Authors Curtis Sittenfeld and Erin White join Joe Haddow for a war of the words...

Curtis and Erin are best mates - which makes for a very competitive Book Off!

Erin talks about her debut novel 'Like Family' which has themes of desire in middle age, queer domestic love and life, navigating the world as a teenager - and much more.

Curtis discusses her latest short story collection 'Show Don't Tell' which is a witty and tender collection of tales, featuring a cast of characters that feel like old friends.

They also give some writing tips and recommend us some brilliant books too!

THE BOOK OFF

'Colored Television' by Danzy Senna

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'Unless' by Carol Shields

Here's a little more on our guests' books!

'Like Family' by Erin White

What if everything you wanted is no longer enough?

Meeting for an autumnal swim in an idyllic pond, Caroline's friend Ruth tells her about a family secret that has recently been exposed. Caroline was looking forward to a celebration they'd been planning together with her sister-in-law, Tobi, but suddenly everything seems complicated.

Tensions that have long been buried are bubbling to the surface. These three couples, who have so much to enjoy in their lives - growing children, affectionate marriages, work they love - must confront the truths they've never shared. More than that, they will have to reconcile the lives they've built with the ones they desire: the old dreams both fulfilled and denied, and the new ones that appeared right when they thought they had all they'd ever hoped for.

'Show Don't Tell' by Curtis Sittenfeld

In this compulsive collection of twelve witty stories, Sittenfeld shows why she’s as beloved for her short fiction as she is for her novels, as she conjures up characters so real that they seem like old friends.

In ‘The Patron Saints of Middle Age,’ a woman visits two friends she hasn’t seen since her divorce. In ‘A for Alone,’ a married artist embarks on a project intended to disprove the so-called Mike Pence Rule, which suggests that women and men can’t spend time alone together without lusting after each other. And in ‘Lost but Not Forgotten,’ Sittenfeld gives readers of her novel Prep a new window into the world of her beloved character Lee Fiora, decades later, when Lee attends an awkward school reunion.

Witty, confronting and full of tenderness, Sittenfeld peels back layer after layer of our inner lives, keeping us riveted to the page with her utterly distinctive voice.

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Alexandra Potter and Madeleine Gray join Joe Haddow for a war of the words!

They chat about their new novels, conmen, queer love, writing women without making them victims - and give us some great book recommendations too.

THE BOOK OFF

'Wuthering Heights' by Emily Bronte

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'How To Be Both' by Ali Smith

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LIbby Page and Ellie Levenson join Joe Haddow for a natter about their new novels - and - go head to head in a War Of The Words!

Libby's new novel - 'This Book Made Me Think Of You' - is a heartwarming, uplifting story about grief and love (and a love letter to books, reading and bookshops!)

Ellie's new novel - 'Room 706' - is a tense page-turner about a woman trapped in a hotel room with her lover

Both authors share their inspirations for their new books, give us some good book recommendations - and of course - take part in The Book Off!

THE BOOK OFF

'Conversations On Love' by Natasha Lunn

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'The Wild Robot' by Peter Brown

And here's a little more on our featured authors' books:

This Book Made Me Think Of You - Libby Page

When Tilly Nightingale receives a call telling her there’s a birthday gift from her husband waiting for her at her local bookshop, it couldn’t come as more of a shock. Partly, because she can’t remember the last time she read a book for pleasure. Mainly, because Joe died five months ago…

The gift is simple – twelve carefully chosen books from Joe, one for each month, to help her turn the page on her first year without him.

And so begins a reading-inspired journey that takes Tilly around the world; from bustling sidewalks in New York and the tree-lined avenues of Paris to the tranquil Tuscan countryside and the white sands of Bali. With the help of the bookshop owner, Alfie, Tilly starts to discover who she is now, after Joe.

But can Tilly’s year of books show her how to love again?

Room 706 - Ellie Levenson

Kate stretches her legs and turns on the TV while James washes away the traces of their morning. She watches in horror at the unfolding news: the hotel they are staying in has been taken under siege.

She should be making her way home, working on appearing normal, getting ready to re-enter family life with her loving husband Vic and their two adored children. Instead, she is trapped somewhere she shouldn't be, with a man she definitely doesn't love.

