The new year is off to a great start with these books released in January 2022.
Stacey Abrams
Criminal psychologist Dr. Erin Abbott wants nothing more than to live a quiet life. That means no danger, no intrigue – and absolutely no romance. But when Erin suspects a serial killer is roaming New Orleans, her investigation throws her straight into the arms of the only man who can help her.
Journalist Gabriel Moss is hot to find his next huge story – and he knows Erin is on to something big. From the moment they meet, Gabriel senses that Erin is hiding something. One thing is certain: Erin’s boxy suits and sensible shoes hide a delicate beauty waiting to emerge…and Gabriel is just the man to reveal the woman inside.
As they join forces to find the killer, Gabriel slowly seduces Erin with his soft kisses. But Erin knows their love can never be. For she is hiding a terrible secret – and if Gabriel reveals the truth, Erin’s life will be shattered forever….
Cherish Amore
Life gives everyone a set of challenges to overcome. What happens when they become too much?
Malaysia, a prominent ballet dancer, has seemingly found her lane and wants to stay in her safe space. However, life sends her situation after situation where that peace is challenged, requiring her to reveal secrets about herself that she normally wouldn’t. Wanting to push past the difficulties, Malaysia tries to strive forward, but can she keep her pace?
Dane, the sexy director, is firm and makes clear what he will and won’t go for. Yet that’s called to question when a certain dancer has him going back on his word. Chance after chance he’s given, but has it become too much?
Point, dip, spin, repeat is their lives. Will they also have room for love?
Jabari Asim
They call themselves the Stolen. Their owners call them captives. They are taught their captors’ tongues and their beliefs, but they have a language and rituals all their own.
In a world that would be allegorical if it weren’t saturated in harsh truths, Cato and William meet at Placid Hall, a plantation in an unspecified part of the American South. Subject to the whims of their tyrannical and eccentric captor, Cannonball Greene, they never know what harm may befall them: inhumane physical toil in the plantation’s quarry by day, a beating by night, or the sale of a loved one at any moment. It’s that cruel practice – the wanton destruction of love, the belief that Black people aren’t even capable of loving – that hurts the most.
It hurts the reserved and stubborn William, who finds himself falling for Margaret, a small but mighty woman with self-possession beyond her years. And it hurts Cato, whose first love, Iris, was sold off with no forewarning. He now finds solace in his hearty band of friends, including William, who is like a brother; Margaret; Little Zander; and Milton, a gifted artist. There is also Pandora, with thick braids and long limbs, whose beauty calls to him.
Their relationships begin to fray when a visiting minister with a mysterious past starts to fill their heads with ideas about independence. He tells them that with freedom comes the right to choose the small things – when to dine, when to begin and end work – as well as the big things, such as whom and how to love. Do they follow the preacher and pursue the unknown? Confined in a landscape marked by deceit and uncertainty, who can they trust?
Joy Avery
Honeybees, history, and small-town charm are what Honey Hill, North Carolina, is all about. Its mayor, Lunden Pierce, will stop at nothing to protect the town’s historical landmarks and distinctive character. She’s Honey Hill’s greatest champion.
But everything changes when Lunden’s childhood sweetheart, Quade Cannon, returns to town. Though Quade has fond memories of his summers in Honey Hill, he has no use for the historic inn he’s inherited—or the honeybees living in its yard. His plan is to sell the inn and reap the rewards.
For Lunden, though, the threat to Honey Hill’s history means war. Determined to change Quade’s mind, she immerses him in the town’s charm and its honeybee culture. But while he’s falling for Honey Hill, he falls for Lunden, too—and the feeling is mutual. As their summer romance heats up, Lunden has a choice to make: the town she loves or the man who threatens to change it.
Erika B.
Being the personal assistant to a celebrity takes hard work and patience. Gwen Marshall is packed with both, especially in her professional life, but she seems to lose her patience with her relationship with her parents. Maybe she needs to meet them where they are to make things better all around.
Luca Page, an actor who most would consider a ladies’ man, is content with the way his home life and career are going until a request from his agent has him reconsidering things with the people closest to him.
