World Book Club

Harriett Gilbert welcomes John Connolly to World Book Club to answer your question on his beautiful, but twisted fairy tale - The Book of Lost Things. Set in the Second World War. The novel tells the tale of twelve-year-old David, who mourns the death of his mother while shut up in his attic bedroom with only his books for company. But those books have begun to whisper to him, tempting him... As his family falls apart, David is drawn into a world peopled by heroes and monsters of fairytale and myth, ruled by a shadowy king who keeps his secrets in a mysterious book, The Book of Lost Things. Not a fairytale for children, the novel is unnerving, psychologically gripping, and achingly tender in parts. It explores how we survive loss, how we can grow braver than we ever thought was possible, and how the stories we cling to can both save us, and scar us. John will answer questions such as what is the hidden meaning behind the monsters young David must confront, why we return to fairy tales throughout our lives, and if he believes in ‘book magic’.

Octavia Bright talks to Ragnar Jónasson about his shocking thriller, The Darkness.When Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir is unceremoniously told she is being forced into early retirement, she is given the chance to work on one last Cold Case, anything she likes. The case she chooses to revive is centred on the death of a Russian asylum seeker, a 27-year-old woman who had been found dead on the icy shore a year before.As Hulda reopens the case, she discovers that another young woman disappeared at the same time - and that crucial facts have been withheld. Witnesses are evasive, records incomplete, and even her fellow officers appear determined to stall her investigation. With only two weeks to uncover the truth, Hulda must uncover what really happened, even at the risk of her own life.Ragnar answers listeners questions such as - how he created his detective, Hulda? How the Icelandic landscape shapes his characters and stories? And if he realised the ending of the novel would shock so many of his readers?

Harriett Gilbert welcomes the French author Laurent Binet to the World Book Club studio to answer your questions about his acclaimed novel HHhH.The book tells the story of the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich, one of the chief architects of the Holocaust, and the daring mission carried out by Czech resistance fighters in Nazi-occupied Prague. At the same time, Binet places himself into the narrative, obsessively questioning how history should be told, where fact ends and fiction begins, and whether a writer ever has the right to blur that line.Recorded in front of a live audience at The American Library in Paris, Laurent will be answering your questions about blending history and fiction without betraying the truth, why he chose to make himself writing part of the story itself, and how storytelling is an attempt to confront, or make sense of, the darkest moments in history.

Harriett Gilbert welcomes master of suspense, the Canadian author Linwood Barclay in the World Book Club Studio, to answer your questions about his thriller 'Take Your Breath Away'.The story centres on Andrew Mason, whose wife Brie vanished six years ago, making him the prime suspect. But just as he’s beginning to rebuild his life, a mysterious woman resembling Brie suddenly appears, forcing him to uncover the truth about what happened to his wife, uncovering secrets and lies at every turn.Linwood will be answering your questions, about how to craft a mystery that keeps readers hooked till the last page, how playing with different points of view can mask or reveal the truth, and why vivid settings can be just as important as characters to telling a compelling story.

Harriett Gilbert welcomes bestselling author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni into the World Book Club studio to discuss her internationally acclaimed novel, The Palace of Illusions.A luminous reimagining of the ancient Indian epic, the Mahabharat, The Palace of Illusions traces the life of Princess Panchaali—better known as Draupadi—from her miraculous birth in fire to her destiny as the wife of five brothers cheated of their father’s kingdom. Swept into their quest to reclaim their birthright, Panchaali stands beside them through years of exile and the terrible civil war that engulfs the kings of India. Along the way, she navigates fierce rivalries, a complex friendship with the enigmatic Krishna, and a forbidden attraction to her husbands’ most dangerous enemy.With its vivid imagery, lyrical prose and unforgettable characters, Divakaruni’s novel brings to life a world of warriors, gods, and fate, seen through the eyes of a fiery woman determined to shape her own destiny.Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni answers readers’ questions about reclaiming women’s voices from myth and legend, the different kinds of love - marital, forbidden and divine, and how mythology can be used to re-write expectations for how people should live their lives even in the modern day.

