Tune in at 7pm ET tonight for this week’s episode!

On Wed 12/31 at 7pm Eastern on F&F’s Facebook group page & YouTube channel we will re-air one of our favorite episodes from the vault! Join us as the Fab Four talk to talk to reigning queen of the modern romance novel, Emily Henry, about her 2024 #1 New York Times-bestselling Funny Story.

Emily Henry is the author of four YA novels and, since 2020, she has published six NYT-bestselling rom-coms for adults (including Beach Read, Book Lovers, and Happy Place), with five of them being adapted for the big and small screens. In April 2024 Emily joined us to discuss Funny Story, a shimmering, joyful novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common that went on to become an instant #1 bestseller and a New York Times Notable Book for 2024. Now is the perfect time to revisit this chat as Emily comes off a truly incredible year. Emily’s 2025 novel Great Big Beautiful Life was another #1 NYT-bestseller and was named a Reese’s Book Club pick, and the movie adaptation of her 2021 The People We Meet on Vacation will premiere on Netflix just after the holidays on January 9, 2026. So, as you wait for the ball to drop this New Year’s Eve, tune in for this interview, now with a brand-new intro recorded by Kristy Woodson Harvey.

Watch the video broadcast of this interview as it airs on Wed 12/31 at 7pm ET on the F&F Facebook group page & YouTube channel. Catch the audio version on our podcast Fri 1/2.

Order Emily’s latest book on Bookshop.org!
Shop all of our guests’ & hosts’ books in our F&F Shop on Bookshop.org!

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Our Favorite Reads & Books to Gift for 2025

MARY KAY ANDREWS: I want to continue to speak out, from my heart, about the world we live in, and continue to find ways to do good, in big and small ways. I want to travel with my husband and make time to connect with old friends, and continue my new-found commitment to fitness. And after a year away, I’m so looking forward to getting out on book tour in June to meet with readers while promoting my new novel ROAD TRIP.

KRISTIN HARMEL: I need to be better about not sweating the small stuff (I sometimes make a dramatic mountain out of a molehill, so to speak!) and also to make more time for myself and my family rather than throwing myself headlong into work all the time. So I guess my resolution in regard to that is to be cognizant of the importance of finding a good work-life balance. I’m not sure if this counts as a resolution, but I’d also like to take my 9-year-old, Noah, to see snow for the first time before he turns 10 in February!

KRISTY WOODSON HARVEY: I love, love goals and resolutions and, most of all, creating new habits. I realized in 2025 that I blurbed so many novels and read so many specifically for the show—which was AMAZING, by the way!—that I didn’t really do much walking into a bookstore and picking out something because it seemed to be calling my name. So that is definitely a resolution for 2026. Oh! And I also got a piano for Christmas so… I’m going to learn how to play it! I’m so excited!

PATTI CALLAHAN HENRY: I have a new grandbaby arriving early 2026, and my heart can’t wait. I don’t make resolutions but I always choose a word for the new year and this year it is DELIGHT IN (okay that’s two words but you get the point). Life is moving so fast and I want to be present for all the delightful parts and not rush through them.

MEG WALKER: I’ve realized lately the importance of celebrating and truly being present for each season and phase of this big, messy life, rather than getting lost in the busyness and mindlessly moving on to the next thing on the to-do list. In 2026 my son will graduate from college. With both of our kids done, my husband and I plan to celebrate them and their accomplishments—and ours as parents in getting them across the finish line—with an epic trip, soaking up our fleeting time together as a family-four unit, enjoying adventures, and making memories. So I suppose my goal or resolution for the new year is to stop and take it all in while it’s happening.

RON BLOCK: I have great things to look forward to in 2026, so I am going to be intentional about treasuring and focusing on each individually, instead of worrying about might go wrong or what others think. The year starts with my oldest granddaughter starring as Miss Trunchbull in Matilda: the Musical at her performing arts high school. We are planning a weekend long celebration. Great way to get the year rolling! I also choose a focus word for a new year, and for 2026 it will be EMPATHY, something that is sorely lacking in our world and I want to seek it out, try to inspire it, and recognize and show gratitude when I witness it.

Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for an ongoing series of roundtable discussions and personal essays by the Fab Four about their careers, writing processes, and all things book and publishing related!

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Coming Up on The Friends & Fiction Show

All shows can be watched on Facebook & YouTube each Wednesday evening at 7pm ET, and listened to on our podcast each Friday, all year long.

WINTER 2026

Brad Meltzer, The Viper
Watch: January 7 | Listen: January 9

Jayne Ann Krentz, The Shop on Hidden Lane
Watch: January 14 | Listen: January 16

Jesse Q. Sutanto, Read Between the Lies
Watch: January 21 | Listen: January 23

Paula McLain, Skylark
Watch LIVE: January 28 | Listen: January 30

Janie Chang, The Fourth Princess & Kate Quinn, The Astral Library
Watch LIVE: February 4 | Listen: February 6

Omid Scobie & Robin Benway, Royal Spin
Watch: February 11 | Listen: February 13

Terah Shelton Harris, Where the Wildflowers Grow
Watch: February 25 | Listen: February 27

Joshilyn Jackson, Missing Sister
Watch: March 4 | Listen: March 6

Lucy Score, Mistakes Were Made
Watch: March 11 | Listen: March 13

Virginia Evans, The Correspondent & Allen Levi, Theo of Golden
Watch LIVE: March 25 | Listen: March 27

F&F 2026 Subscription Box with Oxford Exchange

The 2026 FRIENDS AND FICTION Subscription Box is available for purchase now, exclusively from our friends at Oxford Exchange.

This subscription includes three separate shipments:
1. MAY 2026: A hardcover, signed, first edition of Kristy Woodson Harvey’s forthcoming book SUMMER STATE OF MIND!
2. JUNE 2026: A hardcover, signed, first edition of ROAD TRIP by Mary Kay Andrews!
3. JULY 2026: A hardcover, signed, first edition of MEET ME IN PARIS by Kristin Harmel!
Plus the option to add the March 2026 trade paperback edition of Patti’s THE STORY SHE LEFT BEHIND.

Get your subscription NOW from Oxford Exchange!

Order Now

Stay in Touch!

Subscribe to our PODCAST.
Join our FACEBOOK group.
Follow us on INSTAGRAM.
Subscribe to our YOUTUBE channel.
Find details about everything F&F on our WEBSITE.
Shop our guests’ & hosts’ books in our shop on BOOKSHOP.
Join the F&F Official BOOK CLUB with Brenda & Lisa.

Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus content from our hosts and guests.

Subscribed

Tune in at 7pm ET tonight for this week’s episode!

On Wed 12/24 at 7pm Eastern on F&F’s Facebook group page & YouTube channel we will re-air one of our favorite episodes from the vault! Join us as the Fab Four talk to #1 bestselling author Taylor Jenkins Reid about her blockbuster 2021 novel Malibu Rising, a NYT-bestseller and Read with Jenna Book Club Pick.

Meet #1 New York Times bestselling author, Taylor Jenkins Reid, whose books have been chosen by Reese’s Book Club, Read with Jenna, Indie Next, Best of Amazon, and Book of the Month. Taylor is the author of nine novels, including Daisy Jones and the Six, which was adapted by Hello Sunshine as a limited series for Amazon and has sold more than 2-million copies. In August 2021, Taylor joined us to discuss Malibu Rising. Now is the perfect time to revisit this episode as Taylor had quite the year in 2025 including gracing the cover of TIME Magazine. Her 2025 #1 NYT-bestselling novel, Atmosphere, was a GMA Book Club pick, dominated bestseller lists for weeks on end, and now tops loads of year-end best-of lists, including being named the Target Book of the Year and Audible’s Audiobook of the Year. So, as you wait for Santa to come down the chimney, tune in for this interview, now with a brand-new intro recorded by Kristin Harmel.

Watch the video broadcast of this interview as it airs on Wed 12/24 at 7pm ET on the F&F Facebook group page & YouTube channel. Catch the audio version on our podcast Fri 12/26.

