Six new releases to add to the bookshelf

As we soak up the final moments of summer and get set to welcome a new season, it’s the perfect time to restock the bookshelf for those last-minute getaways, the long bank holiday weekend and the autumnal nights to come. Luckily there’s plenty of recently released standout fiction to keep everyone busy. Here’s a roundup of six new releases that deserve a spot on the reading list.

The Retreat by Sarah Pearse

Back after her bestselling debut novel, The Sanatorium, Sarah Pearse brings another gripping thriller with The Retreat. DS Elin Warner is back to investigate another horrific case as a woman’s body is found at the bottom of a cliff of an island wellness retreat. Just like in her previous novel, the eerie suspense is meticulously built throughout, keeping readers hooked, right up until the very last shocking twist. A must-read.

The House of Fortune by Jessie Burton

The hotly anticipated sequel to Burton’s million-copy bestselling The Miniaturist has finally arrived with another exquisitely crafted historical novel. The House of Fortune continues the story of Thea Brandt, whom we last met as a newborn baby, but now we find her on the brink of turning 18 and ready to be welcomed into adulthood. However, her family’s worsening financial situation means she needs to find a husband who will guarantee her future. An invite to Amsterdam’s most exclusive ball may just provide her with the perfect opportunity, but it soon becomes clear that all may not be as it seems when the miniaturist returns.

Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister

This new and intriguing plot from bestselling author Gillian McAllister depicts every parent’s worst nightmare through twisting timelines and absorbing characters. Jen is living the perfect family life with a loving husband and son, however, her world is soon turned upside down when she witnesses her son, Todd, stab a man to death in front of their house. With Todd arrested and their blissful life destroyed, Jen goes to bed only to wake up and find it’s the day before and Todd has yet to commit the murder. Each night, the protagonist finds herself moving further and further back in her own life, desperately trying to find the key to unlocking the crime, buried somewhere in the past. Full of originality, this is a memorable thriller that will stay with readers long after the last page.

Meredith, Alone by Claire Alexander

For fans of Gail Honeywell’s Eleanor Oliphant, Claire Alexander’s debut novel is a moving story of finding inner strength and courage to overcome our deepest fears. The book’s protagonist, Meredith Maggs, hasn’t left her house in over three years but insists she isn’t alone with her cat, Fred, and her friend, Sadie, who visits occasionally. Things soon change with the arrival of her estranged sister, forcing her to finally open her door to the outside world and face everything she has been hiding from. For a novel that is both heartwarming and heartbreaking, Alexander pulls at the heartstrings as we root for Meredith from the very beginning.

Deep Water by Emma Bamford

Emma Bamford’s debut hooks from the first page when a naval vessel picks up distress signals in the middle of the Indian Ocean. They find a catamaran drifting with a couple onboard: husband and wife, Virginie and Jake. Virginie is distressed and in a state of shock, while Jake is badly injured and unconscious. As their rescuers set out to get her husband help, dark secrets soon begin to surface in this fascinating slow-burn “locked room” mystery, which keeps readers guessing until the very end.

Last Time We Met by Emily Houghton

For anyone on the lookout for a feel-good holiday read, Houghton’s newest release is one not to miss. Last Time We Met follows the lives of Eleanor and Fin, inseparable childhood best friends, who made a pact to marry at 35 if they were both still single. Now 15 years on, they are living on different continents and haven’t spoken to each other since. When tragic circumstances bring Fin home, they unexpectedly bump into each other and are forced to reevaluate their friendship and find out if they can ever be friends again – or maybe more. A lighthearted read for to get lost in.

Alexandra Davis