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The crime writer Ian Rankin has just written his 19th Rebus novel, ‘Saints of the Shadow Bible’ (Orion). Ian tells us how he’s learnt to trust his readers, and how for him Rebus is both a great way to investigate the city, and say the things he’s not allowed to say.

Since publishing the cult classic Fight Club in 1996, Chuck Palahniuk has published 13  novels, his latest is Doomed (Jonathan Cape), featuring Madison Spencer, a dead girl invisible to the rest of the world. Chuck Palahniuk discusses his love for snarky characters, and his hatred of abstract verbs.

The trumpeter and composer Matthew Halsall has teamed up with singer-songwriter Josephine especially for The Verb. They perform two songs for us, ‘The Sun in September’, and a song written as part of our ‘Things I Don’t Want To Know’ series. Josephine’s debut album ‘Portrait’ (Ark) is out now and she will be touring the UK . Matthew’s latest album is ‘Fletcher Moss Park’ (Gondwana Records).