This season is winding down, but there’s still time to add a few more books to your summer reading list!

One of the most immersive, thought-provoking books I’ve read lately is Summer of Love by Kerri Maher, which follows two sisters navigating 1960s California — from concerts and war protests to a time of change for Napa’s vineyards.

A big thanks to Kerri for taking us behind the scenes of Summer of Love this month!

How do you like to introduce Summer of Love to readers?

This is a family secrets road trip novel set on the sun-drenched California coast.

I read that this novel is your most personal book to date. Can you share more about that?

I was born and raised in California, so I poured so much of my experience of that place and the people there into this novel. I’m also 4+ years sober and infused the novel with much of what I’ve learned about addiction, and what I love about recovery.

What was some of the most memorable research you did in order to bring this book to life?

It was fascinating to learn the history of Napa wine country, which mirrors the development of the whole state in so many ways. I was also raised by parents who lived through the counterculture revolution of the 60s in the Bay Area, and so some of my research consisted of fact-checking with my parents!

Is there a particular theme you find yourself drawn to in your writing?

I’m consistently drawn to stories with strong female protagonists who go through sometimes agonizing decision-making processes to become more fully themselves. I also love to explore the many layered and complex relationships between women: friends, mothers/daughters, sisters, aunts, lovers, etc….

What historical novels are at the top of your summer reading list this year?

I’ve already read An Infinite Love Story by Chanel Cleeton, and that’s great! I’m also excited to read Eliza Knight’s Lost in the Summer of '69, and Maggie O’Farrell’s Land.

Kerri Maher is the USA Today bestselling author of Summer of Love, All You Have to Do Is Call, The Paris Bookseller, The Girl in White Gloves, The Kennedy Debutante, and, under the name Kerri Majors, This Is Not a Writing Manual: Notes for the Young Writer in the Real World. She holds an MFA from Columbia University and lives with her daughter and dog in a leafy suburb west of Boston, Massachusetts. She was born and raised in California. Learn more: https://www.kerrimaher.com/

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A new Kristy Woodson Harvey novel is always something to look forward to and savor in the summertime! This month, we’re diving into her latest (and 13th!) novel, Summer State of Mind — the sign to choose this idea, how her writing process has changed through the years, all of Kristy’s summer reading picks for your beach bag, and more.

How do you like to introduce Summer State of Mind to readers?

Summer State of Mind is a story about a burnt-out NICU nurse, a former baseball star, an eccentric southern aunt, and the abandoned baby that brings them together and changes their lives in ways they never could have imagined.

At what point do you know you've landed on the idea you're going to commit to for your next project? And in the case of this novel, what was that original kernel of inspiration?

I originally got the idea for this book from an article I read several years ago about a NICU nurse adopting an abandoned baby under her care. But you hit the nail on the head with the "committing" part! I knew there was an idea there, but I was working on another project and knew what I was going to do after that as well. Then, a friend who is a NICU nurse called to tell me about a friend of hers who adopted one of their patients and who would be willing to talk to me, and it felt like a sign. She had no idea I was even considering this topic! I am usually mulling over a few things at once, but, the more I got to know Daisy, the more I began to realize that this was the perfect next project. It's more a feeling than anything else! When the idea won't let me go, when I find myself thinking about it all the time, I know I have something special!

You have a demanding publishing schedule of one book per year (sometimes more!). Are there practical things you've started doing over time that have helped streamline your writing process or made you more efficient?

Honestly... I think I'm getting worse! When I started writing I had a very small baby, and I got used to writing in these little snippets of time whenever I could find them. I'm a little more precious about the whole thing now! But I have realized that if I can get up and go straight to the page, I am most efficient. My goal is usually 2,000 words a day, sometimes more, but that is very doable for me and leaves time for the rest of my work for the day. I have certainly become faster as the years have gone on. I joke all the time that I write quickly because I'm such a fast typer! There could be a little bit of truth to that.

Your books are always at the top of my summer reading list and I loved a recent post you shared on Instagram about reframing the idea of a "beach read". How do you think about that term?

Oh my goodness! Thank you! Beach reads are different things to different people, and I say all the time that I often read thrillers on the beach because I’m too chicken to read them before bed! But I will say, in general, I want a lighter read on the beach. I want to be whisked away into another person’s story, into a romance, into a friendship, whatever that might be. And I love a happy ending for a beach read. Or, at least, a satisfying one. But I have no issues with that term at all. I am in the business of bringing people joy, and I think that’s a very important business!

What books are you excited to tuck in your beach bag this summer?

So, so many. Road Trip by Mary Kay Andrews, Meet Me in Paris by Kristin Harmel (both of which I've read and are FABULOUS!), Pink Sand Summer by Chassity Evans, The Memory Gardener by Meg Donahue... I could go on. I have so many in my pile that it's toppling over—just the way I like it!

Kristy Woodson Harvey is the New York Times, USA TODAY, and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of fourteen novels, including Summer State of Mind, Beach House Rules, and the Peachtree Bluff series. Many of her novels are in stages of option or development for film and television. She has been featured on Good Morning America, in Southern Living, Cosmopolitan, People, and many others. Kristy is the winner of the Lucy Bramlette Patterson Award for Excellence in Creative Writing and a finalist for the Southern Book Prize, and her writing has appeared in numerous publications, including Parade, Traditional Home, USA TODAY, Country Living, and many more. Kristy is the cocreator and cohost of the hit weekly web show and podcast Friends & Fiction with fellow New York Times bestselling authors Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, and Patti Callahan Henry. She is also the cofounder of the award-winning interiors site Design Chic, with her mom, Beth Woodson. She lives on the North Carolina coast with her husband, son, and dog, Salt, where she is (always!) working on her next novel. Learn more: https://www.kristywoodsonharvey.com/

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!

In this month’s author Q&A, kai alonté shares the inspiration and road to publication for Somewhere Soft to Land, her captivating debut novel that explores the complicated relationship between two best friends from college in the wake of tragedy.

How do you like to introduce Somewhere Soft to Land to readers?

Somewhere Soft to Land is written from the perspective of Dzifa, an emotionally withheld, sharply observant woman in her late 20s, and centers her dynamics with Tatiana, her more outwardly expressive and self-assured best friend from college. The story explores the ruptures and attempted repairs in their friendship, through moments of family drama, grief, and the very different ways they approach life, love, and work. Dzifa’s way of looking at the world is infused with as much humor as hypervigilance, and there’s an intriguing cast of characters to get to know throughout the story.

Can you share the meaning behind the title of the book? And is it one that was with the novel since it started as a work in progress or did it evolve with this project over time?

There was a more cryptic title when I started working on the book, but the words ‘somewhere soft to land’ were always a part of the text. Titling the book Somewhere Soft to Land reflected this quest for belonging and safety that each of the characters is on, in their own way. It’s the idea of that safe space many of us seek where we can be our fullest selves. It’s also an exploration of the versions of ourselves we become in the absence of that space.

You write in the acknowledgements, "I have learned there is real value in creating through exactly what scares us the most." How did that come into play with your creative process in Somewhere Soft to Land?

At the start of this project, I was grappling with a pattern of self-silencing, both creatively and personally; this story pushed right up against that, and it invited a creative process of deepening in, then zooming out. There was a rawness and vulnerability to the story itself, and to Dzifa as a character, that I found confronting. Writing her invited me to move through the projections I had about people like her and the aspects of her I saw in myself, and to go deeper into what the interiority of such a character truly would be. That process was intense, but necessary and illuminating; it was how I came to understand and appreciate all of the characters in the book, including the ones whose choices I may disagree with. This made space for Dzifa, as the narrator of the book, to freely reflect her experience of the other characters; as the author, I could still pull back and have a more neutral birds-eye view of the story as a whole.

I was so drawn in by the way you captured the complexities of female friendship with Dzifa and Tatiana. What were you hoping to show through their relationship?

Thank you–this book does reflect a particular kind of chosen sisterhood where from the outside looking in, people would think, ‘How did those two ever become friends?’ I think it’s common that at some points in life, you have these friendships that are either so long-standing or held together by trauma bonding, that they feel a lot like sibling relationships. Even when there are problematic aspects of those friendships, there’s also a lot of love and history and lives woven together. Trying to evolve or break away from them can be incredibly fraught, and no less heartbreaking than the ruptures in romantic relationships.

What has your journey to debut author been like? And are there any other debut novels coming out this spring you're excited to recommend?

I actually had a sort of parting ceremony with the story when I wrapped up the edits, and that helped me honor the time I’d spent with it, and then let it go so it can be whatever it is to people who read it. These days, I’ve been feeling a lot of curiosity and excitement about which aspects of the book might resonate with different readers. I’ve already had some fascinating conversations about it with early readers, so I look forward to more of that. As far as other debut novels I can recommend, I was lucky to read an advance copy of Khaya Ronkainen’s beautiful debut novel Distorted Is The View, which comes out June 9th. It’s the story of a South African family in the 1980s, unraveling and trying to find their way back to one another. I found Ronkainen’s prose to have a captivating blend of precision and fluidity. I felt such a connection with the characters, and the plot was woven with tender and thoughtful intricacy.

kai alonté is a Ghanaian American artist based in northern Europe. Her short story “3-Step Face Mask” was published in Sycamore Review in 2021 and won first place for nonfiction in the 2020 West Virginia Writers Contest. In 2024, her essay “Embracing Life’s Layers Through Collage” was published in Onko Maailma Valmis?, a collection organized by Kulttuuria kaikille (Culture for All). She graduated from Trinity College Dublin’s MPhil program in creative writing and has been an artist-in-residence at Gullkistan, NES, Arteles, and Hub Feenix.

