Bridge by Lauren Beukes (Michael Joseph, £18.99)
“Reality is not real,” Bridge’s mother, Jo, used to tell her. Was that a delusion caused by the brain tumour that killed her? But after Jo’s death, Bridge finds evidence that her mother had discovered a way to access other realities, close to our own, and she becomes obsessed with finding one in which Jo is still alive. The latest from the author of The Shining Girls is an addictive page-turner that draws on not only theoretical quantum physics, but research into neuroscience, altered states and parasitology for a fascinating, compelling story and an original take on the many worlds theory.
The Kindness by John Ajvide Lindqvist, translated by Marlaine Delargy (Riverrun, £30)
A large yellow container appears on the quayside in a Swedish port city, with no indication of contents or ownership. It turns out to contain the dead bodies of men, women and children, desperate immigrants betrayed by those who’d promised them a chance at a better life. When opened, a terrible, stinking sludge oozes out: a metaphysical byproduct of their agonised deaths, which affects everyone who breathes it in, arousing fear and anger. The bestselling author of Let the Right One In excels at creating characters, mainly young and working-class, in contemporary cultural contexts, getting into their hearts and minds and the details of their lives, until even the saddest Pokémon Go-obsessed nerd becomes sympathetic. The fantasy elements (psychic powers, a talking wind) sometimes fit uneasily with this realism, but the power of Lindqvist’s storytelling and his passion to promote understanding can’t be denied.
Mister Magic by Kiersten White (Del Rey, £16.99)
People have fond memories of a children’s TV show that ended abruptly in 1991; it featured six young friends who had magical adventures while learning life lessons, easily summarised in catchy songs, always overseen by a mysterious caped figure. Fans now sing those same songs to their own children, but despite the happy memories, there’s no solid evidence such a show ever existed. Until a podcast is announced, and the five surviving cast members are summoned to a reunion in a large isolated house in the Utah desert. Gradually, the sinister side of those lessons with Mister Magic are revealed in a suspenseful, spooky tale that resonates with contemporary anxieties.
Pink Slime by Fernanda Trías, translated by Heather Cleary (Scribe, £12.99)
In this award-winning novel set in a port city in the throes of plague and eco-catastrophe, people are literally falling apart, as a new disease destroys their skin. The ocean is dead, birds have disappeared, and a stifling fog pervades the air except when blown away by the dangerous “red wind”. Those who can afford it have moved inland, but the nameless narrator remains, held in place by her job caring for a difficult child, her concerns for her mother, who also refuses to move, and an uneasy relationship with her hospitalised ex-husband, one of the plague’s rare survivors. Powerful and beautifully written, this is a disturbing read, depicting a terrifyingly convincing near-future scenario. The reader shares the achingly sad narrator’s feelings as caregiver, daughter and ex-lover: “I’ve always confused fear with love: that unstable ground, that landslide zone.”
The Finery by Rachel Grosvenor (Fly on the Wall, £10.99)
Dr Wendowleen Cripcot, 100 years old, recently retired from the university, lives alone – unless you count her support wolf. She’s no criminal but keeps being harassed by the law enforcement body known as the Finery, as petty new laws come into force to govern every aspect of life in Finer Bay. The mayor used to take her side, but when the Finery’s director becomes the new mayor, she must flee to maintain her freedom, if not her life. There’s an underground protest movement, whose members live, literally, under the ground, so can’t do much – but maybe she knows something that could help them prevail … if she could just remember what it is. The elderly heroine and her wolf make a refreshing change in this whimsical, gently satirical fantasy debut about how easily a police state might evolve.
