Double feature with Georgia Clark

I discovered Georgia Clark early on in my book blogging career with her first novel, The Regulars. The cover hooked me with its pretty pink background and fun lipstick covered lips, total bliss, beauty and books vibe plus I adored the book. I immediately sent her a bookish pouch and was lucky enough to meet her at Bookexpo- she was a delight! Fast forward to her latest novel, It Had to be You, a fun romcom romp reminiscent of Love Actually. This book is what summer reading dreams are made of. I am so thrilled to have her on the blog with Open Book and What’s in Your Bookish Beauty Bag. Her response to my Royals question is amazing and she even reviews one of her latest reads!

via Amazon ~

“The book-equivalent of a perfect first date… Highly highly recommend.” —Elin Hilderbrand, #1 New York Times bestselling author 

“Clark has concocted a heady kaleidoscope of romance, heartbreak, and healing that’s both rich in insight and enchantingly funny. A magical set of intertwined stories that speaks to our times.” —Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author 

The author of the “emotional, hilarious, and thought-provoking” (People) novel The Bucket List returns with a witty and heartfelt romantic comedy featuring a wedding planner, her unexpected business partner, and their coworkers in a series of linked love stories—perfect for fans of Christina Lauren and Casey McQuiston.

For the past twenty years, Liv and Eliot Goldenhorn have run In Love in New York, Brooklyn’s beloved wedding-planning business. When Eliot dies unexpectedly, he even more unexpectedly leaves half of the business to his younger, blonder girlfriend, Savannah. Liv and Savannah are not a match made in heaven, to say the least. But what starts as a personal and professional nightmare transforms into something even savvy, cynical Liv Goldenhorn couldn’t begin to imagine.

It Had to Be You cleverly unites Liv, Savannah, and couples as diverse and unique as New York City itself, in a joyous Love-Actually-style braided narrative. The result is a smart, modern love story that truly speaks to our times. Second chances, secret romance, and steamy soul mates are front and center in this sexy, tender, and utterly charming rom-com.

Open Book ~

What three celebrities/authors/figures- living or dead, would you want to have a book club with?

Nora Ephron, Truman Capote, Zadie Smith.

Current binge series?

Great British Bakeoff. I only got into it this year and I’m a full-blown fan, I think I’ve
done ten seasons in three months. I feel truly connected to every season’s group of bakers. Bakeoff is about so
much more than good bakes without soggy bottoms: it’s about ordinary people being extraordinary and just
doing their damn best. I’m a bit addicted to that emotional, feel-good feeling at the heart of it. It’s why I write
rom-coms: that feeling works so powerfully on me, and I love making other humans feel that way, too.

Last favorite book?

I just finished Leave The World Behind by Rumaan Alam.

Mini review: New Yorkers Amanda and Clay head to the Hamptons with their teenage kids for a quiet and
indulgent weekend away. The AirBnB is lux—“The house had that hush expensive houses do . . . A house that
barely needed people”—but the temporary illusion of its ownership is shattered when Ruth and H.G., the older
Black couple who own the home, show up after a mysterious black-out renders New York unsafe. With the
internet down, it’s impossible to parse what’s going on in the city. If they’re safe. What to do.
Leave the World Behind works on so many levels. It’s eerily prescient of 2020’s societal unraveling and the
need to collectively patch together What The Fuck Is Happening with little information and a good dose of
paranoia as to if we can trust our neighbors. It’s a devastating skewering of race and our assumptions as to who
deserves what. It’s suspenseful (I suppose you might call it a literary thriller?) and it’s engaged with the very
real environmental danger we’re all currently in. On a line level, it’s masterful. There’s “a whiskey old enough
to vote”; children are “beautiful narcissists”; “Snow, a bit of poetry for what you saw when the signal was
broken.” Rumaan especially excels when writing about parenthood and privilege. This is a novel deeply
concerned with individual responsibility and the fate of the planet. Tightly plotted and paced, Leave the World
Behind deserves all the praise it’s gotten and more.

What 3 things to you pack in your bag for your dream vacation? Where is it?

