Owner of a small African-American bookshop, Miss Cozy has an unique gift: Customers who walk through her door rarely leave without a book that speaks directly to their life. But when Josephine--"Fina"--and Ross arrive in search of an obscure, unpublished manuscript written by a slave woman, Miss Cozy knows that all her visions have been leading her to this magical day.Yet Miss Cozy has no intention of selling the manuscript--no matter the price. So she offers Fina and Ross an alter...

A sizzling, smart, and utterly engaging novel about sex, love, folklore, and family history from the author of Redemption Song and The Haunting of Hip Hop.With her characteristic sense of humor and a good dose of motherly wit, Bertice Berry spins the endearing tale of Jim and Louella Johnson, an elderly couple in a southern town who have settled into a marriage that has long lost its pizzazz. Louella, fed up with her lackluster love life, decides ...

The author of the hit Redemption Song returns with a sparkling new novel about looking for love in all the wrong places—and with all the wrong people.Bernita Brown is a quick-thinking, tireless social worker who is good at practically everything—except love. When her first marriage ends in divorce—a painful experience Bernita refuses to think about—she dives into a series of sad relationships and overwhelming commitments to community and church. But not ev...

When novelist Bertice Berry set out to write a history of her family, she initially believed she’d uncover a story of slavery and black pain, but the deeper she dug, the more surprises she found. There was heartache, yes, but also something unexpected: hope. Peeling away the layers, Berry came to learn that the history of slavery cannot be quantified in simple, black-and-white terms of “good” and “evil” but is rather a complex tapestry of roles and relations, of choices and individual resp...

Still confused about what ghetto is...and what ghetto ain't?You know you're still ghetto if:-You're looking for a brother or sister who will pay your rent-You think you had a great workout because you shouted in church-You always eat before you go to a dinner party because "you never know what them people go"-You know what H.I.B. stands for (Hair I Bought)-You live on an island but you can't swim-You fish in the cityRemember: Ghetto i...

Is the only art you own on your fingernails? Do you consider kool-aid one of the five food groups?You know you're ghetto if:-Turning up the heat means turning on another burner on the stove-You think of paneling as a home improvement-You use a pair of pliers to change the channel on your TV-You run to get pots as soon as it rains-Your glasses and silverware come from a gas station-Your weave is longer than your torso-You have more tha...

A ghost story with a beat . . . Bertice Berry follows her finely pitched Blackboard bestselling debut novel, Redemption Song, with a mesmerizing cautionary tale about urban hip hop culture.In ancient West Africa, the drum was more than a musical instrument, it was a vehicle of communication–it conveyed information, told stories, and passed on the wisdom of generations. The magic of the drum remains alive today, and with her magnificent second novel, Berry brings t...

Blackboard best-selling author Bertice Berry is beloved for her spirited romantic comedies. In When Love Calls, You Better Answer, she introduces a good-hearted woman with a track record of attracting bad men. Tireless social worker Bernita Brown has been through it all. After a broken marriage, she puts in overtime at her local church while enduring a string of unfulfilling relationships. But when Bernita finally does meet an honest man, will she allow herself to trust him and accept the ...

Blackboard best-selling author Bertice Berry delivers an entertaining cautionary tale. Everything hip-hop music producer "Freedom" Hudson touches turns to gold. But when he buys a haunted brownstone in Harlem, he gets an earful from a group of ghosts. One of the spirits, an African drummer whose life was destroyed by slavery, has a warning for Freedom: We've passed the drum to you-now use it to send the right message.

Blackboard best-selling author Bertice Berry breaks all the rules of romantic comedy with this funny, sexy novel about an older couple rediscovering their passion for living and loving. Jim and Louella's love life has gone a bit chilly after 26 years of marriage. But then Louella's ancestors visit her dreams, and a sexual reawakening quickly follows. Soon after, Jim and Louella realize they can read the thoughts of other people, so they begin a quest to heal the community around them.

Owner of a small African-American bookshop, Miss Cozy has an unique gift: Customers who walk through her door rarely leave without a book that speaks directly to their life. But when Josephine—"Fina"—and Ross arrive in search of an obscure, unpublished manuscript written by a slave woman, Miss Cozy knows that all her visions have been leading her to this magical day.Yet Miss Cozy has no intention of selling the manuscript—no matter the price. So she offers Fina and Ross an alternat...

The Gibbons women of Chesterton, Virginia, have built their reputation as a family of shameless--but refined--gold diggers. They even have a strict set of rules by which they operate. But the rebellious, youngest Gibbons is about to break them all. . .Lauren Gibbons is committing the ultimate family betrayal: abandoning the tradition of seducing men for money. Nothing is worth the abuse she's endured from her sugar daddy. Now a sous chef, Lauren is hoping to break from the past for...