Mr. McCane

This is one incredible memoir, and I’m ashamed that it sat on my shelf unread for so long. We follow Richard through every stage of his life: as a child, athlete, comedian, business owner, husband, father, and activist. It’s so well written and well structured that I felt as though I were viewing his life through his eyes.

Although I’m familiar with America’s horrible history of Black people living in America, there’s nothing like hearing individual voices of civil rights soldiers who had boots on the ground. The sacrifices made are unfathomable. Stop what you’re doing and read this book. Same fight, different quarter.

This is my second read by Nguyen Phan Que Mai. I absolutely loved The Mountains Sing and had heard this one was even better, so I dove right in without even reading the synopsis.

During the Vietnam War, many American soldiers slept with Vietnamese women and then left, often leaving them pregnant. The mixed-race children who were left behind were called Amerasians. These children faced discrimination, teasing, and horrible insults because many Vietnamese people still hated Americans. One of the names they were called was “Dust Children.”

Many of these children spent their entire lives trying to locate their fathers. And on rare occasions, there were American soldiers trying to locate the children they had abandoned.

Dust Child takes place between 1969 and 2016 and follows three interconnected POVs.

First, we meet Phong, a half-Black, half-Vietnamese man who is desperately searching for his Black American father who resides in the United States.

Next, we follow 18-year-old Trang (Kim) and her 17-year-old sister, Quynh. The two sisters are trying to earn money for their parents by working as “bar girls,” which, of course, involves prostituting themselves to American soldiers.

Finally, we follow Dan, a white American soldier who returns to Vietnam in 2016 searching for the child he abandoned during the war.

I really enjoyed this book. I wasn’t expecting any Black American representation, and then suddenly, boom, we’re in here too. This author is an incredible writer. I immersive read this book, and I highly recommend experiencing it the same way. It was deeply thought-provoking for me and an easy five stars.

Shen Tao did her thing with this one. It had me locked in. Five stars! Keep in mind that she’s a debut author. I rarely read fantasy, but since three of my favorite mutuals were raving about it (Claude, Dre Reads, and Smitty), I decided to give it a try. And yes, they were spot on!

This is not a romantasy, and it’s definitely not predictable. There are dragons, and this book will take your emotions all over the place!

The Poet Empress is a dark fantasy about a teenage girl named Wei Yin who lives in a small town within a large kingdom. Her town is poor, and her family is struggling financially. In an attempt to help out her family, Wei enters a selection competition to become a concubine for the crown prince.

The whole time, there are rumors that the prince is a cruel and horrible person. Wei has to decide if the benefits of being with the prince will outweigh the consequences. Keep in mind that people are competing not only to become the next emperor, but also the next empress. Everyone in the kingdom is shiesty and lowdown. You can’t trust anyone.

There’s also a magic system that’s easy to understand. The characters basically have to write poems to cast spells.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat, and the ending is straight fire. I loved this book! Check the trigger warnings because this story has a lot going on.

I’m so glad I finally got to read this book.

The setting is the year 2023 in a fictional town (Padua Beach) down south in the Florida Panhandle. Down South is where many people send their pregnant girls. This book focuses on the POVs of three of them.

First, we have Simone, an African American 20-year-old who was kicked out of her parents’ home when she was 16 because she got pregnant. She now lives in the back of her boyfriend’s truck with her twin 4-year-old daughters. She’s like a big sister to a group of other girls who are in similar situations.

Next, we have Emory. She’s a 17-year-old high school Caucasian girl with a newborn. She lives with her grandparents, and they prohibit her boyfriend from entering their home. You can probably figure out why.

And finally, we meet Adela, a mixed-race pregnant 16-year-old from a wealthy family. Her parents sent her from Indiana to live with her grandparents until she had the baby. Apparently she was “embarrassing” the family.

There are other girls in this book, but the story mainly focuses on those three. The chapters are also divided by POV, which I enjoyed.

After being abandoned, all these girls have is each other. This was a good read about sisterhood and watching them band together in a world that does not have their best interests at heart.

You may ask yourself, “Why the hell are you reading a book about pregnant teenage girls?” First, mind your damn business. I don’t like your attitude. And second, I enjoy learning about different situations people go through in life. Pregnant teenagers are a new topic for me to explore in books.

It really bothers me that parents will throw their own children out onto the streets because they got pregnant. That’s a problem. Who throws away their children and grandchildren?

