Katherine Bradley: The Sisterhood [2023] hardback

'Frightening and timely, Bradley's The Sisterhood is the book everyone should read this year. If you thought it ended with Orwell, think again . . .' CHRISTINA DALCHER

Vox meets The Handmaid's Tale in this feminist reimagining of 1984

In Oceania, whoever you are, Big Brother is always watching you and trust is a luxury that no one has. Julia is the seemingly perfect example of what women in Oceania should be: dutiful, useful, subservient, meek. But Julia hides a secret. A secret that would lead to her death if it is discovered. For Julia is part of the underground movement called The Sisterhood, whose main goal is to find members of The Brotherhood, the anti-Party vigilante group, and help them to overthrow Big Brother. Only then can everyone be truly free.

When Julia thinks she's found a potential member of The Brotherhood, it seems like their goal might finally be in their grasp. But as she gets closer to Winston Smith, Julia's past starts to catch up with her and we soon realise that she has many more secrets than we'd first imagined - and that overthrowing Big Brother might cost her everything - but if you have nothing left to lose then you don't mind playing the game . . .

This is a story about love, about family, about being a woman, a mother, a sister, a friend and ultimately about what you would sacrifice for the greater good.

'Fast-paced and suspenseful . . . The Sisterhood's greatest gift, however, may be in its message of hope, capable of surmounting even the most formidable of odds and the most uncertain of futures' KATHERINE J. CHEN, author of Joan

'A gut-wrenching, heart-breaking journey through the looking glass of 1984. Compulsively written, Julia's is a story begging to be told' FREYA BERRY, author of The Dictator's Wife

'A shockingly relevant take on a classic' CLAIRE MCGOWAN, author of This Could Be Us

'A dazzling retelling of the classic dystopian novel, which raises profound questions about how society works, and whether or not woman have political agency. I found it memorable, deeply moving, and at times, terrifying' KATE RHODES, author of the Ben Kitto series

'Katherine Bradley has delivered a worthy counterpart to George Orwell's 1984 in this chilling, taut book. It's as claustrophobic as it needs to be; particularly frightening as one looks around and sees that we are voluntarily moving towards Orwell's nightmare. It is nothing short of a triumph' MARA TIMON, author of City of Spies

'In this highly original take on Orwell's 1984- the Big Brother of all dystopian classics - Bradley weaves a complex and engaging plot around the idea of a female resistance to oppressive overlords. Oppressive and creepy, but with real heart' A. K. TURNER, author of Body Language