The lure of Richmond, VA’s streets is too strong for Bambi, a good girl from the right side of the tracks, who fell in love with, Reggie, a young hustler. Her thug love not only corrupted her but blinded her with the bling and cash that come with living the glamorous life of a gangsta’s girl–until Reggie hit her with a low blow, crumbling her heart. From that day forward, Bambi vowed that whoever crossed her or anyone she loved would pay–usually in large bills. With the street knowledge she gleaned from her ex as well as her own business savvy, Bambi builds a multimillion-dollar party planning empire. Along the way she runs across all kinds of dudes who try to run massive amounts of game, and ultimately she becomes a first-rate swindler and top-notch gamestress in her own right. Then she crosses paths with Lynx, a young drug dealer who sees more in Bambi than the gold digger she is rumored to be. He methodically penetrates her shield layer by layer until he captures her heart. But is she just setting herself up to be played once again? The #1 bestselling author of A Hustler’s Wife and A Project Chick, Nikki Turner gives up the game that could never be sold, only told.

The Glamorous Life: A Novel

Literature & Fiction

Turner, Nikki

United States

Random House Publishing Group

Queen of hip hop fiction Nikki Turner follows her gritty, emotionally charged novel The Glamorous Life with this new tale from the hood featuring a beautiful down-on-her-luck sister who can out-hustle the best of them as she rises from the ghetto to glory. After Mercy’s beloved dad is murdered in cold blood on her seventh birthday, her mother gives her up to foster care. But despite an unsavory upbringing, Mercy vows to make something of herself–at all costs. Working as a concierge at a hotel notorious for its shady clientele, Mercy meets and falls hard for a notorious dealer who keeps her living large in Gucci clothes and off-the-hook apartments. Then she lands a real lucrative deal: running drugs up Interstate 95 from Miami to New York. But Mercy doesn’t want to live the gangsta life forever. She’s got bigger dreams. She turns legit and makes her mark, yet despite a new, cleaned-up career, she can’t get the streets completely out of her blood. A sexy hustler named C-Note steals her heart. And as their relationship heats up, Mercy discovers that their pasts are hopelessly–and tragically–entwined.

Riding Dirty on I-95: A Novel (Nikki Turner Original)

One World

These stories are not fables or fairy tales. They are severe chronicles of gangstas, written by men and women who have starved and bled and survived by the code of the streets. Essence magazine’s #1 bestselling author Nikki Turner has earned her rep as “the Princess of Hip-Hop” with gritty urban novels like A Hustler’s Wife and The Glamorous Life. Now she lends her considerable street cred to this anthology, the first of its kind–an explosive collection featuring edgy new writers Turner handpicked for their ability to evoke the street, and the people who live by its rules, in hot, hyperrealistic stories. Turner scoured the ghetto, the prisons, and every crack and crevice around the country to bring you these impressive new fresh-from-the-street voices. Never one to disappoint her fans, Turner even throws in a raw gangsta tale of her own. From a buppie who risks her entire well-groomed world when she’s suddenly turned on by a thug (“Gotta Have a Ruffneck”), to a lesbian pimp who gets what she deserves from the women she’s turning out (“Big Daddy”), these stories will shock, entertain, and make you fly through the pages.

Tales from da Hood: Stories

Dramas & Plays

“Nikki Turner has truly brought the female hustlers to light. Fellas betta watch out, because the Girls in the Game are taking over!” –LaJill Hunt, author of Drama Queen and No More Drama A collection of explosive stories handpicked by the undisputed “queen of hip-hop fiction,” Girls in the Game presents an all-women crew of urban-lit divas. The game here is survival, and every ghetto-hardened gangsta in these tales does what she’s gotta do to make it on–or off–the mean streets. Call them what you will, but until you’ve faced their reality you’ll never know what you would do if you were in their pumps. Just remember: It’s a dirty game, and women are usually the best players. “The game ain’t to be told but sold. If that’s so, the women in Girls in the Game should be millionaires!” –KaShamba Williams, author of Mind Games “She’s baaaaaaaack! Nikki Turner has returned, bringing with her the new divas of urban fiction. These ladies raise the bar as they chronicle the streets like never before. Get ready for a literary treat.” –Tracy Brown, author of White Lines

Street Chronicles Girls in the Game: Stories

The high priestess of the hood, Nikki Turner, is back with the novel fans have been feenin’ for: the sequel to her #1 bestselling novel, A Hustler’s Wife. Des, Virginia’s slickest gangsta, is about to become a dad when he is charged with the murder of his own attorney. But with Yarni, his gorgeous wife (and a brilliant lawyer), now calling the shots, Des isn’t going back to the slammer without a fierce fight. Even with the heat on, Des manages to take his game to the next level and finds a new hustle, one that will allow him to possess the three things all major players desire: money, power, and respect. He becomes a preacher. Reluctantly, Yarni stands by her man as he trades in his triple beam scale for a Bible and a Bentley and makes his Church of the Good Life Ministry a welcoming place for all sinners to step up to the altar. But when Des’s nephew is killed in the high-stakes heroin trade and Des learns that someone close to him okayed the hit, the dyed-in-the-wool gangsta sets aside the Bible for the gospel of the streets–even if it means risking the one person who’s always had his back.