I kept thinking about my wife and I situation. We were both 20 years old when she became pregnant with our first child. Although it was rough, I can’t imagine her trying to navigate that alone. It’s a cold world out there, and I’m grateful we had each other.

I immersive-read this one and enjoyed the hell out of it.

That’s two books in a row I’ve read with horrible parents. (The Darkest Child.)

The Darkest Child is a historical fiction novel that gives readers a look into a Black family during the Jim Crow era. We get to witness firsthand the effects Jim Crow had on the Quinn family. But instead of seeing it through the mother’s eyes, we get the POV of one of her children.

Rozelle Quinn is the worst character I’ve ever read in a book. She’s light-skinned and can pass as white. She has ten children, all by different men. And although she’s horrible to all of them, she targets the darker-skinned children the most. The more I read, the more disgusted I became with her.

Tangy Mae is our main character, and the story is told from her POV. She’s 13 years old, smart, and just happens to be the darkest child in the family. Tangy Mae endures extreme abuse while also trying to stay in school.

The story takes place in Georgia during the 1950s, in the middle of the Jim Crow era. This is a difficult read, so I advise checking your triggers beforehand. The book tackles mental illness, racism, abuse (mental, physical, and sexual), murder, and more. It’s not just one or two awful scenes; this book is raw and will leave you with your jaw on the floor.

I’m glad I read it. It’s a story I needed to experience. I immersive-read it, and the narrator (Bahni Turpin) did an amazing job. She’s probably the reason I kept going. I will never forget the Quinn family. Unfortunately, the author passed away while writing book two. The audiobook includes a few chapters from book two, but the physical copy I had did not.

There were a couple of things I didn’t like, but I’m not sure this story could have been told without them, so I’m okay with it. One issue was that there were too many characters, which made it difficult to keep up at times. But again, Rozelle had ten children, so how else could you write that? There’s no point in going into anything else. This book hurt my heart, and I’m only recommending it to people strong enough for a gut punch.

I’ve been really enjoying these short thriller novellas lately. Octavia Grant’s Cutthroat blew me away earlier this year. After that, Anna J’s The Hunt series equally impressed me. They both have a way of pulling you into the minds of their characters and somehow making you an accessory to murder(s). I find myself not only justifying this ruthless behavior but also low-key finding it satisfying, in a sadistic, Christian kind of way.

Olivia Renee Wallace is a new author to me, but I believe she writes romance. So, when someone asked me to read an ARC of Vengeance, I agreed. Two queens of the thriller genre with a slash of romance, and a title like Vengeance. Count me in.

For years, people knew Tyrone Houston as the quiet, dependable man who ran the Houston Family Funeral Home and Crematorium. He’s a pillar of the community, a devoted father, and a man who treated the dead with care. At least, that’s what everyone thought.

After he suddenly dies, his daughters receive a shocking final request. They must go on a scavenger hunt to uncover who their father really was. And what they find is worse than any nightmare. They’re now forced to make their own moral decisions.

This book is heavier than a backpack full of textbooks on the first day of school. Please check your trigger warnings. There’s a lot of blood, torture, and death. My favorite quote: “If you haven’t gotten right with the Lord, now is the time.”

I enjoyed this read, and my favorite part was the dialogue between the sisters, it felt so real. I also didn’t realize how hot getting busy in a funeral home, in the presence of the dead, could be… thanks, Olivia lol. Can’t wait for book two. Great job, ladies!

I owned this book for about a year and finally had time to read it. I’m actually glad I did. And after hearing about the lawsuit, it all makes sense now.

This book is about a perfect, goody-two-shoes, privileged woman who does everything just right. She hates men, then suddenly meets the “perfect” man. They have “perfect” children and become the “perfect” family. Her husband ends up taking illegal drugs (ecstasy) in what they call a controlled therapeutic environment (MDMA). The FDA does not approve it, but he convinces his wife to try it anyway.

While under the influence, she experiences vivid “memories” of being violently sexually assaulted for years, starting in middle school by a teacher. Suddenly, everything clicks, and she believes she now remembers why she hates men. The rest of the book focuses on her trying to gain sympathy and positioning herself not only as a victim of sexual assault but as its poster child. She becomes frustrated with law enforcement when they can’t make an arrest in this case for obvious reasons. Example: The statute of limitations and the fact that she was high on illegal drugs.

