The Devil Is a Lie

4-7-14-17-21-25. Those numbers, printed on a slim paper ticket, are about to change the lives of two couples, lovers past and present, in Houston. When Nina Lawson wins $16 million in the Texas Lotto, the real estate executive and her fiancé, personal trainer Rick Henderson, ecstatically begin planning their future — from paying off their credit card debt, to setting their wedding date, to a spontaneous, spare-no-expense island getaway.

But while counting her millions, Nina didn't count on one other astounding twist of fate: her ex-husband, Todd Lawson, isn't her ex anything — since the paperwork for their divorce was never officially filed. Now he's shown up with his money-hungry girlfriend, Pam, to claim half of Nina's winnings. Add to this the relatives coming out of the woodwork to seek a payday for themselves, and Nina must ask herself if scoring a fortune in cash comes with too high a price tag. With a little bit of luck, Nina will discern the real wealth in her heart, not just her bank account — or risk losing everything — to find out what matters the most.

Publishers Weekly

Billingsley's latest (after Can I Get a Witness?) chronicles the devilishly rude awakening in store for Houstonite Nina Lawson after she wins $8 million in the lottery. Not only are family members she hasn't seen in years itching to share the loot, but her fiancé, Rick Henderson, starts counting on his piece before the check's in the bank. Things get even more complicated after Todd, Nina's ex-husband, ends up not being an ex; turns out his hoochie mama girlfriend, Pam, spent the divorce filing fee on a Fendi bag. Pam urges Todd to wrangle a chunk of Nina's dough, and he agrees, though with a near-reasonable motivation: to get his ailing Grams a new heart. The ensuing slapstick is fast moving and hilarious as Billingsley ponders how Nina's impulse to do the right thing gets her in trouble-and yet, somehow, love (and God) provides. (July)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

ReShonda Tate Billingsley is the author of the nonfiction book Help!  I've Turned into My Mother and six previous adult novels: My Brother's Keeper, for which she received the prestigious Gold Pen Award for Best New Author from the Black Writer's Alliance and the Nova Lee Nation Award from the Greater Dallas Writing Association; the national bestseller and #1 Essence bestseller Let the Church Say Amen, chosen for Library Journal's Best of 2004 list for Christian fiction; I Know I've Been Changed, a main Selection of the Black Expressions Book Club and #1 Dallas Morning News bestseller; the sequel to Let the Church Say Amen and a USA Today 2007 ?Summer Sizzler? and Essence bestseller Everybody Say Amen; The Pastor's Wife, also an Essence bestseller and Can I Get A Witness.  Her previous teen novels are Friends 'Til The End, Fair-Weather Friends, Getting Even, With Friends Like These, Blessings in Disguise, and Nothing But Drama, all available from Pocket Books.  She is also a contributor to the anthology Have a Little Faith.  She welcomes readers to her websites at www.reshondatatebillingsley.com.