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For the first time, Bookreporter.com reader Muriel Logan and her husband attended the Tucson Festival of Books, which took place on the University of Arizona campus on March 10th and 11th. Muriel had such a wonderful time that she decided to share some of her experiences at the festival with us, along with a couple of photos from two of the panels she attended.

A friend of Carol Fitzgerald's wants to start a book group for working mothers and is looking for titles that would be perfect for them. She says, “We are a group of working moms of young kids (mostly). We have a love of reading, but not a lot of time to do it (and we’re tired most of the time!). So it needs to be something that isn’t too heavy, but has some depth to it for discussion.” We asked our readers for their feedback, which garnered a HUGE response, and you can see their suggestions in our special blog post. Many thanks to all who took the time to share their recommendations and give Carol's friend the guidance she was looking for!

Last fall, I was lucky enough to do an author talk and signing for the Club RED book club (short for “Read, Eat, Drink”) located just south of Boston. The minute I walked in, the leader of the group, Christine Powers, who exudes the relaxed authority and wicked wit of Tina Fey, gave me a huge bear hug. I knew right off that these were my people.

The 11th Annual Savannah Book Festival took place this year from February 15-18 in Savannah, Georgia. According to their website, the Festival celebrates “nationally recognized and local authors through their contributions to literacy, ideas and imagination. Festival Saturday is a free and open to the public event that features solo author presentations in seven venues around Telfair, Chippewa and Wright Squares in historic downtown Savannah.” In this blog post, four Bookreporter.com readers report on their experiences at this year’s Festival and share their thoughts on the author presentations they attended.  

Lee, one of our readers, wrote to us that “a friend of mine is going into the hospital next week for some testing that may lead to heart surgery. Yesterday, when I saw her at our monthly Book Club meeting, she asked me if I could gather a list of great historical fiction titles, which is her favorite genre.” Our readers weighed in with their own suggestions, all of which you can see in our special blog post. We hope Lee's friend finds at least a few titles here that appeals to her!

Joy, one of our readers, recently asked for a “happy book” suggestion for her book group. As she said, "From the mud in Mississippi, to war-time Europe, trekking through the Amazonian jungle, to President Lincoln mourning his son, these were pretty depressing. I need a happy book to suggest for our book club. Any ideas?” We let our readers know about Joy's question, and they came up with MANY ideas, all of which you can see in our special blog post. Happy Reading!

Ed Ifkovic is the author of the Edna Ferber series, meticulously researched historical mysteries based on the life of the titular “largely forgotten American writer.” In an essay written exclusively for Bookreporter.com, Ifkovic gets into why he found Ferber so endlessly fascinating in the first place, as well as what drives his research and how it helps shape the series. Understanding his thought process and his enthusiasm will make reading his latest Edna Ferber mystery, MOOD INDIGO, all the more enjoyable.

Jeffrey Siger is the author of the internationally bestselling and award-nominated Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis series, the ninth installment of which, AN AEGEAN APRIL, is now available. In an essay written exclusively for Bookreporter.com, Jeffrey offers some background on the Greek island of Lesvos, which is where his latest book takes place, and “the still extant refugee crisis that spurred me to write a book putting a human face to the moneymakers, human smugglers, fearful families, NGO activists, local islanders, politicians, press and cops caught up in this epic catastrophe.”

We wrap up this year’s Holiday Author Blog series with A. J. Finn, whose debut novel, THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW, is a psychological thriller about an agoraphobic woman who believes she witnessed a crime in a neighboring house. A. J. recalls one Christmas Eve when he spotted a present under the tree that came from his sister, Hope. He knew it was a book, but had to spend a long, restless night pondering just what that hardback was that he held in his hands earlier that day and desperately wanted to unwrap. Read on to discover the package’s surprising contents.

Chloe Benjamin is the author of THE ANATOMY OF DREAMS, which received the Edna Ferber Fiction Book Award. Her second novel, THE IMMORTALISTS, releases on January 9th and poses an intriguing question: If you knew the date of your death, how would you live your life? As a child, Chloe knew she wanted to live her life as a writer. Her mom’s domestic partner, Molly, served as an early writing teacher, and the lessons she taught her helped her become a more economical writer who strives for “elegance over excessiveness and rhythm over length.” Chloe and Molly have kept up a years-long tradition of giving each other books for the holidays, as she explains in her Holiday Blog post.