Crozet Book Fest: Ongoing List of Author Announcements

UPDATED MONDAY, AUGUST 10TH

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Over the next several weeks, we’ll be announcing this year’s incredible lineup a few authors at a time. We can’t wait to welcome these writers to the Crozet Book Fest and celebrate their books in our community with all of you on Saturday, October 24.

And check back August 31st for the full festival schedule!

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FICTION

Nadia Hashimi (@nadiahashimibooks ) is an internationally bestselling novelist and pediatrician whose books for adults and young readers have been translated around the world. Her writing on Afghanistan and Afghan women has appeared in Ms. Magazine, NPR, and Mother Jones.

Haili Blassingame (@hailiwroteabook ) is a producer for NPR’s 1A and a writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times and The New Republic. She previously worked on NPR’s Code Switch and Weekend Edition and is the author of the viral Modern Love essay “My Choice Isn’t Marriage or Loneliness.”

Hannah Selinger (@druishamericanprincess ) is a James Beard Award–nominated writer and the author of the memoir CELLAR RAT: MY LIFE IN THE RESTAURANT UNDERBELLY. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure, and many other publications.

Alix E. Harrow (@alix.e.harrow ) is a New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award–winning author of THE TEN THOUSAND DOORS OF JANUARY, THE ONCE AND FUTURE WITCHES, STARLING HOUSE, and THE EVERLASTING. We’re thrilled to have her join us again this year.

Virginia Hume (@virginiahume ) is the bestselling author of HAVEN POINT and LIBERTY ISLAND. Before becoming a novelist, she worked in public affairs and political communications. She lives in Chevy Chase, Maryland with her family.

Rachel Beanland (@rachelbeanland ) is the author of THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE and FLORENCE ADLER SWIMS FOREVER, winner of the National Jewish Book Award for Debut Fiction. She lives with her family in Richmond, Virginia.

Jo Piazza (@jopiazzaauthor ) is the national and international bestselling author of THE PARISIAN HEIST, THE SICILIAN INHERITANCE, WE ARE NOT LIKE THEM, CHARLOTTE WALSH LIKES TO WIN, THE KNOCKOFF, and more. Her podcasts have garnered more than 25 million downloads and regularly top the podcast charts.

Kevin Powers (@kevincpowersauthor ) is the National Book Award–finalist and PEN/Hemingway Award–winning author of THE YELLOW BIRDS. A U.S. Army veteran, his work has been translated into more than a dozen languages.

Stacy Hackney (@stacyhackneybooks ) is the author of the children’s books FOREVER GLIMMER CREEK and THE SISTERS OF LUNA ISLAND. THE PRIMROSE MURDER SOCIETY is her first novel for adults. She lives in Richmond, Virginia with her husband and four sons.

Lee Kelly (@leeykelly ) is the author of CITY OF SAVAGES, A CRIMINAL MAGIC, and WITH REGRETS, and the co-author, with Jennifer Thorne, of THE ANTIQUITY AFFAIR, THE STARLETS, MY FAIR FRAUDS, and THE MIDNIGHT SHOW. She holds an MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Danny O’Dea (@dannyodeaauthor ) is a Charlottesville-based writer whose work explores grief, masculinity, and the stories we tell to survive. PACKAGES is his debut novel.

Lori Gold (@lorigoldsteinbooks ) is the author of KISS, MARRY, KILL and the NPR Book of the Day pick ROMANTIC FRICTION. She has also written historical fiction and young adult novels under the name Lori Goldstein.

Robert Gwaltney (@robertgwaltneyjr ) is the author of THE CICADA TREE, winner of the 2023 Georgia Author of the Year Award, and SING DOWN THE MOON, winner of the Somerset Award for Literary and Contemporary Fiction.

Nicole Glover (@nicolegloverwrites ) is the author of the acclaimed MURDER AND MAGIC historical fantasy series, including THE STARSEEKERS. Her work has appeared on the Locus bestseller list and received starred reviews for its blend of mystery, history, and fantasy.

Mengxi Seeley (@margaretliseeley ) is a Virginia-based novelist and former academic translator whose fiction draws on historical research and fantastically happy endings. SILK AND SENSIBILITY is her debut novel, forthcoming from Shadow Mountain in September 2026.

NONFICTION & POETRY

Earl Swift (@earl.swift ) is the author of ten acclaimed nonfiction books and an avid outdoorsman who has twice hiked the length of the Appalachian Trail. He lives in the Blue Ridge west of Crozet.

Emilee Hackney (@emileehackney ) grew up in the coalfields of southwest Virginia. She graduated from Harvard and her debut, ALL THAT’S UNSEEN, is out this week!

Jesse Crosson (@second_chancer434 ) transformed his life after receiving a 32-year prison sentence at 18. He now works to help others find freedom and build a better future.

Derek Baxter (@derekjbaxter ) is a labor and human rights lawyer who lives in Virginia. His first book, IN PURSUIT OF JEFFERSON, is a travelogue and history recounting his journey through Europe using a travel guide written by Thomas Jefferson in 1788.

Lara Call Gastinger (@laragastinger ) is a Charlottesville-based artist and botanical illustrator and the chief illustrator of FLORA OF VIRGINIA. A two-time gold medalist at the Royal Horticultural Society Botanical Art Show in London, she is also renowned for teaching her perpetual journal process.

Chelsea Krieg (@chelseaenkrieg ) is the author of EVERYTHING IS WATER, winner of the 2026 Southern Poetry Breakthrough Series. Her work has appeared in Fairy Tale Review, Terrain.org, Gulf Coast, and elsewhere, and she teaches creative writing at North Carolina State University.

Mirabella Mitchell (@mirabella_makes_marks ) is a poet and ceramic artist based in Charlottesville. Her debut chapbook, THE GREAT GET BY, is a meditation on depression composed of thirty erasures of a single page of THE GREAT GATSBY.

Melanie McCabe is the author of four books of poetry, including ALL THE SIGNS WERE THERE, winner of the Longleaf Press Poetry Prize, and the memoir HIS OTHER LIFE, winner of the University of New Orleans Press Prize. Her debut novel, ROAD LONGER THAN MEMORY, was published by Oceanview Publishing in June 2026.

CHILDREN'S BOOK AUTHORS

Taunya English — HONEYBIRD BLUE

Cynthia Cliff — MARY E. AND THE APPLE TREE

Tracey Kyle — PEPE AND THE PIÑATA

Audrey Perrott — ONCE UPON A TAIL

Rachel Michelle Wilson — HOW TO ESCAPE A PLAYDATE

Debra Kempf Shumaker — SUNDAY SCARIES

Marcie Flinchum Atkins — WHEN TWILIGHT COMES

Kris Coronado — LIGHTHOUSE LADIES

Brooke McIntyre — IF YOU WENT TO THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN

Hannah Barnaby — THE PUMPKIN SEED’S SECRET (and our resident picture book queen!)