Knowledge Toussaint was exposed to a fast life of grittiness. Being forced to maneuver through a life based on survival at the tender age of ten, he depended on a mother whose life was driven by addiction. All it took were two bullets to change Knowledge's life forever. When he was forced to leave his mother behind, he was taken in by one of the most prestigious hit men in Miami, Booney. As Booney leads Knowledge through an underworld of darkness, he also shines light by teaching him how to play the game of life called 'Chess.'

Everyone in the Rinaldi Mob has a job to do—a role to play—and newly appointed Mafian, Jisei Harper, is no exception. Jisei is used to slumming it out on her own. From birth, she was dealt a bad hand, but instead of dwelling on it, she smiled, rolled her shoulders back, and played her cards. After years of struggling, she meets Mocha, a rich daddy's girl, and Scarlett, a naïve hoodlum who had it worse off than Jisei. Little did she know, these two new friendships would lead her to the only blood relative she never knew existed.

Phox Bello is a fearless, headstrong, high-stepping bombshell of a boss who will do just about anything to secure her empire. The thought of having to collaborate or partner with anyone makes Phox itch with contempt. Hades Metellus is a man who reigns supreme. Everything he touches turns to gold or ash if he so desires. Hades controls everything from his mafia throne, and the power feeds his soul. The thought of having to share space at the top is a concept that he could never wrap his head around, but he better be prepared to get spun. What happens when the two bosses link up?

They say when it comes to hood love it’s double or nothing and all is fair when it comes to the streets. Although it may not show up in a fairytale fashion, love shows up when you least expect it. After dealing with a heartbreak, Jania learns the hard way until an unexpected love drops in her lap during one of the most fearful nights of her life. Jania would do anything to get her ex off of her mind just for something to do until she realizes just how official her new love interest proves to be.

Eighteen-year-old hothead Abel "Hood" Duncan is the neighborhood's bully. Growing up in the toughest neighborhood of Annapolis, Hood is groomed to be a hitta. But underneath the tough exterior, Hood has a soft spot for his long time female best friend and neighbor. Not wanting to cross the line, Hood is left to figure out if he should confess his feelings to her or remain close friends. One weekend changes their lives, leaving Hood to pick up the pieces of his broken heart.

Nalani, a dedicated and compassionate teacher, never expected her life to take a turn when she met Lorenzo, a single father trying to rebuild his life after a painful divorce. When Nalani becomes the teacher of Lorenzo’s daughter, fate plays its hand, intertwining their lives in ways they could never have foreseen. As Nalani and Lorenzo spend time together, their connection grows stronger, igniting a flame neither of them can ignore. The walls around their hearts crumble as they navigate the complexities of love amidst the challenges of co-parenting and healing from past wounds.

Anissa Dent is experiencing heartbreak like none she’s ever felt. Her husband of nearly twenty years has fallen victim to crack cocaine after a devastating loss. All her efforts to help him have failed, and to protect herself and her sons, she divorces him and has him removed from their home. That doesn’t stop him from popping in and out of their lives with promises of getting clean. Anissa desperately wants to move on in her life, but her love for what once was is holding her back. However, attending a family barbeque with her son proves to be the restart she desperately needs.

When it comes to soul ties, Kaylee Martin has spent the last eight years of her life stuck in one. When the man she's given her entire life to hits it big in the music industry, Kay finds herself being left behind as he explores the world of money and fame without her. Even with all the signs pointing toward the exit, Kay struggles to let go of the only love she's ever known.

Kojack has been running the Meurtre (Murder) Mafia since its original founders Adair and Orlando stepped down to become husbands and fathers. Leaving the game for a woman is the furthest thing from Kojack's mind. He's having his way making money and entertaining some of the baddest women in the world. Kojack doesn't have plans to change for anyone or anything—until he meets Rae. Being forced to step up and look after the feisty beauty in the most intimate way forces Kojack to realize he can't keep running from love forever.

