Literary besties take publishing to task in a delightful, rollicking mystery.

On this week’s episode, Evelyn Clarke joins us to discussThe Ending Writes Itself (Harper/HarperCollins, April 7), the hotly anticipated debut Stephen King says is “clearly in the running for the best mystery novel of 2026.” In this closed-circle mystery set in Scotland, a group of midlist authors, sworn to secrecy, compete to finish a mega-famous author’s abandoned manuscript. Kirkus calls it “high-concept and highly entertaining.”

Evelyn Clarke is the pen name of New York Times bestselling authors V.E. Schwab and Cat Clarke, storytelling friends who teamed up to tell this truly unforgettable tale together, despite their protestations. Schwab, the author of more than 20 books (the Shades of Magic series, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue,Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, etc.) swore she’d never co-write a novel, let alone one without fantasy. Clarke, a former editor and author (Girlhood,Entangled, etc.) turned screenwriter, swore she’d never publish again. But as they both reside in Edinburgh, Scotland—where proximity, weather, and mutual affection conspired against them—a book was inevitably born.

Here’s a bit more from our review of The Ending Writes Itself: “Seven writers, all but one published, have received invitations to spend the weekend with crime novelist Arthur Fletch, the world’s most successful author, on his private island off the coast of Scotland. When they arrive at his cliffside castle, they expect to take part in one of the literary salons for which Fletch is famous; instead, they’re greeted by his agent, who informs them that Fletch is dead.…Fletch has left his eagerly anticipated final novel unfinished, so the agent has summoned the writers to the island for a competition: One of them will get to complete Fletch’s book. As premises go, this one’s a humdinger.…The story contains an amusing throughline about the indignity of being an uncelebrated novelist; as the agent tells the assembled writers, the contest winner will receive both cash and something equally valuable: ‘a way out of the midlist.’”

In conversation, we three discuss many intriguing aspects of Schwab and Clarke’s cathartic collaboration, from the challenges of blending their writing styles to the delights of satirizing the publishing industry. At the end of our time together, they recommend a few books to our listeners.Follow @kirkus_reviews on Instagram, DM us the title of one of those books, and you’ll be entered in a drawing to receive a $100 Visa gift card, courtesy of Kirkus.

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS:

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Ballad of the Wayward Child by Keven Renken

Fully Booked is produced by Jessica Lockhart and Megan Labrise.