The utterly addictive killer debut of 2026. With thanks to Jack @jwbakerbooks for the review and The Borough Press for the early copy.

This girl might seem sweet but be careful of her sting.

As with most of the books I have read recently I didn’t know what to expect from this review copy of Honey. What I found was an ensnaring voice that draws you in and doesn’t let you merely read. A passionately told story that teaches the reader, where it can, about gender, race and violence. Having Yrsa, the main character, being a PhD student of sociology is a very clever way to do this and we learn along with her as she studies.

Something this book does very well is inviting the reader to forgive Yrsa, her actions are explainable, understandable even. The justifications Yrsa constructs for herself work just as well on us, inviting us down the rabbit hole with her. So when her actions take a turn, when the justifications stop sticking and we realise there is something deeper going on, not only is it jarring but we are left feeling culpable. Then the book is over, leaving us with a decision to make: do we agree with what was done?

If you like a book that wants you to read it, really read it, then this is a must-read for you. This is a book that expects you to examine the actions of the characters, and what you would do in their place. Yrsa is a phenomenally well-written character, her intelligence and charisma shine off the page. When I finished the story I had the joy of just sitting for a moment, I wanted to process what had happened, to really think about it. I won’t say what conclusions I came to but it takes a special kind of book to make me do that. It’s a book that I want to discuss and deserves to be discussed.

About the Book

Yrsa knows what’s right and wrong. She’s a high achiever. A woman with standards.

She’s also bored. Tired of her PhD. The world’s everyday injustices. The endless disappointments of men.

Then one impulsive act leaves a man dead. And suddenly, Yrsa feels alive.

Comic, sexy, addictive, unpredictable, Honey is about the not-always-righteous path of taking justice into your own hands.

The essential next read for fans of Butter, Yesteryear, My Sister the Serial Killer, Fundamentally or Boy Parts.

About The Author

Imani Thompson is a British writer with Jamaican heritage. During her time studying Sociology at Cambridge University she was published in The Mays and won the Vogue new writer’s prize. She wrote Honey while working as a bookseller at Daunt Books and is now working on her second novel.

Purchase the Book

This book can be purchased in our store either on its own or in a cosy Book Box.

Go to Bookshop