but can they "Come Up" together? Smooth and China are a "power couple." An urban Gothic modern day Bonnie and Clyde. They know the ins and outs of the streets. But Smooth also knows its consequences. Which is why he wants to get "out" of the life just as quickly as he first entered it. The money? It's always an intricate part of any exit plan. The problem? His childhood sweetheart China. She loves "the life" - the wealth, and street cred it has brought her. Perhaps she has a little hidden passion for the action too. But at the end of the day China is a "paper chaser." Their romantic and business dynamic however has never been more tested until now. The life and its stresses, but most of all... its trappings have caused a fracture in their once impenetrable relationship. Smooth wants her by his side when he gets out for good, but China's addicted to the money. It affects her better judgment. Er go she wants their transition out of "hustling" to be a slow one... if at all. As the pair begin to rise through the ranks... enemies, cops, and rivals become a much larger problem. In addition to one-time friends becoming foes. Together they're unstoppable. But money is the root of ALL evil and make no mistake these two love money. The question is... do they love each other more?

    INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS!!!Cadence, Meadow, Lexi, and Tegan have it hard living in a residential facility located in Youngstown, Ohio....and you won't believe the bizarre things that unfold behind closed doors.

    . . Set in the highest ranks of the music industry’s fame machine, Diamond Life is an intoxicating story of love, sex, ambition, money, betrayal, and the surprising realities of making it big. Alex Maxwell’s career as a journalist and celebrity ghost writer is taking off, despite the slightly embarrassing authorship of hip-hop super-groupie Cleo Wright’s memoir. And while Alex’s star is on the rise, it pales in comparison to her husband Birdie’s multiplatinum debut and world tour. Slowly but surely, everything they swore would never happen begins to come true, like leaving Brooklyn for a mansion in suburban Jersey and letting a reality TV crew into their home. Birdie is confronted time and again by the sexy groupies who pursue famous rappers like heat-seeking missiles and he’s forced to make some life-changing choices. Meanwhile, aging rapper Z, in recovery from drug addiction, is too busy trying to repair his marriage to leave much time for his son Zander, newly signed to Z’s label and struggling to maintain his appeal in the wake of a domestic violence scandal with his diva girlfriend Bunny. Record label president Jake is trying to deal with the death of his wife, multiplatinum R&B artist Kipenzi Hill, by drowning his sorrows in alcohol and women. When he meets Lily, a beautiful, quiet waitress, he can’t get her out of his head. But Lily has her own problems to handle and she wants nothing to do with the fame, drama, and baggage that Jake carries with him. This juicy follow-up to Aliya S. King’s Platinum is a scintillating roman à clef that takes readers behind the curtain once again for the real scoop on the biggest players in the hip-hop game—and the first ladies who hold them together.

    She had just completed her third interview, and was told to wait in the lobby while the three person panel deliberated. Renee was positively hopeful. It was her 3rd call back after all. She looks around the sitting area, and notices one young man with spiked hair wearing a thin black tie with a black and white checkered shirt, and another woman with black rimmed glasses, blonde bangs, and tresses, and a burgundy sweater. "I guess this is the competition." Renee whispers to herself under her breath. She glances down at her own apparel. Renee is dressed in black washed out slacks, a black blouse with ruffles down the center, and her thick curly hair worn up in a top-knot bun. Of course she is wearing her trusty black ballet flats - that Renee almost never leaves home without. Eventually the conference room door opens, and one by one each candidate is called back into the large room with an oval glass table, surrounded by silver high-back chairs. When Renee is summoned, she immediately springs up and speeds walk toward the room. Whether good or bad news, Renee is anxious to learn the final outcome.

    When her father is sent to prison, and her mother suddenly develops a drug habit, making it her number one priority; it is up to Mya to raise her younger brother and sister. Alone and aware of the grimy hustle of the streets; Mya hopes to find another path for survival. But when the leader of the a natorious gang severely beats her mother for stealing money from him, Mya vows revenge on his crew by robbing them at gunpoint and hiding her identity behind a mask. Mya successfully pulls off her first robbery against one of them but then she meets and falls in love with the the very person who is attached to her enemy and is now determined to keep her secret a secret. However when Mya s secret starts to unravel and death knocks at her door, things go horribly wrong. Mya learns that hurt and happiness are one in the same but you have to have blood on your hand first.

    Being a natural born hustler with a winning streak on the track has put him on a pedestal. Fast cars, money and beautiful women are just some of the things that comes easy. However, an unintentional wrong turn leads to a three-year prison stint and puts his entire life on pause for a while. Cashmere Lux is Jabari’s ride or die girlfriend that holds him down throughout his bid. She’s not slow when it comes to getting what she wants and plays that card to her advantage while her man is away. When Jabari returns home, he finds that everything is the same, but his feelings have suddenly changed. Is Cashmere really the woman he thought she was? Tiana Thomas is someone Jabari has crushed on since his high school days. With a life of her own, she can barely find time for herself. However, after exchanging numbers, and a few by chance encounters, she finds herself becoming more and more attracted to the bad boy. Knowing he has a woman that’s with all the drama and nonsense, will Tiana be able to slip out of Jabari’s tangled web? Or, will she apprehensively find herself Fallin’ In Love With The Greatest Of All Time?

