Road to Love. Nicole Falls. 2018. [Source: Kindle Unlimited.] This book starts with its main character crying her mascara off in a club bathroom stall. I didn’t know where Road to Love would go from there, but I was along for the ride (pun intended). Emerson Parker has odd luck with men. She didn’t date a lot in high school, thanks to her devout religious upbringing. The one serious relationship she had ended with a swinging hanger in an empty closet and a 4-word goodbye note. She’s been backstabbed by her closest friend and is estranged from her parents. Drama. A much-needed sabbatical from work leads her on a road trip home to Michigan from her new home in L.A. Along the way, she finds an undeniably handsome stranger stranded on the side of a Colorado highway. Roosevelt Ashe is probably too handsome for his own good, and definitely for Emerson’s. Nonetheless, they find themselves unlikely travel companions of sorts, and later, friends. As they both adjust to being back home among family and friends, they provide the support the other needs to face old demons and attempt to move forward in their lives. Road to Love is an enjoyable,…

The Wanderer. Nia Forrester. 2018. Stiletto Press. 202 pages.  [Source: Kindle Unlimited.] Blu — short for Bluebell — has finally come home, sort of. She’s a wandering soul, the product of two “hippie” parents who never quite focused their life energy on her and her younger brother. She’s spent most of her adult life on the go, working for relief organizations in developing countries.  When she lands herself in Washington, D.C., unemployed and living with her younger brother, she’s open to what the world brings her way.  That path, coincidentally, brings her back in contact with one of her closest friends from college, Bryan. Along with their other friends, Blu and Bryan bonded over their art, painting for her and writing for him.  In rekindling their friendship, Blu and Bryan realize they’ve both changed in subtle and obvious ways.  Blu’s travels have opened her up to the world — including love and pain — that have shaped the way she approaches her relationships and life in general.  Her art is still as significant to her, but Bryan’s has tapered off.  Instead, he has settled into a life as a teacher and father, leaving his writing a part of his past.  He’s…

Acceptable Losses. Nia Forrester. 2016. 226 pages. [Source: Kindle Unlimited.] Lena and Quentin are work BFFs. For years, they’ve had a standing afternoon coffee date that helps guard them against the strain of being high-achieving black attorneys at their firm.  Where Quentin sees himself as a mentor to Lena, she buries feelings toward him, knowing he is someone whose interest will always be unrequited.  Quentin’s failing marriage hasn’t totally jaded him on love, so he attempts to hook up Lena with his suave and less conventional brother Darius. The two hit it off; so why does Quentin have such a problem with his successful match-up? Most of this book focuses on Lena and Quentin as they navigate their romantic relationships. Lena is open to love, but hasn’t had a great track record or even time to devote to it.  Quentin is in a dying marriage, where neither he nor his estranged wife seem willing to throw in the towel officially. 

The Makeover. Nia Forrester. 2018. 223 pages. [Source: Kindle Unlimited.] This book is delightfully messy. Not crudely so, but just enough of a mess to keep my butt glued to a chair to finish.  The Makeover follows best friends Colton and Samantha, who’ve been thick as thieves since they were toddlers. They know each other inside and out, so when they finally decide to explore their mutual attraction, it seems like the next natural step. Surely it should be smooth sailing.  Unfortunately, “making over” their relationship brings more challenges than either of them expected or are prepared for. Colton’s career in the NBA presents its own challenges, since he’s been able to live his life without having to answer for a lot of his actions. Women fall at his feet and he indulges himself.  Sam, a budding lobbyist, is a “good girl” who relishes in her place in Colt’s life – he’s always got her back … as a friend.  Their attempt to move from friends to lovers abruptly makes one thing clear –  they don’t know each other as well as they think. I really enjoyed that Sam was her own person with her own “secrets.” Too often, women in…

In Due Time. B. Love. 2018.  B. Love Publications. 147 pages. [Source: Kindle Unlimited.] In Due Time is an interesting story that intrigued me and kept me reading. But at the same time, I was frustrated the entire time because of its protagonist.   Mackenzie and her best friend, Rahim, have a weird non-love triangle thing going on, despite being best friends. Mackenzie dated — and was repeatedly hurt by — Rahim’s cousin Tony. Despite a decade passing, she’s still not over it, to the point where it cripples her ability to be involved with others in what most would consider healthy ways.   It doesn’t stop her from sleeping with Rahim, though.  Instead, she becomes his best friend and while acknowledging her strong feelings for Rahim, she also clings to a sense of loyalty to Tony that won’t allow her to make a go with Rahim. At times, it was hard to get a sense of whether she actually wanted to get back with Tony or if she just couldn’t let go of the idea of him as her first love.   I generally found Mackenzie insufferable. Despite being almost thirty, her maturity and actions are more reflective of a…