What’s more fun than getting a new book in your hands? Listening to a curated playlist while you’re reading! I’m so excited to introduce Charlotte, Alice, Iris, all the ladies and kids of “the mommune” within our beach house, and, of course, maybe most important, @junipershoressocialite, the snarky gossipgrammer who dishes the scoop about all the town’s residents—especially the badly behaved ones! I could have chosen dozens of songs for you to listen to as you read along, but these are my top-five favorites for getting you in the BEACH HOUSE RULES mood. I hope my brand-new novel gives you the feeling of, well, a day on the beach! “Walking on Sunshine” –  Katrina and the Waves There are plenty of twists and turns—and oh so much drama—in BEACH HOUSE RULES. But, ultimately, I want this to be a feel-good novel that can’t help but put readers in a summer state of mind! What better song to set the stage than “Walking on Sunshine”? “A Thousand Years” – Christina Perry The instrumental version of this song is playing during a pivotal moment in protagonist Alice’s love life—in front of the entire town of Juniper Shores. With three dead husbands under…

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? My father introduced me to this heartbreaking song when I was a boy. It was recorded by Bing Crosby in 1932 and was immediately popular, becoming the anthem of the Great Depression. The song tells the story of the everyman whose honest work towards achieving the American dream has been foiled by the sudden collapse of the economy, so that he is now reduced to “standing in line, just waiting for bread.” In my book, The Palace at the End of the Sea, the hero, Theo hears the song for the first time at school in England when his communist friend, Esmond plays it for him on his wind-up gramophone, and it brings back the suffering that Theo witnessed on the cold streets of New York, and encapsulates his father’s experience, who like the man in the song, had built his garment factory like a “tower up to the sun, brick and rivet and lime,” only to see it fall crashing to the ground, turning his dreams to dust. St James Infirmary Blues This is an old folk song that was immortalized by Louis Armstrong and his Savoy Ballroom Five in 1928. It has…

What is the title of your latest release? THE BAKER OF LOST MEMORIES What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? Growing up in 1960s Brooklyn, Lena wants to be a baker just like her mother was back in Poland prior to World War II.  But questions about those days, and about a sister Lena never even knew are ignored with solemn silence.  Nevertheless, she forges ahead, marrying a wonderful man and owning not one, but two bakeries.  The one person she can confide in is her friend, Pearl.  But when she suddenly disappears from her life, and later when that life starts to unravel, Lena is forced to confront the truth about her parents and herself.  Only then can she begin to rebuild the family and future she has always wanted. How did you decide where your book was going to take place? That was easy.  I was born in Brooklyn and lived there for twenty-five years.  Flashbacks occur in the Lodz Ghetto during World War II.  My father was a runner for the black market, just like Josef.  I wanted to explore the ambience of this place in the novel. Would you hang out with your protagonist in…

1–What is the title of your latest release? DROUGHT 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? My new queer novel is a dual narrative set on a Kentucky farm, described as “a parable on human connection in unexpected spaces and despite one’s own weighted history. It’s a spiritual cousin to Proulx’s BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN…a beautifully written and deeply evocative novel that lingers long after the final page.” 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I was on a long bus trip in the South and kept passing extended stretches of fields and farms, and the idea of a story on a tobacco farm came to me. And it stuck. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely! He’s the complete opposite of me and has a beautiful soul! 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Lonely. Big-hearted. Dreamer. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? How tobacco farming is done and the intensity of this type of labor, particular in other eras. Also, the difficulty of being in a queer love affair in Kentucky in 1950. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? I…

1–What is the title of your latest release? NO LIE LASTS FOREVER 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A retired serial killer coaxes a disgraced journalist into finding the imposter trading on his name. When a reporter dies in a shockingly familiar way, the media rushes to announce the return of the PDQ Killer. The city of Denver reels, but no one more than Harry Kugel. After all, he is the PDQ Killer―or was fifteen years ago. And he didn’t do this. Still working to reform his ways, Harry won’t let an amateur murderer ride his twisted coattails and risk drawing the police back his way. To protect his legacy and quiet new life, he’ll have to expose the copycat. Without exposing himself. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? The idea came to me when I was living in Denver, where I lived for nearly 40 years. It seemed like a natural fit. Any big city would have worked, but why not set your novel where researching a location is right at hand? 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? The protagonist of No Lie Lasts Forever is seasoned television reporter Flynn Martin….