I’d really love to explore Japan, and would be packing my sleep mask (I can’t sleep without it), a pair of All-birds sneakers, and, if it wouldn’t get me in trouble, a cheeky weed pen.

Sunday NYT or US Weekly?

I’m a New Yorker, so the Times, of course.

Last movie you saw?

I watched I Care A Lot, because I’m queer and contractually obligated to watch anything with a lesbian relationship. The film was okay. Not sure if I totally bought the relationship between Marla and Fran – Fran’s character was a bit undercooked.

Book you read that you wished you wrote?

Anything written by Karen Russell. I’m obsessed. I recommend Vampires in the Lemon Grove, one of her best short story collections.

Do you have a teacher who encouraged you to become a writer?

I had a great Year 12 English teacher, Mrs Allen. She was small like a wren, deeply passionate (also like a wren? Do we know wrens aren’t deeply passionate?), excited about words and ideas. I had her for 4 Unit English, the Aussie version advanced English/AP classes. We studied Jane Eyre, The Awakening, and Wide Sargasso Sea. Reading rich literary novels like these made me an even more adventurous reader, and writer. Mrs Allen was a wonderful woman. I wonder what happened to her.

Do you listen to music while you write? If so, who?

I used to listen to Air’s Moon Safari on repeat, super soothing and it was just white noise, but now I listen to actual white noises. My new book is set on an island, so I listen to waves, the relentless pulse of the ocean. If I’m not drafting, or doing anything too high-level, I listen to Taylor Swift: I’m a Swiftie, for sure.

Describe your writing space?

My wife and I share an office which is also our guest bedroom/TV room. There’s a messy desk piled with books and gear and empty coffee cups and notebooks. It’s actually a bit of a disaster.

Tell me your coffee/tea order?

Coffee, with half and half, every morning, first thing.

Do you have a favorite book that you gift?

Big Magic is a great gift for creatives. Liz Gilbert has so many precious wise words for anyone making art. My favorite insight is about money. She says (I am paraphrasing): don’t expect your talent to make you money. It’s your job to make money to protect your talent. Your talent is never going show up for you if you’re screaming at it about the fact it hasn’t made you rich. I found this helpful: even though it is hard making a living selling your art, it’s better than not doing that. Big Magic isn’t just a beautiful gift. It’s a generous and insightful guide.

Book that you wished they would make a movie out of?

Less by Andrew Sean Greer. Why isn’t that a movie yet? Everyone loved that book! It is a literal romp around the world. I think romp around the world is one of the best genres ever, and I’m half convinced I’m going to do it after I finish my island book, which I am honestly sad about because I am loving writing this book so much, it’s beautiful and sexy and fun. Anyway, Less: can someone look into this for me? Can we get this thing going? Can someone make a call?

If you could have one song as the theme song of your life what would it be and why?

“Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey. Hold onto that feeling! Such a great 80s classic: I dare you not to singalong.

Must-have beauty product?

I have been wearing so little make-up over lockdown, but if I’m putting on a game face, I’ll wear Becca Skin Love foundation with a Beauty Blender, Glossier or Nyx lipstick, Benefit brow products (also their Pore Primer is good), Tarte blush or Olio e Osso Balm No. 3 (also doubles as a lip balm).

Royals- yes or no?

If so, who is your favorite? I actually just had a long conversation with my dad about the Royals (his take was “well, they cost a lot of money but they make a lot of money”). The Royals are the world’s greatest soap opera and everybody knows it. Diana, a tragic, complicated, extraordinary-but-ordinary young woman. Meghan as the new Diana: it’s too much. I have so much empathy for the boys (Will and Harry); I feel like I grew up with them and they’re my weird rich English cousins. I love Kate. Team Sussex forever. (And look, if you’re into the royals keep reading, if you’re not please stop reading as what I’m about to tell you is kind of embarrassing, but both the Lifetime movies about Will and Kate, and Harry and Meghan, are so so good. Yes, yes, they’re SO trashy and cheesy but I have ugly cried in both because my boys got their happy endings! I’m only human, I love Lifetime royal biopics, don’t tell anyone.)

Favorite Instagram account?

