Contemporary Fiction Books

Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe tale of a mixed-race British American family in conflict with another family of opposing sensibilities. As with all Smith's work, it's smart, funny and a masterclass in the complexities of identity -- Luan Goldie * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis''Fascinating, brilliant, horribly addictive'' Guardian From the day that Sheba Hart joins the staff at St George''s, history teacher Barbara Covett is convinced that she has found a kindred spirit. When Sheba is discovered having an illicit affair with one of her pupils, Barbara appoints herself Sheba''s chief defender. Yet all is not as it first appears in this dark story and as Sheba will eventually discover, a friend can be as treacherous as any lover. ''Superbly gripping'' Daily Telegraph Trade ReviewFascinating, brilliant, horribly addictive * Guardian *Superbly gripping. One of the most compelling books I've read in ages * Daily Telegraph *Deliciously sinister * Daily Mail *Excellent. An undercurrent of subtle malice, cleverly controlled by Heller * Evening Standard *Brilliant, nasty, gripping -- Zadie Smith * Observer *Reads like a nose through someone else's bathroom cabinet: full of guilty insights and delicious snobbery * Independent *A subtle study in obsession and loneliness ... my take-it-to-the-beach recommendation -- Monica Ali * Guardian Summer Reading *

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Book SynopsisThe prize-winning, bestselling author of Middle England turns his gaze to one of cinema''s most intriguing figures - famed director of Some Like It Hot, Billy Wilder.***SOON TO BE A MAJOR FILM*** In the summer of 1977, naïve Calista Frangopoulou sets out to venture into the world. On a Greek island that has been turned into a film set, she finds herself working for Billy Wilder, about whom she knows almost nothing. While Calista is thrilled with her new adventure, Wilder himself is living with the realisation that his star may be on the wane. Rebuffed by Hollywood, he has financed his film with German money, and when Calista follows him to Munich, she finds herself joining him on a journey of memory into the dark heart of his family history.At once a tender coming-of-age story and an intimate portrait of a Hollywood icon, Mr Wilder and Me explores the nature of time and fame, of family and the treacherous lure of nostalgia . . .__________ ''Utterly charming, deeply poignant and ultimately uplifting'' Mail on Sunday''Sweeps beautifully from Hollywood to Greece and London'' FT, Best Books of 2020''The dialogue''s sharp, the comic timing excellent'' Sunday TimesWritten with his signature wit, Jonathan Coe''s unmissable new novel, The Proof of My Innocence, is available to order now!Trade ReviewA satisfyingly sweeping novel that still manages to push the form in new directions. As good as anything he's written - a novel to cherish * Observer *Effortlessly pleasurable and deceptively simple. Mr Wilder & Me doesn't lack resonance, yet stays light on its feet. The whole book feels like some marvellous party where you ricochet from one good conversation to another * The Times *A coming of age story which offers a fascinating insight into fame - and the perils of an industry in flux * Daily Telegraph *One of my favourite writers . . . a thoughtful tender read * Good Housekeeping *

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Book SynopsisONE COTTAGE. TWO STRANGERS.EVERY GREAT LOVE STORY STARTS SOMEWHERE . . .''No waiting for it to kick off and absolutely no filler'' READER *****''The most wonderful depiction of love that I have read. Maybe ever!'' READER *****--------------------------------FROM THE AUTHOR OF ONE DAY IN DECEMBER, COMES AN IRRESISTIBLE LOVE STORYCleo writes about love stories every day. She just isn''t living one of her own.When the editor of her dating column asks her to marry herself on a remote Irish island - a sensational piece to mark Cleo''s thirtieth birthday - Cleo agrees. She''s alone but not lonely, right? She can handle a solo adventure.Cleo arrives at her luxury cabin to find a tall, dark, stubborn American who insists it''s actually his. Mack refuses to leave, and Cleo won''t budge either. With a storm fast approaching, they reluctantly hunker down together. It''s just one night, after all . . .But what if one night on the island is just the beginning?--------------------------------Your favourite authors can''t get enough of One Night on the Island''A gorgeous warm hug of a novel!'' Beth O''Leary, The Road Trip''Sexy, funny and poignant'' Sophie Cousens, This Time Next Year''Utterly delicious - every single ingredient for the perfect love story is here in this wise and witty story'' Rosie Walsh, The Love of my Life''Belly-laugh hilarity, and the coziest Irish setting you can imagine'' Christina Lauren, The Unhoneymooners''Comfort food in book form'' SARAH TURNER, The Unmumsy Mum''I swooned. I laughed. I felt every degree of emotion'' Lizzie Damilola Blackburn, Yinka, Where is your Huzband?''Both the perfect romance and the story of self-empowerment every woman deserves'' Jodi Picoult, Wish You Were Here''Josie Silver is on top form in this wonderfully romantic story'' Daily Express''A propulsive, gorgeous romance, filled with whimsy and overlaid with the stand-out theme of empowerment'' Off The Record''Pure, romantic escapism!'' Sun''A love story with added self-empowerment'' That''s Life MagazineTrade ReviewThe perfect romance and the story of self-empowerment every woman deserves -- Jodi PicoultComfort food in book form -- Sarah Turner, The Unmumsy MumPure, romantic escapism * Sun *

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Book Synopsis''SO much fun'' MARIAN KEYES, author of GROWN UPS ''Fresh and funny'' BETH O''LEARY, author of THE ROADTRIP----- Birdy Finch just got her dream job. The trouble is, it''s not hers . . . It was a simple accident. Well, maybe a tiny fib. OK, maybe an all-out, blatant, mayhem-causing lie. Because the life she''s just claimed is hers actually belongs to her best friend, Heather. Obviously she''ll tell Heather (eventually). And the first guy she''s properly liked in forever (probably). Absolutely nobody will know - just till she sorts herself out . . . So can Birdy carry off a summer at a luxury Scottish hotel pretending to be a world-class wine expert? And can she find the courage to fall in love, even if it means telling the truth? Run away with Birdy Finch - the messy heroine with a heart of gold! THE SUMMER JOB is a fresh, fun, feel good romcom for fans of THE ROAD TRTrade ReviewEngaging, heartwarming and SO MUCH FUN. I bloody loved it -- MARIAN KEYESFresh, funny and filled with delicious food and wine. It made me long for a summer in Scotland with Birdy and all the team at Loch Dorn -- BETH O’LEARYWhat a welcome escape; it's witty and funny and it packs an emotional punch too. Loved it, I'm in the queue for more Lizzy -- JOSIE SILVERFresh, funny and oh so relatable - the perfect tonic -- ABBIE GREAVESFun with a capital F . . . If you've ever felt you're getting left behind in life, or don't have everything worked out quite yet, this is the book for you -- SOPHIE COUSENSI fell for Birdy on the very first page and inhaled the rest of her story . . . A brilliantly original plot paired with fabulously funny writing - a pure joy to read! -- HELLY ACTONIt's really great - so gossipy, warm and funny -- BETH MORREYOne of the funniest and sexiest books of the year. As soon as I finished it, I wanted to read it again. Do not miss this one! -- EMILY HENRYEngaging, heartwarming and SO MUCH FUN. I bloody loved it -- MARIAN KEYESEngaging, heartwarming and SO MUCH FUN. I bloody loved it -- MARIAN KEYESFresh, funny and filled with delicious food and wine. It made me long for a summer in Scotland with Birdy and all the team at Loch Dorn -- BETH O’LEARYFun with a capital F . . . If you've ever felt you're getting left behind in life, or don't have everything worked out quite yet, this is the book for you -- SOPHIE COUSENSI fell for Birdy on the very first page and inhaled the rest of her story . . . A brilliantly original plot paired with fabulously funny writing - a pure joy to read! -- HELLY ACTONIt's really great - so gossipy, warm and funny -- BETH MORREYOne of the funniest, and sexiest books of the year. As soon as I finished it, I wanted to read it again. Do not miss this one! -- EMILY HENRY

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Book SynopsisThe new novel from Salley Vickers, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Librarian and Grandmothers Artist, Hassie Days, and her sister, Margot, buy a run down Jacobean house in Hope Wenlock on the Welsh Marches. While Margot continues her London life in high finance, Hassie is left alone to work the large, long-neglected garden. She is befriended by eccentric, sharp-tongued, Miss Foot, who recommends, Murat, an Albanian migrant, made to feel out of place among the locals, to help Hassie in the garden.As she works the garden in Murat''s peaceful company, Hassie ruminates on her past life: the sibling rivalry that tainted her childhood and the love affair that left her with painful, unanswered questions.But as she begins to explore the history of the house and the mysterious nearby wood, old hurts begin to fade as she experiences the healing power of nature and discovers other worlds.In her haunting new novel, Salley Vickers, the Trade ReviewSalley Vickers sees with a clear eye and writes with a light hand. She's a presence worth cherishing -- Philip PullmanThe Gardener is a novel of regrowth & regeneration, of sisters overcoming a toxic parental legacy & of the healing power of seed packets -- Patrick GaleSteeped in a sense of the redemptive power of place, Sally Vickers's 11th novel is a paean to green-fingered regeneration that is both rigorous and charming * Observer *Vickers writes of relationships with undaunted clarity -- Adam PhillipsNo one can dig down into the shrouded recesses of the human heart quite as forensically as Vickers * Sunday Times *An escapist, involving novel about relationships and two siblings coming to terms with their childhood and each other * Saga *With its sensitively drawn characters, this is a quiet and intelligent hymn to the restorative power of nature. Delightful * Mail on Sunday *The bestselling author of Miss Garnet's Angel and The Librarian, Vickers has been a Jungian therapist and her novels have always featured personal growth and transformation. This is no exception, as Hassie weathers bereavement, abreak-up and midlife despair, but finds a sense of new beginnings and a feeling for the power of place. It also has some sharp social observation about the reality of moving out to the sticks in post-Brexit Britain * Sunday Times *Salley Vickers is skilled at transforming the everyday into something haunting. This tale of a woman's search for inner peace is no exception * Daily Express *Profoundly moving, healing and wise, this is the perfect antidote to our urban anxiety -- Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat

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Book SynopsisFrom the prize-winning author of Supper Club comes a wickedly funny and slyly poignant new satire on modern life - for fans of My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Convenience Store Woman, and J. G. Ballard''s High Rise''This book is a serious vibe'' Cosmopolitan''Lara Williams is the queen of smart modern satire. I could read her all day'' Emma Jane UnsworthMeet Ingrid. She works on a gargantuan luxury cruise liner, where she spends her days reorganizing the merchandise and waiting for long-term guests to drop dead in the changing rooms. On her days off, she disembarks from the ship and gets blind drunk on whatever the local alcohol is. It''s not a bad life. And it distracts her from thinking about the other life she left behind five years ago.Until one day she is selected for the employee mentorship scheme - an initiative run by the ship''s mysterious captain and self-anointed lifestyle guru, Keith, who pushes InTrade ReviewSlyly poignant and wickedly funny... A serious vibe * Cosmopolitan *Readers who enjoy Melissa Broder and Ottessa Moshfegh will appreciate this surreal trip through a troubled woman's psyche * Booklist *Lara Williams is the queen of smart modern satire. I could read her all day -- Emma Jane Unsworth, author of 'Adults'Williams succeeds in satirising the seemingly unmockable: the overwhelming absurdities of modern life... * Literary Review *I have never read anything like this... Deliciously unpredictable -- Mateo Askaripour, author of 'Black Buck'Equal parts satire and elegy, coming from the very edge of the abyss... Unsettling, risk-taking, profoundly moving - I loved it -- Livia Franchini, author of 'Shelf Life'Astonishing, subversive and darkly funny - another dazzler of a novel from Lara Williams -- Zeba Talkhani, author of 'My Past is a Foreign Country'Mischievous and thought-provoking * Sheerluxe *Slyly humorous, sharp, courageous and at times devastating... The Odyssey is a wildly original satire -- Frances Cha, author of 'If I Had Your Face'

