Tag: author

Ep. 175: Aimie K. Runyan Shares the Recipe for Creating Her Treat of a Novel, A Bakery in Paris

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This week, international bestselling author Aimee K. Runyan is here to discuss her new historical novel, A Bakery in Paris, which tells the story of two courageous women of different eras connected by a quaint French bakery.

bakeryinparis

“A Bakery in Paris is a delicious novel that will have you hungering not only for French confections but to turn the next page. Set in two tumultuous wartime periods in Paris, Aimie K. Runyan weaves a spellbinding story of family, friendship, love, self-discovery, and power of healing through cooking. Connected through time by family recipes, Runyan will delight the senses of every reader, as they follow along the emotionally charged journeys of each endearing character.”
– Eliza Knight, USA Today bestselling author of STARRING ADELE ASTAIRE

 

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About the Author:

Aimie K. Runyan is a multipublished and bestselling author of historical fiction. She has been nominated for a Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer of the Year award and two Colorado Book Awards. She lives in Colorado with her wonderful husband and two (usually) adorable children. Learn more: https://aimiekrunyan.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 174: Vanessa Riley Gives Us a Master Class in All Things Researching and Writing Historical Fiction

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This week, I’m thrilled to have acclaimed historical novelist Vanessa Riley here to discuss Murder in Drury Lane, which portrays the true diversity of the Regency-era and the hidden intrigue of England’s abolitionist movement, with an engaging heroine who has a talent for sleuthing.

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“In a time when Black and mixed-race people were marginalized and overlooked, the author brings these voices to the forefront through vibrant and well-developed characters. Readers will enjoy the Bridgerton-esque setting and dialogue and will keep working to uncover the clues. Combining elements of an Agatha Christie–style whodunit with the vivid portrayal of a more encompassing view of Regency-era England, the second Lady Worthing mystery does not disappoint.” —Library Journal

 

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About the Author:

Vanessa Riley is the award-winning author of Island Queen, a Good Morning America Buzz Pick. Riley‘s historical novels showcase the hidden histories of Black women and women of color, emphasizing strong sisterhoods and dazzling multicultural communities. Her works encompass historical fiction, historical romance, and historical mystery and have been reviewed by the Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, Publishers Weekly, and the New York Times. This Southern, Irish, Trini girl holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering and an MS in industrial engineering and engineering management from Stanford University. Riley also earned a BS and MS in mechanical engineering from Penn State University. Her research skills have helped NASA, GM, Hewlett Packard, and several startups. Yet, her love of history (Caribbean, Georgian, and Regency) and lattes overwhelmed her passion for math and has led to the publication of over twenty titles. Vanessa is a member and former president of Regency Fiction Writers, a member of Georgia Writers Association, the Historical Novel Society, Crime Writers of Color, and on the Board of Directors of Christian Book Lovers Retreat. She’s an avid baker who loves creating her Trinidadian grandma’s cake recipes. You can find Vanessa writing on her southern porch with proper amounts of caffeine. To learn more please visit www.vanessariley.com  

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 173: Sara Johnson Allen on the Road to Down Here We Come Up, a Propulsive, Provocative Debut

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Today my guest is Sara Johnson Allen, author of the debut novel, Down Here We Come Up, which was the winner of the 2022 Big Moose Prize and just released from Black Lawrence Press.

downherewecomeup

With Down Here We Come Up, Sara Johnson Allen reminds us that home can be an emotionally messy place–and our mothers even messier. Allen masterfully captures these complexities with propulsive, wholehearted storytelling. This is a remarkable and beautifully written debut!

–Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

 

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About the Author:

Sara Johnson Allen was raised (mostly) in North Carolina. Her fiction has appeared in PANK Magazine, SmokeLong Quarterly, and Reckon Review. She was recently awarded runner-up in the 2022 Third Coast fiction contest. In 2018, she was awarded the Marianne Russo Award for Emerging Writers by the Key West Literary Seminar for her novel-in-progress. In 2019, she received the Stockholm Writers Festival First Pages Prize. She has also been awarded MacDowell fellowships and an artistic grant from the Elizabeth George Foundation. When she is not grading papers or chasing after her three kids, she likes to write about ‘place’ and how it shapes us. Learn more: https://www.sarajallen.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep 172: Nina Simon on the Bestselling Debut Novel She Wrote as a Love Letter to Her Mom

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This week my guest is Nina Simon, author of the debut novel, Mother Daughter Murder Night,  a Reese’s Book Club Pick, New York Times Bestseller, Indie Next Pick, and more. 

This is a big-hearted mystery about a trio of amateur sleuths–a grandmother, single mom, and teenage girl–who come together to solve a murder in their coastal California town.

motherdaughtermurder

“No novel has ever made family drama (or murder) this much fun.”

KATY HAYS, NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE CLOISTERS

 

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About the Author:

Nina Simon writes crime stories about strong women. A former NASA engineer, slam poet, and museum director, Nina lives with her family in an off-grid community in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Mother-Daughter Murder Night is her first novel. Learn more: https://ninaksimon.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 171: Bryn Turnbull on the Art Forging Heroines of The Paris Deception

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This week, internationally bestselling author Bryn Turnbull is here to delve into The Paris Deception, an enthralling novel about art theft and forgery in Nazi-occupied Paris, and two brave women who risk their lives rescuing looted masterpieces from Nazi destruction.

paris deception

“Turnbull effectively combines fascinating background on winemaking and art restoration and forgery with plenty of wartime suspense and some appealing dollops of romance. This will be a page-turning delight for anyone who loves tales of women in the resistance, especially Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale (2015).” –Booklist

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Bryn Turnbull is an internationally bestselling author of historical fiction. Equipped with a Master of Letters in Creative Writing from the University of St. Andrews, a Master of Professional Communication from Toronto Metropolitan University and a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from McGill University, Bryn focuses on finding stories of women lost within the cracks of the historical record. 

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Her debut novel, The Woman Before Wallis, was named one of the top ten bestselling works of Canadian fiction for 2020 and became an international bestseller. Her second, The Last Grand Duchess, came out in February 2022 and spent eight weeks on the Globe & Mail and Toronto Star bestseller lists. Her third novel, The Paris Deception, came out in May 2023.  Learn more: https://www.brynturnbull.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 170: Sandra A. Miller on Seasons of the Writing Life and a Creative Process with Some “Big Magic”

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This week, Sandra A. Miller is here to discuss her new literary suspense novel, Wednesdays at One, and the creative process which was sprinkled with a little bit of pixie dust, dedication,  and some “Big Magic”.

 

wednesdaysatone

Past guest of the podcast, Julie Clark, calls Wednesdays at One, “A taut psychological thriller about family, friendship, and the price we pay when our mistakes come back to haunt us, you will inhale it in one gulp.”

―Julie Clark, New York Times bestselling author of The Lies I Tell and The Last Flight

 

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About the Author:

Sandra A. Miller is the author of the award-winning memoir Trove: A Woman’s Search for Truth and Buried Treasure. She has written for The Boston Globe, The Christian Science Monitor, and many other publications. One of her essays was turned into a short film called Wait, starring Kerry Washington. She teaches at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, and lives outside of Boston with her family. 

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 169: Lynn Hightower on Confronting Grief and Escaping to France in The Beautiful Risk

Posted in Thriller, WritingTagged , Leave a comment

This week, internationally bestselling author Lynn Hightower is here to discuss The Beautiful Risk, a provocative thriller about the collateral damage of grief and the adrenaline of revenge.

lynn hightower

“Dark and swiftly moving, both a thriller and an examination of how deep a connection can be.” —Kirkus Reviews

 

 

