Book Off!

This week we welcome bestselling authors Saara El-Arifi and Callie Hart to the podcast, who go head to head in a war of the words. We chat fantasy, romantasy, maps, sexy fairies - and also learn a new word 'Chussy' (don't google it!) Callie and Saara also give us some brilliant book recommendations and some top writing tips! (oh, and di we mention the interpretive dance?) THE BOOK OFF 'Gideon The...

We welcome two brilliant debut novelists to Book Off this week, who go head to head in a war of the words... Xenobe Purvis and Gurnaik Johal have both recently published their first novels - and they are both brilliant! Hear them discuss their inspirations, writing and research techniques. how to choose a good title and why reading slowly is good. In a Book Off first - Gurnaik pitches a book he ha...

Two debut novelists, Wendy Erskine and Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin join Joe Haddow for a war of the words! They discuss their brilliant new novels ('The Benefactors' and 'Ordinary Saints') as well as giving us some brilliant book recommendations too. They also chat about 'queer literature', the Women's Prize, how to cast a book and the joy of free writing. THE BOOK OFF 'The Price Of Salt' ('Carol') by Pat...

Bestselling crime writers, MW Craven and JD Kirk go head to head in a war of the words... They chat with Joe Haddow about their latest novels ('The Final Vow' and 'A Rock And A Hard Place'), their inspirations, meeting artists they admire and acting weird...and Terry Pratchett. There's quite a lot of Terry Pratchett chat! (Chatchett?) As ever, we have some brilliant book recommendations for you -...

Two bestselling authors, both alike in dignity, in the fair Book Off studio - where we lay our scene... On this episode we bring together two brilliant minds, authors and Scots - Irvine Welsh and John Niven. They discuss their latest novels, nostalgia, returning characters...and the joy of writing in the pre-mobile phone era. They also chat Oasis, crime fiction, the shit that appears on instagram...

It's our 150th episode!!! Can you believe it? No, we can't either... ...and celebrating our big birthday are Harriet Evans and Laura Barnett, who join Joe for a brilliant bit of Booking Off. Sadly - there's no cake or party poppers - thanks to the terrible Thameslink service which meant Joe couldn't get to the shops in time, but there's still a lot of great book chat! Harrie and Laura discuss thei...

Bestselling author Holly Smale goes head to head with Comedian and writer Cally Beaton in a War Of The Words. The authors chat to Joe Haddow about their latest books, imposter syndrome, living in the present and what Orca's can teach us about feminism. They also also share some great book recommendations THE BOOK OFF 'East Of Eden' by John Steinbeck VS 'The Beekeeper Of Aleppo' by Christy Lefteri...

Bestselling spy novelists, David McCloskey and Paul Vidich, join Joe Haddow for a good ole fashioned booking off! As well as discussing their new novels ('The Seventh Floor' and 'The Poets Game'), they also share some great book recommendations and talk us through their writing processes. Spy novels are such a great way to learn about world history - and have arguably never been more popular - so...

Wendy Holden and Jane Thynne are both former journalists turned authors. In fact, they both worked in newsrooms together back in the 1980s. In this episode, they bring their journalistic competitiveness to the Book Off, but who will triumph? They also discuss their new novels, their fascination with WW2, why we need to keep telling historic stories and how fun research can be. They also give us so...

Bestselling authors Linwood Barclay and CJ Tudor join Joe Haddow for a chat about their latest books. They discuss genre bending, horror tropes, Stephen King, rocking horses, muffins and building tension. Quite the eclectic mix! They also give us some brilliant book recommendations too. THE BOOK OFF 'Long Island' by Colm Toibin VS 'Altered Carbon' by Richard K Morgan And here's more on their lates...

This week, Joe welcomes Milly Johnson and Samuel Burr to the studio to chat about their new novels. They talk about their writing habits, author mates, female friendships and the menopause amongst man other things. They also give us some great book recommendations too! THE BOOK OFF 'We All Want Impossible Things' by Catherine Newman VS 'Persuasion' by Jane Austen And here's more on our guests book...

Emilia Hart and Bridget Collins join Joe Haddow for a pretty fun and chaotic Book Off! They chat about their brilliant new novels and give us some great book recommendations too. They also talk about the importance of author mates, accidental deleted manuscripts and some scary scary creepy scenes too. Joe had a glass of wine at lunch before the recording - and then had a negroni thrust in his hand...