How will she begin to tell Vic what she is doing here? If her body is found, will it give up the secret of what she's been up to? She's been so careful hiding the evidence of her affair: write nothing down, leave no trace. Will he begin to understand why?

For now, Kate can only hide, take a deep breath, and reflect on the series of choices she's made that have brought her to this moment.

What will her marriage and her life look like, if she makes it out?

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Bestselling authors Peter James and Sophie Hannah join Joe Haddow for a right royal Book Off!

They discuss Poirot, Christie, Greene and many other writers they love - and give us some great book recommendations too.

Peter and Sophie also chat about their new novels. Queen Camilla is a huge fan of Peter James' Roy Grace books - so much so that she is the star of the latest novel 'The Hawk Is Dead'. And Sophie's latest 'No One Would Do What The Lamberts Have Done' is based on something that happened in real-life, which led her to ask "what would I do in that situation?" (the answer is in the book)

THE BOOK OFF

'Brighton Rock' by Graham Greene

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'The Rose And The Yew Tree' by Mary Westmacott (aka Agatha Christie)

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Charlatans lead singer, Tim Burgess, and music photographer, Tom Sheehan, join Joe Haddow for a war of the words.

Tim and Tom have worked together on and off for over 30 years - and during that time, Tom has captured some of the most iconic images of Tim's band. They chat about their new collaboration 'How High: A Portrait Of The Charlatans' as well as some of their favourite music biographies, artists they've worked with - and the new Charlatans album too.

THE BOOK OFF

'Amusing Ourselves To Death' by Neil Postman

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'Twenty Thousand Streets Under The Sky' by Patrick Hamilton

Here's a little more info on their gorgeous photography book 'How High'

This is the inside story of The Charlatans, told through the lens of legendary photographer Tom Sheehan and the words of the band's frontman Tim Burgess.

More than 250 of Sheehan's photographs - blending iconic shots with those seen here for the first time - are accompanied by moving and insightful text from Burgess, sharing his memories of a band at the very height of their powers.

Covering a decade of the band's story, the book captures recording sessions, live performances, cover shoots, tours and intimate moments snatched backstage and around the world.

Beautifully presented in a cloth-bound hardback, this book is a stunning visual history of The Charlatans, one of the defining bands of a generation.

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This week Joe welcomes two debut authors - Lisa Smith and Marcia Hutchinson - who get head to head in a war of the words.

They chat about their writing journeys, black voices in literature, coming to writing later in life and why sometimes, you can just use books as a way of getting back at people!

THE BOOK OFF

'Beloved' by Toni Morrison

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'Small Island' by Andrea Levy

Here's a little more about our guests new novels:

'Jamaica Road' by Lisa Smith

South London, 1981: Daphne is the only Black girl in her class. All she wants is to keep her head down, preferably in a book. The easiest way to survive is to go unnoticed. 

Daphne’s attempts at invisibility are upended when a boy named Connie Small arrives from Jamaica. Connie is the opposite of small in every way: lanky, outgoing, and unapologetically himself. Daphne tries to keep her distance, but Connie is magnetic, and they form an intense bond. As they navigate growing up in a volatile, rapidly changing city, their families become close, and their friendship begins to shift into something more complicated. When Connie reveals that he and his mother “nuh land”—meaning they’re in England illegally—Daphne realizes that she is dangerously entangled in Connie’s fragile home life. Soon, long-buried secrets in both families threaten to tear them apart permanently.

Spanning one tumultuous decade, from the industrial docklands of the Thames to the sandy beaches of Calabash Bay, Jamaica Road is a deftly plotted and emotionally expansive debut novel about race and class, the family you’re born with and the family you choose, and the limits of what true love can really conquer.

'The Mercy Step' by Marcia Hutchinson

Bradford, December 1962.

A precocious Mercy makes her reluctant entrance into the world, torn from the warm embrace of her mother’s womb, to a chaotic household that seems to have no place for her. Her siblings do not understand her, her mother’s attention is given to the Church, and the entire family lives at the whims of her father’s quick temper. 

Left to herself, Mercy finds solace in books, her imagination, and the quiet comfort of her faithful toy, Dolly. But escapism has its limits, and as the grip of family, faith and fear threatens to close in, Mercy learns she must act if she wants a different future; one where she is seen, heard, and her family set free. 

The Mercy Step is a sharply-witted and tender portrait of a young girl’s quiet rebellion, and her refusal to be broken. 

