Book picks similar to
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Passport Diaries
Tamara Gregory - 2005
There's just one problem with her picture-perfect life -- she's not got one eligible man in sight. Well, thank God she has her career . . . at least until she gets suspended from her job. To regain her sense of purpose, she plans a restorative girl's night out -- all the way to Europe.In this fresh and funny Los Angeles Times bestseller, Kia embarks on what becomes a defining journey to London, Paris, and Greece, where she finds a little bit of trouble, a whole lot of laughs, and what she didn't even know she was looking for -- herself.
Ties That Bind
Brenda Jackson - 2002
Randolph knew the moment he saw Jenna Haywood that he had to make her his. But the path to love is not an easy one. His wealthy Grandmother Julia disapproves of the match and unbeknowst to him, his brother's seemingly docile fiancee has a few plans of her own that she would like to set in motion. Betrayal and devastation lurks in unexpected places and tests the bond they believed was unbreakable. As they struggle with love and passion, secrets and lies the question is: Is love enough to help them see each other through the storms that await them ahead?
You Gotta Sin to Get Saved
J.D. Mason - 2008
Too much love, too much attention, and had too many big dreams. It was how she ended up abandoning her two daughters, Connie and Reesy to chase after a man and the promise of a dream life. But Charlotte never anticipated how her world would be irrevocably changed. Now, twenty-seven years later, her whole world shifts yet again with a letter from one of her daughters. And the past is about to bust wide open. Reesy has always been obsessed with something. Obsessed with finding her birth mother. Obsessed with her sister’s life. Obsessed with her own adopted daughter never finding out that Reesy is really her aunt. With a neglected husband, who is unknowingly drifting further and further away, a sister who is trying to escape her well-meaning clutches, and a daughter becoming more and more curious about her true parentage, finding the mother she always dreamed about seems to be an answered prayer to Reesy. That is until Reesy is brought crashing back to earth to find that her perfect life is in tattered pieces.Connie has always expected too little. Too little from the man she’s been living with for years. Too little from her modest jewelry business. And too little from her relationships, or lack thereof, with her daughter, mother and sister. And too little from herself. Until she discovers she is pregnant again and decides that this time she is keeping her baby, sending her life and her relationship into a tailspin. And rediscovering the mother who left them behind is the last thing she wants. Thrown back together again, in a maelstrom of shocking truths, Charlotte, Reesy and Connie will discover on their journey to forgiveness and redemption that you just might have to sin first in order to be saved.
Scenes from a Sistah
Lolita Files - 1997
As their careers rise and fall and men come and go, they embark on a series of adventures across America.
Blossom
Queen Pen - 2006
Lavished with expensive jewelry, exotic getaways, and, most important, her first love, Blossom's life is transformed. But her fairy tale is quickly ended when a murder occurs -- meant for the two lovers -- and Dude's emotional pain and controlling temper cause him to change his attitude toward Blossom. Soon deceit casts a dark shadow over their relationship, and Blossom is left feeling abandoned and betrayed -- but still hopelessly in love. A portrait of life in urban black America, Blossom takes us on the rocky journey of falling in love with a street hustler, where tomorrow is never guaranteed -- even for Blossom, a woman full of such life and promise.
Tar Baby
Toni Morrison - 1981
Jadine Childs is a black fashion model with a white patron, a white boyfriend, and a coat made out of ninety perfect sealskins. Son is a black fugitive who embodies everything she loathes and desires. As Morrison follows their affair, which plays out from the Caribbean to Manhattan and the deep South, she charts all the nuances of obligation and betrayal between blacks and whites, masters and servants, and men and women.
Hell Has No Fury
Keith Lee Johnson - 2007
Drugs and large sums of money are found at the scene. Several days later, in a Malibu mansion, Heather Connelly, her lover, and her closest friends are murdered in the same way. FBI Special Agent Phoenix Perry investigates.
Dirty Red
Vickie M. Stringer - 2006
She employs her dirty ways - even faking a pregnancy with her boyfriend - to win a closet full of Gucci bags, a deluxe condominium full of baby accessories, a new car, and a book deal. But when one of Red's scams backfires and she winds up truly pregnant by her inmate ex-boyfriend, Bacon, she finds herself in more trouble than she's ever known. The drama truly unravels when Red's picture-perfect cons fall apart due to the power of - surprisingly - love.
Some Sing, Some Cry
Ntozake Shange - 2010
Opening dramatically at Sweet Tamarind, a rice and cotton plantation on an island off South Carolina's coast, we watch as recently emancipated Bette Mayfield says her goodbyes before fleeing for the mainland. With her granddaughter, Eudora, in tow, she heads to Charleston. There, they carve out lives for themselves as fortune-teller and seamstress. Dora will marry, the Mayfield line will grow, and we will follow them on a journey through the watershed events of America's troubled, vibrant history—from Reconstruction to both World Wars, from the Harlem Renaissance to Vietnam and the modern day. Shange and Bayeza give us a monumental story of a family and of America, of songs and why we have to sing them, of home and of heartbreak, of the past and of the future, bright and blazing ahead.
