Empire's Picks on Fiction 2021 Isabella Riosse is the daughter of a cartographer who lives on the island of Joya; an isle both steeped in mythology and shrouded in mystery. For the last thirty years, a strict Governor has forbidden the island inhabitants...

A funny, moving and insightful celebration of the everyday heroes of our NHS. Kay reveals the realities of working for the NHS with visceral honesty but also with humour, never losing sight of the huge significance of the work itself and those...

At once a gripping thriller and an insightful study of a family tragedy in a tight-lipped community, Our Fathers sees a young man return to solve the terrible events of his past in the untamed landscape of the Hebrides. Empire Thriller of the...

Are trees social beings? In this international bestseller, forester and author Peter Wohlleben convincingly makes the case that, yes, the forest is a social network. He draws on groundbreaking scientific discoveries to describe how trees are like human...

Sharp, menacing and darkly funny, this first novel from Nigerian author Oyinkan Braithwaite is a breath of fresh air. Not just an inventive take on the serial-murder thriller, the novel is also a tender examination of sibling relationships in an...

The political tinderbox of 1780’s London provides the perfect backdrop for a tightly plotted and impeccably researched thriller from Laura Shepherd-Robinson, in which an aspiring politician The political tinderbox of 1780’s London provides the perfect...

Beguiling and multi-faceted, the latest novel from the author of The Thirteenth Tale brings together a winning cast of characters around the meandering Thames, each drawn into a mystery that reopens old wounds and lays to rest unburied ghosts. There’s...

The halfway point between east and west… While such countries may seem wild to us, these are no backwaters, no obscure wastelands. In fact the bridge between east and west is the very crossroads of civilisation. Far from being on the fringe of global...

An enthralling wartime adventure perfect for fans of Emma Carroll and Ross Montgomery, Parr’s debut children’s novel centres on a lonely evacuee and a spooky discovery in a Welsh village. September 1939. When Jimmy is evacuated to a small village in...

"Pop your favorite Agatha Christie whodunnit into a blender with a scoop of Downton Abbey, a dash of Quantum Leap, and a liberal sprinkling of Groundhog Day and you'll get this unique murder mystery." —Harper's Bazaar. The 7½ Deaths of...

This darkly atmospheric debut from Elizabeth Macneal is a brooding examination of female subjugation wrapped in the cloak of a rattling good period yarn. In a Victorian London so richly evoked that you can practically taste the fog, the aspiring artist...

From the author of Beetle Boy comes a high-speed, rip-roaring yarn of mystery and adventure set on the last journey of the royal train, The Highland Falcon.   Shortlisted for the Empire Book Awards Children's Fiction Book of...

If you loved the magical mayhem of Nevermoor and the cliffhanging adventure ofThe Wizards of Once, then let Starfell: Willow Moss and the Lost Day weave its enchanting, hilarious spell over you. Willow is the youngest witch in her family, very likeable...

A clear-headed and intelligent denunciation of racist stereotypes and pernicious eugenics, Rutherford’s masterly account of genetics and its dangerous misuse through history contains all you ever need to refute hateful claims about racial superiority...

A woman's dismembered corpse is discovered in a suitcase, and police quickly identify her husband, Doctor Ibrahim Aziz, as their chief suspect. Incriminating evidence is discovered at his home and his wife was rumoured to be having an affair, giving him...

Jessica is grieving for her beloved father, trawler owner Jacob Kingdom, when a heated confrontation leads to her being cast out from the family home and the revelation of a shameful secret. She falls upon the kindness of strangers and it isn't long...

1899, Glasgow. A man is stabbed to death in a tenement courtyard, and Juan Camaron, photographer-cum-sleuth, is enlisted to assist the police investigation.   Perhaps his innovative photographic method can bring to light what the eye may have overlooked...

Juan Camaron and his father travel across Cuba in the summer of 1898, photographing the island and its people as the war between Spain and the United States escalates. But tragedy strikes when Juan's father is killed, and his last photos reveal a...

From the frenetic atmosphere of Manhattan to the magnificent wide-open plains of Africa, The Sun Sister is the sixth epic tale in the Seven Sisters series by the number one bestseller Lucinda Riley. A breathtaking story of love and loss, inspired by the...

Written with Trollope’s keen eye for all-too-human foibles, Mum and Dad puts a bittersweet generational power grab under a compassionate spotlight.   A Richard & Judy Book Club pick, Mum & Dad is a heartwarming family drama from number one...