Plus, Akwaeke Emezi is back with their second captivating YA novel…

Fiction

1. The Colony by Audrey Magee is published in hardback by Faber & Faber, priced £14.99 (ebook £7.99). Available now

The Colony is set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland in 1979, where an Englishman and a Frenchman have come to spend their summer. The Englishman, Mr Lloyd, is an artist who wants to paint the cliffs, and the Frenchman, JP, is a PhD student writing a linguistical study on the Irish language – dying out everywhere but on the island. The story of conflict and resentment breeding between Mr Lloyd, JP, and the island dwellers, is interspersed with the gruesome details of what is happening back on the Irish mainland during the Troubles. The story of art and identity is told in beautiful and colourful prose, often verging on the poetic. Magee has written a gorgeous and powerful novel that will stick with you.9/10(Review by Frances Wright)

2. Devotion by Hannah Kent is published in hardback by Picador, priced £14.99 (ebook £8.49). Available now

Devotion is a modern classic, on par with heart-wrenching love stories such as Wuthering Heights and Pride And Prejudice. It tells the story of an achingly beautiful love and a brutal search for freedom, with the epic landscapes as pressing and foreboding as the thoughts and feelings weighing on main character Hanne. 15-year-old Hanne prefers being in nature than hanging out with girls her own age – until she meets Thea, and finds acceptance. This moving tale is told from Hanne’s perspective, and features a twist so brilliantly done, it will leave you gasping for breath.8/10(Review by Sophie Corcoran)

3. When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo is published in hardback by Hamish Hamilton, priced £14.99 (ebook £9.99). Available now

Ayanna Lloyd Banwo warns at the start of her debut novel, When We Were Birds, that the island of Trinidad is real – but everything else in her novel is fiction. Writing in the local dialect, Lloyd Banwo welcomes the reader into a rich mixture of the real and fantasy landscapes of Trinidad. The narrative alternates between Darwin, a young Rastafari man forced by hardship to take up work as a gravedigger, and Yejide, who we first see as a young girl questioning her grandmother about their family connection to corbeau – mythical death-spirits. Lloyd Banwo gives each of her protagonists an authentic voice, and we feel their conflicts and urges deeply. The supporting characters are movingly drawn, too. As the novel rushes Darwin and Yejide towards its dramatic conclusion, you almost wish for more time with them all, and the enigmatic world Lloyd Banwo has created.8/10(Review by Joshua Pugh Ginn)

Non-fiction

4. Block, Delete, Move On by LalalaLetMeExplain is published in hardback by Bantam Press, priced £12.99 (ebook £9.49). Available now

Weren’t dating apps meant to make meeting people and falling in love easier? Sadly, the Tinder age – despite all the romances it has successfully sparked – has just added new layers of doubt, deceit and even danger to the minefield of modern courtship. The witty and streetwise Block, Delete, Move On from rising Instagram star LalalaLetMeExplain, an anonymous agony aunt and qualified social worker, is an official guide to avoiding the pitfalls and red flags that if ignored, can lead to ghosting, gaslighting and worse forms of abuse. While it is squarely aimed at women who date men, there are empowering tips for anyone looking to find love and avoid pain, and her exploration of persistent toxic male attitudes is sobering.8/10(Review by James Cann)

Children’s book of the week

5. Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi is published in paperback by Faber & Faber, priced £7.99 (ebook £7.99). Available now

This is Akwaeke Emezi’s second YA novel, set in the same sci-fi universe as Pet. Bitter is a young orphaned artist who has survived abusive foster homes, and now lives in the safe creative school of Eucalyptus. Unfortunately, things aren’t quite as secure outside in the city of Lucille, where capitalist overlords rule over the poor citizens. Bitter tries to stay out of the demonstrations, but soon gets drawn in. It’s a captivating book – Emezi builds a fully realised world full of injustice, and the sci-fi elements are quite terrifying and imaginative. It’s not always an easy read – Emezi doesn’t shy away from the realities of abuse and violence – but it’s important and moving. They show art can be as powerful as physical protest – a valuable lesson for any young person wondering how they can help enact change.8/10(Review by Prudence Wade)

BOOK CHARTS FOR THE WEEK ENDING FEBRUARY 12

HARDBACK (FICTION)1. The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett2. Daughter Of The Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan3. Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman4. The Locked Room by Elly Griffiths5. To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara6. The Leviathan by Rosie Andrews7. Love Marriage by Monica Ali8. The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman9. The Maid by Nita Prose10. A Terrible Kindness by Jo Browning Wroe(Compiled by Waterstones)

HARDBACK (NON-FICTION)1. Block, Delete, Move On by LalalaLetMeExplain2. Otherlands by Thomas Halliday3. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? by Dr Julie Smith4. Tired And Tested by Sophie McCartney5. This Is Vegan Propaganda by Ed Winters6. The Boy, The Mole, The Fox And The Horse by Charlie Mackesy7. Manifest by Roxie Nafousi8. Pinch Of Nom Comfort Food by Kay Featherstone & Kate Allinson9. Big Panda And Tiny Dragon by James Norbury10. What I Wish People Knew About Dementia by Wendy Mitchell(Compiled by Waterstones)

AUDIOBOOKS (FICTION AND NON-FICTION)1. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? by Dr Julie Smith2. This Is Going To Hurt by Adam Kay3. Atomic Habits by James Clear4. The Sound Of Laughter by Peter Kay5. Windswept & Interesting by Billy Connolly6. The Locked Room by Elly Griffiths7. Something Fresh by P. G. Wodehouse8. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman9. The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman10. Will by Will Smith & Mark Manson(Compiled by Audible)