I read widely and am delighted when I discover enjoyment in genres outside my usual preferences. I am typically drawn to multi-generational domestic saga novels, through which the reader becomes familiar with the characters over a significant time frame. Kate Atkinson’s Life after Life is one such novel that has really stayed with me. I particularly enjoy books that explore the intricacies of female familial relationships, such as Brit Bennett’s The Vanishing Half and Kate Sawyer’s This Family.

I also love to read historical fiction, with Philippa Gregory and Hilary Mantel’s novels being amongst my favourites. Maggie O’ Farrell’s The Marriage Portrait, inspired by Robert Browning’s poem, really captivated me. I particularly admire her ability to intertwine fact and fiction, giving a compelling voice to a part of history seldom written about.

My favourite non-fiction books are those that have an element of mystery and discovery, like Philippa Langley’s The Princes in the Tower. I relish non-fiction books such as this, that challenge their reader to forensically re-examine previously held conceptions of history. Matthew Green’s Shadowlands is another non-fiction book that fascinated me, telling a unique story of Britain through a tour of its abandoned villages and towns.