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
Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Publishers Russell Appleby
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£8.54
Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Publishers Margo
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£7.59
Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Publishers A Saint Emerging
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£9.49
Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Publishers Walking Shadows
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£9.49
Canongate Books Thrust
Book SynopsisLaisve is a refugee in a destroyed city-island, hunted in Raids and haunted by the spirits of her drowned mother and brother. She dives into the river and finds herself travelling between times and waterways in a race to rescue the future - and past - of other lost children. A Lenape Nation iron-walker, a Dominican nun, a scarred acrobat and a piebald man are risking their lives constructing a colossal monument to freedom for a young and bustling nation. But exactly what - and whom - will that liberty represent? As Laisve drifts into their histories, she schools seekers in the ways of dreams, love and the ultimate aim of liberty - to free the next generation from the chains of this one.
£15.29
Lume Books The Call of Cassandra Rose
Book SynopsisAnnabelle seems to have it all. The perfect house, a successful husband, a darling son. But Annabelle is troubled. Trapped in an unhappy marriage, failing at motherhood, and at odds with her new privileged lifestyle, Annabelle begins to self-harm, a habit resurrected from her traumatic past. When she meets the alluring and charismatic hypnotherapist Cassandra Rose, she is offered a way out. Through hypnosis, Annabelle is encouraged to unearth her painful repressed memories and face her childhood demons. But as the boundaries between her hypnotic trance and reality begin to dissolve, Annabelle becomes increasingly vulnerable to much darker forces. Filled with twists and suspense, The Call of Cassandra Rose is a chilling thriller that examines how trauma shapes our lives and asks whether we can ever really escape our pasts.Trade Review'Hypnotic, chilling and harrowing. Spiers has delivered a fabulous debut thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end.' - J.A. Corrigan, author of The Nurse
£8.54
Oneworld Publications A Cupboard Full of Coats: Longlisted for the Man
Book Synopsis Shortlisted for the Commonwealth Prize Shortlisted for the Writers’ Guild Awards Shortlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award Nominated for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award 'He just knocked, that was all, knocked at the front door and waited, like the fourteen years since the night I'd killed my mother hadn't happened at all...' Crushed by an impossible shame, Jinx's life has been little more than a shell. Now estranged from her husband, she is even relieved when he leaves and takes her young son with him. But a visit from an old friend of her mother's forces Jinx to confront her history. Looking back plunges her once more into the pain of the past, but it also brings with it the possibility of redemption. And Jinx isn't the only one with secrets. Together, she and Lemon will unravel an unforgettable family drama, stoked with violence and passion. Rich with voices from East London and the West Indies, Edwards's narrative is delivered with a unique and uncompromising bite that announces a new talent in British fiction. 'Deeply moving, wonderfully written… A study of grief and remorse.' The Times Trade Review'Deeply moving, wonderfully written... A study of grief and remorse.' -- The Times'In this potent mystery... Edwards makes us greedy for the full story.' -- New York Times'Yvvette Edwards unique and uncompromising debut is stoked with violence and passion, rich with voices form East London and the West Indies.' -- Booker Prize judges'A pleasure to revisit. A Cupboard Full of Coats is literary perfection. Beyond glorious.' -- Eva Verde, author of In Bloom'A gut-wrenching and gorgeously lyrical debut... Engrossing and human to the core, Edwards's novel wrings the heart in the most tender of ways.' -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)'A Cupboard Full of Coats is high drama, full of breathtaking tension, and, at times, brought to mind the works of Arthur Miller and August Wilson, both of whom knew a thing or two about secrets spilled across a kitchen table.' -- Attica Locke, author of Black Water Rising'An impressive debut… A writer to watch.' -- Independent'Redolent of Monica Ali and Zadie Smith, Yvvette Edwards' bold debut is a searing story of