Anthologies & Short Stories

Book SynopsisIn his sharply crafted, unnerving first collection of speculative fiction shorts, Courttia Newland envisages an alternate future as lived by the African diaspora.Robots used as human proxies in a war become driven by all-too-human desires; Kill Parties roam the streets of a post-apocalyptic world; a matriarchal race of mer creatures depends on inter-breeding with mortals to survive; mysterious seeds appear in cities across the world, growing into the likeness of people in their vicinity.Through transfigured bodies and impossible encounters, Newland brings a sharp, fresh eye to age-old themes of the human capacity for greed, ambition and self-destruction, but ultimately of our strength and resilience.Trade ReviewImaginative, precise and always fun. Courttia Newland invites us into new worlds with deftness and imagination, storytelling and creativity that has no rival in the UK. Another future classic from one of the most important writers of British literature -- DEREK OWUSUNewland's work is tender but urgent, grounded but visionary. Risks don't frighten him. These highly imaginative, often cautionary tales seem the product of a world governed by outrage, anxiety and unease. You won't forget them in a hurry. Nor should you -- RUPERT THOMSONA rich, diverse collection of short stories * * Guardian * *An extraordinary collection - vital, strange and brilliant -- JENNI FAGANDeeply satisfying . . . Newland is a class act * * Times * *Whether it's the uncanny dream made flesh or the old Manichean battle far into the future, these stories surprise, are dizzying and intricate * * Irish Times * *The stories in Cosmogramma are shot through with a sense of foreboding, a feeling that we as a species are heading for self-annihilation if we don't get our act together and fast. In that sense, and in several others, the stories feel unsettlingly contemporary and can - and should - be read as a last call to action. "The Sanofka Principle" in particular bent my mind out of shape, in a good way. Now there's a story that requires (and repays) close reading! -- STEPHEN THOMPSONIt's no small feat to so immediately and repeatedly appeal to readers' hearts and minds, and Newland's mastery of short-format storytelling is sure to impress. Speculative fiction fans won't be able to put this down * * Publishers Weekly (starred review) * *An exquisitely imaginative collection of speculative short stories, unlike anything I've ever read . . . Newland succeeds in capturing the reader's attention and refusing to let go of it until the very end . . . an important addition to Black British literature . . . Newland becomes a paramount figure within the genre * * Bad Form * *The combination of excellent world and character building and the rising intensity of each story as the book progresses means Cosmogramma is hard to put down * * New Scientist * *

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Book SynopsisA wounded solider vanishes into notoriety.A nose is found in a loaf of bread.Places - like the Nevesky Prospect - are not what they seem. Nikolai Gogol was one of the nineteenth century's greatest and most influential Russian writers, a realist whose witty and acerbic observations and his taste for the absurd give his writing its strange, comic voice. Selected from the work of Constance Garnett, one of Gogol's earliest translators, this edition presents a new, exclusive collection of Gogol's short fiction, selected and lightly revised by Natasha Randall. Contextualized by Randall's preface, and full of the wit of Garenett's work, this edition is the perfect introduction to Gogol, and a must for the enthusiast.

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Book SynopsisLittle treasures, the FLAME TREE COLLECTABLE CLASSICS are chosen to create a delightful and timeless home library. Each stunning, gift edition features deluxe cover treatments, ribbon markers, luxury endpapers and gilded edges. The unabridged text is accompanied by a Glossary of Victorian and Literary terms produced for the modern reader. The fifteen short stories collected in Dubliners are the best by renowned Modernist writer James Joyce. They were written between 1904 and 1907 and published much later in 1914. The stories explore themes of different life stages and provide a vivid depiction of gritty, day-to-day life in Dublin. The first story, ‘The Sisters’, sets the tone for the collection, exploring childhood. ‘The Dead’, which is the final story in the collection, takes place around the events of a Christmas party, culminating in a profound epiphany. It is widely considered by critics and readers alike to be a work of outstanding literary skill.

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Book SynopsisNow a major TV series starring Daniel Radcliffe and Steve Buscemi. Originally published as What in God's Name. How can you help mankind, when they won't help themselves? Welcome to Heaven Inc, and Craig's life. From the Sunsets Department and Geyser Regulation to the Department of Miracles, Heaven Inc has the earth covered. Unless someone is away from their desk. And these days, the CEO is kind of disillusioned. God knows he should be keeping an eye on the bad things happening on Earth, but instead he finds himself watching the Church channels on satellite TV. His first priority is the team of angels he's asked to get Lynyrd Skynyrd back together. Downstairs on the office floor, Eliza has been promoted from the Prayers Department to Miracles, and Craig, the only other workaholic in heaven, has to show her around. Eliza is shocked by the casual attitude of many of the angels in her new department. And she's furious when she discovers that God has never looked at, let alone answered, a single prayer. So she storms into God's office and asks Him a question that no one has ever dared to ask before. And it might just be the end of the world.Trade ReviewTruly hilarious -- Eva Wiseman * Observer *Simon Rich is outrageously, lavishly gifted -- Caitlin MoranAn appealing mixture of subtle and laugh-out-loud funny * Independent on Sunday *The super-funny Simon Rich . . . a literary romcom . . . Properly laugh-out-loud funny and sweetly charming. You'll be rooting for the angels to save the world * Heat *A romcom with Armageddon hanging in the balance, it's written with a lightness of touch that makes it a breezy read * Herald *Like Douglas Adams in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Rich drags heaven down to Earth ... Rich knows how to balance the smart with the funny * New York Times Book Review *One of the best American comic novels of the past few years -- Michael Schaub * NPR *Divinely funny * Vanity Fair *One of the funniest writers in America ... feels like a little love letter to the world * Daily Beast *Deliciously funny * Kirkus *Like Kevin Smith's Dogma via Neil Gaiman's Good Omens, it takes a lovingly satirical swipe at religion. * Grazia *

