Aunts fictional and real matter more to us than they may know

In praise of our aunts and women who don’t hold the title, but who have always been there for us

More sex, please: Bridget Jones, Colin Firth and the astonishing rebranding of Jane Austen

Thirty years ago, one event made Austen more popular than almost any other contemporary or close successor

Swerve fuel inflation on this magnificent 19th-century penny farthing

Nothing like a vintage bicycle; first edition of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre also on sale

Charlotte Brontë’s hair ‘found in ring’ on Antiques Roadshow

Ring discovered in attic was probably made to mark the Jane Eyre author’s death

Open season: Grand Irish homes that welcome visitors – and get a tax break

‘It isn’t a handout. We’ve earned it,’ say owners of some of Ireland’s best-known houses

The year of slow news, fake news and ‘Love Island’

2018 had everything: scandals, outrages and some terrible slurs on journalists

Mrs Gaskell and Me review: A funny, heartfelt tribute to a literary giant

Nell Stevens’s book could have been grating, but succeeds through her charm and skill

Down at heel – An Irishman’s Diary about Charlotte Brontë

Engaging exploration of the art of singing

Write on, sister: 20 great books by women

The Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction last week announced a list of the top 20 most influential books written by women. We continue our series on female authors, looking at the books as voted for by the public.

Eat your words

With the Ballymaloe Literary Festival taking place this weekend, here are 20 literary quotations to whet the appetite

Mad men and women in fiction

From Jane Eyre’s madwoman in the attic to Captain Ahab in Moby Dick and Francie in The Butcher Boy, madness is a recurring and compelling theme in literature