As you can probably tell, I absolutely hated this book. I’ve been working sexual assault cases for seventeen years, and this comes across as deeply unrealistic.

On top of that, her friend in the book (Claudia) is now suing her in real life. Claudia (referred to as Jane Doe) claims the author hired investigators to pose as people interested in purchasing her story for a movie. They allegedly recorded multiple phone interviews and attempted to arrange an in-person meeting to sign paperwork, which raises obvious questions about intent.

According to Jane Doe, she became suspicious after researching them and asking who they really were. They reportedly became defensive and cut off communication. She accuses the author of stealing her story and then hiring a ghostwriter to tell it.

To me, this book reads like someone who hasn’t experienced these events but is trying to center themselves in a narrative for attention. Adding to that, she and her husband reportedly have financial interests tied to MDMA, which makes the situation feel even more questionable.

People also allege that money went to high-profile individuals such as Oprah Winfrey, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Reese Witherspoon. Most likely to help push this book, but this is all speculative.

If any of this is true, it’s deeply troubling. It undermines real survivors of sexual assault and trivializes their experiences.

Oprah, this is strike three: A Million Little Pieces, American Dirt, and now The Tell. No more book recommendations from you.

Minus two stars.

For me, this book hit on so many levels. It gave me some of the same feelings I had when I read The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, that social horror. The kind of horror that’s only relatable to certain groups of people, especially those who grew up in poverty-stricken neighborhoods. Imagine if S.A. Cosby and Tananarive Due wrote a book together.

This story follows a mother who has recently lost one of her three sons to gun violence and is desperately trying to protect her other two from suffering the same fate. It takes place in a public housing project in Medford, Michigan (a fictional setting), and includes a supernatural element that makes it stand out.

What’s beautiful about this book is the top-tier storytelling, which perfectly captures the feel of these environments. I was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, and this book felt so real that I kept having flashbacks to my childhood. Terrible memories of horror, and reoccurring and generational trauma.

The author captures not only how dangerous it can be to grow up as a young Black male, but everything that comes with it: a mother’s screams after losing a child, the emptiness left by absent fathers, the constant feeling of not mattering, and the always present risk of gun violence from guns that seem endlessly accessible for reasons we still don’t fully understand.

I was very impressed by this author. The ending was wild and left me sitting with my thoughts for about 30 minutes.

This isn’t a book filled with jump scares. Instead, it focuses on the horror of living in Hester Gardens. I immersive-read this one, switching between the audiobook and the physical copy. The narrator did an amazing job. This will definitely be one of my top reads of 2026.

The title and the author’s name alone grabbed my attention. The author describes this book as “the everything bagel of horror” and promises “a twist ending that perfectly explains everything.” It has ghosts, werewolves, vampires, creepy dolls, and haunted Polaroid cameras. Everything you’d expect from the author of the Goosebumps series.

The story follows two siblings who move onto Nightmare Street, where all kinds of strange things start happening. It then shifts to another set of siblings experiencing similar events. The book is told in four parts, with chapters alternating between the two sets of siblings.

My issues: I really disliked the ending, and the pacing bothered me a bit. I just didn’t understand the overall point of the book. However, if you haven’t read a Goosebumps book in a while or you’re a fan of R. L. Stine, you may enjoy it more than I did. I can’t wait to try this out on my future grandchildren.

I’d recommend this more for middle-grade readers or anyone looking for a light, spooky read.

I picked up both the audiobook and the physical copy because I was ready for answers about what happened to my favorite rapper, Tupac.

It started off strong, revisiting the night of the shooting, but that quickly shifted into bragging about himself. I’m talking full-blown arrogance.

He goes into more detail about the murder, then circles right back to comparing himself to the Barack Obama of the streets. Basically, he paints himself as the only real gangster while everyone else is fake.

Oh, and I don’t want to forget, he claims to hate snitches, but admits to doing exactly that for two decades.

And the worst part is that I can’t even tell if he’s lying or not.

Ultimately, his overwhelming ego made this a frustrating read. I did not enjoy this book.

JR Mason did not come to play with this series. What an incredible ending! I rarely binge series back-to-back, but the second I finished book two, I immediately started book three. No hesitation.

This one wastes no time and goes straight for the jugular. The twists, turns, and action were on point. And I don’t care what she says, I need another book immediately.