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Lynn Hightower is the author of numerous other thrillers and her novels have been included in the New YorkTimes List of Notable Books and the London Times bestseller lists. She has won the Shamus Award for Best First Private Eye novel and a WH Smith Fresh Talent Award. Lynn teaches Master Novel classes in the UCLA Extension Writing Program and works as a manuscript consultant/writing coach for novelists. She and her very, very good German shepherd, Leah, live in Kentucky in a small Victorian cottage with a writing parlour. Learn more:  https://www.lynnhightower.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 168: Denene Millner on the Story Behind Her Powerful New Multigenerational Novel

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This week, Denene Millner takes us “behind the book” with One Blood, a powerful new novel which follows three women from The Great Migration, to the civil unrest of the 1960s, to  the quest for women’s equality in the early 2000s. This is one of the most compelling, beautifully written books I’ve read in years and I’ve been recommending it to everyone I see.

oneblood

“In delicious, decadent prose, Denene Millner does what few authors can–compose a sprawling multigenerational tale that is necessary American reading. One Blood sings the song of the South in a voice that is heartbreaking, hopeful, and resilient. A masterpiece.” -Tara M. Stringfellow, National Bestselling author of Memphis

 

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About the Author:

DENENE MILLLNER is a six-time New York Times bestselling author, Emmy Award–nominated TV show host and award-winning journalist who has written thirty-one books, she is also the editorial director of Denene Millner Books, an award-winning imprint that has published two Caldecott Honor books, a Newbery Honor Book, the Kirkus Prize for Children’s Literature and a Southern Book Award. A MacDowell Fellow, Millner has written essays for the New York Times, Glamour and NPR, which hosted her critically-acclaimed podcast, “Speakeasy with Denene.” Millner is a graduate of Hofstra University. She lives in Atlanta with her two daughters and their goldendoodle, Franklin. Learn more: https://denenemillner.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 167: Virginia Pye on on the Literary Women of Gilded Age Boston

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This week, Boston author Virginia Pye discusses The Literary Undoing of Victoria Swann, a historical novel which she calls a love letter to books and authors and to the literary city she adores. It came to be as she imagined being a young woman writing books in Boston’s male-dominated publishing industry of the 19th century.

victoriaswann

“The Bostonians meets Writers & Lovers in Virginia Pye’s gossipy and substantive historical novel about women authors and book publishing. Compelling, fierce, and utterly charming, Victoria Swann is a literary heroine for the ages.”
—Laura Zigman, author of Small World

 

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Virginia Pye is an award-winning author of novels and short stories. Her short story collection, Shelf Life of Happiness, (Press 53) won the 2019 Independent Publisher Gold Medal for Short Fiction, and one of its stories was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Virginia’s debut novel, River of Dust, (Unbridled Books), was an IndieNext Pick and a 2013 Finalist for the Virginia Literary Award. Her second novel, Dreams of the Red Phoenix, (Unbridled Books), was named a Best Book of 2015 by the Richmond Times Dispatch. Virginia Pye grew up in Cambridge, MA and moved back after thirty-five years living up and down the East Coast. Learn more: https://www.virginiapye.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 166: Vibhuti Jain on the Path to Debut and the Importance of Distance from her Setting and Character

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Today my guest is Vibhuti Jain, author of Our Best Intentions, a gripping debut about an immigrant family that gets caught in the middle of a criminal investigation, perfect for readers of Everything I Never Told You.

ourbestintentions

“Our Best Intentions, the lyrical debut by Vibhuti Jain, is equal parts suspense and the best kind of literary fiction. Centered on the assault of a wealthy teen by a Black classmate, this novel is a heartbreaking story of class, family, and the tragedy that often occurs when the two intersect.” — Julie Clark, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Flight and The Lies I Tell

 

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About the Author:

Vibhuti Jain lives with her husband and daughter in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she works in international development. She began her career as a corporate lawyer in New York City. She holds degrees from Yale University and Harvard Law School. She grew up in Guilford, Connecticut. Our Best Intentions is her first novel. Learn more: https://www.vibhutijain.com/

 

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

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Links:

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Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.