African Urban Fiction

The first morning that winter broke in DC, Naomi Taylor - a Howard University senior - found a photo in her new winter coat but it's just not any photo. There is a mystery behind the act itself, and Naomi can’t seem to shake off the vision of what she saw. Nor could her best friend, Shanice. Indeed, what was done was tasteless, dirty, yet so captivating.

My lady and I have decided that laying in bed all day on a Sunday is not enough for our relationship. My girl's friend suggested we meet at Club Paris, an upscale adult club in Times Square later today. The club is nothing more than a façade for what lies beneath. It doesn't take long until the attendees are venturing into the deepest desires. Instead of standing around, my lady and I wanted to join in.

Hip music critic Dwayne Robinson has two main gigs: defending rap's rightful place in the music industry and scoring as many women as possible. But this smooth-talking b-boy has yet to try working love into his lingo - until "buppie" Danielle Embry slides into and rocks his world. A Connecticut suburbanite, Danielle is as far removed from Dwayne's Brooklyn ghetto upbringing as it gets. Yet despite this clash, these unlikely lovers are drawn together.

The body count is mounting and Kira is trying to stay clear of it. Detective Grimes is determined to bring the killer - or is it killers? - to justice and he isn't letting up. Kira, on the other hand, is faced with yet another situation dealing with Dylan. Her one-time knight in shining armor has turned into a crazed maniac and Kira doesn't know how to handle him. While she tries to pick up the pieces that are continuously falling from her once-perfect life, more drama is brewing and this time it may be too hot to handle. Will Kira escape death this time?

It can be really hard to find the right person to settle down with. People have sex with each other all the time, yet there is always that special someone who makes the difference makes you want to make the decision to settle down for good. The author shows how that can happen by suing two different sets of characters in two different stories. The yin and the yang, perfectly joined. Total opposites coexisting in harmony and love....

With her past confronting her head-on, a game of tug of war is being played with her heart and Orchid is faced with having to make the most difficult choice of her young life. Will she choose to revisit her past or move forward with her plans to marry Khalil? But all is not as it seems. As more drama unfolds and alliances are questioned, deep, dark secrets from the past are revealed, once again threatening her family and any chance she has at happiness. Once again life has thrown Orchid a curve ball.

When Keyshia and Clyde meet, they are instantly drawn to each other. Forced to pay back a large sum of cash to one nasty Harlem kingpin or risk the lethal consequences, Keyshia and Clyde use their tight game and their loyalty to pull off the impossible. And when Clyde is falsely accused of a bank hit, Keyshia vows to stick by her man - no matter the cost.

The seventh child of one of Richmond, Virginia's, most ambitious hustlers, Seven is a talented poet and author with a true ear for the streets. In Gorilla Black, a boy with a love of Shakespeare and Langston Hughes struggles to thrive while growing up in the projects as the son of an alcoholic mother. In time, self-dubbed Gorilla Black will ascend to the top seat of a cocaine-fueled empire - and discover the truth about his beloved brother's death so many years before.

A New York Times best-selling author and award-winning journalist with publishing credits in Essence and Vibe, Aliya S. King uses her experience covering celebrity culture to create juicy tales of sex, ambition, and betrayal. In Diamond Life, Alex Maxwell’s rapper husband, Birdie, sees his album go multiplatinum - but life in the spotlight might be too much for his marriage to withstand.

Who can Kiam trust when friends behave as ruthlessly as enemies and the person that he is most loyal to is the very one that has a gun aimed at his back? Reeling in a bloodthirsty rage, he takes to the streets with only one mission on his mind - vengeance. Blood-stained hands and deceitful hearts have destroyed an undying allegiance. As Kiam unleashes his vicious murder game on known adversaries, he overlooks the true enemy which is nearest. However, spilled blood will lead him to the truth.

Essence best-selling author Keith Lee Johnson's popular series continues with this fourth book, which reaches back to unearth the roots of JohnnieWise's family tree. On the eve of her arranged marriage in an African village, a 16-year-old girl elopes with her fiancé's younger brother. But the lovers are captured and sold into American slavery - and the girl wonders if she'll ever see her man again.

The story is told primarily through Andre's voice, but we also see things through the voices and points of view of his mother Ruby, a hard-working medical secretary, his older sister Nina, his mostly not-there-usually-drunk-and-high father Eddie, a halfhearted reggae musician, and Reggie and Smoke, the kingpins of competing drug crews.

Life is supposed to be easy and carefree when you are young, but if you live in Washington, DC, that's not always the case. Flashing back to the 1990s, listeners enter the lives of four black men looking to gain money, power, and respect. These four brothas come from different walks of life, but they have one thing in common: They are trying to make fast money in the harsh inner city. However, when the money comes too easily, there's usually a price attached...the ultimate price.

The Teflon Queen is back and better than ever. All Angela wants to do is disappear, but there's only one problem: every cop in the world is looking for her along with the White Shadow, one of the most brutal, vicious, and dangerous assassins in the world. And they won't stop until the Teflon Queen is no more. Angela quickly turns from the hunter to the hunted. Not only does she have to keep herself alive, but she's also responsible for the life of agent James Carter; her one-time lover who trusts her about as far as he can throw her.

Sparkle is back on the scene and has a newfound love. Ontavious is all that she's ever wanted. He has good looks, a great career, and a humble spirit. Unlike her ex, he's the type of man who she believes can hold her down and remain faithful. After finding the man of her dreams, she's suddenly faced with a situation that could cause her to lose everything she's built with him. Because of Sparkle's new secret, she has to make a decision on whether she wants to continue moving on with her new man or resolve the issues with her ex, Sayveon.

They say loyalty is everything, but beneath the surface of a promise lies betrayal and deceit. Taught by the best and given the keys to an empire, Kiam's loyalty is tested at every turn, as he strives to enforce his rule over those who ultimately can't be trusted. A deadly warning directs his course as he strives to carry out his orders. Complications set in when his mentor's beautiful, sexy, and rebellious daughter Lissha - who is as comfortable carrying a gun as she is carrying a Gucci bag - forces Kiam to decide between his sizzling desire for her and his immense loyalty to big Zo.

This raw and passionate novel from national best-selling author Tracy Price-Thompson is a provocative story of love across racial boundaries. Juanita and her best friend Scooter are both frustrated in life and love, Juanita because her light skin makes it tough to fit in, and Scooter because he is gay. When they meet two fine-looking Puerto Rican men, their lives head down paths they never anticipated.

Trapped in cupid's web, Erika fought to shed no more tears over another failed relationship. She wanted more. Grieving over his own heartbroken issues, David held grudges, and was content with keeping women away from his heart. He desired less. Now, as time provided new opportunities in Erika and David lives, they crossed paths and embraced the desires to trust again.

Trinidad-born Justin Peters is a Harvard-educated literature professor, whose focus on the works of "Dead White Men" receives little professional respect at the public Brooklyn college where he teaches. But whatever troubles he might have at work are eclipsed when he realizes his wife, Sally, is no longer certain about their life together.

National best-selling author Keith Lee Johnson enjoyed breakout success for his novel Little Black Girl Lost. Now Johnson introduces Nelson Kennard, a former number-one NBA draft pick who blew his chance at the big time - and is about to lose the best thing that's ever happened to him, sexy school teacher Parris Stalls. Soon-to-be-dissed Nelson may have been a playa back in the day, but there's always another baller waiting in the wings.