Harriett Gilbert welcomes bestselling author Philippa Gregory into the World Book Club studio to discuss her celebrated historical novel, The Other Boleyn Girl.This novel, about to celebrate its 25th anniversary, is a vivid portrayal of ambition, love, and betrayal in the Tudor Court, told from the perspective of Mary Boleyn, sister to the ill-fated Anne. As Mary becomes the mistress of King Henry VIII, Anne sets her sights on the throne. Set against the splendour and peril of sixteenth-century England, Philippa Gregory’s masterful novel explores power, desire, and the price women paid in a world where one man’s whims were considered sacrosanct.Philippa Gregory answers readers’ questions on what drives her fascination with women’s untold histories, the clash between love and ambition in the fraught world of the English court, and whether sisterhood can survive when the ultimate prize is the crown of England.

Harriett Gilbert welcomes Nigerian author Oyinkan Braithwaite into the World Book Club studio to discuss her internationally bestselling debut, My Sister, the Serial Killer — a darkly comic thriller that has captivated readers around the globe.This is the story of two sisters, Korede, the responsible and overlooked older sibling, and Ayoola, the beautiful younger sister with a deadly secret. When Ayoola’s boyfriends keep turning up dead, Korede finds herself in an impossible position — torn between loyalty to her sister and her own moral compass. Set against the backdrop of modern-day Lagos, this sharp, fast paced novel explores family, power, and the lengths we go to for those we love.Oyinkan Braithwaite answers your questions about why are some forms of violence treated as ordinary while others shock us? How far does beauty allow someone to escape consequences? And what exactly defines the bond — or the burden — of sisterhood?(Photo: Author Oyinkan Braithwaite. Credit: Studio Q)

Harriett is joined by Silvia Moreno-Garcia to discuss her chilling bestseller Mexican Gothic. The story begins when Noemí Taboada, a glamorous socialite from 1950s Mexico City, receives a desperate letter from her cousin Catalina, claiming her new husband is poisoning her. Unsure if Catalina is mad or truly in danger, Noemí rushes to High Place - a decaying English manor transplanted to the Mexican mountains. But is she to be the rescuer, or the unwitting prey of the evil that festers in the bones of the house? High Place, and its inhabitants, want Noemí, and it will take all her courage and ingenuity to save her cousin, and herself. A masterful blend of gothic suspense, startlingly vivid imagery and dark romance, Mexican Gothic has sparked intense fascination from readers around the world - and Silvia Moreno-Garcia will be answering questions from our global audience of book lovers. Why is Gothic literature seeing a resurgence in the 21st century? How does horror allow us to explore themes of colonialism and sexual violence? And where is the very real cemetery that inspired the setting of High House?

Join us for a special episode of World Book Club as we journey into the fog-shrouded moors of Devon to explore The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle—arguably the most iconic and enduring novel in the Sherlock Holmes canon. First published in 1902, this gothic masterpiece has captivated readers for over a century and remains a cornerstone of detective fiction.Harriett Gilbert is joined by internationally bestselling crime writer Denise Mina whose books include Three Fires, and The Good Liar and Dr Mark Jones, co-presenter of The Doings of Doyle podcast and editor of The Sherlock Holmes Journal. Together, they’ll be answering your questions about The Hound of the Baskervilles and discussing Sherlock Holmes’s lasting influence on crime and detective fiction.Recorded in front of a live audience at Topping & Company Booksellers in Edinburgh during the Edinburgh Festival, this episode is a treat for mystery lovers everywhere. Expect lively debate as the panel considers whether all great fictional detectives need to be a little insufferable, whether the novel’s gothic atmosphere has had more impact on the genre than Holmes’s famed deductive reasoning—and why the spectral hound continues to haunt readers’ imaginations more than a century after it first appeared.

Harriett Gilbert talks with Juhea Kim about her debut novel Beasts of a Little Land.Set during the turbulent years of Japanese-occupied Korea in the early 20th century, this sweeping historical epic traces the lives of two unforgettable characters: Jade, a young girl sold to a courtesan school, and JungHo, the orphaned son of a hunter who becomes swept up in the Communist resistance. Over five decades, their paths cross and recross as they navigate war, occupation, and revolution. Rich with lyrical prose, folklore, and unflinching insight into the brutality of empire, Beasts of a Little Land explores identity, loyalty, and the high price of survival. Juhea Kim will be talking about why the Tiger is such an important symbol in Korean history, how her writing is structured like a symphony, and how as a writer she strives to show the humanity of all her characters when they are on very different sides of war and colonialism.