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
Histria LLC The Lost Diary of George Washington
Book SynopsisYou are invited to travel by horse with the General, stay in his quarters, hear what he thinks, weigh upon his decisions, listen to his prayers, and fight by his side. Sometimes he will sound redundant. You will realize this is because many of the problems he faced were repetitive. Sometimes there will be little action. This will bother you. Please keep in mind, it bothered him more. You will see him in anguish and distress. You will experience his frustrations. You will grieve because of those who betrayed him. You will be a fly on the wall as he strategizes with his men. You will see some of those strategies carried out, while others were not executed. Even knowing the glorious outcome beforehand, you will see no possible way for victory to be had - until finally it is. You will be surprised to learn that this stoic figure had an inner turmoil few have ever faced. In the end, because of his own writings, you will know General George Washington more for who he was, above and beyond what he did or what others have said. You will hear it from his lips, in his own words.
£17.56
Oceanview Publishing A Lethal Question
Book SynopsisWith one patient?s question, a therapist?s life careens off the rails Manhattan psychiatrist Bill Madrian takes pride in the level of trust he establishes with his patients. For a patient to open up, they must truly believe that everything said in a therapy session remains confidential. But Bill has never realized the complications this confidentiality could present?until he treats Alex Bronzi. One day, in a session with Alex, the young man asks, ?Hey Doc, ya wanna know who clipped Boris Levenko?? Bill can hardly believe his ears. Boris Levenko was a major crime boss who had been executed a few days prior. The question, so loaded with portent, gives Bill information he desperately did not want to hear. With this knowledge, Bill?s life is upended, and he begins a fight for survival that takes him and his loved ones on a nightmarish journey far beyond the realm of anything he could have ever imagined. Bill has to untangle himself from a web of deceit and corruption or risk losing his career, his family, and his life.Perfect for fans of Joseph Finder and Dennis Lehane
£21.56
Casemate Publishers A Question of Time: A Cold War Spy Thriller
Book SynopsisBerlin, 1979. When the CIA’s most valuable spy is compromised, the Agency realizes it does not have the capability to bring him to safety. If he cannot evade the dreaded East German security service, the result will be chaos and a cascade of failures throughout the Agency’s worldwide operations.Master Sergeant Kim Becker lived through the hell of Vietnam as a member of the elite Studies and Operations Group. When he lost one of his best men in a pointless operation, he began to question his mission. Now, he is serving with an even more secretive Army Special Forces unit based in Berlin on the front line of the Cold War.The CIA turns to Becker’s team of unconventional warfare specialists to pull their bacon out of the fire. Becker and his men must devise a plan to get him out by whatever means possible. It's a race against time to prepare and execute the plan while, alone in East Berlin, the agent must avoid his nemesis and play for time inside the hostile secret service headquarters he has betrayed.One question remains - is the man worth the risk?Trade ReviewWhat's true and what's fiction? Former Special Forces Berlin soldier James Stejskal places you in a tense and thrilling story of a US Special Forces mission to East Germany. * Cold War Conversations Podcast *A Question of Time combines the intrigue of le Carré and the story-telling ability of Forsyth with the authenticity of Chris Ryan. An excellent cold-war thriller. * Matt Johnson, CWA Dagger nominated author, ex-soldier, Patron of Forces Online, and Co-chair Crime Cymru 04/06/2021 *Fiction that reads like fact. Boots on the ground, real-life drama, rich with details only an insider could write… an outstanding book. * John Stryker Meyer, MACV SOG Veteran and Author of Across The Fence: The Secret War in Vietnam *…the author is certainly qualified to write about the military, espionage and counter-terrorism […] This familiarity with weaponry, spy procedures and dynamics are evident in the writing. This man knows his Glocks and/or sabotage devices, and this adds a convincing layer to the story. * Historical Novels Review *The action is described with just enough detail to make it believable and not so much that the story bogs down. The writing is clear and compelling and doesn’t get in the way of the telling. * Crime Fiction Lover *The tale Mr. Stejskal, a veteran of the US Army Special Forces, has woven is a taut, fast-moving, totally-plausible story of inter-agency cooperation at its finest. This is an excellent work of fiction. It is a story about a secret US Army Special Forces unit in Berlin that served throughout the Cold War, a unit that would have probably been wiped out if the Cold War had turned hot. The book is well-crafted, pays attention to detail, and gives long overdue credit to the men and women who were the tip of spear behind enemy lines in East Germany. Put this on your 'must read' list * Barry Broman, Former CIA Chief of Station, author of "Risk Taker, Spy Maker: Tales of a CIA Case Officer *James Stejskal’s A Question of Time will grab you, immerse you in the times, and leave you ready for the next installment. * LTG Charles Cleveland (US Army Retired) Commander *...a good read – action packed and evoking the atmosphere of the times. * Army Rumour Service *Stejskal brings a lively new twist to a familiar area… an intriguing debut… the tradecraft and operational planning are well-drawn and Stejskal takes us into the heart of the American spy set-up in Berlin… The plot feels authentic and Berlin is vividly detailed, right down to the Stasi’s secret door in the Wall. * Financial Times *A thrilling, riveting, and whip-smart novel that feels as though you are being served a slice of Cold War military history. * Love Reading *
£15.29
Deep Vellum Publishing Sexology
Book SynopsisThe tenth child of a fantasist mother and an absent millionaire, Matty Crickholme is growing into a sexually bewildered, neurotic young man. Through the collected paraphernalia of an unconventional childhood, Alex Kovacs creates a quirky, kaleidoscopic rumination on family and how it shapes us—for better or worse.Sexology follows the strange, wonderful, fluxional world of the Crickholmes, where nonconformism is celebrated, siblings form autonomous republics, and eccentricity reigns supreme. The Crickholme siblings youthful exploits take them on myriad paths: a hermetic psychic, a dog trainer, an ice cream purveyoress, a missing person. Between memories, factoids, letters, and old photographs, Matty investigates how their offbeat rearing made them the adults they became, and how fantasy and convention collide.Alex Kovacs’s writings have received acclaim for their invention, wit, and astute observations of our absurd world.
