Courtesy Of Duval County

by Tacarra

"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮...𝘚𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘲"

After recently relocating to Duval, Jenelle realizes the only thing that has changed are her surroundings. That was until she missed a call from an unknown number. When the caller calls again…she answered, not knowing that she was answering her destiny.

Shariq got caught up in the wrong place at the wrong my time, sending him to the last place he wanted or needed to be. When he tries to call home, his call is intercepted by an unfamiliar female.

Intrigued by the sensual voice, he embarks on something that could be beneficial for the both of them.

Follow Shariq and Janelle on their journey to love during and after lockup.

Genres: African American Romance, Novella

114 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 19, 2024

Reviews

[Kameel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first read from this author…this was a quick cute insta story…..

[Elle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bugged her enough!

A brief, sweet read that I really enjoyed. Fast-paced with low drama and angst, and plenty of chemistry. This is a good one!

[Jahda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short Love in Lockdown book 🤣

[She Watkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was cute!! I liked both Janelle and Shariq! Honestly I didn't feel like we got enough of them getting to know one another to actually root for them! I had a feeling Cruz was up to something but I didn't think it was that lol.... I also loved the children! The ending almost gave me whiplash because the time kept jumping. Overall it was a good story but somethings could have been left out (all the shein talk, and her saying her name was Janelle a thousand times lol) all the unhelpful chats with his lawyer 😂) all that could've been left out to make more room for Shariq and Janelle and their cute little family!

[Sunflower · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shariq finds himself in trouble after a family gathering, and with probation hanging over his head, his chances aren’t looking good. When he tries to contact his sister Shay for help, he ends up dialing Janelle instead. New to Duval and hustling as a nail tech, Janelle is a single mom just trying to adjust to her new life. When she answers the unknown call, Shariq’s smooth voice immediately catches her attention. After explaining his situation, Shariq gets her to help connect him with Shay. Janelle assumes that’s the last she’ll hear from him, but Shariq has other plans.

As they start talking, a connection quickly forms between them, leading to a budding relationship. When Janelle visits Shariq in person, the chemistry only intensifies. But with Shariq facing six months behind bars, he’s forced to be away from his daughter, family, and now Janelle.

I give this book 5 stars! The vibe was everything—raw, ghetto, and NASTY. When the author introduced Shariq, I didn’t even need a description to know he was fine. Hood books with drama like this are my jam, and this one hit all the marks.

[BrownBookNerd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick novella but I loved Jenelle and Shariq so much I want more from them!!

[ReadnliftwithShar · Rating 5 out of 5]

❤️

4.5✨I love a quick and easy read and I never met a prison bae (only in books) that I didn’t love. I thought the initial meeting was unique. I hope there’s more!

[Toya Davis-Stokley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute instalove story. Had a few editing issues, but not too bad.

[Tay da Clydesdale · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good hood jam!! This was so good. It had been on my tbr for a minute and I’m mad I haven’t read it sooner. Frost was standing on big business behind bars and when he was released. I enjoyed this. Off to book two ✨✨

[Weekend Reader_ · Rating 3 out of 5]

😅

Talk about things escalating quickly...one phone call straight into a relationship. Don't accept collect calls but if you must I guess Shariq isn't a bad option.

[Pen Game Confessionals · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't for me

The dangerous thing about short stories is that you have a limited time to capture what you're trying to convey. It's always a gamble if the readers are going to connect or not.

In my case, I failed to connect with the story or the characters. I'm trying to keep in mind that the book was meant to be short, but I didnt see the reason to connect or support this relationship. I didn't think they were bad people at all, but they failed to convince me that their foundation was solid enough for a relationship. I feel as though they're almost strangers and now they're stuck with each other.

I am going to give it three stars because I managed to finish it.

[Aja Cornish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this is how you write a short story!!!

Great job! Everything about this story was amazing. The storyline, the plot, the details, the characters… OMG, the characters were so down to earth and realistic. I loved how they weren’t doing too much and the author penned them in a way that made you want more of their story, their history etc. Janele was a sweetheart and I loved how Shariq knew he wanted her and went after her. I loved how his family welcomed Janel from day one. I can’t wait to read pt 2. Great job, Tacarra 🤎🤎

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whew chile

I love a good prison bae and add instalove and it’s really my jam.

Janelle and Shariq was really cute together and his family welcoming her and her son with open arms was too cute. I knew he should’ve cut Cruz off even the plug told him that. But overall this was a cute novella.