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!

In this week’s author Q&A, John R. Kelly takes us into the world of The Inklings Detective Agency. This bookish mystery has it all. Set at magical Oxford University in the 1930s, it features the real-life Inklings (including J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis) joining forces with other legendary authors like Agatha Christie, putting their fictional skills to work solving a series of murders.

How do you like to introduce The Inklings Detective Agency to readers?

Most people who hear the title The Inklings Detective Agency have an immediate idea of what kind of story awaits them—and they’re usually (mostly) right. The story is a historical mystery, set in 1936, at Oxford University. It's about the Inklings. Yes, those real-life Oxford Inklings that included the famous writers J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, just before they became household names. The story follows them forming a detective agency and putting their naturally honed research and puzzle-solving skills to use solving their first murder, connected to the (also real-life) secret society known as the Order of the Golden Dawn.

What sparked the idea for this novel, and how did you approach blending the real lives of these well-known authors with the murder mystery?

It’s surprising how naturally my love of the Inklings lent itself to mystery fiction. It just felt right and made sense to me. The atmosphere was already there: the shadowy quads, intellectual banter, and element of dark academia so many mystery readers are drawn to. Oxford in the 1930s seemed like the perfect setting to me... and then throw in the Inklings, who were just forming during that time, and real secret societies, and literary character cameos. It's just too perfect not to write. I also intentionally wove real historical events into the narrative to blur the line between fact and fiction. My hope is that readers will find themselves questioning what truly happened and what has been imagined, and become so immersed in the world of the Inklings that they feel the same sense of discovery and enjoyment I felt writing the story.

I was fascinated by the scenes where Agatha Christie shows her expertise with poisons. Was that something that came up in your research?

There were many things in the research for this novel that made their way into the story itself. A lot more than I expected. The fact that Agatha worked in a medical dispensary, or that she possessed a natural eye for investigative techniques, or the fact that in 1936 she lived only a short drive from Oxford and was actually involved in a real-life detective society. I would be more surprised to learn she wasn't actually solving crimes on the side than if I learned she moonlighted as a sleuth.

Oxford is one of the places I've most loved traveling to (in life and books!) Where would you send readers if they decide to take a literary trip to the UK and want to walk in the footsteps of The Inklings?

I have never been to Oxford yet, but I do have my own literary trip in the works. I love collecting old ephemera from that time period (print advertisements, postcards, etc.), and I own a few Oxford tour guidebooks from the 1930s. They have such great advertisements and provide a window into that world as it was. They also have great pullout maps and walking guides. Much of the city and campus is the same now as it was then, so I’d try to follow one of those. One walking tour starts at Carfax Tower, circles around Christ Church, over to Magdalen, and loops back on High Street to Radcliffe Camera and up to the Sheldonian Theatre. I think that would be my first day’s itinerary....but don’t worry, the Eagle and Child and The Kilns would be Day 2.

Do you have a favorite book from all of the authors that make a cameo in The Inklings Detective Agency?

I like to split their writing up into a fiction and a non-fiction category. For fiction, the choice for me would have to be Tolkiens' Lord of the Rings. For non-fiction, I've always been a fan of Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. I am a Pastor and Bible teacher besides being an author, so Lewis' way of approaching apologetics, while also holding such a vivid imagination, has always fascinated me. Agatha Christie's book And Then There Were None and anything Sherlock-related by Doyle are my secondary cameo picks.

John R. Kelly has studied history and spirituality for most of his life, which led to a career in teaching Church History and Biblical Studies at True North College, including courses on the occult, history of world religions and also the real-life Inklings. He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and nine children.

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!

In this week’s author Q&A, María Dolores Águila shares the story behind her Newbery Honor-winning novel in verse, A Sea of Lemon Trees.

How do you like to introduce A Sea of Lemon Trees to readers?

A Sea of Lemon Trees is a middle grade, historical fiction novel in verse about the 1931 Lemon Grove Incident, where the Mexican and Mexican American community resisted attempts to segregate their children into a school that was a retrofitted barn. By coming together, they were able to successfully sue and re-integrate the school. In A Sea of Lemon Trees, we experience this vivid and uplifting story through the eyes of Roberto Alvarez, the real life lead plaintiff of the case.

Before this book was published, you wrote two award-winning picture books, and in the Author's Note you share that this book started out in that format as well. What led to your decision to share Roberto's story as a novel in verse instead?

To be completely honest, it happened because there were two other picture books that came out about Roberto and the Lemon Grove Incident! So if I wanted to find a way to tell the story as I saw it, I had to find a new way to do it, and my editor for my picture books suggested that I try expanding it to a middle grade novel. Immediately, the first line came to “I live in a sea of lemon trees.” It truly worked out, because I was able to include all the things I had taken out in order to meet the word limits of a picture book.

This is such a powerful, moving read with so many echoes to our current moment. What do you hope young readers take away?

More than anything, I want young readers to feel empowered to make positive changes in their communities. Especially for children from marginalized backgrounds to see that their communities have been resisting injustices for a long time, and have been successful, even if it was hard and bittersweet sometimes. And lastly, for all readers to feel the call to push back against narratives of exclusion.

A Sea of Lemon Trees won a Newbery Honor (and a long list of other honors!). When I was an elementary school librarian I used to explain to kids that winning a Newbery is like winning an Oscar. What was it like when you heard the news?

The day before the ALA Youth Media Awards were to be announced, I was sick as a dog. I was laying in bed and my ears were horribly clogged. When I got the call, I was shocked—I had just gotten off the phone with the Pura Belpré committee a few hours ago. I was convinced that I had hallucinated the call. It wasn’t until my publisher confirmed it, that I let myself believe it.

This is a novel I'm eager to put into other readers' hands. What books have you read lately that you're excited to recommend?

I always love talking about books! Recently I read One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome. It’s a middle grade, historical fiction novel in verse (do you sense a pattern?) set in 1879 about Lottie and her family’s journey from Mississippi to Nebraska to own land and become homesteaders. I laughed, I cried, and then reread it again. It’s an amazing book.

María Dolores Águila is a Chicana poet and author from San Diego. Deeply inspired by Chicane history and art, she seeks to write empowering and inclusive stories about everything she learns. She also loves drinking coffee, browsing the bookshelves at her local library, and spending time with her family. Learn more: https://mariadoloresaguila.com/

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!

In this week’s author Q&A, Lynn Cullen discusses her new historical novel When We Were Brilliant, which explores the fascinating and complicated relationship between Marilyn Monroe and photographer Eve Arnold.

How do you like to introduce When We Were Brilliant to readers?

Many people want to know about Marilyn Monroe’s death. I’ve always wanted to know about her life. I’d been burning to write a psychological novel about her for decades but couldn’t find an effective way in—until I found the work of the only female photographer for whom Marilyn sat: Eve Arnold. Eve’s photography revealed an unseen side of Marilyn, even as it revealed their extraordinary friendship.

What drew you to writing about the friendship between Eve Arnold and Marilyn Monroe? Did one of their stories inspire you first?

As soon as I found that Eve was the only woman Marilyn had ever asked to photograph her, I bought Eve’s book, Marilyn Monroe: An Appreciation. In it, Marilyn’s photos were different than any I’d seen of her. She didn’t even look like Marilyn Monroe in some of them. She looked younger, brighter, happier, more natural, like the eager girl next door. I had to know this woman…and had to know, too, the woman who brought out this unknown side of Marilyn.

But Eve almost didn’t publish her Marilyn Monroe book. When Marilyn died in 1962, every photographer who had an image of Marilyn joined the gold rush to capitalize on her death. Eve was distressed to see shots that Marilyn clearly disapproved of splashed on magazine covers. When someone published a print of Marilyn in the morgue, Eve exploded. She embargoed all her photos of Marilyn, vowing to never cash in on her friendship with Marilyn. No one would ever see the fruit of their work together again.

Then, nearly twenty-five years after Marilyn’s death, Eve heard Elton John’s “A Candle in the Wind” on the radio. Two lines of the lyrics had gotten her friend Marilyn so wrong that Eve broke her silence. She would show the world the real Marilyn—someone who was not a victim but a brave, brilliant, self-made woman.

How did you go about the research process needed to bring these two compelling women to life — and did you uncover anything that really surprised you?

Choosing to examine Marilyn through the work of Eve Arnold made for fascinating and pointed research. I studied not just Eve’s photographs but her text in her many books. Her work and her words in Marilyn Monroe provided the framework for my story, and her other books fleshed out her world—our world from the 50’s until the 80’s—and her character. Comparing Marilyn’s relationship with Eve to her relationship with other photographers taught me a lot about Marilyn, Eve, and the culture in which they lived.