£14.24
Deep Vellum Publishing American Abductions
Book SynopsisTorrential and dreamlike, Mauro Javier Cárdenas’ novel unfurls into a layered, poignant, and unflinching portrait of how family separations have impacted the minds of Latin American deportees in a technology-bound 21st century. American Abductions opens in a near-future United States whose omnipresence of data-harvesting and algorithms has enabled the mass incarceration and deportation of Latin Americans—regardless of citizenship. After their father is abducted by immigration officials before their eyes and deported to Colombia, Ada and her sister Eva are left to contend with a United States as all-seeing as it is hostile. Now adults, Ada remains in San Francisco while Eva has joined their father in Colombia, tending him in his ailing health. When his condition worsens, Eva asks Ada to come see them: a nearly impossible feat, given the United States’ restrictions on Latin Americans’ movements. Ada, terribly alone, must come to te
£14.25
PM Press The Blast
Book Synopsis
£21.74
Forefront Books No Address
Book Synopsis
£27.97
Dreamspinner Press The Man Who Lost His Pen
Book SynopsisCalgary PI Ben Ames expects a relaxing evening off as he supports his boyfriend, Jesse, one of the star performers at a charity concert. But it turns out relaxing isn’t on the program.When last-minute guest Matt Garrett shows up, it creates a frenzy backstage. An A-list movie star with an ego to match, Garrett has bad blood with many of the performers—Jesse included. So when Garrett turns up dead, Ben begins to dig for the truth, both to protect Jesse and to satisfy his own instinctive curiosity. So much for his night off. When the police arrive, emotions backstage heat up, but no one can step out to cool off, because the Western Canadian winter is so cold that hypothermia waits outside. With such a high-profile crime, the lead detective seems poised to make a quick arrest… and Jesse’s a prime suspect. Ben has his work cut out for him to solve the murder under the police and paparazzi’s noses before Jesse’s reputation becomes collateral damage.
£11.01
Nightboat Books Outline of My Lover
Book SynopsisOn the fringes of the music scene in a Southern college town, a lonely young student driven to fl ee a troubled adolescence pursues and forms a life-altering relationship with an acclaimed artist-musician. Their understanding develops in a pattern of sex and reticence, soon impacting both their paths and greatly shifting expectations. Written “as if telling the truth was a matter of survival” (Andrew O’Hagan), it is a queer bildungsroman.Trade Review"This slim novel, the story of an obsessive love between a young man and the older musician who keeps himself at a distance, is a pitch-perfect summer read: it’s intense, sexy, gratifying even while it’s breaking your heart."—Corinne Segal, Literary Hub"I’d internalized something from Outline of My Lover, less a lesson than a sensibility, or maybe a hunger. From a permission it had become a goad: write well, or why write anything?"—Hugh Ryan, Literary Hub“There is a reverence in Douglas Martin’s writing composed of equal parts language and love. Outline of My Lover strips away the dross, leaving you with the pure mood of youth.”—Dale Peck “Douglas Martin takes you through the heat of family, the electricity of want, and the watch-what-you-wish-for gift of an elusive, famous, lover. This novel feeds you.”—Michelle Tea"Outline of My Lover was the first book I read when I moved to Brooklyn. For me, it isn’t just a 'queer story' or a 'queer narrative' or 'queer characters.' It queered structure. It queered syntax and vocabulary. It queered tense. It gave me permission to question and fuck with and break from the literary structures that were built to keep my voice and my experience and my life and my thought process on the margins. The story told me: Tell your own. Even, and especially if, it occurs strangely to you. Told me: Map your strangeness in words. Told me: Keep going. Keep going. Keep. Going."—Tommy Pico“Spare and elegant, Martin’s book is a worthy companion piece to Duras’ The Lover. It is his elegy on passion and loss.”—Darcey Steinke“Douglas Martin has a very beautiful voice. It is a thing of grace.”—Dennis Cooper"This book is full of hard-won, fraught, unsparing emotional truth. It is a love story between a raw and damaged boy-narrator and a famously mysterious rock star. But more than that, it is a piece of stylish and ferociously sharp prose. I love its fierce concentration and levels of obsession."—Colm Tóibín
£11.39
Nightboat Books Sex Goblin
Book SynopsisA weird, wild ride across non-narrative vignettes and dryly funny aphorisms exploring the shared intensity of violence and the erotic. As if hauled up squirming from the bowels of the internet, Sex Goblin metabolizes sex writing, popular culture, and autofiction to present the real and the imagined as equally surreal possibilities. In the narrator’s childlike voice, all things become both mundane and strange—a child and their dog fused after a car accident, moments of tenderness amidst frat hazing, witches, and hiking accidents. At turns charming and bizarre, Sex Goblin channels sexual violence through the lens of the absurd to alchemize shame and abuse into something that registers differently than trauma. Sex Goblin is a barely factual but deeply felt field guide to relationships and relatability.
