May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry.
Perry’s novel, shortlisted for the Booker Prize (and the only debut on the list), tells the story of a young-ish curator who is trying to understand the world of a medieval monarch who had been reluctant to take the throne. Specializing in mise-en-scène, the curator seeks to evoke strong feelings of the past through her work at an old palace.
This setup allows Perry, a British poet, to explore how history takes shape: “It’s impossible to know anyone’s entire story in the small details and large gaps that make up a life,” Kirkus Reviews writes, adding that the book is “astonishingly layered.” Order May We Feed the King from your local bookstore.