"Beautifully crafted and captivating.This triumphant tale is sure to be an instant classic."--Victoria Christopher Murray, New York Times bestselling co-author of The Personal Librarian

"How do we not all know the name of Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield? The story of this brilliant singer -- a Black woman born enslaved who performed both sides of the Atlantic in the years before and during the Civil War -- is finally given its just due."   --Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The First Ladies

Before the Civil War, Black opera singer Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield reigned supreme on Northern stages—even performing at Buckingham Palace. Novelist Tiffany L Warren brings this remarkable but forgotten diva’s remarkable story to life for modern readers.

Born into slavery on a Mississippi plantation, Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield has been raised in the safety of Philadelphia’s Quaker community by a wealthy adoptive mother. Sheltered and educated, Eliza’s happy childhood always included music lessons to nurture her unique gift: a glorious three octave singing voice that leaves listeners in awe. But on the eve of her twenty-fourth birthday, young Eliza’s world is thrown into a tailspin when her mother dies.

Eliza’s inheritance is contested by her mother’s white cousins, leaving her few options. She can marry her longtime beau, Lucien, though she has no desire to be a wife and mother. Or she can work as a tutor for rich families. Her mother’s dying wish was for Eliza to pursue her talent and become a professional singer, but that grand vision now seems out of reach.

When a chance performance on a steamboat to Buffalo, New York, leads to a surprising opportunity, fearless Eliza seizes her moment. Within a year she is touring America, singing to packed houses, and igniting controversy wherever she goes. In a country captivated by “the Swedish Nightingale” Jenny Lind, Eliza is billed by tour promoters as “the Black Swan.” An unlikely diva, Eliza is tall, dark-skinned, and robust of figure compared to the petite European prima donna, but even the harshest critics can’t deny Eliza’s extraordinary gift. Menaced by racist crowds, threatened by slave-catchers who kidnap free Black people, Eliza lives a public life full of risk, but one which also holds the promise of great riches, and the freedoms those buy.

From the churches of Philadelphia to Queen Victoria’s salon in Buckingham Palace, Eliza Greenfield will blaze her own path—with a voice that no listener will ever forget.

From The Unexpected Diva author Tiffany Warren—a dishy and dramatic novel of the Harlem Renaissance and its most famous Black debutante, Yolande Du Bois, daughter of W.E.B. Du Bois, whose spectacular wedding to poet Countee Cullen was the society event of the year...even though the bride and groom were not-so-secretly in love with other people.

A century ago, Harlem’s glittering social scene had a single princess: Yolande Du Bois, the only child of N.A.A.C.P. icon W.E.B. Du Bois. Yolande was bold, vivacious, and beloved of every gossip columnist. A true daddy’s girl, Yolande followed her father’s advice on everything: from where she went to college (Fisk—Papa’s alma mater) to which sorority she joined (Delta Sigma Theta). But in matters of the heart, Yolande and her father did not agree. Dr. Du Bois himself curated a string of handsome suitors from the “Talented Tenth” for her, but Yolande’s true love was jazz musician Jimmie Lunceford, son of a working-class family from far-off Denver, Colorado. Their romance was an open secret, and more than a little scandalous.

Despite it all, Yolande wound up marrying her father’s choice: famed poet Countee Cullen. Their lavish uptown wedding was the hottest social ticket of 1928. With three thousand attendees, sixteen bridesmaids, and Langston Hughes as a groomsman, it was truly a sight to behold.

But, immediately after the wedding, Yolande’s carefully constructed fairy tale begins to crumble. Torn between the expectations of her father and society and her heart’s true desire, Yolande is forced to decide whether she must leave Harlem to create a more authentic life on her own terms.

A Harlem Wedding is a heady read about love, notoriety, Black excellence, deception, and the très chic lifestyles of the Black elite, from speakeasies of Harlem and the green fields of Fisk University, all the way to Le Grand Duc in Paris.

Celebrate the release of A Harlem Wedding with Tiffany L. Warren! This special author talk will include an evening tea and light bites. 

EVENT DEETS

When: Sunday, June 28 @ 5:30 PM

Where: 2310 Elgin St Houston, TX 77004

How: RSVP ONLY to reserve your seat or RSVP WITH BOOK to support the author and our store programming* 

Please note outside copies of A Harlem Wedding will not be allowed in the bookstore and you will not be eligible for the signing/photo line. You must buy a book from Kindred Stories.

ABOUT THE BOOK

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tiffany L. Warren is a novelist and screenwriter who has published over thirty novels. In addition to writing books, Tiffany has written and produced multiple musicals for the stage, as well as several book to film collaborations with BET. 

ABOUT THE CONVERSATION PARTNER

Bianca is an educator, cultural storyteller, and passionate advocate for Black history. A native Houstonian, she grew up in the city’s historic Pleasantville neighborhood and attends church in the historic 5th Ward. Communities that helped shape her deep appreciation for culture, heritage, and service. A proud graduate of Howard University, she has built a dynamic career in public education.

Deeply committed to service and sisterhood, Bianca is an active member of the Houston Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and volunteers with the Black Heritage Committee of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo amongst many other organizations. Her work in the community reflects her dedication to cultural enrichment, education, and the preservation of Black heritage.
Driven by her love of food, culture, and history, Bianca frequently shares stories of Black food traditions and the African American experience both in the U.S. and across the diaspora. A devoted reader and supporter/fan of Kindred Stories, she is drawn to narratives that illuminate the richness of Black life.

Mary B. Addison killed a baby.

Allegedly. She didn’t say much in that first interview with detectives, and the media filled in the only blanks that mattered: a white baby had died while under the care of a churchgoing black woman and her nine-year-old daughter. The public convicted Mary and the jury made it official.

Mary survived six years in baby jail before being dumped in a group home. The house isn’t really “home”—no place where you fear for your life can be considered a home. Home is Ted, who she meets on assignment at a nursing home.

There wasn’t a point to setting the record straight before, but now she’s got Ted—and their unborn child—to think about. When the state threatens to take her baby, Mary must find the voice to fight her past. And her fate lies in the hands of the one person she distrusts the most: her momma. No one knows the real Momma. But does anyone know the real Mary?