£999.99
Rare Bird Books All The Right Circles
Book Synopsis Fans of Pat Conroy will enjoy John Russell's long-awaited second novel, a rich, multi-generational story of money and morals, power and race, sex and sanity, set in a changing America.Jack Callahan is an outsider in his adopted hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina. A successful lawyer, he's spent years trying to move in all the right circles. But with his literary mother in a sanitarium, his society marriage on the rocks, and his biggest clientRaleigh's family-owned newspaper the Criterionfacing a hostile takeover, he's beginning to wonder if it's really worth it.Step by step readers are drawn into the non-secret secrets of an elite that wields power founded on intricate manners and unsolved crimes. Jack's mentor, World War II hero Hugh Symmes, is haunted by family misdeeds during the Wilmington Massacre of 1898. His client, Ward Forrest, third-generation newspaper heir, portions out liberal duty against riches amassed during the Jim Crow past. His fri
£14.24
Regal House Publishing LLC The Manning Girl
Book Synopsis"The novel is a quiet but strong tour de force."~Marly Swick, author of Evening News: A Novel1992. Tyler Manning— high school teacher, part-time farmer, bachelor of 38—is planning his first day of summer vacation when a strange car approaches his Kansas farmhouse. By the time the battered Ford departs, Tyler is holding a three-week-old infant. The baby’s father is his estranged brother. Woven throughout the narrative of May Manning’s upbringing—assisted by long-time neighbors and school colleagues—is the parallel story of Tyler and his younger brother, the charming but deceitful Mickey Manning. The possibility of Mickey’s return haunts Tyler throughout May’s childhood. When Mickey does reappear, he brings unexpected danger into their lives. The Manning Girl reimagines George Eliot’s 1860 fable, Silas Marner, and places it in a contemporary Midwestern frame, following the girl and her uncle/father from May’s unexpected arrival to her 21st year. The Manning Girl explores, with tenderness and humor, the unique situation of a single father, supported by a surprising community.
£15.26
Regal House Publishing LLC LAir du Temps 1985
Book SynopsisIn 1985, the shooting of Mr. Marfeo disrupts the quiet suburban neighborhood of Maple Bay and prompts thirteen-year-old Zinnia Zompa to reorganize everything she knows about her parents? their preoccupations, obsessions, and above all, their battles with each other. As her understanding of the world grows, Zinnia sees how the violence she witnesses is part of a larger pattern of domination, one that shadows the world far beyond her neighborhood, and her coming-of-age means reckoning with this darkness.
£13.56
Regal House Publishing LLC Walk the Dark
Book SynopsisOliver Curtin grows up in a nocturnal world with a mother who is a sex worker and drug addict, and whose love is real yet increasingly unreliable. His narration alternates between that troubled childhood and the present of the novel, where he is serving the last months of a thirty-years-to-life sentence in a maximum-security prison in upstate New York, for a crime he committed at age seventeen. His redemption is closely allied with his memories, seen with growing clarity and courage. If he can remember, then life in the larger world is possible for him.
£14.41
Regal House Publishing LLC Her Best Self
Book Synopsis
£16.11
Level 4 Press Inc Death Valley
Book SynopsisLove has a brother and his name is . . . hate. Life was never easy for Marcus, even before his parents' murder/suicide in a seedy trailer park in Florida. Now he's landed in Vegas with his older brother, Mac, hoping to start over. But plans usually go sideways when Mac's involved. He's a mean brawler, and Marcus all too often ends up on the receiving end. Then Marcus meets Trina—a ray of hope in his sea of despair. He's smitten. Trina, however, has a thing for bad boys, and Mac is as bad as they come. She falls for Mac and moves into the brothers' one-room apartment. After an unlikely stroke of good fortune dumps a heap of cash in their laps, their pressure-cooker existence explodes and all hell breaks loose. Death Valley is a story of how far you can push someone before they finally push back. It's about love, greed, and the wide-open desert where men mostly end up dead."Chilling...shows the struggle of family blood and conflicting personalities." - Advanced ReviewFans of Raging Bull and The Fighter will love this family drama.
