Bestselling author Karen Dukess returns to the podcast to discuss her delightful and heartfelt new novel, WELCOME TO MURDER WEEK, which was inspired by a trip to the English countryside with her sister, her love of British mysteries, and a desire to write something purely fun! The novel follows a reserved 34-year-old American woman who travels to a small British town after discovering tickets her estranged late mother had purchased for an immersive murder mystery simulation. Karen explores themes of grief, complicated mother-daughter relationships, the loneliness of feeling like an orphan in adulthood, unexpected friendships, how travel can shake up one's identity, and ultimately, the process of healing.

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Totally Booked: LIVE! In this special episode of the podcast (in-person at the Whitby Hotel with a live audience!), Zibby interviews Dina Alvarez and Dina Aronson (as well as 10 other contributors!) about MIDLIFE PRIVATE PARTS, a soulful and revealing collection of essays on what it really feels like to move through the world as a midlife woman and beyond. Zibby, a contributor herself, moderates the conversation on the complexities, challenges, and liberation that come with aging. Touching on shifting identities, raging hormones, sexual awakenings, skin-tightening treatments, menopause, medical gaslighting, empty-nesting, and societal invisibility, each contributor shares a candid, often humorous, and deeply moving reflection on midlife.

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Zibby chats with award-winning poet Edward Hirsch about his memoir, MY CHILDHOOD IN PIECES: A Standup Comedy, where dark comic microbursts of prose relate a childhood in an aspiring middle-class Jewish family in the 50s and 60s. Edward discusses the book’s innovative structure—told in punchy, titled snippets that blend humor and heartbreak—and how it allowed him to unpack long-buried memories of a complex, often painful childhood. He reflects on memory, identity, and growing up with sharp-tongued parents and blended family dynamics, and then delves into how comedy and poetry became tools of survival and storytelling.

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Zibby chats with writer Joanna Sokol about A REAL EMERGENCY, an introspective, richly layered, and surprisingly hopeful memoir about the best and worst parts of her career as a paramedic. Joanna shares gripping insights into the realities of 911 calls, the broken systems behind emergency medical services, and the emotional toll and camaraderie that define life in the ambulance. They discuss everything from the beauty of always showing up—no matter who calls or why—to the burnout and low pay that plague the profession. Finally, Joanna shares how this memoir came to be, after years of collecting stories and needing to get them out of her system.

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Zibby is joined by legendary whitewater rafting guide and debut author Bridget Crocker to discuss THE RIVER’S DAUGHTER, a vivid, propulsive, and deeply insightful memoir about finding courage and meaning in a life outdoors. Bridget shares the decades-long journey of writing her story, which traces her turbulent upbringing in Wyoming, her profound connection to rivers and nature, and her path to healing from trauma, addiction, anxiety, and generational cycles of abuse. She also reflects on her years as an international river guide and the resilience she gained through listening—both to the natural world and her inner voice.

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Totally Booked: LIVE! In this special episode of the podcast (in-person at the Whitby Hotel with a live audience!), Zibby interviews New York Times bestselling author Amy Bloom about I’LL BE RIGHT HERE, a sweeping multigenerational story that begins in occupied Paris and spans 50 years. She reflects on her signature themes (family, love, sex, and death), the moral complexity of her writing, and her fascination with found families, marginalized characters, and hidden histories. She also touches on the impact of her memoir, IN LOVE, which tells the story of her late husband’s Alzheimer’s and death.

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Hannah Brown, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author and The Bachelorette star, joins Zibby to discuss her sparkling new rom-com, THE FOUR ENGAGEMENT RINGS OF SYBIL RAIN, which she describes as White Lotus meets Sex and the City meets Mamma Mia. Hannah delves into her novel’s themes of self-worth, identity, love, and embracing one's true self, and then shares how her characters often mirror her own struggles and breakthroughs (oh, and how her real-life romance influenced her fictional love interest!). Finally, she shares her future writing plans for the “core four” friend group, her dreams of adapting the book for film or TV, and what it’s like to launch a book right before her own wedding.

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Zibby chats with New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict and Courtney Sheinmel about THE SECRETS OF LOVELACE ACADEMY, a charming middle-grade novel about a young girl who is plucked from a London orphanage to attend a prestigious boarding school. The duo (set up by their literary agent) describe how they collaborated on this historical adventure where bright girls gain access to the elite education previously reserved for boys, inspired by Mileva Einstein, Albert Einstein’s brilliant but overlooked first wife. They delve into themes of gender equity, lost histories, and how far we’ve come—and haven’t—when it comes to opportunities for women and girls. They also share how they developed a unified voice and hint at future books in the series!

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