family, jealousy, and tragic betrayal… Rich with voices from East London and the West Indies, Edward's narrative is delivered with a unique and uncompromising bite that announces a new talent in British fiction.' -- Fantastic Fiction'A piercing and engaging narrative...reminiscent of Toni Morrison and Barbara Kingsolver, who similarly explore hidden and revealed secrets.' -- Booklist'Lyrical and haunting.' -- Toronto Star'A novel that pulses with rhythm, texture, language, and a story that keeps you locked to its pages. Brutally honest, expertly woven, and utterly mesmerizing. I loved this book.' -- Naseem Rakha, author of the international bestseller The Crying Tree'A truly stunning work of contemporary literary fiction that packs an emotional punch and keeps readers guessing to the end, A Cupboard Full of Coats is already being compared by critics to the novels of the master, Ruth Rendell.' -- African American Literature Book Club'A fierce book, painfully honest and beautifully written… Impressive.' -- The Book Bag'Beyond the luminous prose and fully dimensional characters, Edwards explores difficult issues of race, beauty, gender, objectification and how they coalesce to create the identity we present to the world as well as ourselves.' -- Book Club Classics'One to watch.' -- Daily Mail'Expertly woven and perfectly paced, A Cupboard Full of Coats is both a heartbreaking family drama and a riveting mystery, with a cast of characters who linger in the mind and the heart long after the last page has been turned.' -- BookBrowse'An elegantly structured story of guilt and redemption…emotionally raw and brutally honest… Impressive in its psychological complexity, this is one of the best novels I've read this year.' -- Publishing Perspectives'An impressive debut, particularly notable for its pellucid prose.' -- Kirkus Reviews'Fans of British psychological thrillers, à la Ruth Rendell, will adore this lyrical debut.' -- Redbook'Yvvette Edwards' A Cupboard Full of Coats is a trauma narrative with a surface patina of Junot Diaz.' -- Propeller Magazine'I can't stop talking about this gut-wrenching tale of forbidden love.' -- Essence'It is carefully structured and the human relationships brutally real.' -- We Love This Book'A slow-burning heartbreaker of a story. . . [written] with elegant restraint and a sensitivity uncommon in debut novels.' -- Shelf Awareness'Rich in emotion but resolutely unsentimental, the story is unspooled with judgement and skill.' -- Literary Review'Expert plotting, a flair for the dramatic and an ability to create characters both vividly idiosyncratic and classically archetypal.' -- The Journal Sentinel'The heroine is Jinx and this is her story… It is a very fine first novel, with Edwards keeping her characters interesting, the plot full of guesswork and her story well told. And it is certainly better than some of the others mentioned above.' -- The Modern Novel
£11.07
Persephone Books Ltd There Were No Windows
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£16.00
Old Street Publishing Hunts in Dreams
Book Synopsis
£8.54
Arkbound Invisible Schemes
Book SynopsisInvisible Schemes is a biting satire that shines a light on the marginalised working class and how reality, time, and all other certainties are blurred beyond recognition to those who aren’t paying attention.Trade Review'This book surprised me, as the way each chapter tells its story is beautiful and intriguing. Growing up and living in a Glasgow scheme, I recognised all the parts described, but it’s written in a way that creeps up on you and is not obvious. There is emotion and feeling in each chapter. I was left thinking of the characters in the book after I had finished. Great read, with an imaginative, poetic yet real, presentation of a Glasgow life that so many of us have lived.'- Angela
£9.49
Luath Press Ltd Swim Until You Can't See Land
Book SynopsisSwim Until You Can’t See Land charts the relationship between two women born sixty years apart, whose chance encounter marks a watershed for the younger woman. In her early twenties, Hannah Wright is forced to give up a promising career as a professional swimmer, and is adjusting with difficulty to her narrowed horizons. She is in danger of becoming embittered, haunted by a lost future. Mariele may now be frail and old, but as her exploits during WW2 unfold, she is revealed as a woman of extraordinary spirit, unbroken by capture and interrogation as an agent in occupied France. Hannah’s delight in the medium of water and the rhythms of swimming are set in dramatic counterpoint to Mariele’s of torture by water, an ordeal that puts her in touch with her core strength – something Hannah starts to discover in herself.Trade Review.