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Book SynopsisThe summer holidays are a chance to escape from it all, to shrug off the troubles and cares of everyday life, and lounge on warm sands or sip a cool drink in the shade of a city square. But, as the characters in this murderously good collection of classic crime stories discover to their cost ... sometimes it's not that easy to escape your fate. An impossible murder on a Cornish beach. A honeymoon in the Italian lakes that becomes a desperate search for the truth. An African safari that ends with the tables being turned. Even in a heatwave, these tales of murder and malice will chill you like a shadow sliding across the sun.Trade ReviewWith Cecily Gayford in charge, you're in safe hands * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisFrom Joyce Carol Oates, literary icon and author of Blonde, now a major motion picture, six feverishly unsettling tales of suspense. A woman sits naked except for her high-heeled shoes, in an apartment she cannot afford, as her married lover rushes, amorously, murderously, to her door. An ageing, jealous wife crafts an unusual game of Russian roulette involving a pair of Wedgwood teacups, a strong Bengal brew, and a lethal concoction. A former Sunday School teacher's corpse turns up and the blighted adolescent she had by turns petted and ridiculed confesses to her murder – but is he really responsible? In a fantastic ode to H.P. Lovecraft, a young outsider is haunted by apparitions at the very edge of the spectrum of visibility after the death of his tortured father. Revelling in the uncanny, this taut collection stands at the crossroads of sex, violence, and longing – challenging us to interrogate the intersection of these impulses within ourselves. Reviews for Joyce Carol Oates: 'A writer of extraordinary strengths.' Guardian ‘Oates chillingly depicts the darkness lurking within the everyday.' Sunday Express 'Both haunting and sublime.' Literary Review 'Splendidly chilling.' Financial Times 'Visceral, psychologically involving, and socially astute.' Booklist 'Few writers better illuminate the mind's most disturbing corners.' Seattle TimesTrade ReviewConsummately well-written, stylistically dashing... Forthrightly nightmarish * Kirkus Reviews *Oates' spookiness is visceral, psychologically involving, and socially astute * Booklist *Oates perfectly captures the atmosphere of fear and well-meaning misunderstanding * The Times *Oates chillingly depicts the darkness lurking within the everyday * Sunday Express *A writer of extraordinary strengths * Guardian *The prolific Oates works her magic on a small canvas in this taut collection of short stories about ageing, jealous wives, lonely mistresses and a game of Russian roulette with poisoned teacups * Daily Telegraph *Both haunting and sublime * Literary Review *

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Book SynopsisA gritty and thrilling anthology of 28 new short stories in tribute to pulp noir master, Cornell Woolrich, author of 'Rear Window' that inspired Alfred Hitchock's classic film. Featuring Neil Gaiman, Kim Newman, James Sallis, A.K. Benedict, USA Today-bestseller Samantha Lee Howe, Joe R. Lansdale and many more. An anthology of exclusive new short stories in tribute to the master of pulp era crime writing, Cornell Woolrich. Woolrich, also published as William Irish and George Hopley, stands with Raymond Chandler, Erle Stanley Gardner and Dashiell Hammett as a legend in the genre. He is a hugely influential figure for crime writers, and is also remembered through the 50+ films made from his novels and stories, including Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, The Bride Wore Black, I Married a Dead Man, Phantom Lady, Truffaut's La Sirene du Mississippi, and Black Alibi. Collected and edited by one of the most experienced editors in the field, Maxim Jakubowski, features original work from: Neil Gaiman Joel Lane Joe R. Lansdale Vaseem Khan Brandon Barrows Tara Moss Kim Newman Nick Mamatas Mason Cross Martin Edwards Donna Moore James Grady Lavie Tidhar Barry N. Malzberg James Sallis A.K. Benedict Warren Moore Max Decharne Paul Di Filippo M.W. Craven Charles Ardai Susi Holliday Bill Pronzini Kristine Kathryn Rusch Maxim Jakubowski Joseph S. Walker Samantha Lee Howe O'Neil De Noux David Quantick Ana Teresa Pereira William BoyleTrade Review"This superior anthology is a welcome companion to In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper, edited by Lawrence Block." - Publishers Weekly PRAISE FOR MAXIM JAKUBOWSKI "A well written sharp, incisive crime story (much like a dagger thrust should be) is a thing of beauty. There are many in this anthology. Read and enjoy." - Frost Magazine "Quality and variety... are guaranteed." - Morning Star "Chilling and crafty, and full of devious characters. Not all of the victims are innocent, and the effects of each story will linger long after you close the volume." - The Girl Who Reads "It's good to see earlier contributions from such luminaries as Peter O'Donnell, Julian Rathbone and Larry Beinhart among the star-studded cast which features Ian Rankin, Jeffrey Deaver, Denise Mina and John Harvey." - Shots Mag "The daggers are drawn, business ends out. An absolute must read for all crime fiction fans." - Advance the Plot "Edgy, twisted and disturbing, Daggers Drawn is a visceral and thrilling collection showcasing the very best modern crime fiction has to offer." - Book Lover's Boudoir "[A]n overall entertaining tale of short stories with quite a few enjoyable tales to entice the reader." - Run Along the Shelves "I'd definitely recommend this great collection for anyone who is a crime fiction fan." - Snazzy Books "[A]n engrossing and entertaining read." - Annarellix Review

