The Benefactors

This book could use a second trigger warning. The first was on the back flap of my copy where I read that a “sexual assault” sets the plot in motion. A more useful one might be, “Assumptions and expectations may be shattered.” Now, I take that as a selling point—I appreciate being taken somewhere I couldn’t imagine by a storyteller with fresh tricks up her sleeve. Erskine is a gifted ventriloquist and the main players’ voices are interspersed with vocal walk-ons to create an effect like an imaginary Belfast Symphony Orchestra tuning up. Along with unorthodox takes on the loaded topics of consent, class, privilege, and misogyny, Erskine makes risky narrative moves that amp up the tension. But even within this uneasiness, you’ll find joy, hope, solace, and quite a few funny bits. Erskine's debut novel came to my attention when it was nominated for multiple awards across the pond and was named Waterstone’s Irish Book of the Year for 2025. I’ll definitely be checking out what she does next.