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Ideas for Celebrating 25!
ReadingGroupGuides.com is celebrating a big anniversary --- 25 years --- and we are looking for ways to honor this major milestone! Over the years, we have gotten some of our best ideas from readers. So we would love to hear yours! Send me your suggestions at [email protected] with the subject line “25!”
We will be hosting our 14th Annual Book Group Speed Dating event on Friday, June 13th at 1pm ET. If you are a librarian, bookseller, or book club leader of four or more groups, and you would be interested in attending this event, please email me and tell me a bit about yourself using the subject line “Speed Dating.” Invites will be going out next week. This is a “trade only” event, but we will be sharing the publisher videos, PowerPoint slides and other materials with you later next month.
I am happy to announce that Beatriz Williams will be this month’s “Bookaccino Live” Book Group guest. The event will be held on Wednesday, May 28th at 8pm ET, and you can sign up here for it. We will talk about her novel, HUSBANDS & LOVERS, a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection that is now available in paperback. In it, two women --- separated by decades and continents, and united by an exotic family heirloom --- reclaim secrets and lost loves.
There will be a two-part Q&A session after I talk to Beatriz.
For the first part, those who are asking a question on camera will be featured. This includes spending time with Beatriz backstage in our virtual green room before the show starts. If you would like to ask your question "live on screen" this way, please email me with the subject line "Beatriz" by noon ET on May 28th. Be sure to include your name, city and state, as well as your question. If you do not want to appear on camera but still would like to ask a question, please note that you want to be off camera, and share your question --- adding your name, city and state.
Then we will take questions from other members of the audience.
I talked to Beatriz last July when HUSBANDS & LOVERS came out in hardcover, so I look forward to having more conversation with her about the book and hearing from those who have read it.
My latest “Bookreporter Talks To” interview is with Victoria Christopher Murray, whose first solo historical novel, HARLEM RHAPSODY, will be a Bets On selection. She has written New York Times bestsellers with her co-author, Marie Benedict.
Victoria explains why she chose to write about the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and shares her extensive research, which included reading issues of The Crisis, the official magazine of the NAACP, and her wonderful finds of letters and other works that helped to bring this story together. She speaks of admiring Jessie Redmon Fauset and her education and career success, as well as what happened later in her life.
Victoria is enthusiastic about how much has been achieved, as just 50 years ago, Black people had been enslaved and didn’t have access to education. Click here to watch the video or here to listen to the podcast. Don't miss my Bets On commentary in the weeks to come.
MY FRIENDS, Fredrik Backman’s latest novel, is May’s Barnes & Noble Book Club selection and #1 Indie Next pick. It revolves around four teenagers whose friendship is forged over one remarkable summer, creating a bond so powerful that it changes a stranger's life 25 years later.
According to Pamela Kramer in her Bookreporter review, “There are twists and unexpected outcomes. Yet Backman's brilliance is in presenting us with characters we may not be able to relate to, but whose understanding of the world is as bright and filled with knowledge as the sea that is depicted in the artist's famous painting. Our hearts break over and over again as we journey with Louisa and Ted and hear their stories, but we also emerge --- as they do --- stronger because of that trip.” Click here to read the review and here for the discussion guide.
On Friday, May 23rd at 3pm ET, Barnes & Noble will host a live virtual event with Fredrik Backman, which you can sign up for here. He will be in conversation with Lexie Smyth, B&N’s Category Manager for Fiction, and Brenda Allison, a Frontlist Buyer at B&N. Here’s a piece from USA Today where Backman talks about the stress of publishing, among other things.
Jeanine Cummins, who many of you know as the author of AMERICAN DIRT, is back with a new novel. SPEAK TO ME OF HOME is ultimately a story of mothers and daughters that asks: How can three women who share geography and genetics have such wildly different ideas of where they come from? And, more important, can they discover a common language to find their way back home?
Pamela Kramer has our review on Bookreporter and says, “Cummins explores our capacity to love and the ways we love. Through her characters, she demonstrates that while home is where the family is, home also needs to be a place where we are accepted and loved for who we are. The cruelty of racism rears its head often in this saga as we come to realize that seemingly, no matter where one lives, skin color matters…. The nuances of life and love, of family ties and fractures, and the ‘home’ in Puerto Rico, all serve to make this a novel that would be perfect for book groups to discuss.” Read the full review here, and check out the guide here.
