Books, Beach, & Beyond

James and Susan Patterson are the co-authors of The Mother Daughter Book Club recently on shelves this summer. James Patterson is one of the most popular storytellers of our time. He is the creator of unforgettable characters and series, including Alex Cross and has co authored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton and Dolly Parton.
Susan Solie Patterson has a Bachelor of Science/Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where she was also an All-American swimmer. She is the author of Big Words for Little Geniuses, a New York Times bestseller. The four discuss book clubs, Wisconsin and the states where we are all from, and how both Jim and Sue got their start writing. We dig into the books, food, characters, and story and inspiration behind The Mother Daughter Book Club and their process for writing it together. It's as if Jim, Sue, Elin and Tim have their own book club together in this penultimate episode of Season 4! 
Thank you to our Episode Sponsor:
Wawa
And a special thank you to our Season 4 Premier Sponsors:
Book of the Month
Nantucket Book Partners
Little, Brown
James and Sue Patterson Reading List
The Mother Daughter Book Club
Things I Wish I Told My Mother
Big Words for Little Geniuses 
The Most Dangerous Games with Mr Beast
What Else are we Reading in this Episode
The Guest by Emma Cline
The Blue Bistro by Elin Hilderbrand 
Lady Chattery’s Lover by Oliver Mellors
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand
Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple
The Wedding People by Alison Espach
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
Whistler by Ann Patchett
The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese 
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
The Five-Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand
The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand
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Happy Reading!

Alice Hoffman is the author of more than thirty works of fiction, including the Practical Magic series. We start this episode talking about beginnings and our favorite first pages of books. The three discuss how Alice got her start as a writer, the magic in Alice’s novels and the magic of books, moving in and living with school roommates, her new novel Witches of Cambridge, Anne Frank, her Best Dog in the World anthology and our love of our dogs, the Practical Magic movie and the upcoming sequel, supporting breast cancer research, and so much more! Alice wrote one of the greatest quotes, “Books may well be the only true magic.” and this episode has a magical feeling to it with some fall autumn vibes.
Thank you to our Episode Sponsor:
Book of the Month
And a special thank you to our Season 4 Premier Sponsors:
Book of the Month
Nantucket Book Partners
Little, Brown
Alice Hoffman Reading List
The Witches of Cambridge
Illumination Night
When We Flew Away
The Best Dog in the World
Practical Magic
The Probable Future
The Museum of Extraordinary Things 
 What Else Are We Reading in this Episode
Plot Twist by Harlan Cohen
Franny and Zooey by J D Salinger
It by Stephen King
Ray Bradbury books
Elizabeth Strout books
Hollow Bones by Jodi Picoult
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And find us on Instagram at @booksbeachandbeyond

Happy Reading!

Harlan Coben joins Books, Beach, & Beyond this week for such an entertaining conversation about reading and writing. Harlan is a #1 best-selling author and one of the world’s leading storytellers, and one of Tim's auto-buy authors. His thirty-eight suspense novels are published in forty six languages and have been number one bestsellers in more than a dozen countries. Your hosts talk with him about his new memoir Plot Twist along with topics like point of view, Harlan’s take on research, favorite endings in books and penning great plot twists, writing with Reese Witherspoon, and all his book to screen adaptations. The episode is filled with incredible writing tips and takeaways from a singular writing life.
Thank you to our Episode Sponsor:
Nantucket Book Partners
And a special thank you to our Season 4 Premier Sponsors:
Book of the Month
Nantucket Book Partners
Little, Brown

Harlan Coben Reading List
Plot Twist
Tell No One
The Innocent
I Will Find You
Gone Before Goodbye
The Woods
The Stranger
Lazarus

What else are we reading in this episode?
The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand
White Fur by Jardine Libaire
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Are You My Mother? by PD Eastman
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S.Lewis
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
The Amateur by Chris Bohjalian
The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain
Double Indemnity by James M. Cain
Michael Connelly books
Phillip Roth books
Bird by Bird by Ann Lamott
The Color of Light by William Goldman
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And find us on Instagram at @booksbeachandbeyond

Happy Reading!

Please welcome to the podcast one of Elin's very favorite writers (and now Tim’s), - Anna Quindlen! Anna is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling novel Rise and Shine, the #1 bestselling memoir Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake, and A Short Guide to a Happy Life. Her new novel More Than Enough was released in February 2026. The three dive into how Anna got her start writing, how reading and writing fulfills someone differently, weaving backstory into narrative, and how to engage fully in our daily lives. Anna discusses her new novel More Than Enough; her characters, the multiple storylines, and the book’s themes and literary references. The episode ends with Anna explaining how she infuses the lessons she writes about in her nonfiction into her fiction and the three give us a terrific speed round with some great reading recommendations!
Thank you to our Episode Sponsor:
Nantucket Meat & Fish
And a special thank you to our Season 4 Premier Sponsors:
Book of the Month
Nantucket Book Partners
Little, Brown
Books Mentioned in this Episode 
Object Lessons by Anna Quindlen
One True Thing by Anna Quindlen
Black & Blue by Anna Quindlen
Every Last One by Anna Quindlen
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Correspondent by Virgina Evans
Theo of Golden by Allen Levi
The Accidental Tourist by Ann Tyler
Still Life with Breadcrumbs by Anna Quindlen
More than Enough by Anna Quindlen
A Short Guide to a Happy Life by Anna Quindlen 
Away by Amy Bloom
The Savage Noble Death by Babs Dionne by Ron Currie Jr.
She Rides Shotgun by Jordan Harper
A Violent Masterpiece by Jordan Harper
The Burning Side by Sarah Damoff
Who Else Are We Talking About
Susan Isaacs
Scott Turow
Richard Russo
Irma Baumbach
Laurie Colwin
Ann Tyler
Herman Melville
Edith Wharton
Alice McDermott
Amy Bloom
Don DeLillo 
Phillip Roth
Stephen King
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And find us on Instagram at @booksbeachandbeyond

Happy Reading!

They say “Summer begins with MKA” and we are thrilled to welcome New York Times best-selling author Mary Kay Andrews this summer to Books, Beach, & Beyond. Mary Kay Andrews is the author of thirty-three novels and a cookbook. In June, St. Martin’s Press published her 34th novel Road Trip. Your hosts and Mary Kay talk about how publishing has changed since her first book in 1992 and how writing for a newspaper helped in writing her novels. Then they dig into Road Trip with a “road trip” inspired speed round (favorite "road trip song", "favorite road trip snack") and background on her research trip to Ireland for the new book. The three end the episode with some bad irish accents and talking all about “Friends and Fiction” and the vibrant show and community that she built along with four other best-selling authors.
Thank you to our Episode Sponsors:
Little, Brown
Peacock
And a special thank you to our Season 4 Premier Sponsors:
Book of the Month
Nantucket Book Partners
Little, Brown
Books Mentioned in This Episode
Road Trip by Mary Kay Andrews
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
Every Crooked Nanny by Mary Kay Andrews
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
To Live and Die in Dixie by Mary Kay Andrews
Savannah Blues by Mary Kay Andrews
Hissy Fit by Mary Kay Andrews
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie 
The Searcher by Tana French
Dolly All The Time by Annabel Monaghan
Who else are we talking about this episode? 
Tim Winton
Karin Slaughter
Agatha Christie
Michael Connelly
Elinor Lipman
Anna Quindlen
Harlan Coben
Follow/Subscribe to the 'Books, Beach, & Beyond' podcast now to stay current on new episodes.

And find us on Instagram at @booksbeachandbeyond

Happy Reading!