cover image Black Skyy: The Lady in Black Series: Book One

Black Skyy: The Lady in Black Series: Book One

Janet Stevens Cook, . . Atria/Strebor, $13 (296pp) ISBN 978-1-59309-113-2

C ook's debut, a series launch, stars a dynamic African-American crime fighter and vigilante, Sandora “Sandy” Knight. While gorgeous Sandy may not have super powers, she's a martial arts whiz as well as a businesswoman on track to become the first black female Fortune 500 CEO. After the murder of her heroin-addicted mother in New York City in 1977, Sandy supports her younger brother by prostitution until Master Kwan, a neighbor and martial arts expert, intervenes. Vowing vengeance for her mom, Sandy graduates from Howard University, works as a spy and concocts her secret “Skyy” identity, amazing New York with her daring exploits—all while working for a womanizing monster with a criminal past that she's determined to unmask. Skyy/Sandy's upfront, sometimes raw narration pulls no punches, giving this vibrant thriller a comic book ambience that's very pop, bang, wow. (July)