On Deck - Audiobooks on sale 8.24.21

Performed by Adenrele Ojo, Karen Chilton, Prentice Onayemi

“This sweeping, brilliant and beautiful narrative is at once a love song to Black girlhood, family, history, joy, pain… and so much more. In Jeffers' deft hands, the story of race and love in America becomes the great American novel.” —Jacqueline Woodson, author of Red at the Bone and Another Brooklyn

A Ms. Most Anticipated Book of the Year • A Goodreads Most Anticipated Book of the Year • A Book Page Writer to Watch

The 2020 National Book Award–nominated poet makes her fiction debut with this magisterial epic—an intimate yet sweeping novel with all the luminescence and force of Homegoing; Sing, Unburied, Sing; and The Water Dancer—that chronicles the journey of one American family, from the centuries of the colonial slave trade through the Civil War to our own tumultuous era. 

The great scholar, W. E. B. Du Bois, once wrote about the Problem of race in America, and what he called “Double Consciousness,” a sensitivity that every African American possesses in order to survive. Since childhood, Ailey Pearl Garfield has understood Du Bois’s words all too well. Bearing the names of two formidable Black Americans—the revered choreographer Alvin Ailey and her great grandmother Pearl, the descendant of enslaved Georgians and tenant farmers—Ailey carries Du Bois’s Problem on her shoulders.

Ailey is reared in the north in the City but spends summers in the small Georgia town of Chicasetta, where her mother’s family has lived since their ancestors arrived from Africa in bondage. From an early age, Ailey fights a battle for belonging that’s made all the more difficult by a hovering trauma, as well as the whispers of women—her mother, Belle, her sister, Lydia, and a maternal line reaching back two centuries—that urge Ailey to succeed in their stead.

To come to terms with her own identity, Ailey embarks on a journey through her family’s past, uncovering the shocking tales of generations of ancestors—Indigenous, Black, and white—in the deep South. In doing so Ailey must learn to embrace her full heritage, a legacy of oppression and resistance, bondage and independence, cruelty and resilience that is the story—and the song—of America itself.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

THE LOVE SONGS OF W.E.B. DUBOIS By Honoree Fanonne Jeffers

Performed by Morag Sims

USA Today bestselling author Charis Michaels returns to her Awakened by a Kiss series where overlooked fairy tale characters get their own happy endings, with a captivating romance about Miss Isobel Tinker and the duke who makes her believe in magic.

All it takes….

After a childhood spent cavorting around Europe with a dangerous crowd, Miss Isobel Tinker has parlayed her experience and language skills into a safe, reliable life. Working as a clerk in Mayfair’s Everland Travel Shop, she dreams of someday owning her own travel agency and has vowed never to leave the familiar shores of England ever again. When a handsome duke arrives at her doorstep, she realizes her staid existence is about to take flight.

…is faith and hope

Jason “North” Beckett, the Duke of Northumberland, desperately needs a travel guide. He’s inherited a dukedom but has a final mission for the Foreign Office—rescuing his wayward cousin from Nordic pirates. Isobel Tinker is the ideal translator, discreet and unknown, but she’s also uncooperative, stubborn, and disarmingly beautiful. 

And a little bit of trust

In exchange for her help, North promises Miss Tinker her own travel agency upon return and strict professionalism at sea. Isobel cautiously agrees but soon realizes “strict” and “professional” are not how she would describe her feelings for the irresistible duke. As their adventure sweeps them to the shores of Iceland and beyond, can temptation and growing trust give way to the magic of wild, passionate love?

WHEN YOU WISH UPON A DUKE by Charis Michaels

Performed by Vivienne Leheny

"In this high-tension domestic drama, nothing is as it seems. Don’t look away, you won’t want to miss a thing!” —J.T. Ellison, USA TODAY bestselling author of Her Dark Lies

"Garza establishes herself once again as a master of domestic suspense . . . a pitch-perfect thriller.” —Mindy Mejia, bestselling author of Everything You Want Me To Be

From the author of When I Was You comes a spine-tingling new thriller about a mother’s worst nightmare come true, when her teenage daughter goes to a sleepover and doesn’t come back.

Whitney had some misgivings when she dropped her increasingly moody teenage daughter, Amelia, off at Lauren’s house. She’d never met the parents, and usually she’d go in, but Amelia clearly wasn’t going to let something so humiliating happen, so instead Whitney waved to her daughter before pulling away from the little house with the roses in front.

