Glossy Magazine’s book editor, Sophie Hughen, offers her expert preview of some of the most exciting literary works that you should read. Her selection features a spectrum of genres, celebrated authors, and noteworthy new narratives, ensuring a wealth of engaging options for every reader. For more book-related inspiration from our editor, follow @readablereviews on Instagram.
1. Flashlight by Susan Choi, £20.00 Hardback
Flashlight takes hold of its readers from the first moment. On a hot summer night, ten-year-old Louisa is found barely alive on a Japanese beach, and her father, Serk, seems to have disappeared without a trace. Spanning decades and continents, this novel traces the shockwaves of that event through fractured memories and tangled family ties. Slowly, the truth comes to light through fragments. As Louisa, her mother Anne and others grapple with loss and secrets, the story becomes a profound exploration of grief, history and what remains unseen. A must-read Booker Prize contender from 2025.
2. Stag Dance by Torrey Peters, £16.99 Hardback
This story is a strange, bold and wonderfully messy tale that dives into gender, desire and how people figure out who they are. We follow a group of posturing, rough-looking lumberjacks who decide to attend a winter dance as women. This sets off a storm of jealousy, longing and unexpected self-discovery. Partnered with this story, there is also a collection of short stories, all of which explore similar themes, all the while jumping between post-apocalyptic worlds and secret crushes, all exploring what it means to want something or someone desperately.
3.Okay Days by Jenny Mustard, £9.99 Paperback
Sam is a carefree 28-year-old from Sweden who is spending the summer in London on a work placement. There, she reignites a spark with Lucas, a man she met years earlier. Their connection feels thrilling and immediate, but as most know, most loves don’t last forever. Amid the ups and downs of modern life and self-discovery, the story asks what it means to be truly happy and whether being “okay” can ever be enough.
4.Universality by Natasha Brown, £14.99 Hardback
During an illegal rave in Yorkshire, a man is brutally bludgeoned with a solid gold bar. A young journalist chases the story, digging into who was involved and how the incident even occurred. As her viral article spreads, the book jumps between the lives of the people wrapped up in the incident, making for an important satirical read that pokes fun at media hype, the truth of language, the written word and modern culture. A very exciting and unique read that tells of our culture and fake news.
5. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sonny by Kiran Desai, £20.00 Hardback
This incredible tale follows two young Indians, Sonia, a fiercely independent student and Sunny, a socially awkward math prodigy, as they drift through love, ambition and the feelings of displacement. Set between India and the United States, the novel explores identity and emotional isolation with sharp humour and tenderness. Through powerful words and an amazing storyline, Desai examines how modern aspirations collide with tradition and belonging in an ever-changing world.
6. Maps Of Our Spectacular Bodies by Maddie Mortimer, £9.99 Paperback
In this lyrical and inventive debut, we meet Lia, a woman whose life is upended when a devastating cancer diagnosis returns. Told in parts through the malevolent voice of the disease itself, the novel weaves between past and present, exploring family, memory and what it means to live and die with grace and a sense of identity. It’s darkly funny, profound and truly lays out in the written word the power of our bodies, of loss, of love and of the stories we carry within us.
7. Flesh by David Szalay, £9.99 Paperback
In this minimalist novel, we follow the life of István, a shy Hungarian teenager whose early encounters and impulsive choices in life set him up for an unpredictable adulthood. From a troubled youth in Hungary, to military service and eventual immersion in London’s upper classes, István’s journey is shaped by wealth, desire, ambition and alienation. A profound book and a rightly deserved winner of the 2025 Booker Prize.
8. The Extinction Of Irena Rey by Jennifer Croft, £9.99 Paperback
When a celebrated novelist who goes by the name Irena Rey vanishes while hiking, the eight women who translate her work are left stranded in her remote retreat and in her shadow. As they search for clues, sudden rivalries, devotion and ambitions surface. Part mystery, part satire, the novel scrutinises authorship and translation, asking who truly owns a story when the author is gone and how language and the written word shape identity and power.
9. Her Realm Of Night by Charlotte Slater, £11.99 Paperback
Living as a university student by day, Goddess Robin secretly hunts monsters by night. When her prey begins whispering about the return of the ‘Powerful One’, Robin’s long-lost lover, the God of Death, reappears with a dire plea. Tragedy soon strikes, propelling Robin into the Underworld, where betrayal, prophecy and forbidden magic collide. To stop a spell raising the dead, Robin must break her oldest vow, unleashing horrors that will change the world forever. This incredible tale is written by one of Stockport’s very own and is a must-read this spring!
