Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan yesterday launched their latest Book Club summer selections, exclusive to WH Smith. We are delighted to announce that Peter James’s striking international thriller ABSOLUTE PROOF is one of Richard and Judy’s picks this Summer. Judy describes ABSOLUTE PROOF as ‘fascinating and often funny... Thought-provoking, thrilling, funny and challenging…Peter James’s most ambitious novel yet.’ A Number One bestseller in hardback earlier this year, ABSOLUTE PROOF is out in paperback from Pan Macmillan this week.

The Richard and Judy Book Club launches with another series of podcasts, providing a fantastic introduction to all the featured titles as well as an exclusive interview with each of the authors. WH Smith customers can enjoy exclusive special editions of the Book Club titles filled with added bonus content, including book club discussion points, author Q&As and more recommended reads.

Investigative reporter Ross Hunter nearly didn’t answer the phone call that would change his life – and possibly the world – for ever.

‘I’d just like to assure you I’m not a nutcase, Mr Hunter. My name is Dr Harry F. Cook. I know this is going to sound strange, but I’ve recently been given absolute proof of God’s existence – and I’ve been advised there is a writer, a respected journalist called Ross Hunter, who could help me to get taken seriously.’

What would it take to prove the existence of God? And what would be the consequences? This question and its answer lie at the heart of ABSOLUTE PROOF, an international thriller from bestselling author Peter James.

The false faith of a billionaire evangelist, the life’s work of a famous atheist, and the credibility of each of the world’s major religions are all under threat. If Ross Hunter can survive long enough to present the evidence…

Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels. His Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton – translated into thirty-seven languages with worldwide sales of over twenty million copies – has given him fourteen consecutive Sunday Times Number Ones. In 2015 WH Smith customers voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he was awarded the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger, a lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. In 2018 he received a Specsavers Honorary Platinum Bestseller Award.

The audiobook of ABSOLUTE PROOF, read by Hugh Bonneville, was shortlisted for a Specsavers National Book Award.

Praise for Peter James

‘Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business’ – Karin Slaughter

‘Probably the closest we’ll get to a British Stephen King’ – The Financial Times

‘Peter James is one of the most fiendishly clever crime fiction plotters’ – The Daily Mail

‘In my thirty-four years of policing, never have I come across a writer who so accurately depicts “The Job“’ – Detective Investigator Pat Lanigan, Office of the District Attorney, NYPD

Praise for ABSOLUTE PROOF

'Sensational – the best what-if thriller since The Da Vinci Code' – Lee Child

‘Peter James is the thinking man's Dan Brown.' — Barry Forshaw, Radio 5 Live

‘ABSOLUTE PROOF is a thriller that grips from the outset but it’s also incredibly thought-provoking, asking some of life’s biggest questions about science and faith, setting big pharma and high church on a collision course that could change the world. I was thrilled when Peter asked me to provide the narration for his latest, most compelling book.’ – Hugh Bonneville

'With ABSOLUTE PROOF, the King of Crime is now a miracle worker.' – Jon Coates, Sunday Express

‘We are in Dan Brown blockbuster territory, but both atheists and believers will find food for thought in this globe-trotting epic.' – Barry Forshaw, Guardian