News

It is 25 years since multi-award-winning Sunday Times bestseller Chris Brookmyre’s first book was published. Since then, he has established himself as one of the most popular crime writers in the UK. His enthusiasm for hurling himself into extra-curricular activities such as the Scotland v England Writers football, the Caledonian Challenge, Channel 5 Egg Heads, the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers (including appearances at Glastonbury and in Toronto), BBC Question Time and a live celebrity Mastermind with Clive Myrie (specialist subject Buffy the Vampire Slayer) is well known and means he has more to talk about than most.

Chris’ first book, Quite Ugly One Morning, was published in 1996 and later adapted for an ITV drama starring James Nesbitt and Eddie Marsan. He’s written twenty-eight novels since, four with his wife Marisa Haetzman under their pen name Ambrose Parry (Marisa visited Islay Book Festival last year to talk about their latest historical crime novel, Voices of the Dead).

Chris told us “this will be my second trip to Islay, having appeared at the festival back in 2016, when the audience greatly enjoyed correcting all the things I had got wrong in my partially Islay-set novel Dead Girl Walking. On this trip, I am particularly looking forward to hearing Andrew O’Hagan talk about Caledonian Road, and as a huge fan of Parks and Recreation, I quite fancy recreating Ron Swanson’s pilgrimage to the Lagavulin distillery.”

Hope you take your whisky neat, Chris.

You can find out more about Chris at his website.

Chris’s latest book The Cracked Mirror came out just a couple of weeks ago, so we’re some of the first to hear him talking about it!  

Chris will join Denise Mina for a brilliantly unpredictable Friday night event at Islay Book Festival – get your tickets here.

Sue Lawrence is the author of absorbing historical thrillers that cast fascinating light on the perils and injustice that characterised women’s lives in Scotland through centuries past: The Green Lady, The Unreliable Death of Lady Grange, Down to the Sea, The Night He Left and Fields of Blue Flax – and her latest novel Lady’s Rock. She is also one of the UK’s leading cookery writers and broadcasters. Having studied French at Dundee university, she then trained as a journalist.

After winning BBC’s MasterChef in 1991, Sue wrote regular columns in The Sunday Times, Scotland on Sunday and many leading magazines. She also appeared on tv and as a regular panellist on BBC Radio 4’s Kitchen Cabinet. She has written 20 cookery books, the latest of which is New Scottish Baking which will be released just before the Book Festival begins. She has won two Guild of Food Writers Awards and a Glenfiddich Food and Drink Award. Born in Dundee, Sue has lived in many countries – France, Finland, Germany and Australia – and now lives in Edinburgh.

Sue told us “I have been to Islay many times. From when my own children were little and we stayed in Ballygrant and Port Charlotte and then in the past five years in Port Ellen, where we come as an extended family with the now very much grown up children – and the grandchildren. It is our favourite place for family holidays.”

Not only has Sue been to the island often, but she continued, “I have also been to the IBF before, so feel very privileged to be returning, and especially since some of the novel Lady’s Rock takes place on Islay. And in my baking book there are many recipes from Islay people.”

When we asked Sue if there were any of the other Festival authors she was particularly excited to hear from, she said “I am excited to hear every single author at this year’s festival. What a line up!” Us too, Sue!

Sue’s latest historical fiction is Lady’s Rock and her latest delicious bakery book New Scottish Baking will be released in August.

Sue will join Islay Book Festival at the Gaelic College on Saturday morning (31^st August), with an event chaired by Les Wilson. She will also host a special event on Sunday afternoon (1^st September) at Craigard Kitchen where we will enjoy some tasty treats and hear more about New Scottish Baking. Tickets are available for both events – visit Ticketsource now to make sure you have your place reserved!