But when she goes back the next day, an elderly couple answers the door—Amelia and Lauren aren’t there, and this couple swears they never were, that she’s at the wrong house. As Whitney searches for Amelia, she uncovers a trail of lies her daughter has told her—from the Finsta account to rumors of a secret relationship. Does she really even know this girl she’s raised? And Amelia’s not the only one with secrets. Could Whitney’s own demons have something to do with her daughter’s disappearance, and can Whitney find her before it’s too late?

WHERE I LEFT HER by Amber Garza

Performed by Coleen Marlo

New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Ryan is known for her cowboy heroes, strong-willed heroines, and powerful love stories. Always page-turning, her western set romances are perfect for fans of Diana Palmer, BJ Daniels, and Linda Lael Miller.

Cowboys live by their word, their wits, and their loyalty.

Jon Crawford has returned to Montana, determined to take over his father’s ranch and raise his daughter in Big Sky Country, leaving the big-city life behind once and for all. He doesn’t have time to fall in love, but he doesn’t count on stubborn but beautiful Trinity McGrath, who arouses his protective instincts even as she tries to push him away.

Life hasn’t always been easy for Trinity, but now she has everything she needs—her family, friends, and a safe and secure life. With a business to build, Trinity doesn’t have time for romance…until Jon comes barging into her life and all her intentions are turned upside down! 

Still, an attraction like theirs is too powerful to deny, and sometimes true love comes along when you least expect it. But when someone from Jon's past comes back with a vengeance, Trinity and Jon will have to do everything they can to save themselves and their new love...

TRUE LOVE COWBOY by Jennifer Ryan

Performed by John Lane

Welcome back to Ridge Trail, Colorado! Get ready for the next all-new book in New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster’s exciting McKenzies of Ridge Trail series.

Reyes McKenzie runs a gym in a run-down part of town where he teaches self-defense and gathers information on illegal activities for his family to investigate. When Kennedy Brooks joins his gym, his concentration is blown to hell. He’s never seen a woman work so hard to be lethal…and he wonders what made her that way.

Kennedy is all too aware of their instant attraction but keeps him at arm’s length. She’s spent years learning how to protect herself and she knows Reyes is much more than just a gym owner…

The McKenzies of Ridge Trail

Book 1: No Holding Back
Book 2: Stronger Than You Know

STRONGER THAN YOU KNOW by Lori Foster

Performed by Teri Schnaubelt

Sometimes, coming home is only the beginning… Don’t miss this reader favorite McKettrick tale from #1 New York Times bestselling author Linda Lael Miller.

Sierra McKettrick felt like a fraud. She might be moving to her family’s ancestral ranch with her son, but being a McKettrick by blood wasn’t enough to make her fit in. To make matters worse, from the moment she’d met the Triple M’s ranch hand, he’d gotten under Sierra’s skin. With his rugged body and tender compassion, Travis Reid was a temptation she didn’t need or want.

But as Sierra began to form a connection to one of her ancestors, Hannah McKettrick—also a woman with a young son and an inconvenient attraction to the wrong man—Sierra started to realize that there were some bonds that even time couldn’t break. And there were some charmed places where even the loneliest of people could find home…and love.

SIERRA'S HOMECOMING by Linda Lael Miller

Read by Alix Sharkey

In this remarkable memoir, a harrowing true story of family, violence, guilt and atonement, a journalist reflects on his own journey to come to terms with his brother’s terrible crimes—and to find justice for the young girl he killed.

In the gritty docklands of south-east England, Alix Sharkey and his younger siblings grew up in awe of their charismatic yet violent father, a vicious alcoholic. Yet it was Alix’s kid brother Stuart—button-cute and fearless—who defended his siblings at home, at school and on the streets. Their fraternal bond was deep and powerful until Alix moved away from their rough hometown. Stuart remained—and slid into a furtive life of sexual violence against teenage girls, punctuated by prison time.

Having started out inseparable, their paths diverged radically. Alix became a journalist, cosmopolitan and bilingual, working for upmarket media in London, Paris, New York, and Los Angeles. Today, Stuart remains incarcerated in Britain’s most notorious high security prison, awaiting imminent parole. Twenty years ago, he was convicted of the kidnap and murder of his 15-year old niece Danielle, daughter of his wife’s brother. Despite his conviction, a lost appeal, and repeated pleas by her parents, Stuart has steadfastly refused to reveal the location of his victim’s remains, condemning the girl’s parents to two decades of unresolved grief.