£14.96
Level 4 Press Inc Death Valley
Book SynopsisLove has a brother and his name is . . . hate. Life was never easy for Marcus, even before his parents' murder/suicide in a seedy trailer park in Florida. Now he's landed in Vegas with his older brother, Mac, hoping to start over. But plans usually go sideways when Mac's involved. He's a mean brawler, and Marcus all too often ends up on the receiving end. Then Marcus meets Trina—a ray of hope in his sea of despair. He's smitten. Trina, however, has a thing for bad boys, and Mac is as bad as they come. She falls for Mac and moves into the brothers' one-room apartment. After an unlikely stroke of good fortune dumps a heap of cash in their laps, their pressure-cooker existence explodes and all hell breaks loose. Death Valley is a story of how far you can push someone before they finally push back. It's about love, greed, and the wide-open desert where men mostly end up dead."Chilling...shows the struggle of family blood and conflicting personalities." - Advanced ReviewFans of Raging Bull and The Fighter will love this family drama.
£13.56
Austin Macauley Publishers LLC Running from Paradise
Book Synopsis
£9.49
Scrivenings Press LLC Love in the Squared Circle
Book Synopsis
£9.74
Amazon Publishing Just a Regular Boy: A Novel
Book SynopsisAn orphaned boy raised by a survivalist wends his way into the real world in an emotional novel about hope, fears, and found family by New York Times bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde. Out there is chaos, the collapse of society, and so much to be afraid of. All that matters is freedom. That’s what Remy Blake has been taught by his survivalist father. Raised off the grid in the middle of nowhere, his own survival skills not yet honed, Remy is days shy of his eighth birthday when his father unexpectedly dies. As seasons pass, supplies run out, and fending for himself grows more desperate, Remy sets out on foot, unprepared for the great unknown of civilization. He is found—near feral, silent, and terrified—in the small rural town of Blaire. To Anne, a nurturing mother of two adopted teenagers who’s still dealing with her own childhood rejections, Remy is not a lost cause. Just a challenging one. As Remy cautiously adapts to his new foster home, his family wants nothing more than to reassure him that he can trust the world. But to do so, they must first reexamine how much they trust the world themselves, and how much they should. As Remy’s journey into the real world begins, figuring out how to navigate it becomes a path they will have to learn to walk together.Trade Review“Prolific author [Catherine Ryan] Hyde applies her heartwarming style to the dynamic between a foster parent and child, highlighting the power of therapy and the reliability of inner strength.” —Booklist “The story is beautifully conceived and executed and incredibly touching. As with all of Hyde's characters, we really come to empathize with Remy and Anne.” —Bookreporter Previous Praise for Catherine Ryan Hyde “Fans of Catherine Ryan Hyde will adore her new novel…No one in this story is perfect. But despite our flaws, we are all worthy of love and able to share our love, just as Stewie so beautifully demonstrates.” —Bookreporter on Dreaming of Flight “A heartwarming story spanning decades of shared trials and personal growth.” —Booklist on My Name is Anton “There is a little bit of magic in every [Catherine Ryan Hyde] book…Perceptive, heartfelt, and enlightening.” —Novelgossip on Heaven Adjacent “Fans of Homer H. Hickam Jr.’s Rocket Boys, Andrew J. Graff’s Raft of Stars, and Hyde’s substantial backlist will savor this heart-opening and meticulously researched coming-of-age tale.” —Booklist on Boy Underground “A story about good people doing their best to survive, combined with a message that will cause readers to close the book feeling a bit more hopeful about humanity.” —Kirkus Reviews on Take Me with You “Multilayered and heartwarming.” —Booklist on Seven Perfect Things “A deftly crafted novel with an underlying message about the power of simple kindness…a thoroughly engaging read from first page to last.” —Midwest Book Review on Have You Seen Luis Velez? “Hyde is a master at mining the emotional depths of her characters and bringing them out the other side.” —New York Journal of Books on Just After Midnight
£13.83
Amazon Publishing The Rose Arbor
Book SynopsisAn investigation into a girl’s disappearance uncovers a mystery dating back to World War II in a haunting novel of suspense by the bestselling author of The Venice Sketchbook and The Paris Assignment.London: 1968. Liz Houghton is languishing as an obituary writer at a London newspaper when a young girl’s disappearance captivates the city. If Liz can break the story, it’s her way into the newsroom. She already has a scoop: her best friend, Marisa, is a police officer assigned to the case.Liz follows Marisa to Dorset, where they make another disturbing discovery. Over two decades earlier, three girls disappeared while evacuating from London. One was found murdered in the woods near a train line. The other two were never seen again.As Liz digs deeper, she finds herself drawn to the village of Tydeham, which was requisitioned by the military during the war and left in ruins. After all these years, what could possibly link the m
£13.73
Amazon Publishing Last Call for Love
Book SynopsisFor an American woman on an impromptu summertime trip to an Irish island, life changes in a heartbeat in a refreshing romance by the author of June, Reimagined.The last thing Chicagoan Maeve Kaminski expects to inherit from her estranged biological father is a pub. Now thousands of miles from home, Maeve is on a remote Irish island and is the new owner of the Moorings. Charming? Yes. Practical? No. The bright side: Maeve is in debt, and off-loading a famous pub for a pretty penny could be the gift she’s been waiting for.Briggs Murphy is suffering from a broken heart. Literally. Recently diagnosed with the same condition that killed his father, he’s not looking for love. But when Maeve shows up with her color-coordinated datebook and striking blue eyes, he falls hard. Too bad she’s off-limits. According to familial legend, they’re enemies. And for the sake of the island, they better stay that way.Love was never the plan. But
£11.69
Amazon Publishing The House of Lost Secrets
Book SynopsisShe thought she knew her best friend…She was wrong.The weatherworn cottage Clachan has always been Jo Wilding’s sanctuary, a blissful escape from her tumultuous home life. From the first summer Rachel invited her to join the Willoughby family in the wilds of Scotland, she fell in love with the sea air, sandy beach and Tristan, Rachel’s older brother…All these years later, Clachan is where their most important occasions and conversations take place, so when Rachel organises a weekend there, Jo never suspects that this weekend will change everything. Because it turns out Rachel has been keeping a secret, a betrayal that plunges Jo into a past she’s spent years trying to forget.Left to untangle the pieces of their past alone, Jo has to decide if there is such a thing as forgiveness when there is no one left to forgive?
