Book of the Month: Summer Hours by Alessandra Thom

We are delighted to be able to offer five copies of New Writers Awardee Alessandra Thom's exciting debut novel Summer Hours in our June Book of the Month competition, courtesy of our friends at Polygon.

Described as 'a spry tale of friendship and desire', the book promises to be the perfect summer read. You can win a copy by answering the question at the bottom of this page by midnight on 30 June 2025.

All entrants must reside in the UK and full terms and conditions apply. Check out our competitions page to find more giveaways.

About Summer Hours

It's a hot Edinburgh summer, and Roisin’s life is stagnating. She spends her days cancelling plans, skipping work and drinking lukewarm wine in the bathtub with her best friend Eve.

When their wealthy mutual friend Claire offers Roisin a significant amount of money under the guise of ‘freelance work,’ Roisin thinks her luck might finally be changing. But Claire’s proposal is not all it seems, and soon Roisin finds herself trapped. Paralysed by both her intense infatuation with Eve and her secret arrangement with Claire, Roisin must walk a delicate line to avoid losing what matters to her most.

Q&A with Alessandra Thom

How did you first get into writing?

I always knew that an author was what I wanted to be, but never thought I would actually be able to finish writing a novel. As a child I would frequently write the first page of a novel, then abandon it very quickly for anything that was more interesting. As a teenager I used to take a bright red notebook to the beach and write terrible poetry. I started writing short fiction again when I was a student at Strathclyde, and loved it. I went to the writing group at Category Is bookshop for a bit and found encouragement and a wee community and something I was writing for. I cobbled together a portfolio and applied to master's programmes. I was very, very lucky to be accepted to St Andrews, where I was taught by and learned from wonderful writers. I wrote Summer Hours during that time. Being surrounded by people who took writing seriously was transformative. Thank you SAAS.

What can readers expect from Summer Hours?

Summer Hours is a little whirlwind of a book, about a complex, murky, beautiful friendship between two complex, murky, beautiful women. It’s set over a hot (ish) Edinburgh summer, and is about a young woman called Roisin. She spends most of her time skipping work and drinking cheap wine with her best friend, Eve, who has been crashing on Roisin’s sofa for a little longer than expected. When Eve’s wealthy friend Claire offers Roisin a well-paid, low-effort job, Roisin thinks she’s set. But Claire’s proposal is not all it seems and Roisin finds she must walk a delicate line to avoid losing what matters to her most.

I think readers can expect a coming-of-age book about drinking too much, desire, loyalty, manic pixie dream girls, having an unhealthy obsession with your best pal, and being entitled, young and stupid. It’s also very much about Edinburgh, and other things bigger than we are (mountains and rituals).

Why did you choose Edinburgh as the setting for your debut novel?

I started writing Summer Hours while I was living in Edinburgh and finished it during a very hot summer in London. Summer Hours is my total love letter to Edinburgh, my favourite city in the world. I don’t think this story could have been set anywhere else. Edinburgh is a city full of contradictions, a capital city famous for its architecture with a gorse-smothered volcano in its centre. What better setting for a novel about young queer womanhood, with all its external finery and internal wilderness. It’s also just really pretty, which was nice to write.