Orlaine McDonald tops our picks this week with an electric debut…

Fiction

1. No Small Thing by Orlaine McDonald is published in hardback by Serpent’s Tail, priced £16.99 (ebook £7.99). Available now

Orlaine McDonald presents her first novel, a crackling fire of a story following three generations of a Black family in working-class London. Livia has been wilfully running away from her life for years, until daughter Mickey and granddaughter Summer arrive on her doorstep with emotional baggage in tow. Over the course of a year spent begrudgingly cohabiting, the trauma, guilt and abandonment that haunts their pasts threatens to destroy their futures too. Opening with a suicide observed by the women’s neighbour who watches the three spark against each other for one tumultuous year, No Small Thing is a poetic, emotional and gripping insight into race, parenthood and class in modern Britain. Compelling and unforgettable, this is a marvellous debut.9/10(Review by Holly Cowell)

2. The Cracked Mirror by Chris Brookmyre is published in hardback by Abacus, priced £22 (ebook £10.99). Available now

The Cracked Mirror brings together two unlikely detectives, Penny Coyne – who’s in Miss Marple’s ilk, and Johnny Hawke, a hard-bitten maverick LA cop in the style of a Michael Connelly protagonist. Two different strands are woven together following two deaths, with the pair arriving at a wedding of a wealthy family whose business chicanery rivals Succession, where a mysterious locked-room death occurs. Action-packed, the plot makes you wonder what the inside of Brookmyre’s head is like – as where it ends up isn’t what you expect from the start. There’s classic plotting alongside bigger questions about artificial intelligence, intellectual property, dementia, sibling rivalry and the privilege of wealth. It’s an interesting mix of classic crime and something a little more cutting edge, while being readable.8/10(Review by Bridie Pritchard)

3. Gold Rush by Olivia Petter is published in hardback by Fourth Estate, priced £16.99 (ebook £7.99). Available now

Gold Rush offers a timely exploration of the darker side of celebrity culture in the wake of the #MeToo movement. Narrated by a Rose, a young woman working in PR, it unveils the competitive and often unglamorous reality of showbusiness, highlighting how icons can exploit their power. The story resonates with its unflinching portrayal of abuse and the struggle for accountability. Rose’s struggle to speak out resonates with the guilt and blame that many women feel in these situations. This compelling read sheds light on the pervasive issues of power imbalance and the courage required to challenge the status quo, urging the reader to confront uncomfortable truths about exploitation and the price of fame.8/10(Review by Jacqueline Ling)

Non-fiction

4. Our Country in Crisis by Kwajo Tweneboa is published in hardback by Trapeze, priced £20 (ebook £11.49). Available now

A sad and poignant reminder of how far the housing quality in the UK has fallen, this book should be a must-read for anyone who has an interest in UK housing and the solutions to its problems. Writer and campaigner, Kwajo Tweneboa, does a great job of bringing to bear his experience and knowledge of the problems faced in and by the UK housing sector, simplifying it all in a series of story-like chapters across different areas. It is rare that someone who has lived experience writes it down, and it is even rarer that it is in such a crucial area as this. A really important and compelling read.9/10(Review by Frances Taylor-Cook)

Children’s book of the week

5. Billie’s Buzz by Alison Brown is published in paperback by Farshore, priced £7.99 (no ebook). Available now

Billie is a confident bee who wants to show off her skills in a talent show – but she needs to be a pet in order to participate. She befriends a boy who agrees to enter her into the competition, on the condition that she hides her true identity. As the story unfolds, we get to find out more about the importance of bees and how they are vital for all sorts of plant growth. There are also lovely messages in it around how important it is to be yourself too. So will Billie get the win she so desperately desires? Can a little bee really beat a whole host of pets on an agility course?9/10(Review by Lauren Westmoreland)

BOOK CHARTS FOR THE WEEK ENDING JULY 20

HARDBACK (FICTION)1. The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Harkness2. Queen B by Juno Dawson3. You Are Here by David Nicholls4. All The Colours Of The Dark by Chris Whitaker5. When The Moon Hatched by Sarah A. Parker6. Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors7. Long Island by Colm Tóibín8. One Day by David Nicholls9. Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros10. A Refiner’s Fire by Donna Leon(Compiled by Waterstones)

HARDBACK (NON-FICTION)1. Pinch Of Nom Air Fryer by Kay & Kate Allinson2. Tom Kerridge Cooks Britain by Tom Kerridge3. Ask Not by Maureen Callahan4. Keir Starmer by Tom Baldwin5. So Good by Emily English6. Failed State by Sam Freedman7. Murder In Harrogate by Vaseem Khan & Various8. The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt9. Endgame 1944 by Jonathan Dimbleby10. Apollo Remastered by Andy Saunders(Compiled by Waterstones)

AUDIOBOOKS (FICTION AND NON-FICTION)1. Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance2. Atomic Habits by James Clear3. Alchemy by Rory Sutherland4. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman5. A Game Of Thrones by George R.R. Martin6. None Of This Is True by Lisa Jewell7. In A Thousand Different Ways by Cecelia Ahern8. Unruly by David Mitchell9. The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Harkness10. MILF by Paloma Faith(Compiled by Audible)