Eve’s photos of Marilyn valiantly trying to recover from an illness on a photo shoot delivered my most surprising finding: Marilyn had endometriosis. Once I realized that the condition caused Marilyn frequent, great physical pain as well as the infertility and miscarriages that devastated her, I saw Marilyn in a whole new light. She was fierce.

Do you have a favorite moment or side of Marilyn that Eve captured in her photographs?

I love the photo of Marilyn fighting through a crowd to meet with Laurence Olivier. She’s glowing like a bright white goddess among drab lesser beings as she leans forward, elbows back, neck out, like a racer lunging across the finish line. It says everything about her in a single shot: she’s a fighter, a force, a unicorn among mules. No wonder she never fit in. She’s not quite of this world. As Eve herself said in her quest for the rest of her 100-year life to find another subject who was as thrilling, inventive, and sheer fun to work with as Marilyn: there is no one like her.

What historical novels have you been recommending lately?

I just finished Buckeye by Patrick Ryan. Masterful!

Lynn Cullen’s bestselling novels, including The Woman with the Cure, The Sisters of Summit Avenue, Mrs. Poe, Twain’s End, The Creation of Eve, and Reign of Madness, have been translated into seventeen languages and are the recipients of various honors, including NPR Great Read, Oprah.com Book of the Week, People magazine Book of the Week, Indie Next List selection, and Atlanta magazine Best Books of the Year. She lives in Atlanta. Learn more: https://lynncullen.com

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!

In this week’s author Q&A, Liz Alterman gives us the inside scoop on A Different Type of Poison, her new novel about a bestselling author who receives a book club invitation that may not be what it seems. If you love books about books with a hefty dose of edge-of-your seat suspense, you’ll want to add this one to your TBR list! This is one I kept looking forward to all day, eager to cozy up and get back to binge reading at night. My favorite kind of winter read.

How do you like to introduce A Different Type of Poison to readers?

Thanks for asking!

When a bestselling author receives an invitation to return to her hometown to discuss her dark campus thriller, she never suspects she may be walking into the most unsettling plot twist of her life.

After her first two books flatlined, author Molly Archer is thrilled that her latest, Birds at Night, is an instant hit. Newly divorced and raising two children in an upscale community north of Manhattan, Molly will do whatever it takes to sustain her novel’s momentum and support the lifestyle she’s worked so hard to achieve.

When an enthusiastic book club organizer from her hometown reaches out, Molly welcomes the opportunity to meet her readers. Traveling back to Ohio offers the perfect excuse to check on her widowed mom, whose health—and memory—appear to be unraveling.

As much as she looks forward to the trip, one thing troubles Molly: She can’t remember Anna Fox, the woman who extended the invitation and seems all too eager to reconnect. Will Molly’s visit introduce her to a new group of adoring fans or is she stepping into her deadliest chapter yet?

If you enjoy psychological thrillers with atmospheric tension, and dark secrets that explore the line between fact and fiction, I hope you’ll check it out!

I’d imagine (or hope!) that you haven’t had some of Molly’s experiences as an author. But is there something from your real writing life or book events that sparked the idea for this story?

Ha! Thankfully, I haven’t had any of the same really bad experiences. But I did have a great time gently skewering different aspects of the writing life—the self-doubt Molly feels, the way her first agent wants her to stay in her lane, the pressure to juggle parenthood with writing and, at the same time, promote her new book.

But in terms of the idea for the story, I will say I try to donate a “book club basket” (a stack of books and an in-person or virtual visit with a book club) to schools and charities, which they can use as an auction item at fundraisers.

So a few years ago, a local book club won, and as I was pulling into the host’s driveway, which was off a fairly dark road, it sort of hit me: “You’re walking into a stranger’s home at night! What are you doing?”

Thankfully, these women were beyond lovely and I had a great time but for a moment there I was thinking, “She told you to let yourself in through the back fence. It’s not well-lit. No one knows where you are! This could be its own thriller!”

My heart was definitely racing as I stayed up late every night reading A Different Type of Poison. Was there a scene where the level of suspense had even you on edge (as the author pulling the strings)?

Oh thank you! I love hearing that! I think it’s a challenge when you’re the author because you know the outcome, so you’re always wondering and hoping that it’s suspenseful enough for readers. There’s a scene in Birds at Night, the book within the book, in which Carly confronts her friend Clem and Clem’s boyfriend, J.P., and I was hoping to get that just right. That scene had me anxious because of what was happening and then also nervous that I’d be able to do it justice.

You've shared that you received an audiobook deal for this one but decided to self-publish the print and ebook versions. How have you found your first experience with self-publishing?

My thoughts sort of shift daily but overall I’m definitely glad I tried it! I’ve learned so much and it’s something that I’ve wanted to try for the past few years but I feared the learning curve, which, as I suspected, is steep.

I’m extremely grateful to have assembled a team that is so responsive, professional, and knowledgeable, and they’ve kept me on track. I’ve loved having the control over the cover and pricing, too. I recently published a newsletter in which I mentioned that having access to the KDP dashboard, which allows you to see book sales and Kindle page reads in real time, has become a bit of an addiction—so I need to get a handle on that!

I’ve also enjoyed shedding a lot of the self-doubt that goes hand-in-hand with querying and going on submission in the traditional publishing world. Your book is your baby and to get dozens of “I like it but I don’t love it” responses while you wait months or longer can really crush your creative spirit.

I kept looking forward to binge reading A Different Type of Poison on these long winter nights. What books have you enjoyed curling up with lately?

I loved The Death of Us by Abigail Dean. I listened to the audio and it was such a stunning combination of thriller and love story. By the end of the book, I felt like I knew the characters so well and had such affection for them. I didn’t want it to end. It’s definitely dark but it’s brilliantly executed. I can’t stop recommending it!

Liz Alterman lives in New Jersey with her husband, three sons, and two cats. She spends most days repeatedly microwaving the same cup of coffee and looking up synonyms. Be sure to also check out Liz’s Substack.

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!

In this week’s author Q&A, Kristin Bair shares the origin story of Clementine Crane Prefers Not To, her new novel about an overwhelmed and underappreciated woman in mid-life who finally hits her breaking point and goes viral with her “I Prefer Not To” movement. Funny and full of an all-too-relatable rage, this one hits all the right notes.

“Clementine is every woman who found her voice and discovered freedom. Relatable, insightful, honest. Loved it!”
—Abbi Waxman, USA Today bestselling author of The Bookish Life of Nina Hill

How do you like to introduce Clementine Crane Prefers Not To to readers?

With a big laugh and a healthy dose of rage! It’s the story of a woman whose first hot flash of perimenopause blows up her rather ordered life—marriage, kids, work, all of it—and sparks a viral “I Prefer Not To” movement that inspires other women to push back too. It’s fierce and funny—a novel about perimenopause, marriage, motherhood, the mental load, and what happens when a woman finally stops saying yes.

This character's frustrations and overwhelm are so relatable (and hilarious). How did you come up with the idea for the movement she starts?

The seed for Clementine’s “I Prefer Not To” movement was planted decades ago in grad school when I first read Herman Melville’s short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street.” In it, a copyist (Bartleby) slowly stops doing his job—first declining small tasks, then refusing to do anything that’s asked of him—each time responding with the same quiet but defiant line, “I would prefer not to.”

That simple act of resistance lodged itself in my imagination. For 25 years, I carried that phrase—and Bartleby’s spirit—around in my noggin, waiting for the right story to bring it to life. When, as I was writing this novel, Clementine hit perimenopause and began to question everything—marriage, motherhood, work, all the invisible labor—I realized I’d found it. Her “I prefer not to” swells into a powerful roar that women around the world rise to meet.

There is such a moving—and I think unique—portrayal of female friendship in this novel, between Clementine and her next-door neighbor Georgia. What were you hoping to show through their relationship?

The friendship between Clementine and her neighbor Georgia is the kind that saves lives. Georgia is Clem’s anchor when her world begins to tilt, the one who shows up with honesty, laughter, and zero judgment. (Something we all need in life!) And near the end of the book, in one jaw-dropping moment, she reminds Clem what true solidarity between women looks like. Their friendship isn’t polite or pretty; it’s the realest kind of love.

Like Agatha Arch, Clementine Crane had me laughing out loud. What advice would you give writers trying to weave humor into their work?

I’m thrilled that both Clementine and Agatha made you laugh out loud! Humor is central to everything I do (in life and writing), and for me, it only lands when it’s grounded in truth and the sheer absurdity of being human (and especially, being a woman). My advice to writers? Don’t chase the punchline. Drop your characters into authentic situations and let them react in messy, unfiltered, and sometimes inappropriate ways—the way real people do. That’s where the funny lives. Then you can go back and sharpen scenes, so the humor hits exactly the way you want it to.

I think Clementine will be on many of our minds for quite some time! What protagonist from a recent read can you not stop thinking about?

I love that—thank you! There are a few protagonists who refuse to leave me alone, including Elizabeth Zott from Bonnie Garmus’s Lessons in Chemistry, Cassandra from Holly Smale’s Cassandra in Reverse, and Nora from Suzy Krause’s I Think We’ve Been Here Before. I love how Nora keeps reaching for connection even as her world unravels—it’s magnetic. (Highly recommend all three.) My current obsession, though, is Sasha Hom’s Sidework. I’ve just started reading it but, damn, the prose is so alive it feels like it’s walking around on its own.

