Absolutely & Forever By Rose Tremain
Whatever she turns her hand to, we can trust that Tremain will tug beautifully at our heart strings. In her latest novel, which is set in the 1950s and 60s of her own youth, she does just that. The book ‘tells a piercing story of thwarted love, true friendship and finding the courage to make your own life’ and is going to be impossible to put down.
The Fraud By Zadie Smith
Smith, 47, plunges into historical fiction for the first time in her most recent work. Based on the unfolding of a real criminal trial, The Fraud shines a light on Victorian colonial England, with all of its prejudice. The New York Times says: ‘As always, it is a pleasure to be in Zadie Smith’s mind, which, as time goes on, is becoming contiguous with London itself. Dickens may be dead, but Smith, thankfully, is alive.’
So Late In The Day By Claire Keegan
Elegant, succinct and perfectly crafted short stories are Keegan’s stock in trade. She doesn’t publish them very often. When she does, it is advisable to leap on a copy. Best of all? Reading her is the work of an afternoon at most. Her latest novella – about a man who is so unbendable that he loses out in love – is every bit as poignant and touching as the previous two.
The Seventh Son By Sebastian Faulkes
When an academic agrees to be a surrogate mother for an English couple, a child is created – in a billionaire-backed institute – unlike any other. Science is stretched, ethics are breached, and the arrogance of man looms large. This melancholic, thoughtful novel, set in the near future, is as troubling as it is elegant.
The Wren, The Wren By Anne Enright
Phil McDaragh was a lauded Irish poet – but a treacherous man. His misdemeanours had an impact on both his daughter Carmel and her daughter Nell and hence their own relationship. This masterful new novel tells their story, as they grapple with loving and being loved. The Guardian says: ‘All the vividness of characterisation that her readers have come to expect is here, and so is the wry, almost surreal wit with which she has always laced her acute observations of human folly.’
We All Want Impossible Things By Catherine Newman
In this debut novel, Edi lies in a hospice with terminal cancer, supported, loved and cared for by her best friend Ash. During Ash’s visits, they chat about everything, about life, love and the pursuit of happiness, about marriage, motherhood and midlife sex. The Guardian calls it: ‘A whip-smart, funny, beautifully observed and exquisitely characterised novel about how even the deepest of losses can be accompanied by a joyous affirmation of life.’
By Becky Ladenburg
September 2023