I immersive read the entire series, and honestly, it should be illegal not to listen to anything she narrates. While the entire series is phenomenal, book three takes the top spot for me. This book pulled me all the way back into the genre.

Do yourself a favor and just read it.

Wow, I was wondering if the author could top book one, and yes, she absolutely did. We’re once again following the Pittsburgh Violent Crime Unit as they try to arrest one of the most heinous serial killers they’ve ever encountered.

In this installment, it appears as if justice has been served, and the citizens are in the middle of recovering. Suddenly, there’s another victim. Law enforcement must now determine whether they suspected the wrong person or if a copycat is responsible.

If you’re a fan of Law & Order or Criminal Minds, then this one is for you. I’m having a lot of fun with this series, and the narration is top tier. To avoid spoiling anything, I won’t say more. I will say, though, I’m a little disappointed I had to stop reading book three just to write this review for book two. So I’ll leave you with this: read the damn series, you won’t be disappointed.

The hold this book had on me should be illegal. Judge Stone is a legal thriller and courtroom drama centered on a 13-year-old girl named Nova, who becomes pregnant after being sexually assaulted. Bria Gaines, the town’s doctor performs an illegal abortion on Nova that results in her being arrested and indicted for murder. She’s facing life in prison. While the premise alone is worth reading, it’s the characters, the town, and the courtroom drama that kept my eyes and ears glued to the story. It’s the biggest trial this small town in Alabama (Union Springs) has ever seen, and one of the most controversial in the South.

First, it’s narrated by Viola Davis. If you’ve read her memoir (Finding Me), then you already know what to expect from her performance. With that being said, I highly recommend the audiobook. The characters are incredibly engaging, and I loved the pacing, the short chapters, and the thought-provoking conversations the book brings with it. It’s perfect for a book club.

This story forces you to reflect on where we are as a country, and the politics surrounding it. Also, what’s considered important and more specifically, who’s considered important. Legally, it’s a straightforward case. Ethically and morally, it is not. The book takes place in 2026, but feels like it’s set decades earlier.

I work in a courthouse as a District Attorney Investigator. It was easy for me to see how law enforcement and the DA’s office mishandled the case from the very beginning. Their focus was never on who impregnated a 13-year-old, which is a huge part of the case.

The book shifts between first and third person perspectives. I was initially concerned that this might be distracting, but it wasn’t. In fact, it’s the first time I’ve genuinely enjoyed that style. Overall, it was a great read and it absolutely needs to be turned into a movie ASAP. Also, now I want to own a farm, don’t judge me.

Brandy really laid it all out in this memoir. I had it preordered because I just knew she was going to reveal things we hadn’t heard before, and she did not disappoint. This book is raw, detailed, and filled with a few shocking, “WTF” moments.

Apparently, I knew nothing about her. I spent most of the book reading with a surprised look on my face. We learn about her childhood, her rise to superstardom, and all the good, and terrible things that followed.

I admired her resilience and the way she tried to remain respectful to people who didn’t extend that same grace to her. Some of my favorite moments included hearing about her close bond with her brother, Ray J, her disclosure about being taken advantage of as a teenager by an adult superstar, her interactions with Aaliyah and Monica, plus a few other things I won’t spoil. I was completely immersed, and experiencing it alongside her narration made it even better.

That said, I didn’t like that she only portrayed her brother in a positive light. Over the years, we’ve seen him embarrass both himself and her, and I wanted more honesty about that. He felt too protected. She also came across as a bit too “Miss Goody Two-Shoes.” There have been plenty of stories circulating about her being conniving or difficult with others. Names like Foxy Brown, Adina Howard, and Shyne come to mind. I expected more transparency. Hopefully, Ray J will tell his story one day.

This is hands down one of the best books I’ve ever read. The Mountains Sing is a Vietnamese historical fiction novel that I absolutely needed. I try my best to read diversely, and this one left me thoroughly impressed.

We follow four generations of the Tran family, told from two perspectives: Dieu Lan and her granddaughter, Huong. What the grandmother goes through is heartbreaking. The writing is so well done that you feel as if you’re there.

During the post World War II era, Japan was wreaking havoc in North Vietnam. The grandmother had to flee with her five children. While being responsible for their safety, she’s forced to make terrible but understandable decisions.

