The Radio 2 Book Club has just announced the Spring Season booklist! As well as coverage on Sara’s show, and other shows on Radio 2, there is a weekly podcast on BBC Sounds.
The Radio 2 Book Club’s weekly podcast will shine a light on some of the best new fiction being published in the UK, across all genres. The books are chosen with help from library staff and other reading experts from across the UK to ensure a fair and unbiased selection process.
As it always has done, the Radio 2 Book Club will champion new voices as well as featuring some of the most popular authors writing today, with a range of novels that listeners will love. Sara will also get an insight into the craft and writing process of the chosen authors and hear from listeners about what they have been reading and enjoying too.
We’re delighted to share the X books that will be featured in this season of the Radio 2 Book Club with Sara Cox:
Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle – and has the social media accounts to prove it. Her charming farmhouse on her working ranch is artfully cluttered, her husband is a handsome cowboy, her homemade sourdough boules are each more beautiful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers and industrial-grade ovens behind the scenes? What Natalie’s followers don’t know won’t hurt them.
Then, one morning, Natalie wakes up in a strange, horrible version of reality. Her home, her husband, her children―they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Is this a hoax? A reality show? A test from God? Natalie knows just two things for sure: this isn’t her perfect life, and she must escape, by any means possible.
Reader comments
“Such a clever book which I think is going to be massive this year. It dissects womanhood, motherhood, gender roles, tradition, religion, social media and The American Dream all within a very readable and accessible narrative.”
“Yesteryear is a story of a nostalgia and yearning for the past confronted with the modern life. It explores fascination with the traditional gender roles, the cult of womanhood and obsession with social media.”
“I’m still thinking about this book and book clubs are going to be dissecting this for years to come there is so much in there!”
This Wreck by Lizzy Stewart
Charlotte and Francesca were best friends at university in the mid-1970s. But tensions coursed beneath their natural affection, deepening when Fran got together with Charlotte’s friend Adrian, and the two women drifted apart.
When Fran contacts Charlotte out of the blue with an unusual proposal – an invitation to live with her and Adrian in the rambling house they’ve bought in the countryside – Charlotte impulsively persuades her partner, Bill, to accept this tantalising promise of a new kind of community.
At first their new life feels utopian; life and space are shared joyfully. But it doesn’t take long for old tensions to rise to the surface, shattering their illusions and showing each of them in a new light.
Reader comments
“I loved this – and am now a convert to graphic novels. The illustrations complemented the writing and helped to tell the narrative in a more visceral way.”
“I found this a breath of fresh air and absolutely got through it so quickly. A beautifully balanced blend of images and prose — it reads like a graphic novel, yet with rich, wonderful passages of text that I absolutely loved.”
“It was beautifully written, and drawn, and really captured the characters personalities.”
Dissection of a Murder by Jo Murray
A dead judge. A silent defendant. And a courtroom full of liars.
When Leila Reynolds is handed her first murder case, she’s shocked at how high-profile it is: the murder of a well-respected, well-known judge. This shouldn’t be the kind of case she’s leading; it’s way beyond her expertise. But the defendant, Jack Millman, is clear. He wants her, and only her.
To make things worse, he’s refusing to talk. How is she supposed to prove herself on what appears to be an unwinnable case?
Losing is not an option. She must find the most persuasive argument. Trials aren’t won by convincing judges or fellow barristers – they’re all about convincing a jury.
Suddenly, Leila finds herself fighting not only to keep Jack out of prison, but also to keep her own secrets buried.
It’s true what they say – there are two sides to every story.
Guilty or not guilty? You decide…
Reader comments
“Fascinating and engaging, I flew through it. Well written and fast-paced.”
" It is very fast paced, the language is sharp, pithy and occasionally sarcastic which I loved. I read this in one sitting; I’m surprised it was by a debut author as the writing was so accomplished!"
“One line that stayed with me: “Often it’s the tiniest details that reveal the greatest secrets.” A perfect summary of this very clever, dark psychological suspenseful read. A must read…”
The Girl with a Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean
Mercy Chan is a triad exorcist with a mysterious past. After washing up on the shores of Hong Kong with no memory during World War II, she found a home in Kowloon Walled City, an infamous, ghost-infested slum full of lost and traumatised civilians. Since the war ended, Mercy has rebuilt her life and found work as a ghost-talker for the local triad, dealing with the angry and bitter spirits who haunt this place.
