New to LA with a couple mil to flip, Grey opens South Beach, the newest addition to the Los Angeles club scene. In the midst of starting his business, he meets an exotic beauty by the name of Nakami. Enamored by her beauty and fiery personality, Grey courts her not knowing that her father, Hero, is the biggest drug lord on the West Coast. Nakami and her father prove to be the connect that Grey needs in order to get back to his hustle. But at what cost? Kimani Summers, Grey's younger brother, is making a name for himself in the modeling industry and is also pursuing a career in acting. When he hears that his brother has relocated to LA, he's not happy. Knowing Grey and the trouble that tends to follow behind him, Kimani is reluctant to interact with the brother he hasn't seen or talked to in over five years. Hesitantly taking Grey up on the invitation to attend the grand opening of his new club, Kimani meets Nakami's best friend, Blu. After losing the last woman he loved tragically, Kimani doesn't want to fall for Blu, but he can't help it. When these four lives are intertwined, things get crazy! And when everything is all said and done, friends will become enemies, business and personal relationships will crumble, and lines will be crossed that will affect the lives of all parties involved.

    Her husband, Johnny, is suddenly hard to reach, distant, and works late too often for Geneva not to be suspicious. Is it because she’s been pressuring him about having a baby? Feeling lonely and neglected, Geneva bonds with Samuel Owens, a colleague who is having marital trouble of his own. Soon, their relationship blossoms into an uncontrollable affair.  Bored with her husband, Samuel, and dead set against having a child with him, Vivana Owens is biding her time until she’s ready to leave—and she’s spending it with Johnny Mayfield. It’s just a fling—until Vivana becomes obsessed with Johnny, especially once he tries to win back his wife. But affairs don’t end easy—and soon one of the unfaithfuls will end up dead, one will end up in jail, and one just might get away with murder… Praise for Playing the Hand You’re Dealt   “Will keep you guessing straight through to the explosive ending."—Victoria Christopher Murray   “Unforgettable characters and a page-turning storyline.”—Lutishia Lovely

    After finding out their beloved foster mother, Claudette McPhearson, was anything but the sweet old woman they thought her to be, Javon, Shanelle, and the rest of their siblings hit the ground running in order to keep the Syndicate operating and to keep themselves alive. That also means they have to lose some of the people they love the most.With the legacy of their mother and her plans for them in motion, the McPhearson children are operating on a broken foundation. Attacked on all fronts, Javon and Shanelle are struggling to keep the family normal, while following the criminal plans of their dead mother. The Syndicate is growing, and Javon is determined to bring in new blood while looking for those who killed Claudette. Not to mention, something odd is going on with all of his siblings that threatens to rock the family to the core. Will the McPhearson clan fall in order for the Syndicate to rise, or will the truth end the legacy before it can even begin?

    The once unshakeable enforcer slash irristible ladies manis now an expectant father! Angelique is pregnant with theirbaby however the fairytale ending may have to waitbecause Dallas is mad as hell with dangerous plans of relationship sabotage. Life continues to throw Tyce curve balls but will he strike out and lose his new family? Will his ex girlfriends vengeance break up a happy home? You would think having a baby for the very first time is enough responsibility but pile on the cruel intentions of a love sick female and you have one helluva stack.Join Tyce for the ride of a lifetime as he uncovers lies, makes tough decisions, and protects the ones he loves. All while being swagtastic and snacking on an endless supply of sweet Skittles. It's game time baby...are you ready?

    Electrocuted. With another woman in there with him. Debbie decides she just isn't going to "do it anymore." But executing her exit strategy from the porn world is a wrenching and far from simple process. Millions of men (and no doubt many women) have watched famed black porn queen Debbie Dare—she of the blond wig and blue contacts-"do it" on television and computer screens every which way with every combination of partners the mind of man can imagine. But one day an unexpected and thunderous on-set orgasm catches Debbie unawares, and when she returns to the mansion she shares with her husband, insatiable former porn star and "film producer" Theon Pinkney, she discovers that he's died in a case of hot tub electrocution, "auditioning" an aspiring "starlet." Burdened with massive debts that her husband incurred, and which various L.A. heavies want to collect on, Debbie must reckon with a life spent in the peculiar subculture of the pornography industry and her estrangement from her family and the child she had to give up. She's done with porn, but her options for what might come next include the possibility of suicide. Debbie . . . is a portrait of a ransacked but resilient soul in search of salvation and a cure for grief.

    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.

    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. --

    He has a father he looks up to and an older brother who keeps him under his wing--until the day his father crosses a line that changes everything. Tone is forced to enter a world he knew nothing about. Detective Abraham is obsessed with power and money, so he has figured out a way to play on both sides of the tracks when it comes to organized crime. The only thing stopping him from making it to the top spot is Santiago, one of the most feared suppliers in the country. Santiago's only weakness is his daughter, Serena. Detective Abraham develops a plan that involves his son, Tone, getting close to Serena.Against his better judgment, Tone goes along with his father's plan and sets out to win Serena over with his charm. What he hasn't planned on is Serena turning the tables and stealing his heart. Now Tone is faced with choices that leave him questioning his loyalty to his family.

