Showing results by narrator "Susan Spain" in All Categories

Convinced that unnamed babies are not truly alive, King Tuthmosis I’s wife Ahmose immediately names her newborn daughter Hatshepsut. This tiny girl will one day rise above her name and become not just "the foremost of women" but ruler of all Egypt. Growing up in pharaoh’s palace, the young princess prepares for her future by learning the essentials of Egyptian religious, political, and social life. After 12-year-old Hatshepsut’s father dies, she - following the royal custom - becomes queen by marrying King Tuthmosis II, the son of one of her father’s lesser wives.

Stanice Anderson, motivational speaker and author of 12-Step Programs: A Resource Guide for Helping Professionals, delivers a personal guide to dealing with failure and turning to triumphs. By examining her own obstacles, Anderson relates to problems that many people face today.

While singing hymns in church back home in Georgia, Deborah Anne Peterson was confident about the role God played in her life. Performing her way to stardom, she is now having a tough time finding time for prayer and meditation. In the world of glitz and glamour, Deborah Anne attends the hottest parties, wears the latest fashions, and makes more money than she ever dreamed of. So why is she feeling so lonely?

The small town of Belle Haven, Louisiana, is still struggling with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf oil spill, and its residents will do whatever it takes to get it back on its feet. So when local English teacher Carissa Melody Wayne is asked to appear on the weight-loss reality show Losing to Win, she agrees. She doesn't realize that others from her past will be joining her, including her high school nemesis, an acquaintance who's been nursing a long-time crush on her - and most shocking of all, Carissa's ex-fiancé...

Thirty-something writer Regina lives in Harlem with her four-year-old daughter. And no matter what she does, drama follows her wherever she goes. Her world is thrown for a loop when shady Little Joe re-enters her life looking for some action. Unfortunately, her lingering feelings for her congressman ex-husband aren't helping either.

In one shattering instant, schoolteacher Cassandra Miller lost everything that mattered to her. Stricken with guilt and sorrow, she has no reason to care about tomorrow. The last person she wants help from is the man she wants to forget. In childhood, Wylie Everett was her cherished best friend. In adulthood, he was the secret lover who left her without explanation. Now he's the person who won't let her go down without a fight.

Cris Burks won widespread acclaim for her engaging first novel, SilkyDreamGirl. Burks' second offering follows the life of a determined girl struggling toward adulthood in 1950s Chicago. The devastating discovery that "Daddy" is not her real father opens a great chasm in Neecey's world and leads to Neecey's abusive mother bringing a succession of no-good men into the home. Nevertheless, as she grows into a woman, the resilient Neecey strives to overcome despair and forge a new life for herself.

Best friends since the fifth grade, Vaughn, Reenie, Susan, and Audrey have always been considered the most likely to write the Great American Novel, marry a prince, find fame, and run the world, respectively. Now in their 50s, they are all still chasing those dreams - which sometimes makes the "girls" collide.

An unstable childhood and a bad marriage have left Nova unable to trust anyone - especially herself. She'd do anything for her young son but feels she'll never be a good enough mother. She's got major talent as a stylist and makeup artist, but big-time success would mean leaving the safety of Martha's Vineyard and the only family she has left. Still, she needs to kick-start her life in a new direction. The last thing she needs is her childhood frenemy, Tanner Brennan, confusing her even more.

Janelle Marshall's life is finally going according to plan. Her perfect, upscale career - and her perfect, successful boyfriend - will make her future as secure and predictable as her childhood never was. And with luck, Little Bill, the grandfather who raised her, will someday understand why she'd rather play it safe than be impulsive. But just when she should be happiest, she gets a distressing call: Little Bill has gone missing. Now Janelle must go to the one place she's long avoided - the tiny mountain town of Mammoth Falls, South Dakota.

Serena Sampson has traveled the world with the gift of prophetic healing, deliverance, and the sword of the Spirit in her hands. She claims victory when she is used by God to set women free from all types of bondage. The world reveres her as a powerhouse of a preacher and a woman of God whose faith is on fire. Women flock to conferences whenever she is in their city. Serena has been molded and shaped for ministry of such magnitude in her mother's church; however, they seem to be two totally different vessels that God uses to reach his people.

Yolanda Joe, author of the Blackboard best-seller Bebe’s By Golly Wow, crafts a touching novel about returning to your roots to understand where you’re headed. Terri Mills’ star is on the rise. A smart and ambitious lawyer, she has everything going for her — until her fiance is unfaithful. Suddenly facing an uncertain future, Terri travels to Arkansas and the bedside of her ailing grandmother, who has plenty of wisdom to share.

In this powerful debut novel set in New York City in the 1970s, Bonnie J. Glover explores the meaning of loss and family. Pamela is the middle of three sisters who are trying to keep their lives together after their mother kicks their father out of the house. Pamela only has an imaginary guide, a character from the television show Kung Fu, to help her and advise her when times turn tough.

After Hannah's fiancé is caught cheating, she leaves him to pursue her cheerleading dream, while still working at RockStar Records. Hannah will have to deal firsthand with Cheerleader Rule #1: don't fall in love with a player.

Winner of multiple literary prizes, Laura Castoro pens novels in genres as diverse as contemporary fiction, Westerns, and period romance. Love on the Line stars unforgettable mother and daughter Thea and Jesse Morgan. Recently widowed, Thea has become a successful business woman and is now rekindling a love affair with a former star athlete-turned pastor. Meanwhile, Jesse struggles with her mixed race heritage as she tries to fit in at college.

Edited by two-time National Book Award winner and Women’s Prize shortlisted-author Jesmyn Ward, a timely and groundbreaking collection of essays and poems about race in America. In this best-selling collection of essays and poems, Jesmyn Ward gathers a new generation of writers and thinkers to speak on race. From Claudia Rankine to Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah, Kiese Laymon to Carol Anderson, these voices shine a light on the darkest corners of American history, wrestle with the struggles the country faces today and imagine a better future.  

Rebecca Lucas is on the run again, running from rumors, running from reality, and most of all, running from Will, her best friend and soul mate. This time Rebecca is ready to reclaim the life she left behind in Salisbury before the burial of her mother and the handling of her mother’s estate. Time away, however, has done little to alleviate her biggest problem—her coworker Kenny Burke and the indecent proposal he pitched to her before leaving town. She’s back, and he uses every resource at his disposal to get her to go along with his plan.

In this spunky update of a classic, a young woman finds she’s not a fair lady, she’s a fine one—actually more than fine when it comes to her musical skills. This gift hasn’t gone unnoticed by several key men in her life. Before Imani makes it, though, she still has to learn how to navigate issues of trust and identity and how to find the strength to be her own inspiration.

After losing her grandmother, her home, and all her worldly possessions in the storm, Monique Deveraux has all but given up on life. Then at an evacuee shelter, a wealthy woman takes her in and introduces her to a billionaire businessman, starting Monique on a whirlwind of success. But something is lurking in the shadows that could take everything away again. In the chaos after the storm, a convict walked out of jail and blended in with the dishevelled evacuees - and she was looking for revenge when she met Monique.

Massage therapist Isrie Walker and plus-sized fashion photographer Deja Douglas are best friends for life. After a bout of bad luck with the opposite sex, these two divas go on a mission to findthe love that’s been missing in their lives.