Goodbye, My Love by Yumna Kassab review – biting reflections on the dissolution of a marriage
This novel told in vignettes and poetic fragments follows a woman who discovers that choice does not always equate to agency
The Pretender by Jo Harkin audiobook review – sprightly historical political skulduggery
This 15th-century royal romp of intrigue and courtly conspiracy is given extra charismatic verve by John Hollingworth’s rambunctious narration
Solace House by Will Maclean review – immensely fun gothic horror with a psychedelic twist
A dead poet’s cluttered mansion is the setting for a heady brew of magic, mystery and mushrooms
Magic review – spellbinding standoff between Houdini and Conan Doyle
David Haig shines as writer and star of this dramatisation about the fraught friendship of two entertainment giants and their debate over what is real or simply illusion
What Am I, a Deer? by Polly Barton review – shyness, obsession and the joy of karaoke
The feverish interiority of a young woman abroad is captured with offbeat wit and disarming candour in the first novel from the translator of Butter
Lady C by Guy Cuthbertson review – how Lady Chatterley’s Lover rocked Britain
A history of the social and cultural impact of DH Lawrence’s novel shows how it inspired comedy as well as controversy
The Given World by Melissa Harrison review – a stunning tale of rural life for an era of ecological crisis
Eerie omens haunt this absorbing group portrait set over six months in an English village
One Leg on Earth by ’Pemi Aguda review – a powerfully eerie portrait of Lagos
A young pregnant woman is assailed by dark visions of sisterhood in a novel splicing eco-horror, cosmic distress and ideas of the monstrous feminine
Iran and the Revolution by Homa Katouzian review – how the Islamic Republic was born
A landmark new account of the 1979 revolution provides much needed context for current events
Homebound by Portia Elan review – a Cloud Atlas-like puzzle-box novel
From 1980s Cincinnati into the interstellar darkness, the stories of four women interconnect across the centuries in a gentle hymn to found families
The best recent poetry – review roundup
Yiewsley by Daljit Nagra; Mer de Glace by Małgorzata Lebda; The Intentions of Thunder by Patricia Smith; Cherry Blossom at Nightbreak by Rishi Dastidar; Dark Night by St John of the Cross, translated by Martha Sprackland
A Rising of the Lights by Steve Toltz review – a darkly funny take on the male loneliness epidemic
A miserable misogynist is on a quest for redemption in Toltz’s fourth novel, which fizzes with dynamic prose but struggles to engender empathy for its protagonist
Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams audiobook review – the insider story that Meta tried to stifle
The author reads her account of her time as a senior executive at Facebook with a mixture of dark humour and astonishment at the working culture in which she finds herself
Hey, Good Morning, How Are You? by Martina Hefter review – a hit in Germany that falls flat in English
The premise of this novel about a ballet dancer who baits love scammers into conversation is great – but the story feels overwritten and underfelt
From Life Itself by Suzy Hansen review – Turkey in the age of Erdoğan
This portrait of everyday life in an Istanbul neighbourhood buffeted by change has far wider relevance