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book reviews Squadpod Reviews

SQUADPOD REVIEWS: Lowbridge by Lucy Campbell

Published July 6th, 2023 by Ultimo Press
Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Crime Fiction

Welcome to my review of the fantastic debut, Lowbridge, which was one of our Squadpod reads this year. Thank you to Ultimo Press for the copy of the book and chance to review it.

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SYNOPSIS:

A missing girl. Decades of silence. A secret too big to bury.

1987: It’s late summer and a time of change when a 17-year-old girl leaves the local shopping centre in the sleepy town of Lowbridge and is never seen again. Her unsolved disappearance is never far from the town’s memory. There’s those who grew up in the shadow of her loss whose own lives were altered forever, and those who know more than they’re saying.

It just takes an outsider to ask the right questions. 2018: Katherine Ashworth, shattered by the death of her daughter, moves to her husband’s hometown. Searching for a way to pick up the pieces of her life, she joins the local historical society and becomes obsessed with the three-decades-old mystery.

As Katherine digs into that summer of 1987, she stumbles upon the trail of a second girl who vanished and was never missed because no one cared enough to see what was happening in plain sight. Her trail could lead right to Katherine’s door.

In a town simmering with divisions and a cast of unforgettable characters, Lowbridge is a heart-wrenching mystery about the girls who are lost, the ones who are mourned and those who are forgotten.

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MY REVIEW:

“Everyone’s drawn to a good mystery, and Tess’s disappearance is the biggest mystery this place has ever seen.”

Shattered by the death of their daughter, Katherine and James move back to his hometown of Lowbridge. Looking for a way to begin to rebuild her life, Katherine gets involved with the local historical society and comes across a thirty-year-old unsolved mystery that still haunts the small town. Katherine begins to dig deeper into what happened that summer and comes across long-buried secrets that some people will go to extraordinary lengths to keep hidden…

Brilliantly written, steadily paced and compelling, this is a fantastic debut. Lucy Campbell has crafted an intriguing character-driven mystery that explores topics such as grief, motherhood, the essence of life in a small town and how the tragedy is still affecting those who live there decades later. Told in dual timelines, one following Tess in the months leading up to her disappearance in 1987 and the other following Katherine as she tries to solve the mystery thirty years later, there’s a claustrophobic feel to the story that comes from both the small-town setting and the bubble of grief that surrounds Katherine. Keeping us guessing, Campbell slowly unspools Lowbridge’s hidden history and dark secrets, building the suspense to a shocking and unexpected conclusion. 

With any character-driven story it is vital to have well-written characters and Ms. Campbell has certainly delivered. While Tess and Katherine are our main protagonists, the story is filled with a cast of authentic, richly drawn characters who draw us into their lives. Campbell makes us feel what each character is going through which ranges from typical teenage angst to much deeper traumas. In the past, everything is happening against a backdrop of us knowing Tess will soon vanish so I found myself searching for clues and trying to figure out who was responsible. But it was Katherine who leapt from the pages most strongly for me, her grief and heartbreak over the loss of her daughter radiating from the pages and seeping into every facet of her existence as she tries to find a way to move forward. It is impossible not to feel heartbroken for her and  think anyone who has lost someone close to them will recognise some part of that loss in her.  I was rooting for her to succeed in both her quest to uncover the truth about Tess’s disappearance and learning to live again.

Gripping, cryptic and heart-wrenching, Lowbridge is a superb debut I have no hesitation in recommending.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰

*DM me for TWs

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Lucy Campbell has worked as a writer and sub-editor across magazines, newspapers and non-fiction books. Lowbridge is her first novel. She lives in Canberra with her husband and three children.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Bookshop.org* | Amazon*

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book reviews Emma's Anticipated Treasures Most Anticipated 2024 Readalong Support Debuts Tandem Readalong

READALONG REVIEW: Anna O by Matthew Blake

Published February 1st, 2024 by Harper Collins UK
Crime Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Medical Thriller, Psychological Fiction, Psychological Thriller,

Welcome to my review for Anna O, the phenomenal thriller that is set to be everywhere in 2024. Thank you to the Tandem Collective for arranging the readalong and offering me a place, and Harper Collins UK for the proof copy of the book.

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SYNOPSIS:

ANNA O – THE WORLD WILL KNOW HER NAME

‘Certain to be one of the year’s best thrillers’ LEE CHILD

‘Reads like a dream but unsettles like a nightmare’ A J FINN

________________________________________________

*The instant global phenomenon*

*Publishing in over 30 territories*

*The thriller that will wake up the nation*

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ANNA O HASN’T OPENED HER EYES FOR FOUR YEARS

Not since the night she was found in a deep sleep by the bodies of her best friends, suspected of a chilling double murder.

For Doctor Benedict Prince, a forensic psychologist on London’s Harley Street, waking Anna O could be career-defining. As an expert in sleep, he knows all about the darkest chambers of the mind; the secrets that lie buried in the subconscious.

As he begins Anna O’s treatment – studying his patient’s dreams, combing her memories, visiting the site where the horrors played out – he pulls on the thread of a much deeper, darker mystery.

Awakening Anna O isn’t the end of the story, it’s just the beginning.

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MY REVIEW:

“Anna O, Sleeping beauty, a figure of myth and reality.”

Anna O hasn’t opened her eyes since the night four years ago when her two best friends were found brutally murdered and she was discovered in a deep sleep. Anna is the only suspect but ever since the debate has raged: is she innocent or guilty? And was she sleeping or awake? Answers are needed and time is running out, so the Ministry of Justice charges Doctor Benedict Prince, a forensic psychologist and expert in sleep, with the task of finally waking Anna from her long sleep in order to get them. If he succeeds, his part in the Anna O case will be a defining moment in his career, but will his theory finally wake the woman her detractors call Sleeping Beauty? After all, waking Anna O isn’t the end of the story but the beginning… 

WHAT. A. BOOK! Quite simply, Anna O is a masterpiece. Sleeping Beauty meets The Silent Patient, this astonishing debut left my jaw on the floor. Deliciously dark, atmospheric and unnerving, this has bestseller and blockbuster movie written all over it. From the moment I first heard about Anna O I knew it was a book I needed to read so I jumped at the chance to take part in a 100-strong readalong organised by the Tandem Collective. Before reading we were asked to vote if we thought Anna was sleeping or awake. I voted for sleeping, but would I be proven right? Or was Anna actually awake that night?

There’s always a danger with a much-hyped novel that you will be disappointed, but this one exceeded all my high hopes. Matthew Blake writes like a veteran of the genre and I am still in awe that this is a debut novel. He expertly intertwines masterful storytelling, compelling characters and vivid imagery to create this tour-de-force. He then adds references to real crimes, Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, Shakesphere, Hitchcock, and real conditions such as resignation syndrome that all add that feeling of authenticity, making it feel like you’re reading a true crime novel rather than a work of fiction. It is a Russian doll of a mystery; the many layers and multiple mysteries all hidden inside one another and then slowly revealed alongside the cleverly placed red herrings that held me in his thrall and kept me guessing. The multiple points of view and timelines in mixed media heightened the tension as Blake drops clues like breadcrumbs for us to follow. I HAD to know the truth and confess that I raced ahead of the reading schedule, but I was unprepared for a twist so shocking it threw me to the ground, stamped on me and left me for dead followed swiftly by that unforgettable finale. I’m still reeling.

Dealing with both the aftermath and build-up to a brutal crime, the book explores the ripple effect violent crimes have on not just those who knew the victims, but those who knew the person accused of the crime. A beautiful woman accused of a brutal crime and an enigma because she has been sleeping since that night, Anna is the epitome of a ‘femme fatale’ and leads perfectly into Blake’s examination of our prejudices and preconceptions about those who kill. He also examines our fascination with true crime, asking what it is that makes a murder capture the public’s imagination and attain infamy. Most unsettling of all, he shifts the fabric of our reality and turns our dreams into nightmares as he explores the things we don’t remember from while we are sleeping and the darker side of the human psyche. 

Suspenseful, twisty, cryptic and unputdownable, this phenomenal debut is destined to be THE thriller of 2024. A must-read for your TBR next year, pre-order this now to discover if Anna is innocent or guilty. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

After discovering that the average person spends thirty-three years of their life asleep, Matthew Blake felt the pull of a story. He began extensive research into sleep-related crimes and into the mystery illness known as resignation syndrome, research that sparked a thrilling question: if someone commits murder while sleepwalking, are they innocent or guilty? And so his novel Anna O was born.

Before writing fiction, Matthew worked as a researcher and speechwriter at the Palace of Westminster. He studied English at Durham University and Merton College, Oxford and now lives in London.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Bookshop.org* | Amazon*

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SQUADPOD BOOK CLUB: Her by Mira V Shah

Published November 23rd, 2023 by Hodder & Stoughton
Psychological Thriller

Welcome to my review for Her, the sensational debut that is the Squadpod Book Club pick for November. Thank you to Alainna at Hodder & Stoughton for my proof copy of the book.

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SYNOPSIS:

YOU WANT TO BE JUST LIKE HER. BUT DO YOU REALLY KNOW HER?


Rani has always felt like an outsider. First growing up among her white, wealthy peers. And now next to her successful, child-free friends. From the tiny rented flat she lives in with her family, she imagines being the kind of woman who owns the beautiful house across the street.

Then Natalie moves in. With her expensive clothes, adoring husband and high-powered job, she has everything Rani wants, and Rani can’t help but be drawn to her new neighbour.

But as the two women strike up a friendship and begin open up, Rani wonders – is Natalie’s perfect-seeming life too good to be true?

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MY REVIEW:

As Natalie moves into her new home on the quiet street she has no idea her neighbour is watching. Her picture-perfect life, blissful marriage and beautiful house are all Rani has ever wanted but instead she’s stuck in a tiny flat, a stale marriage and plagued by regret. But what glitters isn’t always gold and there is something dark simmering underneath the polished image Natalie and her husband portray. And Rani is determined to find out what it is…

OMG. What a book! Heartpoundingly tense, twisty and addictive, Her is a sensational debut that left me reeling. A story of dark secrets, fractured people, complex relationships, trauma, obsession and the evil that can lurk inside us, it sucked me in from the opening pages. But this was nothing like I expected in all the best ways. Skillfully written, intricately plotted and addictive, there’s an inherent darkness and danger, a feeling that something is going to happen but you don’t know what it is keeping me on the edge of my seat. There were shocking revelations and surprising twists that never felt predictable, even when I guessed them correctly.

The story is narrated by both Rani and Natalie, giving us a glimpse into the inner thoughts and fears of both women. They are both unreliable narrators with secrets and things they are hiding from their husbands. I was suspicious of Rani and her obsession with her dream house from the start while Natalie appears much more sympathetic due to the nightmares that haunt her and the mystery of what is in her past. But both women also have something that draws you to them and makes you root for them, even when they are making the wrong choices and I was here for their blossoming friendship despite the hint of foreboding that lurked alongside it.

So if you’re looking for a tantalising and twisty psychological thriller that you won’t be able to put down, then pick up this book. Mira V. Shah is an author to watch and I will be excitedly picking up whatever she writes next. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Mira V Shah is a writer, former City lawyer turned legal editor and the proud owner of three good dogs. She is the daughter of Indian African parents and lives in North London with her husband and the pack – merely a few miles from where she grew up, although she often dreams about retiring in Italy should her intermittent lottery entries prove successful.

She wrote her first ever novel in 2020 during the first UK lockdown after studying on the Curtis Brown Creative novel writing course.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Bookshop.org* | Amazon*

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BLOG TOUR: The Takedown by Carlie Walker

Published October 3rd, 2023 by Orion
Romance Novel, Mystery, Romantic Comedy, Holiday Fiction

Today is my stop on the blog tour for this funny, sexy and addictive debut. Thank you to Becca at Orion for the invitation to take part and my copy of the book.

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SYNOPSIS:

MISS CONGENIALITY meets Emily Henry with the spice of MR AND MRS SMITH in this fun, sexy and absolutely irresistible romcom.



‘Fun, flirty, and fabulous!’ 
LAURA JANE WILLIAMS
‘A hilarious, smart and swoony joy of a romcom’ 
CRESSIDA MCLAUGHLIN
‘The heat between Sydney and Nick is a literal inferno right off the bat’ LIZZY DENT

He wants to take her out. She wants to take him down…

Sydney’s mission is simple:

1. Stop her little sister from marrying a notorious criminal
2. Seduce his bodyguard to gather intel for the FBI
3. Definitely do not fall in love…

Agent Sydney Swift is going home for the holidays. She’s just discovered that her younger sister, Calla, is engaged to Johnny Jones – the heir to the nation’s most notorious crime dynasty – and she’s determined to stop their perfect winter wedding at any cost.

But gathering incriminating evidence on Johnny isn’t as easy as she’d hoped, especially as her biggest obstacle is Nick, his infuriatingly handsome and charming bodyguard!

As Sydney spends more time with Nick, lines begin to blur, and while seducing him to gather intel was bad enough, falling for him is even worse.

Soon Sydney is faced with a difficult decision – one that certainly wasn’t covered in her training . . .

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MY REVIEW:

A female spy on a mission to gather intel on the notorious crime lord engaged to her younger sister by seducing his bodyguard. What could go wrong?

The Takedown is one of the best romcoms I’ve read in a while. Addictive, fun, witty, mysterious, and red-hot, Carlie Walker gives us a masterclass in romcom storytelling with her swoon-worthy debut. It had me hooked from the first page, the tension indisputable as the family gathered together the night before Calla and Johnny’s wedding. It then jumps back to a few days earlier when Sydney first learned about her sister’s engagement and then follows on as she attempts to carry out her mission.

Romcoms generally take a predictable route that we all love and while this one did to some degree, it was also an original take on the stories and tropes we’re familiar with. Firstly, we have a female spy as the central character, and secondly, she has to spy on her own family. It is also filled with surprising twists along the way that keep the reader on their toes and make it all the more entertaining to read. I also enjoyed that although this is technically a holiday read, the Christmas side of things isn’t overbearing. I love a Chrismassy read, but sometimes you aren’t in that mood, and I liked that this one could be read whatever mood you’re in or at any time of year.

What isn’t there to love about a bad-ass female CIA Agent who can take down (like what I did there?😉) criminals with ease? Sydney is a great protagonist. But inside that hard shell is a woman who is a hot mess. Her job is a way to run from her past family traumas and prevent anyone from getting close to her. She’s barely been in touch with her Grandmother or her sister in the last three years and while on this mission she finds it increasingly difficult to balance her past and present colliding. She’s having an internal crisis while trying to save her sister and bring down a crime lord. It’s a lot. But it all helps to make her relatable to the reader and I really liked her and was rooting for her. The background characters were also brilliantly written and I had a real soft spot for Grandma Ruby. What a woman she is! But for a romcom to work you need a believable love interest and Nick is a dreamboat. The chemistry between him and Sydney is undeniable from the start, just like his charm. It was so hot in places that I needed suntan lotion and I loved their effortless banter. You can tell where this one is going for sure. Or so you think…

So if you’re looking for a different kind of romcom and holiday read, then The Takedown is for you. Hilarious, sexy and suspenseful, you won’t be able to put this one down.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Carlie is a big fan of rescue dogs, 90’s rom-coms, and books with happy endings. She lives and works in Atlanta, Georgia. The Takedown is her first novel for adults.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Bookshop.org* | Amazon*

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Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the tour.

