Sian Ellis-Martin

I love a love story, whether it’s a big ‘made-for-each-other’ romance like One Day by David Nicholls, or a quieter depiction of desire like The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden. I’m also a big fan of rom-coms with interesting backdrops or with a focus on queer love.

Platonic relationships are just as fascinating to me, and I’d really like to represent a sweeping friendship or family saga (think Tom Lake or The Dutch House by Ann Patchett and Pachinko by Min Jin Lee). In this space, it’s really the warmth of the writing and richness of the world that draws me in.

In the commercial crime and thriller space, I want to read truly unputdownable standalone books with twists that you don’t see coming or mysteries that get the cogs of your brain turning. On the more upmarket end of the crime spectrum, I love books that focus on the psychology of the characters at the same time as providing pacey plot, like Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka or Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton.

I’m a mostly contemporary reader but I do dabble in historical fiction. I’m drawn to books based on real events or people or stories with a gothic or darker feel like Sarah Waters. I also enjoy when historical fiction looks at the lives of people we don’t hear so much about in periods of time that we already know well, like In Memoriam by Alice Winn.

In the non-fiction space, I look for books that read like fiction and/or draw you into a topic you never expected to be interested in (I recently loved Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer). I also enjoy informative books that make complicated topics accessible or shine a light on something new, like Unwell Women by Elinor Cleghorn or Doppelganger by Naomi Klein. I’d love to find a literary true crime story too, like This House of Grief by Helen Garner, and I’m a big fan of untold histories (think The Five by Hallie Rubenhold).

Lastly, I’m on the hunt for cookery and food writing – delicious food and uncomplicated recipes.