Friends & Fiction

On this episode, Patti Callahan Henry & Kristy Woodson Harvey welcome Broadway producer turned author Brisa Carleton to discuss her debut novel Last Call at the Savoy, which is set against the glittering backdrop of London's iconic Savoy hotel where a young woman is forced to confront her troubled past as she uncovers the story of the hotel's first female bartender who’s been erased from the history books. Brisa grew up in the Pacific Northwest before moving to Midtown Manhattan to turn her passion for musicals and "flare for the dramatic" into an award-winning career as a Broadway producer. Three Tonys later, she's worked on numerous productions including Hamilton, Beautiful, and Moulin Rouge. She recently turned her entrepreneurial spirit to actual "spirits," launching Literati Spirits, a premium vodka created by book lovers for book lovers. She joins us to discuss her buzzy debut novel Last Call at the Savoy which Fiona Davis calls, "an exhilarating, tender read that will leave you smiling," and which Lisa Jackson calls, “bright and sassy.” Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, the full F&F family gathers live to welcome this month’s F&F Featured Author, the award-winning global #1 bestselling David Baldacci to discuss our November 2025 Pick of the Month, his new thriller, Nash Falls, in which Walter Nash’s life is turned completely upside down when he’s recruited by the FBI to bring down a global crime network. Baldacci is one of the world's favorite storytellers with books published in more than forty-five languages in more than eighty countries with 200 million plus copies sold worldwide. His works have been adapted for feature film and television. He’s the cofounder, along with his wife, of the Wish You Well Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting literacy efforts across America. He joins us from his native Virginia to discuss his brand-new stand-alone novel Nash Falls (coming from Grand Central Publishing on Nov. 11) featuring investment banker turned FBI inside man Walter Nash who’s tasked with exposing a money laundering enterprise at his own firm. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, we air the recording from a recent in-person theater event that Kristy Woodson Harvey conducted with #1 NYT-bestselling global phenomenon Nicholas Sparks. Tune in to catch this conversation that was recorded at a packed-house sold-out event at Trustee’s Theater in Savannah, GA on October 14, 2025. Hosted by the fine folks at the Savannah Book Festival, Kristy was in conversation with Sparks to celebrate the release of his newest novel, REMAIN: A Supernatural Love Story, a book that he co-wrote with filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan, which just debuted at #1 on the NYT bestseller list, and which hits theaters soon as a major motion picture starring Jake Gyllenhaal. An unprecedented collaboration between the globally bestselling author of love stories like The Notebook and the renowned screenwriter and director of blockbuster thrillers like The Sixth Sense, REMAIN is a one-of-a-kind novel that grapples with the supernatural mysteries of life, death, and human connection. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, Ron Block & Patti Callahan Henry welcome New York Times bestselling author Catherine Newman to discuss her wonderful new novel WRECK, full of laughter and heart, about marriage, family, and what happens when life doesn’t go as planned. Catherine is the NYT-bestselling author of the memoirs Catastrophic Happiness and Waiting for Birdy, the middle-grade novel One Mixed-Up Night, the kids’ craft book Stitch Camp, the bestselling how-to books for kids How to Be a Person and What Can I Say?, and the novel We All Want Impossible Things. Her 2024 smash success novel, Sandwich, was an instant NYT-bestseller and called “joy in book form” by Ann Patchett. Catherine writes Crone Sandwich on Substack and has been a regular contributor to the New York Times, Real Simple, O, The Oprah Magazine, and Cup of Jo among other publications. She joins us to discuss WRECK, her “utterly joyful standalone novel” (Oprah Daily) that brings back Rocky and her family from Sandwich, this time in at home Western Massachusetts, for an exploration of the hidden rules of family, the heavy weight of uncertainty, and the gnarly fact that the people you love aren’t always who you want them to be. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, Patti Callahan Henry & Kristin Harmel welcome #1 New York Times bestselling author Joe Hill to discuss his new novel, King Sorrow, a chilling tale of modern-world dangers, dark academia, and the unexpected consequences of revenge as six friends dabble in the occult and are tragically, horrifyingly successful… calling forth an evil entity that demands regular human sacrifice. Joe Hill is the son of Stephen King and the #1 bestselling, award-winning author of novels (The Fireman, NOS4A2, Horns, Heart-Shaped Box), fiction collections (Strange Weather, Full Throttle, 20th Century Ghosts), graphic novels (Basketful of Heads, Plunge, Sea Dogs, Dying is Easy, Wraith), and a comic-book series (Locke & Key) which he co-created with artistic maestro Gabriel Rodriguez. Much of his work has been adapted for film and television. He joins us to discuss his epic new horror novel, King Sorrow, which Ruth Ware has called, “a brilliantly Faustian fable with a heart as huge as a dragon’s, and a stinging twist in its tail,” and which has earned a trifecta of starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus & Booklist. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, the full F&F family — Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Mary Kay Andrews & Patti Callahan Henry — gathers to welcome this month’s F&F Featured Author, internationally renowned, #1 NYT-bestselling author Mitch Albom, to discuss our October 2025 Pick of the Month, his new novel, Twice, a stunning love story that dares to explore how our unchecked desires might mean losing what we’ve had all along. Mitch’s numerous books of fiction and nonfiction have collectively sold 42-million copies in 48 languages worldwide. He has written eight #1 New York Times bestsellers (including the beloved Tuesdays with Morrie), award-winning television films, stage plays, screenplays, a nationally syndicated newspaper column, and a musical. Through his work at the Detroit Free Press, he was inducted into both the National Sports Media Association and Michigan Sports halls of fame and is the recipient of the 2010 Red Smith Award for lifetime achievement. He founded the nonprofit SAY Detroit providing health, housing and education for Detroiters in need, and he operates Have Faith Haiti, a home and school for impoverished children and orphans in Port-au-Prince. He joins us from his home in Michigan to discuss Twice, a warm and heartfelt new novel that asks the question: What if you got to do everything in your life —twice? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, Kristy Woodson Harvey & Mary Kay Andrews welcome bestselling author Meagan Church to discuss The Mad Wife, an exploration of identity, motherhood, and the suffocating grip of societal expectations which will leave you questioning the lives we build—and the lies we live. Meagan built a career as a storyteller and freelance writer for brands, blogs, and organizations. Her fiction (The Girls We Sent Away, The Last Carolina Girl) consists of emotionally-charged, thought-provoking, empathy-inducing stories that focus on overlooked and oppressed women's voices from the past. A Midwesterner by birth, she joins us from her current home in North Carolina that she shares with her high school sweetheart, three children and a plethora of pets. We’re eager to discuss her new novel, The Mad Wife (Sourcebooks, Sept 30), which has been praised by Sarah Penner as "a gripping portrait of 1950s suburbia with a sinister undercurrent…a haunting, hopeful tale of resilience, reckoning, and the redemptive power of truth," and by Ashley Winstead as a “one-sitting read [that] offers unforgettable characters, a beautiful window into life in the Fifties, and a stirring tribute to the strength of women." Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, Kristin Harmel & Ron Block welcome acclaimed NYT-bestselling novelist Jane Hamilton to discuss her stunning new coming-of-age novel, The Phoebe Variations, about girls, mothers, and finding one's way in the world. Jane's novels have won literary prizes, have been made into films, and have been international bestsellers. Two of them — The Book of Ruth and A Map of the World — were selections of Oprah's Book Club. Her nonfiction has appeared in the New York Times; The Washington Post; Allure; O, The Oprah Magazine; Elle; and various anthologies. She joins us from her home on an apple farm in Wisconsin to discuss her latest novel, The Phoebe Variations (Sept 23, Zibby Publishing), which is already an Oprah Daily Best Book of Fall, an Indie Next Pick for October, and a LibraryReads Pick for September and which has been described by Meg Wolitzer as “glorious,” and by Allegra Goodman as “poignant and funny with plenty of unexpected twists and turns.” Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, Mary Kay Andrews & Kristy Woodson Harvey welcome bestselling, award-winning author Hank Phillippi Ryan to discuss her new cross-country cat-and-mouse chase, All This Could Be Yours. Hank is the USA Today bestselling author of 16 psychological thrillers, winning the most prestigious awards in the genre: five Agathas, five Anthonys, and the coveted Mary Higgins Clark Award. She’s also the on-air investigative reporter for Boston's WHDH-TV, and has won an unprecedented 37 EMMY awards for her groundbreaking journalism and true crime stories which have changed laws, changed lives, and resulted in millions of dollars in refunds and restitution for consumers. A past president of National Sisters in Crime, she is now on the board of International Thriller Writers. She joins us to discuss her new “nail-biting thriller” (People), All This Could Be Yours, which Library Journal says “should be on everyone’s reading list!” Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On this episode, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Mary Kay Andrews & Kristin Harmel gather to welcome this month’s F&F Featured Author, #1 NYT-bestselling novelist Elin Hilderbrand along with her daughter Shelby Cunningham, to discuss our September 2025 Pick of the Month, their irresistible new co-written novel, The Academy, the deliciously scandalous story of one drama-filled year at a New England boarding school. Elin is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and the Iowa Writers Workshop. The Academy is her 31st novel, and the first co-written with her daughter. Elin is the co-host of the podcast Books, Beach and Beyond with @TimTalksBooks creator, Tim Ehrenberg. Last year’s TV adaptation of her novel The Perfect Couple, premiered in Netflix's #1 slot with more than 20-million views in its first four days becoming the most-watched original streaming series in the US for several weeks running. Shelby Cunningham was born and raised on Nantucket Island. A 2024 graduate of Rhode Island’s St. George's School, she is presently a student at the University of Miami. This dynamic mother-daughter duo joins us to discuss their fresh, buzzy take on boarding school life which represents a thrilling new direction from one of America's most satisfying and popular storytellers.