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BLOG TOUR: She’s A Killer by Kristen McDougall

Published October 5th, 2023 by Gallic Books
Thriller, Dark Comedy, Satire, Humorous Fiction

Happy Publication Day to She’s A Killer and my stop on the blog tour for this deliciously dark debut. Thank you to Gallic Books for the invitation to take part and my copy of the book.

Keep an eye on my Instagram account for a giveaway next week…

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SYNOPSIS:

‘Smart, assured, and extremely funny’ Eleanor Catton

‘A fabulously dark pleasure, delivered in prose of singing tautness’ Luke Jennings

Eleanor Oliphant meets Killing Eve in this darkly funny and gloriously unhinged New Zealand sensation, longlisted for the Dublin Literary Award 2023.

ALICE: 30-something, IQ of 159 (almost a genius), only communicates with her mother in Morse code. Her imaginary friend is back.

ERIKA: 15, daughter of hot ‘wealthugee’ who loves Russian literature, genuine genius, killer eyeliner and killer instincts.

The climate is in crisis and wealthy immigrants are flocking to New Zealand for shelter, stealing land, driving up food prices and taking over. But Alice has far more important things to worry about: hating her best friend’s husband, getting free wine and quiet-quitting her dull day job. Until she meets Erika.

Now, Alice is about to find herself drawn into action of the most radical – and dangerous – kind. Just what is a slacker to do?

Bold and brilliantly bizarre, She’s a Killer is the satirical dystopian cli-fi thriller you never knew you needed. Until now.

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MY REVIEW:

“I’m a fan of unhappy endings. They’re more honest.”

A snarky genius, mother issues, murderous rage, feminism and the end of the world. Put them all together and you’ve got the recipe for She’s A Killer. Satirical, bizarre, unexpected and macabre, this deliciously dark debut is dripping with black humour from start to finish.

30-something Alice has an IQ of 159 but is stuck in a dead-end job, struggling to make ends meet, and only communicates with her mother through morse code. Though she’s almost a genius, Alice has always struggled to empathise with others, isn’t interested in friends or relationships, and is totally unbothered about things that seem to worry others such as climate change and the wealthy immigrants flooding into New Zealand. She’s more worried about why her imaginary friend has come back. 
But when Alice meets fifteen-year-old Erika – the daughter of a hot ‘wealthugee’ she has a thing for – everything changes and she soon finds herself caught up in extreme actions that could have devastating consequences…

Well, this book was quite the trip! As soon as I read the tagline describing it as ‘Eleanor Oliphant meets Killing Eve’ I knew I had to read it. From the opening pages it was clear this wasn’t going to be like anything else I’ve read, but I was sure I had an idea where it was going. I was wrong. This book turned me upside down, twisted me round, and then shook me up for good measure. It was an unpredictable thrill-ride of crazy twists and turns I never saw coming. Kristen McDougall is a new author to watch. Her writing is witty and sharp, engaging the reader with her characters whilst also heightening the tension and keeping them guessing. And while it’s entertaining, the story also feels timely and urgent; like a warning or a call to arms. It’s quite the show. And McDougall pulls it off with finesse. 

Vexatious, snarky, intelligent, and darkly funny, Alice is the sort of unlikeable protagonist I love. She’s a bitch to everyone, including her imaginary best friend, and I got totally sucked into her world. After all, who doesn’t enjoy watching a ‘bad girl’ do or say  things that you’d never dream of doing. I’m fascinated by people who are highly intelligent yet have little common sense or understanding of others, and that certainly applied to Alice. She thought she was superior because of her intellect but she missed so much because she was all IQ and no EQ. Her conversations with Simp, her imaginary best friend, had me laughing out loud and I’d sometimes forget it was herself she was talking to. The secondary characters were all fun to read but it was Erika who stole that show and really challenged Alice. She is bright, fierce, self-assured, and quite frankly, intimidating. I loved the banter between her and Alice, especially as they had totally different values, outlooks and goals that often caused them to clash. You could tell that Alice isn’t used to being around people who are more intelligent than she is and it was quite funny to watch her be so unnerved by this unusual teenage girl. 

Quirky, original, thought-provoking and gloriously unhinged, She’s A Killer is a debut that will make you laugh while your heart is also pounding with tension. Highly recommended. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Kristen McDougall is a novelist, short story writer and creative writing lecturer. Her 2017 novel Tess was longlisted for the Ockham NZ Book Awards and shortlisted for the Ngaio Marsh Award. She’s a Killer was longlisted for the Ockham NZ Book Awards 2022. She lives in Wellington, New Zealand.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Bookshop.org* | Amazon*

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Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the tour.

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BLOG TOUR REVIEW: Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara

Published May 25th, 2023 by Orion
Mythology, Fantasy Fiction, Greek Mythology, Fairy Tales, Hiistorical Romance, Ancient History, Literary Fiction

Today I’m finally sharing my full review for Psyche and Eros. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and to Orion for the copy of the book.

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SYNOPSIS:

‘A riotous adventure, populated by a cast of vivid, glittering characters. An absolute joy!’ JENNIFER SAINT

‘A fabulously entertaining retelling, full of magic, humour and heart’ ELODIE HARPER

A stunning, exciting and hotly-anticipated feminist retelling of one of the greatest love stories in Greek mythology!

The greatest love story ever told…

Born into an era of heroes, a prophecy claims that Psyche – Princess of Mycenae – will defeat a monster feared even by the gods themselves. Rebelling against society’s traditions, she spends her youth mastering blade and bow, preparing to fulfil her destiny.

But she is soon caught up in powers beyond her control, when the jealous Aphrodite sends the God of Desire, Eros, to deliver a fatal love-curse. The last thing Eros wants is to become involved in the chaos of the mortal world, but when he is pricked by the very arrow intended for Psyche, he is doomed to love a woman who will be torn from him the moment their eyes meet.

Thrown together by fate, headstrong Psyche and world-weary Eros will face challenges greater than they could have ever imagined. And as the Trojan War begins and the whole of the heavens try to keep them apart, will they find their way back to each other… before it’s too late?

Luna McNamara’s exquisitely written debut will appeal to fans of Madeline Miller, Jennifer Saint and Susan Stokes-Chapman.

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MY REVIEW:

“There is something powerful in this, I think. We were not in thrall to destiny or fate, but merely the weight of our own choices. When we turned towards each other like flowers facing the sun, we were not fulfilling some prophecy or old story. We were writing our own.”

Alluring, evocative and exhilarating, Psyche and Eros is a feisty feminist retelling of one of Greek Mythology’s greatest love stories. Psyche – Princess of Mycenae – is prophesied to slay a monster even the gods fear. She rebels societal traditions to train as a warrior in preparation for fulfilling her destiny. Eros – God of Desire – is sent by Aphrodite to deliver a fatal love-curse to Psyche in an act of revenge. But when he is pricked by the arrow meant for her, he falls madly in love. Cursed to be torn from each other should their eyes ever meet, their love seems doomed from the start. Can they   overcome the seemingly insurmountable obstacles in their way to find a happy ending together?

As a fan of Greek mythology retellings and a sucker for a gorgeous cover, I was excited to read this one. I went into this one blind and was unfamiliar with Psyche and Eros’ story. But I was soon transfixed as debut author Luna McNamara’s gorgeous storytelling transported me across the ocean and back in time to their world. These vividly drawn, star-crossed lovers are fascinating characters, and by telling the story from both perspectives, McNamara allows us to really get inside the hearts and minds of both characters as well as allowing us to see the broader picture, rather than a skewed, one-sided version of the tale. Psyche is  fiery, gutsy, headstrong and determined while Eros is disenchanted, jaded and often seems melancholy, especially before meeting Psyche. I felt for Eros as he grappled with how he could be with her without the curse taking hold but I had even more empathy for this girl who was taken away from all she knew without warning. The tension escalated as they became closer and I was on tenterhooks as I waited to discover if they could overcome the obstacles in their path.

“I had long noticed that the stories of heroes were mainly about men, Atalanta being one of the rare exceptions. Women when they had roles to play at all, appeared only as mothers or lovers or sometimes monsters.”

McNamara also explores how women were second class citizens and the lack of agency they had at this time. Not only were girls not educated or trained to be heroes like their boys were, but they were viewed as best silent and only useful for sex, bearing children, and cleaning. Psyche recognises this as an obstacle in fulfilling the prophecy and is also concerned that she will soon be expected to become a meek and obedient wife to a stranger rather than the hero she dreams of becoming. I am loving the current trend of feminist retellings of mythology as it is finally giving these women their time to shine and ensuring their place in legend just like their male counterparts.

Intoxicating, fierce, and enthralling, Psyche and Eros is a sensational debut and must-have addition for your Greek Mythology shelf. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰

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MEET THE AUTHOR:


Luna McNamara is a social worker by day, and by night she writes about historical women and forgotten gods.

Luna holds a master’s degree from Harvard University in the study of women and gender in world religions; she has also studied ancient Greek language and philosophy. She lives in Boston with her faithful lop rabbit, Leo. 

Her first novel, Psyche & Eros, will be released May 25th 2023 by Orion Books in the UK, and June 13th 2023 by HarperCollins in the US.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Amazon* | Bookshop.org*

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Thanks for reading Bibliophiles xxxx

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Emma's Anticipated Treasures

Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – July 2023

Just before head into July I’m sharing the books out next month that I’m most anticipating. There’s a whopping 45 books in this list, including some exciting debuts such as The Housekeepers, Talking At Night, The Revels, and My Husband, as well as some new releases from some of my must read authors such as The Song of Me and You by Mike Gayle, None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell, One by Eve Smith, The Whispers by Ashley Audrain, Eye For An Eye by M. J. Arlidge, and A Game of Lies by Clare Mackintosh.

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The Only One Left by Riley Sager

Published July 4th by Hodder & Stoughton
Gothic Fiction, Suspense, Psychological Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
Everyone believes that Lenora Hope is a mass murderer.

When the Hope family was massacred decades ago, she was the only one left after that tragic night.

Mute, paralysed and confined to a wheelchair, Lenora has never been able to tell her side of the story.

Until her new live-in caregiver Kit brings her a typewriter.

And with one working finger Lenora begins to type:

I want to tell you everything.

Pre-order here*

The Beasts of Paris by Stef Penney

Published July 4th by Quercus
Historical Fiction, LGBT Literature

SYNOPSIS:
In Paris 1870, three wandering souls find themselves in a city set to descend into war.

‘Exquisite, relevant and immersive’ ANNA MAZZOLA

‘Hypnotically readable . . . Stef Penney is a mesmerising storyteller’ AMANDA CRAIG

Anne is a former patient from a women’s asylum trying to carve out a new life for herself in a world that doesn’t understand her. Newcomer Lawrence is desperate to develop his talent as a photographer and escape the restrictions of his puritanical upbringing. Ellis, an army surgeon, has lived through the trauma of one civil war and will do anything to avoid another bloodbath.

Each keeps company with the restless beasts of Paris’ Menagerie, where they meet, fight their demons, lose their hearts, and rebel in a city under siege.

A dazzling historical epic of love andsurvival, Stef Penney carries the reader captivated through war-torn Paris.

Pre-order here*

The Housekeepers by Alex Hay

Published July 6th by Wildfire
Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery

SYNOPSIS:
‘Flawless, lawless fun’ Kiran Millwood Hargrave, bestselling author of The Mercies

‘Prepare to grow hungrier for justice with every page you turn’ Nina de Gramont, bestselling author of The Christie Affair



UPSTAIRS, MADAM IS PLANNING THE PARTY OF THE SEASON.

DOWNSTAIRS, THE SERVANTS ARE PLOTTING THE HEIST OF THE CENTURY.


When Mrs King, housekeeper to the most illustrious home in Mayfair, is suddenly dismissed after years of loyal service, she knows just who to recruit to help her take revenge.

A black-market queen out to settle her scores. An actress desperate for a magnificent part. A seamstress dreaming of a better life. And Mrs King’s predecessor, who has been keeping the dark secrets of Park Lane far too long.

Mrs King has an audacious plan in mind, one that will reunite her women in the depths of the house on the night of a magnificent ball – and play out right under the noses of her former employers…

THEY COME FROM NOTHING. BUT THEY’LL LEAVE WITH EVERYTHING.

Pre-order here*

A Song of Me and You by Mike Gayle

Published July 6th by Hodder & Stoughton
Romance Novel, Domestic Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Mike Gayle: emotions you’ll never forget, stories you’ll want to share.

Helen and Ben parted as heartbroken 18-year-olds and went their very separate ways.

Twenty years later, mother-of-two-teenagers Helen is still in Manchester, a part-time primary teacher, stunned by the behaviour of her love-rat husband. In an old T shirt and scruffy jeans, she feels at the lowest point in her life.

And suddenly, impossibly, Ben is standing on her doorstep. Tired maybe, lonely even, but clearly still the world-famous, LA-based multi-millionaire rockstar he has become.

Can you ever go back?

For Helen and Ben, so much has happened in the years between. But just to sit in the kitchen for a while and talk – that would be nice.

Before the world comes crashing in.

Friendship, love, heartache and hope collide in this unforgettable emotional journey, from the author of Half A World Away.

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The Bookbinder of Jericho by Pip Williams

Published July 6th by Chatto & Windus
Historical Fiction, Literary Ficion, War Story

SYNOPSIS:
The captivating new novel from the internationally-bestselling author of The Dictionary of Lost Words – A Reese’s Book Club Pick

‘Vivid and moving … I absolutely loved it!’ Ruth Hogan, author of The Keeper of Lost Things

Charming, original and beautifully researched’ Rachel Hore, author of A Beautiful Spy

‘Your job is to bind the books, not read them.’

When the men of Oxford University Press leave for the Western Front, Peggy, her twin sister Maude and their friends in the bookbindery must shoulder the burden at home. As Peggy moves between her narrowboat full of memories and the demands of the Press, her dreams of studying feel ever more remote. She must know her place, fold her pages and never stop to savour the precious words in front of her.

From volunteer nurses to refugees fleeing the horrors of occupation, the war brings women together from all walks of life, and with them some difficult choices for Peggy. New friends and lovers offer new opportunities, but they also make new demands – and Peggy must write her own story.

‘A fresh, exciting new voice in historical fiction’ Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife
‘A compelling homage to the transformational power of books
‘ Daisy Wood, author of The Forgotten Bookshop in Paris

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Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Torzs

Published July 6th by Century
Fantasty Fiction, Magical Realism, Contemporary Fantasy, Horror Fantasy, Thriller, Mystery

SYNOPSIS:
Not all books should be opened.

A spellbinding, edge-of your seat thriller, Ink Blood Sister Scribe follows a family tasked with guarding a trove of magical but deadly books, and the shadowy organisation that will do anything to get them back . . . even murder.

‘Follow where this novel leads and you will be lost in a bewitching spell, a book of magic about books of magic, and the people who reel from reading them. Go beyond the magic and you’re left with a heartbreaking tale of family where truth blurs with lies, and blood isn’t thick enough. A bold, new novel from an extraordinary new voice.’ Marlon James, New York Times bestselling author of Black Leopard, Red Wolf
____________

Joanna Kalotay lives alone in the woods of Vermont, the sole protector of a collection of rare books; books that will allow someone to walk through walls or turn water into wine. Books of magic.

Her estranged older sister Esther moves between countries and jobs, constantly changing, never staying anywhere longer than a year, desperate to avoid the deadly magic that killed her mother. Currently working on a research base in Antarctica, she has found love and perhaps a sort of happiness.

But when she finds spots of blood on the mirrors in the research base, she knows someone is coming for her, and that Joanna and her collection are in danger.

