Contemporary Fiction Books

Book SynopsisThe President tells the story of a ruthless dictator and his schemes to dispose of a political adversary in an unnamed country usually identified as Guatemala. Drawing on his experience as a journalist writing under repressive conditions, Miguel Angel Asturias provides a blazing indictment of totalitarian government and its damaging psychological effects on society - from the harvest of terror to cowardice, to sycophancy, to treachery and intrigue, and the total sacrifice of human values to lust for power. Written in a language of freedom and originality, full of extraordinary symbolism, biting satire, poetry and dream sequences, with an imagination that is both lyrical and ferocious, The President is a surrealist masterpiece and one of the most influential books of the twentieth century.Trade ReviewA phenomenal work that will never dateAsturias leaves no doubt about what it is like to be tortured, or what it is like to work for a man who is both omnipotent and depraved - TLS

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Book SynopsisAn epic love story that spans twenty years and half the globe, from Puglia to a frozen cave in Iceland.Trade ReviewBig in theme, languid in pace and exquisite in execution... The plot is deftly handled, moving from a secretive steamy teenage romance in Speziale to a cave in Iceland - taking in fringe eco-activism and a doomed attempt to conceive a child along the way...The dreamy lyricism of the prose ("the foam-slick rocks, the silent sea, and, all around, the mercilessly bright night of the South")... Giordano's novel is a devastating marvel. -- Francesca Carrington * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *A highly enjoyable novel, convincingly and smoothly translated by Anne Milano Appel. Spanning twenty years and the anguished love affair between Teresa and Bern, some of it takes place in the dark recent days when Puglia's olive trees were attacked by a beetle that reduced the landscape to an apocalyptic vision of the planet's end. Giordano is especially good on the textures, smells, heat and colours of the Italian south, where almost the whole novel is set, the herbs that scent the air, the rocky terrain on which little grows. These stay long in the mind, as does the way he writes about the obsessiveness of love, the way it dominates and distorts and the self-delusions and fantasies it gives rise to. Puglia's scorched earth and, later in the novel, the craters and caverns of Iceland become metaphors for a plot that is both touching and sad, violent and uncomfortable. * TLS *Heaven And Earth is rooted so deep in idyllic Puglia that you can almost feel the red soil under your sandals * DAILY MAIL *Giordano is a fluid, expansive writer. The chapters flow effortlessly back and forth in time, pulling us deeper into the story of Teresa and Bern's great love. The landscape shimmers with their longing. "It all belonged to us," Bern says. "The trees and the stone walls. The heavens. Even the heavens belonged to us, Teresa." * NEW YORK TIMES *It's been too long since Italian author Paolo Giordano (who happens to have a PhD in particle physics) wrote a novel... Heaven and Earth is set in Puglia and focuses on four friends trying to grow up. It's a story that sprawls and stuns. * goop (Summer 2020 Reading List) *Raw and evocative, Giordano's Heaven and Earth is a breathtaking and poignant creation * SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY *Reading this reminded me instantly of Ferrante's earthy, nostalgic prose. Vividly evoking the sights and sounds of Italy, this novel paints a rustic portrait of life in the vibrant Puglia. Giordano's novel is an evocative depiction of the complexities of adolescence, love and faith. * BOOK RIOT, Best Books of Summer 2020 *Ever since the publication of his debut novel The Solitude of Prime Numbers, Paolo Giordano has stood at the forefront of international literature. His new novel Heaven and Earth is a stunning achievement and confirms him as an electrifying presence in contemporary fiction. * André Aciman, Sunday Times bestselling author of CALL ME BY YOUR NAME and FIND ME *Perfect, moving, honest, brilliant, with characters who feel like old friends * Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of LESS *Heaven and Earth is the perfect novel - always interesting, beautifully but not ostentatiously written, peopled with unforgettable characters, a powerful love story, animated by ideas, visually stunning. Paolo Giordano is one of the handful of great writers working anywhere today. * Edmund White *This is at once a lush picture of growing up in the Italian countryside and a deeply affecting story of friendships under the strain of time and tragedy. Giordano's best book yet. * Dave Eggers, bestselling author of THE CIRCLE *An intense novel about passions and reasons, unbreakable bounds and reckless excursions. Giordano is a master storyteller. * Yiyun Li, author of WHERE REASONS END *Lush regional details, indelible characters, and a riveting story line ... Giordano's captivating tale is a magnificent testament to the lingering impact of a charged romance * PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY (USA) starred review *Magnificent, heart-wrenching, and utterly compelling. Heaven and Earth is the perfect novel. And I'm not saying this lightly. Perfect. Perfect. Perfect. * Andrea Wulf, Costa-winning author of THE INVENTION OF NATURE *Heaven and Earth is not just a magnificent novel - it's an act of faith in literature and in the rousing power of storytelling, an ode to the unknowable mystery that is the human heart. Novels like this are a rare find: you won't be able to forget it. * Elena Varvello, bestselling author of CAN YOU HEAR ME? *A novel as ferocious as youth and as pure as a utopia. * Paolo Cognetti, award-winning author of THE EIGHT MOUNTAINS *A powerful tale of the bond between siblings and the tensions that underpin that relationship ... Evocatively written and sensitively translated, this powerful love story will carry you effortlessly from page to page * ITALIA magazine *PRAISE FOR PAOLO GIORDANO'Mesmerizing... Giordano works with piercing subtlety. An exquisite rendering of what one might call feelings at the subatomic level' New York Times on The Solitude of Prime Numbers 'Seductive and unnerving' Entertainment Weekly on The Solitude of Prime Numbers 'Elegant and fiercely intelligent... A singular love story' Elle on The Solitude of Prime Numbers'Tender, cruel, beautiful, heartless, a brilliant story of desire and youth and death... A modern classic' Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize-winner author of Less on The Human Body'A profound tale of family, crisis and the passage of time, Giordano's novel is a cherished read' Harper's Baazar on Like Family'Elegiac, tender and mournful' Wall Street Journal on Like Family

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF AN ENGLISH PEN AWARD''Effortlessly readable and fizzing with energy, this novel is by turns quirky, funny and thoughtful'' Mail on SundayDani Mosca is 40 and his father has just died. Fulfilling his father''s last wishes, Dani embarks on a road trip back to his childhood village, a three-hour hearse journey from Madrid. Leaving behind the busy streets of the city for the deserted, archaic heart of Spain, Dani revisits the key junctions of his life: his conflicted relationship with a pragmatic and authoritarian father; the mystery of his birth; his school years in the repressed atmosphere of Catholic Spain; the origin of his band and its early successes; the emptiness left by a tragically lost friendship; his great loves. Laugh-out-loud funny, deeply moving and featuring an unforgettable cast of characters - from Ecuadorian drivers to Spanish Bowie lookalikes - Rolling Fields is a novel full ofTrade ReviewEffortlessly readable and fizzing with energy, this novel is by turns quirky, funny and thoughtful. * Mail on Sunday *Incisive and bittersweet. * Independent *Breezy, bittersweet and tangential, Trueba's prose captures the rueful regrets of a man who's searching for meaning and redemption in a life that's short on both. * Daily Mail *What holds the attention is the evocation of a culture trying to break free of rural, religious and Franco-ist ties. Dani's wistful search for validation - from music, sex, or his father - adds a thoughtful dimension. * Evening Standard *David Trueba's skilfully crafted novel is fast-moving and full of sparkle, but with a deeper pull beneath the surface ... It is a novel that tackles the chaos of life nakedly and nobly -- Michael Eaude * LITERARY REVIEW *Funny, poignant, full of honesty and warmth * The Sun *Trueba writes about everyday life with a redemptive epic while avoiding sentimental pornography and cynicism. He wants to know who he is while we the readers try to figure out how is it possible that his experience of life looks so much like ours. * Carlos Zanón, El País *The narrative richness of the book is outstanding. Trueba has an instinct to extract from the language its paradoxes with a grace that comes only from a delicate attention to people's conversations (...) The novel shines even brighter as life flirts with death and the ballad becomes sad. * J.M. Pozuelo Yvancos, ABC *A funny and bitter novel, full of intelligence and energy. It shows some of the miseries and the modest grandeur of life. The character's self-criticism is brave, exciting, and realistic. With a skillful and stimulating taste for risk, it combines many issues and registers: from rock mythology to family melodrama, from John Irving to Rafael Azcona. * Daniel Gascón, Letras Libres *An effortless, fast-paced and light-hearted yet tremendously good piece of fiction. * Rafael Ruiz Pleguezuelos, Qué Leer *A stunningly lucid novel, well written and elegant, but never cold. * Juan Ángel Juristo, La Vanguardia *The novel can be read from several perspectives, all of them enriching the reading experience: the difficulty of growing up with no roots; the deep marks left by love and desire; identity as a work in progress; and the porous connection between life and art. * Domingo Ródenas, El Periódico (Book of the week) *A beautiful novel that blends drama and irony. * Elisabetta Pagani, La Stampa *Lively and bittersweet. * Il Manifesto *Writing that is both warm and charming. * Focus Vif *

