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A Weekend of Whispering Ahead
This warmer sunny weather has been such a treat. My office window at the house overlooks the street, and many people are out walking every day. We have a lot going on, these days at Bookreporter, so I am "walking vicariously," if such a thing is possible. That said, our fingers have been flying on keyboards this week, and we have lots to share with you!
Yesterday I went to the launch event for The Woman in the Window, based on A. J. Finn's bestselling book. It was star-studded, with Amy Adams, Julianne Moore, Wyatt Russell, Anthony Mackie and Fred Hechinger, as well as director Joe Wright, sharing their thoughts on the filming. It was the first time that Amy and Julianne had worked together, which was a fun nugget to learn. This movie has been a long time in the making! It was originally done for Fox 2000, the studio that was sold to Disney, which in turn sold the film to Netflix, where it will drop on Friday, May 14th. You can watch the trailer here. It's very creepy!
On Tuesday, A. J. talked to Chris Whitaker about WE BEGIN AT THE END, last month’s Barnes & Noble Book Club pick and a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection, on B&N's Facebook page. There was some lively banter between the two of them that was fun to listen in on. You can watch their conversation here. By the way, we are giving three book groups the chance to win up to 12 copies of the book in our “What’s Your Book Group Reading This Month?” contest on ReadingGroupGuides.com. All you have to do is fill out the form on this page by Wednesday, May 5th at noon ET.
My latest “Bookreporter Talks To” interview is with Gabriela Garcia, whose debut novel, the New York Times bestseller OF WOMEN AND SALT, is April’s “Good Morning America” Book Club pick, our current Fiction Author Spotlight title, and a Bets On selection. The book looks at the lives of two families of women, from the days of the cigar factories in 19th-century Cuba to modern-day Miami, with a detour to migrant detention centers sheltering refugees coming from Mexico. The voices of these women are intertwined in such a way that their history is woven together seamlessly for the reader. We see how actions of today come as reactions for what happened in the past. The perspective of the book shifts from woman to woman in each chapter, but is brought together brilliantly at the end.
In the interview, Gabriela shared her personal journey to write the book, discussed many of the timely cultural topics that are addressed in her prose, and explained how she worked to blend the women’s voices together. Click here to watch the video and here to listen to the podcast. Also, be sure to check out my Bets On commentary, our review from last week if you missed it, and the discussion guide on ReadingGroupGuides.com.
THE DROWNING KIND by Jennifer McMahon is this week’s New Release Spotlight title, as well as an upcoming Spring Preview contest book (more on the latter in a moment!). The New York Times bestselling author of THE INVITED and THE WINTER PEOPLE has written a chilling novel about a woman who returns to her old family home after her sister mysteriously drowns in its swimming pool…but she’s not the pool’s only victim. According to our reviewer Ray Palen, the book "pulls you into the story of two very unique sisters and may cause you to look over your shoulder late into the night as you turn each suspense-filled page." He goes on to say, “THE DROWNING KIND is a chilling novel that will tug at your heartstrings while simultaneously creeping you out beyond belief, and will linger in your mind for a long time to come.”
I like to swim, so I am sure reading this one will haunt me!
This week, we launched our Historical Fiction Author Spotlight of THE GIRLS IN THE STILT HOUSE by first-time novelist Kelly Mustian, which is now in stores. This debut Southern novel, which the publisher describes as being perfect for readers of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING and IF THE CREEK DON'T RISE, tells the beautiful and harrowing story of two teenage girls cast in an unlikely partnership through murder. Bronwyn Miller has our review and says, “It is amazing to think that this is Kelly Mustian’s debut novel as it is so expertly crafted and assuredly told. Her artful descriptions of the landscape leave readers feeling the humidity and smelling the moss. The perilous story of these two young girls has shades of Harper Lee’s TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, and much like the racial issues that Scout and Jem faced in that classic, Ada and Matilda are navigating these dangerous waters themselves.” We look forward to featuring our interview with Kelly in next week’s newsletter.
Other books we’re reviewing this week include:
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GOOD COMPANY by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney: The author of the instant New York Times bestseller THE NEST is back with a new novel about the enduring bonds of marriage and friendship. Jenna Bush Hager has selected the book as April’s “Read with Jenna” Today Show Book Club pick.
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THE CODE BREAKER by Walter Isaacson: The bestselling author of LEONARDO DA VINCI and STEVE JOBS returns with a gripping account of how Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna and her colleagues launched a revolution that will allow us to cure diseases, fend off viruses and have healthier babies.
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NORTHERN SPY by Flynn Berry: The acclaimed author of UNDER THE HARROW and A DOUBLE LIFE is back with the heart-pounding story of two sisters who become entangled with the IRA. Reese Witherspoon has selected the book as this month’s Reese’s Book Club pick.
