Urban African American

Crystal Sells is a biker chick, not one of those honeys who hang on the back of a motorcycle with their arms around some random man. The self-proclaimed “baddest bitch on two wheels” likes to ride alone on what she calls her “steel.” Crystal hustles knock-off designer purses and bootleg DVDs to make ends meet, until she meets Ray Jackson of the Phantom Cruz, a local motorcycle gang, and begins living the life of a wifey. When their sweet life goes sour, Crystal is forced from their home and finds herself working at a gentleman’s club.

Running their Los Angeles casino has been rewarding for Luke Chance and his three brothers, Malachi, Roman, and Genesis. But recently it seems like everyone is trying to get a piece of the pie. Word on the streets alert the Chance brothers of an impending hostile takeover of their casino, which could leave Luke and his brothers penniless and possibly dead. That is until their 25-year-old sister, Keilah Chance, who lives in DC, comes home for a short visit.

Sometimes going hard means sacrificing the very thing you love the most in order to be at the top. Gwen knows firsthand about this sacrifice as she struggles to get her son back from a heartless killer bent on revenge. Niya, on the other hand, is sitting at the top of the throne. Still, she will have to determine whether she’s willing to sacrifice her girls’ lives in order to make MHB a dominant force in North Carolina’s drug trade. She’s about to find out that playing with the big boys has its consequences, unless you are really about that life.

In this rambunctious satire, Wallace Thurman, one of the leading figures of the Harlem Renaissance, takes his fellow artists and critics to task. The setting is a buzzing apartment building in 1930s Harlem, where avatars for the likes of Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Countee Cullen, and Thurman himself come together to push past old boundaries and test out new ideas. But the heat of this collective energy soon threatens to consume them all, as wild parties, jealous rages, and intellectual conflicts turn the literary circle into an out-of-control hothouse of personal drama.

There's a saying in Brooklyn that if you come from my part of town, you're from around the way. Well Lyric, Juicy, and Precious are all from around the way. They all live in Crown Heights, one of the most notorious sections of Brooklyn, but to them it's just a place they call home. Around the Way Girls 2 is a fast-paced look at the life of some street-smart women who think they know it all but are about to get the lessons of their lives.

Still reeling from her husband’s untimely death, Deborah Robinson needs a fresh start. So she decides to pack up her family and return to her grandmother’s ancestral home on Cavanaugh Island. The charming town of Sanctuary Cove holds happy memories for Deborah, and, after she spies a gorgeous stranger in the local bakery, it promises the possibility for a bright future. Dr. Asa Monroe is at a crossroads. Ever since the loss of his family, he has been traveling from one town to another. When he meets Deborah, the beautiful bookstore owner with the sunny smile, Asa believes he has finally found a reason to stay in one place.

Legendary King lives up to his name: a true legend and a king in the streets. His life was perfect with his dream woman by his side. That was until tragedy struck, causing him to lose it all and end up behind bars. His only plan when he gets out is to get back to the life that he worked so hard to build, but it doesn't take him long to realize nothing will ever be the same. He's haunted by the night that changed his life, and simple tasks, like breathing, prove to be difficult. He does all he can to shake the nightmare, but nothing helps. That is until he comes across the rough beauty.

Paris Italy Hall has had enough of street life and wants no part of it or the men in her complex that dwell in it, living off of the pain and suffering of everyday people. Paris works hard and goes to school so that she can say bye to her surroundings and move on to something better. But Demetrius “Meek” Lewis has other plans. He sees her and pursues her relentlessly until she gives in and gives him a chance. Paris soon realizes that she is trapped and unable to escape his clutches.

Meet Leslie Thompson, a sexually frustrated 30-year-old teacher on summer break. Tired of being locked into a boring routine and conservative lifestyle, she just wants to feel good and have some erotic fun. Her fiancé Trey is everything she could hope for - minus the dull sex life. When the best man, Rico, figures out that Leslie craves sheet-pulling orgasms, he proves to be the man who can deliver. After Leslie grows accustomed to having her cake and eating it, too, sexing Rico ignites her desire to sow her wild oats with lovers other than her man on the side.

