5 new books to read this week

Thriller writer James Patterson is back with his latest celebrity collaboration – this time teaming up with Hollywood star Viola Davis…

Fiction

1. Under Water by Tara Menon is published in hardback by Summit Books UK, priced £16.99 (ebook £9.99). Available March 12

Set between a small island off the coast of Thailand and New York City, Under Water focuses on two natural disasters, the 2004 tsunami and Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and the grief which comes with them. Although the protagonist Marissa finds herself in tragic circumstances, there is love and light in her friendship with her soul sister Arielle. Menon perfectly encapsulates female friendships and how integral they can be to one’s being. The author’s beautiful descriptions of the stunning Thai coastline transport the reader and make them feel as if they’re swimming right alongside Marissa, Arielle and the manta rays. Menon’s debut evokes a fondness in the reader for the characters within it, and will stay with you for a long time.
10/10
(Review by Rhiannon James)

2. Judge Stone by James Patterson and Viola Davis is published in hardback by Century, priced £20 (ebook £9.99). Available now

A state of the nation book about abortion, race and politics provides James Patterson with his latest celebrity collaboration thriller novel, this time with actress and film producer Viola Davis. The partnerships have proved fruitful in recent years – Patterson has previously written books with former US president Bill Clinton and singer Dolly Parton. Judge Stone focuses on a controversial case presided over by a pioneering black judge in Alabama, where a nurse is arrested for aborting the baby of a 13-year-old. This breaks the law in the Deep South state, and the case captures the nation’s attention and brings back trauma from Stone’s own past. Patterson’s prolificacy means he knows what he’s doing, and the book is easy to race through. The story is pertinent in the culture war era and has a few unexpected twists and turns, even if it does feel it has been written for a Netflix adaptation. However, the writing is often over-described, and the ending feels a bit too crowd-pleasing for the reality of 2026.
7/10
(Review by Harry Taylor)

3. Hooked by Asako Yuzuki, translated by Polly Barton, is published in paperback by Fourth Estate, priced £14.99 (ebook £9.99). Available March 12

In Asako Yuzuki’s follow up to smash hit Butter, we meet Eriko and Shoko, two Tokyo women who have never had any female friends. Their paths cross when high-achieving and privileged Eriko engineers a seemingly-spontaneous meeting between her and Shoko, who has gained online popularity for a blog about her life as a lazy housewife. Eriko, a devout fan, becomes convinced the two are meant to be best friends. Hooked delves into several of the themes Butter did around the expectations placed on women in modern Japan. At points, Yuzuki touches deftly on extreme loneliness despite professional accomplishments, the horror of others seemingly advancing quicker in their lives, and whether some people are incapable of connecting with others. Despite this, Hooked falls down somewhat in its central plot – after a while, Eriko’s complete obsession with Shoko and her resulting insane behaviour begins to eschew nuance and grow tedious.
6/10
(Review by Jasmine Norden)

Non-fiction

4. We Are Each Other by Jess Mills is published in hardback by Leap, priced £18.99 (ebook £16.99). Available now

In We Are Each Other, Jess Mills movingly recounts the last year of her mother, MP Tessa Jowell’s, life. It’s rawly emotional, and deals with the realities of grief in a moving way. Mills highlights the dichotomy of that year, as she gave birth to her first child weeks before her mother’s brain tumour was discovered – meaning she was particularly aware of the cycle of life. Mills writes movingly about her mother, the gut-wrenching months before her death and how isolated she felt in her grief. However, it’s not all doom and gloom – ultimately, Mills highlights hope and happiness, despite the seismic event of losing her mother.
8/10
(Review by Prudence Wade)

Children’s book of the week

5. The Magic Feather by Julia Donaldson, illustrated by Catherine Rayner, is published in hardback by Macmillan Children’s Books, priced £12.99 (ebook £3.99). Available March 12

She might be famed for rambunctious reads like The Gruffalo and Room On The Broom, but Julia Donaldson is also expert at quiet, emotionally astute, gently educational reads too, like The Oak Tree and The Paper Dolls. The Magic Feather joins that list. Susanna, who loves birds, comes into possession of a magical feather that gives her the power to understand what her feathered friends are twittering on about. It’s a skill that comes in handy when she voyages across the sea and visits a kingdom where the birds’ trees are facing the axe. Catherine Rayner’s illustrations are stunning, as well as accurate, so you can play ‘spot the linnet/jay/lark’ and broaden your family’s bird knowledge beyond classic garden robins and magpies. Annoyingly though, at two moments the story skips so dramatically you find yourself checking you haven’t actually missed a page. Arguably, the publishers dubbing it a ‘fairytale’ is a ploy to cover those odd plot jumps, but otherwise, it’s a charming book, especially for children interested in the birds outside their window.
7/10
(Review by Ella Walker)

BOOK CHARTS FOR THE WEEK ENDING MARCH 7

HARDBACK (FICTION)
1. The Last Starborn Seer by Venetia Constantine
2. A Far-flung Life by ML Stedman
3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
4. Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman
5. Three Summers by Karen Swan
6. Witch Trial by Harriet Tyce
7. Berwick: The DCI Ryan Mysteries by LJ Ross
8. The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
9. Nonesuch by Francis Spufford
10. The Witch And The Wolf by Lindsey Kelk
(Compiled by Waterstones)

HARDBACK (NON-FICTION)
1. Tender by Harry Baker
2. My Gardening Life by Mary Berry
3. A Hymn To Life by Gisele Pelicot
4. In The Hide by Gordon Buchanan
5. You With The Sad Eyes by Christina Applegate
6. Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins & Sawyer Robbins
7. The Shortest History Of Ireland by James Hawes
8. No-Nonsense Nutrition by Dominique Ludwig
9. Always Remember by Charlie Mackesy
10. Bloody Dangerous by Colin Bell
(Compiled by Waterstones)

AUDIOBOOKS (FICTION AND NONFICTION)
1. Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire by J.K. Rowling
2. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
3. Harry Potter And The PrisonerOf Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
4. Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
5. My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney
6. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
7. The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins
8. Berwick by LJ Ross
9. A Hymn To Life by Gisele Pelicot
10. The Names by Florence Knapp
(Compiled by Audible)