Ollie

Nice piece, and you're dead right about novels not owing us anything - sometimes they're talked about as though they're a politician who owes us an explanation/apology/key to understanding.

I haven't read this, but it sounds very interesting: http://www.newspanishbooks.com/read-report/el-mapa-de-la-vida - the story about a relationship that arises out of the Madrid attacks in 2004. A man and woman, both injured in the bombings, leave previous relationships that have come under strain to pursue a life together.

It's presumably too early for any fiction based on the Mumbai attacks (?), but perhaps that represents the next challenge to writers.