A moment to reconnect and reconsider has fallen on the pair. Are they ready to do the work necessary to come out on top? Or will Gwen and Luca fail and lose relationships that mean the most to them?
Kema B.
Jux and Serenity found the answers to their problems in one another. Now all they have to do is make their marriage of convenience look real and adhere to the terms of their agreement without falling in love in the process. Serenity can’t afford another heartbreak so she is determined to keep her eyes on the prize, her feelings in check and their marriage strictly business.
However, when Jux whisks her away to Jamaica for a week to ring in the new year, she holds off on telling him her decision. Instead she gives herself until midnight on New Year’s Eve to enjoy the erotic pleasures of their honeymoon before ending their intimacy for good.
Jux can’t deny his attraction to his new wife. The more he gets to know her and explore her body, his guard lowers along with his resolve to keep her at arm’s length. Will the heated days and steamy nights on the island cause a change of heart? Or will Serenity uphold her New Year’s resolution to cut him and her feelings off before the ball drops?
Darby Baham
From the outside, Reagan “Rae” Doucet has it all: a coveted career in Washington, DC, a tight circle of friends and a shoe closet to die for. When one of her crew falls ill, however, Rae is done playing it safe. The talented but unfulfilled writer makes a “risk list” to revamp her life. But forgiving her ex, Jake Saunders, might be one risk too many…
Lizzie Damilola Blackburn
Yinka’s Nigerian aunties frequently pray for her delivery from singledom, her work friends think she’s too traditional (she’s saving herself for marriage!), her girlfriends think she needs to get over her ex already, and the men in her life…well, that’s a whole other story. But Yinka herself has always believed that true love will find her when the time is right.
Still, when her cousin gets engaged, Yinka commences Operation Find-A-Date for Rachel’s Wedding. Aided by a spreadsheet and her best friend, Yinka is determined to succeed. Will Yinka find herself a huzband? And what if the thing she really needs to find is herself?
Yancey Braxton
Kaiya O’Neal, the former chief of staff to the mayor of New York City, can’t get out of town fast enough. After her public breakup and humiliation are broadcasted on TMZ, she heads home to Sweetland Bay to hide. Ahem, regroup. Needing to get her career back on track, she accepts the county’s judge position, which is in line with her plans to make a bid for the White House in the next five years. All is going well until a sexy firefighter disrupts her courtroom and she’s forced to throw the hottie in jail.
Getting thrown into jail is a lousy way for Blaise Jefferson to first appear in the media days before the premiere of his new reality TV show, The Real Bachelors of Sweetland Bay. The upheaval of his small-town life and peaceful existence is mostly due to cameras following him everywhere. But it’s the feistiness of the new judge, and a kiss that catches him totally off guard, that has him re-evaluating every aspect of his life. He wants to explore the intense attraction pulsing between them, but the judge is laser focused on her career…until she isn’t.
Kaiya never imagined she’d date a younger man, but Blaise is too tempting to resist. When she finally opens her heart and takes a chance on love, her destiny collides with Blaise’s past. Will he choose responsibility over love? Or will they both hold on to the love they so passionately desire?
Kimberly Brown
Lavish Chamberlain has lived a life of hurt and disappointment. From birth, she couldn’t remember ever experiencing genuine love from another person. A child of the system, she thought that she had finally found love, happiness, and a sense of family when she married Keith Chamberlain. But the life she shared with him was anything but the fairytale ending she had longed for.
Fresh out of her divorce, she travels to New Orleans to celebrate, even with the impending doom that she would have nothing when she returned. Her life changes drastically, the night she meets Mitchell Keonig, a wealthy bachelor who presents her with the offer of a lifetime.
Mitchell Keonig has lived a life of privilege. His father is a world renowned technical genius worth billions of dollars. Even with all of his riches, his father had remained a humble man, something he tried to instill in his son. Forever the showoff and ladies’ man, Mitchell lived life by his own rules and without regrets. When his father threatens to cut him off, Mitchell takes drastic matters to ensure this doesn’t happen.
