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Urban and African American Fiction December 2017
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New and noteworthy titles.
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We Are Taking Only What We Need : Stories
by Stephanie Powell Watts
n these powerfully rendered, prizewinning stories, working-class African Americans across the South strive for meaning and search for direction in lives shaped by forces beyond their control The ten stories in this resonant collection deal with both the ties that bind and the gulf that separates generations, from children confronting the fallibility of their own parents for the first time to adults finding themselves forced to start over again and again. In “Highway 18” a young Jehovah’s Witness going door to door with an expert field-service partner from up north is at a crossroads: will she go to college or continue to serve the church? “If You Hit Randall County, You’ve Gone Too Far” tells of a family trying to make it through a tense celebratory dinner for a son just out on bail. And in the collection’s title story, a young girl experiences loss for the first time in the fallout from her father’s relationship with her babysitter. Startling, intimate, and prescient on their own, these stories build to a kaleidoscopic understanding of both the individual and the collective black experience over the last fifty years in the American South. With We Are Taking Only What We Need, Stephanie Powell Watts has crafted an incredibly assured and emotionally affecting meditation on everything from the large institutional forces to the small interpersonal moments that impress upon us and direct our lives.
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No Perfect Affair : Renaissance Collection
by Charmaine Galloway
Melody, Asia, and Sasha are three successful women working in the careers they’ve always wanted. They excel in life, they excel in their chosen professions, but in their relationships, they fail miserably! From scandalous affairs and drug-induced sex-capades to secret pregnancies and murder in the first degree, these cousins have the personal drama on lock. But when backstabbing and betrayal infiltrates their relationship with one another, the once tight trio quickly finds that blood is nowhere near as thick as water. Come take a roller coaster ride with these women and experience their drama, their deceit, and a little bit of their naughtiness as they each try to handle lust and lies of the most wicked kind.
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The Family Business 4
by Carl Weber
LC Duncan, patriarch and leader of the Duncan clan, is alive and well after being shot by a mysterious gunman. His near death experience has caused him and his wife Chippy to reflect on both the past and present, and together they decide that it’s time to return to Waycross, Georgia for a long overdue family reunion. Wherever the Duncans go, trouble is never too far behind, and this time it comes in the form of longtime Duncan enemy Vinnie Dash and Orlando Duncan's baby momma, Ruby. Vinnie and Ruby are back to seek revenge on the Duncan family, and they continue to deny Orlando the opportunity to meet his only child, who has been named after his family’s sworn enemy. Orlando takes things into his own hands and sets out to Jamaica to get his son. The beautiful Paris Duncan is being haunted by recurring nightmares of her true love, Niles Monroe. She blew up his private plane when he became a threat to her family; however, there have been signs that suggest he may still be alive. On top of this, Darryl Graham, a long lost family friend, has returned and reignited a feud between Paris and London. Will the sisters have it out once again over the attention of a man? Get ready for another roller coaster ride with the Duncan family.
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Guilty of Stealing His Heart
by Ladonna Robinson
Fendi has a knack for complicating her love life, so just as she commits herself to loving the dedicated Mason, one of her old flames turns up and she must make the ultimate choice.
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Be My Forever Bride
by Martha Kennerson
It was like something out of a fairy tale: being swept off her feet, then eloping with her one true love, Houston oil tycoon Brice Kingsley. Then a devastating diagnosis and a threat from her past forced Brooke Smith Kingsley to leave the man she loved. Now she has a chance to make things right, but only if she can keep her secret—and her distance—from her irresistible husband. Though he couldn’t accept Brooke’s reasons for running away, Brice never gave up on her or their marriage. And with the beautiful tax attorney back in his life, reigniting passion stronger than before, he can’t bear to let her go ever again. Even as a revenge-seeking blackmailer schemes to bring down the Kingsley empire, Brice will fight for their future—a love that’s for now and forever.
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Foolish
by Anna Black
November is on the right track to success, and she looks forward to living the lifestyle she always dreamed she’d have as an advertising agent. After suffering through countless roommates and ending up in and out of her parents’ home while in school, her dream condo is within her grasp; but a few weeks before closing, she totals her car. She is sure bad luck has returned to her life, until she meets Tracy Stone, who offers her a solution. That offer leads to a whirlwind romance that takes November by surprise. Charming, dark, handsome, and well-off, Tracy seems to be the perfect man, until he reveals himself to be a little more jealous and controlling than November would like. Excusing his behavior as deep love for her, she marries him, only to learn that this tall, dark, and handsome guy has some demons that could eventually ruin their marriage and derail her happily-ever-after for good.