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Book SynopsisThe No 1 Bestseller!When a shameless rugby legend and a distinguished grey lady get together sparks are bound to fly. And when that legend is South Dublin''s favourite socialite, Ross O''Carroll-Kelly, and the grey lady is the Irish Times, the result is, well, legendary. From locked-in in Donnybrook to locked-down in Killiney, Ross and the old gal have been through a lot. Now, you can enjoy the very best of his efforts to keep her entertained . . . - His adventures with the Mount Anville Moms WhatsApp group- His daughter Honor''s infamous production of South Side Story- His father''s court battles with Denis O''Brien- His wife Sorcha''s efforts to force her banana bread on the neighbours- His son Ronan''s attempt to make it as a Mixed Martial Arts fighterFrom the sheer joy of taking his feral triplets to their first Ireland v. England match, to the sheer misery of Kiely''s pub (his spiritual home) cloTrade ReviewRoss is a national institution * Irish Times *The single greatest chronicler of our times * Irish Independent *

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Book SynopsisThe electrifying follow-up to Dave Eggers'' New York Times Bestseller The Circle''Gulpable fictive entertainment . . . Eggers is a wonderful storyteller with an alert and defiant vision'' ObserverWhen the world''s largest search engine / social media company merges with the planet''s dominant e-commerce site, it creates the richest and most dangerous-and, oddly enough, most beloved-monopoly ever known: The Every.Delaney Wells is an unlikely new hire. A former forest ranger and unwavering tech skeptic, she charms her way into an entry-level job with one goal in mind: to take down the company from within. With her compatriot, the not-at-all-ambitious Wes Kavakian, they look for the company''s weaknesses, hoping to free humanity from all-encompassing surveillance and the emoji-driven infantilization of the species. But does anyone want what Delaney is fighting to save? Does humanity truly want to be free?Studded with unforgettable characters and lacerating set-pieces, The Every blends satire and terror, while keeping the reader in breathless suspense about the fate of the company - and the human animal.''More playful and satirical than Orwell . . . it scores as a series of brilliant set pieces and a devastating overall critique.'' Sunday Times''Part of the genius of this remarkable piece of satire, riven as it is with horribly plausible ideas and horribly good jokes. . . . What Eggers does so well is make The Every alluring as well as alarming...'' The Times''You read it and think: yes, this is set in the future but it is actually going on here and now. It is an urgent and necessary book. It''s also fun. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar'' The ScotsmanThe Circle was a New York Times bestseller in 2013Trade ReviewEggers proposes an uncanny world, on the border between the impossible-to-imagine and the already-in-play. Every reader is implicated. We are all members of that passive army willing to trade freedom for convenience. As digital culture blossomed, people wondered if machines could be made to think like people. The more compelling question is the one Eggers poses in The Every: Are people content to become machines? * Sherry Turkle, author of The Empathy Diaries *Hilarious and horrifying and idealistic. An unusual combination in a novel, or in anything else, really, but here the necessary result of a powerful writer taking on much of what matters most to our future * Mohsin Hamid, author of Exit West *Sparkles with provocative ideas * Publishers Weekly *Once a decade a book like The Every advances the frontier of literary excellence: a book that reflects our culture. Predicts our future. Worm-holes into our subconscious. Delivers artful and complex characters, metaphor, ideas, narrative. Provides percussive movements of levity, gravity, grace, suspense, hilarity." * The Boston Globe *[This is a] remarkable piece of satire, riven as it is with horribly plausible ideas and horribly good jokes. It's one thing to sound a warning about how we are on a slippery slope to a kind of consumerist fascism where we exchange liberty for convenience. What Eggers does so well is make The Every alluring as well as alarming . . . Eight years after The Circle was published, there is all too little that rings false about its predictions about social media. If the same is true of The Every, we are in even more trouble than we thought we were. * The Times *An entertainingly horrifying portrait of a civilisation meekly enslaving itself to the power of the app * Metro *Eggers does us a service in underlining the sinister directions tech is taking... In its timing, The Every is right on the cryptocurrency * i *The plot is prescient and spookily plausible, and Eggers is always entertainingly spot on in his targets * Mail on Sunday *Gulpable fictive entertainment . . . Eggers is a wonderful storyteller with an alert and defiant vision * Observer *You read it and think: yes, this is set in the future but it is actually going on here and now. It is an urgent and necessary book. It's also fun. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar * The Scotsman *More playful and satirical than Orwell, Eggers's digital totalitarianism is a touchy-feely affair; where Orwell has the boot on the face, Eggers has online shopping and emojis. But it is no less of a serious warning . . . it scores as a series of brilliant set pieces and a devastating overall critique. * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERThe unmissable new work from Ali Smith, following the dazzling Man Booker-shortlisted Seasonal quartetOne day in post-Brexit, mid-pandemic Britain, artist Sandy Gray receives an unexpected phone call from university acquaintance Martina Pelf. Martina is calling Sandy to ask for help with a mysterious question she''s been left with after she''s spent half a day locked in a room by border control officials for no reason she can fathom:''Curlew or curfew? You choose.''And what''s any of this got to do with the story of a young and talented blacksmith hounded from her trade and her home more than five hundred years ago?Ali Smith''s novel takes wing, soaring between our atomised present and our medieval past in the hope we can open our locked down homes and selves to all the other times, other species, other histories, other possibilities.''[An] entertaining and expert portrayal of the worlTrade ReviewSuperb, radical, remarkable -- Mohsin Hamid * New York Times *A lockdown story of wayward genius . . . Lyrical visions alternate with fables and farce, history with Covid, in the scheme-busting fifth part of Smith's seasonal quartet -- Lucy Hughes-Hallett * Guardian *Scintillating . . . Companion Piece, like life, is messy, funny, sad, beautiful and mysterious -- Alex Preston * Observer *Both a standalone novel and a coda to her Seasonal quartet, Ali Smith's latest, set during the pandemic, offers a wise and humane voice for perilous times * Financial Times *Smith's way of telling a story - looping in time; switching from one fast-flicking consciousness to another; tying up radically different periods of history in a single place - and her amused delight in the flexibilities of language feel not only modernist but, better than that, modern * The New Statesman *Alive to the music and light of language * Washington Post *Smith's work is brainy and moving, thoughtful and playful * NPR *Like Smith's other novels, Companion piece is a formally dazzling story, constructed from a découpage of funny, messy, beautifully disparate elements * Esquire *It is remarkable to be alive at the same time as Scottish writer Ali Smith . . . Smith is intellectually rigorous yet democratic, warm and - crucially - playful * Los Angeles Times *

