The disquieting story of an unidentified man as told by those who crossed paths with him on the last day of his life, Sheila’s debut novel is haunting, lyrical and darkly suspenseful. Told through a chorus of voices, Falling Animals follows the crosshatching threads of lives both true and imagined, real and surreal, past and present. Slowly, over great time and distance, the story of one man, alone on a beach, begins to unravel.

Each week, the show features four guests discussing their favourite book and two book club picks. One of these picks will spotlight a newly published book, reflecting a mixture of styles and genres, and the second will be a classic selected from The Booker Prize backlist.

The six new books chosen, in broadcast order, are: The Seventh Son (Hutchinson Heinemann), The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson (Pan Macmillan), Remember, Mr Sharma by A P Firdaus (Sceptre), Falling Animals by Sheila Armstrong (Bloomsbury), Devil’s Breath by Jill Johnson (Bonnier Books), The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou by Eleni Kyriacou (Head of Zeus)

The book club picks have been chosen by executive producer and c.e.o of Cactus TV Amanda Ross. In deciding on the list, Ross canvased a range of experts across the industry and was supported by a panel comprising series producer Pollyanne Conway, Prima books editor Nina Pottell and consultant and literary agent Julia Kingsford.

Cox said: "The books chosen this series I think are amongst the best we’ve ever had; superb writing that will entice and delight our viewers plus of course oodles of other great reads courtesy of our superstar guests, who come clutching their favourite books to share with our awesome audience."

Ross added: "Our job was especially tough this series because there have been so many amazing and original books published this season, consequently we were spoilt for choice so I’m more confident than ever that we have something for everyone.