Jamaican-born Donna Hemans is the author of the novel River Woman, winner of the 2003–4 Towson University Prize for Literature. Tea by the Sea, for which she won the Lignum Vitae Una Marson Award for Adult Literature, is her second novel. Her short fiction has appeared in the Caribbean Writer, Crab Orchard Review, Witness, and the anthology Stories from Blue Latitudes: Caribbean Women Writers at Home and Abroad, among others. She received her undergraduate degree from Fordham University and an MFA from American University. She lives in Greenbelt, Maryland.

“Tea By the Sea is a powder keg of a novel, where secrets and lies explode into truth and consequences, all told with spellbinding, shattering power. Hemans doesn't just fulfill the promise of her debut— she soars past it." —Marlon James, Man Booker Prize Winning author of Black Leopard, Red Wolf"The forbidden love story of Plum and Lenworth comes alive in this heart-rending novel, Tea by the Sea. Hemans has a stunning ability to give words to that elusive feeling of emptiness, and the longing for redemption is palpable. In Hemans’s deft hands, regrets are explored with precision and compassion so that the reader finds herself unable to turn against even characters who have committed the most wretched betrayals. Tea by the Sea is like the story told in a grandmother’s kitchen with the odors of fried dumplings and saltfish wafting into mouths that are set agape at the heady twists and turns delivered in an urgent and beautiful prose." —Lauren Francis-Sharma, author of ’Til the Well Runs Dry"Tea by the Sea is an insightful and illuminating prism of a novel, deftly examining familial identity and personal transformation. Hemans turns the kaleidoscope, catching light at different angles, to show us how one person’s act of honor and responsibility can also be an act of unspeakable betrayal." —Carolyn Parkhurst, author of The Dogs of Babel and Harmony"Tea by the Sea is a well-written novel exploring the themes of agency, love, and loss."—LynnDee Wathen, Booklist"A deftly crafted and entertaining work of impressive literary nuance, Tea by the Sea by Donna Hemans is an extraordinary, original, and inherently fascinating novel."—Midwest Book Review"Donna Hemans’ second novel, Tea by the Sea, is a moving portrait of identity, belonging, family, immigration, and the power of maternal love." —Alice Stephens, Washington Independent Review of Books"Her plots are as intense as thrillers yet as resonant as poetry, and the lyricism and emotional honesty of her work has earned her comparisons to Jamaica Kincaid and Edwidge Danticat." —Aimee Liu, The Rumpus"Tea by the Sea sounds deceptively sweet, but this novel connecting Jamaica to the United States packs a soursop punch." —Bethanne Patrick, Lit Hub's "5 Books You May Have Missed in June""In beautiful, wrenching prose, Hemans’ Tea by the Sea tells an unforgettably moving story of family love, identity, and betrayal." —G.P. Gottlieb, author of ’ Whipped and Sipped mystery series."Don’t expect a facile morality play: Hemans writes with precision about the most private bacchanals of the heart, the utter vexations of the spirit. Read with a rum-soaked handkerchief."—Shivanee Ramlochan, Caribbean BeatA Conversation in the Washington Independent Review of BooksAn interview with Aimee Liu in The RumpusAn interview in New York State Writers InstituteSpring 2020 Blog Tour (Reviews, interviews, and more)Week 1 The Livre Café | 6/1Jessica Belmont | 6/2Fiction Matters | 6/3Everyday I Write The Book | 6/4Rebel Women Lit | 6/5Never Without A Book | 6/6The Book Decoder | 6/7Week 2Book of Cinz | 6/8Nurse Bookie | 6/9This Brown Girl Reads | 6/10Jennifer Tarheel Reader | 6/11Book Reviews and More by Kathy | 6/12Girl Who Reads | 6/13 Week 3Suzy Approved Book Reviews | 6/14Blunt Scissors Book Review | 6/15Syllables of Swathi | 6/16Collector of Book Boyfriends | 6/17Gimme The Scoop Reviews | 6/18Audio Killed the Bookmark | 6/19Miss Bibliofancy | 6/20 Week 4Gail Renatta | 6/21Chocolate Covered Pages | 6/22Storybook Reviews | 6/23Long and Short Reviews | 6/24BNJ Reads | 6/25What Is That Book About | 6/26Eno Books | 6/27 Week 5Beth’s Book Nook Blog | 6/28Reading Between the Wines Book Club | 6/29Amy’s Booket List | 6/30Book and Pen In Hand | 7/1Bree McIvor | 7/2Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More | 7/3Karukerament | 7/4Suzanne Bhagan | 7/6