He meets Lavish Chamberlain, and his world is turned upside down. Will the man who once only cared about himself be able to ward off her beauty for the sake of going through with his plan?
Kimberly Brown
Doniece “Niecy” Tillman is a woman all her own. She’s a go-getter who knows what she wants and what she wants is Richard Cartwright Jr. Infatuation ignites and sparks fly when she accompanies her best friend to a family game night where he is in attendance. In spite of warnings that she had her work cut out for her, Niecy sets her sights on the oldest of the Cartwright brothers, who happens to be ten years her senior.
With a swirl of new emotions forged as she gets to know him, she is taken aback when he tells her he just wants to be friends. Will she be able to keep their relationship strictly platonic or is she already too involved?
Richard Cartwright Jr. better known as RJ, is a man who doesn’t do commitment. Content with indulging in women to have his needs met, he can’t fathom his sudden interest in this feisty, young thing. Niecy entices him in a way no woman has and for RJ it becomes the very thing he runs from. With the seeds of lust already planted, he finds himself in a battle between his heart and mind. Can he be just friends with this bold beauty or will he finally give in and find a love he never knew he was craving?
Mahogany L. Browne
A teen girl hiding the scars of a past relationship finds home and healing in the words of strong Black writers. A beautiful sophomore novel from a critically acclaimed author and poet that explores how words have the power to shape and uplift our world even in the midst of pain.
When Darius told Angel he loved her, she believed him. But five weeks after the incident, Angel finds herself in Brooklyn, far from her family, from him, and from the California life she has known.
Angel feels out of sync with her new neighborhood. At school, she can’t shake the feeling everyone knows what happened – and that it was her fault. The only place that makes sense is Ms. G’s class. There, Angel’s classmates share their own stories of pain, joy, and fortitude. And as Angel becomes immersed in her revolutionary literature course, the words from Black writers like Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, and Zora Neale Hurston speak to her and begin to heal the wounds of her past.
This stunning novel weaves together prose, poems, and vignettes to tell the story of Angel, a young woman whose past was shaped by domestic violence but whose love of language and music and the gift of community grant her the chance to find herself again.
Elise Bryant
Lenore Bennett has always been a force. A star artist and style icon at her high school, she’s a master in the subtle art of not giving a…well, you know what. But now that graduation is here, she’s a little less sure.
She’s heading to NYU in the fall with a scarlet U (for “undeclared”) written across her chest. Her parents always remind her that Black kids don’t have the luxury of figuring it out as they go – they have to be 110 percent prepared. But it’s a lot of pressure to be her ancestors’ wildest dreams when Lenore’s not even sure what her dreams are yet.
When her family embarks on a post-graduation Mediterranean cruise, her friend Tessa is sure Lenore’s in for a whirlwind romance. But Lenore knows that doesn’t happen to girls like her.
Then she meets Alex Lee. After their parents bond over the Cupid Shuffle, she ends up stuck with him for the remainder of the cruise. He’s a hopeless romantic and a golden boy with a 10-year plan. In short, he’s irritating as hell.
But as they get to know each other during the picturesque stops across Europe, Alex may be able to help Lenore find something else she’s been looking for, even if she doesn’t want to admit it to herself: love.
J.L. Campbell
Samantha DaCosta, reporter extraordinaire, stumbles upon an explosive story in her research of several wealthy, humanitarians connected to The Castle, a place reserved for the mega-rich.
Her uncle, who is a member, has invested in a medical facility that produces and distributes vaccines to third-world countries. The medication has deadly adverse effects, which sets up Ted DaCosta as a target for blackmail.
As Sam uncovers disturbing details, she’s conflicted. When her personal safety is threatened, she must either pretend not to know the implications of this nefarious plot, or speak up and bring down a hailstorm of publicity. Danger also stalks her to Jamaica in the form of an assassination attempt.
Kingston “King” Coburn is content to support his woman’s endeavors, but when work impacts her well-being, he draws the line. Instead of pulling her back from the edge of a dark abyss, he’s drawn into the world of power brokers, who will do anything to increase their wealth.
