Asylum Road by Olivia Sudjic
‘Asylum Road is a delight — by turns, blackly comic and heart-shattering. There is often the sense that the real story is happening between the words on the page, like the memory of a dream tucked in some nook of the mind, just out of reach but tantalisingly close if you could just angle yourself correctly to reach it.’
The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr
‘What names, then, can the reader use for this debut? ‘Literary historical novel’ is too dry, insufficient, and fails to account for the hints of magical realism, the queering of time and space, and the warnings which seem to speak out to today’s ongoing injustices and harms.’
Theatre of War by Andrea Jeftanovic (tr. Frances Riddle)
‘All credit here to Frances Riddle, the translator of this novel, for her skill in finding the precise English words to convey so strongly the internal sense of a narrative steeped in sadness and yearning.’
God 99 by Hassan Blasim (tr. Jonatahn Wright)
‘The refugee experience is also one of not belonging, of not fitting in; of being, as Blasim puts it, ‘always between two fires: your first home and your new one’. In highlighting the refugee experience, in all of its bleakness and disconnection, God 99 excels.’
There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura (tr. Polly Barton)
‘Mesmeric, funny, wry, delightful – this is a novel to help the millennials find their own paths through the world they’ve inherited. That’s, well… it’s no easy job.’
The Last Good Man by Thomas McMullan
‘The Last Good Man is an essential and commanding slice of folk horror — a wholly successful exercise in world-building that straddles an uncomfortable line between reality and fantasy.’
Cat Step by Alison Irvine
‘When violence erupts between mother and daughter it is never abusive on Liz’s part and concludes in shared remorse and closeness. Irvine paints a vivid picture of the developing relationship between the two of them, and her story throws a bright spotlight on how easy it is for those in authority to make false judgements about parenting which stem from one small and innocent mistake.’
The Pear Field by Nana Ekvtimishvili
‘his novel thrums with a calm assurance, crafted with precision and quiet mastery. The writing is smooth and supple, and the characters are painted with authenticity and tenderness.’
The Virago Book of Women Travellers edited by Mary Morris (with Larry O'Connor)
‘In a time when days are becoming darker and shorter, and armchair travel is all that most of us can realistically aspire to, this anthology makes a wonderful companion. ‘
A Spell in the Wild by Alice Tarbuck
‘What magic is not, as Alice Tarbuck makes very clear, is an escape from reality. It is, rather, about exploring our connections with other energies in our world.’
Reproduction by Ian Williams
‘Williams’ poetic technique embraces a natural oddity, conversations feel stuck in an arrhythmic state, and it feels like romance has been left behind in the conflation of something else bigger entirely — reproduction itself.’
The Employees by Olga Ravn (tr. Martin Aitken)
‘Both powerful and poetic, the chilling prescience and emotional eloquence of Ravn’s prose is wonderfully rendered in Martin Aitken’s translation.’
Viral by Matthew Sperling
‘Viral is perhaps somewhat mismarketed as a thriller, prioritising its satire over twaits and turns. Nonetheless, it is a fast-paced, fun, and engaging takedown of the social media startup scene and the moral ambivalence of its characters.’
Daughters by Lucy Fricke
‘Daughters is an expert blend of profound themes, dark wit, unforgettable characters, with enough unexpected twists to keep the reader engaged. Fricke’s story is packed full of humour and heart: an exceptional start from an intruguing new imprint.’
Piranesi by Susanna Clark
‘You will put this comparatively slim, gently segmented volume down, close its pages with satisfaction. But the impact – the form left against the eyelids – of this modern classic will remain long after you leave.’
New Passengers by Tina Hoeg
‘In many ways, it’s this minimalism that gives the book a real edge. The free verse style lends the narrative a tautness.’
Exit Management by Naomi Booth
‘There is no trace of melodrama in this taut and elegantly-written novel, but a measured weighting of what, in the end, is important in life and what is only vanity or hubris.’
Love Orange by Natasha Randall
‘Revelations are carefully chosen and paced, and Randall neatly side-steps a clean denouement, the tease of a life hack.’
The Night of the Flood by Zoë Somerville
‘Somerville is unafraid of disrupting the picturesque — to show us what happens alone in the darkness, with only the roar of the waves.’
Many People Die Like You by Lina Wolff
‘Not all of the stories in Many People Die Like You are as thematically rich and tautly spun as others, nor are they as memorable, but the collection as a whole sparkles with wit and insight and examines complex ideas with nuance and flair.’