    After witnessing her parents’ execution at her tenth birthday party, Nubia hasn’t been the same. The lavish lifestyle that came with being the daughter of the notorious Apollo Monroe was snatched from under her feet, forcing her to become the foster child her evil aunt never wanted. After years of dealing with her uncle’s hand problem, Nubia goes from a plaything to a punching bag for her husband, Vincent. Believing that Vincent is the best thing to happen in her life since the death of her parents, Nubia suffers in silence until she meets Maine. A notorious hustler by day and ruthless hustler by night, Jermaine “Maine” Emerson is as savage as they come. Born a child soldier in Sierra Leone, Maine was given the opportunity for a new life in America working as a hitta for Sampson, a distributor for the Solares Cartel and an infamous gangsta known for his heartless antics. Maine’s first mission: kill Apollo Monroe’s family, including his daughter. With a heart made of steel, Maine slaughters her family relentlessly, but there is something about ten-year-old Nubia that gives fifteen-year-old Maine pause. He spares her life, and the two never cross paths again until Maine catches Nubia being beaten on the street by her husband. Although he has everything he could ask for—money, cars, and his pick of women—Maine is drawn to the broken Nubia and the mystery she brings. As he tries to repair her broken spirit, he has no idea that he's responsible for it. In the middle of Nubia and Maine's battle of the hearts, is Nubia’s best friend, Shahani. After losing the love of her life in a gunfight, the kept Shahani takes refuge on a pole, rebuilding her life one dance at a time. She meets the suave and charismatic Donovan, who takes her from dancing and introduces her to the world of pimping. While Donovan is focused on building his empire, Shahani has other dreams in mind, one of which is opening her own hair salon. She's content with building with Donovan until a chance encounter with Sampson leaves her sleeping with the enemy. Again.

    Most of these seemingly perfect relationships are filled with lies, deceit, and a little bit of insanity, just like Mike and LiLi's. Mike fell in love with abused, promiscuous LiLi when he was sixteen, and over a span of seven years (two of which he spent incarcerated), his world evolved into confusion, hurt, and betrayal. LiLi, his dream girl, is the exact opposite of what he thinks and Mike quickly finds out that he can never change who she really is. Mike must face the devastating fact that LiLi isn't his bitch, and his best friend since childhood, Dee, is right there to help him..or is he? Come on this turbulent ride with Mike, LiLi, and Dee to find out if LiLi is Mike's bitch, Dee's bitch...or EVERYBODY'S BITCH!!!

    

    But her heart had a mind of its own; and when the decision between love and loyalty comes flying at her full speed, Bella is at a standstill as only death can help her heart decide what's right and what's not. Santana is up next to take over his father’s empire; but when his eyes meet Bella, he soon has to choose between something that might last forever and a temporary setback. Torn Love takes you into the life of Bella and Santana, who were given everything on a gold platter until they decided to play both sides, causing guns to be drawn, blood to be shed, and lives to be taken, all because of a little thing call Love.

    

    She was the product of a Negro mother and a White father who she would go on to know as Massa. After spending over two decades on Mr. Cobweb's plantation, she was sold to Henry Winslow in Houston, Texas. Where she would eventually learn the mental bondage of slavery and the effect that it had on the Negro nation.

    When a couple of Jerome's many secrets come to light, will Semaj’s shoulder still be available for her to cry on? JaNair's trifling and crazy cousin Mya is still up to her old tricks and making Jerome hers is still her #1 goal. Will she finally succeed in getting the man who doesn't want her or will all that lying, backstabbing and blackmailing pay off?Twins LaNiece and ShaNiece have always been close, but with a new love on the horizon and your ex possibly being your sisters baby daddy, will ShaNiece lose her mind, or will the new man in her life make her forget about all of her troubles?Join some of the characters you love, and some of the ones you hate in this second installment of What Bae Won’t Do: The Next Man Will.

    However, with every obstacle that she endured she learned to overcome and conquer. Yasmin was born as a motherless child, and overcame that situation by becoming Daddy’s little princess. She inspired to be just like her Dad, an accomplished Marine. So how does Yasmin cope with the situation when the image of her dad is destroyed? She sets out to kill and destroy the very thing which she feels brought harm to her Daddy, drugs and the men who deal them. After years of countless murders, Yasmin kills the wrong man and her life takes a turn for the worst. On top of that, she has a hotshot Detective on her heels. In the mist of all that is going on Yasmin meets a drug dealer by the name of Omere and everything changes for her. What happens when a drug dealer killer meets the love of her life, who is also the type of person that she hates? Omere happens to also sell the very thing she despises. Will Yasmin escape the brother of the kingpin she killed? Can she actually be in love with a man who deals drugs or will Detective Miles finally bring her down? Find out what happens when Yasmin fights her inner self to be with the man she loves. Will Yasmin win or will The Pink Lipstick killer win?

    Their father runs a very lucrative empire and all they have to do is reap the benefits, until their father does something that the brothers absolutely don't agree with. In Samuel Muhammed's world if you go against him you're dead to him and that's exactly what he tells his twin sons. With nothing to lose the twins leave Miami for North Carolina in search of a come up, but they find much more. Naija lost her husband to the prison system, and she vows to never love another man involved in illegal activity. When she meets the handsome Hosea, she's drawn to him, but his lifestyle makes her hesitant to get too attached. Will she be able to resist him? Aspen has a sexy online persona, but in real life she's a laid back mother who is at home with her kid when she's not making money. When her relationship with a rapper goes south, she decides to take a break from men until she meets the handsome and savage Haji. But is chemistry enough to hold her when things turn toxic?