author interviews

A brown-haired woman in a bright blue 18th-century style dress, seen from the back, holds a basket of ripe fruit and stands in a meadow, facing a city on a hill; cover of Stephanie Dray's and Laura Kamoie's A Founding Mother

Bookshelf, Spring 2026

Novels on my bookshelf in the spring of 2026, by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie, Shana Galen, April Howells, Kristen Perrin, Caitlin Shetterly, and Marian Yee

cplesley

Apr 33 min read

A person in medieval armor, visible only as a stylized nose, mouth, and chin is lit against a black backdrop with the words "He fights for honor, she fights for love" in white beneath the figure; cover of Meg Wahlberg's Chivalry in the Shadows

New Books Network Interview: Meg Wahlberg

New Books Network interview with Meg Wahlberg about her debut novel, Chivalry in the Shadows, first in a new series

cplesley

Mar 272 min read

A woman's face tilted back so she's looking at the sky slowly bleeds in blue ink into the jade green background; cover of The Fountain by Casey Scieszka

Interview with Casey Scieszka

Interview with the author Casey Scieszka, whose magical realist novel The Fountain was published by Harper in March 2026

cplesley

Mar 204 min read

A man's hand, holding an open book with green leather binding, against a black background; cover of Kevin Ashton's The Story of Stories

Interview with Kevin Ashton

Interview with nonfiction writer Kevin Ashton, whose multi-millennial history of storytelling, then and now, just came out with Harper.

cplesley

Mar 65 min read

Drawing of old-fashioned sailing ships on a river against a background of wooden houses and a vast, cloudy sky; cover of Sandra Freels, Anneke Jans in the New World

New Books Network Interview: Sandra Freels

New Books Network interview with Sandra Freels, whose debut novel, Anneke Jans in the New World, came out in January 2026 from She Writes Press

cplesley

Feb 202 min read

A young, dark-haired woman in a floor-length crimson gown stands in a garden, looking at a large gray mansion with only a few lighted windows; cover of Janie Chang's The Fourth Princess

Interview with Janie Chang

Author interview with Janie Chang, whose latest historical novel, The Fourth Princess, came out in early February 2026 from William Morrow.

cplesley

Feb 125 min read

Against a background of blue-green water and sea plants outlined in gold, a woman in a long-skirted dress and a jacket, hands clasped behind her back, is silhouetted; cover of Linda Wilgus's The Sea Child

New Books Network Interview: Linda Wilgus

New Books Network interview with Linda Wilgus, author of The Sea Child, a historical novel set in early 19th-century Cornwell, just published by Ballantine Books

cplesley

Jan 232 min read

A woman in Elizabethan dress, including a large ruff and cut off above the nose; cover of Jennifer Ashley's Eloise and the Queen

Bookshelf, Winter 2026

Novels, mostly historical fiction, on my Winter 2026 bookshelf, by Jennifer Ashley, Janie Chang, Sandra Freels, Kaoru Mori, Casey Scieszka, and Linda Wilgus

cplesley

Jan 24 min read

Drawing of a woman in a tight-fitting blue dress, wearing pearls and a tiara and looking over her sunglasses. At her feet are two Welsh Corgis. She carries a camera and a black purse with the letters ER, all set against a lighter blue backdrop; cover of S. J. Bennett's The Queen Who Came In from the Cold.

New Books Network Interview: S. J. Bennett

New Books Network interview with the author S. J. Bennett about her mystery series featuring Queen Elizabeth II

cplesley

Dec 12, 20252 min read

The silhouette of a woman in late Victorian clothing, steadying a bicycle is outlined against the background of a several-story house surrounded by trees and a wrought-iron fence; cover of Misery Hates Company by Elizabeth Hobbs

Interview with Elizabeth Hobbs

Interview with the author Elizabeth Hobbs, whose historical mystery series featuring a student at Wellesley in the 1890s is published by Crooked Lane Books

cplesley

Nov 21, 20255 min read

A line drawing of a tired, stressed woman in a brown dress with a Puritan collar, draped in a red shawl or cloak. She has red hair and wears a Tudor-style cap; cover of The Bailiff's Wife, by Maren Halvorsen

New Books Network Interview: Maren Halvorsen

New Books Network interview with Maren Halvorsen, whose debut novel, a murder mystery and character study set in 17th-century England has just come out with Cuidono Press

cplesley

Nov 14, 20252 min read

Outline of a figure of indeterminate gender, wearing a flat hat with feathers, tight clothes, and gloves, with an old-fashioned pistol in the right hand, surrounded by Tudor roses; cover of Amie McNee's To Kill a Queen

Interview with Amie McNee

Author interview with Amie McNee, whose latest Tudor historical mystery will soon come out with Crooked Lane Books

cplesley

Nov 7, 20254 min read

A swirling drawing of waves beneath a yellow sun, a red sky, and several seabirds; cover of Mirta Ojito's Deeper Than the Ocean

Interview with Mirta Ojito

Interview with Mirta Ojito, whose first novel, Deeper Than the Ocean, comes out in November 2025 from Union Square Publishing

cplesley

Oct 31, 20257 min read

Against a green floral backdrop resembling wallpaper, a pair of white-gloved hands light a match to a tiny armchair; cover of Katie Tietjen's Murder in Miniature

New Books Network Interview: Katie Tietjen

New Books Network interview with Katie Tietjen, whose second historical mystery featuring Maple Bishop has just been published by Crooked Lane Books

cplesley

Oct 10, 20252 min read

A drawing of a black-haired woman in sunglasses and a blue dress, holding a camera and a bag with the letters ER II and with a corgi on either side; cover of S.J. Bennett, The Queen Who Came in from the Cold

Bookshelf, Fall 2025

Fall 2025 Bookshelf featuring new novels by S.J. Bennett, Mimi Matthews, Mirta Ojito, Andrea Penrose, and Katie Tietjen

cplesley

Sep 26, 20254 min read

Against a medieval map of the Mediterranean, a portrait of a woman in a tall black hat that straps under her chin, wearing a necklace and twelfth-century blue satin dress looks off to one side; cover of Lucy Pick's The Queen's Companion

New Books Network Interview: Lucy Pick

New Books Network interview with Lucy Pick, whose historical novel The Queen's Companion, about Eleanor of Aquitaine in the Holy Land, has just come out with Cuidono Press

cplesley

Sep 12, 20252 min read