But the past she can’t remember won’t let her go. An unusually powerful ghost lurks in Kowloon’s waterways, drowning innocents and threatening the district. Unnervingly, it claims to know Mercy – and her forgotten childhood.
As Mercy is drawn into a deadly cat-and-mouse game with this malignant spirit, she begins to realise that the monster she fights within these walls may well be one of her own making.
Reader comments
“This was an interesting, engaging, gothic fantasy and probably my favourite book of my selection.”
“This was a fascinating story; I could see that it was richly steeped in folklore and history, with a layer of fictional fantasy that made it a truly magical read.”
“the book was written well, and there were occasional track-stopping sentences that were really emotionally impactful, particularly on the topic of family, belonging and the need to let go of wrath, guilt, and trauma.”
John of John by Douglas Stuart
Out of money and with little to show for his art school education, John-Calum Macleod takes the ferry home to the island of Harris to find that not much has changed except for him. In the windswept croft where he grew up, Cal resumes his old life, caught between the two poles of his childhood: his father John, a sheep farmer, weaver, and pillar of their local Presbyterian church, and his Glaswegian grandmother Ella, who has kept a faltering peace with her son-in-law for decades.
While Cal wonders if any lonely men might be found on the barren hillsides of home, John is dismayed by his son’s long hair and how he seems unwilling to be Saved. As the seasons pass, everything is poised to change as the threads holding together the fragile community become increasingly entangled.
Reader comments
“I adored this novel, it was Stuart at his absolute best, the characters and the narrative just sang from the pages.”
“I was blown away by the writing style, both the rich descriptions of the setting and the dialogue.”
“I was completely captivated by this book.”
Mrs Dickens by Emily Howes
London, 1836. Nineteen-year-old Kate Hogarth falls in love with the young journalist Charles Dickens. In the early days of their marriage, Charles is infatuated with his new bride and Kate delights in her new life, the balm to her husband’s irrepressible spirit. But as he finds fame as a novelist and the family rise through the ranks of Victorian society, Kate becomes increasingly aware of his frustration that real people cannot be manipulated as easily as his characters.
Meanwhile, in the East End slums, a young orphan named Anne Brown has lost everything, but is determined to make her way in the world. A chance encounter with the Dickens family transports her to the heart of the household, opening up a world of privilege, travel and remarkable company. But her new-found freedom has come at a cost she cannot always ignore.
As the years go by and the family expands, the cracks in the Dickens’ marriage deepen. Kate seeks comfort and companionship in her trusted servant, but whilst Anne has come to care deeply for Mrs Dickens, her loyalties are tested to breaking point as Charles takes control of their future…
Reader comments
“An impressive historical novel which strikes the perfect balance between biography and good storytelling.”
“I thought this book was excellent. The writing style and the way the characters and story were told was so immersive which made the story even more emotive and gripping.”
" This is a story of loyalty, love and price women paid in a world that so limited their choices. It is a subtle, brilliantly written and totally immersive story."
The Leveret by Anna Goldreich
Moving to the countryside is supposed to fix Clare and Phoebe’s relationship. A fresh start, a change of scenery, a chance to heal after the miscarriage of their baby girl.
Instead, Phoebe feels suffocated. Back in the rural community she ran from at seventeen and unable to face the partner she cannot help, she throws herself into work on the family farm. Clare is a stranger in the village, uninitiated and out of place. She spends her days drifting around the cottage, its walls groaning and shifting as she withdraws into a world inside her head.
One day, wandering through the forest nearby, Clare finds a leveret – her own little Isla. A surrogate to lick and love. A way to feel whole again.
But as Isla grows into an adult hare, she becomes wild and unruly – a kicking, biting, scratching creature. With Clare’s grasp on reality growing ever more tenuous, Phoebe begins to question whether Isla is the cure for grief Clare is searching for as she desperately clings on to the woman she loves…
Reader comments
“This is a beautifully written book about loss, belonging and motherhood.”
“I’d highly recommend it; it is uncomfortable in places, but is a fantastic portrayal of the overwhelmingness of grief.”
“This book grabbed me from the get go. I found the story compelling, beautiful, frustrating and deeply, deeply moving.”
For all the latest Book Club content, including interviews with the authors, visit BBC Sounds. You can even subscribe, to make sure you never miss an episode!
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