SPEAK TO ME OF HOME will be a Bets On pick. Don’t miss my commentary in the next newsletter. I look forward to chatting with Jeanine for a “Bookreporter Talks To” interview after her book tour wraps up later this month.
Oprah’s latest Book Club pick is Ocean Vuong’s new work of fiction, THE EMPEROR OF GLADNESS. In his Bookreporter review, Harvey Freedenberg calls it “an emotionally affecting novel that is rooted in the particulars of life as it partakes of the universal.”
Here’s what Oprah says about the book: “Those of you who are Ocean Vuong fans or have read his previous book or his poetry understand that he is an extraordinary writer, one of the best of our time and for the ages…. THE EMPEROR OF GLADNESS [is] a story of a young boy, Hai, and his search for himself and his search for friendship and connection in a world that seems really lonely. Ocean Vuong's ability to be able to take the characters that have ordinary lives and give extraordinary meaning to those lives makes us each think of our lives differently. He is a brilliant writer and a poet and a master of words.”
In front of a live audience at a Starbucks café in Chicago, Oprah talked to Ocean about this deeply personal narrative and his gift of illuminating the fullness of humanity in the most ordinary of places. Click here to watch their conversation and here for the guide.
For the last month, we hosted a contest where 25 readers won a copy of MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH MURDER, the opening installment in Colleen Cambridge’s An American in Paris Mystery series. Now we are featuring the guide for the third and latest entry, A FASHIONABLY FRENCH MURDER, which is now in stores.
Here’s the premise: Fashion is returning to the forefront in Paris, as the somber hues of wartime are replaced by vibrant colors and ultra-feminine silhouettes, influenced by Christian Dior’s “New Look.” American expat Tabitha Knight and aspiring chef Julia Child join a friend for a private showing at an exclusive fashion atelier, Maison Lannet. The event goes well, but when Tabitha returns later that evening to search for a lost glove, she finds the lights still on --- and the couturier dead, strangled by a length of lace. When another body is found, it’s apparent that someone is targeting employees of Maison Lannet. It’s up to Tabitha to don her investigative hat and find answers.
Be sure to take a look at our Featured Guide page, which has links to discussion questions, info about the author, and more. French fashion and murder. How much fun is that?
We also have added guides for these four books:
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WHERE THE RIVERS MERGE: Set against the evocative landscape of the 20th-century Lowcountry, Mary Alice Monroe’s first book in a duology is a dramatic and sweeping multigenerational family story of unyielding love, lessons learned, profound sacrifices, and the indomitable spirit of a woman determined to persevere in the face of change in order to protect her family legacy and the land she loves.
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THE NAMES: Florence Knapp’s debut novel is May’s “Read with Jenna” Book Club pick. Jenna says, “We watch these three different realities take place over a lifetime. We watch a family who comes together, grows apart, and we meet this boy whose name, in three different ways, predicts who he will be. It’s a book about second chances. It’s a book about family, it’s a book about hope.”
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THE ORIGINAL DAUGHTER: Set in turn-of-the-millennium Singapore, first-time novelist Jemimah Wei’s book is this month’s “Good Morning America” Book Club pick. Genevieve Yang is saddled with an unexpected sibling when Arin appears. As the two girls grow closer, they must navigate the intensity of life in a place where the urgent insistence on achievement demands constant sacrifice. But then a stinging betrayal violently estranges them.
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THE MANOR OF DREAMS: Christina Li’s adult literary debut is May’s Target Book Club pick. Told in dual timelines, spanning three generations, and brimming with romance, betrayal, ambition and sacrifice, this thrilling family gothic examines the true cost of the American dream --- and what happens when the roots we set down in this country turn to rot.
Emily Henry’s new novel, GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL LIFE, is Reese’s Book Club pick for May. In it, two writers compete for the chance to tell the larger-than-life story of a woman with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve.
