The Hobcast Book Show

This week we're joined from Italy by the brilliant Katherine Mezzacappa. Born in Ireland, Katherine is now based Tuscany, a country which has inspired her work as a historical and contemporary novelist. Her most recent novel, The Ballad of Mary Kearney was published earlier this year, sees Katherine return to her Irish roots, telling the tragic tale of an 18th century nobleman who secretly marries his servant, in defiance of law, class, and religion. But Italy also features heavily in Katherine's work, including The Maiden of Florence published in 2024, based on true events involving the powerful Medici family. Writing as Katie Hutton, Katherine has also published four novels with leading publisher Bonnier Zaffre. Katherine is also a passionate advocate of short fiction, and works with us as a judge on The Henshaw Short Story competition. This interview is laced with brilliant advice for authors of all persuasions.Also this week, we hear about trouble for retail giant WH Smith, while rivals Waterstones go from strength to strength thanks to a growth in sales to a younger generation of readers.Katherine Mezzacappa – Katherine Mezzacappa – Authorhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Ballad-Mary-Kearney-Katherine-Mezzacappa-ebook/dp/B0CZQJFJD6https://www.amazon.co.uk/Maiden-Florence-captivating-historical-retelling-ebook/dp/B0CWFBKHX7

If you're beginning to think we're obsessed with Icelandic crime fiction here on The Hobcast Bookshow - you may be right. We're delighted to be joined this week by our third great Icelandic crime fiction writer in recent months, Sólveig Pálsdóttir, the author of the popular Ice and Crime series. As we explore in this wide-ranging interview, Sólveig enjoyed a varied career prior to becoming an author, including several years as one of Iceland's leading actors, before family life encouraged a switch to teaching, with the occasional appearance in TV dramas. But now her principal focus is writing further cases for her detectives, Guðgeir and Elsa Guðrún, translated into English by the brilliant Quentin Bates and published by Corylus Books.Also this week, we discuss the threat posed by AI-written low quality books posing as established titles. Is it time for online retailers to tighten up their submission protocols?Sólveig Pálsdóttir – Corylus Bookshttps://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08Y5NPMKV

In many ways, British crime authors are lucky. They stand on the shoulders of giants from the so-called 'Golden Age' of the genre: Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham, G.K. Chesterton and Ronald Knox were just a few of the greats who established both the rules of the genre, and laid the foundations for crime fiction's enduring popularity with UK and international readers. Our guest this week, Victoria Dowd, is an avowed fan of this era, so when it came to creating her new series, The Charlotte Blood Chronicles, it was natural that she set the opening novel, Death in the Aviary in 1928. Victoria has given both the traditional country house setting and locked mystery a twist: her cast of characters are trapped in a lift, the lights cut out, there's a shot, and a victim lies dead. As Victoria tells us, launching a new series in a historical period required huge levels of research, not least into the habits and behaviour of ravens! It's a departure from the books that established Victoria as one of Britain's rising crime-writing stars, The Smart Woman's Mystery Series. And it doesn't harm that Victoria is a former barrister who worked regularly at the Old Bailey.Also this week, we ask is the CEO of Penguin Random House's response to the recent scandal engulfing Raynor Winn's The Salt Path adequate? And can you really give each of the novels long-listed for this year's Booker Prize a two word review? About – Victoria Dowdhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Death-Aviary-Charlotte-Blood-Chronicles/dp/1915523532https://www.amazon.co.uk/COMPLETE-MYSTERIES-gripping-terribly-mysteries-ebook/dp/B0DQVHFGKB

It sometimes feels as if this podcast feeds our "must visit pile". Whether it's Iceland, Seattle, Barcelona, Romania or Maine, our guests fuel our wanderlust with their passion for their home areas. That's the case again this week with our enthralling conversation with Dr. Nicholas Louis Baham III as we discuss his debut crime novel, The People's Detective. Set in present day Oakland, California, it's a celebration of all facets of Nick's fascinating home city. As he tells us, Oakland is a city of contradictions with great wealth and considerable poverty, and being a major port, a true melting pot of different nationalities. It's also a city with a proud record of protest and the struggle for equality, which underpin Nick's work. Nick's passion for Oakland shines through in this fascinating interview.Also this week, as the dust settles on another Harrogate Crime Fiction festival for another year, we ask "how much?". Yes, it seems bar prices have reached a new stratospheric level at the UK's premier crime fiction event. And we celebrate the growth of niche independent bookshops as a romance specialist store opens in Notting Hill in London.Home | Nicholas Louis Bahamhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Peoples-Detective-Sonny-Trueheart-Mystery-ebook/dp/B0D886W1ZG

Some guests are so good we have to give them two shows. So we're delighted to welcome back Antony Johnston again this week to discuss the methods and techniques he uses to cope with writing multiple projects in multiple formats at the same time. His advice is based on years or trial and error during his career as a writer for video games, films, graphic novels and fiction, as well as extensive research into many productivity systems and ideologies. First published in 2020, his book The Organised Writer distils all this research and advice, and suggests methods all creative professionals can adopt to improve their productivity and flow. So prepare to put aside a weekend, re-organise your workspace, and enjoy the benefits of uninterrupted creative endeavour. It's a brilliant interview full of useful insights and advice.Also this week, we delve into the controversy surrounding Raynor Winn, the author of the best-selling memoir The Salt Path, and we discuss if AI really can translate your work into multiple languages at the press of a button.Antony Johnstonhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Organised-Writer-projects-never-deadline/dp/1472977181

