Bluff
By Francine Toon
Doubleday, £16.99
Bluff, a brooding gothic thriller, follows the author’s bestselling 2020 debut, Pine. On the cobbled streets of a coastal Scottish town, we meet Joanie, a teenager made vulnerable by anxiety attacks, who is seduced by an enigmatic couple with a penchant for herbal remedies. Meanwhile, Joanie’s schoolfriend, Cameron, returns to their hometown a decade later and grows perturbed about his classmate’s whereabouts. Two concurrent searches for truth result in a narrative that is more subdued than its award-winning predecessor. (The novel only obviously reveals itself as a thriller in its latter half.) Amblingly paced, Bluff triumphs in its atmospheric scene-setting – the haunting Scottish coastline is arguably the protagonist. However, the story, characters and denouement remain underdeveloped. Brigid O’Dea
Like Family
By Erin White
Serpent’s Tail, £20
Erin White’s debut novel hits shelves as the author turns 52. It was worth the wait, as the essayist pours a lot of lived experience into this tale of three families in upstate New York. Tobi and Evie are Insta-famous for their handmade pottery, living the rural dream with their five-year-old twins. Tobi’s cousin, Mike, was the sperm donor for said twins, and is also the father of a son with his wife Caroline. Caroline’s best friend Ruth, her wife Wyn and their four kids have just moved to a ramshackle and freezing old house. White throws a bunch of stressors at these relationships, with infidelities and long-buried secrets joining midlife crises, adolescent hormone explosions and plain old chronic anxiety. The result is a subtle yet strong and warm read, perfect for fans of Anne Tyler or Elizabeth Strout. John Walshe
[ Favourite books: Irish authors and stars name their best readsOpens in new window ]
The Last Witch on the Knock
By Aimée MacDonald
John Murray, £18.99
There’s a textural quality to writing in The Last Witch on the Knock, something of grease and straw and pus and a strangely appealing unwashedness. Reading it offers a physical experience, both horrifying and enjoyable. It’s at once a story of the dissociation of modern life and an old-timey tale of burning rebellious women as witches. Running throughout is a healthy bout of man-hatred, epitomised by the exquisitely satirised character of the handsome-bastard boyfriend. MacDonald is a skilled and deeply idiosyncratic writer. She is also wonderfully funny, in that deadpan, Gen Z way. This is a very unpredictable novel, full of stylistic and narrative flair. Although the ending doesn’t quite live up to the rest, it’s still an extremely strong, at times mesmerising, debut. Lucy Sweeney Byrne
