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Fiction

Gossip by Beth Gutcheon

Reviewed by Annabel Gaskell When this novel was published, I couldn’t resist the allure of the cover in an oversized paperback format with French flaps. Luckily the novel inside is…

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Shiny New Books July 15, 2014
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Fiction Reprint Translated

A trio of Maigret novels by Georges Simenon

Reviewed by Lizzy Siddal Let me start this article with a confession.  In my pre-blog years, I once read a Maigret novel. I didn’t like it much. I found it…

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Shiny New Books July 15, 2014
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Fiction Reprint

Mistress Masham’s Repose by T. H. White

Reviewed by Jodie Robson “It was a glorious day in June – for that matter it was the Glorious First of June – and the sun was resounding on the…

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Shiny New Books July 15, 2014
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Fiction

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (YA)

Reviewed by Bookgazing E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars is a small book crammed to the brim with narrative experiment and investigation. Its story begins with sharp lines arranged in a whip crack…

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Shiny New Books July 15, 2014
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Fiction

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

Reviewed by Karen Heenan-Davies Expectations ran high in the run-up to the publication of Khaled Hosseini’s latest novel And the Mountains Echoed. Could he emulate the success of The Kite Runner and A Thousand…

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Shiny New Books July 15, 2014
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Fiction

Beatrice and Benedick by Marina Fiorato

Reviewed by Annabel Gaskell     In tackling on one of Shakespeare’s most popular pairings in her latest novel, Marina Fiorato is taking a big risk. The sparring partners who…

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Shiny New Books July 14, 2014
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Fiction Reprint

During the Reign of the Queen of Persia by Joan Chase

Reviewed by Danielle Simpson Quite often the best reading experiences I have, or at least the most memorable ones, are stories that are in some way challenging or difficult.  This…

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Shiny New Books July 14, 2014
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Fiction

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler

Reviewed by Simon Thomas When we did a piece on the Booker longlist recently, I cheerfully said that I hadn’t read any of them – as always seems to be the case,…

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Shiny New Books July 11, 2014
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Fiction

After Me Comes the Flood by Sarah Perry

Reviewed by Victoria Best John Cole is an antiquarian bookseller who has grown tired of his life and tired of his self. One long, hot summer, towards the end of…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction

The Dance of Love by Angela Young

Reviewed by Simon Thomas In the first issue of Shiny New Books we had a lovely piece by Angela Young about the genesis of her novel The Dance of Love. We were thus…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction

All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld

Reviewed by David Hebblethwaite She may only be on her second novel, but Evie Wyld is already gathering considerable acclaim. Her debut, 2009’s After the Fire, a Still Small Voice,…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction New Translations of Older Works Translated

The Blue Room by Hanne Ørstavik

Translated by Deborah Dawkin Reviewed by Hayley Anderton I read the press release for The Blue Room (published in Norwegian in 1999, and now published by Periene Press in a translation by…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction

All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews

Review by Victoria Best At the funeral service of an aunt who has died unexpectedly, our narrator, Yolandi, notices a toddler creep up to the urn on the dias and…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction Reprint

City of Endless Night by Milo M. Hastings

Reviewed by Simon Thomas My heart would normally sink at any blurb which began ‘The year is 2151.’ I am perfectly willing to concede that the fault is with me…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction

A God in Every Stone by Kamila Shamsie

Reviewed by Rowland Jones There was an immediate appeal in reading the dust jacket. The novel was bound for The Street of Storytellers in Peshawar. For a reader it sounded…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Appetite for Violets
Fiction

An Appetite for Violets by Martine Bailey

Reviewed by Danielle Simpson Martine Bailey’s debut novel, An Appetite for Violets, is a deliciously inventive story in more ways than one. Let me set the opening scene for you. Imagine…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction

The Baklava Club by Jason Goodwin

Reviewed by Helen Parry ‘I’ve been complaining,’ Yashim said, ‘how Istanbul is overrun with foreigners these days. As if it was ever any different’. It’s 1842, and three Italian exiles…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Fiction

Solo by William Boyd

Reviewed by Falaise Although Octopussy was the last James Bond film to reveal the name of its sequel in the end credits, the iconic phrase, “James Bond will return” continues to appear…

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Shiny New Books July 10, 2014
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Virginia Woolf in Manhattan by Maggie Gee
Fiction

Virginia Woolf in Manhattan by Maggie Gee

Reviewed by Simon Thomas I was very nervous about reading Virginia Woolf in Manhattan. I am an enormous Woolf fan, and was a bit scared about the crimes that might be…

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Shiny New Books July 9, 2014
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Fiction

The Severed Streets by Paul Cornell

Reviewed by Ann Darnton Late last year I stumbled across London Falling, the first novel in Paul Cornell’s series of what might loosely – very loosely – be called police procedurals….

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Shiny New Books July 9, 2014
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Lost Luggage by Jordi Punti
Fiction

Lost Luggage by Jordi Punti

Translated from the Catalan by Julie Wark Reviewed by Annabel Gaskell This is the story of Gabriel Delacruz, orphan, international furniture remover, lover and father to four sons. Four boys –…

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Shiny New Books July 8, 2014
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The Goldfinch Donna Tartt
Fiction

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

Review by Harriet Have you ever had the experience of finishing a book and feeling as if you will never find another one that remotely measures up? That’s how I…

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Shiny New Books July 8, 2014
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Fiction Reprint

August Folly, Summer Half and The Brandons by Angela Thirkell

Reviewed by Claire/The Captive Reader When I started blogging in early 2010, I had never heard of Angela Thirkell.  Then, slowly, I started hearing whispers.  A casual reference here and…

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Shiny New Books July 8, 2014
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Fiction Translated

Sworn Virgin by Elvira Dones

Translated by Clarissa Botsford Reviewed by Susan Osborne Reading fiction in translation offers us a glimpse into different worlds, cultures that we can never experience ourselves no matter how sophisticated modern…

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Shiny New Books July 8, 2014
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