£8.54
Amazon Publishing Falling Wisteria
Book SynopsisAs America enters WWII, two women on the home front strive to stay strong in a heartfelt novel about hope, friendship, and family by the bestselling author of Yellow Crocus and Golden Poppies.Kay Lynn Brooke is a wife and mother in Berkeley, California, building a solid future with her husband and family. Then on December 7, 1941, the bombing of Pearl Harbor throws Kay Lynn’s life, and the lives of everyone she knows and loves, into chaos.Within weeks, Kay Lynn’s dearest friend, Kimiko, is forcibly relocated with her family to an internment camp. Kay Lynn’s brother, fortified with a youthful and patriotic spirit, ships out for the Pacific. Her husband enlists ahead of the draft and leaves home for basic training, while Kay Lynn’s sister works for the war effort on the home front—and holds a secret that places her in a different kind of danger.As Kay Lynn struggles to parent, keep the household together, and chal
£8.54
Amazon Publishing Memories of the Lost
Book Synopsis“Magnificent! The writing is lyrical, the story is mesmerizing. Perfection from start to finish.” —Susan Mallery, New York Times bestselling author of For the Love of Summer.An unsuspecting artist uncovers her late mother’s secrets and unravels her own hidden past in a beguiling novel by the USA Today bestselling author of When We Believed in Mermaids.Months after her mother passes away, artist Tillie Morrisey sees a painting in a gallery that leaves her inexplicably lightheaded and unsteady. When a handsome stranger comes to her aid, their connection is so immediate it seems fated, though Liam is only visiting for a few days.Working on her own art has always been a refuge, but after discovering a document among her mother’s belongings that suggests Tillie’s life has been a lie, she begins to suffer from a series of fugue states, with memories surfacing that she isn’t even sure a
£8.54
Amazon Publishing The Curious Secrets of Yesterday
Book SynopsisA woman’s ambitions clash with familial expectations in a captivating novel about generational secrets and self-discovery by the bestselling author of The Candid Life of Meena Dave.Raised by her mother and grandmother and tutored in the healing wonders of spices, Tulsi Gupta is expected to carry on the ancestral tradition from her family’s Salem spice shop. Restless and reluctant, Tulsi yearns to follow her own path—destiny has other plans.When Tulsi finds a letter written by her grandmother, addressed and never sent, that speaks of a long-ago betrayal, she decides to unravel the mystery as a distraction. But Tulsi stumbles into much more than she bargained for. With each new discovery, she learns there’s much more to her mother and grandmother than their expertise in the remedial aromas of coriander and cloves. When an attractive neighbor begins renovating the shuttered deli next door, Tulsi finds the courage to break her routine
£8.54
Amazon Publishing The Sawmill Book Club
Book SynopsisA restless woman discovers the comforts of small-town Texas—and more—in a bighearted novel about the next chapters in life by New York Times bestselling author Carolyn Brown.Unsure of the future but ready for risks, Libby O’Dell trades big-city life for whatever the back roads hold. In this case it’s the small community of Sawmill, Texas, where Libby’s taken a temporary job putting an antique store in order. Her new boss, Benny Taylor, a handsome charmer with a three-legged dog named Elvis, isn’t a bad change of scenery, either.Across the street Benny’s surrogate grandmothers—the widows Minilee and Opal—are ready with homemade corn bread, sweet tea, and an invitation for Libby to join their book club. Even if it is mostly a gathering for local gossip and meddling. The ladies’ main agenda: find Benny a wife. Except Benny’s not looking, and Libby’s only passing through until she decides
£8.54
Amazon Publishing An Echo in Time
Book SynopsisA woman delves into a centuries-old murder to find the truth behind her self-destructive behavior in a powerful novel about love, loss, and healing by the bestselling author of An Unfinished Story and The Stars Don’t Lie.Unable to catch a break in life or love as she approaches thirty, Charli Thurman sees red lights at every crossroads. And given the Thurman family’s tumultuous history, she knows things will only get worse, unless she can break the cycle and figure out where—and when—it all went wrong.Charli is skeptical when her best friend introduces her to a “soul reader” who specializes in generational trauma. But during family constellation therapy with the guru, Charli experiences an inexplicable memory of terrible violence. Whatever happened in the past, it created an imbalance that’s still in the Thurman blood.When Charli’s research leads her to Winchester, England, she meets a charming
£16.99
Amazon Publishing Do Me a Favor
