Black Queen

Nova Albright was the first Black homecoming queen in the history of Lovett High. On the night of her coronation she was murdered, and her body was found the next morning in the old slave cemetery where she spent her weekends doing restoration work.

Tinsley McArthur was supposed to win the crown. She is beautiful, wealthy and white, and being queen is a family tradition: her grandmother, her mother and her sister all wore it before her. Everyone in Lovett knows how far Tinsley would go to keep that tradition alive, and no one is more convinced of it than Duchess Simmons, Nova's best friend. Duchess's father is the first Black police captain in Lovett, and for Duchess, Nova's win meant something for all the Black kids at school.

With her best friend dead, Duchess believes Tinsley is the killer and is privileged enough to think she can get away with it. Her father, however, seems to be doing what he always does and standing behind the blue line, refusing to see the obvious suspect. Duchess sets out to prove Tinsley's guilt, which means getting close to her. But Tinsley has her own agenda.

This young adult murder mystery is pitched to fans of One of Us Is Lying and The Other Black Girl.