May 2014

It’s been a fun --- and busy --- couple of weeks of book and author events.

I was so happy to be in the audience last Thursday night when William Kent Krueger won the Edgar Award for Best Novel for ORDINARY GRACE. I had picked it as a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection when it came out in hardcover; it’s now available in paperback. It’s a really special and beautiful book. As you know, this book was featured in a recent ReadingGroupGuides.com contest where 200 readers were lucky enough to win copies of it. We’ve heard from some of the winners already, and I am so happy to see them responding to it as I did. A reminder to everyone who won: Please send your comments about the book to the [email protected] mailbox so we can share them with ReadingGroupGuides.com readers.

I spent last Friday at Random House’s Open House where I enjoyed sharing my book world with my girlfriends --- Beverley, Rachel, Alita and Nancy. We got to hear from 10 authors, each of whom was an engaging speaker. I was well into reading DELICIOUS! by Ruth Reichl, and thus hearing her talk about the research behind the book and the way the various storylines were developed enhanced my reading experience. I loved how her magazine background at Gourmet made the magazine experience in DELICIOUS! so authentic; it also brought up some nice memories for me of my own magazine days. You can see a photo of me with Ruth below, and it will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection.

I was lucky enough to meet three Bookreporter.com readers who also were at the Open House --- Augustus, Erika and Diana --- and they shared their feedback on the event here. We will be sure to keep you posted on when the next event like this happens!

My mom’s book group selects all their titles for the following year in May. She just sent me their schedule, which I love since I have read so many of these books and we have featured many of them here as well. Here’s their list: ORPHAN TRAIN (her selection; it received the most votes), THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS, THE AVIATOR’S WIFE, THE ROSIE PROJECT, SNOW IN AUGUST, UNDER THE WIDE AND STARRY SKY, THE INVENTION OF WINGS and THE MONUMENTS MEN.

We have FOUR contests this month. The first is LITTLE MERCIES by Heather Gudenkauf. It’s the story of veteran social worker Ellen Moore, who has seen the worst side of humanity --- the vilest acts one person can commit against another. One blistering summer day, a simple moment of distraction will have repercussions that Ellen could never have imagined, threatening to shatter everything she holds dear, and trapping her between the gears of the system she works for. We’re giving 10 groups the opportunity to win 10 advance copies. Winners will be asked to read and comment on the book by Friday, July 18th, and will receive a special digital book club kit, which can be used at book club meetings and shared online via social media. Enter here by Friday, June 6th at noon ET for a chance to win. And be sure to check out the prequel, LITTLE LIES, now available as an eBook Original. I have been a fan of Heather’s work since her first book, THE WEIGHT OF SILENCE, and LITTLE MERCIES has a lot to talk about.

Our second contest this month is THE GLASS KITCHEN by Linda Francis Lee. Portia Cuthcart always dreamt of running the Glass Kitchen restaurant her grandmother built decades ago. But after a string of betrayals and the loss of her legacy, Portia is determined to start a new life with her sisters in New York…and never cook again. But soon, a promise made to her sisters forces Portia back into a world of magical food and swirling emotions, where she must confront everything she has been running from. We’re giving away 100 finished copies of the book, plus recipe cards from the author! Enter here by Friday, June 6th at noon ET for a chance to win. Besides enjoying the book, I love the cover; it’s just gorgeous, and I want vases like those for my home and office!

We’re also still giving away copies of Heather Kopp’s inspiring memoir, SOBER MERCIES: How Love Caught Up with a Christian Drunk. Engaging, funny and bracingly honest, Kopp shares her remarkable journey into darkness...and back to the light again. Her story reveals the unique challenges and spiritual conundrums Christians face when they become ensnared in an addiction, and the redemption that's possible when we finally reach the end of ourselves. We’re giving 12 groups the opportunity to win 12 copies of the book and the chance to chat with the author. Enter here by Thursday, May 22nd at noon ET for a chance to win. Addiction is so rampant, and whether your life has been touched by this personally or from afar, this book will bring you more understanding of its challenges.

We’re featuring award-winning author John Green's THE FAULT IN OUR STARS in May’s “What’s Your Book Group Reading This Month?” Contest, in anticipation of the exciting June 6th release of the film adaptation. I have not looked forward to seeing a movie as much as this one in a while. THE FAULT IN OUR STARS is Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling and tragic business of being alive and in love. We have 12 copies of the paperback edition to give away to three groups who share what THEIR book group is reading. Make sure to let us know the title of the book your group is CURRENTLY reading, not the title we are giving away. Enter here by Friday, June 6th at noon ET to win.