Kristin Bair is the celebrated author of the novels Clementine Crane Prefers Not To, Agatha Arch Is Afraid of Everything (a People magazine Best New Book), The Art of Floating, and Thirsty. Her essays—covering everything from China and bears to expats gone rogue—have appeared in The Baltimore Review, The Manifest-Station, Flying: Journal of Writing and Environment, Scary Mommy, and other publications. Kristin teaches in the MA in Writing Program at Johns Hopkins University and at the Yale Writers’ Workshop, and she serves as a fiction editor at Pangyrus. A native Pittsburgher, she now lives north of Boston with her husband and two kids. Connect with her on Instagram, TikTok, and Threads (@kbairokeeffe) or at kristinbair.com.

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In this week’s author Q&A, Namrata Patel delves into Your Next Life Is Now, in which a newly engaged daughter must navigate her relationship with her soon-to-be divorced mother — including following her on a road trip to face a secret from her past.

How do you like to introduce Your Next Life Is Now to readers?

It’s a book that explores generational tensions between a mother and daughter who are experiencing the struggles women face by giving voice to both points of view.

The mother/daughter relationship at the center of this book has such an intriguing set-up, with Nikki on the verge of marriage and Tara getting divorced. Is that hook where this book began for you?

Yes. I believe one of the biggest decisions women have to reckon with in our lives is to marry or not. This construct is changing but still persists. Younger women who are more free have more of a choice than 30 years ago, especially for those who straddle two opposing cultures, eastern and western.

I love that we’re able to really see what Tara has been through in her chapters. I think this would have been a very different book told only from Nikki’s perspective — we would lose so much of that empathy. Was one point of view more difficult than the other for you to tap into as a writer?

I tried. Really. But it wasn’t working. I needed to show Tara from her own POV to ensure readers understood her. There are things Nikki will never know about her mother, and I wanted to give Tara equal voice so the readers could experience this tension from both sides.

For your past novels, you’ve described delving into some really interesting research during the writing process. What did you enjoy exploring for this book?

I did my graduate work in dual cultural identity and diaspora’s effect on Indian Americans in 1990s. It was good to go back and reference those books like Desis in the House and Karma of Brown Folk. I also enjoyed going back into what the Internet and available tech was thirty years ago. And it made me want an old school flip phone.

What is the last book you loved so much, you couldn’t wait to give a copy to someone?

Dear Writer by Maggie Smith. If a book can give you a hug, this one is it. It’s not just for writers; it’s a meditation on creativity. I love her prose, her careful word choices, her process of putting pen to paper. In fiction, there is a book coming out called The Society by Karen Winn. I’m so excited for people to check it out. It’s a Boston book with interesting characters and a lot of weirdness. I’ll be talking about the book a lot when it’s out.

Namrata Patel is a best selling, Indian-American author who calls Boston home! Her writing dives headfirst into the fascinating world of diaspora and dual-cultural identity, exploring the powerful connections we forge within our families, both the ones we’re born into and the ones we choose. Having lived in countries around the world, Namrata brings a global perspective to her relatable and aspirational characters. Get ready to meet heroines who range from quietly determined to fiercely independent, and heroes who are undeniably swoon-worthy (with just the right touch of flaw!). Namrata’s work has been featured in Writer’s Digest, Christian Science Monitor as well as other literary publications. Her debut novel, The Candid Life of Meena Dave, was celebrated as a longlist nominee for The Center for Fiction’s Best First Novel Prize.

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In this week’s Q&A, bestselling author Hank Phillippi Ryan pulls back the curtain on her unputdownable new thriller, All This Could Be Yours, in which a debut author’s book tour takes a surprising — and sinister — turn.

How do you like to introduce All This Could Be Yours to readers?

A debut author with a surprise blockbuster bestselling novel gets sent on a glamorous book tour—her dream come true! She’s met with devoted fans and standing room only audiences—until yikes—she realizes she has a stalker who was trying to ruin her career and the beloved family she left back home. That’s when a fancy nationwide book tour turns into a deadly dangerous cross country cat and mouse chase—with the author running for her life.

Did something on your book tour spark the idea for this thriller?

Absolutely! I signed a book to a reader as I often do—I put her name, and “so wonderful to see you in Scottsdale!” Then I signed my name, and put the date. And then I burst out laughing. I had just given her a perfect alibi! Then I thought about how potentially scary so many things are on book tour—the strangers, the questions, the high stakes, the vulnerability. It all became so potentially sinister—so I weaponized the whole thing for the novel. I’ve had author friends who tell me they’re happy they did not read it till they got home, because they would have been too creeped out to read it on the road.

This book is such a treat for readers — do you have a favorite indie bookstore that appears in the book?

Ha! This is a secret I cannot reveal. All of my favorite bookstores are in this novel, but in disguise! An Unlikely Story, The Poisoned Pen, Page 158, Swamp Fox, Doylestown Bookshop, Newtonville Books, Litchfield Books, BookLove and more. Do you recognize them? (And librarians have starring roles in the book, too! And readers will certainly see themselves in the book!)

How did you land on the title and what does it mean to you?

I have to say… I have no idea. I knew I had a novel about a debut author, and a Faustian bargain, and the book tour from hell. “All this could be yours”—the words appeared in my mind, and I knew it was the title. And that never changed.

Your books are always impossible to put down! What is the last book that kept you up late turning the pages?

Thank you for the compliment! But I cannot choose just one! Heather Gudenkauf’s The Perfect Hosts, Lisa Jewell’s Don’t Let Him In, Sulari Gentill’s Five Found Dead, and Stacey Abrams Coded Justice. It is the joy of my life to find a book that keeps me up too late, don’t you agree?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN is USA Today bestselling author of 16 psychological thrillers, winning the most prestigious awards in the genre: five Agathas, five Anthonys, and the coveted Mary Higgins Clark Award. She is also an on-air investigative reporter for Boston’s WHDH-TV winning 37 EMMYs and dozens more journalism honors for her groundbreaking journalism and true crime stories. Her newest thriller, ALL THIS COULD BE YOURS, came out in September from Minotaur Books, and is an instant USA Today bestseller. It is already in second printing.

Hank is on the board of International Thriller Writers, a sought-after teacher and keynote speaker, and host of three popular online events: THE BACK ROOM, CRIME TIME on A Mighty Blaze, and FIRST CHAPTER FUN. She lives in Boston with her husband, a nationally renowned criminal defense attorney. Learn more: https://hankphillippiryan.com/

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In this week’s Q&A, Alisha Fernandez Miranda takes us inside the world of elite philanthropy and her new novel Someone’s Gotta Give, perfect for anyone eagerly awaiting The Devil Wears Prada sequel.

How do you like to introduce Someone’s Gotta Give to readers?

Someone’s Gotta Give is a fun, funny mom-com with a kick: think of it like a spicy margarita on the beach. It tells the story of Lucia, a new mom, new wife and new expat who gets a job at London’s poshest private bank advising the rich and powerful on their philanthropy. As she explores this new world, she has to figure out the difference between meaning well and doing good, before she loses herself.

What real-life experience as an ex-pat did you have the most fun turning into a scene?

I had a blast going back to my early motherhood experiences. Being a new mom is hard enough without having to do it in a different country. Everything from the vocabulary to the clothing to the norms around going to the doctor was different from my own upbringing in Miami, and what all my US based friends were doing. The baby classes in particularly were so fun to write — Singy Songy in the book was heavily influenced by my own experiences at baby music class!

Lucia struggles with ethical dilemmas when it comes to philanthropy and the idea of “meaning well vs. doing well”. Is that something you were also trying to work out through writing this book?

When you work in the world of philanthropy — which I have for 20 years —you are constantly wondering if you’re doing enough. It requires trade-offs and compromises all the time and in the name of long-term impact, which might never come to fruition. It was really fun — and freeing— to explore this through fiction. Unlike Lucia, I work with clients so I have to be measured in what I say and cautious in what I do. I loved being able to see what those conflicts would be like in a totally risk free environment.

What was the biggest challenge transitioning from writing your memoir (My What If Year) to this debut novel? Which parts of this different creative process did you enjoy the most?

When I read for pleasure I mostly read fiction, so the task of writing something similar to the types of books I adore was completely daunting. Translating my own voice from my own head onto the page, like I did for My What If Year, felt very natural; but making up a story, and letting someone else’s voice exist in my head, was much harder than I expected. At every point I questioned my ability to actually do it, even after it was done. But it was fun. My favorite part is writing funny, sassy, dialogue — Belly, Tristan, Sooz— I love a good zinger and making myself laugh after I’ve written something.

I hope that this novel follows The Devil Wears Prada in another way and gives us a sequel! Are there any books you’ve read recently that have you clamoring for a next installment?