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Book SynopsisNOW A NETFLIX LIMITED SERIES, COMING VALENTINE''S DAY 2022 ''An absolute scorcher'' Evening Standard''The book about infidelity that has shaken up Italy''The Times''Intimate and ultimately moving... completely absorbing''Daily Mail''A gripping novel exploring the tensions in an apparently idyllic marriage'' Financial Times''A must-read''Sydney Morning Herald''Devotion thrilled me, made me think and moved me deeply... Irresistible''Jonathan Safran FoerCarlo, a part-time professor of creative writing, and Margherita, an architect-turned-real estate-agent: a happily married couple in their mid-thirties, perfectly attuned to each other''s restlessness. They are in love, but they also harbour desires that stray beyond the confines of their bedroom: Carlo longs for the quiet beauty of one of his students, Sofia; MargherTrade ReviewFidelity thrilled me (I read it in one sitting), made me think, and moved me deeply. It manages to be as deep as any literature, and as irresistible as any gossip. It is a brilliant work by a brilliant writer. * Jonathan Safran Foer *The book about infidelity that has shaken up Italy. * The Times *Missiroli's erotically charged novel is currently being made into a Netflix series, but this intimate and ultimately moving analysis of desire and the long-term legacy of betrayal deserves to be read - moving seamlessly between perspectives, we're brought up close to the lives of its sympathetically imagined characters in a way that's completely absorbing. * Daily Mail *An absolute scorcher... Clever structured with characters criss-crossing through one another's lives and the streets of Milan, with the second half of the book taking place nine years later, Fidelity teems with pain and pleasure, blood, sweat, and semen... Its descriptions of gory fight scenes between both dogs and men pulse with a kind of brutal machismo I'm not sure you'd find in an English novel today... Read Fidelity before the end of the year. Books are almost always better than their TV adaptations. * Evening Standard *A gripping novel exploring the tensions in an apparently idyllic marriage, where a couple in their thirties is tested by their attraction to others, and by their own accumulation of desires and disappointments. * Financial Times *A must-read... Marco Missiroli, with intelligence and empathy, considers how and why such people might find themselves wandering beyond the boundaries of promises they have made... This subtle novel has been lauded as a revealing study in marital infidelity, but it also moves beyond the theme of fidelity in traditional marriage to explore different kinds of sexual fidelity. And it touches on more abstract notions of loyalty and betrayal, including the idea of faithfulness to a family, an idea, a place, or a sense of one's true self. * Sydney Morning Herald *A writer of pure excellence. * Emmanuel Carrère *Missiroli cuts right through to the darkness of our inner lives. * Roberto Saviano *Powerful, delicate, exquisite. * Claudio Magris *Masterful: Missiroli's words are fire... The ending - chilling - is just as good as that of Joyce's The Dead. * Corriere della Sera *You'll feel like taking refuge in the pages of this book and never leaving its confines. * La Stampa *With all-encompassing writing, Marco Missiroli opens the rooms of his characters and the streets of Milan, the thoughts and the concealed desires, makes dialogue and silences reverberate with the spontaneity of great narrators. * Il Foglio *

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Book SynopsisTHE NEW THRILLER FROM THE MASTER OF THE KILLER TWISTA breathlessly pacey crime story centred around one of the hottest issues of our age: the human cost of migrationTrade ReviewPRAISE FOR MICHEL BUSSI'No other thriller writer can make you break into a sweat and break your heart at the same time' The Times'One of France's most ingenious crime writers' Sunday Times'A dazzling, unexpected and haunting masterpiece' Daily Mail'Bussi cleverly breaks all the perceived rules of plotting in a story containing riddles within riddles: stunning' Daily Express 'A tantalising story that wraps the reader in myriad enigmas - utterly spellbinding' Daily Mail 'Agatha Christie updated and then cranked up to 11: a blast' Shots Magazine

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Book SynopsisNOW A MAJOR ITV DRAMA, THE SINGAPORE GRIP IS A MODERN CLASSIC FROM THE BOOKER-PRIZE WINNING J.G. FARRELL''Brilliant, richly absurd, melancholy'' Observer''Enjoyable on many different levels'' Sunday Times''One of the most outstanding novelists of his generation'' SpectatorSingapore, 1939: Walter Blackett, ruthless rubber merchant, is head of British Singapore''s oldest and most powerful firm. And his family''s prosperous world of tennis parties, cocktails and deferential servants seems unchanging. No one suspects it - but this world is poised on the edge of the abyss. This is the eve of the Fall of Singapore.A love story and a war story, a tragicomic tale of a city under siege and a dying way of life, The Singapore Grip is a modern classic.''A narrative of exceptional imagination and scope'' Newsweek''A fine piece of work, informative, funny tragic.Trade ReviewOne of the most outstanding novelists of his generation * Spectator *Brilliant, richly absurd, melancholy * Observer *Enjoyable on many different levels * Sunday Times *A narrative of exceptional imagination and scope * Newsweek *A fine piece of work, informative, funny tragic. One of those novels that present a whole world for the reader to inhabit * Margaret Drabble *No writer has swallowed all of Singapore with the verve and wit of the late J.G. Farrell * Time *His brilliant of style places him beside such masters of the modern novel as Patrick White and Saul Bellow * Olivia Manning *

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Book Synopsis''It blew me away'' Emma Donoghue''Large in scope and heart'' Patrick deWitt''Unforgettable'' Nathan Hill''A blast'' Karen Russell On the day of their estranged father''s wedding, half-sisters Cheyenne and Livy set off to claim their inheritance. It''s been years since the two have seen each other - Cheyenne is newly back in Seattle after a failed marriage, Livy works refinishing boats - but the promise of a shot at financial security brings the two together to claim what''s theirs.Except: instead of money, their father gives them information - a name - that reveals a stunning family secret. In the face of their new reality, the sisters each set out on journeys that will test their faith in each other, as well as their definitions of freedom.Moving from Seattle''s underground to the docks of the Far North, from the hideaways of the southern swamps to the storied reaches of the GrTrade ReviewA magnificent beast of a novel. Utterly engrossing. Original. One of the rare novels that understands the realities of American poverty. Epic. * Roxane Gay *The Great Offshore Grounds delivers on the promise Vanessa Veselka made with her excellent debut, Zazen. Large in scope and heart, Veselka skillfully illustrates human behaviors of every shade and iteration. She's a specialist, a keen interpreter of our demented society, and an enviable storyteller. I've been waiting long years for this novel. It was worth the wait. * Patrick deWitt, author of THE SISTERS BROTHERS *The Great Offshore Grounds blew me away. The tangled journeys of three siblings in the hardest of times pursuing freedom and love through a broken world will both move and dazzle readers. Wry, epic, glorious. * Emma Donoghue, author of ROOM *Vanessa Veselka is an expert portraitist of the forgotten and left behind, people struggling to make ends meet, broke and underemployed, people of deep humanity and shallow finances trying to find their place in dysfunctional America. The Great Offshore Grounds is an unforgettable journey through a country full of malice and greed and beauty and grace. A brilliant and fearless book. * Nathan Hill, author of THE NIX *The Great Offshore Grounds reminded me of what a great novel can do - Veselka's seafaring epic has the forward momentum of a grand adventure and the spiraling depth of a new myth. All the pleasure of eighteenth century storytelling renewed for our newborn millennium. I love this textured, tonally complex wonder of a book, a quest for Melville's 'unimaginable sublimity' that never shies away from the messy flux of the body, or the oceanic scope of our shared global history. It's also a blast to read - darkly hilarious, astral, cerebral, suspenseful, warm-blooded, divine. * Karen Russell, author of SWAMPLANDIA! *A deeply moving picaresque... Veselka traces these arcs with empathy and an earthy sense of humor but also with a ruthless eye. She is a remarkable writer, able to break through the surfaces of her narrative to reveal the animal chaos underneath. * Los Angeles Times *This is a novel that feels like hitchhiking: the route is unpredictable but fated and exciting, with an air of treachery. If you relate to the idea of desperate people doing desperate things for reasons only partly clear to themselves, you will find it thrilling. * Vulture *Animating... For all its sweep and ambition, The Great Offshore Grounds mercifully remains driven by its characters' personal travails... Portland, Ore.-based Veselka has an intuitive sense as to when she should break away from the big picture and home in on the little person. . . In Veselka's telling the story is in fact about [vulnerable Americans] - and, with the necessary adjustments, countless other underprivileged men and women caught up in a system that has little use for their kind." * Boston Globe *Vivid . . . The portrayal of the choices one must make when living paycheck to paycheck in late capitalist America is realistic and devastating . . . The deeply moving and nuanced mother narrative is a rewarding journey in itself . . . Veselka is a talented writer, with sensual imagery and an unflinching ability to stick with troubled and troublesome characters. * Seattle Times *The talented Veselka is such a crafty, confident writer you don't immediately grasp the absurdity of the journeys her characters are on. This was true in 2011's bleakly satirical Zazen. And it's true in Veselka's marvelous new novel, in which two sisters hit the road in search of the woman who gave birth to one of them. In other words, either Livy or Cheyenne is adopted and they don't know which. Things only get stranger with each turn of the page, but it's cool because you're in good hands. * Philadelphia Enquirer *I immediately fell in love with the phenomenal sisters at the heart of Vanessa Veselka's supernova of a new novel. This novel is thrilling in its content, daring in heart and makes a helix between a novel of ideas and the best damn story of women who forge their identities on their own terms that I've read in years. * Lidia Yuknavitch, author of THE BOOK OF JOAN *Vanessa Veselka writes with the power of the ocean tides, and The Great Offshore Grounds teems with life as beguiling and beautiful as any undersea grotto. This novel is warmhearted and coldblooded and I'll never forget Livy and Cheyenne and their fierce bond and bottomless wonder. Neither will you. * Peter Geye, author of NORTHERNMOST *The Great Offshore Grounds is a binge-worthy, kaleidoscopic, twenty-first century American family odyssey. Vanessa Veselka spins a radical, delicious, epic tale of women blasting their way forward to free themselves of the past. Her characters play by no rules but their own and they pull you in with oceans of black humor and so much heart. * Andrea Kleine, author of EDEN *PRAISE FOR VANESSA VESELKA'S ZAZEN'Vanessa Veselka is something like a literary comet: bright-burning, far-reaching, rarely seen and a little dangerous' Tom Bissell'At turns hilarious, unsettling and improbably sweet, Veselka's debut is, above all, a highly engaging, and totally unique experience, which will have you re-reading passages and dog-earing pages' Jonathan Evison, author of All About Lulu and West of Here 'Taut... Veselka's prose is chiseled and laced with arsenic observations' Publishers Weekly