If they are to survive, she and Joanna must unravel the secrets their parents kept hidden from them – secrets that span centuries and continents, and could cost them their lives …

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Speak To Me by Paula Cocozza

Published July 6th by Tinder Press
Contemporary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
‘Sharp as a skewer about the devices and desires in many modern marriages. I loved it’ Amanda Craig
‘Charming, very touching and very funny. Taut and full of surprises’ Tessa Hadley

I shall explain about our marriage. We have a modern version of a long-distance relationship. We share a house, but live in different historical eras…

What happens in a relationship when your partner only has eyes for their new phone?

What happens when you lose a treasured possession – a hoard of love letters documenting a relationship that never really ended – and this loss becomes an obsession?

Speak to Me is the story of a woman’s quest, in a world ruled by screens and devices, for a conversation that will unlock who she once was, and what she really wants now. Keenly observed, tender and sharply funny, this is a book about all the ways we say, and don’t say, the things in our hearts.

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I Wish We Weren’t Related by Radhika Sanghani

Published July 6th by Headline
Humorous Fiction, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
FOURTEEN DAYS, THREE SISTERS AND THE MOTHER OF ALL LIES

—–

Reeva Mehta is thriving. Consumed in her career as one of London’s top divorce lawyers, she doesn’t bat an eyelid when her mum calls to tell her that her dad is dead. Because he’s been dead since she was five . . . hasn’t he?

If finding out her dad was alive – until last week – wasn’t bad enough, his last request was for his daughters to spend fourteen days in mourning at his house. Which means Reeva must spend a fortnight stuck with the people who betrayed her when she needed them the most – her sisters.

Navigating her absent Bollywood megastar mother, newly dead father and scheming sisters with only a temperamental boyfriend – and even more temperamental cat – by her side, it’s no wonder Reeva’s hair is falling out. Could confronting the truth help the Mehtas put aside their differences, or will attending a funeral be the death of this family?

A fresh, funny and oh-so-relatable novel about trying to be the grown up when your magnificently messy family seems set to sabotage everything. Get ready to laugh, cry and fall in love with this addictive read.

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Homebodies by Tembe Denton-Hurst

Published July 6th by HQ
Contemporary Romance, Contemporary Fiction, LGBT Literature, Coming-of-Age Story

SYNOPSIS:
She’s stayed quiet for too long.
Now it’s time to speak her truth.

Until twenty-four hours ago, Mickey Hayward was living the life she’d always dreamed of:

– Working as a full-time writer for a trendy media company (tick)
– In a committed, loving relationship (tick)

Now she’s fired, tossed aside for a younger, more ‘agreeable’ Black writer. Sick of always being overlooked and undervalued, she responds with an online letter detailing the racism she’s faced within the industry. But when it’s met with overwhelming silence, and her girlfriend suggests they go on a break, Mickey’s carefully crafted life starts to fall apart.

As Mickey flees to her hometown, the simplicity of her old life – and the arms of an old flame – are all too tempting. But her life in New York refuses to be forgotten. And when a media scandal turns Mickey’s post into a viral sensation, suddenly everyone wants to hear what she has to say.

It’s what Mickey’s always wanted – isn’t it?

Intimate, witty, and deeply sexy, Homebodies is a testament to those trying to be heard and loved in a world that refuses to make space for them.

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Kala by Colin Walsh

Published July 6th by Atlantic Books
Crime Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
‘A gritty heartbreaker of a thriller… Part heartfelt coming-of-age tale, part brutal Irish noir, this is a spectacular read for Donna Tartt and Tana French fans’ Kirkus

In the seaside town of Kinlough, on Ireland’s west coast, three old friends are thrown together for the first time in years. They – Helen, Joe and Mush – were part of an original group of six inseparable teenagers in the summer of 2003, with motherless, reckless Kala Lanann as their group’s white-hot centre. Soon after that summer’s peak, Kala disappeared without a trace.

Now it’s fifteen years later: Helen has reluctantly returned to Ireland for her father’s wedding; Joe is a world-famous musician, newly back in town; and Mush has never left, too scared to venture beyond the counter of his mother’s café. But human remains have been discovered in the woods. Two more girls have gone missing. And as past and present begin to collide, the estranged friends are forced to confront their own complicity in the events that led to Kala’s disappearance, and to try to stop Kinlough’s violent patterns repeating themselves once again…

Against the backdrop of a town suffocating on its own secrets, in a story that builds from a smoulder to a stunning climax, Kala brilliantly examines the sometimes brutal costs of belonging, as well as the battle in the human heart between vengeance and forgiveness, despair and redemption.

Pre-order here*

You Can’t See Me (Forbidden Iceland 4) by Eva Bjorg Aegisdottir

Published July 6th by Orenda Books
Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Psychological Fiction, Crime Fiction, Icelandic Noir, Holiday Fiction, Crime Series

SYNOPSIS:
A wealthy Icelandic family is investigated and dark secrets are exposed when a body is found on the lava fields outside the hotel where they’ve gathered for a reunion … the chilling, gripping prequel to the addictive Forbidden Iceland series
 
The wealthy, powerful Snæberg clan has gathered for a family reunion at a futuristic hotel set amongst the dark lava flows of Iceland’s remote Snæfellsnes peninsula.
 
Petra Snæberg, a successful interior designer, is anxious about the event, and her troubled teenage daughter, Lea, whose social-media presence has attracted the wrong kind of followers. Ageing carpenter Tryggvi is an outsider, only tolerated because he’s the boyfriend of Petra’s aunt, but he’s struggling to avoid alcohol because he knows what happens when he drinks … Humble hotel employee, Irma, is excited to meet this rich and famous family and observe them at close quarters … perhaps too close…
 
As the weather deteriorates and the alcohol flows, one of the guests disappears, and it becomes clear that there is a prowler lurking in the dark.
 
But is the real danger inside … within the family itself?
 
Masterfully cranking up the suspense, Eva Björg Ægisdóttir draws us into an isolated, frozen setting, where nothing is as it seems and no one can be trusted, as the dark secrets and painful pasts of the Snæberg family are uncovered … and the shocking truth revealed.
 
A Golden Age mystery for the 21st Century, with a shocking twist.

Pre-order here

Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena

Published July 6th by Bantam Press
Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
Welcome to Stanhope – a safe neighbourhood. A place for families.

William Wooler is a family man, on the surface. But he’s been having an affair, an affair that ended horribly this afternoon at a motel up the road. So when he returns to his house, devastated and angry, to find his difficult nine-year-old daughter Avery unexpectedly home from school, William loses his temper.

Hours later, Avery’s family declares her missing.

Suddenly Stanhope doesn’t feel so safe. And William isn’t the only one on his street who’s hiding a lie. As witnesses come forward with information that may or may not be true, Avery’s neighbours become increasingly unhinged.

Who took Avery Wooler?

Nothing will prepare you for the truth.

Pre-order here*

The Witching Tide by Margaret Meyer

Published July 6th by Phoenix
Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
THERE IS POWER IN SILENCE

East Anglia, 1645. Martha Hallybread, a midwife, healer and servant, has lived for more than four decades in her beloved coastal village of Cleftwater. Everyone knows Martha, but no one has ever heard her speak.

One Autumn morning, the peaceful atmosphere of Cleftwater is shattered by a sinister arrival and Martha becomes a silent witness to a witch-hunt. As a trusted member of the community, she is enlisted to search the bodies of the accused women. But whilst Martha wants to help her friends, she also harbours a dark secret that could cost her own freedom. In desperation, she revives a wax witching doll that she inherited from her mother, in the hope that it will bring protection. But the doll’s true powers are unknowable, the tide is turning, and time is running out . . .

An immersive and deeply moving novel inspired by true events, The Witching Tide breathes new life into history whilst holding up a mirror to the world we live in now. A story of loyalty and betrayal, fear and obsession, the impact of misogyny and the power of resistance, it is a magnificent debut from a striking new literary voice.

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Talking at Night by Claire Deverley

Published July 6th by Michael Joseph
Romance Novel, Contemporary Romance

SYNOPSIS:
Will and Rosie meet as teenagers.

They’re opposites in every wayShe overthinks everything; he is her twin brother’s wild and unpredictable friend. But over secret walks home and late-night phone calls, they become closer – destined to be one another’s great love story.

Until, one day, tragedy strikes, and their future together is shattered.

But as the years roll on, Will and Rosie can’t help but find their way back to each other. Time and again, they come close to rekindling what might have been.

What do you do when the one person you should forget is the one you just can’t let go?

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Murder on a School Night by Kate Weston

Published July 6th by Electric Monkey
Young Adult Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Romantic Mystery, Coming-of-Age Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Sex Education meets A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder in this darkly hilarious YA murder mystery by Comedy Women in Print Prize and Carnegie Medal nominated author, Kate Weston.

Fiercely funny, feminist and FUN! I bloody loved it’ M.A. KUZNIAR

There’s never a good time to find a dead body. But finding a dead body while you’re trying to kiss your crush?

Dead awkward.

All Kerry wants to do is stay at home with her rom-coms and strict retainer schedule. Instead, her BFF Annie has roped her into going to their first sixth-form party to investigate who’s cyberbullying Heather, the most popular girl in school.

On the cusp of kissing her dreamy crush, Scott, Kerry discovers the body of Heather’s second in command – suffocated with a menstrual cup. Within days, another student turns up dead, this time with a sanitary pad across the eyes. Now Annie and Kerry are officially on the case to stop the menstrual murderer . . . period.

Pre-order here*

My Men by Victoria Kieland

Published July 6th by Pushkin Press
Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary, Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
A spellbinding, darkly poetic literary novel that plunges us into the inner life of America’s first female serial killer

‘This fascinating, off-kilter novel about a female serial killer is an unexpectedly thrilling read’ Karl Ove Knausgaard

Seventeen-year-old Brynhild is in a fever – she can’t quiet the screaming world inside her. When an intense affair ends brutally, she flees Norway for America at the end of the nineteenth century in search of a new life. Changing her name first to Bella, later to Belle, she is driven from any potential refuge by an unbearable tension that won’t let her keep still. As Belle seeks release in a series of men, her yearning for an all-consuming love erupts into violence.

In this breathtaking novel, Victoria Kielland imagines her way into the tumultuous inner life of the Norwegian woman who became Belle Gunness – America’s first known female serial killer. Written in prose of wild, visceral beauty, My Men is a radically empathetic and disquieting portrait of a woman capable of ecstatic love and gruesome cruelty.

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Beyond the Story: 10 Year Record of BTS by BTS and Myeongseok Kang

Published July 9th by Pan Macmillan
Music Biography

SYNOPSIS:
THE FIRST EVER OFFICIAL BOOK―
Published in celebration of BTS’s 10th Anniversary, stories that go beyond what you already know about BTS, including unreleased photos, QR codes of videos, and all album information.


After taking their first step into the world on June 13, 2013, BTS will celebrate the 10th anniversary of their debut in June 2023. They have risen to the peak as an iconic global artist and during this meaningful time, they look back on their footsteps in the first official book. In doing so, BTS nurtures the power to build brighter days and they choose to take another step on a road that no one has gone before.

BTS shares personal, behind-the-scenes stories of their journey so far through interviews and more than three years of in-depth coverage by Myeongseok Kang, who has written about K-pop and other Korean pop culture in various media. Presented chronologically in seven chapters from before the debut of BTS to the present, their vivid voices and opinions harmonize to tell a sincere, lively, and deep story. In individual interviews that have been conducted without a camera or makeup, they illuminate their musical journey from multiple angles and discuss its significance.

In addition, portrait photos that show BTS as individuals and artists open the book, and throughout there are concept photos, tracklists of all previous albums, and over 330 QR codes. As digital artists, BTS has been communicating with the world through the internet and this book allows readers to immediately access trailers, music videos, and more online to have a rich understanding of all the key moments in BTS history. Complete with a timeline of all major milestones, BEYOND THE STORY is a remarkable archive―truly everything about BTS in one volume.

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The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons

Published July 11th by Headline
Historical Fiction, Historical Romance

SYNOPSIS:
As the bombs began to fall, the book club kept their hopes alive…

The most emotional, uplifting and captivating story of wartime London and the extraordinary power of books to shine a light and draw people together in the darkest of days, inspired by true events.

London, 1938. Bookseller Gertie Bingham is facing difficult times, having just lost her beloved husband, Harry, and with a lingering sadness at never having been able to have a child of her own. Struggling to face running the bookshop she and Harry opened together, Gertie is preparing to sell up and move away when she is asked if she would be willing to take in a young Jewish refugee from Germany. Gertie is unsure and when sullen teenager Hedy Fischer arrives, Gertie fears she has nothing left to give the troubled girl.

But when the German bombers come and the lights go out over London, Gertie and Hedy realise that joining forces will make them stronger, and that books have the power to bring young and old together and unite a community in need in its darkest hour…

*Annie Lyons was shortlisted for the RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel of the Year Award*

Pre-order here*

The Half Moon by Mary Beth Keane

Published July 13th by Michael Joseph
Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
There are two sides to every story – and every marriage in crisis . . .

Malcolm, bartender at the Half Moon, has always dreamed of owning a bar, and when his boss finally retires, he seizes his chance.

His wife, Jess, has devoted herself to her law career, but after years of trying for a baby, she’s struggling to accept the idea that motherhood might not be in her future. She finds herself slipping away from both her career and her marriage. The bar is Malcolm’s dream, and as she feels her youth start to fade, she wonders how to reshape her own life.

When a blizzard hits their upstate New York town on the same day that Malcolm learns some shocking news about Jess, and a regular at the bar goes missing, everyone is frozen in place for a single, pivotal week, forcing Malcolm and Jess to confront their uncertain future.

The Half Moon carefully explores a marriage in crisis, what it takes to make a life with another person, and the true meaning of family.

Pre-order here*

Black Thorn by Sarah Hilary

Published July 13th by Pan Macmillan
Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Psyhological Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Sarah Hilary, Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year winner and author of Fragile, returns with Black Thorn, another compulsive psychological thriller that questions how much you know about the people who live next to you . . .

‘An astonishingly gifted writer’ Marian Keyes

Blackthorn Ashes was meant to be their forever home. For the first six families moving into the exclusive new housing development, it was a chance to live a peaceful life on the cliffs overlooking the Cornish sea, safe in the knowledge that it had been created just for them.

But six weeks later, paradise is lost. Six people are dead. And Blackthorn Ashes is left abandoned and unfinished, its dark shadows hiding all manner of secrets.

One of its surviving residents, Agnes Gale, is determined to find out the truth about what happened. Even if that truth is deadlier than she could have ever believed possible . . .

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Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano

Published July 13th by Viking
Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
A rich, compassionate tale of four sisters and the love affair that fractures their family

Best friends and sisters, the four Padavano girls are seen as inseparable by everyone in their close-knit Italian-American neighbourhood. Julia, the eldest, is the ‘rocket’ of the family – she always has a destination in mind and clear plans for how to get there. Sylvie, the dreamer, is happiest with her nose in a book, dreaming of the kind of love you only read about in literature. Cecelia and Emmeline, the twins, are the artist and the caregiver. From childhood, the four sisters complete each other.

When Julia falls in love with William Waters, a history student and college sports star, she’s delighted by the way her plans for adulthood are coming to fruition: a husband, a house, a family of her own. But when darkness from William’s past begins to block the light of his future, it is Sylvie, not Julia, who becomes his closest confidante – and the ensuing betrayal tears the sisters apart.

Heart-breaking and heart-mending, HELLO BEAUTIFUL paints a vivid portrait of the unique bond and devastating betrayals of sisterhood.

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The Whispers by Ashley Audrain

Published July 20th by Michael Joseph
Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
The second novel from the author of THE PUSH, 2021’s most explosive Sunday Times bestseller!

