End Point

Garry Disher's latest novel, Mischance Creek (2025) is a masterful crime novel and the fifth outing in his Hirsch series.

Twice a week Constable Paul Hirschhausen (Hirsch) leaves his single-officer police station in Tiverton, South Australia and does the rounds of his large rural beat. His wellbeing checks usually involve him assisting the isolated locals with small chores in exchange for a cup of tea and a biscuit. Times are hard in this part of the world, with a drought devastating farmers and families being crushed by the cost of living. At the moment, Hirsch is conducting compliance checks on licensed gun owners, inspecting their firearms and making sure they are safely stored.

Hirsch is called out to Mischance Creek to assist a tourist who has been caught in a ditch. Annika Nordrum isn't exactly sightseeing. She has come to this place to find her mother's remains. Eight years ago her parents were fossicking in the area when tragedy stuck. Her father was found dead at the bottom of a disused mine shaft but her mother was never found. For Hirsch, this mystery allows him to be more than a beat cop so he agrees to help with the investigation.

But Hirsh doesn't get to focus on one thing at a time. There are other issues in town: illegal dumping of building materials; the theft of a caravan; hoons driving dangerously; some misfits calling themselves sovereign citizens; and much more. Plus, Hirsch has a lot of personal matters to deal with. He worries about his mum, now a widow, and while his relationship with Wendy is going well, her daughter has now entered her awkward teenage years.

Readers of this blog will know that I am a huge fan of Garry Disher. Other Aussie Noir writers may have a higher profile (looking at you Hammer and Harper!) but Disher is the real deal. His plots are brilliantly paced, his characters are realistically crafted and multi-dimensional, and he depicts the landscape so well that readers can immediately feel a sense of place. Disher also presents the social issues facing rural communities well.

While Mischance Creek can be read as a standalone novel, you don't want to miss enjoying this series from the start. My reviews of other novels in the Hirsch series are available on this blog:

• Bitter Wash Road (2013)
• Peace (2019)
• Consolation (2020) 
• Day's End (2022)

I also recommend highly Disher's standalone novels, like: The Way it is Now (2021) and Sanctuary (2024). 

Finally, special thanks to my mum for giving me this book last Christmas. Loved it!

Stella Prize Longlist 2026

The 2026 Stella Prize longlist has been released! The annual literary award celebrating women and non-binary writers of both fiction and non-fiction is named after Australian author Stella Miles Franklin. 

Past winners include some of my favourite books on recent years, such as:

Sarah Holland-Batt for The Jaguar (2023)

Evie Wyld for The Bass Rock (2021)

Jess Hill for See What You Made Me Do (2020)

Vicki Laveau-Harvie for The Erratics (2019)

Heather Rose for The Museum of Modern Love (2017)

Charlotte Wood for The Natural Way of Things (2016)

Emily Bitto for The Strays (2015)

On 11 March 2026, the longlist was revealed with 12 nominees. 

The 2026 longlist is as follows:

• Eunice Andrada - Kontra (Poetry) 
• Evelyn Araluen - The Rot (Poetry) 
• Geraldine Brooks - Memorial Days (Memoir) 
• Debra Dank - Ankami (Memoir)
• Miranda Darling - Firewater (Fiction)
• Natalie Harkin - Apron-Sorrow/Sovereign-Tea (Non-Fiction)
• Lee Lai - Cannon (Graphic Novel)
• Charlotte McConaghy - Wild Dark Shore (Fiction)
• Lucy Nelson - Wait Here (Fiction)
• Micaela Sahara - Find Me at the Jaffa Gate: An Encyclopaedia of a Palestinian Family (Memoir)
• Marika Sosnowski - 58 Facets: On Violence and the Law (Non-Fiction)
• Tasma Walton - I Am Nannertgarrook (Fiction)

Fiona Sweet, Stella Prize CEO and Creative Director said of the longlist:

“Selected from an enormous pool of 212 entries, this year's judges have read thoughtfully and thoroughly across genres to bring us a cohort of twelve incredibly different, yet equally remarkable books. The Stella Prize is proud to celebrate a wide array of stories - difference has always been our strength. The 2026 Stella Prize long list spans widely across form and content, displaying some of the very best new work from Australian women and non-binary writers. There are stories here for everyone, stories that will resonate, surprise, delight, and challenge. We hope you will dive in and discover for yourself.”

Of the longlisted titles, I have read and loved Charlotte McConaghy's Wild Dark Shore. I am also interested in Brook's Memoir and Araleun's poetry collection. 

The Shortlist will be announced on 8 April 2026 with the winner of the $60,000 prize will be announced on 13 May 2026. 

 For more information and the complete judges comments, see the Stella Prize website. 

Carol Shields Prize for Fiction Longlist 2026

 American-born Canadian author Carol Shields is best known for award winning novels The Stone Diaries (1993), Larry's Party (1997), Unless (2002) although she also wrote plays, short stories and non-fiction. In 2023 an award was created in her memory to 'celebrate creativity and excellence in fiction by women and non-binary writers in Canada and the United States.' Past winners were:

• 2025 - Code Noir by Canisia Lubrin
• 2024 - Brotherless Night by VV Ganeshananthan
• 2023 - When We Were Sisters by Fatimah Asghar

Now in its fourth year, the longlist has been revealed with the following titles:

• The Edge of Water by Olufunke Grace Bankole 
• Sea, Poison by Caren Beilin 
• milktooth by Jaime Burnet 
• Suddenly Light by Nina Dunic 
• Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards
• Hellions by Julia Elliott 
• Casualties of Truth by Lauren Francis-Sharma 
• The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes 
• Audition by Katie Kitamura 
• Cannon by Lee Lai 
• Wild Life by Amanda Leduc
• A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
• The Morgue Keeper by Ruyan Meng
• The Sea Gives Up the Dead by Molly Olguín 
• Lion by Sonya Walger

Of these books, the ones I am most likely to read are the novels by Kitamura and Majumdar which have also been longlisted for the 2026 Women's Prize for Fiction.