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Book Synopsis Collection of short stories and poetry about rock ''n'' roll and death Examines the concept of the chaos of 2020 being the end of an era From the author of I''m Not Like Everybody Else(9781788035118)

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Book Synopsis''A major talent'' Hilary MantelShortlisted for the Edge Hill Short Story Prize Whether seeking knowledge, riches, or a better life, the characters in these stories are united by a quest for lasting value, as they ask how we should treat our world, our work, our selves, and each other. A vainglorious mine owner dreams of harnessing all of nature to the machinery of commerce. Two ladies of a certain age hunt rare butterflies in a pre-First World War Europe already experiencing the first bites of biodiversity loss. A climate campaigner must choose between personal happiness and political action. A rural Welsh community is fascinated and angered by glimpses of its invisible, wealthy neighbours.Exact and lyrical, compassionate, and full of wit and truth, this debut collection from Jo Lloyd, winner of the BBC National Short Story Award, announces a fresh new voice with a sensibility all her own.

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Book SynopsisSeven powerful, gripping short stories from bestselling author, Amanda Prowse. 'If you have not discovered Amanda Prowse yet you are in for a real treat... Full of incident and real characters' Rascals of London Collection includes: Something Quite Beautiful, The Game, Ten Pound Ticket, Imogen's Baby, Miss Potterton's Birthday Tea, A Christmas Wish and Mr Portobollo's Morning Paper. Susie has just arrived in Australia. She is clutching a newborn baby, but she has no wedding ring on her left hand. With no money, and no hope, how can she turn her life around? Gemma Peters, a happy-go-lucky teenager has disappeared without trace. Where has she gone? Why has she been lying to her family? And, most importantly, will she ever come home? Twenty-four-year-old Imogen longs for a baby. She knows it's hard to raise a child alone, but Imogen is also blind. Can she overcome life's challenges and have the baby she longs for? Funny, heart-warming and moving, these seven short stories are the perfect excuse for a bit of me-time.Trade ReviewPRAISE FOR AMANDA PROWSE: 'The queen of domestic drama' Daily Mail. 'A page-turning novel of loss and courage' Sun. 'Compelling, uplifting, thoughtful and wise' Irish Daily Mail. 'If you love JoJo Moyes and Freya North, you'll love this' Closer. 'Heartwarming' * TripFiction *

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Book SynopsisExperience the story of Overwatch 2 from a multiple points of view in this star-studded short story collection, featuring eight tales from award-winning and bestselling authors.

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Book SynopsisPushing intimacy to its limits in prose of unearthly beauty, Vauhini Vara explores the nature of being a child, parent, friend, sibling, neighbour or lover, and the relationships between self and others. A young girl reads the encyclopedia to her elderly neighbour, who is descending into dementia. A pair of teenagers seek intimacy as phone-sex operators. A competitive sibling tries to rise above the drunken mess of her own life to become a loving aunt. One sister consumes the ashes of another. And, in the title story, an experimental artist takes on his most ambitious project yet: constructing a life-size ark according to the Bible's specifications. In a world defined by estrangement, where is communion to be found? The characters in This Is Salvaged, unmoored in turbulence, are searching fervently for meaning, through one another.Trade ReviewA dazzling collection full of spellbinding prose...Through unrestrained characters and fresh scenarios, Vara masterfully makes anew what it feels like to be alive -- Jonathan Escoffery * New York Times Book Review *In these tales, Vara has captured the fantasies, griefs and longings of life. From keen-eyed girlhood to delusional middle-age, the characters reach for more than is possible, falter, then reach for more. This Is Salvaged is a book for readers who need clarity and hope - that is to say: everybody. -- Andrew Sean Greer, author of LESSIt takes tremendous courage and wit to look with wonder at the darkest, most shameful places in the human heart and make them hilarious, tender and deeply moving; Vauhini Vara, with her grand-scale compassion and moral complexity in This is Salvaged, can do this magic with astonishing ease. -- Lauren Groff, author of MATRIXThe stories in Vauhini Vara's This Is Salvaged are brilliant, entirely human, abidingly strange. She is one of our most inventive writers of fiction, as well as visionary, with a gift for writing about grief both extraordinary and ordinary. This Is Salvaged is unforgettable. -- Elizabeth McCracken, author of THE HERO OF THIS BOOKI finished This is Salvaged and immediately wanted to re-read it. What a ride. Vauhini Vara's writing is immersive, yielding stories that are clever and surprising, heartbreaking and laugh-out-loud funny. A brilliant, deeply satisfying collection. -- Deesha Philyaw, author of THE SECRET LIVES OF CHURCH LADIESThese dazzling stories take a kaleidoscopic and ferociously tender look at loss and what people hold onto or discover in the wake of it...Vara has written a wholly original, insightful and powerful collection. -- Danielle Evans, author of THE OFFICE OF HISTORICAL CORRECTIONSA poignant collection of stories that glimpse the salvation of human connection in the midst of modern alienation. * Kirkus Reviews *Vara invigorates with emotional insights, whimsy, and a precision with language. It's a remarkable achievement * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *

