by Tana French — The finale of a wonderful series featuring ex-cop Cal Hooper in rural Ireland. Excellent contemporary fiction and superb crime writing.
Category: 5 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Margaret Oliphant – Victorian domestic realism
Margaret Oliphant Wilson Oliphant (born Margaret Oliphant Wilson; 4 April 1828 – 20 June 1897) was a Scottish novelist and historical writer, who usually wrote as Mrs. Oliphant. Her fictional works cover “domestic realism, the historical novel and tales of the supernatural”. (Source: Wikipedia) Margaret Oliphant
Unspeakable
by Dr Gwen Adshead and Eileen Horne — A psychiatrist/psychotherapist explores trauma responses and the psychotherapeutic process that helps patients verbalise and process trauma.
Assembling Ailish
by Sharon Guard, narrated by Shelley Atkinson — an intimate, visceral and insightful novel of an Irish woman looking back on the events that have shaped her life.
The Square of Sevens
by Laura Shepherd-Robinson — A gripping story with all the trappings of the best gothic novels: suspense, inheritance fraud, hidden documents…
Drayton and Mackenzie
by Alexander Starritt — A Trollopian saga revealing a haunting, inner hollowness within a tale of finance, greentech startup and visionary ambition.
Top 10 novels of 2025
Looking for a really great read among novels published in 2025? Here (in no particular order) are my top 10 favourites. Covering a range of fiction genres — literary, speculative, historical, crime and fantasy — they are all guaranteed great
Havoc
by Rebecca Wait — An absorbing, moving story set in an English boarding school where the social cohesion is crumbling even faster than the damp bricks.
The House of Barbary
by Isabelle Schuller — A multilayered, immersive and convincing tale of trauma and revenge set in 17th C Bern.
The greatest stories ever told: Victorian fiction
For many lovers of the novel, Victorian fiction represents the apogee of English literature and the noble art of storytelling.
J.S. Fletcher – Classic detective fiction influencer
Hailed as a leading writer of Golden Age crime fiction, J.S. Fletcher was, rather, a Victorian-style writer and detective fiction influencer
The Six Murders of Daphne St Clair
by Mackenzie Common — An original and engaging crime story wherein both the killer and investigator are unreliable narrators.
Kill Them with Kindness
by Will Carver — An intelligent speculative global-epidemic thriller that blurs the lines between fiction and reality.
A Case of Mice and Murder
by Sally Smith — A Case of Mice and Murder is a sedate but gripping murder mystery in the classic tradition, set in London’s Inner Temple in 1901. Wonderful.
The Serial Killer Support Group
by DB Stephens — The police aren’t helping these women escape their violently abusive partners. But someone has decided it’s time for them to step up.
Scenes From a Tragedy
by Carole Hailey — Whether you want a fascinating primer on the psychopathic mind or just a cracking good whydunnit story, Scenes From a Tragedy delivers.
Victorian Psycho
by Virginia Feito — Violent gothic horror. A psychopathic governess in a Victorian household descends into a psychotic rampage. Weird, wild and wonderful.
Kitty Collins series: How To Kill Men… and You’d Look Good in a Coffin
by Katy Brent — A fun series with a serious message. Too many men are violent against women. They don’t all get away with it.
The House With Nine Locks
by Philip Gray — A gripping tale of forgery, set in Belgium in the mid 20th century. Well written, infused with the spirit of ‘belgitude’.
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls
by Grady Hendrix — A horror story, of subjugated children, pregnancy and forced adoption, witchcraft and a pact with the devil.