Five books to read in 2015

What to read? That's always a question I'm grappling with, because there's so much good stuff out there. If you don't have time to browse bookshelves, here are five adult fiction books that should absolutely be on your radar for the first half of 2015 (links in titles go to publisher pages).

1. Summertime by Vanessa Lafaye

Based on a true event, Summertime explores racial tensions, a segregated society and the treatment of veterans against the backdrop of a community hit by the tragedy of a hurricane. Summertime is a great story, but more than that, it educates you about a horrible time in history that's been almost completely hidden away.
Out January 15, 2015, from Orion

2. A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale

Gale's story is about a privileged man who leaves his cushy lifestyle in London to farm a homestead in Canada in the early 20th century. But A Place Called Winter is not a typical story about a man finding himself, from its opening it's something completely unexpected and filled with layers upon layers of excellent storytelling.
Out March 26, 2015, from Tinder Press

My review

3. Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum

The story of one woman's unhappiness has the potential to be grating, but instead it's compelling, and full of tension and shocking and heartbreaking moments. Plus, the way in which Essbaum uses language is absolutely brilliant, and Hausfrau is the kind of book you can read again and again, and each time see news things in. (Also, this book's cover is just beatiful.)
Out March 26, 2015, from Mantle

My review

4. All Involved by Ryan Gattis

Covering six days during the 1992 LA riots, Gattis presents a fictional account of some of the crime that took place away from the main rioting. Telling the stories of gang members, innocent bystanders, emergency service personnel and more, All Involved is shocking storytelling, compelling and like nothing I've read before.
Out May 7, 2015, from Picador

5. The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett

Three beautiful, complicated, moving love stories about the same couple. Eva and Jim meet the same way in each of the three versions of their lives, but what follows in each is very, very different. Not only is this a stunning book, I'm also in awe of Barnett's craftsmanship, as she weaves together three tales virtually seamlessly.
Out June 4, 2015 from Orion

Review: Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum

Hausfrau is a bleak novel about an unhappy, almost unfeeling, woman. It's not a novel you have fun reading, but it is a novel you can't stop reading, because despite the fact that's not fun, it is very, very, very good.

American Anna has lived near Zurich for almost 10 years with her husband Bruno. She has three beautiful children, but there is something missing. Anna is unconnected from her life, has refused for years to immerse herself in the culture of Switzerland, has never learnt to drive so has to take trains everywhere, and has never learnt the particular version of German the people surrounding her speak. To fill the void, Anna embarks on an affair with a man from her German class, and over the course of three months, Anna's life goes from cold to falling apart.

Hausfrau is split into three sections, one for each month of Anna's life that we pass with her, but the timeline Essbaum's novel spans is much, much larger. While it is clear what is happening each month, Essbaum purposefully keeps all other events less time-specific. We see snippets of conversation between Anna and her psychologist, Doktor Messerli, although we never actually sit in on a full session. These snippets have Anna analysing guilt, love, language, memory and more, all of which form themes in the book.