From Jam Bands to Thrillers: A Conversation with Author L.M. Pampuro
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
Release Date: 12/30/2024
The Eternality Of Love
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this warm episode of The Ct Book Festivals Podcast Jed welcomes Dr. Dale Atkins. Dr Dale joins us to celebrate her touching picture book The Turquoise Butterfly. Inspired by her late mother Sylvia, whose favorite color was turquoise and who was fondly associated with butterflies, the story explores what Dr. Dale calls the “eternality of love.” Through the relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter, the book shows how memories, stories, and shared experiences help children carry a loved one’s spirit forward, even after death. Dr. Dale and Jed talk about the profound benefits...
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What Makes a Human Human: Understanding That Everyone Belongs
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this powerful episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, Jed welcomes back Mary Keating, lawyer, poet, and author of Recalibrating Gravity, to celebrate Disability Pride Month and reflect on the legacy—and limits—of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Mary shares the story of the car accident at age 15 that left her a paraplegic and completely changed her life in a single moment. With warmth and candor, she recalls how her “can‑do” family refused to sideline her, including her mom’s memorable insistence that she still come downstairs and set the table—an early lesson...
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Angels, Demons and Detectives
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
Lee Driftwood joins the Connecticut Book Festivals podcast to talk about his dark urban fantasy series, Forgotten Flame, and the unforgettable city that shapes it—New York. Lee shares how, as a third-generation former New Yorker, he couldn’t imagine setting his fantasy anywhere else. For him, the city is more than a backdrop; it’s a living, listening character that’s always present in the story. We learn about the first two books in the series, When She Walked In and What Was Lost, and meet the central duo: Michael, a private investigator, and Gabby, an NYPD detective who shows up at...
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Middle Grade Meets Mental Health: K G Mach’s Powerful WWII Story
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this moving episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, Jed sits down with K.G. Mach (pen name of author Kimberly Mach), creator of the middle grade novel Present, Still Missing, to talk about war’s invisible wounds and the power of stories to open hard conversations at home. K.G. Mach introduces us to Irene, a baseball‑and‑football loving girl growing up just after World War II. Irene’s dad returns from the war physically safe but emotionally distant, living with what we now call PTSD. K.G. explains that while PTSD wasn’t officially recognized until 1980, its impact on...
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Book Party over Comedy Clubs: Fatherhood, Reading, and Andrew Ginsburg
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, host Jed Doherty welcomes author, stand-up comedian, and personal trainer Andrew Ginsburg to celebrate his powerful picture book, The Colors of My Sky. Andrew shares the story of Lester, a blue butterfly whose mother only lets him play with other blue butterflies. At school, Lester wants to be friends with butterflies of many colors, but his mother keeps insisting that “blue is the finest butterfly.” Finally, Lester invites her to a party and gently shows her that the sky isn’t just blue—it can be gray, pink, orange, and...
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Resilience, Faith, and Soul Care: AndreYah Maria Hernandez Black’s Devotional Journey
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this inspiring episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, Jed Doherty welcomes AndreYah Maria Hernandez Black, author of the 30-day devotional Revelations for Resilience: Whispers from the Divine for Soul Care. Andrea shares the deeply personal story behind the book—her journey through a devastating season of spousal abandonment in 2015–2016, which led to post-traumatic stress disorder, and how faith, wellness practices, and writing became her lifeline. AndreYah explains that the devotional is autobiographical and prophetic, born from hundreds of journal entries in which she...
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Led by His Past: Inside Katelyn Marie Peterson’s Romantic Suspense World
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals podcast, host Jed Doherty welcomes romantic suspense author Katelyn Marie Peterson to talk about her gripping trilogy, focusing on the second book, Led by His Past. The story follows Lynn Callahan and her private investigator boyfriend, Jake Connolly, as they’re pulled into a tense new case when Jake’s ex-girlfriend shows up asking him to investigate her sister’s murder in Burlington, Vermont. Katelyn opens up about how real her characters feel to her, especially now that she’s living with them over the course of three books. She...
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Balancing Spice and Story: Crafting Dark Romance with CS Kelleher
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
On this episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, Jed welcomes CS Kelleher, author of the dark contemporary romance novel Scorched Boundaries—the first in a planned four-book series. CS shares how the book began in an entirely different direction: a romantic suspense involving mistaken identity and South Korean gangs. After hitting a massive bout of writer’s block, inspiration struck one night while she was watching TV and typing on her phone. That spontaneous moment became the prologue to Scorched Boundaries and launched a brand‑new cast of characters and storyline. Listeners...
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Cat Carmichael on the Case: JP Ferris and the Cat Carmichael Detective Series
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
JP Ferris joins the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast to talk about his long-running Cat Carmichael Detective Series and the latest installment, Catnap, book 13 in the saga. JP introduces Cat Carmichael, a tough, emotionally rich NYPD homicide detective shaped by the loss of her father, who was killed in the line of duty right in front of her. That trauma fuels Cat’s vow to become the best homicide detective New York has ever seen. JP shares that Cat is a blend of Olivia Benson, Kate Beckett, a touch of Jane Rizzoli, and quite a bit of JP himself—right down to having a law enforcement dad...
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Raising Confident Girls: Diana Sussman on The Neighbor’s Secret
Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast
In this engaging episode of Reading With Your Kids, Jed welcomes Diana Sussman, author of the middle grade mystery The Neighbor’s Secret. Diana introduces us to Maddie, a curious and imaginative 12-year-old who becomes convinced her new neighbors are Russian spies after witnessing something very strange. Maddie’s big imagination sometimes gets her into trouble—like the time she thought a neighbor was being eaten by a Yeti—but she’s also sharp, determined, and usually onto something real. Diana shares how her own love of puzzles, mysteries, and strong female characters helped shape...
info_outlineOn this episode of Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, we get to meet L.M. Pampuro, the author of the thrilling "Harlots" series.
L.M. credits the state's natural beauty, creative community, and even the colleges for fostering so many amazing writers. She should know, since her own household is brimming with creativity, with her musician husband and son.
L.M. gave us the scoop on her "Harlots" books, which follow the badass FBI agent Alia Price as she takes on a web of corruption and drug labs. Alia is quite the opposite of the self-proclaimed "total wimp" that is L.M. - but the author admits she may have channeled a bit of her own inner-superhero when crafting this character.
What really got L.M.'s creative juices flowing, though, was live music. She shared a story about being at a music festival, watching the band on stage, when she spotted some suspicious-looking guys in the crowd. That moment sparked the idea for "Harlots Fire" - proof that inspiration can strike anywhere, anytime. Jed could relate, recalling his own lightbulb moment during a U2 concert that led to a successful screenplay.
As for the future of the "Harlots" series, L.M. kept us on our toes, hinting that she always leaves the door open for more adventures. And her current work-in-progress sounds like a real mind-bender, with the villain and heroine being the same person. Guess we'll have to stay tuned to see what other thrills L.M. has up her sleeve!