Book SynopsisCathy Yardley, author of Role Playing, serves up a delectable rom-com about a widowed cookbook writer and a divorced handyman who find that it’s never too late for a fresh start.Willa Lieu-Endicott moved from California to the Pacific Northwest to start over. Since her husband’s death, she’s been struggling to get back her old career as a cookbook ghostwriter. Unfortunately, her latest project—ghostwriting for a viral cooking sensation known more for his washboard abs than his meals—has her stuck.Until she meets her new neighbor.Hudson Clark, the handyman next door, lives on a farm with his parents and two adult children. He’s the opposite of everything she’s ever known. His happily chaotic life includes biker barbecues, an escape artist dog, and adorably menacing goats. He’s also got a sinfully sexy smile and a rumbling bass voice that makes her shiver. He inspires her.From their first meeting
£8.54
Amazon Publishing The Oyster Divers Secret
Book SynopsisSet on the beautiful Swedish coast, this is a story of deep friendship and hope, about facing the worst parts of ourselves and stepping into a new future.Inez is ready to clean out her life. Seventy years old and no longer working as a women’s fiction author, her life has been accumulating in piles around her Swedish cottage by the sea. But it’s not just the house that needs cleaning. Inez is also ready to write one last book—her first true one—about the oyster diver, her friend who disappeared so long ago.Then Meja enters Inez’s life. Thirty-seven years old and hopelessly lost, Meja survives on the kindness of her disinterested boyfriend, a series of temp jobs, and bitterness over her mother’s constant disapproval. The second Inez sees her, she despises her. Meja seems just like the wispy women that Inez used to write about, except those women actually change.But as summer heats up on the Swedish coast, and stark truth
£8.54
Amazon Publishing Bummer Camp
Book SynopsisTwo sisters scramble to save their family’s legacy in a funny, huge-hearted novel about grandiose plans and summers to remember by the author of I Thought You Said This Would Work.Cat McCarthy has spent years extricating herself from the family business—an increasingly run-down theater camp—and all the drama contained within it. At thirty-seven, she’s putting the final touches on a new life as she renovates her dream cottage and awaits her first child. Does it worry her that the McCarthy legacy is in the hands of her disastrously irresponsible sister, Ginger? Sure. But the camp’s not Cat’s problem anymore.Then a series of frantic text messages pulls Cat back to center stage. Ginger has handed the reins to a crackpot motivational speaker, Bob Durand, and his scheming wife, Elaine. The couple’s plan to rebrand the camp as a “rehab” for anxious adults has nearly bankrupted the McCarthys. And now the Duran
£8.54
Amazon Publishing All They Ask Is Everything
Book SynopsisIn this hopeful debut about the silent struggles of motherhood, three very different women want custody of the same two little girls—and learn they have more in common than the children they’re fighting for.Determined to be a better mother than her own, Hannah has devoted her life to her daughters. She ignores her increasing exhaustion and isolation as a widowed mom—until a disastrous mistake lands the girls in foster care.Julie is single and lonely and dreams of being a mother. After infertility issues lead her to foster parenting, she falls head over heels for Hannah’s daughters. The more she bonds with these sweet, precocious girls, the more she worries about their previous home life and becomes intent on finding a way to keep them.Recently forced into retirement, Elaine is devastated by the way her daughter, Hannah, has shut her out. When she discovers her granddaughters are in foster care, she resolves to rescue them from the
£8.54
Amazon Publishing September Mourn
Book SynopsisA festive fairground becomes an unexpected backdrop for a grade A murder in a deliciously funny mystery by Edgar Award-nominated author Jess Lourey.The Minnesota State Fair wows again with 4-H exhibits, rides, a Neil Diamond concert, and deep-fried everything on a stick. Covering it is a breezy assignment as fluffy as cotton candy for reporter Mira James, until the main attraction becomes murder.Ashley Pederson, crowned Milkfed Mary, Queen of the Dairy, is getting her all-American likeness carved in a block of unsalted butter when she drops dead, her face as red as a stoplight. Cause: malicious poisoning. Despite Ashley’s creamy good looks, her reputation was pretty rancid. Still, who’d want to take out the soon-to-be college freshman and Battle Lake resident? Mira’s made a vow to the dairy darling’s grieving mother to find out.Amid queenly competitors, rumors of sordid love affairs and embezzlement scandals, small-town secr
£8.54
Amazon Publishing Friends with Secrets
Book SynopsisIn a funny and suspenseful debut, Christine Gunderson explores the myth of the perfect mother, the bonds of female friendship, and the haunting impact of secrets.What you see isn’t always what you get.Take Ainsley. The gorgeous mother of two lives a picture-perfect life with her husband, Ben—aspiring politician and heir to a candy fortune—in suburban Washington, DC. But in reality, Ainsley has no idea what she’s doing and is terrified someone will figure out who she really is and where she came from.Nikki’s fighting to keep afloat as a stay-at-home mother of four, subsisting on chicken nuggets and very little sleep. She’s a mess on the outside, and inside yearns for the validation—and the paycheck—of the television news career she left behind.When a dangerous figure from Ainsley’s past becomes a coach at her kids’ school, she fears the worst and confides in Nikki, spilling every detail of
