Book picks similar to
Diamond Life by Aliya S. King


fiction
african-american-fiction
african-american
urban

Thirsty


La'Tonya West - 2013
    She doesn't give her goodies to just anyone though. She prefers wealthy Caucasian men. Brothers are not to her liking. She has a thirst for the good life that she feels they cannot fulfill. That is until she crosses paths with Thrill. Initially uninterested Kaliyah has no words for Thrill but once she finds out about the paper that he is sitting on it changes the game. Will her thirst end up being her downfall?

Shyt List 5: Smokin' Crazies the Finale


Reign - 2012
    The plan sounded like a good idea until she realizes their personalities crash harder than a drunken driver with his eyes closed. As the mission continues, Yvonna s rapidly deteriorating health threatens success. Will she complete what she set out to achieve, or turn against the people who swore to help her? Does she make it out alive? Or will she finally succumb to death? For the first time in the HISTORY of urban literature, the choice is yours. Choose wisely as this is, Shyt List 5: The Finale.

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.

Gangsta Twist 1


Clifford Spud Johnson - 2011
    No one's met the mysterious boss who gives them their orders via laptop, but the arrangement works for everyone involved. Their criminal enterprise keeps them rolling in dough, allowing them to purchase property and businesses all over town.When Taz falls in love with Sacha, an ambitious young lawyer, he makes an unexpected enemy. Cliff, another lawyer at the firm, wants Sacha for himself, and he'll stop at nothing to win her back from the thug she's with. He sets his sights on one of Taz s family members, in order to get close to Taz's inner circle. Now Cliff and Taz are locked in a monstrous battle that can only end in tragedy. Which one will come out on top?

Milk in My Coffee


Eric Jerome Dickey - 1998
    When he shares a ride with a vivacious young white girl, a romance grow between the unlikely pair--much to the chagrin of Jordan's friends and family. Love on the other side of the color bar forces him to examine his own values and makes him stand up against what everyone expects him to do. In this brightly entertaining and emotionally complex novel, Dickey again demonstrates why he is one of the hottest voices in African-American fiction today.

Modern Lovers


Emma Straub - 2016
    But nothing ages them like having to suddenly pass the torch (of sexuality, independence, and the ineffable alchemy of cool) to their own offspring.Back in the band's heyday, Elizabeth put on a snarl over her Midwestern smile, Andrew let his unwashed hair grow past his chin, and Zoe was the lesbian all the straight women wanted to sleep with. Now nearing fifty, they all live within shouting distance in the same neighborhood deep in gentrified Brooklyn, and the trappings of the adult world seem to have arrived with ease. But the summer that their children reach maturity (and start sleeping together), the fabric of the adults' lives suddenly begins to unravel, and the secrets and revelations that are finally let loose—about themselves, and about the famous fourth band member who soared and fell without them—can never be reclaimed.Straub packs wisdom and insight and humor together in a satisfying book about neighbors and nosiness, ambition and pleasure, the excitement of youth, the shock of middle age, and the fact that our passions—be they food, or friendship, or music—never go away, they just evolve and grow along with us.

Always True to You in My Fashion


Valerie Wilson Wesley - 2002
    Randall is rich, handsome, and charming -- the true-to-life dream lover of these smart, independent women who all find themselves passionately involved with him during the same seven-month period.There's Medora Jackson, an artist who has loved Randall since college and is now desperately trying to cut him loose. But turning Randall Hollis out of her life will end up being far more difficult than she thinks. There's Ana Reese-Mitchell, a wealthy widow and art collector who is haunted by the death of her best friend and the specter of her cruel late husband. She hopes Randall Hollis will be her second chance at love. And there's ambitious Taylor Benedict, a graduate student in art history who is coming to terms with her parents' divorce and problems from her childhood that she can't chase away. She's sure that Randall Hollis will be the first rung on her ladder to success.Randall Hollis is a man for all seasons, representing a different fantasy for each of the women who love him. As the novel unfolds, each woman will discover more about herself than she bargained for. And each, along with the errant Randall himself, will finally know the true meaning of love and the peace that comes with forgiveness.

Gangsta Girl


George Sherman Hudson - 2011
    She was given the news that her mother had killed her father in a domestic dispute. Taking to the streets, she met her boyfriend Sherm, who soon received a life sentence for robbery.Silk, tired of dancing in the strip clubs turned to Sherm for guidance. He ran down the game to her but enforced LEAVE NO WITNESSES. Following his rules, she pulled off licks, killed the men and got the money to make her life comfortable. But her actions have confused things in the streets—the wrong people are being accused for what she's done. Women and children are being subjected to brutal treatment and these people will stop nowhere to get revenge.Now ready to retire her pistol, Sherm tells Silk he needs a large sum of money to get out of prison. She has to pull of one more lick to get what he needs.Will she make it through this final lick?Part 2Silk was determined to get the money she needed to free Sherm. After going on the big lick that she felt would set her straight, she was hit with a surprise. Her deadly secret would be uncovered, would cause her to lose a loved one and she’d be on the run. Almost out of time, Silk gets desperate and goes against the rules of the game. When Sherm finds out about her indiscretion, she’s all alone, making one bad decision after another. Now, what she thought may be her way out, may be her demise!!Part 3Silk’s situation can’t get much worse. She no longer has the man she loves who introduced her to the game, she’s being hunted by one of the deadliest cliques and her hit list keeps growing. Can she take down everyone who stands in her way? Will she ever find her way out of this lifestyle? Or, will her past come back and challenge her face-to-face for the last time?