Only the couple’s combined skills and access to a safe haven will keep them alive at the end of their harrowing search for the truth.
J. Chary
Tatum Parker is struggling to get his business off the ground and dropping the ball when it comes to being present with his wife, Ayala, and their three-year-old daughter Sunni. When work starts to take precedence over everything else, Ayala withdraws from him. What will it take to make Tatum focus on his family?
Parker J. Cole
Sebro Devereaux makes no apologies for her life as a courtesan. Known for her beauty, wit, and charm, she has carved a liberating and wealthy path for herself as mistress to some of the most powerful and elite men in the city. If she is burdened by memories of a painful past, no one knows it but her.
When she encounters a mysterious, injured man with a spotty memory, she invites him into her home as he heals from his wounds and soon, he offers his strength as her protector.
Jupiter Terhune can’t remember how he wound up bleeding on the steps of his new employer, but he knows he has always been in love with her from afar. Yet, his mind doesn’t have all the pieces and flashes of some hidden terror and an urgent sense of time running out are interwoven through his murky recollections.
When secrets from her past threaten her livelihood and independence, Sebro finds herself clinging to Jupiter in an effort to find solace in the turbulent storms of her life. As he begins to remember the events that led him to her doorstep, Jupiter realizes that Sebro is in great danger… from himself.
Abby Collette
Ice cream shop owner Bronwyn Crewse is in for two scoops of murder in this charming mystery from Abby Collette.
Chagrin Falls, Ohio, is gorgeous in the fall, and Bronwyn Crewse, owner of Crewse Creamery, knows just how to welcome the new season. At the annual Harvest Time Festival, residents will get a chance to enjoy hot-air balloons and hayrides, crown a new Harvest Time Festival Queen, and eat delicious frozen treats sold at Win’s freshly purchased ice cream truck. But she gets into a sprinkle of trouble when a festivalgoer is poisoned and Win is implicated.
Although the victim was a former Harvest Time Festival Queen, her once-sunny disposition had dimmed into bitterness, leaving no shortage of suspects at the festival. To clear her name before the chill of winter sets in, Win will have to investigate and hope that her detective skills won’t “dessert” her.
The Marriage Contract (audiobook)
Shay Davis
Boring. Invisible. Pretty for a plus-size girl. Those were all the things I felt about myself, thanks to my chosen career as an accountant and society’s depiction of the perfect female. For once, I wanted to be something–no, someone–different. So, I booked a trip to Vegas for my birthday. Then, in walked Soul Matthias, treating me and my body as anything but ordinary. He lit a fire inside of me. However, it wasn’t real.
Player. Bad boy. High-risk. That’s what the blogs depicted me as. That’s what baseball owners banked on to lowball my contract extension. I didn’t care about social media, but I definitely cared about my money. I had to get my act together. Then, in strutted Alexa Livingston. A breath of fresh air, someone completely different from what I had ever been used to. But what we had wasn’t real. It was just a marriage contract. Or was it?
Delaney Diamond
Sometimes love isn’t enough…
At the age of seventeen, Skye Thorpe lost her parents and yearns for a family of her own, and she’s certain Ethan Connor is the one to give it to her. After all, they’ve been together for seven years. One night, she broaches the subject of marriage and learns the devastating truth. Ethan has no intention of marrying her.
Ethan married young and learned the hard way what it was like to be betrayed by the person he loved. After a bitter divorce, he promised himself he would never allow another woman to wreck his life again. So when Skye mentions marriage, he quickly shuts her down.
To get the life she craves, Skye has no choice but to end the relationship and walk away. But can she really walk away, if Ethan won’t let her go?
Ja’Nese Dixon
This isn’t a fairytale. He’s not my dream man and I’m not his curvy princess.
I’m not a damsel waiting for a man to save me.
Yet, that’s how I met Jonathan. I’m used to corporate dudes with portfolios and sickening six-packs. Not a man still finding himself and that covers me like a cozy blanket.
Jon’s not a rich guy trying to wine and dine me.
But he cooks at Southern Soul Raleigh for a living. And for the record, he isn’t my type. Yet I find myself looking forward to the next time I’ll see him again.