On this episode, Kristin Harmel & Kristy Woodson Harvey welcome NYT-bestselling author Sarah McCoy to discuss her spellbinding new novel, Whatever Happened To Lori Lovely?, which is based on the true story of a beautiful young movie star of Hollywood’s Golden Age who gives up her bright career to become a nun. Sarah is the New York Times, USA Today, and internationally bestselling author of six novels including Mustique Island, Marilla of Green Gables, and The Baker’s Daughter, which was a nominee for the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction. Her work has been featured in the short story collection Grand Central as well as in Newsweek, Lit Hub, and Real Simple. Previously a writing teacher at Old Dominion University and the University of Texas at El Paso, Sarah hosted the monthly radio program “Bookmarked with Sarah McCoy” and is the founder of The McCoy Grant for southern booksellers who dream of being published authors. She joins us from her home in Winston-Salem, NC to discuss Whatever Happened To Lori Lovely? (William Morrow, Sept. 2), which Chris Bohjalian calls, “part mystery, part history, [and] always a joy.”

On this episode, Patti Callahan Henry & Kristin Harmel welcome #1 New York Times bestselling author Christina Baker Kline and award-winning author Anne Burt to discuss their stylish, twisty thriller, Please Don’t Lie in which a young woman heads to the Adirondacks with her new husband for a fresh start—but the past won't let her go. Christina is the bestselling author of eight novels, including The Exiles, Orphan Train, and A Piece of the World. She is the recipient of the New England Society prize for fiction, the Maine Literary Award, and a Barnes & Noble Discover Prize. She has also written and edited five nonfiction books. Anne is a nonfiction writer and editor whose debut novel, The Dig, was an Indie Next pick and their lead "Thrills & Chills" reading group title for Summer 2024. Together they have co-written Please Don’t Lie (coming September 1st) which has been praised as “twisty-turny” and “riveting” by Lisa Scottoline, "psychologically rich and bone chilling” by Megan Abbott, and “unsettling, atmospheric, and propulsive” by Mary Kubica. We are excited to talk to both of them about their first thriller!

