Malcolm D. Lee Announces The Best Man Book Series starting with THE BEST MAN: Unfinished Business
Storehouse Voices, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, announced today that it will publish THE BEST MAN: Unfinished Business by Malcolm D. Lee with Jayne Allen on July 1, 2025.
The first book in a new trade paperback original trilogy, the novel will be released in physical and ebook formats, with an audiobook edition to be issued simultaneously by Penguin Random House Audio.
In this heartwarming, propulsively enthralling new novel, the classic characters of The Best Man movies and award-winning Peacock series continue their journeys beyond The Best Man: The Final Chapters, navigating unconventional parenthood, midlife renaissance, and second chances at love.
In 1999, Lee’s feature film debut, The Best Man, opened at #1 at the box office, quickly becoming a fan favorite and a defining film in Black rom-coms and bromances. Audiences fell in love with budding novelist Harper Stewart (Taye Diggs) as he reunites with college buddies Lance (Morris Chestnut), Quentin (Terrence Howard), and Julian (Harold Perrineau) over a dramatic wedding weekend in which secrets come to light, loyalties are tested, and Harper’s heart is torn between old and new flames, Jordan (Nia Long) and Robyn (Sanaa Lathan).
Lee’s rich and authentic characters have remained fan favorites for decades through a follow-up movie, The Best Man Holiday, which opened at #2 at the box office in 2013, and the 2022 hit eight-part Peacock series, The Best Man: The Final Chapters, which put Peacock in the Nielsen Top 10 for the first time ever and is still a top series on the platform. Since the series wrapped, fans have taken to social media to ask for more from this unforgettable cast of characters.
Continuing where the Peacock series left off, Lee’s debut novel, The Best Man: Unfinished Business, follows Harper, Jordan, and Robyn as they try to establish new lives away from the hurts of the past and come to realize that some relationships are impossible to break away from.
The Best Man: Unfinished Business marks a foray into a new medium for Lee, who is joined by co-writer Jayne Allen, author of the bestselling Black Girls Must Die Exhausted novel series and The Most Wonderful Time. Says Lee: “Writing this debut novel series around my most beloved cinematic characters has been an incredible journey—unlike anything I’ve done before. Over 25 years, we’ve watched The Best Man characters grow. And even though I thought their stories ended with The Final Chapters, they keep returning, revealing new layers of story and depth. This series offers a deeper dive into their inner worlds, allowing their next chapters to unfold in a way only a novel can. Sharing these new stories with longtime fans while introducing them to new audiences in a fresh medium is truly exciting. It’s both a continuation and a new beginning. I couldn’t be more thrilled to take fans old and new along for the ride.”
The Best Man: Unfinished Business launches a new trade paperback original series on July 1, 2025, with the next two books slated for release in 2026. Each novel stands alone while weaving together the ongoing stories of these beloved characters across the trilogy.
The Best Man: Unfinished Business is now available for pre-order wherever books are sold.