Jonathan Montgomery just is.
Big smile.
Bigger heart.
The absolute best laugh.
Bestie material. Someone to kick it with while I explore Raleigh.
No…he’s not that either. He’s something more.
Jon’s the man that has me questioning my decisions. Where I’ll live? What my future looks like? Does it include him?
This. Isn’t. Love.
Can’t. Be.
I need a man with a plan, a savings account, a house. This situation has caution stamped all over it and like a fool, I let him in. And I’m not a betting woman but everything about this man has me wondering…
What if?
Alechia Dow
To save a galactic kingdom from revolution, Kindred mind-pairings were created to ensure each and every person would be seen and heard, no matter how rich or poor…
Joy Abara knows her place. A commoner from the lowly planet Hali, she lives a simple life—apart from the notoriety that being Kindred to the nobility’s most infamous playboy brings.
Duke Felix Hamdi has a plan. He will exasperate his noble family to the point that they agree to let him choose his own future and finally meet his Kindred face-to-face.
Then the royal family is assassinated, putting Felix next in line for the throne…and accused of the murders. Someone will stop at nothing until he’s dead, which means they’ll target Joy, too. Meeting in person for the first time as they steal a spacecraft and flee amid chaos might not be ideal…and neither is crash-landing on the strange backward planet called Earth. But hiding might just be the perfect way to discover the true strength of the Kindred bond and expose a scandal—and a love—that may decide the future of a galaxy.
J. Elle
Rue has no memory of how she ended up locked in a basement prison without her magic or her allies. But she’s a girl from the East Row. And girls from the East Row don’t give up. Girls from the East Row pick themselves back up when they fall. Girls from the East Row break themselves out.
But reuniting with her friends is only half the battle. When she finds them again, Rue makes a vow: she will find a way to return the magic that the Chancellor has stolen from her father’s people. Yet even on Yiyo Peak, Rue is a misfit—with half a foot back in Houston and half a heart that is human as well as god, she’s not sure she’s the right person to lead the fight to reclaim a glorious past.
When a betrayal sends her into a tailspin, Rue must decide who to trust and how to be the leader that her people deserve…because if she doesn’t, it isn’t just Yiyo that will be destroyed—it will be Rue herself.
Nicole Falls
What would you do if your life suddenly blew up right before your eyes?
Cienna Lewis was living a perfectly meh existence until her life changed dramatically within the span of a few hours one fateful New Year’s Eve.
Left to pick up the pieces of her shattered life, she finds herself in unfamiliar territory. Instead of going along to get along, she bucks the trends, choosing to chart a new course in life that is wholly centered on finding herself and fulfilling her dreams. And on that new course, she is surrounded by a strong support system who just wants to see her win.
Along the way, there are bumps and bruises, but in the end Cienna learns that time is the greatest salve for anything that ails you.
Stephanie Freeman
Not all monsters are born, some are made.
Killing Carpathia was the first mistake. Informing her niece made it worse. Durabia meant a fresh start for Raye Bennett. One phone call destroyed all of that. Returning to American soil could send her back to prison for the rest of her life. Attending the funeral of a family member may be deadlier. Heaven and Hell change places in this romantic thriller where the poison is sweeter than the wine.
D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding
Chencia Higgins
D’Vaughn and Kris have six weeks to plan their dream wedding.
Their whole relationship is fake.
Instant I Do could be Kris Zavala’s big break. She’s right on the cusp of really making it as an influencer, so a stint on reality TV is the perfect chance to elevate her brand. And $100,000 wouldn’t hurt, either.
D’Vaughn Miller is just trying to break out of her shell. She’s sort of neglected to come out to her mom for years, so a big splashy fake wedding is just the excuse she needs.
All they have to do is convince their friends and family they’re getting married in six weeks. If anyone guesses they’re not for real, they’re out. Selling their chemistry on camera is surprisingly easy, and it’s still there when no one else is watching, which is an unexpected bonus. Winning this competition is going to be a piece of wedding cake.