I seem to be obsessed with writing about being a woman of a certain age, a mother, a wife and a person with ambition in all its forms, so while I may not visit Lucia’s world again, my next projects follow similar themes that I hope you’ll also love. Personally, I’m a huge romantasy junkie — how long do I have to wait for Rebecca Yarros’ next book? I also nearly peed my pants laughing through Nussaibah Younis’ Fundamentally this summer, so wouldn’t mind a follow up from her! And my friend Emma Grey has a new book out next year, Start at the End. I devour everything she writes

Alisha Fernandez Miranda is an award-winning Cuban-American author. Her first book, the memoir, My What If Year, was a Best New Book in People magazine and The Boston Globe. Her writing has been published in Vogue, Marie Claire, Shondaland, and numerous other publications. Alisha is the current chair at I.G. Advisors, a leading social impact agency that consults the world’s biggest non-profits, including the Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation and UN Women. Alisha is a graduate of the London School of Economics and Harvard University, and speaks on women’s empowerment, social impact and sustainability. She currently lives in Scotland with her husband and children. www.alishafmiranda.com

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In this week’s Q&A, award-winning author Khadijah VanBrakle (Fatima Tate Takes the Cake) gives us the inside scoop on her sophomore young adult novel, My Perfect Family.

How do you like to introduce My Perfect Family to readers?

My sophomore, young adult novel examines the complexities of family dynamics. In My Perfect Family, the sixteen-year-old main character mistakenly believes that if she had a larger family, not just her and her mom, that her life would be better. When long lost family comes to light, Leena learns that sometimes getting what you’ve always wanted threatens what you already have.

Leena has always dreamed of a large extended family, but finds out it comes with a bit more drama than she anticipated. What inspired you to explore this experience?

My Perfect Family was inspired by my love of the fraught mother/daughter relationships in Gilmore Girls, but within a fractured Black American Muslim family. It is important to me to write about teens within my faith community going through universal themes in my coming-of-age stories. I love that readers from different backgrounds are able to see commonalities with my characters who have different lived experiences than themselves.

You’ve shared that the journey to writing your award-winning young adult novel Fatima Tate Takes the Cake began with a consequential trip to the library with your daughter. Can you tell us about that?

In 2017, my youngest daughter came home from school and told me she almost got in a fight. Another ninth grader told her that she couldn’t be both Black American and Muslim at the same time. At our next visit to our local library, we discovered there wasn’t a single traditionally-published novel in contemporary YA that featured a protagonist that shared our dual marginalization. That reality convinced me to begin writing stories to fill the void in this specific genre.

What has it been like to now come full circle — and maybe hear from readers who see themselves in the Black American Muslim teen protagonists you’ve brought to life?

It’s the best feeling in the world to hear from readers, especially young adults, who relate to the main characters in my novels. Being complimented on the authenticity of the protagonists’ voices and how realistic their personal journeys are means so much to me. The positive support from readers keeps my ever-present imposter syndrome locked up and provides me with fuel to keep writing.

Are there any books releasing this fall that you’re excited to recommend?

This is probably the hardest question for me to answer. Because you asked, I’ve narrowed down my list to three books.

Make Me A Monster by Kalynn Bayron –YA Horror (Sept 2025)

The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson –YA Thriller (Oct 2025)

Reasons To Hate Me by Susan Metallo – YA Contemporary (Sept 2025)

Khadijah VanBrakle is an award-winning author who writes coming-of-age stories about Black American Muslim teens, a dual marginalization that she shares. She was born and raised in Canada to American parents. Khadijah’s debut, FATIMA TATE TAKES THE CAKE, was a 2024 NAACP Image Awards finalist in the Outstanding Youth/Teens literature category. She’s a mom of five and lives in New Mexico with her family. To learn more, please visit her at www.khadijahvanbrakle.com.

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In this week’s Q&A, bestselling author Chanel Cleeton discusses the moving new novel she calls “her love letter to books”, The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes, as well as the family story and real historical events that inspired it all.

How do you like to introduce The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes to readers?

The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes is my love letter to books and the powerful impact they have on our lives. It’s the story of three incredible women spread across continents and over a century of time whose lives are linked by one unforgettable book. In 1900, Eva travels from Havana to Harvard to attend a summer school for Cuban teachers at a pivotal time in Cuba’s bid for independence. The novel she pens while she’s there touches the lives of Pilar—a Cuban librarian living in post-revolutionary 1960s Havana—who is entrusted with safeguarding the book, and Margo—an American expat in modern-day London—who is hired to track down the book amid secrecy and danger.

You’ve shared that you grew up on stories of your family’s exodus from Cuba following the Cuban Revolution. Was something in particular from one of those stories the kernel of inspiration for this new book?

In some ways, I think of this novel as an extension of the journey I began when I published Next Year in Havana. In that novel, I was inspired by a family story of when my family was forced to leave Cuba in the 1960s and they buried their valuable and sentimental possessions in their backyard for when they would be able to return. It was a common practice in Cuba at the time as was entrusting your important possessions to a trusted friend or family member, and in The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes my heroine Pilar is similarly given the responsibility of watching over a mysterious book by her neighbor who is fleeing Cuba. In this novel, I was also able to write for the first time about Cuban-American relations in the 1960s from the perspective of a heroine who was still in Cuba at the time as my family was.

In the novel, Eva travels from Havana to Harvard for a special summer program for teachers. Was this based on a real program, and does anything stand out from your research into this storyline?

This was a real program that took place in 1900 where over twelve hundred Cuban teachers travelled to study at Harvard for the summer. It was the largest cultural exchange of its kind. I first came across a mention of the Cuban Summer School when I was researching one of my previous novels The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba. That book was set during the Cuban fight for independence from Spain and the Spanish-American War which was a difficult period in Cuban history. I was fascinated by the idea that this cultural exchange was born in the aftermath of such a seminal moment in history and knew it was something I would want to incorporate into a future book.

I’d imagine that weaving together the three timelines for this book was quite a challenge! How did you approach the writing process?

I’ve had the opportunity to work with multiple timelines and povs for many of my historical books, and it’s something I really enjoy. I always draft in Scrivener, and I find it to be a very useful tool for moving scenes around when working with multiple timelines. I do a lot of shifting of chapters during the revision and editorial process to make sure that each individual timeline stands alone as a complete story arc as well as to ensure that they are interwoven into a cohesive story. A lot of it is trial and error until I settle on a finished result that I am happy with.

What book is your “A Time for Forgetting”? One that has meant as much to you as Eva’s novel means to Pilar?

I love this question! There are so many books that come to mind, books that found me in a particular time in my life when they really resonated with me. One recent book that exemplifies this is Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire. I read it a little over a decade ago, and it was the first time I saw my family’s experience represented on the page. It had such a powerful impact on me and really reignited my desire to know more about my heritage and family history.

Originally from Florida, Chanel Cleeton grew up on stories of her family’s exodus from Cuba following the events of the Cuban Revolution. Her passion for politics and history continued during her years spent studying in England, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Richmond, The American International University in London, and a master’s degree in Global Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Chanel also received her Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law. Learn more: https://www.chanelcleeton.com/

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In this week’s Q&A, #1 New York Times bestselling author/illustrator and Caldecott medal winner Brian Selznick (The Invention of Hugo Cabret) takes us behind the scenes of his first young adult novel, Run Away With Me — about two boys finding each other and falling in love over one summer in Rome.

How do you like to introduce Run Away With Me to readers?

I usually say it’s a Queer teen love story set in the 1980’s with three other Queer love stories (the 1940’s, 1900 and the 17th century) that weave together. It’s about how Queer people have always found ways to be happy throughout history, even in the worst of circumstances. Oh, and there are a lot of drawings!

I read that living in Rome during the pandemic was part of the inspiration for this book. How did that experience shape the story?

At the height of the pandemic, my husband won something called The Rome Prize given by the American Academy of Rome, and we moved there for nine months, starting in January of 2020. There were no tourists, and most Romans weren’t going out, so it was like we had the entire city to ourselves, it was strange and haunting, and very beautiful, as well as sad and scary. I was really struck by the ways in which history is made apparent throughout Rome, because you can see layers of time almost everywhere you look. The excavations were particularly moving, and I began to imagine two boys falling in love in the midst of the city. I knew that the discovery of a Queer past would also give them strength and guidance as they got to know each other.

I have such fond memories of sharing copies of The Invention of Hugo Cabret and Wonderstruck with kids when I was a school librarian — and watching them turn through the pages, mesmerized. How would you describe your signature style?

The Invention of Hugo Cabret was originally supposed to be a 98-page novella with one drawing per chapter, but as I worked on the story I found myself thinking about silent movies and how the camera tells its story, which I then connected in my mind to picture book sequences, especially the Wild Rumpus in Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are. I thought, if a 6-page wordless spread in a 32-page book can be that exciting, what would happen if there were 40-page picture sequences in a 600-page book? I became very interested in how pictures and words can work together to illuminate something about the story they’re telling, which is something Sendak himself used to talk about when discussing the creation of picture books. In a way, I suppose I’m making 600-page picture books, but they’re also sort of like graphic novels, though they’re different. Basically, I have found all these years later that it’s still easier to describe what my books aren’t than describing what they are. They’re not really picture books, or graphic novels, or comics. They’re experiments in narrative, I suppose.

During a time when LGBTQ representation in books is often under attack, have you had any memorable interactions with young readers about how Run Away With Me has mattered to them?

