1. Pavel and I, Dan Vyleta
Golden-hearted hookers and morally ambiguous American GIs loom large in this thriller but it's bombed-out Berlin, in the winter of 1946, that's the real star of Vyleta's impressive debut.
Bloomsbury Publishing, £12.99
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2. Counting The Stars, Helen Dunmore
The life of the Roman poet Catullus is the inspiration for Counting the Stars. Obsessed with his married lover and tormented by jealousy, Catallus is powerless to resist her charms.
Fig Tree, £16.99
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3. Once Upon A Time In England, Helen Walsh
Her last book, Brass, was like Marmite – it left some readers cold while others raved about it. Now Walsh is back with this epic tale of family life on the mean streets of Warrington.
Canongate Books, £14.99
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4. The Night of the Mi’raj, Zoe Ferraris
This psychological drama revolves around the death of a Saudi Arabian woman on the run from her oppressive family. Will the investigator ever find out what happened to her?
Little Brown, £14.99
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5. Something To Tell You, Hanif Kureishi
Proving that psychoanalysts are as screwed up as the rest of humanity, Kureishi’s middle-aged narrator Jamal ponders the nature of secrets, life, love and growing old.
Faber and Faber, £16.99
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6. The Age of Shiva, Manil Suri
The latest book from Indian-American academic mathematician and novelist Manil Suri follows 17-year-old Meera and her family through post-Partition India.
Bloomsbury Publishing, £14.99
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7. Revelation, CJ Sansom
The fourth novel in Sansom’s series of exhaustively researched and brilliantly written historical thrillers sees lawyer Matthew Shardlake investigating a spate of horrific murders.
Macmillan, £17.99
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8. American Short Stories, edited by Richard Ford
Although this anthology was released at the end of last year, it should still count as a spring must-read. With 44 shocking, fresh and classic stories, it shows American writing at its best.
Granta Books, £25
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9. Submarine, Joe Dunthorne
Oliver Tate’s ambitions include finding out “why my mother’s getting surfing lessons – and probably more – from a hippie-looking twonk”. An Adrian Mole for the Noughties.
Hamish Hamilton Ltd, £16.99
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10. Beautiful Children, Charles Bock
Lincoln and Lorraine’s 12-year-old son Newell has vanished in Las Vegas. His disappearance puts their already rocky marriage under insurmountable strain.
John Murray, £14.99
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5 March 2008, Chosen by Katy Guest
