Kensington Blues

NOW UPDATED WITH A NEW EPILOGUE In the summer of 1964, aged twenty, Ray Davies led the Kinks to fame with their number one hit ‘You Really Got Me’. Within months, they were established among the pop elite, swamped by fans and fast becoming renowned for the rioting at their gigs. But Ray’s journey from working-class Muswell Hill to the Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame was tumultuous in the extreme, featuring breakdowns, bitter lawsuits, spectacular punch-ups and a ban from entering the USA. His relationship with his brother Dave is surely the most ferocious and abusive in music history. Based on countless interviews conducted over several decades, this richly detailed and revelatory biography presents the most frank and intimate portrait yet of Ray Davies.

Regina Pearson has never really known any family other than her late father, who cut ties with his relatives in North Carolina long ago and moved to Hawaii. So when she finds a letter written 40 years earlier that leads to her mother's sister and her maternal grandfather, Regina decides to seek them out. Just as the situation threatens to overwhelm her, Regina finds a passionate connection she hadn't counted on with a man who is ready to show her what real family is all about - and what it takes to keep the love flowing.

These divas represent the voices of past and future generations, such as Tyra Banks, Terry McMillan, Harriette Cole, Maya Angelou, Iyanla Vanzant, Nikki Giovanni, Dawn Davis, Adrienne Ingrum, Carol Mackey, Oprah Winfrey, Rosa Parks, Shirley Chisholm, Coretta Scott King, Zora Neal Hurston, and Octavia Butler.

An exciting new examination of how African-American blues music was emulated and used by white British musicians in the late 1950s and early 1960s

"Perfect for fans of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo...a dazzling depiction of passion, prohibition, and murder.“ —Shelf Awareness “Ambitious and stunning.” —Stephanie Dray, New York Times bestselling author "Vibrant…A highly entertaining read!” —Ellen Marie Wiseman New York Times Bestselling author of THE ORPHAN COLLECTOR “The music practically pours out of the pages of Denny S. Bryce's historical novel, set among the artists and dreamers of the 1920s.”—OprahMag.com Goodreads Debut Novel to Discover & Biggest Upcoming Historical Fiction Books Oprah Magazine, Parade, Ms. Magazine, SheReads, Bustle, BookBub, Frolic, & BiblioLifestyle Most Anticipated Books Marie Claire & Black Business Guide’s Books By Black Writers to Read TODAY & Buzzfeed Books for Bridgerton Fans SheReads Most Anticipated BIPOC Winter Releases 2021 Palm Beach Post Books for Your 2021 Reading List In a stirring and impeccably researched novel of Jazz-age Chicago in all its vibrant life, two stories intertwine nearly a hundred years apart, as a chorus girl and a film student deal with loss, forgiveness, and love…in all its joy, sadness, and imperfections. “Why would I talk to you about my life? I don't know you, and even if I did, I don't tell my story to just any boy with long hair, who probably smokes weed.You wanna hear about me. You gotta tell me something about you. To make this worth my while.” 1925: Chicago is the jazz capital of the world, and the Dreamland Café is the ritziest black-and-tan club in town. Honoree Dalcour is a sharecropper’s daughter, willing to work hard and dance every night on her way to the top. Dreamland offers a path to the good life, socializing with celebrities like Louis Armstrong and filmmaker Oscar Micheaux. But Chicago is also awash in bootleg whiskey, gambling, and gangsters. And a young woman driven by ambition might risk more than she can stand to lose. 2015: Film student Sawyer Hayes arrives at the bedside of 110-year-old Honoree Dalcour, still reeling from a devastating loss that has taken him right to the brink. Sawyer has rested all his hope on this frail but formidable woman, the only living link to the legendary Oscar Micheaux. If he’s right—if she can fill in the blanks in his research, perhaps he can complete his thesis and begin a new chapter in his life. But the links Honoree makes are not ones he’s expecting . . . Piece by piece, Honoree reveals her past and her secrets, while Sawyer fights tooth and nail to keep his. It’s a story of courage and ambition, hot jazz and illicit passions. And as past meets present, for Honoree, it’s a final chance to be truly heard and seen before it’s too late. No matter the cost . . . “Immersive, mysterious and evocative; factual in its history and nuanced in its creativity.” —Ms. Magazine “Perfect…Denny S. Bryce is a superstar!” —Julia Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of the Bridgerton series “Evocative and entertaining!” —Laura Kamoie, New York Times bestselling author “Wild Women and the Bluesdeftly delivers what historical fiction has been missing.” —Farrah Rochon USA Today bestselling author

Four centuries ago, a spurned lover damned Lord Zachary Kensington to eternity as a vampire. Convinced no woman could love the beast within, he concentrates his attention on the quest for redemption. He now stalks evil in the 21st century, working as a police detective. His job puts him up close and personal with Dr. Miranda James when she is carjacked. The sensual doctor captures his heart, but before he can claim her as his, Zacke's past comes back to haunt him. Miranda James falls hard and fast for the seductive Detective Zacke Kensington, but the closer she gets to him the more elusive he becomes. His mysterious air grates on her nerves and when she discovers him kissing a beautiful woman, Miranda is devastated. Tables turn when ex-lover and vampire, Gabriella designates Miranda as her next meal. Miranda swears off of men while Zacke vows to stop Gabriella's vindictive murder spree before she turns Savannah into a city of carnage.