Nonesuch by Francis Spufford review – a dazzling wartime fantasy
Dark magic, fascism and romance in blitz-stricken London: this exuberant novel is a popcorny delight
As If by Isabel Waidner review – surreal doppelganger story
Two uncannily similar men switch places in an existential farce that playfully explores the precarity of working life
Myth, monsters and making sense of a disenchanted world: why everyone is reading fantasy
I have made the leap from literary fiction to fantasy – for those who think it’s mere wish-fulfilment, here’s why we need that thing with the dragons
‘Last year I read 137 books’: could setting targets help you put down your phone and pick up a book?
BookTok influencer Jack Edwards motivates himself with reading goals – and he’s not alone. Authors and avid readers discuss the rise of metrics, and reveal how many books they finished last year
Georgi Gospodinov: ‘Jorge Luis Borges gave me an exhilarating sense of freedom’
The Bulgarian Booker winner on the letter he wrote to JD Salinger, the allure of Homer’s Odyssey and the magic of Thomas Mann
I’ll Be the Monster by Sean Gilbert review – are they fantasists or psychopaths?
The dark past of a seemingly perfect couple is gradually revealed in this observant debut of obsession and control
Old Songs by Amy Jeffs and Gwen Burns review – ancient tales of murder, maidens and magic
These interconnected short stories of love and death, inspired by traditional ballads from the British Isles, are narrated with immediacy and warmth
Bird Deity by John Morrissey review – darkly satirical science fiction about the cost of empire
In his debut novel, the Kalkadoon writer uses the cosmic distance of an alien planet to illuminate our own
Trip to the Moon by John Yorke review – a storytelling handbook in dire need of an edit
A producer shares his tips for tight storylines, but they’re marred by verbal incontinence and hyperbole
The Last of Earth by Deepa Anappara review – into Tibet’s ‘Forbidden Kingdom’
The follow-up to Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line explores the history of colonial exploration through a perilous 19th-century odyssey
Peter Ransley obituary
Screenwriter and novelist who co-founded a charity to support those affected by avoidable harm in healthcare
The Disappearing Act by Maria Stepanova review – a poetic exploration of Russian guilt
Written from exile after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, this autofictional blend of memory and fable tracks a changing sense of self
Our Better Natures by Sophie Ward review – reimagining Andrea Dworkin
Three women, two real and one fictional, seek social justice in an ambitious novel that explores power in 1970s America
More heartache than Hamnet?: Maggie O’Farrell’s best books – ranked!
As her Women’s prize-winning novel heads to the Oscars, we rate the author’s best work – from tales of new motherhood to a life-affirming memoir of mortality
Frogs for Watchdogs by Seán Farrell review – about a boy
A charming child’s-eye view of rural Ireland