Showing results by publisher "Recorded Books" in African American

God is change. That is the central truth of the Earthseed movement, whose unlikely prophet is 18-year-old Lauren Olamina. The young woman's diary entries tell the story of her life amid a violent 21st-century hell of walled neighborhoods and drug-crazed pyromaniacs—and reveal her evolving Earthseed philosophy. Against a backdrop of horror emerges a message of hope: if we are willing to embrace divine change, we will survive to fulfill our destiny among the stars.

Having just celebrated her 26th birthday in 1976 California, Dana, an African-American woman, is suddenly and inexplicably wrenched through time into antebellum Maryland. After saving a drowning White boy there, she finds herself staring into the barrel of a shotgun and is transported back to the present just in time to save her life. During numerous such time-defying episodes with the same young man, she realizes she's been given a challenge.

Start the wacky ride from the beginning. You don’t know what you’ve been missing! In the Company of My Sistahs is a bold, emotionally charged women’s drama with the heart of Waiting to Exhale, the truth bombs of Think Like a Man, and the vacation-gone-wrong humor of Girls' Trip—but with...

Oreo is raised by her maternal grandparents in Philadelphia. Her black mother tours with a theatrical troupe, and her Jewish deadbeat dad disappeared when she was an infant, leaving behind a mysterious note that triggers her quest to find him. What ensues is a playful, modernized parody of the classical odyssey of Theseus with a feminist twist, immersed in seventies pop culture, and mixing standard English, black vernacular, and Yiddish with wisecracking aplomb.

In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, an Egyptian American woman and a man from the village of Shobrakheit meet at a café in Cairo. He was a photographer of the revolution, but now finds himself unemployed and addicted to cocaine, living in a rooftop shack. She is a nostalgic daughter of immigrants “returning” to a country she’s never been to before, teaching English and living in a light-filled flat with balconies on all sides. They fall in love and he moves in. But soon their desire takes a violent turn that neither of them expected.  

As turmoil simmers within a divided nation, smoke from another blaze begins to rise. Sparked by individual acts of resistance among those enslaved across the American South, their seemingly disparate rebellions fuel a singular inferno of justice, connecting them in ways quiet at times, explosive at others. As these flames rise, so will they. Luke, quick-witted and literate, and Henri, a man with a strong and defiant spirit, forge an unbreakable bond at a Virginia plantation called Magnolia Row. Both seek escape from unimaginable cruelty.

Longlisted for the 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction Named one of the best New Novelists for 2025 by The Observer. Bradford, December 1962. A precocious Mercy makes her reluctant entrance into the world, torn from the warm embrace of her mother’s womb, to a chaotic household that seems to have...

Ever saw a dead body? I’ll ask again. Ever saw a dead body walking among us? I’ve been dead on the inside since my parents were taken away from me, and I was forced to move out the only home I knew. Never truly ever knowing love or what it felt like. Always witnessing everyone else have what you wished your heart could do. Love. That word love could walk up on me, snatch me up, and I wouldn’t have ever known. Me and that word didn’t exist, and I had come to terms with that when I watched them fighting to save my boyfriend’s life, after my brother nearly took it from him.

Wren Deloryne’s life has never been easy. Coming from a broken wreckage of a childhood, he’s never had much hope for anything and knows he’s the only person he can rely on. And finding a woman to satisfy his baser needs has always been easy as pie, despite his dark past, and as far as he sees it the only thing that matters is surviving since everything he’s ever gotten came from busting his knuckles. Catapulted into street fighting since his teens, he’s knocked his way through and made it to the height of fame.

