59 h. ago Ordinary Love by Marie Rutkoski review – some of the best sex scenes I’ve read this year

In this page-turning romance, teenage sweethearts reunite as thirtysomething womenSex is notoriously difficult to write. Some authors avoid it entirely; even those who have been called great can come a cropper. Which is why I want to start this review by saying that the sex scenes in Ordinary Love are some of the best I have read this year, and that Marie Rutkoski has a facility for writing physical intimacy that can elude even some of our most gifted authors. Her voice has been compared to that of Sally Rooney. I don’t see much of that in this novel beyond a Rooneyesque ability to write sex well, but that is a talent worth noting.Ordinary Love is a queer romance that tells the story of Emily and Gen, teenage sweethearts who break up in college and reunite in their 30s, their paths having diverged dramatically. Emily marries Jack, who is wealthy and emotionally abusive. When she sees Gen again, she is in the process of leaving him for the second time (the novel opens with ...

Politics

3 d. ago Grooming gangs scandal: Damning key findings from the Casey review

The Government has now ordered a new national inquiry into grooming gangs after the shocking findings

Events

8 d. ago Magdalena, Woman of Joy review – sex, sin and saintliness with a tour de force host

Playhouse East, LondonLily Sinko rages, writhes, provokes and teases her way through the horrifying life story of her storyteller with cartoonish abandonMagdalena appears from the dark, perched on a bar stool, cigarettes and liquor by her side, an array of hanging lamps casting a sultry glow. Her first words set the tone – “You want to fuck me,” she says – and lead us into an uncompromising introduction, littered with sex, violence and sideways jokes.She is the creation of French-English actor and writer Lily Sinko, and as her character’s name suggests, we’re hurled through a life of saintliness and sin, despair and redemption, as Magdalena does the best with the hand she’s dealt. We travel to her childhood in Marseille with a hostile “Papa”, an airport abduction that sees her deposited at the Virgin Mary School for Bad Bad Girls (Cash Only), and a wild escape through the streets of France, finding fleeting refuge in a cathedral.At Playhouse East, London, until 28 June Continue read...

Politics

2 w. ago And Just Like That season three review – finally! The Sex and the City spin off hits its stride

The series has given up trying to squeeze its characters into the modern age and is content to just be. Fans of the original will sink into it as if it is made of marshmallows and airIt all fell into place for me around the shoe montage. Roughly halfway through the third season of And Just Like That, there is an on-screen procession of footwear, strident and unapologetically far too long. Carrie has been accused by her downstairs neighbour of walking too loudly on the floor above his bed. A parade of sandals, boots and mules strut back and forth across a polished and expensive wooden floor. I watched this march of the stilettos and began to suspect that the storyline had been retrofitted to the idea of simply showing off the shoes. And I realised that, even if that is the case, I don’t mind at all, because And Just Like That has found its feet.It took a while for it to get there, but finally, the Sex and the City spin-off feels comfortable in its own skin. If the first two seasons w...

Events

2 w. ago A man charged in a 2013 Pennsylvania campus sex assault hires a lawyer to review possible plea deal

An American who was extradited from France this year to face charges in a 2013 campus sexual assault case has hired a private lawyer to review a potential plea in Pennsylvania

Economics

3 w. ago The writing is clunky and the acting often shoddy, but And Just Like That is starting to find its groove

‘Sex and the City’ sequel has removed some of its less coherent elements, and with more of a focus on its central trio, is more likely to please hardcore fans

Politics

4 w. ago Watch: Justice secretary update on prisons review as chemical castration considered for sex offenders

The justice secretary has said that many sentencing reforms aimed at easing prison overcrowding have been accepted by the government, including chemical castration for sex offenders.

Events

4 w. ago 'A slap in the face for victims': Fury at Labour plans to allow killers, rapists and domestic abusers out of jail earlier in bid to ease prison overcrowding

An independent sentencing review has called for criminals convicted of serious violence or sex offences to win their freedom after serving half their jail term.

Events

4 w. ago Watch live: Justice secretary update on prisons review as chemical castration considered for sex offenders

Watch live as the justice secretary delivers an update on UK prisons reform, in what is the biggest shakeup of sentencing in more than 30 years, in Parliament on Thursday (22 May).

Society

4 w. ago Chemical castration of sex offenders ‘worthwhile’ exploring – review chairman

The review led by former justice secretary David Gauke recommended reforms to overhaul the prisons system.

Politics

4 w. ago What does the sentencing review mean for prisons as chemical castration considered for sex offenders

Former Tory justice secretary David Gauke has called for overhaul of justice system in major sentencing review

Events

4 w. ago UK politics live: Chemical castration considered for sex offenders as review reveals prison capacity crisis

An independent review has recommended that prisoners be released for good behaviour and shorter sentences of less than 12 months to be scrapped

Events

4 w. ago ‘Trump you need me’: Florida man facing federal charges after bomb hoax shuts FBI Tampa field office

Exclusive details: A sign left at the scene read: ‘My name is Nikki Goodman. Abolish government. Trump you need me... Kill all [n-words].’

Events

4 w. ago ‘Trump you need me’: Suspect facing federal charges after bomb hoax shuts FBI Tampa field office

Exclusive details: A sign left at the scene read: ‘My name is Nicki Goodman. Abolish government. Trump you need me... Kill all [n-words].’

Events