Books & Readings

It might seem an odd thing for a leftie, Guardian-reading republican to do. I’d just written one historical novel about a member of the royal family only to find myself writing a second. The first book, The Prince of Mirrors, was about the ‘bad boy’ Prince Eddy, the Duke of Clarence. I’d written that novel because, despite the vas

The Importance of Historical Fiction Knowledge is power. Ideas matter. But communicating them in the age of populism and fake news is challenging. This may seem like a peculiarly contemporary problem, but as I was researching my historical novel, A Matter of Interpretation, it became obvious to me that not only was the struggle to mainta

It's a new year, a whole new decade, which means plenty of reading to do! We've created the Fairlight Reading Challenge 2020 to encourage readers to explore beyond their bookish comfort zones and find some great books! Over the course of the year read or listen to: A self-help book A book by a BAME author A collection of sho

Writing to Fill the Representation Gap in Fiction Books bring us into the lives of characters. As William Nicholson said, ‘We read to know we’re not alone.’ * It is often through reading that we are able to develop skills such as empathy and self-reflection. This is why diversity is essential and the representation gap in fiction m

Conveniently sized, priced and beautifully designed quality writing that is leaving literary fiction readers everywhere eager for more. Set in various locations all over the world, the titles in the Fairlight Books’ upcoming Moderns series will introduce new talented writers, bringing fresh literary fiction back into our busy lives in a

Desperate to try a reading retreat but not sure about the price? We love the idea of a holiday exclusively dedicated to reading. However, spending hundreds on a reading getaway isn’t always practical – especially when you’ll just be focused on your books! This is why we’ve planned an affordable and luxurious DIY reading retreat. H

A frequent reasoning to why someone enjoys reading is that for a couple hours they can be transported from the comfort of their room (or a discomfort of public transport) all the way to a new country, planet or even world. But the incredible thing about books is that they’re not only great for ‘running away’ to a new place, but also

We believe in promoting quality writing – the wider the better. We also love the notion of sharing the books you love with others. Considering both of these ideas, we came up with a worldwide book swapping adventure – a voyage for our books to reach new readers.   [caption id="attachment_2935" align="alignright" width="212"

We turn to books for lots of reasons: comfort, entertainment, escapism, and self-discovery - to name a few. You might not be aware but this is actually a form of therapy: bibliotherapy. This practice takes many forms and genres. In some cases, it means using self-help books to learn and adapt; in others, it involves reading about differen