32 Books Published by Thorndike Press on AALBC — Book Cover Collage

The right one is always worth waiting for…
Dr. Olivia Gray’s passion for history is sparked by the mystery surrounding her own birth parents. A research project in Sag Harbor promises to be her most intriguing assignment yet—especially when she meets Connor Lawson. Shared interests and easy banter give way to searing, unforgettable nights. Yet until she uncovers her past, she can’t consider anything other than temporary bliss…
The sting of his ex-fiancee’s betrayal has left the intense, charismatic restoration specialist resistant to every matchmaking attempt—until Olivia moves to town. She’s gorgeous, talented and determined to avoid commitment. That makes their wild attraction just perfect…until it’s not nearly enough. One soul-baring revelation at a time, she’s restoring his belief in love, but can he convince her he’s offering the kind that lasts forever?

www.BrendaJackson.netShe’s all he’s ever wanted. He’s everything she’ll ever need. Business mogul Dalton Granger is as passionate as he is gorgeous, but private investigator Jules Bradford won’t give him the time of day. She knows all about the youngest Granger brother—a charming bad boy whose only interest is playing the field. But Dalton is more complicated than that, and he’s determined to show Jules that behind all the bravado is the honest heart of a devoted son, brother…and a man whose own life is in peril. Jules is the only person who can protect Dalton, and they embark on a mission to save his family and his legacy. But when their late nights in the office turn into early mornings in the bedroom, Jules and Dalton soon realize they have more at stake than they ever imagined.

Mona Ballinger has a talent for bringing the right people together - and keeping the wrong people apart. But when Anson Tyler’s fiancee ends their engagement thanks to Mona’s advice, he angrily confronts her. Unfortunately, Mona has not only caused him a broken heart - she ends up giving him a broken leg as well. Guilt-ridden over Anson’s injury, Mona decides to help him recover - whether he likes it or not."

"Making a case for love… "
Struggling law student Bailey Sinclair is working two jobs to make ends meet on the night a charismatic stranger walks into her bar. The attraction between them is instantaneous—and explosive. Until Bailey discovers that her anonymous hunk is none other than Justin Lawson, one of the richest, most hotly pursued bachelors in all of Baton Rouge.
Justin is thrilled to discover that the woman managing the bar at his family’s celebration at the Lawson mansion is the intriguing beauty he hasn’t been able to forget. Now all he wants is to lavish Bailey with gifts and his passionate attention. But she’s too proud and independent to accept his help—and determined to make it on her own. They may come from different worlds, but doesn’t Bailey realize there are no obstacles to love…if she’s willing to trust him with her heart?

"New life. New love? "
The tranquil bayou town of Gauthier is the perfect place for widowed single mother Leslie Kirkland to raise her two daughters. Until she’s elected president of the elementary school’s Parent-Teacher Organization. Caught in a clash between the community and progressive science-teacher-turned-assistant-principal Gabriel Franklin, Leslie vows not to take sides. But it’s hard to be objective when a sexy younger man is awakening such an irresistible desire.
Years ago, a teacher saved Gabriel from a one-way path to destruction, and now he is dedicated to his students and the Louisiana town he calls home. But the chemistry sizzling between him and Leslie could ignite a scandal. And when the gathering firestorm threatens both their dreams, Gabe is ready to take a stand. Can he convince Leslie that it’s time to move on and make a bright future…with him?

Wild child Breanna Parker is always in the spotlight, except where her celebrity parents are concerned. But as her whirlwind marriage to a struggling actor implodes, Bree is ready to live on her own terms. The results will surprise everyone - Bree included.

