BOOKS OF THE WEEK
Night Side Of The River by Jeanette Winterson Jonathan Cape, £18.99 (ebook £9.99) Review by Rikki Loftus
Night Side Of The River is a collection of short ghost stories that eerily combines paranormal activity with technology. Jeanette Winterson brings the classic gothic literature theme into the 21st century by imagining what happens when the undead have to find modern ways to reach out to us, sometimes through an app or social media. As Winterson warns, “A ghost has no substance, but it has power – and presence – and it can appear in alternative forms. The Dead will join us,” we follow stories of hauntings that can only happen when technology has taken over. This collection is as hairraising and suspenseful as it is witty and thought-provoking.
She’s A Killer by Kirsten McDougall Gallic Books, £16.99 (ebook £7.60) Review by Tom Pilgrim
Novelist Kirsten McDougall’s latest book is funny, thought-provoking, bold and unusual, and billed as a “satirical dystopian cli-fi thriller”. The story is told through the eyes of Alice, a 30-something socially detached near-genius slacker. In the not-so-distant future New Zealand, where violence and protests are rife on the streets, food prices are spiralling upwards and water is rationed, lazy Alice remains apathetic and remote. But when the mysterious 15-year-old Erika – clever, assertive and capable – suddenly enters her life, Alice is swept up into the terrifying pursuit of radical change. McDougall’s humour, pointed social observations and plot twists make this a darkly compelling and enjoyable tale.
Murder On The Dance Floor by Shirley Ballas HQ on October 12, £18.99 (ebook £9.99) Review by Alan Jones
Shirley Ballas uses her expert knowledge as head judge on Strictly Come Dancing to write a gripping debut novel about violence, death and sex in the not-so genteel world of ballroom dancing. The book takes a dramatic twirl when a promising young Eastern European female dancer drops down dead mid tango – and dance legend Lily Richmond turns to former student Susie Cooper, now a private detective, to solve what she is convinced is a murder. The dance detective duo try to unmask a killer who is keeping two quick steps ahead of them. The book will delight lovers of crime novels – and probably shock Strictly fans.
Emperor Of Rome by Mary Beard Profile Books, £30 (ebook £23.99) Review by Tom Campbell
Rather than follow the well-trodden path of Roman emperors in chronological order, Mary Beard’s new book, Emperor of Rome, draws on their collective experiences to better understand what life was like at the peak of the power pyramid under a one-man rule. Beard masterfully navigates the traitorous historical evidence, using both fact and fiction to shed light on key aspects of the emperor’s role and daily life, all the way down to the nitty gritty of his deadly dinner parties, sexual fantasies and medicine cabinet. Many of the questions raised by Beard’s historical excavation surrounding the endless struggle for power and the lost but important voices of slaves and women, still resonate today.