Book of the Month Live

Author Marisa Kashino sat down in our headquarters to discuss her debut novel Best Offer Wins. She talks about her pivot from real estate reporting to housing horror, her increasingly unhinged protagonist, and whether a flash mob-filled street is a homebuying dealbreaker. After 11 unsuccessful bids, a desperate homebuyer in a cutthroat market will stop at nothing to snag her dream home. As ambition gives way to obsession, she resorts to increasingly extreme measures to win the house (and the life) she's always dreamed of. Get Best Offer Wins at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

Author Stacia Stark came by our headquarters to talk about her new Romantasy, We Who Will Die. Naturally, the conversation turned to her Roman Empire, one filled with vampires, gladiators, fighting to the death, and second chance love. Enter the perilous Thorn district, where vampires and gladiators collide and Arvelle is caught between them. After vowing to assassinate an ancient vampire emperor, she's forced into a deadly gladiator arena and an uneasy alliance with her vampire ex boyfriend. Get We Who Will Die at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

In this special episode recorded at the Aspen Literary Festival presented by Book of the Month, debut authors Kristin Koval, Anika Jade Levy, and Eliana Ramage give candid thoughts on first novels, family themes, and the pure magic of getting published. From origin stories to audience questions, they discuss what it takes to go from blank page to Book of the Month pick. About Penitence: When murder rocks a Colorado family, old secrets resurface, and long-lost love returns. Spanning decades and coasts, one family grapples with guilt, forgiveness, and the mess of trying to make things right. About Flat Earth: In a crumbling near-future New York, a young woman spirals through grad school, sugar daddies, and watching her best friend become the next big thing. This darkly funny debut explores transactional love, female friendship, and some unexpected conspiracy theories. About To the Moon and Back: Steph Harper is determined to escape her past—and Earth—with a dream to become an astronaut. As she pushes toward space, and past the Cherokee Nation where she was raised, the women around her navigate their own journeys of identity, ambition, and belonging. Get Penitence, Flat Earth, and To the Moon and Back at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

Author Thea Weiss came by our headquarters to chat about her debut novel, The Second Chance Cinema, and things got nostalgic fast. She shares thoughts on lasting love, the memories that make us, and, of course, the movies. A couple on the brink of marriage stumbles upon a hidden theatre that screens their real life memories, forcing them to confront forgotten moments, buried truths, and old versions of themselves. As the past plays out on screen, they must decide whether revisiting it will strengthen their future or unravel it. Get The Second Chance Cinema at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

Author Stephanie Garber visited our headquarters to discuss her first adult book, Alchemy of Secrets. During our conversation, we learned what it was like for Stephanie to start writing for a new audience, along with a few other important things about her–she's obsessed with urban legends, she makes excellent kettle corn, and she wouldn't be surprised if magic turned out to be real. When Holland, a grad student, takes a mysterious course called Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, she becomes convinced that there's more to Los Angeles than meets the eye. As she realizes that the legends might contain elements of truth, she gets caught up in a web of magic, secrets, and lies. Get Alchemy of Secrets at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

Author, reality TV star, and founding member of Momtok, Mayci Neeley visited our headquarters in New York to discuss her new memoir, Told You So. From the grief of losing the father of her child to the undeniable joys of motherhood, she opened up about all the ways her life experiences have prepared her for the ups and downs of fame. Reality TV star Mayci Neeley shares an inspiring and honest examination of the life experiences that have shaped her—from painful losses to the gift of becoming a mom—and makes the case for wearing your scars with pride. Get Told You So at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

The best way to listen to Book of the Month LIVE is in our app. Author Elizabeth Gilbert didn't hold back in her visit to our headquarters, where she unpacked the wrenching life experiences that shaped her new memoir, All the Way to the River. From falling for her dear friend, to recognizing addiction in all its forms, to finally understanding that we're all students in one big Earth School. Sometimes true love becomes a true nightmare. Liz Gilbert bares her soul—and all her skeletons—in a deeply personal memoir, unpacking a friendship-turned-romance that spiraled out of control. Get All the Way to the River at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

Author Sharon Kurtzman visited our headquarters to discuss her new historical novel, The Lost Baker of Vienna. She shared the true family history that inspired the story, why it took her 25 long years to complete it, and how food and family are always intertwined. A young woman in post-war Vienna finds herself caught between two futures, and two suitors, as she struggles to keep her family afloat — and keep her father's legacy alive through baking his best recipes. Get The Lost Baker of Vienna at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

Author Sarah MacLean stopped by our headquarters to discuss her new book, These Summer Storms. She broke down the book's themes of wealth, power, and nobility—and spilled about writing the first chapter of her first novel on a dare. When Alice Storm's wealthy father passes away, the whole family has to pay their final respects by playing a week-long twisted game on a private island—or risk losing out on their inheritance. Get These Summer Storms at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.

The best way to listen to Book of the Month LIVE is in our app. Author Wally Lamb visited our headquarters to discuss his new novel, The River Is Waiting. He talked about what motivates his writing (fear), the most common reported side effect of reading his books (crying), and what it takes to really forgive (listen to find out). When a new father causes an unimaginable tragedy, he is confronted with prison time and a question he may never be able to answer: what does it take to win his family's forgiveness? Get The River Is Waiting at bookofthemonth.com. Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.