Departure(s) by Julian Barnes review – this final novel is a slippery affair
Memoir merges with fiction as the author reflects on failed love, ageing and the end of life in this last instalment to his writing career
Author Julian Barnes confirms new novel will be his last
Booker prize winner, 80, says he has reached point of having ‘played all my tunes’ after new book Departure(s)
The best recent crime and thrillers – review roundup
The Cut Up by Louise Welsh; The Persian by David McCloskey; The 10:12 by Anna Maloney; Very Slowly All at Once by Lauren Schott; Vivian Dies Again by CE Hulse
Chosen Family by Madeleine Gray review – friends, lovers or something in between?
From classmates to co-parents, the changing dynamics of a female friendship are astutely observed in a novel that explores the boundaries between love, lust and companionship
‘How do you really tell the truth about this moment?’: George Saunders on ghosts, mortality and Trump’s America
The Lincoln in the Bardo author is back with another metaphysical tale. He discusses Buddhism, partisan politics and the terrifying flight that changed his life
I’m a crime writer. Here’s why we make the best Traitors contestants
Barrister turned novelist Harriet Tyce is playing a blinder in the fourth series of the show. As a thriller writer myself, I recognise the traits that make her such a formidable Faithful
Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy – the follow-up to I’m Glad My Mom Died
Family trauma shapes a student’s affair with her teacher in this bleak and funny fiction debut from the American memoirist
Nero book awards: Benjamin Wood and Sarah Perry among prize winners
Wood wins the award for fiction for his ‘utterly immersive’ novel Seascraper while Perry picks up the nonfiction prize for her memoir Death of an Ordinary Man
Heated Rivalry books sell out amid Australian fans’ infatuation with gay ice hockey TV show
Wild success of television series drives huge demand for Game Changers books, with Australian booksellers reporting significant customer orders
Seven by Joanna Kavenna review – a madcap journey to the limits of philosophy
With its cast of thinkers, gamers and artists, this romp across Europe explores our desire to define reality – even as it slips from our intellectual grasp
‘Act of family vengeance’: French defamation case highlights perils of writing autofiction
Complaint against Cécile Desprairies over Nazi collusion novel alleges that ‘resentment permeates the entire work’
Mass surveillance, the metaverse, making America ‘great again’: the novelists who predicted our present
From Jorge Luis Borges to George Orwell and Margaret Atwood, novelists have foreseen some of the major developments of our age. What can we learn from their prophecies?
The best recent science fiction, fantasy and horror – review roundup
Godfall by Van Jensen; The Salt Bind by Rebecca Ferrier; The Poet Empress by Shen Tao; A Hole in the Sky by Peter F Hamilton; Hello Earth, Are You There? by Brian Aldiss
Belgrave Road by Manish Chauhan review – a tender tale of love beyond borders
This poignant debut about two strangers who fall in love offers a powerful portrait of the lived realities of immigrants in Britain
The Guardian view on granting legal rights to AI: humans should not give house-room to an ill-advised debate
Editorial: Anthropomorphising tech helps Silicon Valley shares to soar, but our empathy should be directed to worthier causes