How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones review – barbarity in Barbados
A woman’s struggle against domestic violence is at the centre of a grim debut novel, which mixes in murder, rape and incest for good measure
The Rules of Revelation by Lisa McInerney review – whatever became of the unlikable lad?
The final volume of an Irish trilogy feels overwhelmed by its prize-winning debut
Blood Legacy by Alex Renton review – family fortunes built on brutality
The author of Stiff Upper Lip examines his own family history to expose the extent to which the fortunes of the UK’s wealthiest relied on a dehumanising trade
Languages of Truth: Essays 2003-2020 by Salman Rushdie review – self-absorption writ large
Rushdie is overly drawn to low-hanging fruit in this smug collection of criticism, speeches and essays
The Devil You Know by Dr Gwen Adshead and Eileen Horne review – hope for the worst of humanity
A forensic psychiatrist who’s worked at Broadmoor shows why it pays to treat criminals with compassion in these revelatory case histories of her patients
London by Phil Baker review – a 100,000-year survey of the capital
From prehistoric hippopotamuses to high-rise towers, the development of an awe-inspiring metropolis is captured with depth and detail
An Extra Pair of Hands by Kate Mosse review – the dignity of care
Looking after the elderly is a feminist issue, but this moving and unusual memoir also speaks of the pleasure and privilege that leaven the heavy burden of care
Battle for the Soul review: how Biden beat Trump – and exposed Democratic divides
Edward-Isaac Dovere’s campaign chronicle is essential reading, not least for progressives wondering what comes next
In the Heights review – Lin-Manuel Miranda musical loaded with Sunny-D optimism
There’s no space for bad feelings as Miranda’s exuberant and innocent Broadway hit transfers to the screen
Diamond Hill by Kit Fan review – pre-handover Hong Kong noir
This gripping debut portrays the territory in flux, witnessed by the colourful denizens of a crumbling neighbourhood
Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray by Anita Heiss review – a mighty and generous heartsong
Heiss’s indelible new novel is at once a joyful love story, a celebration of language, and an invitation to trace the old wounds of our history
The Netanyahus by Joshua Cohen review – an excess of genius?
Cohen’s bookish learning and worldly knowhow are on show in this fantasia about the Israeli prime minister’s father, inspired by an anecdote from Harold Bloom
Liars by Cass R Sunstein review – in search of the ‘optimal chill’
Who should regulate false information? A ‘nudge’ expert and former adviser to Barack Obama takes on free speech
This Rare Spirit: A Life of Charlotte Mew review – in praise of a Victorian New Woman
Julia Copus captures the hard times and brilliance of an impoverished, independent woman who was ‘the greatest poetess’ Hardy ever knew
The Scent of Empires by Karl Schlögel review – politics, power and perfume
The story of two revolutionary perfumes and their creators are at the centre of a gripping olfactory history of the 20th century