If I Ruled the World


Joylynn M. Jossel - 2005
    In this unforgettable novel, her name is Harlem.Harlem Jones is a twenty-six-year-old bad-ass female who owns her own home, her own car, and her own business. And no, some drug dealer didn't front her the money for any of it. Nor did she have to sell herself to get what she's got. Harlem came up the hard way. She had the perfect family until her mother fell prey to an addiction and Harlem's whole world fell apart. After several life-changing encounters, Harlem seems to have lost everything. But then, under circumstance she wishes never existed, she inherits a modest fortune and opens up her own business. Then into her life comes an unexpected and unlikely love, a street-bred charmer named York. Not your typical hood, York is out for Harlem's heart. But when tragedy strikes, Harlem knows that, as a survivor, she must be the one to decide her own destiny.

Shyt List


Reign - 2007
    When Yvonna's ghetto fabulous would is rocked after the brutal murder of her high school sweetheart Bilal Santana, at the hands of her father, she learns a lot about the people around her. Behind her back they conceal a sultry secret involving her best friend and deceased boyfriend.Unable to move past her anger, which eventually causes her to get into a major car accident; she leaves D.C., fleeing only to Baltimore. There she remains nourishing the hate she feels inside.Four years later, angrier and crazier than ever, she decides to return home to one by one exact revenge on those who made what she affectionately refers to as her "Shyt List". From defecating on a gravesite, to murder, she reigns supreme at completing her mission of destroying their lives. That is until she reaches the last name on the list. With him her plans are difficult to carry out. Will the love she feels for him prevent her from following through with her plan? Or will old memories push her to go even further? In the end all will be revealed, and you'll be blown away!

Country Boy


Blake Karrington - 2011
    The story takes you away from the bright lights of the big cities. Where drug deals take place on city blocks and Street corners, to the backwoods, dirt roads and trap houses of the south. Q a well known and respected hustler faces all the problems that come with the life. Torn between Van a childhood love who has been down from day one. And Tee the well educated and upscale women he believes he needs. He wished all he had to worry about was the law.

The Girl She Used to Be


David Cristofano - 2009
    In this book, a woman who has lost her identity to the Witness Protection Program flirts with trusting her life to the Mafioso hired to kill her.

Exposed


Naomi Chase - 2011
    . .On the brink of a major promotion, Tamia Luke is within reach of the glitzy life she's always dreamed of--until her client, Dominic "Nico" Archer, blackmails her into becoming his mistress, threatening to reveal her scandalous past. Tamia has no choice but to submit to his demands. But the tables turn when her hostility towards Nico is replaced with insatiable lust. No man--including her boyfriend--has ever satisfied her the way he does. And as her infatuation grows, the closer she comes to losing everything--including her life.

Disappearing Acts


Terry McMillan - 1989
    She was pretty and independent, petite and not too skinny, just his type. Franklin Swift was a sometimes-employed construction worker, and a not-quite-divorced daddy of two. Zora Banks was a teacher, singer, songwriter. They met in a Brooklyn brownstone, and there could be no walking away... In this funny, gritty urban love story, Franklin and Zora join the ranks of fiction's most compelling couples, as they move from Scrabble to sex, from layoffs to the limits of faith and trust. Disappearing Acts is about the mystery of desire and the burdens of the past. It's about respect, what it can and can't survive. And it's about the safe and secret places that only love can find. --

Sheisty


T.N. Baker - 2000
    Now as adults, their friendship is put to the test when envy, built up animosity, hidden betrayal and the bad boys in their lives cause havoc. Every day becomes a struggle to keep the clique tight. Every day something beats against the tried, tested and proven relationship. Several dramatic occurrences take the odds against the trio. When the dust settles, with all that's already riding against them, will these girls be down for one another or just plain "SHEISTY?"

Crackhead


Lisa Lennox - 2005
    In the late `80s and early `90s, the crack epidemic swept through inner city communities like the plague. Mothers abandoned their children and took to the street for a hit. Fathers sold everything they owned to get a taste. The crackhead was rampant. Some neighborhoods were never the same. Enter Laci Johnson, a privileged, smart, beautiful teenage girl from across town, who teams up with The South Bronx Bitches - an infamous girl group known for chasing men and money. When the SBB becomes envious of Laci they devise a plan to destroy her life. Finding love in the most unexpected of places, Laci turns to a local drug dealer to help save her and heal the wounds of her new addiction.

Queen Sugar


Natalie Baszile - 2014
    Recognizing this as a chance to start over, Charley and her eleven-year-old daughter, Micah, say good-bye to Los Angeles.They arrive just in time for growing season but no amount of planning can prepare Charley for a Louisiana that’s mired in the past: as her judgmental but big-hearted grandmother tells her, cane farming is always going to be a white man’s business. As the sweltering summer unfolds, Charley must balance the overwhelming challenges of her farm with the demands of a homesick daughter, a bitter and troubled brother, and the startling desires of her own heart.Penguin has a rich tradition of publishing strong Southern debut fiction—from Sue Monk Kidd to Kathryn Stockett to Beth Hoffman. In Queen Sugar, we now have a debut from the African American point of view. Stirring in its storytelling of one woman against the odds and intimate in its exploration of the complexities of contemporary southern life, Queen Sugar is an unforgettable tale of endurance and hope.

