Book picks similar to
N.O.L.A: Noel & Tamia by Cion Lee


urban
black-fiction
cion-lee
cliffhanger

Bella and Braxton: A Hood Love Story


Jan'a Sullivan - 2016
    Hattie and Tommy done had babies again." Growing up in the hood of Covington, KY wasn't so great for sixteen year old Labella Jones. Living in a world where you have to teach your self how to be a woman because your mother's minimum wage job takes all of her time isn't so easy. Fighting everyday to overcome teenage jealousy and bullying because you don't fit in with the "it" crowd was a ritual for young Bella. When a harsh situation brings Bella and Choc, one of the most popular girls in school together, Bella learns how to love herself for who she is even with dirty clothes, nappy hair and all. Waking up everyday knowing that to the world you're nothing but to him you're everything made a big change in Bella's life. Meet Braxton " B", struggling to make it out of the hood but falling victim to the only resource available in the hood "drugs" to survive. B makes it a priority to teach Bella the true meaning of "Love your self first or no one will" while still trying to find himself. Being a black man coming from poverty they expect you to fail and thats exactly what the police is doing even if they have to play dirty to keep there statistics going. When feelings get involved, rumors are spread will Bella and Braxton be able to survive to tell their "hood love story?"

Second to No One


Keysha - 2015
    After learning that the two people she trusted with her life were snakes in the grass, Jazzy decided to move on. Rayshawn a boss in his own right always get what he wants and he always wanted Jazzy. The only thing stopping him was that nigga Jaylin, but things changed. Jaylin has messed up and Rayshawn is gonna do everything in his power to make Jazzy his... Even if he has to hurt a few people in the process.

A New Jersey Love Story 2: I Got Yours, You Got Mine


Myiesha - 2015
    They continue to make enemy after enemy, when all they really want to do is be completely in love with each other. Being with Troy has caused Camilla to step out of her reserved personality and show all other females that she’s about that life and she plays no games when it comes to her man. Camilla has learned that everyone that smiles in your face isn’t your friend. Supreme’s secret obsession with Camilla has stirred up some jealousy within Kitty. After Supreme’s vicious attack on Camilla, she’s determined to get revenge. Once Supreme goes missing, Kitty already knows who had something to do with it and she will not stop until those who are responsible pay. Troy, completely in love with both sides of his sunshine, is willing to jump through all hoops for her and be by her side when shit goes down. He’s the first to pick up on Kitty’s deceitful vibes and does his best to warn Camilla to be careful around her. When Kitty starts to feel that Camilla and her gang are on to her ulterior motives, she expedites her plan that may get her revenge for Supreme once and for all. After Kitty and Keyonna’s sneak attack on Troy and Camilla, lives are left hanging in the balance. Who will survive this unforeseen attack? Will G-Ma have to dust off her gat for her BooBoo?

She From The Gutta


BriAnn Danae - 2018
    Having witnessed crime, poverty, death and much more at such a young age; Harlem learned to make a way when there was no way. Due to unfortunate circumstances, and fear for her family, Harlem’s mother packs them up and relocates to a shelter away from everyone and everything she’s accustomed to. Opting to make the best of her situation, Harlem finds solace in the presence of the young and handsome Enzo Maverick. As much of a mystery as he is to Harlem, Enzo prefers to keep it that way. With an impeccably rude demeanor and crass decorum, mostly everyone stays clear from him. Everyone except his mother’s boyfriend, Khalil. When the two come to blows and Enzo almost gets arrested, his mother is forced to make a decision that lands Enzo in the same place as Harlem, where their blossoming, yet rocky friendship begins. Hesitant to trust anyone, Enzo and Harlem both quickly learn that allowing one another into their world may be just what they need to find peace. When tragedy and triumph strikes, the two are abruptly detached. After years pass, Harlem is no longer the curious 17-year-old Enzo first encountered. In fact, she’s just as ruthless and cold-hearted as he is. In this gritty tale of money, love, lust and betrayal, Harlem is reminded that everything in life worth fighting for comes with a struggle. Even love; a feeling she desperate yearns for.

