Kristyn Kusek Lewis' Top 5 of 2018...plus a book giveaway

We're pleased to have Kristyn Kusek Lewis at CLC today to tell us about her happiest moments in 2018. Her latest novel, Half of What You Hear publishes at the end of this month and thanks to HarperCollins, we have TWO copies to give away!

Kristyn Kusek Lewis is the author of Save Me and How Lucky You Are. A former magazine editor at Glamour and Child, Kristyn has been writing for national publications for nearly twenty years. Her work has appeared in the New York Times; O, The Oprah Magazine; Real Simple; Reader's Digest; Glamour; Self; Redbook; Cosmopolitan; Marie Claire; Parents; Allure; Good Housekeeping; Cooking Light; Health; Men's Health; the New York Daily News; and many more. Kristyn is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and the Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she earned an MFA in creative writing. She lives in the Washington DC area with her family.

Visit Kristyn online:
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram

Synopsis:
From well-loved women’s fiction writer Kristyn Kusek Lewis comes a breakout novel about a woman moving to a small community and uncovering the many secrets that hide behind closed doors—perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty and Elin Hilderbrand.

Greyhill, Virginia—refuge of old money, old mansions, and old-fashioned ideas about who belongs and who doesn’t—just got a few new residents. When Bess Warner arrives in town with her husband Cole and their kids, she thinks she knows what to expect. Sure, moving to Cole’s small hometown means she’ll have to live across the street from her mother-in-law, and yes, there’s going to be a lot to learn as they take over Cole’s family’s inn-keeping business, but Bess believes it will be the perfect escape from Washington. She needs it to be. After losing her White House job under a cloud of scandal, she hardly knows who she is anymore.

But Bess quickly discovers that fitting in is easier said than done. Instead of the simpler life she’d banked on, she finds herself preoccupied by barbed questions from gossipy locals and her own worries over how her twins are acclimating at the town’s elite private school. When the opportunity to write an article for the Washington Post’s lifestyle supplement falls into Bess’s lap, she thinks it might finally be her opportunity to find her footing here…even if the subject of the piece is Greyhill’s most notorious resident.

Susannah “Cricket” Lane, fruit of the town’s deepest-rooted family tree, is a special sort of outsider, having just returned to Greyhill from New York after a decades-long hiatus. The long absence has always been the subject of suspicion, not that the eccentric Susannah cares what anyone thinks; as a matter of fact, she seems bent on antagonizing as many people as possible. But is Susannah being sincere with Bess—or is she using their strangely intense interview sessions for her to further an agenda that includes peeling back the layers of Greyhill’s darkest secrets?

As Bess discovers unsettling truths about Susannah and Greyhill at large, ones that bring her into the secrets of prior generations, she begins to learn how difficult it is to start over in a town that runs on talk, and that sometimes, the best way to find yourself is to uncover what everyone around you is hiding....

(Bio and synopsis are courtesy of Amazon.)

Five Happy Things that Happened in 2018

1. My third book, HALF OF WHAT YOU HEAR, is receiving lovely reviews prior to its New Year’s Eve release!
With just a couple of weeks to go until my new novel comes out, I’m finding it difficult to think of almost anything else! I’ve been thrilled that the book has received lovely early reviews. Kirkus Reviews called it, “Perfect for fans of Big Little Lies.” (!!) And InStyle magazine said, “Detox from the holidays with this novel of a small and well-to-do Virginia town, its meddlesome residents, and the decades of secrets within its walls.” This story is an escape with a capital-E and I am so excited to share it with readers!

2. We added a sweet Golden Retriever puppy to our family.
We are big dog people in our house, and were so excited to bring home Rosie, our sweet Golden Retriever puppy, at the start of the year. She joins our four-year-old mutt, and the two of them keep me company while I write, often even squeezing under my desk while I’m working.

3. I found inspiration in unlikely places.
Like the gym! I’m a lifelong runner, a practice that is essential given how much time I spend sitting at my desk. Running clears my mind like nothing else does, and often helps me untangle a tricky plot detail when I’m working on a story. But this year, inspired by a friend, I joined a strength-training gym that has pushed me physically and led to several new friendships. The bonus: I get lots of story ideas from the women I chat with during class.

4. I had an excellent reading year.
I read so many good books this year--Michelle Obama’s memoir, Curtis Sittenfeld’s story collection, Katherine Center’s How to Walk Away, as well as tons of new releases by writer friends, including Susie Orman Schnall’s The Subway Girls, Jamie Brenner’s The Forever Summer, Kristin Harmel’s The Room on Rue Amelie, Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke’s Girls’ Night Out, and so many others.

5. I spent lots of time in libraries.
At the beginning of 2018, I volunteered weekly at my kids’ elementary school library. For a book lover, there is nothing quite as fun and encouraging as watching kids get excited about books. The experience even inspired one of my 2019 projects: My first children’s book! I also took advantage of my local public library, checking out dozens of books and attending author talks. Libraries have so much to offer, they’re the true cornerstones of our communities, and I feel so lucky to have an excellent library system where I live.

Thanks to Kristyn for visiting with us and to HarperCollins for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

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Giveaway ends December 26th at midnight EST.