by Anne Enright — Not a narrative of grand events but an exploration of the intricate threads that bind couples and families.
Category: 5 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A Bird in Winter
by Louise Doughty — A Bird in Winter is beautifully written, well paced, at times exciting, at times more reflective. Older, career women will appreciate it!
Bad Men
by Julie Mae Cohen — Bad Men is sharp and fast and clever and very funny. You’ll love it. (Maybe less so if you’re a scumbag who hurts women.)
Tell Me What I Am
by Una Mannion — Portrays coercive control and domestic violence. Highlights the difficulties facing victims’ families and the lack of legal support.
The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies
by Alison Goodman — When the days are dull and lifeless, you need The Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies. Thrilling, moving, clever.
Cuckoo in the Nest
by Fran Hill — A quiet domestic drama set in 1970s Britain. Moving and well written. A wealth of domestic detail plunges the reader into the era.
Fyneshade
by Kate Griffin — A taut and dark gothic tale. Marta is sent to be a governess at Fyneshade, where she expects to find a rich man to marry.
The Memory of Animals
by Claire Fuller — A group of young people are trapped in hospital during a pandemic that wipes through the population, leaving just them, alone and isolated.
Breakwater
by Marijke Schermer — A moving, painful exploration of traumatic memories of sexual violence. Beautifully written (and translated) in stark, precise prose.
Weyward
by Emilia Hart — Three women, three time periods, and always the same old shit of male coercion and violence. An absorbing, immersive story.
The Silence Project
by Carole Hailey — A gripping feminist novel of ideas about cults, power politics, female empowerment and utilitarianism: does the end really justify the means?
Darling
by India Knight — A clever and up-to-date retelling of the classic The Pursuit of Love. It’s an absolute joy. Vivid, hilarious dialogue, wonderful characters.
How To Kill Men and Get Away With It
by Katy Brent — Entertaining novel about a one-woman quest to redress the balance. Too many men are violent against women. They don’t all get away with it.
Inside Job
by Dr Rebecca Myers — Well-written, thoughtful book on the treatment of sexual offenders in a high-security prison in Yorkshire.
Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone
by Benjamin Stevenson — A very clever and funny contemporary novel based on the 10 Commandments of crime fiction, as written in 1929.
The Whalebone Theatre
by Joanna Quinn — One of the best novels of 2022. An engrossing, moving saga following the lives of an eccentric British family from 1919 to 1945.
The Language of Food
by Annabel Abbs — Vivid, beautifully written novel about a wonderful 19th century cook, Eliza Acton, with characters and scenes that leap off the page.
The Man Who Died Twice
by Richard Osman — Residents in a retirement community are back, solving murder again. More fun, plot twists and witty dialogue than ever.
Triflers Need Not Apply
by Camilla Bruce — There’s no excuse for being a serial killer… Or is there? Superbly written, captivating and vivid historical novel based on a true story.
The Devil You Know
by Dr Gwen Adshead and Eileen Horne — Well written, moving accounts by a forensic psychiatrist, exploring the backgrounds of criminals and their motivations for committing crimes.