"Take off your clothes, I want to see the body I'd be living with for the rest of my life," he commands, moving to the other side of the room where the red armchair was.She hesitated, and that displeased him. He growled, clearly infuriated. “Do you need some kind of motivation? Because you will not get it. Take off your fucking clothes!” he thunders, making her jump and her legs shake.***Mia Asika had wanted only one thing for the longest time, enli...

"Take off your clothes, I want to see the body I'd be living with for the rest of my life," he commands, moving to the other side of the room where the red armchair was.She hesitated, and that displeased him. He growled, clearly infuriated. “Do you need some kind of motivation? Because you will not get it. Take off your fucking clothes!” he thunders, making her jump and her legs shake.***Mia Asika had wanted only one thing for the longest time, enlightenment and the...

A “dramatic [and] ingeniously crafted” (Los Angeles Times) memoir of family, community, and resilience, and an ode to the power of books to help us understand ourselves, from the renowned founder of Well-Read Black Girl.“A beautiful portrait of a full life that has been buoyed by an expansive and ever-growing love for words and for language.”—Hanif Abdurraqib, author of There’s Always This YearAN NPR BEST BOOK OF T...

NOMINATED FOR AN NAACP IMAGE AWARD • An inspiring collection of essays by black women writers, curated by the founder of the popular book club Well-Read Black Girl, on the importance of recognizing ourselves in literature.“Yes, Well-Read Black Girl is as good as it sounds. . . . [Glory Edim] gathers an all-star cast of contributors—among them Lynn Nottage, Jesmyn Ward, and Gabourey Sidibe.”—O: The Oprah MagazineRemember th...

I saw this tradition in Klean and I thought it was cute," Xavier answered, still on one knee."What tradition?" Mia asked in a curious tone, her brow raised. "Well, the to-be groom asks the bride to marry him by getting on one knee and saying will you marry me? So, Mia Ainsworth, will you marry me?" he asked her.She seemed interested to know how this ends. Yesterday he had gotten on his knee to give her the gold and green ribbons and she wanted to see how this would go. "Oka...

"Take off your clothes, I want to see the body I'd be living with for the rest of my life," he commands, moving to the other side of the room where the red armchair was.She hesitated, and that displeased him. He growled, clearly infuriated. “Do you need some kind of motivation? Because you will not get it. Take off your fucking clothes!” he thunders, making her jump and her legs shake.With shaky hands and a trembling body, she grabbed the hand of the silk gown again and dra...

He rose and moved towards me, my heart picking up its pace with every step he took. His hand stroked the side of my face, causing a tingle to rush through me and I shivered at his touch just like earlier. He leaned in and his breath fanned over my face, hot, weakening, and mind-numbing."You should be running, Zera," he said with a voice so raw it made me shudder against him. "The most sensible thing to do is run from someone like me.""I don't want to run." I stubbornly stat...

Oh, the horror of damsels in dire distress times four. This short anthology tells the separate tales of four young women who find themselves in dire sexual straits by something out of this world. In “Alienated,” while driving toward Roswell, New Mexico, Kat finds herself driven by out-of-this world beings. Reba, a zookeeper, succumbs to reptilian fascination in “Snaked.” In “Too Smart,” Pamela’s Halloween adultery tryst plans don’t go quite as planned. And in “Ungeheuer,” ...

She rubbed her forehead profusely, "You do, you could walk away and save yourself now and I will be fine and I will understand."He glanced at her and his gaze locked and there was a level of sincerity in them, "If I save myself, who's going to save you?"She was not a selfless person, she was selfish.She had never been a good person, so why start now?She pressed her lips into a thin line before nodding, "Fine, I accept."Jasmin Whyte was a twenty-six-year-...

The image of him being happy and loving with my best friend felt like betrayal. It felt like he had launched a knife into my heart while I was struggling to breathe.How could he betray me this way? How could he betray me with my best friend? "You said you loved me." I cried out and brushed the tears running down my face away.He stared at me, and the coldness in his eyes mirrored the one his mother always had for me. "That was my greatest mistake." I felt cold.

As he moved towards me, my heart raced with every step he took. His hand gently stroked the side of my face, sending a tingle through my body. I shivered at his touch, just as I had before. He leaned in, his hot breath fanning over my face, leaving me feeling weak and mind-numbed."You should run, Zera," he said in a raw voice that made me shudder against him. "It's the sensible thing to do when dealing with someone like me.""I don't want to run," I stubbornly replied, tired...

The image of him being happy and loving with my best friend felt like betrayal. It felt like he had launched a knife into my heart while I was struggling to breathe.How could he betray me this way? How could he betray me with my best friend? "You said you loved me." I cried out and brushed the tears running down my face away.He stared at me, and the coldness in his eyes mirrored the one his mother always had for me. "That was my greatest mistake." I felt cold.