Friend of My Youth by Amit Chaudhuri
Reviewed by Rob Spence I read most of this novel on a plane, and it struck me that it was appropriate to consume it in the transient, somehow timeless and…
Reviewed by Rob Spence I read most of this novel on a plane, and it struck me that it was appropriate to consume it in the transient, somehow timeless and…
Reviewed by Rebecca Foster Daniel Mendelsohn chairs the Humanities department at Bard College, where he was previously a Classics professor. He is the author of seven earlier books, ranging from…
Reviewed by Helen Parry First of all, is it as good as everyone says it is? Yes, it really is. The plot is compelling and perfectly paced, the characters have…
Translated by W. J. Strachan Reviewed by Karen Langley Is it the destiny of mankind to be pulled constantly back and forth between the two poles of good and evil,…
Reviewed by Julie Barham I received a review copy of this book from Honno Press, the Welsh Women’s Press, as I was intrigued by the idea of a book which…
Reviewed by Harriet Subtitled ‘A Christmas Crime Story’, this is a remarkably accomplished and fascinating novel by a writer better known under her other pseudonym, Anthony Gilbert. It was much…
Review by Peter Reason It is easy for those of us who live inland to read the ‘seabirds’ in the title as ‘seagulls’ and think of those creatures that poo…
Reviewed by Lucy Unwin We That Are Young is ambitious. So very ambitious, and so very good. Most strikingly it’s a thorough and impressive academic exercise, but it’s also a great…
Translated by Neil Caistor Reviewed by Terence Jagger I enjoyed this book, set amongst the French police in Paris and in Abidjan, but that’s not to say I really followed…
Paperback review by Annabel Amor Towles’ debut novel Rules of Civility was one of the best books I read in 2011. Although Towles graduated in English back in the late…
Reviewed by Lucy Unwin This is the most grittily realistic book I’ve read in a while — it just happens to be a ghost story. Somehow, despite its fantastical content, Sing,…
Reviewed by David Harris This has been a hard book to review. I find this is surprisingly often of true the very best books, say the ones you’d give six…
Translated by Helen Constantine Reviewed by Harriet Here on Shiny we’ve reviewed several of the new Oxford World Classics editions of the novels of Émile Zola: Money, Earth and The…
Reviewed by Annabel Those who read Weir’s debut novel, The Martian (which Dan reviewed for us here), tended to fall into two camps. As SF novels go, it was funny,…
Reviewed by Liz Dexter Mary Beard is described as being ‘Britain’s best–known classicist on the inside front flap of this book. She’s also known for having experienced her unfair share…
Reviewed by Harriet Nine Lessons is the seventh of Nicola Upson’s crime novels featuring the mystery writer Josephine Tey (1896-1952). I normally have a few reservations about the seemingly fashionable…
Reviewed by Max Dunbar Nightshade Upon Magic The online OED defines starstruck as ‘Fascinated or greatly impressed by famous people, especially those connected with the cinema or the theatre.’ There…
Review by Peter Reason When our postman handed me the package that contained my review copy of The Lost Words I blurted out, “I’ve been waiting for this!” In the…
Reviewed by Hayley Anderton Christmas is coming and it’s time to start talking about it. The books vying for our money, and a top ten spot have been released –…
Reviewed by Alice Farrant “We can get the Times to write something. Or that nut from the Observer.”“Wait, what… what nut from the Observer?”“Frank something? The one who’s so in…