On her deathbed, Leona seeks forgiveness by confessional. Dastardly as the sin is, it is an act of love, loyalty, disobedience, and perceived fairness. How did she get here, where she, an internationally renowned model, is forced to kill her father-in-law to avenge her mother's death? Set against a background of real events, Colours of Hatred is a complex web of plots detailing a woman's journey from childhood through the fire and anvil of love, loss, betrayal, lust, and duty. Obinna Udenwe's Colours of Hatred is a daring novel that spans decades in its examination of how the effects of violence, political upheaval and revenge can alter the lives of individuals irrevocably. -Karen Jennings, Author of Finding Soutbek and other titles. A densely textured novel that produces a fresh view of the diverse ethnicities and impressive cultures of two countries; Nigeria and Sudan, with its deeper currents that work beneath the surface to reveal the otherness that hasn't been comprehensibly perceived. Socio-cultural fusions and clashes are deftly sketched and explored through a bi-cultural perspective, where one can see the variables on both sides of the equation. The wonderfully evocative narrative shines a bold light on the darkest corners of ethnic tensions, wars that leave unmistakable scars on both people and homes, where the worst fears are painfully confirmed. -Lemya Shammat, Assistant professor and former head of the languages and cultural studies department at King Saud Bin Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah. Udenwa's Colours of Hatred is both a commentary on contemporary Nigeria and an exploration of the power of love. He writes passionately about innocence and the loss of it, loyalty and betrayal, love and lust. -Chika Unigwe, author of On Black Sisters Street and other titles. Obinna Udenwe paints vivid pictures of life and family complexities in this novel. Colours of Hatred is a contemporary tale of malice, of mental health, of parenting, and of posterity. -Amara Chimeka, Editor and Publisher at Purple Shelves.

Debut Historical Suspense Novel Wins IPPY Award for Best “Literary Fiction 2014” Stolen art, love, lust, deception, and revenge paint the pages of veteran journalist Lisa Barr’s debut novel, Fugitive Colors, an un-put-down-able page-turner. Booklist calls the WWII era novel, "Masterfully conceived and crafted, Barr’s dazzling debut novel has it all: passion and jealousy, intrigue and danger." Fugitive Colors asks the reader: How far would you go for your passion? Would you kill for it? Steal for it? Or go to any length to protect it? Hitler’s War begins with the ruthless destruction of the avant-garde, but there is one young painter who refuses to let this happen. An accidental spy, Julian Klein, an idealistic American artist, leaves his religious upbringing for the artistic freedom of Paris in the early 1930s. Once he arrives in the “City of Light,” he meets a young German artist, Felix von Bredow, whose larger-than-life personality overshadows his inferior artistic ability, and the handsome and gifted artist Rene Levi, whose colossal talent will later serve to destroy him. The trio quickly becomes best friends, inseparable, until two women get in the way—the immensely talented artist Adrienne, Rene’s girlfriend with whom Julian secretly falls in love, and the stunning artist’s model Charlotte, a prostitute-cum-muse, who manages to bring great men to their knees. Artistic and romantic jealousies abound, as the characters play out their passions against the backdrop of the Nazis' rise to power. Felix returns to Berlin, where his father, a blue-blooded Nazi, is instrumental in creating the master plan to destroy Germany’s modern artists, and seeks his son’s help. Bolstered by vengeance, Felix will lure his friends to Germany, an ill-fated move, which will forever change their lives. Twists and turns, destruction and obsession, loss and hope will keep you up at night, as you journey from Chicago to Paris, Berlin to New York. With passionate strokes of captivating prose, Barr proves that while paintings have a canvas, passion has a face—that once exposed, the haunting images will linger . . . long after you have closed the book. The Hollywood Film Festival awarded Fugitive Colors first prize for “Best Unpublished Manuscript” (Opus Magnum Discovery Award). Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade, Yucca, and Good Books imprints, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in fiction—novels, novellas, political and medical thrillers, comedy, satire, historical fiction, romance, erotic and love stories, mystery, classic literature, folklore and mythology, literary classics including Shakespeare, Dumas, Wilde, Cather, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

An epic novel of blood, betrayal, and intrigue. . . Perimadeia is the famed Triple City and the mercantile capital of the known world. Behind its allegedly impregnable walls, everything is available-including information that will allow its enemies to plan one of the most devastating sieges of all time. The man called upon to defend Perimadeia is Bardas Loredan, a fencer-at-law, weary of his work and the world. For Loredan is one of the surviving members of Maxen's Pitchfork, the legendary band of soldiers who waged war on the Plains tribes, rendering an attack on Perimadeia impossible. Until now, that is. But Loredan has problems of his own. In a city where court cases are settled by lawyers arguing with swords not words, enemies are all too easily made. And by winning one particular case, Loredan has unwittingly become the target of a young woman bent on revenge. The last thing he needs is the responsibility of saving a city.