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Book SynopsisA FINANCIAL TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023: FICTION 'A trailblazer in the world of short-form prose' New YorkerLydia Davis is a virtuoso at detecting the seemingly casual, inconsequential surprises of daily life and pinning them for inspection. In Our Strangers, conversations are overheard and misheard, a special delivery letter is mistaken for a rare white butterfly, toddlers learning to speak identify a ping-pong ball as an egg and mumbled remarks betray a marriage. In the glow of Davis's keen noticing, strangers can become like family and family like strangers.Our Strangers is a fascinating collection that confirms the genius of a writer whose every attention is transformative.Trade ReviewSharp, deft, ironic, understated and consistently surprising -- JOYCE CAROL OATESOur Strangers shows Lydia Davis's 'gift for voice' and 'intimate . . . writing' -- CHRIS POWER * * Guardian * *The wonder of Davis's work is her ability to reveal how close attention - that rarest of commodities in anattention-starved world - reveals the beauty, sorrow and strangeness of all our seemingly quotidian lives -- ERICA WAGNER * * Sunday Times * *Davis's ability to observe and celebrate minutiae is as wise and miraculous as ever * * Financial Times * *Graceful, funny, awkward, surprising, unlikely, persuasive and moving -- HEATHER CASS WHITE * * Times Literary Supplement * *Lydia Davis has, in recent years, become the most successful and prominent practitioner of flash and super-short fiction * * Daily Telegraph * *[A] delicious collection of off-beat, drolly observant tales. Even the slenderest (and some are a few scant lines) contain whole worlds of suggestion and feeling, displaying an absorbing inquisitiveness into the natural world and human nature that's irresistible * * Daily Mail * *Despite the quality of remoteness that permeates all of Davis's work, in Our Strangers, our present anxieties creep in * * New York Times Book Review * *Davis, a meticulous fiction writer and an acclaimed translator, observes words with care and bemusement, tuned to the way different contexts alter their sound and meaning, sparking confusion or humour or heartbreak * * Los Angeles Times * *Davis is the pre-eminent practitioner of flash fiction . . . Her sharp observations of even mundane human interactions are presented so vividly and economically that they feel like contemporary fables * * New Statesman * *

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Book Synopsis'A gut punch of a collection...it astonishes as it reveals how malignant political forces can both ravage and vitalize the human spirit.' New York TimesSet in Soweto, the urban heartland of South Africa, Innards tells the intimate stories of everyday black folks processing the savagery of apartheid. Rich with the thrilling textures of township language and life, it braids the voices and perspectives of an indelible cast of characters into a breathtaking collection flush with forgiveness, rage, ugliness and beauty. Meet a fake PhD and ex-freedom fighter who remains unbothered by his own duplicity, a girl who goes mute after stumbling upon a burning body, twin siblings nursing a scorching feud, and a woman unravelling under the weight of a brutal encounter with the police. At the heart of this collection - of deceit and ambition, appalling violence and transcendent love - is the story of slavery, colonization and apartheid - and it shows in intimate detail how South Africans must navigate both the shadows of the recent past and the uncertain opportunities of the promised land.Full to bursting with life, in all its complexities and vagaries, Innards is an uncompromising depiction of black South Africa. Visceral and tender, it heralds the arrival of a major new voice in contemporary fiction.Trade ReviewDo not miss this authoritative, urgent take on modern South Africa * Oprah *An unforgettable debut that hits with all the force of the sun. Complex and breathtaking, Innards is a book haunted by apartheid's monstrous shadow and illuminated by the radiant talent of one of our generation's most original voices. Makhene writes like liberation should feel: transcendently. * Junot Díaz, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of This is How You Lose Her and The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao *Innards by the brilliant Magogodi Makhene is a wonder. Magnificent and devastating * NoViolet Bulawayo, Booker-listed author of Glory and We Need New Names *Innards reads like a relay of fearless, burning emblems, each story lit by the one before and each igniting the next. Beautiful, lethal, funny, righteous visions... ablaze with the utterly familiar and the utterly mysterious. This work is prophetic?not because it shows us what will be, but because it shows us how it all really is. Simply, marvellous. * Paul Harding, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of This Other Eden *A much-needed addition to contemporary fiction... Makhene's stories capture the heart and soul of the Soweto people * Booklist, starred review *Makhene shapes her debut story collection around suburban Soweto, from its inception during apartheid as the South-Western Townships until its eventual incorporation into Johannesburg proper....Makhene's vividly rendered stories are propulsive and challenging * Kirkus, starred review *

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Book SynopsisA collection of short stories and micro stories from Claire Heaven, taking readers on a journey to places near and far.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book Synopsis'Stuart Neville writes crime fiction that is edgy, compelling and always deeply humane' MARK BILLINGHAMBringing together thirteen gripping and unsettling tales from one of Northern Ireland's bestselling crime authors, The Traveller & Other Stories is the perfect introduction to a modern master of thriller writing, featuring a Foreword by John ConnollyStuart Neville is a writer known for shining an unflinching light on his home country and its people. Ireland - north and south - in Neville's hands, is a land haunted by ghosts, both real and imagined. This collection is divided into two parts: New Monsters and Old Friends. And many of the characters from Stuart's novels, like Gerry Fegan from The Twelve, can be found haunting these pages. Childhood, innocence, guilt and redemption are all themes that are represented in Stuart's novels and in this collection, as John Connolly puts in his Foreword, 'here are monsters, both human and non-human. Here are hauntings, real or imagined. Here are old friends and older fiends.'Stuart's pleasure in the short story is evidenced in these tales, culminating in the previously unpublished novella, 'The Traveller', which sees Jack Lennon (from The Final Silence) and his daughter Ellen McKenna, pitted against the unnamed assassin who is targeting them. This is a collection of stories covering a decade of the author's writings and, as Connolly says, is 'the work of a prodigiously talented writer'.This is Irish noir at its best.'Not to be missed' Publishers Weekly, starred review'In the world of modern crime fiction, Stuart Neville is a supernova' Dennis Lehane'Irish noir done to a turn, with just enough tearful sentiment to turn the screws tighter' Kirkus reviewTrade Review[A] splendid collection . . . Each entry turns on an unexpected ending. This chilling assortment of Northern Irish noir is not to be missed * Publishers Weekly, starred review *Irish noir done to a turn, with just enough tearful sentiment to turn the screws tighter * Kirkus review *