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Bestselling authors Joe Hill and Joe Abercrombie join another Joe (the host) for a natter about books, films, horror, fantasy and much more.

They discuss their brilliant new novels, 'King Sorrow' and 'The Devils', their writing processes and routines, Stephen King, James Cameron, film adaptations, comics - and - give us some brilliant book recommendations too.

THE BOOK OFF

'Lonesome Dove' by Larry McMurtry

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'The Night Always Comes' by Willy Vlautin

Heres some more info on our guests brilliant novels!

'King Sorrow' by Joe Hill

Bookish dreamer Arthur Oakes is a student at Rackham College, Maine, renowned for its frosty winters and beautiful buildings.

But his idyll - and burgeoning romance with Gwen Underfoot - is shattered when local drug dealers force him into a terrible crime: stealing rare and valuable books from the exceptional college library.

Trapped and desperate, Arthur turns to his closest friends for help: the wealthy, irrepressible Colin Wren; brave, beautiful Alison Shiner; the battling twins Donna and Donovan McBride; and brainy, bold Gwen. Together they dream up an impossible, fantastical scheme that they scarcely imagine will work: to summon the fabled dragon King Sorrow to kill those tormenting Arthur.

But the six stumble backwards into a deadly bargain - they soon learn they must choose a new sacrifice for King Sorrow each year or one of them will become his next victim. Unleashing consequences they can neither predict nor control, this promise will, over the course of four decades, shape and endanger their lives in ways they could never expect.

'The Devils' by Joe Abercrombie

Europe stares into the abyss.

Plague and famine stalk the land, monsters lurk in every shadow and greedy princes care for nothing but their own ambitions. Only one thing is certain: the elves will come again, and they will eat everyone.

Sometimes, only the darkest paths lead towards the light. Paths on which the righteous will not dare to tread . . .

And so, buried beneath the sacred splendour of the Celestial Palace, is the secret Chapel of the Holy Expediency. For its congregation of convicted monsters there are no sins that have not been committed, no lines that will not be crossed, and no mission that cannot be turned into a disastrous bloodbath.

Now the hapless Brother Diaz must somehow bind the worst of the worst to a higher cause: to put a thief on the throne of Troy, and unite the sundered church against the coming apocalypse.

When you're headed through hell, you need the devils on your side.

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This week we welcome bestselling authors Saara El-Arifi and Callie Hart to the podcast, who go head to head in a war of the words.

We chat fantasy, romantasy, maps, sexy fairies - and also learn a new word 'Chussy' (don't google it!)

Callie and Saara also give us some brilliant book recommendations and some top writing tips! (oh, and di we mention the interpretive dance?)

THE BOOK OFF

'Gideon The Ninth' by Tamsyn Muir

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'I Medusa' by Ayana Gray

And here's a little more on our guests latest books:

'Cursebound' by Saara El-Arifi

Yeeran and Lettle are no longer prisoners to the fae court, but now they’re bound by the shackles of their hearts …

Yeeran was born for war but is unprepared for love. She has left her new lover, the Queen of the fae, to return to her homeland, only to find that her former lover now threatens war against the fae. Left behind, her sister Lettle is determined to break the curse that binds the fae to their realm.

When a stranger appears in the city, Lettle is convinced he’s the key. But the Fates that once spoke to her have fallen silent.

Can Lettle and Yeeran discover the secret behind the curse – and unite these two worlds before they destroy each other?

'Brimstone' by Callie Hart

Saeris Fane doesn't want power. The very last thing she needs is her name whispered on an entire court's lips, but now that she's been crowned queen of the Blood C ourt, she's discovering that a queen's life is not her own. A heavy weight rests upon her shoulders.

Her ward - and her brother - need her back in her homeland . . . but the changes that have strengthened Saeris have also made her weak. Born under blazing suns, Saeris will surely die if she makes her way home through the Quicksilver. Which means that, once again, she must send someone else in her stead . . .

Kingfisher of the Ajun Gate has defeated armies and survived all manner of horrors, but traveling back to Zilvaren with C arrion Swift might just be the death of him. The male just will not shut up. Hidden dangers await them down the narrow alleyways of the Silver C ity. Unfolding secrets pose impossible threats. Fisher must wrangle the smuggler and accomplish his goals quickly if he wants to see his mate again.