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YOU BELONG HERE NOW by Dianna Rostad: This brilliant debut novel, which will be a Bets On pick, centers on three orphans who journey westward from New York City to the Big Sky Country of Montana, hoping for a better life. Note that William Kent Krueger said, “I love this book, and I guarantee you won’t find a finer debut book anywhere.” My Bets On commentary will appear in next week’s newsletter, and I am going to schedule an interview with Dianna in the coming weeks.
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I HAVE BEEN BURIED UNDER YEARS OF DUST by Valerie Gilpeer and Emily Grodin: Imagine yourself as a new mother or father, and you realize that "something" is going on with your child. But you are not sure what that "something" is. Your child is not verbal, but she clearly is very bright. And then one day, when she is 25, she writes, “I have been buried under years of dust and now I have so much to say.” Suddenly through her writing, Emily conveys to her parents so much that she has remembered and known from the quarter century before. This is the story of this family's journey through the maze of Emily's life --- and their unbridled joy at this enormous breakthrough!
Spring Preview Update
YOU BELONG HERE NOW was one of this week’s Spring Preview contest titles; the others were ASTRID SEES ALL by Natalie Standiford (which we also review this week), THE HENNA ARTIST by Alka Joshi, and PROJECT HAIL MARY by Andy Weir. Next week’s prizes will be THE GOOD SISTER by Sally Hepworth, which releases on Tuesday and will be a Bets On pick; LADY BE GOOD: The Life and Times of Dorothy Hale by Pamela Hamilton; and the aforementioned THE DROWNING KIND by Jennifer McMahon. The first contest of the week will be up on Monday, April 12th at noon ET.
Quick Takes on Regular Features
Our New in Paperback roundups have been updated for April. We’re featuring paperback reprints from such bestselling authors as Lee Child and Andrew Child (THE SENTINEL), Michael Connelly (THE LAW OF INNOCENCE), Jennifer Weiner (BIG SUMMER), Kiley Reid (SUCH A FUN AGE), and J. Courtney Sullivan (FRIENDS AND STRANGERS); nonfiction titles, including WARHOL by Adam Gopnik and THE CHIFFON TRENCHES by André Leon Talley; and paperback originals like IN HER TRACKS by Robert Dugoni and STRONGHEART: The Lost Journals of May Dodd and Molly McGill by Jim Fergus.
Our Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks feature for April is now up. Click here to take a look at this month’s Indie Next and LibraryReads titles, the Target Book Club pick, Pennie’s Pick for Costco, and more.
Submit your comments about the books you’ve read, and you’ll have the opportunity to win MOTHER MAY I by Joshilyn Jackson and WHEN THE STARS GO DARK by Paula McLain in our Word of Mouth contest. Please do so by Friday, April 16th at noon ET. We will feature our reviews of both in that’s day’s newsletter.
Our poll continues to ask where you get your e-books (if you read them). Click here to let us know what you do. We are curious.
This is your last weekly newsletter reminder to sign up for this month’s “Bookaccino Live” afternoon event, which will take place on Wednesday, April 14th at 2pm ET. I will present a number of titles releasing between April 13th and May 4th, along with a few from June, that I would like to get on your radar. Please keep in mind that attendees of the live event will be invited to answer a survey about the books from the presentation that they are most interested in reading. Those who do will be eligible to win prizes! Be sure to register here by 1pm ET on Wednesday to get a list of the featured titles sent to you before the event. If you have enjoyed "Bookaccino Live," may we ask you to reach out to friends and suggest that they join us as well?
Please keep in mind that our rescheduled "Bookaccino Live" Book Group event featuring Kim Michele Richardson, author of THE BOOK WOMAN OF TROUBLESOME CREEK, will take place on Thursday, April 22nd at 8pm ET. Click here to sign up. If you would like to be one of our featured audience guests and ask Kim Michele a question on camera, please send me an email with the subject line “Question for Kim Michele.”
News & Pop Culture
Reader Mail: Wanda wrote this on winning our Spring Preview contest for THE WOMAN THEY COULD NOT SILENCE: “Awesome, thank you so much! I love reading, and I started a book club in 1965. We are still active.” We are impressed that you have been in a book club for 56 years!
"Tina" on HBO: This documentary about Tina Turner was fun to watch. Women dancing in high heels…seriously! You can see how she taught Mick Jagger how to dance.
"Ted Lasso" on Apple TV+: Okay, we are late to the game on this one, but it was a fun series to watch.
HBO Celebrates the 10th Anniversary of "Game of Thrones": Yes, it’s been 10 years since the premiere of "Games of Thrones." HBO has launched the Iron Anniversary, a month-long celebration. Here are details.