    And when her soon-to-be husband, Trevan "TC" Clayton, is shot to death right in front of her on the night he proposes to her, her life takes a dramatic turn for the worse. TC's mother gives all her son's worldly possessions away—including he and Nisey's Florissant suburban home—to a two-bit con-artist/ex-pimp turned reverend. Nisey is left with no other choice but to move back to the drug-infested Section 8 apartments of St. Louis' JVL.Stripped of the ghetto fabulous lifestyle, Nisey and her girlfriends pick up the scale and baggies to turn their misfortunes into a fortune. Quickly, she and her clique of "Trap-A-Rellas" become the talk of the Lou, and just as fast as she reaches the top, schemes are set in place to knock her back down.

    Josephine was the toast of Europe, and her fabulous apartment in Amsterdam’s theater district was a popular gathering place for an international community of artists, actors, and expatriates who considered themselves true citizens of the world. Josephine lived above and beyond the reach of conventional definitions of who and what an African American diva could be, and her legions of loyal fans loved her for it. She had a perfect life and enough sense to live it to the hilt, but then a war she didn’t fully understand turned everything upside down, thrusting her into a role she never wanted and was not prepared to play. Suddenly the target of angry protests aimed at the country she had never really felt was her own, Josephine is forced to return to America to see if she can create a new definition of home.Camping out with her granddaughter, Zora, who is housesitting in Atlanta’s West End; and trying to avoid the unwanted attentions of Dig It!, the city’s brand-new gossip magazine, Josephine struggles to reclaim her old life even as she scrambles to shape her new one. Hoping her friend Howard Denmond is as good as his word when he promises to engineer her triumphant return to the European stage, Josephine sets out to increase her nest egg by selling the house her mother willed her, only to find the long-neglected property has become home to squatters who have no intention of leaving.But an unexpected reunion with an old friend offers Josephine a chance to set things right. Spurning an offer from unscrupulous land developer Greer Woodruff, Josephine gathers new friends around her, including Victor Causey, a lawyer whose addictions left him homeless but still determined to protect his mother; Louie Baptiste, a displaced New Orleans chef hoping to return to the city he loves; and Aretha Hargrove, recovering from her role in the same scandal that sent Zora running for cover. As Greer gets serious about her plan to tear the community apart, Josephine finds herself playing the most important role of her life, showing her neighbors what courage really is and learning the true meaning of coming home.

    For a 17-year-old, Amina has a decent life. But after meeting her father and 23-year-old brother for the first time, things take a turn for the worse. Amina ends up alone, trying to fend for herself and save her boyfriend, Kayne, from 3 years in jail. Amina must prove her loyalty to Kayne, but can you be a Down Chick without being locked down yourself? This is a question that never crosses Amina’s mind, leading her to make the ultimate mistake of her life. Author Mallori McNeal began writing Down Chick at age 14, during the summer before she began her first year in high school. She completed Down Chick and was accepted for publishing at age 16. Mallori currently lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.

    The land in which the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Meet Falen. She’s grown up in the infamous Fifth Ward and life has never been easy. Her crack addicted mother left she and her sister years ago to fend for themselves. Now at nineteen Falen is left homeless and hopeless. Along with her best friend Toya the two try to climb out of the gutter. Tino is one of the biggest ballers in Fifth Ward. He’s pushing major weight. The ladies love him and he loves the ladies. He’s a sucker for a nice round rump accompanied with a pretty face. So, when he encounters a troubled Falen sparks ignite instantly. She’s everything he never knew he wanted and he’s everything she’s always been afraid of. Even as Tino tries to assist Falen she just can’t elude misfortune. Problems take on a new meaning until she stumbles across a drop being made. After consideration Falen and Toya make a brash decision to step in during a small window of opportunity and steal what they think is cash. To their complete and utter shock they ended up snatching ten kilos of cocaine. With their backs against the wall they have no choice but to get out in the streets and hustle. In this story of love, lust, and betrayal friendships will end and bonds will be broken. Money is the root of all evil and it can turn the most innocent person into a ruthless conniver. Taking ten kilos from a hustler can change lives forever, especially when no one seems to know who’s at fault. With an all-out war promising to rear its ugly head, will Tino be able to save Falen? Or will both their futures cease to exist?

    This funny, sexy book has something for everyone!

    A passionate encounter causes Mercedes more problems than she relalizes. With her guards down, her life is violently put on the line.

    They lived lavishly as King and Queen while calling shots from New York to Augusta, Georgia. Their Columbian connect in Miami, ensured their place at the top of the game.They lived the dream, until the feds raided their mansion and snatched Falisa and her husband, leaving their twelve-year-old son to hold down the Throne. He did everything his father asked; even placing his own life in jeopardy to prove that he was capable of walking in the shoes that were left for him.One simple mistake turned their entire family upside down, and their son was left to swim the waters with the Great Whites. Loyalties are tested, and bonds are strained as young Fly learns that the road to the throne is no cakewalk.