Love is the sweetest way home …
After a taste of Broadway stardom and a failed marriage, Francine Tanner is rebuilding her life back home on Cavanaugh Island. She’s done with acting-and anyone who isn’t genuine about real life and true feelings. But the mysterious newcomer who’s bought land outside her hometown of Sanctuary Cove is as down-to-earth as he is handsome … and he may be her second chance for the real thing.
Keaton Grace has had a crush on glamour-girl Francine Tanner for years. He can’t believe his luck that she lives in the same small town where he’s developing his new film studio. He just has to convince his favorite star to return to the spotlight. Yet the more time they spend together, the more he realizes the smart, funny, sexy woman she is in real life is far better than any role he envisioned.
Now what he wants most is to heal her pain-and prove their attraction could be more powerful than anything they ever imagined …
"The kind of place you visit and never want to leave."
-Hope Ramsay, bestselling author of "Last Chance Beauty Queen"," "
""on "Sanctuary Cove"""

A New York Times Bestselling Author Superstar musician Caden Granger has spent years running from love, commitment and family. He knows what he needs can only come from one person ? the woman who wants nothing to do with him. Shiloh Timmons finally got her life on track after her relationship with Caden ended, and she?s in no hurry to revisit it. Without Shiloh by his side, all of Caden?s success will mean nothing. Now he has a chance to renew his promises … but is it too late?

Richelle Alers’ most deliciously scandalous novel yet brings together three very different women, united by the secret lives they lead. Each woman is about to discover that every passion has a price - and that some secrets are impossible to keep.

Dawn Gibbons is shocked when her long-lost father reappears in her life. His dying wish is to reconnect with her. But for Dawn, it?s complicated ? her wealthy father comes complete with jealous relatives and handsome young lawyer Xavier Hughes, who Dawn finds dangerously sexy. Dangerous because he?s engaged ? to her newfound half-sister. And one thing a Gibbons woman does not do is steal her sister?s man.

Shar Gracey wants nothing more than to sing the Lord s praises, so she jumps at the chance to join a traveling choir led by the father of black gospel music, Thomas A. Dorsey. Better yet, the opportunity will give her money to pay for her ailing mother s medical care. While on tour she falls under the tutelage of gospel great Mahalia Jackson and falls for the handsome but not-so-great Nicoli James, whose desires for Shar are fueled by his own greed. Shar would do anything for Nicoli and he knows it so when his life is threatened after a night of gambling, Shar agrees to help pay Nicoli s debt, only to have her faith and dreams shattered. Reeling from the betrayal, Shar loses her voice and she believes that she will never sing again. She has no place to run except back home to her seriously ill mother and the man she left behind, who would move heaven and earth to make Shar s pain go away. Even if it means he has to let her go … again.

It all started with one passionate night…
Don’t preach to Alexis Montgomery about settling down. She’s got her act together—a fabulous new job, great friends and plenty of dating prospects. She’s happily taking New York City by storm, so why would she ruin things by committing to just one man?
If anyone could influence Alexis, it might be Graham Stone. He’s gorgeous and brilliant, enough to make any red-blooded woman question her single status. Unfortunately, he’s also her boss. When these two seductive forces collide, neither thinks past the sparks they are generating. But their rendezvous has an unexpected consequence during the holiday season—one that could make them never want to walk away…from each other.

The best is worth waiting for…
Surry McDaniel loves designing beautiful clothes. In fact, it’s the only thing she truly loves. Clothes can never fail her, the way people can. But when she’s accused of stealing designs, Surry risks losing the life she’s spent years building.
The only person who can help is Ian Duncan, a political strategist who knows how to fix bad PR and who hasn’t been able to stop thinking about Surry since they met. But Surry has kept him—and everyone else—at arm’s length as long as they’ve known each other. Helping her would be a risk, but the more Ian gets to know Surry, the more he knows that while she needs him, he needs her even more.

Paris Simmons-Holyfield is finally pregnant with the baby she’s dreamed of for so long. There’s just one complication: she’s not sure who the father is. After a night of drinking with her ex-coworker Darius Connors, it could be him. Considering her husband’s track record, chances are it is. Still, Paris keeps quiet and prays it’s not, because Darius isn’t ready to give up on his crumbling marriage.

Patience Kash and Joy Karry, two church-ladies-turned-private detectives, must find out who stole the prized family Bible and church funds—a case that gives them a heaven-sent opportunity to root through everyone’s’ deepest, darkest secrets to find the culprit. (general fiction).

Prayer warrior Sister Betty must help save the Crossing Over Sanctuary church, which is in financial trouble, by convincing Reverend Leotis Tom to accept some of trustee Freddie Noel’s mega-lottery winnings instead of relying on the crazy money-raising schemes of two bickering church mothers. (general fiction).

