10 debuts out this year you'll definitely want to pre-order
It's only January but 2025 is already looking to be a good book year. There are lots of new books by some of my favourite writers (Anne Tyler and Rachel Joyce, among them). But this year seems to be the year of the dazzling debut. Below are some of the books by new authors I'm most excited about and think you will love...
Confessions by Catherine Airey
Confessions by Catherine Airey
Set between New York and the west coast of Ireland, this elegant debut is a beautiful exploration of sisterhood and women’s place in the world across three generations. It opens on 9/11 as the Twin Towers are hit, leaving teenage Cora an orphan, before plunging back through time to the 70s and her mother’s own teenage years. In 2021 Airey quit her job in the civil service and with just £3000 in her bank account, moved to rural West Cork to write. The book sold to a publisher in a 24-hour pre-empt. Out 23 Jan
Nesting by Roisin O'Donnell
Nesting by Roisin O’Donnell
I was biting my nails all the way through this emotional, tense novel about a woman on the run with her two young daughters after leaving her abusive husband. A heart-rending but ultimately hopeful read. In 2018, Roisín won the prize for Short Story of the Year at the An Post Irish Book Awards, and was shortlisted for the same prize again in 2022. She is the author of the story collection Wild Quiet, which was longlisted for the Edge Hill Short Story Prize and shortlisted for the Kate O’Brien Award. Out 30 Jan
The Artist by Lucy Steeds
The Artist by Lucy Steeds
Set 1920s Provence, this enthralling story follows (fictional) reclusive artist, Edouard Tartuffe, as he and his niece Ettie are joined by a young journalist for the summer. The descriptions of the landscape, the meals they eat and the art created are so rich and evocative it’s as if you’re there. Much of The Artist was written in France, where Steeds was taken a year out of her career in academia to focus on her book. Out 30 Jan
Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis
Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis
This novel about a woman who accepts a UN job in Iraq rehabilitating ISIS brides is one of the funniest I’ve read for ages. Alongside the hilarious observations, this is a thought-provoking, sensitive book about race, religion and womanhood. Younis is a Middle East expert and senior resident Fellow at the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East at the Atlantic Council in Washington DC. Out 25 Feb
The Eights by Joanna Miller
The Eights by Joanna Miller
It’s 1920 in Oxford and women have been admitted to the university for the first time. Enter Beatrice, Dora, Marianne and Otto, who all arrive from very different places but whose lives become deeply entwined. I wholeheartedly recommend this joyful read about the power of female friendship. Miller runs an award-winning poetry gift business and recently studied creative writing at Oxford University. Out 3 April
Fair Play by Louise Hegarty
Fair Play by Louise Hegarty
This sounds so much fun: for her brother's birthday, Abigail hires a grand old house and hosts a murder mystery party. Over the course of the evening, much alcohol is consumed, people fall out and someone has their heart broken. Then morning comes and one of their group is dead and suddenly everyone is a suspect. Hegarty’s stories have appeared in Banshee, The Tangerine, The Stinging Fly and The Dublin Review and have been featured on BBC Radio 4 and she was the inaugural winner of the Sunday Business Post/Penguin Ireland Short Story Prize. Out 3 April
The Names by Florence Knapp
The Names by Florence Knapp
I read the first few chapters of this moving story in awe that it was a debut. Not only is it beautifully written, it's alive with raw emotion and both devastating and heartwarming by turn. It follows a baby boy from birth, then splits into three strands with three different outcomes. Knapp is a quilter and dressmaker and wrote a popular blog, Flossie Teacakes, and has more recently moved over to Substack. She is also an award-winning short story writer and the author of a non-fiction book about English Paper Piecing. Out 8 May
Consider Yourself Kissed by Jessica Stanley
Consider Yourself Kissed by Jessica Stanley
Set against the backdrop of an eventful decade in British politics, this smart, joyful romcom offers an intimate look at the intricacies of a relationship, with characters so real they live beyond the pages. I loved it! Stanley grew up in Australia and now lives in London with her family. She has previously worked as a journalist and on the set of the TV show Neighbours. Out 8 May
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
This story about 73-year-old Sybil who keeps the world at arms length, preferring to stay in touch by letter, already has an endorsement from Ann Patchett - I'm sold! Evans is from the northeastern United States and studied creative writing at Trinity College in Dublin. Out 15 May
The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine
The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine
The debut novel from the author of the acclaimed short-story collections Sweet Home and Dance Move is about three women from very different families are brought together when their sons are accused of assaulting a young woman. Erskine has published two short story collections, Sweet Home and Dance Move and works as a journalist and broadcaster. Out 19 June
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