Welcome to Insider Reading, where the booksellers of Mr B’s give you the lowdown on new and future releases. We are very lucky as booksellers to get to read books ahead of publication.
So here is a behind-the-scenes peek into what some of our booksellers are already raving about for the months ahead, and a few they can’t wait to get stuck into…
Juliette has literally dived right into Lauren Groff‘s upcoming book, Brawler (March 5th) a book already beloved by several B’s booksellers. Here’s what she has to say: “There is nothing more exciting than being surprised by a book and Lauren Groff’s brilliant, electric stories are the ultimate in sucker punches. I got to the end of the first story only to realise I hadn’t drawn breath for pages. These nine powerful, bold and at times shattering stories are all suffused with the complexities and messiness of life, with our own inner conflicts, moral grey areas and our capacity for both light and dark.
Set across various US states over the last 70 years, we find a terrified young mother hiding with her kids in a desperate escape from her abusive husband; a young girl overwhelmed with the responsibility of being the sole carer of a disabled sibling; a rich young man in line to inherit the family business left reeling when his expectations are shattered. These stories are full of loud and quiet torment, frustration and elation – and best of all, they were wildly unpredictable and I loved every word.”
Already preparing for a re-read ahead of interviewing Nelio Biedermann for our upcoming event in March, Nic has been bowled over by the incredible skill of this debut novelist. Nic says: “Lazar (March 26th)is a multi-generational whirlwind of lust, drama, broken secrets and family trauma. Tearing through five decades of one aristocratic Hungarian family’s chaotic history, the narrative is littered with so many twists and scandals that at times it’s difficult to know which unreliable narrator to get behind.
This is a tale of a crumbling dynasty being destroyed simultaneously from outside and within. If the endless chain of ill-advised liaisons and tortured souls don’t bring the house of Lazar to its knees, then the end of the Habsburgs, the Second World War and Soviet occupation surely will.
Biedermann himself is the 22-year old descendant of Hungarian nobility and his talent for writing is precocious. I was hooked from the very first words, “The snow of the dying century still lay on the edge of the forest…” and the very first character description, “the translucent child with water-blue eyes”. The evocative imagery pours down and the endlessly flawed characters pepper the story with dark humour.
At times it feels like a homage to Central European masters like Sandor Marai or the great Sicilian novel The Leopard, and it holds up superbly against that illustrious company.”
Click here for details of our event with Nelio Biedermann.
Nethmi hasn’t stopped raving about this hilarious debut novel from former Smash Hits (hands up if this just hit you over the head with a big dose of nostalgia) feature editor, Alex Kadis. Nethmi describes Big Nobody (5th March) as “a magnificent 70’s coming-of-age tale following the half-Greek, half-British Connie Costa as she tries to get rid of The Fat Murderer – aka, her dad.”
Lottie has been devouring The Age of Calamities by Senaa Ahmad (available now), a wickedly playful and and fiercely inventive little gem already loved by many of her favourite authors (Edward Carey and Rosanna Pike to name but a few). Lottie says: “this giddy collection of short stories weaves the reader through so many ‘might have beens’ of history. Ever wonder what would have happened if Anne Boleyn’s head had just popped itself back on her neck? Or what a dinner party with Queen Victoria, Blackbeard, Marilyn Monroe, and Ibn Battuta would actually look like? *Clue: someone gets murdered*. These stories are wickedly playful, time-bending, and genre-defying. I’ve been snorting my way through each one.”
Our resident romance reader Liv is already (understandbly) dreaming of blue skies and summer love: “the past few weeks have been consistently and miserably WET. My trainers have been damp for days. The sentiment is very much of the rain, rain, go away variety. So when the latest Carley Fortune landed on our doorstep, it felt like the sun finally peeking out from behind the clouds. The undisputed queen of the escapist summer romance, I can’t wait to lose myself in her new novel, Our Perfect Storm (7th May), in which two former friends reunite in the surfing paradise of Tofino.”
Also on the romance front, our Rosa has been loving Hot For Preacher (26th Feb) by Anne Marsh. She says: “this is a fun and sultry romance, following a struggling country singer hellbent on making it on her own and not in the shadow of her semi-famous father. When her van breaks down she stumbles through a small Tennessee town into the arms of the valiant local minister, but isn’t happy to just be his latest project.”
Charlotte has been loving Bimbo by Ashley James (12th Feb), an empowering new book on modern womanhood. Charlotte says: “James’ writing is ferocious and raw, offering insight into the labels we place on women, and how we can do better for the future.”
No stranger to an obsession with tennis, Tom M has already flown through the darkly comic novel, Dad Had a Bad Day (2nd July) by Ashton Politanoff: “Ever wondered what Patrick Bateman was up to a decade after the events of American Psycho? Well, Ned from Dad Had a Bad Day might give you some idea. A middle-aged dad who finds himself out of work, Ned joins the tennis club and starts to rediscover some of the glory of his youth… if only other people wouldn’t get in his way. A hilarious, unhinged satire of parenthood and the onset of middle age.”
And as for me, I may well have already found my book of the year for 2026 with Lizzy Stewart‘s beautifully illustrated novel, The Wreck (9th April). When you read the amount of books we do as booksellers, it’s not often you discover a whole new reading experience, but I was left in awe of Lizzy’s skills here as both a writer and illustrator. The Wreck follows two couples in their forties in the 1980s who decide to live together in a big country house just outside Bristol. As they each find a way to share the same space, and navigate new feelings, they create a wonderful existence that makes you wonder why more of us don’t live this way. Until of course, tensions arise, and the bubble bursts. It’s a novel about class, ambition, happiness and creativity and the way these things mean something different to each of the characters. I doubt I will read anything as unique as this for many months to come, and I can’t wait to welcome Lizzy to the shop for an event in April!
I’ve also just started I Want You To Be Happy by Jem Calder (21st May), chosen by the Obsever as one of 2026’s Best Debut Novelists, and a book I have been hotly ancitipating! It follows two writers at very different times in their lives, with an almost ten year age gap, who dare to imagine a future between them. I’m very much hoping it will fill my Sally Rooney-shaped hole, and it’s certainly promising so far!
Despite all of this reading our team has undertaken, our TBR piles are of course no smaller – so stay tuned for more Insider Reading coming soon!
Thanks for reading.
Emma