Three hosts of the award-winning 20-year podcast phenomenon Satellite Sisters swing by to celebrate Mother’s Day with the Fab Five in a fun round-robin question-and-answer show. Learn each woman’s most embarassing mom moment, the fictional mom they most wanted for their own, and their favorite fictional bad mom. Enjoy a trip down memory lane with lots of insights and revelations and plenty of laughs. https://satellitesisters.com/
The launch party episode for Mary Kay Andrews’s THE NEWCOMER is packed with all the silliness you’ve come to expect from F&F launch parties. The Fab Five take MKA on a trip down memory lane in a game show style mash-up of This is Your Life and Password. Meet her first editor, her agent, her current editor, and longtime pal from their days as newbie authors, Lisa Scottoline. The props and sound effects departments of F&F are not expecting Hollywood to come calling anytime soon. But the laughs were plentiful. And stick around for a mini version of F&F Theater in the aftershow. https://marykayandrews.com/
The Fab Five welcome #1 New York Times bestselling author, Chris Bohjalian, author of 22 books, three of which have been made into movies, including his 2018 bestselling novel, THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT, which was the basis for the recent smash hit HBO Max television series starring Kaley Cuoco which was just renewed for a second season. Chris joins us to talk about his brilliant new historical thriller coming May 4th, HOUR OF THE WITCH. Described as part Crucible, part Handmaid’s Tale, it centers on a young Puritan woman in 1662 Boston who is trying to plot her escape from a violent marriage. The crew also discuss the Armenian genocide and, to lighten things up, a comical tale about a box of missing hotel-laundered underwear from book tour long, long ago. https://chrisbohjalian.com/
Friends and Fiction has a fascinating Nguyen Phan Que Mai about her bestselling novel When Mountains Sing, about writing in English as her second language and about the deep wisdom of Vietnamese proverbs.
The Fab Five turn tonight’s after show into a big fat first birthday party complete with party hats, champagne and cake! Check out fun show clips, most embarrassing moments, and favorite memories from the past year.
The Fab Five sit down with literary legend Jodi Picoult. The discuss Jodi’s more than two dozen novels (including her latest The Book of Two Ways), her intensive research process, and how she does not shy away from tackling difficult topics in her writing. THy also chat about Jodi’s forthcoming musical, BREATHE, premiering vrtually in May 2021. https://www.jodipicoult.com/
Bestselling author Joshilyn Jackson joins the Fab Five to discuss her latest book, MOTHER MAY I and how the shift from writing southern women’s fiction to thrillers allowed her to “lean in and have a little more ‘murdery fun’.” They also touch on Joshilyn’s acting career, her work as an award-winning audiobook narrator, and her advocacy for literacy and reform in women’s prisons. http://www.joshilynjackson.com/
Tune in at 7pm ET for TONIGHT’s episode! Join us Wednesday, April 10th at 7pm Eastern on the F&F Facebook page and YouTube channel as Patti Callahan Henry & Ron Block welcome bestselling author, podcast creator, and award-winning journalist, Jo Piazza, to discuss THE SICILIAN INHERITANCE, her transporting novel rooted in the author's own family history about a long-awaited trip to Sicily, a disputed inheritance, and a family secret that some will kill to protect.
Jo Piazza is the national and international bestselling author of We Are Not Like Them, You Were Always Mine, Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, The Knockoff, and How to Be Married. Her work has been published in 10 languages in 12 countries, and 4 of her books have been optioned for film and television. Jo’s podcasts have garnered more than 25-million downloads and regularly top podcast charts. An editor, columnist, and travel writer, her work has also appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, New York magazine, Marie Claire, Glamour, and many other publications. She joins us to discuss her brand-new historical novel, THE SICILIAN INHERITANCE (out now from Dutton Books), which has been called “a page-turning family chronicle,” by The Washington Post, “a joy to read,” by the New York Times, and “packed with wit and wicked twists,” by Town & Country. Watch the video broadcast of this interview Wed 4/10 at 7pm ET on the F&F Facebook group page & YouTube channel. Catch the audio version on our podcast Fri 4/12. Order Jo’s book on Bookshop.org! Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for a bonus Q&A with Jo which includes a writing tip, book recommendation, and information about her work-in-progress, plus other great material not covered on the show! Latest News from the Fab Four!
