Books

Robert De Niro’s legacy in the history of cinema is unquestionable - and aside from gracing our screens with his acting talent, De Niro has also helped bring some truly powerful stories to audiences.One of De Niro’s best-reviewed, most celebrated and quietly haunting films was adapted from a book he counts among his personal favourites.When De Niro picked up I Heard You Paint Houses, the 2004 nonfiction title by Charles Brandt, he immediately saw its cinematic potential. “Marty [Scorsese] and I were working on a project before that, and it was a different type of genre film… I said, ‘Well, I have to read this book that I spoke with Eric Roth about a couple of years earlier when it came out,’” he explained during the Variety Screening Series.“There might be a lot of good research materia...

If you're addicted to watchable and wild plots, then fans only have a few days to binge the first season of The Buccaneers on Apple TV+. The rousing feminist period drama, based on the classic novelist Edith Wharton's unfinished book, is set to release its highly anticipated second season this week. Taking place against the backdrop of America’s Gilded Age in the late 19th century, the first season follows the story of five American women who travel to England to find a husband. With plenty of jaw-dropping twists, bonds of sisterhood, and lots of corsets, the first season received plenty of critical acclaim, with viewers at home giving it a 96 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.One person said online, "It’s intelligent, well-acted, funny, uplifting, and addictive!" Another chim...

Launched in 2018 and lasting four seasons - wrapping up in 2024 - a TV series that follows the lives of two childhood friends across six decades is seen by critics as one of the most underrated shows of recent years.Alongside a well-adapted script, brilliant acting, and high production values, another major factor behind the show's quality is its source material: the book voted by The New York Times as the best of the century.The publication describes My Brilliant Friend as “uncompromising, unforgettable,” and “like riding a bike on gravel: It’s gritty and slippery and nerve-racking, all at the same time.”The book, the first of four volumes penned by Italian author Elena Ferrante, became a bestseller. In contrast, its TV adaptation wasn’t as popular - though specialised media considers ...

A new crime novel has hit out shelves this week and fans are describing it as "gripping". Winter by former political science professor H.N. Hirsch is a crime fiction with diverse lead characters. Hirsch's Winter is the fourth book featuring the crime-solving duo Bob and Marcus. The first novel in the series, Shade, is set against the backdrop of 1985 Boston, where Marcus, a sharp-minded assistant professor at Harvard, finds his world upended when one of his students is murdered. Enter Bob, the murdered student’s summer roommate. As Marcus and Bob work together to untangle the mystery, a deeper connection forms between them—one that blossoms into a loving relationship. When Bob finishes law school, the couple relocates to San Diego, where Marcus joins the faculty at a University of Calif...

At the start of the year, many of you will likely have had a list of books to get through this year, perhaps including a fantasy or a recent Hunger Games installment, but how many have you read since 2020, and which of those stood out the most for you? Here is a list of the top books of the decade so far, as ranked by Goodreads.10. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle ZevinThis creative love story by Gabrielle Zevin explores the decades-long friendship between Sam Masur and Sadie Green, both now video game designers who first met as children and later reunite in college. When they decide to collaborate on a video game, they are met with massive success, but with that comes huge tests. The novel has themes of identity, love, loss, and the power of human connection.9. Lessons...

You really can't beat the feeling of truly getting stuck in a book. Not being able to drag yourself away from a story is the best sign that it's a good one, and for many people, a psychological thriller is their go-to.If you love a book with an eerie, uneasy plot and heart-wrenching twists and turns, then there's one that should be on your list. Magpie by Elizabeth Day, which was released in 2021, was described as the 'most gripping psychological thriller of the year' on Amazon. And for the month of June, you can get your hands on it for just 99p. The book is one of hundreds available on the Kindle store for 99p just now. These deals change every month, so it's worth checking every now and then to see if there's anything that catches your eye. Magpie follows the story of pregnant Marisa...

Stephen King has released many well-known books. From ‘The Shining,’ to ‘IT,’ to ‘Cujo’ and so many more, he’s firmly ingrained in popular culture.But some of his books never quite got the popularity they deserved, and sometimes, that’s because King decided to write under pseudonym. His pen name was ‘Richard Bachman,’ and under this name, he wrote Rage (1977), The Long Walk (1979), Roadwork (1981), The Running Man (1982), Thinner (1984), The Regulators (1995), and Blaze (2007). One of my favourite books of all time was written under King’s pseudonym. And while versions of this story are now published under Stephen King, at the time, nobody knew it was he penning the novels. So, which books left me sobbing, utterly inconsolable? It was ‘Blaze’ and ‘Elevation,’ and I didn’t expect tears t...

A defence expert believes a 1928 novel which was adapted into a film is the “greatest of all war novels”. Dr Michael Shurkin, an expert in European defence and West African politics and security, revealed his 10 favourite war novels.The novel that topped his list is WW1 German soldier Erich Maria Remarque’s semi-autobiographical book All Quiet on the Western Front, first released in 1928. The book describes the German soldiers' extreme physical and mental trauma during the war as well as the detachment from civilian life felt by many upon returning home from the war. Dr Shurkin said it could “quite possibly” be the “greatest of all war novels”, following Paul, an enthusiastic young man who joins up with his schoolmates and then, after the obligatory training, goes to fight the French on...

Melita Norwood outside her home in Southeast London after being exposed as a KGB spy (Image: PA)In the autumn of 1992, a man called Vasili Mitrokhin fled Russia with a bag full of secrets. He had worked as a senior archivist for the KGB for much of the Cold War and had spent years meticulously copying down the Russian spy service’s deepest secrets, before finally being exfiltrated by MI6 in a daring operation.The secrets he brought to the West would unmask hundreds of agents who had spied for the KGB around the world. Yet it was a grandmother in a south-east London suburb who would become the most famous case – and who would also cause a major headache for MI5. It is a story which points to a wider failure to appreciate the threat posed by Russia.Mitrokhin first approached the British E...

Award-winning thriller writer M W Craven has been revealed as the author of a new James Bond action-series for children – sending the world’s best-known secret agent back to school to train the next generation of British spies. James Bond and the Secret Agent Academy, filled with “courage, cleverness, and laugh-out-loud moments” and due to be published next June, will be the first of a series set in the 007 universe aimed at attracting a new generation of fans.It promises to portray Bond “as you have never seen him”, taking the “world’s most beloved secret agent to a place of dread, weirdos and strange food: school”. “A new generation of young heroes, mentored by 007, have entered the Secret Agent Academy to see if they have what it takes to join the ranks of the Double O's,” explains t...