A darkness falls across Yvelia. The realm and their friends are in danger. Together, Saeris and Fisher will pass through fire and brimstone to save them.

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We welcome two brilliant debut novelists to Book Off this week, who go head to head in a war of the words...

Xenobe Purvis and Gurnaik Johal have both recently published their first novels - and they are both brilliant!

Hear them discuss their inspirations, writing and research techniques. how to choose a good title and why reading slowly is good.

In a Book Off first - Gurnaik pitches a book he hasn't even finished yet! And there are some great recommendations all round.

THE BOOK OFF

'The Portrait Of A Lady' by Henry James

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'Lonesome Dove' by Larry McMurtry

And here's a little more about our guests' books:

The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis

Many stories are told about the five Mansfield sisters. They are haughty, thinking themselves better than their neighbours in the picturesque village of Little Nettlebed. They have taken the death of their grandmother hard. They are liars, troublemakers, untamed and dangerous... Accounts of their behaviour differ, but the villagers all agree that the girls are odd.

One long summer, a heatwave descends. Bloated sea creatures wash up along the parched riverbed, animals grow frenzied, ravens gather on the roofs of those about to die. As the stifling heat grips the village, so does a strange rumour: the Mansfield sisters have been seen transforming into a pack of dogs.

With the witch trials only a recent memory, hysteria sets in. Slowly but surely, the villagers become convinced that something strange is taking root in Little Nettlebed. And when a bark finally leads to a bite, the sisters will be the ones to pay for it.

Visceral and richly atmospheric, The Hounding plunges its reader into 18th century Oxfordshire, where the power of a man’s word is absolute, and it is safer to be a wild animal than an unconventional young woman.

'Saraswadi' by Gurnaik Johal

Centuries ago, the holy river Saraswati flowed through what is now Punjab. Many dismiss this as myth, but when Satnam arrives in his ancestral village for his grandmother's funeral, he finds water in the dried-up well behind her house. The discovery sets in motion a contentious scheme to unearth the lost river as an act of Hindu nationalist pride.

The river changes the course of Satnam's life, and those of six others. As legends and histories resurface, the distant relatives - from a Canadian eco-saboteur to a Mauritian pest exterminator to a Bollywood stunt double - are brought together in a rapidly changing India. Ambitious, moving and brimming with folklore, Saraswati is a tour de force from one of Britain's most feted young writers.

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Two debut novelists, Wendy Erskine and Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin join Joe Haddow for a war of the words!

They discuss their brilliant new novels ('The Benefactors' and 'Ordinary Saints') as well as giving us some brilliant book recommendations too.

They also chat about 'queer literature', the Women's Prize, how to cast a book and the joy of free writing.

THE BOOK OFF

'The Price Of Salt' ('Carol') by Patricia Highsmith

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'Hunchback' by Saou Ichikawa

Here's a little more about our guests' novels:

Ordinary Saints

An arresting, unmissable debut novel shortlisted for the Women's Prize Discoveries award - an exploration of family, grief, queer identity, and the legacy of the Catholic Church in Ireland.

'Can you imagine it? I'd say to them. Can you imagine me there in the front row in Saint Peter's Square? The lesbian sister of a literal saint.'

Brought up in a devout household in Ireland, Jay is now living in London with her girlfriend, determined to live day to day and not think too much about either the future or the past. But when she learns that her beloved older brother, who died in a terrible accident, may be made into a Catholic saint, she realises she must at last confront her family, her childhood and herself . . .

The Benefactors

In The Benefactors we meet Frankie, Miriam and Bronagh - very different women but all mothers to 18-year-old boys. Glamorous Frankie, now married to a wealthy, older man, grew up in care. Miriam has recently lost her beloved husband Kahlil in ambiguous circumstances. Bronagh, the CEO of a children's services charity, loves the celebrity and prestige this brings her.

They do not know each other yet, but when their sons are accused of sexually assaulting Misty Johnston, whose family lacks the wealth and social-standing of their own, they'll leverage all the power of their position to protect their children.

From the prize-winning author of Dance Move and Sweet Home, this is an astounding novel about intimate histories, class and money - and what being a parent means. Brutal, tender and rigorously intelligent, The Benefactors is a daring, polyphonic presentation of modern-day Northern Ireland. It is also very funny.

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