MARY KAY ANDREWS succumbed to an extremely rare virus called “Spring Cleaning” in which she (briefly) decluttered, cleaned and purged select rooms of her home. Yes, reader, she polished silver. Then she returned to her senses and important pre-publication tasks such as online shopping for clothes to wear on the big-azz book tour for Summers at The Saint. Good news—stops at Thomasville, Ga. and St. Simons Island have been added. KRISTY WOODSON HARVEY had a great spring break with her family in Florida, and is so excited to be heading to New York to be celebrating 100 years of Simon and Schuster. She then will head to Asheville for the Zibby Retreat and cannot wait to see so many readers there! She will be sharing about the paperback of THE SUMMER OF SONGBIRDS on Saturday and recording a podcast with Zibby about A HAPPIER LIFE later in the weekend. PATTI CALLAHAN HENRY has had the most amazing ten days on the road for the paperback tour of The Secret Book of Flora Lea. What day is it? What time is it? What city is she in? She’s not exactly sure, but readers have made it all worth it (even the midnight hotel fire alarm, even though she leaves things behind in most hotel rooms). Everywhere she goes, Friends & Fiction members are there to spread the love. With sold out crowds and an eclipse and meals with surprise friends, she is happy that tonight she ends the tour with a special event with our very own Kristin in Orlando. Her own bed will feel mighty good. Also—she wants to tell you—DO NOT MISS tonight’s show with Jo Piazza. It’s such an amazing interview and Patti loved the book! KRISTIN HARMEL is so excited, because tonight she gets to hang out with Patti at Quantum Leap Winery in Orlando, for a party (thrown by Writer’s Block Bookstore) celebrating the launch of Patti’s The Secret Book of Flora Lea in paperback! If you’re in Central Florida, come join them! She had a wonderful weekend and was honored to be invited by her friends Naila and Samea to attend an interfaith dinner at a local mosque on Saturday; she and her husband and son had the opportunity to learn a bit about Ramadan and Islam, to hear from speakers from several faiths (including Christian and Jewish leaders), and to break the fast together at an Iftar dinner (which was delicious). It was really a lovely experience! This weekend, she’s off to Ft. Lauderdale for the Broward Literary Feast, and on Tuesday, she’ll be in conversation with David Baldacci at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando. 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! Upcoming Events
Click HERE to see Patti Callahan Henry’s full book tour for the April 2nd release of the trade paperback edition of The Secret Book of Flora Lea. Click HERE to see Mary Kay Andrews’s full book tour for the May 7th release of her new hardcover, Summers at the Saint. Click HERE to see Kristin Harmel’s full book tour for the May 14th release of the trade paperback edition of The Paris Daughter Click HERE to see Kristy Woodson Harvey’s full book tour for the June 25th release of her new hardcover, A Happier Life. Wednesday, April 10, 12:30pm ET — Patti in conversation with Kristin Hannah via Instagram Live on the Barnes & Noble Instagram feed. Friday/Saturday, April 12-13 — Join Kristin at the Broward Literary Feast in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, including LitLive on Friday at 5:30pm, which is FREE and also features F&F fave Lisa Unger! More information here. Tuesday, April 16, 6pm — Join Kristin at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando as she talks with David Baldacci about his latest novel. Tickets available here. Sunday, May 5, 3pm ET — See all four founders and hosts of Friends & Fiction—along with Managing Director Meg Walker, podcast host extraordinaire Ron Block & producer Shaun Hettinger—together in-person for a launch celebration for MKA’s Summers at the Saint hosted by The BookMark in Neptune Beach, FL. Get tickets HERE. Friday, June 28, — Join all four founders and hosts of Friends & Fiction—along with Meg Walker & Ron Block—together in-person for a launch celebration and garden party for Kristy’s A Happier Life hosted by The Novel Neighbor at the St. Louis Library in St. Louis, MO. Get tickets HERE. In Case You Missed It