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On-air Passion
by Lindsay Evans
Basketball star Ahmed Clark’s wealth made him a target for money-grabbing groupies. He’s since left sports behind to become an Atlanta radio-show host—who is famously cynical about romance. But from the moment gorgeous, upbeat Elle Marshall goes on air to promote her business of creating perfect dates for couples, it’s a whole new ball game. And for the first time, he’s caught off guard. Idealistic Elle believes in love, even if she has yet to experience it. She and Ahmed clash and sizzle over the airwaves—even more so when the station arranges a media-friendly Valentine’s date for them in response to irrefutable excitement from his audience. Elle’s passionate response to Ahmed’s touch spurs powerful mutual desire, until past hurt puts him on the defensive. Bringing his heart in play is the riskiest move Ahmed’s ever made, but it’s the only way to earn a shot at her love…
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Best Laid Plans
by Brick
Dr. Antonio “Tone” Ortiz is an ordinary single father in Miami, trying to ignore what flows through his veins, until his daughter, Jewel, goes missing. With all his options failing, it’s up to Tone to find his daughter by any means necessary, even if that means signing his soul over to the devil himself: his father, Caltrone Orlando. Co-parenting has never been easy, and Kenya Gates will learn just how hard it is with the kidnapping of her daughter, Jewel. Even through all the sacrifices, secrets, lost love, drama, pain, and manipulation, these two fighting parents will come together with one agenda in mind: to save their daughter at all costs. But will Kenya also be willing to join up with Tone’s dangerous father, or will she allow her emotions to get in the way? Behind the scenes, a legacy had been founded, one ushering in legendary murders and mayhem. Now it's time to understand the Orlandos, the seductive, lethal, and notorious family known for taking and leaving bodies behind. Journey with street lit authors, Brick & Storm as they tell another tale of the Hood Misfits’ urban world.
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A Taste of Desire
by Chloe Blake
The lush mountains of Brazil provide a stunning location for a business trip—or a wild, unexpected romance. International real estate agent Nicole Parks isn’t expecting the latter, but she’s quickly falling under the spell of incredibly handsome French vintner Destin Dechamps. The man is as delicious as the fine blends he creates. Yet he’s out to sabotage the deal that will guarantee her a promotion and the adoption she’s been longing for. Destin lost both his wife and his career when his family winery burned down. Gradually he’s found meaning in a new plan—defy his father, keep the land and rebuild. He can’t afford to fantasize about a gorgeous Realtor who’s been hired to interrupt his scheme—even unknowingly. When a rainstorm traps them together, attraction spills over into intoxicating pleasure. With both their dreams in the balance, is there room for a sweet, intense fling to deepen into love?
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He Used to Love Me : Renaissance Collection
by Dorothy Brown-newton
When 27-year-old Jakiyah Smith left New York after a failed relationship, she had no plans of returning, but the death of her sister has forced her to come back. Now Jakiyah must help to care for her sister’s child, but she soon finds herself surrounded by drama. German, the man she thought she would be with forever, is still with the woman he left her for. To make matters worse, Jakiyah’s mother is the side-piece’s newest friend. As Jakiyah struggles to come to terms with what has happened to her sister, she must also figure out whom she can trust. She learns that not all smiling faces are friendly, and now she’s second-guessing the people she would have laid her life down for. Jakiyah’s life has quickly spiraled out of control, and she regrets her decision to move back home.
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An American Marriage
by Tayari Jones
Newlyweds Celestial and Roy, the living embodiment of the New South, are settling into the routine of their life together when Roy is sent to prison for a crime he didn't commit. An insightful look into the lives of people who are bound and separated by forces beyond their control/
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If It Ain't About the Money
by Saundra
Secret. Penny. Isis. Two sisters, one best friend. Between neglectful parents and growing up in Miami's worst neighborhood, the three have had each others’ backs since forever. So there's nothing Secret won't do to grab the cash flow and glamorous lives she, innocent Penny, and idealistic Isis surely deserve. And she and lowlife fixer Kirk have the perfect plan: transfer rich folks’ wealth to new accounts, cleverly make withdrawals, and line their pockets . . . Soon it's raining money, exclusive condos, fast cars—and major bad-news trouble. ʼCause Isis just found real love and now wants out of the game for good. And when a merciless enemy, a disastrous old scam-gone-bad, and unexpected betrayal turn the girls’ glittering world inside out, how far will they game each other—and risk their friendship—to survive?
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