With nothing but brains, ambition and sheer nerve, Charlotte Hale built a career as a do–anything–to–succeed real estate developer. She's at the top of that mountain...but her life is empty. Her friends are as grasping and insincere as she has become. Far worse, Charlotte's alienated her family so completely that she's never held or spoken to her only granddaughter. One terrifying day, facing her own mortality, she realises that her ambition has almost destroyed her chance at happiness. So Charlotte vows to make amends, not simply with her considerable wealth, but by offering a hand instead of a handout. Putting in hours and energy instead of putting in an appearance. Opening her home and heart instead of her wallet. With each wrenching, exhilarating decision, Charlotte finds that climbing a new mountain– one built on friendship, love and forgiveness– will teach her what it truly means to build a legacy.

“Intriguing” women’s fiction from a USA Today–bestselling author with “credible, compassionate, and even heartless characters” and an “enticing plot” (New York Journal of Books). Cristy Haviland gave birth behind bars to the child of the man who put her there and might yet destroy her. Now she’s free again, with no idea what to do next. As smart as she is, a learning disability has kept her from learning to read. And that’s the least of her hurdles. Georgia Ferguson, talented educator, receives a mysterious charm bracelet that may lead her to the mother who abandoned her at birth. Does she want to follow the clues? Can she bring herself to reach out for help along the way? Now Cristy and Georgia are standing at a crossroads, a place where unlikely unions can be formed. A place where two very different women might bridge the gap between generations and education, and together make tough choices. They might even, if they dare, find friendship. Praise for One Mountain Away, book 1 of the Goddesses Anonymous series: “Richards creates a heart-wrenching atmosphere that slowly builds to the final pages, and continues to echo after the book is finished.” —Publishers Weekly “Complex characters, compelling emotions and the healing power of forgiveness—what could be better? I loved this book!” —New York Times–bestselling author Sherryl Woods

The Woman of Colour is a unique literary account of a black heiress’ life immediately after the abolition of the British slave trade. Olivia Fairfield, the biracial heroine and orphaned daughter of a slaveholder, must travel from Jamaica to England, and as a condition of her father’s will either marry her Caucasian first cousin or become dependent on his mercenary elder brother and sister-in-law. As Olivia decides between these two conflicting possibilities, her letters recount her impressions of Britain and its inhabitants as only a black woman could record them. She gives scathing descriptions of London, Bristol, and the British, as well as progressive critiques of race, racism, and slavery. The narrative follows her life from the heights of her arranged marriage to its swift descent into annulment and destitution, only to culminate in her resurrection as a self-proclaimed “widow” who flouts the conventional marriage plot. The appendices, which include contemporary reviews of the novel, historical documents on race and inheritance in Jamaica, and examples of other women of colour in early British prose fiction, will further inspire readers to rethink issues of race, gender, class, and empire from an African woman’s perspective.

When Faith Bronson’s marriage ends abruptly, she finds her privileged life shattered. Only just beginning to face the lie she has lived, she finds sanctuary with her two children in the shabby Georgetown row house that’s been in her mother’s family for generations. This historic house harbors dark secrets of its own. When Faith takes steps to rebuild her ancestral home, she meets Pavel Quinn. Though he is connected to her past in stunning ways, his strong attraction to Faith is enough to convince him to keep silent…because the truth could drive her away forever. But now the secrets of the house on Prospect Street are about to be revealed. For it is only when the truth is told that Faith, her family and the man she loves can make a new beginning.

A hurricane isn’t the only trouble looming as a family assembles for a will reading in this sequel to Iron Lace by a USA Today–bestselling author. Nine people have gathered for the reading of Aurore Gerritsen’s will. Some are family, others are strangers. But all will have their futures changed forever when a lifetime of secrets is finally revealed. Aurore Gerritsen left clear instructions: her will is to be read over a four-day period at her summer cottage on a small Louisiana island. Those who don’t stay will forfeit their inheritance. With the vast fortune of Gulf Coast Shipping at stake, no one will take that risk. Tensions rise as Aurore’s lawyer dispenses small bequests, each designed to expose the matriarch’s well-kept secrets. Longtime loyalties are jeopardized, and shocking new alliances are formed as the family feels the sands of belief shifting beneath their feet. As a hurricane approaches and survival itself is threatened, the fourth day dawns and everyone waits for the final truth to be revealed. Praise for Rising Tides “Richards’s ability to portray compelling characters who grapple with challenging family issues is laudable.” —Publishers Weekly “This novel features a multilayered plot, vivid descriptions, and a keen sense of time and place.” —Library Journal

Hurt people hurt people. Say there was a novel in which Holden Caulfield was an alcoholic and Lolita was a photographer’s assistant and, somehow, they met in Bright Lights, Big City. He’s blinded by love. She by ambition. Diary of an Oxygen Thief is an honest, hilarious, and heartrending novel, but above all, a very realistic account of what we do to each other and what we allow to have done to us.

Some betrayals are like rivers, so deep, so wide, they can't be crossed. But–for those with enough courage–forgiveness, redemption and love may be found on the other side. On the night her home is consumed by fire, Janine Stoddard finally resolves to leave her abusive husband. While she is reluctant to involve her estranged daughter, she can't resist a chance to see Harmony and baby Lottie in Asheville, North Carolina, before she disappears forever. Harmony's friend Taylor Martin realizes how much the reunited mother and daughter yearn to stay together, and she sees in Jan a chance to continue her own mother's legacy of helping women in need of a fresh start. She opens her home, even as she's opening her heart to another newcomer, Adam Pryor. But enigmatic Adam has a secret that could destroy Taylor's trust...and cost Jan her hard–won freedom.