She throws herself into her work from dusk to dawn, until her solitary routine is disrupted by the appearance of a mysterious child who shows up at her cabin barefoot and covered in bruises.The girl calls herself Ursa, and she claims to have been sent from the stars to witness five miracles. With concerns about the child’s home situation, Jo reluctantly agrees to let her stay—just until she learns more about Ursa’s past.Jo enlists the help of her reclusive neighbor, Gabriel Nash, to solve the mystery of the charming child. But the more time they spend together, the more questions they have. How does a young girl not only read but understand Shakespeare? Why do good things keep happening in her presence? And why aren’t Jo and Gabe checking the missing children’s website anymore?Though the three have formed an incredible bond, they know difficult choices must be made. As the summer nears an end and Ursa gets closer to her fifth miracle, her dangerous past closes in. When it finally catches up to them, all of their painful secrets will be forced into the open, and their fates will be left to the stars.In this gorgeously stunning debut, a mysterious child teaches two strangers how to love and trust again.

    But she's not looking for a happy and tearful reunion.After a life of pain, loneliness and neglect, Makayla wants revenge.Her search leads her to Robin Jones, but she’s nothing like the monster Makayla imagined. While pursuing her mission to destroy Robin’s life, Makayla comes to know, and even love her.But by the time she realizes her mistake, her plan for payback has already been set in motion, leaving Makayla helpless to stop it.With disaster looming, Makayla needs help. The kind only God can give. What she doesn't realize is, she's going to need Him for a lot more than that.Because Robin's life isn't the only one about to be blown to pieces. There's a secret Makayla doesn't know. A secret worse than anything she experienced in her past. A secret that will change her life forever.

    His most promising client is a low-rent call girl, and he runs his fledgling law practice out of a dingy strip mall. But he’s long since made peace with his path to the American Dream, carefully tucking away his darkest sins: the guns, the FBI file, the trial that nearly destroyed him.Houston, Texas, 1981. It’s here that Jay believes he can make a fresh start. That is, until the night he impulsively saves a drowning woman’s life – and opens a Pandora’s Box. Her secrets put Jay in danger, ensnaring him in a murder investigation that could cost him his practice, his family, and even his life. But before he can get to the bottom of a tangled mystery that reaches into the upper echelons of Houston’s corporate powerbrokers, Jay must confront the demons of his past.With intelligent writing that captures the reader from the first scene through an exhilarating climax, Black Water Rising marks the arrival of an electrifying new talent.

    On a scorching day in August 1954, thirteen-year-old Jubie Watts leaves Charlotte, North Carolina, with her family for a Florida vacation. Crammed into the Packard along with Jubie are her three siblings, her mother, and the family's black maid, Mary Luther. For as long as Jubie can remember, Mary has been there cooking, cleaning, compensating for her father's rages and her mother's benign neglect, and loving Jubie unconditionally. Bright and curious, Jubie takes note of the anti-integration signs they pass and of the racial tension that builds as they journey further south. But she could never have predicted the shocking turn their trip will take. Now, in the wake of tragedy, Jubie must confront her parents failings and limitations, decide where her own convictions lie, and make the tumultuous leap to independence.Infused with the intensity of a changing time, here is a story of hope, heartbreak, and the love and courage that can transform us from child to adult, wounded to indomitable.

    Later, after nailing her interview and accepting her boyfriend's marriage proposal, Dannie goes to sleep knowing she is right on track to achieve her five-year plan. But when she wakes up, she’s suddenly in a different apartment, with a different ring on her finger, and beside a very different man. The television news is on in the background, and she can just make out the scrolling date. It’s the same night—December 15—but 2025, five years in the future. After a very intense, shocking hour, Dannie wakes again, at the brink of midnight, back in 2020. She can’t shake what has happened. It certainly felt much more than merely a dream, but she isn’t the kind of person who believes in visions. That nonsense is only charming coming from free-spirited types, like her lifelong best friend, Bella. Determined to ignore the odd experience, she files it away in the back of her mind. That is, until four-and-a-half years later, when by chance Dannie meets the very same man from her long-ago vision. Brimming with joy and heartbreak, In Five Years is an unforgettable love story that reminds us of the power of loyalty, friendship, and the unpredictable nature of destiny.

    Success, however, has come at a tremendous price on the home front. The closeness he once shared with his wife of twelve years is gone. Dave spends most of his time working, while Madeline is struggling with balancing her job and home. When she elects to take time off and let Dave run the business, their lives are forever changed. Revered by others as a man of strong faith, Dave is not above temptation. His professional relationship with his new secretary eventually crosses the line, and the two share a night of passion. Madeline is crushed when she discovers the affair, but she has sacrificed too much already to let go. She digs her heels in, refusing to give up her marriage, her family, her company, or her place in Dave's heart.

    At the center: a woman who calls herself Bride, whose stunning blue-black skin is only one element of her beauty, her boldness and confidence, her success in life; but which caused her light-skinned mother to deny her even the simplest forms of love until she told a lie that ruined the life of an innocent woman, a lie whose reverberations refuse to diminish ... Booker, the man Bride loves and loses, whose core of anger was born in the wake of the childhood murder of his beloved brother ... Rain, the mysterious white child, who finds in Bride the only person she can talk to about the abuse she's suffered at the hands of her prostitute mother ... and Sweetness, Bride's mother, who takes a lifetime to understand that "what you do to children matters. And they might never forget."

