The Kashmir Shawl by Rosie Thomas

I will always have fond memories of this novel as I read it throughout a recent journey across northern India from Shimla to Kolkata. How I wished I could have visited Srinagar and stayed on a houseboat as the author had. I loved the scope of the novel, travelling from the present day to war-time India. The shawl was a perfect link to both past and present and it was only towards the end of the novel that all was revealed. How a missionary’s wife had such a precious garment in her possession remained a mystery till then. Over the years I have collected Kashmiri embroidery and recently bought an exquisitely embroidered shawl in Nepal; so few tourists now visit Kashmir that their handiwork is often sold in other places. The novel enriched my love of India, as I knew it would. Twenty-six years ago, on our first visit to India, I was inspired by reading Paul Scott’s Raj Quartet. Reading The Kashmir Shawl took me back to that era and made me want to learn more. I have become interested in maharajahs’ jewels and palaces; Ravi Singh, Caroline’s lover, comes alive in sepia photos of tiger shoots and polo matches. I defy anyone to read this book and not want to visit this fascinating country; I would go back tomorrow. While I am in the mood I must order a DVD of ‘Heat and Dust’.

C'est La Folie by Michael Wright

I often find books in Oxfam that describe an Englishman's escape to a rural idyll/derelict farmhouse in France. Such is my love of France, I read them all, but apart from Patricia Atkinson's struggle to create a vineyard in the Dordogne, am often disappointed. Michael Wright's book was much more interesting. Although I have never read his columns in The Telegraph, I felt I knew him and warmed to his writing style, like Nigel Slater's, and have ordered the sequel to find out what happens next. He has become, in his own words, 'the kind of person who, through the way he or she lives their life - bravely and simply and openly - can somehow be a force for good'.

Daughters-in-Law by Joanna Trollope

It’s a long time since I read a Joanna Trollope novel so 'thoughtfully'. I read most of her early novels avidly - The Choir and The Rector’s Wife etc. - when I would have loved a book group, which didn’t exist then, in order to discuss them. I kept up with her novels until a couple of years ago when I decided to move on. But Daughters-in-Law has been a welcome return. I have to say it made me feel grateful to have daughters, unlike the dominant Rachel who feels shut-out by her three sons’ wives. This novel was a painful, almost disturbing read, observing in-laws becoming grandparents and still trying to influence their children who need space to work out their marriages and new roles of parenthood in privacy. I felt sympathy for all the characters, even if I didn’t like them very much, caught up in such a complicated web from which there was no easy escape as loyalties became divided and relationships frayed. The author's ability to make me see 'all sides' made me wiser and more thoughtful about how complicated families are. This is a novel to discuss with friends: too intimate, perhaps, for a book group unless it’s a therapy group and confidentiality is paramount!

The Reader by Bernhard Schlink

Translated from the German by Carol Brown Janeway

This is a haunting, compelling read from post-war Germany, fusing past and present as the lives of a teenage boy and an older woman intertwine. It is one of the most moving books I have read for a long time: the sorrow and pity of war and personal sadness linger on long after. But there is beauty to be found, and savoured fleetingly, in its sad pages, despite the heartache that accompanies it. No wonder a recent film adaptation was nominated for five Academy Awards.

Daughter of Siena by Marina Fiorato

Another romantic romp through Italian history, set in 18th century Siena, with the famous horse race, Il Palio, as the backdrop. Having studied Siena's earlier history and visited the city a couple of times it was fascinating to read about its later history and learn more about the contrada. Marina Fiorato moves on apace in her inimitable way and kept my attention, despite starting the novel on a night flight to Nepal and finishing it on the Eurostar, returning from Strasbourg, a few weeks later. I look forward to reading it again one day.

Reading Location by Luisa Moncada and Scala Quin

This is a wonderful compendium of fiction/non-fiction titles evoking spirits of place to enrich your travel experiences and tempt you to return. Film adaptations of stories are also highlighted alongside interesting background information. I discovered this book when an assistant in the Travel section of Hatchards, Piccadilly tried to find some titles for me and I realised how useful a resource it was. The section on the UK is equally fascinating. Reading Location is a book to be scribbled in and scrawled over, time and again.