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Author Talk: Karen White, author of The Shop on Royal Street

Mar 31, 2022

THE SHOP ON ROYAL STREET is the opening installment in a spin-off series of Karen White’s New York Times bestselling Tradd Street novels. It stars Nola Trenholm, who is hopeful for a fresh start in New Orleans. But she must deal with ghosts from her past, as well as new ones. In this interview, White talks about why she decided to tell this story from Nola’s point of view, her “research” trip to the Big Easy (it was a tough job, but someone had to do it!), and some aspects of the new series that she thinks Tradd Street fans will love --- including several cameo appearances and the surprising reappearance of a character brought back into Nola’s life due to reader demand.

Lisa Scottoline, author of What Happened to the Bennetts

Jason Bennett is driving his family home after his daughter’s field hockey game when a pickup truck begins tailgating them. Suddenly two men jump from the pickup and pull guns on Jason, demanding the car. A horrific flash of violence changes his life forever. Later that awful night, Jason and his family receive a visit from the FBI. The carjackers were members of a dangerous drug-trafficking organization, and now Jason and his family are in their crosshairs. The agents advise them to enter the witness protection program, and they have no choice but to agree. The Bennetts begin to fall apart at the seams. Then Jason learns a shocking truth and realizes that he has to take matters into his own hands.

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March 28, 2022

My book group postponed our March meeting until the first week of April. We still are meeting outside, and last week the weather was a tad bleak for that. So I am looking forward to our discussion of BLACK CAKE by Charmaine Wilkerson.

We have a Facebook group where we talk about upcoming events, make date changes and discuss books in general. We have a somewhat lively conversation in between book discussions that allows us to keep in touch with each other.

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—New York Journal of Books

—Booklist

Lisa See Book Group Event

Links to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdfiOwpBJ2s.

April 2022 Bookaccino Live Event

Links to https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_nvdTHU9zRhyfPHj92fnQ8g.

Miranda Cowley Heller Event

Links to https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_v1cXCF_GTsOFx8QFHY36UQ.

Melissa Fu, author of Peach Blossom Spring

It is 1938 in China. As a young wife, Meilin’s future is bright. But with the Japanese army approaching, Meilin and her four-year-old son, Renshu, are forced to flee their home. Relying on little but their wits and a beautifully illustrated hand scroll, filled with ancient fables that offer solace and wisdom, they must travel through a ravaged country, seeking refuge. Years later, Renshu has settled in America as Henry Dao. Though his daughter is desperate to understand her heritage, he refuses to talk about his childhood. How can he keep his family safe in this new land when the weight of his history threatens to drag them down? Yet how can Lily learn who she is if she can never know her family’s story?

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Simone St. James, author of The Book of Cold Cases

In 1977, Claire Lake, Oregon, was shaken by the Lady Killer Murders. Two men, seemingly randomly, were murdered with the same gun, with strange notes left behind. Beth Greer was the perfect suspect, but she was acquitted and retreated to the isolation of her mansion. Oregon, 2017. Shea Collins is a receptionist who runs a true crime website, the Book of Cold Cases. When she meets Beth by chance, Shea asks her for an interview. To Shea’s surprise, Beth says yes. They meet regularly at Beth’s mansion, though Shea is never comfortable there. Is she making friends with a manipulative murderer, or are there other dangers lurking in the darkness of the Greer house?

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