When I was growing up in the 70’s I thought I was the only gay person in the world. There was almost no representation in the media that I was aware of, and I felt very alone. Growing up, coming out, and discovering I am part of a huge community that extends back through all of time gave me a real sense of strength and support, and now I hope that’s what Run Away With Me will offer for young readers.

Are there other YA stories that have stolen your heart lately you’d want to recommend?

I just finished Kazimir Lee’s wonderful graphic novel Low Orbit about a Queer fifteen year old Malaysian-American girl who is obsessed with a sci-fi book series, and much of it takes place in an abandoned mall, which I particularly love. What-the-Dickens by Gregory Maguire is about storytelling at the end of the world, in which a society of fairies may hold the keys to survival, and I’ve been loving the work of Laura Redniss whose illustrated non-fiction isn’t specifically for YA audiences, but I think they’d love her books. Radioactive is about Marie and Pierre Curie, and Oak Flats is about the potential destruction of holy land in Arizona by a copper mine, and it is both galactic and microscopic in its storytelling and detail.

Brian Selznick’s books have sold millions of copies, garnered countless awards worldwide, and have been translated into more than 35 languages. He broke open the novel form with his genre-breaking thematic trilogy, beginning with the Caldecott Medal-winning #1 New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, adapted into Martin Scorsese’s Oscar-winning movie Hugo. He followed that with the #1 New York Times bestseller, Wonderstruck, adapted by celebrated filmmaker Todd Haynes, with a screenplay by Selznick, and then the New York Times bestseller, The Marvels. In praising his body of work, The Washington Post said, “Brian Selznick proves to be that rare creator capable of following one masterpiece with another.” The Associated Press called Selznick “one of publishing’s most imaginative storytellers.” Selznick’s most recent novels, Big Tree (inspired by an idea from Steven Spielberg) and Kaleidoscope, were both national bestsellers and were named New York Times Notable Children’s Books. He also illustrated the 20th anniversary edition covers of the #1 globally bestselling Harry Potter series. Selznick has appeared on Good Morning America, NBC’s Today Show, CBS Sunday Morning, and has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, The Guardian, Le Monde, la Repubblica, among many other renowned publications worldwide. He and his husband Dr. David Serlin divide their time between Brooklyn, New York and La Jolla, California. Learn more: https://brianselznick.com/

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In this week’s Q&A, bestselling author and longtime publishing veteran Christine Pride shares the story behind her new novel, All The Men I’ve Loved Again. The book was inspired by her real-life experiences in the same love triangle — two decades apart!

How do you like to introduce All the Men I've Loved Again to readers?

EXUBERANTLY! But that’s not exactly what you meant. Haha. This novel is a coming of age love story about a woman named Cora who falls for two men in her twenties and then falls for the same two men again as she approaches forty. It’s a heartfelt story about first love, following your heart and how it’s never too late for a second chance and for life to surprise you, romantically and otherwise!

I read that the novel was loosely inspired by your own experiences dating the same two men in your twenties and then in your forties. Tell us more! And can you share the process of blending fact with fiction?

It’s true—the premise is ripped from my real life. Like Cora, I dated the same two people back to back, twice. And two decades apart. Safe to say, this was a pretty unique experience—part Black Mirror, part Sliding Doors! It inspired me to reflect a lot on fate, timing and all the ways we grow and change (or don’t). I’ve become a little obsessed with this idea of how our first loves shape us — mark us — and how they cast such a long shadow on every relationship that comes after.

But aside from the initial premise, the story is very heavily fictionalized—I did not want to write a memoir about my love life by any means! So I made sure that Cora was very different from me, and in turn her love interests diverge from their real life counterparts in significant ways, but the emotional truth of the story — the struggle to learn how to follow your heart — is very much there, and very real.

All the Men I've Loved Again is also a love story about the friends that see us through hard times — if we're lucky enough — in every stage of our lives. What was it like going back in time and exploring the early years of those college friendships?

My friends, including my college besties, are my great loves! Female friendships are a cornerstone of my life and the stories I write, so any great romance would have to involve them. In this case of this novel, Cora’s best friends, Neisha and Kim, are a composite of all my favorite women friends. It was incredibly fun to revisit college memories (and music!) and to be reminded once again how influential our friends are, how much they shape us, especially as we’re figuring out who we are. Lifelong friends are a special treasure because you’ve shared and witnessed so much. I loved showing Cora’s friendships over twenty years, the way they grow, evolve, are challenged and have to be cared for with intention just like any romantic relationship.

You shared in your acknowledgements that you still strongly identify as an editor after decades in publishing. How has that lens shaped you as a writer?

It’s both a blessing and curse to have such deep knowledge of what’s going on behind the scenes in publishing a book, akin to a doctor becoming the patient! I understand how this business works—the challenges, joys and surprises — and how hard people are working behind the scenes, including my team at Atria and that’s a plus all around. But some of the knowledge is also…sobering. It’s very hard to sell books — there’s so much competition, it’s a challenge to get attention for new releases (especially debuts) and the market changes quickly. I’m grateful that I understand all that and it gives me a healthy perspective and expectations as an author.

Mainly, though, being an editor has given me a “reader-forward” mentality — at the end of the day, it’s about what experience am I offering the reader, what value I’m offering them with my story-telling in exchange for their time and dollars — both of which are precious. It’s not about my personal ego or bestseller dreams (though that — I’m human!) but more about what I can deliver to someone by way of diversion or entertainment, humor or inspiration. That’s what drives me…both as an editor and a writer.

What books are at the top of your recommendation list this fall?

Oh, I love giving recommendations! I’m excited for Elizabeth Gilbert’s new memoir, All The Way To The River (I just started reading the ARC and already mesmerized). I’m also really looking forward to The People’s Project by Maggie Smith and Saeed Jones. I’m huge fans of both of those writers and this anthology of essays, poetry and art feels like the perfect response to our troubled times — a reminder that art matters more than ever as inspiration, solace and escape.

Christine Pride is a writer, editor, and longtime publishing veteran. She is the co-author of the Good Morning America book club pick WE ARE NOT LIKE THEM (2021) and YOU WERE ALWAYS MINE (2023) with Jo Piazza. Christine has held editorial posts at many different trade imprints, including Doubleday, Broadway, Crown, Hyperion, and Simon & Schuster. As an editor, Christine has published a range of books, with a special emphasis on inspirational stories and memoirs, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. As a freelance editorial consultant, she does select editing and proposal/content development, as well as teaching and coaching, and pens a regular column—“Race Matters”—for Cup of Jo. Christine splits her time between New York City and Los Angeles. Learn more: www.christinepride.com

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In this week’s Q&A, Rhys Bowen takes us behind the scenes of Mrs. Endicott’s Splendid Adventure. Three unlikely companions seize their chance for a second act, traveling from England to a seaside villa in France in this heartwarming historical novel.

This book really is a "splendid adventure"! How would you describe the trio of women who set off for France together?

An unlikely friendship, definitely. These were not women who would have been close friends and equals in England. Thrown together because life had treated each of them unfairly, they form a close bond of support for each other.

Ellie Endicott's second act is a delight to read about — heartwarming, moving, empowering, and funny, with such a picturesque setting. Did you plot out her character arc in advance or are you someone who has to write your way through to the ending?

I never know that much when I start. I have to see where my characters take me. I knew I wanted her to restore a villa and endure the hardships of WWII, but it wasn’t until Nico stepped out when her car broke down that I realized he might be her future love interest, and that he’d have such an interesting back story.

I read that you love to travel. Are the villa and town in Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure real places that captured your imagination?

The town is based on Cassis, near Monte Carlo, as it would have been before WWII. And the villa? I took photos of several villas when I was researching, but the idea for the villa came when I was on an Italian lake a few years ago and came upon a lovely villa, quite abandoned, ivy covered. I couldn’t believe who would walk away from such a lovely place, and if they had died, why their family did not want it. Being a hopeless romantic, I wanted my husband and I to buy and restore it. Practical husband pointed out that such a repair would be beyond us. But I kept the image of it in my heart and was allowed to renovate a villa vicariously through Ellie.

Is there anything you uncovered during the research process for this book that has really stayed with you?

Several things. There is a monastery on an island further along the coast. I went there once and was caught in a hail storm! Also in my reading I found that a local resistance cell in Marseilles really did manage to spirit away Jewish men to safety to Corsica. Unfortunately there wasn’t a convenient monastery on an island off the coast as there was in my book. The monastery I used is really further along off the coast at Cannes.

This is one of those novels where I was practically in mourning when it ended. What is the last book that had you wishing for just a few more chapters?

That’s a hard one. I really loved The House in the Cerulean Sea and The Echo of Old Books, but both ended quite satisfactorily!

About the Author: Rhys Bowen is the New York Times bestselling author of more than sixty novels, including The Rose Arbor, The Paris Assignment, Where the Sky Begins, The Venice Sketchbook, Above the Bay of Angels, The Victory Garden, The Tuscan Child, and In Farleigh Field, the winner of the Lefty Award for Best Historical Mystery Novel and the Agatha Award for Best Historical Novel. She is also the author of the Royal Spyness mysteries and several other series. Bowen’s work has been translated into many languages and has won sixteen honors to date, including multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards. A transplanted Brit, Bowen divides her time between California and Arizona. For more information, visit rhysbowen.com.

