Meet Victoria Christopher Murray TONIGHT!
Weekly News from Friends & Fiction—February 5, 2025
Tune in at 7pm ET for TONIGHT’s episode!
Join us Wednesday, February 5th at 7pm Eastern on the F&F Facebook page and YouTube channel as Patti Callahan Henry & Ron Block welcome New York Times bestselling author Victoria Christopher Murray to discuss her gripping new historical novel, Harlem Rhapsody, about Jessie Redmon Fauset, the powerhouse civil rights activist and literary sensation who ignited the Harlem Renaissance.
Victoria Christopher Murray is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than thirty novels, including The Personal Librarian (a Good Morning America book club pick), and The First Ladies, (Target’s Book of the Year), both of which she co-authored with Marie Benedict. Victoria won the NAACP Image Award for her social commentary novel, Stand Your Ground, which was also a Library Journal Best Book of the Year. Four of her novels, Lust, Envy, Wrath and Greed have been made into TV movies for Lifetime. She joins us to discuss her new novel, Harlem Rhapsody, which Sadeqa Johnson calls “powerful” and “simply stunning,” and Tayari Jones calls, “a page turner and history lesson at once.”
Watch the video broadcast of this interview as it airs Wed 2/5 at 7pm ET on the F&F Facebook group page & YouTube channel. Catch the audio version on our podcast Fri 2/7.
Order Victoria’s book on Bookshop.org!
Shop all of our guests’ & hosts’ books in our F&F Shop on Bookshop.org!
Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus Q&A’s with our guest authors which include a writing tip, book recommendation, and information about their works-in-progress, plus other great material not covered on the show!
Latest News from the Fab Four!
PATTI CALLAHAN HENRY just returned from a remarkable vacation and is now so renewed and excited to dive back into a new novel, and preparing for book tour for THE STORY SHE LEFT BEHIND. Is there a place she will see you? Like the Friends and Fiction Launch Party in Atlanta Georgie at the Atlatna History Center with the entire F&F family!
KRISTY WOODSON HARVEY has been busy writing a super secret awesome project that she cannot wait to announce. She has had the best week celebrating her husband’s birthday. She also has really enjoyed watching little Will play lots of basketball. Valentine's Day is one of her favorite holidays and she has loved spending time decorating her house and catching up on all of her favorite love stories. Her latest love story is coming out in May, BEACH HOUSE RULES.
KRISTIN HARMEL is hard at work on her next novel–and on physical therapy to continue healing her broken leg! She’s four weeks out from her surgery and (hopefully) four weeks from beginning to bear weight on her leg again, so the end is in sight! In the meantime, she was thrilled to receive a big box of galleys (advanced copies) of her June 2025, THE STOLEN LIFE OF COLETTE MARCEAU. It always feels real when those physical books arrive! She can’t wait to share it with all of you!
MARY KAY ANDREWS loved seeing so many F&F members at Joseph Finder’s signing of his new thriller THE OLIGARCH’S DAUGHTER last week at FoxTale Book Shoppe, where she was in conversation with Karin Slaughter and Joe. On Monday her family celebrated granddaughter Molly’s confirmation. MKA is headed to the Savannah Book Festival this week and looking forward to seeing several authors who’ve recently been F&F guests, including Anna Quindlen, Scott Turow, and Jean Hanff Korelitz.
Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for an ongoing series of roundtable discussions and personal essays by the Fab Four about their careers, writing processes, and all things book and publishing related!
Upcoming Events
Tuesday, February 18 at 7pm — Live virtual event hosted by Patti on her Facebook author page. Learn the backstory of her forthcoming novel The Story She Left Behind, ask her anything, and win prizes! She’ll be doing these every Tuesday evening for four straight weeks leading up to her March 18th pub date, with a new topic and a new prize drawing each week. Mark your calendars for this first one on Tues. 2/18! Details HERE.
Monday, March 17, 2025 at 6pm — F&F Live in-person event to celebrate the launch of Patti’s The Story She Left Behind at the Atlanta History Center. Save the date! GET TICKETS.
View Patti’s full 20205 book tour for The Story She Left Behind HERE.
Want to know what these F&F Live events are all about? Watch this video compilation!
