This week we’re deep diving into the brilliant Maggie O’Farrell’s The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, a novel about Victorian asylums, family secrets, and the tragedy of being yourself. 

Also this week, Saph read 100 Boyfriends by Brontez Purnell, Joseph read Day by Michael Cunningham, and Michelle read Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett. 

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Skye who loved Milk Teeth by Jessica Andrews and is looking for something with a similarly lyrical first-person style. Joseph recommends Second Self by Chloe Ashby, Saph recommends Tangerine by Christine Mangan, and Michelle recommends Normal People by Sally Rooney. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

I Am I Am I Am by Maggie O’Farrell

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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This week we take a look at Small Hours, the highly-anticipated second novel from British writer Bobby Palmer whose debut Isaac and the Egg is already being touted as a contemporary classic.  

Also this week, Saph read Turbulence by David Szalay and Joseph read The Night Alphabet by Joelle Taylor. 

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Rachel who really enjoyed The Watchers by A.M. Shine and is looking for more scary reads. Joseph recommended just about anything by Shirley Jackson and Blood Child And Other Stories by Octavia E. Butler, and Saph recommended The Troop by Nick Cutter and The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

Five Children and It by E. Nesbit

The Boy and the Dog by Hase Seishu

The Guest Cat by Takashe Hiraide

The Salt Path by Raynor Winn

Enchantment by Katherine May 

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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In celebration of International Women’s Day on 8 March 2024 on this week’s episode we talk about active female representation in contemporary fiction and recommend some of our favourite books that absolutely smash the Bechdel Test

Boulder by Eva Baltasar

Jungle House by Julianne Pachico

Matrix by Lauren Groff

If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha

Also this week, Joseph read On Reading, Writing, and Living with Books by Pushkin Press/The London Library, and Saph read The Latecomer by Jean Hanff Korelitz.

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Mollie who reads a lot of contemporary fiction set in the present day and would like to read more books set in different time periods. Joseph recommends The Dutch House by Anne Patchett, and Saph recommends Hurdy Gurdy by Christopher Wilson and The Glutton by A K Blakemore. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield

Nevada by Imogen Binnie

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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Join us this week as we chat about a glut of great new fiction and non-fiction releases for March, plus we reveal our top picks from the new Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction long list. 

March 2024 New Releases

The Extinction of Irena Rey by Jennifer Croft

Mona of the Manor by Armistead Maupin

Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood

Clear by Carys Davies

Who Owns the Moon? by A.C. Grayling

The Rising Down: Lives in a Sussex Landscape by Alexandra Harris

Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction Long List - Our Picks

Some People Need Killing: A Memoir of Murder in the Philippines by Lisa Evangelista

Intervals by Marianne Brooker

Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein

How To Say Babylon: A Memoir by Safiya Sinclair

Wifedom: Mrs Orwell’s Invisible Life by Anna Funder

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Mike who normally enjoys cosy crime, but is looking for something a bit more heartfelt. Joseph recommends Things Can Only Get Better by David M. Barnett, and Saph recommends Skippy Dies by Paul Murray and just about anything by Fredrik Backman.

Also mentioned in this episode:

Shadowlands: A Journey Through Lost Britain by Matthew Green

The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf

Flights by Olga Tokarczuk

Eileen: The Making of George Orwell by Sylvia Topp

Murder Before Evensong by Richard Coles 

A Good Read Podcast (BBC Radio 4)

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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Join us this week as we give our empathy muscles a workout and chat about six of the best contemporary memoirs we’ve read recently. 

Saph recommends This Is Not A Pity Memoir by Abbi Morgan, Taking Sides: A Memoir About Love, War, and Changing the World by Sherine Tadros, and The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions by Jonathan Rosen. Joseph recommends Stay True by Hua Hsu, In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado, and Also A Poet: Frank O’Hara, My Father, and Me by Ada Calhoun. 

Also this week, Joseph read The Wrong End of the Telescope by Rabih Alameddine and Saph read The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin 

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Sara who loved The Girl With The Louding Voice by Abi Daré and is looking for similar books. Joseph recommends Half A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and Saph recommends The Seven Moons of Mali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

War Stories by Jeremy Bowen

Boy Friends by Michael Pedersen

Friendaholic by Elizabeth Day 

Platonic: How Understanding Your Attachment Style Can Help You Make and Keep Friends by Marisa G Franco

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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Ahoy! Join us for our first ever author spotlight in which we dive into the award-winning novels of American author Rebecca Makkai. Makkai’s work tackles subjects as diverse as the trauma of the 1980’s AIDS crisis and the enduring legacy of the #MeToo movement, to the secrets and scandals of a mysterious artists’ colony and the modern-day politics of conversion therapy. 