Giselle thinks she has the perfect life. Her fine and sexy husband, Giovanni, is obsessed with his perfect wife and gives her whatever her heart desires. Giselle thinks her husband can do no wrong. What she doesn’t know is that his lucrative adult film company is not as legit as it seems, and Giovanni’s seedy dealings put his precious wife in danger.

Joan, Tisha, and Lila are three single, ambitious party girls embarking on a journey where they attempt to give up sex and draw nearer to God. Giving up their boyfriends and club hopping for empty beds and Bible study is more challenging than they could have imagined. The Single Sister Experiment is a fast-paced, drama-filled ride that you don’t want to miss!

A former inmate, who is now an assistant stock broker and a part-time gang counselor, details his life on the inner city streets of Atlanta as a notorious drug dealer, vividly recreating the his struggle to break the cycle and walk the straight and narrow.

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?

Urban Books' popular Girls from da Hood series continues its gritty street drama in this twelfth installment, featuring urban fiction superstar Treasure Hernandez and rising stars Katt and Paradise Gomez. Honey has been working them streets for El-Jihad, selling his wares and keeping up her end of the bargain. Strawberry has been a rather lucrative ho for Larry "Sir" Smalls; however, she's been at it for a minute, and it is starting to have an effect on her mind and body. Jackie spent 15 years in the state pen for stabbing the fool that had the audacity to put his hands on her.

Around the Way Girls 10, like its predecessors, is a fast-paced look at the lives of some street-smart women who think they know it all but are about to get the lessons of their lives.

Urban Books' popular Around the Way Girls series is back, bringing readers more dramatic tales about the lives of some tough, resourceful women who can hold their own when things get rough on the streets. Growing up poor and biracial, Shannon never quite fit in. Not truly accepted by either side of her family, the confused teenager turns to the one thing that loves her back unconditionally - the streets. With a bottle of liquor at her side and a worthless mentality in tow, Shannon allows the local strip club and the pole to become her new family.

Reesa's a savvy financial planner with one goal - to have a baby before 35. But to do that, she's got to do one of two things: dump her current man, Simon, and find another man more suitable to be husband and father, or settle with Simon and work overtime trying to train him for the starring role. At 33, getting rid of Simon to find Mr. Right is a chance Reesa's not willing to take. But when she's had enough of Simon's antics and kicks him to the curb, will her goal change?

Kayla, Evelyn, and Trina have been on-and-off-again girlfriends for many years, but the lines of true friendship will be crossed, the knives that go into another friend's back will cut deep, trust will not apply, and no one will share their dirty little secrets. With enough backstabbing, finger-pointing, and disrespect to go around, this trio sticks to their motto of "What she can do, I can do better; and whatever she has, I want a piece of it too." Much competition is thrown in the mix, and jealousy is so thick that there will be no place for anyone to run when the mess hits the fan.

Dee Dee is as laid back, sassy, and cute as they come, but having two overprotective brothers like Jay and Bee, who have clout in the Memphis streets, makes finding and building a relationship seriously hazardous to a brother's health. Things move fast for Jay and Bee after hooking up with a new contact. All of the training that Jay was secretly putting Dee Dee through comes into play as Jay and Bee are locked up in the county jail for selling to an informant. The game is dominated by thugs until Dee Dee hits the scene.

Trayce is an Internet entrepreneur in Chicago, and she has moved on. Solomon never moved away. Janet, head cheerleader and homecoming queen, fell from grace after graduation. Karim, the handsome and successful New York music video director who is on everyone's lips, wasn't always like that. Ten years ago, he was bullied and ridiculed by the Crew, the most popular clique in school. At their 10-year class reunion, how will these four handle it? And what are their motives?