I just started following @adrirachelle, this woman who founded a farm for rescued farm animals called Wild Things Sanctuary. One day I’ll give up the hustle and go live on her farm and tend cows, I think.

If you could name just one lipstick after a book, what would you call it and what shade would it be?

Red, White & Royal Blue, after the excellent rom-com of the same name, and it would be red, white and royal
blue, aka purple.

Current #TBR pile?

Too too many. Daddy by my friend Emma Cline, Luster by future friend Raven Leilani… I just started Geek Love by Katherine Dunn: a birthday gift from my wife; Katherine’s a fave of my fave Karen Russel. I can see the influence in Karen’s work: so interesting. I’m also reading The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman (and have dipped into her previous The Bird Way: A New Look at How Birds Talk, Work, Play, Parent for research for the book I’m currently writing. Ask me about birds, I know a ton! Did you know they are descendants of dinosaurs? And we are descendants of mammals – evolutionarily speaking, birds have been around for 100 million years. They are older than us, they have survived for much longer (think about that next time you call someone bird-brained, hm?). But half the species of bird in North America are predicted to go extinct in the next half century because they can’t evolve quick enough to deal with the pace of human change. We, dumb humans, are so destructive we’re killing off something that evolved to fly. I’m fun at parties, I promise.

Best advice you’ve ever received?

“Just keep doing it.” It’s the secret to every artist’s success.

What’s In My {Bookish} Beauty Bag?

What is your bag of choice?- purse/tote/backpack and brand that you have? I’ve been heading out without a bag recently (the freedom! Is! Real!), but if I have to, I take my cute Aussie-themed tote. 

What are your top favorite beauty picks? I try to buy cruelty-free, ethical everything. Tarte for foundation and blush. Tata Harper’s products are lush but exxy. Acure skincare. The Strategist said Revision Skincare D.E.J. has the best eye cream so I just spent $75 on that and I actually think it’s working. (I didn’t check if this was cruelty-free because I am a flawed weak human. Literally can’t bring myself to confirm I traded beauty for values. Being a woman is hard!)

What do you always carry in your bag/purse/carry-on for beauty products? There’s usually a lipstick or lip balm rolling around in there somewhere. 

What are you currently reading (can be books/magazines)

Geek Love and The New Yorker. I just started doing the crosswords. I want to be someone who does crosswords. To me that person is smart and cool. My dad does crosswords. I guess he’s pretty smart and cool. 

And any other fun item/must-have that you always have with you 🙂 

Well, right now it’s an ARC of my new book, IT HAD TO BE YOU. My dream is to write smart, funny, sexy romantic comedies that are diverse and have girls kissing in them. My new book has five interwoven love stories (Love Actually but make it 2021) is a reminder that life-changing love is out there for all of us, at any age, no matter who you are. Babes, if that sounds up your alley this charming buzzy new novel is only a few clicks away. Support your local independent bookstores by buying from Bookshop.org!

Georgia’s Bag

Follow Georgia:

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

GEORGIA CLARK is the author of The Regulars, The Bucket List, It Had to Be You, and others. She is the host and founder of the popular storytelling night, Generation Women. A native Australian, she lives in Brooklyn with her hot wife and a fridge full of cheese. More at GeorgiaClark.com and on Instagram and Twitter @georgialouclark.

Grace Kelly Open Book with Brenda Janowitz

I do not need to tell you how much I love Brenda Janowitz.  It is evident every time she writes a column for Pop Sugar or new book- she is the godmother of all bookish things if there ever was one plus her love for pop culture is unparalleled.  Her latest book, The Grace Kelly Dress, out now, is the one of her best yet!  It is the most lovely story about a dress, three lives and the interwoven secrets and love that tie them together.  I can’t tell you how much you need to read this book and you need to get to know Brenda.  She is literally the best “book” friend we need in all of our lives ❤

via Amazon ~

“Exactly the type of book I love: charming, smart, and brimming with heart.”—EMILY GIFFIN, #1 New York Times bestselling author of All We Ever Wanted

“Fast paced and entertaining from beginning to end.”—KRISTIN HANNAH, #1 New York Timesbestselling author of The Nightingale

Two years after Grace Kelly’s royal wedding, her iconic dress is still all the rage in Paris—and one replica, and the secrets it carries, will inspire three generations of women to forge their own paths in life and in love.