£8.54
Eglantyne Books It Will Be Cold In The Afternoon
Book Synopsis
£9.45
MOIST The Jacques Lacan Foundation
Book SynopsisIt's fall (or autumn) 2018. The Trump administration wants to fortify the United States-Mexico border, Robert 'Beto' O'Rourke is running for Senate, and British grifter Nicki Smith has just secured a "low-paid glamour job" at the University of Texas' Jacques Lacan Foundation. In between sleeping with the air-conditioning repair guy (or man) and watching Kate Moss make-up commercials (or advertisements) Nicki completes the first ever American-English translation of Lacan's newly discovered and highly controversial notebook - without knowing any French. An Anglo-American comedy of manners about identity and class The Jacques Lacan Foundation reveals-and revels in-the numerous pretentions that surround academia and authorship, and the institutions that foster them.Trade Review"Laugh-out-loud funny ... a wonderfully absurd plot ... a wild ride, wearing its intelligence lightly while still performing a detailed critique of a world where politics, capitalism and image-making are almost indistinguishable." Peter Salmon, Prospect Magazine ---------- "Knowing and playful, fresh and funny, The Jacques Lacan Foundation is both an affectionate satire and a wily celebration of bibliophilia, intellectual glamour, and the institutionalised life of the mind." Rob Doyle ---------- "The Jacques Lacan Foundation is perfectly mordant ... I love how this gorgeous, raucous novel delights in ruffling anyone's - including its own - desire to be 'an authentic something'." Daisy Lafarge ---------- "Sick! In the best way." Stephanie LaCava ---------- "The Jacques Lacan Foundation is highly recommended. Imagine a working-class Fleabag astray in Malcolm Bradbury's Mensonge. But in hipsterland Texas!" Andrew Gallix ----------"The Jacques Lacan Foundation is linguistically Nabakovian, it's got Babitz eque charm, it's experimental, it's satirical, it's fucking hilarious ... destined to become a cult classic." Book Talk ---------- "Absolute and unremitting irony ... ice-cube cold." Times Literary Supplement ---------- "The incredible sustained moire effect carried off with such aplomb in Susan Finlay's The Jacques Lacan Foundation - really enjoying." Tony White ----------"Susan Finlay's talents as storyteller, freewheeling theorist and popular culture expert blossom in the novel ... A vindication of humour and style over theoretical solemnity, an assertion of a dynamic and necessary engagement with ideas from abroad, and a priceless guide in how to conduct oneself with poise and panache." Tribune ----------"A fun exterior but a clever punch from the inside ... an unforgettable experience." The Bobsphere ---------- "The Jacques Lacan Foundation pulls off trick after impressive trick, not least in its ability to be both a virtuosic exercise in irony and a searching examination of the twin institutions-psychoanalysis and academic-at its core. I loved it." Helen Charman ---------- "Brilliant. Bad puns abound in this hilarious yet affectionate pastiche of transatlantic Lacanians." Isabel Miller ---------- "This joyful satire is so much fun, Just gulped it down." Clare Pollard ---------- A South London Gallery Summer Book Choice ---------- "A Book of the year 2022" The White Review ---------- “A favourite book of 2022” Anti-Capitalist Resistance
£11.40
Parthian Books Kiss and Tell: Selected Stories
Book SynopsisThese sensual stories by prize-winning author John Sam Jones reveal lucid prose and complex lives. Moving through city steam rooms, rugged North Wales mountains and estuaries facing other places. Risky sex, new romance and easy understanding, a mortgage on a semi or keeping a lid on it all for the sake family, status and belief...Trade Review"John Sam Jones's charming, thoughtful collection of Welsh stories, Welsh Boys Too, is a joy to read." Sebastian Beaumont, Gay Times; "Are these the best gay stories since Tennessee Williams' One Arm?" Booklist; "...clever, poignant and perceptive..." The Daily Post
£9.50
Fairlight Books The Second Person from Porlock
Book SynopsisHighgate, London, 1824. Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a washed-up opium addict, estranged from his friends and from his neglected wife. His grip on reality is starting to slip; his past and present mingle in laudanum-induced dreams. In a Cambridge college library, Scrivener, a bullied undergraduate, finds a strange annotation in a book of Coleridge's poems. Intrigued by this mystery marginalia and captivated by Romantic poetry, he resolves to become a poet himself, with Coleridge as his guiding light. Across the sea, Samuele, a young Sicilian, discovers that his mother once had a liaison with Coleridge. He sets out for England to learn all he can about the man who may be his father. It isn't long before Samuele and Scrivener cross paths - but will their journeys take them to the real Samuel Taylor Coleridge?Trade Review'In clear, lyrical prose, Dennis Hamley takes the reader on an imaginative journey through Samuel Taylor Coleridge's life, bringing the characters to life with gentleness and insight' —Kathleen