Order Taylor’s newest book on Bookshop.org!
Shop all of our guests’ & hosts’ books in our F&F Shop on Bookshop.org!

Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus Q&A’s with our guest authors which include a writing tip, book recommendation, and information about their works-in-progress, plus other great material not covered on the show!

Subscribed

Our Favorite Reads & Books to Gift for 2025

MARY KAY ANDREWS: Favorite read of 2025: I really loved Annabel Monaghan’s It’s a Love Story, about a former child television child named Janie Jackson who’s struggling to make get a movie project off the ground in Hollywood–while forced to collaborate with a cinematographer named Dan Finnegan who’s the last man she’d ever want to spend time with. This is the kind of rom-com I love, one with heart AND smarts.
Book I Give For the Holidays: A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote. This short, tender-hearted story is set in Depression-era Alabama, where a seven-year-old boy named Buddy is preparing for Christmas with his elderly cousin Sook, baking fruitcakes with pecans they’ve gathered from their farm, which they send to people they hardly know, including President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Largely autobiographical and mostly unlike any of Capote’s other work, this is a book that should be read in one sitting, preferably by the fireplace, maybe with a little glass of brandy.

KRISTIN HARMEL: Favorite Read of 2025: This is maybe the hardest question you could ask me…. I adored so many 2025 books, including Beach House Rules (by our very own Kristy!) and The Story She Left Behind (by our very own Patti!). Plus there were so many good books by authors we had on the show in 2025 that I had the opportunity to read. But if I had to choose one to tell you about, it would be The Sea Stone Sisters, which actually comes out in 2026…. I had the chance to read it early for a blurb. A gorgeous, immersive epic that spans many generations, it explores four lost sisters, an abandoned house on the rugged Scottish coast, and a decades-old curse that rolls in with the mists of the sea. Look for this one in the new year!
Book I Gift for the Holidays: Our first Friends & Fiction guest of the new year will be the extraordinary Brad Meltzer (on our Jan. 7 show), and it just so happens that his inspirational book Make Magic is one of my very favorite books to give as a gift. It’s based on his 2024 graduation speech to 70,000 at the University of Michigan, which went viral, and it’s a great reminder to reset your priorities and put kindness first as you kick off the new year. Plus, it’s less than $15 and is a gorgeous little hardcover.

KRISTY WOODSON HARVEY:
Favorite Read of 2025: I read so many fabulous books in 2025 that I couldn’t possibly choose a favorite. But I adored Far From the A-List by debut author Stephanie Burns. It’s frothy and fun, and the perfect confection to end your 2025 on!
Book I Gift for the Holidays: A Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. This slim volume is not only beautiful but also packed with wisdom for those days when the world seems to be spinning too fast. It’s slim and slight and doesn’t feel like an overwhelming read to dive into during the most hectic parts of the holidays.

PATTI CALLAHAN HENRY: Favorite Read of 2025: Isola by Allegra Goodman. This book has everything I love: a true lost to time story, adventure, mystery, and above all, grand sweeping love. I read it at the beginning of the year and have recommended it over and over.
Book I Gift for Holidays: To Bless the Space Between Us by John O’Donohue. Although this book was published in 2008, it is a book I love giving because it carries such deep meaning and can be opened anywhere to find beautiful prose about the most meaningful moments in our lives. It pairs well with his book Anam Cara (Celtic word for Soul Friend).

MEG WALKER: Favorite Read of 2025: The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett. What a sweet surprise this book was. For the life of me I can’t figure out why the whole world isn’t reading and buzzing about it as it deserves to be so widely read and enjoyed. Think Little Miss Sunshine meets Jojo Moyes’s One Plus One with a dark comedic vibe a la The Wedding People. A lovable band of misfits embarks on an ill-advised cross-country road trip. The characters are so quirky and wholly original. The voice is fresh and unexpected. The story is heartwarming and funny. There’s redemption and healing for imperfect people who sorely need it, but also loads of laughs along the way. Pick this one up. I promise you won’t regret it.
Book I am gifting for the holidays: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans because I can’t think of a single soul who wouldn’t love it. As a decades-long publishing professional nothing warms my heart more than an out-of-nowhere, word-of-mouth smash hit. This delightful book deserves every bit of its grassroots success. It’s so moving and reminds us of the goodness in the world and within us all. It’s a redemption story. And it’s about the value of human connection. And it’s about forgiveness—of others and of ourselves. And who doesn’t need and want that?!

