The Write Stuff: 4 plot-twisting adventures for literary lovers

Words by Karen Pasquali Jones

Literary lovers should bookmark the new novel way to travel. It’s not enough anymore to simply pack a book or two to while away the hours relaxing on a holiday – now you can travel with the author of your favourite best-seller while exploring the world. 

Loved Sex & The City? Well why not join Candace Bushnell in the City of Lights on a literary adventure through France that takes in Paris before sailing along the Seine to Honfleur, the inspiration for legendary artists Van Gogh and Monet, through Rouen where Joan of Arc was martyred, all the way to Normandy’s Landing Beaches, stormed by Allied forces during WWII to liberate Europe from Nazi occupation. 

Or were you enthralled by Gillian Flynn’s crime novel, Gone Girl? Known for her twisting, dark plots, book lovers can join the Killer Queen exploring the sights between Budapest and Vienna, discovering the Old World in new ways. 

Browse the art collection of the Habsburg Empire, attend a Medieval Knights Tournament at a Visegrád castle and see Gustav Klimt’s renowned “The Kiss” painting in Vienna. Drink beer and sample cheese made by Trappist monks before exploring their Abbey gardens, take a hike to Count Dracula’s prison tower, or tour one of WWII’s most notorious concentration camps, Mauthausen.

For a trip with a more tropical flavour, join Sarah Cruddas, who has written about space and the solar system, poet Jacqueline Gabbitas and crime writer Barbara Nadel on a voyage from Jamaica’s Montego Bay taking in Antigua, Madeira, Gibraltar, and Dubrovnik, Croatia.

There will be guest talks and interactive workshops on Tui’s first book lovers voyage including one with actor Shaun Williamson – known as Barry from EastEnders. 

The author of A Matter of Facts: One Man’s Journey into the Nation’s Quiz Obsession, Shaun will discuss his acting career, the country’s quiz scene and why he’s so obsessed with quizzing.