Paris, 1958: Rose, a seamstress at a fashionable atelier, has been entrusted with sewing a Grace Kelly—look-alike gown for a wealthy bride-to-be. But when, against better judgment, she finds herself falling in love with the bride’s handsome brother, Rose must make an impossible choice, one that could put all she’s worked for at risk: love, security and of course, the dress.

Sixty years later, tech CEO Rachel, who goes by the childhood nickname “Rocky,” has inherited the dress for her upcoming wedding in New York City. But there’s just one problem: Rocky doesn’t want to wear it. A family heirloom dating back to the 1950s, the dress just isn’t her. Rocky knows this admission will break her mother Joan’s heart. But what she doesn’t know is why Joan insists on the dress—or the heartbreaking secret that changed her mother’s life decades before, as she herself prepared to wear it.

As the lives of these three women come together in surprising ways, the revelation of the dress’s history collides with long-buried family heartaches. And in the lead-up to Rocky’s wedding, they’ll have to confront the past before they can embrace the beautiful possibilities of the future.

1. What three celebrities/authors/figures- living or dead, would you want to have a bookclub with?

 

Well, Grace Kelly, of course! And we‘d be reading The Great Gatsby, so I’d love for F. Scott Fitzgerald to join us. Finally, I’d include Michelle Obama. I recently read her memoir, and I instantly fell in love!

 

2. Current binge series?

 

At the recommendation of Elin Hilderbrand, I binged both seasons of Succession on HBO. I love a good family drama, and Succession is all about the drama!

 

3. Last favorite book?

 

I loved Little Fires Everywhere and cannot wait for the new Reese Witherspoon adaptation coming soon!

 

4. What 3 things are a must for your purse?  What type of bag do you carry?

 

I carry a cross-body hobo bag. For a busy mom with kids, cross-body is a must! It’s big enough to carry my trusty iPad, for when I need to get work done on the go. My must haves are lip balm, my phone, and a book!

 

5. Must read magazine or newspaper column?

 

I”m completely obsessed with the New York Times Modern Love column. I recently had my own essay published there, and it was such an honor. (https://nyti.ms/2NQxDEO)

 

6. Last movie you saw?

 

My husband and I saw Knives Out in the theater. (And yes, as a busy working mom, I am bragging about seeing a movie in the movie theater.)

 

7. Favorite or film you read/watched while researching Grace Kelly?

 

I’m a sucker for all of Grace Kelly’s films, but my favorite one is To Catch a Thief. I mean, Cary Grant looking dreamy, come on!

 

8. Funnest fact you found out about Grace?

 

I was shocked to discover that Grace’s wedding dress was actually comprised of four separate parts, each of which were put on separately as she dressed for her big day.

 

9. Top 3 favorite blogs?

 

Beauty, Bliss, and Books, of course! I also love Great Thoughts, Great Readers, and Good Book Fairy.

 

10. Describe your writing space?

 

I usually write in my office, which has a large double desk that my husband and I share. It’s lined with bookcases, and thus, very inspiring. That said, I write wherever and whenever I can, so I have an iPad with an attached keyboard that I love. In fact, I’m writing this to you from my iPad right now!

 

11. White, Red, Rose or no way?

 

Rose!

 

12. Do you have a favorite book that you gift?

 

I always give books as gifts! I try really hard to match the book with the recipient and make it personal.

 

13. Current book that you wished they would make a movie out of?

 

The Grace Kelly Dress!!

 

14. Top 5 favorite movies?

 

To Catch a Thief

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Clueless

Mean Girls

Casablanca

 

15. Current must have beauty product?

 

I cannot live without SPF everyday. I love Skinceuticals and SuperGoop!

 

16. Royals- yes or no?  If so, who is your favorite?

 

Yes! There are so many to choose from, but I especially loved watching Grace Kelly’s grandchildren get married this summer.

 

17. Favorite Instagram influencer?

 

Besides you? I love Ashley Spivey’s feed.

