12,557 book reviews and counting...

"the book is suffused not just with mere charm, but with the author’s genuine, and genuinely attractive, personality..."

"this is a novel bursting with resilience and warmth..."

"a remarkable piece of writing..."

"(A) clear-eyed, wry, wise novel..."

"This overwhelming novel by ‘Iraq’s Irvine Welsh’ captures the alienation of people exiled by conflict..."

"Hazzard is wonderfully attuned to subtle shifts in moods and feelings, particularly when writing dialogue, at which she excels..."

"Timely novel about a sudden, cataclysmic event that shocks the world..."

"Barba’s denouement still grips with the power of a thriller..."

"one of our finest contemporary novelists, of any genre..."

"This funny and inventive novel plays with American stereotypes about Asians,..."

"a suspenseful and spine-tingling page-turner..."

"Thomas McMullan’s debut novel portrays a vivid dystopia fuelled by sham democracy..."

"Plot and chronology are less important than the mini-manifestos and rousing riffs..."

"This exquisitely written debut novel sizzles with cruelties and betrayals..."

"Jonathan Coe’s usual cohort of fans may be bemused by the inconsistent style and tone..."

"questions linger long after the final pages of this supremely intelligent collection..."

"O’Farrell’s remarkable novel about Shakespeare’s son is both painful and satisfying..."

"The Housing Lark affirms Selvon’s skill as a storyteller..."

"Taylor has written an economical, patient and incisive examination of race relations in present-day America...."

"This poignant tale of a mismatched couple in turn-of-the-century Germany gives away its secrets too early..."

"Harrison excels at evoking the deadened absurdity of the everyday. ..."

"The author of the teen books that inspired a smash hit TV show returns with a novel about the bumbling middle-class hang-ups of Brooklyn..."

"Things mankind was not supposed to know — the dark side of science..."

"Mieko Kawakami’s novel reads like two different books rather than two parts of the same story..."

"This smartly self-knowing dystopian tale looks at a version of America that gives up and dies. What’s left in the wasteland to come?..."

"Prepare for mansplaining littered with tedious verbal tics, which is oddly compelling to read..."

"one of the most remarkable authors the Booker Prize has ever celebrated..."

"there’s Harry Potter-ish pleasures to be had getting lost in Montverre’s labyrinthine corridors and the byzantine intricacies of the game..."

"Reeve’s latest novel continues to hold the reader’s attention ..."

"Timely novel about a sudden, cataclysmic event that shocks the world..."

"a suspenseful and spine-tingling page-turner..."

"plot is lacking in both credibility and coherence..."

"this is certainly not House Of Cards..."

"There’s perhaps a shade too much dependence on withholding information from the reader, but that thud you hear is Kernick whipping the rug from under your feet again...."

"a thriller that improves as it advances, becoming a riveting brain teaser as well as serving up vivid action scenes..."

"Cybercrime, though, is notoriously difficult to translate into fiction..."

"A chilling debut, wonderfully paced..."

"It is always good to be back in Rebus’s company, even more so with Rankin slipping in various hints as to his eventual demise..."

"Thomas has come up with an original plot and his detective is gay, allowing him to explore homophobia in the police..."

"One for fans only...."

"(a) breathtaking thriller ..."

"this is proof that Dahl is a writer to watch..."

"grabs you on the very first page and doesn’t let go until the final, last-minute, twist..."

"Final verdict? A hugely entertaining paranoid pantomime..."

"you can’t help turning the pages hungrily to see what happens next..."

"there’s an aptly gothic tinge to the tense drama that ensues..."

"This humorous novel wisely goes for jokes over biting satire..."

"Compelling, formally innovative and beautifully conceived, this is an unusual and deeply rewarding novel..."

"terrifyingly macabre..."

"A coming-of-age story as much as an espionage novel..."

"Jurjevics vividly conjures up the febrile atmosphere of a city in turmoil...."

"Reeve’s latest novel continues to hold the reader’s attention ..."

"one of our finest contemporary novelists, of any genre..."

"a suspenseful and spine-tingling page-turner..."

"an immersive and immensely powerful novel..."

"a clear-eyed examination of how the pettiness of village life mirrors the wider problems in a changing society..."

"It would make an ideal present for a wicked aunt..."

"Cybercrime, though, is notoriously difficult to translate into fiction..."

"a thriller that improves as it advances, becoming a riveting brain teaser as well as serving up vivid action scenes..."

"a magical tale that blends very human people with a hidden world of enchantment..."

"A chilling debut, wonderfully paced..."

"It is always good to be back in Rebus’s company, even more so with Rankin slipping in various hints as to his eventual demise..."

"an absorbing plot that has its roots in the brutal poverty of the 1930s..."

"Thomas has come up with an original plot and his detective is gay, allowing him to explore homophobia in the police..."

" based on a delightful conceit..."

