Debut Novels of 2022- So Far
"A novel, in the end, is a container, a shape which you are trying to pour your story into." - Helen Dunmore.
The Leviathan Rosie Andrews
The year is 1643 in Norfolk and the civil war is ravaging England. Thomas Treadwater is returning home after receiving a disturbing letter from his sister Esther, advising him that their servant, Chrissa Moore, has bewitched their religiously devout father. Upon his return home, Thomas finds a flock of sheep mysteriously dead, his father seriously ill from a stroke, and Chrissa Moore in prison for the charge of witchcraft. Thomas is a sceptic and decides to start his own investigation, and discovers something dark and ancient connected to a shipwreck years before.
When We Were Birds Ayanna Lloyd Banwo
Darwin, born into the Rastafarian faith, is down on his luck and estranged from his mother. He arrives in Port Angeles hoping to find work, and also hoping to find his father. Meanwhile, Jegide's mother who has the power of talking to the dead, is dying, and Jegide is uncertain whether she wants to continue the legacy. Darwin and Jegide meet at the cemetery where Darwin has taken a job as a gravedigger. Each has something the other needs and a fledgling romance is formed, as they are guided by stories of their ancestors to find their way and to make them safe.
A Terrible Kindness Jo Browning-Wroe
Nineteen-year-old William Lavery has recently qualified as an undertaker and is celebrating with his girlfriend, Gloria, when news comes through that a landslide at a coalmine has buried a school in Aberfan, Wales. It is October 1966, and a call goes out for embalmers to assist with some 140 bodies, most of them children. William volunteers to help and works through the night to carry out the grisly work. William returns home suffering from PTSD, and is forced to think about the little boy he was and the losses he has suffered, including the death of his father when William was eight years old.
Lessons in Chemistry Bonnie Garmus
The year is 1961 and Elizabeth Zott is a research chemist, although her male colleagues treat her with disdain and expect her to make the coffee. Elizabeth and highly regarded chemist Calvin Evans fall in love, but, unfortunately, the relationship ends. Several years later Elizabeth is a solo mother and host of a successful cooking show and weaves her love of chemistry into the show, at the same time, trying to empower women to be independent thinkers and doers.
Trespasses Louise Kennedy
Set in Belfast in the time of "the troubles". Cushla, a young Catholic woman, is trying to live her best life amongst the daily threats of violence. Cushla is a teacher and also works part-time at a bar owned by her family. When an older, Protestant, married man walks into the bar, both his and Cushla's lives are changed forever. Michael Agnew is a barrister who has made a name for himself defending IRA members. In the meantime, tensions in the town are escalating, particularly amongst the children at Cushla's school, leading to desperate behaviour.
The Plant Hunter T L Mogford
A glimpse into the world of the Victorian obsession with plants. The year is 1867 and Kings Road, Chelsea is full of plant nurseries. Plant hunters are part of these establishments and in one of them, Harry Compton is chosen by his boss to be a salesman because of his good looks. By chance, Harry meets a famous plant hunter who tells Harry about a rare plant in China which could be worth a great deal of money. When the person dies Harry is left with a map and decides to set out to find the plant himself. Along the way, Harry has many adventures, including rounding the Cape of Good Hope, and sailing up the Yangtze in the company of a young widow.