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Book SynopsisSoldier. Farmer. Felon. Writer. Father. Lover.One man, many lives.Born in 1799, Cashel Greville Ross experiences myriad lives: joyous and devastating, years of luck and unexpected loss. Moving from County Cork to London, from Waterloo to Zanzibar, Cashel seeks his fortune across continents in war and in peace. He faces a terrible moral choice in a village in Sri Lanka as part of the East Indian Army. He enters the world of the Romantic Poets in Pisa. In Ravenna he meets a woman who will live in his heart for the rest of his days. As he travels the world as a soldier, a farmer, a felon, a writer, a father, a lover, he experiences all the vicissitudes of life and, through the accelerating turbulence of the nineteenth century, he discovers who he truly is. This is the romance of life itself, and the beating heart of The Romantic.From one of Britain''s best-loved and bestselling writers comes an intimate yet panoramic novel set across the nineteenth century.''Picaresque, big-hearted and moving, this is Boyd at the top of his game'' Guardian''There are few reading pleasures as great as giving in to a William Boyd novel'' Sunday Times''One of our best contemporary storytellers'' Spectator''Simply the best realistic storyteller of his generation'' Sebastian FaulksTrade ReviewThe Romantic by William Boyd was the novel I enjoyed most this year. It's incredibly ambitious, its hero moving from Co Cork to London, then from Waterloo to Zanzibar, and at one point even joining the East Indian Army, but it was such an easy, indulgent read -- Sathnam Sanghera * The Times, Best Books of the Year *[One of the] most enjoyable new novels I read this year . . . [it] offers deep pleasure to those who love novels, instruction to anyone setting out to write one -- Allan Massie * Scotsman, Best Books of 2022 *Boyd is as magically readable as ever, and, as always with his whole life novels, there is an invigorating air of spontaneity * Telegraph *William Boyd's The Romantic is disguised a an historical biography - The Real Life of Cashel Greville Ross - but is actually an utterly engrossing adventure story . . . Cashel, we understand, is searching for himself, but in the process he provides romance, entertainment and enlightenment for his readers. How better to spend the relaxed days around Xmas than following his footsteps -- Antonia Fraser * Tablet, Books of the Year *Storytelling is what floats my boat and William Boyd's The Romantic, a return to his "whole-life" novels, has it in spades. Following our hero Cashel Greville Ross (Boyd is big on names) from Ireland to the Battle of Waterloo, then India, Italy, New England, Africa and beyond, it has enough engrossing variety to fill several books, not just the one -- Peter Brookes * The Times, Best Books of 2022 *Cashel ultimately emerges as a one-off - an inimitable character, whether he knows it or not . . . what is often lost behind the sheer pleasure brought by [Boyd's] books is their layered Chekhovian subtleties: Boyd is abundantly talented at capturing life's disconnections . . . it is intoxicating to be in the company of a writer who seems to be having such fun * Guardian *William Boyd's new novel is one of his best * Scotsman *A rambunctious, swashbuckling tale, told with panache by a master storyteller . . . Those who fall in love with The Romantic may wonder whether their own lives lack adventure. Surrender to this fine novel's spell, though, and it will vicariously supply more than enough thrills for anyone * Observer *Boyd's back, baby. The great writer of big, splashy (mostly) historical adventures has gone all guns blazing on this one . . . The pages brim with famous names and exotic locations - with Florentine palazzos, debtors' prisons, scandalous love affairs, Byron and the Battle of Waterloo . . . pure, joyful escapism * The Times, Best Fiction Books of 2022 *If it's true escapism you're after, William Boyd can always be relied upon to transport the reader from reality and his next offering, The Romantic, another epic that follows Cashel Greville Ross from 19th-century Country Cork to Zanzibar via Oxford and Sri Lanka, offers a wonderful literary getaway as the nights draw in * Vogue, A Most Promising Page-Turner of the Season *Packed with passion, adventure, suspense, comic interludes and a range of colourful characters . . . the rollicking work of a masterful storyteller, The Romantic is both a vivid portrait of a life and a sweeping panorama of an age * Economist *The Romantic is certainly a crowd-pleaser . . . Boyd knows how to time the hights and lows, how to blend triumphs and tragedies, personal and historical . . . genuinely poignant and wise * Sunday Times *A satisfyingly meaty novel in the rich vein of his earlier classics The New Confessions and Any Human Heart. As we have come to expect, here is exceptional storytelling - pristine, immersive, and intoxicating. The elegant prose is characteristically detailed and precise . . . It has the expansiveness of many classic 19th century novels. There's a Dickensian warmth and verve, an epic scale, a spirited sense of chance and adventure. Boyd as ever stresses period detail, and the novel is as informative as it is entertaining . . . It is bravura, high octane stuff, eventful and sometimes on the edge of chaos * Irish Examiner *A panoramic and deeply satisfying narrative from an author on top form * Mail on Sunday *It's tremendously entertaining and, as always with Boyd, virtually impossible to stop reading * Daily Mirror *A globe-trotting adventure through the 19th century * i, Best Books for Autumn *Boyd's pile-up of set piece escapades offers a huge amount of fun * Daily Mail *Boyd's books are so enjoyable that it's hard for us to resent the tricks being played on us, even as we find ourselves constantly reaching for Google, wanting to know what is and isn't real * TLS *There's a cornucopia of fine things here . . . The Romantic, always enjoyable, ranks with two of his best: The New Confessions and Any Human Heart. Both were intelligent and engrossing, novels you lived with. Both told a fine story very well. The Romantic does just that * Scotsman *A ripping yarn. And as such, it is pretty much faultless: as moreish as good chocolate, terrifically entertaining, and deeply humane * i *A huge amount of fun * Daily Mail (Ireland) *One of our best contemporary storytellers * Spectator *A narrative that Charles Dickens or Jane Austen would surely have been happy to claim as their own . . . there's a joy to Boyd's storytelling throughout and his hero is one to cheer for * Business Post (Ireland) *A wonderful tale that spans a life of adventure, this is storytelling at its very best * Best *Crammed with incident, the novel has the wonderfully freewheeling quality that one associates with the great 19th-century novelists. As with most of Boyd's works, it manages to be warm-hearted and deliciously sardonic at the same time * Literary Review *William Boyd taps into the classic novel tradition with this sweeping tale of one man's century-spanning life * Spectator *There is no doubt that Boyd is a masterful storyteller . . . this is a book to get totally, utterly and delightfully lost in -- Anna BonetA new novel by William Boyd is always a treat and in his picaresque latest, The Romantic, his hero is Cashel Greville Ross, born in 1799, a soldier, lover, friend of poets, bankrupt and adventurer who is swept into many of the most important episodes of the 19th century -- Lucy Lethbridge * Oldie *This highly entertaining, engrossing page-turner is the fictionalised biography of Cashel Greville Ross, who was born in 1799 in Scotland and brought up in Cork. Such is William Boyd's mastery as a storyteller, one begins to believe that all of the events are entirely real -- James Lawless * Sunday Independent *The Romantic is a rollicking read that will delight his many fans -- Susie Mesure * i *A wild ride across the 19th century on the back of a narrative that never pauses for breath . . . this breakneck pace seems to be a function of Boyd's exceptional imaginative facility, which sees him just as irresistibly drawn to new ideas as his hero is -- John Self * Financial Times *What could be more reassuring in troubling times than a new William Boyd novel? Trio is immensely readable, its descriptions full of light and colour, its humour spot on, its mood a perfect mix of frolicsome and melancholy * Sunday Telegraph on Trio *Reading William Boyd's Trio is like shrugging on a worn leather jacket on the first brisk morning of autumn: cosy but cool . . . He has enormous fun with the worlds - and egos - of page and screen * The Times on Trio *Breakneck pace seems to be a function of Boyd's exceptional imaginative facility, which sees him just as irresistibly drawn to new ideas as his hero is . . . there's something irresistible about that energy . . . if a whole-life novel is intended to represent the span of a unique existence, then The Romantic gets it right * FT *The Romantic is a whole-life novel, a form in which Boyd excels . . . a terrific read * Country & Town House *

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Book SynopsisWinner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction''Exquisite'' The New York Times''A tale of grief and memory awash with dark humour and wit'' Spectator____________________________________________________Up there, she says, I''m just another little old lady. But down here, at the pool, I''m myself.For the people who swim there each day, the local pool is a haven of unexpected kinship and private solace. For Alice, her daily laps have become the ritual that gives her life meaning, even though she may not remember the combination to her locker or where she put her towel.But one day, a crack appears deep beneath the surface of the water, and then another, and then another. The pool must close for repairs, and with that Alice is plunged into dislocation and chaos.Away from the steady routines of her swimming, she is engulfed by difficult memories of her own past. And as her sense of home, and of herself, slip further out of her grasp, her daughter must navigate the newly fractured landscape of their relationship.From the internationally bestselling author of The Buddha in the Attic comes a novel about memory and loss, mothers and daughters, the stories that make up a life, and what happens when they start to unravel.______________________________________________''I''m in awe of how this beautiful, graceful novel can hold so much grief and loss and love in its pages: a literary gem.'' Nicci Gerrard''An unforgettable novel about mothers and daughters by a spellbinding talent'' Daily MailTrade ReviewHer wisdom is staggeringly beautiful, implicating each of us * The Irish Times *Here comes the new Julie Otsuka novel, so we can begin to live again * Colson Whitehead, author of Harlem Shuffle *Heartbreaking and astoundingly good * Rebecca Makkai, author of The Great Believers *I'm in awe of how this beautiful, graceful novel can hold so much grief and loss and love in its pages: a literary gem. * Nicci Gerard, author of Soham: A Story Of Our Times *'If it wasn't tragedy it would be comedy, and it nimbly treads the very narrow line between' * The Tablet *'One of the marvels of The Swimmers is its unshowy portrayal of the immense drama inherent in losing the mind before the body has expired. But perhaps even more impressive is its respect for the general confusion of living' * Financial Times *Poignant and funny, I've never read such a brilliant account of this devastating illness, nor for that matter of the compulsive nature of swimming lengths in a pool. * Collagerie *"The Swimmers" is an exquisite companion. Though it doesn't answer the unanswerable, the novel's quiet insistence resonates: that it is our perfectly ordinary proclivities that make us who we are. * New York Times *An unforgettable novel about mothers and daughters by a spellbinding talent * Daily Mail *Stylistically ambitious and deeply moving * Kirkus Reviews *A goddamn heartbreaker * Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers *A story of memory loss and its fallout for family, and of the power of pool friendship. Glittering and tender. * Sainsbury's Magazine *As a regular and sedate swimmer, I loved this novel...A quiet and thoughtful story about the small, steady joys of life and how quickly and irrevocably they can become disrupted. * Red Magazine *A story about mothers and daughters, love and loss, it will make you reconsider what's truly important in life * Kintsugi Magazine *Haunting, ironic and poetic in its resonance, this slender volume is a must-read...Don't miss this beautifully written, heartfelt, wry and wistful exploration of loss. * Woman & Home *With shrewd characterisation and original observations, Otsuka tells a tale of grief and memory that's quietly observed yet awash with dark humour and wit. * Spectator *Amid an incantatory litany of totalising losses, there are snapshots of a unique life with all its complications. Superbly realised and incredibly moving * Daily Mail *Haunting, ironic and poetic in its resonance, this slender volume is a must-read * Woman's Weekly *What makes a good life? What is a good death? The answers to these questions shimmer elusively just below the surface of The Swimmers * Stylist *Otsuka's slender, stylistically ambitious third novel is a marvel, capturing the hypnotic rhythm of lane-swimming and the devastating decline of memory and connection as dementia takes hold...Heartbreakingly powerful * Mail on Sunday, Best New Fiction *

