This week's new book releases offer a gripping tale set in the elite world of golf, a psychological thriller with relentless twists, and a highly readable account of the 1936 constitutional crisis. The selection also includes the latest novel from bestselling author Meg Mason and a new children's picture book from Jess Hannigan.
The Amateur: A golf prodigy's downfall
Chris Bohjalian's The Amateur (8/10) is set in a wealthy New York suburb in the late 1970s, where 18-year-old golf prodigy Mira Winston kills a classmate in a freak accident at the country club. The death upends Mira's life, sparking revelations that cause the neighbourhood to turn on her, and setting her on a downward spiral involving drugs and unhealthy relationships.
The narrative, written from Mira's point of view, is a blunt and totally unfiltered account, capturing the character's sense of guilt and shame and adding shock value for readers. It prods at issues of sex and class such that, at times, a teenage girl takes the blame for the actions of the powerful and predatory men around her. It's an unusual premise that hinges on the world of golf, but it's a gripping read that gets more so as the story unfolds.
The Amateur is published in hardback by Hutchinson Heinemann, priced £18.99 (ebook £9.99). Review by Anna Wise.
Eyes On You: A thriller with relentless twists
Adele Parks' Eyes On You (8/10) is a psychological thriller that delivers shocks throughout, rather than saving them for the end. The story revolves around two people who have huge secrets to hide, both involving violent deaths. Amy saw her father brutally attack his lover, testifying against him in court while just 15, while Oliver's mother was murdered.
Fate throws them together when Oliver enters a restaurant where Amy works. They connect and a promising relationship starts, but their joint pasts catch up with them – with devastating consequences. Dark secrets are slowly revealed, leaving Amy to doubt that she actually saw her father kill someone with a hammer, while Oliver stumbles on the shocking truth about his mother's murder. The book skips between the past and present, with an ending as good as any crime thriller.
Eyes On You is published in hardback by HQ, priced £16.99 (ebook £9.99). Review by Alan Jones.
Sophie, Standing There: A disappointing follow-up
Meg Mason's Sophie, Standing There (6/10) centres on Sophie, a kind tech who loves books and works behind the scenes at literary festivals. Unfortunately, her life is a bit bleak – most people her age have moved on from her freelance job, and she lives in a rundown apartment owned by her ex-husband, who left her unexpectedly.
She finds solace in reading an author's books – and soon consumes everything from them, including lengthy podcast interviews – and finds herself falling in what feels like love. This parasocial relationship is upended when the author crashes into Sophie's life and appears at her literary festival – completely derailing her slightly dull life.
While Sorrow And Bliss dealt with serious subjects like mental health with a huge helping of dark humour, that's distinctly lacking from Mason's new book. It also seems to be without much of a plot, making the mundane bleakness of Sophie's life even harder to stomach. While the characters are engaging, there's just not enough in it to live up to expectations.
Sophie, Standing There is published in hardback by Bloomsbury Publishing, priced £20 (ebook £14). Review by Hannah Colby.
1936: The Year Of Three Kings – a constitutional crisis retold
Sian Evans' 1936: The Year Of Three Kings (7/10) is really the story of one king – Edward VIII, whose determination to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson led to his abdication less than 11 months after ascending to the throne. The tale of the playboy Prince wholly unsuited to the job he inherited is nothing new, but Evans relies on private letters and diaries to create a highly readable account of the late-night dinners and high-society parties where a constitutional crisis played out.
Evans is even-handed, but there is little here to make the reader warm to Edward – an entitled, selfish man uninterested in the wishes of others. That is partly offset by his visit to depressed areas of south Wales, part of the story Evans can embellish with her own family history, but also a key reason Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin resolved to steer Edward towards the exit.
1936: The Year Of Three Kings is published in hardback by Hodder & Stoughton, priced £20 (ebook £16.99). Review by Ian Parker.
Kids' corner: The Cow In The Dark At Night
Jess Hannigan's The Cow In The Dark At Night (6/10) tells the story of a farmer's prized cow who wants more out of life – he wants to see the world at night. Irreverent and silly, but kind of charming, the tale takes young children through the cow's adventures after dark – meeting 'night people' including thieves, a vampire and eventually an alien, landing him in a bit of trouble.
Best to read to three to four-year-olds, it's probably not a modern classic, but Jess Hannigan has a style that many parents and children love. Following Spider In The Well and The Bear Out There, her latest offering is just as original and off-beat, her illustrations are fun, and it's a quick, easy read before bedtime.
The Cow In The Dark At Night is published in hardback by Quill Tree Books, priced £12.99 (no ebook). Review by Lauren Taylor. Prices correct at time of publication.
