Contemporary fiction titles are those which focus on the present or near past. Stories rooted in the current cultural, social, and political landscape which feature characters we can all recognise.
Contemporary Fiction Books
Headline Publishing Group Dream a Little Dream A young family rediscover
Book SynopsisEdie Dennison was a sweet young girl when she first met her husband Robert living in the same street of two-up two-down houses in Seaforth. Now, thanks to the success of Robert''s business, they''ve gone up in the world. When Robert realises that his wife has forgotten her roots, and is encouraging their children to have ideas above their station, he decides to take his two youngest children, Nigel and Abbie, back to Seaforth, to meet their old friends and the grandparents they never knew they had. Soon they discover a whole new world of happiness is waiting for them...Trade ReviewPraise for Joan Jonker: 'As usual our Joan has come up with a story full of laughter and smiles * Liverpool Echo *Hilarious and touching stories of life in Liverpool * Woman's Realm *
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group Drowning Ruth The stunning psychological drama
Book Synopsis''POWERFUL . . . SUSPENSEFUL . . . RICHLY TEXTURED . . . [A] CHILLING, PRECOCIOUSLY GOOD START TO A BRIGHT NEW NOVELIST''S CAREER'' New York Times ''[A] gripping psychological thriller . . . In the winter of 1919, a young mother named Mathilda Neumann drowns beneath the ice of a rural Wisconsin lake. The shock of her death dramatically changes the lives of her daughter, troubled sister, and husband . . . The narrative gradually and tantalizingly reveals the dark family secrets and the unsettling discoveries that lead to the truth of what actually happened the night of the drowning'' FRANCINE PROSE, US Weekly ''DEFT AND ASSURED . . . [WITH] STRONG CHARACTERS AND A PLOT LONG ON TENSION AND SURPRISES'' Time ''A strong sense of portent and unusually vivid characters distinguish this mesmerizing first novel about horrifying family secrets . . . a complex and rewarding debut. ANITA SHREVE RIVETING . .Trade Review'A gripping read' Choice magazine * Choice *'A compelling mystery' The Times * Play (The Times) *'Assured and dense debut...Schwarz's real achievement is in matching the complexities of her plot with vivid characters' The Scotsman * The Scotsman *'Austere, tense, painful and rewarding, this book keeps you reading until the vertebrae sulk - and the aftertaste has the bitterness of a linctus whose sharpness conveys its benefit' Frank Delaney * Frank Delaney *In [the] assured last stroke, Ms Schwarz affirms the psychological underpinnings of a book that would have worked page-turningly well as a straightforward mystery alone. She gives it the extra wisdom that marks DROWNING RUTH as the chilling, precociously good start to a bright new novelist's career * New York Times *'This is a book that really ought not to be missed' Sentinel Sunday * Sentinel Sunday *A strong sense of portent and unusually vivid characters distinguish this mesmerizing first novel about horrifying family secrets and nearly annihilating guilt. DROWNING RUTH is a complex and rewarding debut * Anita Shreve *A riveting first novel... A very suspenseful tale, one that will keep readers up shivering in the heat of an August night * USA Today *Quietly powerful prose and carefully nuanced description... Creates a satisfying fictional world. An engrossing debut from a writer to watch * Kirkus Reviews *The first sentence of this brilliantly understated psychological thriller leaps off the page and captures the reader's imagination...Schwarz deftly uses first-person narration to heighten the drama. Her prose is spare but bewitching, and she juggles the speakers and time periods with the surety of a seasoned novelist * Publishers Weekly *This unusually deft and assured first novel conveys a good deal more than thrills and chills * Time *The stars of DROWNING RUTH are the beautifully imagined lakes in summer and winter, the desolate farmhouse where Ruth grows up... The book offers ... more tender gifts * Washington Post *It remains gripping to the end * New York Post *A remarkable debut: surprising, unsettling and sure * New York Times Book Review *'It is not hard to see why DROWNING RUTH became a bestseller...Where many historical novels are weighed down by detail, DROWNING RUTH is drenched in the melancholic atmosphere of its setting...an intriguing story' New Statesman * New Statesman *'The compelling quality of Christina Schwarz's first novel, DROWNING RUTH, is quite unique' Independent * Independent *
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group Many a Tear has to Fall A warm tender heartfelt
Book SynopsisThings are finally looking up for George and Ann Richardson. After causing years of worry, their younger daughter Tess, who had always been sickly and small, is starting to blossom into a confident, clever girl. It will be some time before she catches up with her older sister Maddy, but her family know she''ll soon be just as strong. And they''ve just scraped together enough money to take them on their first holiday, to Wales, where the country life will be just what they need. But heartache is waiting for the family when they return to Liverpool, and many a tear will have to fall before they find the true happiness they long for...Trade ReviewPraise for Joan Jonker: 'As usual our Joan has come up with a story full of laughter and smiles * Liverpool Echo *Hilarious and touching stories of life in Liverpool * Woman's Realm *
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group Backpack A dark suspense thriller with a shocking
Book SynopsisTansy has to escape from her London life. She''s desperate to get away from her media job, her coke habit, her dead mother and her selfish boyfriend. But she finds travelling through Asia more smelly than romantic and, besides, she''s missing her boyfriend. However, she is determined not to give in, give up or go home. As she travels further east she begins to enjoy her journey - until murder starts to follow her and the trip becomes much more adventurous than she had anticipated.
