During the lockdown years, I kept reading articles by novelists saying how unproductive they were feeling, how virus narratives had colonised their subconscious minds, destroying the creative impulse. 2023’s novels – or at least those of them I’ve read – suggest otherwise. It’s an extraordinary crop, with memorable books from both celebrated and lesser-known authors. As usual, I’ve concentrated on those released in the first half of the year and have left first novels to the New Review’s best debut novelists feature.
Let’s start with some big names. There’s inevitable excitement surrounding a new Bret Easton Ellis. The Shards (Swift, January) is a riotous tale of privilege and psychosis at a swanky prep school. After the horrors of last year, it’s splendid that Salman Rushdie has a new novel out – Victory City (Jonathan Cape, February). Better still, it’s a cracker. Purportedly a rediscovered ancient epic, it’s about the transformative power of human creativity, the enduring ability of art to shape the world. Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton (Granta, March) comes 10 years after the Booker-winning The Luminaries and is worth the long wait. Full of wit, big ideas and the most beautiful writing, it’s the story of a group of guerrilla gardeners who clash with a billionaire prepper. I loved it.
