The latest book reviews in one place

"a tour de force that crescendoes to its conclusion, reimagining the birth of Liberia in a way that is tender, humane and suffused with lyricism..."

"The more one reads the novel, we realise that what Holleran has given us is our very own queer (queerer?) Great Gatsby..."

"Niven Govinden’s novel shows the complexity of drag balls and queer life..."

"relatively gripping..."

"feels chillingly relevant in the age of Trump..."

"rewards the attentive..."

"playful but unfocused..."

"chilling..."

"Homeland isn’t in the same league as All for Nothing; few novels are...."

"It would be no surprise to see his name on the Booker longlist..."

"sensual but frustrating..."

"the great procrastinator has finally produced a brilliant comic novel..."

"The beautiful, sad story of a racist miscarriage of justice..."

"Laura Acampora’s debut novel, set in the Holywood bubble, is gripping and nuanced..."

"It would be a crime to give away anything more, but the end of this beautiful novel made me cry. Jones writes with intelligence and a lively wit, but there’s more — a warmth that forces you to care about these people as if you had met them...."

"a savage, blackly thrilling debut..."

"An eccentric boarding school teacher becomes a media hate figure in a novel that sidesteps conventional thrills..."

"a fascinating British Asian spin on domestic noir..."

"A Homeric meditation on the Spanish civil war examines how decent men were drawn to fascism..."

"Claire McGlasson’s debut novel maps out the intriguing world of the Panacea Society..."

"The survival of hope through ingenuity..."

"Malik’s great gift is to present seemingly insoluble issues of faith and intolerance in a light, accessible manner..."

"playful and inventive novel..."

"an exuberant, entertaining read..."

"a fictional mathematical discovery is placed in the past and its ripple effects are carried forward..."

"A Soviet writer unpopular in Russia, popular in the West..."

"A life-affirming debut..."

"a heart-rending read..."

"a novel of intersecting London lives..."

"A scorching and original read..."

"a suspenseful story of obsession..."

"a hit summer read..."

"will resonate with approximately 99% of women..."

"readers who enjoy something haunting, atmospheric and genuinely mysterious have a treat in store..."

"a true skin-crawler..."

"immersive and highly enjoyable..."

"An eccentric boarding school teacher becomes a media hate figure in a novel that sidesteps conventional thrills..."

"a charming debut..."

"a satisfyingly convoluted plot..."

"One to get lost in..."

"A thriller that cleverly absorbs Hungary’s history, politics and current events..."

"A fantasy novel exploring a real mental disorder..."

"Claire Fuller’s atmospheric novel unfolds its dark secrets with exquisitely paced suspense..."

"As you would expect from Bilal, the story is told with a delicate elegance... compelling..."

"a satisfying read, and a hugely thoughtful novel to boot..."

"A road trip through the California desert becomes a thumping political allegory for a divided nation ..."

"absorbing..."

"Lowe is very good on the passion of teenagers for their friends, ..."

"James writes with verve about a very modern species of crime..."

"combining a tough novel about a grim social phenomenon with a fast-paced plot..."

"Shaw handles these diverse plotlines brilliantly..."

"Vomit, sweat, alcohol and murder in late eighteenth-century Stockholm..."

"a novel filled with intrigue..."

"Downing has the wit to pull it off and, in the process, creates a highly original and dark look at the shifting power structures in a modern marriage...."

"Beautifully constructed and written, it pulses with the humanity that is Billingham’s — and Thorne’s — trademark..."

"think Cracker but with a sympathetic, if troubled, female protagonist...."

"Kidd still manages to surprise, summoning up a sprawling, vibrant Victorian London..."

"atmospheric and poignant..."

"the sprightly narrative and vivid evocation of turn-of-the-century Poland make for an enjoyable tale..."

"an immersive and exciting read..."

"a pageturner that will keep you up way past your bedtime..."

"the emotional pressure is as explosive as the falling bombs..."

"another classy slice of psychological drama from Alafair Burke..."

"relatively gripping..."

"who adroitly mashes up psychological thriller and satirical campus novel..."