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Book SynopsisOscar-nominated star of Educating Rita and Billy Elliot''s darkly funny debut novel.Cissie is a stand-up comedienne and national darling.Helena is the toast of Broadway.Maggie is an extremely beautiful but troubled actress - and she''s cracking up fast, in fact she''s ''out of her tree''.When Cissie takes Maggie to see Helena in New York, it leads to trouble straight away: Maggie disappears into the freezing February night, no one knows where.As the search for their friend continues, alarming divisions occur in the lifelong friendships of Cissie, Helena and her stoic husband Luke. And then Cissie disappears too. So, two of the closest of friends are lost separately somewhere in snowbound Manhattan.Julie Walter''s dark and very funny first novel is as assured as her celebrated work for stage, television and the cinema. It is a brilliant debut.Trade ReviewWalter's fiction debut is as funny as you'd expect, and twice as frenetic. * THE INDEPENDENT *Ms Walters is a gifted writer who entrances with a moving and darkly comic story * PETERBOROUGH EVENING TELEGRAPH *

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Book Synopsis''Private eye Philip Marlowe is transplanted into 21st-century Los Angeles in this tongue-in-cheek tribute to the classic works of Raymond Chandler... The wisecracking dialogue, outlandish characters and vicious slapstick make The Goodbye Coast a joy to read from the very first page''The Times ''A terrific read - pacy, with tension, pathos, wonderful descriptions of LA and some lovely one-liners''Guardian''Sunshine and skullduggery, movie stars and mayhem - Joe Ide brings us Philip Marlowe who wears our twenty-first century like a well-cut suit''Ian Rankin''How the hell do you write a mystery about Philip Marlowe, set it in Los Angeles, and still make it a total gobsmacking original? That''s the miracle of Joe Ide''s The Goodbye Coast. Ide has created a Philip Marlowe for the 2020s''James Patterson''Not so much a reimagining of Chandler''s world as a reinvigoratTrade ReviewPrivate eye Philip Marlowe is transplanted into 21st-century Los Angeles in this tongue-in-cheek tribute to the classic works of Raymond Chandler... The wisecracking dialogue, outlandish characters and vicious slapstick make The Goodbye Coast a joy to read from the very first page. * The Times *A terrific read - pacy, with tension, pathos, wonderful descriptions of LA and some lovely one-liners. * Guardian *The laugh-out-loud dialogue, the vivid similes, the complicated story and the set-piece subplots are all vintage Chandler. The gripping flashbacks, the adrenaline-pumping action and the heart-piercing poignance show Mr. Ide at his best. The Goodbye Coast delivers the distilled essence of both authors for the price of one. * Wall Street Journal *How the hell do you write a mystery about Philip Marlowe, set it in Los Angeles, and still make it a total gobsmacking original? That's the miracle of Joe Ide's The Goodbye Coast. Ide has created a Philip Marlowe for the 2020s. And an L.A. that he clearly loves and hates * James Patterson *Not so much a reimagining of Chandler's world as a reinvigoration. By transplanting Philip Marlowe to 2021 LA, Joe Ide has chiseled off the rust while keeping the soul of one of American fiction's icons. The Goodbye Coast is a blast from start to finish * Dennis Lehane *Sunshine and skullduggery, movie stars and mayhem - Joe Ide brings us a Philip Marlowe who wears our twenty-first century like a well-cut suit * Ian Rankin *There is tension, violence, humor, and a bit of sadness, with romance just out of the hero's reach. This one's witty, clever, and fun, and it's worthy of the great Raymond Chandler. * Kirkus (starred review) *

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Book Synopsis''Astonishing'' Stephen Fry''Exceptional'' Douglas Stuart, author of the Booker Prize-winning SHUGGIE BAIN''Now is the time for this book'' DBC Pierre, author of the Booker Prize-winning VERNON GOD LITTLE''Funny. Disturbing. Brilliant'' Lily AllenFunny, smart, damaged, Tom is lost in the machinery of the British mental health system, talking to a voice no one else can hear; the voice of Malamock, the Octopus God - sometimes loving, sometimes cruel, but always there to fill his life with meaning. Once an outstanding law student, Tom is now cared for by his long-suffering sister Tess, who encourages him into an experimental drugs trial that promises to silence the voice forever. The Octopus God, however, does not take kindly to being threatened...Deeply moving and tragi-comic, The Octopus Man is a bravura literary performance that asks fundamental questions about belief and love.Trade ReviewWhat an astonishing work The Octopus Man is. Schizophrenia is not an easy condition to write about. It scares us. It scares those who live with it even more. But there is a kind of beauty, comedy and transcendence in the way that Jasper Gibson takes us inside the mind of Tom, which lifts the spirits and shows that disorders like his can give as well as take away -- Stephen FryAn exceptional work . . . What a brilliant and necessary book. A funny, heart-expanding story of a man trapped between the God-like voice in his head and society's desire for him to be 'normal.' It's a deeply compassionate portrait and I felt the frustration of battling a broken mental healthcare system, and the guilt and hope of everyone who loves poor, cheeky, troubled Tom and wants so badly for him to get better -- DOUGLAS STUART, author of Shuggie Bain, Winner of the 2020 Booker Prize AwardAbsolutely wondrous. The characterisation, the humour, the whole glorious swirl of it -- NIALL GRIFFITHS, author of Broken Ghost, Winner of the 2020 Welsh Book of the Year AwardMagnificent novel... beautifully rendered and very funny. The bedraggled England here is as vivid as Jez Butterworth's version in Jerusalem. Gibson is surely the playwright's heir in vision and wit... You will be hooked, you will laugh and possibly cry. And you will know by page four that this hilarious and compassionate novel really matters. -- Horatio Clare * THE SPECTATOR *Gibson... has achieved something remarkable... full of jokes, capers, black ironies and a wild juxtaposition between the mundane and the transcendental. -- Sam Leith * Book of the Month in THE OLDIE *Deliriously good! * ES MAGAZINE *Jasper Gibson's bravura new novel is timely and revelatory... Gibson skilfully combines black comedy with a compassionate and searching examination of what madness is and whether "normal" life is itself a state of mind. -- Alexander Larman * THE OBSERVER *The Octopus Man reminds us that behind the words "mental health" lies a universe of wild creativity, humanity, and spanking big life. A beautiful thing, this is The Dharma Bums meet Clozapine. Now is the time for this book -- DBC PIERRE, author of Booker Prize-winning Vernon God LittleThe Octopus Man was a joy to read. I cried with laughter and I just plain cried. It is one of the wittiest and most humane pictures of a person and their mind - a timely conversation about mental health from within the perspective of the subject. It's a beautiful book and so incredibly funny. It was astounding to me how funny it was sometimes. * JOHNNY FLYNN *A man suffering from schizophrenia doesn`t sound like it has comic potential, but this novel shows good storytelling can always confound expectations. -- Robbie Millen * TIMES BOOKS NEWSLETTER *Funny. Disturbing. Brilliant -- LILY ALLENAn engaging novel about a man with a voice in his head evokes the radical politics of the anti-psychiatry movement. -- Houman Barekat * GUARDIAN *A compassionate, witty novel about being lost in the maze of the British mental health system. -- Martin Chilton * THE INDEPENDENT *Cleverly written . . . very funny, and it can be interpreted in a number of different ways * Sydney Morning Herald *A brave, bold and brilliant exploration of the forces that drive us mad and the wild, crazy journey's back to ourselves and each other. Scary, hilarious and touching. I loved it -- DR JACQUI DILLON, Hearing Voices Network

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Book SynopsisA dark and addictive story of betrayal and desire.Trade ReviewHere, everything is epiphanic, essential, surprising, whether it be the revelation of a secret or the painting of a detail...At once classic and phantasmagoric, Born of No Woman proves that fiction...can still amaze * Le Monde des livres *A vivid, mesmerizing tale * L’Express *Rare are those who, like Franck Bouysse, manage to write the indescribable, to touch the unspeakable, with so much subtlety and intensity. In spite of the severity and darkness of certain pages, Born of No Woman is a deeply moving and luminous book * La Libre *Born of No Woman is a dazzling, heart-wrenching tale of cruelty and mercy, secrets and horrors. The novel is deeply immersive, gothic, and taut with dread; the prose sings and the characters burn in the heart. Easily my favourite book of the year. Not to be missed * Kim Taylor Blakemore, author of After Alice Fell *One of the most disturbing yet lyrically exquisite novels I've read in a long time . . . Brave, sometimes horrific, Born of No Woman is one of the most compelling novels I have read in many years. Infused with lurid elements of the most gothic fairy tales, it explores the darkest realms of human sexuality * Essie Fox, author of The Last Days of Leda Grey *A haunting, suspenseful gothic tale set in nineteenth-century France that weaves many layers, from the plight of women in that era to class distinctions that lead to oppression of the vulnerable . . . Ultimately, this is a book of hope and the resilience of the human spirit to overcome tragedy. The narrative is elegant, and the viewpoint of every character is compelling and credible. Highly recommended! * Debbie Herbert, author of Not One of Us and Cold Waters *Born of No Woman is beautifully and quietly haunting. Rose's triumph over human weakness, cruelty, and her own powerlessness as a woman without means or status deeply resonates, and the strength of her dignity and resilience lingers long after the pages are turned * Megan Chance, bestselling author of A Splendid Ruin *Undoubtedly effective . . . There are plenty of narrative surprises as Rose's father seeks to recover her, and she falls in love with the mysterious Edmond * Guardian, Best Recent Translated Fiction *This book feels like the Marquis de Sade's Justine if Justine had written it . . . show[ing] the author's keen observational skills when it comes to class and gender * CrimeReads, Best International Crime Fiction of the Month *