Greg decided that he was going to make the Easter dinner desserts, and he went all out. He made a Lemon Icebox Cake from Garden & Gun magazine, and a Pavlova with fresh fruit suggested to him by his friend, Teesh, who is from Australia. He is hired to make desserts for all future family events. Both were terrific!
In the ongoing saga about my wanting to knit the Nature’s Palette Blanket from Purl Soho, there is an update. First, the puzzle based on the blanket was framed, and it now hangs in the stairway to my office. (I see it as I head downstairs). And the yarn FINALLY came in, so I can start knitting it. Humorously the instructions say, "A few customers have been a handful of yards short of True Turquoise. Please make sure you’re getting the correct gauge and also be sparing with your True Turquoise ends!" I am laughing. Of all colors where I might run short, it HAD to be turquoise?
And in another yarn update, the 10-skein cowl is done. My friend Keri finished it for me; she blocked and weaved in the ends, and redid the lace section that Melanie said was going to be challenging. The pattern was more than a bit of a mess to follow. I thought I did it right, but luckily Keri knew how to fix it! Maybe I will wear it for "Bookaccino Live" on Wednesday!
The Masters Tournament is on this weekend, which means there will be lots of whispering from the announcers on television, and I will be making pimento cheese sandwiches.
Many plants are peeking out from the ground, so I would like to rake the flower beds out. But alas it is supposed to RAIN, which should never happen on a weekend!
I have lots and lots of books to read; wow, this is a great year for reading. I still am reading SUNFLOWER SISTERS for my book group meeting; I think it’s my favorite Martha Hall Kelly book. It’s long at 528 pages.
Read on, and have a great week.
Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)
P.S. For those of you who are doing online shopping, if you use the store links below, Bookreporter.com gets a small affiliate fee on your purchases. We would appreciate your considering this!
Featured Review: GOOD COMPANY
by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney
April’s “Read with Jenna” Today Show Book Club Pick
GOOD COMPANY by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Marin Ireland
Flora Mancini has been happily married for more than 20 years. But everything she thought she knew about herself, her marriage and her relationship with her best friend, Margot, is upended when she stumbles upon an envelope containing her husband’s wedding ring --- the one he claimed he lost one summer when their daughter, Ruby, was five. Flora and Julian struggled for years, scraping together just enough acting work to raise Ruby in Manhattan and keep Julian’s small theater company --- Good Company --- afloat. A move to Los Angeles brought their first real career successes and a reunion with Margot, now a bona fide television star. But has their new life been built on lies? What happened that summer all those years ago? And what happens now? Reviewed by Eileen Zimmerman Nicol.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to see why the book is April's "Read with Jenna" pick.
Click here to read our review.
Featured Review:
THE CODE BREAKER by Walter Isaacson
THE CODE BREAKER: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson (Science/Biography)
Audiobook available, read by Kathe Mazur
When Jennifer Doudna was in sixth grade, she came home one day to find that her dad had left a paperback titled THE DOUBLE HELIX on her bed. As she sped through the pages, she became enthralled by the intense drama behind the competition to discover the code of life. Driven by a passion to understand how nature works and to turn discoveries into inventions, she would help to make what the book’s author, James Watson, told her was the most important biological advance since his co-discovery of the structure of DNA. She and her collaborators turned a curiosity of nature into an invention that will transform the human race: an easy-to-use tool that can edit DNA. Known as CRISPR, it opened a brave new world of medical miracles and moral questions. Reviewed by Cindy Burnett.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
Click here to read our review.
New Release Spotlight:
THE DROWNING KIND by Jennifer McMahon
THE DROWNING KIND by Jennifer McMahon (Supernatural Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Joy Osmanski and Imani Jade Powers
When social worker Jax receives nine missed calls from her older sister, Lexie, she assumes that it’s just another one of her sister’s episodes. Manic and increasingly out of touch with reality, Lexie has pushed Jax away for over a year. But the next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. When Jax arrives at the house to go through her sister’s things, she learns that Lexie was researching the history of their family and the property. And as she dives deeper into the research herself, she discovers that the land holds a far darker past than she ever could have imagined.
In 1929, 37-year-old newlywed Ethel Monroe hopes desperately for a baby. In an effort to distract her, her husband whisks her away on a trip to Vermont, where a natural spring is showcased by the newest and most modern hotel in the Northeast. Once there, Ethel learns that the water is rumored to grant wishes, never suspecting that the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.
A haunting, twisty and compulsively readable thrill ride from the author who Chris Bohjalian has dubbed the “literary descendant of Shirley Jackson,” THE DROWNING KIND is a modern-day ghost story that illuminates how the past, though sometimes forgotten, is never really far behind us.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here to read Jennifer McMahon's bio.
- Click here to visit Jennifer McMahon's website.
- Connect with Jennifer McMahon on Facebook and Instagram.
