Coming soon to a bookshop near you: from Zadie Smith to Curtis Sittenfeld, from heart-throbs to hauntings, kidnaps and con artists, our top critics give a sneak preview of the novels they'll devour in 2023
NEW FICTION
- MUST READS Ben, 34, and Winnie, 85, were unlikely housemates. Necessity united them.
- LITERARY FICTION French writer Duras, who died in 1996, is best known for her disturbing autobiographical novel The Lover, published when she was in her 70s
- PICTURE THIS Though his mainstream music career lasted just four years, Jimi Hendrix left an indelible stamp on the world.
- PSYCHO THRILLERS In 1932, Charles Lindbergh and his wife Anne Morrow were easily the most famous celebrity couple in America.
- CONTEMPORARY Beekeeper Olivia escaped her abusive marriage and chose to raise her six-year-old son, Asher, alone
- DEBUTS Eve's 33-year-old husband committed suicide, leaving no note. In one swoop, Eve has lost her safety net, her love
Health books: How to be a happy, healthy Super-Ager, according to a psychology coach
According to psychology coach Lynne Dorling, there are eight positive character traits common to what she calls 'super agers': they're resilient, with backbone and the determination to bounce back; endlessly curious - every day is a school day, even in your 80s; adaptable and open to change; they remain connected to others, and they pursue their passions. Yes, hobbies can help you live longer.
Hot on sex... cold on emotion: From a steamy account by John le Carré's mistress to Justin Webb on his snobbish but loving mother, the stand-out memoirs of 2022
Dawson's highly readable memoir of their illicit love affair of John le Carré and Suleika Dawson (half his age) is a blockbuster and highly readable. Meanwhile, you'll feel as though you're living inside the 1970s when you read Justin Webb's gloriously evocative memoir of his weird upbringing as an only child in the suburbs of Bath. And following on from her 2019 bestseller Lady In Waiting, Anne Glenconner, now 90 and delighting in her late-life success, takes us through facets of her rollercoaster of a life - author, daughter, wife, hostess, mother, lady-in-waiting, adventurer and friend - and throws new light on them all.
RECENT SERIALISATIONS
Why we British always needed a monarchy: Stephen Bates explores how our country's history has been shaped by the people on the throne and the powers around it
Stephen Bates - formerly royal correspondent of The Guardian - tells a lively tale of monarchy in the UK, from Saxon warlords to William and Harry. Bates points out that, 'unlike France, Germany or Russia, Britain has experienced neither the trauma of total defeat in war, nor of violent revolution'. This matters, as does our geography, insulated from invasion by the sea - a 'sceptred isle' indeed.