Flexin' On My Ex with A Boss 2


Jenica Johnson - 2018
    She finally feels that she’s able to move on from her past and fully focus on being with Bash. Her rocky relationship with her mother-in-law is still being tested but, for the sake of her relationship with Bash, Yah-Yah continues to turn the other cheek. With a little help, she’s able to start up her own business and that keeps her occupied so she couldn’t see the obvious. When she finds out what’s been happening in front of her eyes, will she return to the old her or will she remain the woman she worked hard to become? Bash is in love and he can no longer hide the fact that Yahria is going to be his wife. He thought he finally found the right woman after the death of his child’s mother. Yah-Yah helped him get his life back in order but he seems to battle with keeping his woman happy and his mother too. Bash is forced to make some major decisions as it pertains to his personal and love life. Will he choose correctly or will he play it safe? When you fall in fast, it will either crumble or stand strong during a test. Which will it be with this couple?

Hold You Down 2


Dominique Thomas - 2014
    He’s given second chances to people that stabbed him in the back and tying up loose ends with Floyd’s family that’s out for revenge and looking to paint the town red with his blood. Yet the life that he wants to leave behind isn’t ready to let him go and sending Sophie away to California only caused more problems for their already troubled relationship. Sophie is upset with Ameer for sending her away and that pain pushes her into the arms of another man. Ameer won’t back down and he won’t lose his girl. He’s a natural born boss and he’ll show the world that Ameer Kadar Matin is no one to be played with. Take a ride with your favorite couple and see if they can survive lies, betrayal, and even death.

Of All The Boys I Used To Love


Carry Lowe - 2018
    So she wants no part of it.Yet, one Sunday evening as she’s sitting on her front porch, sipping sweet tea with her grandmother, the sound of loud rap music blasting through the neighborhood precedes the arrival of Amir Savage, who is moving in with his granny next door.He was tall and tatted and unlike anything the sheltered, church-going Wren had ever laid eyes on. And she fell in love with him on sight without even knowing it.But can a love between two people who are so vastly different ever survive?She’s all sweetness and innocence. He is violence personified; born and bred in the grit and grime of the bitter streets of New York. He is more accustomed to having people begging for forgiveness than getting down on his knees and praying for it.Though he does have a soft spot for the country girl, and no matter how much he tries to push her away, he can't seem to get her out of his mind.However, he knows that they don’t fit into each other’s worlds.But Wren knows that she loves Amir, and is willing to fight to be by his side.He’s the one who keeps lingering in her heart. Of all the boys she used to love.This is a Full Length, Standalone Novel.

Karma and Myles: Downside of a Thug's Love


Traci B - 2018
    After her father dies, Karma inherits a fortune from him. As a college student loaded with lots of money, Karma doesn’t fit the description of a typical college student. She doesn’t care for anything that comes with the college lifestyle – the parties and people included. Best friends with Tiffani, her older cousin by seven years, Karma is introduced to a much more adult lifestyle. Karma spends her weekends in 21+ clubs alongside her big cousin. There, she meets Myles Kensington, the son of a well-known drug lord. Myles, having always been the type to create his own lane, became a billionaire from packaging and distributing heavy artillery in the streets and overseas. Sometimes exhausted from being a successful business owner at the age of 28, he likes to unwind at the same club Karma frequents. The two cross paths after an apparent mix-up in the VIP section. Exchanging heated words, in the beginning, turns into the two exchanging numbers in the end. Myles immediately finds himself drawn to Karma and doesn’t think twice about pursuing her. There’s just one issue. Myles has some extra baggage that proves hard to get rid of. Tiffani inadvertently forces Karma to be “grown,” but is Karma actually ready for what all comes with being grown, especially when it comes to dating? What would you do if you found out the man you’re physically tied to is emotionally tied to someone else?

My Love Ain't Meant For A Thug : The Beginning Of Us


A'zayler - 2015
    He’s been living his life on the grind for as long as he could remember. Dominating the streets, and every other small time hustler in quest of his position at the top. Showing no mercy to the men and disregarding the women Congo was on a power trip until the murder of his oldest brother. Everything he’d worked for came to a screeching halt and he’s left with nothing. Now he’s forced to live a regular life working a regular job. The dope game having always been his first love, he now has nothing left that’s appeasing to his heart. A unique beauty dumbed down to nothing more than an extra source of income, Honey, is desperate and lost. She desires a way out of her current situation but with the only family she has locked away forever, she’s all alone. Getting to the money day in and day out, Honey shuts herself away from any and everything not aiding in her success. Having been used and taken for granted in her past relationship, she’s a little more resistant to the advances of the handsome young thug that’s captivated her truest feelings. She’s determined to ignore him and his efforts until there’s no more reasons to run. Here in the moment with this totally perfect stranger Honey decides to give it a chance. Both needing security and someone in their corner they embark on this new journey together. Struggling but determined to make it, Congo and Honey stick side by side, loving one another past their current situation. Believing in the visions he has for them and the passion filled relationship they’ve started, Honey promises to stay down until he makes it. Congo’s life was going nowhere fast until his heart took to Honey, so now that he has her he’s going above and beyond to show her that as much as she believes that it isn’t, her love is indeed meant for a thug.