 

18. If you could name just one lipstick after a The Grace Kelly Dress, what would you call it and what shade would it be? 

 

It would be a pale pink, and we’d have to call it— what else?— Princess Grace.

 

19. Current #TBR pile?

 

Right now, I’m reading tons of ARCs for my PopSugar Summer list.

 

20. Best advice for aspiring writers?

 

Writing is re-writing. Don’t be afraid to cut ruthlessly!

 

Bonus trio:

 

1. Favorite outfit Grace wore during her heyday?

There’s something so classic about the dress Grace wore when she won her Oscar in 1955. But I also love it when Grace let her hair down in Jamaica— that white two piece? To die for!

 

2. Favorite celebrity wedding dress?

I think this one is pretty obvious!

 

3. Tell us about selecting your wedding dress?

When selecting my wedding dress, there were so many details that I was drawn to, and it was only in hindsight that I realized that I was actually shopping for my own version of a Grace Kelly Dress. From the delicate bows that trailed down the back of my dress to the silk ribbon that tied around the waist— a nod to the cummerbund— I was channeling this iconic gown.

 

Follow Brenda:

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Open Book with Jillian Cantor

Happy March!  This month so many AH-mazing books will be making their way to your TBR pile including Jillian Cantor’s latest, In Another Time, a sweeping love story set during the second World War.  She is my latest Open Book and we are talking dream bookclub- hers is one of my all time favorites, dream vacation items- same, and the perfect literary lipstick- a red lip is always a yes.  Read below!  Jillian is my kinda gal ❤

via Amazon ~

A sweeping historical novel that spans Germany, England, and the United States and follows a young couple torn apart by circumstance leading up to World War II—and the family secret that may prove to be the means for survival.

Love brought them together. But only time can save them…

1931, Germany. Bookshop owner Max Beissinger meets Hanna Ginsberg, a budding concert violinist, and immediately he feels a powerful chemistry between them. It isn’t long before they fall in love and begin making plans for the future. As their love affair unfolds over the next five years, the climate drastically changes in Germany as Hitler comes to power. Their love is tested with the new landscape and the realities of war, not the least of which is that Hanna is Jewish and Max is not. But unbeknownst to Hanna is the fact that Max has a secret, which causes him to leave for months at a time—a secret that Max is convinced will help him save Hanna if Germany becomes too dangerous for her because of her religion.

In 1946, Hanna Ginsberg awakens in a field outside of Berlin. Disoriented and afraid, she has no memory of the past ten years and no idea what has happened to Max. With no information as to Max’s whereabouts—or if he is even still alive—she decides to move to London to live with her sister while she gets her bearings. Even without an orchestra to play in, she throws herself completely into her music to keep alive her lifelong dream of becoming a concert violinist. But the music also serves as a balm to heal her deeply wounded heart and she eventually gets the opening she long hoped for. Even so, as the days, months, and years pass, taking her from London to Paris to Vienna to America, she continues to be haunted by her forgotten past, and the fate of the only man she has ever loved and cannot forget.

Told in alternating viewpoints—Max in the years leading up to WWII, and Hanna in the ten years after—In Another Time is a beautiful novel about love and survival, passion and music, across time and continents.

 

 

 

• What three celebrities/authors/figures- living or dead, would you want to have a bookclub with?  Reese Witherspoon – I always love her book club picks, and how fun would it be to sit down and discuss with her? Michelle Obama – I respect and admire her so much, and I know she would have the most interesting take on whatever our book club was reading. And third, Jane Austen. Wouldn’t it be interesting to hear what she thinks about fiction today, and all the many retellings of her work?

 

 

 

• Current binge series? Life in Pieces –we started over Christmas break and now we’re almost done season 3. It’s hysterical and perfect to watch one or two episodes at the end of a long day.

 

 

 

• Last favorite book? I just got to read an early copy of The Flight Girls by Noelle Salazar. It’s not out until July, but it’s a beautiful novel based on the real women who were WASPs in WWII. It’s a love story, a war story, and what I loved most, a story about powerful women who persevere.