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Book SynopsisA middle-aged novelist devoid of inspiration alights on material in the form of an obsessive pet-shop worker from Cincinnati. A pregnant mother of two finds herself increasingly in thrall to her help, Nat. For Joad, the discovery of a haunting type-written document in an old desk in need of restoration is overwhelming. And when Roxanne rescues her sister from an institution, she comes to realise how vulnerable they both are.Each of the seven stories in Total is a full world, painted with vivid strokes. From the comforting mundanities of motherhood to a technologically infected near future that mirrors our present with dark prescience, each life captured in this collection is unforgettable.Deftly navigating the fault lines of relationships - new, established or remembered - Total is a powerful collection of brilliantly imaginative stories, and eloquent proof of Rebecca Miller's writing prowess.Trade ReviewWit and coolly slaying wisdom are constant delights in these emotionally complex stories . . . cinematically vivid * * Observer * *Miller knows and is playing with . . . all the ways stories and lives infinitely repeat. You've never quite seen them inhabited by these versions of these characters, nor at the tenor of these sentences, with these deftly deployed layers of surprise * * New York Times * *Miller's new collection shows her in many moods and modes, from wistful to comedic to speculative. What a pleasure! -- JEFFREY EUGENIDESA "cinematic prose style" is often a critical cliché, but in the case of Rebecca Miller, no other descriptor suffices . . . [a] captivating, coolly spare new collection * * Oprah Daily * *The characters in Total are instantly recognisable - they are privileged, deluged by memories and in situations fraught with anxiety, but Miller manages to offer a fresh perspective on old conundrums * * Daily Mail * *In Miller's alluring collection, protagonists search for connection and pleasure in strange, sometimes destructive ways . . . Miller brings a cinematic eye to her descriptions (a parking garage's "final floor" offers a "vivid sky") and plenty of drama to the situations. These stories are full of surprises * * Publishers Weekly * *The seven brilliantly knotty and piercingly intimate stories in Total depict characters undone, temporarily or irreparably, by obsessive love * * Lit Hub * *Slim but powerful . . . [Miller] adeptly encapsulates these women's experiences . . . Recommended for fans of Joyce Carol Oates and Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go * * Booklist (starred review) * *Praise for Rebecca Miller: Miller is a luminous writer -- OLIVIA LAINGMiller is an excellent novelist -- KATE ATKINSON

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Book SynopsisA pregnant mother of two finds herself increasingly in thrall to her help, Nat. For Joad, the discovery of a haunting typewritten document in an old desk in need of restoration is overwhelming. And when Roxanne rescues her sister from an institution, she comes to realise how vulnerable they both are. Deftly navigating the fault lines of relationships - new, established or remembered - Total is a powerful collection of brilliantly imaginative stories. From the comforting mundanities of motherhood to a technologically infected near future that mirrors our present with dark prescience, each life captured in this collection is unforgettable.Trade ReviewWit and coolly slaying wisdom are constant delights in these emotionally complex stories . . . cinematically vivid * * Observer * *Miller knows and is playing with . . . all the ways stories and lives infinitely repeat. You've never quite seen them inhabited by these versions of these characters, nor at the tenor of these sentences, with these deftly deployed layers of surprise * * New York Times * *Miller's new collection shows her in many moods and modes, from wistful to comedic to speculative. What a pleasure! -- JEFFREY EUGENIDESA "cinematic prose style" is often a critical cliché, but in the case of Rebecca Miller, no other descriptor suffices . . . [a] captivating, coolly spare new collection * * Oprah Daily * *The characters in Total are instantly recognisable - they are privileged, deluged by memories and in situations fraught with anxiety, but Miller manages to offer a fresh perspective on old conundrums * * Daily Mail * *In Miller's alluring collection, protagonists search for connection and pleasure in strange, sometimes destructive ways . . . Miller brings a cinematic eye to her descriptions (a parking garage's "final floor" offers a "vivid sky") and plenty of drama to the situations. These stories are full of surprises * * Publishers Weekly * *The seven brilliantly knotty and piercingly intimate stories in Total depict characters undone, temporarily or irreparably, by obsessive love * * Lit Hub * *Slim but powerful . . . [Miller] adeptly encapsulates these women's experiences . . . Recommended for fans of Joyce Carol Oates and Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go * * Booklist (starred review) * *Praise for Rebecca Miller: Miller is a luminous writer -- OLIVIA LAINGMiller is an excellent novelist -- KATE ATKINSON

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Book SynopsisM.R. James's celebrated ghost stories resonate still, their chilling narratives drawing us unsuspecting into the deadly shadows. His tales are haunted, bleak disturbances of the soul, carefully crafted from the stuff of human fears. A towering presence in literature, TV and the movies, his work is much admired today. A deluxe edition, this sinister new collection offers many of his most famous tales, with some of the less well known, including: 'Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad', 'Canon Alberic’s Scrap-Book', 'The Mezzotint', 'The Fenstanton Witch', 'The Experiment' and 'Wailing Well'. The Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy, Classic Stories and Epic Tales collections bring together the entire range of myth, folklore and modern short fiction. Highlighting the roots of suspense, supernatural, science fiction and mystery stories, the books in Flame Tree Collections series are beautifully presented, perfect as a gift and offer a lifetime of reading pleasure.

