Reader's Entertainment Radio

Amy Bearce writes magical escapes for young readers and the young at heart. She is the author of the World of Aluvia series, Shortcuts, and Paris on Repeat (July 2020).  She is also a former reading teacher and school librarian. As a military kid, she moved eight times before she was eighteen, so she feels especially fortunate to be married to her high school sweetheart. Together they’re raising two daughters in San Antonio.  You can find Amy at her website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Linkedin. Her books are on Amazon and Bookbub. 

USA Today Bestselling author Jess Michaels likes geeky stuff, Vanilla Coke Zero, anything coconut, cheese, fluffy cats, smooth cats, any cats, many dogs and people who care about the welfare of their fellow humans. She is lucky enough to be married to her favorite person in the world and lives in the heart of Dallas, TX where she's trying to eat all the amazing food in the city. When she’s not obsessively checking her steps on Fitbit or trying out new flavors of Greek yogurt, she writes historical romances with smoking hot alpha males and sassy ladies who do anything but wait to get what they want. She has written for numerous publishers and is now fully indie and loving every moment of it (well, almost every moment). In addition, Jess is super (some would say obsessively) active on both Facebook and Twitter, so be sure to follow her on one or both from the links provided here! And sign up for her newsletter to be the first to know when there is a new release out and for a chance to win a $75 Amazon Gift

Ellen Goodwin is a Productivity Trainer, TEDx speaker, and author who uses neuroscience-based principles to enable individuals and businesses to overcome all types of procrastination, build stronger habits, and be more focused so that they can be more efficient and effective with their time. Ellen believes that when it comes to productivity, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, which is why she advocates for experimentation to find the tools and techniques which will work seamlessly with your life and your business, no matter what you want to accomplish.  Through the course of a successful career as an advertising creative, Ellen learned the elusive secrets to getting things done when no one is watching. She now shares this information through speaking engagements, corporate seminars, consulting, and writing. Ellen lives in San Diego is the co-host of The Faster, Easier, Better Show podcast. You can find her on her website where you can also sign up for her weekly newsletter. Reach out to her on Face

We welcome the amazing Amanda Jayde for a quick 15 minute spot to chat about her new release Bewitched, her new witch series and writing! Learn about some great dark romantic fantasy and the fun-loving Amanda!

Bianca D'Arc started her professional life running a laboratory. After grad school, she started to climb the corporate ladder in the shark-infested streets of lower Manhattan. She now writes full time and loves it more than anything, though she'll always miss her first love... her laboratory. You can find out more on her website: https://www.biancadarc.com/ Anna Lowe loves putting the "hero" back into heroine and letting location ignite a passionate romance. If she's not hunched over her laptop, working on her latest story, you'll find her hiking in the mountains or biking country roads. Either way, the day will end with a chunk of dark chocolate and a good read. Find out more at http://www.annalowebooks.com And for more about our host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a light on good books!

#1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan joins us to talk about her paperback release of Dark Illusion and her upcoming Dark Song. We'll talk all things Dark!

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN has won five Agatha Awards, in addition to the Anthony, Macavity, Daphne du Maurier, and Mary Higgins Clark Award for her bestselling mystery novels. As an investigative reporter, her work has resulted in new laws, criminals sent to prison, homes saved from foreclosure, and millions of dollars in restitution for victims and consumers. Along with her 36 Emmys and 14 Edward R. Murrow awards, Hank has received dozens of other honors for her ground-breaking journalism. A former president of Sisters in Crime and founder of MWA University, she lives in Boston with her husband, a nationally renowned civil rights and criminal defense attorney. She is the author of acclaimed psychological thriller Trust Me and the Jane Ryland series, which begins with The Other Woman. Visit Hank online at HankPhillippiRyan.com, on Twitter @HankPRyan, on Instagram @hankpryan and Facebook at HankPhillippiRyanAuthor. And for more about our host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a ligh

Katie Golding is a racing fan with a writing problem. The recovering cheerleader lives in a small town outside of Austin, Texas, mom to a future philanthropist, and wife to a superman. Her writing playlists range from 80s love songs, 90s grunge, 00s punk, to new age underground in less time than it takes her to burn dinner, and she is currently at work on her next romance novel—unless she’s tweeting about it. You can find her latest book, Fearless, is out now.  Reach out to Katie on her website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and BookBub. 

