Works by
Bernice L. McFadden
(Aka Geneva Holliday)
(Writer)

Writing as Bernice L. McFadden

• Nowhere Is a Place (2006)
  Her spectacular debut novel Sugar established Bernice L. McFadden as a writer to watch in African-American literary fiction. In Nowhere is a Place, she limns a fully realized and memorable portrait of a young woman on a journey of self-discovery.
  
  Sherry has struggled all her life to understand who she is, where she comes from, and, most importantly, why her mother slapped her cheek one summer afternoon. The incident has haunted Sherry and it causes her to dig into her family’s past. Like many family histories, it is fractured and stubbornly reluctant to reveal its secrets, but Sherry is determined to know the full story. In just a few days’ time her extended family will gather for a reunion and Sherry sets off across the country with her mother, Dumpling to join them. What Sherry and Dumpling find on their trip is far more important than a scenic site here and there—it is the assorted pieces of their family’s past. Pulled together, they reveal a history of amazing survival and abundant joy.

  Nowhere is a Place is a graceful, richly imagined work by McFadden; it promises to bring a new audience of admirers.

• Camilla's Roses (2004)
  Known for bringing to life a host of endearing characters who reveal tender truths about humanity, Bernice L. McFadden now turns her storytelling talents to an unforgettable and deeply troubled woman named Camilla.
  
  Unfolding in a progression of stirring and powerful chapters, Camilla’s Roses presents a life haunted by the past. Camilla’s childhood was immersed in chaos and love, and steeped in the myth of perfection. As an adult, she never looked back, refusing to acknowledge the people and places that had scarred her so many years ago. But a legacy of cancer proves inescapable, forcing Camilla to embrace the past—no matter how painful it may be—and to salvage what is left of her love in order to save her daughter. As Camilla discovers the bittersweet limitations of motherhood and reconciliation, she also awakens an inspiring message about the mortality issues we all must face.

• Loving Donovan (2004)
  Despite being born to a faithless father, Campbell still believes in the power of love...if she can ever find it. Living in the same neighborhood, but unknown to Campbell until a chance meeting brings them together, is Donovan, the "little man" of a shattered home - a family torn apart by anger and bitterness. In the face of the se daunting obstacles, Donovan dreams of someday marrying, raising a family, and playing for the NBA. But deep inside, Campbell and Donovan live with the histories that have shaped their lives. What they discover - together and apart - forms the basis of this compelling, sensual and surprising novel.
  
  A deeply thoughtful novel about hope, forgiveness, and the cost of loving Donovan.

• This Bitter Earth (2002)
  This Bitter Earth picks up where Sugar left off: on the dirt road leading to Sugar's childhood home in Short Junction, Arkansas. Here, Sugar hears a shocking revelation about unrequited love, and about one man's hatred--and the black magic that has cursed generations. Her travels take Sugar to St. Louis, where the bonds of an old friendship test the limits of her courage and compassion--and the sacrifices she will make for another young woman in desperate need of a caring friend.
  
  Filled with the lyrical language, haunting imagery, and compelling voice that imbued Sugar with its power and grace, This Bitter Earth is a novel about the inexorable power that the past exerts over us and about our ability to triumph over adversity and sorrow. Earthy and richly evocative, it is a testament to the ultimate triumph of the human spirit.

• The Warmest December (2001)
  For Kenzie, growing up in the Lowe home means opening the bottom drawer of her father's dresser to choose which belt she will be whipped with that night, furtive trips to the Bee Hive Liquor store for her father's vodka, and dreaming of the day she can escape apartment A5.
  
  Buoyed by the lyrical, redemptive voice that distinguished Bernice L. McFadden's earlier novel, The Warmest December tells the powerful, deeply moving story of one family and the alcoholism and abuse that marked all of their lives. Moving fluidly between the past and the present-as the adult Kenzie visits the bedside of her dying father-it is an ultimately cathartic tale of hope, healing, and forgiveness.

• Sugar (2000)
  The novel opens when a young prostitute comes to Bigelow, Arkansas, to start over, far from her haunting past. Sugar moves next door to Pearl, who is still grieving for the daughter who was murdered fifteen years before. Over sweet-potato pie, an unlikely friendship begins, transforming both women's lives-and the life of an entire town.
  
  Sugar brings a Southern African-American town vividly to life, with its flowering magnolia trees, lingering scents of jasmine and honeysuckle, and white picket fences that keep strangers out-but ignorance and superstition in. To read this novel is to take a journey through loss and suffering to a place of forgiveness, understanding, and grace.

Writing as Geneva Holliday

• Seduction (2008)
  Mildred Johnson is the last woman on earth that gorgeous Tony Landry would dare to be seen with. That is, until Tony wants to pull a scam on the company where she works. In order to keep Mildred signing phony documents, Tony gives Mildred a taste of romance and keeps raising the stakes until he’s eventually forced to propose. But when the big day arrives he skips town with the money he’s stolen.
  
  Heartbroken, Mildred takes a trip to Barbados where her “vacation” turns out to be a boot-camp style weight loss clinic! Soon she discovers a goddess that had been hiding beneath her homely exterior. And when she runs into Tony on the island, he doesn’t even recognize the sexy fox standing before him. Little does he know that this fox has a plan for revenge that will leave him whimpering with his tail between his legs for a good, long time.

• Heat (2007)
  Crystal’s finding it hard to concentrate at work, and no wonder—she’s got a stud in Antigua who’s beginning to mean more to her than just steamy sex.
  
  While things are red-hot with Geneva and her sexy young man, Deeka, her new diet pills stir up more trouble than her collection of slinky lingerie ever did.
  
  Chevy’s out-of-control spending has finally caught up with her; when her paycheck is almost entirely garnished, she is forced to resort to sex with an ex to keep a roof over her head.
  
  Noah and his partner can’t come to an agreement about adopting children, but one thing’s for sure: A blast from his little-known past with a woman is about to rock his world.

• Fever (2006)
  It’s almost summer in New York City, and the heat is breaking records on the street and between the sheets in Geneva Holliday’s beyond-sexy follow-up to Groove. When Geneva, Crystal, Chevy, and Noah get hot and bothered, they get way more than they ever bargained for…
  
  Geneva is busy caring for her daughter—and robbing the cradle with her son’s business manager. Chevy is working for a diva who requires assistance that’s way too personal for Chevy’s liking. Crystal is in for the surprise of her life when her mom (!) conspires to get Crystal’s engine purring like a kitten again. And Noah hears everyone’s secrets, miles away in London, but with these friends, secrets don’t stay secret for long! After all, what are friends for?
  
  So slip into something slinky and get ready to catch the Fever!

• Groove (2005)
  Geneva Holliday’s juicy novel brings a lighter touch to African American erotica, setting the sexual escapades amid the real-life folly and drama of four very different friends during one incredibly hot summer in New York City. This funny, sexy book has something for everyone!