    One Dress.A tale of faith, redemption, and timeless love.Charlotte owns a chic Birmingham bridal boutique. Dressing brides for their big day is her gift . . . and her passion. But with her own wedding day approaching, why can't she find the perfect dress...or feel certain she should marry Tim?Then Charlotte discovers a vintage dress in a battered trunk at an estate sale. It looks brand-new-shimmering with pearls and satin, hand-stitched and timeless in its design. But where did it come from? Who wore it? Who welded the lock shut and tucked the dog tags in that little sachet? Who left it in the basement for a ten-year-old girl? And what about the mysterious man in the purple vest who insists the dress had been "redeemed."Charlotte's search for the gown's history-and its new bride-begins as a distraction from her sputtering love life. But it takes on a life of its own as she comes to know the women who have worn the dress. Emily from 1912. Mary Grace from 1939. Hillary from 1968. Each with her own story of promise, pain, and destiny. And each with something unique to share. For woven within the threads of the beautiful hundred-year-old gown is the truth about Charlotte's heritage, the power of courage and faith, and the timeless beauty of finding true love.

    But the day he meets Ameenah, he becomes consumed by an entirely different and more attractive distraction--his bold, beautiful, sexy neighbor with the "glorious hips" and a penchant for ice cream. Ameenah Porter, daughter of successful New York restaurateurs, moves to the beach town of Black Diamond to fulfill her dream of opening a smoothie shop. She doesn't need the distraction of a new man but the tall, dark and handsome Wade, who's staying in the giant sized home at the end of her block, is irresistible. Ameenah's days at Tikis & Cream are spent cooling off her customers with her gourmet smoothie blends. Her nights on the shores of Black Diamond Bay are enchanting and romantic, and soon Wade and Ameenah find themselves in the middle of a Beach Thing... a fun, meaningless tryst that will end when the summer is over. Or will it? Wade is returning to Brooklyn at the end of the summer. Ameenah lives on Black Diamond. Neither want this Beach Thing to end... so is this fling really a fling or is it the beginning of something real... and will they realize it in time?Indulge in a fun, steamy #beachyblackromance and join me on Black Diamond.

    Taking us inside the glittering world of New York's hip-hop scene with an unforgettable cast of characters, smart dialogue, and a whole lot of attitude, Erica Kennedy grabs the microphone and makes it clear that she is a major new voice in the popular new genre of urban fiction.

    Just the thought of Simone Campbell makes him turn away from any chick. Whether it's the baddest bitch or a foreign chick, he'll pass. But then "she" came into his life and that all changed. He's ready to live and love again, and she just might be the one. That is, if Simone doesn't ruin it like she has everything else in his life. Simone and her wicked, deadly ways are back. But she isn't still that devious side bitch that's obsessed with Omari Sutton. Now, she's obsessed with staying out of prison. However, one glimpse of Omari and his new leading lady causes her insanity to resurface. Little does she know, Detective Keisha Howard is just as obsessed as she is and won't sleep until she tracks down Simone to ensure that she pays for all of her murderous ways. In Secrets of a Side Bitch 4, every lie, trick, and murder is laid out on the table, and karma begins to take its revenge on some, while new life begins for others.

    Now that the beautiful executive is trying to settle down with the man of her dreams, she decides to come clean. She admits to a past filled with lies, heartbreak and scandal. But she soon learns that some secrets are best left buried.Once the skeletons are out, all hell breaks loose. In the midst of the drama, Venni's long-time ally becomes her greatest adversary and her most-hated adversary surprisingly becomes her ally. When it's all said and done, egos and feelings are tattered and family ties are severed. Will Venni regret coming clean?It's Complicated is a page-turner that reaffirms we all have a backstory and perfection on the surface isn't always what it seems.

    Now, in Pastor Needs a Boo, she's back with an amazing journey of faith, drama, and love.It was a regular New Jerusalem Gospel United Church work day for Reverend Denzelle Flowers when Veronica Washington, Keisha Jackson, and Marsha Metcalf showed up after losing their jobs on the same day, same morning, and almost at the same time. Denzelle struggled to solve that first problem. The other problem—the lovely Marsha—would be much harder to solve. Denzelle didn't even know how to fight wanting to turn in the playah's card and getting "booed" up with the poster girl for "church girls." Marsha Metcalf and her fellow unemployed church members aren't Denzelle's biggest problem, though. He is running for bishop, and his enemies—a more ruthless consortium of corrupted clergy—want power badly enough to go to rather extreme lengths for it because the stakes are just that high. Now, his ex-wife was back and sleeping with the enemy, digging for dirt. Reverend Denzelle can't fight this battle alone. This pastor needs a ‘boo' who will stand by his side. Before the dust settles, both Marsha and Denzelle's faith and love will be put to the ultimate test.

    Will she get her man or destroy herself and everyone else in the process?

    They thought the unfaithful men in their lives caused their storms, but as they are forced on a journey of self-examination, they realize that something greater than a “do right” man is needed to heal the hurts that trouble their souls.Kenneth Underwood and Isaac Walker want to rid themselves of the selfish, ungrateful women in their lives. Kenneth, a successful businessman, is planning to divorce Elizabeth, his wife of 7 years. Isaac, a man of the street and Nina’s former lover, has a more final solution to rid himself of his problem.Will they allow the grace of God to heal and restore the shattered lives they have created, or are they forever destined to go through the storm?