Reese calls it “a mystery, romance, and thriller all rolled into one captivating story!” She goes on to say, “The plot follows two journalists competing for the chance to interview a prominent socialite who has been missing for 30 years. What unfolds between them? I won’t give away any spoilers, but trust me, it’s so good!” Rebecca Munro completely agrees with Reese, as you can see in her Bookreporter review.
For more May selections, including the Indie Next and LibraryReads lists, see our “Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks” feature here.
We hosted May’s “Bookaccino Live” book preview afternoon event on Wednesday. I talked about 41 books releasing between now and June 3rd, plus 14 from July, that we wanted to get on your radar. You can watch the presentation here and see a list of the featured titles here.
We’re featuring Lori Foster’s new novel, THE GUEST COTTAGE, in our Women’s Fiction Author Spotlight on Bookreporter. Susan Mallery calls it “[a] wonderful read with all the feels! Give yourself plenty of time with this one. You’re going to want to read it again the second you finish!”
In anticipation of the book’s May 27th release, we’re awarding a copy to 25 readers and asking them to share their feedback with us by Monday, July 7th. To enter, please fill out this form by Friday, May 30th at noon ET. Scroll further down the newsletter to read more about this first installment in the Firefly Summer series.
Our Bookreporter Summer Reading Contests are Back for a 21st Year!
On select days through mid-August, we are hosting a series of 24-hour giveaways on Bookreporter and on each of the contest days awarding five readers a book that we think is a great summer read. You will have to check Bookreporter each day to see the featured Summer Reading prize book and enter to win. We also are sending a special newsletter to announce the day's title, which you can sign up for here.
Have a great next discussion with your book group!
Carol Fitzgerald ([email protected])
P.S. For those of you who shop online, if you use the store links that appear on our site for shopping, ReadingGroupGuides.com gets a small affiliate fee on your purchases from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and IndieBound. As you check out the discussion guides and various features on our site, we would appreciate your considering this as you buy!
New Guide: MY FRIENDS by Fredrik Backman
May’s Barnes & Noble Book Club Selection
and #1 Indie Next Pick
MY FRIENDS by Fredrik Backman (Fiction)
Most people don’t even notice them --- three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it’s just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an aspiring artist herself, knows otherwise. Twenty-five years earlier, in a distant seaside town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their bruising home lives by spending long summer days on an abandoned pier, telling silly jokes, sharing secrets, and committing small acts of rebellion. Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that unexpectedly will be placed into 18-year-old Louisa’s care. She embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn how the painting came to be and to decide what to do with it.
» MY FRIENDS is May's Barnes & Noble Book Club pick. On Friday, May 23rd at 3pm ET, B&N will host a live virtual event with Fredrik Backman. Click here to sign up.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read our review on Bookreporter.com.
Click here for the discussion guide.
New Guide: SPEAK TO ME OF HOME by Jeanine Cummins
An Upcoming Bookreporter.com Bets On Title
SPEAK TO ME OF HOME by Jeanine Cummins (Fiction)
On her wedding day in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1968, Rafaela Acuña y Daubón has mild misgivings, but she marries Peter Brennan Jr. anyway in a blaze of romantic optimism. She has no way of knowing how dramatically her life will change when she uproots her young family to start over in the American Midwest, unleashing a fleet of disappointments. In the 1980s, against the backdrop of her mother’s isolation in St. Louis, Missouri, Rafaela’s daughter, Ruth, wants only to belong. Eager to fit in, Ruth lets go of her language, habits and childhood memories of Puerto Rico. It’s not until decades later when Ruth’s own daughter, Daisy, returns to San Juan that her mother and grandmother begin to truly reflect on the choices that have come to define their lives.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here to read our review on Bookreporter.com.
Click here for the discussion guide.
SPEAK TO ME OF HOME will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick.
Don't miss Carol's Bets On commentary in the next newsletter
and her interview with Jeanine Cummins in the weeks to come.
