December 3, 7 PM ET
Join authors Jillian Cantor, Jeneva Rose, Nalini Singh, and Jessica Strawser along with Back Room hosts Karen Dionne and Hank Phillippi Ryan for an evening of great conversation!
The Authors
Jillian Cantor has a BA from Penn State University and an MFA from the University of Arizona. She is the USA Today and internationally bestselling author of 12 novels which have been chosen for Indie Next, Library Reads, Amazon Best of the Month and have been translated into 14 languages.
Born and raised in a suburb of Philadelphia, Cantor currently lives in Arizona with her husband and two sons.
Her most recent novel, THE FICTION WRITER, is a gothic mystery with shades of Daphne du Maurier’s REBECCA. Learn more at www.jilliancantor.com.
Cindy Fazzi is a Filipino American writer and former Associated Press reporter. She has worked as a journalist in the Philippines, Taiwan, and the United States. She’s the author of Multo (meaning ghost in Tagalog), a contemporary thriller published by Agora Books, an imprint of Polis Books, in September 2023. Her historical novel, My MacArthur, was published by Sand Hill Review Press in 2018. Her articles have appeared in the Daily Beast, Electric Literature, Publishers Weekly, Forbes, and Writer’s Digest.
She’s the author of Multo (meaning ghost in Tagalog), a contemporary thriller published by Agora Books, in September 2023. Learn more at cindyfazzi.com.
Jeneva Rose is the New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including the million-copy bestselling thriller, The Perfect Marriage and the instant New York Times bestseller, You Shouldn’t Have Come Here.
Her work has been translated into more than two dozen languages and optioned for film/tv.
Originally from Wisconsin, she currently lives in Chicago with her husband, Drew, and her English bulldog, Winston.
Learn more at www.jenevarose.com.
Jessica Strawser is editor-at-large for Writer’s Digest and the author of six popular book club novels, including ALMOST MISSED YOU, the Book of the Month selection NOT THAT I COULD TELL, A MILLION REASONS WHY, and the People magazine pick THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW.
Her latest, THE LAST CARETAKER, is an Amazon Editors’ First Reads pick for November 2023, and releases widely on December 1. Learn more at jessicastrawser.com.
Authors’ Books
The Fiction Writer by Jillian Cantor
The once-rising literary star Olivia Fitzgerald is down on her luck. Her most recent novel–a retelling of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca–was a flop, her boyfriend of nine years just dumped her and she’s battling a bad case of writer’s block. So when her agent calls her with a high-paying ghostwriting opportunity, Olivia is all too willing to sign the NDA.
At first, the write-for-hire job seems too good to be true. All she has to do is interview Henry “Ash” Asherwood, a reclusive mega billionaire, twice named People‘s Sexiest Man Alive, who wants her help in writing a book that reveals a shocking secret about his late grandmother and Daphne du Maurier. But when Olivia arrives at his Malibu estate, nothing is as it seems. The more Olivia digs into his grandmother’s past, the more questions she has–and before she knows it, she’s trapped in a gothic mystery of her own.
Purchase online at www.bookshop.org.
Multo by Cindy Fazzi
Filipino-American bounty hunter Domingo has made a career of catching criminal undocumented immigrants. He’s the best in the business-and it isn’t lost on him that he’s so good because of his similarities to his targets. Despite Domingo’s claims that he is unsympathetic to their plight, yet spends his spare moments on stakeouts and in between jobs writing a book of advice for aspiring immigrants. Brash, funny, and candid, he compiles the names of all the people he’s apprehended, documenting the hazards of his profession, and imparting advice to foreigners who dare to dream of life in America.
