Bookmark

Top 10: ghost stories and tales of haunted houses Bubbling under…

Top 10: novels retold from another character’s point of view This month is all about parallel novels: familiar stories from new perspectives. Canonical novels and plays are subverted when minor characters take centre stage. Read on for ten of the best reimagined classics. Bubbling under…

Top 10: books set in the West Country Intrigue! Romance! Piracy! Rich in history and folklore, the region’s dramatic coastline and untamed countryside have long inspired literature. So, heave ho, me hearties, for ten of the best books set in the West Country. Bubbling under

Top 10: legal thrillers set in the courtroom The best courtroom dramas have jeopardy, opposition and reversal of fortune. In some, the letter of the law and human morality are aligned, in others they are in direct conflict. This moral question invites the reader to be the judge. All rise Read more…

Top 10: literature’s influence on popular music Literature has long been a pool of inspiration for popular music. Here are ten of the best examples of works of fiction with the songs or bands they influenced.

Top 10: classic summer novels This month’s list features novels in which summer drives the plot. These are books of sultry summers where time has a hazy, dream-like quality. Frequently about love, sometimes unrequited, and loss of innocence. Classic summer novels often include a sense of transience and nostalgia. Bubbling Read more…

Top 10: books celebrating plants and Spring May is the festival of Flora, the Roman goddess of Spring and flowers. Accordingly, this month we dig deep into all things botanical with the best of fiction and non-fiction about gardening, plants, nature and plant-hunters. Bubbling under

Top 10: books about insanity This month, we descend into madness with the best of fiction and non-fiction exploring insanity. Fiction Non-fiction

Top 10: best reads of the year A retrospective of our favourite reading during 2023, not necessarily published this year, in fiction and non-fiction. These are books that stay with you long after the last page is read.