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Book SynopsisONE OF BARACK OBAMA''S 2022 SUMMER PICKS''Le Carré at his finest'' Mick Herron, GuardianJulian Lawndsley has renounced his high-flying job in the City for a simpler life running a bookshop in a small English seaside town. But after only a couple of months into his new career, Edward, a Polish émigré, shows up at his door with a very keen interest in Julian''s new enterprise and a lot of knowledge about his family history. And when a letter turns up at the door of a spy chief in London warning him of a dangerous leak, the investigations lead him to this quiet town by the sea . . .Silverview is the mesmerising story of an encounter between innocence and experience and between public duty and private morals. In this last complete masterwork from the greatest chronicler of our age, John le Carré asks what you owe to your country when you no longer recognise it.''The finest, wisest storyteller'' Richard Osman''A towering writer'' Margaret Atwood''A literary giant'' Stephen KingTrade ReviewValedictory, with a final turn of events that ends surprisingly but pleasingly in a cock-up, this is a satisfying coda to the career of the finest thriller writer of the 20th century * Guardian, Books of the Year *A compelling character study of a supposedly retired spy . . . Such was his rare command of language and unique understanding of how the world really works that I finished the book with a sense that the only real grown-up in the room had left -- Jake Kerridge * Daily Telegraph, Books of the Year *As graceful an exit as we could hope for, the old master remaining at the top of his game to the last -- Mick Herron * Daily Express, Books of the Year *Nothing will ever match the Cold War spy novels written in his prime, but his later work illuminates themes of loyalty, betrayal and conflicting values in a modern context -- Vince Cable * New Statesman, Books of the Year *A superb example of le Carré's enduring and exquisite genius * Daily Mail, Books of the Year *Gripping and involving, an elegant farewell by a much missed writer -- Siân Phillips * Daily Express, Books of the Year *Silverview has many of le Carré's characteristic virtues . . . engaging characters and three or four splendid set scenes in which veteran spooks stir the embers of old fires * Scotsman, Best Books of the Year *Silverview is a cat-and-mouse chase from an East Anglian seaside town to the Eastern Bloc. Published ten months after he passed away, it marks a fitting final work by the master of spy fiction * Irish Times, Books of the Year *A taut, thrilling spy novel. Read it as a tribute to a master * Stella, Books of the Year *Silverview has all the old magic . . . it offers a rewarding post-script to the long-distance spell-binders The Little Drummer Girl and Absolute Friends -- David Bromwich * Times Literary Supplement, Books of The Year *His publisher is promoting it as a great literary event - the final book by one of postwar Britain's finest writers. That seems fair enough to me . . . [Silverview has] enough reminders of the old magic to please his most ardent aficionados -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times *Le Carré at his finest, revealing character and backstory through dialogue with an economy and grace beyond most writers . . . le Carré's greatness has its roots in his mastery of spy fiction; a genre he augmented with novels notable for their craftsmanship and humanity, and writing for its stealth and sophistication. With the publication of Silverview, it's clear these virtues remained intact to the end -- Mick Herron * Guardian *Thematically, this is classic le Carré: an exploration of how people do the wrong thing for the right motive. The prose is as unshowily superb as ever * Sunday Telegraph *A fitting coda to the work of our greatest spy novelist -- John Williams * Mail on Sunday *It is written with elegance and often pungency, the pitch-perfect dialogue ranging from the waggishly epigrammatic to the bluntly outraged * New York Times *Le Carré's ability to inhabit the deepest recesses of his characters' lives is once again on sparkling display . . . It leaves no doubt that le Carré believed good literature could help make the world a better place. His own contribution to that edifice was by no means negligible * FT *Textbook le Carré and a pleasing coda to a brilliant career: a short, sharp study of the human cost of espionage * Daily Telegraph *The first page hooks you in . . . John le Carré has lost none of his power to draw the reader straight into his world * The Times *There is a retro charm about proceedings . . . as well as a welcome array of familiar le Carré tropes, from sharply drawn characters to stimulating interviews and debriefings, plus a compelling denouement involving a wanted man on the run . . . a worthy coda, a commanding farewell from a much-missed master * Economist *Arguably the greatest English novelist of his generation * Guardian *Crisp prose, a precision-tooled plot, the heady sense of an inside track on a shadowy world . . . all his usual pleasures are here * Observer *A lyrical, poignant portrait of betrayal in a family that lives in a world submerged in subterfuge, and resonates with le Carré's exquisite genius. It is to be savoured gently rather than devoured * Daily Mail *A diverting if slender coda to one of the boldest writing careers of the 20th century . . . In this posthumous farewell, le Carré is still showing us how literary fiction and the spy narrative can coexist in the same book * i *A poignant story of love and loyalty * Independent *A fitting conclusion to the long career of a writer who redefined an entire genre with the deceptive easy of pure genius . . . Silverview is filled with joy in the resilience of the human spirit, and with love . . . It's also deeply thrilling, in the best way * Irish Times *Packed with cherishable details and intriguingly ambivalent about the role of the Secret Intelligence Service, John le Carré's last novel brings his career to a close in fine style * Scotsman *A very fine finale . . . for writing of subtlety, cadence and strength, with a special aptitude for the revealing particular, [le Carré] is virtually unequalled . . . Time and again, le Carré was able to weave an entrancing, haunting world of his own, a feat repeated in Silverview. There are few writers to match him, and fewer who are still alive * Spectator *In his trademark lucid prose, le Carré sets the scene for an atmospheric tale of betrayal, deceit and secret service malpractice . . . John le Carré, one of the great analysts of the contemporary scene, has left us a minor masterpiece of secrets and lies in spy land * Evening Standard *A winner with fans of the master spy-writer * Oldie *A piercing portrait of moral ambivalence * i *It is classic le Carré . . . If this is the quality le Carré was producing in the last years of his life, we can be certain there are further posthumous delights coming our way * Herald *I gobbled up Silverview . . . Here le Carré is on more familiar territory - what was once known as Mitteleuropa, with its shape-shifting double agents, scarred idealists on the prowl for lost causes * Spectator *It has often been said that le Carré is a novelist, not a mere thriller writer. Yet the thing is that, for all his protests that his creations were always more fictional than credited, what he excels at is giving us a plausible peek into the spy's world * The Times *[Le Carré's] prose is as quietly impressive as ever and it's a thoroughly enjoyable read. It makes for bittersweet reading - the final work of a master, on fine form * Daily Express *Promises to be filled with intrigue, surprises and timely meditations on the relationship between individuals and nations * i *One of the great moral writers of recent times * Metro *First-rate prose and a fascinating plot . . . a fitting coda to a remarkable career * Publishers Weekly *

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE BERNARD SHAW PRIZE 2023Elegant, mature and richly atmospheric, a bittersweet love story glimpsed through the veil of memory''The love child of Normal People and Brideshead Revisited... Sublime and elegiac'' Francesca Reece''[A] heady mix of hope and nostalgia, of desire and regret, of new love and lost love'' Sunday TimesThora, August and Hugo come from different worlds. One is an art school dreamer, one a wealthy scion of the old-world elite, and one an ordinary boy from out of town. But over the course of two sky-blue summers in Stockholm, they are drawn together magnetically.Years later, Hugo is long estranged from Thora and August when their daughter knocks on his door. She has questions about her parents which she believes Hugo can answer - and the memories of those luminous days of youth come flooding back.Modern yet timeless, poignant and euphoric, The Trio is a novel about the path not taken, the people we might have become, and the relationships which shape and haunt us long after they come to a close.''Remarkably assured... Sharp, vividly imagined and affecting, [it] intrigues and captivates'' Irish Times''An international success before even being published, The Trio is a novel that stands well above the hype... Elegiac, bittersweet, [with] the golden shimmer of nostalgia'' Gefle DagbladTrade ReviewA smart, elegant and moving novel, all the more impressive for it being Johanna Hedman's debut... The stylish emotional distance of Normal People * The Times *Sharp, vividly imagined and affecting in a way that both intrigues and captivates * Irish Times *Fans of Sally Rooney will adore this excellent novel, which has garnered rave reviews * The Bookseller *The Trio is like the love child of Normal People and Brideshead Revisited. A sublime and elegiac meditation on love, intimacy, freedom and jealousy, it elegantly explores the gulf between our interior lives and the personas we perform - and between ourselves and other people. Hedman's writing (and Josefsson's stunning translation) is staggeringly beautiful. Vivid, effortless, and perceptive to a molecular degree -- Francesca Reece, author of 'Voyeur'Delicate and beguiling... The Trio spans from Berlin to London to Paris as the [characters] continually renegotiate who they each are to each other, questions of ownership and privilege floating in the background of summers which feel both fleeting and endless * Esquire *An international success before even being published, The Trio is a novel that stands well above the hype... Elegiac, bittersweet, [with] the golden shimmer of nostalgia, it is a story about big emotions * Gefle Dagblad *Mature and confident, delicate and eloquent, a study in intimacy . . . Timeless and universal * Kult Magasin *Full of verve, nostalgia, longing and the claustrophobic euphoria of being in the world with the people you love, this gorgeous novel whisks you along with it; you have no choice but to gratefully follow -- Lara Williams, author of 'Supper Club'Vigorous and vivid, wistful and engaging. Johanna Hedman should definitely expect to win prizes * Upsala Nya Tidning *An acute, eloquent and bittersweet debut... There may be an August Prize nomination! * Femina *An unusual debut, confident and intriguing, [by] a mature and gifted writer. The implicit nostalgia works its magic [in this] story of the time when life first gains colour and shape * Expressen *The ending leaves a stinging sensation [asking] questions of what really becomes important in hindsight, what we remember and how we remember it, and, not least why we become who we are as a consequence of our choices * SR Kulturnytt *Stylishly and elegantly composed * Göteborgs-Posten *How on earth is it possible that Johanna Hedman is a debutant? It feels as if I've seen the future of Swedish writing -- Alex Schulman, author of 'The Survivors'An absolutely fantastic debut novel -- Fredrik Backman, author of 'A Man Called Ove'

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Book SynopsisBrought to you by Penguin.In Silverview John le Carré turns his focus to the world that occupied his writing for the past sixty years - the secret world itself.Julian Lawndsley has renounced his high-flying job in the City for a simpler life running a bookshop in a small English seaside town. But only a couple of months into his new career, Julian''s evening is disrupted by a visitor. Edward, a Polish émigré living in Silverview, the big house on the edge of town, seems to know a lot about Julian''s family and is rather too interested in the inner workings of his modest new enterprise.When a letter turns up at the door of a spy chief in London warning him of a dangerous leak, the investigations lead him to this quiet town by the sea . . .Silverview is the mesmerising story of an encounter between innocence and experience and between public duty and private morals. In his inimitable voice John le Carré, the greatest chroniclTrade ReviewValedictory, with a final turn of events that ends surprisingly but pleasingly in a cock-up, this is a satisfying coda to the career of the finest thriller writer of the 20th century * Guardian, Books of the Year *A compelling character study of a supposedly retired spy . . . Such was his rare command of language and unique understanding of how the world really works that I finished the book with a sense that the only real grown-up in the room had left -- Jake Kerridge * Daily Telegraph, Books of the Year *As graceful an exit as we could hope for, the old master remaining at the top of his game to the last -- Mick Herron * Daily Express, Books of the Year *Nothing will ever match the Cold War spy novels written in his prime, but his later work illuminates themes of loyalty, betrayal and conflicting values in a modern context -- Vince Cable * New Statesman, Books of the Year *A superb example of le Carré's enduring and exquisite genius * Daily Mail, Books of the Year *Gripping and involving, an elegant farewell by a much missed writer -- Siân Phillips * Daily Express, Books of the Year *Silverview has many of le Carré's characteristic virtues . . . engaging characters and three or four splendid set scenes in which veteran spooks stir the embers of old fires * Scotsman, Best Books of the Year *Silverview is a cat-and-mouse chase from an East Anglian seaside town to the Eastern Bloc. Published ten months after he passed away, it marks a fitting final work by the master of spy fiction * Irish Times, Books of the Year *A taut, thrilling spy novel. Read it as a tribute to a master * Stella, Books of the Year *Silverview has all the old magic . . . it offers a rewarding post-script to the long-distance spell-binders The Little Drummer Girl and Absolute Friends -- David Bromwich * Times Literary Supplement, Books of The Year *His publisher is promoting it as a great literary event - the final book by one of postwar Britain's finest writers. That seems fair enough to me . . . [Silverview has] enough reminders of the old magic to please his most ardent aficionados -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times *Le Carré at his finest, revealing character and backstory through dialogue with an economy and grace beyond most writers . . . le Carré's greatness has its roots in his mastery of spy fiction; a genre he augmented with novels notable for their craftsmanship and humanity, and writing for its stealth and sophistication. With the publication of Silverview, it's clear these virtues remained intact to the end -- Mick Herron * Guardian *Thematically, this is classic le Carré: an exploration of how people do the wrong thing for the right motive. The prose is as unshowily superb as ever * Sunday Telegraph *A fitting coda to the work of our greatest spy novelist -- John Williams * Mail on Sunday *It is written with elegance and often pungency, the pitch-perfect dialogue ranging from the waggishly epigrammatic to the bluntly outraged * New York Times *Le Carré's ability to inhabit the deepest recesses of his characters' lives is once again on sparkling display . . . It leaves no doubt that le Carré believed good literature could help make the world a better place. His own contribution to that edifice was by no means negligible * FT *Textbook le Carré and a pleasing coda to a brilliant career: a short, sharp study of the human cost of espionage * Daily Telegraph *The first page hooks you in . . . John le Carré has lost none of his power to draw the reader straight into his world * The Times *There is a retro charm about proceedings . . . as well as a welcome array of familiar le Carré tropes, from sharply drawn characters to stimulating interviews and debriefings, plus a compelling denouement involving a wanted man on the run . . . a worthy coda, a commanding farewell from a much-missed master * Economist *Arguably the greatest English novelist of his generation * Guardian *Crisp prose, a precision-tooled plot, the heady sense of an inside track on a shadowy world . . . all his usual pleasures are here * Observer *A lyrical, poignant portrait of betrayal in a family that lives in a world submerged in subterfuge, and resonates with le Carré's exquisite genius. It is to be savoured gently rather than devoured * Daily Mail *A diverting if slender coda to one of the boldest writing careers of the 20th century . . . In this posthumous farewell, le Carré is still showing us how literary fiction and the spy narrative can coexist in the same book * i *A poignant story of love and loyalty * Independent *A fitting conclusion to the long career of a writer who redefined an entire genre with the deceptive easy of pure genius . . . Silverview is filled with joy in the resilience of the human spirit, and with love . . . It's also deeply thrilling, in the best way * Irish Times *Packed with cherishable details and intriguingly ambivalent about the role of the Secret Intelligence Service, John le Carré's last novel brings his career to a close in fine style * Scotsman *A very fine finale . . . for writing of subtlety, cadence and strength, with a special aptitude for the revealing particular, [le Carré] is virtually unequalled . . . Time and again, le Carré was able to weave an entrancing, haunting world of his own, a feat repeated in Silverview. There are few writers to match him, and fewer who are still alive * Spectator *In his trademark lucid prose, le Carré sets the scene for an atmospheric tale of betrayal, deceit and secret service malpractice . . . John le Carré, one of the great analysts of the contemporary scene, has left us a minor masterpiece of secrets and lies in spy land * Evening Standard *A winner with fans of the master spy-writer * Oldie *A piercing portrait of moral ambivalence * i *It is classic le Carré . . . If this is the quality le Carré was producing in the last years of his life, we can be certain there are further posthumous delights coming our way * Herald *I gobbled up Silverview . . . Here le Carré is on more familiar territory - what was once known as Mitteleuropa, with its shape-shifting double agents, scarred idealists on the prowl for lost causes * Spectator *It has often been said that le Carré is a novelist, not a mere thriller writer. Yet the thing is that, for all his protests that his creations were always more fictional than credited, what he excels at is giving us a plausible peek into the spy's world * The Times *[Le Carré's] prose is as quietly impressive as ever and it's a thoroughly enjoyable read. It makes for bittersweet reading - the final work of a master, on fine form * Daily Express *Promises to be filled with intrigue, surprises and timely meditations on the relationship between individuals and nations * i *One of the great moral writers of recent times * Metro *First-rate prose and a fascinating plot . . . a fitting coda to a remarkable career * Publishers Weekly *

