the very first page. -Paige Crutcher---Examiner.com“We absolutely love this new book and we think you will too!"-Megan Sayers, ModernMom.com