Universality by Natasha Brown is a curious short novel. It’s initially set in London, where the Universalists commune takes over a farm and there’s a missing gold bar. Then the story moves to Edmonton and we learn more of what happened and how the characters are connected. I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the full cast as there’s multiple points of view but I found the storyline disjointed. It’s quite dry as the journalist is recounting events to us. While I didn’t love this book I’m still curious about Brown’s previous novel Assembly.

Delighted to include this title in the March edition of Novel Encounters, my column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for the Books section of Zoomer, Canada’s national lifestyle and culture magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)

Really thankful for an advanced proof of Brown’s newest novel - I quite enjoyed the opening of the novel - it totally grabbed me - an attack occurring on a farm on the outskirts of London during Covid. A book about class, capitalism and woke culture - a fascinating deep dive into all these things. I was completely invested to begin with, knowing that every word matters in this very short novel, but lost interest as the novel continued. It was disjointed, and maybe trying to say too much? For this reader it felt very incoherent as it progressed and I completely lost interest. Admittedly Brown is a very talented writer and I am very sure this will have wide appeal - just not my cup of tea.