William, how sweet!
Elizabeth Strout Viking £14.99
This is the story of a narrator who will charm you from the first sentence. Her name is Lucy Barton, and she’s come a long way from her impoverished rural roots.
Now in her 60s, a feted novelist living in Manhattan, Lucy is mourning the loss of her second husband when she becomes embroiled once again in the life of her first, a scientist named William who’s left reeling by two unpleasant shocks.
It’s a subtle, vibrant masterpiece, bringing wisdom and wit to bear on the mysteries of love and fate.
Great Circle
Maggie Shipstead Doubleday £16.99
Novels like this 600-pager are perfect for long winter nights.
The film is exuberantly entertaining and artfully constructed. It combines two fascinating heroines: Marian Graves who was an aviatrix, born in New York City in 1914 and who disappears as she attempts to circumnavigate all of the planet. Hadley Baxter who became a Hollywood superstar, gets to portray her in a biopic that takes place more than 100 years later.
Shipstead must deal with scandalous celebrities, wartime deeds, and the unrelenting call for freedom.
Early morning riser
Katherine Heiny Fourth Estate £14.99
Jane is an elementary school teacher who moves to Boyne City in Michigan with Duncan. He’s a charming, laid-back furniture restorer, but Jane doesn’t feel secure about her commitment.
Jane isn’t the only one to have succumbed to Duncan’s charms, however – it seems he’s had dalliances with almost every woman she meets in this archetypal small town.
Heiny is an entertaining romcom. However, as Heiny tracks their downs and ups over 20 years, Heiny creates a comforting story that’s also full of hard truths.
April in Spain
John Banville Faber £14.99
Crime novels don’t come classier than this. Banville used a pen name for his first books featuring pathologist Quirke, but this latest bears his own, and it’s a triumph – evocative, colourful and cannily constructed.
The boozy, irrepressible hero of the story has taken a vacation to San Sebastian along with his wife. He is taken to hospital after an unfortunate encounter with oysters. A familiar-looking Irish doctor then examines him.
As Quirke becomes convinced that she’s a woman believed to have been murdered, a hitman lurking in the background adds pace.
Harlem Shuffle
Colson Whitehead Fleet £16.99
Mid-20th Century Harlem provides the backdrop for this captivating tale about a small-time criminal who gets out of control.
Ray Carney is the owner of a furniture shop and also has an side hustle fencing stolen jewellery. Determined to achieve social respectability, he tells himself he’s ‘only slightly bent’ – until he gets caught up in a hotel heist.
The result is top-notch storytelling and an unforgettable cast, perfectly capturing not just the era’s promise but also its gloomier underbelly.