EP54: Hannah's Happy, Sam Did Not Finish

Live from the Book Shop: John Updike's Ghost

This week, Hannah and Sam are just back from the New England Crime Bake, where crime-fiction authors gather, along with murder consultants and the like — don't miss people like Elly Griffiths, Deborah Crombie (the new one was "A Killing of Innocents"), and Chris Fabricant, who calls into question the way prosecutors use evidence in "Junk Science." Then we move into Hannah's love for "The Unmaking of June Farrow," by Adrienne Young, which has strong "Time Traveler's Wife" vibes, with time travel, romance, and mystery. Don't worry: It's not like "The Girl on the Train." Sam isn't quite as enamored with the new Paul Auster book, "Baumgartner," and is mildly troubled by the fact he's read three books this year, now, that feature 70-year-old men having sex. Sam says it's like "Wonder Boys" without any weed (Auster's book about a man whose sons and wife have died is "Book of Illusions," FYI). On the other hand, Hannah also loves "Down Here We Come Up," Sara Johnson Allen's debut novel, and not just because Sara lives in Ipswich. You can tell, in a good way, that Sara worked on the book for 15 years, a story of con artists and heart. Unfortunately, Sam follows with a couple books he just couldn't finish. Meh. Lessons learned. Not for him. Luckily, Hannah rescues the vibe with "Hotel Nantucket," her Elin Hilderbrand dive in preparation for our big event (it's not much like "Hotel New Hampshire," though), and Sam does like the new John Prine book (don't know who John Prine is? Ho boy, you're in luck). We're all over the map this week, folks, but next week we're doing a "gift-giving" thing, so stay tuned.