The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
“The British government has figured out time travel, and our nameless protagonist is known as a ‘bridge’ in an experimental new project where they will bring a number of ‘expats’ from history to the present day. One such person is Commander Graham Gore of the ill-fated Franklin Arctic expeditions.
The Bridge’s role is to acclimatise Graham to the modern world and it is no easy task. As Graham is introduced to the likes of Spotify, washing machines, the collapse of the British Empire, and feminism, he reckons with the loss of everything and everyone he has ever known. But perhaps the hardest thing of all is falling in love with someone from a different era altogether…
This novel really goes through all the genres – it’s a science fiction, a love story, a comedy, and a spy novel. I laughed, I swooned, I cried. I certainly never expected to fall for an 1800s Commander, but I sure as hell did. And now I’m completely and utterly bereft that it’s all over.” – Emma
Real Americans by Rachel Khong
“A dazzling family saga following three generations of a Chinese-American family in the wake of Mao’s cultural revolution. Unpaid intern Lily Chen knows she is a disappointment to her scientist mother, who left China to pursue her dreams of biological innovation and expects nothing less than greatness from her daughter. But when Lily falls in love with Matthew, the heir to a vast fortune, she is launched into a world of luxury she has not had to work for.
Twenty year later, Nick Chen dreams of leaving the small island in Washington State where he grew up with his strict single mother Lily. With no idea who his father is or why he looks nothing like his Chinese mother, Nick is sure that college will be his chance to figure out who he really is. But when his best friend convinces him to take a DNA test, Nick discovers a complicated family history he hadn’t bargained for.
A fascinating novel about expectation and choice, with an unexpected hint of magical realism.” – Nethmi
August Blue by Deborah Levy
“Elsa M. Anderson is a precociously talented pianist, who has been the star attraction everywhere she has travelled and played. But two weeks ago, she had a meltdown on stage.
Now she finds herself in crisis, standing in a market in Greece, staring at a women who appears to be her doppelganger. The woman buys a pair of mechanical horses from a street trader – horses Elsa now wants. What follows is a dreamlike journey across Europe as these two women dance around each other’s lives, while Elsa reckons with a troubled past full of questions and very few answers.
August Blue is a melancholic, surreal and virtuoso meditation on music, family and middle age, by one of our great authors at the height of her powers.” – Tom M