This month, we have three featured guides to share with you. The first is New York Times bestselling author Francine Rivers’s BRIDGE TO HAVEN. It’s about a young woman named Abra, whose early childhood trauma has left her angry and confused. Seduced by the glamour of Hollywood life, Abra burns every bridge to get what she thinks she wants --- only to find the price of fame too high, and the attention not enough to heal her broken heart. Click here for the guide, here for the Bookreporter.com review, and here for a Q&A with the author.

Our second featured guide is Claire Kendal’s extraordinary debut, THE BOOK OF YOU. It’s the mesmerizing, disturbing tale of a woman who must fight to escape an expert manipulator determined to possess her. Filled with exquisite tension and a pervasive sense of menace, THE BOOK OF YOU explores the lines between love and compulsion, fantasy and reality, and offers a heart-stopping portrait of a woman determined to survive. Click here for the guide.

The last guide we’re featuring this month is THE BLESSINGS by Elise Juska. When John Blessing dies and leaves behind two small children, the loss reverberates across his extended family for years to come. Through departures and arrivals, weddings and reunions, THE BLESSINGS reveals the interior worlds of the members of a close-knit Irish-Catholic family and the rituals that unite them. Click here for the guide. This is my next read; I have been looking forward to it as I love stories about family like this.

Don’t forget to check out our “Rate Books for Book Groups” feature. Here, we encourage you to share books you think would be good for books groups, and check out books other readers suggest. Please note that these don’t necessarily need to be books that you have read with your book clubs --- they simply can be titles that you think would be great for discussion! All entries will be posted shortly after the June 6th deadline.

Heads up: Bookreporter.com’s Ninth Annual Mother's Day Contest is wrapping up tomorrow. We’re awarding 10 readers a Bookreporter.com Mother's Day prize package, which will include a selection of 10 books, along with Tazo Tea, a Divine dark chocolate bar, and a Crabtree & Evelyn bar of soap and bath sponge shaped like a flower. Please fill out this form by Friday, May 9th at noon ET for your chance to be a winner.

Above is an ad for the NOOK GlowLight eReader, which is now available for just $99, $20 off the regular price. Click on the ad or here to purchase one for yourself, your mom, or anyone else you may have in mind! The offer expires on Mother's Day, May 11th, so please take advantage of this special opportunity while you can!

Our Mother’s Day Author Blogs are also back for a fifth year! From now until Mother’s Day, we’re sharing pieces from authors who talk about how their moms influenced them to become readers and writers, along with their own experiences as mothers and their views on motherhood. We’ve already heard from so many lovely authors --- including Francine Rivers, Dorothea Benton Frank and Cassandra King --- and there are more to come! Be sure to check it out, and share with a mother or daughter or friend.

It’s time to register for our special speed-dating event, which will take place at BookExpo America in New York City on Friday, May 30th! Representatives from a dozen publishers will gather at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center to share selections and book group news from their publishing houses in a speed-dating format designed to give book group leaders, booksellers, librarians and bloggers an inside look at what book groups will be tempted by for fall and winter. Galley giveaways and ideas for enhancing book group discussions will be part of this event. Advance signup is required and seating will be assigned. Fill out this form to sign up. Please note: You must be registered to attend BookExpo America in order to attend this session. If you are not, click here to register.

We have a new poll question for you this month. We want to know how many books you read each month --- not including your book group selection. Let us know by taking the poll here.

And a reminder that at the beginning of each month, we compile a list of the Most Requested Guides in the categories of New Favorites, Ongoing Favorites and Enduring Favorites, along with an overall list of Top 50 Requests. Here is the list from March, and here is the most recent list from April. Check back in early June for May’s list! And check out our new Reading Roundup feature --- a page where we note the Indie Next and LibraryReads titles for the month, as well as Pennie’s Pick from Costco (DELICIOUS!) and the Target Book Club title of the month, FLAT WATER TUESDAY, which was a previous Bookreporter.com Bets On selection. We will add other lists and nuggets of info that we think you would like to explore as we discover them. This feature will be updated each month as information for it becomes available, usually the first week of the month.

And of course, it wouldn’t be a newsletter without a reminder to follow us on Facebook and Twitter! We know you don’t want to miss a thing on the site, so Emily has been working hard to send out regular alerts when we add content or when a contest deadline is approaching. One easy click and you’ll be permanently in the loop.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there. Here’s to a lovely day of being feted. And to those of you who are spending this year without your mom, a special heartfelt hug from me to you.