‘Spellbinding, a shimmering, visceral ride through the dark side of family, of community, of womanhood and mothering. Nobody delves as deep into the guts of motherhood as Ashley Audrain, she really is in a league of her own’ Lisa Jewell

‘Deeply thrilling and provocative . . a truly masterful novel’ Nita Prose, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Maid

***

The whispers started long before the accident on Harlow Street . . .

Was it at the party, when Whitney screamed blue murder at her son?

Or after neighbour Blair started prowling Whitney’s house, uninvited?

Or once Rebecca and Ben’s childlessness finally puts a crack in their marriage?

But on the terrible night of the accident, the whispers grow louder, more insistent.

Neighbours gather round. Questions are asked. Secrets are spilled. And the gloss on everything begins to rub off. Everyone is drawn into the darkness.

Because there’s no smoke without fire.
No friendship without envy.
And no lie that does not conceal a devastating truth . . .

The Whispers is a darkly psychological portrait of couples in crisis and families in free fall.

Pre-order here*

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell

Published July 20th by Century
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Celebrating her 45th birthday at her local pub, podcaster Alix Summers crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie is also celebrating her 45th birthday. They are, in fact birthday twins.

A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for Alix’s series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.

Alix agrees to a trial interview. Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep digging.

Slowly Alix starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life – and into her home.

Soon she begins to wonder who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?

Pre-order here*

One by Eve Smith

Published July 20th by Orenda
Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Science Fiction, Political Fiction, Dystopian Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
A powerful, prescient speculative thriller: a woman’s job of enforcing climate-emergency Britain’s one-child policy is compromised when she discovers a personal link to an illegal sibling on the ministry hit-list, leading to a shocking discovery that changes everything…
 
One law. One child. Seven million crimes…
 
A cataclysmic climate emergency has spawned a one-child policy in the UK, ruthlessly enforced by a totalitarian regime. Compulsory abortion of ‘excess’ pregnancies and mandatory contraceptive implants are now the norm, and families must adhere to strict consumption quotas as the world descends into chaos.
 
Kai is a 25-year-old ‘baby reaper’, working for the Ministry of Population and Family Planning. If any of her assigned families attempt to exceed their child quota, she ensures they pay the price.
 
Until, one morning, she discovers that an illegal sibling on her Ministry hit-list is hers. And to protect her parents from severe penalties, she must secretly investigate before anyone else finds out.
 
Kai’s hunt for her forbidden sister unearths much more than a dark family secret. As she stumbles across a series of heinous crimes perpetrated by the people she trusted most, she makes a catastrophic discovery that could bring down the government … and tear her family apart.

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Eye For An Eye by M. J. Arlidge

Published July 20th by Orion
Crime Fiction, Legal Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
RIGHT OR WRONG?
Only nine criminals in the UK have been granted lifelong anonymity.
Their crimes so heinous that their identities are permanently changed for their own safety.

CRIMINAL OR VICTIM?
Upon release, they’re given a second chance: new identities and new homes with new neighbours who have no idea. Because, by law, they cannot be named as who they are – or were…

REDEMPTION OR REVENGE?
But what if someone started systematically exposing their true identities? Not to the press, or the public, but to the families of their victims.

Who deserves justice? And who gets to decide?

#EyeForAnEye

Pre-order here*

A Game of Lies (DC Ffion Morgan 2) by Clare Mackintosh

Published July 20th by Sphere
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Police Procedural, Crime Series

SYNOPSIS:
They say the camera never lies.
But on this show, you can’t trust anything you see.

Stranded in the Welsh mountains, seven reality show contestants have no idea what they’ve signed up for.

Each of these strangers has a secret. If another player can guess the truth, they won’t just be eliminated – they’ll be exposed live on air. The stakes are higher than they’d ever imagined, and they’re trapped.

The disappearance of a contestant wasn’t supposed to be part of the drama. Detective Ffion Morgan has to put aside what she’s watched on screen, and find out who these people really are – knowing she can’t trust any of them.

And when a murderer strikes, Ffion knows every one of her suspects has an alibi . . . and a secret worth killing for.

Pre-order here*

All Of Us Are Broken (Detective Saul Anguish 2) by Fiona Cummins

Published July 20th by Pan Macmillan
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction, Police Procedural, Crime Series

SYNOPSIS:
The electrifying new crime novel from the award winning author, Fiona Cummins, author of Into the Dark and Rattle.

It’s been a long time since the Hardwicke family has been on holiday. But thirteen-year-old Galen has wanted to see the wild dolphins at Scotland’s Chanonry Point for as long as she can remember, and her mother Christine – a lone parent since her beloved husband left – is determined she gets her wish. But their serene trip is about to be interrupted.

When DC Saul Anguish is called to investigate the shooting of an ex-police officer in Midtown-on-Sea, Essex, he quickly discovers that this is the first in a string of killings by Missy and Fox, a damaged young couple hell-bent on infamy, their love story etched in blood. In pursuit, Saul follows their trail north.

The paths of the Hardwickes’ and the deadly couple are about to collide. When Saul and his forensic linguist partner, Blue, arrive on the scene, they witness the unthinkable: a mother forced to make an impossible choice.

Saul must uncover the truth about the couple. But can he find the strength to lay the ghosts of his past to rest before they break him?

Pre-order here*

Bad Men by Julie Cohen

Published July 20th by Zaffre
Mystery, Suspense, Dark Comedy, Satire, Psychological Fiction, Romance Novel, Contemporary Romance

SYNOPSIS:
WHEN IT COMES TO BAD MEN, THERE’S ONLY EVER ONE CHOICE . . .

‘I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a thriller this much’ – ERIN KELLY

Saffy has a secret. A secret that she is deeply ashamed of. It’s not the fact that she’s a serial killer in her free time. In fact, she’s quite proud of that. After all she’s only killing the bad men. She is making the world a better place.

No, her secret is far worse than that. Saffy has a messy, inexplicable, uncontrollable crush. So while she’s busy plotting her next murder, she also has the much harder task of figuring out how to get a boyfriend.

But if there’s one thing Saffy knows, it’s how to get her man . . .

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Girl, Goddess, Queen by Bea Fitzgerald

Published July 20th by Penguin
Fantasy Fiction, Greek Mythology, fFantasy Romance,Coming-of-Age Fantasy

SYNOPSIS:
To hell with love, this goddess has other plans…

Thousands of years ago, the gods told a lie: how Persephone was a pawn in the politics of other gods. How Hades kidnapped Persephone to be his bride. How her mother, Demeter, was so distraught she caused the Earth to start dying.

The real story is much more interesting.

Persephone wasn’t taken to hell: she jumped. There was no way she was going to be married off to some smug god more in love with himself than her.

Now all she has to do is convince the Underworld’s annoyingly sexy, arrogant and frankly rude ruler, Hades, to fall in line with her plan. A plan that will shake Mount Olympus to its very core.

But consequences can be deadly, especially when you’re already in hell . . .

A fierce, fresh and enormously fun YA fantasy re-imagining from a growing TikTok superstar.

“Bring[s] to life timeless gods, the complex intimacy of family bonds, a fierce protagonist, and a passionate slow-burn romance.” Sue Lynn Tan, Sunday Times bestselling author of Daughter of the Moon Goddess.

Pre-order here*

The List by Yomi Adegoke

Published July 20th by Fourth Estate
Psychological Fiction, Literary Fiction, Political Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
*SOON TO BE A MAJOR TV SERIES*

‘Topical, heartfelt, provocative and wise’ Bernardine Evaristo, author of Girl, Woman, Other
‘The perfect summer read: intelligent, funny, topical and impossible to put down’ Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train
‘Phenomenal. Brilliantly written and incredibly clever’ Abi Daré, author of The Girl with the Louding Voice

From award-winning journalist and bestselling co-author of Slay in Your Lane, Yomi Adegoke, comes The List, a sensational, page-turning debut novel about secrets, lies and our lives online.

Ola Olajide, a high-profile journalist at Womxxxn magazine, is marrying the love of her life in one month’s time. Young, beautiful, successful – she and her fiancé Michael are the ‘couple goals’ of their social networks and seem to have it all.

That is, until one morning when they both wake up to the same message:

‘Oh my god, have you seen The List?’

It began as a crowdsourced collection of names and somehow morphed into an anonymous account posting allegations on social media. Ola would usually be the first to support such a list―she’d retweet it, call for the men to be fired, write article after article. Except this time, Michael’s name is on it.

Compulsively page-turning, wildly entertaining and piercing with fearless insight, The List is perfect for fans of Such A Fun AgeMy Dark Vanessa and MagpieThe List by Yomi Adegoke is set to be the most hotly debated debut novel of 2023.

Pre-order here*

The Revels by Stacey Thomas

Published July 20th by HQ
Historical Fiction, Gothic Fiction, Supernatural Fiction, Horror Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
The stage is set and the witch-hunt is about to begin…

‘I am no witch. I have not sold my soul to the devil for powers. What I am has never openly been whispered of, yet it is enough that people would hang for it.’

England, 1645.
After his half-brother dies, aspiring playwright Nicholas Pearce is apprenticed to Judge William Percival, an infamous former witch-hunter who is under pressure to resume his old profession.

In a country torn apart by civil war, with escalating tensions between Catholics and Protestants, Royalists and Roundheads, and rumours of witchcraft, Nicholas hides a secret: the dead sing. He hears their secrets, but will he find the courage to speak up to save innocent lives, even if it means putting himself in great danger?

A spellbinding debut novel perfect for fans of Stacey Halls, Laura Purcell and Bridget Collins.

Pre-order here*

73 Dove Street by Julie Owen Moylan

Published July 20th by Michael Joseph
Historical Fiction, Romance Novel, Historical Mystery

SYNOPSIS:
‘An incredibly vivid rendering of post-war London and the complicated lives of three woman whose fates intersect at a boarding house . . . emotional, immersive and utterly absorbing’ Jennifer Saint

‘Once again, Julie Owen Moylan has created a world that feels completely real and vivid. A hugely enjoyable book’ Jodie Chapman

When Edie Budd arrives at a shabby West London boarding house in October 1958, carrying nothing except a broken suitcase and an envelope full of cash, it’s clear she’s hiding a terrible secret. And she’s not the only one; the other women of 73 Dove Street have secrets of their own . . .

Tommie, who lives on the second floor, waits on the eccentric Mrs Vee by day. After dark, she harbours an addiction to seedy Soho nightlife – and a man she can’t quit.

Phyllis, 73 Dove Street’s formidable landlady, has set fire to her husband’s belongings after discovering a heart-breaking betrayal – yet her fierce bravado hides a past she doesn’t want to talk about.

At first, the three women keep to themselves. But as Edie’s past catches up with her, Tommie becomes caught in her web of lies – forcing her to make a decision that will change everything . . .

Pre-order here*

The Beach Party by Nikki Smith

Published July 20th by Viking
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Holiday Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Six friends.
The holiday of their dreams.
One night that changed it all . . .

1989: The tunes are loud and the clothes are louder when a group of friends arrives in Mallorca for a post-graduation holiday of decadence and debauchery at a luxury villa.

A beach party marks the pinnacle of their fun, until it isn’t fun any longer. Because amidst the wild partying – sand flying from dancing feet and revellers leaping from yachts – an accident happens. Suddenly, the night of a lifetime becomes a living nightmare.

Now: The truth about that summer has been collectively buried. But someone knows what happened that night.

And they want the friends to pay for what they did.

Pre-order here*

The Dive by Sara Ochs

Published July 20th by Bantam Press
Mystery, Thriller, Crime Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Welcome to paradise. We hope you survive your stay…

‘It really is The Beach for a new generation – a hot contender for best travel thriller of 2023.’ Janice Hallett

The Dive turns paradise into a nightmare… and I loved every minute of it.’ Amy McCulloch

‘Utterly compelling.’ Lucy Clarke

Escape to paradise.
Scuba diving instructor Cass leads her students out for their first dive off the beautiful coast of Koh Sang, Thailand’s world-famous party island. It’s supposed to be a life-changing experience, but things quickly spiral out of control…

Leave your secrets behind.
By the time she gets back to the shore, one of her students is dead, another badly injured, and she knows that her idyllic life is about to be smashed to pieces on the rocks.

But don’t get lost for ever…
Because this isn’t the first mysterious death on the island, and it won’t be the last. Someone is making sure that backpackers stay in paradise for ever – one murder at a time…

Pre-order here*

The Clearing (Rees &TannahillBook 2) by Simon Toyne

Published July 20th by Harper Collins UK
Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction, Crime Series

SYNOPSIS:
From the author of the Sanctus series comes a brilliant new serial killer thriller featuring forensic specialist Dr Laughton Rees and Detective Chief Inspector Tannahill Khan

‘The tension is almost unbearable… the ending is genuinely one of the most jaw-dropping ones I’ve read in a long time. Absolutely superb.’ M.W. Craven

Women are going missing
Something deadly lurks in the forest around Cinderfield. Locals put the unusually high number of disappearances down to transients or runaways; some even blame the Cinderman, a figure of local legend rumoured to haunt the woods looking for unsuspecting victims.

Vanishing without a trace
Forensic specialist Laughton Rees doesn’t believe in monsters. Already investigating the area’s history of missing women, news of the latest ‘runaway’ Maddie Friar brings her to Cinderfield to find out the truth.

No one’s talking
But, from the gruff leader of an off-grid commune to the mysterious Earl who presides over the crumbling abbey in the heart of the forest, everyone in Cinderfield has something to hide

But what lies in the shadows?
As Laughton searches for answers, with the help of DCI Tannahil Khan back in London, someone is watching – cataloguing her every move, prepared to do anything to keep their dark secrets from coming to light

Pre-order here*

The New Wife by JP Delaney

Published July 20th by Quercus
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Domestic Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
When Finn Hensen gets a call from his sister Jess to say their father has died, neither is heartbroken. Their parents divorced many years ago, after which their father, Jimmy, continued to live a bohemian lifestyle in sun-soaked Mallorca.

Ownership of his beautiful but dilapidated farmhouse in the mountains now passes to Finn and his sister. The only problem is that Jimmy recently remarried and his new wife, Ruensa, is still living there.

The pair agree that Finn should go to Mallorca and tactfully take possession of their inheritance. When he arrives, however, Finn is surprised to find that Finca Siquia has been completely transformed into a chic Mediterranean bolthole by Ruensa and her twenty-seven-year-old daughter, Roze. The Spanish police, meanwhile, are asking awkward questions about Jimmy’s death . . .

Are Ruensa and Roze the helpless victims of circumstance? Or will they stop at nothing to get Finca Siquia for themselves?

Pre-order here*

The Little Italian Hotel by Phaedra Patrick

Published July 20th by HQ
Contemporary Romance, Holiday Fiction, Humorous Fiction, Adventure Fiction, Coming-of-Age Story

SYNOPSIS:
Escape to Italy this summer with The Little Italian Hotel, the uplifting new book from Phaedra Patrick, the bestselling author of The Library of Lost and Found.

‘The perfect book to read when you want to give your heart a holiday’ Sally Page, bestselling author of The Keeper of Stories

Ginny Splinter, acclaimed radio host and relationship expert, prides herself on knowing what’s best for others. So, she’s sure her husband, Adrian, will love the special trip to Italy she’s planned for their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. But when Ginny presents the gift, he surprises her with his own very different plan: a divorce.

Beside herself with heartache, Ginny impulsively goes live on air to invite four heartbroken listeners to join her instead. From hiking the hills of Bologna to sharing a gondola in Venice and dancing until dawn, Ginny and her guests embark on a holiday of full of fun, hope and healing.

