THE SECRET OF SNOW

Viola Shipman

When a SoCal meteorologist is replaced by a virtual weather forecaster, the only television station willing to give her another shot is her northern Michigan hometown.

ONE NIGHT, NEW YORK

Lara Thompson

A thrilling debut novel of corruption and murder set in the nightclubs, tenements, and skyscrapers of 1930s New York.

LEARWIFE

J.R. Thorp

Inspired by Shakespeare's King Lear, this breathtaking debut novel tells the story of the most famous woman ever written out of literary history.

LIVING LIKE A TUDOR

Amy Licence

"Our book club is discussing Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian. Any fun snacks I can serve?”

"I suggest foods involving pumpkins, corn (and cornmeal), apples, and spices. They drank copious amounts of beer and were thrilled when a ship would port with Madeira.

"I am hosting our book club for The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave. Can you share dinner ideas?"

-Kathy, Whitman County, Washington

From Laura Dave: "Hannah's Redemption Pasta: My number one suggestion is to recreate the pasta (Poggio Linguine) that Hannah tries to make for Bailey in Chapter 2. Here’s a video of how to make it. I also suggest gingerbread pancakes like Hannah and Bailey had in Austin!”

"Can you suggest food pairings for This is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel?"

-Amy, Baltimore, Maryland

"The third section of the book is set in Thailand, so Thai food is probably the most obvious and versatile food pairing. The final scene of the book involves banana splits. There’s much ado about packing lunches for school, so you could do something in the PB & J /turkey sandwich/pretzel realm. The hardcover edition of the book features an orange peel on the cover, so lots of flavor/dish possibilities there."

"Can you send a book club menu for Jesica Anya Blau's Mary Jane?"

-Brittany, Phoenix, Arizona

From Jesica Anya Blau:

"Mary Jane takes place in 1975, in Baltimore, Maryland. Mary Jane Dillard lives with her tidy, conservative parents who have a framed picture of President Ford hanging in their dining room. Mary Jane helps her mother with dinner each night and then takes her mother’s recipes with her to the Cone house where she prepares meals as a summer nanny.

Mary Jane and Izzy, her five-year-old charge, buy lots of candy for the Cone house. Everyone eats candy necklaces, Screaming Yellow Zonkers (candied popcorn), and popsicles. Mary Jane also buys Slim Jims which Jimmy likes to eat in alternating bites with something sweet.

For breakfast, Mary Jane makes 'Birds in a Nest': she cuts holes and crack eggs in the center of pancakes, and then flips them until cooked. She uses lots of butter in the pan, lots of salt on top, and serves it with syrup and butter.

Dinner at the Dillard and Cone houses includes ham, meatloaf, string beans, fried potatoes, chicken a’ l’orange, and iceberg lettuce wedge salad. For dessert, orange sherbet with three Nilla Wafers halved and arranged like a flower in the center of the sherbet, None of the food is organic, olive oil is never used, and there are no grains other than white rice."

"Our book club is discussing Mark Sullivan's Beneath A Scarlet Sky. I'm making the sausage and broccoli recipe. Can you suggest other menu items?"

-Dede, Minneapolis, Minnesota

From Mark Sullivan: "Gnocchi is a big northern Italian dish, and so is pesto with chicken breast slices, fresh tomatoes, basil, fresh mozzarella cheese. Serve with good Italian wine."