Kingdom of No Tomorrow - by Fabienne Josaphat (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The story of a young Haitian woman in California who becomes involved with the Black Panthers and discovers that being part of the revolution may not always mean equal justice for women"--

Book Synopsis

From a PEN/Bellwether Prizewinner, a "beautifully convincing slice of history" novel about the Black Panther Party, perfect for fans of The Love Songs of W. E. B. Dubois (Barbara Kingsolver).

Nettie Boileau joins the Black Panthers' Free Health Clinics in Oakland in 1968 and is soon swept up in an all-consuming love affair with Melvin Mosley, a defense captain of the Black Panther Party. When Nettie and Melvin head to Chicago to help launch the Illinois chapter of the Panthers, they find themselves targets of J. Edgar Hoover's famous covert campaigns against civil rights leaders.

As she learns more about the inner workings of the Panthers, Nettie discovers that fighting for social justice may not always mean equal justice for women.

Fabienne Josaphat's Kingdom of No Tomorrow is a timely story of self-determination and revolution amid injustice.

Review Quotes

"Josaphat's pitch-perfect dialogue and pacing and scene-unraveling, make Kingdom of No Tomorrow a successful story about a young woman caught up in the eye of a political hurricane. In the best tradition of political fiction, it taps into larger questions about personal responsibility and revolutionary ardor."--New Haven Independent

"An earnest, urgent novel... [t]he tension in "Kingdom of No Tomorrow" revolves around whether there can be any future for a young woman dedicated to healing and a young warrior determined to burn the racist country down... Kingdom of No Tomorrow gave me a sense of an intense period of America's racial history that I've never felt before."--The Washington Post

"Sharply rendered"--Los Angeles Review of Books

Longlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize

An NPR Book of the Day

Named a Most Recommended/ Anticipated Book of the Season by Amazon, Goodreads, Ebony, Ms. Magazine, Chicago Review of Books, and Alta

"An emotional testament to the power of sisterhood."--BookReporter.com

"Muscular, searing... Fabienne Josaphat fixes her lens on the late 1960s, a time of turmoil and transformation for Black people the world over... Tracking the political and romantic awakening of 20-year-old Nettie, a Black public health student who becomes increasingly entangled in a radical arm of the movement as she falls for one of its leaders, Josaphat erects a kind of love triangle as a scaffolding for the novel's central concerns. Amid revolution, how do you reconcile private needs with public struggle?... Josaphat delivers a novel for our times."--New York Times Book Review

"With soaring language and impeccable historical research, Josaphat captures the rhetoric and hyperbole of the time... Josaphat's vivid, bracing novel reveals the collateral damage of violent social change while reminding us that a better, more peaceful world is possible."--Los Angeles Times

"This beautifully convincing slice of history is powered not just by good research, but by lots of suspense, compelling characters, and understated political themes that broke my heart because of how timely they remain. Kingdom of No Tomorrow will bring the fierce vision of the Black Panthers to new generations of readers, adding some stunning context to the modern Black Lives Matter movement."--Barbara Kingsolver, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Demon Copperhead

"A new classic in the literature of Black liberation...a vivid imagining of how young people -- still growing, still grappling with their vulnerabilities -- faced the challenges of a world on fire....Josaphat's characters are vibrantly complicated and written with the special care required to honor those who became ancestors at an incredibly young age....The narrative propels forward with the momentum of a film..."Kingdom of No Tomorrow" is more than a novel. It's a mirror. A map. A call to remember. For anyone interested in liberation, community and the cost of both, it's a compelling tale worthy of our grateful, close reading."--Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Praise for Dancing in the Baron's Shadow:

"Fabienne Josaphat impressively brings to life a horrible period as well as the men and women who fought against it. Filled with life, suspense, and humor, this powerful first novel is an irresistible read about the nature of good and evil, terror and injustice, and ultimately triumph and love."
--Edwidge Danticat, author of Claire of Sea Light

​"Josaphat fills the pages with vivid depictions of historical figures... and explores the stark reality of what it was like for the Black Panthers to live under the constant threat of infiltration and violence from law enforcement. This dynamic and layered novel offers much to admire."--Publishers Weekly

"Fabienne Josaphat has written a moving and gorgeous exploration of one young woman's awakening. Deftly traced and deeply moving, this novel is for anyone who has done the hard work of seeking truth and beauty in an unjust world. Josaphat has created an unforgettable heroine, a captivating voice that illuminates questions of justice, history and self."
--Kaitlyn Greenidge, author of Libertie

"With her timely and urgent novel, and through the eyes, heart, and soul of Nettie, we are brought front and center into the world of the Panthers, and how they struggled to bring the Black community into a place where justice was possible. Kingdom of No Tomorrow is ambitious in scope and brave in execution. "Nettie had grown accustomed to the kind of darkness the human eye couldn't recognize," the novel begins, but there is also lightness and hope. Nettie is a character to cheer for, and her struggles remain relevant in the chaos and upheaval we are living through today."
--Naomi Benaron, author of PEN/Bellwether winner Running the Rift

About the Author

Fabienne Josaphat was born and raised in Haiti, and graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing from Florida International University. Of her first novel, Dancing in the Baron's Shadow published with Unnamed Press, Edwidge Danticat said, "Filled with life, suspense, and humor, this powerful first novel is an irresistible read about the nature of good and evil, terror and injustice, and ultimately triumph and love." In addition to fiction, Josaphat writes non-fiction and poetry, as well as screenplays. Her work has been featured in The African American Review, The Washington Post, Teen Vogue, The Master's Review, Grist Journal, Damselfly, Hinchas de Poesia, Off the Coast Journal and The Caribbean Writer. Her poems have been anthologized in Eight Miami Poets, a Jai-Alai Books publication. Fabienne Josaphat lives in South Florida.