The Listeners, by Maggie Stiefvater

The Avallon Hotel in the mountains of Virginia is a luxury spa resort that caters to every whim of the rich and infamous. Protégé of its owners, the Guilfoyle family, June Hudson has been the General Manager for 10 years, devoting her entire life to keeping the magical waters sweet and the hotel in balance. When the attack on Pearl Harbor draws the US into the war, the Avallon is commandeered to house enemy diplomats prior to their deportation. June is stretched to her limit, dealing with the FBI, the Feds, her unwelcome guests and the staff, many of whom she is losing to the draft. Can she keep it all together until the hotel is rid of its enemy aliens and will life ever return to what passes as normal at the Avallon? War changes everything, including June, and she finds herself questioning her priorities and her future. This is a strange tale, based on true events but with a magical twist and a very engaging heroine.

The Names, by Florence Knapp

Cora is married to a violent and controlling man, Gordon, who presents to the world as a charming and lovable GP. They have a 9-year-old daughter, Maia, who is already showing signs of damage from this toxic relationship. Gordon has instructed Cora to register the birth of their new son with his name and that of his father before him. But Cora wants to break that tradition and call her son Julian, while Maia would like him to be called Bear. What follows is three versions of the same story with quite different outcomes that hinge on the naming decision. They trace the fate of the family every seven years – Sliding Doors meets 7-Up. The children take very different paths in each story, but suffer consequences of domestic violence in all of them. The dark subject matter is written with sensitivity and intelligence, capturing the voices of Cora, Maia and the three boys and examining the impact on their family and those around them with clarity and empathy. A film version would be interesting.

Clown Town, by Mick Herron

Slow Horse River Cartwright is still waiting for medical clearance to return to MI5’s Slough House repository for failed spies, following his Novichok poisoning. Meanwhile Louisa is considering an opportunity to go private. All plans are disrupted by First Desk Diana Taverner’s need to address a threat from the past and at the same time rid herself of her bête noir, Johnsonesque ex Tory Minister and constant troublemaker Peter Judd. As usual her machinations put the Slow Horses in the line of fire and it is up to their boss, the execrable Jackson Lamb, to sort it out. The action jumps around multiple points of view within chapters, which can get confusing. Herron has never been afraid to kill off his horses, but the long drawn out teaser as to which has been put down this time is an unnecessary and annoying cliffhanger. His withering and succinct analysis of the current state of UK politics and the intelligence service is chilling confirmation of the book title.

Beautiful Lies, by Lisa Unger

Freelance writer Ridley Jones has lived a charmed life in New York, with loving parents and a promising career. That starts to change after a heroic act puts her in the spotlight and she receives a message that makes her question her whole identity. A sexy new neighbour helps her out, but what are his true motives and who can she trust? The opening preamble, set in 1972, is suspenseful and ominously sets up the story. The opening chapter jumps forward 30 years, reverting to first person in an expository mess. This improves as the action heats up and the tale of corruption and violent exploitation unfolds, but the characters are just not credible and the epilogue is as dully expository as chapter one.

The Incandescent, by Emily Tesh

Dr Walden is director of magic at Chetwood School, a cross between Rowling's Hogwarts and Novik's Scholomance, where she is charged with keeping students safe from ravening demons who would like to feast on their burgeoning abilities. When ambitious A-level students summon a demon beyond their powers to contain, Walden has to draw on everything she has to save them and protect the school. Unfortunately this drags up demons from her own past at the school, putting herself and everything she cares about at risk. After a slow and heavily expository beginning this tale develops into an interesting psychological examination of magical teachers and students, with an appropriate British touch of class, wealth and status. The characters and their relationships are well developed and credible. The ending is a little pat, but offers some optimism and the possibility of redemption with a possible sequel.

There will be bodies, by Lindsey Davis

Ten years after the Pompei disaster, Roman informer Flavia Albia and her husband are visiting the region to renovate his uncle’s newly-acquired holiday villa. There they discover the body of the former owner, who was clearly not killed by the volcano. Albia uncovers a tale of piracy, kidnapping and murder, putting her own safety in jeopardy again in her quest for justice. Escaping the familiar streets of Rome is always a boost to these stories and this one sees Davis in fine form, with a great balance of humour, politics and compassion. A postscript would seem to indicate this could be the last Flavia Albia tale and if so this is a fitting send off.

The Unquiet Grave, by Dervla McTiernan

A career crossroads looms for Detective Cormac Reilly in this fourth tale of policing in Galway. Tourists have found a body in a peat bog, not an historic relic but a missing local head teacher. Ex girlfriend Emma’s husband has gone missing in France and she needs Cormac’s support in getting his disappearance properly investigated, which dredges up old feelings and old hurts. Protégé Peter Fisher is emigrating to Australia for better pay and lifestyle, but will he finds policing any more satisfying in another country? The detective must decide whether to take a promotion that will put him even more on the outer within the Garda. The twisty-turny murder investigation feeds satisfyingly into the cops’ choices on their futures, but while the Emma storyline serves as a vehicle for moving on it was clearly only that and is anticlimactic.