How do two brothers choose such different paths? Could anything have prevented Stuart from becoming a killer? What factors contributed to his fall? What does Alix owe to Stuart—the fiercely protective kid brother—and what does he owe to the truth? With the clock ticking, can he convince Stuart to do the right thing and give the victim’s family the closure and peace they’ve sought for so long? Or will Stuart walk free, unrepentant and defiant?

In this piercing and unforgettable memoir, laced with bleak irony and heartrending honesty, Alix tackles these questions and confronts a harsh reality: that the younger brother he once adored not only deceived their own family for decades, but destroyed another with his truly heinous crime.

MY BROTHER THE KILLER by Alix Sharkey

Performed by Todd McLaren

Head back to Jacobsville, Texas with this fan-favorite Long, Tall Texans romance, originally published as Calhoun in 1988, from New York Times bestselling author Diana Palmer!

Orphaned as a child, Abby Clark learned not to rely on many people—except the Ballenger brothers, who were her rocks and her providers. But she's not the little girl they once knew. Now, nearly twenty-one years old, Abby is a woman grown, and she knows what she wants: sexy cattleman Calhoun Ballenger. He insists on keeping her under his thumb, so Abby resolves to teach Calhoun a lesson. With the fury of a South Texas twister, she devises a plan to prove her independence—and capture his attention. Can Abby make Calhoun her very own cowboy?

LONG TALL TEXANS: CALHOUN by Diana Palmer

Performed by Justine Eyre

USA Today bestselling author Julie Anne Long continues her Palace of Rogues series with a brand-new romance about an ambitious American and a headstrong British heiress.


He’s the battle-hardened son of a bastard, raised in the wilds of New York. She’s the sheltered, blue-blooded darling of the London broadsheets, destined to marry a duke. Their worlds could only collide in a boardinghouse by the London docks...and when they do, the sparks would ignite all of England. 

 
Nothing can stop Hugh Cassidy’s drive to build an American empire...unless it’s his new nemesis, the arrogant, beautiful, too-clever-by-half Lady Lillias Vaughn. The fascination is mutual. The temptation is merciless. And the inevitable indiscretion? Soul-searing—and the ruination of them both. Hugh’s proposal salvages Lillias’s honor but kills their dreams for their futures...until they arrive at a plan that could honorably set them free. 

 
But unraveling their entanglement inadvertently uncovers enthralling truths: about Lillias’s wounded, tender heart and fierce spirit. About Hugh’s stunning gentleness, depth, and courage. Soon Hugh knows that as surely as he’d fight a thousand battles to win her...the best way to love Lillias means breaking his own heart.

I'M ONLY WICKED WITH YOU by Julie Anne Long

Performed by Carly Robins

Nate doesn’t know what kind of trouble Bianca is in

He only knows that he is honor-bound to protect her. He owes her brother that much. And ever since Nate Fortune found out he is related to the world-renowned Texas family, he’s braced for the unexpected. But nothing could have prepared the former navy SEAL for the reappearance of Bianca Shaw. The shy teenager Nate used to know as “Busy Bee” has blossomed into a beautiful young woman—and she’s just arrived at his Paseo ranch with a suitcase and her four-year-old son in tow.

Bianca isn’t sure she should get lost in the arms of a man whose embrace feels so much like home. Because this soldier’s heart holds secrets, and Bianca wonders if her dreams of family are too good to be true…

HER SOLDIER OF FORTUNE by Michelle Major

Performed by Adenrele Ojo

Don’t miss Foolish Hearts, the next sexy and irresistible book in Synithia Williams’s Jackson Falls series featuring the Robidoux family!

Coming soon from HQN Books!

Jackson Falls

FOOLISH HEARTS by Synithia Williams

Performed by Ron Butler

Are his playboy days over for good?

In the wake of political defeat, former mayoral candidate Ainsley St. James does something totally out of character—she has a one-night stand with a seductive stranger. Never expecting to see him again, she accepts a job covering a breaking story in Hilton Head, South Carolina…only to discover that the island's most desirable recluse is the lover she has yet to forget.

Winston Coltrane can't get that incredible night—or the sexy, sophisticated beauty—out of his mind. The marine biologist is developing a secret formula that could be a major medical breakthrough. But there's something Winston is keeping from Ainsley: his feelings for her have grown beyond the bedroom. Kiss by breathtaking kiss, Ainsley is transforming his oceanside sanctuary into a sensual retreat. Will they be able to turn a passionate fling into forever in each other's arms?

