Bayoubabe

After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago. Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors—until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

I have no soul. And that suits me. How else could I wield absolute power in the nation’s capital? I own this town and everyone in it. The public thinks the politicos run Washington. Who do you think is pulling their strings? I am. Some hate me for it…until they find themselves at the center of a scandal. That’s when I become their savior.

Corruption runs rampant even in a not-so-distant future where the biggest lottery is rigged so that the only winners are rich and white. In a world that has been ravaged by a destructive alien attack, an opportunity for a lifetime of riches in exchange for serving as consort to one of the alien defenders is indeed a great prize. Down on her luck, Karma will be the first Black consort, despite believing that being an alien's whore is only slightly better than being one for humans.

Thirty years ago, Amelia Vaux Tanner and her husband built a house high on the bluffs, a cottage they named Chateau Laveau. For decades, “Ama” played host to American presidents, Wall Street titans, and cultural icons. But her favorite guests have always been her three “goddaughters”: Esperanza “Perry” Soto, a beautiful, talented Afro-Latina lawyer with Ama’s strong, yet guarded personality; Olivia Jones, a gifted Wall Street analyst with Ama’s brilliant, logical mind; and Billie Hayden, a gifted marine biologist and rule-breaker with Ama’s courageous free spirit.

Life’s complicated—add a crown, and it’s a royal mess. Tola Adetoye is your average woman—well, if you ignore the daily battle with her untameable hair. Her life is as chaotic as Chicago traffic: college, odd jobs, and caring for her bedridden mom. Let’s just say “easy” isn’t in her vocabulary. So, imagine her shock when she’s hit with the news—she’s a princess. Suddenly, her worries don’t seem so daunting—or so she thinks. Turns out, being royal isn’t all tiaras and tax-free shopping. It’s rules, responsibilities, and a royal family counting on her to carry on...

When he falls ill on his way home from school, 15-year-old Michael Berg is rescued by Hanna, a woman twice his age. In time she becomes his lover--then she inexplicably disappears. When Michael next sees her, he is a young law student, and she is on trial for a hideous crime. As he watches her refuse to defend her innocence, Michael gradually realizes that Hanna may be guarding a secret she considers more shameful than murder.

Ridley Wells is done with men. All she wants is to focus on her dream of opening her own nursery, but she has the opposite of a green thumb when it comes to love. She’s always been the “good twin” who played by all the rules waiting for Prince Charming to show up. Instead she is currently in hiding from her latest case of bad judgment. So when there’s a teeny tiny case of mistaken identity, for once she decides to do the “wrong” thing.

It is 1940 and a tragedy sends Lou and her little brother, Oz, along with their invalid mother, from New York City to the rugged mountains of Southwest Virginia to live with their great-grandmother. The story is told with both heartbreaking elegance and large doses of touching humor as the lives of Lou and Oz are changed forever.

The most toxic racial arguments share one of five traits. They try to erase Black history, prioritize white victimhood, deny Black oppression, promote myths of Black inferiority, or rebrand racism as something else entirely. They’re all designed to distract society from racial justice, but now we have the tools to debunk them.

I never wanted the throne.... I have a plan: Find my long-lost brother and make him the prince so I don't have to rule. The last thing I have time for is my sexy new neighbor. She's everything I don't want, sassy, funny and...not available. That's okay - I'm amazing best-guy-friend material.... Friends? Sure. Anything more? Definitely not. All I have to do is not touch her, kiss her, or fantasize about...never mind.... It's not like I have a choice. With my secrets, I can't let her find out who I really am. My secrets could get us both killed.