Fantasy author Sunyi Dean joins Sara for the Book Club, to chat about her new novel and the inspirations behind it.

They chat about Hong Kong, myths, legends, ghosts and dim sum!

We also hear a clip from the audiobook (*which has references to drowning) and get some great book recommendations from Sunyi too.

Here's a little more info on 'The Girl With A Thousand Faces':

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.

Emily Howes returns to the Radio 2 Book Club to discuss her new novel, Mrs Dickens; a fictional story about the life of Kate Hogarth - who was married to the author Charles Dickens for 22 years.

Sara chats to Emily about writing women back into history, who were written out in their own lifetime, and the challenges that come with writing real-life figures in fiction.

We also hear a clip from the audiobook - and get some great book recommendations too.

Emily was last on the Book Club back in 2024 for her debut novel, 'The Painter's Daughters' - and you can hear that chat on BBC Sounds too!

Here's a little more info on 'Mrs Dickens': London, 1835. 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 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 newfound freedom has come at a cost she cannot always ignore.

As the years go by and the family expands, the cracks in the Dickens's 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 . . .

Vibrant, witty and deeply moving, Mrs Dickens traces a long marriage in all its tenderness, grief, romance and fury. It illuminates the life of a complex, forgotten woman whose voice often went unheard, but whose story deserves to be told.

Sara welcomes international bestselling author, Douglas Stuart, to the Book Club.

They discuss his beautiful new novel - John Of John - and his inspirations behind the story. Douglas tells Sara about his epic trip to the Scottish Islands, the people he met there - and what he learned about sheep farming and textile making (all of which made it into this new book).

He also chats about exploring the theme of masculinity and how not growing up with a father figure helped shape and create the central relationship in his novel.

Douglas also gives a great book recommendation - and - plays us a short extract from the audiobook too.

Here's a little more info on 'John Of John': 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.

Superstar librarian, Stella Hine, joins Sara for a chat about this year's Carnegie Awards (the UK's longest-running children's book awards)

She also shares her top five reads of the year (so far) which is a mixture of non-fiction, fiction - and children's books (as you might expect)

Her choices are:

Everyday Nature by Andy Beer The Examiner by Janice Hallett The Crossing by Manjeet Mann Ming The Panda: A True Story of Courage and Hope by Jake Hope – illustrated by Yu Rong Theo Of Golden by Allen Levi

Debut novelist Jo Murray joins Sara for a natter about her crime thriller 'Dissection Of A Murder'

Jo was a criminal barrister for many years before leaving the profession to spend more time with family and to write. Sara talks to Jo about bringing her real-life experiences from the courtroom to the page, making her readers work hard and how she came up with a very important element of the story (and characters).

We also get a great book recommendation from Jo - and - get an exclusive extract of the audiobook too.

Here's a little more info on 'Dissection Of A Murder':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 . . .

Jeremy Vine goes backstage at The British Book Awards ('The Nibbies') to speak with the great and the good of the book industry, including: Sir Tony Robinson, Michael Rosen, MC Grammar, Steph McGovern, Matt Cain, Laura Shepherd-Robinson and Abir Mukherjee...

He brings us all the glitz and glam from the 36th Nibbies, which took place in London's Mayfair in May 2026, as well as an interview with the first ever winner of The Radio 2 Book Club Award - Roisin O'Donnell.

Roisin won for her debut novel, 'Nesting', which we featured on the Book Club back in January 2025. (you can hear that interview on BBC Sounds anytime you like!)

Here's a little more info on her book:

On a bright spring afternoon in Dublin, Ciara Fay makes a split-second decision that will change everything. Grabbing an armful of clothes from the washing line, Ciara straps her two young daughters into her car and drives away. Head spinning, all she knows for certain is that home is no longer safe.

This was meant to be an escape. But with dwindling savings, no job, and her family across the sea, Ciara finds herself adrift, facing a broken housing system and the voice of her own demons. As summer passes and winter closes in, she must navigate raising her children in a hotel room, searching for a new home and dealing with her husband Ryan’s relentless campaign to get her to come back. Because leaving is one thing, but staying away is another.

What will it take for Ciara to rebuild her life? Can she ever truly break away from Ryan’s control – and what will be the cost?

Author and illustrator, Lizzy Stewart, joins Sara in the Book Club to chat about her new illustrated novel, 'The Wreck'.

They talk about her writing (and drawing) routine, Eric Ravilious as an inspiration, 90s hairdos - and how drastically friendships can change over decades.

Lizzy also recommends us a couple of books she has enjoyed reading recently.

Here's a little more info on 'The Wreck':

Two couples pursue their dream of communal living in the English countryside – and then it all comes tumbling down

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.

Sara presents a special edition of the Radio 2 Book, celebrating all things comics, with a trip to Phoenix Fest in Oxford.

This two-day festival showcases some of the biggest names in the world of comic books - and encourages children and adults to draw and read for pleasure.

As well as hearing from some of the children who are attended the festival, we also chat to Jamie Smart (creator of Bunny VS Monkey), Neill Cameron (creator of Donut Squad), Jess Bradley (Super Dweeb) and Patrice Aggs and Joe Brady, on collaborating together.