Book reviews – July and August 2026
Week commencing 6th July 2026
Science Fiction
All That We See or Seem
Ken Liu
After becoming the infamous ‘Orphan Hacker’, a lawbreaker who captivated a nation, Julia Z is now trying to leave that life behind and live her life anonymously. However, when she is asked to use her skills to help find a kidnapped artist she embarks on a harrowing journey, drawing her deeper into the shadows of the American Dream and confronting her own past. A science-fiction thriller with thought-provoking speculation on the future of art in an age dominated by AI.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 9781035915965
Thriller
A Beautiful Family
Jennifer Trevelyan
On a family holiday that ten-year-old Alex considers boring, he meets a new friend who tells the secret of a girl who went missing two years ago, thought to be drowned. As they hunt for clues, they wonder if the adults were wrong and she is waiting to be found. Childhood curiosity gives way to a darker reality with a terrifying question of whether the missing girl drowned or if the predator is hiding in plain sight.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 9781035055753
Contemporary Fiction
Country People
Daniel Mason
A devoted husband, a doting father beloved for his outlandish bedtime stories, and the proud owner of a truffle-hunting dog in a land with no truffles, Miles is a bit lost. So, when his wife Kate accepts a visiting professorship at a prestigious college in the far away forests of Vermont, he decides that this will be the year to finally move forward with his life. But Miles is a man of many enthusiasms. Soon he finds himself entangled with a cast of characters as colourful as those of any of his folktales, from a ghostly tree surgeon, to a scythe-mad biochemist, a Shakespearean temptress, and a photographer of snowflakes, until at last he stumbles upon a bizarre local legend, which, he begins to suspect, might not be a legend at all.
Format: Hardback
Published by: John Murray Press
ISBN: 9781399835015
Picture Book
Meltdown!
Cara Matheson and Mike Byrne
A perfect picture book for the summer weather. Cilla Chinchilla’s ice cream van has only one rule: your ice cream flavour MUST rhyme with your animal name. But when her customers start to misbehave, can Cilla avoid a meltdown? It’s Rocky Road for Toad, banana for Iguana and fig for Pig. But when Pig demands Rocky Road, the other customers start to complain too. Can Cilla stick to her strict rhyming rule? And will Pig EVER get his Rocky Road? Full of fun and giggles, feelings and – of course – ice cream!
Format: Paperback
Published by: Puffin
ISBN: Paperback
Contemporary Fiction
Ever Land
Amy Abdelnoor
Dinah, a Jewish teenager from London, arrives in Israel with her family in 2000. Still reeling from the death of her beloved dad, the idea of having to start all over again daunts her. A fourteen-year-old Palestinian who was shot and killed decades ago in the Six Day War, Safa is caught in a limbo which she calls the ‘In-Between’. She is unable to fully pass on without knowing what happened to her younger sister, Nur, who is still alive somewhere. After thirty-three years, the possibility of finding her sister is suddenly within reach – but Safa needs Dinah’s help. Ever Land is a gripping and powerful story that sheds light on the ongoing occupation of Palestine. It is a tale of belonging and identity, of devastation and displacement and – ultimately – of the enduring universality of humanity and love.
Format: Hardback
Published by: Cornerstone
ISBN: 9781529155129
Week commencing 5th August 2026
Picture Book
Don’t Do it, Doug!
Maudie Powell-Tuck and Duncan Beedie
From the team that created ‘Hank Goes Honk’, comes another brilliant picture book that speaks to everyone who lacks impulse control. Doug is a hamster with a taste for trouble. From shaking fizzy pop to pressing oh-so-tempting red buttons, Doug just cannot help himself. Fun to read aloud together as Doug ignores to our cries of ‘Do NOT do that!’, a wonderful book for little ones and grown-ups alike.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Little Tiger Press Group
ISBN: 9781801048620
Graphic Novel
Rune: The Tale of the Winged Sorceress
Carlos Sanchez
After the roaring success of the first ‘Rune’ graphic novel, we have been eagerly awaiting the sequel.
