June Bookclub reveal!
The heir to Lynda La Plante is here! Plus your chance to win a free copy
I first met Saima Mir, the author of this month’s bookclub pick, when I interviewed her at Cheltenham Literature Festival for a “New Blood” panel highlighting fresh crime writing talent (the others on the panel were Janice Hallett, author of The Appeal and Zakiya Dalila Harris, author of The Other Black Girl). When I read Saima’s debut, The Khan, I was instantly hooked. Set in Yorkshire, it traces the reluctant return of successful London lawyer Jia Khan to the community where she grew up and her father heads up the local crime syndicate. It’s bold, addictive and focusses on a world that’s rarely given attention in fiction.
Jia has to be twice as good as the men and four times as good as the white men and damn she is – and then some.