The Sea Inside by Philip Hoare

Philip Hoare won the Samuel Johnson prize for Leviathan, his musings on whales. This new book, "part memoir, part fantastical travelogue", sees him rediscover the sea, from the south coast of the UK to the Azores and New Zealand, investigating both natural and human history. Fourth Estate, 6 June.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

Fans will be desperate to get their hands on The Ocean at the End of the Lane – it's been eight years since Anansi Boys, Gaiman's last novel for adults, was published. Now, thanks to his comics, childen's fiction, fantasy writing and Doctor Who scripting, he is bigger than ever. A fantastical fable, The Ocean … follows the adventures of a young boy subjected to evil beyond his imagining, with only a family of three strange women – the oldest of whom can remember the Big Bang – to help him. Headline, 18 June.

Longbourn by Jo Baker

Pride and Prejudice, which celebrates its 200th anniversary this year, has been subjected to erotic reimaginings, zombie reimaginings and multiple sequels. Now, Jo Baker gives us the story from the servants' perspectives and pulls off the seemingly impossible: a completely fresh take on Austen. "If Elizabeth Bennet had the washing of her own petticoats, Sarah thought, she would be more careful not to trudge through muddy fields." Utterly engrossing.

Doubleday, 15 August.

MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood

The conclusion to Margaret Atwood's dystopian trilogy, which began with Oryx and Crake, MaddAddam is set in a world devastated by a man-made plague, where the bioengineered Crakers live alongside the humans they were created to replace. Brutal, extraordinary; catch up with the first two books now.

Bloomsbury, 29 August.