<iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-K3L4M3" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden">

Books

Mario Reading reviews four first-rate first novels

The trials of married life and the revenge of a spurned mistress are among the themes of promising debut novels from Michela Wrong, Natasha Pulley, Benjamin Johncock and Julia Pierpont

29 August 2015

9:00 AM

29 August 2015

9:00 AM

Borderlines Michela Wrong

Fourth Estate, pp.352, £14.99, ISBN: 9780008147402

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street Natasha Pulley

Bloombury Circus, pp.336, £12.99, ISBN: 9781408854280

The Last Pilot Benjamin Johncock

Myriad, pp.320, £8.99, ISBN: 9781908434845

Among The Ten Thousand Things Julia Pierpont

Oneworld, pp.336, £14.99, ISBN: 9781780747637

It has become something of a truism among writers’ groups and in articles offering advice on how best to secure the services of an agent or publisher that the opening of a novel is everything — the ne plus ultra of the writer’s armoury. If one can knock the reader’s socks off with the first few lines one is almost there.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Subscribe for just $2 a week

Try a month of The Spectator Australia absolutely free and without commitment. Not only that but – if you choose to continue – you’ll pay just $2 a week for your first year.

  • Unlimited access to spectator.com.au and app
  • The weekly edition on the Spectator Australia app
  • Spectator podcasts and newsletters
  • Full access to spectator.co.uk
Or

Unlock this article

REGISTER

'Borderlines', £12.99, 'The Watchmaker of Filigree Street', £10.99 , 'The Last Pilot', £8.54, and 'Among The Ten Thousand Things', £12.99 are available from the Spectator Bookshop, Tel: 08430 600033

You might disagree with half of it, but you’ll enjoy reading all of it. Try your first month for free, then just $2 a week for the remainder of your first year.


Comments

Don't miss out

Join the conversation with other Spectator Australia readers. Subscribe to leave a comment.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Close