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group The Urchins Song Has she found the key to
Book SynopsisThe approach of the twentieth century means little to Josie Burns and her family; living in Sunderland''s slum area, they battle dirt, cold and hunger on a daily basis. Josie''s brothers and sisters are terrified of their violent alcoholic father, but Josie is not like the rest, for she has something that will enable her to rise out of the slums: a beautiful singing voice, with which even as a child she earns enough pennies to keep her father happy. When she discovers that her father is trying to put her younger sister, Gertie, on the game, Josie and Gertie flee the family home, taking refuge with a friend. By educating herself and taking singing lessons, Josie starts on the journey to success and security - but can she also find love?Trade ReviewPraise for Rita Bradshaw: 'Catherine Cookson fans will enjoy discovering a new author who writes in a similar vein * Home and Family *If you like gritty, rags-to-riches Northern sagas, you'll enjoy this * Family Circle *What an emotional rollercoaster ride of a book! It grabs your attention from page one and does not let go until the end * Sunderland Echo *Displaying an uncanny ability to spin a good yarn * Sunderland Echo *All published writers have skill and creativity, but a few have more. It's called magic. I'm beginning to believe Bradshaw has it! * Historical Novels Review *
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group Suzannes Diary for Nicholas
Book SynopsisBook editor Katie is in love with poet, Matt Harrison. He seems to share her feelings, but refuses to talk about his past. All she knows is that Matt was once married. One evening, he suddenly ends their relationship, leaving Katie devastated. A few days later, he sends her a notebook that he promises will explain everything. Katie opens the book to find it is the diary that Matt''s wife, Suzanne, wrote for their baby son. It tells the story of her love for Matt and Nicholas, and reveals the tragedy that haunts Matt''s life today. And Katie realises he needs her to understand his past if she is ever to be a part of his future.Trade ReviewSuzanne's Diary was no.7 in the Observer and the Daily and Sunday Telegraph bestseller lists'An affecting love story awash in tragedy and hope' Publishers Weekly, 7/6/04 * Publishers Weekly *'A moving, and fast-moving fable' Kirkus Reviews'A whimsical romance... more American than cherry pie' MirrorSuzanne's Diary For Nicholas was no.10 in the Sunday Times, Observer and Daily and Sunday Telegraph bestseller lists and no.3 in the Times fastseller list
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group No Sanctuary Do you dare to go down to the lake
Book SynopsisRick would do anything for his girlfriend Bert. He''d even spend his vacation in the wilderness, walking the trails around Fern Lake. After what happened last time, it''s the one place in the world he''d prefer not to go. But Bert is a woman with a passion for the outdoors - and a passion for other things too. Rick would follow her to hell and back - which is what he''s about to do. Gillian is off on vacation too, only her idea of a holiday is a little weird. She likes breaking into people''s homes while they are away and living there. Pity that this time she chances on the home of a serial-killer. The kind of guy who likes to take his female victims out into the wilderness for his fun. Rick and Bert are not the only ones heading to Fern Lake...
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group The Woman on the Bus A lifeaffirming novel of
Book SynopsisIt''s a typical Tuesday evening in Kilbrody. Cathy Long is on her way to collect her drunken father from the pub. Ozzy O''Reilly is in the graveyard, watching the Dublin bus through his binoculars. Charlie Finn is pulling pints, when suddenly it hits him: he''s bored. And that''s when the woman from the bus walks through his door and drinks herself into oblivion. Now the whole village wants to know, who is the woman on the bus? The question is, will she tell them?Trade Review`A funny read' Heat magazine * Heat magazine *
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group Shadows on our Skin
Book SynopsisDerry in the 1970s: teenager Joe Logan is growing up in the teeth of the Troubles, having to cope with embittered parents, a brother who''s been away and come back with money and a gun in his pocket, harsh school teachers, and the constant awareness of the military presence in the background. Central to the story is the friendship that tentatively grows up between Joe and Kathleen, a young school-teacher who brings a fresh perspective to his familiar world.Trade ReviewMasterly -- Penelope Lively * The Sunday Times *She has created a world of her own... of such material is the finest literature made -- Derek Mahon * Irish Times *A bittersweet demonstration of the impossibility of love... shot through with a luminous magic -- John Walsh * Independent *Superbly executed... both enchanted and enchanting * Daily Telegraph *
£9.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Jump and Other Stories
Book SynopsisFeatures a collection of sixteen stories.Trade Review"If one were never to read any other literature about South Africa, Gordimer's work would be enough. For more than thirty years she has delineated each shift and change in the system in novels and short stories that intertwine the personal with the political. As a literary keeper of records, she has no peer." Penny Perrick, Sunday Times.
£10.44
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Monkeypuzzle Tree
Book SynopsisA novel that springs from shocking facts. During the 1950s and 1960s the CIA ran a series of programmes in mind-control or psychic driving, which they tested on ordinary US and Canadian citizens. These people were kept in ignorance of the experiment's nature which exposed them to electroshock.
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Photocopies
Book SynopsisThis is a collection of portraits of a shepherd, a farmer, a painter and blind man, a sylph of Byzantine arrogance and a vagabond cyclist with primroses growing in her basket. The backgrounds range from Prague, Paris, Athens and Lahore, to countrysides and mountainscapes.
£12.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Lagoon
Book SynopsisA collection of stories appeared in New Zealand in 1951, while the author was confined in a mental hospital.
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Peculiar Memories of Thomas Penman
Book SynopsisThe cult classic novel of growing up in 1950s England from the writer of Withnail and ITrade ReviewThis book hums with particularity and vision ... Thomas Penman is the work of a genuine prose-writer - and a gifted one at that * OBSERVER *This book is in a league-table of revulsion all its own * SUNDAY TIMES *Never before has the painful, knotty journey to maturity been depicted with such gusto, and never has the venerable Bildungsroman received such riotously profane treatment. * NEW YORK TIMES *
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC burgersdaughter
Book SynopsisPresents the story of a young woman's slowly evolving identity in the turbulent political environment of South Africa.
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC KPax
Book SynopsisWhen a man who claims to be from outer space is brought into Manhattan Institute, the mental ward seems to be just the place for him. Calling himself 'prot', he says that he is an inhabitant of the planet K-PAX. Setting a departure date - August 17th at 3.31am - on which he plans to return home on a beam of light. Is he really extraterrestrial?Trade ReviewA man is brought into the mental ward of the Manhattan Institute after claiming to come from outer space. He maintains that he is an inhabitant of planet K-PX, a perfect world without wars, government or religion where every being co-exists in perfect harmony. And he sets a departure date when he will return home on a beam of light - which keeps the reader guessing until the very end.
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Typhoid Mary
Book SynopsisThe story of a notorious cook and a riveting slice of 1900s New York from the bestselling author of Kitchen ConfidentialTrade Review'What Jean Genet was to the prison, what Tom Waits is to the lowlife bar, Bourdain is to the restaurant kitchen: a charmingly roguish guide to a tough, grimy underworld with its own particular rules and rituals ... a tale of hot pursuit, with the rude gusto and barbed wit that made Kitchen Confidential such a full-bodied pleasure' New York Times Book Review 'Raw, readable prose' Entertainment Weekly 'Bourdain's prose is utterly riveting' New York Magazine 'A juicy drama ... Bourdain creates a varied historical portrait of Mallon's time' Seattle Times
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Someone to Run with
Book SynopsisA bestselling love story of two teenagers - and one missing dog - on the run in Jerusalem by the highly esteemed author of The Zigzag KidTrade Review'Brings together the differing aspects of his writing in a book that unites social realism and dizzy teenage romance ... This is a book about feelings, about highs and lows, chemical, emotional, religious' Daily Telegraph
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents
Book SynopsisA novel of Latin American life.Trade Review'Simply wonderful writing, and there's a good deal of it in this debut novel by a lively and gifted author' Los Angeles Times 'Compelling ... a classic tale of immigration ... warm and honest' Elle 'She has beautifully captured the threshold experience of the new immigrant' New York Times Book Review 'In telling this story, Alvarez treats the subjects of immigration, exile, Hispanic culture and the American Dream with a sensitive and often irreverent touch' Washington Post
£10.79
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Here is Where We Meet
Book SynopsisA collection of linked stories, encounters, journeys and perceptions that bear testament to the extraordinary creativity of this Booker-winning writerTrade Review'A triumph ... Sad, reflective and peppered with unforgettable images ... it makes us stop and take a breath. It makes us see the world afresh. Makes us do a double-take' Guardian 'Here Is Where We Meet is recognisably of a genre that Berger long ago made his own: the rich amalgam of novel, essay and autobiography. It seems very much a genre of the future. Where a comparable writer, W. G. Sebald, always risked a certain nostalgia in his invention of an erudite, time-travelling persona, Berger reads as if he is reaching for forms as yet not invented' New Statesman 'Berger's clarity, passion and independence put him closer to the heart of things than many a more famous name' Mail on Sunday 'Poetic, philosophical and profound ... One of our best living British writers' Scotland on Sunday
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Two Pound Tram
Book SynopsisOld-fashioned and eccentric in tone, this book could have been written in the 30's - it's a modern-day classicTrade Review'Rather like Daisy Ashford's The Young Visiters this is a charming, miniature oddity, just right for a Christmas stocking' Sunday Telegraph 'Very occasionally one comes across a book which, in its unexpected delights, inspires one to leap about wild with praise, and rush out to buy copies for friends. This first work by William Newton will surely have this effect Their adventures with the tram are both touching and extraordinary Newton is a wonderful find, it's my book of the year and I shall give it to everyone for Christmas' Spectator 'I predict that this book will become something of a cult it goes on haunting the reader's imagination long after he has put the book down I loved it' Country Life 'The Two Pound Tram is a necklace of miracles, each more beautiful and unbelievable than the last. That it may be author William Newton's memoir may be the most dazzling miracle of all' Los Angeles Times
£999.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC GoodFellas
Book SynopsisThe enthralling story of Henry Hill's life as a gangster and notorious participation in the Witness Protection Programme, made into the hugely acclaimed Martin Scorsese filmTrade Review‘Absolutely engrossing' * New York Times *‘The best book ever written on organised crime' * Cosmopolitan *‘A riveting account of organised crime as a way of life ... extraordinary' * Publishers Weekly *‘This book chronicles Hill's criminal successes ... smuggling, hijacking, union racketeering, credit card fraud, robbery, bribery, drug dealing, prison, marriage, and assorted girlfriends ... faithfully portrayed' * Library Journal *
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Minaret
Book SynopsisA unique novel about the life of an orthodox Muslim woman forced into a new life in LondonTrade Review'Aboulela paints a fascinating picture of intercultural strife ... Aboulela has chosen a complex structure and keeps perfect control of it. Beautifully written, restrained and lyrical, Minaret is both thought-provoking and disturbing' Independent 'This is the modern female voice ... young, fresh, diverse, challenging, uninhibited' Rachel Cusk 'This is a beautiful, daring, challenging novel' Guardian 'Instead of the coming-of-age novel, we have here perhaps the beginnings of a coming-to-faith genre. The subject matter is important, and Aboulela makes an informed escort into this world' Literary Review
£10.44
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Tango Singer
Book SynopsisAn extraordinary novel that will propel the International Man Booker Prize-nominated Tomas Eloy Martinez to wide recognition and major salesTrade Review'At times reminiscent of Paul Auster, The Tango Singer has the makings of a satisfying thriller' Daily Telegraph 'One of Latin America's most celebrated contemporary writers ... The Tango Singer is a work of hallucinatory brilliance ... This exhilarating and often poignant book has a liberating rhythm every bit as hypnotic as the tango itself' Adam Feinstein, Guardian 'Gloriously mysterious ... a rich and delicious experience ... His writing is satisfyingly sharp and eccentric' Independent on Sunday 'This is nothing like the Buenos Aires that he has read about ... A vivid, fascinating, dreamlike novel' Kate Saunders, The Times
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Piercing
Book SynopsisEvery night, Kawashima Masayuki creeps from his bed and watches over his baby girl's crib while his wife sleeps. But this is no ordinary domestic scene. He has an ice pick in his hand, and a barely controllable desire to use it. Deciding to confront his demons, Kawashima sets into motion a chain of events seeming to lead inexorably to murder.Trade Review'Equally compelling and disturbing ... a dark psycho-thriller' Daily Mail 'Piercing is a Japanese extension of David Lynch's world: surreal, sexually anguished, highly neurotic, both knowing and naive' Guardian 'Each time a new book by Ryu Murakami is published, the people at the Japanese Tourist Board must hang their heads in despair ... darkly witty' Daily Telegraph 'There are echoes here of Edgar Allan Poe and Dostoyevsky - Murakami shares their fascination with the darkest layer of the soul, and the appalling isolation of the criminal. Creepy and gripping' Kate Saunders, The Times
£10.44
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Bad Monkeys
Book SynopsisBad Monkeys.Trade Review'A bloody good read ... a very enjoyable adventure story with a bizarre paranormal twist that will satisfy fans of such things' Dark Side 'If you leave this book on a train halfway, you'll buy another copy tomorrow ... Her world is superbly rendered. This is a feat of imagination, helped by its setting: one of those haunting all-American locations that are both nowhere yet on the road to places the whole world has heard of' Daily Telegraph 'Fast. Wicked. Scarily clever, and equally fun for those who like thrillers and those who don't' Neal Stephenson, bestselling author of Quicksilver and Cryptonomicon 'Highly entertaining. It moves fast and keeps surprising you. There are also some exciting and hallucinatory action sequences that are so skillfully written I felt as if I was watching the first Matrix movie, which I unabashedly loved' New York Times Book Review
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Temples of Delight
Book SynopsisJem is a joyful mystery to Alice. She is something to give thanks for. And when she disappears from Alice's life, as suddenly as she entered it, a whirl of glamour, subversion and literary references, Alice is left bereft. But then she meets Giovanni, presumptuous and hectoring, passionate and beautiful, who leads her back to her childhood friend.Trade Review'One of the funniest books I've read in a long time' Time Out 'Temples of Delight is so readable, so full of incidental pleasures and curiosities, that one could easily overlook its terrifying honesty' Philip Hensher, Guardian 'Her characters are larger than life ... Temples of Delight shows how grief is implicit in joy. It makes you laugh and it moves you' Sunday Times 'Steel yourself for a baroque romance of untimely deaths, orphan babes, stolen novels, canny nuns and dark, forceful lovers' Company
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Life Times
Book SynopsisThroughout her career the internationally renowned South African writer Nadine Gordimer has built a literary reputation with her incisive short stories as much as with her acclaimed novels. Together with her essays, this highly imaginative and committed body of work won her the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1991. In the opinion of the Academy: Through her magnificent epic writing she has - in the words of Alfred Nobel - been of very great benefit to humanity.'' Gordimer has said that while novelists take the reader by the hand developing a consistency of relationship that does not and cannot convey the quality of human life, where contact is more like the flash of fireflies, in and out, now here, now there, in darkness. Short-story writers see by the light of the flash; theirs is the only thing one can be sure of - the present moment.'' Now, for the first time, the best of her stories are published in one volume. Trade Review‘Nadine Gordimer is one of the best story-writers in English today.' * Observer *‘Gordimer's stark sentences and emotional depth make most modern fiction seem trivial.' * The Times *‘Gordimer has undoubtedly become one of the World's Great Writers ... her rootedness in a political time, place and faith has never dimmed her complex gifts as an artist.' * Independent *
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Pavel and I
Book SynopsisBerlin, 1946. During one of the coldest winters on record, Pavel Richter, a decommissioned GI, finds himself at odds with a rogue British Army colonel and a Soviet General when a friend deposits the frozen body of a dead Russian spy in his apartment.Trade Review'Writing in the tradition of Graham Greene and John le Carre, Vyleta throws a nod to Oliver Twist and Albert Camus in this stylish update of the Cold War spy thriller ... a proper page-turner' Metro 'A gripping espionage thriller very much in the uncertain, paranoid vein of The Third Man ... It keeps you hooked on its mysteries by rationing the truth more severely than its characters' coffee ... an entirely guilt-free treat' Independent 'An espionage thriller, complete with double-crosses, torture, prostitution, a monkey and summary executions ... There is much to like about this book' The Times 'Pavel & I is a hybrid of literary writing and spy novel - a kind of postmodern pastiche of Raymond Chandler that is irreverently humorous and inventive with language' Time Out
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC John
Book SynopsisA mesmerising new novel from the author of the bestselling Four Letters of LoveTrade Review'An eloquent and moving statement of the power of love and the belief that it will triumph in the end' Barry Unsworth, Guardian 'Powerful and moving an absorbing and intelligent novel' Times Literary Supplement 'Gripping and believable In an age where reason and science have shown themselves inadequate to fulfil the human dream of perfection, it is important that serious writers such as Williams face the perennial questions of faith and love' Irish Times 'Niall Williams' lyrical prose often takes a form similar to prayer but this feels natural rather than contrived. Williams prefers to focus on the workings of love; his exploration of the tensions and contradictions of faith is enough to compensate' New Statesman
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Pilgrims
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£8.54
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Epitaph of a Small Winner
Book Synopsis'One of the masterpieces of Brazilian literature The kind of humour that makes skulls smile' Salman RushdieTrade Review'Machado de Assis was a literary force, transcending nationality and language, comparable certainly to Flaubert, Hardy or James ... Epitaph of a Small Winner is clearly one of those books which we call definitive. It is there, complete, done: a study of ironic disillusionment couched in the most delicate suavity of despair' New York Times Book Review 'No satirist, not even Swift, is less merciful in his exposure of the pretentiousness and the hypocrisy that lurk in the average good man and woman. Machado, in his deceptively amiable way, is terrifying' New Republic 'A masterpiece of Epicurean irony' New York Times
£10.44
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC To the Wedding
Book SynopsisA devasting and unforgettable story of doomed love from the winner of the Booker Prize, reissued with a new introduction by Nadeem AslamTrade Review'To The Wedding is one of the greatest and most honest love stories of our time. It does what all great literature can and should do -- we become alive in bodies, stories, histories, geographies not our own. We are given a new lease on life through an imaginative act. If I ever pack up my books, this novel will not go into a box, rather I will slip it into my overcoat and carry it with me wherever I happen to be' Colum McCann 'No one knows more about the necessity of love than John Berger: what love makes us capable of, and incapable of. This is a book of the most precise humanity. No one who reads it will forget what it makes us understand: every action has its twin, conscionable or unconscionable; every truth, its shadow in the world; everything lost, alive in love' Anne Michaels 'A masterpiece a novel that will haunt you' Sunday Telegraph 'A great, sad, and tender lyric, a novel that is a vortex of community and compassion that somehow overcomes fate and death. Wherever I live in the world, I know I will have this book with me' Michael Ondaatje
£13.49
Allison & Busby Angels at War A captivating tale of staying true
Book SynopsisAfter a tumultuous past, the future is finally looking rosy for the Angel sisters. Livia is set to marry handsome Jack Flint to while her sisters are contentedly living at Todd Farm. Yet Livia still dreams of resurrecting the family business but is she prepared to jeopardise the love she shares with Jack to achieve her wish?Trade Review'Charming and exciting. A lovely story by an author with an extraordinary feeling in her writing' Bangor Chronicle
£5.99
Allison & Busby The Corrigan Legacy
Book SynopsisAnna Jacobs was born in Lancashire at the beginning of the Second World War. She has lived in different parts of England as well as Australia and has enjoyed setting her modern and historical novels in both countries. She is addicted to telling stories and recently celebrated the publication of her one hundredth novel, as well as sixty years of marriage. Anna has sold over four million copies of her books to date.
£8.54
Allison & Busby Larch Tree Lane
Book SynopsisAnna Jacobs was born in Lancashire at the beginning of the Second World War. She has lived in different parts of England as well as Australia and has enjoyed setting her modern and historical novels in both countries. She is addicted to telling stories and recently celebrated the publication of her one hundredth novel, as well as sixty years of marriage. Anna has sold over four million copies of her books to date.
£8.54
Allison & Busby Escape to Pumpkin Cottage
Book SynopsisThis feel-good read returns in paperback
£12.00
Allison & Busby Escape to Pumpkin Cottage
Book SynopsisPippa Mason is ready for a fresh start. She has bought Pumpkin Cottage in the picturesque Wye Valley village of Riverdean, where her late mother grew up, and plans to renovate the run-down bed and breakfast into the business of her dreams. Adjusting to her new life on the Welsh-English border might take time, but Pippa is settling into village life and starting to fall for the charms of local Jake when problems start coming thick and fast ...Jenny Foster has enough on her plate running Riverside Lodge as well as managing her husband Phil''s diagnosis of early-onset dementia. She did not need the threat of another B&B on her doorstep. When a spat between Pippa and Jenny escalates and an autumn storm brings matters to a head, they will have to see if Riverdean is big enough for the both of them.
£18.70
Allison & Busby The Dress Shop of Dreams
Book Synopsis
£9.49
Allison & Busby The Lost Art of Letter Writing
Book Synopsis
£9.49
Allison & Busby The Patron Saint of Lost Souls
Book Synopsis
£9.49
Allison & Busby The French Promise
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£10.44
Vintage Publishing The LoneRanger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven
Book SynopsisBall games, cars, and romances: the icons and battlefields of modern life. In twenty-two linked stories, with infinite humour and pathos, Sherman Alexie explores some of the major issues of our time: the pull between the urban and the rural, the future and the past; the trials and tribulations of young adulthood; the comlex density of daily life. A modern mythmaker with a sharp eye for irony, Sherman Alexie''s focus is an American Indian reservation, but his playground is the world.Trade ReviewSo wide-ranging, dexterous and consistently capable of raising your neck hair that it enters at once into our ideas of who we are and who we might be * New York Times Book Review *I laughed and laughed and couldn't stop reading... Sherman Alexie is simply one of the best new writers we have -- Leslie Marmon SilkoPoetic and unremittingly honest . . . The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven is for the American Indian what Richard Wright’s Native Son was for the black American in 1940. * The Chicago Tribune *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing The Snapper
Book SynopsisMeet the Rabbitte family, motley bunch of loveable ne'er-do-wells whose everyday purgatory is rich with hangovers, dogshit and dirty dishes.Trade ReviewA superb creation, exploding with cheerful chauvinism and black Celtic humour... You finish the book, hungry for more * The Times *While recognising that we have all sat po-faced through novels which other people have assured us are hilarious... all I can say is that The Snapper creased me up * Guardian *Not since I first delved into Flann O'Brian have I so consistently laughed out loud while reading a book * Sunday Tribune *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing War of Don Emmanuels Nether Parts
Book SynopsisSurreal and hilarious' IndependentEnter Louis de Bernières'' magical, tragic and hilarious South American odyssey.When the spoilt and haughty Dona Constanza tries to divert a river to fill her swimming pool, she starts a running battle with the locals. The skirmishes are so severe that the Government dispatches a squadron of soldiers led by the fat, brutal and stupid Figueras to deal with them.Despite visiting plagues of laughing fits and giant cats upon the troops, the villagers know that to escape the cruel and unusual tortures planned for them, they must run. Thus they plan to head for the mountains and start a new and convivial civilisationTrade ReviewA very good book indeed, the sharpest and funniest I have read in quite some time * Financial Times *A fat, juicy, tropical fruit of a narrative... There is astonishing landscape. There are numerous good jokes. And, indispensably in such a novel, there is magic * Independent on Sunday *A wonderful mixture of the mythical and the poetic, of the cruel and clinical aspects of life... I have seldom read a finer first novel. It is one to savour and revisit * Scotland on Sunday *Sureal and hilarious [...] perfect for anyone lucky enough to be on an South American gap year -- Katy Guest * The Independent *A tour de force * Time Out *
£10.44
Vintage Publishing The Commitments
Book SynopsisBarrytown, Dublin, has something to sing about. The Commitments are spreading the gospel of the soul. Ably managed by Jimmy Rabbitte, brilliantly coached by Joey ''The Lips'' Fagan, their twin assault on Motown and Barrytown takes them by leaps and bounds from the parish hall to the steps of the studio door. But can The Commitments live up to their name?The bestselling book behind the long-running West End stage show. ''Unstoppable fun. A big-hearted, big-night out'' The Times Trade ReviewA contender for the funniest debut of the year...young, feisty, funky, rude, unpretentious and great fun * Time Out *An Irish version of The Blues Brothers...authentic and brilliantly funny * Literary Review *An absurd comedy of the commonplace...a charming, truthful and immensely funny story which leaves you gasping for more * Sunday Times *One of my favourite trilogies ever, nobody makes hard times as funny as Irish author Roddy Doyle… Beloved classics… The stories will be a balm to your bruised soul. * Image *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing Gormenghast
Book Synopsis''The Gormenghast Trilogy is one of the most important works of the imagination to come out of [this] age'' Anthony BurgessBOOK TWO OF THE GORMENGHAST TRILOGYEnter the world of Gormenghast...the vast crumbling castle to which the seventy-seventh Earl, Titus Groan, is Lord and heir. Gothic labyrinth of roofs and turrets, cloisters and corridors, stairwells and dungeons, it is also the cobwebbed kingdom of Byzantine government and age-old rituals, a world primed to implode beneath the weight of centuries of intrigue, treachery, manipulation and murder.Gormenghast is more than a sequel to Titus Groan - it is an enrichment and deepening of that book.The fertility of incident, character and rich atmosphere combine in a tour de force that ranks as one of the twentieth century''s most remarkable feats of imaginative writing.Trade ReviewMervyn Peake is a master of the macabre and a traveller through the deeper and darker chasms of the imagination * The Times *Mervyn Peake is a finer poet than Edgar Allan Poe, and he is therefore able to maintain his world of fantasy brilliantly through three novels. [The Gormenghast Trilogy] is a very, very great work...a classic of our age[Peake's books] are actual additions to life; they give, like certain rare dreams, sensations we never had before, and enlarge our conception of the range of possible experience
£13.49
Vintage Publishing Titus Groan
Book Synopsis''Gormenghast is, to my mind and to my taste, a perfect creation'' Neil GaimanWelcome to the world of Gormenghast, the classic fantasy series from the imagination of Mervyn Peake As the first novel opens, Titus, heir to Lord Sepulchrave, has just been born: he stands to inherit the miles of rambling stone and mortar that stand for Gormenghast Castle. Inside, all events are predetermined by a complex ritual, lost in history, understood only by Sourdust, Lord of the Library. There are tears and strange laughter; fierce births and deaths beneath umbrageous ceilings; dreams and violence and disenchantment contained within a labyrinth of stone.''A gorgeous volcanic eruption... A work of extraordinary imagination'' New YorkerTrade ReviewMr Peake's first novel holds one with its glittering eye - It has a genuine plot in the strictest sense, and it persuades you to read on simply in order to know what will happen - its gallery of characters is wonderful * Nation *A gorgeous volcanic eruption... A work of extraordinary imagination * New Yorker *The Gormenghast Trilogy is one of the most important works of the imagination to come out of [this] age * Spectator *[An] extraordinary story bursting with grotesque characters, madness and mayhem. Fantasy writers of today owe his wild imagination a massive debt * Mail on Sunday *
£13.49
