Victoria Hislop’s fiction draws readers into the lives of people caught in history, often in Greece. Fans may come with a remembered place, a family story or a favourite character in mind. Her autumn festival conversations offered time with the novelist as another book brought readers into a post-war world.
Quick facts
Best known for
The Island
Genre or subject
Historical fiction, especially stories set in Greece
Hislop writes historical fiction closely associated with Greece. Her publisher describes novels in which individual lives are bound up with the disruptions of history. Readers can follow a family through a place and a period, seeing larger events through what happens to people within the story.
The Island remains a familiar first encounter with her writing. Her author website and publisher bibliography offer a wider route through the fiction, for readers who want to stay with her interest in place and character after finishing that first book.
Headline published her latest novel in September 2026. It begins in post-war Greece, with families affected by conflict and separation. That setting brings another period into her historical fiction, while the human relationships give a reader something close to follow. If place was what drew you to her earlier work, the new novel offers another world to spend time in before a book conversation.
Where to start with their books
The Island
Alexis visits Crete to learn about her mother’s past and discovers a family connection with Spinalonga, the former leprosy colony. This is a starting point for readers who enjoy a present-day search opening onto earlier generations, with the past of a place becoming a family’s story.
The Thread
This novel follows Thessaloniki through the twentieth century. Choose it if you want to stay with a city across change: the place supplies a different route into Hislop’s historical fiction from an island setting, while giving a reader another way to think about lives within a wider history.
The Sunrise
Two families remain in Famagusta after conflict empties the city. The story begins amid the promise of a glamorous resort and follows a place transformed by violence. Choose it for another Mediterranean setting in which the lives of people and the history around them cannot be separated.
Festival appearances
For tickets, use the host festival’s official box office. Confirm the date, venue and access details before paying.
Henley welcomed Hislop to the Marquee at Phyllis Court on 8 October, followed by Cheltenham’s Garden Theatre on 9 October. Both appearances came soon after the new novel’s publication.
The autumn visits gave readers the chance to hear her as that story reached them. A fan returning after an earlier novel could bring an interest in the link between the Greek setting and family life; a new reader could begin with the book just published. The official programme links below record those two completed events.
Where to see them next
Stratford Literary Festival’s 2026 programme included Victoria Hislop: The Wine-Dark Sea, 29 October 2026. 2026 event details.
No 2027 appearances announced yet. Check the festival guides for programme dates.
Plan your trip
Make the trip with someone who enjoys the same novelist, even if you have chosen different favourite books. Compare the places or characters that stayed with you over a meal, while keeping later turns quiet for a companion who has not finished reading.
If you are taking a novel along, choose the one copy you most want with you and check whether a signing is planned. Leave time after the conversation for a slow departure, especially if you hope to browse books or meet friends. The guides below cover the festival base and overnight choices.
The 2026 programmes featured Victoria Hislop at Cheltenham Literature Festival, Henley Literary Festival; follow those guides for event information and practical visit details.
When was her Stratford conversation?
She discussed The Wine-Dark Sea at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on 29 October 2026. Read the 2026 event details above; for a later visit, follow the Stratford guide’s next festival dates.
Do I need to finish her latest novel first?
Reading it can give you characters and places to listen for, but you can also enjoy an introduction from its author before starting. Keep the wider plot for your own reading if you prefer discovering a novel slowly.
What should I take to a Hislop event?
Bring the book you want to read around the visit, plus a short question if one has stayed with you. Ask the organiser about signing plans before carrying more copies, and keep the journey comfortable enough to enjoy the conversation.
