"Hold You Down is an edgy novel from rising star Tracy Brown about the perils of love and the ties that bind... New York City. Late 1980s to early 1990s. Mercy and Lenox Howard have always only had each other. Growing up on the mean streets of Harlem with an absentee mother meant that they had to have each other's backs. Now young, smart mothers they are determined to survive in New York City while raising their two sons, who have bright futures ahead...

"The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary reprieve from being good. The nine stories in this collection feature four generations of characters grappling with who they want to be in the world, caught as they are between the church's double standards and their own needs and passions"--

A mesmerizing, indelible coming-of-age story about a girl in Boston's tightly-knit Ethiopian community who falls under the spell of a charismatic hustler out to change the world A haunting story of fatherhood, national identity, and what it means to be an immigrant in America today, Nafkote Tamirat's The Parking Lot Attendant explores how who we love, the choices we make, and the places we're from combine to make us who we are. The story begins on...

"An irreverent and deeply moving comedy about friendship, fertility, and fighting for one's sanity in a toxic workplace."--Provided by publisher. Jen, a once-promising painter, takes a job at a feminist nonprofit. The foundation's aim is to empower women, but staffers spend all their time devising acronyms for imaginary programs, ruthlessly undermining one another, and stroking the ego of their boss, celebrity philanthropist Leora Infinitas. Jen...

Lilith was born into slavery on a Jamaican sugar plantation at the end of the eighteenth century. Even at her birth, the slave women around her recognize a dark power that they--and she--will come to both revere and fear. The Night Women, as they call themselves, have long been plotting a slave revolt, and as Lilith comes of age and reveals the extent of her power, they see her as the key to their plans. But when she begins to understand her own feelings...

It's almost Halloween at Alfie's school and everyone is excited to dress up in costumes for the class Halloween party. Shy Bella asks Alfie if she wants to be bunny rabbits together, but then all of Alfie's other friends are going to be princesses! Alfie is so torn. Can she be both ... and not hurt anyone's feelings? Probably not!

Seven-year-old Alfie Jakes isn't thrilled when her mom organizes end-of-summer playdates with her soon-to-be classmate, Hanni. Hanni is kind of bossy. So Alfie is relieved when Hanni is more fun to play with then she thought. Even better, she shows Alfie her cat--who has kittens! Alfie immediately falls in love with a little gray kitten and wants to give it a home. But one of the Jakes' house rules is 'no pets' because Alfie is supposedly alergic....

Feeling adrift after ending a relationship, Julius, a young Nigerian doctor living in New York, takes long walks through the city while listening to the stories of fellow immigrants until a shattering truth is revealed.

"In a fantastical version of New Orleans where music is magic, a battle for the city's soul brews between two young mages, a vengeful wraith, and one powerful song in this vibrant and imaginative debut contemporary fantasy"--

"With beguiling wit and undeniable passion, Lush Lives is a deliciously queer and sexy novel about bold, brilliant women unafraid to take risks and fight for what they love. An unabashedly charged love story set in the evocative and high-stakes world of art and auction in New York City. For Glory Hopkins, inheriting her aunt Lucille's Harlem brownstone feels more like a curse than a blessing. As a restless artist struggling to find gallery representation,...