The books me cant wait to read in 2020

From daring debuts to moving memoirs and gripping blockbusters, Arielle Tchiprout reveals the books we’ll be captivated by this year

EXCITING NEW VOICES

The Sight Of You by Holly Miller (Hodder & Stoughton, out 11th June) From the moment Joel and Callie meet, it feels like the start of something lifechanging. But since he was a child, Joel has been haunted by dreams about his loved ones that always come true. Now, he has a vision of how it’s going to end. It’s set to be the big love story of 2020.

Seven Lies by Elizabeth Kay (Sphere, out 16th April) This compulsive, hypnotic debut has already been sold in 25 territories, and the rights have been snapped up for TV. The story unpicks seven lies in the shared history of friends Jane and Marnie, whose husbands are dead. It’s a tale of obsession, grief and the real meaning of truth.

Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, out 16th April) We’re really, um, excited, about this sharp, smart debut by Irish writer Dolan: it’s a modern love story about three cynics living in Hong Kong.

The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré (Sceptre, out 5th March) Adunni, a 14-year-old girl from a small Nigerian village, is first sold as a wife, then sent to work as a servant in Lagos. No one will talk about the strange disappearance of her predecessor, but Adunni refuses to be silenced.

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell (4th Estate, out 31st March) When she was 15, Vanessa had an affair with her 42-year-old English teacher, which continued on-off into her 30s. She’s sure this was an epic love story, until she’s forced to re-evaluate their relationship in the #Metoo era. Nuanced, urgent and addictively disturbing.

COMPELLING PAGE-TURNERS

Blue Ticket by Sophie Mackintosh (Hamish Hamilton, out 18th June) Margaret Atwood described Mackintosh’s extraordinary debut, The Water Cure, as ‘a gripping, sinister fable’. Her new novel, where women are given a ‘ticket’ on the day of their first bleed that determines whether they will have children or freedom, promises to be just as illuminating.

Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton (Viking, out 9th January) From the author of Sister comes an electrifying, pulse-racing novel about a school siege in rural Somerset.

True Story by Kate Reed Petty (Riverrun, out 4th August) This provocative novel tells four different versions of a sexual assault – it’s part campus novel, psychological thriller, horror story and crime noir.

Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan

(Simon & Schuster, out 2nd April) The Anatomy Of A Scandal author returns with this thriller about friends Liz and Jess. Secrets begin to unravel when Jess shows up at the hospital where Liz is the doctor on call with a story that doesn’t add up.