The shortlist will be revealed on 21 April 2026 and the winner on 2 June 2026 at a ceremony in Toronto. The winner received $150,000 USD while the four shortlisted finalist receive $12,500 each. If the winner is translated, the author receives $100,000 USD and the translator $50,000. 

Women's Prize for Fiction Longlist 2026

On 4 March 2026, the Women's Prize for Fiction longlist was revealed! The annual literary award celebrating women writers has previously recognised the talents of so many gifted writers, including these past winners which are among my favourite reads:

Yael Van Der Wouden - The Safe Keep (2025)

Barbara Kingsolver - Demon Copperhead (2023)

Susanna Clarke - Piranesi (2021)

Maggie O'Farrell - Hamnet (2020)

Tayari Jones - An American Marriage (2019)

Lionel Shriver - We Need to Talk About Kevin (2005)

Andrea Levy - Small Island (2004)

 

The 2026 longlist is as follows:

Lucy Apps - Gloria Don't Speak

Nineteen-year-old Gloria has a learning disability. She has little to do except hang out with Jack. He is controlling and commits an act of violence. Gloria is largely non-verbal. She has to give evidence against him, but wants to remain friends. This is a tender book about a vulnerable person, taking readers into a life they are likely unfamiliar with. Author Apps is a doctor, working as a GP in London. Gloria Don't Speak is her debut novel. 

Hannah Lillith Assadi - Paradiso 17

Sufien was born in Palestine in 1948 and is forced to leave his home for a Syrian refugee camp. In exile, he spends his life searching for something he cannot articulate. He journeys to Damascus, Kuwait, Italy, New York and Arizona in search of family, friends, home. This is a story of displacement and belonging. American author Assadi teaches fiction at Columbia University. Her previous works are The Stars Are Not Yet Bells and Sonora.

Elaine Castillo - Moderation

Girlie is a content moderator removing inappropriate content on the internet. She takes a new job working for a big social media company on its new virtual-reality theme parks. The new job takes her away from family and friends. It seems like a dream opportunity, but she is soon in a virtual world and developing real feelings for her boss. Castillo is an author from California. Moderation is her second novel, having previously published America Is Not The Heart. Moderation sounds really intriguing and I love the cover!

Susan Choi - Flashlight

Ten-year-old Louisa and her academic father Serk go for a walk on a beach when tragedy strikes. Serk has disappeared.  Louise and her mother Anne are left to put together what happened. The novel moves between the post-war Korean immigrant community in Japan, suburban American and North Korea. Choi is an American author of six novels. She is best known Trust Exercise (2019) which won the US National Book Award for Fiction. Flashlight was Shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize and Longlisted for the 2025 National Book Award.

Addie E Citchens - Dominion

Set in Mississippi, Reverend Winfrey preaches at the local Baptist church and hosts a radio program, influencing every aspect of his community. His wife Priscilla, is by his side, raising their five sons. Their youngest son, Wonderboy is the favourite to continue his father's legacy. When Wonderboy is involved in a violent incident, the community reels. This story is told through the perspectives of the women who love these men.  Citchens is a writer from Mississippi. Dominion is her debut novel.

Wendy Erskine - The Benefactors

Three women from Belfast - Frankie, Miriam and Bronagh - have 18 year old sons. They have completely different backgrounds, but are brought together when their sons are accused of sexual assault at a house party. The story is told through the perspectives of all involved. Erskine is best known for her short story collections Sweet Home and Dance Move. She currently works as a secondary school teacher in Belfast. The Benefactors is her debut novel.

Virginia Evans - The Correspondent

Septuagenarian Sybil Van Antwerp sits down each day to write letters. She writes to her family, friends, former colleagues, her favourite authors, and she also writes but does not send, letters to another person to whom she shares her deepest feelings. Through the letters she writes and receives, readers come to learn about Sybil and the vulnerability that lies beneath her hard exterior. This is an engrossing debut novel which I absolutely loved. So happy it is on the list. My review is available on this blog.

Marcia Hutchinson - The Mercy Step

Mercy is born in Bradford in 1962 into a chaotic household where she is misunderstood by her siblings. Her parents are part of the Windrush Generation, migrating from Jamaica. She struggles to bond with her parents as her father is a violent man and her mother immerses herself in church life. Mercy escapes to her imagination and books, where she can see alternate futures for herself. By her teens she knows that if she wants a different life, she will have to claim it for herself. The Mercy Step is Hutchinson's debut solo novel, having previously coauthored The Blackbirds of St Giles.

Sheena Kalayil - The Others

Set in a city in East Germany in 1989, three young people from diverse backgrounds are caught up in a love triangle. Theo is an East Berliner who wants to be a writer but cannot gain higher education as he refuses to be recruited by the Stasi. Immigrants Armando from Mozambique and Lolita from India have come to this place to pursue their own dreams. As the Berlin Wall begins to fall it brings hope for Theo but uncertainty for Armando and Lolita. Kalayil is a Manchester-based author and teacher. She has previously published The Bureau of Second Chances, Sense of Place, and The Wild Wind. The Others is her fourth novel. 

