cover image Suspicious

Suspicious

Sasha Campbell. Dafina, $14 trade paper (320p) ISBN 978-0-7582-4197-9

The danger of keeping secrets from loved ones propels this crazed cautionary tale from Campbell (Confessions). Thirty-eight-year-old Noelle Gordon loves running Situations, her popular hair salon in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, but she's distracted by husband Grant's unwillingness to have another child. When someone leaves a baby girl on their doorstep, Noelle is sure their college son, Scott, must be the daddy since "Sierra" looks like a Gordon. Noelle's efforts to find the mother lead to a transformative shockeroo. Meanwhile, Tiffany Phillips, Situations' 27-year-old beautician, has a rude awakening when her best friend, Candace Santiago, reveals Tiffany's fianc%C3%A9, Kimbel King, has a nasty secret he hasn't informed her about. Situations' hot pedicure tech, Chauncey Coleman, also has a secret that might destroy his promising relationship with Candace. Despite a sometimes too glib Tyler Perry vibe, Campbell shows promise as she juggles each "suspicious" intimacy issue in serious soul sistah style. (May)