New Guide:
THE EMPEROR OF GLADNESS by Ocean Vuong
Oprah’s Latest Book Club Pick
THE EMPEROR OF GLADNESS by Ocean Vuong (Fiction)
One late summer evening in the post-industrial town of East Gladness, Connecticut, 19-year-old Hai stands on the edge of a bridge in pelting rain, ready to jump, when he hears someone shout across the river. The voice belongs to Grazina, an elderly widow succumbing to dementia, who convinces him to take another path. Bereft and out of options, he quickly becomes her caretaker. Over the course of the year, the unlikely pair develops a life-altering bond, one built on empathy, spiritual reckoning and heartbreak, with the power to transform Hai’s relationship to himself, his family and a community on the brink.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here to read our review on Bookreporter.com.
- Click here to see why the book is Oprah's latest Book Club pick.
Click here for the discussion guide.
New Featured Guide: A FASHIONABLY
FRENCH MURDER by Colleen Cambridge
A FASHIONABLY FRENCH MURDER: An American in Paris Mystery by Colleen Cambridge (Historical Mystery)
If there’s one art the French have mastered as well as fine cuisine, it’s haute couture. American expat Tabitha Knight and aspiring chef Julia Child are already accustomed to Fsampling the delights of the former. Now fashion is returning to the forefront in Paris, as the somber hues of wartime are replaced by vibrant colors and ultra-feminine silhouettes, influenced by Christian Dior’s “New Look.”
Tabitha and Julia join a friend for a private showing at an exclusive fashion atelier, Maison Lannet. The event goes well, but when Tabitha returns later that evening to search for a lost glove, she finds the lights still on --- and the couturier dead, strangled by a length of lace. The shop manager suspects that a jealous rival --- perhaps Dior himself --- committed the crime. Tabitha dismisses that idea, but when another body is found, it’s apparent that someone is targeting employees of Maison Lannet.
Meanwhile, Tabitha’s Grand-père and Oncle Rafe are in the midst of their own design-related fracas, as they squabble over how to decorate their new restaurant. And there are strange break-ins at a nearby shoe store. But are the crimes related? It’s up to Tabitha to don her investigative hat and find answers before someone commits another fatal fashion faux pas.
Click here for the featured guide, which includes discussion questions,
info about Colleen Cambridge, and more.
New Women’s Fiction Author Spotlight & Contest on Bookreporter.com: Win One of 25 Copies of
THE GUEST COTTAGE by Lori Foster, Releasing on
May 27th, and Share Your Comments on It
In THE GUEST COTTAGE, the first installment in Lori Foster's Firefly Summer series, love, forgiveness and renewal take center stage in the haven of a quiet lakeside town when two very different women bond over one man’s betrayal.
We have 25 copies to give away to those who would like to read the book, which releases on May 27th, and share their comments on it. All winners must be prepared to provide their feedback by Monday, July 7th.
To enter, please fill out this form by Friday, May 30th at noon ET.
THE GUEST COTTAGE by Lori Foster (Fiction)
Marlow Heddings is starting over. She has carried the outrage of her husband Dylan’s affair with a younger woman --- and the expectations of his family’s powerful Chicago holdings company --- long enough. Now, after another devastating twist of fate, she is unapologetically moving on.
Arriving in tiny Bramble, Kentucky, Marlow revels in her freedom, swapping her executive suits for sundresses...and scouting places to open her dream boutique. Best of all is her new residence, an adorable cottage with gorgeous lake views --- and a breathtaking landlord, former Marine Cort Easton. Soon they’re sharing dockside morning coffee and nighttime firefly gazing. Marlow’s new life feels like a dream.
Then Pixie Nolan arrives on her doorstep. With a shocking secret.
To Marlow’s astonishment, Dylan’s “other woman” is a desperate girl of 19, destitute, exhausted and disowned by her family. Defying her manipulative in-laws’ demands, and surprising even herself, Marlow vows to lay down roots in Bramble and help Pixie get on her feet. Then they’ll part ways. But empathy has a way of forging bonds. As Marlow grows close to the hard-working, devoted young woman, she becomes something of a big sister to Pixie.
Now, with each sunrise, Marlow awakens to the life she was truly meant to live, one filled with deepening connections, supportive friendship...and even a second chance at love.
Click here to read more in our Women's Fiction Author Spotlight
and enter the contest.
