'RHONY' Alum Eboni K. Williams Announces Second Book, 'Bet on Black' — See the Cover!

Eboni K. Williams is telling her story in celebration of Black excellence.

PEOPLE can exclusively reveal that the Real Housewives of New York City alum has penned a second book, Bet on Black: The Good News About Being Black in America Today, which is set to release Jan. 17, 2023.

In the book from Legacy Lit (an imprint of Grand Central Publishing at Hachette Book Group), Williams shows how Blackness has been instrumental in achieving her dreams and how — as a first-class, mainstream, fully liberated experience — it can be not only source of empowerment and transformation but her community's superpower toward success.

"As I approach 40 years old, it's just been really my lived experience as a Black woman born here in America and living here in America that Blackness is indeed the single most misunderstood construct in America," Williams, 39, tells PEOPLE. "But I believe that there is remedy around that. So I wrote this book around that; around the fact that there is so much trauma and hardship about the Black American experience, but that I and many others have and can use the benefits and advantages of Blackness to find greatness in our lives."

"Toni Morrison always said, 'If there's a book that you want to read that hasn't been written, it's your job to write it.' And I take that mandate very literally and seriously," Williams adds. "I wanted to write a story about what is joyful, what is awesome, what is fantastic and what is incredible about being Black in America today."

Williams made history as the first Black cast member on RHONY when she joined the series in season 13.

Written as if each chapter is a standalone essay, Bet on Black presents a fuller picture of the attorney, speaker and journalist from what fans saw on the Bravo show.

"I'm very grateful for my experience on The Real Housewives of New York City because it's a platform like no other, but you know, it's 44 minutes per episode," Williams tells PEOPLE. "There's only so much Eboni K. Williams you can see. Whereas this book, this is full-throttle Eboni K. Williams."

Readers will explore Williams early years growing up in the South with a single mother, according to a release, as well as her time at various broadcast outlets like The View and BET's The Breakfast Club where "she's defied rigid and restrictive notions of Black professionalism and womanhood to create a unique on-air persona while also being a staunch advocate for the Black community."

Bet on Black also showcases Williams' sense of humor, which is familiar to listeners of her weekly Holding Court podcast. "Unfortunately, some other platforms I was on weren't on board for showcasing my sense of humor," she says. "This book, it is direct, it is purposeful, but it is also quite funny and fresh and different. It reads like Bet on Black reads like Holding Court sounds."

Bet on Black comes five years after the publication of Williams's debut book, Pretty Powerful: Appearance, Substance and Success.

"It was a completely different experience with this second book," she tells PEOPLE. "I'm an older, more actualized individual. I'm stronger in my identity and stronger in my womanhood and stronger in who I am and where I take up space in this world. So while I am very proud of my first book and its cult following, Bet on Black is deeper, Bet on Black is more personal, Bet on Black is more prescriptive. I go there in Bet on Black, where I just say it plainly around what I think are tangible steps to actualize the constructs that I present in this book."

And as for fans hoping for some RHONY revelations, Williams says they'll be pleased. "If you're someone who is like, 'I love Eboni K. Williams for who she was and what she represented on The Real Housewives of New York City, pick up the book and turn directly to chapter 3. It is entitled 'Disruption,' and it goes there," she says. "I think there is going to be surprises, frankly, in what you read and learn about everything from how I was cast on the show, what my thought process was like, the very first time I met particular cast members, and my true and deep reflections around life after."

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Bet on Black: The Good News About Being Black in America Today is available for preorder now.