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It is hard to believe that within the span of just a few weeks, we have lost two pillars of the literary world: Mary Higgins Clark and now the great Clive Cussler.

The last weekend of January, I was lucky enough to join 19 other authors and over 150 avid readers aboard the Queen Mary ocean liner in Long Beach, CA for the first ever Super Book Weekend, hosted by Adventures by the Book. Organizers Susan McBeth, Kathie Bennett and Robin Hoklotubbe kicked off the weekend with a sunset cocktail party at nearby Signal Hill Public Library, where the authors shared their love of libraries.

Authors Tasha Alexander and Andrew Grant have been married since 2010. At no point during these 10 years have their books come out on the same day. Until now, that is. January 7th saw the releases of IN THE SHADOW OF VESUVIUS, Tasha’s latest Lady Emily mystery, and TOO CLOSE TO HOME, the second installment in Andrew’s series featuring intelligence agent-turned-courthouse janitor Paul McGrath. In this fun and informative conversation, Tasha and Andrew talk about relocating from Chicago to Wyoming, and explain how their new environment (with its “sense of space and isolation --- combined with stunning landscapes and amazing wildlife”) has enriched every aspect of their lives, especially their writing careers.

Michael Stanley is a pseudonym for the writing team of Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip. Their latest novel, FACETS OF DEATH, is a prequel to their award-winning Detective Kubu series set in Botswana. Nordic noir (aka Scandinavian noir) has become an enormously popular genre of crime fiction over the last couple of decades. But in this enlightening essay, Stanley maintains that the homicide rate in these stories, many of which take place in cold climates, requires an unreasonable suspension of belief --- and they have statistics to back this up.

We wrap up this year’s Holiday Author Blog series with Alena Dillon, whose debut novel, MERCY HOUSE, releases on February 11th. Alena and her husband are looking forward to celebrating their first Christmas with their son, who will be 10 months old. At first, they were just going to wrap up some toys they already own, or let him tear through gift bags with nothing but tissue paper in them. And surely, his grandparents would have plenty of goodies for him to unwrap. But then Alena put on her writer’s hat and finally figured out the ideal presents for her baby boy: books, of course. Lots and lots of books.

Liz Moore is the author of the acclaimed novels HEFT and THE UNSEEN WORLD. In her upcoming book, LONG BRIGHT RIVER (releasing January 7th), two sisters travel the same streets, though their lives couldn't be more different. Then one of them goes missing. As a child, Liz was a voracious reader. She was always deciding between books she wanted to read and those she thought she should read --- especially during Christmastime. In our penultimate blog post of the holiday season, Liz explains how the discovery of gift certificates marked the beginning of her private relationship with books, which, in turn, helped lead to her writing career.

Jean Kwok is the New York Times and international bestselling author of GIRL IN TRANSLATION, MAMBO IN CHINATOWN and her latest novel, SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE, which untangles the complicated ties binding three women --- two sisters and their mother --- in one Chinese immigrant family, and explores what happens when the eldest daughter disappears and a series of family secrets emerge. In this touching holiday blog post, Jean talks about immigrating to New York City from Hong Kong with her family at the age of five, the hardships they had to endure, and her very first Christmas, which turned out to be more special than she ever could have imagined.

Earlier this year, Marjan Kamali followed up her debut novel, TOGETHER TEA, with THE STATIONERY SHOP, a beautiful and timely exploration of devastating loss, unbreakable family bonds and the overwhelming power of love. Marjan spent her childhood in Kenya, Germany, Turkey, Iran and the United States. Her family thought it was important to create a sense of belonging --- and they achieved that by participating in the traditions and holidays of the many places in which they lived. In her holiday blog post, Marjan recalls returning to Iran at the age of nine and the critical role that books played during their first Christmas back --- and in the years that followed.

Sarah McCoy is the bestselling author of such novels as THE BAKER’S DAUGHTER, THE MAPMAKER’S CHILDREN and MARILLA OF GREEN GABLES, the latter of which recently released in paperback. A few years ago, Sarah flew out to Denver with her husband to visit his family for Christmas. While there, her sister-in-law suggested that they each think of an “experience gift” to give: “an activity wherein the presents were memories.” Sarah’s very special gift for her niece and two nephews was a trip to Tattered Cover Bookstore on Christmas Eve --- and what a fun, festive and memorable experience it turned out to be!

Wendy Wax is the USA Today bestselling author of 15 novels, including her latest that released earlier this year, MY EX-BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING, in which a wedding dress passed down through generations unravels the tangled threads of three women's lives. Wendy loves receiving books, and she recalls being gifted a “deluxe edition” of GONE WITH THE WIND, which introduced her to historical fiction. In this holiday blog post, Wendy explains how the classic book and its film adaptation --- specifically the character of Scarlett O’Hara --- inspired her “to write novels about women who are forced to discover just how strong they are when their lives crumble around them.”