A Hard Man is Good to Find


James W. Lewis - 2011
    Despite the exceptional qualities and his obvious interest in her, things are moving too slow between them. Unlike most men who can’t wait to get in her pants, this particular man refuses to take things to the next level.DARYL JACKSON has grown tired of the nightclub scene and wants to settle down, but he has a secret that always seems to interrupt any potential love connection once he reveals it. He believes Michelle is the ideal woman, but can she handle the truth?After six weeks of dating, and still no attempt from him to get her “horizontal,” Michelle grows sex-starved. She is driving herself crazy trying to figure out Daryl’s problem! During a weekend getaway in Palm Springs, Michelle finally puts an end to the what’s-wrong-with-Daryl guessing game and demands to know what’s up. Not only does Daryl answer all her questions, Michelle learns first hand that you really need to be careful with what you wish for!

Bebe's By Golly Wow!


Yolanda Joe - 1998
    A big, strapping "steak-colored" man who is as strong as he is sensitive, Isaac is the man of Bebe's dreams. But he's also a father dealing with the challenges of raising a thirteen-year-old daughter on his own.Much to Bebe's surprise, Isaac's whip-smart daughter, Dashay, turns out to be the "other woman" who threatens to keep them apart. Meanwhile Sandy, Bebe's best friend, who is struggling in the workplace as she clashes with the new owners of the radio station, continues on her adventure in search of true love, refusing to give up. Set in Chicago and told in alternating voices, Bebe's By Golly Wow sparkles with Yolanda Joe's deft storytelling, in-your-face dialogue, and marvelous insight as she paints a sensitive and funny tale of modern romance, family transitions, and heartfelt friendships.

Married but Still Looking


Travis Hunter - 2002
    He’s a good-looking, smooth-talking former pro-basketball player, but he has a problem: He has never been satisfied with just one woman. Then he meets Terri and everything changes. Sort of.Genesis knows that Terri is perfect for him, and they become engaged. But Genesis just can’t seem to stop cheating on Terri nearly every chance he gets. Genesis’s best friend, Prodigy, constantly warns him that he’s going to mess up the best thing ever to happen to him, but Genesis is not ready to listen.After dealing with a family crisis, Genesis realizes the importance of his relationship with Terri, and he begins to change his cheating ways. He knows that once he says, “I do,” everything will fall into place. But it may be too late, because one of his past indiscretions comes back to haunt him, and Terri has a few surprises of her own for Genesis.

Harlem Heat


50 Cent - 2007
    She was also a mom at fourteen years old, and did what she had to do to raise her daughter, Chyna. Now Chyna's all grown up, a stunningly beautiful exotic dancer with a baby girl of her own, while super-sexy Roxy is at the height of her power running Harlem Heat, a gun-trafficking ring. It's a lucrative life- style some would do anything to have. And when former drug kingpin Panama Pete returns to the hood after serving fifteen years in prison, a spiral of violence traps Roxy and Chyna and has them running from the law - and running for their lives.

Crack Money With Cocaine Dreams


Jahquel J. - 2014
    And so are the drug dealers that flood them. When your pockets are empty but your needs are full, you do the unthinkable. After her mother walks out on her at seven years old, Messiah Garibaldi was groomed to be a boss. Being the daughter to a mob boss and maid, she learned early to never mix business with pleasure. Messiah and her best friend, Jaylah, cook some of the best dope to man, which is how the ruthless drug lord, Tech, enters her world. Never being the one to be in love, Rasheed enters Messiah’s life and opens her to the possibility to love. Will Messiah mix business with pleasure? There’s only one thing in his way: Eli, Messiah’s companion. Eli is money hungry and broke. When giving the opportunity, Eli pulls off a stunt that might end his life. LB is a low-level nickel and dime drug dealer for Tech. Tech has been promising to put him on for years. Tired of being broke and watching Tech reaps the benefits of his labor, LB decides to step out and link up with Rasheed. Staten Island is small, everyone knows everyone…but do they really? When you have crack money but cocaine dreams, envy becomes your best friend.

True Lies


Margaret Johnson-Hodge - 2002
    Reprint.

I Do Love You Still


Mary B. Morrison - 2019
    Morrison comes the seductive, no-holds-barred novel of a dazzling power couple who play their scandalous love-hate affair one game too far . . .   Between their skyrocketing careers and insatiable passion for each other, Xena Trinity and Memphis Brown seem to be the perfect potential power couple. Sure, they break up constantly—their love and sexual chemistry is unbalanced, yet undeniable. Since their ultimate goal is to marry and start a family after Memphis fulfills his dreams, they believe they can one day have it all. Until Xena gets a once-in-a-lifetime chance to take her fashion brand global—just as track star Memphis is this close to an Olympic slot . . .   Feeling neglected by Xena, Memphis crosses a new line: he looks elsewhere to fill the void of her abandonment and betrayal. Fed up, Xena moves on to a new man who supports her dream of building her brand . . . until his selfish demands make her yearn once more for a life with Memphis. With her career and love life hanging in the balance, Xena is forced to re-evaluate her priorities. Every man she meets seems like the one, but all of them have their faults. Who can she trust with her health and happiness? Will she choose the young, vibrant man who loves but also wants to control her? Or the man offering wisdom and stability? Will turning to her business partner or her best friend for support give her answers or more complications?   Just when Xena has hope everything will turn out fine, a scandalous fallout puts lives and careers on blast—and breaks more than hearts. And getting real enough to manage this damage could cost Xena and Memphis more than they ever imagined . . .