Latest news

Tune in to Radio 4 this Sunday, at 4pm, to hear Charles Cumming interviewed on his most recent novel, A Colder War. "From the winner of the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger 2012 for Best Thriller of the Year comes a gripping and suspenseful new spy novel. Perfect for fans of John le Carr?, Charles Cumming is ?the master of the modern spy thriller?" - Mail on Sunday http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04xmwz2

Patrick Woodhead has held the world?s ?most southerly book launch? to mark the publication of his latest thriller Beneath the Ice, set in Antarctica. While visiting the base camp of his company White Desert, which runs exclusive holidays to Antarctica, Patrick entertained friends and penguins with a reading from his novel. Meanwhile, The Times is holding a competition to win one of Patrick?s holidays to Antarctica ? a rare opportunity to see the place that inspired Patrick?s book: http://www.mytimesplus.co.uk/public/offers/win-a-trip-to-antarctica.

The Chimes, by d?but author, Anna Smaill, has been chosen by the Independent as one of the top books to look out for in the year to come. "The Chimes, by the New Zealand poet Anna Smail (Sceptre, 12 February), has already picked up praise from Eleanor Catton and Kevin Powers; its title refers to ?a world where music has replaced the written word and memories are carried as physical objects?. Simon is an orphaned young man who discovers he has a gift that could change all of this forever ? Will it be the novel of 2015? Watch this space." Follow this link for the full article: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/from-kazuo-ishiguro-and-patrick-hall-to-pat-butcher-the-books-of-2015-9955048.html

Charles Cumming's A Colder War has been selected as one of the Richard and Judy Spring Bookclub titles. Cumming joins Jessie Burton, Claire Kendal, Emma Healey, Tony Parsons, Anna McPartlin, Shelia Hancock and Naomi Wood in hte first of this year's selections. Judy Finnigan said: ?Richard and I always take great pleasure in choosing the final eight titles for each Book Club and continue to be amazed at the level of talent out there ? we can assure you that this latest collection will not disappoint.? Richard Madeley added: ?The feedback we receive from readers is so encouraging and it?s our New Year?s resolution to contine to be able to offer more extra content for readers, through our podcast series and exclusive bonus material at the back of the books.?

Written specially for Audible Studios, Six Degrees of Assassination is an original work by M.J. Arlidge, author of the bestselling Detective Inspector Helen Grace novels, Eeny Meeny and Pop Goes the Weasel. Andrew Scott and Freema Agyeman star. On a sullen, cloudy July day, ten years since 7/7, the happy, confident and optimistic British Prime Minister is visiting a charity in East London. All is well in his world. The economy is on the mend, the government has been returned to power with a clear majority and the coalition is fast becoming a bad memory. Then suddenly, a man steps out of the crowd and shoots him three times in the chest. The subsequent investigation is led by Alex Cartwright (Andrew Scott), Chief Counter Terrorism Officer with MI5. Alex has screwed up big time ? no-one saw this attack coming ? and it is up to him to get to the bottom of it. Partnered with MI5 Agent Ellen Townsend (Freema Agyeman), as Alex?s investigation proceeds we discover that whoever ordered the assassination has covered their tracks very well indeed. There are six people in the chain from mastermind to assassin, each a vital step on the road to murder. Full version available from 10am, 24th November 2014.

Janklow & Nesbit UK are offering representation to the winner of a debut novel competition launched today in association with Mumsnet and Gransnet. Users of Mumsnet and Gransnet can submit the first 8,000 words of a novel, along with a 500-word outline of the remaining chapters, by January 30th 2015. A shortlist will be selected, with the winner announced in March 2015. As part of the competition, a one-day Get Published event will be held in London on Saturday 29th November where writers will get a chance to meet Janklow agents, leading editors and authors. There will be panel discussions and an opportunity to pitch directly to industry insiders. Mumsnet is a huge online community, generating over 60 million page views and over 13 million visits per month. We know from the success of their book club how engaged their members are and it feels like the perfect place to discover new talent. Justine Roberts, Mumsnet CEO and Founder said: ?Mumsnet and Gransnets? forums are teeming with great writing and shared stories. Joining forces with Janklow & Nesbit will give one talented user a substantial helping hand towards realising the dream prize of getting published and enabling their writing to reach a whole new audience.?

The Crime Writers Association announced their 5-strong shortlist for the Dagger in the Library prize this week, and Elly Griffiths is shortlisted for her Ruth Galloway novels. The prize, awarded in December, is for a body of work to date, and this year for the first time readers nominated the longlist, with the judges whittling it down to a shortlist. http://thecwa.co.uk/news/dagger-in-the-library-shortlist-announced/

Novelist and travel writer Tara Isabella Burton has been in Trieste recently and met up with those who campaign for Trieste?s independence. You can read her piece in the BBC magazine here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29822594 or listen to it on From Our Own Correspondent here, at 11 minutes in: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04mb107

There Is No ?Healthy? Microbiome. LONDON ? In the late 17th century, the Dutch naturalist Anton van Leeuwenhoek looked at his own dental plaque through a microscope and saw a world of tiny cells ?very prettily a-moving.? He could not have predicted that a few centuries later, the trillions of microbes that share our lives ? collectively known as the microbiome ? would rank among the hottest areas of biology... http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/02/opinion/sunday/there-is-no-healthy-microbiome.html?_r=1

Follow this link for Jonathan Jones' brilliant Guardian ?Long Read? piece on Picasso?s legacy, and the troubles at the Picasso museum: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/oct/16/-sp-nightmare-picasso-museum-paris

The new series of 'Trust Me I'm a Doctor' starts on BBC Two tonight at 8 p.m.. Surgeon and writer Gabriel Weston is one of the presenters, talking this evening about new medical procedures that are helping those with spinal injuries regain movement. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04m0bt4

BBC Africa Correspondent and author of the forthcoming Mayor of Mogadishu has won an Emmy for ?outstanding feature story in a regular newscast? for his coverage of the conflict in the Central African Republic, broadcast on 6 December 2013. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-29440572

Alec Ash is a writer and journalist in Beijing currently writing a book about young Chinese society. Here he discusses young people's historic role in Chinese protest movements.

Guo Xiaolu, author of I am China, recently visited New York for an event at Asia Society sponsored by Pen America. Follow this link for a full write-up and videos of her reading and performing.