A near-flawless novel of emotional truth. Joyce executes this story with precision and flair… Its unputdownable factor lies in its exploration of so many multilayered emotions… It is her clever did-I-read-that-right twist at the end that really got to me and had me scrabbling back through the chapters, open-mouthed.

The power of Joyce’s prose lies in small, astute observations… [her] subtle touches give the book an intense, slightly mesmeric feel. Tense and engrossing… readers who loved The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry will not be disappointed.

Joyce’s faith in the essential goodness of humanity and her observation of the comedy in the everyday shine through… This is a darker, more complex novel than Joyce’s first but readers will find other points of comparison. Not least a twist that few will see coming and will leave you reeling; and a redemptive ending that is perhaps the sweeter given all the pain that goes before. An instant classic, Perfect confirms Rachel Joyce as a major new British literary voice.

Diana herself is faultless. She is to Perfect what Harold Fry was to [The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry]: a fully rounded hero, someone to fall in love with and argue about, cherish and admonish, as though she were real… If only there were more novelists like Rachel Joyce

What’s right with it? You’ll fall in love with the characters. They’re kind, anxious, flawed, funny and wonderful. Also, knowing that the two stories will have to meet builds a wonderful sense of tension. What’s wrong with it? Nothing. It’s brilliant. Even the fact that Byron is convinced that scientists tried to slip an extra two seconds into time is a wonderful hook for all the decisions he goes on to make. Verdict: Uplifting, engaging, sad and funny. A perfect follow-up to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.

This book is hard in every sense… But persevere and plough on alongside Byron (who you’ll find you want to stay with, as if by continuing to read him you might be able to protect him somehow, or at least keep him company), and the reward is a redemptive ending of such tenderness that after 300-odd pages of darkness you will end up grinning dippily and recommending this wild, searching book to everyone you know.

Brilliantly realized… a powerful study of grief, loss, guilt, depression, mental illness – and ultimately the power of love – which grips the reader on every page.

Colonising the territory occupied by Catherine O’Flynn and Clare Morrall, Perfect is marked by effortless storytelling, droll side-swipes at the oddities of human behaviour and the use of simple, unaffected imagery that manages to plumb deep emotion… it will move and enchant.

This month’s best book. 3 reasons to read Perfect: for real characters you’ll fall in love with… for a book that will keep you asking questions… to question the nature of mistakes.

Full of compassion… the heartbreaking story of how two lives are derailed by a split-second mistake.