In today’s author spotlight, we meet the brilliant Andrew O’Hagan. Hailed as one of the most exciting and serious chroniclers of our times, he has been nominated for the Booker Prize three times, was voted one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists in 2003, and won the E.M. Forster Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is Editor-at-Large of the London Review of Books and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Born and educated in the west of Scotland, his work is wide-ranging and uses both fiction and non-fiction to explore what it means to live in society today.  Andrew’s latest book Caledonian Road unpicks the privilege and corruptions of life in London, and tests the creaking foundations of the United Kingdom.

You can find out more about Andrew at his website.

Andrew will open Islay Book Festival on Thursday 29^th August. The event will be chaired by the excellent Glenn Campbell, and there will also be music from Taylor Strickland and Alan Windram.  Some tickets are still available for this event, so make sure to get yours now!

We are excited to bring you the next in a series of author spotlights, giving you an insight into the wonderful people who will be with us at Islay Book Festival 2024.

Nadine Aisha Jassat is an award-winning writer, and author of poetry collection Let Me Tell You This. She has been published widely, including in It’s Not About The Burqa (shortlisted for the Foyles Non-Fiction Book of the Year). Nadine delivers creative practice work filled with heart, which addresses social justice, builds community, and supports participants to connect to and grow their voices.

She often works with schools and youth groups and has worked with libraries around the world. She is a regular borrower in hers. Nadine lives in Edinburgh, and grew up in the North of England with a Yorkshire mum and a Zimbabwean dad. She is of mixed heritage; a heritage which can only be told in stories.

We asked Nadine whether she’s ever been to Islay before, and she told us “This will be my first time, and I’m so excited to visit and take part in the festival.” Nadine’s novels can be enjoyed by children and adults alike, from age 9 to 900 – Nadine will be part of the exciting schools programming for Islay Book Festival, and we will hopefully see her at many other sessions across the weekend. She told us that she’s especially excited to hear from Maisie Chan and Alycia Pirmohamed. 

You can find out more about Nadine at her website.

Nadine’s latest book for 9-12 year olds is The Hidden Story of Estie Noor

She also has a poetry collection: Let Me Tell You This

Today we are delighted to bring you the first in a series of author spotlights, giving you an insight into the wonderful people who will be with us at Islay Book Festival 2024.

Maisie Chan is a children’s author whose debut novel Danny Chung Does Not Do Maths won the Jhalak Prize and the Branford Boase Award in 2022. Her latest novel Keep Dancing, Lizzie Chu is out now with Piccadilly Press and was longlisted for the Diverse Book Awards 2023. She also writes the series Tiger Warrior.

She has written early readers for Hachette and Big Cat Collins, and has a collection of myths and legends out with Scholastic. She runs the Bubble Tea Writers Network to support and encourage writers of East and Southeast Asian (ESEA) descent in the UK. She has a dog called Miko who has big eyes.

We asked Maisie to tell us a bit more about herself and her books.

Have you ever been to Islay before? What are you most looking forward to on your visit? 

I’ve never been to Islay before! I’m looking forward to visiting the island and have already heard great things about it from those who have been. It will actually be the very first Scottish island that I will have visited (and I’ve been living in Scotland for nearly seven years!). I’m looking forward to learning more about the island and its inhabitants and of course, I am super excited to meet young readers! I’m very grateful to be asked to come along and talk about my books. 

What would you like people coming to the festival to know about you or your book before your session? 

I am a versatile children’s author and like to try new things. My novels are humorous contemporary stories about modern Britain, my younger fiction series is a fun, action-packed series with magical zodiac animals and portals. I feel like I’ve written a lot of different kinds of children’s stories so there should be something for all kinds of young readers. 

Is there another author you are looking forward to hearing from during the festival?

I think Denise Mina and I live in the same area in Glasgow but have never met, so I am looking forward to seeing her speak and meeting her. And it’s going to be wonderful seeing my friend and fellow children’s author Nadine Aisha Jassat at the book festival as well. 

Maisie will be part of our exciting schools programming. She will also lead a session at the Gaelic College on Saturday afternoon for children with additional needs.  

Maisie’s books will be available to buy at the festival, but if you can’t wait you can buy your copy of Keep Dancing, Lizzie Chu here.