"Laura Acampora’s debut novel, set in the Holywood bubble, is gripping and nuanced..."

"carefully crafted..."

"readers who enjoy something haunting, atmospheric and genuinely mysterious have a treat in store..."

"a true skin-crawler..."

"a fascinating British Asian spin on domestic noir..."

"Mick Herron is fast becoming the go-to author for British espionage..."

"immersive and highly enjoyable..."

"a satisfyingly convoluted plot..."

"the Cold War from a fresh perspective..."

"amps up the tension..."

"secrets from the past..."

"A fantasy novel exploring a real mental disorder..."

"A thriller that cleverly absorbs Hungary’s history, politics and current events..."

"Claire Fuller’s atmospheric novel unfolds its dark secrets with exquisitely paced suspense..."

"A dystopian thriller that wears its smartness on its sleeve..."

"a satisfying read, and a hugely thoughtful novel to boot..."

"a beautifully written, gripping take on the battle between the sexes..."

"absorbing..."

"both beautifully written, a crisp, ice-cold immersion in the glory of the wilderness..."

"Lowe is very good on the passion of teenagers for their friends, ..."

"James writes with verve about a very modern species of crime..."

"combining a tough novel about a grim social phenomenon with a fast-paced plot..."

"Emotionally and intellectually engaging, Elizabeth Macneal’s debut is a stunner..."

"it puts the entire raw reality in front of the reader..."

"superb no-holds-barred plotting..."

"It’s impossible not to be impressed by Kate Hamer’s expert control of language. ..."

"Miracles, myths and a mystical tour round India..."

"hugely entertaining..."

"Claire McGlasson’s debut novel maps out the intriguing world of the Panacea Society..."

"a fictional mathematical discovery is placed in the past and its ripple effects are carried forward..."

"A Soviet writer unpopular in Russia, popular in the West..."

"The Eat, Pray, Love author’s romp through 1940s Manhattan is a glorious, multilayered celebration of womanhood..."

"a suspenseful story of obsession..."

"[a] gripping historical novel..."

"captivating and poignant..."

"The novel is a wonderfully commodious creature..."

"Love amid the unrest of medieval Europe rarely runs smooth..."

"(an) eye-opening and meticulously researched novel..."

"This subversive reseeing of the classics is a many-layered delight..."

"an engrossing portrait of DH Lawrence’s muse..."

"Emotionally and intellectually engaging, Elizabeth Macneal’s debut is a stunner..."

"a fictional mathematical discovery is placed in the past and its ripple effects are carried forward..."

"A dystopian thriller that wears its smartness on its sleeve..."

"Two environmentally dystopian visions of a flooded earth..."

"detailed depiction of scientists diligently going about their work..."

" a remarkably clever and engrossing first novel..."

"awesome, awe-inspiring space opera..."

"a coruscating, propulsive tale of colonisation...."

"The novel gathers momentum as it goes, and few readers will stop until they reach its final page..."

"enjoyably nightmarish...compulsive reading..."

"an exuberant mash-up of an Agatha Christie-style murder mystery and time-travelling, body-swap science fiction..."

"some brilliant, one shocking..."

"lyrical successes – and plenty of imaginative touches..."

"a collection rich in language and dark in tone..."

"makes a deep impact both on account of its own narrative and in the wake of Grenfell..."

"Wry, clear-eyed and uncompromising..."

"It is among his greatest work...."

"The British poet’s technical dexterity and way of seeing the past afresh reap rich dividends..."

"laugh-out-loud funny [with] a feminist bite..."

"this edition is utterly remarkable..."

"The relationship between art and our beleaguered ecosystem fires the Australian poet’s new collection..."

" may seem a slight book at first, but – like a rock pool – look closely and you’ll find a whole world...."

"The surreal and fiery debut from a striking new voice..."

" Kuhn and Constantine speak eloquently of the ways in which Brecht’s poems ‘are never just the servants of his politics"..."

"captivating bundle of spectral vignettes and wry half-anecdotes..."

"subtlety and an intellectual curiosity..."

