Terence: The Man Who Invented Design by Stephen Bayley and Roger Mavity review – a life and times of the king of style

The contradictions in Terence Conran’s character shine through in this profile by a former protege whose book is a mixture of score-settling and affection

The Fell by Sarah Moss review – the hills are alive with pandemic anxieties

The story of four characters craving nature in the Peak District is a deft mixture of mounting dread, metaphysical angst and doomy drollness

Both/And review: Huma Abedin on Clinton, Weiner and a political life

The close aide to Hillary Clinton has written a tale spliced with pain but blind to her boss’s weak spots

Leonard Cohen: The Mystical Roots of Genius review – the God behind the guy

Harry Freedman’s examination of how the musician’s spiritual life shaped his songs is rich in detail if a little too earnest in its quest for enlightenment

The Secret of Life by Howard Markel review – science and misogyny

A cinematic account of toxic masculinity among 1950s DNA researchers – and a celebration of scientist Rosalind Franklin

Misfire review: a bullseye from Tim Mak – but the NRA isn’t beaten yet

The NPR reporter has written an important book about the moral bankruptcy which put the powerful and merciless gun group on the back foot

The Sandman: Act II audiobook review – Neil Gaiman’s dreamworld

The author takes on the role of narrator alongside a Hollywood cast as Morpheus comes face to face with his arch enemy

The best recent poetry – review roundup

Howdie-Skelp by Paul Muldoon; Oak by Katharine Towers; Amnion by Stephanie Sy-Quia; New and Selected Poems by Ian Duhig

The Ocean at the End of the Lane review – Neil Gaiman’s monsters will leave you cowering

Shapeshifting creatures take centre stage in Katy Rudd’s production that terrifyingly evokes childhood nightmares and family trauma

Murder Isn’t Easy: The Forensics of Agatha Christie by Carla Valentine review – science and skullduggery

Mortuary technician Valentine reveals how advances in crime-fighting made their way into Christie’s novels

The Falling Thread by Adam O’Riordan review – deeply satisfying

The poet’s debut novel follows the drama-filled lives of three siblings in Manchester, in the lead up to the first world war

Devotion by Hannah Kent review – historic queer love story overwhelmed by solemn ecstasy

While Devotion skims over its knottier racial issues, Kent’s fans will find a lot to savour in her lush and sensory third novel

The Selfless Act of Breathing by JJ Bola review – an existential roadtrip

This powerful if overwrought novel considers one man’s search for release from systemic racism

The Retreat by Alison Moore review – a tale of two islands

A would-be artist and an aspiring writer seek seclusion, in haunting but underdeveloped reflections on creativity and escape

Patient 1 by Charlotte Raven review – living with Huntington’s

The former journalist’s unsparing account of her life before and after the diagnosis of a rare neurodegenerative disease