African American Crime Fiction

National bestselling authors Kiki Swinson and De'nesha Diamond light it up with two devious tales of players, hustles - and running out of time...

Growing up in Carson Homes, one of the most ruthless hoods on the eastside of San Antonio, Peanut has seen it all. Although, Peanut is determined to never follow in his old man’s ruthlessness, the streets keep calling his name. Before his old man was shot and killed in front of him, two of his closest friends made him a promise to look after Peanut, but the struggle is real. When Peanut and his best friend Jay pull off a lick for a few pounds, he finally decides to see what the game has to offer. With the right plug, they find themselves on the way to the top, but with more money, comes ...

When Billie was eight years old, her father was murdered. Ever since that day, she has vowed to bring every criminal to justice, especially the man responsible for her father's death. Twenty years later, Billie is still on a mission to rid the streets of criminals. If she can't do it legally, then she takes matters into her own hands.

After being released from a five-year prison sentence for an armed robbery gone sideways, Tarzan Brixton makes a vow to his dying mother to change his ways. With his mother’s medical bills piling up, the temptation of the criminal life becomes too real once again. His solution is to escape the rough streets of New York for the equally ruthless beaches of Kingston, Jamaica. He soon creates a drug-running empire while falling in love with a beautiful Jamaican woman named Maya.

On a cold December evening, Autumn Spencer's twin sister Summer walks to the roof of their shared Harlem brownstone and is never seen again - the door to the roof is locked, and no footprints are found. Faced with authorities indifferent to another missing woman, Autumn must pursue answers on her own, all while grieving her mother's recent death. With her friends and neighbors, Autumn pretends to hold up through the crisis. She falls into an affair with Summer's boyfriend to cope with the disappearance of a woman they both loved.

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.

As a low-level enforcer in Los Angeles, Ken Swift knows danger, but nowhere does he feel it more than in his tangled romances. Divorced from one woman, in love with another, and wrestling with a strong desire to get to know a third, his life is far from perfect, and it becomes all the more complicated when his troubled daughter resurfaces on the same day as a major job.

Eva spends much of her life torn between the man she had and the man she has. On paper they both look like ideal husband material. But looks, as we all know, can be bought, faked, or photoshopped. Everyone around Eva seems to keep shoveling lies to bury their secrets. As Eva starts to dig for the truth, she realizes it's impossible to stay clean, especially while playing in someone else's dirt.

An extraordinary fiction debut: a large, stirring novel of suspense that is, at the same time, a work of brilliantly astute social observation. Publishers Weekly predicts this "will be the talk of the political in-crowd this summer," and Booklist's starred review calls it "a roman à clef with fascinating insights into the behind-the-scenes machinations of racial and power politics." Don't miss this one!

Zeke has just received an anonymous package that will turn his world upside down: intimate photographs of his wife with another man. Zeke, already torn apart by betrayal he never anticipated, is shocked to walk in on son-in-law Sam having sex with the company’s young intern. Determined not to lose it all, Sam vows to do whatever it takes to keep his infidelity between him and his father-in-law. Whatever it takes. Zeke, with anger and hatred blackening his heart, thinks it over and then tells Sam exactly what it will take: “I want you to kill my wife.”

Xavier "Scarecrow" Wallace, a mixed-race MMA fighter on the wrong side of thirty, is facing the fight of his life. Xavier can no longer deny he is losing his battle with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), or pugilistic dementia. Through the fog of memory loss, migraines, and paranoia, Xavier does his best to stay in shape by training at the Philadelphia gym owned by his cousin-cum-manager, Shot, a retired champion boxer to whom Xavier owes an unpayable debt. With his memory in shreds and his life crumbling around him, can Xavier hold on to the focus he needs to survive?

At 37, Tuesday is eager for a better way of life. That means getting out of the game her gentleman's club has been fronting. Her all-female "business" team has made a fortune using the club to attract, seduce - and rob - wealthy men. But in addition to being squeezed by a corrupt cop, an unfortunate incident has put Tuesday deep in debt to a ruthless gun dealer and is creating dangerous dissent behind the scenes....

Anita is a young, strong black woman who made her dreams a reality: the house, the cars, a generous bank account, and a fiancé who was getting ready to go pro. Everything was perfect. She was only a step away from finishing her doctorate when her world was shattered. When Leah’s teenage love Dropp got caught up and sent away for a five-year bid, Brit, a low key hustler, was there to show her that she never had to be alone again. Leah fell hard for Brit, married him, and made a family. But now Dropp is home....

Take a moment and walk in the shoes of a 17-year-old Egyptian girl who was drugged, raped, and turned into a hoe. Meet a young single Black mother who lost her job and needed a way to make ends meet but ended up losing it all. Get to know a White runaway girl who started turning tricks just to eat. The one thing they all had in common was Tmac. He was a smooth monster who hid behind a charming smile.

My world was built on lies and secrets, eating away at the good parts of me. When knowing too much incriminating information could get you killed, your only choices are to adapt or die. There are things about me others would never understand. Yet, one knowing look from her and I realize that my world just got more complicated. She could be my sanctuary in more ways than one. Or she might just be the siren leading me to my demise.

Framed for a high-profile murder, Abrianna Parker finds herself hurtling down a conspiracy rabbit hole in a desperate attempt to clear her name. Her only way out is to go after the most powerful man in the country. But the powers that be play dirty - and expose her billionaire adoptive father, Cargill Parker, and his criminal activity. With charges of collusion swirling on Capitol Hill, police and federal agencies force Abrianna off the grid. But she's not alone. By her side is ex-con turned private investigator Kadir Kahlifa, a man as seductive as he is dangerous.

Outsiders call Manuel a villain. After spending his youth entangled in inner-city gang warfare, he’s lied, robbed, and murdered his way to the top. His path was set long ago, when two killers massacred his family in front of him. While Manuel was able to take down one of the murderers, his bloodlust has grown for the killer who got away. When he gets the chance to complete his vengeance, the city cowers beneath his thirst for retribution....

For the last 60 years, fear has seeped into every area of American life: Americans own more guns than citizens of any other country, sequester themselves in gated communities, and retreat from public spaces. And yet, crime rates have plummeted, making life in America safer than ever. Why, then, are Americans so afraid - and where does this fear lead to? In this remarkable work of social history, May demonstrates how our obsession with security has made citizens fear each other and distrust the government, making America less safe and less democratic.

In February 1971, racial tension surrounding school desegregation in Wilmington, North Carolina, culminated in four days of violence and skirmishes between white vigilantes and black residents. The turmoil resulted in two deaths, six injuries, more than $500,000 in damage, and the firebombing of a white-owned store before the National Guard restored uneasy peace. Despite glaring irregularities in the subsequent trial, 10 young persons were convicted of arson and conspiracy and then sentenced to a total of 282 years in prison.

Markita “Kita” Jones is a young woman with the world at her fingertips. A high school student with beauty and brains to match, she’s well on her way to Howard University. However, on her 18th birthday, she watches her dreams die during a drive-by shooting that claims the life of her brother. Overnight, Kita transforms from a naïve schoolgirl into a savvy street hustler on a mission to find her brother’s killer. With the help of her best friends, Kenya and Alexis, Kita quickly begins making more money and more enemies than she ever could’ve imagined.