 

 

 

• What 3 things do you pack in your bag for your dream vacation?  Where is it? A good book, sunscreen, and a bottle of rosé. Hawaii – I’ve never been, and I really want to.

 

 

 

• Sunday NYT or US Weekly? Sunday NYT if I’m at home on a lazy Sunday – I’d be doing the crossword. US Weekly if I’m traveling. I love reading it on airplanes.

 

 

 

• Last person you sent a text message to? My husband. He texted me to ask if I’d fed the dog before I left. The dog always acts like she hasn’t been fed, so she’s not a reliable source. This is a common text between us!

 

 

 

• Book you read that you wished you wrote? The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. It has been my favorite book since college (long before the TV series!) and the way she invented the world and weaved in the backstory – it’s just brilliantly written. I come back to it again and again.

 

 

 

• Do you have a teacher who encouraged you to become a writer? Yes, several! But the first teacher who ever encouraged me was my 4th grade humanities teacher Mrs. I. In 4th grade she assigned us to write one short story a week, for the entire year. It was my first time writing fiction and I loved it. She was very enthusiastic about my stories, and it was the first time I ever considered the possibility that I could write fiction.

 

 

 

• Do you listen to music while you write? If so, who? No, I need complete silence to write. But writing In Another Time, where Hanna, one of my main characters, is a violinist, I did actually end up listening to a lot of classical music before I would sit down to write particular scenes. I listened to all the music that I have Hanna playing in the book, just not at the same time while writing!

 

 

 

• Describe your writing space? I have an office in my house, and I do write there, when everyone else in my family is home. I have a huge (messy) desk, a wall filled with whiteboards for charting stories and characters, and a small couch that my cats and dog like to sleep on. But I also end up writing at the kitchen table a lot, especially first thing in the morning, with a cup of coffee or two (or three)! That is where I tend to be my most productive.

 

 

 

• Coffee or tea? See above, definitely coffee. I need a few cups every morning to get going with writing. But I like tea too. Later in the day I switch to decaffeinated green tea.  

 

 

 

• Do you have a favorite book that you gift? I don’t have just one book that I always gift, but I do give books as gifts all the time. I like to buy copies of books I’ve recently read and loved, so it’s always changing. I give my mom a book every year for her birthday and Mother’s Day!

 

 

• If you could have one song as the theme song of your life what would it be and why? “Anbody Have a Map?” from Dear Evan Hansen. Being a fiction writer is definitely an unconventional career path, and it’s always filled with a lot of uncertainty. Even after publishing eight books I’m still not always sure what the right next move is, or the perfect thing to write next, or even the perfect way to write it. I have a teenager and a pre-teen too, so this song also applies to being a mom, for sure.  

 

• What/Who inspires you? I often write about ordinary women who lead extraordinary lives. I’m especially inspired by women who fight for what’s right, no matter what the costs, both throughout history and today.  

 

• Bravo reality TV- yes or no? A few years ago, yes. I used to be very invested in The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. But I haven’t watched the past few seasons. Now I like my reality from Rachel Maddow – I watch her every night after dinner.

 

• Favorite Instagram account? @dachshund.planet – there’s nothing I love more than a cute dog picture, and I especially love dachshunds (I have a rescue dog who is part dachshund part terrier.)

 

• If you could name just one lipstick after a book, what would you call it and what shade would it be? You Think It, I’ll Say It by Curtis Sittenfeld. And it would be bright red, of course!

 

• Current #TBR pile?

Learning to See by Elise Hooper

The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff

The Secrets of Clouds by Alyson Richman

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

 

• Best advice you’ve ever received? The best writing advice I’ve ever received is “butt in chair.” Quite simply, sit down every day and just do the hard work rather than making excuses not to. But I also think this applies in all areas of life as good advice!

 

Follow Jillian:

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jillian Cantor has a BA in English from Penn State University and an MFA from the University of Arizona. She is the author of award-winning novels for teens and adults, including, most recently, the critically acclaimed, The Lost Letter, The Hours Count and Margot. Born and raised in a suburb of Philadelphia, Cantor currently lives in Arizona with her husband and two sons.