26A by Diana Evans

Sad, sweet and somewhat haunting, Evans debut novel tells the story of twins, Georgia and Bessi who share a loft at 26A Waifer Avenue in a London suburb. Reminiscent of Zadie Smith’s White Teeth, Evans absolutely nails the “twinness” of the sisters, enough to make me wonder if she is actually a twin herself. It is a rather sprawling coming of age story of sisters, '80s England, mental and sexual abuse, ghosts, Nigeria, sad families and flapjacks. Evans has a rather lyrical prose style and an intriguing ability to get in the heads of her characters and that is literally how the girls end up. She has a real feel for the pop culture of the time and a great ear for dialogue. Keep an eye on what she does next.