Crime fiction is one of the most popular genres of writing today. Whether it be through exploring horrifying murders, sly psychological mazes, eccentric detectives or damaging family secrets, this fiction digs deep into our troubled psyches. Crime fiction, at its best, goes on an unsettling journey around the themes that concern us: how to live a good life, corrupt authority and power, difficult relationships, race and equality, justice and retribution.

It is truly a versatile genre and while it can be light, it can also allow for profound exploration of our private fears. These are books that rely on tight, focused writing, and while they can be as explicit and action-packed as the writer likes, they need to show restraint.

This year we are delighted to have four writers who are at the peak of their powers, in conversation with Declan Hughes, himself a novelist and playwright.

Liz Nugent has emerged as a great exponent of unsettling psychological fiction and her books traverse the crevices of family life and loving relationships gone wrong.

Jane Casey excels in creating characters we root for who are caught in tense and morally ambiguous situations that make great demands of them as they reach for redemption.

Håkan Nesser is a Swedish writer, whose work is wonderfully compelling and clear-eyed: Scandinavian crime writing that is rivetingly written and multi-layered.

Catherine Ryan Howard brings a sophistication to her books that make them stand out in their narrative assurance and the unexpected journeys her characters embark upon.

This promises to be a great evening in their company as we investigate what is behind great crime fiction and why we love it so much.

Kindly sponsored by