Many people are leery of creepy crawlies—but insects are critical to the functioning of the planet, says Dino Martins, the entomologist, evolutionary biologist and author of Hidden Creatures. We asked him to recommend five entomology books that seek wonder in unexpected places, including bee colonies and termite mounds.

Psychological horror blurs the line between what is real and imagined, finding demons in the mind as often as in the outside world. Tabitha Potts, author of The House of Dust and Shadows, explores five of the best psychological horror novels, from Gothic classics to contemporary fiction.

Anthropologists look for cultural and political currents reflected in everyday behaviours, says Ruben Andersson, the Oxford academic and author of a new book about the contemporary obsession with self-protection, Age of Security. Here, he recommends five anthropology books that have influenced his work and writing—and reflects on the difficulties of recognising patterns in our own thinking.

If you enjoy crime fiction, there can be a bewildering array of books to choose from. Fortunately, the UK has the Dagger Awards, awarded by the Crime Writers' Association to standout books in the genre. The 'Gold Dagger' is given for the best crime novel by an author of any nationality, originally written in English and first published in the UK. Five Books editor Sophie Roell runs us through the six books that made this year's shortlist.

Adolescence is an "electrifying" time of self-definition, explains the award-winning novelist Tom Newlands. Here he recommends five of the best 'coming of age' novels that capture the porosity and potential of those vivid teenage years when everything, just everything, seems possible.

Sci fi dystopias are often, paradoxically, hopeful: they show oppressive systems, but they also show resistance. Award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky picks out five titles that deserve more readers, ranging from near-futures to space operas, but all featuring complex humans responding to dire circumstances.

Body horror is often bloody and gory, argues the novelist Heather Parry, but it is also a vessel for social commentary. Here she recommends five books that explore notions of bodily autonomy, capitalism and technology through the form of a horror novel – cult hits that will make you wince, but also make you think.

Mythological beings were ever-present in the world for ancient Egyptians. Author Garry J. Shaw introduces his five best books to get started, from guides to source texts to lavish illustrations. He tells us why the worst parts were never written down, where to look for ghosts and magical spells, why the north is less well understood than the south, and why life is less well understood than the elaborate rituals of death.

There is romance in the study of ecology, explains the conservationist Kulbhushansingh Suryawanshi—whose new book draws from twenty years studying wild snow leopards. Here he recommends five excellent ecology books, from a study of the Serengeti lion to one man's search for a most elusive owl, that get to the heart of what it is to study the natural world.

In 1974, British politician Jeffrey Archer lost all his money in a con. As he tried to dig himself out of the financial hole, he wrote his first novel, Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less, about four men who fall victim to a stock market scam and take revenge on the con man behind it. The novel has never been out of print since its publication. As it celebrates its 50th anniversary, the bestselling author chooses his favourite books about heists and con artists, both fictional and all too real.