OK, this is going to be the last 'relationship thriller' for a while i think - this was one too many! This is an obsessive and unsettling book, in which a middle aged and very proper American school headmaster is apparently confessing to some horrific crime, but as the novel progresses the reader learns just how unreliable the narrator really is. It's a dark and compelling book, with a significant twist part way through, and it becomes quite a different book, about different things..but for me it unravelled a bit at that point.

I guess this is another book which almost fits into the very popular 'marriage thriller' genre, but this one is perhaps a little more literary, a little more emotionally ambitious than most, relying as it does on the psychology of the lead character more than the plot twists. It's not without its revelations, however, and it's some way into the book before the character, Grace Sachs, a marriage therapist, and the reader, figure out just what has happened, and what her husband has been up to.

A tremendous collection of the best writing from The Guardian throughout 2013 - and an excellent way for those who don't have daily access to this newspaper to get a taste of their journalism and lifestyle writers. From the unpalatable truth about quinoa, to coverage of Margaret Thatcher's passing, to the early coverage of Edward Snowden's revelations, to what to do with Christmas leftovers this is the perfect bedside dipping-into book. Personally, i would have liked a bit more of The Guardian's excellent arts and literature coverage, but a very satisfying collection anyway.

Another in the 'marriage thriller' genre, I guess, and another very good one. George Foss's college sweetheart had gone home to Florida for the holidays twenty years ago, and never returned. George learns that she has committed suicide. Devastated, his life drifts meaninglessly for the next twenty years, until he meets a woman in a local bar claiming to be her. She asks for a favour, which leads to a twisting and thrilling series of events which leaves the reader riveted.

A rather lovely and authoritative illustrated history of the Appian Way. This book describes the history and construction of the road, with beautiful photographs of the key sights to be found along the way. The text is a little dry, but that may be partly due to the translation from Italian. The authors are all experts in their particular fields, and there are good maps and diagrams. It would be an excellent companion on any expedition, or a souvenir following one.

I was lucky enough to be able to walk a section of the Appian Way out of Rome last year, and this has inspired some reading on the subject. This is a delightful little hardback of just 120 pages, which describes the history of that great road from Rome to Brindisi, and describes the journey along it. The author is a professor of classics at Princeton, and he knows his Roman history, but, although authoritative, this book is also charming and accessible, beautifully packaged, and essential reading for any fan of Roman history.