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Book SynopsisSet in her native southwest Ontario, they include 'Royal Beatings', in which a young girl, her father and her stepmother release the tension of their circumstances in a ritual of punishment and reconciliation; 'Friend of My Youth', in which a woman comes to understand that her difficult mother is not so very different from herself; and 'The Love of a Good Woman', in which, when an old crime resurfaces, a woman has to choose whether to believe in the man she intends to marry. Like the World War I soldier of the title story, whose letters from the front to a small-town librarian he doesn't know change her life for ever, Munro's unassuming characters take permanent hold of our imaginations. Her incomparable empathy for the people she writes about, the depth of her understanding of human nature, and the grace and surprise of her narrative add up to a richly layered and capacious fiction.

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Book SynopsisCollected here are Gogol's finest tales - stories which combine the wide-eyed, credulous imagination of the peasant with the sardonic social criticism of the city dweller - allowing readers to experience anew the unmistakable genius of a writer who paved the way of Dostoevsky and Kakfa. All of Gogol's most memorable creations are here: the minor official who misplaces his nose, the downtrodden clerk whose life is changed by the acquisition of a splendid new overcoat, the wily madman who becomes convinced that a dog can tell him everything he needs to know. The wholly unique blend of satire and realism that Gogol crafted established his reputation as one of the most daring and inventive writers of his time.

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Book SynopsisMark Twain’s famous novels, Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn (available in Everyman) have long been hailed as major masterpieces, but it is less well known that the father of American literature also made his mark as a master of the short story. This is the only edition in hardcover of his complete shorter fiction: sixty tales spanning a long career – many rollicking and uproarious, some sombre and even shocking. Included, of course, are such immortal classics as ‘The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County’ (1865), a humorous piece set in Gold-Rush California, which helped establish the young author’s reputation, and ‘The Man Who Corrupted Hadleyburg’ (1899), a satirical novella in which a self-righteously respectable American small town is exposed as a fraud.

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Book SynopsisHere are literary classics by such golf-loving writers as P. G. Wodehouse, Ring Lardner, and John Updike, mixed with surprises like an appearance by Ian Fleming's James Bond and a little crime on the links from mystery master Ian Rankin. Humorists and sportswriters ranging from E. C. Bentley to Dan Jenkins and Rick Reilly weigh in as well, alongside a tale of romance on the greens from F. Scott Fitzgerald, a little-known gem by famous golf architect A. W. Tillinghast, and a story by Rex Lardner (Ring's nephew) that just may be the single funniest thing ever written about golf. The resulting anthology is as enticing, provocative, and entertaining as the game of golf itself.

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Book SynopsisIn this lively collection, wine snobs receive their comeuppance at the hands of Roald Dahl and Edgar Allan Poe; innocents over-imbibe in tales by Jack London and Alice Munro; riotous partying exacts a comic price in stories by P. G. Wodehouse and Kingsley Amis; Charles Jackson and Jean Rhys chronicle liquor-soaked epiphanies; while John Cheever, Vladimir Nabokov and Robert Coover set their characters afloat on surreal, soul-revealing adventures. Here, too, are well-lubricated tales by Dickens, Twain, Beckett, Colette, Dorothy Parker, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Doris Lessing, Frank O'Connor, Penelope Lively, and many more.The settings include hotels and restaurants, a wine cellar in Italy, a café in Paris, a bar in Dublin, a New York nightclub, Jazz Age speakeasies, suburban lawn parties and the occasional gaol cell, and are peopled by lovers and loners, barmen and chorus girls, youths taking their first sips and experienced tipplers nursing hangovers.Whether living it up or drowning their sorrows, the vividly drawn characters in these sparkling pages will leave you shaken and stirred.

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Book SynopsisThe Golden City of Prague has long been an intellectual centre of the western world. The writers collected here range from the early nineteenth century to the present and include both Prague natives and visitors from elsewhere. Here are stories, legends, and scenes from the city's past and present, from the Jewish fable of the golem, a creature conjured from clay, to tales of German and Soviet invasions. The international array of writers ranges from Franz Kafka to Ivan Klíma to Bruce Chatwin, and includes the award-winning British playwright Tom Stoppard and former American Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, both of whom have Czech roots. Covering the city's venerable Jewish heritage, the glamour of the belle-époque period, World War II, Communist rule, the Prague Spring, the Velvet Revolution, and beyond, Prague Stories weaves a remarkable selection of fiction and nonfiction into a literary portrait of a fascinating city.Richard Bassett, former Central European correspondent for The Times, knows his subject inside out. Here is Prague in all its brilliance, a city rich in folklore both Slavic and Jewish, whose history is the stuff of legend - Jan Hus, Charles IV and his eponymous bridge, serial defenestrations; Prague in the dark years of World War II, in the grey years of Communism, in the excitement of the Velvet Revolution. And here is today's Prague, a vibrant cosmopolitan capital where a new generation of Czech writers - Sylva Fischerova, Daniela Hodrova and others - explores its identity in new and exciting ways.A unique collection of fiction and non-fiction to delight and stimulate travellers and stay-at-homes alike.

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Book SynopsisTwenty-Twenty Vision is a collection of 20 interlinked short stories exploring hindsight, middle-age regret, and late-life revelations, framed within the first year of the pandemic and offering a poignant portrait of the 1950s generation confronting their pasts and uncertain futures.

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2019 A brilliant collection of fictions in the vein of Roald Dahl, Etgar Keret and Amy Hempel. These are stories of what the world looks like from a child's pure but sometimes vengeful or muddled perspective. These are stories of life in a war zone, life peppered by surreal mistakes, tragic accidents and painful encounters. These are stories of fantasist matadors, lost limbs and perplexed voyeurs. This is a collection about sex, death and the all-important skill of making life into a joke. These are unexpected stories by a very fresh voice. These stories are unforgettable.