Antony Johnston's list of achievements as a writer take the breath away. His work has been made into a star-studded Hollywood film. He's a legend in the video games industry with some of the biggest franchises amongst his credits. He's worked in the Marvel Comic universe with superheroes such as Daredevil and Wolverine. Antony is also an accomplished novelist working across a number of genres, including thrillers, cosy crime, and now, an innovative take on the "whodunnit" where readers try to solve the crime themselves and have to make decisions as they read Can You Solve The Murder which was published last month. This is a fascinating interview. So good in fact, that we've split it into two parts. Next week Antony will take us through his system for improving your productivity as a writer or freelance creative.Also this week, we run through the winners of this year's CWA Daggers, and ask, should job-sharing become standard practice in publishing?Antony JohnstonCan You Solve The Murder: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Can-You-Solve-Murder-Investigate-ebook/dp/B0D5QP9W2HDog Sitter Detective series: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BW9MGPQC

We had one of those moments this week. In fact we had a few. Those moments when you are given an insight or information that challenges your perception of the world or the work you do. One of those came during our interview with author Jodie Robins, whose debut novella The Off-Season was published earlier this month. Jodie adopted the Eastern Story Structure or Kishōtenketsu, which is traditionally divided into four acts and, in contrast with western story structures, does not require conflict to drive the narrative. As Jodie tells us, it was both challenging and liberating in equal measure. The result is a captivating story set in wintry Blackpool, described by one reviewer as a "darkly glittering fairground of a novella." It's been published by our friends at Wild Hunt Books as part of their Northern Weird series.As for the other moments of insight, Rebecca and Adrian attended this year's Self Publishing Show Live 2025 in London this week. How has the show changed since we first attended five years ago? What are the latest trends in book marketing for independent creators? And how will a landmark legal ruling impact the long-running battle between copyright holders and big tech companies looking to fuel their AI systems? Jodie Robins | SubstackThe Off-Season by Jodie Robins The Northern Weird Project — wild hunt booksThe Northern Weird Project — wild hunt booksThe Self Publishing Show LIVE! 2024 - Digital Tickets

The rise and rise of Icelandic crime fiction continues, and we at The Hobcast Bookshow are here for it! We're delighted to be joined this week by internationally acclaimed playwright, screenwriter and author Jón Atli Jónasson, whose brilliant novel Broken was published in translation this month by Corylus Books. His plays have been performed in major cities including London, Paris, Berlin, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Athens.Jón has also written a number of film scripts, most notably The Deep, produced by 101 Studios Iceland and based on his own play, which was shortlisted for Best Foreign Feature at the 85th Academy Awards in 2015. His crime novels all take place in modern-day Iceland and focus on themes such as corruption within the police force, changing dynamics in Iceland’s society, the evolving underworld and shifting power structures in politics and business. This is a brilliant interview with a master storyteller, who is also joined by translator and former Hobcast guest, Quentin Bates.Also this week, we discuss major changes at leading UK indie crime publisher Bloodhound Books including a partnership with AI-powered editing service, Pro Writing Aid, and is a 31% rise in UK audiobook sales in 2024 as exciting as it seems?Jón Atli Jónasson – Corylus BooksBroken: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Broken-J%C3%B3n-Atli-J%C3%B3nasson-ebook/dp/B0DVZFZ6Y7132: Inside Icelandic Noir - with Quentin Bates - The Hobcast Book Show | AcastEnhancing Our Editorial Process: A New Partnership with ProWritingAid — Bloodhound BooksAudiobooks and fiction drove growth in 2024 - Publishers Association

Every so often, when Rebecca and I put down our microphones after an interview, we turn to each other and say: "That was great." Our interview with New York Times bestseller J.D. Barker is a classic example of that feeling. His journey to the top of the bestseller lists is remarkable. Encouraged by his wife, J.D. sold up everything and they moved to a small duplex in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania while he wrote his debut novel Forsaken. With some support from Stephen King, the book took off, and soon J.D. was being approached by major publishers. He's also written six novels in partnership with James Patterson, and in this fascinating interview J.D. reveals how the two men have influenced each other in the way they approach the craft. J.D's latest novel, Something I keep Upstairs, is his latest release under his own imprint within the Simon and Schuster empire. This is a remarkable story of how taking a huge risk can pay off with skill, creativity, and daring.Also this week, we look again at the downwash from the issues at struggling indie-publisher Boundless/Unbound, and we ask - why are children reading less?J.D. BARKER - NY Times Bestselling Author | Master of Suspensehttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Forsaken-J-D-Barker-ebook/dp/B00P1W6RDQhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Something-Keep-Upstairs-J-D-Barker-ebook/dp/B0DJW9ZHWV