But each week of the competition brings new challenges, and soon the prize money’s not the only thing at stake. A reality show isn’t the best place to create a solid foundation, and their fake wedding might just derail their relationship before it even starts.
Alexandria House
The Exhibition is a place where a woman’s deepest desires and most debaucherous wishes come true. As our protagonist states: “I more than hoped for a good time. In this place, I expected it.”
Note: This erotic short first appeared on the xoafterglow website.
Shamika Lindsay
A small town girl with dreams of making it big in the city, Nyla is eager to see where her new life will take her, where her second chance will lead. When a bizarre weather phenomenon very nearly kills her, she is grateful to be alive—to have escaped unscathed. But… did she?
When an illness that she thought was a random bout of the flu wreaks havoc on her body, she realizes she may not have been so fortunate after all. Sure she’ll die in a few weeks, Nyla tries to enjoy what is left of her meager life, until she feels better—quite miraculously.
Nyla soon discovers that her recovery isn’t so mysterious after all, when a guy she met only once before seems to be responsible. A human antidote.
Two sick people. One shared antidote. Trying to stay alive shouldn’t be difficult, right?
Nyla will do everything in her power to stay alive, even if it means befriending the guy with the power to make her sick.
Casandra McLaughlin
Life after heartbreak isn’t always peachy keen and Yachri Moore was still feeling the effects of the day her boyfriend of three years, Derrick Lanely, allowed her to run away without chasing her when he was the one deciding to walk away. A single’s retreat with her bestfriend Eva, a vow to remain celibate until marriage, her ex Derrick, and her new date Theo Jackson, all led to Yachri experiencing just how life could really be after heartbreak and all he twist and turns that leads to the path of healing, love, and happiness.
Snowed in at Shenandoah Valley
Tina Martin
Deja Barnett is embarking on a journey to Shenandoah Valley to try on a gorgeous wedding gown. She has a cake tasting appointment all lined up and a walk-thru at the venue to ensure the BIG day is perfect. The only thing is, she’s not the one getting married…
When Deja happily signed on as her sister’s maid of honor, she didn’t expect she’d also be the ‘stand-in’ bride to handle ALL the tasks her busy, real estate sister isn’t able (or willing) to do. She also didn’t expect that her car would break down in a snowstorm on the way to the valley. And she definitely didn’t foresee the tall, dark and handsome, Dare Stokes, coming to her rescue.
After Dare helps Deja to her condo, he thought that would be the last time he saw her. He was wrong. They’re connected in a way that neither of them can believe, but another connection is swirling between the single, ditsy woman who men didn’t quite ‘get’, and the handsome bachelor who had his heart broken six years ago.
Brandon Massey
No one is more shocked than Eric Newton when he discovers he has an adult daughter. Happily married, a successful business owner, and a dedicated father of two young children, Eric vows to make up for lost time with his newfound child, Destiny. He’ll do whatever it takes to be the perfect dad and invites Destiny to move in with his family. But Destiny, twenty-years-old, has her own ideas about Eric’s role in her life–and after a nasty argument one night, Eric wakes to find that she’s vanished without a trace.
Convinced that Destiny’s involvement with her shady boyfriend has landed her in trouble, Eric knows he’s got to find her. He embarks upon a relentless hunt for clues. His search plunges him deep into a shadowy world he never knew existed, a treacherous web of con artists, psychopaths, and buried secrets.
But when tragedy strikes close to home, Eric realizes that the answers may lie in his own tangled past–and that to save his daughter, he must face his worst fears, no matter the cost.
A compelling, twisty read for fans of domestic suspense and psychological thrillers!
Nikki May
Ronke wants happily ever after and 2.2 kids. She’s dating Kayode and wants him to be “the one” (perfect, like her dead father). Her friends think he’s just another in a long line of dodgy Nigerian boyfriends.
Boo has everything Ronke wants–a kind husband, gorgeous child. But she’s frustrated, unfulfilled, plagued by guilt, and desperate to remember who she used to be.
Simi is the golden one with the perfect lifestyle. No one knows she’s crippled by impostor syndrome and tempted to pack it all in each time her boss mentions her “urban vibe”. Her husband thinks they’re trying for a baby. She’s not.
