The Killing Jar by Nicola Monaghan

The Killing Jar is the story of a young girl, who grows up in house filled with drugs, violence and addiction. Her slow transformation from young girl who still believes in a different life, into the life of a psychotic addict is mesmerizing and disturbing. Perhaps the most effective element of this novel is her utter likability, even as she commits a series of increasingly violent crimes as she tries to escape the lifestyle.

Paula Spencer by Roddy Doyle

Paula Spencer is one of those novels that quietly sinks in and weeks later you find yourself remembering bits and pieces of it. I think I am liking it better as I continue to think about it. This follow-up to The Woman Who Walked Into Doors shows a now sober Paula, renegotiating the day-to-day struggle of her new life as a recovering alcoholic. She worries about her daughter, who seems to be following in her footsteps and tries to reconnect with her son, who is also a recovering addict.

This is another of those novels that I am sitting on for a while before I decide whether or not to nominate it.