Debut novelists, Roisin O'Donnell and Chris McQueer, go head to head in a war of the words. They discuss their latest books ("Nesting" and "Hermit"), their writing inspirations, the power of short stories and the rise of toxic masculinity. Whilst Andrew Tate doesn't in any way dominate this conversation (nor should he dominate any conversation), the authors discuss how young boys and men are being...

Sir Ben Okri and Colum McCann join Joe Haddow for a war of the words... This is Ben's second appearance on Book Off! (The first author to ever appear on the pod twice) Let's see if he's learnt anything from the last time! He chats about his woozy new novella - "Madame Sosostris And The Festival For The Broken-Hearted' - and the poem that inspired it. We also learn he has read 'War & Peace' FOU...

Bestselling thriller writer(s) Nicci French go head to head in a war of the words, expertly refereed by Joe Haddow. Nicci French is the pen name for husband and wife writing team, Nicci Gerrard and Sean French, and this is our first official Book Off couple! Sean and Nicci discuss their latest novel, The Last Days Of Kira Mullan, and dig into some of the themes which inspired this story. Here's th...

On the first episode of Series 14, we welcome bestselling authors Emma Healey and Fiona Scarlett to the studio. They chat about their new novels, give us some great book recommendations - and go head to head in a war of the words! (aka The Book Off) Emma Healey's new novel - Sweat - is a maze-like game of revenge. It blends wellness culture with a slow-burn feminist thriller - and is eery and unse...

Two great music writers - James Kaplan and Paul Alexander - join Joe for a War of the Words. Joe gets excited and takes a deep dive into both of their brilliant books, which are both about America in the 40s and 50s, both about the jazz music scene, but follow very different subjects. 'Three Shades Of Blue' by James Kaplan is biography of Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Bill Evans - and how those t...

Two top crime and thriller writers, Ragnar Jonasson and Simon Kernick, go head to head in a war of the words! They share their love of Agatha Christie, why scary crime fiction doesn't have to be gory and tell us about their latest novels. ("Death At The Sanitorium" and "You All Die Tonight") We also get some cracking book recommendations from them too. THE BOOK OFF! 'The Murder On The Links' by Ag...

We're so excited to bring you this episode of Book Off, featuring two of our favourite poets and humans - Salena Godden and Hollie McNish. We've been wanting to bring these two together for a long time, and now it's finally happened! They talk about their latest poetry collections ('With Love Grief and Fury' and 'Lobster'), the freedom of performance, why they love the form so much and why you can...

M.L. Rio and Kate Weinberg arrive as friends, but will they still be so chummy with each other after the Book Off? They chat to Joe Haddow about their latest books, Trump, the importance of publishing at a time when books are being banned and why Scooby Doo is a great influence. They also give us some briiiilliant book recommendations too - so apologies to your TBR pile in advance. Here's more on...

Authors Rachel Abbott and Hannah Lynn go head to head in a war of the words. They talk to Joe Haddow about their self-publishing journeys, the pros and cons and how things have changed on that side of the industry over the last 10 years. They also discuss their new novels, how the weather can influence a chapter and why sometimes you just have to go away in the name of research! THE BOOK OFF 'Good...

Bestselling crime author, Attica Locke, goes head to head with John Le Carre's son - Nick Harkaway - in a war of the words. Nick has written a new George Smiley novel, continuing his father's legacy, called Karla's Choice. He chats to Joe Haddow about the pressure he felt to get the character right and how he got himself in the right frame of mind to write the novel. Attica discusses 'Guide Me Hom...

Two brilliant authors and humans, Rumaan Alam and Tessa Hadley, go head to head in a war of the words. They talk about the joy of writing about clothes, how money can drive you mad and how some cities are easier to fictionalise than others. As well as discussing their new novels, their writing styles and processes and the difference between writing short stories, novels and novellas, they also giv...

Global bestselling author Liane Moriarty goes head to head with author and content creator Bea Fitzgerald. They discuss their new novels, their writing practices and seasonal reading! Bea shares her love of reality TV, which has inspired her new novel, and Liane tells us about her characterisation and plot structures. They both get pretty nervous about the Book Off, and decide to have an arm wrest...

Booker Prize winner, Alan Hollinghurst, and Booker Prize shortlistee, Rachel Kushner, join Joe Haddow for a Book Off! Alan talks about his new novel 'Our Evenings' and the writing processes to create the tempo he wanted. The book follows the life of the actor Dave Win, from 1962 to 2020. Rachel discusses her new novel 'Creation Lake' (her second novel to be shortlisted for the Booker) and the auth...