The Millionaire Mistress
Tiphani Montgomery - 2006
Just when she thinks she's got it all, times get tight, and her body is put to work in the bedroom. Between sexin' married men for hire and searching for the man who would get her out the game; her life is shattered when her cousin Oshyn, pulls in a drug dealer with deep pockets. Oshyn knows her conniving cousin would do anything to walk in her shoes, so she flaunts glamorous gifts and icey diamonds, given to her by new love, Brooklyn Jones. Chloe gets senseless and resorts to desperate measures when she can't steal Brooklyn from Oshyn. When her wild sexual escapades don't work, she uses the ultimate betrayal as her weapon. But her plan is destroyed when a tragic moment happens that shocks everyone. Will Chloe look past her evil ways and change for the better, or will their fate be a replica of their dark family secret? There's a reason why their mothers are locked down and six feet under.
Naughty
Brenda Hampton - 2003
Nestled in his lavishing home in Chesterfield, Missouri, he captures women with his wealth, charm, nine-plus inches of goodness and amazingly good looks. Although his bed is never empty, his heart is. He feels nothing for the women who love him dearly and continues his search for the perfect one. When Scorpio Valentino, an attractive, seductive and charming woman saunters into his view, she offers Jaylin a life of altering changes. Her intention is to make his life a living hell, however, Jaylin is not about to take the fall. Surprisingly, soon, love presents itself. Not for the women in Jaylin's life, but he experiences love through becoming a father to Scorpio's five-year-old daughter, Mackenzie. She's his guardian angel and is there for Jaylin through the tough times he's bound to face.
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.
All the Beautiful Girls
Elizabeth J. Church - 2018
When she was eight years old, Lily Decker somehow survived the auto accident that killed her parents and sister, but neither her emotionally distant aunt nor her all-too-attentive uncle could ease her grief. Dancing proves to be Lily's only solace, and eventually she receives a "scholarship" to a local dance academy--courtesy of a mysterious benefactor.Grown and ready to leave home for good, Lily changes her name to Ruby Wilde and heads to Las Vegas to be a troupe dancer, but her sensual beauty and voluptuous figure land her work instead as a showgirl performing everywhere from Les Folies Bergere at the Tropicana to the Stardust's Lido de Paris. Wearing costumes dripping with feathers and rhinestones, five-inch heels, and sky-high headdresses, Ruby may have all the looks of a Sin City success story, but she still must learn to navigate the world of men--and figure out what real love looks like.With her uncanny knack for understanding the hidden lives of women, Elizabeth J. Church captures both the iconic extravagance of an era and the bravery of a young woman who dances through her sadness to find connection, freedom, and, most important, herself.Advance praise for All the Beautiful Girls"A riveting novel, at once raw and tender, of a woman's struggle to heal the wounds of a devastating childhood . . . Elizabeth J. Church makes us feel Ruby Wilde's pain and root for her to survive. This is a heartbreaking story, passionately told."--Ellen Feldman, author of Next to LovePraise for Elizabeth J. Church's The Atomic Weight of Love"Oh, what an incandescent debut! Church follows one extraordinary woman who is brave to enough to challenge the times, take defiant wing, and chart her own extraordinary flight path. The Atomic Weight of Love is so engrossing I couldn't wait to read another page, and so alive I never wanted the story to end."--Caroline Leavitt, author of Is This Tomorrow"A tightly crafted novel."--The New York Times Book Review"Exquisite . . . the beautifully written story of a woman who must negotiate the tricky terrain of love, responsibility, ambition, and sacrifice. . . . It shows the impossible choices women faced--and still face--between family and self."--Tara Conklin, author of The House Girl"What does love require of us? How does one strike a balance between compromise and self-fulfillment? In her debut novel, Church writes to these issues in a style that is thoughtful and elegant. . . . Church hits the mark in this emotionally driven debut."--Library Journal"A striking story of a woman forced to choose between the future she desires or the path society insists she take."
--Harper's Bazaar
"An elegant glimpse into the evolution of love and womanhood."--Kirkus Reviews
44 Charles Street
Danielle Steel - 2006
And every square inch was being devotedly restored to its original splendor—even as a relationship fell to pieces. Now Francesca Thayer, newly separated from her lawyer boyfriend Todd, is desperate. The owner of a struggling art gallery, and suddenly the sole mortgage payer on her Greenwich Village townhouse, Francesca does the math and then the unimaginable. She puts out an advertisement for boarders. Soon her house becomes a whole new world.First comes Eileen, a fresh, pretty L.A. transplant, now a New York City schoolteacher. Then there’s Chris, a young father struggling with a troubled ex-wife and the challenge of parenting a seven-year-old son who visits every other weekend. The final tenant is Marya, a celebrated cookbook author hoping to start a new chapter in her life after the death of her husband. As Francesca’s art gallery begins to find its footing and Todd moves on to another woman, she discovers that her accidental tenants have become the most important people in her life. As the roommates bond, and the house fills with the aroma of Marya’s exquisite cuisine, there are shadows as well as light. Naïve Eileen explores the precarious boundaries of online dating with a series of strangers. Chris’s custody fight for his son escalates to devastating levels. Marya faces an unexpected choice that will take her into untested waters. And Francesca herself will contemplate what had seemed impossible: opening her heart once more.Over the course of one amazing, unforgettable, ultimately life-changing year, the house at 44 Charles Street fills with laughter, heartbreak, and, always, hope. In the hands of master storyteller Danielle Steel, it’s a place those who visit will never want to leave.
Never Kiss and Tell
Tracie Howard - 2004
Successful Manhattan psychotherapist Brooke Parrish falls for Taylor Hudson, a handsome, ambitious ivestment banker with a prestigious New York firm who is trapped in a loveless marriage, but the situation is complicated when Taylor's wife, Kiernan Malloy, enlists Brooke's aid as her therapist to he