What we’ve read and liked this year (so far)

The Currency team and a couple of friends (especially my mom Jenny, who reads everything) rustled up a list of books we’ve enjoyed thus far this year. We’re still waiting for that absolutely stonking, “This rocked our world” new release, but nevertheless have found some cool reads. They’re not all recent, and we think that’s the right attitude. Don’t forget the excellent oldies!

‘Kingmaker’ by Sonia Purnell (Viking)

This gripping biography tells the life story of Pamela Churchill Harriman – often dubbed “history’s greatest courtesan” – who reinvented herself from aristocratic ingenue into a political powerbroker. From her marriage to Randolph Churchill to her affairs with Gianni Agnelli and Averell Harriman (who she later married) all the way to her role as US ambassador to France, it’s a story of strategic reinvention and smarts. Purnell writes with clarity and flair. The real takeaway? Harriman wasn’t just a socialite – she was a major behind-the-scenes architect of influence.

‘Other People’s Houses’ by Clare Mackintosh (Sphere)

This is number three in the DC Ffion Morgan series, and it’s just as sharp, twisty, and propulsive as its predecessors. When a wealthy couple is found murdered in a luxury Airbnb, the local Welsh community is thrown into disarray. Secrets unravel, loyalties shift – and Morgan’s personal life bleeds into the case. Mackintosh is a former police officer and her procedural detail shines through in her writing. Bonus points for a flawed, funny lead character you can’t help rooting for.

‘My Name Is Emilia del Valle’ by Isabel Allende (Ballantine Books)

A new novel from Allende is always cause for excitement. This one blends fact, fiction and the author’s signature lyricism as it traces the life of Emilia del Valle, a young Chilean woman navigating identity, trauma and rebellion during political upheaval in the early 1900s. It’s sweeping, romantic and deeply political – classic Allende. At a time when human rights are once again under threat in so many places around the world, Emilia’s story feels fiercely relevant.

‘The Covent Garden Murder’ by Mike Hollow (Allison & Busby)

This is one of Hollow’s Blitz Detective series, in which each instalment sees DI John Jago solving crimes in a different wartime London neighbourhood. This one’s set in Covent Garden, amid bombed-out buildings, black marketeers and West End intrigue. Jago is a classic: principled, weary and just cynical enough. It’s satisfying, atmospheric stuff – perfect for fans of Foyle’s War or classic Christie. Historically rich, but still light enough to zip through in a weekend.

‘The Mirror and the Light’ by Hilary Mantel (Henry Holt and Company)

The final book in Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy is a masterpiece. A tome and a half that awakens the ghosts of Henry VIII’s Tudor court, this historical fiction is immersive and humming with life. Spanning one beheading, one divorce, and two of Henry’s weddings, English history just whips past you. But it isn’t the large historical events that give this book its muscle – it’s Thomas Cromwell, the tragic figure we know will end up on the scaffold by the book’s end. Nonetheless, you are rooting for him all the way, laughing at his wry jokes and balking at his bloody dealings. You will have to put this book down after a while to give your wrists a break, but Mantel’s entrancing characters will still lurk in the corners of your mind – dancing at masque parties and stabbing each other in the back. 

‘Perfection’ by Vincenzo Latronico (Fitzcarraldo Editions)

Don’t let the slimness fool you – this novella packs a quiet, existential punch. Translated from the Italian, Perfection follows an impeccably curated couple as they drift through European cities, parties and apartments. But beneath the surface, the cracks show. It’s a dry, sharply observed commentary on aesthetic living, emotional detachment and the modern cult of “tasteful” everything. It’s also the book that all the “cool literary crowd” are citing as a fave right now. A smidge ironic, don’t you think?

‘Murder on Line One’ by Jeremy Vine (HarperCollins)

This Sunday Times bestseller from British broadcaster Jeremy Vine unfolds in Sidmouth, where late-night radio host Edward Temmis uncovers a murder linked to his listeners. After the tragic loss of his job, he’s pulled back into the mix when Stevie, grappling with her grandmother’s suspicious death, enlists his help. Joined by his friend Kim, their trio navigate seaside secrets and small-town menace. Vine’s procedural blends warmth, grief, and community eeriness — just the sort of mystery that sticks with you.

‘Atmosphere: A Love Story’ by Taylor Jenkins Reid (Hutchinson Heinemann)

TJR fans, rejoice: her new offering is out and has all the hallmarks: solid prose, deep-feeling characters, and an, erm, out-of-this-world backdrop. Set in the 1980s during NASA’s space shuttle programme, it follows a female astronaut on her quest to work among the stars. There’s a serving of romance yes, but it also explores ambition, sacrifice, and what it means to love someone whose head is literally in the stars. Pure, popcorny escapism.

‘Caledonian Road’ by Andrew O’Hagan (Faber & Faber)

The best book I’ve read so far this year? Quite possibly. I bought it in paperback at Heathrow and couldn’t stop reading. O’Hagan delivers a great, baggy, brilliant Bonfire of the Vanities-style tale of contemporary London. Outstanding. (Thanks to literary doyenne Michelle Magwood for this great suggestion.)

A glut of Patrick Radden Keefe

Get stuck into one Patrick Radden Keefe book, and you may find yourself on a binge. The investigative journalist’s Say Nothing is a sweeping telling of The Troubles in Northern Ireland, centred around a single murder. Perhaps even better is Empire of Pain. If you weren’t sure where to lay the blame for the opioid epidemic, Radden Keefe will leave you in no doubt (spoiler: it’s the notorious Sackler family). Meticulously researched, it’s a fascinating take on greed and all forms of power. Snakehead – perhaps not as gripping – is a deep dive into the murky world of people-smuggling, revolving around the innocuous-sounding Sister Ping. All three weave multiple narratives into a coherent, compelling whole and are masterclasses in storytelling. Radden Keefe’s is narrative journalism of the best kind. Well worth your time.

‘Death at La Fenice’ by Donna Leon (Arrow)

Yes, we’re 30 years late to the party – but better late than never. This is the debut that introduced the world to Commissario Guido Brunetti and his Venice. A conductor is murdered at the famed La Fenice opera house and Brunetti investigates, weaving his skilful way through alleys, canals and social niceties. The setting is everything: espresso at Caffè Florian, gossip from gondoliers and a city that is as much of a character as the human cast. With 33 books in the series, and Leon’s Venice memoir waiting after, you’re in for a long, indulgent literary holiday.