£8.54
Amazon Publishing Polite Calamities
Book SynopsisIn a hazy 1960s Rhode Island summer, three disparate lives converge and combust in this riveting story of the empowerment women find in friendship, solidarity, and rage, from the author of Halfway to You.Winifred is blunt, opinionated, and outrageously colorful. In a community that demands domesticity, she simply doesn’t fit. When her wealthy husband suddenly dies, Winifred’s fellow society housewives no longer have a reason to play nice. Cast out entirely, Winifred throws roaring parties for the clerks and waiters that serve the town, finding the connections she’s been craving—and upsetting the gentle balance of her elite neighborhood in the process.Flailing artist Marie wants to paint over her past before the painful memories consume her. On the brink of making a longtime dream come true, her newfound friendship with Winifred might be the key to finally moving forward—or her undoing.High-society housewife June weathe
£8.54
Amazon Publishing In Our Likeness
Book SynopsisThe wonders and chaos of AI converge in a powerful and thrilling novel about rewriting history, identity, love, and what it means to be human.Graham Gooding is a leader at a tech start-up when his brilliant coworker—and work crush—Nessie Locke asks for help testing a new algorithm. Graham jumps at the chance to impress her, and to improve his floundering personal life. He soon discovers that the algo is more powerful than Nessie—or anyone—realizes. It was built to detect lies on the internet, but when Graham makes a small edit to Nessie’s online profile, hoping to see if the program will catch the lie, Nessie changes in real life. The algo can alter the real world. Now, so can Graham.No one knows what Graham has done, except his boss, enigmatic tech guru David Warwick. Graham is racked with guilt, but Warwick thrills to the possibilities of what they can do next. This promises to be the innovation that will make Warwick a household
£8.54
Amazon Publishing Bitter Truth
Book SynopsisFor two wounded hearts, love is a risk in an emotional novel about family, past regrets, and future hopes by Jillian Liota and #1 New York Times bestselling author Meredith Wild.After nine years in LA, aspiring singer Murphy Hawthorne leaves behind her broken dreams to return to her family’s vineyard. But as she helps open the property’s new restaurant, she faces a family still bitter about the fact she ever left, and old wounds quickly resurface. The only refreshing note is the handsome head chef, Wesley Hart.Hired to draw more tourists to the Hawthorne vineyard, Wes is a culinary master with a reputation he wishes he could forget. Struggling with regrets and complex family dynamics of his own, he’s trying to start over, too. The biggest mistake he could make right now is to act on his attraction to his boss’s younger sister. If only he could get her out of his head…Despite all the reasons to keep their distance, Murp
£8.54
Simon & Schuster Under the Influence
Book SynopsisThe Devil Wears Prada meets The Assistants in this “compulsively readable, frightening, but addictive” (Shelf Awareness) debut following a young woman who takes a job working for an enigmatic influencer and quickly discovers there’s an ugly side to being a #GirlBoss.After a series of go-nowhere jobs in the New York publishing world, Harper Cruz is desperate for a salary that won’t leave her scrambling to make rent each month. So when she stumbles across a job posting from an influencer offering triple her last paycheck, she automatically submits her résumé. Harper may not be familiar with self-help guru Charlotte Green, but her relentless optimism and charismatic can-do spirit has created a cult-like following of women across the country. When she selects Harper among thousands of other applicants in less than twenty-four hours, it’s obvious she sees something she likes. Harper decides to take a leap of
£999.99
The New York Review of Books, Inc Dissipatio H.G.: The Vanishing
Book SynopsisA fantastic and philosophical vision of the apocalypse by one of the most striking Italian novelists of the twentieth century.From his solitary buen retiro in the mountains, the last man on earth drives to the capital Chrysopolis to see if anyone else has survived the Vanishing. But there’s no one else, living or dead, in that city of “holy plutocracy,” with its fifty-six banks and as many churches. He’d left the metropolis to escape his fellow humans and their struggles and ambitions, but to find that the entire human race has evaporated in an instant is more than he had bargained for. Meanwhile, life itself—the rest of nature—is just beginning to flourish now that human beings are gone.Guido Morselli’s arresting postapocalyptic novel, written just before he died by suicide in 1973, depicts a man much like the author himself—lonely, brilliant, difficult—and a world much like our own, mesmerized by money, speed, and machines. Dissipatio H.G. is a precocious portrait of our Anthropocene world, and a philosophical last will and testament from a great Italian outsider.