Tell Me Your Dreams


Sidney Sheldon - 1998
    She had no idea who it could be, who would want to harm her. She was trying desperately not to panic, but lately her sleep had been filled with nightmares, and she had awakened each morning with a feeling of impending doom.Thus begins Sidney Sheldon's chilling new novel, Tell Me Your Dreams. Three beautiful young women are suspected of committing a series of brutal murders. The police make an arrest that leads to one of the most bizarre murder trials of the century. Based on actual events, Sheldon's novel races from London to Rome to the city of Quebec to San Francisco, with a climax that will leave the reader stunned.

The Bed We Made


Ivy Symone - 2017
    Just to give her cheating husband a dose of how it feels. She sought a one night stand; but instead, stumbled upon a serendipitous situation. Nothing should have come from it, but it changed the dynamics of her marriage. A bed unmade… Niecey had always piqued his senses; just as much then as she does now. Although she is considered off limits, it doesn’t stop Asad from seizing the opportunity once it presents itself. He could care less about boundaries. But as bad as he wants her, he knows he could never have her. Two things prevent him from wanting more of her: One, he is about to go away to prison for a few years; and two, he knows she doesn’t want anything more. He understands that he was only something she needed for that night. Those few years have passed; and through familiar circumstances, they have to face one another again. Asad is a young arrogant tatted up diabolical thug known for his churlish disposition. His mouth is reckless, his attitude sucks, and empathetic he is not. Niecey is an entrepreneur, beautiful, and well-off. She’s flawed, but has learned to love herself anyway. They’re not a likely pair, but those factors don’t matter much when they touch. The connection and unquestionable sexual chemistry between them turns their reunion into an ongoing carnal affair. However, things take a turn in a direction Niecey wasn’t intending. The bed has been made… Neither can contend the interdependence that exists between them. Succumbing to its power, they can no longer deny love’s right to live. But how deep will Niecey let their situation get before she can no longer keep the truth away, and from hurting everyone she cherishes, including Asad? Now they must lie in the bed they’ve made…

The Flint Saga


Treasure Hernandez - 2011
    A place where the good die young, loyalty is a rarity, and everybody has a hustle. Malek Johnson's hustle is the basketball court, and he's the best Flint's projects has ever produced. He's on his way to the University of Michigan, but not for long because all the NBA scouts say he's destined for the pros after a year or two of seasoning. He finds love in the super fine girl everyone calls Halleigh, and he promises her that he will take her out of the hood. When Halleigh's virginity is traded in exchange for her mother's drug tab, their dream spirals out of control and they are quickly separated and sucked into the life that they have so desperately tried to avoid. Now that every installment of the series has been released, The Flint Saga combines all the parts of this street love story into one book.

32 Candles


Ernessa T. Carter - 2010
    Just when she's resigned herself to her fate, she sees a movie that will change her life--Sixteen Candles. But in her case, life doesn't imitate art. Tormented in school and hopelessly in unrequited love with a handsome football player, Davie finds it bittersweet to dream of Molly Ringwald endings. When a cruel school prank goes too far, Davie leaves the life she knows and reinvents herself in the glittery world of Hollywood as a beautiful and successful lounge singer. Just as she's about to ride off into the L.A. sunset, the past comes back with a vengeance, threatening to crush Davie's dreams--and break her heart again.With wholly original characters and a cinematic storyline, 32 Candles introduces Ernessa T. Carter, a new voice in fiction with smarts, attitude, and sassiness to spare.

Wish You Well


David Baldacci - 2000
    Then tragedy strikes -- and Lou and her younger brother, Oz, must go with their invalid mother to live on their great-grandmother's farm in the Virginia mountains. Suddenly Lou finds herself coming of age in a new landscape, making her first true friend, and experiencing adventures tragic, comic, and audacious. But the forces of greed and justice are about to clash over her new home...and as their struggle is played out in a crowded Virginia courtroom, it will determine the future of two children, an entire town, and the mountains they love.

The Other Widow


Susan H. Crawford - 2016
    This time it could be theirs . . .It isn’t safe. That’s what Joe tells her when he ends their affair—moments before their car skids off an icy road in a blinding snowstorm and hits a tree. Desperate to keep her life intact—her job, her husband, and her precious daughter, Lily—Dorrie will do everything she can to protect herself, even if it means walking away from the wreckage. Dorrie has always been a good actress, pretending to be someone else: the dutiful daughter, the satisfied wife, the woman who can handle anything. Now she’s going to put on the most challenging performance of her life. But details about the accident leave her feeling uneasy and afraid. Why didn’t Joe’s airbag work? Why was his car door open before the EMTs arrived? And now suddenly someone is calling her from her dead lover’s burner phone. . . .Joe’s death has left his wife in free fall as well. Karen knew Joe was cheating—she found some suspicious e-mails. Trying to cope with grief is devastating enough without the constant fear that has overtaken her—this feeling she can’t shake that someone is watching her. And with Joe gone and the kids grown, she’s vulnerable . . . and on her own.Insurance investigator Maggie Devlin is suspicious of the latest claim that’s landed on her desk—a man dying on an icy road shortly after buying a lucrative life insurance policy. Maggie doesn’t believe in coincidences. The former cop knows that things—and people—are never what they seem to be.As the fates of these three women become more tightly entwined, layers of lies and deception begin to peel away, pushing them dangerously to the edge . . . closer to each other . . . to a terrifying truth . . . to a shocking end.