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Chan’s first book follows the adventures of a Malaysian mother whose life is upended when she becomes a spy for the Japanese forces during World War II. This is a resonating tale that perfectly captures the anger of a woman who feels utterly powerless; in it, Chan skilfully weaves together different perspectives for a rich and multi-layered narrative built on shifting sands. A thoroughly thought-provoking debut.
After Kiley Reid’s witty and incisive debut, Such A Fun Age, her second novel has been hotly anticipated. Thankfully, she doesn’t disappoint with Come And Get It, a cleverly drawn campus fiction that centres on Millie, and her messy entanglement with a professor and three students. At once highly readable and an important comment on the lose-lose decisions millennials face in a bleak economy, this is a book you’ll devour in days.
Sweeney presents a startling premise many may find thrillingly relatable in Breakdown. What if, instead of going to work, you began to drive in the opposite direction – and never came back? A can’t-put-it-down story from one of Ireland’s most admired writers, this is highly recommended for anyone who’s experienced a sense of ennui with day-to-day life.
A hefty doorstop of a book from the author of Mayflies, this state-of-the-nation novel is set to be one of the most talked-about reads of the year. Campbell Flynn – art historian and celebrity intellectual – is a middle-aged aesthete with a taste for finer things and witticisms. Milo Mangasha, his beguiling student, has a devious plan, and over the course of an incendiary year, a web of crimes, secrets and scandals is uncovered. Will Flynn be able to protect himself from everything that the tearing down of his privilege involves?
Successful lawyer, dutiful daughter, beloved girlfriend, loyal friend: Jade seemingly has a perfect life. But when a work party goes horribly wrong and her carefully constructed world begins to crumble around her, she’s forced to reassess all her blithe assumptions. Razor-sharp and darkly funny, this exploration of identity, consent and love will leave you asking yourself: what would you have done in Jade’s situation?
Anyone who’s ever experienced the slog of modern dating will love As Young As This, an achingly relatable novel that focuses on the dreams we have for our lives, and what happens when we open ourselves up to letting them go. Unusually told in the second person, As Young As This charts Margot’s quest to work out what to do when she finds herself 34 years old, single, childless – and about to make the biggest decision of her life.
After the roaring successes of Nicholls’ previous novels, including Us, Sweet Sorrow andOne Day – the latter now a major Netflix series – everyone is waiting with baited breath for the latest, You Are Here. The story is classic Nicholls: Marie feels as if life is passing her by, while Michael is still reeling from his wife’s departure. When a persistent mutual friend and some very English weather conspire to bring them together, the pair suddenly find themselves alone on the most epic of walks and on the precipice of a new friendship.
A wild and extremely cleverly plotted piece of science fiction, Creation Lake tells the story of secret agent Sadie Smith, who is sent to infiltrate and disrupt a group of “anti-civvers” – eco-terrorists – in a France of the near-future, where industrial agriculture and sinister corporations dominate the landscape. Beneath this parodic spy novel with plenty of Killing Eve-style capers is a woman caught in the crossfire between the past and the future of our planet. Meaningful, yet effortlessly readable.
A Black London family relocates to a small farming village in Somerset in this poetic tale of love, belonging and rural landscapes, inspired by the author’s own experience. It’s a meaningful take on on broken relationships, overlapping perspectives and a life lived in the cracks – as Williams writes, “ain’t nothing wrong with being broken. Nothing at all. You’re like these houses, not a whole brick in em and look how strong they are.”
A story of maids and mistresses set in a grand Victorian house, this period tale has everything you’d ask for from a gothic thriller: murder, a relatable heroine and plenty of dark detail. Set to be the beach read of the summer, this well-researched and convincing page-turner is the ideal choice for fans of Mary Shelley and Emily Brontë’s classic novels.
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