192: Joanna Polietano

Cara welcomes author Joanna Politano back to Book Talk to discuss her upcoming novel The Life She Forgot (out April 21), the first in a new reverse-chronology series centered on an imaginary house built into Cornwall’s cliffs, where each book reveals new hidden rooms and tunnels. Joanna shares life updates, including homeschooling her three kids and teaching her oldest to write, and explains why she chose to publish indie for flexibility, creative control, and to learn marketing. They tease the story’s amnesia-driven conflict as a woman begins remembering a past life after three years and a marriage of convenience, alongside a split timeline featuring a PTSD-haunted veteran rebuilding after war. Joanna highlights Cornwall’s scent as a key memory trigger, a mosaic motif of broken pieces forming a whole, and reflects on how memory shapes identity.You can learn more about Joanna and her books at her website: https://jdpstories.com/Want to watch this interview? You can see this episode as well as multiple others on YouTube! Enjoy!If you enjoyed this conversation, I would be thrilled if you left a rating and review on your favorite podcast app and leave me a note below letting me know who you would love to see on the show!