Ultrabestselling novelist Brad Meltzer is back with a thrilling new nonfiction based on little-known fact, The First Conspiracy: The Secret Plot Against George Washington and the Birth of American Counterintelligence. On this episode, Meltzer speaks candidly with Clay and Megan about the plot against the General, plot (in general), and working with longtime collaborator Josh Mensch. And our editors join with their top picks in books this week.

One need not be a royalist to enjoy Lucy Worsley’s radiant new biography of Queen Victoria, the “hard-working, energetic, [and] resilient” woman who saved the status of the British monarchy. Worsley, an English historian, author, curator, and television presenter, joins us on this week’s Fully Booked for a spirited discussion of Queen Victoria: Twenty-Four Days That Changed Her Life, and our editors name their most anticipated books and trends of 2019.

Happy holidays, Fully Booked fans! In this special episode, Clay and Megan reintroduce two of their favorite 2018 interviews — Susan Orlean and David Sedaris. Thanks for listening! We’ll see you in the new year.

Investigative journalist Christopher Goffard’s stories grab you, shake you, and don’t let go. On this week’s Fully Booked, Goffard joins Clay and Megan to discuss Dirty John and Other True Stories of Outlaws and Outsiders, “a collection of swift-flowing pieces about outliers, liars, victims, and victimizer” (Kirkus) whose unforgettable titular tale inspired a megapopular podcast and Bravo TV show. Nonfiction editor Eric Liebetrau rounds out the hour with continuing coverage of the Best Books of 2018.

The first person we meet in Karina Longworth’s Seduction: Sex, Lies, and Stardom in Howard Hughes’s Hollywood *isn’t* Howard Hughes—it’s screenwriter Frederica Sagor— a clue to the true focus of her provocative popular history. On this week’s Fully Booked, Clay and Megan chat with the author and creator of the You Must Remember This podcast about the highly varied experiences of the talented and ambitious women in Hughes’s orbit (1920s-1950s) and nonfiction editor Eric Liebetrau signs on for continuing coverage of the Best Books of 2018.

It’s the first-ever Fully Booked Holiday Gift Guide Extravaganza! The eggnog flows freely as Clay and Megan round up the crème de la crème in photography, cooking, games, health, beauty, and more. Guests include photographer Beowulf Sheehan (Author: The Portraits of Beowulf Sheehan), Brooklyn-based restauranteur Doug Crowell (Kindness & Salt: Recipes for the Care & Feeding of Your Friends & Family), bookseller Abby Fennewald of Book People in Austin, and YA editor Laura Simeon with continuing coverage of the Best Books of 2018.

In Everything’s Trash, But It’s Okay, Phoebe Robinson offers readers a beacon of light and hope for these dumpster fire times. This frank and funny second essay collection by the NYT-bestselling author, cultural critic, and 2 Dope Queens cohost tackles feminism, race, class, body image, Bono, and much more. Today’s episode of Fully Booked features a standup set and Q&A by Robinson, recorded live at the Texas Book Festival, as well as continuing coverage of the Best Books of 2018 with children’s editor Vicky Smith.

Michelin-starred chef Anita Lo hasn’t always been lucky in love … but the fruit of her solitude is sweet. On this week’s podcast, she joins Clay and Megan for a spirited discussion of Solo: A Modern Cookbook for a Party of One, a personal and playful collection of repasts for the unattached. Lo proves to be an unforgettable guest, serving up stories of an only-in-New-York dating disaster and an only-in-Mongolia dining experience, and children’s editor Vicky Smith signs on for continuing coverage of the Best Books of 2018.

Part madcap comedy, part post-Election 2016 primal scream, Jonathan Lethem’s The Feral Detective is a veritable carnival of hardboiled delights from the author of Motherless Brooklyn. On this week’s episode, Lethem joins Clay and Megan in eternal debates- East Coast vs. West Coast, Democrat vs. Republican, Rabbits vs. Bears (trust us)- and fiction editor Laurie Muchnick introduces the Best 100 Fiction Books of 2018.

Kirkus Reviews asked the finalists for the 2018 Kirkus Prize—which recognizes excellent literature every year, from picture books to adult books, rewarding three writers $50,000 each—to talk about their new books at the recent Texas Book Festival in Austin. This week’s episode, which is sponsored by Penguin Young Readers Group, is a recording of that panel of prominent, nationally known writers of many genres. Join us as the writers talk about their inspirations.