Fully Booked by Kirkus Reviews

On this week’s episode, New York Times bestselling author Jessica Knoll joins us to discuss her latest novel, Helpless (Scribner, July 7). “A Hollywood writer returns to her college town for a funeral only to get pulled back into the complicated relationships she left behind,” Kirkus writes in an admiring review of a scintillating novel that “puts the ‘erotic’ back in ‘erotic thriller.’” THANKS TO...

On this week’s episode, New York Times bestselling novelist Jenny Jackson joins us to discuss The Shampoo Effect (Pamela Dorman Books, June 30). Kirkus: “A beginning author gets in over her head, personally and professionally” in a winning novel that “combines a literary rom-com with an acute portrait of midlife among millennials.”   THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: A Name Unbroken by Donald Proffit A...

On this week’s episode, Eva zu Beck joins us to discuss The Wilder Way: A Memoir of Adventure, Freedom, and an Uncharted Life (Gallery Books, June 2). In a starred review, Kirkus calls this bold debut by the YouTube adventurer and National Geographic TV host “an inspiring, action-packed journey to find one’s self through perilous adventures in exotic, far-flung destinations.”   THANKS TO OUR...

On this week’s episode, sponsored by Cambridge University Press, Deb Olin Unferth joins us to discuss her latest novel, Earth 7 (Graywolf, June 9), which Kirkus calls “a quirky, bold, and endearing masterpiece of climate fiction” (starred review). THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:  The Elephants in the Room   by Seth Masket (Cambridge University Press) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privac...

On this week’s episode, comedian and former SNL writer Rosebud Baker joins us to discuss  Fully Baked: A Messy Memoir  (Gallery Books, June 9. Kirkus: “A scathingly funny memoir about a late-bloomer’s wild ride from debauched youth to motherhood and comedy success.”   THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: Queen of the Styx  by Buell Hollister Diamonds and Roses, Vipers and Toads &n...

On this week’s episode, No. 1  New York Times  bestselling novelist Christina Baker Kline joins us to discuss  The Foursome  (Mariner Books, May 12). “Famous conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker were married to Sarah and Adelaide Yates, a pair of sisters in the Civil War–era South, where they produced 21 children between them,” Kirkus writes, in a starred review.&nbsp...

On this week’s episode, Lisa Lee joins us to discuss  American Han  (Algonquin, March 31). “A long-simmering tragedy unfolds in the Kim family of California, from the 1980s to the early 2000s,” Kirkus writes in a starred review of this stunning debut novel. “Lee’s self-aware, relentlessly honest narrator feels absolutely real, and her story cuts deep.”  See Privacy Po...

On this week’s episode, Tom Selleck joins us to discuss  You Never Know: A Memoir  (Dey Street, May 5), out now in paperback with bonus material. “The beloved actor shares his splendid life and career” Kirkus writes in a review of Selleck’s excellent memoir, written with Ellis Henican, calling it “a celebrity memoir worth reading.” THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: So Many Are the D...

On this week’s episode, actress Jamie Lynn Sigler  joins us to discuss  And So It Is…: A Memoir of Acceptance and Hope  (Harper, May 5). Kirkus: “A memoir of pain, recovery, and, of course, an enduring classic TV series.” And in a sponsored interview, author Jeff Gottesfeld and illustrator Matt Tavares discuss their stunning new picture book,  Honor Flight: Celeb...

On this week’s episode, No. 1  New York Times  bestselling crime novelist Patricia Cornwell joins us to discuss  True Crime: A Memoir  (Grand Central Publishing, May 5). “The life of a hugely popular crime novelist has been full of outsized violations and blessings,” Kirkus writes in a starred review of  True Crime . “This literary memoir is as good as it ge...

On this week’s episode,   New York Times  bestselling novelist Xochitl Gonzalez joins us to discuss  Last Night in Brooklyn  (Flatiron Books, April 21). “Two Brooklyn women forge identities and careers in their rapidly gentrifying borough,” Kirkus writes in a starred review of Gonalez’s latest, calling it “smart, tough-minded, and passionate: a pleasure from star...

On our special Indie Episode, indie author Kamla K. Kapur joins us to discuss  The Privilege of Aging: Savoring the Fullness of Life  (Park Street Press, 7/9/24). In this lyrical work of nonfiction, Kapur considers the pleasures of complexities of old age. Kirkus: “A moving celebration of life before death, balanced between plangent reflection and exuberant affirmation” (s...

On this week’s episode, No. 1  New York Times  bestselling author Rainbow Rowell joins us to discuss her eagerly anticipated new novel,  Cherry Baby  (William Morrow, April 14). The  Times  calls this vibrant second-chance romance, set in Omaha, Nebraska, “sexy, messy, raw and funny.” THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: Stitchcraft  by Jonna Carter Don’t Stop...

On this week’s episode,  Evelyn Clarke—a pseudonym for bestselling authors V.E. Schwab and Cat Clarke—joins us to discuss their rollicking mystery novel, The Ending Writes Itself (Harper, April 7). “Fiction writers compete to finish a famous author’s abandoned novel,” Kirkus writes in an admiring review of this closed-circle mystery, calling it “high-concept and highly entertai...

On this week’s episode, No. 1  New York Times  bestselling author Jenny Lawson joins us to discuss How To Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay: Tips and Tricks That Kept Me Alive, Happy, and Creative in Spite of Myself (Penguin Life, March 31). Kirkus calls Lawson’s latest, “Self-help with a twist of humor.” THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: Acadia  by Sterling Nixon Song of Hummi...

On this week’s episode, actor, director, and award-winning travel writer Andrew McCarthy joins us to discuss  Who Needs Friends: An Unscientific Examination of Male Friendship Across America  (Grand Central Publishing, March 24). Kirkus: “An exploration of male friendship and the difficulties of connection…. Thoughtful and well written—and a good prompt to call an old frie...

On this week’s special Debuts Episode—in honor of the 3/15 Debuts Issue of  Kirkus Reviews,  celebrating standout first books across genres—first-time novelist Rebecca Lehmann joins us to discuss  The Beheading Game  (Crown, March 24). “The further adventures of Anne Boleyn, post-decapitation,” Kirkus writes in a starred review. “Brilliantly imagined, stylishly written, sa...

On this week’s episode,  New York Times  and internationally bestselling thriller writer Lisa Unger joins us to discuss  Served Him Right  (Park Row Books, March 10). Kirkus: “ B reaking up isn’t just hard to do—it can be fatal,” in this “twisty, satisfying thriller” (starred review).   THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: Dance With Me, Franny Nice Shirt  by Elizabeth K...

On this week’s episode,  New York Times  bestselling memoirist Lindy West joins us to discuss  Adult Braces: Driving Myself Sane  (Grand Central Publishing, March 10). Kirkus: “The author of a memoir ( Shrill , 2016) and two essay collections ( The Witches Are Coming , 2019, and  Shit, Actually , 2020)…tackles big subjects…[in] a well-realized, candid memoir that reve...

On this week’s episode, No. 1  New York Times  bestselling romance author B.K. Borison joins us to discuss  And Now, Back to You  (Berkley, Feb. 24). Kirkus: “Opposites attract when meteorologists are forced to work together during a massive snowstorm…. [in] a wonderfully cozy and warm romance in a cold, snowy setting.”  THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS: Ruta’s C...

On this week’s episode, Eugene Robinson joins us to discuss  Freedom Lost, Freedom Won: A Personal History of America  (Simon & Schuster, Feb. 3). As Kirkus writes in a starred review of  Freedom Lost, Freedom Won,  the author skillfully illuminates a “central truth of African American history: that for every advance toward being seen as truly American, ‘in short...

On this week’s episode, Allegra Goodman joins us to discuss  This Is Not About Us  (Dial Press, Feb. 10). “Goodman offers an unsparingly frank, wryly funny take on a multigenerational American family.,” Kirkus writes in a starred review. “Like an exquisitely baked apple cake, Goodman’s delicious and deeply perceptive novel is something to savor.” Then Kirkus’ editors offer thei...

On our Best February Books episode, Kirkus’ editors share some of the month’s most highly anticipated titles. Then Sara Pennypacker joins us to discuss  The Lions’ Run  (Balzer + Bray, Feb. 3). “An orphan in occupied France during World War II finds his courage and a sense of family,” Kirkus writes in a starred review, calling this middle-grade historical fiction, “co...

Amy DuBois Barnett joins us to discuss  If I Ruled the  World (Flatiron Books, Jan. 27). “A young Black woman navigates the treacherous world of New York magazines in the 1990s,” Kirkus writes in an admiring review of Barnett’s fiction debut: “Style, love, and hip hop converge in this lively, likable novel.” Then our editors recommend their top picks in books for the week. THAN...

On our special Spring Preview episode, celebrating the most anticipated titles of 2026,  New York Times  bestselling writer and artist Chanel Miller joins us to discuss  The Moon Without Stars  (Philomel, Jan. 13). “After her zines launch her into the popular crowd, seventh grader Luna must decide what she’s willing to sacrifice to stay there,” Kirkus writes in a starred review...