In this episode of Reading Is Political, I'm joined by debut novelist Fauzia Musa to discuss her extraordinary novel The Strangling Fig.

Spanning the Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 through to the early 2000s, The Strangling Fig is a sweeping family saga that blends literary fiction, magical realism and historical memory. We explore how personal histories become family myths, the generational impact of political decisions, and why some stories remain untold for decades. 

Fauzia shares how the novel began as an attempt to write her own family's history before evolving into fiction, why she introduced a ghost into the narrative, and how multiple drafts transformed the book into the story readers see today. We also discuss researching Partition, writing ambitious dual timelines, and the challenge of creating authentic characters across generations. 

Fauzia also recommends four books that have shaped her thinking, before sharing two comfort reads she returns to again and again:

Melissa Febos – Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative

Shehan Karunatilaka – The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida

Shon Faye – Love in Exile

Ayn Rand – The Fountainhead

Lily King – Heart the Lover

John Fowles – The Magus

If you enjoy conversations about books, politics, identity and the stories that shape our world, don't forget to follow In My Good Books wherever you listen to podcasts.

Fauzia's Legit Substack

Kirsty Lockwood joins me to discuss her debut crime thriller, We Know What You Did, a novel that's already making waves after being shortlisted for the 2026 Bloody Scotland Debut Prize and longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize.

In this episode, Kirsty shares the whirlwind journey from publication day to becoming one of the most talked-about new voices in Scottish crime fiction. We chat about the inspiration behind Odette, one of this year's most compelling protagonists, the challenge of writing dual timelines, and why social media became such an important part of the novel's central mystery. 

As part of my Bloody Scotland 2026 series, Kirsty also tells us about appearing on the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize Panel, taking place Friday 18 September at 3:00pm, and shares the festival events she's most excited to attend.

Her recommendations include Femme Fatales (featuring Liz Nugent, Harriet Tyce and Andrea Mara) and Are They or Aren't They? featuring Leodora Darlington. 

If you enjoy psychological suspense, character-driven crime fiction and behind-the-scenes publishing conversations, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

When Zoe Rankin first joined the podcast, The Vanishing Place hadn't even been published. Fast forward a year and her haunting New Zealand thriller has been shortlisted for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize and longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize, an incredible achievement for a first novel. 

In this special Bloody Scotland 2026 episode, we chat about everything that's happened since publication, from seeing her novel on bookshop shelves to meeting readers, navigating imposter syndrome, and why receiving congratulations from Ian Rankin felt completely surreal.

We also dive back into The Vanishing Place, discussing its unforgettable setting in the remote New Zealand bush, why Zoe describes her books as "nature-centric thrillers", and how the landscape became as important as any of the characters. She shares the inspiration behind the novel, the challenges of writing it, and why Jane Harper's The Dry changed her life forever. 

There's plenty of Bloody Scotland chat too, including Zoe's excitement about making the journey from New Zealand, the panels she's appearing on, and the events she's most looking forward to attending.

Debut Prize Panel
Friday 18 September • 3:00pm

Murder at the End of the World
Saturday 19 September • 9:45pm

• Femmes Fatales featuring Liz Nugent, Harriet Tyce and Andrea Mara
• Jane Harper & Jane Casey
• Denise Mina in conversation with Lucy Foley

If you're heading to Bloody Scotland, don't miss the chance to hear Zoe speak!

In this episode, I'm joined by Dr Eleanor Drage, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge, AI ethicist, broadcaster and co-host of The Good Robot podcast, to discuss her new book What If We Got AI Right?

We explore why conversations about AI need to move beyond hype and fear, how power, politics and inequality are embedded in technology, and why regulation, education and public participation will all be essential in shaping the future of AI.

Eleanor also recommends a brilliant selection of books that explore technology, disability, labour, philosophy and the future of society.

Joshua Schuster & Derek Woods – Calamity Theory

Tim Ingold – Lines

Karen Levy – Data Driven

Jane Bennett – Vibrant Matter

Cassandra Hartblay – Access Vernaculars

Ned Beauman – Venomous Lumpsucker

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with anyone interested in AI, politics, technology or the future of society.

Join me behind the Scenes at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival 2026!

This week's episode is something a little different as I take you behind the scenes at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate, Europe's largest celebration of crime fiction.

Over one packed weekend I caught up with eight fantastic authors to chat about their latest books, writing life, festival highlights and what readers can expect next. From bestselling thriller writers to exciting debut novelists, this episode gives you a flavour of one of the friendliest and most exciting weekends in the publishing calendar.

📚 John Marrs – Dead In The Water

📚 Gillian McAllister – Caller Unknown

📚 Dorothy Koomson – The Quiet Girls

📚 Holly Stars – Murder in the Dressing Room

📚 Arvind Ethan David – The Great Game

📚 Adele Parks – Eyes on You

📚 Mark Edwards – One of the Family

📚 Anna Mazzola – Anna Sharpe: Lie for Your Life (coming January 2027)

📝 Enter the Sarita Domingo Prize

📬 Arvind Ethan David's Substack: The Dread and the Envy 

🎙️ Dorothy Koomson's podcast: The Dorothy Edit 

If you enjoy In My Good Books, I'd really appreciate it if you could follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share the episode with a fellow book lover.

