Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel
Headshot delves into the dreams and motivations of a group of teenage girl boxers as they face off with each other over two days for a coveted boxing title. It is unique and intriguing, and paces along without any stodge, lean and energetic like the protagonists.
The reader spends time in the heads of each girl as their game plans unfold – or come unstuck – and their reasons for being in the ring are picked over. I loved the way the narrative skips from the present to their past and future selves, jumps that are sudden and fleeting, internally mirroring the jabs and feints, blows blocked and impacted, of the fights themselves. One of the best things I’ve read this year. – Edward
The Mars House by Natasha Pulley
How to do a book of this scope and imagination justice in just a few lines? A book of Pulley’s signature charm, wit and originality that defies genre and convention, this is something entirely new that would sit perfectly at home between Becky Chambers and Ann Leckie.
January, principal dancer of the London Royal Ballet, is preparing for a performance of Swan Lake when London finally succumbs to the floodwater that has threatened to drown it for as long as he can remember. With nowhere else to go, January finds himself among the refugees on their way to Mars. There have been populations on Mars for generations now, and January and the other ‘earthstrongers’ are three times as strong as the ‘naturalised’ population, who have adjusted to Mars’ gravity and air pressure. January has always been strong, but he’s never been dangerous – only now he has to wear a cage that supresses his strength.
Earthstronger accidents are the primary cause of death for the naturalised population. Senator Gale is running for election on the proposition of a ‘simple path’ to equality; force every immigrant from Earth to undergo the disabling and sometimes fatal process of forced naturalisation. For January, that would be no life at all. When Gale visits the factory January now works at to talk to Earthstrongers, a misjudged joke turned disastrous media encounter threatens Gale’s election prospects – and January’s life.
A gorgeous addition to what we’ve begun to refer to as the Pulley Extended Universe, this is a beautifully realised exploration of the direction that culture, language, technology, politics, social media and art may overlap in a future that feels rich with detail and character. It’s a story to be swept up in with all the drama and nuance we’ve come to expect from Pulley’s writing, with characteristic depth and a deliciously philosophical edge. – Rhian
Walking Practice by Dolki Min
Meet Mumu, a murderous shape-shifting gender-fluid alien who crash landed from space and has developed a taste for humans (turns out we’re quite tasty). Told in first-person and directly addressed to the reader, we follow Mumu on their depraved scavenge for sustenance, sensuality, and love.
This short, experimental novel reads as a thinly-veiled commentary on the social structures that marginalize those who are different – the queer, disabled and non-conformist. Translated from Korean, Walking Practice is a debut from non-binary artist and writer Dolki Min, so is also littered with beautiful line-drawings of Mumu throughout.
For fans of Under the Skin and Cursed Bunny, or anyone who likes their fiction weird, a little crass, a lot witty and utterly unique. – Soffi