[TheReaderVert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick standalone that sucks you in this unique romance had just enough of the drama to keep you interested and perfect romance flow to root for the couple. With an outlandish meet cute (he dialed the wrong number while locked up in County) it was cute watching a competent, grown, on her real womanish FMC attract a real one. This plays into the Stepdaddy Season trope, good smex with spanking sprinkled in here and there, and a satisfying romance ending. A fan of Urban Romance couldn't ask for more, except pages 😁.

[Keia Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

baby !!!!

All I have to say is let me get a phone call from an inmate 😂 but I loved everything about this book. I wish it was longer.

[JazzReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read

This book was a good and quick read that I really enjoy. I will be reading more books by this author.

[Bri Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

sign me up!!

Baby I ain’t ever wanted to find that pen pal list so badddd, I had a time reading this short story and gave me everything I needed!

[Abbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first read by this author. The premise caught my eye and I was excited to see how she’d develop a love story based around it but unfortunately for me it fell a little flat. I loved Janelle’s confidence when it came to her work and the brief moments we saw between her and her son. I liked the confidence Shariq had as well. Other than that I really didn’t have a reason to root for them or to believe any of this would happen this way in reality, ha. I kept telling myself not to expect a lot of detail and development since it was less than a hundred pages but the more I thought about it I realized that some things could have been left out or it could have been fleshed out a little more in just a sentence or two.

I was okay when she decided to jump into this relationship with this man who was stuck in prison for 6 months because I mean, Love After Lock Up exists, but where the story kinda lost me was when they had that disagreement and they didn’t talk to each other for 4 whole months and suddenly they’re back on track. And then after that we get another 3 month time jump. There weren’t enough moments building up their relationship to make me want to root for them or care about anyone in the story to be honest.

Paired that with the editing/grammatical errors and that lowered my rating to a 2… but even though I wasn’t feeling the connection between Janelle and Shariq I was intrigued enough to see how it would end so that alone made me bump it to a 3 out of 5.

[The Urban Fiction Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

To make things VERY clear Riq is MY MAN. That’s it that’s all!!!! MINE. Now my only compliant I got is this book wasn’t look enough for me and I know Tacarra gonna cuss me out and that’s okay too cause bayybeee I wanted and probably needed just a little bit more. Now I will say this is a super quick read and I mean fast. It’s less than 2 hours and it goes quick. I loved how Janelle hooked Riq even before they met face to face. But the fact that he put down and then let his dumb ssa BM tell him something without fact checking it PMO. But I digress, he did fix his wrong doing even though time had passed. And the way they knocked each others boots down in that room WHEW!!!!! It was needed for them both. I knew Cruz was grimy I just ain’t know he was nasty too. SMH! I loved how Ky and Riah built a cute lil bond and accepted each other without the drama. Loved, loved, loved this cute and quick read. Thank you Miss MaMas!!!!

Love,
Prettygirlsmil3thebookworm

[Taees_Cozy_Corner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Janelle, new to Duval gets a voicemail from an unknown caller. The next days he calls back so she decided to see who or is & being the good person she is she helps this man finds his sister. What she didn’t expect is both Shariq finding something more. Shariq knew what he wanted and he started applied instant pressure.

Shariq was the epitome of if he wants to, he will. After the weekend in jail he realized he’s going to do more time than expected, but he knew he wanted to keep Janelle around. He called her up and told her “You are mines” & he moved accordingly. From behind bars he made sure her & her son’s life was smooth AF. Only problem was his messy Babymama and her hating drama. You have to read out for yourself to get the rest but I need more lol. This was a quick novella that did its jobs. I loved every second of it.

[Shanae · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my second read from Tacarra and, while I really liked the first book I read from her titled Khan's Choice, this short story, Courtesy of Duval County just didn't cut it for me. The characters were pretty stereotypical and the story was just really unlikely. I really enjoyed the synopsis and thought the premise was cool, but reading this love story just felt really rushed and I think more could've been done to establish the relationship between the FMC, Janelle/Nellie, and the MMC, Shariq/Frost.

Courtesy of Duval County is mostly engaging with likable characters. The book is relaxing, occasionally funny, and it offers an escape. I recommend this short story to established fans of Tacarra.