You can also find me on Instagram:
@inmygoodbookspod

Steve Cavanagh joins me to discuss his latest legal thriller, One of Us is Guilty, the tenth novel in his bestselling Eddie Flynn series.

In this episode, Steve introduces Eddie Flynn for anyone who is new to the series and explains why every book is written to work equally well for first-time readers and long-standing fans.

We talk about why the tenth Eddie Flynn novel felt significant, the characters Steve wanted to revisit, and his decision to spend more time in Eddie’s head. Steve also discusses the structure of One of Us is Guilty, including the challenge of showing the same scene from two different perspectives and allowing the reader to see what each character is thinking and hiding.

Buy One Of Us Is Guilty

Find Steve on Instagram

The Steve Cavanagh Readers Club

Books recommended:

The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

The Firm by John Grisham

In this episode I'm joined by award-winning Scottish author Sara Sheridan to discuss her captivating new historical novel, The Jewel Keepers.

Known for bringing overlooked stories from Scotland's past to life, Sara takes readers on a thrilling treasure hunt through 1837 Edinburgh, following Araminta Mackenzie Moore as she uncovers family secrets, hidden histories and a mysterious lost Scottish crown.

Sara's website

Buy The Jewel Keepers

Sara also shares three brilliant book recommendations:

• Water Music by T. C. Boyle
• Doorways in Drumorty by Lorna Moon
• The Pretender by Jo Harkin

This week I'm joined by bestselling crime writer, former criminal defence lawyer, podcaster and Chair of the Crime Writers' Association, Nadine Matheson.

Nadine's Inspector Anjelica Henley series has become one of the standout police procedural series in UK crime fiction, and in this episode we dive into the fourth novel, The Shadow Carver. We discuss why she wanted to explore vigilantism, justice and the moral grey areas that exist between right and wrong, as well as why Henley's flaws are just as important as her strengths.

We also chat about creating memorable serial killers without relying on gratuitous violence, building an ensemble cast across four books, and why Nadine begins every novel with a single vivid scene she can see playing out like a film.

Away from the series, Nadine shares the story of her route to publication, explains why she avoided writing legal thrillers despite her career in criminal law, and gives an exclusive glimpse into her forthcoming standalone psychological thriller.

As part of my Bloody Scotland 2026 series, we also talk about the festival itself, the panels Nadine is looking forward to attending, and what readers can expect when she returns to Stirling.

Nadine will be appearing at Bloody Scotland on Saturday 19 September at 4.45pm in In Conversation with Steve Cavanagh.

During the episode she also recommends the following festival panels:

• Twists and Turns featuring Gilly MacMillan, Dorothy Koomson and Claire Douglas.

• Across the Pond featuring Gavin Bell, Adele Parks and Tariq Ashkanani and chaired by me!

If you're heading to Bloody Scotland, I'd highly recommend checking them out.

If you enjoy the episode, please follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with a fellow book lover. It really helps more readers discover the show.

This week I'm joined by bestselling husband-and-wife writing duo Ellery Lloyd (Paul Vlitos and Collette Lyons) to discuss their brilliant new thriller, Time to Burn. Set in a near future where commercial time travel has become a reality, the novel follows documentary filmmaker Phoebe Hunt as she investigates a luxury time travel company after one of its billionaire clients disappears during a trip to the London Blitz. It's an ambitious, twist-filled thriller that explores power, privilege, history and the consequences of changing the past. 

During our conversation, we delve into the inspiration behind the novel, including why the Blitz was the perfect setting and how they created a believable set of rules for time travel. We also discuss writing across two timelines without confusing the reader, the influence of modern tech billionaires, and why so many of their novels take glamorous worlds and expose the darker secrets lurking beneath the surface.

We finish by chatting about book festivals, what they're working on next, and, of course, their book recommendations. If you love intelligent thrillers, speculative fiction or stories that keep you guessing until the very last page, I think you're going to love this episode. 

Books recommended:

• The Killing Time – Elly Griffiths
• The Ending Writes Itself - Evelyn Clarke

In this episode I'm joined by debut author Natalie Gregory, whose novel was born from personal loss and years of research into one of Thailand's most overlooked historical events: the 1976 Thammasat University Massacre.

We discuss how the death of Natalie's own mother inspired the novel, why difficult histories matter, and how family stories can preserve memories that nations sometimes choose to forget. Natalie also talks about growing up between cultures, writing ghosts into the novel as an expression of Thai spirituality, and the eight-year journey to publication after winning the Primadonna Prize.

As part of my Reading Is Political series, Natalie also recommends five brilliant books exploring history, empire, race, class and political memory, before sharing the comfort reads she always returns to.

Natalie's Instagram

Buy Mother, Ghost, Mango Seed

Natalie's book recommendations

Moments of Silence: The Unforgetting of the October 6, 1976, Massacre in Bangkok — Thongchai Winichakul

Empireland — Sathnam Sanghera

Girl, Woman, Other — Bernardine Evaristo

Minority Rule — Ash Sarkar

Shuggie Bain — Douglas Stuart

Agatha Christie

Jane Austen

His Dark Materials — Philip Pullman