The festive season is right around the corner, and to help with your gift-giving dilemmas we’ve teamed up with our friends at Doubleday to help you find the perfect present. Whether your loved ones are fans of detective stories or love a cosy read, we have you covered.

For the amateur sleuth: Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson.

Jackson Brodie returns in a brilliantly clever take on the classic country house murder mystery in Death at the Sign of the Rook. Brilliantly inventive and full of wit, this book is perfect for fans of Agatha Christie.

For fans of an atmospheric thriller: The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins

Nothing is quite what it seems at first when a human bone is discovered in the much-revered artwork of a celebrated artist. Set on a Scottish tidal island, The Blue Hour is dark, atmospheric, and unapologetically addictive.

For those who like to read the book first: The Trunk by Kim Ryeo-ryeong

The Trunk is a gripping feminist satire from award-winning, bestselling author Kim Ryeo-ryeong. Told with biting humour, it centres on the dramas that unfold around a secretive marriage service, exploring societal expectations, gender roles, and the modern marriage industry – with a brilliantly creepy ending. The Trunk has just been released on Netflix, starring major names including Gong Yu from Squid Games and Seo Hyun-Jin.

For historical-fiction lovers: The Silence in Between by Josie Ferguson

Shortlisted for the Waterstones debut prize 2024, this is a gripping historical novel about a family separated by the Berlin Wall and a daughter’s desperate attempt to reunite her family. Based on true stories, The Silence in Between is a page-turning, emotional epic that will stay with you long after you finish reading.

For fans of a moving memoir: Learning to Think by Tracy King

A gripping brilliantly told memoir about belief and the liberating power of education. It is the story of an ordinary family trapped in a broken system. One that could happen to anyone without the tools to transform their circumstances. And it’s the story of how Tracy found her way out.

For cat-lovers: We’ll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida

For fans of The Travelling Cat Chronicles comes the Japanese bestseller, We’ll Prescribe You a Cat. On the top floor of an old building lies the Kokoro Clinic for the Soul. Only a select few – those who feel genuine emotional pain – can find it. The mysterious centre offers a unique treatment for its troubled patients: it prescribes cats as medication.

For the foodie: Piglet by Lottie Hazell

Piglet has curated the perfect life: she and her fiancé Kit are the picture of domestic bliss. But if a life looks too good to be true, it probably is. Thirteen days before the wedding, Kit reveals an awful truth. To do something about it would be to self-destruct. But what will it cost Piglet to do nothing? A deliciously dark and piercing story of food and secrets.

For the perfect stocking-filler: Marigold Mind Laundry by Jungeun Yun, translated by Shanna Tan

Marigold Mind Laundry is an inspirational fable about an old woman who opens a magical Mind Laundry, where she cleanses painful experiences from her customers’ hearts, turning them into stains on a T-shirt and transforming them into dazzling red petals. We share in the healing experience of five locals who visit to have their bad memories washed away.

For history buffs: Trailblazer by Jane Robinson

Acclaimed historian, Jane Robinson brings out of the shadows one of Victorian Britain’s most influential but forgotten women, Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon. This is a celebration of the life of the founder of Britain’s suffrage movement: campaigner for equal opportunity in the workplace, the law, at home and beyond.