Sunny, tender and brimming with charm, The Little Italian Hotel explores love, the importance of friendship, and reclaiming the present moment – even if it means leaving the past behind.

Pre-order here*

You Were Always Mine by Christine Pride & Jo Piazza

Published July 20th by HQ
Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
‘Sits squarely at the tender intersection of race, class, and ethics – wrapped in beautiful prose and a killer plot that keeps you turning the pages’ JODI PICOULT

Is the truest family the one we’re born into, or the one we make for ourselves?

Cinnamon Haynes has fought hard for everything she has – her marriage, a stable job as a career counsellor, and home of her own. She’s overcome the difficult circumstances of her childhood to build this life, and yet, she can’t help but wonder . . . is this all there is?

Just nineteen years old, Daisy Dunlap has already faced her share of hardships, but she has big dreams for her future. A future which is threatened when she gets unexpectedly pregnant and, desperate and alone, she makes a drastic decision with devastating consequences.

When Cinnamon finds an abandoned baby in the park, she takes the newborn into her home, not realising the chain reaction this will set off. Cinnamon must deal with the shocking judgements from friends, strangers, even her own husband, about why a Black woman like her would take in this blonde-haired, blue-eyed baby, but all Cinnamon wants is to do right by this innocent child. Then, Cinnamon’s fragile hold over the baby is threatened and she must fight for the family she wants – even if that costs her everything she once held dear . . .

Pre-order here*

The Sun and the Void by Gabriela Romero Lacruz

Published July 25th by Daphne Press
Fantasty Fiction, High Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Romantic Fantasy, Horror Fantasy

SYNOPSIS:
Enter a lush world inspired by the history and mythology of South America, where twisted family politics deceive, dark magics thrive, and fantastical creatures roam.

Reina is desperate.

Stuck living on the edges of society, her only salvation lies in an invitation from a grandmother she’s never known. But the journey is dangerous, and prayer can’t always avert disaster.

Attacked by creatures that stalk the region, Reina is on the verge of death until her grandmother, a dark sorceress, intervenes. Now dependent on the Doña’s magic for her life, Reina will do anything to earn―and keep―her favor. Even the bidding of an ancient god who whispers to her at night.

Eva Kesare is unwanted.

Illegitimate and of mixed heritage, Eva is her family’s shame. She tries her best to be perfect and to hide her oddities. But Eva is hiding a secret: magic calls to her.

Eva knows she should fight the temptation. Magic is the sign of the dark god, and using it is punishable by death. Yet, it’s hard to deny power when it has always been denied to you. Eva is walking a dangerous path, one that gets stranger every day. And, in the end, she’ll become something she never imagined.

Pre-order here*

Immortal Longings (Flesh and False Gods 1) by Chloe Gong

Published July 25th by Hodder & Stoughton
High Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fantasy Romance, Fantasy Series

SYNOPSIS:
‘Each page is fierce and filled with yearning – I loved it’ Andrea Stewart

The only way to win, is to survive.

Every year, thousands flock to San-Er, the dangerously dense capital twin cities of the kingdom of Talin, where the palace hosts a set of deadly games. Those confident in their ability to jump between bodies can enter a fight to the death – for the chance to win unimaginable riches.

Princess Calla Tuoleimi has been in hiding for five years, ever since she murdered her parents to free the people of Talin from her tyrannical family. Only one person stands in her way of finishing the job: her reclusive uncle King Kasa. However, she knows he always greets the victor of the games. If she wins, she will finally get the chance to kill him.

Enter Anton Makusa, whose childhood love has lain in a coma since they were both ousted from the palace. He’s deep in debt trying to keep her alive. Which means his last chance at saving her is entering the games and winning.

When Anton proposes an unexpected alliance with Calla, they quickly find their partnership spiraling into something all-consuming. But before the games close, Calla must decide what she’s playing for – her lover or her kingdom. For no matter what, only one of them can walk out alive . . .

#1 New York Times bestselling author Chloe Gong’s adult epic fantasy debut, inspired by Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra, is a fiery collision of power plays, spilled blood, and romance amidst a set of deadly games.

Pre-order here*

Horses of Fire by A. D. Rhine

Published July 25th by Dutton
Historical Fiction, Greek Mythology, High Fantasy, War Story

SYNOPSIS:
Four women. Four threads spinning on a single loom. Can they reweave the tapestry of fate? Troy is not just a legend born of myth and poetry, but a historical place where real people schemed and defended, loved and lost. Unlike other retellings, this novel explores the earlier days of the Trojan war, digging deep into the story of those trapped behind the city’s walls. This Troy is not a playground of gods and goddesses, but a political and physical battleground where ordinary people and strong, yet misunderstood women take center stage: Andromache is cast as the doting wife of Prince Hector, yet her Amazonian name means ‘battler of men.’ When her struggle to produce a male heir endangers Hector’s position as Troy’s future king, she must gather a band of outcasts and become the military commander she was born to be, while protecting the secret life growing within. Rhea is a war refugee and a horse whisperer who finally earns a place, and sense of belonging, in Hector’s stables. When the Greek hordes come banging at the city gates, Rhea must become an unlikely spy, while facing a forbidden love that will test all her loyalties. Helen is blamed by all for starting the Trojan War, but no one knows her real story. To escape her abusive husband and foil a plot to undermine Hector, Helen must risk everything and reveal her true face to the one who despises her most. Cassandra is tormented by the truth about Troy’s fate as she watches helplessly from her tower. All of Troy believes that her prophecies are those of a mad woman, but that is about to change.

Pre-order here*

The Weaver and the Witch Queen by Genevieve Gornichec

Published July 25th by Titan
Fairy Tale, Hisotrical Fantasy, Romantic Fantasy

SYNOPSIS:
Two stepsisters encounter the gods and giants of Norse mythology, as they face their intertwining destinies and an ominous prophecy in this powerful novel from the acclaimed author of The Witch’s Heart.

Oddny and Gunnhild meet as children, and they could not be more different. Oddny longs for a quiet, peaceful life. Gunnhild, on the other hand, burns for power, secretly longing to harness the magic that flows inside of her, and one day become queen. But after a visiting wise woman makes an ominous prophecy that involves them both, the girls take a blood oath to help each other always.

When Oddny’s mother is killed and her sister kidnapped by Viking raiders, she finds herself set adrift from the life she imagined. Gunnhild, who fled her home years ago to learn the ways of a witch, is on her way to her exalted destiny. When they find each other again, their bond will be tested in ways they could never had imagined in this rich novel of magic, history, and sworn sisterhood.

Pre-order here*

My Husband by Maud Ventura

Published July 27th by Hutchinson Heinmann
Psychological Thriller, Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Domestic Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
PRIZE WINNER OF FRANCE’S FIRST NOVEL AWARD


‘One of the most daring, provocative, unnervingly intimate thrillers I’ve read in years. Few writers besides Ruth Rendell and Patricia Highsmith can evoke domestic unease with such sangfroid; fewer still can make it such delirious fun‘ A. J. Finn, #1 NYT bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

‘What a wonderfully tense, obsessive, enveloping novel – almost like a feminist, introspective spin on Fatal Attraction! Ventura’s deftly spun debut is a sharply observed dissection of marriage that will haunt you for days’ Virgina Feito

‘In this wry, psychologically complex debut, a meticulously manicured wife is obsessed with her husband. For the past 13 years, she’s made a science of meeting his needs, putting them before her own or even their children’s. Her love is a stranglehold; something’s gotta give. The winner of France’s First Novel Prize, this riveting emotional thriller requires serious willpower to not devour in a single sitting’ Oprah Daily

From the outside, she has an enviable life: a successful career, stunning looks, a beautiful house in the suburbs, two healthy children, and most importantly, an ideal husband. After fifteen years together, she is still besotted with him. But she’s never quite sure that her passion is reciprocated.

Determined to keep their relationship perfect, she meticulously prepares for every encounter they have, always taking care to make her actions seem effortless. She watches him attentively, charting every mistake and punishing him accordingly to help him improve. And she tests him – setting traps to make sure that he still loves her just as much as he did when they first met.

Until one day she realizes she may have gone too far . . .

With the surprise of Gone Girl, the bleakness of The Talented Mr Ripley and the sinister charm of the Netflix thriller YouMy Husband is a bold and exhilarating story of passion and the dark secrets that lie beneath a seemingly healthy marriage.

Pre-order here*

Disobedient by Elizabeth Freemantle

Published July 27th by Michael Joseph
Historical Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
I’ll show you what a woman can do . . .

‘Artemisia’s life was extraordinary, and so is this book. I was swept away by lush, evocative prose. An unforgettable, moving and important story told with great skill and care’ JENNIFER SAINT

‘Outstanding. A powerful novel about women who are shamed and silenced, and how they learn to survive. A literary knockout’ ANNA MAZZOLA, author of The Clockwork Girl

‘An unforgettable book – visceral and lush and fierce. The last few pages left me gasping. An absolute triumph’ EVE CHASE

Rome 1611.

A jewel-bright place of change, with sumptuous new palaces and lavish wealth on display. A city where women are seen but not heard.

Artemisia Gentileschi dreams of becoming a great artist. Motherless, she grows up among a family of painters – men and boys. She knows she is more talented than her brothers, but she cannot choose her own future. She wants to experience the world, but she belongs to her father and will belong to a husband.

As Artemisia patiently goes from lesson to lesson, perfecting her craft, she also paints in private, recreating the women who inspire her, away from her father’s eyes.

Until a mysterious tutor enters her life. Tassi is a dashing figure, handsome and worldly, and for a moment he represents everything that a life of freedom might offer. But then the unthinkable happens.

In the eyes of her family, Artemisia should accept her fate. In the eyes of the law, she is the villain.

But Artemisia is a survivor. And this is her story to tell.

Pre-order here*

Their Vicious Games by Joelle Wellington

Published July 27th by Penguin
Young Adult Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Romantic Mystery

SYNOPSIS:
*Squid Game at an American High School – the twisty YA thriller that everyone will be talking about in 2023.*

Twelve girls. Three rounds. One ultimate prize . . . for the last one left alive.


Edgewater Academy is a school for the very rich and very powerful.

Adina Walker is neither of those things. Alone and outcast, when she gets into a fight with a fellow student (and former friend), her scholarship to a top college is revoked, and her world falls apart.

Until she’s invited to The Finish.

Annual games for the brightest and the best, hosted by power-family The Remingtons, the winning prize for The Finish is everything Adina wants. This is her chance at the life she’s dreamed of.

Then the contestants start to die.

Love, revenge, pride – all are on the line. This isn’t a game any more . . .

Horrific and engrossing in equal measure, THEIR VICIOUS GAMES is also a thoughtful and clever commentary on race and class. Ace of Spades meets The Inheritance Games, this is a game you’ll want to see through to the finish.

Pre-order here*

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Are any of these on your TBR? What other releases are you excited for in July? Let me know in the comments.

Thanks for reading Bibliophiles xxx

*These links are affiliate links

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book reviews Emma's Anticipated Treasures Squadpod Squadpod Recommends Squadpod Spotlight Support Debuts

SQUADPOD REVIEWS: Don’t Believe the Hype by Natalie Lewis

Published April 13th, 2023 by Hodder Paperbacks
Humorous Fiction, Urban Fiction

Today I’m sharing my review for one of our Squadpod Reviews titles, Don’t Believe the Hype. Thank you to Hodder Paperbacks for the invitation to read this book and the gifted copy.

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SYNOPSIS:
‘An addictive, glorious romp . . . Don’t Believe the Hype feels like spending time with your funniest, most gossipy, best dressed friend’ Clare Pooley


The world of fashion is supposed to be glamorous . . . isn’t it?

Meet Frankie Marks: the world’s least likely fashion PR. She got the job by fluke, she doesn’t know the first thing about designers, she’s always hungry, and she struggles to think before she speaks. When Frankie crash-lands in the prestigious GGC agency, her friends and family can’t believe it – least of all her long-term (and long-suffering) boyfriend, James.

Frankie quickly realises she needs to use everything she’s got to survive life behind the scenes of this glamorous and chaotic industry – with its eccentric characters, towering expectations, and quite frankly ridiculous requests. But first, she needs to learn the difference between velour and velvet . . .

As the pressure builds and Frankie’s personal life begins to take the hit, she starts to wonder if she’ll ever manage to escape the strange world of fashion unscathed. And, for that matter, does she even want to?

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MY REVIEW:

Frankie Marks is not your typical fashion PR. But finding a job that utilises her History of Art degree has been far from easy, and she’s getting desperate. So, she applies for a job at the prestigious GGC agency, feeling certain she’ll not get the job as she knows nothing about fashion. But to the surprise of herself and all those who know her, Frankie is hired. Forced to take a crash-course in the chaotic world of fashion PR, Frankie soon realises she has a lot to learn if she’s going to succeed in her new role. But does she really want to succeed? And if so, what will she have to sacrifice along the way?

Entertaining, witty, gossipy, snarky and stylish, Don’t Believe the Hype pulls back the curtain to offer us a glimpse of what it’s really like to work in the crazy world of fashion. Debut author Natalie Lewis sets the tone perfectly, opening each chapter with a faux press release that correlates to that chapter. Perfect for reading in the sun with a glass of wine, it feels like dishing the dirt with your bestie, or reading a tell-all memoir. 

Frankie is a great protagonist. She’s someone we can relate to, and starts out at GGC as a real fish out of water. After all, this job is just a brief stepping stone to help her in her ‘real’ career. But, to her surprise, she finds herself being drawn into this relentless, exhilarating, absurd and stressful world, and is no longer sure she wants to leave. But as her personal life slowly begins to fall apart from neglect, you have to wonder if it’s all worth it, and there were many times I wanted to reach into the book and shake her yet also wanted her to keep entertaining us by remaining in this strange world. The cast of background characters has been filled with some eccentric, memorable people who were an absolute joy to read. And we can’t forget the must-have conflict that is provided courtesy of Dominic Carter, the handsome but irritating character who runs a rival PR company.

Fun, lighthearted and totally readable, I highly recommend this brilliant debut. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Natalie Lewis was a leading fashion pr for three decades. As an agency owner she launched brands including net-a-porter and Jimmy Choo before going on to work with several designers and high-profile clients such as Claudia Schiffer, Bella Freud and latterly Victoria Beckham. After deciding she couldn’t discuss camera angles or lighting up nostrils any longer she retired from the industry in 2020 to concentrate on writing.

Her first novel features Frankie Marks, the most unlikely fashion pr in London. Fashion isn’t her forte, she’s always hungry and sometimes she doesn’t think before she speaks. As she navigates her way through a sometimes-absurd fashion world trying and failing to balance her professional and personal lives, she provides a contemporary take on insider access to the worlds of fashion and celebrity pr. Don’t Believe The Hype will be published in Spring 2023.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Waterstones* | Bookshop.org* | Amazon*

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Thanks for reading Bibliophiles xxxx

*All purchase links are affiliate links

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Blog Tours book reviews Emma's Anticipated Treasures Most Anticipated 2023

BLOG TOUR: Love & Other Scams by PJ Ellis

Published April 13th by Harper North
Humour, Mystery, Crime Fiction, Romcantic Comedy, Romance Novel, Contemporary Romance, Humorous Fiction, Urban Fiction, LGBT Literature, Holiday Fiction

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this delicious debut. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part, and to HarperNorth for the gifted proof.

