Debut novelist Kasim Ali goes head to head with author and teacher Okechukwu Nzelu in a war of the words...

They discuss their publishing journeys, how they approach rejection, "messy" romcoms, queerness and the joy in "simple writing". They also recommend us some books they have read and loved recently - and give us some tips for getting books back from friends you've loaned them to!

In the Book Off, they pit "The Incarnations" by Susan Barker against John Paul Brammer's "Hola Papi" - but which one will win?

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Authors Harriet Tyce and Amy Mcculloch go head to head in a war of the words!

They talk about mountaineering, foxes, the Marathon des Sables, Edinburgh, long baths and give us some brilliant reading recommendations.

In the Book Off, they pit Andrew Kurkov's "Death And The Penguin" against Lizzie Pook's "Moonlight And The Pearlers Daughter" - but which one will win???

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Bestselling authors Sarah Pinborough and Sarah Vaughan go head to head in a War Of The Words.

They discuss their Netflix adaptations, writing for TV, lack of sleep in lockdown, the genius of Marian Keyes and...their new novels.

We also get some great book (and TV) recommendations - and in the Book Off, they pit Hilary Mantel's "Bring Up The Bodies" against "A Tidy Ending" by Joanna Cannon, but which one will win???

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Authors Ruth Ozeki and Cathy Rentzenbrink join Joe Haddow for a war of the words and to discuss their new novels.

Ruth explains how she came to stare at her face in a mirror for 3 hours and then write a book about it, whilst Cathy talks about the joys of sea swimming and how anyone can write a book if they want to.

They also talk about the joy of libraries, their writing processes and recommend some books they have been reading and enjoying recently.

In the Book Off, they pit Lemn Sissay's "My Name Is Why?" against "Booth" by Karen Joy Fowler...but which will win?

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Booker Prize winning author Damon Galgut goes head to head with author and translator Adrian Nathan West in a war of the words.

Damon discusses his Booker winning novel, The Promise, and how he reached a point in his career where he didn't care what anyone else thought.

Nate talks about the relationship between author and translator, and how he navigated writing a fictional memoir.

In the Book Off they pit "Kaputt" by Curzio Malaparte against J.R. Ackerley's "My Dog Tulip" - but which one will win?

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Bestselling authors Marian Keyes and Nina Stibbe go head to head in a war of the words in a bumper episode of Book Off.

They shower admiration on to each other and their new books, "Again, Rachel" and "One Day I Shall Astonish The World" which they discuss with Joe Haddow.

They also talk about their writing, inspirations, friendship, sex in older age, taking the waters in Bath, writing a sitcom and fabulous funny females.

We get their recent book recommendations, and in the Book Off they pit "Gravity Is The Thing" by Jaclyn Moriarty against "The Fortnight In September" by R.C. Sherriff, but which one will win???

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Authors Charlotte Mendelson and Liz Hyder go head to head in a war of the words.

It's been 9 years since Charlotte published a novel - and on this episode she tells us all about her new book - "The Exhibitionist" - and how she feels now it's finally being published. The novel is an exploration of art, sacrifice, toxic family politics, queer desire and personal freedom.

And Liz tells us about her first novel for adults - "The Gifts" - where her fascination with Victorian history came from, and how a graveyard helped her name lots of her characters. The novel is a gripping and ambitious story, told through five different perspectives, and explores science, nature, religion, enlightenment and the role of women in society.

They also discuss their book buying habits, how cities can be just as inspirational as the countryside and the lure of Orkney - and in particular, Twatt.

In the Book Off, they pit George Mackay Brown's short story collection, "Hawkfall", against Charlotte Bronte's "Villette" - but which one will win???

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International bestselling novelists David Baldacci and Linwood Barclay go head to head in a war of the words.

They discuss writing themselves into corners, how they scare themselves to write better books and tell us about their brand new novels, "Take My Breath Away" and "Dream Town".

They also talk about their shared loved of the author Ross MacDonald, and the Lew Archer novels.

In the Book Off, they pit Ken Follett's "Never" against "Caste" by Isobel Wilkerson, but which one will win?

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Debut novelists, Jo Browning Wroe and Miranda Cowley Heller go head to head in a war of the words...

They discuss their books, "A Terrible Kindness" and "The Paper Palace" - as well as their writing journeys and inspirations.

Miranda also discusses her former career at HBO - where she worked on shows such as The Sopranos and The Wire, whilst Jo explains how she came to the idea for her novel and how she approached such a sensitive subject.

They also recommend some of the books they have been reading and enjoying recently - and pitch us a book that they both love in the Book Off.

In this episode, we see J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord Of The Rings" go up against "A Manual For Cleaning Women" by Lucia Berlin...but which one will win???

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Bestselling author, Monica Ali, goes head to head with debut author Hafsa Zayyan in a War Of The Words. 

It's been 10 years since Monica Ali published her last novel - and in this episode she talks about losing confidence in her writing and how she decided to explore screenwriting. 

After winning the inaugural #Merky Books New Writer's Prize, she published her debut novel "We Are All Birds Of Uganda" to great acclaim. Now on maternity leave, Hafsa discusses motherhood and writing whilst parenting. 

The two authors also both recommend some books they have read and enjoyed recently, including David Diop's International Booker Prize winning novel, "At Night All Blood Is Black" 

In the Book Off, V.S. Naipaul's classic "A House For Mister Biswas" goes up against YA novel "Feed" by MT Anderson, but which one will win!?? 

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