Jones, author of 'A Passionate Sisterhood'; 'With no discernible sleight of hand this master storyteller, with effortless assurance and prodigious skill, weaves his mighty spell and conjures before our very eyes all we will ever need to know about the most famous lines of poetry that English ever produced' —Robert Lipscombe, author of 'The Salamander Tree' and 'The English Project'; 'This novel is an interesting take on the life of Coleridge, an unacknowledged son he may have left in Sicily, and a hard-up scholar in 1820s Cambridge. It is fascinating to read about what might have happened as these three people intersect' —Merryn Williams, poet and founding editor of 'The Interpreter's House'; 'A wonderful read that combines literary mystery with a quest for the ideal and leaves us with a richly satisfying resolution' —Jane Spiro
£13.49
Neem Tree Press Limited Sylvia
Book Synopsis
£9.49
Cameron & Company Inc Plain Air: Sketches from Winesburg, Indiana
Book SynopsisA new story collection focused on the Heartland from Michael Martone, one of America's most prolific and important contemporary authors.In Plain Air: Sketches from Winesburg, Indiana, Michael Martone places steady fingers on the arrhythmic pulse of the Flyover as he conjures Winesburg, Indiana, a fictional town and all of its inhabitants’ lyric philosophies, tales of the mundane, and the sensation of being “lost” in the heart of the heart of the country. But here, in over one-hundred and thirty short fictions, even as there is much sadness, the citizens continue to tinker and create, marvel and wonder in the midst of ruin and rust. These stories may capture lives of quiet desperation, but in so doing, they create a kind of hobbled poetry in the spontaneous sketches of the ordinary made extraordinary, the regular irregularities, the familiar knocked off-balance with a glancing blow. From the overly overworked City Manager, to Margaret Wigg’s obsessively collected collection of library stamps, to Blanche’s air-filled aluminum ice cube tray, the town is a community of everyday odd-balls rife with isolation and idiosyncrasy. They are people trying to get by; that question loss as well as passion, devotedness, childhood wonder, and kinship in their observations and daily routines. With undeniable humor, intelligent quirk, and earnest longing for a pastoral passing into the annals of deep Midwestern time, Michael Martone crafts an unforgettable panoply of characters whose perspectives invite us to alternatively interpret our own commonplaces.Trade ReviewBy the end of this collection, you’ve been to Winesburg, Indiana. You can recall its businesses and its citizens and whatever it is that is each person’s personal business—what makes them tick, individually—what makes them get up in the morning to try, again, to live with themselves and with each other—what makes the many of them so very individual in these vivid and intricate snapshots of their souls. — Molly Gaudry, We Take Me Apart Michael Martone is our curator of community, our impresario of Americana, our chandler of the national flame. Plain Air is a wonder. It offers history, wit, and wistfulness all at once—a portrait of a small town made whole by its citizens’ laughters and loves. — Alyson Hagy, Scribe Plain Air comprises a collage of municipal sadnesses—a poverty of tourists, an amalgam of quiet losses, a blank billboard, an abandoned floss factory, a low-grade apprehension in the face of something already passed, an inventory of forlorn hearts, a docufiction about the exceptional mundane. His Winesburg, Indiana, metaphorizes Flyover as an existential condition with innovative lyricism, meticulous intelligence, and an always-arched eyebrow. — Lance Olsen, Skin Elegies and My Red HeavenPlain Air puns and pranks, twists and turns with every new sketch on every page. A play on Sherwood Anderson’s classic collection, Martone takes us to Winesburg, Indiana, a post-industrial town with its dying eraser factory, and a cast of characters more alive in their passions, obsessions, and idiosyncrasies than any in contemporary fiction. What a great read. I laughed, cried, and was moved by the characters’ desire to finally take their place in the intricate web of Winesburg, all the way to their vanishing points in the mural on the post office wall. — Mary Swander, The Girls on the RoofMichael Martone's Plain Air sketches, like prose poems, erupt sharp with insight . . . They're really weird and profound. What more could you want? — Terese Svoboda, Great American DesertMisfits rejoice! Michael Martone's Plain Air gives voice, vision, and velocity to the ordinary and quiet lives of people overlooked, undervalued, and sometimes erased. Each sketch of humanity draws a reader in to the heart of the matter--a curation of basic being. I laughed, I cried, I held my breath, I felt at home. What beautiful little heart bomblettes. — Lidia Yuknavitch, Thrust & Verge
£11.04
Dzanc Books In the Event of Contact: Stories
