African Urban

When Farah Cotton places a classified ad stating, “Cute redbone female looking to share a luxury apartment with another redbone female”, many women apply. One look at the lush apartment in Washington, DC, and every fly girl around wants a chance to call Platinum Lofts her new home. The moment Farah lays eyes on Lesa Carmine, a pretty young woman with an active lifestyle and a sunny disposition, she knows she’s found the perfect girl for her ultimate plan. The two become fast friends - until Farah becomes intrusive and her siblings move in, violating Lesa’s privacy.

All he ever wanted to be was a good son. Shai Clark was an all-American basketball player with aspirations of one day making it to the NBA, but that all changed when his father was viciously murdered and he found himself thrust into the role of the new head of his family's criminal enterprise.

In ancient mythology, the Titan Prometheus was punished by the gods for bringing man the gift of fire - an event that set humankind on its course of knowledge. As punishment, Prometheus was bound to a rock. But in The Gift of Fire, those chains cease to be, and the great champion of man walks from that immortal prison into present-day South Central Los Angeles. Disheveled and lost, he is thrown in jail, where he meets lifelong criminal Nosome Blane....

After seven years of prison, multimillionaire drug mogul Kane Garrett is back on the streets. But instead of diving back into the drug game, he’s teaching a college class, infusing business principles with his signature ruthless edge he developed in the streets. When a student - and heavy heroin dealer - named Basil catches Kane’s eye, Kane takes him on as a protégé, and together, they build the biggest, smartest drug trafficking business the state has ever seen.

Mama Black Widow tells the tragic story of Otis Tilson, a stunning black drag queen trapped in a cruel queer ghetto underworld. In hopes of escaping the racial bigotry andeconomic injustice of the South, Otis' family journeys north from their plantation to an urban promised land. Once in Chicago, Otis and his siblings become prisoners to a wasteland of violence, crime, prostitution, and rape. This is the gut-wrenching tale of the destruction of a family and the truest portrayal of homosexuality in the ghetto ever told.

The first family of Miami, the Diamonds, are back and more ruthless than ever. When the family has to deal with the sins of the father, karma comes back and rests on the shoulders of Carter “CJ” Jones II. The life his father never wanted for him calls him, and the allure of family tradition sucks him in so deep that he falls victim to the game. This story shows the second coming of a king and solidifies the cartel family tree in the roots of the streets forever.

To Merlin Mills, his family ceased to exist when his father turned his back on him, and he had to make some drastic changes in order to survive. Now, nine years later, his family is back, and their existence threatens his once stable relationship with his new wife. If Merlin wants to hold on to her, he must face the demons he’s conveniently forgotten and put them in their proper perspective. Can he undo the damage caused by his omission, or will he snap under the pressure?

Do you know who you are? Are you comfortable in your skin? Outed by her best friend in front of the whole neighborhood, Niya is trying to come to terms with being a lesbian. When she falls for her straight neighbor, Jamilla, there is no more denying who she really is. Niya will do whatever it takes to prove her love, even if it means taking a life. What will happen when family issues, fame, the struggle for love, and reality set in? How will Niya deal with a hip-hop career as she tries to repair her broken heart and family issues?

Nola wants no part of a relationship with Hot Shot after her family is incarcerated. He has never loved a woman the way he loves Nola, so dealing with that loss on top of the loss of his parents and little brother has Hot Shot on the verge of committing murder. He is determined to get his woman back at all costs, and the streets of Oklahoma City will run red if someone steps to him the wrong way.

Raven loves the night life, chasing women and her next high. Men and women fall under her spell at first sight, but she only has eyes for women. She accepts all shapes, sizes, and forms, for they are mere pawns in the quest to feed her cravings. She has a little secret, though - one that could have catastrophic results for anyone who encounters her, one that could lead Raven into a sticky situation - but her cravings are too powerful for her to resist. Will her little secret come back with a vengeance?

Simone knows if she plays with fire, she runs the risk of getting burned, but she just can't help herself. Living large off the paternity scam of a lifetime, she has two baby daddies cashing her out for her infant son. Even her own best friends are getting tired of her low-down, manipulative ways. Unfortunately, the streets begin to talk, and the out-for-self mother's luck taps out.

You've seen them in print before, and their books are hot, hot, hot! Now see what Edd McNair, Keisha Ervin, and Brenda Hampton can do when they join forces to bring you three stories in the latest installment of Girls from da Hood. Being married to notorious gangsta rapper Sean Pynn isn't as glamorous as it appears to be. Behind closed doors, Queen is dealing with knock-down drag-out fights, verbal abuse, and neglect. When her bodyguard, Ahsim, comes into the picture, things change in a hurry.

For Unique, life is good until her dope-dealing boyfriend, Took, is arrested and winds up in jail. Now she's broke as a joke, trying to put every petty hustle into play to chase hard times away from the door. With an empty refrigerator, a stack of bills piling up, a tenth-grade education, a big butt and a smile, it doesn't take long for her to learn to pull the wool over the eyes of any fool who's blinded by her good looks.

Following the action of Justify My Thug, the story rejoins the saga’s favorite couple, Tasha and Trae, as they try to make their marriage work in the midst of innumerable troubles: a murdered son, shattered bonds, forbidden affairs, deception, blackmail, hate, love, lust, corruption, friends torn apart by treachery, and the threat of going up against one of the most sophisticated and deadliest Chinese crime organizations. In the torrid world of sex, drugs, and crime, Wahida Clark continues the definitive hip-hop soap opera that fans have come to love.

Picking up where the suspenseful Payback with Ya Life left off, we’re plunged back into the hip-hop drama, where the men are hot and dangerous, the women know their shoes from their Choos, and they will stop at nothing to get what they want. In a game of power and intrigue where the stakes are high and the rewards are dazzling, the losers are gonna discover there’s always a price to pay.

Two children from Sierra Leone, Liberty and A’shai, are brought together by chance, only to be forced apart by the most inevitable and tragic fate. Ashley & JaQuavis bring us this classic love story set against modern life’s most horrifying realities.

Jaylin and Nokea Rogers have been married for almost four years. Jaylin has finally tamed his womanizing ways, and they're happily raising their children together. Things couldn't be more perfect, until an unforgettable kiss from Nokea's past has her wondering what could - or should - have been. The tender kiss was placed on her lips by Jaylin's best friend, Shane, and when Nokea is forced to spend a night alone with him, the unthinkable happens.

While Jaylin fights his battle to stay out of jail for giving Felicia a major beat-down, he also has to do what it takes to maintain his marriage to Nokea. This time, she’s skeptical about standing by her man, and when she finds out that Scorpio and Jaylin can’t quite keep their feelings under control, throwing in the towel just might be the best thing to do. Till death do us part, Jaylin confirms, as losing his wife is not an option. For everyone, Scorpio’s cravings for the one man she’ll never be able to conquer must come to an end.

At the time of its publication, Wallace Thurman’s debut novel was deeply provocative. This was due not only to its frank considerations of race and sex, but also to its vivid portrait of a Harlem that few other writers had dared to explore. At the heart of this journey into new terrain is Emma Lou Morgan, a Black woman who leaves her “color-struck” Idaho hometown behind and strikes out, first for Los Angeles and later for Harlem—where, unfortunately, discrimination simply takes on a new form.

Jakki and School Boy are more than first cousins; they’re best friends and partners in crime with a reputation for getting theirs by any means necessary. The pair are ultimately forced to defend not only their family name but their loyalty to each other. With both wanting to stand at the head of the table, Jakki and School Boy feud. Sani, a well-known female gambling house owner, is at the top of her game, but after she decides to inject phony currency into her business, all hell breaks loose.