Mary's Feminist Fiction Reading Group

Welcome to the wonderful Feminist Fiction Reading Group! A place to discover and enjoy a range of titles and themes lovingly hand picked by Mary. Woven together by feminist perspectives and critique, we will be discussing everything from unsung classics to contemporary literary fiction.

Shortlisted for the International Booker Prize 2026, She Who Remains by Rene Karabash will be our August book group pic. Translated from Bulgarain by Izidora Angel, this is a dark and poetic novel about identity, gender, love, freedom and societal norms.

High in the Accursed Mountains, in a village ruled by the ancient laws of the Kanun, Bekija escapes an arranged marriage by becoming a sworn virgin, renouncing her womanhood to live as a man. Her decision sets off a brutal chain of events, destroying her family and separating her from the one she loves the most. Years later, as Bekija - now Matija - tells their story to a visiting journalist, long-buried truths come to light, along with the realization of all that might have been.

There’s no need to prepare or pressure to contribute at all - just bring your lovely self - but do feel free to mention a particular passage or character that you enjoyed during your reading.

Each entry place costs £5, fully redeemable as a voucher towards a copy of the book. We hope you’ll join us for some great conversation, and perhaps some baked goods!

Our Previous book group books include:

The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
Sula by Toni Morrison
Hot Milk by Deborah Levy
Queens of Sarmiento Park by Camila Sosa Villada
Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq
Hagstone by Sinead Gleeson?
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson
Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq
Long Petal of the Sea by Isabelle Allende
How to be both by Ali Smith
Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi
The Persians by Sanam Mahloudji