When the high-flying, charismatic Isobel explodes into the group, it seems at first she’s bringing out the best in each woman. (She gets Simi an interview in Hong Kong! Goes jogging with Boo!) But the more Isobel intervenes, the more chaos she sows, and Ronke, Simi, and Boo’s close friendship begins to crack.
Joi Miner
Two strangers. Unexpected circumstances. One night…
Monaca “Mona” Green was a Plain Jane who stayed under the radar and in her comfort zone. With her thirtieth birthday fast approaching, her best friend challenges her to make a bucket list and follow-through. A simple plan turned into an adventure she never could’ve seen coming, and a man who changes her life— forever.
Jacob “Deuce” Johnson is a boss who is coming back from making big moves to go legit. When he ends up stranded in the airport, and steps in to save a damsel in distress, he finds himself in compromising situations that can cause him more problems than he bargained for.
When you take a chance, you may be surprised how it turns out. Monaca finds a new self on New Year’s Eve. Deuce learns where his loyalty lies and who it’s to. Both of these strangers form a bond that’s unbreakable and unforgettable, forged in the presence of one another’s company. They choose to make the most of each moment shared, both knowing that all they have is One Night Only.
D. Rose
Lori Woods had completed all of her new year resolutions except one, the most spontaneous one of them all; to go on a blind date. With the help of her best friend, Lori was set up on a date with Karter Reid. Karter was the one man her heart couldn’t escape, no matter how hard she fought it. After years of inopportune timing and failed communication, Karter is determined to make 2021 the last year they spend apart.
Shae Sanders
Soon-to-be divorced Savannah Dayne needs a job. CEO Taurus Jackson needs an assistant. But here’s the problem: she’s never had a real job and he’s, well, horrible…Mean, arrogant, curses like a sailor, and prone to yelling fits. But in a rare fit of niceness, he gives Savannah a chance.
It doesn’t go well.
But they’re two very sexy people in very close quarters, so…sparks naturally fly. And when business and pleasure collide, and lines get blurred, they’re forced to confront their growing feelings for each other before they fail to close the most important deal of all: love.
Kay Shanee
*This story is an update on the lives of Kamden and Jaelynn, who were first introduced as a couple in Heal My Heart. If you have not read the previously mentioned book, I would recommend that you do. This is a novelette and only meant to give you a small glimpse into the couple’s life after marriage and children. *
Kamden was just the man to heal Jaelynn’s heart, and he’s taken excellent care of it for several years. After giving birth for the fourth time, Jaelynn is having a hard time losing the baby weight and feeling insecure about her appearance. Being the man that he is, Kamden goes above and beyond to make sure his wife knows that his love for her will never change. Someone from Kamden’s past tries to disrupt their happy home, and he is determined to make sure their attempt is unsuccessful. Will he handle it before Jaelynn finds out? Or will he mishandle it and create an even bigger problem?
Michele Sims
Miles Moore will stop at nothing to make his dreams of a music empire a reality.
Fame. Secret powers. Fortune. An unrelenting drive for success. He has all the building blocks he needs.
Except for one thing… and the woman he loves holds the keys to his future.
Bella Moore, the Chief Marketing Officer of their growing company, wants nothing more than to help her husband realize his goals. But for her, the choice of family over business is a no-brainer. After discovering more about the competitive nature of the music industry, she fears a growing feud with their competitors will result in bloodshed.
In this romantic and suspenseful tale filled with the power of magic and ignited by the threat of revealed secrets, Miles and Bella discover that the price of their shared success is too high, if it means endangering their lives and the lives of those they love.
Jacquelin Thomas
Wounded marine Trey Rothchild has returned to Polk Island. People call him a hero, but will he ever feel that way after losing his team? Reuniting with high school crush Gia Harris buoys his spirits. Though she’s focused on making her physical therapy clinic a success—and avoiding romance with patients—Gia can’t bear watching the former athlete sit on the sidelines of life. Could helping Trey recover include loving him fearlessly?
