The Silence by Don DeLillo review – the machine stops

Planes go down and screens go dark in this slim apocalyptic tale from a master stylist

The Witches review – Roald Dahl reboot fails to cast the original’s magic spell

Robert Zemeckis’s retelling of the wicked children’s story feels more grumpy than scary, while its comedy veers between frantic and strained

From codebreakers at Bletchley Park to the crisis surrounding whistleblower Edward Snowden … an authorised history of GCHQ

Comfortable tropes are mixed with darker themes in a zeitgeisty comic novel about thirtysomething life

After a lifetime of tragedies and dashed hopes, will he finally triumph? And what would it mean if he does?

Three bears have a terrible night’s sleep, a pug has a pet human, and a veggie patch goes raving

The secret lives of three characters on a 1960s film set make for the novelist’s funniest book in years

Two fiftysomething Dubliners go on a pub crawl full of surprises

The author tackles Kashmir, Hindu nationalism and the dangers of being outspoken in this startling collection of essays

Margaret MacMillan’s exemplary study of war

Morley’s typically digressive attempt to demystify classical music is exhausting but illuminating

Tom Bower gives us a better idea of Boris Johnson’s inner demons but is much too forgiving of his many flaws

David Rothkopf has all a good Trump reporter requires. Sixteen days out from the election, his book is a bracing read

From the witchcraft of ‘Hellish Nell’ to our credulous fetishising of royal female bodies – a masterclass in critical writing

So much as anyone can, the New York governor has had a good pandemic. His book trumpets successes – and settles scores