BOOKS OF THE WEEK
Prima Facie by Suzie Miller
Hutchinson Heinemann, £16.99 (ebook £8.99) Review by Beverly Rouse
Bright Tessa Ensler has worked hard to become a successful and sought-after defence barrister, despite her working-class roots making her a minority in the industry. She has been taught to trust in the law, but realises the system leaves her at a terrible disadvantage when she becomes a victim of sexual assault. Suzie Miller’s awardwinning one-woman play – which saw a breathtaking performance from Jodie Comer – has lost none of its pace and power after being reworked as a novel. Tessa’s ruthlessness and talent in court is captured in Miller’s fast-paced opening chapter, before the author gradually peels back the layers of the barrister’s life to show the vulnerability beneath the mask she has carefully created.
Dominoes by Phoebe McIntosh
Chatto & Windus, £16.99 (ebook £7.99) Review by Eleanor Barlow
When the 2020 death of George Floyd in America sparked global Black Lives Matter protests, the legacy of the slave trade all around us was brought sharply into focus. In Dominoes, Layla discovers an ugly history hidden in her own relationship. As she prepares to marry Andy, who happens to share her surname, best friend Sera calls into question whether she can really enter into an equal partnership with a man whose ancestors may have owned hers. The novel, which started life as a one-woman show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, explores how modern characters confront an almost unimaginable past. McIntosh’s writing is both thought-provoking and engaging.
Say Hello To My Little Friend by Jennine Capó Crucet Riverrun, £20 (ebook £9.99) Review by Caroline Duggan
Jennine Capó Crucet explores the legacy of USCuban immigration and the tragic impact of chasing the American dream in Say Hello To My Little Friend. At the centre of the novel is 20-year-old Ismael ‘Izzy’ Reyes, who lives with his aunt in Miami and dreams of being a player among the city’s glitz and glamour. He’s getting by as an impersonator of the rapper Pitbull, until a threat of legal action forces him to rethink his ambitious life plan – so he ludicrously decides to reinvent himself as a modern-day Tony Montana – Al Pacino’s protagonist in the 1983 film, Scarface – as he tries to hustle his way to greater things.
Maurice And Maralyn: A Whale, A Shipwreck, A Love Story by Sophie Elmhirst Chatto & Windus, £18.99 (ebook £9.99) Review by Karen Shield
This is an epic story of adventure and survival where the reader gets to live each moment adrift at sea with Maurice and Maralyn Bailey, willing them to stay alive. This biography – a tale of 118 days on a raft in the Pacific Ocean – is journalist Sophie Elmhirst’s first book, told from the view of the married couple during their 1970s voyage. The tale does not disappoint. Maurice and Maralyn are a mismatched pair that fell in love, not only with each other, but also their shared sense of geographical exploration. Their story begs the question, how prepared would any of us really be for such a change in circumstance?