"poems of lasting power..."

"a wonderful alternative history of modern poetry..."

"Tennant’s precise Englishness requires something bolder to offset its simplicity: you miss fellow Pet Shop Boy Chris Lowe’s neon-lit synthesiser..."

"What Reid’s sequel soft-pedals is the thing that Eliot, the American who took British citizenship, was fascinated by: class..."

"This is a reminder of the poet Kate Tempest is – able, whenever she chooses, to soar above the conversational...."

"playful and inventive novel..."

"a must-read if you're addicted to 'Missed Connections' columns..."

"Another wonderful romcom..."

"a sweet romance that explores autism..."

"One to get lost in..."

"secrets from the past..."

"Love is never like this except in middle-aged female fantasies..."

"Emotionally and intellectually engaging, Elizabeth Macneal’s debut is a stunner..."

"[a] warm, romantic read..."

"[a] breathtaking debut...."

"Stibbe has the timing, and the beats, to keep you open-jawed..."

"I raced through it...."

"A female slave breaks all the boundaries in this compelling debut that revives the gothic novel..."

"a romance for Brexit Britain..."

"It’s wonderful to hear the sound of Rooney’s voice on the page again..."

"both beautifully written, a crisp, ice-cold immersion in the glory of the wilderness..."

"Brutality, terrorism and division infuse a powerful saga..."

"detailed depiction of scientists diligently going about their work..."

"One of history’s half-forgotten horrors, the Japanese treatment of the Chinese during the Second World War, is ripped open ..."

" a remarkably clever and engrossing first novel..."

"Sidebottom conjures up this landscape and its people brilliantly..."

"awesome, awe-inspiring space opera..."

"It’s something more than well crafted; it’s phenomenal...."

"This exuberant debut is a swirling, multi-generational tale that shifts from the historical to the futuristic..."

"a devastating debut..."

"Clare Clark’s sixth work of historical fiction, (is) as compelling as it is expansive..."

"if you enjoyed JRR Tolkien’s The Silmarillion, you’ll like this...."

"Katalin Street’s effect on me was so extraordinary that at first I couldn’t decide what was most extraordinary about it..."

"every sentence is a joy..."

"vivid, illuminating and unbearably tense..."

"brimful of its author’s trademark invention, charm and humanity..."

"superb debut..."

"Fforde keeps the puns and neologisms coming thick and fast..."

"recounts eloquently the history of the Royal British Legion..."

"clear-sighted view of a divided America ..."

"[a] striking account of growing up gay in Syria..."

"Fabulous elements are mixed with everyday life and references to Brexit in an intriguing mother-daughter story about origins..."

"reassert[ing] that black readers are as capable of having broad, varied, multifaceted interests as anyone else...."

"the narrative builds like a tidal wave ..."

"reading it can often be a bit of a slog, to be frank..."

"if you enjoyed JRR Tolkien’s The Silmarillion, you’ll like this...."

"This diary to an unborn child shows a world where the treachery of our genes has distorted society..."

"an intensely satisfying fairytale retelling..."

"but builds into a scorching, ultra-violent portrait of war’s horrors..."

"captures wonderfully how hard love can be in an unlovely world..."

"Fforde keeps the puns and neologisms coming thick and fast..."

"playful and inventive novel..."

"original and engrossing... brilliant..."

"Zombies hunt for living flesh in an Ireland destroyed by ‘the Emergency’ … but does this debut bring anything new to the dystopian genre?..."

"this book is an artefact in itself – a tactile, mysterious and seductive one..."

"Kristen Roupenian’s sharp, powerful and uncomfortable debut collection of stories..."

"her command of her material is scintillating..."

"There is no sign of second-album syndrome: the mix of grotty provincial realism and amateur cold-case sleuthing works just as well here...."

"a masterpiece..."

" There is...real daring here, as well as empathy and imagination..."

"this flawless performance is captivating..."

"it certainly is a wild ride..."

"devilishly good..."

"a sweet romance that explores autism..."

"One admires Slimani's bravery in creating a deeply unsympathetic character ..."