Rozie Kelly - Kingfisher

An academic becomes infatuated with his colleague, the poet, threatening his relationship with his partner. The poet is his opposite, he is a queer man who has never been interested in women. He and his partner are in an open relationship, but his obsessed with the poet was not what either of them expected. Kelly is a writer from North Yorkshire and Kingfisher is her debut novel. Her writing has been compared to Sally Rooney. 

Lily King - Heart the Lover

The narrator knows all about great love stories. During her college days she became involved with Sam and Yash, in a classic love triangle. Decades later, she is a successful writer, living with her husband and children. She has a surprise visit causing her to remember the past and the decisions she made when she was young. King is a bestselling author of five novels, including Euphoria, and  Writers and Lovers. Super excited to read this book and actually bought it last week in anticipation of it being longlisted! 

Katie Kitamura - Audition

A middle-aged actress meets a much younger man at a Manhattan restaurant. The woman is nervous and wonders what passers-by will make of the couple. Will they be seen as mother and son, age-gapped lovers, or something else? The pair have an unsettling conversation, giving way to more disquiet. Kitamura is an American author of five novels. She is best known for the critically acclaimed Intimacies (2021). Audition was Shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize and was on Barack Obama's 2025 summer reading list.

Megha Majumdar - A Guardian and a Thief 

Set in the near future, Ma, her young daughter Mishti and her elderly father are preparing to leave the Kolkata as it faces flood and famine. They have obtained visas and are planning to join Ma's husband in Michigan, but Ma's purse and all their immigration documents are stole by a thief who is desperate to care for his own family. Author Majumdar was raised in Kolkata but now lives in New York. She was nominated for the National Book Award for her debut novel A Burning. 

Charlotte McConaghy - Wild Dark Shore

I recently read Australian author Charlotte McConaghy's novel and absolutely loved it. Set on an island between Australia and Antarctica, it follows a family who are managing the shutdown of a research station which is being closed due to climate change. A terrible storm washes ashore a woman who arrives bruised and shivering, harbouring a secret. As she recovers from her injuries she discovers the island is full of secrets. Wild Dark Shore is a brilliant, multilayered, suspenseful page turner. My review is available on this blog. McConaghy is also the other of bestselling novels Migrations and Once There Were Wolves. 

Kit de Waal - The Best of Everything

It's the 1970s and Paulette works as an auxiliary nurse. She is desperately in love with Denton, but after he is killed she learns he had a wife and children that he never told her about. Still grieving this relationship, Paulette moves in with Denton's friend and soon has a child for whom she is determined to give the best of everything. De Waal is the author of My Name is Leon, an international bestseller, and a range of other novels, short stories and a memoir Without Warning and Only Sometimes (2022). She was previously longlisted for the Women's Prize in 2018 for The Trick to Time.

Alice Evelyn Yang - A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing

On her fourteenth birthday, Qianze's father walked out of her life. Eleven years later he shows up on her door, a stranger. He tells her about his past as a Red Guard during the Cultural Revolution, and how his mother survived Japanese occupation. While Qianze wants to know more about her family's past, it is dark and frightening to her. This is a story of intergenerational trauma, folklore and colonialism.  Yang is a Chinese American writer from Virginia. This is her first novel.

 
The chair of the judges, former Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard said of this longlist:

"Across a longlist that is international in both scope and setting, these sixteen books masterfully demonstrate the power of fiction to examine the messy business of being human. From climate change to artificial intelligence, they navigate the issues of our time with urgency and purpose, they immerse us in environments and experiences that are sometimes like our own, but more often are radically different, and they explore identities and perspectives that are often ignored or forgotten, amidst those inherently universal and recognisable. Spotlighting both emerging novelists and small, independent publishers, my fellow judges and I are proud to share a list that so wonderfully reflects the thriving creativity of contemporary women authors, as well as the crucial work of the Women’s Prize Trust in bringing unheard voices to the fore. It is truly a treasure trove for readers, and we offer our heartfelt congratulations to all the nominated writers."

My thoughts on the Longlist

This was an exciting list given there were so many surprises. I didn't blog my predictions this year but I was really hoping to see Wild Dark Shore and The Correspondent on the list so I am happy to see them longlisted. I had expected to see Madeliene Thein (The Book of Records) and Tayari Jones (Kin) on the list, and was hoping Emily Maguire (Rapture) to be longlisted too.

I have read two of the novels listed (The Correspondent and Wild Dark Shore) but I already have several others to get started with. I am particularly interested in Heart the Lover,  Moderation, and Audition. Many of the other books and authors I have not heard of, so I am delighted to be exposed to new writers. Last year's longlist gave me many hours of reading pleasure, so I am hopeful that this year's list will do the same. 

If I had to pick a shortlist, I would choose Flashlight, Audition, The Correspondent, and A Guardian and a Thief, to be among those listed. 

The shortlist will be announced on 22 April 2026 and the winner will be revealed on 11 June 2026. Happy reading!

Want more Longlist fun? Here are the judges announcing the longlist.

The Devilish Dougal Douglas

Muriel Spark's novella The Ballad of Peckham Rye (1960) is a curious creation. It begins with a jilted bride who is left at the altar when Humphrey Place is asked if he takes Dixie Morse to be his wife and he responds 'No'.  This scandalous event, the local gossips conclude, is due to Humphrey's friendship with  Scottish migrant Dougal Douglas. 