New Guide: WHERE THE RIVERS MERGE
by Mary Alice Monroe
WHERE THE RIVERS MERGE by Mary Alice Monroe (Historical Fiction)
1908: The Lowcountry of South Carolina is at the cusp of change. Mayfield, the grand estate held for generations by the Rivers family, is the treasured home of young Eliza. A free spirit, she refuses to be confined by societal norms. But the Great War, coastal storms and family turmoil bring unexpected challenges to Eliza, putting her on a collision course with the patriarchal traditions of a bygone era. 1988: At 88, Eliza is the scion of the Rivers/DeLancey family. She has fought a lifetime to save her beloved Mayfield and is too independent and committed to quietly retire and leave the fate of the estate to her greedy son. She must make decisions that will assure the future of the land and her family --- or watch them both be split apart.
- Click here to read more about the book.
Click here for the discussion guide.
New Guide: THE NAMES by Florence Knapp
May’s “Read with Jenna” Book Club Pick
THE NAMES by Florence Knapp (Fiction)
In the wake of a catastrophic storm, Cora sets off with her nine-year-old daughter, Maia, to register her son's birth. Her husband, Gordon, a local doctor, respected in the community but a terrifying and controlling presence at home, intends for her to name the infant after him. But when the registrar asks what she'd like to call the child, Cora hesitates. Spanning 35 years, what follows are three alternate and alternating versions of Cora's and her young son's lives, shaped by her choice of name. THE NAMES explores the painful ripple effects of domestic abuse, the messy ties of family, and the possibilities of autonomy and healing.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read our review on Bookreporter.com.
- Click here to see why the book is this month's "Read with Jenna" Book Club pick.
Click here for the discussion guide.
New Guide: THE ORIGINAL DAUGHTER by Jemimah Wei
May’s “Good Morning America” Book Club Pick
THE ORIGINAL DAUGHTER by Jemimah Wei (Fiction)
Living with her parents and grandmother in a single-room flat in working-class Bedok, Genevieve Yang is saddled with an unexpected sibling when Arin appears. As the two girls grow closer, they must navigate the intensity of life in a place where the urgent insistence on achievement demands constant sacrifice. Knowing that failure is not an option, the sisters learn to depend entirely on one another in pursuit of academic perfection and passage to a better future. When a stinging betrayal violently estranges Genevieve and Arin, Genevieve must weigh the value of ambition versus familial love, home versus the outside world, and allegiance to herself versus allegiance to the people who made her who she is.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to see why the book is this month's "Good Morning America" Book Club pick.
Click here for the discussion guide.
New Guide: THE MANOR OF DREAMS by Christina Li
May’s Target Book Club Pick
THE MANOR OF DREAMS by Christina Li (Gothic Fiction)
Vivian Yin is dead. The first Chinese actress to win an Oscar, the trailblazing ingénue rose to fame in the ’80s, only to disappear from the spotlight to live out the rest of her life as a recluse. Now her remaining family members are gathered for the reading of her will, and her daughters expect to inherit their childhood home: Vivian’s grand, sprawling, Southern California garden estate. But due to a last-minute change to the will, the house is passed on to another family instead --- one that has suddenly returned after decades of estrangement. In hopes of staking their claim, both families move into the mansion. As Vivian’s daughters race to piece together what happened in the last weeks of their mother’s life, disturbing visions and bizarre behaviors start to take hold of everyone in the house.
- Click here to read more about the book.
Click here for the discussion guide.
Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks for May
Each month, we share top book picks from Indie Next and LibraryReads. We also feature a number of other prominent selections, including the Barnes & Noble Book Club, the "Good Morning America" Book Club, Oprah’s Book Club, the PBS Books Readers Club, the "Read with Jenna" Book Club, Reese's Book Club, and the Target Book Club.
Below is a preview of May's "Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks." For the complete Indie Next and LibraryReads lists, as well as additional links pertaining to this month's selections, please click here.