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In this week’s Q&A, Brooke Lea Foster explores the nugget of inspiration for her new historical novel, Our Last Vineyard Summer: What if Gloria Steinhem had been your mother? We also dive into the sisters and secrets at the heart of this story.

How do you like to introduce Our Last Vineyard Summer to readers?

Our Last Vineyard Summer is a story about sisters. It’s been said that having a sister is like looking into a mirror – you adore what you see at the same moment that you’re repelled. This novel is about secrets and families and the narratives we tell ourselves about who our family is and how we fit into it. It’s about memory and how looking back we may see the same childhood memory differently than our siblings, depending on our place in the family. Lastly, it’s a story about healing. I think all of us carry some level of baggage when it comes to our families. In this novel, the sisters have struggled but they also learn to accept one another, flaws and all.

This book is full of relatable sister drama. I read that like Betsy, you are also one of three sisters. What parts of these (beautiful, complicated, infuriating!) relationships were you most interested in exploring?

Thank you! Whenever my sisters and I sit down and talk together, I’m often blown away by how differently we see our parents. Recently, we were talking about when our parents’ marriage began to crumble. For me, it was when I was older; I feel like I had them at their best in the first ten years of their relationship. Generally, I remember my parents happy together. My youngest sister cocked an eyebrow and said something like, “Mom and dad were never happy.” It’s this perspective that really fascinates me – how do siblings grow up in the same family but effectively feel as though we’ve grown up in entirely different ones?

There is a strong feminist throughline to this novel and I was so intrigued by the mother, who becomes a well-known leader in the women's movement. Was she based on anyone in particular and how do you think her character speaks to our current political moment?

This novel began with a hook: What if Gloria Steinem had been your mother? I began thinking about this now that I have my own children and I’m often pointing out gender discrimination in the bro-sphere to my 15-year-old son and trying to empower my 10-year-old daughter. I started to wonder: What if this backfires on me? Will they develop in opposition to me or in tandem with my beliefs? And yet it’s so important to me that they grow up with context for some of the sexist videos they see on YouTube and on social media. It made me think about other tough moments in our political history—the 1960s and 1970s—and what it would have been like to be the three daughters of someone like Steinem. I think it makes the grown daughters in Our Last Vineyard Summer so complicated; the oldest believes in everything her mother ever told her but the youngest is misunderstanding the messaging and it backfires in their relationship.

In our interview for All the Summers in Between you shared that certain songs and artists helped pull you deeper into scenes as you were drafting. What was on your writing playlist for Our Last Vineyard Summer?

I love this question! I kept listening to Benson Boone’s Ghost Town on repeat. I know that may seem strange because he’s a contemporary artist and this is a novel set in the 60s and 70s but there’s this line I love. Something like…Before I turn your heart into a ghost town, Show me everything we built so I can tear it all down. It’s what I felt like when writing this story; I was creating a close, intertwined family with memories, a beach house, grief and love. But then as a writer, I had to tear it all down. I struggled with that. I really wanted them to be happy the same way I just want my own family to be happy.

What books do you wish you could tuck into everyone's beach bag this summer?

There are so many! I have so many on my list. I’m excited for Amy Poeppel’s Far & Away. I can’t wait for the latest Beatriz Williams! She never disappoints. I loved Meg Mitchell Moore’s latest Mansion Beach. I’m dying to read Typewriter Beach by Meg Waite Clayton too!

Brooke Lea Foster is an award-winning author and journalist whose articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe and The Washington Post Magazine. Her novels, Summer Darlings, On Gin Lane, and All the Summers in Between have been named top summer reads in magazines like People, Entertainment Weekly, First and PARADE. She writes the popular Dear Fiction newsletter and she's the author of three nonfiction books. Our Last Vineyard Summer is her fourth novel.

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In this week’s Q&A, Amy Poeppel shares the experiences that led to writing her new novel, Far and Away. Travel from Texas to Berlin and back again in this story about two women who impulsively agree to a house swap — and get a bit more than they bargain for.

We've been able to speak in the past about Musical Chairs and The Sweet Spot. I know that many of your readers (like me!) have been counting down to this next book's release. How would you describe Far and Away?

Far And Away is a love letter to two of my favorite places: Texas, where I was born and raised, and Germany, where I’ve lived off and on for the past twenty years. In my novel, two strangers—Greta and Lucy—are in a big rush to leave town and agree to swap homes with each other without asking enough questions … or any questions at all. They get a lot more than a change of scenery as their lives become completely entangled. I hope readers will enjoy the ride without having to endure any jet lag or culture shock!

I remembered that you spend some of your time in Germany and so I wondered as I was reading how much of this book's origin story had to do with wanting to explore your own experiences (and the humor!) of going between cultures?

So much of this book is based on my experiences of living in a place where I don’t speak the language well and don’t always grasp the cultural expectations. When I moved to Berlin in 2003 with my husband and three children, I never could have imagined how important and impactful the experience would be for me. From parent-teacher night at the local school, to grocery shopping (and bagging), to making friends, I was often caught off guard and regularly said or did exactly the wrong thing at the wrong moment. My German is pretty terrible, so communication has gone off the rails more than once. Being out of my comfort zone has been very humbling and, yes, funny at times. I wanted Lucy and Greta, two women who are quite competent and responsible, to get knocked off balance by the experience of leaving home, and I wanted them to be changed in interesting ways.

One of the things I love most about your books is the way you create these warm, funny, complicated, and very relatable multigenerational families. Do you have any favorite characters in Far and Away? (I for one have a real soft spot for all the grandparents).

When I’m writing a book, I’m initially focused on a main character to center the story around. But then I start asking myself: who is important to that person? Who raised her? Who are her friends? Does she like animals? And the next thing I know, I’ve populated the novel with parents, grandparents, siblings, neighbors, and pets. It happens every time. In this book, I really came to love Emmi, Greta’s daughter, and Jack, Lucy’s son. (I taught high school for years, so I really adore the work-in-progress nature of kids that age.) I have a soft spot for Sylvie, the recently divorced woman who moves in next door to Lucy and her family. And I have great respect for Greta’s sister Bettina. All of these characters play important roles in the story, even the pool boy.

I saw you share on social media some very exciting news about The Sweet Spot. Can you tell us anything about this adaptation project?

The Sweet Spot is being adapted by Amazon Studios/MGM, thanks to Rebelle Media and writer and actress Jennifer Westfeldt. I couldn’t be happier, and my book could not be in better hands. It was a dream come true to see the announcement in Deadline!!

What books are you recommending to everyone this summer?

If you like books like Far And Away that involve the messiness of travel, I highly recommend The Road To Tender Hearts. It is a wild ride! I loved the characters, despite their many flaws, and I was so happy that their chaotic road trip comes to a wonderfully satisfying conclusion.

I’m a fan of epistolary novels, so I couldn’t wait to read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans. What a marvelous book! It will make you laugh and cry as you read the letters of Sybil to her brother in France, her kind neighbor, her daughter, and to one person who remains a mystery until the end. It is a beautifully told story.

About the Author: Amy Poeppel is the award-winning author of the novels Far and Away, The Sweet Spot, Musical Chairs, Limelight, and Small Admissions. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Rumpus, Literary Hub, and Working Mother. She and her husband have three sons and split their time between New York City, Germany, and Connecticut. She would love to hear from you on Twitter or Instagram: @AmyPoeppel or at AmyPoeppel.com.

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This week, I’m sharing a special author Q&A to celebrate the fifth anniversary of Friends & Fiction — a wildly popular weekly web show, podcast, and online community launched at the dawn of the pandemic by four New York Times-bestselling authors—Mary Kay Andrews, Patti Callahan Henry, Kristin Harmel & Kristy Woodson Harvey.

Like many readers, I found the show to be such heartening bookish company during the pandemic and five years later it feels like listening to old friends — who also happen to write and recommend so many of your favorite titles! If you haven’t tuned in yet, I hope you treat yourself to some time with Friends and Fiction soon.

I, for one, cannot believe it has been five years. Friends & Fiction was a real bright spot during the pandemic and continues to be today. What has been the most memorable moment for you so far?

Kristin Harmel: There are so many moments to choose from...it’s hard to pick just one! Two that come to mind are seeing MKA in her pajamas on episode one—and finally getting to hug MKA, Patti, Kristy, and Meg in November 2020, the first time we all met up in person after starting F&F! Since then, our “Friends & Fiction LIVE” events—which have taken place from St. Louis to Columbus to Atlanta to Alabama—have all been such a joy, because we get to be together in person, and we get to spend time with so many members of our Friends & Fiction community.

Mary Kay Andrews: I think the most memorable/surreal memory was Feb. 2022, the year we were the closing act at The Savannah Book Festival. Sitting on a stage, looking out at a live sold-out audience for the first time since the pandemic had started, was amazing, and the interaction with our fans, who told us how much the show had meant to them during lockdown, came as a happy revelation.