Readers are transported back a few months to Dougal's arrival in Peckham. He is an 'arts man' and gets a job at Meadows, Meade and Grindley, a textile factory. Dougal is employed in some odd occupation doing 'human research' into the inner lives of the people who work there. He hardly ever comes to the office, as he is also employed at another firm and is actually ghost writing a memoir of a retired actress/singer and is using his observations of locals to pad out the story. Dougal becomes close to Merle Coverdale, a secretary who is having an affair with her married boss, Mr Druce, the head of the company. While some people fall under the Dougal's spell, others are more wary - especially when he tells them he once had horns that have been surgically removed! Dougal's antics impact all the locals, and when he eventually leaves town he has caused untold havoc. 

It is hard to know what to make of this brief novella. While the idea was fun and the story could have been more darkly comical, I found it rather superficial and it didn't really grab me after the compelling start. In fact, I probably would not have finished it had it not been so short. Suffice it to say, the thing I liked most about this book is the cover on the Penguin Modern Classic edition. 

My reviews of other works by Muriel Spark are available on this blog:

• The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1961) 
• The Driver's Seat (1970) 

Very Nice People

In Agatha Christie's Mrs McGinty's Dead (1952), Hercule Poirot arrives home to his flat in London to find a gentleman has called. Superintendent Spence needs urgent assistance. A court has just convicted James Bentley of the murder of charwoman Mrs McGinty, his landlord, and sentenced him to death. Spence doesn't think he is guilty and wants Poirot's help to prove this and save the man from execution. 

Poirot heads to the village of Broadhinny and stays at a ramshackle guest house owned by the Summerhayes family. The accomodation is terrible - draughty, dirty and messy, with awful meals which offend Poirot's gastronomic sensibilities. From here Poirot wanders about the village interviewing the locals, whom he concludes are all very nice people. Poirot reminds Spence that very nice people 'has been, before now, a motive for murder' (Chapter 8).  He learns that a few days prior to the murder, Mrs McGinty had taken a clipping from the Sunday Comet, a gossipy newspaper. She had also purchased some ink and written letters to persons unknown. The newspaper clipping contained photos of four women who were involved in old criminal cases. Perhaps Mrs McGinty had recognised one of the women. Perhaps one of the women was now living in Broadhinny. Perhaps one of the women did not want her past revealed and killed Mrs McGinty to stop her from sharing this secret.

Like most Poirot novels, there are little clues scattered everywhere, a few red herrings, and the story culminates in a gathering of all potential suspects to hear Poirot narrate his findings and reveal the killer in dramatic fashion. 

I had never heard of Mrs McGinty's Dead so I went in with no knowledge of the story. This allowed me to theorise and guess motives and suspects, and while I had kind of worked it out, there were a few twists I had not foreseen. What I found problematic was that there were so many characters I could not keep them straight in my mind.  Between the Hendersons, Carpenters, Weatherbys, and Summerhayes there were too many similar characters that I could not tell them apart detracting from my enjoyment of the book. 

However, one of the delights of this novel is the character Ariadne Oliver, famed crime novelist in town to work with a playwright adapting one of her works. Oliver talks about the famous Finnish detective she has based her stories around, Sven Hjerson. Olivier exclaims: 

'How do I know why I ever thought of the revolting man? I must have been made! Why a Finn when I know nothing about Finland?.... You try something - and people seem to like it - and then you go on - and before you know where you are, you've got someone like that maddening Sven Hjerson toed to you for life. And people write and say how fond you must be of him, Fond of him? If I ever met that bony gangling, vegetable-eating Finn in real life, I'd do a better murder than any I've ever invented.' (Chapter 14)

Christie must have delighted in creating this fictitious version of herself and to critique her own famous detective. Mrs McGinty's Dead was Christie's 29th Poirot novel, and it marks the beginning of Poirot's final phase and Oliver's ascendency.

I read this novel as part of the 2026 Read Christie Challenge 'Biggest, Best, Beloved', which has placed Mrs McGinty's Dead in the 'Beloved Characters' category. While I cared little for most of the characters, I certainly enjoyed Poirot and Ariadne Oliver.

My reviews of other Christie novels are available on this blog: 

• The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1920)
• Murder on the Links (1923)
• The Body in the Library (1942)

 

International Booker Prize Longlist 2026

The International Booker Prize 2026 Longlist has been announced with thirteen titles of fiction translated into English.

The longlist is as follows:

• The Nights are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar (translated by Ruth Martin)
• 
  
  We are Green and Trembling by Gabriela Cabezon Camara (translated by Robin Myers)
• The Remembered Soldier by Anjet Dianne (translated by David McKay)
• 
  The Deserters by Mathais Enard (translated by Charlotte Mandell)
• Small Comfort by Ia Genberg (translated by Kira Josefsson)
• She Who Remains by Rene Karabash (translated by Izadora Angel)
• The Director by Daniel Kehlmann (translated by Ross Benjamin)
• On Earth as it is Beneath by Ana Paula Maia (translated by Padma Viswanathan)
• The Duke by Matteo Melchiorre (translated by Antonella Lettieri)
• The Witch by Marie NDiaye (translated by Jordan Stump)
• Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parispur (translated by Faridoun Farrokh)
• The Wax Child by Olga Ravn (translated by Martin Aitken)
• Taiwan Travelogue by Yang Shuang-zi (translated by Lin King)

Natasha Brown, Chair of the judges writes of this longlist: 

'Many of the submitted books examined the devastating consequences of war, which is reflected in our longlist. The list also features petty squabbles between neighbours, mysterious mountain villages, Big Pharma conspiracies, witchy women, ill-fated lovers, a haunted prison, and obscure film references. The page counts range from “pocket-friendly” to “doorstopper”. And while the books’ original publication dates span four decades, each story feels fresh and innovative.'