Click here to read our review.
Click here to read more in our New Release Spotlight.
New Historical Fiction Author Spotlight:
THE GIRLS IN THE STILT HOUSE by Kelly Mustian
THE GIRLS IN THE STILT HOUSE by Kelly Mustian (Historical Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Johanna Parker
Ada promised herself she would never go back to the Trace, to her hard life on the swamp and her harsh father. But now, after running away to Baton Rouge and briefly knowing a different kind of life, she finds herself with nowhere to go but back home. And she knows there will be a price to pay with her father.
Matilda, daughter of a sharecropper, is from the other side of the Trace. Doing what she can to protect her family from the whims and demands of some particularly callous locals is an ongoing struggle. She forms a plan to go north, to pack up the secrets she's holding about her life in the South and hang them on the line for all to see in Ohio.
As the two girls are drawn deeper into a dangerous world of bootleggers and moral corruption, they must come to terms with the complexities of their tenuous bond and a hidden past that links them in ways that could cost them their lives.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here for the discussion guide.
- Click here to read Kelly Mustian's bio.
- Click here to visit Kelly Mustian's website.
- Connect with Kelly Mustian on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Click here to read our review.
Click here to read more in our Historical Fiction Author Spotlight.
Don't miss our interview with Kelly Mustian in next week's newsletter.
Fiction Author Spotlight:
OF WOMEN AND SALT by Gabriela Garcia
April’s “Good Morning America” Book Club Pick
and a Bookreporter.com Bets On Title
OF WOMEN AND SALT by Gabriela Garcia (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Frankie Corzo
In present-day Miami, Jeanette is battling addiction. She is determined to learn more about her family history from her reticent mother, a Cuban immigrant named Carmen, and makes the snap decision to take in the daughter of a neighbor detained by ICE. Still wrestling with the trauma of displacement, Carmen must process her difficult relationship with her own mother while trying to raise a wayward Jeanette. Steadfast in her quest for understanding, Jeanette travels to Cuba to see her grandmother and reckon with secrets from the past destined to erupt.
From 19th-century cigar factories to present-day detention centers, from Cuba to Mexico, Gabriela Garcia's OF WOMEN AND SALT is a kaleidoscopic portrait of betrayals --- personal and political, self-inflicted and those done by others --- that have shaped the lives of these extraordinary women. A haunting meditation on the choices of mothers, the legacy of the memories they carry, and the tenacity of women who choose to tell their stories despite those who wish to silence them, this is more than a diaspora story; it is a story of America’s most tangled, honest, human roots.
- Click here to read Gabriela Garcia's bio.
- Click here to visit Gabriela Garcia's website.
- Connect with Gabriela Garcia on Twitter and Instagram.
- Click here to see why the book is April's "Good Morning America" Book Club pick.
Click here to read our review.
Click here to read Carol's Bookreporter.com Bets On commentary.
Watch Gabriela Garcia's "Bookreporter Talks To" interview
and listen to the podcast.
Click here to read more in our Fiction Author Spotlight.
Featured Review: NORTHERN SPY by Flynn Berry
Reese’s Book Club Pick for April
NORTHERN SPY by Flynn Berry (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Katharine Lee McEwan
A producer at the BBC and mother to a new baby, Tessa is at work in Belfast one day when the news of another raid comes on the air. Bomb threats, security checkpoints and helicopters floating ominously over the city have become features of everyday life. As the news reporter requests the public's help in locating those responsible for the robbery, security footage reveals Tessa's sister, Marian, pulling a black ski mask over her face. The police believe Marian has joined the IRA, but Tessa is convinced she must have been abducted or coerced. When the truth about Marian comes to light, Tessa is faced with impossible choices that will test the limits of her ideals, the bonds of her family, her notions of right and wrong, and her identity as a sister and a mother. Reviewed by Ray Palen.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here for the discussion guide.
- Click here to visit the Reese's Book Club website.
Click here to read our review.
Featured Review:
YOU BELONG HERE NOW by Dianna Rostad
An Upcoming Bookreporter.com Bets On Title
YOU BELONG HERE NOW by Dianna Rostad (Historical Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Courtney Patterson
Montana, 1925: An Irish boy orphaned by Spanish flu, a tiny girl who won’t speak, and a volatile young man who lies about his age to escape Hell’s Kitchen are paraded on train platforms across the Midwest to work-worn folks. Fate guides them toward the ranch of a family stricken by loss. Nara, the daughter of a successful cattleman, has grown into a brusque spinster who refuses the kids on sight. She works them without mercy, hoping they’ll run off, but they buck up and show spirit. And though Nara will never be motherly, she begins to take to them. So when Charles is jailed for freeing wild horses that were rounded up for slaughter, and an abusive mother from New York shows up to take the youngest, Nara does the unthinkable, risking everything she holds dear to change their lives forever. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here for the discussion guide.