In Case You Missed It
On last week’s episode of The Friends & Fiction Show, Kristy Woodson Harvey & Mary Kay Andrews welcomed neuroscientist turned New York Times bestselling author Lisa Genova to discuss her breathless, riveting new novel, More or Less Maddy, about a young woman diagnosed with bipolar disorder who rejects the stability and approval found in a traditionally “normal” life for a career in stand-up comedy.
You can WATCH that episode on Facebook or YouTube, or LISTEN to it on our podcast.
Coming Up on The Friends & Fiction Show
All shows can be watched on Facebook & YouTube each Wednesday evening at 7pm ET, and listened to on our podcast each Friday, all year long.
Already aired: Fiona Davis, The Stolen Queen
WATCH now! | LISTEN now!
Already aired: Kate Fagan, The Three Lives of Cate Kay
WATCH now! | LISTEN now!
Already aired: F&F January Pick of the Month: Tara Dorabji, Call Her Freedom
WATCH now! | LISTEN now!
Already aired: Scott Turow, Presumed Guilty
WATCH now! | LISTEN now!
Already aired: Lisa Genova, More or Less Maddy
WATCH now! | LISTEN now!
Victoria Christopher Murray, Harlem Rhapsody
Watch: February 5 | Listen: February 7
Christina Clancy, The Snowbirds
Watch: February 12 | Listen: February 14
F&F February Pick of the Month: Pam Jenoff, Last Twilight in Paris
WATCH LIVE: February 19 | Listen: February 21
C.J. Box, Battle Mountain
Watch: February 26 | Listen: February 28
Colleen Oakley, Jane and Dan at the End of the World
Watch: March 5 | Listen: March 7
F&F March Pick of the Month: Patti Callahan Henry, The Story She Left Behind
WATCH LIVE: March 12 | Listen: March 14
Emma Donoghue, The Paris Express
Watch: March 19 | Listen: March 21
Emilia Hart, The Sirens
Watch: March 26 | Listen: March 28
F&F 2025 Subscription Box with Oxford Exchange
The 2025 FRIENDS AND FICTION Subscription Box is available for purchase now, exclusively from our friends at Oxford Exchange.
This subscription includes three separate shipments:
1. MARCH 18th: A hardcover, signed, first edition of Patti Callahan Henry’s forthcoming book THE STORY SHE LEFT BEHIND with an exclusive Friends & Fiction friendship bracelet and car magnet
2. MAY 27th: A hardcover, signed, first edition of BEACH HOUSE RULES by Kristy Woodson Harvey!
3. JUNE 17th: A hardcover, signed, first edition of THE STOLEN LIFE OF COLETTE MARCEAU by Kristin Harmel!
*Optional add-on: A paperback, signed, first edition of SUMMERS AT THE SAINT by Mary Kay Andrews (coming in paperback June 3)!
Get your subscription NOW from Oxford Exchange!
F&F Merch Store
We have a Friends & Fiction merch store with t-shirts, sweatshirts, coffee mugs and a book bag on Bonfire. We also have other items like wine tumblers, reading journals, and our original white v-neck logo tees available through Oxford Exchange.
F&F Official Book Club & 2025 Reading Challenge
Join Brenda Gardner & Lisa Harrison for monthly book club picks and live online author chats on the Facebook page for the F&F Official Book Club with Brenda & Lisa, where they’ve amassed 35,000 of their own members. You can also follow the Book Club on Instagram and subscribe to their YouTube channel where you can catch past discussions, including their most recent chat with Lauren Connolly about her novel, PS: I HATE YOU. Mark your calendars for February 24th for their next author guest, Jennifer Moorman, when they’ll discuss her novel, THE VANISHING OF JOSEPHINE REYNOLDS. The Book Club is also hosting the 2025 F&F Reading Challenge. Join them for a different category prompt each month to read outside your comfort zone. The February prompt is to read a romance novel by a BIPOC author and for March it’s to read a science fiction or fantasy book.
Stay in Touch!
Subscribe to our PODCAST.
Join our FACEBOOK group.
Follow us on INSTAGRAM.
Subscribe to our YOUTUBE channel.
Find details about everything F&F on our WEBSITE.
Shop our guests’ & hosts’ books in our shop on BOOKSHOP.
Join the F&F Official BOOK CLUB with Brenda & Lisa.
Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus content from our hosts and guests.
❤️❤️❤️