The prize awards £25,000 to the author and £25,000 to the translator, in recognition of the essential work of translators in bringing fiction to a wider audience. 

The only one of these titles that had been on my radar was The Director about a filmmaker who flees Nazi Germany for Hollywood. However, I am interested in The Remembered Soldier which sounds like an interesting story about a man who lost his memory in World War One and a woman who claims to be his wife. The Nights are Quiet in Tehran also sounds intriguing, about a family fleeing and then returning to Iran.  I need to read more translated fiction, so will be keen to investigate these titles further and see if I can track them down at the local library.

The shortlist of 6 titles will be announced on 31 March and the winner on 19 May 2026.

Dublin Literary Award Longlist 2026

Back in November 2025, the nominations for the 2026 Dublin LiteraryAward were announced with 69 titles vying for contention.  That list has now been whittled down to a longlist of twenty works of fiction as follows:

• Rachel Kushner - Creation Lake
• Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Dream Count
• Maria Reva - Endling
• Ali Smith - Gliff
• Aria Aber - Good Girl
• Magdelana Blazevic - In Late Summer
• Sally Rooney-  Intermezzo
• Brigitte Giraud - Live Fast
• Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin - Ordinary Saints
• Alan Hollinghurst - Our Evenings
• Laurent Binet - Perspective(s)
• Karen Russell - The Antidote
• Donatella Di Pietrantonio - The Brittle Age
• Siphuwe Gloria Ndlovu - The Creation of Half-Broken People
• Evie Wyld - The Echoes
• Ocean Vyong - The Emperor of Gladness
• Olga Tokarczuk - The Empusium
• Jerimamah Wei - The Orignial Daughter
• Elif Shafak - There are Rivers in the Sky
• Eric Chacour - What I Know About You

This is an interesting Longlist. I have only read Evie Wyld's The Echoes, but I have Intermezzo, and Our Evenings. Many of these titles have been recognised elsewhere, for example, Karen Russell's The Antidote was shortlisted for the National Book Award 2025, Maria Reva's Endling was longlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize, Rachel Kushner's Creation Lake was longlisted for the 2025 Carol Shields Prize, and both Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Dream Count and Aria Aber's Good Girl were longlisted for the 2025 Women's Prize. 

The Longlist will become a Shortlist of six titles in April 2026, while the winner of the 100,000 Euro prize will be announced in May 2026. 

The Sense of an Ending

On his eightieth birthday, English author Julian Barnes released his final book Departure(s) (2026). Currently being treated for a rare blood cancer, Barnes had one last book to write and has crafted a curious  hybrid work of fiction and memoir about aging and the problems of memory.  

Departure(s) begins with an exploration of memory - the Proustian involuntary autographical memory of madelines dunked in tea which transport the author back to an earlier time, the importance of forgetting unwanted memories, and the wonder of the human mind. Barnes plays with his reader, inserting himself (or a fictional version of himself) in the tale, and promising that this will be an unreliable story filled with gaps.

The first part of his story takes place at Magdelen College Oxford in the 1960s, where Julian is reading modern languages. Here he meets Stephen, a fellow student, and introduces him to Jean, a girl from Julian's Russian class. Stephen and Jean engage in a brief relationship while students, but then go their seperate ways. Forty years later, when Julian, Jean and Stephen are in their sixties, they are reunited, with Barnes again enabling the couple's meet-cute. This time they wed and, during their marriage, Julian is their confidant and sounding-board. 

Amidst this tale of love, is one of aging and death. Barnes' diaries are used to explore his diagnosis and treatment. His body is failing and he grasps on to recollections of his past. He is preparing to depart but still has some wisdom to convey. 

I have always liked Barnes as a writer. His wonderful novel The Sense of an Ending (2011) won the Booker Prize and prior to my blogging days, I enjoyed his A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters (1989) and Flaubert's Parrot (1984).  I had the good fortune of hearing him speak and meeting him at the 2016 Sydney Writers' Festival where he signed a copy of The Sense of an Ending for me. 

While the story was different, Departure(s) reminded me of Richard Flanagan's genre-defying Question 7 (2023) which blended autofiction, memoir, history and philosophy. As I read Departure(s) I initially wondered what parts were fiction and which were memoir, and then I realised it doesn't matter. This is Barnes' departure, leaving behind his brilliant career on his own terms, and giving his readers a gift with his contemplative musings. 

Journey's End

I have just finished the final volume of Philip Pullman's epic The Book of Dust trilogy. It has been 30 years since Pullman introduced the world to heroine Lyra Bellaqua (aka Lyra Silvertongue) in the His Dark Materials series. Now, with The Rose Field (2025), Lyra's journey has come to an end. While I am saddened that no more books will be written in this series, I feel tremendously satisfied with this story and was utterly gripped by its conclusion.

Picking up where volume two - The Secret Commonwealth (2019) - ended, Lyra is travelling East in search of her daemon Pantalaimon who is heading towards the Blue Hotel in the desert of Karamakan. Earlier Pan and Lyra had a disagreement, which saw Pan depart in search of Lyra's imagination. Lyra is assisted in her journey by her knowledgable and wily guide, Abdel Ionides. Pan, for the most part, is bravely travelling alone. 

