New books to read this week

Fiction

The Compound by Aisling Rawle is published in hardback by The Borough Press

For some, the idea of being stuck in a house with 18 strangers, no matter how beautiful, for months on end, sounds like absolute torture. For some, the chance to stack up endless luxury goods and swell your fame just by performing for the cameras would be a dream. If the concept seems familiar then indeed, The Compound, the gripping debut novel from Irish ex-bookseller Aisling Rawle, is a clear pastiche of Love Island and Big Brother but with a huge dollop of George Orwell’s Animal Farm and Lord Of The Flies by William Golding. Lily wakes up in the compound of the title surrounded by other gorgeous girls, all waiting for a group of men to join them after traversing a desert to escape a war-torn world. Their days are inane and shallow, until the producers start pitting the residents against each other with sick challenges and mind games until there is only one person (barely) standing. A darkly humorous warning about the perils of materialism, you will be hooked right up to the final blood-soaked banishment.

Getting Away by Kate Sawyer is published in hardback by Zaffre

Getting Away by Kate Sawyer approaches the idea of telling a multi-generational family saga from an ambitious and original angle, through the summer holidays that they take between the Thirties and the present day. A character-driven novel, each of the family members are brought to life so vividly that by the final page you feel as though you were part of their travelling group, watching events, both the joyful and the heartbreaking, unfold over the decades. This book is the perfect summer read with plenty of sun and sand and new experiences, but it also has depth, secrets and traumas that make it an incredibly moving story as well. It could very easily be consumed in one pool-side session, after which you’ll spend the rest of your holiday wondering where the Smith family are now.

I Know Where You Buried Your Husband by Marie O’Hare is published in hardback by Bantam

Five female friends return from a night out to find a dead body in the living room. It’s the husband of Sophia, who had fantasised and written notes about killing him, so instead of calling the police, they decide to bundle the body into a car, drive to a remote spot and bury it. And so begins seven years of anguish as Sophia, Safa, Ella, Ajola and Caoimhe hope they have got away with their reckless crime and continue with their not always happy lives.

But out of the blue, Sophia is contacted by an anonymous blackmailer who claims to know what they did, as well as intricate details of their private lives. The five grapple with trying to unmask the blackmailer, going to the police to admit what happened years earlier – or doing as the blackmailer demands. Primary school teacher Marie O’Hare has created some strong female characters in her debut novel, telling a gripping story of their friendship and their turmoil.

Non-fiction

The Parallel Path: Love, Grit and Walking the North by Jenn Ashworth is published in hardback by Sceptre

Writer Jenn Ashworth is firmly rooted in the north west of England, born in Preston and currently teaching writing at Lancaster University. She is the author of several novels (Ghosted: A Love Story, Fell) and short stories, but this offering is a memoir/travelogue. It follows Ashworth’s post-lockdown compulsion to walk alone and away from her life and family for a time as she tackles Alfred Wainwright’s Coast to Coast Walk. Being a keen walker, I was drawn to this book as soon as I saw the title, and having attempted to walk the same route myself, I was intrigued to read about someone else’s experiences. The story is told beautifully and evoked many memories of the route, but it is so much more than a simple travelogue. As Ashworth travels along, often joking about only being a few miles from home, she begins to pick apart her life and reconsider her needs while reading letters from a dying friend along the way. A stunning and honest account of post-pandemic life and self-discovery.

Children’s book of the week

Thoughts from a Quiet Bench by Kes Gray, illustrated by Nila Aye, is published in hardback by Hodder Children’s Books

Award-winning British author Kes Gray is best known for his humorous Oi Dog/Oi Frog series, as well as his mischievous Daisy character. His latest picture book for preschool-aged children comes with charming illustrations from Nila Aye. Find joy in everyday things with the children sitting on the quiet bench, who watch the world pass by and ponder the meaning and patterns of all things, like: Are two clouds ever the same? Is lost property sad? Is that ant coming this way? A sweet, gentle, but narrative-light bedtime read, this calming tome inspires contemplation and enjoyment in the minutiae of daily life, but not huge amounts of fun.