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SYNOPSIS:
There’s no thrill like breaking the rules…

‘MISCHIEVOUS, MAGNETIC AND HEAPS OF FUN’ EMMA GANNON

‘THE ROMCOM OF 2023’ LIZZY DENT

***

Cat has a dangerously dwindling bank balance. She also has:

· a month before her landlord kicks her out
· a surprise wedding invitation from rich mean girl, Louisa
· a secret talent for con artistry

A priceless jewel the size of a cocktail olive is glinting on Louisa’s finger.

And when Cat meets her ideal plus one, Jake – who’s gifted at hustling and posing as the perfect boyfriend – this wedding becomes a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. After all,

How hard can a diamond heist be?

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MY REVIEW:

Sparkling, funny, magnetic and ebullient, Love and Other Scams is the romcom everyone should be reading this summer. A delicious debut filled with diamonds, duplicity and debauchery, I was completely hooked.

Cat is single, unemployed, and about to be homeless. As her bank balance dwindles and the date of her impending eviction looms, she becomes increasingly desperate. Then she gets an invitation to the wedding of an old friend, Louisa, a rich mean girl she hasn’t seen in years. When Louisa brags about her priceless engagement ring Cat spies an opportunity. You see, what people don’t know is that Cat is a skilled thief. So, with bartender Jake on her arm masquerading as her boyfriend, the tricky twosome plan a heist that will solve all their financial problems. 

This comedic caper is everything you want in romcom. I’m calling it now, PJ Ellis is going to be huge. He’s definitely an author to watch and writes like he’s been doing this forever. Skillfully crafted, laugh-out-loud funny and addictive, it manages to be both relatable and completely absurd. I had high expectations for this debut after hearing so many great reviews and it exceeded them all. It’s the perfect book to read this summer whether you’re on the beach, by the pool or just in your garden, and I predict it is just the start of many uproarious novels from Mr. Ellis. But first, I’m going to need a sequel. 

This is a book filled with vibrant, compelling and unforgettable characters. Though none so much as our protagonist, Cat. She’s bold, feisty, messy, resourceful and dodgy as hell, but despite all of this – and her illegal ‘hobby’- I liked her immediately and was rooting for her scheme to succeed. By giving her struggles that the reader can relate to and then slowly revealing how she started stealing, Ellis makes her someone we can connect and empathise with, rather than simply a crook out to rip people off. And, let’s be honest,  there’s nothing better than living vicariously through a character, which I loved doing with Cat. 
When your main character is someone so memorable you need someone who can shine as brightly to compliment them. And that is exactly what we get in Jake. At first it seems like Jake is someone who fades into the background, but we soon learn this is part of his ruse. He and Cat make a great duo and I loved the banter and chemistry between them. It seemed inevitable that they would fall in love, and I was totally here for it. 

Upbeat, entertaining and hilarious, this first-class romcom with a twist was an absolute riot from beginning to end. Trust me when I tell you that this is one not to be missed. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮.5

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Philip Ellis is a contributing editor for Men’s Health, covering relationships, pop culture, and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in British GQ, Teen Vogue, and Repeller, and his short fiction has been long-listed for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize. He lives in Birmingham, UK. 

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BUY THE BOOK

Waterstones | Amazon | Bookshop.org

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Thanks for reading Bibliophiles xxxx

Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the tour.

*Purchase links are affiliate links

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Emma's Anticipated Treasures Most Anticipated 2023

Emma’s Anticipated Treasures – June 2023

I can’t quite believe we’re already at the half way point for this years most anticipated books. But, here we are, and June is another month jam-packed witth fantastic fiction, including new releases from some of my favourite authors and exciting debuts I can’t wait to dive into.

So, here are the books out next month that I’m most anticipating:

The Miniscule Mansion of Myra Malone by Audrey Burges

Published June 1st by Pan Macmillan
Contemporary Fiction, Magical Realism, Contemporary Romance

SYNOPSIS:
Audrey Burges’ The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone is a charming and magical debut novel, with a love story at its heart, woven across multiple periods and perspectives, about a mystical dolls’ house.

Once upon a time there was a house . . .

From her attic in the Arizona mountains, thirty-four year-old recluse Myra Malone blogs about a miniature mansion – a dolls’ house – which captivates thousands of readers worldwide. Myra herself is tethered to the Mansion by a strange magic she can’t understand – there are rooms that appear and disappear overnight, music that plays in its corridors.

Across the country, Alex Rakes, the thirty-four year-old heir of a furniture business, encounters two Mansion fans trying to recreate a room from her stories. Alex is shocked to recognize his own bedroom in minute scale.

The Mansion is his family’s home, handed down from the grandmother who disappeared mysteriously when Alex was a child. Searching for answers, Alex begins corresponding with Myra. Together, the two unwind the lonely paths of their twin worlds – big and small – and trace the stories that entwine them, setting the stage for a meeting rooted in loss, but defined by love.

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The Moon Represents My Heart by Pim Wangtechawat

Published June 1st by Magpie
Literary Fiction, Family Saga, War

SYNOPSIS:
How far would you travel to find a love lost in time?

1927, East London. The first time Tommy and Peggy meet, they are nine years old. He is lost in London’s original Chinatown, panicking as he struggles to escape the tangle of Limehouse streets, with their road signs in Chinese characters that he can’t decipher. 

‘Where do you come from?’ Peggy asks him.

For Tommy, the answer to that question can never be straightforward, because his family share a secret gift: they can travel through time. And each must eventually decide how much the present day means to them, and how far they are willing to travel to hold onto the people they love.

Heartfelt and hopeful, weaving through decades and across continents, The Moon Represents My Heart is an unforgettable debut about one extraordinary family, the gift that threatens to tear them apart and the love that binds them together. 

‘An immediately compelling, unusual story with a totally fresh voice.’ Jennifer Saint, author of Ariadne

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See Me Rolling : On Disiblity, Equality and Ten-Point Turns by Lottie Jackson

Published June 1st by Hutchinson Heinemann
Autonbiography, Humour

SYNOPSIS:
‘The world was sadly not my lobster, it was a skimpy crayfish from a petrol station sandwich and it was on the turn.’

In this heartfelt, thought-provoking and often hilarious book, Lottie Jackson reflects on her experiences of living with disability: from the pitfalls of going shopping on a mobility scooter, and the headache of defining oneself on a tick-box form, to a slapstick scuffle with the so-called ‘easy-pull’ tights aid, and the intense pleasure of finally swapping a hospital gown for a slinky dress. Lottie captivatingly expresses the raw vulnerabilities, injustices and untold joys of disability, as well as the bizarre everyday occurrences that able-bodied people usually don’t experience.

See Me Rolling is a playful, illuminating memoir, but it is also a clarion call for greater diversity and inclusion. Lottie powerfully explores the ways in which we undervalue and underrepresent disabled people in our society, and demonstrates how negative stigmas about ‘abnormal’ bodies seep into all aspects our lives, from travel, work and education, to fashion and social media. In this dazzling debut, Lottie reveals why we must strive for change and redefine what it means to be disabled in every facet of life. She has a voice that needs to be heard.

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My Murder by Katie Williams

Published June 6th by Wildfire
Psychologial Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
SOMETIMES THE ONLY PERSON WHO CAN SOLVE YOUR MURDER IS YOU.

‘Startling and original, My Murder is a gripping speculative twist on the crime novel.’ – Paula Hawkins, bestselling author of The Girl on the Train

‘Completely absorbing. A smart, speculative twist on domestic suspense.’ – Ashley Audrain, bestselling author of The Push


‘A cool, confident, clever thriller. But best and most of all, this book is F-U-N.’ – A. J. Finn, bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

Lou has been murdered.


She was the fifth victim of the serial killer Edward Early. A young wife and new mother, Lou’s death outraged a public breathlessly following the story of the serial murders.

Lou has been cloned.

Along with Early’s other four victims, Lou has been brought back to life by the government-funded replication commission. The women gather at a weekly support group, helping each other to navigate a society obsessed with their very existence.

Lou has been lied to.

But when Lou agrees to help fellow murder victim Fern secure a visit with Edward Early, a shocking revelation causes Lou to investigate the events around her death and question everything she thought she knew about her murder.

Can she finally uncover the truth?

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The Wind Kbnows My Name by Isabel Allende

Published June 6th by Bloomsbury Publishing
Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Vienna, 1938. Samuel Adler is five years old when his father disappears during Kristallnacht – the night their family loses everything. As her child’s safety seems ever harder to guarantee, Samuel’s mother secures a spot for him on the last Kindertransport train out of Nazi-occupied Austria to England. He boards alone, carrying nothing but a change of clothes and his violin.

Arizona, 2019. Eight decades later, Anita Diaz and her mother board another train, fleeing looming danger in El Salvador and seeking refuge in the United States. But their arrival coincides with the new family separation policy, and seven-year-old Anita finds herself alone at a camp in Nogales. She escapes her tenuous reality through her trips to Azabahar, a magical world of the imagination. Meanwhile, Selena Duran, a young social worker, enlists the help of a successful lawyer in hopes of tracking down Anita’s mother.

Intertwining past and present, The Wind Knows My Name tells the tale of these two unforgettable characters, both in search of family and home. It is both a testament to the sacrifices that parents make, and a love letter to the children who survive the most unfathomable dangers – and never stop dreaming.

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All The Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby

Published June 6th by Headline
Thriller, Mystery, Southern Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
The stunning new thriller from the international bestselling, multi-award-winning author.

‘S. A. Cosby’s novels always hit the grand slam of crime fiction; unstoppable momentum, gripping intrigue and deep character with a hard and telling look at culture and society’MICHAEL CONNELLY

‘American crime fiction has found its future and his name is S.A. Cosby’ DENNIS LEHANE

‘Titus Crown is one of the most compelling characters I’ve read in a long time.’ STEVE CAVANAGH

A BLACK SHERIFF. A SERIAL KILLER.

AND A SMALL TOWN READY TO COMBUST.

Titus Crown is the first Black sheriff in the history of Charon County, Virginia. In recent decades, Charon has had only two murders. After years of working as an FBI agent, no one knows better than Titus that while his hometown might seem like a land of moonshine, cornbread, and honeysuckle, secrets always fester under the surface.

But a year to the day after Titus’s election, a school teacher is killed by a former student. The student is then fatally shot by Titus’s deputies.

As Titus investigates the shootings, he unearths terrible crimes, and a serial killer who has been hiding in plain sight, haunting the dirt lanes and woodland clearings of Charon. With the killer’s possible connections to a local church and the town’s harrowing history weighing on him, Titus tries to project confidence about closing the case while concealing a painful secret from his own past. At the same time, he also has to contend with a far-right group that wants to hold a parade in celebration of the town’s Confederate history.

Charon is Titus’s home and his heart. But where faith and violence meet, there will be a reckoning.

‘Cements S.A. Cosby’s place as one of the most important new voices in crime fiction. I won’t read a better book this year. Incredible.’ M. W. CRAVEN

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Killingly by Katharine Beutner

Published June 8th by Coruvs
Gothic Fiction, Historical Mystery, Literary Fiction, Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
ONE OF LIT HUB‘S TOP CRIME NOVELS OF 2023

‘A story of women who defy strict rules’ KATE MANNING, author of My Notorious Life
A superb novel, suffused with dread’ ELIZABETH MCKENZIE, author of The Dog of the North

KILLINGLY is a haunting, gothic, turn-of-the-century campus thriller about female desire, rage and ambition in the face of convention and patriarchal control.

The young women at Mount Holyoke College are famed for their beauty and virtue – except for Agnes and Bertha. With their strange dresses, scholarly pursuits and intimate friendship, these two students are considered peculiar.

One autumn morning, Bertha is spotted in the woods. Then she vanishes, leaving Agnes to wander the cold university halls alone.

While a search team dredges the pond where Bertha might have drowned, a private detective arrives in town and an investigation ensues, sending shockwaves through the university and the quiet town of Killingly.

Bertha might be gone, but she left behind secrets. Secrets which are beginning to surface, threatening to put her best friend in mortal danger and shatter the peaceful world of Mount Holyoke forever…

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The Burnings by Naomi Kelsey

Published June 8th by HarperNorth
Historical Fiction, Gothic Fiction, Fantasy Fiction, Magical Realism

SYNOPSIS:
Nothing scares men like witchcraft . . .

1589. Scottish housemaid Geillis and Danish courtier Margareta lead opposite lives, but they both know one thing: when a man cries “witch”, no woman is safe.

Yet when the marriage of King James VI and Princess Anna of Denmark brings Geillis and Margareta together, everything they supposed about good, evil, men, and women, is cast in a strange and brilliant new light.

For the first time in history, could black magic – or rumours of it – be a very real tool for women’s political gain?

As the North Berwick witch trials whip Scotland – and her king – into a frenzy of paranoia, the clock is ticking. Can Margareta and Geillis keep each other safe? And once the burnings are over, in whose hands will power truly lie?

Inspired by the incredible true story that set 16th-century Scotland and Denmark alight, The Burnings is 2023’s most bewitching debut novel, by a multi-awardwinning new star of historical fiction.

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Hokey Pokey by Kate Mascarenhas

Published June 8th by Apollo
Mystery, Suspense, Gothic Fiction, Horror Fiction, Fantasy Fiction, Mashup Novel

SYNOPSIS:
A grand hotel, a famous opera star and a psychoanalyst with a hidden agenda. Kate Mascarenhas’s third novel offers her readers a glamorous, thrilling ride through murder, madness and the darkest recesses of the mind.

February, 1929. The Regent Hotel in Birmingham is a place of deception and glamour. Behind its six-storeyed façade, guests sip absinthe cocktails on velvet banquettes, while the hotel’s red-jacketed staff scurry through its lavish corridors to ensure the finest service is always at hand.

In the early evening, a psychoanalyst checks in under a pseudonym: Nora Dickinson. Nora is young, diligent and ambitious. Though she doesn’t see herself as a liar, she is travelling with an agenda. Having followed the famous opera singer, Berenice Oxbow, from Zurich to Birmingham, she’s determined not to let her out of her sight.

But when a terrible snow storm isolates the hotel – and its guests – from the outside world, the lines between nightmare and reality begin to blur…

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The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner

Published June 8th by Raven Books
Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
‘This is The Undoing meets Big Little Lies. A fast-paced, decadent skewering of upper middle-class motherhood’ ABIGAIL DEAN

The outstanding new thriller from the author of international bestseller, Greenwich Park

_______________

You want to be one of them. Until you know them.

Ex-journalist Tash has been searching for a story to launch her freelance career. But she has also been searching for something else: new friends to help her navigate motherhood.

She sees them at her son’s new playgroup. The other mothers. The sleek, the sophisticated, the successful mothers. The women she wants to be.

And then one day they welcome her into their circle and Tash discovers the kind of life she has always dreamt of; their elegant London townhouses a far cry from her cramped basement flat and endless bills.

They seem to have everything. But they also have their secrets.

And it’s soon clear that not everyone at the playgroup can be trusted.

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The People Watcher by Sam Lloyd

Published June 8th by Bantam Press
Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
‘One thing I’ve learned, these last few weeks, is that small acts of kindness are far less effective than fear…’

Meet Mercy Lake. She likes to fix things: broken toys, old appliances. People.

She watches them in the dead of night, identifies what their lives are lacking and gives it to them . . . quietly. So quietly, they don’t even know she exists.

Then Mercy meets Louis. He believes some of these people deserve punishment, not help. Joining up with him to dispense a little harmless justice feels good – at first. But when people start getting hurt, Mercy must decide if the ends can ever justify their increasingly violent means.

And soon, their interventions draw the attention of the very person Mercy embraced her nocturnal existence to evade. Someone who will go to extreme lengths to make her pay for knowing their secret . . .

