My 2025 Summer Reading Guide is out! It is an 18-page printable document that contains over 60 reading recommendations including books from spring and summer 2025 as well mystery series recommendations, fiction/nonfiction pairings, fall 2025 titles that I love, backlist titles, and some fall most anticipated reads. I have read every page of over 90 books and sampled at least 40 more to find the ones that really resonated with me and that I can personally recommend. Please fill out this form to indicate which form of payment (a tip in the amount of your choosing), and I will send it to you!

Episodes

March 31, 2023

Interview with Amulya Malladi - A DEATH IN DENMARK

In this interview, Amulya and I discuss A Death in Denmark, setting a book in Copenhagen, writing a mystery series, creating a character who fits the city of Copenhagen, her highlight of writing the book, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 28, 2023

Interview with Colleen Oakley - THE MOSTLY TRUE STORY OF TANNER AND L…

In this interview, Colleen and I discuss The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise, how her grandmother and "Thelma and Louise" inspired this story, the value of connecting with older generations, what it means to be a woman in today's world, Parkinson's, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 24, 2023

Interview with Jacqueline Winspear - THE WHITE LADY

In this interview, Jacqueline and I discuss The White Lady , the woman who inspired Elinor, the emotional impact writing this book had on her, what surprised her the most when drafting The White Lady, writing a standalone, an...

Listen to the Episode
March 21, 2023

Interview with Laura Spence-Ash - BEYOND THAT, THE SEA

In this interview, Laura and I discuss Beyond That, the Sea, exploring how someone moves forward when they can't quite figure out who they are and where they belong, telling the story through multiple points of view and why she selected the people she did to tell the story, the source of her title,…

Listen to the Episode
March 17, 2023

Interview with Jennifer Rosner - ONCE WE WERE HOME

In this interview, Jennifer and I discuss Once We Were Home, exploring the nature of bonds and how they locate a person in a home, how her experience as a parent of deaf children helped her tell this story, her research, examining the theme of identity, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 14, 2023

Interview with Kristen Bird - I LOVE IT WHEN YOU LIE

In this interview, Kristen and I discuss I Love It When You Lie, writing a Southern story, mirroring her own family life, creating a mystery where the reader doesn't know who died, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 13, 2023

Interview with Balli Kaur Jaswal - NOW YOU SEE US

In this interview, Balli and I discuss Now You See Us, how she decided to write this story, having her book selected as Marie Claire's March Book Club pick, tempering some of the stories she learned to keep the book from bein...

Listen to the Episode
March 10, 2023

Interview with Deanna Raybourn - A SINISTER REVENGE

In this interview, Deanna and I discuss A Sinister Revenge, her Veronica Speedwell title generator, Killers of a Certain Age and its success, weaving prominent people from history into her stories, her book covers, Stoker's brothers, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 9, 2023

Interview with Laura Cathcart Robbins - STASH

In this interview, Laura and I discuss Stash, why she decided to write this book, how tricky memory is, overcoming her addiction to Ambien, providing input on her book's cover, her podcast The Only One in the Room, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 8, 2023

Interview with Julie Carrick Dalton - THE LAST BEEKEEPER

In this interview, Julie and I discuss The Last Beekeeper, all of the world building she did for this book, why she chose bees, her own beekeeping experiences, the book's stunning cover, the font created just for this book, maintaining hope, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 7, 2023

Interview with Jessa Maxwell - THE GOLDEN SPOON

In this interview, Jessa and I discuss The Golden Spoon, setting the book during a baking competition, the hardest part of writing the book, her stunning cover, crafting a story where the reader does not know who dies until the end, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
March 3, 2023

Interview with C.J. Box - STORM WATCH

In this interview, C.J. and I discuss Storm Watch, weaving together two central mysteries into each book, how there is now more fiction focused on the outdoors than there used to be, the Joe Pickett TV series, incorporating a political element into his books because of the large amount of public la…

Listen to the Episode
March 2, 2023

Interview with Davina Morgan-Witts - Founder and Publisher, BookBrowse

In this Behind the Scenes interview, Davina and I chat about her role as Founder and Publisher of BookBrowse, how she came up with the idea to create the website, curating books for readers and book clubs, BookBrowse's membership options, how reviewers are selected, deciding which books to review f…

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 28, 2023

Interview with Shelley Read - GO AS A RIVER

In this interview, Shelley and I discuss Go as a River, the kernel of inspiration that sparked the story, her love of nature and wilderness, grief and how she explores it in her writing, connecting with others through grief, her title and cover, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 27, 2023

Interview with William Kent Krueger- THE LEVEE

In this interview, Kent and I discuss The Levee, using Faulkner's novella The Old Man as a jumping off point, the booming audiobook market, writing an audio original versus a book, why he focuses on the themes of the power of nature and the complexity of humans, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 24, 2023

Interview with Cheryl A. Head - TIME'S UNDOING

In this interview, Cheryl and I discuss Time's Undoing, basing the story on her family history, setting Time's Undoing in Birmingham and Detroit and the similarities in the cities, how the earth below a city holds its secrets and history, reviewing old newspapers from the 1920s, the American flag, …

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 21, 2023

Interview with Lynn Cullen - THE WOMAN WITH THE CURE

In this interview, Lynn and I discuss The Woman With the Cure, writing a book about the polio pandemic during another pandemic, how our culture is dictated by advertisements, her research, her goal to present the science necessary in the book in a basic and readable format, the creation of Candylan…

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 14, 2023

Interview with Amy Tector - THE FOULEST THINGS

In this interview, Amy and I discuss The Foulest Things, writing a series and mysteries as a pantser, why she created the fictional Dominion Archives, incorporating art theft into her story, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 10, 2023

Interview with Sadeqa Johnson - THE HOUSE OF EVE

In this interview, Sadeqa and I discuss The House of Eve, how she was inspired by her family's history to write this story, colorism in the Black community, what she learned while writing this novel, her stunning cover, finding the right title for the book, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 7, 2023

Interview with Christie Tate - B.F.F.: A Memoir of Friendship Lost an…

In this interview, Christie and I discuss B.F.F., all of the book's great pre-publication press, why friendships were so hard for her, social media's impact on relationships, how the title and cover came about, how her family responded to this book, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 3, 2023

Interview with Sally Page - THE KEEPER OF STORIES

In this interview, Sally and I discuss The Keeper of Stories, how she collected the stories for the book, why she started writing fiction, the importance of intergenerational relationships, how truth is stranger than fiction, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Feb. 1, 2023

Interview with Alison Wisdom - THE BURNING SEASON

In this interview, Alison and I discuss The Burning Season, her inspiration for this book, her fascination with cults as well as the wider world's fascination with them, infertility, writing from a first person point of view, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Jan. 24, 2023

Interview with Audrey Burges - THE MINUSCULE MANSION OF MYRA MALONE

In this interview, Audrey and I discuss The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone, how she came up with the idea for the story, the fascination with miniatures, how her fabulous cover came about, choosing the book's locales, the Thorne Miniature Rooms at The Art Institute of Chicago, her inspiration for…

Listen to the Episode
Jan. 20, 2023

Interview with Grady Hendrix - HOW TO SELL A HAUNTED HOUSE

In this interview, Grady and I discuss How to Sell a Haunted House, his decision to write about dolls and puppets, how he started writing horror, world building, and much more.

Listen to the Episode