Koda Perry is a self-made millionaire who can't seem to form his own identity as anything other than a spoiled rich kid. Determined to build his own legacy, he branched out on his own, built a company from the ground up, and became a millionaire before the age of thirty—but for his billionaire father, that's not good enough. In his mother's eyes, Koda's life will never be complete until he gets married and has kids. All Koda wants to do is live his life the way he sees fit on his own terms.

For brothers Krypt, Khrome, and Kavalli, their opportunity to learn was cut short. The death of their father, Duke, left them with more duties than they expected. Equipped with hustle, an education, and a rowdy group of young go-getters behind them, they feel they can take on whatever problems arise. The streets and the women who hold them down think otherwise. With budding relationships in the air, coparenting becoming non-existent, and raw betrayal by the ones they love, can the brothers keep the Priest name alive, or will their father's death be in vain?

Carmen Vasquez was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, a real Georgia peach. With a Mexican father and a black mother, she has such a spice to her, which forces people to either love or hate her. She grew up wealthy, but that didn't stop her from always finding interest in those bad boys from the other side. The other side is where she meets her baby's father, Ramonte.

Tricey, Vic, and Lyric are three friends from the Southside of Chicago fighting in the tumultuous war to find the one amongst the chaotic sea of Mr. Wrongs. After breaking up with her baby's father, Memphis, Vic is in the arms of one new beau after the next, turning her heartbreak into a life filled with bald-headed h*e shenanigans. Vic's new approach to love terribly clashes with Asa's uncontrollable need to be more than her next sneaky link.

Remington Lawson has always been the man who ran things around the small town of Gloombridge. Being a man with money, he has a lot of influence and power but never lets that take away from the laid-back person he is. A leader of two businesses, Remi has a lot on his plate. When someone close to him tries to sabotage his livelihood, Remi is out for blood. Will he find out who is behind it?

For a man like Merc, his reputation has always preceded him. Known for his allegiance to the criminal underworld as a protector, the gangster only shows love to his family… and his son and the woman who birthed him are at the top of that list. When Merc decides to take one last job before retiring, he doesn’t think it will include protecting a woman he’s been trying to avoid but can’t seem to get rid of. A woman who softens him and brings out the lover he’s kept hidden over the years.

When mystery author D. B. Ziegler is late delivering her book, Abi Schore steps in to help. Surely she can give her favorite author moral support over the holiday break and get the manuscript to her boss at Tea & Sympathy Publishing in time for the new year. When Abi shows up on Ms. Ziegler’s doorstep bearing holiday treats, she’s met by the author’s handsome grandson Dov, who reveals a startling plot twist. His grandmother isn’t able to finish the book and Dov promised he’d complete it so fans won’t be disappointed—a task that’s harder than he ever imagined.

Two little girls stand with their heads bowed in my living room. I’m told they’re my granddaughters. Daisy is nine, and Alice seven. Daisy is the spitting image of her mother. This is the first time I’ve met them since my daughter and I fell out after she married that waste of space, Vince. They’ve come to live with me because their mother — my daughter — was murdered. In her own home while they slept close by. I think Vince killed her. But the police can’t prove it. I’ve always known he was no good. He treated my daughter like dirt. I said he’d cheat on her — but she wouldn’t listen.

There's no place like home for the holidays ... especially for Lesley Carver. Life in the big city just wasn't her jam and now she's back in Hickory Falls, working at the family diner and helping her mom after she took a tumble. Lesley longs to build a life here, working at the cafe, selling her handmade ornaments and ... er, apparently reviving her high school crush on her best friend’s older brother. Only one problem, her mom wants her to leave Hickory Falls far behind.

Tilly Farriday isn’t feeling very jolly this season. Recently divorced and broke, she’s squatting in one of her rental agency’s properties until her new home is ready. The sprinkles on top of the burnt Christmas cookie that is her life? The new owner shows up early, forcing Tilly to hide in the attic to save her job…and what remains of her dignity.

First published in 1843, it tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a mean and unpleasant man who dislikes people generally and Christmas especially. One Christmas Eve he is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come and given a glimpse of the many homes and lives which Scrooge has touched in his wretched life to date. After their visits, Scrooge is transformed into a kinder, gentler man.