Carol Fitzgerald ([email protected])

 

LITTLE MERCIES by Heather Gudenkauf (Fiction)
Veteran social worker Ellen Moore has seen the worst side of humanity --- the vilest acts one person can commit against another. She is a fiercely dedicated children's advocate and a devoted mother and wife. But one blistering summer day, a simple moment of distraction will have repercussions that Ellen could never have imagined, threatening to shatter everything she holds dear, and trapping her between the gears of the system she works for.

Meanwhile, 10-year-old Jenny Briard has been living with her well-meaning but irresponsible father since her mother left them, sleeping on friends' couches and moving in and out of cheap motels. When Jenny suddenly finds herself on her own, she is forced to survive with nothing but a few dollars and her street smarts. The last thing she wants is a social worker, but when Ellen's and Jenny's lives collide, little do they know just how much they can help one another.

-Click here for the reading group guide.
 

We're giving 100 readers the chance to win a copy (plus recipe cards!) of Linda Francis Lee's THE GLASS KITCHEN, the delicious story of three sisters who move from Texas to New York City and learn about food, family and finding true love. To enter, please fill out this form by Friday, June 6th at noon ET.

THE GLASS KITCHEN by Linda Francis Lee (Fiction)
Portia Cuthcart never intended to leave Texas. Her dream was to run the Glass Kitchen restaurant her grandmother built decades ago. But after a string of betrayals and the loss of her legacy, Portia is determined to start a new life with her sisters in…and never cook again. But when she moves into a dilapidated brownstone on the Upper West Side, she meets 12-year-old Ariel and her widowed father Gabriel, a man with his hands full trying to raise two daughters on his own. Soon, a promise made to her sisters forces Portia back into a world of magical food and swirling emotions, where she must confront everything she has been running from. What seems so simple on the surface is anything but when long-held secrets are revealed, rivalries exposed and the promise of new love stirs to life like chocolate mixing with cream.

-Click here for the reading group guide.
 

Let us know what your group is reading in May, and you will be entered in a giveaway to win multiple copies of a book for your group! In anticipation of the June 6th release of the film adaptation, our latest prize book is award-winning author John Green's THE FAULT IN OUR STARS. We have 12 copies of the paperback edition to give away to three groups. To enter, please fill out the form on this page by Friday, June 6th at noon ET.

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green (Fiction)
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent and raw, THE FAULT IN OUR STARS is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling and tragic business of being alive and in love.

-Click here for the reading group guide.
-Click here to read our review on Bookreporter.com.

Just so you know! Thanks to your participation last month, we learned that the three most popular books among book groups in April were THE INVENTION OF WINGS by Sue Monk Kidd, ORPHAN TRAIN by Christina Baker Kline and THE HUSBAND'S SECRET by Liane Moriarty. Keep posting so we see what else is trending on our site!
 

BRIDGE TO HAVEN by Francine Rivers (Historical Fiction)
To those who matter in 1950s Hollywood, Lena Scott is the hottest rising star to hit the silver screen since Marilyn Monroe. Few know her real name is Abra. Even fewer know the price she’s paid to finally feel like she’s somebody.

To Pastor Ezekiel Freeman, Abra will always be the little girl who stole his heart the night he found her, a wailing newborn abandoned under a bridge on the outskirts of Haven. Zeke and his son, Joshua --- Abra’s closest friend --- watch her grow into an exotic beauty. But Zeke knows the circumstances surrounding her birth etched scars deep in her heart, scars that leave her vulnerable to a fast-talking bad boy who proclaims his love and lures her to Tinseltown. Hollywood feels like a million miles from Haven, and naive Abra quickly learns what’s expected of an ambitious girl with stars in her eyes. But fame comes at an awful price. She has burned every bridge to get exactly what she thought she wanted. Now, all she wants is a way back home.

-Click here to read our review on Bookreporter.com.
 

THE BLESSINGS by Elisa Juska (Fiction)
When John Blessing dies and leaves behind two small children, the loss reverberates across his extended family for years to come. His young widow, Lauren, finds solace in her large clan of in-laws, while his brother's wife Kate pursues motherhood even at the expense of her marriage. John's teenage nephew Stephen finds himself involved in an act of petty theft that takes a surprising turn, and nephew Alex, a gifted student, travels to Spain and considers the world beyond his family's Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood.

Through departures and arrivals, weddings and reunions, THE BLESSINGS reveals the interior worlds of the members of a close-knit Irish-Catholic family and the rituals that unite them.
 

Rate the books you have read to let us know if you think they would be good selections for book groups. You can add books that you have read personally or with your book group. Share the title and the author, and please pay attention to proper spelling. Capitalize words as appropriate! All submissions will be reviewed before they are posted on June 6th, thus your post will not appear immediately.