With Dai missing, Chiri is desperately rallying her fellow adventurers on a quest to find him. But with the darkness creating a fearsome army of creatures and planning on total domination of the kingdom, finding her best friend is starting to feel impossible. With another dark herald hunting Chiri down, it’s going to take every drop of magic she can summon to protect the friends she has left and find the one she’s lost. A gripping adventure that is beautifully illustrated throughout.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Flying Eye Books
ISBN: 9781838744076
Young Adult
Sunrise on the Reaping
Suzanne Collins
Now out in paperback, the latest offering from the Hunger Games prequels. As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honour of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes. Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves. When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. The story behind one of the much-loved characters.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Scholastic
ISBN: 9780702349072
Fantasy
Brigends & Breadknives
Travis Baldree
Fern has weathered the stillness and storms of a bookseller’s life for decades, but now, in the face of crippling ennui, transplants herself to the city of Thune to hang out beside a long-absent friend’s coffee shop. What could be a better pairing? Surely a charming renovation montage will cure what ails her. It turns out that fixing your life isn’t a one-time prospect. A drunken night sees the rattkin waking far from home in the company of a legendary warrior, an imprisoned chaos-goblin with a fondness for silverware, and an absolutely thumping hangover. As together they fend off a rogue’s gallery of ne’er-do-wells trying to claim the bounty the goblin represents, Fern may finally reconnect with the person she actually is when nothing seems inevitable.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 9781035035960
Politics
Frankly
Nicola Sturgeon
The enduring popularity of Nicola Sturgeon, the first female and longest-serving First Minister of Scotland, was a rare constant in an era marked by Brexit, Covid and five different UK prime ministers. In this deeply personal memoir, Sturgeon recounts her journey from working-class Ayrshire to the steps of Bute House. She pulls no punches, candidly recounting her interactions with figures including Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Donald Trump, and Alex Salmond – her mentor and, ultimately, her staunch adversary.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 9781035040230
Week commencing 17th August 2026
Children’s Non-Fiction
The History of the Bayeux Tapestry
Lyse Doucet
With the arrival of The Bayeux Tapestry in the UK, they have produced a fascinating gift book aimed at children 6+, to introduce them to this magnificent historical artefact. What is the Bayeux Tapestry? How was it made? Who created it and what story does it tell? Find out the answers to these questions and more in this illustrated child-friendly guide filled with facts, tales, theories and secrets. Written in consultation with curators from the British Museum, this is a celebration of the Bayeux Tapestry and its place in history.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Nosy Crow Ltd
ISBN: 9781807080167
Graphic Novel
Wilomina: The Land
John Chalmers and Sandra Marrs
A fantasy graphic novel where Wilomina boards a mysterious train travelling away from the world she knows. Joined by Mephisto, a talking cat, she tumbles into Nocturna—a parallel land where dreams and nightmares come from. But something eerie is happening: the nightmares are taking over. However, Nocturna is slowly transforming Wilomina into a ferocious ‘Werepire’.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Scholastic
ISBN: 9780702340918
Contemporary Fiction
The Forever Home
Erica James
Hope Hall was once a grand country house, but it’s now been converted into beautiful luxury apartments, and its new residents are moving in. Cassie is blissfully in love with her partner Ben and looking forward to life in their new home, but shadows from Cassie’s first marriage loom large.
Gallery owner Nina needs a fresh start since losing her husband two years ago, but moving on will mean confronting a painful decision that will shatter her mother-in-law’s dreams. Into their lives comes Venetia, a lively seventy-nine-year-old with a penchant for secrets. As Venetia faces her own bittersweet history with Hope Hall, the lives of the three women become intricately connected, revealing the power of friendship and the courage to confront the past.
Format: Paperback
Published by: HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN: 9780008703554
Historical Romance
Henrietta
Sophie Irwin
Henrietta has secretly loved Arthur, Lord Allerton, since childhood. He is the only man who is interested in her rather than her fortune just not in the way that she wants. After three years away at war, Arthur has returned to London to find everything changed. His finances are ruined, his family in chaos. And sweet, shy Hetty is different. For Hetty has set herself a challenge: she has one summer to become the charming, dashing Diamond she’s always wished to be.
And either Arthur will notice her, or she’ll give up her dreams entirely. But in a glittering Season plagued by scandal and intrigue, is there still room for love. Perfect for fans of Period romance and Bridgerton.
Format: Hardback
Published by: Cornerstone
ISBN: 9781529963519
History
Vengeance
Wilbur Smith and Tom Harper
The warrior king is dead. Ralph Courtney and Ann Waite have escaped. From the chaos and bloodshed that consumed the Zulu nation after the murder of King Shaka. From Ralph’s enemies. From the man who would have enslaved Ann and sold her to the highest bidder. Now Ralph and Ann, and their son Harry, are safe. Rescued by the missionaries at Mahikeng, they can finally dream of a new life.
Can Ralph finally lay to rest the ghosts that haunt him? Can Ann overcome the enemy she believed they’d escaped forever? Can Harry make his peace with the secrets and lies that have shaped his life? On a blood-soaked battlefield, as a new nation is forged in violence and slaughter, all three will be given a choice – to succumb to the past, or to stand and fight for their family’s future.
Format: Paperback
Published by: Bonnier Books Ltd
ISBN: 9781806171460