It’s 1984, and life has changed beyond recognition. Airstrip One, formerly known as Great Britain, is a place where Big Brother is always watching, and nobody can hide. Except, perhaps, for Winston Smith. Whilst working at the Ministry of Truth, rewriting history, he secretly dreams of freedom. And in a world where love and sex are forbidden, where it’s hard to distinguish between friend and foe, he meets Julia and O’Brien and vows to rebel.

Clark Griswold was onto something...at least with his annual holiday meltdown. And since the last three weeks of my life have been riddled with humbug—another breakup, a broken toe, an office promotion I deserved and didn’t get—I’m not at all in the mood to celebrate nor have the happ, happ, happiest Christmas EVER.

My fiancé brought me tea and scrambled eggs in bed that morning, and we snuggled together, talking about buying our rings, and about our perfect wedding next year. Then we headed into town. He held my hand and gazed at the ring I liked best, a smile spreading slowly over his face. Then a glass of bubbly to celebrate. I felt flushed, excited and ready for the rest of my life with the man I loved. We race to get on the train home. It screams to a halt and I run towards its open doors. Made it. I think he’s right behind me — but when I turn around, he’s gone.

Lucas knows the perfect night entails just three things: video games, wine, and pad thai. Peanuts are a must! Other people? Not so much. Why complicate things when he’s happy alone? Then one day the apartment board, a vexing trio of authority, rings his doorbell. And Lucas’s solitude takes a startling hike. They demand to see his frying pan. Someone left one next to the recycling room overnight, and instead of removing the errant object, as Lucas suggests, they insist on finding the guilty party. But their plan backfires. Colossally.

Johnnie Rico never really intended to join up—and definitely not the infantry. But now that he’s in the thick of it, trying to get through combat training harder than anything he could have imagined, he knows everyone in his unit is one bad move away from buying the farm in the interstellar war the Terran Federation is waging against the Arachnids. Because everyone in the Mobile Infantry fights. And if the training doesn’t kill you, the Bugs are more than ready to finish the job.

Knowledge Toussaint was exposed to a fast life of grittiness. Being forced to maneuver through a life based on survival at the tender age of ten, he depended on a mother whose life was driven by addiction. All it took were two bullets to change Knowledge's life forever. When he was forced to leave his mother behind, he was taken in by one of the most prestigious hit men in Miami, Booney. As Booney leads Knowledge through an underworld of darkness, he also shines light by teaching him how to play the game of life called 'Chess.'

Everyone in the Rinaldi Mob has a job to do—a role to play—and newly appointed Mafian, Jisei Harper, is no exception. Jisei is used to slumming it out on her own. From birth, she was dealt a bad hand, but instead of dwelling on it, she smiled, rolled her shoulders back, and played her cards. After years of struggling, she meets Mocha, a rich daddy's girl, and Scarlett, a naïve hoodlum who had it worse off than Jisei. Little did she know, these two new friendships would lead her to the only blood relative she never knew existed.

Once upon a time, in a small town, lived a young girl who was abandoned by her mother. She was left with a pensive heart because she watched her father die at the hands of his brother. Beauty was left to fend for herself, along with the heartache of having not a soul to genuinely care for her. Daily, she would dream of being rescued by a prince, and he would take away the pain her past life caused. Until this day, Beauty still had those same dreams as she slept. Yet, instead of the knight in shining armor, the tribe of fairies delivered Tuson.

With ten years into a successful marriage and a thriving business, Destiny Harris was living the life most only dreamed of. There was only one addition that would bring everything full circle, but a harsh reality turned her world upside down. Betrayal and lies replaced the truth she believed to be the foundation of her happy life. MyKyng Masters was a man of substance and structure. Even at a very young age, he had a firm grasp on everyone and everything around him. With an already complicated life, the last thing he needed was a reminder that no one can maintain complete control.

