Nicole Cuffy Livres

Faruq Zaidi, a young journalist grappling with his father's death, immerses himself in the enigmatic cult known as The Nameless, led by Vietnam War veteran Odo. As he delves into the cult's teachings, including the mantra "THERE IS NO GOD BUT THE NAMELESS," Faruq confronts his own past and the complexities of belief. The narrative intertwines his investigation with Odo's history and a documentary script about the cult's conflict with a fundamentalist church, exploring themes of longing, belonging, and the human search for connection.

At twenty-two years old, Cece Cordell reaches the pinnacle of her career as a ballet dancer when she’s promoted to principal at the New York City Ballet. She’s instantly catapulted into celebrity, heralded for her “inspirational” role as the first Black ballerina in the famed company’s history. But even as she celebrates the achievement of a lifelong dream, Cece remains haunted by the feeling that she doesn’t belong. As she waits for some feeling of rightness that doesn’t arrive, she begins to unravel the loose threads of her past—an absent father, a pragmatic mother who dismisses Cece’s ambitions, and a missing older brother who stoked her childhood love of ballet but disappeared to deal with his own demons.Soon after her promotion, Cece is faced with a choice that has the potential to derail her career and shatter the life she’s cultivated for herself, sending her on a pilgrimage to find her brother and to reclaim the parts of herself lost in the grinding machinery of the traditional ballet world.