A Risk Worth Taking

Salina Brown isn’t looking for a new relationship, and her goal of landing a position as a New York City chef is proving more difficult than she thought. Then a temporary position as a nanny comes her way, and the opportunity could help her achieve her culinary dream.

Sexy lawyer Jake McKnight has a demanding career, yet the widowed father can’t help but relax his guard around his new nanny, Salina. Amazingly, she is able to make him want to enjoy romance again. Suddenly, Salina’s living the high life…with this sensual man who’s showing her a side of love she never knew. But can he persuade Salina to believe in him and in their special love?

A USA Today and Essence Bestselling Author — In just four short months, lucky-in-love Annelise will be a mother. But before she hits the delivery room, she has one last thing to take care of: hooking up her single girlfriends with a pair of sexy brothers on a weeklong getaway. Lishelle and Claudia are more than happy with their no-strings-attached flings. But then why is Lishelle still so bothered about her ex-boyfriend getting married? And why is Claudia still holding out for the ideal man?

For Erica Sanders, finding a soul mate was the easy part. Brian Lawson is the man she wants, and everyone agrees they’re the ideal couple. Almost everyone. The one exception is Erica’s mother, Karen, who prefers her daughter marry another man. Karen even hires a private detective to investigate Brian, but the truth he uncovers is the last thing she expected a devastating betrayal that rips both families apart. Convinced that her relationship can’t be salvaged, Erica ends her engagement. Yet she has lingering doubts over her decision, especially once Brian’s attractive single neighbor starts pursuing him. A chance meeting proves that the passion between Brian and Erica hasn’t dimmed but neither has the determination of others to keep them apart, or the shocking lengths Karen will go to in order to undermine her daughter’s relationship. As secrets old and new are revealed, Erica and Brian find themselves caught between the bonds of the past and an uncertain future, each making painful discoveries about who to believe and trust. Masterfully told and laced with the sensuality and drama that Brenda Jackson does best, this is an unforgettable story of relationships at their most complex, and how hard it can be to choose between living separate lives or holding fast when love hangs by a silken thread
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Three years ago Brianne Kenyon suffered the unthinkable: her fiancé disappeared while hiking the Rocky Mountains, never to be seen again. Heartbroken beneath an avalanche of grief, Brianne’s not sure what her path holds. But just when she starts to regain her foothold on life, sexy Alex Thorpe returns to town—and her pain reaches its peak. But so does her desire.

Alex Thorpe knows why beautiful Brianne doesn’t want to have anything to do with him—and he doesn’t blame her. After all, he was her former fiancé’s best friend and hiking partner. But Alex can’t fight the depths of his passion…even when earth-shattering news threatens their trail to romance. Alex is determined to show Brianne that he, and their love, was meant to be the high point of her life.

If a miracle happened to you, wouldn’t you tell everyone? What if they thought you were crazy? Poor in health but rich in faith, Gina Merritt—a young, broke, African-American single mother—sits in a pew on Ash Wednesday and has a holy vision. When it fades, her palms are bleeding. Anthony Priest, the junkie sitting beside her, instinctively touches her when she cries out, but Gina flees in shock and pain. A prize-winning journalist before drugs destroyed his career, Anthony is flooded with a sense of well-being and knows he is cured of his addiction. Without understanding why, Anthony follows Gina home to find some answers. Together they search for an answer to this miraculous event and along the way they cross paths with a skeptical evangelical pastor, a gentle Catholic priest, a certifiable religious zealot, and an oversized transvestite drug dealer, all of whom lend their opinion. It’s a quest for truth, sanity, and grace . and an unexpected love story.

A New York Times Bestselling Author This story, dazzling in its powerful simplicity and inspiring wisdom, is about an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in search of a treasure buried in the Pyramids. What starts out as a journey to find worldly goods turns into a discovery of the treasures found within. Lush, evocative, and deeply humane, the story of Santiago is an eternal testament to the transforming power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts. Available only in Dist. 5 & deluxe.

