While June brings sun and blue skies, keep your summer fully booked up with the hottest new fiction! Grab an ice cream and relax in a warm summer breeze with our latest outstanding titles – what a novel idea!
Release by Lucy Christopher
(9781911231387, Out 30/06/2022, Text Publishing Company, p/b, £10.99)
A gripping sequel to Lucy Christopher’s bestselling YA novel Stolen. Set ten years later, Gemma Toombs determines to accost her past abductor, yet finds herself confusing attachment and entrapment, past and present, cessation and revenge… A darkly irresistible novel about infatuation, destruction and vengeance.
The Reservoir by David Duchovny
(9781636140445, Out 07/07/2022, Akashic Books, h/b, £16.99)
Whilst we unwind in our first real summer for two years, transport back on a thrilling journey to a world transfixed in a global pandemic from the perspective of ex-Wall Street veteran Ridley. Forced to retreat into solitary quarantine by the new coronavirus laws, he finds he has little choice else than to stare out at Central Park from his New York apartment… that is, until he notices a flashing light opposite, communicating with him in Morse code. Follow Ridley down a spiralling path that seems to lead to seduction, jeopardy, and mystery – or could it be just the sickness of a suffering man?
Moldy Strawberries by Caio Fernando Abreu & translated by Bruna Dantas Lobato
(9781953861207, Out 16/06/2002, Archipelago Books, p/b, £13.99)
The first of his works to be translated into English, Moldy Strawberries is written by one of Brazil’s greatest queer writers: Caio Fernando Abreu. In this dauntless and unshrinking collection of 18 stories, Abreu traverses through 1980s Brazil during the height of the AIDS epidemic and oppressive governmental dictatorship. Trapped in a country that stifles their identity and ignites their fear, the myriad of characters – including a glittered man in a Carnival to an office romance – attempt to navigate their uncertain and dangerous world whilst maintaining their own inner strength.
Nettleblack by Nat Reeve
(9781838390068, Out 23/06/2022, Cipher Press, p/b, £12.99)
This superbly written epistolary novel depicts the tricky, elusive and often treacherous path in finding our place and true identity in the world. Set in 1893, Henry Nettleblack finds herself compelled to leave the comfort of her affluent life by threat of marriage. Yet escaping into a risky and dark world brings its own danger, and she discovers rescue in the form of a secret detective society. As the search for the lost Nettleblack sibling starts to close around her, Henry embarks on a deep discovery of desire, love and queer identity. Perilous, playful, and full of sharp wit, this novel is sure to thoroughly invigorate any sleepy summer’s afternoon of reading!
Goering’s Gold by Richard O’Rawe
(9781612199658, Out from 02/06/2022, Melville House Publishing, p/b, £12.99)
From bestselling author and former IRA officer Richard O’Rawe comes another suspenseful instalment of ex-IRA soldier James O’Hare’s escapades in the Runctions O’Hare series. Based on true speculations from real historians, O’Rawe creates a hair-raising narrative around the supposition of Nazi Reichmarschall Hermann Goering’s secret stash of plundered gold.
(Cover coming soon)
The Cellist by Jennifer Atkins
(9781913512118, Out 23/06/2022, Peninsula Press, p/b, £10.99)
A beautifully written narrative overlapping love, music and complex passion. Solo cellist Luc falls down a path of longing nostalgia for her younger self, sparked by an exhibition of sculptures made by her former love Billy. Immensely soul-stirring, written in Atkins’ elegant prose, The Cellist navigates the delicate balances of artistry, intimacy and the tribulations of sustaining someone else’s emotional fulfilment.
Stargazer by Laurie Petrou
(9780857308221, Out 23/06/2022, Verve Books, p/b, £9.99)
The fourth novel from award-winning author Laurie Petrou, ‘Stargazer’ transports back to the summer of 1995 in the gorgeous landscape of Northern Ontario. A budding affair between two students blossoms beneath luscious forests and star-lit skies at Rocky Barrens University. Both escaping their own tragic pasts, Aurelle and Diana develop a deep, soulmate-level connection with one another, their spirits inextricably intertwined in love and lust. Yet when the lure of fame begins to pull Diana away, Aurelle finds herself taking comfort in intoxicating substances as reality threatens to burst their bond.
Solo Dance by Li Kotomi
(9781912987351, Out now from 02/06/2022, World Editions, p/b, £13.99)
This remarkable debut novel by Li Kotomi is a striking piece of queer writing illustrating the pursuit of optimism after an endurance of suffering. Solo Dance recounts the narrative of Cho Norie, a Taiwanese office worker at a Tokyo company. Compelled to conceal her sexuality whilst battling an inner trauma, Cho Norie’s heart-rending coming-of-age story in a conservative corporate world is a powerful account of the pains of forced hidden homosexuality whilst searching for hope.
