Urban Reviews - Your Source for the Best in AA Fiction!

5 out of 5 books Devon Payne snatched my heartstrings and played a song of brokenhearted dreams and the emptiness of retribution. Like the strings on a guitar, the Payne family members struck a different chord of feelings of abandonment of nurturing and love due to favoritism that they didn’t sit on the side of. Like so many others, the less favored children tend to deal with the lack of what family should feel and look like. It’s normal for siblings to be competitive in wanting to be the best or go the furthest in life. But the tragedies of youthful ignorance derailed Devon’s dreams of life, love, and having his own family. It didn’t help to have to be separated from the people you are most familiar with to be halfway across the world only to be acknowledged for what you did wrong and are needed for something. I enjoyed this story that Jerry McGill wrote as it addresses many family dysfunctions, turmoil, failures, growth, and forgiveness. This title is recommended to all who love Urba...

  3.5 out of 5 books The day Austin Dash has been regretting has arrived. His ex-wife, Naomi has been released from prison. Austin fears how this will affect his now peaceful life that he has with his wife, Brooke, their children, and his son Khari from his previous marriage to Naomi. Austin is afraid of Naomi who was imprisoned for brutally stabbing him during a jealous episode. There is no cause for the jealous behavior, but this is what Austin dealt with while married to Naomi, delusional, unhinged and violent episodes.  This last incident convinces him that he had to take action to keep him and Khari safe.   His new marriage to Brooke is everything that Austin wanted in life. He and Khari are able to move on and bond with the new family that Brooke and Austin create.  But Naomi wants her family back, both Austin and Khari. She will stop at nothing even including her spooky and crazy family to get what she wants. The antics of Naomi and Austin’s ex-in-laws, takes ...

  4 out of 5 books Jason Tanner has come to Harlem in 1963. His mission is to spread the word of passive resistance of his mentor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Anita Hopkins is a poet that believes in the teachings of Malcolm X and freedom is “by any means necessary”. But when Jason sees Anita performing her poetry at the B-Flat lounge, he is instantly drawn to her. Can Jason and Anita make a connection? Civil rights, different ideologies, and a love story is what Donna Hill brought us with Confessions in B-Flat. From the iconic restaurants, record stores, and other local black community landmarks, Hill transports you to 1963 Harlem. You can literally see everything that is taking place in this story. The development of Anita and Jason’s love story is a steady build that readers will appreciate. Donna Hill hit just the right note with Confessions in B-Flat . Reviewed by Radiah Hubbert Get your copy of Confessions in B-Flat today!

  4 out of 5 books Tabitha Walker is a 33-year-old local news reporter that is navigating through life. She plans to make a down payment on her dream home and has a steady boyfriend. But when a medical diagnosis threatens her ability to have children, Tabitha doesn’t know what her future will look like. Black Girls Must Die Exhausted   is a good debut novel from Jayne Allen. Tabitha is a very relatable character. Allen paints a very accurate picture of the difficulties of balancing a career, love life, and fertility. Tabitha’s relationships with her friends and grandmother are nurturing and rewarding. Good character development and dialogue makes Black Girls Must Die Exhausted   a good start to this three book series. Reviewed by Radiah Hubbert Get your copy of Black Girls Must Die Exhausted today! See the interview with Jayne Allen here!

  4 out of 5 books Bernadette, Tess, and Arizona are back with more drama than before. When Bernadette moved to a small town a year ago, she never thought that she would be pregnant and in a relationship. But Bernadette soon finds out that life is not that easy.   Tess is happily engaged to a successful restaurateur. But when she finds out she has difficulty conceiving, will her world fall apart? Arizona has married the love of her life. She is trying to help her husband to work out his intimacy issues in the bedroom. But Arizona’s husband has dark issues that she may not be able to solve. Blindsided is a good follow-up to The Other Side by Trice Hickman. Both books are recommended. Hickman gives us an excellent update on these memorable characters. Just like in the first book, the characters in this story are memorable and relatable. Readers will find that there are some unexpected revelations in this book that makes this a true page-turner. Blindsided is a good book club ...

4 out of 5 books   When the ancestors were stolen from Africa, the slave catchers were taking kings, queens, princes, princesses, and doctors. Highly intelligent individuals who carried their knowledge, secrets and gifts with them to America.  THE BLACK MAGICIAN is a tale that portrays the strength, intelligence, and resilience of those who are enslaved. George is such a person, gifted with the ability to read the aura of individuals, he uses this to identify slaves who are mentally strong and highly desire freedom from the bonds of slavery.   With the aid of his grandmother, affectionately referred to as “Granny’ by all, George learns the history of his people, the power he possesses and the secrets of plants and herbs that she learned from her ancestors who were doctors and scientists.  George’s responsibility on the plantation is as a blacksmith. He is recognized by his master for the inventions he made that the master is secretly patenting and selling as his own ...

  3.5 out of 5 books In LOVE, HONOR, BETRAY, we find ourselves back in the lives of Hubert and Jessie Wiggins in the third installment of Mary Monroe’s Lexington Alabama series.  Things pick up right where the second book of the series ended, the serial murders are still plaguing the town with no clue as to who the culprits are. The killings have become more sinister with racial undertones as the victims are no longer young black women but now includes black men who are being hung in trees.  Everyone is afraid and on high alert. This is beneficial for Hubert’s business as the funeral home director, but the potential threat to their lives is instilling fear. Especially considering the Klan may be on the loose and the police investigation is hitting  too  close to home to the appalling act they are keeping secret.   Hubert has managed to keep his secret affair with his lover Leroy hidden but things change, sending Hubert in a downward spiral. Jessie is dealin...

  3.5 out of 5 books PRIDE is the tale of Journee Alexander, a successful real estate broker in Houston, TX. Journee is proud of her accomplishments and her ability to rise above homeless and parental abandonment. Journee’s life turns around when her best friend Vivian Wallace invites her to join her uncle Simon’s real estate mortgage company.  Simon takes Journee under his wings as a mentee and the two engage in practices that was not above board. A tragic event that took place because of their schemes drives Journee to pull away from Simon and start her own mortgage firm.   Someone knows about Journee’s past  shady business dealings and is threatening revenge for her actions.  She enlists the assistance of her ex-boyfriend Ethan Thomas, a criminal defense attorney to get ahead of the threatening text and potential lawsuit as her former boss and mentee may be facing criminal charges. Journee’s situation becomes more dire as she refuses the advice of those who a...