Last week on The Friends & Fiction Show, MKA & Kristin interviewed #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Scottoline to discuss THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEVLINS, her latest pulse-pounding domestic thriller about family and justice, the ties that bind us, and the lies that tear us apart. Order Lisa’s book—an instant NYT bestseller, out now!—from the F&F Shop on Bookshop.org, where you’ll also find books by all our hosts and guests, all at a discount—and where all your purchases support our show and our beloved indie bookstores nationwide! 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.Already aired: Lisa Scottoline, The Truth About the Devlins Jo Piazza, The Sicilian Inheritance F&F April Pick of the Month: Emily Henry, Funny Story Sally Hepworth, Darling Girls Janet Skeslien Charles, Miss Morgan's Book Brigade Ruth Ware, One Perfect Couple F&F May Pick of the Month: Mary Kay Andrews, Summers at the Saint Steven Rowley, The Guncle Abroad Sunny Hostin, Summer on Highland Beach Annabel Monaghan, Summer Romance Lisa Wingate, Shelterwood F&F June Pick of the Month: Kristy Woodson Harvey, A Happier Life Chris Whitaker, All the Colors of the Dark Bonus Episodes!
The Fab Four are taking turns interviewing some additional authors in short video segments we are calling “Behind the Book.” Check out a few recent bonus interviews that our host authors have run on the F&F YouTube channel! WATCH MKA & Ron’s interview with Lian Dolan, about her new novel, The Marriage Sabbatical. F&F Merch Store & 2024 Subscription Box
We have a Friends & Fiction merch store with t-shirts, sweatshirts, coffee mugs and a book bag on Bonfire. We also have other items like wine tumblers, reading journals, and our original white v-neck logo tees available through Oxford Exchange. You can also order the F&F 2024 SUBSCRIPTION BOX exclusively through our friends at Oxford Exchange. You get the two first-edition autographed hardcover books (and the adorable pouch!) shown below, plus the option to add Patti’s & Kristin’s 2024 paperback editions of last year’s books. All details HERE!
F&F Official Book Club & 2024 Reading Challenge
Join Brenda Gardner & Lisa Harrison for monthly book club picks and live online author chats on the Facebook page for the F&F Official Book Club with Brenda & Lisa, where they’ve amassed more than 30k of their own members. You can also follow the Book Club on Instagram and subscribe to their YouTube channel where you can catch past discussions, including their most recent chat with Tia Williams about her book, A Love Song for Ricki Wilde. Mark your calendars for their April 15th discussion with Zibby Owens about her novel, Blank. With the help of Annissa Armstrong, the Book Club is also hosting the 2024 F&F Reading Challenge. Join them for a different category prompt each month to read outside your comfort zone. The April prompt is to read a book by an author who uses a pen name. Stay in Touch!Subscribe to our PODCAST. Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus content from our hosts and guests. You're currently a free subscriber to Friends & Fiction's Substack. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription.
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To close out Women’s History Month, the Fab Five welcome TWO giants of historical fiction! Meet Stephanie Dray, whose new book just released this week! THE WOMEN OF CHATEAU LAFAYETTE is an epic saga based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France and the remarkable women bound by its legacy. Stephanie will be joined by the one and only THE ALICE NETWORK author Kate Quinn, whose latest book, THE ROSE CODE (published March 9th!), is the heart-stopping World War II story of three female code breakers at Bletchley Park and the spy they must root out after the war is over. https://www.stephaniedray.com/ http://www.katequinnauthor.com/
The Fab Five welcome bestselling author Nancy Jooyoun Kim whose September 2020 debut novel, THE LAST STORY OF MINA LEE, met with rave reviews across the board and was a New York Times and USA Today bestseller and a Reese’s Book Club Pick. Nacny talks about how her relationship with her own mother, family secrets, and experience as the daughter of a Korean immigrant growing up in LA informed her writing, and they discuss the strong sense of place and all the glorious food in the novel. http://www.nancyjooyounkim.com/