Click here to read our review.
YOU BELONG HERE NOW will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick.
Don't miss Carol's commentary in next week's newsletter.
Bookreporter.com's 10th Annual
Spring Preview Contests and Feature
Spring is in the air! We’ve caught the fever --- and it’s being fueled by some wonderful new and upcoming releases. Our 10th annual Spring Preview Contests and Feature spotlights many of these picks, which we know people will be talking about over the next few months. We are hosting a series of 24-hour contests for these titles on select days through April 23rd at noon ET. You will need to check the site to see the featured book and enter to win. We also are sending a special newsletter to announce each title, which you can sign up for here.
Our next prize book will be announced on Monday, April 12th at noon ET.
This year's featured titles are:
Click here to read all the contest details
and learn more about our featured titles.
April’s New in Paperback Roundups
April's roundup of New in Paperback fiction titles includes THE SENTINEL, the 25th entry in the Jack Reacher series and the first collaboration between Lee Child and his brother, Andrew Child, whose protagonist ends up in a town near Pleasantville, Tennessee --- but there’s nothing pleasant about the place; THE LAW OF INNOCENCE, a heart-stopping thriller from Michael Connelly, in which Lincoln Lawyer Mickey Haller must defend himself against murder charges; BIG SUMMER by Jennifer Weiner, a deliciously funny and remarkably poignant novel about the power of friendship, the lure of frenemies, and the importance of making peace with yourself through all of life’s ups and downs; and Kiley Reid's SUCH A FUN AGE, a page-turning and big-hearted story about race and privilege, set around a young Black babysitter, her well-intentioned employer, and a surprising connection that threatens to undo them both
Among our nonfiction highlights are WARHOL by esteemed art critic Adam Gopnik, the definitive biography of a fascinating and paradoxical figure, one of the most influential artists of his --- or any --- age; THE CHIFFON TRENCHES, a deeply revealing memoir by legendary style icon André Leon Talley that captures the fashion world from the inside out, in its most glamorous and most cutthroat moments; WHY WE SWIM, which finds New York Times contributor Bonnie Tsui, a swimmer herself, diving into the deep, from the San Francisco Bay to the South China Sea, to investigate what about water --- despite its dangers --- seduces us and why we come back to it again and again; and 108 STITCHES, in which former New York Mets pitcher and Emmy-nominated broadcaster Ron Darling offers his own take on the "six degrees of separation" game and knits together a collection of wild, wise and wistful stories reflecting the full arc of a life in and around our national pastime.
Find out what's New in Paperback for the weeks of
April 5th, April 12th, April 19th and April 26th.
From left to right: Paula McLain, John Sandford, Sally Hepworth
Upcoming Virtual Book and Author Events
As so many book and author events are happening online these days, we are highlighting a number of them that you may be interested in attending. Click on the links below for more info and to register.
Monday, April 12th at 7pm ET: Cuyahoga County Public Library: This is the first event on Paula McLain’s virtual book tour for WHEN THE STARS GO DARK! She will be in conversation with Kristin Hannah.
Monday, April 12th at 7pm ET: Porter Square Books: Porter Square Books is pleased to present a virtual event with Dawnie Walton for her debut novel, THE FINAL REVIVAL OF OPAL & NEV. She will be joined in conversation by Curtis Sittenfeld.
Monday, April 12th at 8pm ET: Magic City Books: Magic City Books is proud to welcome Kirstin Valdez Quade for a virtual event in celebration of her new novel, THE FIVE WOUNDS, which is this month's Barnes & Noble Book Club pick. Joining Kirstin in conversation will be Maggie Shipstead, author of SEATING ARRANGEMENTS, ASTONISH ME and the forthcoming GREAT CIRCLE.
Tuesday, April 13th at 6pm ET: "Adriana Ink": In the latest episode of her weekly Facebook Live show, "Adriana Ink," Adriana Trigiani will talk to Martha Hall Kelly about her new historical novel, SUNFLOWER SISTERS.
Tuesday, April 13th at 7pm ET: Cuyahoga County Public Library: Join bestselling author Sally Hepworth for a virtual discussion of her latest domestic thriller, THE GOOD SISTER, with librarian Aimee Lurie.
Tuesday, April 13th at 7pm ET: Wellesley Books: Paula McLain presents WHEN THE STARS GO DARK, an atmospheric novel of intertwined destinies and heart-wrenching suspense. Paula will be in conversation with Dani Shapiro, author of INHERITANCE.
Tuesday, April 13th at 9pm ET: Poisoned Pen Bookstore: John Sandford will discuss his latest novel, OCEAN PREY, featuring fan-favorite heroes Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers.