Years later, she again has to survive a war, but this time it’s the Resistance War against America (the Vietnam War), with her granddaughter, Huong. Huong also endures a lot, leading me to become emotionally attached to her character and reflect on the violence the Vietnamese people suffered throughout the 20th century.

The story goes back and forth between the two POVs. I initially thought I would hate that, but I didn’t. I actually enjoyed it.

This book not only shows how terrible war is but also what it looks like from the receiving end of American and Japanese weapons.

This book contains extremely triggering content, so if you decide to read it, bring out the Kleenex. It’s a page-turning, beautiful, heartbreaking tearjerker, and I loved it. I learned a lot from this history lesson, and I’m thirsty for more. I just picked up Dust Child by this author, and I’m jumping right in.

I can’t count how many movies I’ve watched or books I’ve read about World War II. Adolf Hitler was a horrible person, and unfortunately, because of that, we have an unlimited amount of horror stories about death and survival. What I haven’t seen before is a perspective from France or one told through the eyes of women. Welp, that was until I read The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.

In this book, we follow two sisters who take very different paths to survival. These are awful times, so the author includes some truly graphic and disturbing scenes, so check your triggers.

This book really takes you on an emotional roller coaster. I loved and hated the main characters at different points. There’s also a love story mixed in and a really satisfying ending. I waited until Women’s History Month to read this one, and these two ladies kicked ass.

I know there are mixed reviews on this one, and I understand both sides. I’ve read that it isn’t historically accurate and that there are plot holes. However, as someone who isn’t from France, I still enjoyed it.

Wow, just wow! This book was fascinating and arrived right on time for me. There is so much history in these pages that I’m calling it a must-read for anyone interested in Black history. It’s incredibly thorough. I took my time reading it because it’s packed with knowledge. There are sticky notes on damn near every page of my hardcover.

We first learn about David Ruggles, who ran the country’s first known Black-owned bookstore in the 1800s, along with so many other pioneers. I mean, it’s loaded with nuggets.

I have always known about the government’s attempts to silence Black leaders, but I didn’t realize the extent of what was done to Black bookstores and their owners.

Author Char Adams did an amazing job; you can tell she likely spent years on research alone.

I am currently at war with my local Barnes & Noble over how they never have new releases from popular Black authors, or how they refuse to put up displays for Black History Month. Since February 6, 2026, I’ve only shopped at Black-owned bookstores and indie bookstores that support our authors.

One of the best things about this book is in the back. there’s a list of all active Black-owned bookstores.

My only critique is that the book felt a little dry at times. I listened to the audiobook while reading along with the physical copy. The narrator, Shayna Small, did an outstanding job, but at times it read more like a textbook.

Here’s a quote:

“Toni Morrison joined Random House as an editor in 1967 and immediately got to work. Random House published more than two dozen books by Black authors during Morrison’s sixteen years with the company. After she left, that number dwindled, with Random House publishing just two books by black authors between 1984 and 1990–one of which was Morrison’s own book Beloved.” 😡

Well, damn! I’m a mood reader, and I was really in the mood for a quick horror fix. I ended up receiving a beautiful book in the mail, which came at just the right moment. This novella is just over a hundred pages, so I dove right in. I also purchased the audiobook for a more immersive read. The first page hooked me.

This book is a mind f*ck. We follow a guy named Jason who wakes up in a hotel room, apparently after having been attacked. He doesn’t know who he is or how he got there. All he knows is that every clock reads 10:41 and that he has to make it to a meeting.

For most of the book, nothing made sense, and I was just as confused as Jason. Although there wasn’t much of a traditional storyline, Jason meets people along the way who make this read highly entertaining. There was no chance of me putting the book down until I figured out what was going on.

There were a lot of sick and gross scenes, which I enjoyed; however, I didn’t like all the genital references.

I enjoyed the ending, though, and it was good to see everything come together. Solly Vo did an amazing job narrating it. He has the perfect voice for this. I enjoyed the read.

My main issue is that I wanted to know more about Jason. Who is he? I could’ve used another 50 pages. I can’t wait to read more by this author.

A friend gifted me this book because of my love for memoirs. I’ve lost a lot of love for Tiffany Haddish over the years because of the terrible 2014 comedy sketch with Aries Spears titled “Through a Pedophile’s Eyes.” Despite that, I thought I would give it a shot. I even purchased the audiobook so I could hear it in her own voice.

