Claire Powell is the author of At The Table, which was named one of the best books of 2022 by The Times and Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Critic, Red Magazine and Good Housekeeping. A graduate of the University of East Anglia Creative Writing MA, she was awarded the Malcolm Bradbury Bursary and the Malcolm Bradbury Continuation Prize. Her short stories have been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and in 2017 she won the Harper's Bazaar short story contest. She lives with her family in south-east London.
Captures the reality of various relationships on the rocks with startling accuracy and emotional intimacy. I laughed, I cried, I couldn’t pull my eyes away -- Daisy Jones * Vogue Best Beach Reads 2026 * Powell's 2022 debut At the Table was one of my favourite books of that year: painful, funny, deeply insightful and relatable. Her new family drama follows couple Jo and Dave... who hope an all-expenses paid holiday in the sun will fix their problems -- Joanne Finney * Good Housekeeping Most Anticipated Reads 2026 * One for fans of The Wedding People and White Lotus * The Bookseller 10 TITLES NOT TO MISS IN JUNE * One of those novels I couldn’t stop reading. Filled with heart it captures all the awkwardness of family dynamics and navigating marriage with such compassion and authenticity. Claire Powell is a real talent -- JENNIE GODFREY, author of The List of Suspicious Things I haven't enjoyed a book so much in ages. It's completely absorbing, and excruciating (in the best way). I was having such fun reading that its emotional undertow caught me off guard. I had tears in my eyes at the end -- REBECCA WAIT, author of I'm Sorry You Feel That Way Elegant, sensitive and sympathetic, All In is rigorously honest, fun-filled and full of Claire Powell’s trademark dry wit -- JESSICA STANLEY, author of Consider Yourself Kissed Quietly devastating. Not a word out of place -- SARAH VAUGHAN, author of Anatomy of a Scandal An exquisitely observed, propulsively plotted story of a family in free fall -- JOE DUNTHORNE, author of Submarine A deliciously messy tale of marriage, money, and miscommunication. Familial and romantic love are pushed to the brink in this all-too-believable holiday from hell -- CHLOË ASHBY, author of Wet Paint As funny and sad as a dropped ice cream -- ANDREW HUNTER MURRAY, author of A Beginner's Guide to Breaking and Entering A beautifully nuanced and completely gripping exploration of love, family and marriage by an exceptionally gifted writer -- LISA OWENS, author of Not Working Brilliantly observed and beautifully written. It takes real genius to turn a believably awful family holiday into a painful, funny and touching examination of a marriage… I loved it -- LISSA EVANS, author of Old Baggage A painfully funny, honest and compassionate novel written with superb precision and psychological acuity -- CHETNA MAROO, author of Western Lane Brilliant… expertly drawn family drama, loveable flawed characters and a very sweet dog… a perfect holiday read -- CLAIRE LYNCH, author of A Family Matter Hugely enjoyable... had me snorting with laughter on almost every page. Claire writes with such deft humour and insight into marriage and family -- HANNAH BECKERMAN, author of The Forgetting The setting is so vivid, the dialogue so zingy and these deliciously flawed, but totally believable, characters are so plausible, I absolutely devoured it -- JOSIE LLOYD, author of You & Me & You & Me & You & Me Irresistible, wry and absorbing, All In is both deeply fun and wildly compelling... A heartstopper of a novel -- FLYNN BERRY, author of Northern Spy Deeply funny and jaw-droppingly emotionally astute... By turns melancholy, sexy, existential, hilarious - tautly encapsulated in the all-inclusive purgatory of a luxury holiday -- LUKE KENNARD, author of The Transitions A highly amusing, meticulously written comedy about a marriage in crisis and a hideous family holiday abroad -- AMANDA CRAIG, author of The Three Graces Partners, parents, siblings, in-laws… Claire writes about family dynamics so believably. I looked forward to going to bed every night so I could read it and felt genuinely disappointed to get to the end -- ROXY DUNN, author of As Young As This