In brief: The Wolf Den; In Love With Hell; Brixton Hill – reviews

A historical novel set in the Roman sex industry, a dark study of alcoholic writers and a thriller with a social conscience

The Wolf Den

Elodie Harper
Apollo, £16.99, 454pp

A Pompeii brothel in first century AD might not be the obvious setting for a novel about female empowerment, but Harper’s vibrant and thrilling story is steeped in historical detail while remaining contemporary in its concerns. The book follows the fortunes of Amara, a reluctant “she-wolf” – a woman sold into sex work – who aims to escape from this degrading world while taking comfort from the solidarity of her colleagues. Harper tells her gripping tale with conviction and wit.

In Love With Hell

William Palmer
Robinson, £20, 262pp

Drinking has traditionally been the writer’s vice and Palmer’s pen portraits of 11 alcoholic authors, from Patrick Hamilton to Elizabeth Bishop, place their work in the context of their bibulous activities. Palmer’s vignettes are engaging and highly readable, despite some sloppy copy-editing and sweeping generalisations. There are some questionable omissions, too, and the book may have benefited from exploring more writers’ lives.

Brixton Hill

Lottie Moggach
Corsair, £8.99, 288pp (paperback)

Moggach’s former partner is Chris Atkins, author of the prison memoir A Bit of a Stretch. She draws on her experiences of visiting Atkins in jail to considerable effect in this gripping thriller with a social conscience. Her protagonist, Rob, is a convict who leaves Brixton on day release to work in a local charity shop and forms a bond with Steph, a businesswoman whom he literally bumps into. Steph’s agenda, and how it relates to Rob’s incarceration, is teasingly revealed over the course of a twist-laden novel.

• To order The Wolf Den, In Love With Hell or Brixton Hill go to guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply

Contributor

Alexander Larman

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
In Brief: On Chapel Sands; Nobody Will Tell You This But Me – reviews
A gripping memoir by Laura Cumming along with a touching tribute to a Brooklynite grandmother

Hephzibah Anderson

12, Apr, 2020 @10:00 AM

Article image
In brief: The Turnout; Conversations on Love; To Be a Man – reviews
Megan Abbott’s gripping ballet thriller, moving meditations on love, and Nicole Krauss’s impressive short story collection

Hannah Beckerman

18, Jul, 2021 @2:00 PM

Article image
In brief: Three Times a Countess; Queen High; Nina Simone’s Gum – review
An eye-opening biography of Raine Spencer; an exciting counterfactual novel set in postwar Britain; and Warren Ellis’s witty account of devotion

Alexander Larman

02, Oct, 2022 @3:00 PM

Article image
In brief: The Good Sharps; The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle; Fey's War – review
A beguiling biography of a prominent 18th-century family; the tale of two strait-laced brothers on the European grand tour; and a mother’s struggle with the Nazis

Alexander Larman

09, Aug, 2020 @11:00 PM

Article image
In brief: Four Shots in the Night; The Kellerby Code; Masquerade – review
The gripping real-life story of the murder of a spy; a funny and chilling debut in hock to the Ripley books; and the definitive biography of Noël Coward

Alexander Larman

17, Mar, 2024 @12:30 PM

Article image
In brief: 42: The Wildly Improbable Ideas of Douglas Adams; Alchemy; Mercury Pictures Presents – review
A fascinating glimpse into the mind of the humorist and sci-fi writer; a rip-roaring historical thriller; and a subversive novel set in golden-age Hollywood

Alexander Larman

06, Aug, 2023 @2:00 PM

Article image
In brief: Hotbed; The Very Nice Box; In Love With Hell – review
Joanna Scutts’s fascinating secret US club of early 20th-century feminists, Laura Blackett and Eve Gleichman’s quirky romcom and William Palmer’s vivid study of authors and alcohol

Hephzibah Anderson

03, Jul, 2022 @2:00 PM

Article image
In brief: Troy; Home Stretch; Three Hours – reviews
Stephen Fry gives fresh life to classical myth, Graham Norton engrosses with his new novel and Rosamund Lupton compels with a school-shooting thriller

Hannah Beckerman

11, Oct, 2020 @12:00 PM

Article image
In brief: Solo; The Forger's Daughter; Little Weirds – reviews
A timely guide to happy home-working, a literary thriller and a comedian’s exuberant essay collection are all worth your time

Hephzibah Anderson

25, Oct, 2020 @1:00 PM

Article image
In brief: Illuminations; The World: A Family History; From Manchester With Love – reviews
Alan Moore’s short stories enchant, Simon Sebag Montefiore’s dynastic history illuminates and Paul Morley’s biography of Tony Wilson is a moving portrait of Manchester

Ben East

16, Oct, 2022 @4:00 PM