This book came out in 2017, a few months after the release of the movie Girls Trip. I can say there were some heartbreaking moments, and I laughed twice. She had a tough childhood, and I admire how she stayed true to herself. However, I would be lying if I didn’t say there were more cringey moments than anything else.

After reading a lot of other people’s reviews, I can see that the Roscoe joke pissed many people off. (She basically made fun of a physically disabled person for an entire chapter.) But for me, that wasn’t what bothered me the most. She came across as very immature and a little annoying.

I didn’t hate the book, but I damn sure didn’t love it. In this memoir, she promised to lay it all out and tell it all. However, she failed to mention anything about engaging in the sexual exploitation and grooming of minors. I couldn’t wait for it to end. I say let’s meet in the middle. Two and a half stars.

This book takes us back to the beginning of when COVID hit. There was a ton of hatred in America directed at people of Asian descent, specifically Chinese Americans. In this story, we follow Cora Zeng. After being called a bat-eater, she witnesses the murder of her sister. While trying to process this trauma, she takes a job cleaning gruesome crime scenes in Chinatown. Several months pass without an arrest, and Cora finds it difficult to keep herself together. She’s also seeing what she believes are ghosts. While working these crime scenes, she notices that the victims are all Asian women and that bat carcasses are present.

This was a great read. I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but it was certainly unexpected. For me, the real horror wasn’t the ghosts, it was everyday Americans. The book made me reflect on how we currently live alongside individuals who would treat others in such a cruel manner. For many Americans, this country itself can feel like a horror story. I’ll never forget the treatment of Muslims after 9/11, the treatment of Chinese Americans after COVID-19 hit, the current treatment of Hispanic people, the treatment of Haitians last year, the treatment of Indigenous Americans in their own country, and the historical treatment of Black people since the dawn of time.

The only thing I disliked was that the book dragged a little in places; however, I absolutely loved the author’s note.

This short story is about two girls, Twyla and Roberta, who meet at eight years old while living in a shelter. They spent four months as roommates before losing touch, only to cross paths several times throughout their adult lives. Each time reveals how differently they remember their past.

What I enjoyed most was how Toni Morrison deliberately withholds the characters’ races. That omission shifts the burden onto the reader. It’s a brilliant experiment. By the end, I thought I had it figured out. That was until I read a review from a white reader whose interpretation was completely different. That’s when I realized the point of the book. We are being forced to rely on assumptions, biases, and cultural stereotypes to figure out which girl is black and which is white.

This was genius writing! This is the only short story Tony Morrison ever published, and it made me want to work through her entire catalog.

If you’re listening to the audiobook, I recommend reading the story first, then going back to hear the introduction by Zadie Smith. It adds context for sure, but I think you’ll appreciate it more once you’ve formed your own interpretation.

So I picked up this book because I half-read the synopsis and completely misjudged what it was about. I thought it centered on a woman working in the late 90s early 2000s hip-hop magazine industry, and I was expecting tons of references to artists and music from that era. That’s not what I got, but honestly, I’m glad. I got an entire experience instead. If I had fully understood the synopsis, I might have skipped it. That would’ve been a mistake.

This story follows Nikki Rose, who begins her career in a white-dominated fashion magazine industry, where she’s forced to hear things like, “Black girls don’t sell magazines.” From there, she works her way up to become editor-in-chief of an urban, male-dominated hip-hop industry. And that’s where we meet characters like Alonzo Griffin, an unapologetic, sexiest monster.

Nikki finds herself in some incredibly dangerous situations, surrounded by the worst manipulative and predatory people. The story is engaging and difficult to put down. Yes, she makes several frustrating decisions that had me shaking my head, but she’s human, so I gave her a break. Plus, she touched my heart.

I loved how the author kept bringing up the importance of Black women’s hair. The politics, its perception, and the pressure for it to look a certain way in order to be deemed “acceptable.” It made the book seem so realistic. It’s a very important topic that doesn’t receive enough talk. Same with how the industry is full of male-dominated spaces with idiots who hide behind power and influence. This book forced me to sit back and really reflect on how difficult it was, and still is for women, especially Black women. The storytelling was great. I felt as if I worked there.

Shout out to the narrator, Kristolyn Lloyd. She did amazing!

Wow, what an experience. This is another standout psychological thriller from my new favorite suspense author. The Trainer is the final installment in the Red Series, but the books can be read in any order.