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Book SynopsisWalter Mosley's infamous detective Easy Rawlins is back, with a new mystery to solve on the sun-soaked streets of Southern California

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Book Synopsis''Jaw-droppingly good'' Sinead Gleeson''Funny, poetic, heart-chilling'' Graham Norton''Terrific'' Jenny Offill''Marvellous'' Kevin Barry''Takes your breath away'' Observer''Unlike any other fiction'' IndependentThere once was ...a woman who loved her husband''s cock so much that she began taking it to work in her lunchbox.a man who made films without a camera, which transfixed his estranged daughter.a couple who administered electric shocks to each other, to be reminded of what love is.a world where you wake up one day and notice that, one by one, people are turning blue.Trade ReviewTerrific, eerie short stories that linger in your mind long after you have closed the book. * Jenny Offill, author of DEPT OF SPECULATION *Cathy Sweeney's stories have already attracted a band of fanatical devotees, and this first collection is as marvellous as we could have hoped for. A unique imagination, a brilliant debut. -- Kevin Barry, author of NIGHT BOAT TO TANGIERCathy Sweeney's work is jaw-droppingly good: inventive, funny, lush. One of the best short story writers working today. -- Sinéad Gleeson, author of CONSTELLATIONSModern Times, Cathy Sweeney's inventive debut collection, offers snapshots of an unsettling, dislocated world. Surprising and uncanny, funny and transgressive, these stories only look like distortions of reality. * Irish Times *I loved this collection. It vibrates with a glorious strangeness! Magnificently weird, hugely entertaining, deeply profound. -- Danielle McLaughlin, author of DINOSAURS ON OTHER PLANETSIn Modern Times, Cathy Sweeney gives us fables of the present that are funny, vertiginous and melancholy. -- David Hayden, author of DARKER WITH THE LIGHTS ONWith a crispness and clarity and weirdness unlike any other fiction being published now ... Sometimes chilling, eerily accessible - and as wickedly droll as they are horrifying ... The voice running through is lucid and bright and highly readable, each sentence stripped clean and polished ... The stories themselves, long-sweeping, succinctly told anatomies of spectral lives lived in sad rented places or loveless middle-class homes, are absolutely for this moment. * Irish Independent *Sweeney's stories are wacky, bold, form-bending ... Reading Modern Times is a bit like being in a strange dream ... Powerful ... Daring * Irish Times *Taut, surreal tales that take your breath away... As the first lines of short story collections go, it's pretty hard to beat the one that opens Modern Times: "There once was a woman who loved her husband's cock so much she began taking it to work in her lunchbox." This, and the darkly funny page-and-a-half (A Love Story) it kicks off, are representative of Sweeney's off-kilter sensibility. Her writing is direct, no-holds-barred; her sentences are as taut as bow strings... [it's] a breathtakingly weird book, jammed full of peculiar characters and strange scenarios. But Sweeney brings a genuine depth to her writing too, and so the collection is peppered with aphorisms ("No one ever really hears a story until they need to", "There was a subplot, but isn't there always") and probing questions: "How do you overlay words on experience and get anywhere near the feeling of the thing?" There are shades here of Angela Carter, Lydia Davis and Miranda July, but Sweeney's style is all her own. Reading this book in a single sitting feels a bit like getting giddy from eating too many Easter eggs, so moreish is each one of these stories. Modern Times announces the arrival of an unforgettable new voice in Irish fiction. * Observer *Cathy Sweeney's debut collection of short stories comes after more than a decade of publishing slick short fiction... Sweeney is a master of brevity... ['The Cheerleader' and 'A Love Story'] balance absurdist humour with profundity and are highlights of the book. Sweeney's stories stage battles of attrition... there is more than just comic relief to be found in these slantwise tales of modern times. Depression is isolating, but Sweeney's compendium of isolated voices remind us that we are not alone. * Times Literary Supplement *In its sparseness, astonishments, and cyclical twists, the fairy tale has something in common with the 20th-century European absurd, which follows funny, appalling patterns of repetition. Cathy Sweeney brings together these two traditions in her brilliant debut short story collection, Modern Times. * Catherine Toal, Irish Times *Bite-size and bittersweet, Cathy Sweeney writes miniscule short stories that are reminiscent of Beckett and Blindboy... The stories are rarely longer than two pages, and Sweeney writes fleeting, distanced snapshots, detailing absurdist impressions of modern life... Sweeney's stories come across like strange dreams and there is an element of magic realism at play * RTE *A collection of 21 dreamlike stories of varying length and form. Her offbeat rhythm scoops you up from the first word, with effortless humour and moments of palpable poignancy while ordinary people go about their daily business, relationships, break-ups, affairs, compromises, disappointments and regrets. To the naked eye, one might say the author is a surrealist, but her fable-like images only contribute to a biting truth. One of the most appealing aspects of her storytelling is that she doesn't wrap her endings up in neat little bows. They are what they are, much like life - the seams can hang loose without need of a conventional conclusion. * The Gloss *Startling... Very short, very unconventional and very strange... It opens with a shockingly unforgettable line which sets the tone for an off-kilter collection that is economical with words, but full of hard-to-define emotion. * Daily Mail *A shocking take on modern life and love... throughout there are distant echoes of writers such as Gabriel Garcia Marques, Angela Carter, Flannery O'Connor and Jonathan Swift, alongside echoes of contemporary writers such as Kristen Roupenian, Anakana Schofield and June Caldwell * The Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisObserver''s ''Ten Debut Novelists'' of 2021 Longlisted for the Desmond Elliott PrizeShortlisted for the Author''s Club Best First Novel AwardHarper''s Bazaar''s ''Five Debut Female Authors to Read This Summer''''Powerful and heartbreaking''Observer''Gripping... Razak painstakingly paints a portrait of a family; their rituals, their private languages, their shared lives''The Times ''Heartbreaking and heart-warming... The character portrayal is so intricate that as the plot twists and turns, you''ll truly care what happens to them''Independent''Assured and powerful''Harper''s Bazaar''One of the best debuts I''ve ever read. It made my heart swell''Sarah Winman, author of Still Life''A stunning, powerful work by a brave new voice in British fiction''Anna Hope, author of ExpeTrade ReviewPowerful and heartbreaking... The book's primary and unflinching focus is the female members of the household: Ma, her daughters Alma and Roop, among others, all drawn with such skill and love that they remain with you long after the final sentence. * OBSERVER (Ten Debut Novelists of 2021) *Gripping... Razak painstakingly paints a portrait of a family; their rituals, their private languages, their shared lives. This careful characterisation pays off, heartbreakingly, when the horrors of partition wreak havoc on small, happy lives. * THE TIMES *Both a heartbreaking and heart-warming story, Melody Razak's debut transports the reader into the home of a Brahmin family in 1940s Delhi. She navigates their beautiful yet complicated relationships as India builds up to and enters Partition... Razak hones in on the strength and suffering of women; with moments as small as sharing stories, cooking food and plaiting hair becoming lifelines... Moth has a backdrop of religion, politics, class and violence, but the central focus is on family life. The character portrayal is so intricate that as the plot twists and turns, you'll truly care what happens to them. 9/10 * INDEPENDENT *I adored Moth. It's rare for a writer to appear fully-formed, but that's how I see Melody Razak: this is a remarkable novel and one of the best debuts I've ever read. It made my heart swell. * Sarah Winman, author of TIN MAN and STILL LIFE *I was utterly transported by Moth. In exquisite prose, Melody Razak takes us right to the heart and the heat of Partition-era Delhi - a fracturing city, a fracturing nation and a family attempting to hold themselves together when everything threatens to tear them apart. Moth is a rare, winged delight - able to stare unflinchingly into the darkness, while always illuminated by a fierce love for life. A stunning, powerful work by a brave new voice in British fiction. * Anna Hope, author of EXPECTATION *Moth is a powerful and moving story of a liberal, Brahmin family caught up in the violence and social unrest of post-partition India. It is written with absolute fidelity to the small rituals of daily life, the allegiances and jealousies within families, and the huge and overwhelming forces of history. Every character springs from the page, involving the reader completely in their triumphs and sufferings - the writer's skill and sympathy are immense. I loved it. * Clare Chambers, author of SMALL PLEASURES *From the first beautiful and terrifying pages I couldn't put Moth down. The assurance of tone, the loving faithfulness to the complexity of family dynamics and female experience , the celebration of humanity and resilience amid the horrors of Partition all make for one of the most immersive reading experiences I can remember. I loved this book. * Sally Magnusson, author of THE SEALWOMAN'S GIFT *

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Book SynopsisA captivating collection of pitch-black tales from one of the most important Japanese writers of the second half of the twentieth century - 'shocking, ominous, and subversive' The Paris ReviewTrade ReviewThere are resonances here with Tanizaki, but Kono's subversions feel somehow scarier, in part because of her deadpan prose and in part because she strikes at sacred paradigms of motherhood and femininity * The Wall Street Journal *It does a disservice to this collection of stories, which were originally published throughout the 1960s, to focus too much on its flashes of sadomasochism; but it's difficult not to start there. But the pleasure in Kono's work is not only, or even primarily, derived from its daring. These stories are also captivating in traditional ways * NY Times *The fiery, beguiling stories in TODDLER HUNTING AND OTHER STORIES are vertiginous tightrope walks between two planes of reality. Kono's writing is shocking, ominous, and subversive * The Paris Review *Left me shaken and in awe; they are incendiary, beautiful, and frightening confrontations of the lives we keep hidden from others * Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida *Japanese master of the unsettling: Kono should be an electrifying discovery for English-speaking lovers of short fiction * Kirkus *Reminiscent of Flannery O'Connor's works, Kono's stories explore the dark, terrifying side of human nature that manifests itself in antisocial behaviour * World Literature Today *

