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(Mills & Boon £8.99, 320pp)

The fiercely competitive world of an elite ballet company is the setting for Hamrick’s debut novel.

Outwardly all poise, pastel tutus and satin pointe shoes, behind the scenes there is a messier, if no less compelling, world of bitching, body-shaming and illicit sex and drugs.

Hamrick’s heroine, Sylvie Carter, is an innocent teenage ballerina when she joins North American Ballet. But that quickly changes when she is offered private coaching by the company’s wolfish assistant director, Sebastian Alvarez.

Sylvie discovers a new world of wickedly sophisticated hedonism.

As a former ballerina (and ’s partner), Hamrick knows the mixture of glamour, sleaze and sheer hard work that performing at the highest level involves, and her novel is an addictively racy account of the thrills and spills of being a star.

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(Penguin £9.99, 320pp)

In the small Irish village where she lives, social influencer Ciara Dunphy is the undisputed Queen Bee. Her home is immaculate, she has a handsome husband, Gerry, and two adorable children — and every detail of their lives is shared on her glamorous yet relatable lifestyle blog.

But behind the perfect photos, Ciara’s life is falling apart. Her only real confidante is quiet, self-contained Mishti, who is trapped in an arranged marriage with a coldly controlling doctor.

And Ciara loses no opportunity to turn village opinion against her detested neighbour, hippyish Lauren with her out-of-control children and charming, feckless partner, Sean. Both Mishti and Lauren know some of Ciara’s secrets, and suspect others. But then a fatal accident exposes a wicked new level of deceit and desire. Bose’s debut novel is a compellingly twisted tale of toxic love.

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(William Collins £10.

99, 348pp)

A few years ago, Nicolson and his wife, Sarah Raven, were sailing in the Aegean when he picked up a book by his father-in-law, John Raven. The book explored the ideas of Greek philosophers, who lived some 2,500 years ago in the places where Nicolson was sailing.

Their discussions began a conversation about the great conundrums of existence that are still being debated today. Nicolson finds it still astonishingly relevant, offering inspiration, guidance and solace.

Poets, philosophers and epic heroes, including the lyric poet Sappho and Homer’s legendary trickster Odysseus, shared what Nicolson calls a ‘harbour mind’ — fluid, adaptable, adventurous —well adapted to the challenges we face today.

Generously illustrated with photographs of ancient Greek artefacts, this is a rich study of what it means to be human.