On this episode, the full F&F family — Patti Callahan Henry, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Kristin Harmel & Mary Kay Andrews — gathers to welcome this month’s F&F Featured Author, bestselling novelist Francesca Serritella to discuss our August 2025 Pick of the Month, FULL BLOOM, her stunning new novel about ambition and untapped desire in which a woman’s life is forever changed by a mysterious perfume. Francesca is the New York Times bestselling author of GHOSTS OF HARVARD, nominated for Best First Novel by International Thriller Writers, and a nine-book series of essay collections co-written with her mother, bestselling author Lisa Scottoline, which was based on their Sunday column in The Philadelphia Inquirer. She graduated cum laude from Harvard University, where she won multiple awards for her fiction, including the Thomas T. Hoopes Prize. She joins us to discuss her second novel, the USA Today bestseller FULL BLOOM (August 5th, Ballantine), which Sarah MacLean calls “an absolutely gorgeous read—the perfect combination of romance, mystery, and magical realism, with a vibrant cast of characters.”

On this episode, Ron Block & Patti Callahan Henry welcome author Victoria Benton Frank to discuss THE VIOLET HOUR, her heartwarming and empowering new novel about thriving after tragedy. Victoria was born in New York City and raised in Montclair, New Jersey, but considers herself to have dual residency in the Lowcountry. A graduate of the College of Charleston and the French Culinary Institute, Victoria worked in restaurants in New York before returning to Charleston, South Carolina, which she now calls home. According to Ann Patchett, Victoria’s 2023 debut novel MY MAGNOLIA SUMMER cemented her as “the rightful heir to the crown of summertime storytellers.” Victoria joins us to discuss her second novel, out August 12th from Gallery Books, which our own Patti Callahan Henry praises as “enchanting, hilarious, and insightful.”

On this episode, Patti Callahan Henry & Kristy Woodson Harvey welcome TWO debut novelists! We love the discovery of new voices on F&F, so this week we are thrilled to bring you two first-time authors—Laura Dickerman whose Hot Desk will hit stores on September 2nd, and Morgan Pager whose The Art of Vanishing came out on July 1st. With an MA in English from Middlebury College’s Bread Loaf School, Laura Dickerman has taught high school English at the Hopkins School, the Collegiate School, and Germantown Friends. She joins us from her home in Atlanta to discuss her rollicking, sparkling, and funny novel that spans decades and generations of a family in the publishing industry. A fresh take on the workplace rom-com, Hot Desk is described as Younger meets Writers & Lovers. Morgan Pager is a publishing professional and the content creator behind NYC Book Girl. A graduate of Duke University, Pager joins us from her home on the Upper West Side to discuss her “wildly inventive” (Jodi Picoult) debut The Art of Vanishing. This stunningly original love story between a museum employee and the man in a masterpiece hanging on the walls is a breathtaking debut about time, art, and the enduring power of love. We are excited to introduce you to both of these first-time novelists!

On this episode, Patti Callahan Henry & Mary Kay Andrews welcome #1 NYT-bestselling author Susan Wiggs to discuss her wrenching but life-affirming new novel, Wayward Girls, based on a true story of survival, friendship, and redemption set in the turbulent Vietnam era in Buffalo, New York. Susan Wiggs is the author of more than fifty novels, including the beloved Lakeshore Chronicles series and the recent New York Times bestsellers The Lost and Found Bookshop, The Oysterville Sewing Circle, and Family Tree. Her award-winning books have been translated into two dozen languages. She joins us from her home in Washington State’s Puget Sound to discuss Wayward Girls, her haunting and thrilling new tale of six teens condemned to forced labor in the dark and secretive Good Shepherd Catholic reform school controlled by Sisters of Charity nuns. Called “a gut-wrenching story of survival, friendship, and justice,” by Robert Dugoni, and “a page-turner, replete with mystery and suspense,” by Adriana Trigiani, this novel is a bold leap in a new direction for Susan and we are so excited to talk to her all about it.