£13.49
Austin Macauley Publishers LLC The Old Man and the Immigrants
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£9.49
Lulu.com Manchenkivskiy zoreviy
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£16.50
Indie Novella Lotte
Book SynopsisHow much harm can you cause while meaning well?In 1933 Lotte has left poverty behind. She has a fine house in the best street and a tentative position in Stirling society for her young family.But she cannot stop walking away, or towards, something else. She walks, with ghosts, and guilt, a path that ultimately leads to the grey, stony asylum.
£10.44
Selkies House Limited BETWEEN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT
Book SynopsisDebut thriller, winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing. With echoes of Lawrence Osborne and Graham Greene . . . brutally and wrenchingly captures the consequences of modern amorality and the sacrifices we make for redemption. A tale that's determined not to let you go.- I.S. Berry, author of The Peacock and the Sparrow
£17.00
Solid Ground Press Gaza
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£15.19
Howard Publishing The Foxtrot's Easy
Book Synopsis1936: After twelve-year-old Graeme Moodie recovers from polio, he's left with a pronounced limp. Unable to handle a 'normal' boarding school with its beatings and bullying, he goes to Maiden Erlegh School for Boys which, Moodie later claimed, changed his life. The story is largely true. Whispered by locals to take all sorts of misfits and oddballs, the school is the brainchild of Captain TS Waterlow Fox, an ex-Army captain who rules with an iron fist in a velvet glove. 'We're all different, we're all the same,' is his message. Graeme's intelligence shines. His roommates are Paul Caspari, a Jewish refugee from Germany, and Charlie Marshall, a stutterer, badly damaged by his parents' nasty divorce. Graeme feels at home, and for the first time in years, happy. Now if only he could find a girlfriend - that would be heaven. But by 1939, as storm clouds of war grow ever closer, a German student joins the Nazi party, which threatens to shatter Maiden Erlegh's bubble of sanity.
£8.54
Heloise Press QUEENLESS
Book SynopsisA moving tale about the love of a young woman for her mother.
£11.66
Allen & Unwin The Watchful Wife
Book SynopsisA story of unshakeable belief and unbending faith from the author of The Deceptions.'The Watchful Wife is assured and engrossing. As our crisp, clear-eyed narrator with more than one cross to bear, Ellen guides us through a tangle of ethical and emotional quandaries that feel both timeless and immediate, keeping us on her side the whole way through.' Jacqueline Bublitz, author of Before You Knew My Name'Leal's unusual perspective on the destructive force of an allegation gives this book real moral complexity...Nuanced, troubling and convincing.' Jock Serong, author of The SettlementRaised by her severe parents in a punitive and authoritarian church, Ellen's narrow world is upended when she meets Gordon, a fellow teacher. Responding to his interest with curiosity and, before long, pleasure, Ellen is both transformed and beguiled by the connection, love and laughter he brings into her life.Three years later, a knock on the door changes everything. Two police officers have come to accuse Gordon of a shocking crime. Abandoned and reviled by those around her, Ellen steadfastly refuses to believe Gordon has done anything wrong. In a world of swirling suspicion, however, she will have to fight to protect him.But what will that cost her? And what will she discover about him along the way?A propulsive and provocative novel about love, faith and courage from the bestselling author of The Teacher's Secret.'Suzanne Leal's books always grab me from the very first sentence and The Watchful Wife is no exception. It is intriguing, engaging and deeply moving from beginning to end. I loved Ellen from the first moment I met her.' Jane Caro, author of The Mother'Leal delivers an intriguing page-turner with emotional depth, nuance and moral complexity: The Watchful Wife is a truly gripping read from start to finish.' Mark Brandi, author of The Others'The Watchful Wife is a tense Australian thriller that reminds us: sometimes you need an outsider to fight injustice.' Jack Beaumont, author of The Frenchman
£13.49
Ultimo Press Women of Good Fortune
Book SynopsisThree women. One daring plan. A wedding heist to remember. Lulu has always been taught that money is the ticket to a good life. So, when Shanghai’s most eligible bachelor surprises her with a proposal, the only acceptable answer is yes, even if the voice inside her head is saying no. His family’s fortune would solve all her parents’ financial woes, but Lulu isn’t in love or ready for marriage. The only people she can confide in are her two best friends: career-minded Rina, who is tired of being passed over for promotion as her biological clock ticks away; and Jane, a sharp-tongued, luxury-chasing housewife desperate to divorce her husband and trade up. Each of them desires something different: freedom, time, beauty. None of them can get it without money. It’s not long before they realise that Lulu’s wedding is their golden opportunity. With Shanghai’s elite clamouring to att
£17.09
