Showing results by narrator "Leon Nixon" in All Categories

Do you know the saying, “keep your friends close and your enemies closer”? The same is true for Nirvana Hart. She has been dealt a bad hand in life. After a bombshell was dropped on her doorstep, she’s just trying to deal with the reality of finding her daughter. As far as she is concerned, the worst is over, but it is only the beginning when more secrets come to light. The only thing she knows for sure is her feelings for Blaze Banks.

Journalist Josiah Bates pulls back the curtain on a crisis that continues to plague the United States in this gripping narrative. Fueled by the convergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and social unrest, gun violence has surged to unprecedented levels, devastating marginalized communities and urban areas across the nation. Bates embarks on a heart-wrenching journey, crisscrossing the country to meet victims, perpetrators, community activists, and renowned scholars. Through their powerful stories, he unearths the hidden causes behind the escalating gun violence epidemic.

There is no position in pro sports more important than an NFL quarterback. But quarterbacking was the exclusive domain of white players for many years, and when Doug Williams and Vince Evans arrived in the league in the late 1970s, they got death threats, faced racist questions, and knew that a single mistake could end their careers. The Great Black Hope tells the twin stories of Vince Evans, an electrifying dual-threat quarterback ahead of his time, and of Doug Williams, the first Black quarterback to become a champion.

They promised to love one another deeply, madly, and unconditionally, forever and ever.

Confronted by a crisis in black American leadership, state-sanctioned violence against black communities, and colorblind laws that trap black Americans in a racial caste system, Black Lives Matter activists and the artists inspired by them have devised new forms of political and cultural resistance. More Than Our Pain explores how affect and emotion can drive collective political and cultural action in the face of a new nadir in race relations in the United States. Affect and emotion have moved from the margin to the center of this new human rights movement.

Hard-working corporate attorney Axel Becker has tried settling down in the past, but when the relationship didn't work out, he focused on his career to the exclusion of everything else. Enter Naphressa St. James. The sexy project manager is a former lover and reminds him of what his life could be-fun, exciting. She's just the woman he might need to shake him out of a rut, but convincing her they belong together will be a lot harder than he expected.

Staring forty in the face, Braxton Harper is accustomed to having everything in his life fall into its precise place. Only he hasn't found that special one and he refuses to settle for anything less than a woman who is his perfect match. The moment Londyn Grant dances into his life, Braxton is convinced he's found her. Kiss by sizzling kiss, the sexy doctor slowly lets her guard down. Now, if she'd only let him into her heart.

Centering Black voices and the narratives of enslaved people, Breaking the Chains offers a thoroughly researched account of the ways people in bondage were themselves a driving force behind their own emancipation.

At the end of part two, Belly realized just how important the upcoming match was to Mason Strauss. In a game where your pride and ego can sometimes drive you to do irrational things, Belly and the people who love him have learned that to some this is more than just a sport. Will Belly make it through and be able to seek retribution for what Mason has done? Or will their longtime rivalry end in death, making it far too late?

In the final installment, outsiders will give it one last whirl to attempt to break up the unbreakable Owen and Conquer. From fake pregnancies to jealous family members, no stone will be left unturned when trying to rip this couple apart. Not to mention, the young, handsome, intelligent, and extremely envied capo has daggers being shot his way constantly, prompting Owen to become leery of what she's signed up for. Will the couple make it in love and out of all the drama alive?

Upon finding out Belly has been unfaithful, Blaise realizes that bringing yet another child into the world with a womanizing manipulator isn't ideal, so she must act accordingly. In the second installment, Belly learns that Blaise is a far cry from the sit-by-the-phone women he's used to. His suave demeanor, charming ways, and calculated words fall on blind eyes and deaf ears when it comes to the heartbroken and now callous Blaise. However the ever so determined Belly is always up for a challenge.

In the final installment, Belly and Blaise return, but with a plate even fuller than before. Belly has found himself incarcerated over the rape of the former champion's wife, and it couldn't be at a worse time. Having to be away from his newborn child leaves Belly seething on the inside of his jail cell, praying for the opportunity to get his hands on whomever is responsible. Not to mention, the handsome boxer still finds himself in trouble with the ladies, even while locked up.

Blaise Cansino has always been an attractive girl, using her looks to make a coin for as long as she could remember. After experiencing the ultimate heartbreak at the hands of her malicious and deceitful child's father, Blaise swears to only take a man as seriously as the deepness of his pockets. Things take a dramatic turn when she crosses paths with the sexy, cocky, audacious, yet charming Belly. He's far from the men that the beautiful Blaise is used to in personality and bank account status, but she still finds herself drawn to the rugged gentleman.

Since Yakima's been able to date, her detective father has reminded her of the type of men to steer clear of. At twenty-seven, she's done just that until one night of partying and a botched raid lead her into the house of mob boss Francisco Matisse.

When COVID-19 began spreading rapidly, the world was taken by surprise. As the ensuing pandemic raged, we faced one constant—a lack of consistent, scientifically sound, and trusted information about dangers, risks, and mitigation strategies that the average person could understand and put into practice to keep themselves and their families safe. Now, the former Surgeon General of the United States—freed from the many constraints he worked under in public office—reveals critical lessons learned from both mistakes and successes overlooked during the pandemic.

A legendary diplomat, scholar, and civil rights leader, Ralph Bunche was one of the most prominent Black Americans of the twentieth century. The first African American to obtain a political science Ph.D. from Harvard and a celebrated diplomat at the United Nations, he was once so famous he handed out the Best Picture award at the Oscars. Yet today Ralph Bunche is largely forgotten. In The Absolutely Indispensable Man, Kal Raustiala restores Bunche to his rightful place in history.

In this “well-written addition to the history of Congress” (Kirkus Reviews), Courage in The People’s House tells the “accessible and well-researched” (Booklist) stories of nine individuals who served in the US House of Representatives—the “People’s House”—during a span of over one hundred years, from the 1870s to the 1990s. From the first African American to serve in the House to immigrants elected at the dawn of the 20th century, all were trailblazers who made significant contributions to the country.

Nirvana Hart, 24, had been dealt a bad hand all her life. As a result of watching her dad shoot her mama and then himself, Nirvana was all alone in the world. The knight in shining armor she thought was there to save her was actually the devil in disguise. Being with her boyfriend, Prophet Morris, for six years, all she’d focused on was doing what she could to stay afloat and uncovering the truth about her past. Yet, at every turn, somebody sought to destroy everything she had built.

In this new collection, Patrick Barb explores themes of family found and lost, media consumption and the dangers of runaway nostalgia, the supernatural in our lives, and the impact of violence in both the long- and short-term. From rural backwoods to Park Slope brownstones, Barb's characters face impossible, awful situations, testing their inner strength and understanding of reality. Covering quiet horror, weird fiction, supernatural horror, slasher horror, topical dark fiction, and more, these stories spotlight supposedly familiar terrors and fears in new and unexpected ways.

Conflict has subsided. Rebuilding is underway. But for those at the heart of the upheaval, moving forward won't be easy. Mistakes must be rectified. Hearts must heal. Limits are tested when unlikely alliances form. Taking the fight to Montica pushes the shaken Kaycians to their breaking points, but even back home, dangers loom.