Having scooped up a host of awards for bestselling novels Life After Life and A God In Ruins, Kate Atkinson is back with Transcription, another page-turning slice of literary fiction that’s about to become the next paperback on your must-read list.

Set in 1940 (and several time periods after), the novel follows 18-year-old Juliet Armstrong as she’s reluctantly recruited into the murky world of MI5 espionage.

Initially stuck behind a typewriter transcribing the mundane chatter of fascist sympathisers, Juliet soon finds herself out in the field, where her actions have consequences reaching far beyond the end of the war.

It’s a thrilling tale of shifting identities and questionable loyalties, but it’s the sardonic, precocious and super-relatable Juliet who’s the real star of the show.

Here’s why you’re about to fall in love with her…

5 reasons why the lead character in 'Transcription' is 2019’s most relatable heroine