Upgrade your commute

My Sister, the Serial Killer

Book by Oyinkan Braithwaite

Last month we tried to brighten up your grey and gloomy winter commute a bit, but for February we’re doing pretty much the opposite, with a dark and twisty, page-turny thriller about family drama and murder.

My Sister, the Serial Killer’s tagline, “when blood is thicker, and more difficult to get out of the carpet”, brilliantly sums up the tone Braithwaite’s recently-released darkly comic debut, which opens with one sister scrubbing blood from the bathroom after the other sister stabs to death yet another boyfriend in ‘self-defence’.

Set in Lagos, nurse Korede is both deeply jealous and wildly protective of her gorgeous sister Ayoola - reasons for which become clearer as their abusive father’s back story is revealed incrementally, creating a compelling sense of mystery.

The chapters are short and punchy - perfect if your commute is only a few stops - and if you can get any of your colleagues to read it at the same time, it offers loads of themes to talk once you get to your desk. Unsurprisingly, a film is already on the cards.

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Atlantic Books, £8.54 from Amazon)