BACHELOR UNCLAIMED by Brenda Jackson

Performed by Melissa Moran

In the Alaskan wilderness, love blooms in unlikely places—and between an unlikely couple…

Still single, still working at the same bookstore and still pining for the guy who got away, Ellie Mitchell cringes at the prospect of attending her high school reunion. She just can’t face showing up alone—with her dreams of becoming a teacher still unfulfilled—when her ex will be bringing a model-gorgeous plus-one. 

Callum McKendrick has been in love with Ellie since forever, but he’s not sure his coworker takes him seriously. Offering to be her date for the reunion is his chance to show Ellie just what she’s missing by being stuck in the past, but will becoming her fake boyfriend be enough to prove that Callum is her perfect match?

Look for the newest book in Jennifer Snow's Wild River series, coming soon from HQN!

A Wild River Novel

Book 1: An Alaskan Christmas
Book 2: Under an Alaskan Sky
Book 3: A Sweet Alaskan Fall
Book 4: Stars Over Alaska

ALASKA REUNION by Jennifer Snow

Performed by Teri Schnaubelt, Carly Robins

A home on the ranch?

Sierra's Homecoming by #1 New York Times bestselling author Linda Lael Miller

Sierra McKettrick moves to her family’s ancestral ranch with her son, but being a McKettrick by blood isn’t enough to make her fit in. And the Triple M’s ranch hand, Travis Reid, is a tempting complication she doesn’t need. But as Sierra forms a connection to one of her ancestors, she starts to realize that there are some bonds that even time can’t break.

FREE BONUS STORY INCLUDED IN THIS VOLUME!

Her Soldier of Fortune by USA TODAY bestselling author Michelle Major

Nothing could have prepared former navy SEAL Nate Fortune for the reappearance of Bianca Shaw. The shy teenager Nate used to know as "Busy Bee" is now a beautiful young woman—and she’s just arrived at his Paseo ranch with a suitcase and her four-year-old son in tow. But this soldier's heart holds secrets, and Bianca wonders if her dreams of family are too good to be true…

#1 New York Times Bestselling Author Linda Lael Miller

USA TODAY Bestselling Author Michelle Major

Previously published as Sierra's Homecoming and Her Soldier of Fortune

A RANCHER'S HONOR by Linda Lael Miller

Performed by Karen White and Vanessa Johansson

Down-home charm and romance on the ranch.

A Little Bit Country

Stranded on the side of a country road with a broken-down car, Rorie Campbell is grateful when horse rancher Clay Franklin comes to her rescue. Stuck in the quirky small town, Rorie gets to know Clay, and she quickly starts to fall for the gruff, tough cowboy. Can a city girl make it work with a country man? Clay certainly thinks so. But their situation is…complicated. Clay and Rorie will have to sort out their feelings if they're going to be together.

Country Bride

Kate Logan is understandably devastated when her former fiancé marries someone else instead. At the wedding, after one glass of champagne, she spontaneously—foolishly—proposes to her longtime friend Luke Rivers. And Luke agrees. The rancher is a man of his word, and though Kate thinks they're making a mistake, he will not renege on his promise. Not only does he refuse to break the engagement, he insists that Kate actually loves him—and he’ll prove it.

"Romantic, warm, and a breeze to read." —Kirkus Reviews on Cottage by the Sea

A COUNTRY AFFAIR by Debbie Macomber

Performed by Melanie Crawley

The sheikh is about to discover his stand-in wife is pregnant with his child… Drama abounds in this pregnancy romance by USA TODAY bestselling author Lynne Graham!

From substitute bride…
To carrying the royal heir!

For her family’s sake, penniless Tatiana Hamilton must marry Prince Saif after his original bride, her cousin, disappears. At least the ice-cold sheikh promises to end their sham marriage quickly. Until, on their opulent honeymoon, their simmering chemistry grows too hot to ignore…and Tati discovers she’s pregnant!

Saif closed his heart when his mother abandoned him. He’ll never do the same to his own child! But as he opens his mind to fatherhood, can brooding Saif also open himself to a relationship as real as their unstoppable passion?

From Harlequin Presents: Escape to exotic locations where passion knows no bounds. Read all the Heirs for Royal Brothers books:

Book 1: Cinderella's Desert Baby Bombshell
Book 2: Cinderella's Desert Baby Bombshell & Her Best Kept Royal Secret

Cinderella's Desert Baby Bombshell

CINDERELLA'S DESERT BABY BOMBSHELL by Lynne Graham

Performed by Kimberly Austin

All she wanted was the truth.

All he wanted was to be left alone.

Nadia has always been in charge of her life. As a private investigator, she makes her own hours and only takes on cases that she wants to work on. But when a family friend asks her to look into a case, she instantly regrets it—it hits far too close to home.