Heartbreak U


Johnni Sherri - 2019
    Born and raised in the heart of Brooklyn, Franki doesn’t take crap from anyone. After relentlessly being hurt by the men in her life, she finds herself using them for the one thing she believes they’re good for. Sex. But when she’s labeled for her promiscuity and a new tragedy strikes, how will she recover? Paris, on the other hand, has led a life of privilege out in Beverly Hills; one that didn’t include very many minorities in her circle. When her mother sends her off to an HBCU in hopes that she’ll reconnect with her people, she finds herself culture shocked. Asha, the local girl, is a complete slacker when it comes to school and anything else that doesn’t align with her future plans of becoming a basketball wife. She is a user and a mastermind manipulator that will ultimately have to pay a price. Then lastly there’s Hope, the good girl. Raised by her father and brought up in the church, she’s been sheltered most of her life. But when she falls hard for the big man on campus and gets her heart crushed to pieces, will she persist? Told from each character’s distinct point of view, this narrative is about each young woman navigating the dynamics of sex, love and heartbreak in college. Being outcasts in their own right, these four young women ultimately forge a very unique bond.

Bad Boys Love Good Girls: The Return of the Outlaw


Porscha Sterling - 2019
     Janelle's dreams are all set to come true when she gets the chance to become the District Attorney of New York City. The only thing making her have second thoughts is the fact that she’s married to the city’s ultimate bad boy, Luke ‘Outlaw’ Murray. With no one around who understands her ambitious goals, she finds a friend in a woman who truly only wants to bring her down. The saying ‘keep your friends close and your enemies closer’ always rings true but once Janelle finally realizes that her enemy is right in front of her, will it be too late? Luke ‘Outlaw’ Murray is the bad boy who no one ever imagined could be tamed. Now that he’s a family man, his reckless lifestyle has changed, but the savage in him is very much alive. With Janelle focused on her own dreams, he turns his attention back to running the streets... only to meet someone he would have never expected: Chloe Harvarty, the sister of Chris Harvarty, a man whose life he ended in order to protect the woman he loved. His guilt plagues him when he sees the way that his actions have utterly devastated her life and, against his better nature, he’s caught up—feeling obligated to help a woman he begins to feel responsible for. When a simple friendship begins to cross the line over into a lane that he knows he shouldn’t explore, will Outlaw stand strong or will he turn back into his old self and fall back into his womanizing ways?

A Loyal Heart (The Hale Girls #3)


AshleyNicole - 2020
    

Daddy's Baby, Mamas Maybe


Tracee Boyd - 2013
    Family secrets and lies will be revealed and lots of scheming surrounding the lives of these two sisters will surface. Once the drama ensues and lies are uncovered, you won't be able to handle what happens at each turning corner.

Kissin' On My Tattoos


Niyah Moore - 2014
    That’s exactly what Charity and Daquan are trying to do in this drama-filled love story. Charity Manfredi is one of the hottest female tattoo artists in the city. She’s loving all the perks of having celebrity clientele to being featured in the hottest magazines. Being married to the owner of King’s Studio starts to have its problems as she struggles with being a wife and a career woman. That is until Daquan Davis starts working at King’s Studio. Daquan Davis is an up and coming tattoo artist in Brooklyn, trying to make his mark in the industry by opening up his own shop one day. While dealing with his nagging baby mama, it keeps him on edge, but when she goes too far, he has to call it quits. Besides, he has his eye on the boss’s tatted up wife. When an opportunity is presented to Charity and Daquan, nothing will stay the same. Cory Manfredi is Charity’s husband. Born to one of the wealthiest families in Staten Island, his ego is out of check. All he wants is a wife who stays at home, cooks, and can give him some babies. What happens when he starts spreading the love to someone other than his wife? Will love, lust, and scandal push Charity into Daquan’s arms?

All I Want is that Hood Love 3


Mercedes G. - 2015
    Mega’s tired of playing games and there’s a new chick in his life, but there’s something about Taysia that he just can’t seem to shake. Will they finally let go and throw in the towel? Or is their love for one another strong enough for a happily ever after?