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Book Synopsis'A strange and compelling new book from one of America's greatest living authors' TLSA new novella about memory and ageing and three short storiesTrade ReviewOne of the greatest fiction writers and critics alive today * The New York Times *Unequaled in her generation * Harold Bloom *A genuinely brilliant modern writer * Guardian *One of America's most important and inventive writers * Time Out *She is a writer innately drawn to paradox, and to the moral questions inherent in the relationships between richness and poverty, mind and body, history and imagination * Ali Smith *The most accomplished and graceful literary stylist of our times * John Sutherland, New York Times Book Review *Beguiling. Ozick is adept at capturing the vicissitudes of fading memory or flashes of lucid insight. A fascinating portrait of isolation, memory, and loss * Publishers Weekly *A literary national treasure returns with a textured, gripping tale that peels back layers of antisemitism, with echoes of both A Separate Peace and the fiction of Isaac Bashevis Singer * O, the Oprah Magazine *

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Book Synopsis''Shows girlhood as it really was: brutal and tender, intimate and lonely, magical and utterly gross'' Anna Beecher''Sensual and dirty, absurdist and tragic. Abreu''s talent is thrilling to witness'' Irish TimesStuck in a working-class neighbourhood, high up among Tenerife''s volcanoes, a ten-year-old girl dreams of hitching a ride to the faraway beach.Instead she hangs out with her best friend, Isora. She likes everything about Isora. From the colour of her arms and her hair and her eyes to the way she writes the letter g with a huge tail. But she envies her too. Envies her grits and gut; her periods and her pubes; the way she is growing up at full tilt without her.As the summer goes on and the heat becomes ever more oppressive, friendship simmers into obsession, desire into intimate violence.''The sentences blast off the pages. Hilarious, devastating and brilliantly attuned to the eroticsTrade ReviewBold, dazzling, hilarious. Andrea Abreu is a lively meteorite in the landscape of Hispanic Literature -- Fernanda Melchor, author of International Booker-shortlisted Hurricane SeasonLike the tide. A force of nature. It drags you. It submerges you. And, all of a sudden, it leaves you stranded on a rich and prophetic insular world of women and low, grey, clouds that merge with the sea. It is pure poetry. A book that carries you and makes you feel a place -- Pilar QuintanaAndrea Abreu's characters, like her sentences, are bold and wild. Reminiscent of Marieke Lucas Rijneveld's The Discomfort of Evening, Abreu's writing twirls and clacks with tactile precision, like winding a cassette tape with a No. 2 pencil. I'll return to Dogs of Summer whenever I crave a searing, brutal shot of life -- Gabriella Burnham, author of It is Wood, It is StoneI am overwhelmed. What a marvelous book, what a miracle -- Sara Mesa, author of Among the HedgesAndrea turns up a notch, or turns it up ten times, in this rescue of poetic tremendismo (expressionist dirty realism). A political book: for the world that has never been given a voice before, and most of all for the phonetical shamelessness, for the syntactical violence, for the incorrectness, the localisms, the linguistic variety, because Andrea Abreu writes for her body and from her body -- Marta SanzIt describes the state of things without beating around the bush giving way to the purest form of tenderness, innocence, and care ... It intertwines the feeling of the first love with the pain that comes with growing up -- Brenda Navarro, author of Empty HousesDogs of Summer weaves a powerful narrative, where bodies and hunger take over the story. It transports us to the threshold of puberty, to face a disturbing procession of fears, euphoria and daily violence. An unsweetened and unprejudiced portrait of poverty. Pure life -- Irene Vallejo, author of PapyrusShit. My brain just exploded. What a marvel -- Marta OrriolsRazor sharp and mesmerizing, Dogs of Summer will thump through your heart and mind. A novel that consumes and sentences to die for -- Amina Cain, author of IndelicacyThis slim novel's scope and intensity are shockingly, magnificently large, and the sentences blast off the pages with all the sordidness and wonder of early adolescence. Readers will be unable to resist the spell of Dogs of Summer, a hilarious, devastating story that is brilliantly attuned to the erotics of friendship, the intoxicating muddle of identification and desire, and the power of both the sublime and the profane. The unforgettable girls at the center of Andrea Abreu's moving debut are two of the liveliest fictional creations I've come across in quite a long time -- Jamel Brinkley, author of A Lucky ManAndrea Abreu's characters, like her sentences, are bold and wild. Reminiscent of Marieke Lucas Rijneveld's The Discomfort of Evening, Abreu's writing twirls and clacks with tactile precision, like winding a cassette tape with a No. 2 pencil. I'll return to Dogs of Summer whenever I crave a searing, brutal shot of life -- Gabriella Burnham, author of It is Wood, It is StoneDogs of Summer shows girlhood as it really was: brutal and tender, intimate and lonely, magical and utterly gross. I loved it -- Anna Beecher, author of Here Comes the MiracleNothing else matters in the world of Dogs of Summer other than what these two girls mean to each other. Every crushing, toxic, excruciating, loving, difficult and unboundaried female friendship came hurtling back to me in a tumultuous wave while reading this book, all the sores and salves of a coming-of-age relationship are here in details that feel almost too sacred to be told, but universalised in their telling. I have a new favourite writer, I will read everything she writes. I love it, I love it, I love it! -- Rachael Allen, author of Kingdomland

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Book Synopsis''Warm and uplifting storytelling: a delightful treat''Clare Chambers, author of Small Pleasures''If you''re not in the Yuletide mood yet, you will be after this''Telegraph''An ode to the strange and wonderful time that is Christmas''Stylist''A novel that''s sure to warm the heart of any Scrooge''Radio Times''Tender and moving, Gifts is infused with Christmas magic - that bittersweet mix of joy, yearning, sadness and hope that accompanies the festive season''Daily Mirror''A gorgeous festive tale... Beautifully written and highly emotionally intelligent''Daily Mail''I loved The Versions Of Us by Laura Barnett and her new novel is just as wonderful... The ideal warm, bittersweet read to get you in the festive spirit''Good Housekeeping''Full of warmth, poignancy and a hugeTrade ReviewWarm and uplifting storytelling: a delightful treat. * Clare Chambers, author of SMALL PLEASURES *The ideal warm, bittersweet read to get you in the festive spirit. -- Jo Finney * GOOD HOUSEKEEPING *In her third novel, set in a fictional English village, Barnett weaves together 12 interlinking stories set at Christmastime. We meet a single dad, a grieving daughter, a guilt-ridden ex-convict and a sprightly pensioner, and what connects them is a desire to do right by the people they love and choose the perfect gift. If you're not in the Yuletide mood yet, you will be after this. * TELEGRAPH *I thoroughly enjoyed this gorgeous festive tale. Told in the form of interlinked short stories, it's beautifully written and highly emotionally intelligent. -- Sara Lawrence * DAILY MAIL *Full of warmth, poignancy and a huge dose of Christmas spirit. -- Sarra Manning * RED *The best gift of all is a book you can curl up under a blanket with over the Christmas and New Year holidays and happily transport yourself. Leading the way is Laura Barnett's Gifts which is an ode to the strange and wonderful time that is Christmas told through a series of moving stories about characters trying to find gifts for awkward-yet-loved people in their lives. -- Francesca Brown * STYLIST *This book will inspire, comfort, and move anyone who reads it. * HOOD MAGAZINE *Celebrating the power of community and exploring the emotional ups and downs the festive season can bring, it's a novel that's sure to warm the heart of any Scrooge. * RADIO TIMES *This gem of a book is well observed, poignant and hopeful. -- Deirdre O'Brien * BEST *Tender and moving, Gifts is infused with Christmas magic - that bittersweet mix of joy, yearning, sadness and hope that accompanies the festive season. -- Mernie Gilmore * DAILY MIRROR *They say don't judge a book by its cover but in this case, go right ahead. Like chocolate for the eyes, Gifts tells the bittersweet story of 12 interconnected characters on the hunt for the perfect gift for the people who matter most to them. An immensely readable book made for a cosy day at home, preferably with a snoozing dog on your lap. * ZOELLA *Heartwarming and comforting, this beautiful festive gift of a book allows you to connect with a vivid cast of characters and soak up the festive spirit of hope which is infused in every page... A wonderful piece of storytelling that is a must read for your festive fiction book selection. * MY WEEKLY *