The answer to ‘What if Eleanor Oliphant found herself in a Stephen King novel?’, The People Watcher is a shiver-inducing, heart-pounding suspense that will keep you up into the early hours.

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Everything’s Fine by Cecilia Rabess

Published June 8th by Picador
Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Romance Novel

SYNOPSIS:
‘A stunning debut’ – Meg Mason, author of Sorrow and Bliss

‘Plain funny as hell’ – Zakiya Dalila Harris, author of The Other Black Girl


When Jess first meets Josh at their Ivy League college she dislikes him immediately: an entitled guy in chinos, ready to take over the world. Meanwhile Jess is almost always the only Black woman in their class. And Josh can’t accept that life might be easier for him because he’s white.

After graduating, Jess and Josh end up working together in the same investment bank. As they lunch, spar and pick each other’s brains, Jess begins to see Josh in a different light.

Soon, their tempestuous friendship turns into an electrifying romance that shocks them both, and Jess finds herself questioning who she really is and whether she’s willing to compromise that for love.

Everything’s Fine is an utterly original and deeply moving take on an age-old question from a dazzling new voice: what have you got to lose when you fall in love?

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Mrs. S by K. Patrick

Published June 8th by Fourth Estate
Psychological Fiction, LGBT Literature, Romance

SYNOPSIS:
An Observer Best Debut of the Year

‘Oozes with erotic tension from the start’ Sarah Winman, author of Still Life

‘Tense and taut and exhilarating’ Monica Heisey, author of Really Good, Actually

Powerfully sensual and sublimely stylish, Mrs S is a tale of queer love that smoulders with the heat of summer.

In an elite English boarding school where the girls kiss the marble statue of the famous dead author who used to walk the halls, a young Australian woman arrives to take up the antiquated role of ‘matron’. Within this landscape of immense privilege, in which the girls can sense the slightest weakness in those around them, she finds herself unsure of her role, her accent and her body.

That is until she meets Mrs S, the headmaster’s wife, a woman who is her polar opposite: assured, sophisticated, a paragon of femininity. Over the course of a long, restless heatwave, the matron finds herself irresistibly drawn ever closer into Mrs S’s world and their unspoken desire blooms into an illicit affair of electric intensity. But, as the summer begins to fade, both women know that a choice must be made.

K Patrick’s portrait of the butch experience is revelatory; exploring the contested terrain of our bodies, our desires and the constraints society places around both. Mrs S marks the arrival of a major new literary talent, unlike any other.

‘The intense physicality of the novel’s emotions and its stylish, stripped-back prose make for an arresting pairing’ Observer

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The Twilight Garden by Sara Nisha Adams

Published June 8th by Harper Collins UK
Literary Fiction, Humorous Fiction, Urban Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
The uplifting, unforgettable new novel from the acclaimed author of The Reading List

In a small pocket of London, between the houses of No.77 and No.79 Eastbourne Road, lies a neglected community garden.

Once a sanctuary for people when they needed it most, the garden’s gate is now firmly closed. And that’s exactly how Winston at No.79 likes it – anything to avoid his irritating new next-door neighbour.

But when a mystery parcel drops on Winston’s doormat – a curious bundle of photographs of a community garden, his garden, bursting with life years ago – a seed of an idea is planted . . .

Somewhere out there, a secret gardener made a decades-old promise to keep the community’s spirit alive. And now it’s time for The Twilight Garden to come out of hibernation . . .

Sweeping through the 1970s to a modern corner of London, this is a life-affirming story of small spaces, small pleasures – and a community lost and found.

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High Time by Hannah Rothschild

Published June 8th, 2023 by Bloomsbury Publishing
Humour, Romance Novel, Domestic Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Chosen by The Irish Times and Tatler as a fiction highlight for 2023

WHEN THE STAKES ARE HIGH, HOW LOW WILL YOU GO?

Ayesha Scott has a perfect life. Home is an art-filled Cornish castle with her stratospherically wealthy, titled husband and their beloved daughter. But behind every realised dream lurks an unexploded nightmare and in the course of one day Ayesha discovers that she will be penniless, homeless and powerless unless she can outwit the international mafia, infiltrate the world of high finance and make backstreet deals with the shadiest members of the art world.

Hurt and betrayed, she’s determined to fight for herself and her daughter – but can she do it without enlisting the help of her beloved, deeply eccentric but estranged family?

Sharp escapist fiction, High Time is a novel about high stakes and high jinx set in the world of high art and high finance.

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The Interpreter by Brooke Robinson

Published June 8th by Harvill Secker
Legal Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Suspense

SYNOPSIS:
The most dangerous person in the courtroom isn’t the killer. . .

Revelle is a court interpreter and knows the power of words. She spends her days translating for other people; murderers, fraudsters and their victims. She speaks their words. Only she knows exactly what they’re saying.

When she spots an injustice is about to take place, and a guilty man about to be labelled innocent, she has the power to twist an alibi to get the verdict she wants. The verdict she believes is correct. She’s willing to risk it all.

But someone knows what she’s done.

And they want justice.

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The Expectant Detectives by Kat Ailes

Published June 8th by Zaffre
Humour, Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Humorous Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Motherland meets Midsomer Murders in this fresh and funny mystery about a group of soon-to-be mums who turn detective when there’s a murder at their antenatal class.

FEATURED IN THE EVENING STANDARD‘S BOOKS TO WATCH IN 2023

‘Cosy crime at its finest!’ JANICE HALLETT

‘A sharply witty debut’ SIMON BRETT

For Alice and her partner Joe, moving to the sleepy Cotswold village of Penton is a chance to embrace country life and prepare for the birth of their unexpected first child. He can take up woodwork; maybe she’ll learn to make jam. But the rural idyll they’d hoped for doesn’t quite pan out when a dead body is discovered at their local antenatal class and they find themselves suspects in a murder investigation.

With a cloud of suspicion hanging over the heads of the whole group, Alice sets out to solve the mystery and clear her name, with the help of her troublesome dog, Helen. However, there are more secrets and tensions in the heart of Penton than first meet the eye. Between the discovery of a shady commune up in the woods, the unearthing of a mysterious death years earlier and the near-tragic poisoning of Helen, Alice is soon in way over her head.

CAN YOU SOLVE THE MOTHER OF ALL MURDERS?

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Lovestruck by Laura Jane Williams

Published June 8th by Penguin
Romantic Comedy, Humorous Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
This isn’t one love story. It’s two.

Becca Calloway is calling it: she’s ready for Mr Right, and she’s ready now.

She even goes as far as to hold a manifestation ceremony for him – and when she receives a text from her ex five minutes later, she knows it’s a sign.

The problem is, she doesn’t know which way it’s pointing…

Should Becca reply and reignite things with her old flame Mike? Or delete and block, moving forward with the new man in her life?

Becca has one choice, with two ways this could go. And in Lovestruck, you’re about to see them both…

Pre-order here*

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

Published June 13th by Sphere
Romancic Comedy, Contemporary Romance, Literary Ficiton

SYNOPSIS:
From the author of tiktok sensations and global bestsellers The Love Hypothesis and Love on the Brain 

Rival physicists collide in a vortex of academic feuds and fake dating shenanigans in this delightfully STEMinist romcom.

The many lives of theoretical physicist Elsie Hannaway have finally caught up with her. By day, she’s an adjunct professor, toiling away at grading labs and teaching thermodynamics in the hopes of landing tenure. By other day, Elsie makes up for her non-existent paycheck by offering her services as a fake girlfriend, tapping into her expertly honed people-pleasing skills to embody whichever version of herself the client needs. 

Honestly, it’s a pretty sweet gig – until her carefully constructed Elsie-verse comes crashing down. Because Jack Smith, the annoyingly attractive and arrogant older brother of her favourite client, turns out to be the cold-hearted experimental physicist who ruined her mentor’s career and undermined the reputation of theorists everywhere. And he’s the same Jack Smith who rules over the physics department at MIT, standing right between Elsie and her dream job. 

Elsie is prepared for an all-out war of scholarly sabotage but… those long, penetrating looks? Not having to be anything other than her true self when she’s with him? Will falling into an experimentalist’s orbit finally tempt her to put her most guarded theories on love into practice? 

Pre-order here*

Morgan is My Name by Sophie Keetch

Published June 15th by Magpie
Historical Fiction, Fantasy Ficiton, Historical Fantsasy, Fairy Tale, Adventure Fiction, Arthurian Romance

SYNOPSIS:
One of National Book Tokens’ ’23 Books to Read in 2023′

An atmospheric, feminist retelling of the early life of famed villainess Morgan le Fay, set against the colourful chivalric backdrop of Arthurian legend.

When King Uther Pendragon murders her father and tricks her mother into marriage, Morgan refuses to be crushed. Trapped amid the machinations of men in a world of isolated castles and gossiping courts, she discovers secret powers. Vengeful and brilliant, it’s not long before Morgan becomes a worthy adversary to Merlin, influential sorcerer to the king. But fighting for her freedom, she risks losing everything – her reputation, her loved ones and her life.

Pre-order here*

Clytemnestra’s Bind (The House of Atreus) by Susan C. Wilson

Published June 15th by Neem Tree Press
Greek Mythology, Fairy Tale, Myths, Historical Romance

SYNOPSIS:
Perfect for fans of MADELINE MILLER’S CIRCE and THE SONG OF ACHILLES, this is the first instalment in an epic three-part series.

The House of Atreus is spiralling into self-destruction – a woman must find a way to break the family curse.

Queen Clytemnestra’s world shatters when Agamemnon, a rival to the throne of Mycenae, storms her palace, destroys her family and claims not only the throne but Clytemnestra herself. Tormented by her loss, she vows to do all she can to protect the children born from her unhappy marriage to Agamemnon. But when her husband casts his ruthless gaze towards the wealthy citadel of Troy, his ambitions threaten to once more destroy the family Clytemnestra loves.

From one of Greek mythology’s most reviled characters – a woman who challenged the absolute power of men – comes this fiery tale of power, family rivalry and a mother’s burning love.

Pre-order here*

The Woman Inside by M. T. Edvarsson

Published June 15th by Pan Macmillan
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction, Domestic Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
A breathless page-turner from an international master of suspense, this is a story about dependency, justice, and the sometimes fine line between right and wrong.

Three young people.

Bill, a widower and single dad, is in a financial mess with bills to pay when he rents out a room in his apartment to Karla.

Karla left home to study law and to earn some money begins working as a cleaner at the palatial home of Steven and Regina Rytter. But inside their house it is clear that something is wrong with the doctor and his wife, who never leaves her bedroom.

Jennica is single and careerless when she meets Steven on Tinder. But just as she thinks her luck is changing, it soon becomes clear that Steven is hiding secrets of his own . . .

Two murders.

By the end of the summer Steven and Regina Rytter will be found dead in their home and the questions will begin . . .

One truth.

Ordinary people will do things they never thought possible when faced with extraordinary circumstances, and the truth is that the woman inside may hold the key to it all . . .

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Conviction by Jack Jordan

Published June 22nd by Simon & Schuster UK
Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Ficiton, Legal Thriller, Political Thriller, Legal Story

SYNOPSIS:
TO STEAL A MAN’S FREEDOM ALL IT TAKES IS . . . CONVICTION

Wade Darling stands accused of killing his wife and teenage children as they slept before burning the family home to the ground. 
 
When the case lands on barrister Neve Harper’s desk, she knows it could be the career making case she’s been waiting for. But only if she can prove Wade’s innocence. 

A matter of days before the case, as Neve is travelling home for the night, she is approached by a man. He tells her she must lose this case or the secret about her own husband’s disappearance will be revealed.
 
Failing that, he will kill everyone she cares about until she follows orders.
 
Neve must make a choice – betray every principle she has ever had by putting a potentially innocent man in prison, or risk putting those she loves in mortal danger.

For fans of Steve Cavanagh, Linwood Barclay and Gillian McAllister, introducing the latest novel from the master of the moral dilemma, Jack Jordan.

Pre-order here*

The Fascination by Essie Fox

Published June 22nd by Orenda
Gothic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Thriller, Suspense, Historical Romance

SYNOPSIS:
The estranged grandson of a wealthy collector of human curiosities becomes fascinated with teenaged twin sisters, leading them into a web of dark obsessions. A dazzlingly dark gothic novel from the bestselling author of The Somnambulist.
 
‘Essie Fox follows in the footsteps of Angela Carter and AS Byatt with an adult fairy tale that delves into the darkest compulsions of human nature …  an opium trance of a novel, a vivid fantasmagoria’ Noel O’Reilly
 
‘An enthralling tale about deception, love and loss, and what it means to be different. Macabre and shocking, beautiful and tender, it had me spellbound’ Louisa Treger
 
________________________________
 
Victorian England. A world of rural fairgrounds and glamorous London theatres. A world of dark secrets and deadly obsessions…

Twin sisters Keziah and Tilly Lovell are identical in every way, except that Tilly hasn’t grown a single inch since she was five. Coerced into promoting their father’s quack elixir as they tour the country fairgrounds, at the age of fifteen the girls are sold to a mysterious Italian known as ‘Captain’.

Theo is an orphan, raised by his grandfather, Lord Seabrook, a man who has a dark interest in anatomical freaks and other curiosities … particularly the human kind. Resenting his grandson for his mother’s death in childbirth, when Seabrook remarries and a new heir is produced, Theo is forced to leave home without a penny to his name.


Theo finds employment in Dr Summerwell’s Museum of Anatomy in London, and here he meets Captain and his theatrical ‘family’ of performers, freaks and outcasts.

But it is Theo’s fascination with Tilly and Keziah that will lead all of them into a web of deceits, exposing the darkest secrets and threatening everything they know…

Exploring universal themes of love and loss, the power of redemption and what it means to be unique, The Fascination is an evocative, glittering and bewitching gothic novel that brings alive Victorian London – and darkness and deception that lies beneath…

Pre-order here

The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry

Published June 22nd by Headline
Historical Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Dear Reader, the man I love is trying to kill me…

A rich, beguiling story of long-buried secrets and dark obsession, The Birdcage Library will hold you in its spell until the final page.

‘A delicious page-turning mystery within a mystery, with twists and surprises’ LIZ HYDER
‘Gothic, gorgeous and atmospheric; an immersive page-turner to be swept up in’ ELLERY LLOYD
‘It glistens with a hint of the danger that lurks within’ CHARLOTTE PHILBY
_________

1932. Emily Blackwood, adventuress and plant hunter, travels north for a curious new commission. A gentleman has written to request she catalogue his vast collection of taxidermied creatures before sale.

On arrival, Emily finds a ruined castle, its owner haunted by a woman who vanished five decades before. And when she discovers the ripped pages of a diary, crammed into the walls, she realises dark secrets lie here, waiting to entrap her too…

Pre-order here*

The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

Published June 22nd by Mantle
Historical Fiction, Crime Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
‘A book that stays with you . . . The Square of Sevens is a masterpiece’ – Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels

‘A sweeping Dickensian tour de force of a novel . . . cementing the author’s place as the queen of modern Georgian literature’ – Susan Stokes-Chapman, bestselling author of Pandora

Laura Shepherd-Robinson’s The Square of Sevens is an epic and sweeping novel set in Georgian high society, a dazzling story offering up mystery, intrigue, heartbreak, and audacious twists.


My father had spelt it out to me. Choice was a luxury I couldn’t afford. This is your story, Red. You must tell it well . . .

A girl known only as Red, the daughter of a Cornish fortune-teller, travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient method: the Square of Sevens. When her father suddenly dies, Red becomes the ward of a gentleman scholar.