Aphrodite Greer was born and raised in the bricks—projects in Jagoda Bay. She met the love of her life, Baguette, on that very soil. The ghetto goddess had her entire life mapped out for her, and just like most life plans, things took a turn for the worse. Infidelity, losing her baby girl Athena, and constant fights with her lover's mistress turned her from a rigid, dope boy's queen to a soft, put-up businesswoman. With five years between their failed relationship, Baguette and Aphrodite remain best friends, and since Baguette has moved on, his current girlfriend has also joined their circle.

Treasure Herring has lost and gained in the past year and a half. After the tragic loss of her parents, she gains a sibling and new family in her big sister, Savvy… but she still feels lost. Then, a handsome but ruggish hooligan she'd only met once reappears and gives her a semblance of belonging. Pierre.

Jade's life is already complicated. She's trying to co-parent with her toxic ex, keep from breaking his trifling girlfriend's neck, and make sure her family stays completely unaware of her disastrous decision-making skills. The last thing she needs is more drama. So, it probably wasn't a good idea for her to get so close to the one guy that she was warned never to get involved with, Khalif Bowen. But she couldn't help herself. One minute, they were talking, and the next, she was greeting him with her lips in the middle of the night.

Since Yakima's been able to date, her detective father has reminded her of the type of men to steer clear of. At twenty-seven, she's done just that until one night of partying and a botched raid lead her into the house of mob boss Francisco Matisse.

Phox Bello is a fearless, headstrong, high-stepping bombshell of a boss who will do just about anything to secure her empire. The thought of having to collaborate or partner with anyone makes Phox itch with contempt. Hades Metellus is a man who reigns supreme. Everything he touches turns to gold or ash if he so desires. Hades controls everything from his mafia throne, and the power feeds his soul. The thought of having to share space at the top is a concept that he could never wrap his head around, but he better be prepared to get spun. What happens when the two bosses link up?

Starting her journey with children was a fresh breath of air, especially when she started working for the Prince Family. The love she had for the Prince Family children was unmatched, especially when she got acquainted with their father, Chief Prince. Struggling with grief after losing the love of his life, Chief is compelled to continue his demanding job as a billionaire investment banker, and he isn't interested in finding another love. At least that's what he thought.

Yazmeen Franklin is as green as they come. Her only real friend is her older sister, who raised her after their mother died. Because of their father’s poor example, Yazmeen has little trust in men, so dating is foreign to her. During her sophomore year of college, she lets her guard down and finally gets close to a man. However, he is a known womanizer, and she keeps him in the friend zone to protect her heart.

Alistair Duston is for the streets of Leakston, Mississippi. That means nothing when he and his family owned them, literally. As heir to the Duston Dynasty, he never had to worry about anything but his horses, cattle, and dogs. How things can change in the bling of a signed contract. When he is forced into an impossible position, will he remain faithful to the streets or commit to one that might be able to give him the world?

Kelaya Harper knows two things when it comes to Hezekiah Perez. One, she loves him. Two, they can never be together. They are from two different worlds and blending them will be a tragic misstep. Hezekiah knows his heart belongs only to Kelaya and will do anything to prove that they are meant to be. Just when he thinks they are finally locked in, everything implodes and he fears his life will never exist with the love and balance he craves.

The Strong family. A family filled with hustlers, breadwinners, and stone-cold killers. They run one of the biggest drug operations to ever come out of Miami, Florida. The business dates back to the 1940s when Kamil Strong created it with his blood, sweat, and tears. So here we are, well over 80 years later, and the business is now in the hands of Korporate Strong, the great-grandson of Kamil Strong. Alongside Korporate is his mother, Shadae Strong, wife of the late Kato Strong, who felt compelled to leave the business to his wife and oldest son.

Nalani, a dedicated and compassionate teacher, never expected her life to take a turn when she met Lorenzo, a single father trying to rebuild his life after a painful divorce. When Nalani becomes the teacher of Lorenzo’s daughter, fate plays its hand, intertwining their lives in ways they could never have foreseen. As Nalani and Lorenzo spend time together, their connection grows stronger, igniting a flame neither of them can ignore. The walls around their hearts crumble as they navigate the complexities of love amidst the challenges of co-parenting and healing from past wounds.