On Friday, May 30th, from 2:00pm to 3:50pm, representatives from more than a dozen publishers attending BookExpo America will gather at the Jacob K. Javits Center to share selections and book group news from their publishing houses in a speed-dating format designed to give book group leaders, booksellers, librarians and bloggers an inside look at what book groups will be tempted by for fall and winter. Galley giveaways and ideas for enhancing book group discussions will be part of this event. Advance signup is required by Thursday, May 22nd at noon ET, and seating will be assigned. Fill out this form to sign up.

Please note: You must be registered to attend BookExpo America in order to attend this session. If you are not, click here to register.
 

THE STORIED LIFE OF A.J. FIKRY by Gabrielle Zevin (Fiction)
I am wild, wild, wild about Gabrielle Zevin’s THE STORIED LIFE OF A.J. FIKRY, a brilliantly smart --- and fun --- novel that has as its protagonist a charming indie bookseller named A.J. On the faded Island Books sign hanging over the porch of the Victorian cottage on Alice Island, which houses the store, is the motto "No Man Is an Island; Every Book Is a World." As the book opens, A.J. Fikry, the irascible owner, is about to discover just what that truly means.

-Click here to read more of Carol's thoughts on the book.
-Click here to read more about the book.
-Click here to read a review.
-Click here to read a Q&A with the author.

'TIL THE WELL RUNS DRY by Lauren Francis-Sharma (Historical Fiction)
I love books where the characters’ voices are distinct to me and where place becomes a character. Both of these fine bookish traits can be found in ’TIL THE WELL RUNS DRY by debut novelist Lauren Francis-Sharma, which I knew I was going to love from chapter one. The story is told in three voices: that of Marcia Garcia; her lover, policeman Farouk Karam; and their second-born daughter, Jacqueline. It’s set in Trinidad, and I felt like frying up plantains and consulting a Caribbean cookbook as I read. I wanted to taste the marvelous-sounding foods that evoked the epicurean culture of the country.

-Click here to read more of Carol's thoughts on the book.
-Click here to read more about the book.
-Click here to read a review.
 

• APART AT THE SEAMS: A Cobbled Courts Quilt Novel by Marie Bostwick
• THE APPLE ORCHARD by Susan Wiggs
• BRIDGE TO HAVEN by Francine Rivers
• DARK WITCH: Book One of The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy by Nora Roberts
• DRIVING LESSONS by Zoe Fishman
• FOUR FRIENDS by Robyn Carr
• GOODNIGHT JUNE by Sarah Jio
• THE IDEA OF HIM by Holly Peterson
• THE LAST ORIGINAL WIFE by Dorothea Benton Frank
• A LONG TIME GONE by Karen White
• MARRY SMART: Advice for Finding THE ONE by Susan Patton
• MRS. POE by Lynn Cullen
• THE MUSEUM OF EXTRAORDINARY THINGS by Alice Hoffman
• THE ONE & ONLY by Emily Giffin
• ONE HUNDRED NAMES by Cecelia Ahern
• THE QUAKER CAFÉ by Brenda Bevan Remmes
• THE ROAD TO TESTAMENT by Eva Marie Everson
• THE SAME SWEET GIRL'S GUIDE TO LIFE: Advice from a Failed Southern Belle by Cassandra King
• SHADOW SPELL: Book Two of The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy by Nora Roberts
• TEST OF FAITH by Christa Allan

Our Mother’s Day Author Blogs are back for a fifth year! From now until Mother’s Day, we’re sharing pieces from authors who talk about how their moms influenced them to become readers and writers, along with their own experiences as mothers and their views on motherhood.

We’ve already heard from so many lovely authors --- including Francine Rivers, Dorothea Benton Frank and Cassandra King --- and there are more to come! Be sure to check it out, and share with a mother, daughter or friend.

The following guides are now available on ReadingGroupGuides.com:

ANNIHILATION: Southern Reach Trilogy #1 by Jeff VanderMeer (Science Fiction)
In the first book of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, Area X has been cut off from the rest of the continent for decades and nature has reclaimed the last vestiges of human civilization.

AUTHORITY: Southern Reach Trilogy #2 by Jeff VanderMeer (Science Fiction)
From a series of interrogations, a cache of hidden notes and hours of profoundly troubling video footage, the secrets of Area X from ANNIHILATION, the first book in Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, begin to reveal themselves --- and what they expose pushes Control to confront disturbing truths about both himself and the agency he’s promised to serve.

