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—Booklist (starred review)

Author Talk: Jamie Ford, author of The Many Daughters of Afong Moy

Aug 4, 2022

Jamie Ford, the New York Times bestselling author of HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET, returns with his highly anticipated new novel, THE MANY DAUGHTERS OF AFONG MOY. This powerful exploration of the love that binds one family across the generations is this month’s “Read with Jenna” Today Show Book Club pick. In this interview, Ford explains what epigenetics is and why he decided to write a love story that revolves around it. He also discusses what fascinated him about the true story of Afong Moy, how he managed the personalities of the various female characters who span several generations, the challenges he faced in writing about the future, and what’s next for him.

July 30, 2022

We have been hearing from so many book groups about how much they have been enjoying our “Bookreporter Talks To” author interviews. Some are watching them before their discussions to decide what to read, and others say that they are sharing them with their groups to view before their meetings. We love hearing this. Please note that authors who have interviews available for a title are noted on our "Videos & Podcasts" page here.

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Megan Miranda, author of The Last to Vanish

Ten years ago, Abigail Lovett fell into a job she loves, managing The Passage Inn, a cozy, upscale resort nestled in the North Carolina mountain town of Cutter’s Pass. Cutter’s Pass is best known for its outdoor offerings and mysterious history. As the book begins, the string of unsolved disappearances that has haunted the town is once again thrust into the spotlight when journalist Landon West, who was staying at the inn to investigate the story of the vanishing trail, disappears himself. When she finds incriminating evidence that may bring the community closer to the truth, Abby soon discovers how little she knows about her coworkers, neighbors and even those closest to her.

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Susan Wiggs, author of Sugar and Salt

Jerome “Sugar” Barnes learned the art of baking in his grandma’s bakery, also called Sugar, on historic Perdita Street in San Francisco. He supplies baked goods to the Lost and Found Bookshop across the street. When the restaurant that shares his commercial kitchen loses its longtime tenant, a newcomer moves in: Margot Salton, a barbecue master from Texas. Margot isn’t exactly on the run, but she needs a fresh start. She’s taken care of herself her whole life, and her dream has been to open a restaurant somewhere far, far from Texas. Margot instantly takes to Jerome’s grandmother, the lively, opinionated Ida. The older woman proves to be a good mentor, and Margot is drawn to Jerome. But just as she starts to relax into a happy new future, Margot’s past in Texas comes back to haunt her.

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Sarah Vaughan, author of Reputation

As a politician, Emma has sacrificed a great deal for her career --- including her marriage and her relationship with her daughter, Flora. A former teacher, the glare of the spotlight is unnerving for Emma, particularly when it leads to countless insults, threats and trolling as she tries to work in the public eye. Fourteen-year-old Flora is encountering heartless bullying. When another teenager takes her own life, Emma lobbies for a new law to protect women and girls from the effects of online abuse. Now, Emma and Flora find their personal lives uncomfortably intersected…but then the unthinkable happens. A man is found dead in Emma’s home. A man she had every reason to be afraid of and to want gone.

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Katherine Center, author of The Bodyguard

Hannah Brooks looks more like a kindergarten teacher than somebody who could kill you with a wine bottle opener. Or a ballpoint pen. Or a dinner napkin. But the truth is, she’s an Executive Protection Agent (aka "bodyguard"), and she just got hired to protect superstar actor Jack Stapleton from his middle-aged, corgi-breeding stalker. When Jack’s mom gets sick, he comes home to the family’s Texas ranch to help out. There's only one catch: He doesn’t want his family to know about his stalker. Or the bodyguard thing. And so Hannah --- against her will and her better judgment --- finds herself pretending to be Jack’s girlfriend as a cover. But the more time she spends with Jack, the more real it all starts to seem.

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Sarah Pearse, author of The Retreat

An idyllic wellness retreat has opened on an island off the English coast, promising rest and relaxation --- but the island itself, known locally as Reaper’s Rock, has a dark past. Once the playground of a serial killer, it’s rumored to be cursed. A young woman is found dead below the yoga pavilion in what seems to be a tragic fall. But Detective Elin Warner soon learns the victim wasn’t a guest --- in fact, she wasn’t meant to be on the island at all. And they would do anything to escape. The longer Elin stays, the more secrets she uncovers. When someone else drowns in a diving incident, Elin begins to suspect that there’s nothing accidental about these deaths. But why would someone target the guests at this luxury resort?

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Jennifer Hillier, author of Things We Do in the Dark

When Paris Peralta is arrested in her own bathroom --- covered in blood, holding a straight razor, her celebrity husband dead in the bathtub behind her --- she knows she'll be charged with murder. With the unwanted media attention now surrounding her, it's only a matter of time before someone from her long-hidden past recognizes her and destroys the new life she's worked so hard to build. Twenty-five years earlier, Ruby Reyes was convicted of a similar murder in a trial that riveted Canada in the early ’90s. Reyes knows who Paris really is, and when she's unexpectedly released from prison, she threatens to expose all of Paris' secrets. Left with no other choice, Paris must finally confront the dark past she escaped.

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Editorial Content for Acts of Violet

Book

Acts of Violet

Teaser

From Margarita Montimore, the author of the "Good Morning America" Book Club pick and national bestseller OONA OUT OF ORDER, ACTS OF VIOLET is a dazzling and twisty new novel about a famous magician who disappears, leaving her sister to figure out what really happened.

Promo

From Margarita Montimore, the author of the "Good Morning America" Book Club pick and national bestseller OONA OUT OF ORDER, ACTS OF VIOLET is a dazzling and twisty new novel about a famous magician who disappears, leaving her sister to figure out what really happened.

About the Book

From Margarita Montimore, the author of the "Good Morning America" Book Club pick and national bestseller OONA OUT OF ORDER, ACTS OF VIOLET is a dazzling and twisty new novel about a famous magician who disappears, leaving her sister to figure out what really happened.

Nearly a decade ago, iconic magician Violet Volk performed her greatest trick yet: vanishing mid-act. Though she hasn’t been seen since, her hold on the public hasn’t wavered. While Violet sought out the spotlight, her sister Sasha, ever the responsible one, took over their mother’s salon and built a quiet life for her daughter, Quinn. But Sasha can never seem to escape her sister’s orbit or her memories of their unresolved, tumultuous relationship. Then there’s Cameron Frank, determined to finally get his big break hosting a podcast devoted to all things Violet --- though keeping his job hinges on an exclusive interview with Sasha, the last person who wants to talk to him.

As the 10-year anniversary approaches, the podcast picks up steam, and Cameron’s pursuit of Sasha becomes increasingly intrusive. He isn’t the only one wondering what secrets she might be keeping: Quinn, loyal to the aunt she always idolized, is doing her own investigating. Meanwhile, Sasha begins to experience an unsettling series of sleepwalking episodes and coincidences, which all lead back to Violet. Pushed to her emotional limits, Sasha must finally confront the most painful truths about her sister, and herself, even at the risk of losing everything.

Alternating between Sasha’s narration and Cameron’s podcast transcripts, interspersed with documents that offer a tantalizing peek at Violet herself, ACTS OF VIOLET is an utterly original, propulsive story of fame, deception and forgiveness that will make you believe in magic.