Wednesday, April 14th at 2pm ET: "Bookaccino Live: A Lively Talk About Books": Carol Fitzgerald will present titles releasing between April 13th and May 4th, along with a few from June, that she would like to get on your radar.
Wednesday, April 14th at 2pm ET: Murder By The Book: Flynn Berry will be in conversation with GIRL A author Abigail Dean about her latest thriller, NORTHERN SPY, which is Reese's Book Club pick for April.
Wednesday, April 14th at 7pm ET: "Friends and Fiction": The "Friends and Fiction" authors --- Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Patti Callahan Henry and Mary Alice Monroe --- will celebrate their one-year anniversary with special guest Jodi Picoult.
Wednesday, April 14th at 7pm ET: Warwick's: Warwick's will host Paula McLain as she discusses her new book, WHEN THE STARS GO DARK, in conversation with Christina Baker Kline.
Thursday, April 15th at 6pm ET: Square Books: Join Square Books for an evening with Martha Hall Kelly and Lisa Wingate as they discuss Kelly's newest book, SUNFLOWER SISTERS.
Thursday, April 15th at 6:30pm ET: Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library: Lisa Scottoline will visit the library as part of their "Between the Lines" author series to discuss her new novel, ETERNAL.
"Bookreporter Talks To" Videos & Podcasts
“Bookreporter Talks To” is a video and podcast series that delivers a long-form, in-depth author interview every week. For years, Carol has moderated book festivals and author events around the country. But we know that readers often do not live where they can attend an author event. Our goal is to bring these author interviews to readers, wherever they may be. Watch on video, or listen as a podcast. (The podcasts include audio excerpts.)
Here is our latest interview:
Other authors we've interviewed include:
Upcoming interviews include:
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Dianna Rostad (YOU BELONG HERE NOW)
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Lisa Scottoline (ETERNAL)
Click here for a complete list of our
"Bookreporter Talks To" videos and podcasts.
LIBERTIE by Kaitlyn Greenidge (Historical Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Channie Waites
Coming of age as a freeborn Black girl in Reconstruction-era Brooklyn, Libertie Sampson is all too aware that her purposeful mother, a practicing physician, has a vision for their future together: Libertie is to go to medical school and practice alongside her. But Libertie, drawn more to music than science, feels stifled by her mother’s choices and is hungry for something else. When a young man from Haiti proposes to Libertie and promises she will be his equal on the island, she accepts, only to discover that she is still subordinate to him and all men. As she tries to parse what freedom actually means for a Black woman, Libertie struggles with where she might find it --- for herself and for generations to come. Reviewed by Maya Gittelman.
PEACES by Helen Oyeyemi (Fiction/Magical Realism)
Audiobook available; read by Ben Allen, Intae Kim, Jade Wheeler, Deana Taheri, Rosa Escoda and Deepti Gupta
When Otto and Xavier Shin declare their love, an aunt gifts them a trip on a sleeper train to mark their new commitment --- and to get them out of her house. Setting off with their pet mongoose, Otto and Xavier arrive at their sleepy local train station, but quickly deduce that The Lucky Day is no ordinary locomotive. Their trip on this former tea-smuggling train has been curated beyond their wildest imaginations, complete with mysterious and welcoming touches, like ingredients for their favorite breakfast. They seem to be the only people onboard, until Otto discovers a secretive woman who issues a surprising message. As further clues and questions pile up, Otto and Xavier begin to see connections to their own pasts that now bind them together. Reviewed by Kayla Provencher.
I HAVE BEEN BURIED UNDER YEARS OF DUST: A Memoir of Autism and Hope by Valerie Gilpeer and Emily Grodin (Memoir)
Audiobook available, read by Sara Morsey
“I have been buried under years of dust and now I have so much to say.” These were the first words 25-year-old Emily Grodin ever wrote. Born with nonverbal autism, Emily’s only means of communicating for a quarter of a century had been only one-word responses or physical gestures. Her parents, Valerie and Tom, sought every therapy possible in the hope that Emily would one day be able to reveal herself. When this miraculous breakthrough occurred, Emily was finally able to give insight into the life, frustrations and joys of a person with autism. I HAVE BEEN BURIED UNDER YEARS OF DUST highlights key moments of Emily’s childhood that led to her communication awakening --- and how her ability rapidly accelerated after she wrote that first sentence. Reviewed by Jana Siciliano.