"a genre-sampling epic that sets outrageous traps for the reader..."

"Griffiths carves out her own very distinctive niche in this sub-genre, balancing humour and suspense with some aplomb..."

"you can’t help turning the pages hungrily to see what happens next..."

"grabs you on the very first page and doesn’t let go until the final, last-minute, twist..."

"a beautiful and profound crime novel..."

"Compelling, formally innovative and beautifully conceived, this is an unusual and deeply rewarding novel..."

"Reeve’s latest novel continues to hold the reader’s attention ..."

"(A) haunting tale in unpretentious but persuasive prose..."

"O’Farrell’s remarkable novel about Shakespeare’s son is both painful and satisfying..."

"This poignant tale of a mismatched couple in turn-of-the-century Germany gives away its secrets too early..."

"there’s Harry Potter-ish pleasures to be had getting lost in Montverre’s labyrinthine corridors and the byzantine intricacies of the game..."

"A gripping read..."

"Everyone has a story in this subtlety written, yet grand, sweep through German-run colonial times..."

"her story offers a glimpse of the redemptive power of love amid the inhumanity..."

"There are glimpses of Tremain at her best in a passionate tale of coloniser and colonised in the British empire..."

"Highly recommended..."

"subtle and moving..."

"at the very least an act of rebellion..."

"Horrible Histories for adults, with a plot attached..."

"..it feels like one of Vine’s election night swingometer performances – a little overheated...."

"The Swedish novelist transports readers to a setting as remote as Australia’s wide open spaces..."

"Bullock’s story is sometimes confusing, but the voice she gives to Norris ... is a haunting one...."

"Now in his mid-eighties, Keneally continues to create immensely readable fiction that reimagines the history of his native Australia..."

"Dramatic and highly evocative..."

"intriguing fictionalisation of real-life events..."

"(A) haunting tale in unpretentious but persuasive prose..."

"It's the debut rom-com you'll want on your list..."

"A feel-good Christmas treat..."

"Everyone has a story in this subtlety written, yet grand, sweep through German-run colonial times..."

"Ley’s crisp, witty writing keeps it firmly on the right side of mawkishness..."

"one of Guo’s achievements in this novel is to make it straightforward to read..."

"Hornby has built a career on capturing emotional nuance..."

"Horrible Histories for adults, with a plot attached..."

"Uplifting and relatable..."

"A bold read..."

"..it feels like one of Vine’s election night swingometer performances – a little overheated...."

"Bullock’s story is sometimes confusing, but the voice she gives to Norris ... is a haunting one...."

"Mandel grounds her interrogation of reality in tangible modernities..."

"This love story has everything we want from a classic romcom..."

"[a] fabulous and funny story..."

"a clever, quirky mystery, full of twists, and reminiscent of Agatha Christie at her best..."

"A beautiful evocative read..."

"Compassionate portrayal of grief..."

" gripping, tender and perfectly formed..."

"An original and spirited novel...."

"Intoxicating stuff..."

"(A) haunting tale in unpretentious but persuasive prose..."

"a searing addition to the literature of America’s postwar imperialism..."

"a genre-sampling epic that sets outrageous traps for the reader..."

"Everyone has a story in this subtlety written, yet grand, sweep through German-run colonial times..."

"Germany’s past and present combine to provide a disquieting counter-narrative to his liberal values..."

"subtle and moving..."

"Dalton again tackles good and evil from the perspective of a heartbreaking, hopeful child..."

"Horrible Histories for adults, with a plot attached..."

"Bullock’s story is sometimes confusing, but the voice she gives to Norris ... is a haunting one...."

"V for Victory is suffused with Evans’s trademark blend of wit and pathos...."

"Underdogs: Tooth and Nail is an admirably unusual book, and one that serves real purpose..."

"strangely, desperately moving..."

"The Englishman is a cracking, finely crafted thriller...."

"the jigsaw of information forms a shocking picture..."

"ohnson excels at contrasting lives of privilege and poverty..."

"emotionally gripping..."

" There is no shortage of sardonic humour here, a cosmopolitan range of sympathies, and a steely, visionary optimism...."

"Harrison excels at evoking the deadened absurdity of the everyday. ..."

"This smartly self-knowing dystopian tale looks at a version of America that gives up and dies. What’s left in the wasteland to come?..."

"a genre-sampling epic that sets outrageous traps for the reader..."

"a fierce and funny exploration of other consciousnesses and the limits of language..."

"Female privacy, emotion and choice are the ultimate rebellion in the follow-up to the Booker-longlisted The Water Cure..."

"an excellent example of the prophetic nature of speculative fiction..."

"Underdogs: Tooth and Nail is an admirably unusual book, and one that serves real purpose..."

"the most astonishing blend of narrative, meta-narratives and visuals..."

"Two Tribes holds up a mirror to our fractured times..."