Now raised as a lady amidst the Georgian splendour of Bath, her fortune-telling is a delight to high society. But she cannot ignore the questions that gnaw at her soul: who was her mother? How did she die? And who are the mysterious enemies her father was always terrified would find him?

The pursuit of these mysteries takes her from Cornwall and Bath to London and Devon, from the rough ribaldry of the Bartholomew Fair to the grand houses of two of the most powerful families in England. And while Red’s quest brings her the possibility of great reward, it also leads into her grave danger . . .

The Square of Sevens dazzles with heart, mystery and breathtaking detail. I doubt I’ll read a better book this year’ ― Chris Whitaker, bestselling author of We Begin at the End

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The Illusions by Liz Hyder

Published June 22nd by Manilla Press
Historical Fiction, Historical Romance, Historical Fantasy, Magical Realism, Supernatrual Fiction, Horror Fantasy

SYNOPSIS:
At a time of extraordinary change, two women must harness their talents to take control of their own destiny . . .

Bristol, 1896. Used to scraping a living as the young assistant to an ageing con artist, Cecily Marsden’s life is turned upside down when her master suddenly dies. Believing herself to blame, could young Cec somehow have powers she little understands?

Meanwhile Eadie Carleton, a pioneering early film-maker, struggles for her talent to be taken seriously in a male-dominated world, and a brilliant young magician, George Perris, begins to see the potential in moving pictures. George believes that if he can harness this new technology, it will revolutionise the world of magic forever – but in order to achieve his dreams, he must first win over Miss Carleton . . .

As a group of illusionists prepare for a grand spectacle, Cec, Eadie and George’s worlds collide. But while Cec falls in love with the bustling realm of theatre and magic, she faces the fight of her life to save the performance from sabotage and harness the element of real magic held deep within her.

THE ILLUSIONS is the captivating new novel from the much-lauded author of THE GIFTS. Inspired by real-life illusionists and early film pioneers, this astonishing story of women and talent, magic and power, sweeps you into a world where anything is possible and nothing is quite as it seems . . .

‘Hyder is a wonderfully accomplished storyteller. The Illusions is a magical tale of innovation, darkness and delight. A book to disappear into – I devoured it greedily’ Joanne Burn, author of The Hemlock Cure

‘Filled with wonders in all forms, in real life and in the theatre, this is a story that will mesmerise and cast its spell. I loved it’ Essie Fox

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The Other Side of Mrs Wood by Lucy Barker

Published June 22nd by Fourth Estate
Historical Fantasy, Historical Mystery, Supernatural Fiction, Religious Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
The irresistible story of two rival mediums in Victorian London…

’Charming, gorgeous, an utter delight’ Marian Keyes

Mrs Wood is London’s most celebrated medium. She’s managed to survive decades in the competitive world of contacting the Other Side, has avoided the dreaded slips that revealed others as frauds and is still hosting packed-out séances for Victorian high society.

Yet, some of her patrons have recently cancelled their appointments. There are reports of American mediums nearly materialising full spirits and audiences are no longer satisfied with the knocking on tables and candle theatrics of years gone by. And then, at one of Mrs Wood’s routine gatherings, she hears something terrifying – faint, but unmistakable: a yawn.

Mrs Wood needs to spice up her brand. She decides to take on Emmie, a young protégé, to join her show. But is Emmie Finch the naïve ingenue she seems to be? Or does she pose more of a threat to Mrs Wood’s reign and, more horrifyingly, her reputation than Mrs Wood could ever have imagined?

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After That Night (Will Trent Book 11) by Karin Slaughter

Published June 22nd by Harper Collins UK
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Police Procedural, Crime Series

SYNOPSIS:
After that night, nothing was ever the same again …

Fifteen years ago, Sara Linton’s life changed forever when a celebratory night out ended in a violent attack that tore her world apart. Since then, Sara has remade her life. A successful doctor, engaged to a man she loves, she has finally managed to leave the past behind her.

Until one evening, on call in the ER, everything changes. Sara battles to save a broken young woman who’s been brutally attacked. But as the investigation progresses, led by GBI Special Agent Will Trent, it becomes clear that Dani Cooper’s assault is uncannily linked to Sara’s.

And it seems the past isn’t going to stay buried forever …

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Night Will Find You by Julia Heaberlin

Published June 22nd by Michael Joseph
Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction, Police Procedural, Southern Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Being developed as a TV series by FOX Network

Haunting, heartfelt, chilling and beautifully told, Night Will Find You walks that rare line between mystery, thriller and truly original character study. I adored it’
CHRIS WHITAKER, bestselling author of WE BEGIN AT THE END

——————

Vivvy Bouchet, respected scientist and reluctant psychic, saved a boy’s life after a premonition when she was a child.
That boy is now a Texas police officer.

He convinces Vivvy to help him solve a high-profile cold case, working alongside detective Jesse Sharp, a sceptic of anything but fact.
Three-year-old Lizzie Solomon disappeared in broad daylight from her home.
A body was never found, but the child’s mother, Nicolette,
is in prison for the disappearance, loudly proclaiming her innocence.

When a popular podcaster hears of Vivvy’s involvement in the case,
his conspiracy theories about the missing child, and Vivvy’s background,
have an army of fans hanging on every dangerous word.

But when it becomes clear there may be a kidnapper
– or killer – still on the loose,
Vivvy knows there’s more to lose than her reputation.

Because the difference between the truth and a lie can mean life or death . . .

A sharply observed psychological thriller, Night Will Find You explores the dangerous meeting of conspiracy theories and our need to believe – and the line between fact and what we can’t explain.

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Speak of the Devil by Rose Wilding

Published June 22nd by Baskerville
Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Contemporary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Seven women stand in shock in a seedy hotel room; a man’s severed head sits in the centre of the floor. Each of the women – the wife, the teenager, the ex, the journalist, the colleague, the friend, and the woman who raised him – has a very good reason to have done it, yet each swears she didn’t. In order to protect each other, they must figure out who did.

Against the ticking clock of a murder investigation, each woman’s secret is brought to light as the connections between them converge to reveal a killer.

A beautifully written debut thriller about love, loyalty, and manipulation, Speak of the Devil explores the roles in which women are cast in the lives of terrible men . . . and the fallout when they refuse to stay silent for one moment longer.

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Don’t Swipe Right by L.M. Chilton

Published June 22nd by Aries Fiction
Mystery, Suspense, Humour, Romance Novel, Contemporary Romance, Psychological Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
‘Utterly compelling and laught-out-loud funny.’ Katy Brent, author of How To Kill Men and Get Away With It

Finding true love can be murder.

Gwen Turner, 29, entrepreneur and part-time barista.

Likes: true-crime podcasts, cheese-based snacks (the more unnaturally orange the better) and constantly refreshing her dating apps.

Dislikes: two-day hangovers, people who refer to themselves as entrepreneurs… and discovering her latest match is actually a serial killer (probably should have put that top of the list).

They say romance is dead – but if Gwen can’t catch the mystery killer who’s targeting every man she’s ever dated – it’s about to get a whole lot more deadly.

A twisty, fast-paced and darkly hilarious modern murder mystery set in the terrifying and mystifying world of online dating, Don’t Swipe Right is perfect for fans of Bella Mackie’s How To Kill Your Family and Netflix’s You.

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Over Sharing by Jane Fallon

Published June 22nd by Michael Joseph
Humorous Fiction, Domestic Fiction, Revenge Comedy

SYNOPSIS:
Does she have the perfect life?
Or is she living the perfect lie?

Iris is happy, really. No, this isn’t exactly what she thought her forties would look like…she’s divorced. She hasn’t had the baby she so wanted. She’s had to rent out her spare room to help with the bills. But she has a job as a kitchen designer that she loves, and great friends. Things could definitely be worse.

Social influencer Maddy Fulford’s brand is happy families. She preaches loyalty and the sanctity of marriage, and is quickly becoming famous for her wholesome videos of family life. But she’s also the woman who destroyed Iris’s marriage, and Iris isn’t sure she can bear the hypocrisy …
But what happens when not everything being posted is the complete truth?

Jane’s sharply hilarious novel explores the murky truths behind the versions of ourselves we project online, the lengths we go to when we feel we’ve been wronged, and the often unlikely places we find true friendship.

Pr-order here*

The First Bright Things by J. R. Dawson

Published June 22nd by Tor
Fantasy Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Supernatural Fiction, Paranormal Fiction, Paranormal Fantasy

SYNOPSIS:
If you knew how dark tomorrow would be, what would you do with today?

The First Bright Thing by J. R. Dawson is a spellbinding debut for fans of The Night Circus and The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue.


Welcome to the Circus of the Fantasticals.

Ringmaster – Rin, to those who know her best – can jump to different moments in time as easily as her wife, Odette, soars from bar to bar on the trapeze. With the scars of World War I feeling more distant as the years pass, Rin is focusing on the brighter things in life. Like the circus she’s built and the magical misfits and outcasts – known as Sparks – who’ve made it their home. Every night, Rin and the Fantasticals enchant a Big Top packed full with audiences who need to see the impossible.

But while the present is bright, threats come at Rin from the past and the future. The future holds an impending war that the Sparks can see barrelling toward their Big Top and everyone in it. And Rin’s past creeps closer every day, a malevolent shadow Rin can’t fully escape. It takes the form of another Spark circus, with tents as black as midnight and a ringmaster who rules over his troupe with a dangerous power. Rin’s circus has something he wants, and he won’t stop until it’s his.

Pre-order here*

Good Girls Die Last by Natali Simmonds

Published June 22nd by Headline
Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
Today, nothing is going right for Em. And it’s about to get much worse.
Heartbroken by a recent split, with her 30th birthday looming, she loses her job and her home in the same morning because of two swaggering, dishonest men – the boss who sexually harassed her and the flatmate sleeping with her behind his fiancée’s back. But all Em can think about is catching a flight to attend her sister’s wedding and see her dying mother.

With a record-breaking heatwave, and a serial killer making the streets unsafe, London is completely gridlocked. Em’s life has always been full of men getting their own way, and today the scorched city teems with them standing between her and home. As Em’s troubled past returns to haunt her, she refuses to let them win. Her defiance leads to shocking consequences that soon spiral wildly out of control.

In a world where men don’t listen, and girls have no voice, one woman can change everything.
Today, no one will be staying silent.

Pre-order here*

The Launch Party by Lauren Forry

Published June 22nd by Zaffre
Mystery, Trhiller, Crime Fiction, Detective Stories, Women Sleuths

SYNOPSIS:
Agatha Christie meets Andy Weir in the ultimate locked room mystery set in the first hotel on the moon. Perfect for fans of Lucy Foley, Anthony Horowitz and Hanna Jameson.

FEATURED IN THE EVENING STANDARD‘S BOOKS TO WATCH IN 2023

And Then There Were None meets Black Mirror. Lauren Forry’s moon-based murder mystery is heaps of fun. I had a blast!’ TOM HINDLE, author of A Fatal Crossing

THE TRIP OF A LIFETIME. YOU’D DIE TO BE THERE.

Ten lucky people have won a place at the most exclusive launch event of the century: the grand opening of the Hotel Artemis, the first hotel on the moon. It’s an invitation to die for. As their transport departs for its return to Earth and the doors seal shut behind them, the guests take the next leap for mankind.

However, they soon discover that all is not as it seems. The champagne may be flowing, but there is no one to pour it. Room service is available, but there is no one to deliver it. Besides the ten of them, they are completely alone.

When one of the guests is found murdered, fear spreads through the group. But that death is only the beginning. Being three days’ journey from home and with no way to contact the outside, can any of the guests survive their stay?

Pre-order here*

Midnight by Amy McCulloch

Published June 22nd by Michael Joseph
Suspense, Thriller, Psychological Thriller

SYNOPSIS:
With her life back in London falling apart, Olivia cannot believe her luck when she’s invited on a once-in-a-lifetime Antarctic cruise with her boyfriend, Aaron.

Olivia has never been anywhere so spectacular: huge cliffs of ice loom high on the horizon, penguins dive through the sparkling sea, and above it all, the sun never sets in the eerie twilight sky.

And then Aaron disappears. And a body is discovered on board.

Surrounded by strangers, Olivia has no idea who she can trust.

And if she can’t figure it out soon, she won’t make it back alive…

Pre-order here*

Four Seasons in Japan by Nick Bradley

Published June 22nd by Doubleday UK
Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
Flo is sick of Tokyo. Suffering from a crisis in confidence, she is stuck in a rut, her translation work has dried up and she’s in a relationship that’s run its course. That’s until she stumbles upon a mysterious book left by a fellow passenger on the Tokyo Subway. From the very first page, Flo is transformed and immediately feels compelled to translate this forgotten novel, a decision which sets her on a path that will change her life…

It is a story about Ayako, a fierce and strict old woman who runs a coffee shop in the small town of Onomichi, where she has just taken guardianship of her grandson, Kyo. Haunted by long-buried family tragedy, both have suffered extreme loss and feel unable to open up to each other. As Flo follows the characters across a year in rural Japan, through the ups and downs of the pair’s burgeoning relationship, she quickly realises that she needs to venture outside the pages of the book to track down its elusive author. And, as her two protagonists reveal themselves to have more in common with her life than first meets the eye, the lines between text and translator converge. The journey is just beginning.

From the author of The Cat and The CityFour Seasons in Japan is a gorgeously crafted book-within-a-book about literature, purpose and what it is to belong.

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The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue

Published June 22nd by Virago
Literary Fiction, Humorous Fiction

SYNOPSIS:
The Rachel Incident is an all-consuming love story. But it’s not the one you expected…

*2023’s MOST ANTICIPATED SUMMER READ*

‘Funny, LOVELY, romantic, DRENCHED in nostalgia’ MARIAN KEYES
‘You will love The Rachel Incident’ GABRIELLE ZEVIN, author of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow


The Rachel Incident is an all-consuming love story. But it’s not the one you’re expecting. It’s unconventional and messy. It’s young and foolish. It’s about losing and finding yourself. But it is always about love.

When Rachel falls in love with her married professor, Dr Byrne, her best friend James helps her devise a plan to seduce him. But what begins as a harmless crush soon pushes their friendship to its limits. Over the course of a year they will find their lives ever more entwined with the Byrnes’ and be faced with impossible choices and a lie that can’t be taken back…

Pre-order here*

The T in LGBT by Jamie Raines

Published June 29th by Ebury Books
LGBTQ+ Biographies, Social Issues

SYNOPSIS:
Hey, I’m Jamie, a 29-year-old trans guy from the UK. I’ve been transitioning for 12 years now after realising I was trans (by accident!) at sixteen years old. I knew I was a boy since the age of four, but realised whilst growing up that I was different. It was only in my teens that I found the words to express who I was and what I needed to do. Since then, I’ve been on testosterone for more than a decade – I know, I can’t believe it either – I’ve also had top and bottom surgery and legally changed my sex, so I know a few things about the transitioning process and being trans!

I want to welcome you to The T in LGBT where you can explore and learn about so many topics surrounding gender identity: realising you’re trans, starting hormones, considering surgery, and everything in between. Whether you’re questioning your own identity and are looking for advice on certain stages of transition, or whether you’re wanting to learn about the trans experience to support someone or understand allyship, I hope this book can be your one-stop guide to everything trans related.

And don’t just take my word for it either – this book is packed full of advice, tips, and the personal stories of a range of trans voices, because no one journey is the same.

Pre-order here*

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Are any of these on your TBR? What are you most anticipating being released in June? Let me know in the comments below.

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Thanks for reading Bibliophiles xxxx

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