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Book SynopsisBrought to you by Penguin.A new mystery is afoot in the third book in the Thursday Murder Club series from record-breaking, bestselling author Richard Osman.It is an ordinary Thursday and things should finally be returning to normal. Except trouble is never far away where the Thursday Murder Club are concerned. A decade-old cold case leads them to a local news legend and a murder with no body and no answers. Then a new foe pays Elizabeth a visit. Her mission? Kill. . . or be killed. As the cold case turns white hot, Elizabeth wrestles with her conscience (and a gun), while Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim chase down clues with help from old friends and new. But can the gang solve the mystery and save Elizabeth before the murderer strikes again?2022 Richard Osman (P)2022 Penguin AudioTrade ReviewHumour is gently threaded through every element * Observer *Unlike the bullet, Richard Osman seems incapable of missing * The Times *Delivered with the sharp wit that we associate with Osman * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisWINNER of the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year 2023WINNER of the John McGahern Prize 2023''Unputdownable . . . one of the best novels of the year'' Sunday Independent* * *In the seaside town of Tramore, County Waterford, visitors arrive in waves with the tourist season, reliving the best days of their childhoods in its caravan parks, chippers and amusement arcades.Local teenager Helen Grant is indifferent to the charm of her surroundings; she dreams of escaping to art college with her glamorous classmate Stella Swaine and, from there, taking on the world. But leaving Tramore is easier said than done. Though they don''t yet know it, Helen and Stella''s lives are pulled by tides beyond their control.Following the Grant and Swaine families and their neighbours over three decades, The Amusements is a luminous and unforgettable story about roads taken and not taken - and a brilliantly observed portrait of a small-town community.* * *''THIS BOOK is EVERYTHING'' Marian Keyes''Flannery''s flawed, hopeful characters live and grow on the page'' ANNE ENRIGHT, author of The Gathering''Quietly beautiful . . . Flannery''s characters are very well drawn, as is her understanding of small-town mores and idle gossip. It''s a book that leaves and impression long after the final page'' IRISH INDEPENDENT''Effortless, perceptive, and hugely entertaining - I loved it'' DONAL RYAN, author of Strange Flowers''A cracker of a book'' KATHLEEN MAC MAHON, author of Nothing But Blue Sky''Fantastic . . . we were gripped'' STELLAR''If you like dark humour, superbly drawn characters, caravan parks, fish suppers and slot machines, The Amusements is what you''ve been waiting for'' JAN CARSON, author of The Fire Starters''A joy to read'' LOUISE NEALON, author of Snowflake''A brilliant book. I loved meeting all these characters, who jumped off the page and stayed in my head'' RÓISÍN INGLE''Brilliant. Dramatic, heartfelt, sometimes shocking and sad'' IRISH EXAMINERTrade ReviewIf you like dark humour, superbly drawn characters, caravan parks, fish suppers and slot machines, The Amusements is what you've been waiting for -- Jan CarsonBrilliant. Dramatic, heartfelt, sometimes shocking and sad -- Sue Leonard * Irish Examiner *Unputdownable . . . one of the best novels of the year -- Estelle Birdy * Sunday Independent *The writing, so true to small-town life, is both shrewd and enlarging. Flannery writes like a grown-up; her flawed, hopeful characters live and grow on the page -- Anne EnrightIts effortless evocations of the tides and pulls of small-town life are note perfect . . . It's often very funny, sometimes sad, always authentic and perceptive, and hugely entertaining. Beautiful -- Donal Ryan

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Book Synopsis''Vivid as fireworks ... Both terrifying and exhilarating'' Doireann Ní Ghríofa, author of A Ghost in the Throat''Funny and sharp ... A hungry book, looking everywhere and seeing everything'' ObserverIn a time more turbulent than any of us could have ever imagined, a woman is attempting to write a book about prophecy in the ancient world.Navigating the tightening grip of lockdown, a marriage in crisis, and a ten-year-old son who seems increasingly unreachable, she becomes fixated on our many forms of divination and prediction: on oracles, tarot cards and tea leaves and the questions we have always asked as we scroll and click and rage against our fates.But in doing so she fails to notice the future creeping into the heart of her own home. For despite our best intentions - our sacrifices and our bargains with the gods - time, certainty and, sometimes, those we love, can still slip away ...Heartbreakingly relatable anTrade ReviewInviting, stylish and candid ... Pollard's future, as a novelist, is very bright indeed * The i *For anyone looking for ways of thinking creatively and with love about art in an emergency and what just happened to us all I would recommend it, because despite the bleakness - you can't have realism without bleakness now - this is clever, warm and funny writing -- Sarah Moss * Guardian *Funny and sharp ... Ripe with references and allusions ... Delphi is not just a novel about Covid; it's also about how a given historical moment such as the pandemic can connect us to the past and to the universal -- John Self * Observer *This isn't the first - and most certainly won't be the last - pandemic novel, but it might be the most brilliant ... As a scribe of the present, Pollard, who is a successful poet and playwright, often recalls Ali Smith. But whereas Smith's formula has lately seemed rather stale, Pollard's novel is consistently inspired, and will keep you gripped all the way through to the heart-stopping finale * Daily Mail *If you're a fan of Greek mythology, you'll enjoy Delphi ... What I loved most about this quick read is the straight-talking, frustrated narrative voice, which feels so real and relatable ... There's something strangely comforting about seeing the messiness of lockdown life through fictional eyes * Stylist *Set in the dark days of the 2020 lockdowns, this moodily relatable narrative introduces a protagonist who, faced with a global pandemic and a marriage in crisis, looks to the ancient art of prophecy for consolation ... This is a powerful fable about life in an ever-more unpredictable world * Harper’s Bazaar, 15 brilliant debut novels to discover now *Delphi distils something elusive and upsetting about all the things we can't quite see or understand about the present moment, even as all we ever do is look. This feels impressive, part of what good fiction is meant to do * New York Times *Darkly funny ... This book does a superb job of providing perspective by connecting our present moment to ancient history in a way that's clever and surprising. For fans of Jenny Offill, Ottessa Moshfegh and Sally Rooney, here's another hot sad girl book to add to your list * Buzzfeed *There's a refreshing acerbity to the central character in Delphi ... Delphi is an angry, witty, at times despairing account of one woman's lockdown * Financial Times *Finally, a brilliantly funny and sad look into the heart of the pandemic lockdown... Pollard's debut novel, Delphi, is a greatest hits of COVID-era angst that manages to avoid cliches and tired complaints while being reassuringly familiar at the same time... This is the COVID novel I've been wanting to read - the COVID novel that feels brilliantly true to real life while elevating the monotonous drag of lockdown into something funny, sad and universal... [in] compact, concise language... Characters, settings and even whole scenes are drawn in quick, exquisite precision full of wit and pathos. Its intimacy reminded me of Sally Rooney and its subtle, sly humor of Miriam Toews' All My Puny Sorrows... a reassuring reflection in the darkness * San Francisco Chronicle *An ingenious response to Covid, combining ancient Greek prophecy with the daily frustrations of lockdown to face up to our fears for the future * Guardian, Best Fiction of 2022 *Lyrical and ambitious, humorous and disturbing at points, Delphi is a relatable tale ... Delphi gets to the heart of what we might not see coming when the future isn't on our radar * The Skinny *Delphi [...] deftly utilises the occult world to shine an unflinching light on domestic mundanity, midlife anxiety and our changed relationship with the future ... Pollard takes care to demonstrate that amidst overwhelming, life-altering experiences, we can find comfort in small miracles and moments - a smile from a loved one, or recovery from illness. An important reminder that there is a sense of hope and contentment to be found in the present * Buzz Magazine *Delphi is a triumph of sly observation, wit and tragedy... dark and dangerous, disturbed and disturbing in equal measure - I loved it. * Anna Hope, author of Expectation *Consoling, harrowing, hilarious. I feel like it's healed me ...Pollard's narrator is so funny and so radically honest it leaves you reeling * Luke Kennard, author of Notes on the Sonnets *Delphi is a compact miracle of a book * Evie Wyld, author of The Bass Rock *Bold, brave and uncompromising, Pollard has found a way to write about the last couple of years which is both truthful and enjoyable to read, which I didn't think was possible. Exhilarating, exciting, rare and beautiful * Cathy Rentzenbrink, author of Write It All Down *Vivid as fireworks, Delphi explodes with the ambivalence, rage and dread of middle years lived within a world of pandemic and climate collapse. Both terrifying and exhilarating * Doireann Ní Ghríofa, author of A Ghost in the Throat *Using language that charms and beguiles, Clare Pollard cleverly creates moments of the darkest déjà vu, so that I was swept up into a story which I was both unnerved and reassured to recognise * Claire Fuller, author of Unsettled Ground *Delphi delivers an urgency unlike any I've experienced. I loved this book so much; the language, the humour, the style, which reminded me of both Patricia Lockwood and Sheila Heti. A brilliant novel born of searing eloquence and sinister wit * Jackie Polzin, author of Brood *