Indie Next
#1 Pick: MY FRIENDS by Fredrik Backman
THE NAMES by Florence Knapp
THE LILAC PEOPLE by Milo Todd
THE ROAD TO TENDER HEARTS by Annie Hartnett
THE PRETENDER by Jo Harkin
LibraryReads
Top Pick: THE MISSING HALF by Ashley Flowers with Alex Kiester
THE DEVILS by Joe Abercrombie
ONE GOLDEN SUMMER by Carley Fortune
SILVER ELITE by Dani Francis
THE NAMES by Florence Knapp
Barnes & Noble Book Club
MY FRIENDS by Fredrik Backman
"Good Morning America" Book Club
THE ORIGINAL DAUGHTER by Jemimah Wei
PBS Books Readers Club
WE ALL LIVE HERE by Jojo Moyes
"Read with Jenna" Book Club
THE NAMES by Florence Knapp
Reese's Book Club
GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL LIFE by Emily Henry
Target Book Club
THE MANOR OF DREAMS by Christina Li
Click here for May's Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks.
Announcing Bookreporter.com's 21st Annual
Summer Reading Contests and Feature
Summer will be here before you know it! At Bookreporter.com, this means it's time for us to share some great summer book picks with our Summer Reading Contests and Feature.
We are hosting a series of 24-hour contests for these titles on select days through mid-August, so you will have to check the site each day to see the featured prize book and enter to win.
We also are sending a special newsletter to announce the day's title, which you can sign up for here.
This year's featured titles are:
Click here to read all the contest details
and learn more about our featured titles.
From left to right: Chris Pavone, Beatriz Williams, Linwood Barclay
Upcoming Virtual Book and Author Events
Here are a number of upcoming virtual book and author events that you may be interested in attending. Click on the links for more info and to register.
Every Monday night through July 7th at 7:30pm ET: “Lisa Live”: Join Lisa Scottoline on Facebook as she reveals her inspirations behind her upcoming novel, THE UNRAVELING OF JULIA, and shows videos from her research trip to Tuscany. Then, on July 14th, join “Lisa Live” for her Virtual Publication Celebration.
And be sure to enter the Pre-Order Sweepstakes for THE UNRAVELING OF JULIA, where you have a chance to win prizes such as an iPad mini or the Grand Prize of a Gucci Mini Bag. Lisa will be giving away an exciting prize each week during her “Lisa Live” events, leading up to the book’s publication on July 15th.
Monday, May 19th at 8pm ET: The Poisoned Pen Bookstore: Michael McGarrity will talk about his latest novel, NIGHT IN THE CITY, in which Korean War veteran Sam Monroe, who is accused of the murder of his former lover, is forced to abandon his job as an assistant district attorney and fight to clear his name.
Tuesday, May 20th at 9pm ET: Killer Author Club: Be there when the one and only Jaime Lynn Hendricks joins the Killer Author Club --- Kimberly Belle, Heather Gudenkauf and Kaira Rouda --- to talk all things writing and her latest bone-chilling page turner, THEIR DOUBLE LIVES.
Wednesday, May 21st at 3pm ET: Barnes & Noble: Join Barnes & Noble as they welcome Anthony Horowitz for a live virtual discussion of MARBLE HALL MURDERS as part of their B&N Midday Mystery Virtual Event series. Anthony will be in conversation with the New York Times bestselling author of END OF STORY, A. J. Finn.
Wednesday, May 21st at 7pm ET: “Friends & Fiction”: Join “Friends & Fiction” for a conversation with Kristy Woodson Harvey about her book, BEACH HOUSE RULES. This delightfully moving new novel is about a mother-daughter duo learning to lean on their community of women --- and each other --- after their world is turned upside down.
Thursday, May 22nd at 3pm ET: Barnes & Noble: Join Barnes & Noble as they welcome Chris Pavone for a live virtual discussion of THE DOORMAN as part of their B&N Midday Mystery Virtual Event series. Chris will be in conversation with bestselling author Maria Semple.
Friday, May 23rd at 3pm ET: Barnes & Noble Book Club: Join Barnes & Noble as they welcome Fredrik Backman for a live virtual event to discuss his latest novel, MY FRIENDS, which is May's B&N Book Club pick. Fredrik will be in conversation with Lexie Smyth, B&N’s Category Manager for Fiction, and Brenda Allison, a Frontlist Buyer at B&N.
Wednesday, May 28th at 7pm ET: “Friends & Fiction”: Join “Friends & Fiction” for a conversation with Kristina McMorris about her new book, THE GIRLS OF GOOD FORTUNE, a gripping novel of love, lore and betrayal that shines a light on shocking events surrounding Portland's dark history.
