The Night Always Comes by Willy Vlautin

Amongst some fairly over-the-top and violent criminal behaviour, lies the heart of this book – a woman trying to make amends, and who’s deeply anxious about the future for herself and her handicapped brother. It’s her brother that motivates her, and Vlautin captures the life complexities as well as the daily challenges of people in a caring role. I enjoyed the way Vlautin spliced scenes from the past into the present, which gave context for the characters but I had trouble with the conclusion – no spoilers, but I wasn’t convinced.

2.5/5

Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton

Why did I love this book so, so much? I’m not exactly sure, apart from the fact that there was something about the way that Dolly spoke about her friends (with such love and affection), alongside all the shenanigans experienced with the same friends that resonated very, very deeply. Some readers will interpret Dolly’s essays as first-world-problems-described-by-a-privileged-Millennial – fair enough, but I found her observations insightful and warm and actually quite sensible. Best of all, she’s not afraid to laugh at herself.

It is futile and knackering to try and make all of your tiny choices representative of your moral compass then beat yourself up when this plan inevitably fails. Feminists can get waxed. Priests can swear. Vegetarians can wear leather shoes. Do as much good as you can. The weighty representation of the world cannot rest on every decision you make.

Spoiler: what Dolly does learn about love comes from her relationships with family and friends, as opposed to (fleeting) romantic encounters.

4/5

Mrs March by Virginia Feito

Lots of reviews are comparing Feito to Patricia Highsmith – I’m not familiar enough with Highsmith’s work to make a judgement but I did find much to like in Mrs March, notably an intriguing voice that hooked me from the outset, and an curious sense of time (I could not pinpoint when this book was set – there were pantyhose and remote controls; mechanical train sets for Christmas and party guests who had never heard of foie gras…hints but no evidence). What let the story down ever so slightly, was the repetitive use of motifs, flagging the unreliable narrator each time – this was okay to listen to but I reckon I would have wearied sooner had I been reading.

3/5