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Book SynopsisMacMahon writes with such beautiful simplicity, conjuring real and complex people straight off the page ... subtle and authentic - Claire Fuller On opposite sides of the world, half-siblings Cassie and Christo have built their lives around work, intent on ignoring their painful past.When a dramatic storm in Galway hits the headlines, they''re drawn back there to revisit a glorious childhood summer, the last before their mother died. But their journey uncovers memories of a far less happy summer - one that had tragic consequences.Confronted with the havoc their mother left in her wake, Cassie and Christo are forced to face their past and - ready or not - to deal with the messy tangle of parental love and neglect that shaped them.The Home Scar is a luminous and precise story about the inheritance of loss and the possibility of finally making peace with it._________Her beautifully simple style belies psychological complexity ... and her tone is wryly accepting - Big Issue Quiet and bleakly beautiful ... like the siblings and Ireland, it will leave a permanent mark on those who venture into its depths - Buzz Picks at the wounds only a mother can inflict ... ambitious ... intricate - Sunday Independent An exceptional novel about a brother and sister returning to the west of Ireland and to a summer of their past. - Anne Griffin, Sunday Independent A powerful story about legacy and loss and the possibility of reconciliation - Irish Times

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Book SynopsisFROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE BALLROOM AND EXPECTATIONThey are separating, she and her husband, after two decades together.This fact is new.There are many ways of telling the tale ...There are many different sides to every story ... A minibus journeys through rural Mexico. Inside it are twelve strangers on a pilgrimage to the White Rock, which stands, ancient and sacred, off the Pacific coast. Like many before them, over centuries and from across continents, they find themselves irresistibly drawn here, for answers, to give thanks, to seek protection.One of them is a writer. She is travelling with her husband and young daughter, as her faith in her marriage, and the future itself, is foundering. She has come to the White Rock in the hope of excavating a beginning from the rubble of many different endings.Here she will find the echoes of many stories: oTrade ReviewPrecise and perceptive ... Deeply satisfying ... We may struggle to find hope, Hope tells us, but it is there in the landscape, in faith and memory and ritual, in the ancient unchanging silences that persist' * Guardian *An eco-novel you actually want to read ... She's an assured author with a knack for an arresting image ... It leaves you with a gentle sense that things keep going * The Times *Its narrative sweep is capacious ... It has ambition to match, musing on freedom and reciprocity, on the redemptive power of storytelling and the sustaining force of ritual ... Demonstrating impressive stylistic verve * Observer *Mesmerising ... Imaginative ... Among its many impressive elements is Hope's handling of the past ... Her greatest talent is in getting under the skin of her characters ... There is a subtle plangency in this powerful portrait of human folly and ferocity * The Herald *Deeply moving ... I, for one, hope we hear plenty more from her * i news *Full of wisdom about the blink-and-you'll-miss-it nature of our lives * Good Housekeeping *Lyrical and timely * Stella *Mysterious and beautiful. It reminded me of Cloud Atlas, but it's very much itself: so bold and wild, but controlled and fierce. It's stunning writing and it has left me with hope, that we can tell stories like these even as the carbon builds, and that imagination and ideas remain powerful and valid * Russell T. Davies, writer of It's A Sin *Perfectly crafted, evocative prose which effortlessly transported me through two hundred and fifty years of history * Claire Fuller, author of Unsettled Ground *Brilliant. A stunning book of extraordinary, audacious scale * Sadie Jones, author of The Snakes *Poetic, philosophical and wildly captivating... Anna Hope captures the human condition and feeds it treats while you watch it shimmer. Her characters dance, crawl and blast off the page, like mystical beings who are at the same time solidly human. I swam in this book and didn't want to come up for air * Emma Jane Unsworth, author of Animals and Adults *I loved it. I became invested in each of the different eras and was struck by the sense of unknowable forces outliving us all. It is full of wisdom, intricate and emotional, and it will linger in my head for a long time * Dave Haslam, author of Sonic Youth Slept On My Floor *Anna Hope is such a generous and sensitive writer, and The White Rock is full of extraordinary voices and ideas. Absolutely a story for our times, and a fiercely important one, too * Clover Stroud, author of The Red of my Blood *I loved the sparseness, the moments of poetry, the quiet brutality. The voice throughout is fierce and graceful and utterly compelling; each central character is rich and beautifully pinpointed. It is her strongest work yet * Melody Razak, author of Moth *The White Rock is a sublime, poetic, and visionary work of art * Ron Rash, author of In the Valley *

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Book SynopsisFrom the twice Booker-shortlisted author of The Reluctant Fundamentalist and Exit West, a story of love, loss, and rediscovery in a time of unsettling changeOne morning, Anders wakes to find that his skin has turned dark, his reflection a stranger to him. At first he tells only Oona, an old friend, newly a lover.Soon, reports of similar occurrences surface across the land. Some see in the transformations the long-dreaded overturning of an established order, to be resisted to a bitter end. In many, like Anders''s father and Oona''s mother, a sense of profound loss wars with profound love.As the bond between Anders and Oona deepens, change takes on a different shading: a chance to see one another, face to face, anew.''A transformative tale . . . compellingly readable and strangely musical'' Guardian''With this big-hearted novel of ideas, Mohsin Hamid confronts challenging truths with insight, wisdom, and - aTrade ReviewMohsin Hamid's The Last White Man is a visionary novel exploring race and identity... it's another bracing achievement from a consummate master, its silken prose breathing fresh air into fusty debates about race and identity * Oprah Daily *A hypnotic race fable . . . In the hands of such a deft and humane writer as Hamid, a bizarre construct is moved far beyond any mere 'what if' * Guardian *The electric premise, borrowed from Kafka's The Metamorphosis, looks set to update a classic to make it urgently relevant * Evening Standard *[A] powerful contemporary update of Kafka's The Metamorphosis -- A Financial Times Book of the Year

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Book SynopsisA deliciously dark, atmospheric novel about family and brotherhood from one of America''s most distinctive writersThere''s sibling rivalry and then there''s the relationship of brothers Cal and Frank Belanger.Enemies since childhood, the small town of Littleford just isn''t big enough to hold them both. So, Cal strikes out for the world''s wild places - a gifted geologist in search of gold and other precious minerals - leaving Frank to develop a successful career as the town''s lawyer, fixer and local hero.But when Cal, newly rich and newlywed, returns to the town of his birth, Frank gives him the opposite of a brotherly welcome, leading to a series of betrayals and reprisals culminating in the ultimate plan: murder.A riveting tale of adventure, betrayal and the true cost of family bonds, The Bad Angel Brothers is a remarkable novel from one of American''s most distinctive writers.''Laden with jealousy, betrayal and a mythic lTrade ReviewA manic tale of sibling rivalry that owes its small town setting mostly to John Cheever, and its seething resentment mostly to William Shakespeare . . . at once maundering and intensely emotionally violent * Observer *Searing and memorable . . . Theroux plays skillfully on reader sympathies until the bitter end, showing how a man's beliefs can make him turn to violence * Publishers Weekly *American master Paul Theroux delivers a chilling psychological novel in The Bad Angel Brothers * Honolulu Magazine *Watch the magician's hands: Theroux has some powerful twists in his hat, and the language and compelling prose with which to offer them into the spotlight * New York Journal of Books *Theroux's prose is so rich, his perceptions so many-layered, he involves us in a world that extends well beyond the physical limits of his novel * The Times *

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Book Synopsis''A tender, heart-felt read, with the perfect blend of ingredients: New York, food, family and romance!'' Sophie Cousens-----Where better to start again than New York?Iris arrives in the city of dreams, intent on restarting her culinary career, and leaving her recent heartache behind.Wandering the streets at a famous food festival, Iris feels like she''s living in a movie. Then she stumbles upon a gelateria that looks strangely familiar. Inside, she meets Gio: a perfect leading man with an irresistible smile - and a crisis of his own.As fate would have it, Iris is the one person with the answer to his problem. She just can''t tell him that . . .So, can Iris finally let go of the past - and let herself fall in love?A sumptuously cosy seasonal love story set in sparkling New York, from the queen of the ''what if?'' romance Josie Silver.-----''Joyous, uplifting and heart-racingly romantic. I devoured it. You''ll find me in Little Italy licking gelato off a hot Italian stallion''s chest'' Cathy Bramley''A unique and gorgeously written love story bursting with characters you''ll want to protect'' Lizzie Damilola Blackburn''Deliciously romantic - I loved everything about it'' Libby Page''A magical love story that had me hooked from the first page'' Cressida McLaughlinTrade Review'The sweetest love story . . . you're going to LOVE it' * Marian Keyes on ONE DAY IN DECEMBER *'Heartbreakingly beautiful, butterfly-inducing and laugh-out-loud funny' * Paige Toon on THE TWO LIVES OF LYDIA BIRD *'Sexy, funny and poignant' * Sophie Cousens on ONE NIGHT ON THE ISLAND *

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Book SynopsisTHE TOP TEN SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING NOVELWINNER OF THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE 2024Dancing is the one thing that can solve Stephen''s problems.At Church with his family, the shimmer of Black hands raised in praise. With his band, making music speaking not just to their hardships, but their joys. Grooving with his best friend, so close their heads might touch. Dancing alone to his father''s records, uncovering parts of a man he has never truly known. His youth, shame and sacrifice.Stephen has only ever known himself in song. But what becomes of him when the music fades?Set over the course of three summers, from South London to Ghana and back again, SMALL WORLDS is a novel about the worlds we build for ourselves. The worlds we live, dance and love within.*****''Caleb Azumah Nelson''s stunning second novel confirms his status as a literary star'' Observer''Beautiful, unforgettable and all-consuming'' Candice Carty-Williams, author of Queenie''SMALL WORLDS is a book for everyone . . . an uplifting symphony of a summer read'' TimesTop 10 Sunday Times bestseller, May 2023

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Book Synopsis''A DELICIOUSLY DARK STORY OF MURDER AND SECRETS'' CLAIRE DOUGLASYou can run away from your life. But you can''t run away from murder.When her family tragedy is splashed across the newspapers, Nancy decides to disappear. Her grandmother''s beautiful Regency house in a quiet seaside village seems like the safest place to hide. But the old house has its own secrets and a chilling wartime legacy . . .Now someone knows the truth about the night Nancy''s mother and stepfather were murdered. Someone knows where to find her. And they have nothing to lose . . .So what really happened that night? And how far will she go to keep it hidden?DON''T MISS THE CAPTIVATING NEW BOOK FROM SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR JANE CORRY----------------------------''Deftly peeling back layers of family secrets, Coming to Find You is a compelling read'' Shari Lapena, author of Not a HaTrade ReviewYou won't know who to trust in this twisty, absorbing and intricately-plotted family thriller -- T.M. Logan, author of The Holiday on The Lies We TellGritty, real, interesting and clever. Highly recommended -- Gillian McAllister, author of That Night on I Made A MistakeEverything I love in a book -- Lisa Jewell, author of The Family Upstairs on The Lies We Tell

