"Bookaccino Live" Book Group: Charmaine Wilkerson-Black Cake
Release Date: 12/09/2022
“Bookaccino Live” Book Group: Lisa See
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Lisa See joined us for September’s “Bookaccino Live” Book Group event to discuss her instant New York Times bestseller, DAUGHTERS OF THE SUN AND MOON, which was a Bookreporter Bets On selection when it released in June. Lisa shared how a story that her grandmother told her when she was a child standing in downtown Los Angeles gave her the initial idea for the book. Research is always critical to her writing, and she explained how she created her three characters, basing them on four women she read about. Lisa loves talking to book groups and has created materials to enhance the...
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Amanda Peters: The Birthing Tree
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Amanda Peters joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest novel, THE BIRTHING TREE, which is an instant national bestseller. Like her debut, THE BERRY PICKERS, it is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. Amanda shares the personal and professional inspirations behind the book. They include a childhood memory involving her grandmother, who had dementia and told her about a tree near the water where Mi'kmaq women used to give birth, as well as Amanda’s work with Nova Scotia's midwifery regulation committee. Our conversation explores the importance of preserving Mi'kmaq traditions,...
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Jonathan Santlofer: Ten Perfect Guests
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Jonathan Santlofer joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about his latest thriller, TEN PERFECT GUESTS, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. He describes the book as a classic whodunit featuring 10 characters brought to an isolated island for a memorial, with an inheritance at stake. Jonathan wanted to use all classic tropes — locked room, large cast, hidden motives — without a detective figure. He explains that managing 10 distinct characters was more difficult than anticipated, requiring a character chart and careful differentiation so readers would not need to look back. The novel is...
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Hank Phillippi Ryan: Mother Daughter Sister Stranger
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Hank Phillippi Ryan joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest novel, MOTHER DAUGHTER SISTER STRANGER, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. This multilayered domestic thriller explores family secrets, identity, the meaning of motherhood, and the search for happy endings. The story centers on two sisters, Eliza and Bea Ramsey, the sole survivors of a plane crash that killed their parents. When Bea disappears on the 11th anniversary of the tragedy, Eliza must find Bea while caring for her 11-year-old niece, Piper. The book was inspired by Hank reflecting on lying to her mother as a...
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Shari Lapena: Getting Away With Murder
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Shari Lapena joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest thriller, GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER, which is an instant New York Times and USA Today bestseller, as well as a “number one” library hold and a Goodreads “most wanted to read” title. It also is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. For Carol, Shari's books are always “one-sit reads,” meaning that once she starts them, they are propulsive enough that she does not stop until they have been read in full. GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER centers on Jill and Ted, a privileged Manhattan couple who live in a Brooklyn...
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Chris Bohjalian: The Amateur
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Chris Bohjalian joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about his new novel, THE AMATEUR, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. He wrote in an “alchemic frenzy” over 90 days in the summer of 2024 without telling anyone — not his wife, daughter, editor or agents — until it was finished. It's his most autobiographical book in nature as he mined the days he spent as a “spectacular golf caddie” when he was in high school, earning $40–$50 a day, staying fit, and reading during breaks. Chris explains that his second summer at this job made him acutely aware of how golf displays the class...
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Nadia Hashimi: City of Widows
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Nadia Hashimi joins Carol Fitzgerald to discuss her new novel, CITY OF WIDOWS, a Bookreporter Bets On selection set in Afghanistan, a place that she previously wrote about. While the book looks back in time, the arc of it moves towards the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, focusing on Afghan female soldiers, journalists, and the chaos of evacuation. Nadia talks about the shock of the total Taliban takeover — many had hoped for a power-sharing arrangement — and the rapid reversal of 20 years of progress for women. Marjan, Nadia’s protagonist, had been a soldier in an elite unit of...
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Sophie Chen Keller: Little Wonder
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Sophie Chen Keller joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest novel, LITTLE WONDER, which was published by Jenna Bush Hager's imprint, Thousand Voices. It is an Oprah's Book Club pick and a Bookreporter Bets On selection. Song, a migrant worker, and her 11-year-old piano prodigy son, River, are separated in a massive crowd at a Beijing train station on the busiest travel day of the year. The story follows both characters over the years as they search for each other while building separate lives. Sophie describes LITTLE WONDER as being about motherhood, music, and the love between a mother...
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Ben Reeves: Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt
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Ben Reeves joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about his debut novel, EVERYTHING WAS BEAUTFUL AND NOTHING HURT, which is an instant New York Times bestseller, a #1 Indie Next pick, and a Bookreporter Bets On selection. The book reimagines the Grim Reaper as a compassionate, ordinary man named Travis who spends time with people before they die, exploring themes of life, death, grief and regret. It ultimately makes readers question if they are truly living the life they want and focusing on what matters. The book won the Bath Novel Award in 2024, which launched Ben's publishing journey...
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Rachel Beanland: The Half Life
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Rachel Beanland joins Carol Fitzgerald to discuss her new novel , THE HALF LIFE, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. This is the third time that Carol has interviewed Rachel. Her previous books, FLORENCE ADLER SWIMS FOREVER and THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE, were Bets On picks as well. THE HALF LIFE follows Eileen O'Malley, a 23-year-old woman from Charleston who marries a naval officer named Paul Archer and moves to La Maddalena, Italy, in 1974. Rachel drew heavily from her own childhood experiences living on La Maddalena as a Navy family member, as well as a 2019 research trip back to the...
info_outlineCharmaine Wilkerson joined Carol Fitzgerald for a "Bookaccino Live" Book Group discussion about her debut novel, BLACK CAKE. Three readers shared questions on screen, and then there were numerous audience questions. Charmaine explained how she writes in bursts, and that her writing can sometimes appear in brief on the page, while at other times more is explored. She talked about her characters, her background that inspired the story…and, yes, black cake! There was also discussion about the cover and the additional materials in the paperback edition.
Check out our past "Bookaccino Live" Book Group events!
Joyce Maynard: https://youtu.be/atXP9_gxGU8
Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray: https://youtu.be/rYelwWiTJbE
Janet Skeslien Charles: https://youtu.be/47Sx9DtcAkA
Miranda Cowley Heller: https://youtu.be/gVlKvApDO8M
More “Bookreporter Talks To”:
Clare Mackintosh: https://youtu.be/yxU_npofftw
Jamie Fiore Higgins: https://youtu.be/bz6tTCLmxlE
Thrity Umrigar: https://youtu.be/295H-VzRJeU
Alli Frank and Asha Youmans: https://youtu.be/4kvcZ6nqoo4
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Art Credit: Greg Fitzgerald
Edited by Jordan Hickman