“Perfection in short story form, I am in love with every single word Bolu Babalola has written. So rarely is love expressed this richly, this vividly, or this artfully.” —Candice Carty-Williams, international bestselling author of Queenie A vibrant collection of love stories from a debut author, retelling myths, folktales, and histories from around the world. A high-born Nigerian goddess, who has been beaten down and unappreciated by her gregarious lover, longs to be truly seen. A young businesswoman attempts a great leap in her company, and an even greater one in her love life. A powerful Ghanaian spokeswoman is forced to decide whether she should uphold her family’s politics or be true to her heart. In her debut collection, internationally acclaimed writer Bolu Babalola retells the most beautiful love stories from history and mythology with incredible new detail and vivacity. Focusing on the magical folktales of West Africa, Babalola also reimagines Greek myths, ancient legends from the Middle East, and stories from long-erased places. With an eye towards decolonizing tropes inherent in our favorite tales of love, Babalola has created captivating stories that traverse across perspectives, continents, and genres. Love in Color is a celebration of romance in all its many splendid forms. “Babalola’s writing shines”—New York Times Book Review

When Glasgow journalist Gerry Conway receives a phone call promising unsavoury information about Scottish Justice Minister Peter Lyons, his instinct is that this apparent scoop won't warrant space in The Tribune. But as Conway's curiosity grows and his leads proliferate, his investigation takes him from Scotland to Belfast. Shocked by the sectarian violence of the past, and by the prejudice and hatred he encounters even now, Conway soon grows obsessed with the story of Lyons and all he represents. And as he digs deeper, he comes to understand that there is indeed a story to be uncovered; and that there are people who will go to great lengths to ensure that it remains hidden. Compelling, vividly written and shocking, ALL THE COLOURS OF THE TOWN is not only the story of an individual and his community - it is also a complex and thrilling inquiry into loyalty, betrayal and duty.

My sister Julia manipulated my life into a prison to keep me silent about our dirty family secret. Her greed made me a slave and circumstance left me with no way to escape. Trapped, the only way I could silence the nightmares driving me to insanity was to wrap them in color, hold them with shadow, and stitch them to negative space with line. But no matter how bright the pigments, no one could see my confession. Except for Roy Callahan. I thought he was just another nameless one-night stand in a long line of many. But I was wrong. Roy could see past the façade of my life and through the veil color over the canvas. He could see what the world couldn't. And with him I'd find the courage to tell the truth about the boy. The boy who kissed me. The boy who loved me. The boy whose name I couldn't remember.

“Meticulously researched and beautifully crafted.... This is glorious work.” — Washington Post “A gripping, deeply relevant book.” — New York Times Book Review From Paulette Jiles, author of the critically acclaimed New York Times bestsellers Enemy Women and Stormy Weather, comes a stirring work of fiction set on the untamed Texas frontier in the aftermath of the Civil War. One of only twelve books longlisted for the 2009 Scotiabank Giller Prize—one of Canada’s most prestigious literary awards—The Color of Lightning is a beautifully rendered and unforgettable re-examination of one of the darkest periods in U.S. history.

Aristocratic parents, academic brilliance, smouldering romance with the prettiest girl on campus, a God-given gift that enables him to perceive people with an aura of colour -- growing up in the garden city of Bangalore in the sedate seventies, teenager Karan has everything going for him. At thirty-five, swept away by the unforgiving culture of Los Angeles, Karan s life is in shambles. The women he loved have deceived him; Dolly, the child he parented is taken away; his God-given gift is gone. Karan is penitent he once humiliated Danny, a friend who wanted to be much more. Seeking atonement, Karan returns to Bangalore, the burgeoning silicon megalopolis of the post-liberalization nineties. Living in the ancestral house, haunted by memories of the debacled death of his parents, he faces a new fear-- of being afflicted by promiscuous Lila s unfulfilled wanderlust. Karan reconnects with Arjun, Aarti, and Indu, rekindling the flames of friendship and love, trust and betrayal, and hope and despair. When tracing the whereabouts of Danny leads to a startling discovery, Karan must confront the truth through a complex interplay of agony, forgiveness and grief. Can Karan redeem himself? Does the love he always chased find him?

The dark and alluring first novel in New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop’s beloved Black Jewels series introduces Jaenelle Angelline, a witch with astonishing power and a dangerous destiny, and Daemon Sadi, the lethal Warlord Prince born to be her lover. Seven hundred years ago, a Black Widow witch saw an ancient prophecy come to life in her web of dreams and visions. Now the Dark Kingdom readies itself for the arrival of its Queen, a Witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But she is still young, still open to influence—and corruption. Whoever controls the Queen controls the darkness. Three men—sworn enemies—know this. And they know the power that hides behind the blue eyes of an innocent young girl. And so begins a ruthless game of politics and intrigue, magic and betrayal, where the weapons are hate and love—and the prize could be terrible beyond imagining...

Everyone has secrets, but some can change your life forever... In the midst of the Second World War, Eva receives the devastating news that her husband is missing and presumed dead. Neither wife nor widow, she lives in a numb state of limbo until, in the heat of an English summer, she meets Bill, a black American GI. Despite their vastly different backgrounds, neither can deny the love that overcomes them in the frantic weeks that follow, when every day could be their last. After Eva discovers she's pregnant, Bill is shipped off to join the D-day fight, leaving her alone in a bigoted world. As her mixed-race daughter, Louisa, grows up, how far will Eva go to keep her safe and bury the past? And how far will Louisa go to uncover the truth? Revised edition: Previously published as With Love and Crocodiles: The Untold Story of a War Bride, this edition of The Color of Secrets includes editorial revisions.