For Lyra and Ionides, the journey is an arduous one in which the travel by land, sea and air. Along the way they meet witches, angels, and gryphons, while being tracked by both Olivier Bonneville and Marcel Delamare, the head of the Magisterium. Oakley Street agent and friend Malcolm Polstead is also on his way. Everyone is racing to get to gateway to another universe which houses the Rusakov Field. Will Pan and Lyra find one another? Will Delamare succeed in his ruthless ambition to rule the world with a global theocracy? Will they ever get home again?

Pullman is such a creative writer, having set this series in a world that mostly resembles our own, but with subtle differences. He offers a rebuke of authoritarianism, capitalism and colonialism, and there are times this reads as a cautionary tale.

I know some readers have criticised the ending for not tying all the threads up in a neat, shiny bow. But I loved this, as Pan's whole quest was to find Lyra's imagination, her childlike wonder and free-thinking mind. Pullman is encouraging his readers to do the same and use our imaginations to continue this story. He has played his last Myriorama card, and now it is our turn to chose the next one.

As with the previous two volumes, I power-read this alongside Michael Sheen's audiobook narration. I absolutely loved Sheen's storytelling as he is able to voice different characters/accents, and he alters her tone and pace to drive the story forward. Highly recommend listening to the audiobook! 

Farewell Lyra and Pan. Thank you - and Mr Pullman - for an incredible adventure that has brought me such joy over the past thirty years. 

My reviews of the previous books in this trilogy are available on this blog:

• La Belle Sauvage (2017) 
• The Secret Commonwealth (2019) 

I don't have reviews of Pullman's earlier His Dark Materials trilogy - Northern Lights (aka The Golden Compass) (1995) The Subtle Knife (1997) and The Amber Spyglass (2000) - as I read these long before I started this blog. Perhaps it is time to revisit....  

Women's Prize for Non-Fiction Longlist 2026

The third annual Women's Prize for Non-Fiction longlist has been revealed! This prize celebrates non-fiction written by women. The Winner will receive £30,000. Sixteen works of non-fiction were longlisted.

The 2026 longlist is as follows:

Barbara Demick - Daughters of the Bamboo Grove: China's Stolen Children and a Story of Separated Twins

In 2000 a Chinese woman secretly gave birth to identical twin girls. An American couple adopted an abandoned baby girl from China, not knowing that she had been snatched from her mother and separated from her twin. Author journalist Demick is the adoptive mother who only discovered the truth in 2007. This book tells the story of what happened to these twins and Demick's role in reuniting them. Demnick is the author of Eat the Buddha (2020) and Besieged (2012).

Lyse Doucet - The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People's History of Afghanistan

The luxury Hotel Inter-Continental in Kabul is a modern wonder in a city and country that has been devastated by civil war and invasion. It has remained open using the fall and rise of the Taliban, and has welcomed journalists and visitors from around the world. BBC journalist Doucet writes about the Afghans who have maintained the hotel since the 1970s.

Jenny Evans - Don't Let It Break You, Honey: A Memoir About Saving Yourself

At 18 Evans was cast in a cult film and thought she had got her big break. She was assaulted at a party by a high profile person and reported the crime. A tabloid published her story without her permission. Evans went on to train as a journalist to make sense of what happened and realised she was part of the 'phone-hacking' scandal. This memoir is about resilience and finding your own voice.

Daisy Fancourt - Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health 

While most people consume art as a hobby, perhaps the arts are more beneficial to our health than we realise. Professor Fancourt explores the science behind the transformational power of arts and how it is good for the mind and the body. Fancourt is a professor of Psychobiology and Epidemiology at University College London.

Lady Hale - With the Law on Our Side: How the Law Works for Everyone and How We Can Make It Work Better

Written by the former President of the British Supreme Court, this book uses real cases to explore the justice system and how the law works. This is an accessible, easy to read book peppered with compelling cases. It is designed to give a glimpse behind the formalities of the intimidating legal system, and show that everyone has rights to be protected. Baroness Hale was called to the Bar in 1969, became a judge in 1994. She was President of the Supreme Court from 2017-2020.

Kidiatu Kanneh-Mason - To Be Young, Gifted and Black: Creativity and Race in the 21st Century

Kannah-Mason is the mother of seven children who are all gifted, classically-trained musicians (including cellist Sheku Janneh-Mason who performed at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle). When one of her children was the victim of racist online bullying, she had conversations with her children about Black artistic self-expression and how to rise above the abuse. This book explores belonging and creativity.

Judith Mackrell - Artists, Siblings, Visionaries: The Lives and Loves of Gwen and Augustus John

Welsh post-impressionist painter Augustus John was known for his portraiture as well as for fathering children with many different women. His sister Gwendolyn was also an artist, and long-time lover of sculptor Auguste Rodin. This book explores the sibling artists, their work and their lives. Biographer Mackrell has written books about other artists and was the dance critic for The Guardian. 

Deepa Paul - Ask Me How it Works: Love in an Open Marriage

Paul is a Filipina-Indiana author living in Amsterdam. Married, with children, Paul also has a boyfriend. In this book she answers questions many people have about open marriage, how it works and whether polyamory is worth it. Deepa seeks to live an authentic life, without shame for her desires.