[NubianJoí · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silly Rabbit

“Silly rabbit, Trix are for kids” …Frost reminds me of a classic (early 70’s 🤭) cereal commercial 🤷🏾‍♀️ he’s both simple & silly..a buffoon 🤡and unrealistic. Unfortunately, for him these qualities/character traits are not compliments. “Courtesy of Duval County” was just a mediocre read. However, I appreciate Janelle/Jenelle’s hustle as an entrepreneur. And possibly even Shariq’s potential pen pal. But an overnight girlfriend, misrepresenting herself as a Lawyer (which is a crime) and then the reckless act of public “service” in a county jail with a stranger 🤦🏾‍♀️🥴😮‍💨‼️Yet it’s inconceivable for Mariah & Cruz to be romantically involved ⁉️Hypocrite ‼️…sorry I’m not impressed with this storyline.

[Cris Criss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some kind of call!

Nellie never expected that accepting a county jail call would change her life. Assuming it was her son’s father (because he stayed in trouble), she answered the call. On the other line was Shariq, who thought he was calling his sister to get him out of jail. When he realized it was the wrong number, he was already hypnotized by the raspy and sultry voice of Nellie.

Nellie, feeling bad about the situation helped to connect Shariq with his sister. Because she helped him, he felt he needed to show her gratitude which later turned into him feeling her.

This was a quick read, but the storyline holds you in place. I kinda need to know what Shariq does about Cruz. 😬🤷🏾‍♀️

[Tenika Glover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prison Bae!!

Shariq should have drove his butt straight home, he's lucky they didn't check his truck. Boogie told him don't trust Cruz because like everybody thought he was going to set him up. He broke the the bro code. Janelle answers the phone to her future boyfriend, baby daddy. His family was so accepting of her and her son. She had to let Mariah know that she's not the one to be playing with because she can get active. See Shariq had to apologize for ratchet baby mama. She thought she was slick telling on Janelle out with her other baby daddy and Shariq fell for it. Janelle's mama surprised her then she went into labor.

[Shadicia Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, Frost & Janelle❤️

Whew!

What a beginning, right y'all? A misplaced phone call led to the start of a friendship, relationship, and family. Cruz was so trifling & only thy heavenly father can tell me he wasn't the one trying to send Frost to prison. It's too convenient that he keeps forgetting to pick up the drugs, clearing want Frost to do it, and he's stopped by the police and then searched. Plus, when your plug or anyone tells you they don't trust someone around, check that person out regardless of connection as it's necessary as people change everyday.

I would've liked more about Janelle and Frost... you didn't even give us name for his son.

[Cashmere Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Janelle and Shariq

This was a fast paced instant love book and I loved it, slight spoilers! boy I was anxious as hell about him getting locked up even thought I knew it was going to happen 😆. I’m glad he won’t locked up for a long time lol. Also Cruz was on some other sh!t but not the sh!t I thought he was up to. Still trifling though. While I was side eyeing his family for pulling Janelle in so quick, I’m glad they won’t nasty to her. Mariah annoyed me but I did enjoy the book!!

[KweenBee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Couldn't Look Away!

I don't usually read the synopsis because I kinda like to be surprised about the contents of a book. However, the title intrigued me enough to know what I was getting into first and while this would be considered an insta love book with a touch of recklessness and much drama I couldn't look away. It was kinda predictable and a tad bit ghetto... especially how the friends always addressed each other and how the adults talked in front of the kids... but it was also kinda comical so I stuck beside it. It ended in a cliffhanger so I had to see it through before I could even stop to leave a review of this one. Overall, it was like an entertaining train wreck.

[mimi 🧚🏽‍♀️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75⭐️

why did shariq had me blushing like i was jenelle?? 🥰

i liked this book a lot, i ate it up in less than 2 hours and was lowkey wishing it was longer by chapter 7.
and that scene when janelle went to visit shariq in jail is gonna be in my mind for the rest of the week 🤭😭.

i loved shariqs family, and janelle’s character. there was nothing really wrong with this book besides it being too short (because i wanted more) and some minor typos. other than that it was amazingggg.

i’m definitely gonna read the shariqs second book cause i like him a lot 🫣.

[Mia L Boone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Courtesy of Duval County

Who knew that answering a phone call could change your location life. That's exactly what happened to Janelle. Shariq couldn't remember his sister's number when he got jammed yo, so he started randomly dialing numbers that he thought were correct. Unfortunately and fortunately, Janelle answered.

Shariq aka Frost was so taken with her voice he continued to call. He asked her to find his sister and connect the call. She did and the soul tie was born.

Fantastic book!!!

[T G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful read! 😍

It started with a mistake that began a wonderful love affair. This is a wonderful read. I enjoyed this book so much. The writing was perfect. The characters are great. Shariq comes from a close-knit family that loves and supports him. Janelle, a single mother, is raising her son and starting over. One phone call changes their whole lives. It is my pleasure reading your books. 🥰