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Book SynopsisA collection of early short stories which helped make Fitzgerald’s name, Tales of the Jazz Age combines period pieces – the most notable of which is the novella-length ‘May Day’ – with more fanciful creations, such as the fantastical ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’, recently made into a Hollywood film. Also containing the now classic story ‘The Diamond as Big as the Ritz’, as well as lesser-known sketches and tales, this diverse selection, compiled by Fitzgerald himself from material published in newspapers and magazines, showcases both the variety of his writing and early examples of the themes and characters which would find their way into his later novels.Trade ReviewHe was better than he knew, for in fact and in the literary sense he invented a generation. * The New York Times *Table of ContentsContains: The Jelly Bean, The Camel's Back, May Day, Porcelain and Pink, The Diamond as Big as the Ritz, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Tarquin of Cheapside, O Russet Witch!, The Lees of Happiness, Mr Icky, Jemina, the Mountain Girl.

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Book SynopsisAfter a traumatic early childhood spent living in poverty in a Preston cellar, the suddenly orphaned George Silverman grows up convinced that he is at fault for all the misfortunes in his life. Hoodwinked by hypocritical clergymen and exploited by his employer, he finds himself forsaking love and facing professional ruin. One of Dickens’s very last writings, ‘George Silverman’s Explanation’ is a dark and psychologically insightful investigation of failure and guilt. This volume also includes two other lesser-known pieces of fiction by Dickens: the novella for children ‘Holiday Romance’ and the detective story ‘Hunted Down’.Trade ReviewThe power of [Dickens] is so amazing that the reader at once becomes his captive. -- William Makepeace Thackeray

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Book SynopsisWhen it is discovered that the reigning world chess champion, Mirko Czentovic, is on board a cruiser heading for Buenos Aires, a fellow passenger challenges him to a game. Czentovic easily defeats him, but during the rematch a mysterious Austrian, Dr B., intervenes and, to the surprise of everyone, helps the underdog obtain a draw. When, the next day, Dr B. confides in a compatriot travelling on the same ship and decides to reveal the harrowing secret behind his formidable chess knowledge, a chilling tale of imprisonment and psychological torment unfolds. Stefan Zweig’s last and most famous story, ‘A Game of Chess’ was written in exile in Brazil and explores its author’s anxieties about the situation in Europe following the rise of the Nazi regime. The tale is presented here in a brand-new translation, along with three of the master storyteller’s most acclaimed novellas: Twenty-four Hours in the Life of a Woman, The Invisible Collection and Incident on Lake Geneva.Trade ReviewPerhaps the best chess story ever written, perhaps the best about any game. * The Economist *A perfect introduction to Zweig. * The Jewish Chronicle *It is somehow progressively thrilling, yet consistently still and calculated. With barely a note out of tune, this is a short story masterclass. * The Big Issue *Although these four stories are in many ways very different, they all share a theme of single-minded behaviour, are underpinned by social and political commentary, full of symbolism and are rich in metaphor and allegory. This ensures that they really do feel timeless – true modern-day parables. * Nudge Books *

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Book Synopsis“I know every move of your game… It has been a duel between you and me, Mr Holmes… If you are clever enough to bring destruction upon me, rest assured that I shall do as much to you.” With Sherlock Holmes’s reputation as the scourge of the criminal underworld preceding him, the ingenious detective, with the aid of Dr Watson, is confronted in these stories by some of his most fiendishly difficult cases yet. The collection culminates in ‘The Final Problem’, in which the evil Professor Moriarty is plotting the detective’s downfall. Soon Holmes and Watson are led across Europe in a deadly pursuit of their devilish quarry, until the final showdown in Switzerland, at the precipitous Reichenbach Falls…Table of ContentsThe Silver Blaze The Yellow Face Adventure of The Stockbroker's Clerk The Gloria Scott The Musgrave Ritual The Reigate Puzzle The Crooked Man The Resident Patient The Greek Interpreter The Naval Treaty The Final Problem

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Book Synopsis"Published in the Christmas edition of Charles Dickens’s magazine All the Year Round, Mugby Junction is the spellbinding result of a literary collaboration between some of the leading writers of the day, and contains four unforgettable contributions by Dickens himself, including ‘The Signalman’ – a chilling tale of a spectral apparition whose appearances forebode fatal accidents on the line. The eight stories included in this volume range from the hilarious to the hair-raising, and not only remain as fresh today as when they first appeared in 1866, but stand as a testament to the versatility and exuberance of Dickens’s unrivalled genius. Includes: ‘Barbox Brothers’, ‘Barbox Brothers and Co.’, ‘Main Line: The Boy at Mugby’ and ‘No. 1 Branch Line: The Signalman’ by Charles Dickens, ‘No. 2 Branch Line: The Engine Driver’ by Andrew Halliday, ‘No. 3 Branch Line: The Compensation House’ by Charles Collins, ‘No. 4 Branch Line: The Travelling Post-Office’ by Hesba Stretton and ‘No. 5 Branch Line: The Engineer’ by Amelia B. Edwards"

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Book SynopsisIt is New Year’s Eve, and Nellie, the pretty daughter of a landowning general, is sitting in her room looking in the mirror. Although she is tired and her eyes are half closed, she is spellbound as the reflection in the looking glass dissolves into a sea of grey mist, in which she starts to discern the beloved features of her fiancé. As in a diorama, the scene keeps changing, and to the early snapshots of joyful marital life succeed other, more sinister images of care, sickness and bereavement, casting a long shadow onto the girl’s future. With ‘The Looking Glass’ Chekhov captured the very essence of the Russian soul. This short story, along with the others included in this collection, demonstrates why he is considered the absolute master of the genre.