RON BLOCK: Favorite Read of 2025: Food Person by Adam Roberts. Among so many great books this year, this one truly spoke to me. A fun, food filled story in the vein of Hacks in which a wanna be food writer takes on the hilarious and heartwarming task of ghostwriting a fallen television star’s cookbook. A perfect read to take a break from everyday worries and struggles.
Book I Gift for Holidays: I’m switching it up a bit this year. After hearing our first guest of 2026 Brad Meltzer’s viral and inspiring speech to his son’s University of Michigan’s graduating class which was the basis for Make Magic. This slim but powerful and beautifully written gift inspires everyone to rethink how they approach the world, grow in kindness and empathy, while remaining committed to the things that mean the most. A perfect read to begin a New Year!

Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for an ongoing series of roundtable discussions and personal essays by the Fab Four about their careers, writing processes, and all things book and publishing related!

Subscribed

In Case You Missed It

On last week’s episode of The Friends & Fiction Show, Mary Kay Andrews & Ron Block welcomed #1 New York Times bestselling author, Jacquelyn Mitchard, to discuss The Birdwatcher, her page-turning drama that explores the beauty of female friendship; the relationship between money, power, and sex; and the very human desire to protect the ones we love most.

You can WATCH that episode on Facebook or YouTube, or LISTEN to it on our podcast.

Coming Up on The Friends & Fiction Show

All shows can be watched on Facebook & YouTube each Wednesday evening at 7pm ET, and listened to on our podcast each Friday, all year long.

WINTER 2026

Brad Meltzer, The Viper
Watch: January 7 | Listen: January 9

Jayne Ann Krentz, The Shop on Hidden Lane
Watch: January 14 | Listen: January 16

Jesse Q. Sutanto, Read Between the Lies
Watch: January 21 | Listen: January 23

Paula McLain, Skylark
Watch LIVE: January 28 | Listen: January 30

Janie Chang, The Fourth Princess & Kate Quinn, The Astral Library
Watch LIVE: February 4 | Listen: February 6

Omid Scobie & Robin Benway, Royal Spin
Watch: February 11 | Listen: February 13

Terah Shelton Harris, Where the Wildflowers Grow
Watch: February 25 | Listen: February 27

Joshilyn Jackson, Missing Sister
Watch: March 4 | Listen: March 6

Lucy Score, Mistakes Were Made
Watch: March 11 | Listen: March 13

Virginia Evans, The Correspondent & Allen Levi, Theo of Golden
Watch LIVE: March 25 | Listen: March 27

F&F 2026 Subscription Box with Oxford Exchange

The 2026 FRIENDS AND FICTION Subscription Box is available for purchase now, exclusively from our friends at Oxford Exchange.

This subscription includes three separate shipments:
1. MAY 2026: A hardcover, signed, first edition of Kristy Woodson Harvey’s forthcoming book SUMMER STATE OF MIND!
2. JUNE 2026: A hardcover, signed, first edition of ROAD TRIP by Mary Kay Andrews!
3. JULY 2026: A hardcover, signed, first edition of MEET ME IN PARIS by Kristin Harmel!
Plus the option to add the March 2026 trade paperback edition of Patti’s THE STORY SHE LEFT BEHIND.

Get your subscription NOW from Oxford Exchange!

Order Now

Stay in Touch!

Subscribe to our PODCAST.
Join our FACEBOOK group.
Follow us on INSTAGRAM.
Subscribe to our YOUTUBE channel.
Find details about everything F&F on our WEBSITE.
Shop our guests’ & hosts’ books in our shop on BOOKSHOP.
Join the F&F Official BOOK CLUB with Brenda & Lisa.

Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus content from our hosts and guests.

Subscribed