Book SynopsisIn the Event of Contact chronicles characters profoundly affected by physical connection, or its lack. Among them, a scrappy teen vies to be the next Sherlock Holmes; an immigrant daughter must defend her decision to remain childless; a guilt-ridden woman is haunted by the disappearance of her childhood friend; a cantankerous crossing guard celebrates getting run over by a truck; an embattled priest with dementia determines to perform a heroic, redemptive act, if he can only remember how; and a young girl navigates crippling aversion to touch, even from her sisters. Amidst backgrounds of trespass and absence, the indelible characters of In the Event of Contact seek renewed belief in themselves, recovery, and humanity.Trade Review"These are characters who are desperate to feel, and Rohan’s keen sensitivity to the many textures of longing and loss bring their exquisite stories to life." —Arianna Rebolini, BuzzFeed "[Rohan's] work is imbued with the empathy of faith, with pain and heartbreak but not cynicism or despair. Her stories of hard-won resilience are welcome reading in these challenging times." —Rene Ostberg, U.S. Catholic Magazine "In the Event of Contact is a timely read about the importance of connecting with other people on our own terms." —Evette Dionne, BITCH Magazine Selected Feminist Reads for May, 2021 "In the Event of Contact is one of 2021's must-read collections." —BUSTLE “With In the Event of Contact, Rohan explores the literal edges of the human experience—what we desire to bring into contact with our bodies, and just as importantly, what we don’t. She counts herself among the excellent women writers who continue to unflinchingly explore the realm of the body, and through this lens, infuse the short story form with a pervasive loneliness and ambient anxiety that mirror the uneasiness of our times: authors like Carmen Maria Machado, Roxane Gay, Ottessa Moshfegh, Sarah Rose Etter, Amber Sparks, and Sara Lippmann. Add Ethel Rohan’s name to that list.” —Joe Kapitan, The Rumpus “Through her brilliant storytelling, Rohan explores the deep desire for human relationships, and the physical or psychological distances that affect them.” —Emily Park, Booklist “Social distancing marked the lonely horror that was this year; paradoxically a demonstration of how affection and empathy for our fellow humans required us to retreat into ourselves, connection now defined by the absence of contact. Ethel Rohan’s book of short stories examines something similar in its evocation of what connection or its lack can do to us. In the Event of Contact is a loving homage to humanity in all its complexity.” —The Millions "Cultures merge, too, in the collection, Rohan’s meticulously crafted stories reflecting emigration and identity struggles on top of clashing relationships...In the Event of Contact reverberates with this ultra-personal stake, made palpable in the cultures, characters, and relationships woven into its earnest, artful, and heartfelt stories." —J.A. Tyler, Ploughshares Magazine "A striking collection about loners." —Publishers Weekly “The stories straddle the faultlines of the lives of their characters and as a collection quietly and subtly accumulate a potency that by the end leaves the reader breathless.” —Tadhg Carey, The Westmeath Independent “Rohan’s plain prose helps to feature the emotional earthquakes these characters undergo while they’re navigating ordinary happenings, and her masterful use of Irish lilts and rhythms helps to reveal intricate emotional distances between those who left and those who stayed behind, even as it nestles the reader deep into her characters’ hearts and minds.” —Elaine Chiew, Foreword Reviews "Rohan excels in the movement of characters, positioning them as efficiently as a stage manager. She knows at precisely which scene the Peters and the Dohertys of the world should enter, and she understands the limited space she is working with. This control ensures that her stories are never at a loss for momentum...Rohan captures the emigrant experience for what it is, a process of becoming an alien in two countries — and as glad as her characters might be that they left, they understand that everywhere has become, in some way, a separate world, in which there will still also be men." —Connor Harrison, Necessary Fiction "Much of [Rohan's] work deals in the difficult, but it is of the emotional, spiritual sort—the prose itself flows swift, clear and beautiful, with the musicality of her literary ancestors, and also with ripples of something completely her own." —Alex Capdeville, Scoundrel Time "In each story, Rohan’s prose shines with deft eloquence, depicting her characters with compassion, leavened by insight." —Paul Wilner, Nob Hill Gazette
£12.34
Sarabande Books, Incorporated A New Race of Men from Heaven
