In this exclusive piece, chef and food writer, and the author of Bitter, Alexina Anatole explores the land, people, light and food of Saint Lucia, deepening her links to the island where her grandparents were born and experiencing the particular magic of Cap Maison. She also shares a beautiful recipe for an aromatic hot drink from the island, perfect for cold winter evenings. 

A sparkling sequel sees Nina return to London once again with hilarious consequences.

What better way is there to bring family and friends together at Christmastime than with the perfect game or puzzle? From bright and bold jigsaws for the very young to epic contests of grand strategy and logical thinking, check out our stellar selection of the best festive games and puzzles.  

Shortlisted for the Waterstones Book the Year in 2022, Katherine Rundell's The Golden Mole – our Non-Fiction Book of the Month for November – is a breathtakingly illustrated love letter to a variety of incredible endangered species and an urgent clarion call to save nature's vanishing wonders. We are delighted to share Katherine's introduction to the book, along with some of the wonderful illustrations by Talya Baldwin, with the readers of our blog.

In her new novel The Future, Naomi Alderman – the author of Disobedience and the Women's Prize-winning The Power – delivers a tantalising and terrifying slice of speculative fiction, as the richest people in the world fence off comfortable futures for themselves at the expence of everyone else. We are delighted to have Naomi reveal the books she most enjoyed this year with the readers of our blog.

Laughter is on the menu as we talk about a lifetime obsession with food.

Connecting to Shakespeare with a legend of British stage and screen.

Discovering the humble beginnings of an acting great.

An internationally bestselling novelist and poet, Sophie Hannah is best known for her gripping psychological crime series Culver Valley and her gloriously fiendish murder mysteries based on Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot – the most recent one of which, Hercule Poirot's Silent Night, finds the famous Belgian investigating a gruesome murder at a Norfolk hospital just before Christmas. We are delighted to have Sophie share her favourite books from 2023 with the readers of our blog. 

Earlier this year, Alice Winn was crowned the winner of the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize 2023 for her stunning novel In Memoriam, which contrasts the insanity of war with the purity of love in an unforgettable story of two young men on the Western Front. We are delighted to have Alice share her favourite books published this year with the readers of our blog.

Mining the real-life Frost Fair of 1683-4 for a bewitching winter adventure of enchanted creatures and magical strangers, the first instalment in Natasha Hastings' The Miraculous Sweetmakers series has its basis in a fascinating period of British history. In this exclusive piece, Natasha discusses how both the stories of the past and her own life experiences came together to create The Frost Fair.  

Since bursting onto the literary scene in 2018 with the scorching thriller The Chalk Man, C.J. Tudor has proven herself one of the country's premier purveyors of visceral, horror-tinged crime writing. Her latest novel, The Drift, is set during a deadly snowstorm and in this exclusive piece, Tudor selects five unputdownable wintry thrillers to curl up with as the nights get colder.