Sarah Perry - Death of an Ordinary Man

When her father-in-law died in 2022 only nine days after his cancer diagnosis, Perry realised that this ordinary may was actually quite extraordinary. This meditation on mortality shows that life and death are both ordinary and unique. Perry is an internationally best selling novelist best known for The Essex Serpent, what was longlisted for the 2017 Women's Prize for Fiction. 

Harriet Rix - The Genius of Trees: How Trees Mastered the Elements and Shaped the World

Trees are change agents, surviving forrest fires, drought, climate change and human interference. They manipulate fungi, water, animals and humans to survive. Humans have a lot to thank trees for and this book is designed to ensure readers never look at trees the same way again. Rix is a science consultant and writer with a passion for ecology. 

Jane Rogoyska - Hotel Exile: Paris in the Shadow of War

The Hotel Lutetia on Paris' Left Bank has served as a meeting place for bohemian artists, musicians and politicians. Among its guests were Andre Gide, James Joyce, Pablo Picasso, Josephine Baker, and Henri Matisse. In the 1930s activists and intellectuals fleeing Hitler's rise to power, came to the hotel and attempted to form an alternative government. When Paris was occupied, it became the headquarters of the German Military intelligence service. After the war, it was requisitioned again as a repatriation centre for people returning from concentration camps. Author Rogoyska charts the incredible history of this hotel at the heart of European history.

Arundhati Roy - Mother Mary Comes to Me

The Booker Prize winning novelist Arundhati Roy's memoir details how her relationship with her mother Mary shaped her life. It is the story of how Roy became an artist, writer and activitist. The mother-daughter relationship was fraught, but provided the fuel for Roy's remarkable life. From all the reviews I have read, this memoir sounds brilliant,

Zakia Sewell - Finding Albion: Myth, Folklore and the Quest for a Hidden Britain

Documentarian Sewell has travelled across Britain in search of its folklore and myth. She learns of Celtic rites, ancient folksongs and seasonal rituals. Along the way, she discovers the story of who the British are and where they are going. 

Grace Spence Green - To Exist As I Am: A Doctor's Notes on Recovery and Radical Acceptance

Junior doctor Spence Green has a life changing injury in 2018 which has confined her to a wheelchair. In this memoir, she shows how to turn tragedy into advocacy as she uses her resilience to fight for a more accessible and inclusive future. Hailed as an eye opener and a must-read for the medical profession, this memoir is a powerful story of rehabilitation and the need to change the narrative around disability. 

Ece Temelkuran - Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century 

The number of displaced persons continue to grow as exiles and refugees seek shelter in new places. Nation of Strangers is a series of letters between strangers encouraging them to welcome newcomers and push back against oppression. The meaning of Home shifts, not just meaning a place to live but also a sense of comfort and security. Turkish author and activist, currently based in Berlin, writes on the rise of fascism around the world. 

Lea Ypi - Indignity: A Life Reimagined

Ypi finds a photo of her grandmother honeymooning in the Alps in 1941 amidst the horrors of World War Two. She thought records of her grandmother had long been lost, so begins a search to discover her past. In doing so she questions the moral authority with which we judge the acts of those who came before us. Chair in Politics and Philosophy at the London School of Economics, Lea Ypi won the Ondaatje Prize for her first book Free: Coming of Age at the End of History.

The Chair of the Judges, Baroness Thangam Debonnaire, said of the Longlist:

'The books on this hopeful longlist are rigorous and researched, lyrical and flowing. They are drawn together by the originality and skill with which they have been written. This reading list carries relevance and truth for the future as well as holding significant value for the present day – the books spark curiosity and demand attention; they are for everyone navigating the complicated and unpredictable world we are living in. The voices of these sixteen remarkable women need to be heard – loud and clear.'

I have not read any of these titles, and I have to say I am disappointed that Hannah Kent was not recognised for her brilliant memoir Always Homesick, Always Home. I had also anticipated that Jacinda Arden's A Different Kind of Power, Electric Spark and Yiyun Li's Things in Nature Merely Grow would be in the list. I am surprised, but not saddened, that there are no books on Artificial Intelligence or technology on the list.

Of the longlist, the only one I am likely to read, and my early pick for winner, is Arundhati Roy's memoir Mother Mary Comes to Me. If I can find them in the library, the other books that interest me are Hotel Exile, Indignity and Nation of Strangers.

The shortlist will be announced on 25 March 2026 and the winner will be revealed on 11 June 2026. Happy reading!

Want more? Here is the video of the Longlist announcement.

Cat and Mouse

Dead Lions (2013) is the second novel in Mick Herron's Slough House series, and the subject of season two of the tv series Slow Horses. 

London's Slough House is an off-shoot of the British spy service MI5, where incompetent or disgraced agents remain on the payroll doing tedious archiving or low level grunt work, forever hoping to make their way back to MI5 headquarters, 'The Park'. The man overseeing these misfits, Jackson Lamb, knows they will burnout, quit or die before ever being redeemed. Lamb himself was stationed in Berlin at the height of the Cold War, before he wound up as head of the Slow Horses. Dismissed by The Park as a washed out annoyance, and physically resembling the same in his stained clothes and greasy visage, Lamb has dirt on 'Second Desk' Diana Taverner. Despite his appearance and the time he spends sleeping, drinking and/or smoking at his desk, Lamb possesses a razor-sharp mind which allows him to piece together clues which would be undecipherable to others.