ACCEPTANCE: Southern Reach Trilogy #3 by Jeff VanderMeer (Science Fiction)
In the final installment of Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach trilogy, the mysteries of Area X may have been solved, but their consequences and implications are no less profound --- or terrifying.

APART AT THE SEAMS: A Cobbled Court Quilts Novel by Marie Bostwick (Fiction)
New York Times bestselling author Marie Bostwick welcomes readers back to picturesque New Bern, Connecticut --- a perfect place for a woman whose marriage is in turmoil to discover a new pattern for living.

THE BLESSINGS by Elise Juska (Fiction)
Through departures and arrivals, weddings and reunions, THE BLESSINGS reveals the interior worlds of the members of a close-knit Irish-Catholic family and the rituals that unite them.

THE BOOK OF YOU by Claire Kendal (Psychological Suspense)
Like the bestselling novels of Gillian Flynn and S. J. Watson, THE BOOK OF YOU --- an utterly original fiction debut --- is a sophisticated psychological thriller that will haunt you long after it reaches its terrifying, breathtaking conclusion.

THE GLASS KITCHEN by Linda Francis Lee (Fiction)
Three sisters move from Texas to New York City to open a restaurant in this novel about food, family and finding true love from the author of EMILY AND EINSTEIN.

LITTLE MERCIES by Heather Gudenkauf (Fiction)
In her latest ripped-from-the-headlines tour de force, New York Times bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf shows how one innocent mistake can have life-altering consequences.

LOVERS AT THE CHAMELEON CLUB, PARIS 1932 by Francine Prose (Historical Fiction)
Here is a richly imagined and stunningly inventive literary masterpiece of love, art and betrayal, exploring the genesis of evil, the unforeseen consequences of love, and the ultimate unreliability of storytelling itself.

ONE MORE LAST CHANCE: A Place to Call Home, Book 2 by Cathleen Armstrong (Romance)
After ending a tumultuous engagement, Sarah Cooley returns to the one place where nothing changes --- or so she thinks.

THE PEARL THAT BROKE ITS SHELL by Nadia Hashimi (Fiction)
Debut Afghan-American author Nadia Hashimi’s THE PEARL THAT BROKE ITS SHELL is the entwined stories of two Afghan women separated by a century who find freedom in the tradition of bacha posh, which allows girls to dress and live as boys…until they are of marriageable age.

THE SHELF: From LEQ to LES: Adventures in Extreme Reading by Phyllis Rose (Literary Criticism)
Essayist and biographer Phyllis Rose chose a bookshelf at random --- LEQ-LES --- challenging herself to an adventure in “extreme reading” in the wilds of a historic library on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

THE SNOW QUEEN by Michael Cunningham (Fiction)
By turns heartwarming and heartrending, Michael Cunningham’s THE SNOW QUEEN is a haunting exploration of the longings that seem to define us and the love that sustains us.

'TIL THE WELL RUNS DRY by Lauren Francis-Sharma (Historical Fiction)
'TIL THE WELL RUNS DRY is a glorious and moving multi-generational, multicultural saga that begins in the 1940s and sweeps through the 1960s in Trinidad and the United States.

Please note that these titles, for which we already had the guides when they appeared in hardcover, are now available in paperback:

FIN & LADY by Cathleen Schine (Historical Fiction)
From the author of THE THREE WEISSMANNS OF WESTPORT comes a wise, clever story of New York in the ’60s. This comic, romantic love story is about a brother and sister who must form their own unconventional family in increasingly unconventional times.

GONE GIRL by Gillian Flynn (Thriller)
In a story full of surprising twists, GONE GIRL tracks the course of a marriage gone spectacularly wrong. For the protagonists, it’s a psychological battle with everything at stake; for the reader, an excavation of human failings and incredible depths of betrayal…and a mystery whose resolution is every bit as troubling as its beginning.

LADIES' NIGHT by Mary Kay Andrews (Fiction)
Heartache, humor and a little bit of mystery come together in a story about life’s unpredictable twists and turns. Mary Kay Andrews's LADIES’ NIGHT will have you raising a glass and cheering these characters on.

THE LIGHT IN THE RUINS by Chris Bohjalian (Historical Fiction)
From the New York Times bestselling author of MIDWIVES and THE SANDCASTLE GIRLS comes a spellbinding novel of love, despair and revenge --- set in war-ravaged Tuscany.

THE SUPREME MACARONI COMPANY by Adriana Trigiani (Fiction)
New York Times bestselling author Adriana Trigiani takes us from the cobblestone streets of Greenwich Village to lush New Orleans to Italy and back again, from the tricky dynamics between Old World craftsmanship and New World ambition, all amid a passionate love affair that fuels one woman's determination to have it all.