Friday Reads 8.8.25
Hello, and Happy Friday!
I come to you from the lobby of our hotel in Scottsdale, where we are killing a couple of hours between check-out and heading to the airport. That plane, friends, goes home to Nashville, and with it, my physical tour for LAST SEEN comes to an (almost) end. It’s been an absolutely fantastic six weeks of interviews, essays, Q&As, podcast tapings, and TV appearances, culminating in the incredible in-person events at Parnassus and Poisoned Pen. All that’s left is Bouchercon and a couple of interviews, and my part of this tour is officially wrapped. The online campaign continues, the Instagram tour goes until he end of the month. (If you’re interested in how all of this is designed and comes together, check this post from the 22 Steps for details.)
It’s always so much fun to talk to readers in person, see old friends (Hey, Beth!) and make new ones. It is also brutal, with travel and constantly being on (there were 8 events last week alone), so I got smart this time and scheduled myself a break at the end so I wouldn’t come back totally burned out. It was the best gift I could give myself. Three days off the grid, up in the mountains of Sedona, in a creekside cabin, chilling out with the skunks and the kittens and the bats. It was 100 degrees, but without humidity, felt more like 85. The food was stellar, the vibe so laid back, and I was able to work, pool, walk, and chill. It was fabulous. I also fell madly in love with a David Devary painting of a cowgirl, and she’s coming home with me to inspire a new character. She already has a name. You know how much I love having a character before there’s a story… So, win-win on all levels.
Then we headed to Scottsdale, into the heart of the inferno. The record-breaking temperature on the day of our event was 118 degrees. Folks, that’s really hot, even without humidity. But Arizonans are hearty stock and came out in droves to see me and Megan Miranda at the Poisoned Pen, which was awesome. You can watch the event here.
I also got to see Diana Gabaldon do a talk about Outlander #10 (!), which was amazing. I broke bread and drank a lovely Corsican Rosé with my friend Barbara Peters, who is one of my favorite people in the world, and Megan and I got a chance to catch up and talk business and toast her #5 hit on the NYT list. All in all, this has been a fantastic trip.
So now, pumped full of guacmole and electrolyte drinks, I head home to get to work on the last parts of YOU KNOW WHY.
Oh, before I forget, Step Twenty-One: The Audiobook, is live! That means I have one step left, Publication Day. I’ll have that for you on Tuesday.
We want some books, though, am I right? I bought a whole stack of awesome titles at the Pen, one of my favorite things to do is shopping their stacks and getting recommendations. I was so jazzed that I barely remember what I bought, so I’ll go into those next week.
I have been waiting and waiting to sit by a pool or on a beach and read Emily Henry’s newest, GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL WORLD, and that is how I rewarded myself this week. I love grumpy sunshine stories, and she’s created an incredible new set of characters who are impossible not to love. Henry is a fantastically witty writer, and I can’t recommend all of her books enough. I also hear the Netflix adaptation of Beach Reads is cooking with fire. Hurrah!
Also snagged BAD DATE by Ellory Lloyd from AFR, and KINGDOM OF TOMORROW by Gena Showalter. So happy to see her on the list this month!
I’m at the point in the book that I need stories that are widely different from my own. So all recs are welcome!
Over to you, friends. I’d love to hear what’s tickled your fancy this week! What are you reading this weekend? Any recommendations for us?