"Emotionally complex and intellectually satisfying..."

"ohnson excels at contrasting lives of privilege and poverty..."

"emotionally gripping..."

"a feminist space opera..."

"liberty and creative endeavour are compromised by political and socioeconomic reality..."

"Touching on issues of prejudice and xenophobia along the way, Axiom’s End is the engaging first volume of a projected series...."

"the only novel I have ever read that made my ears tingle..."

"What killed the dinosaurs? Cixin Liu blames their intelligence..."

"plenty of spark and impetus to make up for its not wholly original premise..."

"Silicon Valley biochemist Stivers writes with a calm, technical authority..."

"Devolution deftly incorporates “real-world” history..."

"Susanna Clarke’s enchanting, extravagant fusion of magic and memory..."

"It’s a joy of a book..."

"Faber’s novels are often distinguished by his mastery of eerie dread; that’s precisely what’s missing here...."

"Human-sized bunnies roam Britain in a dystopian satire on middle-class complacency..."

"a harsh, improbable world that blends some of the tropes of young-adult fiction with both grim realism..."

"It’s sad and satisfying..."

"plenty of spark and impetus to make up for its not wholly original premise..."

"deliciously horrid horror..."

"her storytelling ability and sympathetic characterisation win the reader over..."

"entrancing..."

"A great option if you’re a lover of fantasy and mythology..."

"(an) impressive and highly ambitious epic fantasy debut..."

"Teintze excels at building a fantasy world governed by an original system of magic, and thrills the reader with an enjoyable, breakneck plot...."

"Running through all of The City We Became is Jemisin’s fizzing, vivid energy..."

"Nyquist has to stick to the rules to win the game. ..."

" you might find this offbeat ghost story haunting or even poetic ..."

"super-readable..."

"It’s safe to say the intent is as much ironic as iconoclastic..."

"MacInnes’s intriguing second novel deserves to cement his reputation as a bold and curious writer...."

"Natasha Pulley’s novel is full of paranormal mystery, but it’s the characters — including a clockwork octopus — that keep you reading..."

"There are chills galore in this enjoyable 70s-set debut about disturbed teenagers and malevolent spirits..."

"Is it a thriller, a psychological drama or dark comedy? The answer remains unclear..."

"represents one of King’s most obscure and impressive accomplishments..."

"The zombie-meister’s epic about a virus destroying human civilisation is everything you could have hoped for..."

"I’m not sure whether this is a case of very good or very unfortunate timing..."

"Jones is excellent at depicting the anxiety of Native Americans in contemporary society..."

"written with skill and a zealous intensity..."

"plenty of spark and impetus to make up for its not wholly original premise..."

"Devolution deftly incorporates “real-world” history..."

"It’s a grim ride, by turns moving and harrowing, and not for the faint-hearted...."

"Lebbon excels at portraying the phantasmagorical proliferation of nature within Eden..."

"Nyquist has to stick to the rules to win the game. ..."

"a balm to the soul in these restricted times and her complicated mystery a welcome diversion from reality..."

" you might find this offbeat ghost story haunting or even poetic ..."

"a stodgy read, by no means as compelling as its predecessor..."

"Pine wraps folk-horror trappings around a tale of grief and loneliness set in the Scottish Highlands..."

"This funny story of a student’s trip abroad with her new anarchist friend will resonate with anyone who has been a fresher..."

"Although some books on grief can be prescriptive and preachy, this one is neither..."

"the most astonishing blend of narrative, meta-narratives and visuals..."

"every page of this luscious collection is delightful..."

"He has an incredible ability to capture universal fears in a handful of minimal panels..."

"witty graphic novel unleashes hipster hell..."

"a powerful piece of work..."

"A funny, thought-provoking treat..."

"The idea of a graphic history of medicine seems almost an impertinence right now. ..."

"Year of the Rabbit movingly depicts the rising terror of the Khmer Rouge years...."

"South Korea’s reputation for comic art continues to blossom in this feline tale of feasts and filial duty..."

"this soapy, spiky book is a compelling read..."

"Funny, sweet and emotionally true, it doesn’t so much tiptoe on to fraught cultural territory as dance wildly across it..."

"Come for the consumer satire; stay for the heartache...."

"With her pithy put-downs and her easy way with half-truths, it’s impossible not to warm to Little Lulu..."

" a beloved genius of storytelling and illustration..."

"Rusty Brown is a human document of rare richness..."

"a restrained, poignant graphic novel..."

"This affecting account of family life features dreams of monsters, classroom japes – and a father hooked on heroin..."

"a huge year for the Wimpy Kid comes to a close with Greg's 14th adventure...."

"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..."

"Keenan’s rhythmic repetitions and short sentences lend a mesmeric quality to this story of a daughter’s protective love for her father..."

"a sweet romance that explores autism..."

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