#223: Sarah Perry, novelist

Rachel and Simon speak to the novelist Sarah Perry. Sarah is the internationally bestselling author of four novels - "After Me Comes the Flood" (2014), "The Essex Serpent" (2016), "Melmoth" (2018) and "Enlightenment" (2024) - as well as two works of non-fiction, "Essex Girls" (2020) and "Death of an Ordinary Man" (2025). Waterstone's and the British Book Awards both named "The Essex Serpent" Book of the Year and in 2022 Apple TV+ adapted the novel into a mini-series starring Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston. Sarah's work has been nominated for major literary prizes including the Women's Prize for Fiction, the Dylan Thomas Prize, the Folio Prize and the Costa Novel Award. We spoke to Sarah about growing up in a Strict Baptist household, her breakout success with "The Essex Serpent", and her latest novel, "Enlightenment".