Book SynopsisKirkus Reviews, "Best Fiction Books of the Year"Kirkus Reviews, "20 Best Books to Read in January"Kirkus Reviews, "Yes, You Can Read Short Stories in Shuffle Mode"Book Riot, "15 Excellent 2023 Short Story Collections by Asian Authors"Liberty Hardy, "Favorite Books of 2023"Electric Literature, "Recommended Reading”Storizen, "9 Short Story Collections by Asian Authors in 2023" by Saurabh ChawlaTexas Monthly, "The Best Books, Film, TV, Art & More Coming to Texas This Winter"Winner of the 2021 Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction“The stories in A New Race of Men from Heaven move elegantly between the ache of loneliness and the grace of connection, however fleeting.” —Danielle Evans, author of The Office of Historical CorrectionsA New Race of Men from Heaven is a collection of stories about characters who wander but are never truly lost. A lonely man on a business trip finds himself in the middle of a search party for a missing boy; a grieving widow leaves India to join family in the United States; a writer finds renewed success when an unknown imposter begins publishing under his identity. In these quiet yet deeply knowing stories of migration, power, and longing, A New Race of Men from Heaven offers us, above all else, stories of enduring love and hope.Trade Review"Almost every story here is a study in restraint, Sen’s considerable talent evident in her ability to wring meaning from the smallest details. Quiet, emotionally gripping stories."—Kirkus Reviews, starred review"This intelligent collection from Sen explores themes of isolation and connection with clear, direct prose. . . . Recommended for readers who enjoy thoughtful fiction with well-developed characters navigating difficult situations."—Library Journal"In this winner of the 2021 Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction, characters find themselves adrift and longing for companionship and understanding. In a world where physical borders are at times more porous than social ones, their quests for love, friendship, or self-knowledge are circuitous and take them in surprising directions."—"Ten Questions for Chaitali Sen,” Poets & Writers"A fantastic collection."—Liberty Hardy, Book Riot's "All the Books""Sen’s gift for being forthright—for finding the precise language to capture even a fleeting feeling—is matched by her gift for restraint, her willingness to leave silence on the page, to let language be the best tool we have for forging connection or understanding and still, frequently, not enough."—Danielle Evans, Electric Literature "Recommended Reading""Chaitali Sen has a breathtaking way of capturing the quiet, internal tumult of each of these characters, examining migration, relationships, and humanity."—Book Riot, "15 Excellent 2023 Short Story Collections by Asian Authors""I picked up [A New Race of Men from Heaven], and boy, was I glad I did."—Liberty Hardy, Book Riot's "All the Books!" Podcast"Rereading A New Race of Men from Heaven, I became aware of the bones of Sen’s stories, as well as the laborious work of laying down their skeletal structure. I had to go back and ask, as a jealous writer, how she did this. I found, underneath a perfect skeleton, a long set-up."—Gemini Wahhaj, Cleaver“A New Race of Men from Heaven is a collection of poignant stories about wanderers who are never truly lost. It features a lonely man joining a search party, a grieving widow’s journey to the United States, and a writer’s unexpected encounter with an imposter. These migration-themed narratives embody enduring love and hope."—Saurabh Chawla for Storizen"Sen is a sure-handed, reflective guide through her characters’ new and old worlds, their large and small concerns, and their extraordinary ordinary lives."—Colorado Review"Sen’s stories mirror the expansive feel of a novel; there’s room to enjoy her skillful sentences, there’s room to travel from Calcutta to London to Austin to Ithaca, and there’s room to enjoy the way her characters interact with the world, as kind, self-sacrificing, sometimes fumbling, sometimes impulsive, good humans."—Julie Poole for Sightlines"Understated, lyrical prose."—"The Best Books, Film, TV, Art & More Coming to Texas This Winter" by Rose Cahalan, Texas Monthly“The stories in A New Race of Men from Heaven move elegantly between the ache of loneliness and the grace of connection, however fleeting.” —Danielle Evans, author of The Office of Historical Corrections "A New Race of Men from Heaven is a stunning and masterful collection. With great insight and compassion, Chaitali Sen explores characters as they negotiate issues of displacement and connection; her vision is wise and expansive.” —Karen E. Bender, author of The New Order “Chaitali Sen’s beautiful, tender, absorbing stories grapple with minor and major complications in the lives of Indian men, women, and children, traveling across continents in full exploration of the contemporary immigrant experience. Lyrical, nostalgic, tragic, and sometimes understatedly funny, these stories are as heart-wrenching as they are clever, and will resonate with me for a very long time.” —Chinelo Okparanta, author of Harry Sylvester Bird “A storytelling sword wielded with such precision, virtuosity, and grace that you want the wound. A collection at once magnificent and cold-blooded. Read it.” —Shobha Rao, author of Girls Burn Brighter “In Chaitali Sen’s profoundly moving short story collection A New Race of Men From Heaven, her dislocated narrators are immigrants and orphans, acute observers or interlopers who find themselves in larger dramas as they try to figure out the right, just way to navigate the