My 17-page 2025 Winter Reading Guide is live! The guide contains 45 recent and upcoming releases plus new titles in book series, fiction/nonfiction pairings, stellar mystery series and some anticipated spring and summer releases. All of these will make great reads for this winter and many are books you won’t see many other places; I strive to find those under-the-radar gems. If you are interested, fill out the Google form and submit a tip of your choosing.

Contemporary Fiction Episodes

Sept. 28, 2022

Interview with Elyssa Friedland - THE MOST LIKELY CLUB

In this interview, Elyssa and I discuss The Most Likely Club, her inspiration for this book, incorporating 90s nostalgia, how she tackled drafting four distinct women, the highlight of writing this book, which character she identifies with the most, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Sept. 13, 2022

Interview with Angie Cruz - HOW NOT TO DROWN IN A GLASS OF WATER

In this interview, Angie and I discuss How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water, how humor can help a difficult situation, the importance of storytelling, how she decided on the book's unique format, visiting a psychic as part of her research, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
Aug. 26, 2022

Interview with Chris Cander - A GRACIOUS NEIGHBOR

In this interview, Chris and I discuss A Gracious Neighbor, the short story that inspired her novel, how we never really know what goes on behind closed doors, why she created her own definition of gracious for the book, her writing process, mean girls and how some never grow out of that phase, and…

Listen to the Episode
July 31, 2022

Interview with Leigh Newman - NOBODY GETS OUT ALIVE

In this interview, Leigh and I discuss Nobody gets Out Alive, her focus in these short stories on the real Alaska, the isolation and loneliness experienced when living some place so remote, baring her soul in this collection, her personal connection to the title, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
July 27, 2022

Interview with Carley Fortune - EVERY SUMMER AFTER

In this interview, Carley and I discuss Every Summer After, setting a book in Canada, choosing Barry's Bay as the book's locale and the response by residents, what surprised her the most writing this book, tackling her sophomore novel, why this book is resonating with so many people, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
July 25, 2022

Interview with Jamie Brenner - GILT

In this interview, Jamie and I discuss Gilt, the way guilt permeates the story, the inspiration for this book and for Pavlin and Company, the hardest character for her to write, the relevance of the green cover, how book covers mark a particular moment in time, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
July 18, 2022

Interview with Jane Rosen - A SHOE STORY

In this interview, Jane and I discuss A Shoe Story, her writing process, choosing the shoes for each chapter of this novel, how her book was selected by Elin Hilderbrand for her July Literati Book Club selection, getting thrown out of an Upper East Side Mom's group, looking forward versus focusing …

Listen to the Episode
July 12, 2022

Interview with Eleanor Brown - ANY OTHER FAMILY

In this interview, Eleanor and I discuss Any Other Family, writing a book centered around adoption and the issues the process raises, crafting character-driven stories focused on why people act the way they do, using the Enneagram types to help flesh out characters, weaving humor into her novels, w…

Listen to the Episode
July 5, 2022

Interview with Margarita Montimore - ACTS OF VIOLET

In this interview, Margarita and I discuss Acts of Violet, melding her love of stories about unresolved disappearances and those set in the showbiz world, exploring why the world of magic is so male-dominated, writing in a multi-media format and helping design the interior of the book, how the titl…

Listen to the Episode
June 14, 2022

Interview with Ali Brady - THE BEACH TRAP

In this interview, Alison, Bradeigh and I discuss The Beach Trap, how they came up with the name Ali Brady and why they chose to write under a pen name versus their own names, creating their own take on The Parent Trap, the way they approach writing together, their great cover, what's next for them…

Listen to the Episode
June 10, 2022

Interview with Annabel Monaghan - NORA GOES OFF SCRIPT

In this interview, Annabel and I discuss Nora Goes Off Script, how Nora is resonating with so many readers, the great reception the book is getting on Bookstagram, how titles send signals to readers about a book's genre, the difference in writing YA and nonfiction verses adult fiction, and much mor…

Listen to the Episode
June 8, 2022

Interview with Clare Pooley - IONA IVERSON'S RULES FOR COMMUTING

In this interview, Clare and I discuss Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting, the inspiration for the story and Iona, her fascination with intergenerational relationships, designing the plot around the train stops on the Waterloo/Hampton Court line, how both the cover and title are different for the U…

Listen to the Episode
May 31, 2022

Interview with Marie Myung-Ok Lee - THE EVENING HERO

In this interview, Marie and I discuss The Evening Hero, humanizing her main character, her trip to North Korea that rounded out details for the book, what surprised her the most when writing this book, the complicated process of finding a title,, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
May 29, 2022

Interview with Amy Tector - THE HONEYBEE EMERALDS

In this interview, Amy and I discuss The Honeybee Emeralds, the inspiration for the fictional necklace in the book, avoiding information dumps, the unique situation of living as an expat in a foreign country, her favorite and least favorite characters to write, and much more.

Listen to the Episode
April 25, 2022

Interview with Michelle Huneven - SEARCH

In this interview, Michelle and I discuss Search, her inspiration for the story, the format for telling the tale, the characters that were the easiest and hardest to write, how her cover came about, the way her characters developed as she wrote them, and much more.

Listen to the Episode