Lamb is out in the field for much of Dead Lions. An old chum from his Berlin days has been found dead on a bus in Oxford. Dickie Bow's demise doesn't raise an eyebrow anywhere, but Lamb knows there is more to his death and starts to investigate Bow's movements leading up to his death. Bow left a cryptic message, which hints at the return of a ghost from their past. 

Back at Slough House, Louisa and Min have been seconded to help The Park with a Russian oligarch that may become an asset. Roddy Ho continues his online creeping. Newcomers Shirley Dander and Marcus Longridge join the team, wary of each other. River Cartwright is given an opportunity to go undercover, ever hoping to prove himself. Meanwhile Standish, the steely core of Slough House, keeps the wheels turning. As all these agents busy themselves in seemingly unrelated tasks, the pace quickens leading to a heart-racing crescendo.

 

I loved Dead Lions. Herron has done something remarkable in creating a modern thriller which hints at Cold War old school spycraft and marries this with satire and laugh-out-loud dialogue. Herron's genius comes in his innovative use of scene setting, bookending this novel with a walkthrough of Slough House by a cat and mouse. His pacing in brilliant and I admire the way Herron weaves the various strands of the story together.

Having seen the series, the characters are forever imprinted in my mind as the actors who play them. But this is not a bad thing, as the series is perfectly cast. There are several differences between the novel and the television adaptation, that also make for interesting reading. So glad I have a box set of these books on hand as I am sure it won't be long before I visit Slough House again.

 My reviews of other books in Mick Herron's Slough House series can be found on this blog:

• Slow Horses (2010)

Storm Front

Australian author Charlotte McConaghy's Wild Dark Shore (2025) is a novel which appeared on many 'best novels of the year' lists and regularly popped up on social media with high praise from readers. Knowing little about it, other than it was a work of speculative fiction set on a remote island, I downloaded the audiobook and was immediately sucked in by this remarkable tale.

On the fictional island of Shearwater, located in the cold waters between Tasmania and Antartica, is a research station which holds a seed vault. This collection of seeds, from plants all over the world, has been preserved underground in an icy room to protect the diverse species. There are countless penguins, sea lions and other creatures who thrive in this environment, but the only human inhabitants are the Salt family. Dominic Salt has lived here with his three children for the past eight years, so he knows the island intimately. He is the lighthouse keeper and custodian of Shearwater. Climate change and rising sea levels have led to a decision to close the station, so the researchers have departed and Salt has to pack up the island before the ship arrives to ferry them all back to the mainland. 

A devastating storm rattles the island, and a woman washes ashore. Bruised and shivering, the Salts take her in and tend to her wounds. They soon get to know her, and suspect she is harbouring a secret. But they too have secrets. After so long without a mother, the children form a bond with Rowan.

I loved this novel. The setting of a remote island gives the story a lot of energy and a locked-room mystery element. The sense of place is vivid as McConaghy has described it so well that readers can picture the landscape, smell the salty sea air, and feel the bone chilling cold. The characters were fascinating and McConaghy is gifted in the way she drip feeds information about Rowan, Dominic and the children. Each chapter is told by from a different perspective, so we see things from their point of view. There is also a lot to learn here as young Orly, knows everything about the different species of plants and animals and is keen to share his passion.

I cannot say much more about the story without spoiling it for others, so it is best that readers go in with no expectations. I did and was surprised to find that this novel is multi-layered and so engaging. There are complex themes to McConaghy's novel, with plenty of fodder for book clubs to ponder. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook version, as it employs several talented voice actors who narrate the chapters from the perspective of their characters. It also adds a sense of urgency as the novel heads towards its thrilling conclusion. 

I can see why McConaghy topped so many reader's lists last year. It will certainly be among my top reads this year. 

Immortal Words

Retired lawyer Sybil Van Antwerp lives alone in Arnold, Maryland. There is routine to the septuagenarian's life. She reads, keeps her house by the river tidy, but mostly she sits at her desk with a mug of Irish breakfast tea and writes letters. Occasionally she will send an email, but Sybil prefers to write in cursive longhand and send the letters by post.  

Sybil writes to authors like Joan Didion, Ann Patchett and Larry McMurtry, telling them about her admiration for their books. She writes to her beloved brother, Felix now living in France with his husband. She writes to her daughter Fiona, a career-driven mother living in London, and to her son Bruce who lives near enough that he could visit more often. She writes to a child of a colleague, the local Garden Club, her neighbour, the editors of a newspaper and a company help desk. Sybil is also writing a long, unsent letter to another person in which she reveals some of her most painful memories and deepest fears. 

Virginia Evans' delightful debut The Correspondent (2025) is an epistolary novel, told in letters. Through the letters she writes and receives, we learn about Sybil and the secrets she holds, the regrets she has, and the belonging she desires. 

Sybil is a remarkable character you cannot help feeling affection for.  Externally she presents as strong-willed and cold, but underneath she is vulnerable and needs to make peace with her past. Evans has lovingly crafted Sybil and tenderly helps her to know and possibly forgive herself. 

The novel is engrossing and covers some deep themes - family, friendship, loss, aging, regret, companionship. I loved how it shined a light on the lost art of letter writing. In a world of social media, instant messaging and AI, the art of a handwritten letter has disappeared. I cannot even remember the last time I wrote or received a handwritten letter, yet I have fond memories of sending aerograms and cards in the time before the internet. If I could, I would love to write to Sybil (she would be an excellent pen pal) and exchange book recommendations with her.  

I highly recommend this unique novel. While it is only January, I have a feeling this will be among my top books for the year. I will be thinking about The Correspondent for a long time to come.