Wednesday, May 28th at 8pm ET: “Bookaccino Live” Book Group: Carol Fitzgerald will talk to Beatriz Williams about HUSBANDS & LOVERS, a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick that is now available in paperback. Beatriz also will answer questions from guests who will be “on stage,” as well as from other members of the audience.
Thursday, May 29th at 8pm ET: The Poisoned Pen Bookstore: Chris Pavone will talk about his latest thriller, THE DOORMAN. In this pulse-pounding novel of class, privilege, sex and murder, the worlds of the haves and the have-nots collide in a polarized New York City and one iconic apartment building.
Friday, May 30th at 8pm ET: The Poisoned Pen Bookstore: Linwood Barclay will talk about his new book, WHISTLE, a supernatural chiller in which a woman and her young son move to a small town looking for a fresh start, only to be haunted by disturbing events and strange visions when they find a mysterious train set in a storage shed.
"Bookreporter Talks To" Videos & Podcasts
“Bookreporter Talks To” is a video and podcast series that delivers long-form, in-depth author interviews. 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:
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Victoria Christopher Murray (HARLEM RHAPSODY) Video | Podcast
Other authors we've interviewed include:
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Marie Benedict (THE QUEENS OF CRIME) Video | Podcast
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Joseph Finder (THE OLIGARCH'S DAUGHTER) Video | Podcast
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Clare Leslie Hall (BROKEN COUNTRY) Video | Podcast
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Katy Hays (SALTWATER) Video | Podcast
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Jeff Hobbs (SEEKING SHELTER: A Working Mother, Her Children, and a Story of Homelessness in America) Video | Podcast
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Michelle Horton (DEAR SISTER: A Memoir of Secrets, Survival, and Unbreakable Bonds) Video | Podcast
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Georgia Hunter (ONE GOOD THING) Video | Podcast
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Nita Prose (THE MAID'S SECRET: A Maid Novel) Video | Podcast
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Scott Turow (PRESUMED GUILTY) Video | Podcast
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Charmaine Wilkerson (GOOD DIRT) Video | Podcast
Upcoming interviews include:
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Julie Clark (THE GHOSTWRITER)
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Brenda Coffee (MAYA BLUE: A Memoir of Survival)
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Jeanine Cummins (SPEAK TO ME OF HOME)
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Lori Foster (THE GUEST COTTAGE: A Firefly Summer Novel)
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Chris Pavone (THE DOORMAN)
Click here for a complete list of our
"Bookreporter Talks To" videos and podcasts.
We currently are featuring the following guides on ReadingGroupGuides.com:
THE AMALFI CURSE by Sarah Penner (Historical Fantasy/Adventure)
Powerful witchcraft. A hunt for sunken treasure. Forbidden love on the high seas. Beware the Amalfi Curse. Against the dazzling backdrop of the Amalfi Coast, this bewitching novel shimmers with mystery, romance, and the untamed magic of the sea.
BIG CHIEF by Jon Hickey (Fiction)
THERE THERE meets THE NIGHT WATCHMAN in this gripping literary debut about power and corruption, family, and facing the ghosts of the past.
THE EMPEROR OF GLADNESS by Ocean Vuong (Fiction)
Ocean Vuong returns with a bighearted novel about chosen family, unexpected friendship, and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive.
A FASHIONABLY FRENCH MURDER: An American in Paris Mystery by Colleen Cambridge (Historical Mystery)
American expat Tabitha Knight has found a new life in postwar Paris, along with a delightful friend in aspiring chef Julia Child. Yet there are perils in peacetime too, as a killer infiltrates one of the city’s most famous fashion houses.
HAPPY LAND by Dolen Perkins-Valdez (Historical Fiction)
A woman learns the incredible story of a real-life American Kingdom --- and her family’s ties to it --- in this enthralling new novel from the New York Times bestselling and NAACP Image Award-winning author of TAKE MY HAND.
HEARTWOOD by Amity Gaige (Literary Mystery)
HEARTWOOD takes readers on a gripping journey as a search and rescue team races against time when an experienced hiker mysteriously disappears on the Appalachian Trail in Maine.
