Episode 42: Mastering historical crime fiction - with Abir Mukherjee

5000 words, a competition, and a measure of luck launched Abir Mukherjee's glittering literary career five years ago. With The Shadows of Men, the fifth novel in his Wyndham and Bannerjee historical crime fiction series due out on November 12th, Abir has cemented himself as one of the genre's best authors. His books have sold over 250 thousand copies and been translated into 15 languages. As he tells Rebecca and Adrian in this week's Hobcast Book Show, he takes nothing for granted and always strives to improve as an author. Also this week, the team discuss further evidence that rising costs are impacting the independent publishing scene, and we reveal details of Hobeck Books upcoming charity anthology, The Dark Side of Christmas.