LIFE’S TOO SHORT by Abby Jimenez (Romantic Comedy)
Audiobook available, read by Christine Lakin and Zachary Webber
When Vanessa Price quit her job to pursue her dream of traveling the globe, she wasn't expecting to gain millions of YouTube followers who shared her joy of seizing every moment. But after her half-sister suddenly leaves Vanessa with custody of her baby daughter, life goes from "daily adventure" to "next-level bad." The last person Vanessa expects to show up offering help is the hot lawyer next door, Adrian Copeland. No one warned her that he was the Secret Baby Tamer or that she'd be spending a whole lot of time with him and his geriatric Chihuahua. Now she's feeling things she's vowed not to feel. Because the only thing worse than falling for Adrian is finding a little hope for a future she may never see. Reviewed by Rebecca Munro.
ANIMAL INSTINCT: A K Team Novel by David Rosenfelt (Mystery)
Audiobook available, read by Fred Berman
Corey Douglas and his K-9 partner, a German shepherd named Simon Garfunkel, are recently retired police officers turned private investigators. Along with fellow former cop Laurie Collins and her investigating partner, Marcus, they call themselves the K Team. Their latest case gives Corey a chance to solve "the one that got away." Corey knew the murder victim from his time on the force, when he was unable to protect her in a domestic dispute. Now, he is convinced the same abusive boyfriend is responsible for her murder. With some help from Laurie’s lawyer husband, Andy Carpenter, the K Team is determined to prove what the police could not. What they uncover is much more sinister than they could have imagined. Reviewed by Jack Kramer.
NORTHERN HEIST by Richard O'Rawe (Historical Thriller)
Nobody robs banks in Belfast without the IRA getting a cut --- not even former Provo James “Ructions” O'Hare. But when word gets around that O'Hare may be up to something, the pressure from the IRA begins. Ructions trusts his crack squad of former paramilitary compadres, and has full confidence in his audacious plan: To literally empty the biggest bank in Belfast by kidnapping the families of two employees --- known as a "tiger" kidnapping --- in order to force them to help Ructions and his crew get into the bank's vault. But keeping the plan --- and the money --- from the IRA is another plan entirely, one requiring all of Ructions' cunning and skill. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
- Click here to read an interview with Richard O’Rawe.
ASTRID SEES ALL by Natalie Standiford (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Emily Tremaine
Phoebe Hayes is in search of excitement and adventure. But the recent death of her father has so devastated her that her mother wants her to remain home in Baltimore to recover. Phoebe wants to return to New York, not only to chase the glamorous life she so desperately craves but also to confront Ivan, the older man who painfully wronged her. With her best friend Carmen, she escapes to the East Village, disappearing into an underworld haunted by artists, It Girls and lost souls. Carmen juggles her junkie-poet boyfriend and a sexy painter, while, as Astrid the Star Girl, Phoebe tells fortunes in a nightclub and plots her revenge on Ivan. When the intoxicating brew of sex, drugs and self-destruction leads Phoebe to betray her friend, Carmen disappears, and Phoebe begins an unstoppable descent into darkness. Reviewed by Megan Elliott.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
THE LAMPLIGHTERS by Emma Stonex (Literary Thriller/Mystery)
Audiobook available, read by Tom Burke and Indira Varma
It's New Year's Eve, 1972, when a boat pulls up to the Maiden Rock lighthouse with relief for the keepers. But no one greets them. When the entrance door, locked from the inside, is battered down, rescuers find an empty tower. A table is laid for a meal not eaten. The Principal Keeper's weather log describes a storm raging round the tower, but the skies have been clear all week. And the clocks have all stopped at 8:45. Two decades later, the wives who were left behind are visited by a writer who is determined to find the truth about the men's disappearance. Moving between the women's stories and the men's last weeks together in the lighthouse, long-held secrets surface and truths twist into lies as we piece together what happened, why and who to believe. Reviewed by Ray Palen.
THE BOHEMIANS by Jasmin Darznik (Historical Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Dylan Moore
In 1918, a young and bright-eyed Dorothea Lange steps off the train in San Francisco, where a disaster kick-starts a new life. Her friendship with Caroline Lee, a vivacious, straight-talking Chinese American with a complicated past, gives Dorothea entrée into Monkey Block, an artists’ colony and the bohemian heart of the city. Dazzled by Caroline and her friends, Dorothea is catapulted into a heady new world of freedom, art and politics. She also finds herself unexpectedly falling in love with the brilliant but troubled painter Maynard Dixon. Dorothea and Caroline eventually create a flourishing portrait studio, but a devastating betrayal pushes their friendship to the breaking point and alters the course of their lives. Reviewed by Rebecca Munro.
GEORGE WASHINGTON: The Political Rise of America's Founding Father by David O. Stewart (Biography)
Audiobook available, read by Arthur Morey
George Washington's rise constitutes one of the greatest self-reinventions in history. In his mid-20s, this third son of a modest Virginia planter had ruined his own military career thanks to an outrageous ego. But by his mid-40s, that headstrong, unwise young man had evolved into an unassailable leader chosen as the commander in chief of the fledgling Continental Army. By his mid-50s, he was unanimously elected the nation's first president. How did Washington emerge from the wilderness to become the central founder of the United States of America? Award-winning historian David O. Stewart unveils the political education that made Washington a master politician --- and America's most essential leader. Reviewed by John Vena.