On this episode, the full F&F family gathers to welcome this month’s F&F Featured Author, #1 bestselling novelist Lisa Scottoline to discuss our July 2025 Pick of the Month, her new gothic thriller with dashes of romance and excellent twists, The Unraveling of Julia, in which a young widow inherits a Tuscan estate from a mysterious benefactor and finds herself thrust into the crosshairs of a dangerous conspiracy. Lisa is a #1 bestselling and Edgar Award-winning author of 37 novels. She also wrote a series of humorous memoirs, co-authored with her daughter, novelist Francesca Serritella. Lisa is President of Mystery Writers of America and she reviews fiction for the New York Times, Washington Post, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. A former trial lawyer, she graduated magna cum laude in three years from the University of Pennsylvania and cum laude from its law school, where she taught Justice & Fiction. There are 30 million copies of her books in print, and she is published in 35 countries. She joins us from her Pennsylvania farm with her array of disobedient pets to discuss her twisty, transportive, and haunting, new novel, The Unraveling of Julia. Called "pulse-pounding, propulsive, and utterly unputdownable,” by our own Kristy Woodson Harvey, this is suspense with a passport and we are excited to talk to Lisa all about it!

On this episode, Mary Kay Andrews & Ron Block welcome beloved NYT-bestselling author Adriana Trigiani to discuss The View from Lake Como, her new novel about one woman’s quest to build her own life before it’s too late. In addition to writing 21 books published in 38 languages around the world, Adriana is also an award-winning playwright, television writer/producer, and filmmaker. She wrote and directed the major motion picture of her debut novel, Big Stone Gap, adapted her novel, Very Valentine, for TV, and directed the documentary, Queens of the Big Time. For her significant contributions to literature, culture, and community, Adriana has been awarded Italy’s Cavaliere dell’Ordine della Stella d’Italia, the Library of Virginia’s Patron of Letters degree, and Ellis Island’s Medal of Honor. Trigiani grew up in Appalachia where she co-founded The Origin Project, and she’s also a proud member of the New York State Council on the Arts. She joins us from her home in Greenwich Village to discuss The View from Lake Como, which has been named to most-anticipated lists by People, Elle, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly and which Booklist calls “an immersive, big-hearted ode to family, history, and the importance of independence.”

On this episode, Kristin Harmel & Patti Callahan Henry welcome NYT-bestselling author Meg Waite Clayton to discuss her new dual-timeline historical novel, Typewriter Beach, the unforgettable story of the unlikely friendship between an Oscar-nominated screenwriter and a young actress hoping to be Alfred Hitchcock's new star. Meg is the NYT-bestselling author of eight previous novels, including the Good Morning America Buzz Pick and New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice, The Postmistress of Paris, The Last Train to London, and The Wednesday Sisters. Her books have been published in twenty-four languages, and have been finalists for the PEN Bellwether Prize, the National Jewish Book Award, and the Langum Prize. She also writes for major newspapers and magazines, mentors in the OpEd Project, and is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and the California bar. She joins us to discuss Typewriter Beach which has gotten starred reviews from Publishers Weekly (“intrigue to spare”) and Library Journal (“top-tier…thought-provoking and timely”). Set in Hollywood’s golden age in the shadow of the McCarthy era, it’s the story of two women separated by generations—and a tale of ideas and ideals, passion and persistence, creativity, politics, and family.

In honor of Independence Day we are re-airing a favorite episode of The Friends & Fiction Show from the vault. Join all four F&F hosts—Patti Callahan Henry, Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel & Kristy Woodson Harvey—as they interview No.1 NYT-bestselling author Kristin Hannah about her smash success novel, THE WOMEN! Kristin Hannah is the award-winning and bestselling author of more than 20 novels including the international blockbuster, The Nightingale, the instant No.1 NYT bestsellers The Great Alone and The Four Winds, and Firefly Lane, which was the No.1 Netflix series around the world the week it came out. Her novels have hit the NYT, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Indie bookstores’ bestseller lists; won the People’s Choice award for best fiction; been named Book of the Year by Book Of the Month Club; been voted the Best Historical Novel of the Year by Goodreads; been chosen as book club picks by Reese Witherspoon and the TODAY Show; and been highlighted as best books of the year by outlets such as Amazon, iTunes, and Buzzfeed. THE WOMEN is an intimate and eye-opening portrayal of Army nurses during the Vietnam War, and is at once an intimate portrait of coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided.