On this Complicated Conversation, we chat with New York Times bestselling author Kimberly McCreight,about her new novel, Friends Like These. MCreight has crafted another character-driven mystery, this one about a group of college friends in their early 30’s that reunite at an upstate home to stage an intervention for one in their group. The intervention quickly goes terribly wrong when one friend is found dead inside a car and another is missing. ** Friendship is a key aspect of this book and Kimberly explains why she wanted to explore the dark side of unconditional love and loyalty. (01:47)** Friends Like These includes a fascinating cast of characters, including what we call complicated women in Maeve, Stephanie, Alice, and Detective Julia Scutt. We discuss who came first and how she built out this web of friends. (09:51)** This book moves around in time a lot seamlessly and we just can’t help but press Kimberly about how she keeps it all straight without outlining. (12:04)** Inspired by a quote from her newsletter, we discuss “letting go” with Kimberly, a fellow lawyer and self-described control freak. Her words about accepting uncertainty are truly aspirational, in writing and in life! (17:11)** Friends Like These is a product of the Covid-related lockdown and Kimberly explains how she managed to be productive among the madness. (23:31)** We delve into the different realities writers have to juggle...there’s the book she is promoting, the book she is writing and the new idea she is conceiving. Kimberly talks to us about how those three things work together. We geek out about calendars and schedules! (27:04)** The group of friends in the novel meet at a weekend house in Kaaterskill, NY, which has an interesting duality between the locals and the weekenders. So even the setting is complicated and adds to the drama. (30:33)** Kimberly is a Virgo, with a Pisces moon, and shares a love of astrology. She opens up about her recent experience with a tarot card reading where she demanded a do-over! (34:06)** We do a speed round of questions on writing, being an author, and what makes her tick! (39:00) ** Kimberly shares what she’s loving right now and it’s one of our personal favorites! (45:40)** We get updates on her book to screen adaptations! (47:00) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.