What makes a setting feel so vivid it becomes a character? With Paula Hawkins

About this episode

Best-selling author Paula Hawkins discusses her latest thriller and shares gripping book recommendations.

Which novels are truly unputdownable and what should you read on a dark winter's night? We’re joined by best-selling author, Paula Hawkins , who discusses art, love and remote islands in her latest thriller, The Blue Hour . She also helps us tackle your listener questions with a stack of gripping recommendations to guide you to your next great read. Explore all the books mentioned on this episode: Click here Paula Hawkins worked as a journalist for fifteen years before writing her first novel. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, she moved to London in 1989. Her first thriller  The Girl on the Train  became a global phenomenon, selling over 23 million copies. Published in over fifty languages, it was a No.1 bestseller around the world and a box-office-hit film starring Emily Blunt. Paula's subsequent thrillers have all been instant  Sunday Times  bestsellers. In 2021  A Slow Fire Burning  was nominated for Thriller of the Year at the British Book Awards, and in 2025  The Blue Hour  was voted the  Good Housekeeping  Good Books winner. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Guest: Paula Hawkins

Topics covered

• novels
• thrillers
• reading recommendations
• Paula Hawkins
• vivid settings
• unputdownable books

Keywords

• Paula Hawkins
• The Blue Hour
• thrillers
• reading recommendations
• unputdownable novels
• The Girl on the Train
• British Book Awards

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: British Book Awards, Good Housekeeping

Books & works: The Blue Hour, The Girl on the Train

Places: Zimbabwe, London

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