A controversial new novel from critically acclaimed Essence bestseller Reginald L. Hall explores the attraction of dating a bad boy from an entirely new angle. During college, Juan Jiles fell in love with Darrell, who convinced Juan to help him rob one of Philadelphia's largest banks. During the heist, Darnell is killed, and Juan escapes with more than $175,000. After mourning the loss of his lover, Juan begins rebuilding his life and uses the money to open a popular celebrity hair salon. Then along comes Bryant Thompson, a street thug with drugs, drama, and deception in tow. Juan falls in love with the hustling, muscle-bound Bryant and soon succumbs to Bryant's addictive world. Juan's life starts to spin out of control, and he realizes that his meeting Bryant didn't happen by chance. A story of a man doomed by passion, In Love with a Thug is by turns a humorous, tragic, and hard-hitting look at the cost of destructive love and the price some pay for true happiness.

They say if you don't have trust, you don't have a marriage. In the fifth and final installment of Good Girls Love Thugs: Nic and Kendrick, the couple learns just how important trusting one another is. When an incident occurs, putting Kendrick in the middle of a scandal, Nic has to figure out whether she should trust her man or move on to greener pastures. Kendrick loves his wife more than anything, but sometimes love just isn't enough; especially when there is another man who is willing to stick by Nic through thick and thin. Will Kendrick be able to convince Nic that despite his mistakes, she belongs with him, or will he have to accept that she's moved on to a man that she feels will treat her the way she deserves to be treated. Get on this emotional roller coaster ride, and find out if this good girl will forever love her thug, or simply leave him in the dust.

Being married to her childhood sweetheart was the best feeling in the world to Keyawna. They grew and glowed up together; creating this beautiful family. Life should've been perfect, right?Wrong! Keyawna thought life was amazing with Phillip until she discovered he had habits that he couldn't let go of. Family didn't come first for Phillip, and Keyawna found that out quickly. She was left devastated and heart broken, when she was hit with the news that his old habits never died. That was until she met Erik, also known as Dome. Dome was a rare breed and the epitome of what a real man supposed to be, but he had relationship problems too. Having a wife with not only Cancer, but postpartum depression had his personal life on hold.Choosing to put his family first, he left the streets alone and focused on his beautiful wife Dot and their baby girl Belize. From the outside looking in, he was doing everything to make sure his wife was comfortable in her final days, but if you stepped inside, you would see that his home was standing on rocky grounds.Meeting Keyawna one night caused a shift in the atmosphere and the Universe was destined to put these two together. Both being in a relationship that hurt more holding on, than letting go; they had to decide was taking a chance on new love worth it, or should they let old love die first?Dome was the opposite of the only man Keyawna ever dated. He was sweet, charming, sexy, and that thug side always made an appearance. Keyawna would soon find out that the love she thought she couldn't live without was nothing compared to the feeling she got when she, Fell in Love With a Thug.

Justify My Thug is a story of intersecting lives, featuring familiar characters from Wahida Clark's Thug series. Trae and Tasha Macklin's marriage is on thin ice. Jaz and Faheem were living the American Dream until a haunting part of their past threatens their marriage, and ultimately their lives. In the meantime, Marvin is trapped in a living nightmare desperately trying to escape the mistakes of his thug past. Back in New York, Kaylin has to face the toughest decision of his life, while his girl Angel has to answer for herself as well.

Kennedy: Apparently I had been naive the entire time that I was with King. Who knew that he had been keeping such a secret from me? Just my luck, as I hid from him to gather my thoughts and deal with the pain, yet another crushing blow to my happiness was revealed. I then realized that I could no longer live for King; it was time to live for Kennedy. Little did I know, Jada was suffering the same heartbreak that I was. Dolla had torn her heart into two. My girl was miserable, but she didn't run as I did; she was trying her best to inflict the same pain on Dolla as he had on her. Meanwhile, King, Meech and Dolla were constructing a plan to permanently get rid of the squad's enemies. But will it work? Will the squad make it through this storm of deception and lies to continue ruling the streets of Chi? Some secrets should never be kept and some secrets should never be told because, either way, we were all about to suffer the consequences of secrets both revealed and untold.

After suffering a tragic loss, Amir "Ace" Johnson gave up his stronghold of the streets and put his guns away. He became the doting father that his twin girls needed and turned his back on everything including love. Out of nowhere, he meets hardworking attorney Aaliyah Bailey who has him feeling a way he never thought he would ever feel again. Ace gets forced back into the game when he starts receiving notes and pictures that convince him that the original love of his life could still be alive. What is Aaliyah to do now that he might find his love and put his life back together without her?Is Aaliyah ready to ride or die for her man? Or will it all be for nothing?

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