The last thing she wants to do is rip open old wounds. Especially Trade’s, the single father she’s been spending time with. It isn’t long before she’s falling not just for him, but for the kids he’s trying so hard to protect.

But the little voice in Nadia’s head tells her that something isn’t right, and she’s determined to find the truth. Using her connections to the Knights of Fury MC and the Fast & Fury motorcycle garage to gather evidence, Nadia uncovers evidence of a conspiracy that will leave everyone shaken—and force her and Trade to do whatever it takes to keep their new family safe.

Fast & Fury

Book 1: Custom Built
Book 2: Custom Made
Book 3: Custom Love

Custom Love

CUSTOM LOVE by Chantal Fernando

Performed by Mary Jane Wells

New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean returns with a blazingly sexy, unapologetically feminist new series, Hell’s Belles, beginning with a bold, bombshell of a heroine, able to dispose of a scoundrel—or seduce one—in a single night.

After years of living as London’s brightest scandal, Lady Sesily Talbot has embraced the reputation and the freedom that comes with the title. No one looks twice when she lures a gentleman into the dark gardens beyond a Mayfair ballroom…and no one realizes those trysts are not what they seem.

No one, that is, but Caleb Calhoun, who has spent years trying not to notice his best friend’s beautiful, brash, brilliant sister. If you ask him, he’s been a saint about it, considering the way she looks at him…and the way she talks to him…and the way she’d felt in his arms during their one ill-advised kiss.

Except someone has to keep Sesily from tumbling into trouble during her dangerous late-night escapades, and maybe close proximity is exactly what Caleb needs to get this infuriating, outrageous woman out of his system. But now Caleb is the one in trouble, because he’s fast realizing that Sesily isn’t for forgetting…she’s forever. And forever isn’t something he can risk.

BOMBSHELL by Sarah MacLean

Performed by Ann Marie Gideon

Fans of The Kennedy Debutante and Last Year in Havana will love Georgie Blalock’s new novel of a world on the cusp of change...set on the eve of World War II in the glittering world of English society and one of the last debutante seasons. 

They danced the night away, knowing their world was about to change forever. They were the debutantes of 1939, laughing on the outside, but knowing tragedy— and a war—was just around the corner.

When Valerie de Vere Cole, the niece of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, makes her deep curtsey to the King and Queen of England, she knows she’s part of a world about to end. The daughter of a debt-ridden father and a neglectful mother, Valerie sees firsthand that war is imminent.

Nevertheless, Valerie reinvents herself as a carefree and glittering young society woman, befriending other debutantes from England’s aristocracy as well as the vivacious Eunice Kennedy, daughter of the U.S. Ambassador. Despite her social success, the world’s troubles and Valerie’s fear of loss and loneliness prove impossible to ignore.

 
How will she navigate her new life when everything in her past has taught her that happiness and stability are as fragile as peace in our time? For the moment she will forget her cares in too much champagne and waltzes. Because very soon, Valerie knows that she must find the inner strength to stand strong and carry on through the challenges of life and love and war.

THE LAST DEBUTANTES by Georgie Blalock

Performed by Jonathan Messinger

Finn Caspian and Explorers Troop 301 dive into the belly of a planet-sized alien in the fourth book of this hilarious chapter book series based on the award-winning kids’ podcast, and read by the author, Jonathan Messinger!

Explorers Troop 301 has explored a lot of planets hoping to find a place to call home. But their latest mission feels like the most boring ever—until they get chased by giant ANTibodies straight into the planet’s open mouth! Uh-oh! This planet is really a ginormous, planet-sized alien and the explorers are her lunch! 

Can Finn and his friends make it through all thirty-five stomachs, battle an army of ants, out-whiz a super-computer in a deadly game of trivia, and find a way out? Or are they doomed to be part of the planet’s balanced diet?

The books in this series are for kids ages 7 to 12 looking for a funny story to tear through. They contain no violence, a little bit of suspense, and some aliens who are real chuckleheads.

THE ALIEN ADVENTURES OF FINN CASPIAN #4: JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THAT THING by Jonathan Messinger

Harper Audio proudly traces its roots back to 1952, when Dylan Thomas first recorded for our Caedmon label. For more than five decades, HarperAudio/Caedmon has been synonymous not only with distinguished poets reading their works, but also with equally distinguished authors and readers performing classic and contemporary texts.

On Deck - Audiobooks on sale 8.24.21

HarperAudio US