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Book Synopsis''Sarah Thankam Mathews'' prose is undeniable . . . she captures the sneaky, unsaying parts of longing'' Raven Leilani, author of Luster''Some books are merely luminous . . . this one is iridescent'' Susan Choi, author of Trust ExerciseGraduating into a recession, Sneha tries on adulthood like an ill-fitting suit. Moving to a new city, she embraces all that it has to offer: friends that feel like family, gay bars, house parties and new romances. But when painful secrets rear their heads, corporate jobs go off the rails and evictions loom, Sneha and her community find themselves looking for a new way to live.All This Could Be Different is a novel about being young in the twenty-first century. About work, precarity, distant parents, found family, activism, queer love, sex and hope. About knowing that all this could be different.Trade ReviewAll This Could Be Different is an extraordinary novel, spiny and delicate, scathingly funny and wildly moving. Sarah Thankam Mathews is a brilliant writer, one whose every ringing sentence holds both bite and heart. -- Lauren Groff, author of FATES AND FURIESSarah Thankam Mathews' prose is undeniable and hyper attuned to the terrible privacy of the mind. In All This Could Be Different, she captures the sneaky, unsayable parts of longing and writes sharply about the long shadow of family -- Raven Leilani, author of LUSTERSome books are merely luminous-this one is iridescent: with joy and pain, isolation and communion, solemnity and irreverent humour. Even the title has twin meanings. All This Could Be Different is a sorrowing observation of our contemporary precarity, but 'All this could be different' is equally - and ultimately - a declaration, an electrifying act of resistance -- Susan Choi, author of TRUST EXERCISEBattle cry and love song both, All This Could Be Different is an ode - tender, sexy, and smart - to coming of age in turbulent times. As Sneha navigates the hilarious and deadly serious work of being a good friend, lover, daughter, immigrant, adult, queer woman, and worker under late stage capitalism, what emerges is a portrait of a woman determined to live her life to its brim - no matter what. Sarah Thankam Mathews writes like a blaze, and this book will remind you what it is to be young and powerfully alive -- C Pam Zhang, author of HOW MUCH OF THESE HILLS IS GOLDSharply observed and deeply empathetic, All This Could Be Different is a gorgeous story of dreaming and daring against the odds. I loved these flawed, funny friends and I rooted for them, and as I raced toward the end I felt an ache in my chest, missing them already -- Dawnie Walton, author of THE FINAL REVIVAL OF OPAL & NEVSarah Thankam Mathews' All This Could Be Different is an exquisite debut. Mathews' is a completely original voice that is, by turns, fierce, witty, musical, poignant, and, yes, deeply sexy. Simultaneously a tender portrait of chosen family, a stunningly rendered queer romance, and a keen reflection on work in a monstrous economy, this novel also thrums with a persistent, private hope for another, better world. It is the kind of book one should read not only to be entertained or impressed, but also to feel less alone -- Sanjena Sathian, author of GOLD DIGGERSA story of dreaming against the odds. The novel thrums with a hope for a better world, free of capitalism, racism, sexism and homophobia. The book perfectly illustrates the many ways life tears us down, and our friends build us back up. Delicate, moving, hilariously realistic * The Voice *One of the buzziest, most human novels of the year . . . breathless, dizzying, and completely beautiful -- Emma Specter * Vogue *Dazzling and wholly original . . . [written] with such mordant wit, insight, and specificity, it feels like watching a new literary star being born in real time * Entertainment Weekly *Beautifully written, lusciously felt, and marvellously envisioned. Resplendent with intelligence, wit, and feeling * Kirkus *What fuels All This Could Be Different is love, a force Mathews portrays not as a panacea . . . but as an instrument of change * The New Yorker *A darkly witty and finely wrought exploration of the struggle to embrace one's identity, this debut also illuminates the hardships of immigrant life, the elusiveness of lasting romantic love - and ultimately the joy and belonging that can come from a 'family' of friends * People *Sneha's equally vulnerable and cutting narration of new friendships, new romances, and generally figuring it out captures the queer, immigrant experience unlike any other. * Harper’s Bazaar *Radiant . . . Mathews' writing is daring, sharp, and authoritative. She's a master in building rich characters that are imperfect and complicated, charismatic and lovable. At times, the prose felt luxurious and welcoming in the way that the scent of your favourite candle might slowly fill up an ever-expanding room * Vox *A beautiful, authentic rendition of the brown queer experience and immigrant dynamics, All This Could Be Different is a love letter to these communities. * Electric Literature *Mathews has a big heart and a sharp tongue . . . [and] a wonderful eye for the things that make friendship and community just as valuable as romance * The New York Times Book Review *Engrossing . . . a moving immigrant's story and a heartfelt queer love story that tackles socioeconomic issues with nuance . . . its themes are universally relatable at any age * Rolling Stone *A wholly original exploration of queer friendship and the demanding, incredible realities of communal living, Sarah Thankam Mathews convinces the reader that yes, maybe all this could be different after all * Vulture, 'The Best Books of 2022' *[A] novel so good I was torn by the incompatible desires to never set it down and never finish it . . . [Mathews'] skillful alternating between lush imagery and straightforward, plain language makes All This Could Be Different pulsate . . . it is perhaps the greatest depiction of what chosen family really means without ever explicitly using those words -- Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya * Autostraddle *[A] dazzling debut . . . There is so much here to chew on: economic and food insecurity, tenants' rights, coming into one's own, queer romance, immigration, and the vitality of friendship. All This Could Be Different is an epic and beautiful first novel from a writer to watch * them *

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Book SynopsisIn Adam Burch’s thrilling series debut, a young man must choose between violence and peace in a distant world divided between those who thrive in endless sunlight and those who survive in eternal darkness.The isolated planet of Tao is a house divided: the peaceful Daysiders live in harmony while the pale Nightsiders pursue power and racial purity through the violent ritual of the Combat.Edmon Leontes, the gentle son of a ruthless warrior noble and a proud Daysider, embodies Tao’s split nature. The product of diametrically opposed races, Edmon hopes to live a quiet life pursuing the music of his mother’s people, but his Nightsider father cruelly forces him to continue in his bloody footsteps to ensure his legacy.Edmon’s defiance will cost him everything…and spark a revolution that will shake the foundations of Tao. His choice—to embrace the light or surrender to the darkness—will shape his own fate and that of his Trade Review“Song of Edmon is a fantastic epic of personal transformation and struggle, within an imaginative, deftly drawn science-fiction and fantasy world.” —Jim Uhls, screenwriter (Fight Club, Jumper) and producer “A coming-of-age story in a brutal world where the only path to power is combat. Burch writes characters that steal your heart—and then break it. This is space opera done right.” —Philip Eisner, screenwriter (Event Horizon)

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Book SynopsisAs war engulfs Europe, 1,500 passengers risk everything to find a brighter future.Cousins Masha and Rachel Morgenstern board the luxury liner the SS Manhattan bound for New York, desperate to escape the concentration camps that claimed the rest of their family. America offers a safe haven, but to reach it they must survive a hazardous Atlantic crossing.Among their fellow passengers fleeing the war, each with their own conflicts, secrets and surprises, are the composer Igor Stravinsky, making a new start after a decade of tragedy, and Rose Kennedy, determined to keep her four children from harm. Particularly worrying to Rose is her daughter Rosemary, a vivacious but troubled woman whose love for a Californian musician may derail her family’s political ambitions. And then there’s young Thomas, a Nazi with a secret…But, under the waves, the Manhattan is being stalked by a German U-boat. Will any of those ab

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Book SynopsisThe thrilling conclusion to the million-copy, Wall Street Journal bestselling Kingfountain series from Jeff Wheeler.A devastating disaster has left the Forbidden Court in ashes, its fountains destroyed, and its magic at risk. It was destined as the site of Trynne Kiskaddon’s coronation as empress. Now, all Trynne can imagine is the roar of flames, the cries of Gahalatine’s people, and the smell of cinders in a city gone dark. Tragic as the threat to Kingfountain is, it’s nowhere near as foul as the treachery posed by Morwenna. Saboteur, conspirator, and full-blood sister of the king, she is prepared to set forth a wave of destruction that will eliminate everything that stands between her and possession of the throne.But Trynne has her weapons, too—her magic, her resilience, her skills at intrigue, and especially, Fallon. The man who once swore his allegiance to Morwenna now stands by Trynne’s side as they venture into the unk

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Book SynopsisAfter the death of her art dealer father, forty-year-old Gaby Greenwood’s unmoored grief drives her to Paris alone, leaving her American husband behind. Where better for an existential crisis than the city so many artists have loved?Walking through the streets, she sees a man with white hair and a worn corduroy jacket—a dead ringer for her late father. A ghost? Or has mourning driven her mad? Then she receives a letter from a woman she never knew existed—her father’s lover of three decades. The mysterious Françoise has been entrusted with her father’s last gift to Gaby, a valuable seventeenth-century still life. The woman is also the bearer of so many of her father’s secrets.But when Gaby takes a French lover, she starts to question everything she ever knew about her father and her own double life: America or Paris, husband or lover, old life or a new, reimagined one?

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Book SynopsisIn the follow-up to bestselling psychological thriller The Night Bird, a serial killer mistakenly set free becomes a city’s worst nightmare—and a detective’s deadliest challenge.Four years after serial killer Rudy Cutter was sent away for life, San Francisco homicide inspector Frost Easton uncovers a terrible lie: his closest friend planted false evidence to put Cutter behind bars. When he’s forced to reveal the truth, his sister’s killer is back on the streets.Desperate to take Cutter down again, the detective finds a new ally in Eden Shay. She wrote a book about Cutter and knows more about him than anyone. And she’s terrified. Because for four years, Cutter has been nursing revenge day after stolen day.Staying ahead of the game of a killer who’s determined to strike again is not going to be easy. Not when Frost is battling his own demons. Not when the game is becoming so personal. And not when the killer&Trade Review“An unputdownable psychological thriller that will linger with you long after the final page is read…Brian Freeman is masterful in setting up the pace and suspense.” —Bookreporter “Explosive…must reading for crime/mystery fans, with a smart, ethical, likable and believable protagonist.” —Pioneer Press “While the first book in this series, The Night Bird, was outstanding, this one is even better…Explosive and totally unexpected.” —Strong Reviews “This is the way to start a book…You nearly jump from the sense of danger.” —Books Are Magic

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Book SynopsisEver since Martin Banks and his fellow computer geeks discovered that reality is just a computer program to be happily hacked, they've been jaunting back and forth through time, posing as medieval wizards and having the epic adventures that other nerds can only dream of having. But even in their wildest fantasies, they never expected to end up at the mercy of the former apprentice whom they sent to prison for gross misuse of magic and all-around evil behavior.Who knew that the vengeful Todd would escape, then conjure a computer game packed with wolves, wenches, wastelands, and assorted harrowing hazardsand trap his hapless former friends inside it? Stripped of their magic powers, the would-be wizards must brave terrifying dangers, technical glitches, and one another's company if they want to see Medieval Englandand their favorite sci-fi movies on VHSever again. Can our heroes survive this magical mystery torture? Or will it only lead them and their pointy hats into more peril