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Book SynopsisNEW PAPERBACK EDITION 2015 saw the publication of The Long Gaze Back: An Anthology of Irish Women Writers, edited by Sinéad Gleeson. The Long Gaze Back was widely acclaimed and went on to win Best Irish-published Book of the Year 2015 at the Irish Book Awards. More importantly, it sparked lively discussion and debate about the erasure of women writers from the literary canon. One question kept arising: where was the equivalent anthology for women writers from the north? The Glass Shore, compiled by award-winning editor, broadcaster and critic Sinéad Gleeson, provides an intimate and illuminating insight into a previously underappreciated literary canon. Twenty-four female luminaries — whose lives and works cover three centuries — capture experiences that are both vivid and varied, despite their shared geographical heritage. Unavoidably affected by a difficult political past, this challenging landscape is navigated by characters who are searingly honest, humorous and, at times, heartbreakingly poignant. The result is a collection that is enthralling, stirring and quietly disconcerting. Individually, these intriguing stories make an indelible impact and are cause for reflection and contemplation. Together, they transgress their social, political and gender constraints, instead collectively presenting a distinctive, resolute and impassioned voice worthy of recognition and admiration. Featuring stories by: Rosa Mulholland, Erminda Rentoul Esler, Sarah Grand, Alice Milligan, Eithne Carbery, Margaret Barrington, Janet McNeill, Mary Beckett, Polly Devlin, Frances Molloy, Una Woods, Sheila Llewellyn, Linda Anderson, Anne Devlin, Evelyn Conlon, Mary O’Donnell, Annemarie Neary, Martina Devlin, Rosemary Jenkinson, Bernie McGill, Tara West, Jan Carson, Lucy Caldwell and Roisín O’Donnell.

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Book SynopsisWritten over a period of more than half a century, Tolstoy’s enchanting short stories and novellas reflect every aspect of his developing art and outlook. Volume 1 of the Everyman Collected Shorter Fiction is dominated by the characteristic experiences of his early life as soldier, land-owner, husband and father, the life which shaped Anna Karenina and War and Peace. It also includes several short fables which point to his later preoccupation with the religious life.

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Book SynopsisFrom legends of the desert to horrors of the forest, Blasim's stories blend the fantastic with the everyday, the surreal with the all-too-real. Taking his cues from Kafka, his prose shines a dazzling light into the dark absurdities of Iraq's recent past and the torments of its countless refugees. The subject of this, his second collection, is primarily trauma and the curious strategies human beings adopt to process it (including, of course, fiction). The result is a masterclass in metaphor - a new kind of story-telling, forged in the crucible of war, and just as shocking.Trade Review'It is not his identity but the quality of his writing that makes his voice striking. It is deeply troubling and complex, the metaphors arresting and violent.' - The Spectator; 'Required reading for a real taste of life in Iraq.' - The National; 'An arrestingly vivid picture of the privation and the terrors of life in Iraq.' - Herald Scotland; 'Blasim pitches everyday horror into something almost gothic... his taste for the surreal can be Gogol-like.' - The Independent; 'Blasim's vivid prose reflects the way the fantastic and the ordinary collapse into a Kafkaesque jumble during urban conflict.' - The Financial Times

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Book SynopsisNew Writing Scotland is the principal forum for poetry and short fiction in Scotland today. Every year we publish the very best from emerging and established writers, and list many of the leading literary lights of Scotland among our contributors.

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Book SynopsisAndie can see no other way to escape a wedding than by hiding in a tree. Esther starts a new life in a King's Cross hotel with a bad-tempered ventriloquist dummy, while Gina finally leaves a group of infuriating friends - but not before providing them with a suitable replacement. Ways of Living is Gemma Seltzer's keen exploration of what it means to be a modern woman inhabiting the urban landscape. Ten stories of ordinary women going to extraordinary lengths to be understood, acting in bold and unpredictable ways as they map their identities onto London's streets. How do we speak and listen to each other? Who gets to talk? And what is the true power of quiet in a noisy world?

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Book SynopsisUpon changing his religion, a young man is denounced as an apostate and flees his country hiding in the back of a freezer lorry… After years of travelling and losing almost everything – his country, his children, his wife, his farm – an Afghan man finds unexpected warmth and comfort in a stranger’s home... A student protester is forced to leave his homeland after a government crackdown, and spends the next 25 years in limbo, trapped in the UK asylum system... Modelled on Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the second volume of Refugee Tales sets out to communicate the experiences of those who, having sought asylum in the UK, find themselves indefinitely detained. Here, poets and novelists create a space in which the stories of those who have been detained can be safely heard, a space in which hospitality is the prevailing discourse and listening becomes an act of welcome.Trade Review'A wonderful way of re-humanising some of the most vulnerable and demonised people on the planet.’ - Shami Chakrabarti; 'This stark short story collection will shake you to the core' - Reader's Digest

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Book SynopsisHom Yun's meticulously ordered life of reading books and drinking coffee receives a jolt when a mysterious cultural foundation unexpectedly agrees to fund his film proposal: a blend of fiction and documentary, a tone-poem constructed around a lyrical narrative, set around Scythian graves in the High Altai mountains. Desperate to be taken on as his assistant, the foundation's secretary follows him from their offices and begins a night of crossed wires, dislocation, and reality seen through glass, darkly. One of South Korea's most astonishingly sui generis authors, Bae Suah mixes the cerebral and the pungently physical, the mundane and the wildly surreal, in a characteristically potent blend.

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