Lex With The Text

HOUSTON 📣 You only have a few more days to experience Fences at The before it ends on May 10th. Trust me… this one is worth seeing. 🎭📖

I had the opportunity to attend opening night, and the entire experience was incredible from start to finish. Before the show even began, we were invited in early for an exclusive sneak peek of the set before the audience entered, which made the experience feel even more immersive and special. There was also a themed specialty cocktail crafted specifically for the production, which was such a fun touch for the evening. ✨

Directed by Eileen J. Morris, this production of Fences is powerful, emotional, and deeply human. Having previously read the play and the watched the film starring Viola Davis and Denzel Washington, seeing one of August Wilson’s most iconic works come to life on stage added a completely different emotional depth to the story for me.

Themes of family, love, sacrifice, generational tension, and forgiveness are woven throughout this play in such a moving way. Even decades later, the story still resonates.

🎟 Use promo code LOVEALLEY for $10 off any performance!

7 YEARS of Bookish HTX Bookclub 🥹📚

As April nears its end, I’m sitting in so much gratitude reflecting on 7 years of .htx. We’ve read over 70+ books and have tried so many Houston restaurants. I can’t believe it. 🙌🏽

Back when and I started this book club in 2019, we were just two friends who simply LOVED reading and were looking for a community of like-minded readers to consistently engage with in Houston.

From those early meetings with just a few of us in the room… to now, with 20+ members each month…we had no clue this group would grow into a powerful sisterhood of women who show up, month after month, to read together. It’s beautiful. So incredibly grateful! Book friends really are the best friends! 🤎

Shoutout to and more for taking us to the next level! Love y’all down!

Sisterhood WomenWhoRead BookCommunity HoustonBookClub ReadingCommunity Bookstagram 7YearsStrong

📖 Currently Reading: Fish Tales by Nettie Jones!

Published in 1983, out of print for decades, and now reissued by Farrar, Straus & Giroux in 2025, Fish Tales is a bold, brash, and beautifully bizarre ride through 1970s New York and Detroit. Think Studio 54, bohemian chaos, and champagne-soaked nights, all centered around Lewis, a 30-something party girl whose voice and choices leap off the page.
Y’all, this book is wild. It had me hooked from the first page. NGL, It’s very strange and provocative, but impossible to put down. The writing is sharp and fluid, and I truly have no idea where it’s going (which I love).

What makes this one even more special? It was edited by Toni Morrison herself during her time at Random House. Nettie Jones was part of a wave of Black women writers Morrison championed in the ’70s and ’80s, but unlike her peers, Jones’s work slipped into obscurity. This reissue is finally giving her the spotlight she deserved all along.

I’ll be back with a full review after this weekend’s book club meeting, but if you’re into literary fiction with edge and grit, this might be one to add to your list.

POLL: Have you read this one yet?

Last night was unforgettable. ✨

I had the absolute honor of moderating an intimate and powerful conversation with the one and only at the historic Eldorado Ballroom for the launch of his debut novel, The Best Man: Unfinished Business. 📚🎬

This was Malcolm’s first-ever trip to Houston (!) and the love in the room was electric. We laughed, we reflected, and we celebrated the next chapter of a story, and a legacy, that’s meant so much to so many of us over the years.

🙏🏽 I’m still processing what a gift it was to hold space for this conversation, and for the brilliant storytelling that continues to shape our culture.

Thank you to for hosting this beautiful evening! Another great author talk in the books!

Shout out to for the amazing signature cocktails! So smooth! 😍

And thanks to the incredible team at for bringing this book into the world.

And finally big thanks to everyone who showed up, showed love, and made this event a moment !

📍 The Best Man: Unfinished Business is out now. Support the trilogy, get your signed copy from , and let’s keep the love going!

How Similar Is Our Taste in Books?

I finally joined the trend! I picked 36 titles I loved or am really looking forward to reading.

+10 if you’ve read it
+5 if it’s on your TBR

Add up your score and tell me your total in the comments 🙌🏽

Which books have you read?
Spot any favorites?