This collaboration is a trio I didn’t know I needed: Tanisha Stewart delivers with her amazing writing, elevated by dual narration from Drama Simpson and JR Mason. Together, they’re a powerhouse. Their performances kept me fully invested and on edge from beginning to end.

I don’t do spoilers, so I’ll just give you a bite instead of the whole sandwich. The story follows two women, Latifa and Adele, who join forces to stop a manipulative and abusive man named Alonzo. Be advised: the novel deals heavily with domestic violence, so check your triggers before diving in.

At just 197 pages, this book packs a serious punch. It’s fast-paced, tightly plotted, and delivers a few sharp twists. The ending, in particular, was deeply satisfying.

I highly recommend the audiobook for the full experience, it even includes a bonus chapter from narrator JR Mason that I’m now always looking forward to.

So far, I’ve read The Hitchhiker, The Bridesmaid, The Babysitter, and now The Trainer. I’ve loved every single one. I will be recommending the book for a long time.

I couldn’t wait to read this book. The moment I saw the words “The Authorized Biography” in the title, I moved it to the top of my TBR. There are over 40 books written about my favorite rapper, but none of them are official. I’m not saying those books aren’t good, they’re just not authorized. So for nearly 20 years, I waited for someone who truly knew him to tell his story. This is recognized as the first and only official biography authorized by his estate, and I knew this was the one to read.

This book was written by Staci Robinson, a close friend of Tupac Shakur. They attended high school together, and he even lived with her for a time. Tupac’s mother personally asked her to write this book, which makes the storytelling feel even more intimate and intentional.

What also makes this biography unique is the access to Tupac’s private notebooks, poems, and letters, they were preserved and provided by his mother, Afeni Shakur.

The book begins with Afeni’s story, diving into her life as a member of the Black Panther Party. We learn about her relationships with Mutulu Shakur (Tupac’s stepfather) and Billy Garland (Tupac’s biological father), and we get a vivid look at what life in America looked like during that era. I was so intrigued that I ended up purchasing Afeni Shakur: Evolution of a Revolutionary by Jasmine Guy to learn even more about her.

From there, we follow Tupac’s life from his earliest days to his tragic death. While I was familiar with much of his story, there were still stories that caught me off guard. Some of them jaw-dropping. The narrator made me feel like I was right there for the ride. Tupac wasn’t just an actor, activist, rapper, and poet, he was an icon. For young street dudes like me, he was a big brother and a role model.

I won’t lie, the final chapters were difficult. Knowing how his story ends doesn’t make reliving it any easier. If you’re sensitive to discussions surrounding violence and untimely death, check your triggers before diving in.

This is easily one of the best celebrity biographies I’ve ever read. I highly recommend both the physical copy and the audiobook. The photographs, poems, and personal letters alone make the physical edition worth owning. Rest in Peace, we lost a good one.

I was born and raised in Chicago. In 2001, R. Kelly wasn’t just a superstar; he was a living legend in the city. I remember hearing about the leaked tape while buying bootleg CDs and DVDs like everyone else. I thought it was just another celebrity sex tape. But while watching it, something felt deeply wrong. The woman in the video didn’t look like a woman at all; she looked like a child. And he was urinating on her. This was an obvious case of child exploitation, and everyone in the city was trying to identify her.

It was one of the saddest, most disturbing periods I can remember in Chicago. I felt so bad for her and hated R. Kelly after that. For years I thought about that child that I only knew as Jane Doe. Now, Reshona Landfair has released a memoir claiming she is Jane Doe. In this book, she tells her story with honesty and restraint, remaining respectful of other victims’ privacy. The memoir is heartfelt, shocking, and emotionally heavy. Please check your triggers before diving in.

I’ve worked crimes against children cases for the past 16 years, and the patterns she describes are painfully familiar. Grooming, manipulation, isolating the child, and gaining the trust of parents. The only difference here is that R. Kelly has a lot of money and influence, which makes everything ten times worse.

She comes across as sincere and credible to me. There are several jaw-dropping moments, but the most powerful part for me is hearing a little girl, failed by nearly every adult around her, finally reclaim her voice. That, more than anything, makes this memoir matter. I’m very proud of her and glad she told her story. I recommend the audiobook since she does her own narration.

Tiffany D. Jackson’s book “Grown” was based on this story. But instead of rapper Korey Fields and Enchanted, you have the actual story of Robert Kelly and Reshona Landfair.