Wynta Tyme
After the death of her father at age eight, Marvelous “Marvel” Stephens, was uprooted from her home to be raised by her father’s parents. As much as she adored her grandparents, her own need for companionship developed as the only child in the household. That all changed when troubled ten-year-old, D’usse “Duce” Phelps, and his uncle moved down the street. From the first point of contact, their friendship took off, causing the two to be inseparable. What seemed like an odd pairing to everyone was a match made for them. Marvel has always been aware of D’usse’s troubled upbringing, and it didn’t bother her in the slightest that she was his therapy.
The more time they spent together, the more their feelings evolved. Now all grown up, the thirty-year-old operates her own laundry business. The lines are blurred between them, and the thought of what could be surfaces. Marvel wants more than a friendship, and D’usse wants his shot at forever. Will they take a leap and act on their feelings? Or will the new player arriving into town with his eyes set on Marvel, beat Duce to the punch? When soiled sheets are used other than going into the wash, all signs point to something much sinister lurking in the shadows.
J.B. Vample
Reign Price has always had a good head on her shoulders. At thirty-two, she’s an editing supervisor, in the process of purchasing a home, and when she’s not journaling her deepest thoughts into one of her notebooks, she’s making time for her loved ones. Reign seems to have it all together—on the outside.
That’s because Reign’s ability to suppress her feelings is unmatched. Putting on a brave face while uttering the words “I’m fine” is a skill she has mastered. While her relationship of six years is on the verge of crumbling, Reign tries her best to remain stoic. However, after a devastating betrayal, she’s forced to face her emotions head on.
Through it all, she rekindles a once-close friendship with Chase Williams—her best friend’s older brother. Leaving a dead-end relationship of his own, Chase realizes that being close to Reign again is what he wants.
As old feelings resurface, and new desires reach fever pitch, Reign finds herself faced with a dilemma: be honest about how she truly feels, or risk losing the best thing that has ever happened to her.
Monica Walters
Things can be rectified, if only given the chance…
Kai Booker has created a new life for himself and moved on as Nathaniel Rhodes. Besides the constant nagging of the loneliness he feels, he’s safe and his cover is secure. After seventeen years of being under the radar, there’s only one issue… he misses his one true love. Being with one particular woman that reminds him of her only amplifies his desire for her. He’s willing to risk everything just to see her again. However, will seeing her from afar be enough?
Sonya Taylor has been living in the lap of prosperity and passion within her marriage for the past thirteen years with her high school love, Shawn Taylor. Overcoming the tragic loss of her fiancé came at a cost. However, it was Shawn that helped her through it and after five years of running from him, she succumbed to her desires as well as his and married the man she believed was meant to be her life partner. She’s sure in her relationship with him until things take a turn.
Shawn Taylor has been living the best years of his life. Being able to love on the woman he’s loved since the age of fifteen, has been a dream come true. There have been obstacles to overcome and challenges to defeat, but he’s done it by any means necessary and lived a life of triumph. However, his insecurities creep in when someone from the past threatens to tear down everything he’s built with Sonya, which would leave his life in ruins.
Some things are better left in the past, no matter how misconstrued the facts are. Lives have changed and people have matured and moved on. Emotions have been subdued and hurt has been overcome. Revelations contradict what is presumed as truth and threatens to destroy lives, families, and the overall well-being of the individuals involved.
The drama quickly unfolds, and they all have decisions to make… decisions that can crumble everything they’ve built. Will they be able to get past this revelation or will it harden their hearts and consume their souls?
*This book is an extension of the Sweet Series books by Monica Walters. These books should be read before reading this one.
Sean D. Young
Cassaundra Moore, event planner extraordinaire, never believed in fairy tales only in creating them for her clients. Why would she believe something so magical would happen to her after being scammed by her ex causing her loss of business and social standing.
But when Adam Simmons, candidate for governor of Virginia comes along making a proposition that would not only help propel him in the race but also relieve her of her financial worries, she has to redefine what fairytales are made of.
In Name Only explores one man and one woman’s decision made out of convenience that forces them to consider there was something else at play. They both yearned for love.