Eric is a former bookseller, cellist, and comic seller currently living in Saint Louis, Missouri. A lifelong enthusiast of books, music, toys, and games, he discovered a love for the written word after being dragged to the library by his parents at a young age. When he is not writing, you can usually find him reading, gaming, or buried beneath a small avalanche of Transformers. You can learn more and sign up for his newsletter here: https://www.ericrasher.com/ And for more about our host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a light on good books!

Makenna Lee is an award-winning romance author living in the Texas Hill Country with her real-life hero and their two children. Her oldest son has Down syndrome and taught her to appreciate the little things, and he inspired one of her novels. As a child, she played in the woods, looked for fairies under toadstools, and daydreamed. Her writing journey began when she mentioned all her story ideas, and her husband asked why she wasn’t writing them down. The next day she bought a laptop, started her first book, and knew she’d found her passion. Now, Makenna is often drinking coffee while writing, reading, or plotting a new story. Her wish is to write books that touch your heart, making you feel, think, and dream. She enjoys renaissance festivals, nature photography, studying herbal medicine, and usually listens to Celtic music while writing. She writes for Harlequin and Entangled Publishing and believes everyone deserves a happy ending. Her debut novel, Her Second Chance Cowboy, is out now. Her first book

Ann Charles is a USA Today Best-Selling author who writes award-winning mysteries that are splashed with humor, romance, and whatever else sounds fun. Ann has a B.A. in English with an emphasis on creative writing from the University of Washington. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and Western Writers of America. She is currently toiling away on her next book, wishing she was on a Mexican beach with an ice-cold Corona in one hand and a book in the other. When she is not dabbling in fiction, she is arm wrestling with her two kids, attempting to seduce her husband, and arguing with her sassy cat. Most nights, you can find her hanging out over at www.anncharles.com, on Facebook as Ann Charles, or as AnnWCharles on Twitter. And for more about host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a light on good books!  

LM Gonzalez's first love was romance books. After she read “Sweet Savage Love” by Rosemary Rogers one summer, it encourage her to write her first story.  Ever since, she's written and in 2006 after submitting a story for an antholgy to the Wild Rose Press, she got that email that every writer waits for. A request, but not for her short story.  No, they wanted her to expand her short three chapter story to a full sized novel.  As she worked in the medical field, she continued to write and is now up to book five, A Well-Structured Life, due out July 22nd.  Her future project include a series set in a small town that was inspired by her own hometown. Her characters may be looking for a second chance at love and they’ll encounter love in the most unlikely places – sometimes even in their own backyards – and at the least expected time. You can find LM Gonzalez on her website and Facebook.

Suzy Vadori is a Book Coach, Editor, Public Speaker and the Calgary Bestselling Author of The Fountain Series (The Fountain, The West Woods, Wall of Wishes). This fantastical Young Adult Series has received two Aurora Nominations for Best Young Adult Novel, as well as Five Stars and a bronze medallion from Readers’ Favorite Book Awards. She is represented by Naomi Davis of Bookends Literary Agency. Suzy lives in Calgary, Canada with her husband and three children and is an involved member in the writing community. She is a Program Manager for Calgary’s When Words Collide (WWC), teaches writing at Alexandra Writers’ Centre Society, and is a touring member of the Young Alberta Book Society. Suzy is also the founder of WriteIt! creative writing programs in schools. You can learn more at her website: https://suzyvadori.wordpress.com/ And for more about host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a light on good books!  

Nan Reinhardt is a USA Today bestselling author of sweet and sexy romance novels for older women.  Writing is my first and most enduring passion. She wrote her first romance novel at the age of ten. It involved a love story between the most sophisticated person I knew at the time, my older sister (who was in high school!), and a member of Herman’s Hermits. If you know who they are, you are her audience! She's writing romance, but this time from the viewpoint of a wiser, slightly rumpled, menopausal woman instead of a starry-eyed preteen. Her newest series, Four Irish Brothers Winery, from Tule Publishing includes A Small Town Christmas, Meant to Be, and Christmas with You, are out now. Book four, The Baby Contract, releases July 16, 2020 and is currently available for pre-order from all book retailers. Contact me at nan at her website,Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