Adira Smith-Cortez knows how to turn around a troubled past. Now she’s a selfmade multi-millionaire who takes exquisite care of herself and her only true love: her husband, Gabriel. Adira has it all—except the answer to one tormenting question: why is attentive, affectionate Gabriel cheating on her—with not just one, but two women. There’s sexy Jocelyn, a club owner. And then there’s Julianna, a celebrity makeup artist he’s even crazier about. In a tricky twist, vengeful Jocelyn offers Adira the perfect plan to get her straying spouse back …

Fans of Verity will be engrossed by this unpredictable novel of suspense as a new bride’s fairytale marriage becomes a prison of secrets. From the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Perfect Ruin, this insidiously sexy, twist-filled psycho-drama is reminiscent of the classic...

Forty-something widow Jessie Tucker is beloved throughout Lexington, Alabama, for her kind heart and endless generosity. But she feels it’s past time she rewarded herself—especially when upstanding Hubert Wiggins tragically loses his wife and son. Making herself indispensable, yet discouraged by Hubert’s lack of romantic interest, Jessie cooks up a deception she knows will make pious Hubert do right by her …

Inspired by real-life legendary choreographer Katherine Dunham’s groundbreaking expedition into the heart of Caribbean dance culture, this uniquely captivating novel imagines the experiences of three very different women who accompany her, hoping to find their destinies—yet find themselves forced to survive a historic event …

An illicit affair between 55-year-old widow Binta Zubairu and 25-year-old weed dealer and political thug Hassan "Reza" was bound to provoke condemnation in conservative Northern Nigeria. Brought together in startling circumstances, Binta and Reza discover a need that only each can satisfy in the other.  

Since childhood, Yolanda Vance has forged her desire to escape poverty into a laser-like focus that took her through prep school and Harvard Law. So when her prestigious New York law firm is raided by the FBI, Yolanda turns in her corrupt bosses to save her career - and goes to work for the Bureau. Soon she’s sent undercover at Red, Black, and Green - an African-American “extremist” activist group back in her California college town. They claim a biotech corporation fueled by Pentagon funding is exploiting the neighborhood.

Justice Barrett has only known the hustle his entire life. Being the provider for his younger siblings was tough for a young teenage boy. Having to get it out the mud, by any means necessary, he fell into a life of dealing. Within a few years, he was dominating the streets to the point several government agencies were looking to catch him slipping. Logan Gaines has been a ride or die since the day she fell in love with Justice. He spoiled her rotten. She was his twin flame. When they were together, trouble was sure to find them. 

When Ridah discovers being pregnant, she prays that God will somehow favor her, and the child she is carrying will turn out to be K.J.’s. But Ridah knows it is almost impossible, especially after sleeping with his cousin, Smirky. After the lines are crossed between Ridah and K.J., Lanka is willing to do anything within her power to disconnect any bond Ridah and K.J. have built, and she makes attempts on Ridah’s life in fear of her exposing her secrets to the only man she has ever loved, K.J.

Part historical drama, part supernatural horror, and part alternate history, Blood Slaves is an ingenuous and defiant new creation myth of the vampire, one rooted in both justice and the sometimes-violent means necessary to achieve it.

Anyssa Kelley, a YouTube travel vlogger, is ticking off 30 items to complete before her 30th birthday in 90 days. The most elusive item on her thirty-before-thirty list is to fall in love. Yet, on her quest, she accumulates a string of meaningless affairs and an indiscriminate reputation. Over dinner with a group of travelers at a resort, she meets vineyard owner Camila Martinez, who resembles her strikingly. The two become fast friends when Anyssa learns about Camila’s dilemma: tour the exclusive resort Belle Baie in Mauritius for research or return home for her father’s emergency surgery.

The daughter of a hard-working restaurant owner, Louise Brooks always sees the best in people—and in helping them no matter how difficult her own life gets. She's lived through tragic loss and running the family business on her own, even in the face of a failed marriage. So, she's delighted when she finds a best friend in Della Thornton, a woman struggling with bad breaks and unlucky romances. When Louise's father and her prosperous second husband suddenly pass away, Louise takes Della in and makes her the restaurant’s right-hand woman as it grows more successful than ever . . .