Forever a Hustler's Wife: A Novel

#1 bestselling author Nikki Turner returns with an explosive new novel about a woman at an emotional crossroads–and the men left in her wake. Isis Tatum knows firsthand the way love can mess up a person. After all, she saw her mother drive a truck through the home of her father’s mistress before killing her dad. And ever since Isis was a teenager, her love life has been a series of disasters: Her first sweetheart was executed by the state of Virginia, and her next lover was sent to jail for murder. Now Isis is a successful jewelry designer, but she remains a failure with men. When she meets Logic, a Las Vegas high roller who treats her like a princess, Isis reckons she’s finally struck gold–literally. Logic sees to it that her custom pieces of jewelry are seen on the hottest rap stars and pro athletes. But when this Mr. Right ends up in jail too, Isis starts to believe that she’s cursed, that she’s a true Black Widow. Always one to roll with the punches, she embraces her life and walks bravely down all its twisted paths, taking her business to unprecedented heights while letting the men who dare to get involved with her take their chances. “Few writers working in the field today bring the drama quite as dramatically as Nikki Turner. . . . [She’s] a master at weaving juicy, ’hood-rich sagas of revenge, regret, and redemption.” –Vibe.com “Turner [takes] street literature to the next level, further proving that she is indeed ‘The Queen of Hip-Hop Fiction.’ ” –UrbanPublicity.com

Black Widow: A Novel (Nikki Turner Original)

The reigning queen of hip-hop lit, Nikki Turner, takes on the music biz in this tale of a young woman who risks everything to be a superstar. Fabiola Mays was born to sing. She has a voice like honey and a body to match, but one heartbreaking setback after another threatens to derail her dreams of a recording deal. To make matters worse, it’s Christmastime, rent is past due, and the cops intend to kick her tight-knit family to the curb–until a small-town gangster comes to the rescue and offers them a place to stay. Years pass, and Fabiola continues to play gigs and travel around the country hoping for another shot at fame. She’s long forgotten the gangster named Casino who bailed out her family once upon a time. But when Casino is shot, Fabiola feels that she must help the man who helped her family during their lowest point. As Fabiola climbs the ladder of success, she is pulled between the spotlight and the street, trying to resist industry moguls who find the allure of fresh meat irresistible and the thugs from the shadowy side of the ghetto who threaten to keep her close.

Ghetto Superstar: A Novel (Many Cultures, One World)

The #1 bestselling author of Natural Born Hustler and Relapse, Nikki Turner gives up the game that could never be sold, only told. The lure of Richmond, Virginia’s streets is too strong for Bambi, a good girl who fell in love with Reggie, a young hustler. Her thug love not only corrupted her but blinded her with the bling and cash that come with living the glamorous life of a gangsta’s girl—until Reggie hit her with a low blow, breaking her heart. From that day forward, Bambi vowed that whoever crossed her would pay—usually with large bills. With the street knowledge she gleaned from her ex as well as her own business savvy, Bambi builds a multimillion-dollar party-planning empire and becomes a first-rate swindler and top-notch gamestress. Then she crosses paths with Lynx, who sees more in Bambi than the gold digger she is rumored to be. He penetrates her tough exterior layer by layer until he captures her heart. But is she just setting herself up to be played once again?

Ballantine Books

The undisputed queen of hip-hop fiction, #1 Essence bestselling author Nikki Turner unwraps a talented new collection of writers with raw urban stories to jingle your bells this season. Christmas in the Hood presents fresh talent alongside shining stars such as K. Elliott and Seth “Soul Man” Ferranti–all writing gritty tales that reveal what the holidays bring for the naughty and the nice who live by the code of the street. In “Secret Santa,” after her children’s Christmas presents are stolen, a woman has to decide what she’s willing to sacrifice to give them the holiday they deserve; in “Me and Grandma,” a senior sleighs more crack than candy canes to bring Christmas cheer to her needy grandkids; and in “Holiday Hell,” Noelle must raise $23,000 to repay a loan shark or her sister will become a ghost of Christmas past. True to the streets and true to the season, these stories will raise the holiday spirit in the heart of even the most ghetto-hardened gangsta. “The ghetto’s voice without constraint.” –Upscale, on Tales from da Hood

Christmas in the Hood: Stories (Street Chronicles)

The undisputed Queen of Hip-Hop Fiction presents five knockout tales set in the fast-paced, high-stakes rap game–written by a hot lineup of authors with unmistakable swag and a gift for dropping sexy, thrilling stories. From a big-time hustler who can’t give up the streets–even when it might cost him his rap career–to a fearless female emcee who goes both ways in the bedroom, these characters steam up the pages as they set out to make their mark, outsmart all the haters and hustlers looking to derail them, and rise to the top of the charts. Backstage is a VIP pass to the glamorous, gritty music industry, a world Nikki Turner knows intimately–as she introduces writers you’ll want to read again and again.

Backstage: Stories (Street Chronicles)

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Turner, Nikki. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Turner, Nikki

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Turner, Nikki. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Glamorous Life: A Novel

Riding Dirty on I-95: A Novel (Nikki Turner Original)

Tales from da Hood: Stories

Street Chronicles Girls in the Game: Stories

Forever a Hustler's Wife: A Novel

Black Widow: A Novel (Nikki Turner Original)

Ghetto Superstar: A Novel (Many Cultures, One World)

The Glamorous Life: A Novel

Christmas in the Hood: Stories (Street Chronicles)

Backstage: Stories (Street Chronicles)