Former librarian turned book influencer, Simon Savidge, joins Sara for a chat about his favourite books of the year - and - his recommendations for great Christmas gifts.

His choices include three novels (for that person who's already read everything!), three kids books (to inspire and entertain young minds) and three works of non-fiction (for the hard-to-buy-for person in your life).

SIMON'S RECOMMENDATIONS

Fiction:

Younger Readers:

Non-Fiction:

His go-to Christmas book:

Sara welcomes former library worker turned head of all things Radio 2 Book Club, Karen McPherson, to the podcast.

They chat about how we choose our titles each year, the joy of libraries, 'the fight room' - plus - Karen also shares her Top Five Reads Of The Year.

The Names by Florence Knapp

Show Me Where it Hurts by Claire Gleeson

This Bright Life by Karen Campbell

One Yellow Eye by Leigh Radford

The Greatest Possible Good by Ben Brooks

Broadcaster and author Sally Magnusson returns to The Radio 2 Book Club once more, to discuss her new novel 'The Shapeshifter's Daughter'.

The book is a re-telling of the Norse myth of Hel - set across the mythological realm of Asgard and present day Orkney Islands.

Sally chats to Sara about her fascination with Scandanavia, the challenges of re-writing a myth and why Orkney is such a special place. We also hear a snippet from the audiobook, get a great book recommendation - and learn about what happened to the original Mastermind chair! (Sally's Dad was the great journalist and TV Presenter Magnus Magnusson)

Here's a little more info on 'The Shapeshifter's Daughter':

Before she was a hideous monster, the queen of the underworld was simply Hel. But cast as a girl out of lofty Asgard, realm of the gods, by Odin the Allfather, Hel's fate as the terrible goddess of death is sealed. Half beauty, half crone, she has reigned for aeons in the starless darkness of Niflheim, grimly welcoming the most pitiful of death's travellers to her ice-locked prison. Until one day a memory shifts, and she is forced to seek out the sun in Midgard, where humans have made their home.

Faced with a terminal cancer diagnosis, Helen Firth makes the impulsive decision to return to Orkney after forty years to make peace with her past. Under the wintering solstice sun, she reconnects with the ungainly but affable Thorfinn Coffin, who helps her address the real reason she has returned to the islands: to die. As Helen draws closer to death and ever closer to Thorfinn, Hel in turn is intrigued by Helen. She, too, has a past to confront and a lesson to learn: that perhaps who she believes herself to be isn't who she really is.

Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller, Joe Hill, joins Sara to chat about his epic new novel 'King Sorrow'.

This book has been 10 years in the making and, as Joe explains, is the first novel he published after getting married to his wife - so wanted to impress her.

Sara and Joe chat about his inspirations behind the book, how his family (all of whom are writers) share their work with each other, and why he has now chosen to write a book a year. (no more 900 pages for a while!)

We also get to hear a clip from the audiobook, and a book recommendation too.

Here's a little more info on Joe's novel:

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 Allison 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.

Sara welcomes Sir Salman Rushdie to the Radio 2 Book Club to talk about his new collection of stories.

'The Eleventh Hour' consists of five stories, some short stories and some novellas.

Salman talks about his inspiration behind the work, including why he wanted to return to the world of 'Midnight's Children' - and regales us with some great stories - including the time he met E M Forster at university and ended up playing croquet with him!

Here's a little more info on Salman's new book:

These five dazzling works of fiction move between the three countries that Salman Rushdie has called home – India, England and America – and explore what it means to approach the eleventh hour of life. They are the reckoning with mortality that we all must one day make, and speak deeply to what the author has come from and through.

Do we accommodate ourselves to death, or rail against it? How can we bid farewell to the places that we have made home? How do we achieve fulfilment with our lives if we don't know the end of our own stories? The Eleventh Hour ponders life and death, legacy and identity with the penetrating insight and boundless imagination that have made Salman Rushdie one of the most celebrated writers of our time.

Whether you're into the Halloween thing or not - we thought it was as good a time as any to celebrate some spooky, scary, dark, ghostly, chilling books which have recently come out - and - get some cracking recommendations.

Sara has invited six brilliant authors - who write in the horror genre - to tell us about their latest novels and their favourite scary book.

LISTEN IF YOU DARE MWAAAHAHAHA*

Here are our featured authors - and - the books discussed:

Gemma Amor - 'Itch'

Tobi Coventry - 'He's The Devil'

Bora Chung - 'The Midnight Timetable'

Andrew Michael Hurley - 'Saltwash'

Oyinkan Braithwaite - 'Cursed Daughters'

Thomas Olde Heuvelt - 'Darker Days'

As the nights draw in, it's the perfect time for some cosy crime - and our latest book choice will fit the bill.

The Murder At World's End has been described as Downton Abbey meet Knives Out, and is the debut adult novel from bestselling children's author Ross Montgomery.

Sara chats to Ross about his fascination with the Victorians, plotting a murder mystery and how he managed to get Sir Derek Jacobi to read his audiobook.

We also get a sneak preview of said audiobook, and Ross gives us a top book recommendation as well!

Here's the blurb for 'The Murder At World's End'

All eyes turn to Stephen Pike, Tithe Hall's newest under-butler. Fresh out of Borstal for a crime he didn't commit, he is the wrong man in the wrong place at the wrong time. His unlikely ally? Miss Decima Stockingham, the foul-mouthed, sharp as a tack, 80-year-old family matriarch. Fearless and unconventional, she relishes chaos and puzzles alike, and a murder is just the thrill she's been waiting for.

Together, this mismatched duo must navigate secret passages, buried grudges and rising terror to unmask the killer before it's too late...

Superstar librarian Kelly Greenwood joins Sara for a natter about working in libraries and being a children's book specialist.

She gives us her Top Five Reads Of The Year (so far) and also talks about being on our Book Club panel.

Her picks are:

Roar by Manjeet Mann

Debut novelist Thomas R. Weaver joins Sara for a chat about his new techno-thriller 'Artificial Wisdom'.

They discuss Thomas' thoughts on AI, his entrepreneurial background and how he came to be a novelist. We also play out a little taster of the audiobook - and get some brilliant book recommendations too.

Here's a little more about the book:

Who would you trust with the future?

The year is 2050. In the teeth of a climate catastrophe, the world is left with a drastic solution: one global leader to steer it through the coming apocalypse.

The final two candidates are ex-US President Lockwood, and Solomon, the world’s first political artificial intelligence.

As whispers of a global conspiracy emerge, investigative journalist Marcus Tully find himself at the centre of it – when Solomon’s creator turns up murdered.

Overnight, one investigation becomes two, and it’s not just the result of the election that’s at stake but the future of the species. Suddenly humanity must make an impossible choice – between salvation, or freedom.

Sara welcomes international bestselling author, Maggie O'Farrell, to the Book Club. They discuss a brand new writing prize, set up in Hilary Mantel's name, which is open to all unpublished budding writers.

Maggie gives some great writing advice, talks us through her own writing routine - and - reveals her Top Five Reads Of The Year (so far)!

1. 'Glorious Exploits' by Ferdia Lennon

2026 is an exciting year for Maggie - not only is the film adaptation of her novel 'Hamnet' coming out, but she's also publishing a new novel - and Sara gets the lowdown on both of these new projects too!