Good Dirt

FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF BLACK CAKE COMES A GRIPPING TALE OF LOVE, FAMILY, AND THE SEARCH FOR A NEW BEGINNING.

A family full of secrets. A chance to set them all free.


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When Ebby Freeman travels to France to take a three-month hiatus from her complicated home life, the last person she expects to find is her ex-fiancé Henry, with his new girlfriend in tow.

Nearly twenty years earlier, the Freemans were the only African American family living in a wealthy coastal enclave in Connecticut when armed robbers invaded their home and tragedy changed their lives forever.

Then, just as Ebby thought she had a new chance at happiness, her storybook romance with Henry fell apart.

Now, this unexpected encounter with Henry will force Ebby to reckon with her past and to think on the other loss her family suffered that day – the destruction of a beloved stoneware jar crafted by an enslaved ancestor and passed down through the generations.

A piece that might hold not only her family history, but also the key to reclaiming her future.

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'A sensational story about hidden heartbreak, hope, and the power of embracing one's ancestry' JESSICA GEORGE, author of MAAME

'Will be every reader's highlight of 2025' ETHAN JOELLA, author of THE SAME BRIGHT STARS

'Glittering and discerning prose, poignant yet hopeful' NIKKI MAY, author of WAHALA

'One of the great multi-generational storytellers of our time' ABI DARE, author of THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE

'I'm in utter awe of Charmaine - she is the real real' HARRIET CONSTABLE, author of THE INSTRUMENTALIST

'Her brilliance knows no adequate words' ORE AGBAJE WILLIAMS, author of THE THREE OF US

Praise for Charmaine Wilkerson and Black Cake:

'Completely blew me away' Red

'Unputdownable. Astonishing. Twists and turns so shocking they will leave your head spinning and your heart aching' Grazia

'You can't help but fall in love with this book' Stylist

'A novelist to watch' Independent

'Beautiful, deeply resonant . . . A story that is as meaningful as it is delicious' Taylor Jenkins Reid