Celebrating the world of words

Go All In: Reading for Pleasure

Celebrate the joy and power of reading at this special “Go All In” Year of Reading event, championing reading for pleasure at every stage of life.

Caroline Cauchi is an international bestselling novelist. Her writing seeks to give voice to silenced yet remarkable women, reimagining the stories of those erased from historical narratives. In 2023, her novel Mrs Van Gogh was published in multiple countries and selected as a Heather’s Picks title in Canada. Currently lecturing in Creative Writing at the University of Hull, Caroline lives in the UK with her partner and their many children.

L. C. Winter likes to give the reader a shiver and writes gothic historical fiction that explores relationships and place. After studying for her English degree many years ago, Libby went on to a career as a gardener, demonstrating that, if nothing else, she's not afraid to change her mind. She has spent many years wrangling the gardens at various historic homes, feeding a love for the past and walking through it every day. She lives in Derbyshire with her nerdy husband and neurotic cats, and her debut novel, Spider, Spider, was published in March 2026.

Mike Gayle was born and raised in Birmingham. After graduating from Salford University with a degree in Sociology, he moved to London to pursue a career in journalism and worked as a features editor and agony uncle. He has written for a variety of publications including The Sunday Times, the Guardian and Cosmopolitan. Mike became a full-time novelist in 1997 following the publication of his Sunday Times top ten bestseller My Legendary Girlfriend, which was hailed by the Independent as 'full of belly laughs and painfully acute observations', and by The Times as 'a funny, frank account of a hopeless romantic'. Since then he has written eighteen novels, including The Man I Think I Know, selected as a World Book Night title, and Half A World Away, selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club. His books have been translated into more than thirty languages. In 2021, Mike was the recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Romantic Novelists' Association. He lives in Birmingham with his wife and kids.