Cynthia is an award-winning paranormal romance author that writes for sassy nerds with a sharp sense of humor. Starting her adult life in theater, she earned a Masters of Fine Arts in Costume Design, but her first love was telling stories. After some encouragement, she dove down the writing rabbit hole, creating magical worlds, snarky heroines, and sexy heroes with a dash of "cinnamon roll". When not telling tales, Cynthia is a geek, a costumer, and an amateur artist. She resides in sunny San Diego, California with her husband Max, two cats of varying intelligence, and a ton of goldfish. You can learn more at her website: http://www.cynthiadiamondauthor.com/ And for more about our host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a light on good books!

Reese Ryan is the author of fifteen published works of romantic fiction and counting. Her stories feature complex, deliciously-flawed characters. She presents her characters with family and career drama, challenging love interests, and life-changing secrets while treating readers to an emotional love story with unexpected twists. Born and raised in the Midwest, she now resides in Central North Carolina. She treads the line carefully between being a Northerner and a damned Yankee, despite her insistence on calling soda pop. She gauges her progress by the number of “bless your lil’ hearts” she receives each week. She is currently down to two. Reese, an advocate for the romance genre and diversity in fiction, is the past president of her local Romance Writers of America chapter, a panelist at the 2017 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, and the 2018 Donna Hill Breakout Author. Her latest booksA Reunion of Rivals and Candidly Yours are available now.  You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instag

Lisa Kessler is a Best Selling author of dark paranormal fiction. She's a two-time San Diego Book Award winner for Best Published Fantasy-Sci-fi-Horror and Best Published Romance. Her books have also won the PRISM award, the Award of Excellence, the National Excellence in Romantic Fiction Award, the Award of Merit from the Holt Medallion, and an International Digital Award for Best Paranormal. Her short stories have been published in print anthologies and magazines, and her vampire story, Immortal Beloved, was a finalist for a Bram Stoker award. When she's not writing, Lisa is a professional vocalist, and has performed with San Diego Opera as well as other musical theater companies in San Diego. You can learn more at http://Lisa-Kessler.com

Robert J. Sawyer is one of only eight writers ever to win all three of the world’s top awards for best science-fiction novel of the year: the Hugo, the Nebula, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. He has also won the Robert A. Heinlein Award, the Edward E. Smith Memorial Award, and the Hal Clement Memorial Award; the top SF awards in China, Japan, France, and Spain; and a record-setting sixteen Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Awards (“Auroras”). Rob’s novel FlashForward was the basis for the ABC TV series of the same name, and he was a scriptwriter for that program. He also scripted the two-part finale for the popular web series Star Trek Continues. He is a Member of the Order of Canada, the highest honor bestowed by the Canadian government, as well as the Order of Ontario, the highest honor given by his home province; he was also one of the initial inductees into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. Rob lives just outside Toronto.His website and blog are at sfwriter.com, and

Eric is a former bookseller, cellist, and comic seller currently living in Saint Louis, Missouri. A lifelong enthusiast of books, music, toys, and games, he discovered a love for the written word after being dragged to the library by his parents at a young age. When he is not writing, you can usually find him reading, gaming, or buried beneath a small avalanche of Transformers. You can learn more and sign up for his newsletter here: https://www.ericrasher.com/ And for more about our host Lisa Kessler visit http://Lisa-Kessler.com Book Lights - shining a light on good books!

Get ready because I've got a reading list for you that will keep you plenty busy all summer. For the history of baseball fans:  Curveball by Martha Ackerman A Strong Right Arm by Michelle Y Green Mo'ne Davis: Remember my Name by Mo'ne Davis Children's Books:  What was the March on Washington? by Kathleen Krull What was Stonewall? by Nico Medina 20 Shakespeare Children's Stories: The Complete Collection (found on Amazon) A bit of whimsy: Head Over Paws by Debbie Burns All the Way by Kristen Proby The Kissing Game by Marie Harte Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler Not the Girl You Marry by Andie J. Christopher Conventionally Yours by Annabeth Albert Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors AND Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev The First Emma by Camille di Maio To expand our perspectives:  So You Want to Talk About Race by Injeoma Oluo Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad Workbook for Me and White Supremacy  Keep reading friends! Keep learning. Be safe.