Episodes

Mary Webbey O'Malley and Pamela Klinger-Horn join me to recommend their favorites reads of Spring and Summer 2024. Mary's selections: April Days of Wonder by Caroline Leavitt Somehow by Anne Lamott May Long Island by Colm Toibin Long After We Are Gone by Terah Shelton Harris The Klanman's Son by R. Derek Black June Bear by Julia Phillips Service by Sarah Gilmartin Swift River by Essie Chambers One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whittaker July The Wedd...

In this interview, I chat with Holly Gramazio about The Husbands, how she came up with the unique premise for The Husbands, creating all of the different husbands and the many more that were left out of the book, why Lauren's life continues moving forward, creating the attic and coming up with how it would work in the novel, and much more. Holly's recommended reads are: Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K. Reilly Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon Want to know which new titles are publishing in Janu...

In this interview, I chat with Jo Piazza about The Sicilian Inheritance, how this book is inspired by a family story, Sicily as a setting, why she chose for Sara to be a chef, plotting versus pantsing, what surprised her the most when writing this one, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Jesse Q. Sutanto about The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties, creating and now ending this series, the screen adaptation and its status, the highlight of writing this book, her writing process and how she shares it on Instagram, incorporating the Chinese new Year, infusing humor into her stories, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Allison Pataki about Finding Margaret Fuller, how she learned about Margaret Fuller and decided to write about her, why her goal is to educate and entertain, visiting Concord, her in-depth Author's Note, Fuller's rivalry with Edgar Allen Poe, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Cara Hunter about All the Rage, how the DI Fawley series came about, creating a police procedural series, basing All the Rage on a real-life case, the title and its mutliple meanings, when book 7 will be out, and much more. Cara's recommended reads are: What Have You Done? by Shari Lapena Anna O by Matthew Blake The Woman on the Ledge by Ruth Mancini Want to know which new titles are publishing in January - May of 2024? Check out the new Literary Lookbook whic...

In this interview, I chat with Rebecca Serle about Expiration Dates, incorporating magic into her books, how magic opens up the world she is creating, how she chooses her characters' names, how her title and cover came about, what surprised her the most when writing this one, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Jennifer Ryan about The Underground Library, writing a book about books and libraries, how her role as book editor informed her writing, what surprised her the most when writing this one, her stunning cover, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Stephanie Dray about Becoming Madam Secretary, why she decided to write about Frances Perkins, her research and how she chose what to include and what to leave out, drafting a comprehensive Author's Note, what she is working on next, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Eliza Knight and Denny S. Bryce about Can't We Be Friends, how they learned about the friendship between Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe, writing a book together and how they approached it, using song titles for chapter headings, how the title and cover came about, and much more. Eliza's recommended read is The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang. Denny's recommended reads are: Lone Wolf by Gregg Hurwitz Endless Vessel by Charles Soule All the Sinne...

In this Behind the Scenes interview, Heather Duncan and I chat about her role as Executive Director at Mountains and Plains Booksellers Association, what her job entails, FallCon and SpringCon, the states that make up the MPIBA region, Reading the West book awards, and much more. Heather's recommended reads are: Gideon the 9th by Tamsyn Muir Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie Middlegame by Seanan Maguire Want to know which new titles are publishing in January - May of 2024? Check out the new L...

In this interview, I chat with Clare Mackintosh about I Promise It Won't Always Hurt Like This, how grief changes your identity, structuring this memoir, how her titles and cover came about, the differences and similarities in writing crime fiction and a memoir, and much more. Clare's recommended reads are: A Manual for Heartache by Cathy Rentzenbrink The Madness of Grief by Richard Coles The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World by Laura Mai Messina Want to know which new titles are publish...

In this interview, I chat with Katherine Reay about The Berlin Letters, setting a story during the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall, what surprised her the most when writing this one, why the Cold War is a popular time period to write about now, how her title and cover came about, deciding on the format she used, and much more. Katherine's recommended reads are: The Matchmaker's Gift by Lynda Cohen Loigman Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell Want to know which new titles are publishing in Jan...

In this interview, I chat with Deborah Jackson Taffa about Whiskey Tender, telling an intersectional story, portraying blended backgrounds versus oversimplifying the Native experience, weaving history into her own story, what surprised her the most when she was writing her memoir. her title and cover, and much more. Deborah's recommended reads are: Shutter by Ramona Emerson The Missing Morningstar by Stacie Shannon Denetsosie The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters The Strange Beautiful by Carla...

In this interview, I chat with Amanda Churchill about The Turtle House, how this story is inspired by her grandmother's life, incorporating a Minogame into the book, deciding on Lia's career path, telling an intergenerational story, Japan before and during World War 2, and much more. Amanda's recommended reads are: Chenneville by Paulette Jiles Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea by Rita Chang-Eppig A History of Burning by Janika Oza The Majority by Elizabeth Silver B.F.F. by Christie Tate Wa...

In this interview, I chat with Robin Oliveira about A Wild and Heavenly Place, how she set out to write an epic love story, creating a strong sense of place, her title and cover, understanding her characters' motivations, shipbuilding and coal mining, and much more. Robin's recommended reads are: The General and Julia by Jon Clinch The Voyage of the Narwal by Andrea Barrett On the Way to the End of the World by Adrianne Harun The Poldark series by Winston Graham Want to know which new titl...

In this interview, I chat with Brandy Schillace about The Framed Women of Ardemore House, writing a mystery series, creating an authentic neurodiverse character, her title and cover, how she named the house in the book, her Peculiar Book Club and why she launched it, and much more. Brandy's recommended reads are: Books by Ngaio Marsh, Louise Penny and Donna Leon Red Rabbit by Alex Grecian The Kingdom of Bones by Stephen Gallagher Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn Want to know whi...

In this interview, I chat with Karen Outen about Dixon, Descending, how she came upon with the idea for this story, the mental component of climbing Mt. Everest, her research and the way she depicts the mountain, having to decide what to leave out, choosing the correct year to set the story, her title and cover, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Jessica Bryant Klagmann about This Impossible Brightness, how she came up with the idea for this novel, climate change and incorporating it into the story, focusing on the idea of listening, echoes, genre mashups, and much more.

In this Behind the Scenes interview, Adam Vitcavage and I chat about Debutiful, how Debutiful got started, his First Taste Reading series, why he focuses on debuts, why he doesn't believe in spoilers, how he decides who to interview, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with ReShonda Tate about The Queen of Sugar Hill, how she became interested enough in Hattie McDaniel to write about her, how Hattie opened doors for others, the research she did for the book, how she decided what years of Hattie's life to focus on for the story, looking at historical events through the lens of the time period versus a 21st-century lens, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Benjamin Stevenson about Everyone On This Train Is a Suspect, subverting the unreliable narrator trope, setting this book on the Ghan and his trips on the train, creating homages to Golden Age mysteries, weaving humor into his stories, his screen adaptation news, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Laurie Frankel about Family Family, exploring adoption in a positive manner, her research, unpacking the idea of chosen family, infusing humor into her stories, cancel culture, how much the book transformed over time, and much more.

In this interview, I chat with Karl Marlantes about Cold Victory, how he came up with the idea for this story, why the Cold War enthralls people even today, his title and cover, educating people about the past because it informs the present, and much more.