Hello, I’m Kit Conway and I’m excited to tell you more about my debut novel, CAT FIGHT. Cat Fight tells the story of three suburban women who, over the course of one hot summer, each use the growing hysteria around a big cat sighting to achieve their own agendas—some more sinister than others. I have always been a bit of a word nerd and loved writing acrostic poems at school so I couldn’t resist taking up Fresh Fiction’s Title Challenge! I hope you enjoy my effort! C is for Claws. And cats. And cattiness. Because when peace shatters in suburbia, the claws come out … A is for Action! Not just among the residents of Briar Close, as the action ramps up and the pressure builds, but also ‘Lights! Camera! Action!’ as Cat Fight is being adapted for TV. Read the book before you watch the show! T is for Twig, one of the three (another T!) women at the heart of this story. Twig is a reluctant suburbanite, desperate to draw attention to her unwell daughter’s fundraiser. She lives next door to Emma, a Disney-mom determined to push through her (extremely pink!) home renovation plans. Meanwhile Coralie, trained zoologist,…

1–What is the title of your latest release? UNSHAKEN 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? UNSHAKEN is about an Amish girl who witnesses a gang shooting and is forced to into hiding on a ranch in Crittenden County, KY. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? This is my third novel for Revell that takes place in Crittenden County, KY. There are a lot of sprawling ranches in this area as well as a small Amish community. This setting lent itself to my story. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Awkward, brave, steadfast 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? I learned quite a bit about building a safe room in a house. That was something new for me! 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? The short answer for this is that I wait until I’m done. I usually have to rewrite a novel several times, though. The first draft is fast, everything else feels like it takes forever. 8–What’s your favorite foodie indulgence? Baking. Producing something in just an hour or…

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-Reader Match” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Michelle Griep! Writes: Michelle Griep writes richly immersive historical fiction brimming with adventure, romance, and intrigue. Whether whisking readers through the shadowy alleys of Victorian London or the rigid social circles of Regency England, her stories pulse with tension, heart, and faith. With a knack for crafting complex characters and vividly atmospheric settings, she blends danger and devotion into page-turning tales that keep readers riveted until the very last word. Her new release, OF SILVER AND SECRETS transports you to the English countryside where the mistress of a derelict estate in need of funds and a down-on-his-luck college professor team up to unearth precious artifacts—but both are hiding more secrets than a Roman dig. About: Lover of all things old-fashioned (except dental work), Michelle Griep is on a never-ending quest to bring history to life—preferably with a brooding hero, a dash of danger, and just the right amount of swoon. Fluent in Regency etiquette, Victorian intrigue, and the fine art of making characters suffer before their…

Music has played a huge role in my life, and in an extremely roundabout way that I probably don’t have time to go into right now, I wouldn’t be an author at all if it weren’t for the love I have for certain artists, and the friends I’ve made through our shared love of music. But do you know what else I love? A theme! So here I am, combining the two. While I was looking through my playlist, I realized that a lot of songs on there follow a celestial theme, which tracks, because THE FRIENDSHIP FLING contains a lot of celestial imagery (it makes sense in context, I promise). So, here are five songs from my playlist that encapsulate both the book, and this starry theme. I Revolve (Around You) by Neck Deep This song is about how these two people feel like they’re drifting in space until they meet and get stuck in each other’s orbit – just like Ava and Finn. They’re both a little lost and lonely before they find each other, and they find themselves when they find each other. Also, a fun extra fact for you is that the ‘colliding stars’ lyric from…

1–What is the title of your latest release? BATTLE OF THE BOOKSTORES 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? We like to think of it as You’ve Got Mail meets The Hating Game. Two booksellers with absolutely nothing in common must compete for the same job when their stores are combined by the new owner. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to them, they’re also chatting with each other online in an anonymous forum for booksellers. And as their rivalry heats up in real life, their online relationship deepens. What could possibly go wrong? 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? We knew we wanted to set the book in an area where it might be possible to have two very different bookstores located so close together. We were also excited to set it in a new location from our other books. The Boston area (and Somerville more specifically) was the perfect setting for a cozy bookish vibe–and it allowed us to send the characters to Kennebunkport for some beach time, too! Alison used to live in Somerville, so it helped that she was familiar with the area. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?…