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Book SynopsisA ghostly tale of how much fame and fortune can cost... American artist Joseph Hannigan and his alluring sister, Sophie, have arrived in enchanting nineteenth-century Venice with a single-minded goal. The twins, who have fled scandal in New York, are determined to break into Venice's expatriate set and find a wealthy patron to support Joseph's work. But the enigmatic Hannigans are not the only ones with a secret agenda. Joseph's talent soon attracts the attention of the magnificent Odilé Leon, a celebrated courtesan and muse who has inspired many artists to greatness. But her inspiration is otherworldly and comes with a devastatingly steep price. As Joseph falls under the courtesan's spell, Sophie joins forces with Nicholas Dane, the one man who knows Odilé's dark secret, and her sworn enemy. When the seductive muse offers Joseph the path to eternal fame, the twins must decide who to believeand just how much they are willing to sacrifice for fame.Trade Review“Chance’s eighth novel (after Bone River) is a thrilling depiction of the world of Venetian artists in the late 19th century, as well as an exploration of the myth of the muse. Chance gets better with each book, and this look at the dynamic between inspiration, desperation, and creation makes for a breathtaking tale.” —Publishers Weekly “The plot will keep readers wondering and guessing until the very end, when this conundrum of love, death, art, and obsession finally comes to its bittersweet resolution. Recommended.” —Historical Novels Review

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Book SynopsisDream date . . . or an absolute nightmare?Lisa’s dated a series of disastrous men; Simon’s loved and lost the girl of his dreams. She’s hoping fate might intervene in her love life; he’d prefer that it stopped meddling with his.Today, they’re meeting, courtesy of the local paper’s “Blind Date” feature—but while Lisa’s looking for that elusive “spark”, Simon’s sure lightning doesn’t strike twice. Will theirs be a love that’s written in the stars, or merely another mismatch written up in the Gazette?From the bestselling author of At the Wedding comes a story of two perfect strangers who might just be perfect for each other.

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Book SynopsisMeet Zoe and Greg Milton, a married couple who have let themselves go.Zoe was a stunner in her high school days, but the intervening decades have added seventy pounds, and removed most of her self-esteem.Greg''s rugby-playing days are well and truly behind him, thanks to countless beers and fast food.When Elise, a radio DJ and Zoe''s best friend, tells them about a new competition, it seems like the perfect opportunity to turn their lives around. Fat Chance will pit six hefty couples against one another to see who can collectively lose the most weight and walk away with a large cash prize.So begins six months of abject misery, tears, and frustrationthat just might turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to themin another laugh-out-loud look at the way we live now from bestselling author Nick Spalding.Trade Review“This novel delivers the laugh out loud moments that are Spalding’s absolute hall mark with plenty of farcical situations which had me weeping with laughter.” —Ruth Saberton, bestselling author “I would recommend this book highly, and I’m definitely going to be looking to read more of Mr. Spalding.” —Time Enough At Last “A hilarious novel that’ll make you laugh out loud. Even when you maybe feel you shouldn’t.” —Matt Dunn, bestselling author “Nick Spalding never fails to entertain me. His books have the uncanny knack of making you realise just how funny and ridiculous real life situations can be. With his latest literary offering, Fat Chance, we can see that he is just as on form as ever.” —lisatalksabout.com

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Book SynopsisFrom bestselling author Amanda Prowse comes a heartwarming tale of first impressions and lasting love.Thomasina ‘Hitch’ Waycott loves living and working on the remote family farm and B&B. But she also wants more. To see the world. To own her own home. To fall madly in love.But those are fairy tales, and if her life is a fairy tale, then she’s the ugly duckling. Her deformed lip, her crooked limbs and her weak heart have kept her from taking chances. But that’s about to change.When Grayson Potts comes to stay, he’s unlike anyone Thomasina has ever met. He’s aloof, eccentric and exceptionally kind. He’s also totally unconcerned with the physical flaws that have always defined Thomasina.The two form a bond that neither has had before. It’s possible that it could become something more, but Thomasina also wonders if it’s too good to be true. By putting her heart on the line, Thomasina may open hersel

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Book SynopsisWhen Reece Johnston was a boy, a fire destroyed his home, killing his mother and brothers while leaving him scarred for life. It also kindled something dark inside him: an irresistible attraction to flames in all their terrifying, tantalizing power. But after two failed arson attemptsand two trips to the mental wardhe was finally able to put down the matches and pick up the pieces. With a career as a bestselling crime writer going strong, Reece is working to fix his broken marriage to Lisa and be there for their preteen daughter, Anna. He's not just dealing with his own demons; there's a world of deadly hurt bearing down on him in the form of the jealous rival he's bested in literature and love, who's determined to see Reece crashand burn. But a guy like Reece knows how to take the heat. And thanks to his lifelong friendship with fire, he also knows how to bring it.

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Book SynopsisAn airplane plunges into an icy river and the world witnesses the dramatic rescue. Then, life after the Miracle on the Hudson landing puts three families on another crash coursewith their own fragile humanity. Airplane passenger Deborah DeWitt-Goldman knows her survival means one last chance to start the family she so badly desiresno matter the cost to her marriage. Preacher's wife Brett Stevens witnesses the event from a ferry, burdened by a secret that could destroy her family. And while twelve-year-old Robby Palmer's desperate parents struggle to reach through the fog of his autism, the boy discovers a deep connection to the birds responsible for the crash. Now, all of them must navigate the crosscurrents of the consequences of their decisionsand when their paths collide a second time, another miracle just might happen. Award-winning author Cari Noga's Sparrow Migrations is an inspiring, heartfelt look at the crucible of crisis and the power of human connection.

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Book SynopsisThe third Bennet sister, Mary, steps into the spotlight in this graceful retelling of Pride and Prejudice.As a middle child flanked by two pairs of closely bonded sisters, marginalized by her mother, and ridiculed by her father, Mary Bennet feels isolated within her own family. She retreats to her room to read and play the pianoforte and, when obliged to mix in society, finds it safer to quote platitudes from books rather than express her real opinions. She also finds it safer to befriend those who are socially “beneath” her. When wealthy Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley glide into her sisters’ lives, Mary becomes infuated with an impoverished young musician, the son of her old wet-nurse, who plays the fiddle at the Meryton assemblies.It is only after her sisters tease her about her “beau with the bow” that Mary is forced to examine her real feelings and confront her own brand of pride and prejudice.An elegant accompaniment to Jane

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Book SynopsisEmotionally shattered, a soldier slowly repairs her life in the picturesque town of Perfect, IndianaCory Marcel worked tirelessly over eight grueling years to develop a successful military career. After her commanding officer violently assaulted her, she lost everythingespecially her trust in people. Despite the emotional damage threatening to sink her, Cory agrees to accept a new job at a furniture store in Perfecta job that could offer the fragile brunette the chance to start over. Ted Lovejoy cofounded Langford & Lovejoy Heritage Furniture, but lately he feels like an outsider in his own business. When he meets Cory, Ted realizes his company can do more than just build furnitureit can also help rebuild lives. He longs to help Cory recover from her pain, yet every time he gets too close to her heart, she pushes him away. While Cory can't resist her attraction to Ted, she fears the demons haunting her will drag down both of them. Could this kind, soft-spoken man help her finally bTrade Review“Highly recommend this book…This story was truly inspiring and I loved it.” —Night Owl Reviews (5 stars), Top Pick

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Book SynopsisWHY DATE A MOUNTAIN MAN? Because he knows how to pitch a tent.TROPES: Tall, dark & (adorably) grumpy hero charmed by heroine despite himself; quirky small mountain town; gorgeous Colorado Rocky wilderness; only one sleeping bag; slow burn to clothes melting off spice; extreme competence; a few (somewhat) minor explosions.CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN MANWhen Dahlia Weathersby''s sister disappears on what should have been a simple day hike, Dahlia immediately heads deep into the Colorado Rockies to find her. Knowing she''ll never survive the mountains alone, she convinces the local hermitadorably grouchy survival expert Winston Daneto be her guide. All it takes is a good helping of Dahlia''s charmand just the teeniest bit of blackmailbefore she''s got all six-foot-something of him wrapped around her finger.Winston Dane should know better than to follow beautiful city girl Dahlia deep into the mountains, but it's not like he could let her go <

