Bookish Flights: Books, Author Interviews & Must-Read Recommendations - Saltwater and Upmarket Suspense Fiction to Take You Places with Katy Hays (E138)

Saltwater and Upmarket Suspense Fiction to Take You Places with Katy Hays (E138)

03/26/25 • 33 min

2 Listeners

Bookish Flights: Books, Author Interviews & Must-Read Recommendations

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Katy Hays. Katy is a Californian, writer and cake aficionado. She lives in the shadow of the Sierra with her husband and their dog, Queso. In addition to writing, Katy works as an adjunct Art History Professor teaching rural students from Truckee to Tecopa. Her academic writing has been published by Ashgate, an imprint of Routledge. Her fiction explores how far humans are willing to go to believe the unbelievable, strange-but-real worlds, and complex female friendships.

We chatted about Katy being an ex-academic having moved to the mountains to write the novel she always wanted to write. She talks about writing her sophomore novel and all that goes into it. Saltwater is not just about rich people behaving badly, Katy loves looking at family dynamics and the length people are willing to go to maintain appearances. If you are a writer, she suggests using a process journal when you get stuck to include the date, number of words written, where you are at in the writing and how you are feeling. Her book flight features thrillers/upmarket suspense fiction that will transport you somewhere.

Key Highlights:

Katy shares her journey as an ex-academic who moved to the mountains to write the novel she always wanted to write.
She discusses the process of writing her sophomore novel and the unique challenges that come with it.
Saltwater is not just about rich people behaving badly—it delves into family dynamics and the lengths people go to maintain appearances.
Katy offers advice for writers: she suggests keeping a process journal when stuck. This journal should include the date, number of words written, where you are in the writing process, and how you are feeling.
Katy’s book flight features thrillers and upmarket suspense fiction that will transport you somewhere intriguing.

Connect with Katy Hays:

Books and authors mentioned:

The Perfect Nanny by Leila Slimani
The Keep by Jennifer Egan
The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz
Scrap by Calla Henkle
Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Book Flight

A Beautiful Crime by Christopher Bollen (Venice)
Other People’s Clothes by Calla Henkle (Berlin)

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE.

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

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Key Highlights:

Katy shares her journey as an ex-academic who moved to the mountains to write the novel she always wanted to write.
She discusses the process of writing her sophomore novel and the unique challenges that come with it.
Saltwater is not just about rich people behaving badly—it delves into family dynamics and the lengths people go to maintain appearances.
Katy offers advice for writers: she suggests keeping a process journal when stuck. This journal should include the date, number of words written, where you are in the writing process, and how you are feeling.
Katy’s book flight features thrillers and upmarket suspense fiction that will transport you somewhere intriguing.

Connect with Katy Hays:

Books and authors mentioned:

The Perfect Nanny by Leila Slimani
The Keep by Jennifer Egan
The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz
Scrap by Calla Henkle
Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Book Flight

A Beautiful Crime by Christopher Bollen (Venice)
Other People’s Clothes by Calla Henkle (Berlin)

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

Previous Episode

Words That Move Us: Poetry, Language, and Literature with Patricia Lezama (E137)

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Today, I am chatting with Patricia Lezama, a writer and storyteller living in a teacher’s body. Patricia holds a BA in Education and an MA in Literature. She has worked as a Project Manager in education and IT in both public and private sectors in Colombia. Currently, she teaches Spanish in Southern California while continuing her journey as a writer and poet.

📚 Children’s Language Development
📖 The Power of Poetry
✍️ Writing in Community
🌎 Spanish Literature – Patricia’s book flight features a mix of classic and contemporary Spanish authors.

Connect

Website
Patricia’s Poetry Corner
Purchase Sentir Latino Transformado en Mujer: Identidad Latina Poesía
Instagram
Spanish Social Club (at Yipao Coffee Roasters in San Diego)
LinkedIn

Books and authors in the episode (Editions are listed in English/Spanish):

The Color Monster: A Story About Emotions by Anna Llenas
Baltasar & Blimunda/Memorial del Convento by José Saramago
Luís de Camões books
Women Who Run with Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés
The Delivery/La Encomienda by Margarita García Robayo

Book Flight

Love Poems/Los Amorosos by Jaime Sabines
The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa
El Sonido de las Olas (The Sound of the Waves) by Margarita García Robayo
El Dulce Daño by Alfonsina Storni

Episode Sponsor

This episode was sponsored by Bethany House with a Suspense Book Flight, head over to their website and get a generous 30% off & free shipping.

Serial Burn by Lynette Eason
Break My Fall by Lynn H. Blackburn
Shattered Sanctuary by Nancy Mehl

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

Next Episode

BFF Book Club - What Happened to the McCrays? with Tracey Lange (E139)

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Welcome to today’s episode of Bookish Flights! This episode is the latest meeting of the BFF Book Club! If you love books, author meet-and-greets, and in-depth conversations, the BFF Book Club is for you. Each month, we dive into a new book, and this month’s selection is What Happened to the McCrays? by Tracey Lange. Tracey was born and raised in New York City before heading west to graduate from the University of New Mexico with a degree in psychology. After owning and operating a mental health services company with her husband for fifteen years, she completed the Stanford University novel writing program while working on her first novel, the New York Times bestseller, We Are the Brennans. Tracey currently lives in beautiful Bend, Oregon with her husband, two sons, and beloved German Shepherd.

Episode Highlights:

📖 How Tracey's background in mental health influences her storytelling and helps her understand complex characters.
📖 Why she is drawn to exploring the gray areas of human nature.
📖 Her writing process and what she has learned about herself.
📖 The books that shaped her as a young reader and have impacted her writing style.
📖 Her book flight, featuring stories with tragically flawed characters you can't help but root for.

If you’d like to join us next month, we will be reading an amazing contemporary fiction, The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County by Claire Swinarski. This is a heartwarming story of love, life, casseroles and community set in Wisconsin.

Esther Larson has been cooking for funerals in the Northwoods of Wisconsin for seventy years. Known locally as the “funeral ladies,” she and her cohort have worked hard to keep the mourners of Ellerie County fed. But, after falling for an internet scam that puts her home at risk, the proud Larson family matriarch is the one in need of help these days. Register to join us on Apr. 27th at 1:00 pm PST!

Connect with Tracey:

Books and authors mentioned: