Four Novellas

Be Not Afraid - That Could Be Enough - Let Us Dream - Let It Shine

By: Alyssa Cole

Narrated by: Karen Chilton

Be Not Afraid

Brooklyn, 1776

Elijah Sutton is no fool, despite his love of a country that enslaves people like him. When he's offered land, livestock, and - most importantly - his freedom if he fights in his Patriot owner's stead, Elijah believes he'll soon have everything he ever wanted...and then he meets Kate....

The Crown has promised freedom to slaves who escape their Patriot masters and join the British side, and Kate intends to take them up on it. She's eager to leave America - and the painful memories it holds for her - far behind...and then she meets Elijah.

That Could Be Enough

Mercy Alston knows the best thing to do with pesky feelings like "love" and "hope": Avoid them at all costs. Serving as a maid to Eliza Hamilton, and an assistant in the woman's stubborn desire to preserve her late husband's legacy, has driven that point home for Mercy - as did her own previous heartbreaks.

When Andromeda Stiel shows up at Hamilton Grange for an interview in her grandfather's stead, Mercy's resolution to live a quiet, pain-free life is tested by the beautiful, flirtatious, and entirely overwhelming dressmaker....

Let Us Dream

A rebellious cabaret owner and her stubborn chef pursue, life, liberty, and happiness in 1917 Harlem...and find love where they least expect it....

After spending half her life pretending to be something she's not, performance is second nature for cabaret owner Bertha Hines. With the election drawing near and women's voting rights on the ballot, Bertha decides to use her persuasive skills to push the men of New York City in the right direction.

Chef Amir Chowdhury jumped ship in New York to get a taste of the American Dream, only to discover he's an unwanted ingredient. When ornery Amir reluctantly takes a job at The Cashmere, he thinks he's hit the bottom of the barrel; however, working at the club reignites his dream of being a force for change. His boss, Bertha, ignites something else in him.

Let It Shine

Sofronia Wallis knows that proper Black women don't court trouble by upending the status quo, but it's 1961 and the Civil Rights movement is in full swing. Sofie's spent half her life being prim, proper, and reserved - as if that could bring her mother back - but the nonviolent protests happening across the South bring out her inner agitator.

Ivan Friedman has devoted his life to boxing, loving the finesse of a well-delivered punch and the penance of receiving one. His family escaped from Europe before the horrors of WWII, and Ivan decides to help fight injustice in their new country, even if it goes against all his instincts as a fighter.

When Ivan and Sofie meet, they realize that their pasts are intertwined and - with the sparks that fly between them - perhaps their futures will be, too.

©2016, 2017 Alyssa Cole (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

Beautiful & Intense

This is my first real audiobook experience and though it took me a little to finish due to personal matters I look forward to listening to more audiobooks but also reading more of Alyssa Cole's work. The stories she tells are magnificent and hold nothing back. Fully encompassing you in the experience these characters go through. And the narrator? Beyond talented! Her voice was captivating. While I loved all the stories my favorite was definitely Let Us Dream and though the narrator did an absolutely fantastic job on all the stories I'd say her reading during that one was my favorite too.

Wish the narrator was stronger

I found the stories compelling. But this is an example of a narrator diminishing the story. While her voice tone is pleasant, she didn’t distinguish characters well at all. This is especially true when doing dialects of people from different countries. Bad choice of narrator for a book so lush with different types of people.

Wonderful

Loved it. There was a previous review that mentioned they could not make it through the second story. I wonder if it was because of the love between two women. The 4 stories step through the life and love of African Americans during poignant times in history. Well worth the listen.

Beautiful!!

I haven't read romance novels in years! Durning these turbulent times we're in, my soul needed a respite and the #FourNovellas by Alyssa Cole were exactly the sage I needed.
Be Not Afraid, That Could Be Enough, Let Us Dream, and my favorite, Let It Shine are perfect...just perfect.

Ms. Cole has a new fan.

Wish I had chosen something else

Narrator was fine. Stories were lackluster. I wish I had chosen something different, as boredom set in early on in the second story.