THE OCCASIONAL VIRGIN
HANAN AL-SHAYKH
Born and brought up in Beirut, novelist Al-Shaykh has been described as the Jane Austen of the Arabic world. Her new novel, The Occasional Virgin, transports us to the shimmering Italian Riviera, and conjures up the blazing azures, delicious salty smells and vibrating warmth of the Mediterranean as convincingly as it does the passion and angsts of its lead characters, Huda and Yvonne. This is a funny, honest and sensual novel, about female friendships, Arabic wisdom, self-knowledge, romance, sex, men, and the alluring laps, licks and kisses of The White Sea.
You can float on it for a while, but it will take you deeper than you might expect. (Bloomsbury, £16.99)
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO SAVE YOURSELF
JM HOLMES
This debut novel from award-winning…