I Have Some Questions For You 

The Great Believers 

The Hundred Year House

The Borrower 

Also this week Joseph read The End We Start From by Megan Hunter and Saph read Society of Snow by Pablo Vierci. The Novel Thoughts team also talk about Charlie Kaufman’s forthcoming adaptation of Yoko Ogawa’s The Memory Police.

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Kelly who likes a good crime novel and is looking for recommendation for her next five-star read. Joseph recommends The It Girl by Ruth Ware and Saph recommends Night Boat To Tangier by Kevin Barry. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

The Harpy by Megan Hunter

Stillicide by Cynan Jones

They by Kay Dick

To The Friend Who Did Not Save My Life by Hervé Guibert

The Farewell Symphony by Edmund White 

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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It’s Donna Tartt appreciation week! Michelle joins us for our deep dive into The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt’s brilliant, award-winning novel about art, drugs, loss, and not always getting what you want. 

Also this week Joseph read Death Valley by Melissa Broder and Duty Free Art by Hito Steyerl, Michelle read A Curious History of Sex by Kate Lister and Fire and Blood by George R R Martin, and Saph read Son of Rosemary by Ira Levin and Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories. 

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Edward who is looking for a great (auto)biography. Joseph recommends Girl In A Band by Kim Gordon. Saph recommends Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner and Take Away by Angela Hui. Michelle recommends Clothes Clothes Clothes, Music Music Music, Boys Boys Boys by Viv Albertine, Seabiscuit: The True Story of Three Men and a Racehorse by Laura Hillenbrand, and Educated by Tara Westover. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

The Secret History and The Little Friend by Donna Tartt

Milk Fed by Melissa Broder

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

Whores of Yore Twitter account

e-flux

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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This week Sapphire and Joseph deep dive into two new brilliant fiction releases: debut novel Piglet by British writer Lottie Hazell and The Vulnerables, the ninth novel from American writer Sigrid Nunez. 

Also this week Sapphire read Jillian by Halle Butler and Normal Women by Ainslie Hogarth. Joseph read Minor Detail by Adania Shibli and The Coming Bad Days by Sarah Bernstein. 

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Saniya who really enjoyed Elif Batuman’s Either/Or and is looking for more great campus novels. Joseph recommends The Life of the Mind by Christine Smallwood and White Noise by Don DeLillo. Sapphire recommends My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell, The Secret History by Donna Tartt, and The Nix by Nathan Hill. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

The Writer’s Prize 2024 Shortlist

The Boy and the Heron by Hayao Miyazaki (Studio Ghibli) 

Boy Swallows Universe 

How Do You Live? By Genzaburo Yoshino

The New Me by Halle Butler

The Friend by Sigrid Nunez

See the Novel Thoughts bookshop page for all books mentioned in this episode.

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On this week's episode we're chatting about the best short books to start your year. Read this week: Corey Fah Does Social Mobility by Isabel Waidner, The Employees by Olga Ravn, Come Closer by Sara Gran, Bewilderment by Richard Powers, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride. 

Saph’s short books: Ti Amo by Hanne Orstavik, I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman, You Should Have Left by Daniel Kehlmann, Helpmeet by Nabeen Ruthnum, and A Short Stay In Hell by Steven L. Peck. Joseph’s short books: Happening by Annie Ernaux, Assembly by Natasha Brown, Days At The Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, Ice by Anna Kavan, Open Throat by Henry Hoke, and The Summer Book by Tove Jansson.

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Patricia who is looking for historical fiction similar to The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell. Joseph recommends Secrecy by Rupert Thomson and Sapphire recommends Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers, Still Life by Sarah Winman, and The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

Isabel Waidner and Diarmuid Hester (LRB Podcast)

Consumed Future Spewed Up As Present by Lea Guldditte Hestelund

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Happy New Year! Michelle is back with a hot take on Tom Hanks’s charisma. Read this week: Shark Heart by Emily Habeck, Ordinary Human Failings by Megan Nolan and Chain Gang All Stars by Nana Kwame Adeji-Brenyah, Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky, Speedboat by Renata Adler, The Maid by Nita Prowse, Better Left Unsaid by Tufayel Ahmed.

This week’s deep dive book is the best-selling Good Material by Dolly Alderton, ‘this generation’s Nora Ephron’. 

This week’s listener recommendation request comes from Aimée who is looking for light hearted reads, but not Bill Bryson. Sapphire recommends The Dog of the North by Elizabeth Mckenzie, Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld and Where’d you go Bernadette? by Maria Semple. Michelle recommends The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. Joseph recommends Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout. 

Also mentioned in this episode:

The Skeleton Key by Erin Kelly

‘You’ve Got Mail’

‘The Shop Around The Corner’

Ghosts by Dolly Alderton

Foundation by Isaac Asimov

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