contradictions of contemporary life. Sen’s wonderfully engrossing portraits of these tender and unsettling characters told through such elegant and precise prose are a pleasure to read.” —Chanelle Benz, author of The Gone Dead "A New Race of Men from Heaven is a beautiful and moving story collection that shows us not only what it means to be an immigrant, regardless of where that journey may have started or happens to end, but also holds up a mirror to all the pain and joy that comes with being alive and engaged in the world today. Chaitali Sen knows her characters so intimately, knows what they yearn for, knows what keeps them up at night, knows what they are hiding from those closest to them and even from themselves, knows where they're most vulnerable, knows where they need healing. She will break your heart in so many ways." —Oscar Cásares, author of Where We Come From “These are wonderful stories—Chaitali Sen's characters are such dear human beings: mysterious and lovable, irritable and alive. Each story is beautiful but together they are even better, about the anxieties and amnesias of our time, how strange and essential we are to each other. Above all they are truly surprising, in the way of life itself.”—Elizabeth McCracken, author of The Souvenir Museum“Chaitali Sen’s A New Race of Men from Heaven are more than just stories with wonderful characters and situations: they are revelations into the human spirit and the world in which that spirit lives. Written with utmost elegance, these stories radiate with such brightness that when you put the book down, it’s hard to adjust to the light of the real world. Sen is simply a master."—Morgan Talty, author of Night of the Living Rez “Chaitali Sen knows how to achieve that miraculous density that only comes from real mastery of the short story form. These stories are singularities: whole lives and selves and minds have been made, breathtakingly, to fit inside them. I felt these characters’ love and yearning in my bones. This is a brilliant collection.” —Clare Beams, author of The Illness Lesson
£12.34
Random House USA Inc Stateways Garden Stories
Book SynopsisNEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS’ CHOICE • A blazingly original story collection about the interconnected lives of the residents of a public housing project on the South Side of Chicago “The residents and their buoyant dreams are documented, celebrated, honored. I bow to this writer in gratitude.”—Sandra CisnerosNAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY CHICAGO TRIBUNEBefore being torn down in 2007, the Stateway Gardens public housing projects on Chicago’s South Side were ridden with deprivation and crime. But for some, like Tracy, the shy, intelligent young boy at the center of this enthralling collection of linked stories, they are simply home. Set in the mid-1980s and taking readers up to the point of the destruction of the infamous Cabrini-Green housing projects—a set of buildings similar in design to Stateway Gardens to the south—this collection gi
£14.99
Austin Macauley Publishers LLC When the Stars Aligned
Book Synopsis
£11.39
Austin Macauley Publishers LLC Age of Ascent
Book Synopsis
£9.49
Quercus Publishing Tell Me Everything
Book Synopsis 'Glorious, hilarious and life affirming . . . I absolutely loved it' - EMMA HUGHES, author of No Such Thing As Perfect Would you entrust your life choices to someone hell-bent on avoiding theirs? Natasha has everything under control, at least that's what her clients think. As a therapist, she has all the answers but when it comes to her personal life, she seriously needs to start taking her own advice.Still living with her ex-girlfriend, Natasha's messy love life is made up of dates and one-night stands. After all, why would you commit to one person, when there is an endless stream of people waiting for you to swipe right? Besides, people always leave.But when Margot arrives on the scene, everything changes. Flailing between mending long broken relationships and starting new ones, Natasha's walking the line between self-actualisation and self-destruction... With denial no longer an option, it is time for Natasha to take control of her own happiness.~*~ PRAISE FOR TELL ME EVERYTHING ~*~'A captivating read from a truly exciting talent' JUSTIN MYERS, author of The Fake-Up'Truly joyful and uplifting . . . this is a big-hearted story about what really matters in life: friends, family and love' LUCY DIAMOND, author of Anything Could Happen'Tell Me Everything is a book that reads like a crush, all summer and exuberance with a tight, intelligent kernel of anxiety at its core' MIKAELLA CLEMENTS & ONJULI DATTA, authors of The View Was Exhausting'Hilarious, tender and romantic . . . with characters you'll wish were real and an ending that will leave you fully uplifted' CRESSIDA MCLAUGHLIN, author of The Staycation'It's sweet, sexy, funny and full of adorable characters . . . The kind of book that makes you feel like everything's going to be alright!' MATT CAIN, author of The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle'Laura Kay's writing is so warm and open-hearted, but also has a dry wit