Books of the week

Emma Cline

This much-anticipated debut novel of Emma Cline, already a well-regarded short story writer and fiction reader for the New Yorker, will probably get summarised a lot as "that Charles Manson novel". But while it does indeed fictionalise the Manson murders, it's really more about the agonies of adolescence. Plot and structure are superficially simple. Evie Boyd, 14, is the drifting daughter of a failed marriage, languishing in the absent care of a mother preoccupied by her own insecurities. As mum brings home a series of inappropriate men friends, Evie - desperate for attention, for adulthood, for something to happen - is easily drawn into the outlaw community of teenage girls and hangers-on centred on the darkly charismatic Russell, a self-styled prophet with a desperate hankering for a recording deal. And we all know how that will go... Evie's account of this dark Californian summer is framed as the recollection of her older present self, who's house-sitting for a friend and now observes the troubled dynamics of an adolescent girl who comes to stay, and the two dubious young men who accompany her. In this way, we see that Evie's own teenage struggle was not just a freak cult occurrence (though the Manson/Russell story massively accentuates the tale), but is more about the nuances of power and performance that play out between partially-formed people - male and female - who are desperate to know who they are. Wonderfully readable, finely written and acutely observed, this is that rare thing: a beach novel of real substance.

End Of Watch

Stephen King

Former police detective Bill Hodges, now a private investigator, knows time is running out. That leaves him with little time to catch a killer. And what makes it worse for Hodges is it's a killer he already knows. But nobody will believe Hodges when he tries to tell them it's Brady Hartsfield, the man hell-bent on mass murder from Mr Mercedes, the opening part of Stephen King's suspense-packed thriller trilogy. Hodges and unorthodox sidekick Holly Gibney need to unravel the latest mystery surrounding the suicide-obsessed Hartsfield. Strangest of all is that he has been stuck in a mental hospital since the end of the first book, unable to stand trial after Gibney scrambled his brains with a blow to the head to stop him blowing up a concert hall full of teenagers. As everyone around them follows the false trails laid by Hartsfield and his computer-hypnotised associates, Hodges and Gibney must put their disbelief aside if they are to stop him delivering death via a children's computer game. King needs no introduction and the final story in this trilogy is sure to put him right back at the top of the best seller charts.

Daisy In Chains

Sharon Bolton

Serial killers and felons have a certain type of sex appeal - the many women who become infatuated with convicts and set up admirers' fan clubs are testament to that. For her latest stand-alone book, Oxford-based crime novelist Sharon Bolton focuses on the story of Hamish Wolfe, a good-looking and charming surgeon who has been locked up for life, accused of abducting and killing three women. He is convinced that blue-haired true crime writer and lawyer Maggie Rose could get him off the hook and potentially prove his innocence, if she is willing to take on his case, much to the disapproval of Detective Sergeant Pete Weston. Each page - along with the letters and documents interlinking chapters - reveals more of Wolfe's past and the case's background, thus drawing the reader in. Daisy In Chains is intriguing, complex, full of suspense and gripping until the very end, making this thriller a must-read for fans of the genre.

Hole In The Heart: Bringing Up Beth

Henny Beaumont

On Mother's Day 2004, the author Henny Beaumont gave birth to her third daughter, Beth. For the first few hours of her life, she seemed the same as her first two daughters and all they wanted to do was to take her home and show her off to her sisters. However, soon afterwards, a diagnosis of Down's Syndrome was confirmed and Henny's world fell apart. This graphic book - illustrated in beautiful, raw and moving pictures - describes the family's deeply personal journey and the complicated emotions involved in having a child with Down's Syndrome. Refreshingly honest and at times very funny, Hole In The Heart is not only a good read for parents of children with special needs and those who work closely with them, but will resonate with all parents as a wonderful expression of love.