Three compelling new novels have arrived, offering readers profound explorations of conflict, family dynamics, and the underbelly of celebrity culture. Each book, available now from the Mail Bookshop, presents a unique and powerful narrative voice.
Ali Smith's Punning Meditation on War
Ali Smith returns with her characteristically inventive style in 'Glyph', published by Hamish Hamilton at £20. Billed as a standalone companion to her 2024 novel 'Gliff', this 288-page work is described as a wide, free-wheeling meditation on war, delivered with Smith's signature punning brio.
The story follows two sisters, Petra and Patricia, as they grapple with harrowing tales of conflict passed down through their family. These range from the story of a horse blinded by a mustard gas attack in the First World War to a horrifically grisly eyewitness account of a man flattened on a dirt road in France during the Second World War. While these historical episodes consume their imaginations, Patricia's daughter confronts the modern reality of live-streamed contemporary warfare.
Smith masterfully melds history with today's headlines, creating an invigoratingly political narrative. Intriguingly, her previous novel, 'Gliff', which depicted siblings in a surveillance dystopia, is itself being read by the characters within 'Glyph'.
Elisa Shua Dusapin's Tale of Family Strife
Following the success of her debut 'Winter In Sokcho', author Elisa Shua Dusapin presents her new novel, 'The Old Fire'. Published by Daunt Books at £14.99, this 176-page work maintains Dusapin's spare and uncluttered prose, which brims with potent, pent-up emotion.
The narrative centres on a screenwriter who, after suffering a miscarriage, leaves her life in New York to clear out her father's home in rural France. There, she is forced into an awkward reconnection with her estranged sister, Véra, who has been mute since the age of six. Dusapin skilfully contrasts the fairytale atmosphere of the woodland setting with the brutal, nitty-gritty details of the sisters' shared history and grief.
With a clear and direct style seeded with implication, Dusapin holds readers spellbound, immersing them in a moving portrait of family conflict and the unspoken breakdown of relationships.
Lauren Rothery's Punchy Hollywood Debut
From US-based, English-born novelist Lauren Rothery comes a punchy debut titled 'Television'. Published by Ecco at £16.99, this 256-page novel lifts the lid on the seamier side of showbusiness through the monologues of a trio of characters.
The story unpicks a knotty three-way relationship between two female scriptwriters—one seasoned, one aspiring—and a hard-drinking male lead. His midlife crisis is turbocharged by becoming even more wealthy from his latest 'brain-off' role in a major action franchise. While the novel's sex-soaked ambience can lean towards the sour, the effect is compelling, offering a seductively heady sense of insider access to the world of celebrity rather than relying on plot-driven thrills.
All three novels are available for purchase now, providing timely and thought-provoking additions to contemporary bookshelves.
