Scarlett Thomas is a very prolific young writer (The Seed Collectors is her ninth novel) and she’s also immensely talented. Her witty prose is captivating from the first page of this sprawling and highly original family saga. It begins with the funeral of Great Aunt Oleander (all the characters have botanical names) and it is soon revealed that she has left mysterious seed pods to some of her family members. We then get a glimpse inside each character’s chaotic and dysfunctional world before the fantastical secret of the seed pods is revealed, leading to what can only be described as some tragically comical outcomes.

I am not normally a fan of magic realism but it just works here and doesn’t detract from the realism of the characters who you will come to love and loathe. A little warning, there are some racy bits, and I think there’s a big question mark over the depiction of some of the sex, which can get quite violent in parts, but it’s absolutely still worth reading to make up your own mind about whether this is necessary or not.

Thomas’ writing is that rare combination of smart, funny and satirical but without laboring the point. As well as teaching creative writing, she has also studied ethnobotany, which looks at the interrelationship between people and plants, a subject that is very much at the heart of this novel. For me though, it’s the characters that make this book, their thought processes will make you smile and the dialogue is absolutely spot on. It’s also a deceptively easy book to read but it’s worth taking your time so as not to miss the brilliant and astute satire on modern life.

Kara Nicholson