This article contains affiliate links, and we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. If your bookshelf has even a tiny bit of space left, you will want to check out this week's new releases. They include stories set deep in the countryside and on a celebrity cruise.
1. The Given World by Melissa Harrison - 10/10
For some reason, it is often thought that nothing happens in the countryside. People see the patchwork fields, grazing cattle, stone fences, and hiking trails and presume that life is still and sleepy. Melissa Harrison taps into this thought, but steadily, chapter by chapter, pulls at the loose thread running through this novel's central community. There is drama, and beauty, in the minutiae. Traditional life and the land surrounding them are dying, and people are moving in from the city. Generational feudal land issues, folklore, and bad blood run like a river through Welm Valley. As one resident gets closer to death, another is mysteriously saved against the odds. A young farm labourer is stuck with one foot in the modern world, while a life-long roofer laments the marching of time. The Given World captures the slow death of community at the expense of ego, consumerism, and modernity.
The Given World by Melissa Harrison is published in hardback by Hutchinson Heinemann, priced £18.99 (ebook £9.99). Review by Rachel Howdle.
2. American Fantasy by Emma Straub - 7/10
Fifty-year-old Annie finds herself unexpectedly solo on a celebrity cruise. With her divorce still stinging, she feels out of place on a ship full of middle-aged fans of the now middle-aged boyband Boy Talk. She catches the attention of singer Keith, who is experiencing a midlife crisis of his own: his wife is drifting away, and he is under pressure from his bandmate brother to commit to a world tour. A single moment provides the catalyst for some quite profound soul-searching against an increasingly chaotic backdrop of fans and ageing heart-throbs behaving badly. Emma Straub resists the obvious path and instead plays with the wild world of fandom, using it to gently examine the turning points of getting older. American Fantasy is a frothy cocktail of humour and wit spiked with pointed reflections on fame, integrity, and identity. If you ever had a boyband poster on your bedroom wall or knew all the lyrics by heart, this will float your boat.
American Fantasy by Emma Straub is published in hardback by Michael Joseph, priced £18.99 (ebook £8.99). Review by Amy Crowther.
3. Solace House by Will Maclean - 7/10
Devotees of Will Maclean's 2020 debut novel The Apparition Phase may have wondered when his second offering would appear, but it has finally arrived with this release six years on. At a little over 500 pages, this is a weighty affair, but one that grips until the end. There are periods when you feel things could be shifted on a bit, but Maclean has created an intriguing world that is worth persevering with. The Solace House in question refers to a mansion bequeathed to a university by a mysterious hoarder called Flayne, which several students are given the task of clearing out in 1993. Central to these is Alex, who is lured into Flayne's world – a world which touches on mystery, intrigue, and fantasy, and a creepiness that slowly seeps into the reader. This is one to immerse yourself in and enjoy. A tough read at times, but very satisfying.
Solace House by Will Maclean is published in hardback by Atlantic Books, priced £20 (ebook £9.99). Review by Karl Hornsey.
Non-Fiction
4. This Dark Night: The Life Of Emily Brontë by Deborah Lutz - 8/10
Drawing on newly unearthed material, Deborah Lutz's This Dark Night is a lively, comprehensive, and thoroughly researched biography of Gothic fiction titan Emily Brontë. Rooted in the dramatic landscape of the Yorkshire moors, Lutz paints a vivid portrait of the surroundings, people, and politics that gave rise to Wuthering Heights. Readers hoping for a biography with an exclusive focus on the middle Brontë sister will not find it here, however. So entwined was her life with those of her sisters, Charlotte and Anne, that any attempt to separate Emily entirely would be misrepresentative. It is Lutz's dissection of Brontë's works, from early writings set in the fictional Gondal to her now renowned 1847 novel, that place her at the biography's centre. Despite a somewhat slow start, This Dark Night, underpinned by wide-ranging sources and expert analysis, is a discerning insight into the woman behind a tale which has captivated generations.
This Dark Night: The Life Of Emily Brontë by Deborah Lutz is published in hardback on May 28 by Bloomsbury Continuum, priced £20 (ebook £14). Review by Izzie Addison.
Kids' Corner
5. Broken by X Fang - 8/10
With books like Dim Sum Palace and We Are Definitely Human, visual artist X. Fang has made a name for herself with joyful and slightly surreal romps that liven up any bedtime reading session. Broken is no different – but this time, Fang has injected more of a teachable lesson into the story. It is the kind of tale that pretty much any child will relate to – when Mei Mei accidentally breaks her ama's favourite cup, she immediately spirals and starts catastrophising about what will happen when the truth comes out. So Mei Mei does not say anything at all – but it will not stay secret for long, particularly if her ama's pet cat has anything to do with it. It is a simple story that Fang has injected with plenty of life and humour, with a useful message about guilt and accountability for kids at the end.
Broken by X Fang is published in hardback by Pushkin Children's Books, priced £14.99 (no ebook). Review by Lily Rose.
Prices correct at time of publication.