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE AUTHORS'' CLUB BEST FIRST NOVEL AWARDSHORTLISTED FOR THE GORDON BOWKER VOLCANO PRIZEAN OBSERVER BEST DEBUT OF THE YEAR''One of the best debuts this year'' Guardian''An intoxicating portrait of modern India ... Terrific'' Daily Mail''Hugely engaging, written with verve, intelligence and compassion'' Irish Times____________________________________________India, 1992. The country is ablaze with riots. In Lucknow, ten-year-old Shubhankar witnesses a terrible act of mob violence that will alter the course of his life: one to which his family turn a blind eye.As he approaches adulthood, Shabby focuses on the only path he believes will buy him an escape - good school, good degree, good job, good car. But when he arrives in Mumbai in his twenties, he begins to question whether there might be other roads he could choose. His new friends, Syed and Shruti, are asking the sam

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Book SynopsisWinner of the Booker Prize, the beautiful, romantic and gorgeously philosophical Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner is part of our Penguin Essential series which spotlights the very best of our modern classics''The Hotel du Lac was a dignified building, a house of repute, a traditional establishment, used to welcoming the prudent, the well-to-do, the retired, the self-effacing, the respected patrons of an earlier era''Into the rarefied atmosphere of the Hotel du Lac timidly walks Edith Hope, romantic novelist and holder of modest dreams. Edith has been exiled from home after embarrassing herself and her friends. She has refused to sacrifice her ideals and remains stubbornly single. But among the pampered women and minor nobility Edith finds Mr Neville, and her chance to escape from a life of humiliating loneliness is renewed . . .''A classic . . . a book which will be read with pleasure a hundred years from now'' Spectator''Humorous, witty, touching and formidably clever'' The Times''Hotel du Lac is written with a beautiful grave formality, and it catches at the heart'' Observer''So sure and so quietly commanding'' Hilary Mantel, GuardianTrade ReviewMiss Brookner's most absorbing novel . . . graceful and attractive * New York Times *Her technique as a novelist is so sure and so quietly commanding * Hilary Mantel, Guardian *Hotel du Lac is written with a beautiful grave formality, and it catches at the heart * Observer *The last great novelist of the 20th century * Daily Telegraph *A classic . . . a book which will be read with pleasure a hundred years from now * Spectator *A smashing love story. It is very romantic. It is also humorous, witty, touching and formidably clever * The Times *She is one of the great writers of contemporary fiction * Literary Review *

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Book Synopsis''A darkly comedic story . . . I loved it'' JESSE SUTANTOPoignant and funny, dark and searing' ANDREA MARA''Perfect for those who like feminism with their dead bodies'' JULIE COHEN''Tense, funny, moving and strangely cosy'' HOLLY BOURNE---Four new friends. Four dead bodies. One big problem . . .Sally never meant to cave her husband''s head in with a skillet. Or at least she didn''t until suddenly, she did.But Sally isn''t the only woman in town being pushed to breaking point. When coincidence brings four strangers together, a surprising solidarity is formed.So can they find the best way to bury their husbands - and get away with it?Darkly funny and with a big beating heart, The Best Way to Bury Your Husband combines four very different women, one unexpected friendship and several spades in this irresistible page-turner.

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Book Synopsis''Bound to be the hit thriller of the summer!'' T. M. Logan, The Holiday-----Six friends.The holiday of their dreams.One night that changed it all . . .1989: The tunes are loud and the clothes are louder when a group of friends arrives in Mallorca for a post-graduation holiday of decadence and debauchery at a luxury villa.A beach party marks the pinnacle of their fun, until it isn''t fun any longer. Because amidst the wild partying - sand flying from dancing feet and revellers leaping from yachts - an accident happens. Suddenly, the night of a lifetime becomes a living nightmare.Now: The truth about that summer has been collectively buried. But someone knows what happened that night.And they want the friends to pay for what they did.-----''Thrilling, twisting and gloriously ''80s'' Chris Whitaker, We Begin at the End''Sun-soaked and fast-paced, the perfect holiday page turner'' Ellery Lloyd, The Club''Deliciously gripping and twisty'' Shalini Boland, The Secret Mother''Sizzling with suspense, the perfect summer read'' B. A. Paris, Behind Closed DoorsTrade ReviewPrepare to be utterly seduced by this gloriously immersive summer read. Secrets, revelations and twists aplenty! -- Lesley Kara, author of The RumourIt's only 5th January and I'm pretty sure I've just finished one of the best thrillers I'll read this year -- Emma Curtis, author of One Little MistakeWith a to-die-for setting and elegant prose, this scorcher is a must-have holiday read -- Fiona Cummins, author of When I Was TenPropulsive read which delivers a real punch. Coercive friendships in '89 and now are dissected with skill by Nikki Smith in this cautionary tale. I could not look away! -- Amanda Reynolds, author of Close to MeA truly gripping tale packed with sun, secrets, toxic allegiances and shocking revelations, this novel is sure to grace many a sunlounger this summer -- Caz Frear, author of Sweet Little LiesPerfect reading for a sun lounger * Daily Mail *

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Book Synopsis''The perfect beach read'' Harriet Tyce, Blood Orange''Wonderfully escapist and nail-bitingly suspenseful'' Laura Marshall, Friend Request-----WELCOME TO PARADISE! Or so the staff say as they greet the Hamiltons on the pristine shores of the idyllic Maldives resort.And it starts off that way: snorkelling in the serene blue sea, champagne picnics on powder-white sand, and moonlit walks under the stars.But lies lurk beneath the luxury, because each of the guests has a secret and they''re not the only ones.Months later, a grisly discovery is made.Whatever happened to the Hamiltons? And how did their once-in-a-lifetime trip turn into the holiday from hell?From the author of THE BEACH PARTY comes a novel of sun, sea and secrets for fans of ONE OF THE GIRLS and WHITE LOTUS.PRAISE FOR NIKKI SMITH''A sumptuous blend of glossy luxury and dark underbelly'' Andrea Mara, No One Saw A Thing''The new queen of the glamorous destination thriller'' Ellery Lloyd, The Club''Set to be another summer scorcher'' BA Paris, Behind Closed Doors''Bound to be the hit thriller of the summer!'' T. M. Logan, The Holiday''Thrilling, twistinga heart stopping read '' Chris Whitaker, We Begin at the End''Deliciously gripping and twisty'' Shalini Boland, The Secret MotherA cocktail of questionable motives set against a backdrop to die for' Liv Matthews, The TwinsDark secrets and twists that will knock you sideways' Lesley Kara, The Rumour

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Book Synopsis''Just the right dose of delicious steam'' Ali Hazelwood''Fresh, fun and extremely sexy'' Helen Hoang''Full of wit, charm and Big Firefighter Energy'' Lynn Painter----------Curvy fitness influencer Crystal Chen built her career shattering gym stereotypes. After a recent break-up, she has little time left for men, instead finding joy in the gym - her place of power and positivity.Enter firefighter Scott Ritchie, the smug new guy who routinely steals her favourite squat rack. Soon, sparks start flying . . .As the ultra-competitive foes battle for gym domination, the last thing they expect is to run into each other at their grandparents'' engagement party. And, in the lead-up to the wedding, Crystal discovers there''s a soft heart under Scott''s muscled exterior. Bonding over family, fitness and cheesy pick-up lines, she just might have found her person.But when a photo of them goes viral, savaTrade ReviewEnergetic, steamy, and so, so fun. But more than that, it's also a hugely important book that celebrates body positivity in the most joyous way possible -- Jesse Sutanto, Dial A for AuntiesThe gym has never seemed such a sexy place -- Denise Williams, How to Fail at FlirtingAn incredibly fun and sexy slow burn, enemies-to-lovers romcom -- Kerry Winfrey, Very Sincerely Yours

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Book Synopsis''Unapologetically romantic, wonderfully sexy, always brilliant'' Ali Hazelwood''The perfect book to lift your spirits'' Beth O''Leary------Tara Chen has had her heart broken ten times, by ten different men. Nevertheless, she is still determined to find her perfect match. The only problem? Tara is a romance novel obsessive, and her standards are sky high.Modern dating apps have killed the meet-cute, so Tara decides to revisit her exes - all ten of them - in the hope of finding her very own trope-worthy second-chance romance. And every heroine needs a sidekick, so she enlists her new flatmate, firefighter Trevor.Trevor Metcalfe is the first to rush into a burning building but the last to rush into a relationship. Love just isn''t his thing. But, the more time they spend together, the more Trevor appreciates Tara''s authentic, dramatic self.Can they break the habits of a lifetime and give their spark a cTrade ReviewJust the right dose of delicious steam -- Ali Hazelwood on Set on YouFresh, fun and extremely sexy -- Helen Hoang on Set on YouFull of with, charm and Big Firefighter Energy -- Lynn Painter on Set on You

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Book Synopsis''[Amy is] always brilliant'' Ali Hazelwood''If The Proposal and While You Were Sleeping had a baby'' Sarah Adams''I can''t wait for readers to devour it'' B.K. Borison----In a last ditch attempt to rescue her brand from the brink of irrelevance, fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen finds herself in a rural fishing village on the east coast of Canada. The only thing scarier than nature itself? Burly fisherman Evan Whaler - who single-handedly disproves the theory that canadians are ''nice''.After a boating incident lands Evan in the hospital, Mel is mistaken for his fiancee by his welcoming yet quirky family. And, in exchange for Evan''s help with her social media content, Mel agrees to fake their engagement for just. one. week.But reeling in their budding feelings for each other proves more difficult than expected.Is Mel willing to sacrifice her picture-perfect life in the city for a chance at true love in the wild?-----Praise for Amy''s other swoon-worthy rom-coms...''Sparkles with Amy''s signature sweetness and steam'' Carley Fortune, Every Summer After''An outright, unmitigated delight'' Christina Lauren, The Unhoneymooners''Every rom-com reader''s dream'' Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka, The Roughest Draft''The tension is chef''s kiss!'' Sarah Adams, When in Rome''A perfect mix of relatable characters, hilarious banter and steam'' Lily Chu, The Stand-InTrade ReviewA small town, a grumpy hero, a fake romance . . . Just gorgeous! -- Beth O'LearyUnapologetically romantic, wonderfully sexy, always brilliant -- Ali Hazelwood on Exes and O’sSparkles with Amy's signature sweetness and steam -- Carley Fortune on Exes and O's