Friends & Fiction has such a dedicated following. How did you go about fostering this community of readers?

Kristy Woodson Harvey: We’ve always said that book people are the best people! I really feel like it was a “build it and they will come” type of situation. We created a place for readers who were separated and stuck at home during the pandemic to congregate… And, boy, did they ever! It’s such a joy to see the real-life friendships that started online. We continue to marvel at it!

Patti Callahan Henry: We started Friends & Fiction at the beginning of the pandemic, simply as a way for four author friends to connect with readers and support independent bookstores during an uncertain and isolated time. We didn’t plan for it to become a community, but it just happened because of the magic that occurs when storytelling meets community. From the beginning, we focused on showing up for each other: readers, authors, bookstores, libraries. Week after week, we invited readers into real conversations about books and the writing life. Over time, that vulnerability and joy turned into a true literary family, one that continues to grow, not just because of us, but because our readers have made it their own.

What nugget of wisdom from your co-hosts or the hundreds of authors you’ve interviewed has changed you as a writer?

Kristin: I think my biggest writing realization along the way is that there’s no one way to write. I spent the first decade and a half of my career thinking I was missing the boat somehow—surely there was a clear-cut “best way to write a book” that I just hadn’t found out about yet. But after talking to literally hundreds of writers on the show over the last five years, one thing that has become clear is that every single person has a different method to his or her madness—and that the best way to write a book is simply the way that works for you. Realizing that gave me a lot of freedom and allowed me to become a bit more confident in my own process rather than trying to compare my technique to that of others.

Mary Kay: I interviewed Jean Hanff Korelitz, the author of THE PLOT. It’s a dark, twisty thriller, and when I confessed to her that I hadn’t liked or felt sympathy for any of her characters, she told me, “It’s not my job to create likeable characters. It’s my job to tell a story with believable, flawed characters.” I’d always worried about trying to make my readers fall in love with characters, especially my protagonists, but that was a lightbulb moment for me, giving me permission to create more complex characters, flaws and all.

Supporting independent bookstores and libraries has always been at the heart of Friends & Fiction’s mission. At this moment, when we are seeing federal cuts to library funding, book bans, and economic uncertainty for independent bookstores, how do you think readers can make a difference?

Kristy: I think continuing to stand up for underrepresented voices and voting with our dollars (i.e. supporting our indie bookstores and authors we love and encouraging our libraries to order books we’re interested in!) is the very best way. We will continue to do that personally and on the show and encourage our readers to do the same.

Patti: Readers hold extraordinary power, not just in what we choose to read, but in what we choose to support. Independent bookstores and libraries aren’t just places to find books; they’re community anchors, safe havens, and keepers of culture. At Friends & Fiction, we’ve always believed that stories can change the world, but only if they’re allowed to be heard. Readers can make a difference by shopping local, attending author events, donating banned books to Little Free Libraries, supporting library levies, and using their voices to speak up for the freedom to read. Every book you buy, every story you share, every library card you use matters. Now more than ever, it’s up to us to protect the spaces that have always protected imagination.

For each of you — What book are you most excited to feature on Friends & Fiction soon?

Kristin: My favorite episodes are the ones where we launch each other’s books, because we have started a tradition of performing what we call “Friends & Fiction Theater”: little scripted plays where we each play characters to introduce you to the plot of each book. They’re always a lot of fun—and I have the feeling that we’re in for an especially good time with Mary Kay’s 2026 book! I also love having returning fan favorites like Lisa Scottoline, Elin Hilderbrand, and Karin Slaughter on the show... we can always count on a lot of warmth and laughs from them!

Kristy: We have a fun “debut authors” episode coming up and will feature even more in our Substack. I’m super excited about A Killer Wedding by Joan O’Leary and Hot Desk by Laura Dickerman, two debuts we will be featuring.

Mary Kay: It’s always a joy to have my old pal Lisa Scottoline on the show, so I’m looking forward to hosting her for her new thriller, set in Tuscany, called The Unraveling of Julia.

Patti: We just finished an interview with Jess Walter and his new book, So Far Gone, and it was such a fabulous interview about writing and characters and I can’t wait for our community to hear it. His book Beautiful Ruins has been in my top ten of best reads for a long while now, and I loved this interview.

Learn more about FRIENDS & FICTION.

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This week Katherine Reay gives us the inside scoop on the The English Masterpiece. Set in 1970s London, the novel follows one woman’s race against the clock to uncover the truth about a Picasso masterpiece.

I loved being immersed in the London art scene of the 1970s for this novel. What drew you to exploring this for your next project?

The English Masterpiece started with the villain — then I needed a “high stakes” time period in which to set the crime. I was reading an article about a famous contemporary art forger and felt the story unfold within my imagination, but I knew it wasn’t a “contemporary” story. I wanted that time before social media and even before art burst upon the world as an investment vehicle in the 1980s, and Picasso’s death provided the perfect backdrop. He was not only the world’s most famous artist — his Tate Gallery 1960 exhibition is considered the world’s first “blockbuster” art show — but, upon his death, every museum was scrambling to honor him. Picasso is also the world’s most forged artist — I guess when you canvas all those movements, forgers have a lot to work with — and that, of course, worked perfectly for my purposes as well.

I was fascinated reading about the intricacies of passing off an art forgery at the time. Were the forgers and their methods based on any real people?

Yes, I was inspired by real forgers for the story and the methods I employed within The English Masterpiece closely resemble what I read about them — how they worked, how they thought about themselves and about their art. I’m withholding the names of my direct inspiration so I don’t give anything away — so, readers, be sure not to read the Author’s Note before you finish the novel! But, really, it wasn’t just this forger. I found so many forgers that, in the end, played a role in my fictitious villain because it wasn’t always about the art, at least not only the art. For example, I read an article about Han van Meegeren — one of history’s most famous forgers — who focused primarily upon Vermeer, and this article stated that his “story” was more convincing than his art — the psychological game he played with the buyer as they considered their purchases. In fact, the article even went so far as to state that side-by-side it was a wonder anyone ever thought any of Van Meegeren’s works could be mistaken for a Vermeer. I found that fascinating and gave a little of that cat-and-mouse, gamesmanship, quality to the crimes in the story.

Did you do a research trip to London for The English Masterpiece and if so, what were some of the most memorable moments?

I think I keep setting novels in London so I can keep visiting. I lived there for a couple years in the early 2000s so I know it well, but each trip reveals something new and I always love going back. For The English Masterpiece, I raced all around Tate Britain, as it was the Tate Gallery in 1973 and houses this story. I spent time in its archives and researched past exhibitions and the expansions the gallery underwent over the years. I also walked the path Lily would have walked from the Underground’s new Pimlico station to the Gallery and traced her path to St. Martin’s School of art, now Foyle’s Bookstore. That was a delightful surprise and I purchased a few books.

But the most dynamic part of my research was an interview with the chairman of an insurance company that is part of the Lloyd’s syndicate. I toured the Lloyd’s offices, learned about its beginnings in the 17th century, and it was that discussion and insights gleaned into the insurance classification of art, the movement of art, and its evolving nature as an investment from the 1970s into the 1980s, that really framed the story.

You described your early books such as Dear Mr. Knightley as a love letter to literature. Is there a theme that you keep coming back to in your more recent historical novels?

Such a good question. I supposed you could call my historical fiction — my spy novels and this one — love letters to history. If I can use a fact over a fiction within these stories I do. They are full of the real events of our pasts — and our pasts inform our presents and our futures. What’s even more fun is that we often misunderstand what happened — as oftentimes what objectively happened, is not what, subjectively, we see or understand, both on a personal scale and on a larger collective one. Wrestling with the past, understanding it, laying it down, forgiving it — whatever must be done — is oftentimes the only way to move forward. I find this to be an inherent part of our human nature and endlessly fascinating. So, while there are different themes I gravitate towards within each of my historical fiction works, this — by the very nature of the genre — seems to be a common one.

Can you tell us about “The 10 Minute Book Talk" and a favorite book you've read for that recently?

That is such a fun group! About five years ago, authors Marie Bostwick, Rachel Linden, and I decided to reach out to author friends and conduct quick and easy ten minute interviews on books, new releases, the reading life, etc. We drop a new “short and sweet” interview each Wednesday on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, and it has turned out to be an amazing thing. It’s a wonderful way to stay in touch with and offer support for friends, meet new author friends, and learn about upcoming books. When you ask about a favorite book, I believe I’ll give a shoutout to Elise Hooper and The Library of Lost Dollhouses. It was original, fresh, compelling, and a wonderful read. And without this idea we came up with all those years ago, I might not have known about it!

About the Author: Katherine Reay is a national bestselling and award-winning author of twelve novels and one non-fiction work. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Northwestern University, her writing has appeared in numerous publications, including Redbook, USA TODAY, The Daily Beast, Criminal Element, and many more. She holds a master’s in marketing from Northwestern University as well. Katherine is also a co-founder and host of the What the Dickens Book Club on Facebook and The 10 Minute Book Talk on Instagram. She is a mother of three and lives in Montana with her husband and their dogs.

*A note that all book links bring you to Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. If you purchase something through these affiliate links, A Bookish Home also earns a small commission. Thanks for your support!