Melissa Westemeier

Author of a range of historical fiction, Lauren Small’s curiosity comes from her thirst to understand how we got to where we are today. Her stories focus on the experiences of everyday people living through enormous events and she explores the roots of discontent, migration, and hope in her new novel Radegonde and the First Crusade . In a sweeping adventure that’s part road trip and part coming of age story, a girl from rural France joins the First Crusade with her brother an

Wildwood, Amy Pease’s sequel to Northwoods, gripped me from the first scene when a young woman is discovered missing. We chat about her fictional setting of Shaky Lake, which is based on Wisconsin’s Minocqua resort area. The formidable Sheriff Marge North and her son Elia again team up with Alyssa Mason, an FBI agent from Chicago to investigate why and how an undercover informant disappeared. Their search leads them to discover terrifying secrets about a local rehab clinic. L

Bestselling writer Bruce Robert Coffin started writing following his storied career as a police detective sergeant in Maine. His mysteries are fast-paced, action-packed, and gripping from the first page. We discuss his new series featuring Detective Brock Justice, the fun he’s having bringing Justice (both literal and figurative) to different locations around the state of Maine, and the secret to how he writes such strong female characters. Bitter Fall yanks readers’ attentio

Award-winning children’s author Ross Montgomery wrote a killer read for grownups after getting inspired by Halley’s comet trip over Cornwall in 1910. Deploying the humor and criminal elements he gleaned from watching Clue as a kid, The Murder at World’s End delivers a plot twister of a mystery when servants and family members and scientists and lunatics converge at Tithe Hall in anticipation of the apocalypse.

USA Today Bestselling author and Agatha winner Ellen Byron’s new release, Crescent City Christmas Chaos tosses carolers, holiday parties, a cookbook project, and a shady thief wearing a snowman costume into this Cajun mix. Ricki James-Diaz’s hands are full when her parents come to town, her boyfriend’s filming in a Christmas cooking show special, and of course Bon Vee is hopping with festive shoppers. It’s a perfect time for a murder investigation! Ellen dishes about her pa

Sally Smith’s newest title, A Case of Life and Limb, ticks all my boxes: a secret corner of London (that really exists!), a twisty mystery set in a real place in history, backstage theater drama, lawyers wrestling with ethical questions, complex characters, and a sassy cat. She describes her background as a barrister living in The Temple, the secluded grounds dating back to the Knights Templar and today a main legal district in London. We also talk about Gabriel’s origin stor