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Book SynopsisRECOMMENDED BY DOLLY PARTON IN PEOPLE MAGAZINE!A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERA USA TODAY BESTSELLERA LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLERA PBS BOOK PICKThe bestselling historical fiction novel from Kim Michele Richardson, this is a novel following Cussy Mary, a packhorse librarian and her quest to bring books to the Appalachian community she loves, perfect for readers of William Kent Kreuger and Lisa Wingate. The perfect addition to your next book club!The hardscrabble folks of Troublesome Creek have to scrap for everything-everything except books, that is. Thanks to Roosevelt''s Kentucky Pack Horse Library Project, Troublesome''s got its very own traveling librarian, Cussy Mary Carter.Cussy''s not only a book woman, however, she''s also the last of her kind, her skin a shade of blue unlike most anyone else. Not everyone is keen on Cussy''s family or the Library Project, and a Blue is often bTrade Review"Richardson has penned an emotionally moving and fascinating story about the power of literacy over bigotry, hatred and fear." - BookPage"With a focus on the personal joy and broadened horizons that can result from access to reading material, this well-researched tale serves as a solid history lesson on 1930s Kentucky. A unique story about Appalachia and the healing power of the written word." - Kirkus Reviews"This gem of a historical from Richardson (The Sisters of Glass Ferry) features an indomitable heroine navigating a community steeped in racial intolerance. In 1936, 19-year-old Cussy Mary Carter works for the New Deal–funded Pack Horse Library Project, delivering reading material to the rural people of Kentucky...Readers will adore the memorable Cussy and appreciate Richardson's fine rendering of rural Kentucky life." - Publishers Weekly"The novel serves as a testament to the power of the written word, arguing that words can traverse barriers between class, race and individual differences." - Deep South Magazine"A powerful yet heartfelt story that gives readers a privileged glimpse into an impoverished yet rigidly hierarchical society, this time by shining a light on the courageous, dedicated women who brought books and hope to those struggling to survive on its lowest rung. Strongly recommended." - Historical Novel Society"The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is a timely and necessary novel, certain to find an enthusiastically loyal following among book clubs, for whom it offers myriad opportunities for engagement, and with librarians and library patrons, for whom it is a heartrending hero's tale. " - The Charleston Post & Courier"Based on true stories from different times (the blue-skinned people of Kentucky and the WPA's Pack Horse Librarians), this novel packs a lot of hot topics into one narrative. Perfect for book clubs." - Library Journal"A rare literary adventure that casts librarians as heroes, smart tough women on horseback in rough terrain doing the brave and hard work of getting the right book into the right hands. Richardson has weaved an inspiring tale about the power of literature." - Alexander Chee, author of Edinburgh and Queen of the Night"Kim Michele Richardson has written a fascinating novel about people almost forgotten by history: Kentucky's pack-horse librarians and "blue people." The factual information alone would make this book a treasure, but with her impressive storytelling and empathy, Richardson gives us so much more." - Ron Rash, New York Times bestselling author of One Foot in Eden and Serena"Readers will respond to quiet Cussy's steel spine...And book groups who like to explore lesser-known aspects of American history will be fascinated." - Booklist"Richardson's latest work is a hauntingly atmospheric love letter to the first mobile library in Kentucky and the fierce, brave packhorse librarians who wove their way from shack to shack dispensing literacy, hope, and - just as importantly - a compassionate human connection. Richardson's rendering of stark poverty against the ferocity of the human spirit is irresistible. Add to this the history of the unique and oppressed blue-skinned people of Kentucky, and you've got an un-put-downable work that holds real cultural significance." - Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants"This is Richardson's finest, as beautiful and honest as it is fierce and heart-wrenching, THE BOOK WOMAN OF TROUBLESOME CREEK explores the fascinating and unique blue-skinned people of Kentucky and the brave Packhorse librarians. A timeless and significant tale about poverty, intolerance and how books can bring hope and light to even the darkest pocket of history." - Karen Abbott, New York Times bestselling author of Liar Temptress Soldier Spy"Emotionally resonant and unforgettable, The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is a lush love letter to the redemptive power of books. It is by far my favorite KMR book—and I am her huge fan. Cussy Mary is an indomitable and valiant heroine, and through her true-blue eyes, 1930s Kentucky comes to vivid and often harrowing life. Richardson's dialogue is note-perfect; Cussy Mary's voice is still ringing in my head, and the sometimes dark story she tells highlights such gorgeous, glowing grace notes that I was often moved to hopeful tears. " - Joshilyn Jackson, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Almost Sisters

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Book SynopsisAll three of the Godmothers novellas together for the very first time!   Old friends reunite for an adventure unlike any they’ve faced before in the latest novel by beloved storyteller and #1 New York Times bestselling author Fern Michaels.   As Sophie De Luca has learned, many things really are better the second time around, whether that’s a wonderful year of marriage with Goebel, her sweet second husband, or strengthening her bonds with childhood friends Toots, Ida, and Mavis.   Yet ever since she and Goebel moved into their new home, Sophie has sensed something a little . . . unusual. Old houses often contain items left behind from previous owners, but what remains in this case is a painful secret. Facing this past presents a special kind of challenge, but with her three extraordinary friends by her side, Sophie is ready to confront a terrible wrong that occurred within the house decades ago. And,

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Book Synopsis“Reminiscent of Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swensen cozies, which also include baking and a group of close friends working together to solve crimes.” – Booklist A delightful new story from a New York Times bestselling author perfect for fans of Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swensen Mystery series! In this page-turning new book, entertaining guru Sophie Winston is faced with a midsummer nightmare when a celebration in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, is the appetizer for murder…Old Town’s midsummer festivities are getting a tasty addition this year. To coincide with a public performance of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Bobbie Sue Bodoin, the Queen of Cheesecake, has hired Sophie to organize a dinner with a dessert buffet on the waterfront. Bobbie Sue’s homegrown company is thriving, and since her baking dish overfloweth, she wants to reward her employees.   Bobbie Sue

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Book SynopsisSet in small-town Kansas, USA Today bestselling author Amy Lillard’s Sunshine Café Mystery series features a twenty-something advice columnist turned café manager and sleuth, her tiny dog with a big personality, farm-fresh produce—and murder!Professional advice columnist turned café manager and amateur sleuth Sissy Yoder is adjusting to life in her parents’ small but not-so-sleepy former hometown of Yoder, Kansas, where family is plentiful, the tomatoes are “to die for”—and murder is often in season . . .Twenty-something Sissy Yoder never imagined herself running her Aunt Bethel’s café, but her help is needed, so she’s making a go of it. And she must admit that life in tiny Yoder has been anything but dull–she’s already solved one homicide—after being named the prime suspect in the case!Enjoying a peaceful respite after all that excitement, Sissy ju

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Book SynopsisIn a powerful Civil War epic coursing with raw human drama, award-winning author and master historian Jim R. Woolard forges a young man’s harrowing coming-of-age journey from Confederate captive to Union prisoner to unchained force of vengeance during the most controversial episode in American history…Autumn, 1864. Rebel bushwhackers have seized and looted a small town in Missouri. Wounded and left for dead by his half-brother, seventeen-year-old Owen Wainwright is captured and conscripted by the Confederate Army. As the troops’ blacksmith, he witnesses the horrors of war firsthand: the savagery of General Selby’s Iron Brigade, the massacres of Union troops, the bloody battles at Lexington, Westport, and Mine Creek. Against all odds, Owen survives with the help of an unlikely ally—a new friend in arms and the only person he trusts. But if fate is cruel, war can be crueler... Caught in the crossfire of a deadly Y

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Book SynopsisIn Barbara Ross’ award-winning series featuring sleuth Julia Snowden and her family’s coastal Maine clambake business, two mysteries rock the colony of Chipmunk Island after a suspicious memorial service has Julia and her mother shifting into some family sleuthing.Serving up mouthwatering shellfish, the Snowden Family Clambake has become a beloved institution in Busman’s Harbor, Maine. But when new clues rise to the surface five years after the disappearance of Julia Snowden’ s mother’s friend, the family business shifts to sleuthing . . .Julia and her mother, Jacqueline, have come to the exclusive summer colony of Chipmunk Island to attend a memorial service for Jacqueline’s old friend Ginny, who’s been officially declared dead half a decade after she went out for her daily swim in the harbor and was never seen again. But something seems fishy at the service—especially with the ladies of the Wednesday

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Book SynopsisIn the latest Country Store Mystery by Agatha and Macavity Award-winning author Maddie Day, it’s Saint Patrick’s Day in South Lick, Indiana! But a holiday cooking competition at Pans ’N Pancakes is put on the back-burner when a killer strikes…There’s no mistaking Saint Patrick’s Day at Pans ’N Pancakes. Robbie may only be Irish by marriage to Abe O’Neill, but the shelves of vintage cookware in her southern Indiana store are draped with glittery shamrocks and Kelly-green garlands and her restaurant is serving shepherd’s pie and Guinness Beer brownies. The big event, however, is a televised cooking competition to be filmed on site.Unfortunately, someone’s luck has run out. Before the cameras start rolling, tough-as-nails producer Tara O’Hara Moore is found upstairs in her B&B room, bludgeoned apparently by the heavy hilt of a cleaver left by her side. Now, not only does Robbie have a store fu

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Book SynopsisSuperb from start to finish. An instant classic. —New York Times Bestselling Author Marc Cameron on Forever Texas Experience the gritty reality of life on the Texas frontier in this riveting historical adventure based on actual events and the true history of the legendary King Ranch, as one pioneering ranch family carves out their own piece of the American West…South Texas, 1854. Regis Royle is determined to turn eighteen-thousand acres of raw prairie into the greatest cattle ranch in the world. But he can’t do it alone. The region is wilder than a herd of mustangs—and crawling with rustlers. Teaming up with the Cattlemen’s Justice Consortium, Regis hopes to stop the rustling and start laying tracks for a new railway. Problem is, the cattlemen—including Jarvis “Bone” McGraw, Regis’s own ranch manager—can’t help but lock horns with the Texas Rangers. And it doesn’t t

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Book SynopsisMelanie Travis and her pedigree poodles are back on the case in an adorably giftable, Easter-themed hardcover by award-winning author Laurien Berenson!Melanie Travis is gifted at raising prize-winning Standard Poodles, not standing in as the Easter Bunny. But when March in Connecticut brings daffodils and dead bodies, she’ll need to hop into action—and fast . . .Aunt Rose already has a strike against her for not being too fond of dogs—or Aunt Peg. But Melanie still agrees to organize Easter festivities at Gallagher House, the new women’s shelter opened by the stern former nun, even if it takes all the jellybeans in Greenwich to sweeten the arrangement. No sooner does Melanie arrive to dye multicolor eggs and stuff baskets, than she learns devasting news about Beatrice Gallagher, the respected benefactor of the estate. Beatrice has fallen to her death, and the circumstances are shocking . . .No one can say why or how c

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