Andy Warhol’s life and social circle were brought once more into popular discourse following last year’s Netflix documentary about his eponymous diaries. Now, Nicole Flattery offers a strikingly original coming-of-age novel, Nothing Special, set in his fictional orbit – told from the perspective of 17-year-old Mae, hired as a typist for Warhol’s collection of conversation tapes.

Set against the backdrop of mid-1960s New York City and its rapid gritty, cultural overhaul, Mae and her new friend and colleague Shelley soon find themselves navigating life at the core of the countercultural, hedonistic, artistic mid-century East Coast as they also navigate their own young adulthood.

As a narrative depicting a young female journalist in New York in the mid-20th century, Nothing Special offers plenty of opportunity to draw fascination and intrigue. Yet it’s Flattery’s writing that makes the book sparkle: characterisations of young women realising their place in a dizzying world, exchanges in a diner over sweet ice-cream sundaes, and familial relationship dynamics involving addiction are captured evocatively and compellingly.    

It’s a story as vibrant and absorbing as the world it depicts. Flattery crafts and portrays her characters with striking realism and emotional insight. A captivating read, it’s an early contender for spring’s must-read fictional books.