John le Carré, the great deceiver
The duplicity that defined his spy novels also enabled his relentless pursuit of sexual pleasure.
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The darkness of the secret world: Mick Herron and John Gray in conversation
The bestselling author of the Slough House series and the philosopher discuss spy thrillers, the allure of the Cold War…
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Benjamin Myers: “Historical fiction is not all tabards and turnips”
The author of the Goldsmiths Prize-shortlisted Cuddy on being a heathen, and why he wants to see a ghost.
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Anthony Horowitz Q&A: “I admire Rishi Sunak for his resilience and work ethic”
The novelist on optimism, late-night plot anxiety, and being born 25 years too late.
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Richard Milward: “I use humour as a coping mechanism”
Polari is the “perfect slang for a freewheeling anarchist”, says the author of the Goldsmiths-shortlisted Man-Eating Typewriter.
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The 2023 Goldsmiths Prize shortlist celebrates northern fiction
The award for “fiction at its most novel” is dominated this year by authors from and writing about the north…
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The curse of the cool girl novelist
Her prose is bare, her characters are depressed and alienated. This literary trend has coagulated into parody.
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Anne Enright’s damaged lives
In The Wren, The Wren, the Irish author rigorously traces the line between love and trauma.
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Evelyn Waugh is laughing at you
His lethally coherent worldview still turns reality into a farce.
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EP Thompson’s dystopian visions
His science fiction novel tackled two fears: atomic annihilation and AI determinism.
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John Le Carré and the spectre of British decline
The 1970s London of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was a place of decay. What defines it now?
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Cormac McCarthy’s art of war
In Blood Meridian the author reaches the dark heart of the American novel – where violence is timeless.
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The “trauma” of publishing a novel
I once found it risible to hear authors describe the publication process as “traumatising”. Then my first novel came out,…
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What is Annie Ernaux hiding?
What the Nobel Laureate teaches us about shame, confession and secrecy.
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From Ferdinand Mount to Isabel Waidner: new books reviewed in short
Also featuring Crisis Actor by Declan Ryan and Women We Buried, Women We Burned by Rachel Louise Snyder.
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Joyce Carol Oates, online and off
The novelist reflects on Twitter, autofiction and our lack of a “sense of history”.
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Cormac McCarthy’s existential Westerns
In his career-defining Border Trilogy, the late novelist summoned the ghosts of America’s bloody history.
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Martin who?
Not everyone is convinced of Martin Amis’s genius.
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How Michel Houellebecq diminished himself
Full of explicit depictions of bizarre, humiliating events, the French novelist’s new memoir reads like the ramblings of a buffoon.
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Maddie Mortimer: “My book is just furious it’s not a ballet”
The author of the Goldsmiths Prize-shortlisted novel Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies on typesetting, A Clockwork Orange, and why the…
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