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.

Historical Fiction Episodes

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, …

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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…

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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.

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Dec. 7, 2022

Interview with Shaunna J. Edwards and Alyson Richman - THE THREAD COL…

In this interview, we discuss The Thread Collectors, how Alyson and Shaunna met and decided to write this book together, what their writing process looked like, the research behind the book, the book's original title and how they decided on The Thread Collectors, and much more.

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Nov. 20, 2022

Interview with Tori Whitaker - A MATTER OF HAPPINESS

In this interview, Tori and I discuss A Matter of Happiness, her personal interest in bourbon and craft cocktails, what the car in her book symbolizes, her gorgeous cover, the revisions she made while writing the book, how she chose her characters' names, and much more.

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Nov. 1, 2022

Interview with Kate Manning - GILDED MOUNTAIN

In this interview, Kate and I discuss Gilded Mountain, her inspiration for this story, the character she enjoyed writing the most, including Mother Jones in her book, exploring the many ways women are silenced, how the cover and title came about, and much more.

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Oct. 28, 2022

Interview with Louise Kennedy - TRESPASSES

In this interview, Louise and I discuss Trespasses, living through The Troubles in the 1970s and setting her book during that time period, how a high level of violence impacts a population, tit-for-tat killings, why she does not use quotation marks, the stunning cover, and much more.

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Oct. 7, 2022

Interview with Barbara Mujica - MISS DEL RIO

In this interview, Barbara and I discuss Miss Del Rio, telling Dolores Del Rio's story, weaving history into her story and all the details she couldn't include, Charlie Chaplin, the Golden Age of Hollywood, the process for coming up with the title and cover, and much more.

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Oct. 4, 2022

Interview with Ann Davila Cardinal - THE STORYTELLER'S DEATH

In this interview, Ann and I discuss The Storyteller's Death, how the book is a love letter to Puerto Rico and her family there, the importance of including the sense of smell when creating an immersive setting, why she set the book in the 1970s, her incredible opening sentence, magical realism as …

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Oct. 2, 2022

Interview with Kristina McMorris - THE WAYS WE HIDE

In this interview, Kristina and I discuss The Ways We Hide, including MI-9 in her book and why people are so much less familiar with it, how the game of Monopoly was used as spy craft, her Book Club Guide online, the highlight of writing this book, all of the research she conducted, and much more.

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July 29, 2022

Interview with Vanessa Riley - SISTER MOTHER WARRIOR

In this interview, Vanessa and I discuss Sister Mother Warrior, providing the historical context for her book. which character was the hardest to write, having 2 books publishing so close in time to each other, the lasting implications from the Haitian Revolution, and much more.

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June 28, 2022

Interview with Piper Huguley - BY HER OWN DESIGN

In this interview, Piper and I discuss By Her Own Design, telling Ann Lowe's little-known story, how she went about filling in the gaps of Ann's life, writing biographical historical fiction, why Jackie Kennedy Onassis remains so popular, how historical fiction teaches while also telling a story, a…

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June 26, 2022

Interview with Geraldine Brooks - HORSE

In this interview, Geraldine and I discuss Horse, how she learned about the horse Lexington, her research and visiting the Smithsonian's Museum Support Center, how popular horse racing was in the 1800s, tackling 3 timelines, the significance of the title, and much more.

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May 27, 2022

Interview with Chanel Cleeton - OUR LAST DAYS IN BARCELONA

In this interview, Chanel and I discuss Our Last Days in Barcelona, writing a dual timeline story, how readers wanted to learn Isabel's story, why writing historical fiction starts with research, the connection between all of her book titles, and much more.

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May 20, 2022

Interview with Joy Callaway - THE GRAND DESIGN

In this interview, Joy and I discuss The Grand Design, why she decided to write about the Greenbrier and Dorothy Draper, the Greenbrier's rich history and political connections, understanding how Dorothy Draper went from heiress to interior designer, her gorgeous cover and recently recreating it, a…

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