LITERATURE
Good for You LUCY VINE This romp of a novel by local author Lucy Vine follows psychologist Liv through a public shaming and the ripples it causes. When at a restaurant with her long-term boyfriend, expecting to be proposed to, she finds herself dumped out of the blue. Her furious reaction is filmed by another guest and goes viral on TikTok. As a result of becoming ‘Tiramisu Girl’ (you’ll have to read it), she’s put on leave from her job on morning TV, her private clients cancel their sessions and her publishers start to make worrying noises about the book they commissioned. Adrift and furious, Liv is required to undergo six sessions of anger management therapy, and for the sake of expediency her agent decides she should complete those sessions with her current colleague and university friend, the irritatingly smug, three-piece-suit-wearing Edward. Although no real therapist would let their personal and professional lives intermingle in such a complicated fashion, never let the truth get in the way of a good story. Their sessions together begin to reveal what’s simmering underneath Liv’s anger. And the book is only just getting started. It’s described as a romance, yet while there’s definitely a love story at its heart, it’s not the one you’ll expect. Lighthearted and messy with one hand, proudly feminist and furious with the other, Liv’s chaotic post-break- up decision-making processes are hugely relatable, and Vine’s eighth novel will no doubt be as successful as its predecessors – a great holiday read.
Keep it regional with these three classic books set in Cambridge FAMILIAR SETTINGS
A fantastic time-slip/alternative- reality romance that starts in our city in 1958. Two students meet by chance and fall in love, but they also don’t. A sliding-doors novel with a trio of possible futures for our heroes: some outcomes appear across all of their realities, some are unique, but all will break your heart in their own way. Perfect summer reading for those who love wondering ‘what if?’ The Versions of Us LAURA BARNETT
Forster’s own favourite of his books that many say draws on his time in Cambridge. In the early 1900s, Rickie Elliott is busy enjoying student life when reality gets its claws into him. A series of compromises and choices ensue. Descriptions of the countryside are interspersed with asides on creativity and what it costs to challenge society’s expectations: a read worth persevering with. EM FORSTER The Longest Journey
Nine Lessons NICOLA UPSON
The seventh in local author Upson’s brilliant series with crime writer Josephine Tey in the lead. Not only is this evocative novel set in our city in the thirties, it also sees Josephine and detective Archie Penrose investigate a series of murders connected to the work of legendary Cambridge academic and ghost- storysmith MR James. One to file away for spooky season…
CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK JUNE 2026 23
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