A New York Times Bestselling Author This sizzling novel by master of crime fiction Walter Mosley pits Easy Rawlins against his greatest challenge ever when he takes a suspicious missing person’s case to raise money for his daughter’s medical treatment. Simultaneous publication with Little Brown’s standard print edition.

Shannon Holmes, the bestselling author of B-More Careful, delivers a wild adventure on the streets of the Badlands, one of the toughest and poorest communities in Philadelphia.Bad Girlz takes listeners into the mysterious and often dangerous lives of young women who turn to the streets and strip clubs as a means of survival. These are girls who, along the way, suffer bad breaks and find themselves ripe for exploitation by men and women who pretend to be their saviors.Tender and Goldie are taken under wing by Kat, a veteran stripper who enjoys the life and the risks she must take to stay in the mix of the sex trade. Both of these young and beautiful girls end up in dire straits and are in need of Kat’s help for the same reasons: they lack the love and support that most of us expect from our home and our community. Where they live, illegal money is often the only money to be made, and the difference between the law and the outlaw is tough to discern.Holmes tells a page-turning story of sex, money, and murder in the name of survival and reveals the many ways in which good girls—as they try to get by in desperate situations—become Bad Girlz.

An uplifting story about finding true love and a true voiceawith a fresh spin on "Pygmalion"afrom the bestselling author whose novels top 300,000 copies in print. Yolanda Joe has wowed thousands of fans with her lively storylines and savvy heroines. Now she introduces Imani, a rising star whose dreams and challenges will capture the hearts of thousands more.

Talented, ambitious, and just twenty-two years old, Imani is surrounded by men with advice about her singing career. Her father, who owns a struggling nightclub, sees Imanias future as a chance to fulfill his own failed dreams. Her boyfriend, Taz, is determined to become a mega-producer, with Imanias street rapping as his ticket to fame. But Professor Orenthal Hopson, who teaches in the music department of a historically black college, has his own designs on her: he struck a bet with a colleague requiring him to transform Imani from a hip-hop hopeful into a traditional jazz singer. Like a modern-day Eliza Doolittle, Imani finds herself caught up in a musical makeover that causes her to question who she really wants to become. As Professor Hopson begins to sweep her off her feet, she also has to decide whether to stand by Taz, the man sheas cared about since childhood, or let herself fall for the dashing intellectual.

A delight on every page, "My Fine Lady" presents the dilemmas of romance, family, and career with Yolanda Joeas signature wit and flair.

A Coretta Scott King Award-winning AuthorTwelve-year-old Michaela loves her brother, Red. Day in and day out, it’s Mike and Red. Mike and Red fishing for porgies. Red and Mike cruising the coast with Red’s girlfriend, or diving off piers with his buddy, Mark. Then one day Red disappears. Gone. No warning. No time to prepare. And Mike must come to terms with that loss, or risk never finding comfort in what remains of the life she and her brother shared. NOL
An Accelerated Reader(R) title for ages 12 and up

The civil rights leader, attorney, and former head of the National Urban League recounts his boyhood in segregated Atlanta, his career, and the social changes he helped to bring about.

Two women, one African-American, one white, have been the best of friends since childhood, having grown up together in the same neighborhood. When they attend the funeral of a mutual friend, they both fall in love with the deceased’s brother, testing the boundaries of their friendship as well as their mutual love for one man.

In best-selling author Sandra Kitt’s provocative urban romance, light-skinned Patricia Gilbert has spent much of her life passing as white, but her identity becomes much more complicated when she falls in love. With her youthful appearance and light skin, African-American high school counselor Patricia knows how it feels to be an outsider in her own world. And when a biracial 15-year-old boy becomes the target of neighborhood bullies, she’s determined to help him. One of New York’s most successful men, Morgan Baxter feels totally at home in a corporate boardroom. But being a single father to a troubled teenager is a far more daunting challenge. Patricia Gilbert seems to understand his son - and him. As Morgan and Patricia start seeing each other, he has no idea where the three of them are headed. With insight and sensitivity, Sandra Kitt gives us a passionate and thought-provoking novel about family, race, identity, and romantic love.

Book by Yerby, Frank