Red Clocks

by Leni Zumas

Women leading lives of quiet, and not-so-quiet, desperation are at the heart of Leni Zumas's dystopian novel Red Clocks. Reminiscent of the nightmarish world of Gilead in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, the book is set in a United States in which abortion is banned and IVF has been made illegal. Four women from a small Oregon town try to make sense of these new rules and the effects they have on their lives: One sets out on a dangerous journey in the hope of making it across the Canadian border, where abortions are still available, while another longs to have a baby but can't. And in between, we follow a fifth woman - a 19th-century Arctic explorer from the Faroe Islands - who has her own battles to fight. Together, the five stories form a deeply touching exploration of women's lives past and future. It's a timely and disturbing tale about motherhood and identity that, despite the grim subject matter, leaves you with hope.

The Immortalists

by Chloe Benjamin

In her second novel, Chloe Benjamin weaves an ambitious family saga that spans several decades. The premise is intriguing: How would you live your life if you knew the day you were going to die? This is the problem troubling the four Gold children, after a mysterious gypsy reads their fortunes in a sweltering New York apartment in 1969. Each child interprets the information differently, and the novel is broken into four short stories focusing on each in turn. We meet Simon, a young gay man who escapes to San Francisco (the scenes that handle the start of the Aids epidemic in the 1980s are some of the book's most powerful); Klara, a wannabe magician in Vegas; military doctor Daniel; and Varya, who is working on an anti-ageing study. In its scope and themes, The Immortalists brings to mind Hanya Yanagihara's A Little Life. The problem is, while that book had flawed yet lovable characters, The Immortalists tends to focus on the flaws, and it's hard to always root for the siblings. While Simon and Varya's stories ring true, the actions of Klara and Daniel are frustrating. Benjamin also seems to be ticking off a list of issues - mental health, homosexuality, animal cruelty, religion etc. - that can distract from the story. The most interesting characters are often those shunted to the edges: matriarch Gertie, football star-turned ballet dancer Robert, and precocious child Ruby. A strong ending is almost redemptive, but although you're seemingly supposed to take away a lesson on how to live fully, it's hard not to finish the book hoping you're never given advance warning of your death.

Sal

by Mick Kitson

The eponymous teenage heroine of Mick Kitson's debut novel, who is on the run from the drab, chaotic lives of her alcoholic mother and her 'Maw's' drug-dealing partner, steps into another world in Scotland's last wilderness. Kitson's ability to combine the mundane and harrowing with an uplifting, giddy traipse through the great outdoors, with characters who take you with them, belies the fact this is his first venture into fiction. Despite the odd jarring note and some patchy moments, he succeeds in giving voice to the troubled narrator and in handling her sometimes upsetting story. He captures the stillness, peace and beauty of her new surroundings and some joyous experiences as Sal and her sister battle hunger and cold, and shake off some old horrors. Armed with her Bear Grylls knife, YouTube education on the wild, and the SAS Survival Guide, Sal desperately tries to come up with a blueprint for her family's survival. Along the way she has to find out if she is as adept at using her own streetwise, survival handbook to confront and escape life's traps as she is at setting snares in the woods. An inventive, memorable and soul-stirring read.

Children Of Blood And Bone

by Tomi Adeyemi

Children Of Blood And Bone immerses you in a fantasy world of magic and myth, where good and evil battle it out in an adventure of epic proportions. Inspired by the legends of west Africa, this trilogy opener from Tomi Adeyemi amazes and terrifies in equal measure. Set in the fictional kingdom of Orisha, it sees teenager Zelie embark on a quest to bring magic back to her land after the harrowing genocide of her people by oppressive ruler, King Saran. With a narrow window to bring back the power of the majis, Zelie and her brother Tzain must overcome all odds to succeed, battling against not only Saran's soldiers, but also their own personal moral dilemmas. It is aimed at the young adult market and younger readers would find some of the scenes shocking - in particular, a graphic torture. While it is brutal in parts, it is also a beautiful and touching story and a punchy debut from Adeyemi. Bring on part two.