THE BEST NEW FICTION

The Last Of The Greenwoods Clare Morrall Sceptre €20.99

Down an overgrown lane on the outskirts of a village in the English Midlands reside the Greenwood brothers: forgotten and reclusive, now not even speaking to each other, they live in awkward isolation in two adjoining railway carriages. Then one day they receive a letter claiming to be from the sister they thought had died over 50 years ago. Written with warmth and compassion, this is a charming story about the pain people carry deep inside.

Simon Humphreys

The Melody Jim Crace Picador €13.49

Alfred Busi, once a famous singer, lives alone in the seaside town where he grew up, giving occasional performances and mourning his wife. Then, in one terrible week, his quiet life is turned upside down: he is attacked by a feral child and then by a mugger, and discovers that his nephew is plotting with developers to move him out of the family house. Can he find the strength to fight back? Crace writes beautifully, but this exploration of old age is so selfconsciously artful that it’s hard to engage with the characters. Anthony Gardner

Bad Romance Emily Hill Unbound €16.56

The opening story sets the tone: at her ex’s wedding, a wronged woman lets her heavily pregnant belly do the talking while she smokes and tipples. Telling of romance in all shades of bad, from the disappointing to the downright disastrous, this collection of 20 tart tales tracks its heroines as they pick their way across urban backdrops of tarnished dreams. They may start out tear-streaked, but these girls are invariably transformed into goddesses with lightning bolts at their fingertips and icy revenge in their hearts. The macabre tidiness of the endings is sure to seduce readers allergic to the frothy ick-fest of Valentine’s Day.

Hephzibah Anderson

Birth Of A Dream Weaver Ngugi Wa Thiong’O Vintage €13.99

Kenyan writer Ngugi Wa Thiong’O came of age during the twilight years of British rule and the transition to independence. In this superbly written memoir, he explores his early days as a playwright and novelist, which, not surprisingly, coincided with the birth of his political consciousness. His words have the ring of truth. Simon Shaw