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Book SynopsisTHE NUMBER 1 BESTSELLER - AND THE PERFECT GIFT FOR THE ROSS O''CARROLL-KELLY FAN IN YOUR LIFE!''Ross is a national institution'' - Irish Times''The social satire is as sharp as it gets ... compelling and carefully crafted'' Irish Examiner ''One of the funniest writers in the country'' - RTÉ Radio One* * *''The name''s O''Carroll-Kelly. Ross O''Carroll-Kelly.''As the great James Bond said, ''History isn''t kind to men who play God.'' How right the dude ended up being.My secret double-life was finally catching up with me. Sorcha wanted a divorce. I was facing jail time for taking my orse out in a pub in Cork. And there was a very good chance that my sister-in-law''s surrogate baby was actually mine?One by one, all of the goys turned their backs on me.Then came an unexpected plot twist. From beyond the grave, Fr Fehily - the M and the Q to our Leinster Schools Senior Cup-winning team - sent us all on one final mission . . .To walk the Camino - or die trying!It''s, like, double oh fock!* * *''Laugh-out-loud funny'' - Anton Savage, Newstalk ''A legendary anti-hero'' - Business Post''Ripe with witty neologisms, side-splitting sexscriptions and of course, rugby ... Paul Howard continues to keep the quality control at an impressively high level. Fair focks'' Hot Press

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Book SynopsisDazzling I didn't want it to end' Coco Mellors author of Cleopatra and FrankensteinPhenomenal! A book worthy of a standing ovation' Lizzie Damilola Blackburn, author of Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband? Getting a second chance is a beautiful thingBianca Bridge's personal and professional lives are in tatters. She has lost her beloved mother and has only a distant relationship with her self-made father. And now, she's been outed as the mistress of a government minister ending her journalism career before it had even started.All but unemployable, she is astonished when tyrannical make-up artist Obadiah Cortland, Trinidad's legendary God of Good Looks', hires her as his new assistant.At first, Bianca can't stand her fierce new boss and he lets her know the feeling is mutual. But when her ex threatens both their futures and working together becomes their last resort, she begins to glimpse another Obadiah beneath the façade he's so carefully cultivated.I loved it' India KnightA glittering will-they, won't-they Bridget Jones re-boot' Nikki May, author of Wahala A punchy romance with plenty to say about Caribbean class, poverty and sexism. Bianca Bridge is a heroine to root for' ObserverWickedly funny Mc Ivor uses the metaphor of make-up to examine privilege, corruption and truth. Bianca is a hugely endearing heroine' Daily Mail

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Book SynopsisFROM THE COSTA AWARD-WINNING, WOMEN'S PRIZE-SHORTLISTED AUTHOR OF UNSETTLED GROUND''A stunning piece of speculative fiction'' The i''A haunting novel about love, survival and everything in between ... One to get excited about'' Stylist, Best Modern Dystopia---Humans are useless at learning from their mistakes. We just have to keep making new plans.When Neffy wakes up from an uneasy sleep in a hospital bed, nothing is as it should be. There is no food, and nobody to tend to her. The city streets outside her window have fallen silent. She doesn't know it yet, but a debilitating new virus is sweeping the globe, and the world will never be the same again.Feverish, confused, and wary of the strangers trapped inside with her, Neffy finds solace in her own memories of the past even the memories of the mistakes that led her here.But as the days turn into weeks, it is clear that Neffy will have to mak

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Book SynopsisIn this dazzling collection of stories, a son must repeatedly come out to his senile father while looking for a place that will care for the old man. An elderly couple confronts the note-taking fiction writer eavesdropping on their conversation. A famous actor in recovery has a one-night stand with the world''s most surprising film critic. And in the beautifully romantic title story, a shy twenty-one-year-old studying Latin in Rome during the year of my reinvention finds himself face-to-face with the gorgeous Italian actress of his adolescent dreams.Funny, poignant, and redemptive, this collection takes the reader to Italy and Idaho, Washington and Mississippi. With his signature wit and bighearted approach to the darkest parts of humanity, Walter tackles the modern condition with a timeless touch.Trade ReviewWalter is a writer whose work deserves a wide readership * Sunday Times on The Cold Millions *One of our most gifted builders of fictional worlds * Esquire on The Cold Millions *Walter is a believer in capricious destiny with a fine, freewheeling sense of humour * New York Times on The Cold Millions *

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD 2024LONGLISTED FOR THE NOTA BENE PRIZE 2024A radical, joyful novel from Goldsmiths Prize-winning author Isabel WaidnerIn flight from a traumatic rural childhood, Corey Fah has come to earth in a one-bed council flat in the capital. Trapped, with partner Drew, in the limited world which late capitalism has allotted them, they are modestly happy but practically futureless.Until, one day, Corey is offered a life-changing prize from out of the blue. Things are looking up but as Corey soon finds, it's one thing winning a prize in life's lottery, and quite another being able to collect it especially if you are a queer, working class immigrant with all of History working against you.Corey Fah's pursuit of the elusive prize and an escape from precarity is a whirlwind, epic journey through the streets of the city and the time-loops of the past, written with boundless energy and invention.Social mobility, in this radiant, radical novel, is never a simple step up the ladder, but a hopeful leap into the void.Praise for Corey Fah Does Social Mobility:''A head-spinning, mind-bending roller coaster of fun, horror, and subversion'' Kamila Shamsie''A radical, rebellious novel . . . [Waidner] brings a fresh lens to our troubled world'' Observer[The] writer everyone is talking about . . . and deservedly so'' Bernardine Evaristo''Filled with wickedly sharp commentary and well-aimed digs at hypocrisy and injustice'' Times Literary Supplement

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Book SynopsisDevastating' Anne EnrightBeautiful' Louise Nealon''Magnificent'' Aingeala Flannery''Masterful'' Kathleen MacMahonJean Kennedy is a gentle, perceptive girl growing up in a very strange world: suburban Dublin in the 1970s and ''80s. In the company of her mother, her Aunty Ida, and her little brother Baby John F., Jean experiences love and joy. But home is not a safe place, and Jean is unequal and unprotected. When she speaks just one small part of the truth, she must quickly learn to navigate the dangers and possibilities of a world she scarcely understands.Jean's hypnotic, unsparing and ultimately hopeful voice captures the dreams and terrors of girlhood in a brutally hypocritical world, and offers glimpses of a better life. Through it all, Jean's voice pulsates with insight and passion. Girl in the Making is a deeply moving, propulsive coming-of-age story from a major new talent.-----A gifted writer' Sarah Gilmartin, Irish TimesTender and perceptive simply unforgettable' Sue Leonard, Irish Examiner''Reminiscent of the work of Tessa Hadley and Elena Ferrante'' Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett''Devastating and superb'' Anne Cunningham, Irish Independent

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Book SynopsisA brilliant collection of short stories from Leonora Brito exploring race, identity, and love''Magical, enigmatic, distinctive, accomplished and haunting . . . Brito was ahead of her time'' BERNARDINE EVARISTO, FROM THE INTRODUCTIONLeonora Brito was a writer of exceptional stories. In Dat''s Love, she soaks up the sights, sounds and colours of Cardiff to boldly explore race and history.With each electric story, Brito introduces a unique cast of characters, vibrantly elevating their everyday lives. From 59-year-old Dorothy taking up nude modelling to black aristocrat Dido Elizabeth Belle absconding her uncle''s estate, from the assassination of JFK to what''s going down at the Blue Bayou bar, Brito blends the surreal and the mundane to redress history and immerse the reader in a vibrantly painted world.Containing an unusual exactness and sense of place, Brito''s stories are unique in Welsh fiction in presenting an insider''s perspective oTrade ReviewScintillating . . . Dat’s Love conjures into being a vivid and vital picture of life in Cardiff’s Tiger Bay . . . Brito’s communicable zest for language fizzes like a seltzer . . . a high-water mark in Welsh fiction, with stories that have a real sense of a real place and stand proud on the shelf * Nation Cymru *Outstanding . . . Leonora Brito shares stirring social observations that cut to the core of the human condition through intimate portraits of a diverse cast of characters. These are stories that stir the soul, quiver the heart, and quicken the brain * LoveReading *Leonora Brito's perspective is utterly unique and her voice is remarkable. I feel incredibly lucky to have discovered this book and to have made this connection to her legacy -- Orla Mackey, author of MOUTHINGA collection that is sometimes funny and always highly original. Brito's narrators and characters are freetalkers and freethinkers with strikingly singular perspectives * Publishers Weekly *The themes of race, community, a sense of place, history and identity (and specifically a Welsh identity) explored in Brito's writing are timeless and relevant as ever, making Dat's Love a must-read for everyone * Wales Arts Review *

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Book Synopsis''Such a fun, heart-warming page-turner'' - Marian Keyes''A fantastic Irish writer'' - Joanne McNally''The next Jackie Collins'' - Aoife BarryI don't know if Ireland has ever seen a book like this' Georgie Crawford, The Good Glow''It's camp and sexy but also a serious exploration of romantic relationships, friendship and family. Escapism at its finest!'' - Sarah Breen Portia Daniels'' life is sorted. She has a perfect man (Jason, a hot TV producer from Ireland), a perfect apartment (in lower Manhattan), a perfect job (writing for TV). Best of all for her, unlike the rest of her family, she lives in perfect obscurity.On the other hand, it''s all drama with her mother, Dessie, Kerry-born queen bee of hit reality show, Ladies of Los Angeles, and sisters, Vinnie, a supermodel-turned-Insta-guru and Ariel, a Tik-Tok teen sensation.When Jason drops a bombshell that leaves her life in tatters, Portia flees to be with her

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Book SynopsisLonglisted for the CWA Twisted Dagger Award 2025''Grips you with a stranglehold from the get-go'' Edel Coffey''Riveting gripping' The Irish IndependentAn incredibly gripping and entertaining page-turner' The Irish Times-----Two mothers. Two daughters. Two sides to the story.When Sara leaves her high-flying London life to move to Dublin, her only concern is her nine-year-old daughter, Lexie. For Lexie''s sake she tries to get to know other mothers at the school gates, but they appear uninterested - particularly their leader, the beautiful and charismatic Vanessa, whose daughter rules the playground.After a simple misunderstanding between Vanessa and Sara, none of the other kids at school want anything to do with Lexie. Desperate to mend fences, Sara offers to look after Vanessa''s daughter one afternoon. But when the playdate ends in catastrophe, Vanessa is convinced that what happened wasn''t an accident.With allegations flying in all directions, Sara is forced to ask herself what she has unleashed? And how far a mother will go to protect her daughter?-----''Engrossing psychological drama ... a real page-turner, with lots of suspense'' Irish Examiner''A finely plotted book, one to be read in a single sitting. There are some jaw-dropping twists, yet it feels plausible'' Sue Leonard, Irish Examiner''You cannot put it down . . . an absolute page-turner' Claire Byrne, Today with Claire Byrne, RTÉ Radio

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewAn important contribution to world literature. . . Fiona Mc Laughlin has made a masterful translation. * African Studies Review *[This novel] comes closer than have many political scientists or historians to trying to understand why this small country . . . sank in such appalling violence. * Radio France International *A powerful contribution to the literature of the Rwandan genocide. * Kirkus Reviews *Table of ContentsForeword: An Urn for the Dead, an Hourglass for the Living by Eileen JulienAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: "To call a monster by its name" by Fiona Mc LaughlinPart 1. Fear and Anger Michel Serumundo Faustin Gasana JessicaPart 2. The Return of CorneliusPart 3. Genocide Aloys Ndasingwa Marina Nkusi Jessica Rosa Karemera Doctor Joseph Karekezi Jessica Colonel Etienne Perrin JessicaPart 4. Murambi

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