Passion in dog days of summer
(Bloomsbury £14.99, 304 pp) THIS smooth, sexy and sharply hilarious read is a million times better than very nice — it’s totally fabulous.
Rachel Klein didn’t intend to kiss her creative writing professor or look after his dog for the summer but the latter swiftly follows the former.
Zahid Azzam, aforementioned professor, didn’t expect to spend the entire break in his student’s family home but finds it impossible to leave the sparkling swimming pool, delicious dinners and beautiful interiors.
Rachel’s recently separated mother, Becca, thought she was done with men but could never have predicted the effect Zahid would have on her, nor how obsessed she becomes with his dog.
As we know, the most carefully prepared plans may go wrong but here they do so in spades, making this the most addictive rollercoaster ride. It’s the best thing I’ve read in ages. SARONG PARTY GIRLS (Allen & Unwin £8.99, 320 pp) SINGAPOREAN Jazzy is 26 years old and works for a western creep who looks up her skirt during meetings.
She doesn’t mind because her sole focus is on hooking (her word) a white husband and his financial benefits.
Jazzy’s mother is disgusted by her daughter’s partying lifestyle, different men, foul mouth and complete disinterest in anything to do with her heritage. The only time Jazzy shows any interest in her own culture is when she thinks it might appeal to the expat men she is obsessed with.
This powerful, occasionally astonishing story about materialism, status and manipulation is written in Singlish — a Singaporean English patois — which takes some getting used to but adds extra authenticity to the experiences of these girls trapped between two different worlds: struggling to work and party in a Westernised city when the home tradition expects them to be married. Fascinating. WHAT HAPPENS NOW? (HQ £12.99, 384 pp) I ADORED this author’s debut so am delighted to report this second novel is just as funny and beautifully written.
Lil had no idea she was about to be dumped by the boyfriend she thought was ‘the one’ but there are plenty more fish online so she gets swiping and has her first date in eight years.
Max is a handsome, funny and kind mountaineer who is a great conversationalist and lives in a stunning flat in Hampstead — where they end up after too many drinks. What Lil doesn’t know is that her birth control has failed.
Then Max won’t reply to her messages. It’s only when she tells him she’s pregnant and going to keep it that he gets back to her, not exactly thrilled. I loved it.