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The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman

By Deesha Philyaw
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Brief Description
From the highly praised and award-winning author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, a sparklingly witty, feisty rollercoaster of a novel about one woman's—sometimes misguided—search for acceptance. Decadent. Daring. Delicious. From the multi-prize winning author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, the dazzlingly funny... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3800
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Releases 28th January 2027 (Approx. Date) Pre-order  "The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman" now to secure your copy from our first shipment

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

From the highly praised and award-winning author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, a sparklingly witty, feisty rollercoaster of a novel about one woman's—sometimes misguided—search for acceptance.

Decadent. Daring. Delicious. From the multi-prize winning author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, the dazzlingly funny novel about one woman's (sometimes misguided) search for acceptance.

'The novel everyone is going to be talking about' - JASMINE GUILLORY

'Funny and juicy and sexy' - SAMANTHA IRBY

'Pure audacious joy!' - BONNIE GARMUS

'Witty, raunchy, funny as hell' - TIA WILLIAMS

'This novel is so alive!' - RAVEN LEILANI

'I laughed, I cried, I got turned on! A heroine you can't help but root for.' - RUFI THORPE

Meet Scharisse Freeman, the Beyonce of the megachurch world: bold, unapologetic, ambitious, very much her own woman. For the same reasons, she has always been a pariah among the other preachers' wives (aka First Ladies).

Hers is a rags-to-Rolex story. From the moment she ditched her humble roots and married a megachurch pastor fifteen years her senior, she's been labelled too brash by the First Ladies and too holy by her estranged childhood friend, Petra. Schar doesn't have a lot of allies, but that hasn't stopped her from building an empire spanning from books to branded products—a comfortable life her mother could only have dreamed of.

On the eve of her 40th birthday, Schar gets the validation she's always craved: an invitation to participate in one of the biggest dates in the megachurch world, the First Lady USA pageant. But as the competition nears, a scandal breaks and her carefully curated life threatens to implode...

Funny, smart, and splendidly unruly, The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman is perfect for fans of books with buzz!

A Most Anticipated Book of the year by PEN America, Lit Hub, BookPage, and Ms. Magazine.

'This book is so damn good. Sexy, messy, funny AF...it slaps with a perfectly manicured open hand.' - NIKESHA ELISE WILLIAMS

'Fasten your seatbelt...a funny yet sobering literary exploration of aspiration, double-standards, shame, heartbreak and healing' - CHARMAINE WILKERSON

'Sexy, shocking and funny as hell.... Deesha Philyaw has written a love letter to the women in this world.' - VICTOR LAVALLE

'This one is special. Like, forever special.' - KIESE LAYMON

'Irresistibly catty, twisty, and packed with secrets.' - MATEO ASKARIPOUR

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529935929

Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 28 January 2027

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Doubleday

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 153.0mm

Height: 234.0mm

Weight: 0g

Pages: 432

Collections

Deesha Philyaw Fiction General Fiction Humour Literary Fiction Penguin Books Pre-order Books Pre-order General Fiction Pre-orders Pre-orders by Release Date

About the Author

The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman is the highly anticipated debut novel from Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies. This acclaimed short story collection won the 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, the 2020/2021 Story Prize, and the 2020 LA Times Book Prize: The Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction and was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction. Deesha is a Kimbilio Fiction Fellow, a Baldwin for the Arts Fellow, a United States Artists Fellow, and co-host of two podcasts, Ursa Short Fiction and Reckon True Stories.

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  • The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
    "Left me wanting more. Masterfully written." – Candice Carty-Williams, author of Queenie "Joyous... It's a book in love with life." – The Times "Exquisite... delicious." – Bolu Babalola, author of Love in Colour The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires, and pursue a momentary reprieve...
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  • The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
    The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary reprieve from being good. The nine stories in this collection feature four generations of characters grappling with who they want to be in the world, caught as they are between the church's double standards...
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