Domingo’s latest job is finding biracial Filipino woman Monica Reed–for the third time. Monica is the only fugitive who has ever escaped him, and the only one he’s ever released, against orders. As he embarks on a third and final hunt for her, Domingo uncovers a dangerous truth that Monica was determined to publicize–even though it put her life in danger. And as he chases her around the country, despite his agreement to arrest people like Monica, Domingo finds himself taking her side. Flushing out immigrants whose biggest crime was clinging to the American Dream pales in comparison to getting justice for a woman who he discovers was living in the shadows, but was only ever searching for the truth.
Purchase online at www.bookshop.org.
You Shouldn’t Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose
Grace Evans, an overworked New Yorker looking for a total escape from her busy life, books an Airbnb on a ranch in the middle of Wyoming. When she arrives at the idyllic getaway, she’s pleased to find that the owner is a handsome man by the name of Calvin Wells–and he’s eager to introduce her to his easygoing way of life. But there are things Grace discovers that she’s not too pleased about: A lack of cell phone service. A missing woman. And a feeling that something isn’t right with the ranch.
Despite her uneasiness, the two bond and start to fall for one another. However, as her departure date nears, things change for the worse. What began as a playful romance soon turns into a complicated web of lies. Grace grows wary of Calvin as his infatuation for her seems to have morphed to obsession. Calvin fears that Grace is hiding something from him–including her reason for staying at his ranch to begin with. Vacation flings typically end in heartbreak, but for Grace and Calvin, it’ll be far more destructive.
Purchase online at www.bookshop.org.
The Last Caretaker by Jessica Strawser
Katie’s divorce was, in a word, humiliating. So when her friend Bess offers a fresh start–a resident caretaking job at a nature preserve–Katie accepts. No matter that she’s not exactly a “nature person.” How hard can it be?
But from day one, something feels off. Katie’s new farmhouse looks as if the last caretaker barely moved out at all. When a frantic, terrified woman arrives late at night, expecting a safe place to hide, it’s clear caretaking involves way more than Katie bargained for.
Suddenly, Katie is no longer sure who she can trust: the brooding groundskeeper, the daily regulars–hikers, dog walkers, bird-watchers, photographers–even Bess.
As Katie digs deeper for clues in what the last caretaker left behind, she must discover courage she never knew she had–and decide how much she’ll risk to do the right thing.
Purchase online at www.bookshop.org.
Your Hosts
Karen Dionne is the USA Today and #1 internationally bestselling author of two psychological suspense novels set in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula wilderness, The Marsh King’s Daughter and The Wicked Sister, both published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons in the US and in dozens of other languages.
Praised by The New York Times Book Review as “subtle, brilliant, and mature,” The Marsh King’s Daughter is now a major motion picture starring Daisy Ridley and Ben Mendelsohn.
Visit Karen at www.karen-dionne.com
Karen’s newest novel is The Wicked Sister. “Dionne paints a haunting portrait of a family hurtling toward the tragic destiny they can foresee but are powerless to stop.”–Publishers Weekly (starred review; best book of 2020)
Purchase The Wicked Sister online at www.bookshop.org.
Hank Phillippi Ryan is the USA Today bestselling author of 15 psychological thrillers, winning the genre’s most prestigious awards: five Agathas, five Anthonys, and the coveted Mary Higgins Clark Award. She’s also investigative reporter for Boston’s WHDH-TV, winning 37 EMMYs for her groundbreaking journalism. National book reviewers call her “a superb and gifted storyteller.”
Hank is the co-host of The Back Room and First Chapter Fun, as well as host of her CRIME TIME interview show on A Mighty Blaze. She lives with her husband, a criminal defense and civil rights attorney, in Boston.
Learn more at www.HankPhillippiRyan.com.
Her newest is the page-turning standalone ONE WRONG WORD – taut and tense psychological drama exploring gossip, rumor, greed and revenge. Two smart women face off in a high-stakes psychological cat and mouse game to prove their truth about a devastating betrayal—but which woman is the cat, and which woman is the mouse? Publishers Weekly says “Ryan is a master of suspense!”
Purchase One Wrong Word online at www.bookshop.org.
