LATEST TITLES

LOOKING FOR ELIZA

by Leaf Arbuthnot, Trapeze, £14.99 (ebook £7.99) ★★★★★ SET among the dreamy spires of Oxford, Looking For Eliza explores unlikely friendship. Isolated

Ada advertises herself as a ‘Rent a Granny’ while Eliza is lonely, estranged from her mum, newly single and a less affluent member of the student society, among wealthier peers.

A classic unlikely couple, they come together to inadvertently help the other blossom creatively again. But the friendship is by no means a softly-softly one, with the Brexit referendum thrown in for good measure.

THE MAGNIFICENT SONS

by Justin Myers, Piaktus, ebook £8.99, hardback, out August 6 ★★★★★ JAKE D’ARCY, 29, is seen as the boring one in his boisterous family, but when his younger brother Trick comes out as gay, he finally confronts the lifelong suspicion that he might be bisexual. This is the story of two brothers coming to terms with their sexuality. The writing is raw and honest, and even if at times it means characters are not entirely likeable, they remain real. However, there are a few too many subplots that sometimes crowd the page and don’t always feel necessary.

SET MY HEART TO FIVE

by Simon Stephen, 4th Estate, £14.99 ★★★★★ JARED, a dentist ‘bot circa 2054 can “no more feel than a toaster”, and yet, he begins experiencing worry, and then even crying at old movies.

Guided by a ‘Feelings Wheel’ given to him by a doctor, the android finds himself both “bamboozled” and propelled (OK, chased) across America, all the while trying to come to terms with his newfound emotions. Intriguing, yes, but the delivery is self-aware to the point of grating at times.