HEAVEN'S A LIE by Wallace Stroby (Thriller)
Struggling to afford her mother's sky-high medical bills and also keep the lights on in her trailer home, Joette Harper needs a break. So when she spies a bag full of money amongst the wreckage of a fiery car accident, she knows she can't just let it be. Inside is a bounty better than she could have dreamed --- just shy of $300,000 --- which is enough to pay off her debts, give her mother the care she deserves, and maybe even help out a few of her friends. But the missing briefcase didn't go unnoticed by its original owner, Travis Clay, a ruthless dealer who will stop at nothing to get back what's his. Joette is way out of her depth, but can't seem to stop herself from participating in this cat-and-mouse chase. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
Next Week's Notables:
Noteworthy Books Releasing on April 13th
Below are some notable titles releasing on April 13th that we would like to make you aware of. We will have more on many of these books in the weeks to come. For a list of additional hardcovers and paperbacks available the week of April 12th, see our “On Sale This Week” newsletter here.
ANTIQUITIES by Cynthia Ozick (Fiction)
From one of our most preeminent writers comes a tale that captures the shifting meanings of the past and how our experience colors those meanings.
DEATH WITH A DOUBLE EDGE: A Daniel Pitt Novel by Anne Perry (Historical Mystery)
Daniel Pitt’s investigation into his colleague’s murder leads him through London’s teeming underbelly to the suspicious dealings of one of England’s most influential shipbuilding magnates.
EMPIRE OF PAIN: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe (True Crime/Biography)
The prize-winning, bestselling author of SAY NOTHING has penned a grand, devastating portrait of three generations of the Sackler family, famed for their philanthropy, whose fortune was built by Valium and whose reputation was destroyed by OxyContin.
THE GOOD SISTER by Sally Hepworth (Psychological Thriller)
Sally Hepworth, the author of THE MOTHER-IN-LAW, delivers a knock-out of a novel about the lies that bind two sisters in THE GOOD SISTER.
OCEAN PREY: A Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers Novel by John Sandford (Mystery/Thriller)
Fan-favorite heroes Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers join forces on a deadly maritime case from #1 New York Times bestselling author John Sandford.
THE SOUVENIR MUSEUM: Stories by Elizabeth McCracken (Fiction/Short Stories)
Award-winning author Elizabeth McCracken is an undisputed virtuoso of the short story, and this new collection features her most vibrant and heartrending work to date.
TURN A BLIND EYE: A Detective William Warwick Novel by Jeffrey Archer (Mystery)
TURN A BLIND EYE is the third installment in the gripping story of Detective Inspector William Warwick by the Sunday Times number one bestselling author of the Clifton Chronicles.
THE TWELVE LIVES OF ALFRED HITCHCOCK: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense by Edward White (Biography)
Edward White explores the Hitchcock phenomenon --- what defines it, how it was invented, what it reveals about the man at its core, and how its legacy continues to shape our cultural world.
UNDER THE WAVE AT WAIMEA by Paul Theroux (Fiction)
From legendary writer Paul Theroux comes an atmospheric novel following a big-wave surfer as he confronts aging, privilege, mortality and whose lives we choose to remember.
WHAT COMES AFTER by JoAnne Tompkins (Mystery)
After the shocking death of two teenage boys tears apart a community in the Pacific Northwest, a mysterious pregnant girl emerges out of the woods and into the lives of those same boys’ families.
WHEN THE STARS GO DARK by Paula McLain (Literary Thriller)
From the New York Times bestselling author of THE PARIS WIFE comes an atmospheric novel of intertwined destinies and heart-wrenching suspense: A detective hiding away from the world. A series of disappearances that reach into her past. Can solving them help her heal?
Click here to see the latest "On Sale This Week" newsletter.
Our Latest Poll: Where Do You Get Your E-books?
If you read e-books, where do you get them? Please check all that apply.
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Amazon
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Click here to vote in the poll by Friday, April 16th at noon ET.
Word of Mouth Contest: Tell Us What
You're Reading --- and You Can Win Two Books!
Tell us about the books you’ve finished reading with your comments and a rating of 1 to 5 stars. During the contest period from April 2nd to April 16th at noon ET, three lucky readers each will be randomly chosen to win a copy of MOTHER MAY I by Joshilyn Jackson and WHEN THE STARS GO DARK by Paula McLain.
To make sure other readers will be able to find the books you write about, please include the full title and correct author names (your entry must include these to be eligible to win). For rules and guidelines, click here.
- To see reader comments from previous contest periods, click here.
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