Author Talk: Francesca de Tores

Francesca's new book is a bold re-imaging of the real-life story of Alexander Selkirk, the 18th-century sailor whose extraordinary survival on a remote island was the inspiration for Robinson Crusoe.

Cast Away: or, the Surprising Adventures of Alexander Selkirk was Book of the Month in The Times and was described by The Guardian as 'a revelatory meditation on humanity.' Francesca’s first historical novel, Saltblood, was awarded the 2024 Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize and was a Sunday Times top 20 bestseller.

Image: Author Francesca de Tores in a yellow jumper smiling against a brick wall. Next to this, the cover of her book Cast Away: or, the Surprising Adventures of Alexander Selkirk.