HOW TO SEAL YOUR OWN FATE by Kristen Perrin (Mystery)
Kristen Perrin is back with the second novel in her Castle Knoll series. Annie Adams is caught in a new web of murder that spans decades, returning us to the idyllic English village that holds layers of secrets.
THE LILAC PEOPLE by Milo Todd (Historical Fiction)
THE LILAC PEOPLE is a moving and deeply humane story about a trans man who must relinquish the freedoms of prewar Berlin to survive first the Nazis and then the Allies while protecting the ones he loves.
THE MANOR OF DREAMS by Christina Li (Gothic Fiction)
MEXICAN GOTHIC meets THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO in Christina Li’s haunting novel about the secrets that lie in wait in the crumbling mansion of a former Hollywood starlet and the intertwined fates of the two Chinese American families fighting to inherit it.
MATRIARCH: A Memoir by Tina Knowles (Memoir)
MATRIARCH is a revealing personal life story like no other --- enlightening, entertaining, surprising, empowering --- and a testament to the world-making power of Black motherhood.
MY FRIENDS by Fredrik Backman (Fiction)
#1 New York Times bestselling author Fredrik Backman returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a complete stranger’s life 25 years later.
THE NAMES by Florence Knapp (Fiction)
With exceptional sensitivity and depth, Florence Knapp draws us into the story of one family, told through a prism of what-ifs, in an extraordinary novel that asks: Can a name change the course of a life?
THE ORIGINAL DAUGHTER by Jemimah Wei (Fiction)
In this dazzling debut, Stegner Fellow Jemimah Wei explores the formation and dissolution of family bonds in a story of ambition and sisterhood in turn-of-the-millennium Singapore.
SPEAK TO ME OF HOME by Jeanine Cummins (Fiction)
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jeanine Cummins comes a deeply felt multigenerational family story that asks: What does it mean to call a place home?
WHERE THE RIVERS MERGE by Mary Alice Monroe (Historical Fiction)
From New York Times bestselling author Mary Alice Monroe comes her highly anticipated WHERE THE RIVERS MERGE, the first of two epic and triumphant novels celebrating one intrepid woman's life across multiple generations in the American South.
Please note that these titles, for which we already had the guides when they appeared in hardcover, are now available in paperback:
THE COVENANT OF WATER by Abraham Verghese (Historical Fiction)
From the New York Times bestselling author of CUTTING FOR STONE comes a stunning and magisterial epic of love, faith and medicine, set in Kerala, South India, and following three generations of a family seeking the answers to a strange secret.
LISTEN FOR THE LIE by Amy Tintera (Mystery)
What if you thought you murdered your best friend? And if everyone else thought so too? And what if the truth doesn't matter?
THE NEXT MRS. PARRISH by Liv Constantine (Psychological Thriller)
Daphne and Amber Parrish are thrust back into each other’s lives upon the resurgence of a long-forgotten threat, forcing a vicious game of cat and mouse where everything is on the line, in this thrilling sequel to the million-copy-bestselling Reese’s Book Club pick THE LAST MRS. PARRISH.
THE SEVENTH VEIL OF SALOME by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Historical Fiction)
A young woman wins the role of a lifetime in a film about a legendary heroine --- but the real drama is behind the scenes in this sumptuous historical epic from the author of MEXICAN GOTHIC.
SOCIETY OF LIES by Lauren Ling Brown (Domestic Thriller/Mystery)
A decade after graduating, Maya Banks has returned to Princeton for her college reunion and her little sister Naomi’s commencement. But what should have been a dream weekend becomes Maya's worst nightmare when she receives the news that Naomi is dead.
THE STOLEN CHILD by Ann Hood (Historical Fiction)
An unlikely duo ventures through France and Italy to solve the mystery of a child’s fate in this moving, page-turning novel from Ann Hood, who captures a world of possibility and romance through the eyes of a young woman learning to claim her place in it.
SWIFT RIVER by Essie Chambers (Historical Fiction)
SWIFT RIVER is a sweeping family saga about the complicated bond between mothers and daughters, the disappearance of a father, and the long-hidden history of a declining New England mill town.
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