that makes you snort with delighted recognition' LILY LINDON, author of Double BookedTrade ReviewGlorious, hilarious and life affirming . . . I absolutely loved it - reading it felt like sitting on Brighton Beach with my funniest, smartest friends and several dozen tins of alcohol * EMMA HUGHES, author of NO SUCH THING AS PERFECT *A captivating read from a truly exciting talent * JUSTIN MYERS, author of THE FAKE-UP *Truly joyful and uplifting, with a great cast of characters, this is a big-hearted story about what really matters in life: friends, family and love * LUCY DIAMOND, author of ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN *I loved this. . . It reminded me in tone of Steven Rowley's writing. It's clever, uplifting, and funny, but also balances heavier topics like emotional trauma and commitment issues. It was a very bright, lovely read * EMILY AUSTIN, author of EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM WILL SOMEDAY BE DEAD *Tell Me Everything is packed with jokes and full of heart. I adored this wonderful book about queer people having messy, real relationships. I highly recommend reading it on a sunny beach while drinking cold wine! * MALINDA LO, NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of LAST NIGHT AT THE TELEGRAPH CLUB *Tell Me Everything is a book that reads like a crush, all summer and exuberance with a tight, intelligent kernel of anxiety at its core' * MIKAELLA CLEMENTS & ONJULI DATTA, authors of THE VIEW WAS EXHAUSTING *Tell Me Everything is a hilarious, tender and romantic hug of a book, with characters you'll wish were real and an ending that will leave you fully uplifted * CRESSIDA MCLAUGHLIN, author of THE STAYCATION *It's sweet, sexy, funny and full of adorable characters - the kind of book that makes you feel better about life. The kind of book that makes you feel like everything's going to be alright! * MATT CAIN, author of THE SECRET LIFE OF ALBERT ENTWISTLE *Laura Kay's writing is so warm and open-hearted, but also has a dry wit that makes you snort with delighted recognition. If you liked The Split, you'll LOVE Tell Me Everything * LILY LINDON, author of DOUBLE BOOKED *Clever Laura Kay has done it again. Tell Me Everything is smart, witty and oh so engaging * PENNY PARKES, author of HOME *Beautiful, tender and incredibly fun . . . Tell Me Everything is essential reading. We could all do with more Laura Kay joy in our lives! * HANNAH DOYLE, author of JUST MY TYPE *A beautiful, romantic, funny read. I actually punched the air at the ending I loved it so much * OLIVIA BEIRNE, author of HOUSE SWAP *Kay's warm, clever stories deal in messy characters and messy relationships * EVENING STANDARD *Heartily recommended * BELFAST TELEGRAPH *Warn, lough-out-loud funny * THE IRISH EXAMINER *A funny, warm-hearted and relatable story about ordinary people figuring it out as they go along * CULTUREFLY *An entertaining feelgood story * THE CHRONICLE *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing The Skating Rink
Book SynopsisDropped from the Olympic figure skating team, Nuria Martí's fate pivots her into a world of corruption, jealousy and revenge.Cushioning her fall from grace, a besotted admirer builds a secret ice rink for her in the ruins of an old masion on the outskirts of their seaside town. What he doesn't tell her is he paid for it using public funds. Such deceit is not without repercussions, and the skating rink soon becomes a crime scene.Narrated by a corrupt and pompous civil servant, a beleaguered romantic poet, and a duplicitous civil servant, The Skating Rink is a darkly atmospheric tale of murder and its motives.TRANSLATED BY CHRIS ANDREWS''A work of intense and unrealized longing'' The New York TimesBolaño makes you feel changed for having read him; he adjusts your angle of view on the world' Guardian
£9.49
Eye Books Let These Things Be Written
Book SynopsisIn the plague-ridden, battle-torn Northumbria of the Dark Ages, seven-year-old Wilfrid is banished by his parents to the windswept island of Lindisfarne, where he has only one protector. Fortunately, that protector is St Cuthbert, the holiest and wisest man alive. Although perhaps also the strangest...
£9.49
Headline Publishing Group At Home with the Templetons
Book SynopsisIt''s never too late to learn what family means . . .When the Templeton family from England takes up residence in a stately home in Australia, they set the locals talking - and with good reason. From the outside, the seven Templetons seem so unusual . . . peculiar even.No one is more intrigued by the family than their neighbours, single mother Nina Donovan and her young son, Tom. Before long, the two families'' lives become entwined in unexpected ways, to the delight of Gracie, the youngest of the Templeton daughters.In the years that follow, the relationships between the Templetons and the two Donovans twist and turn in unpredictable and life-changing directions, until a tragedy tears them all apart. What will it take to bring them back together again?From Australia''s top-selling female novelist comes her best book yet - a wonderfully entertaining and touching story about the perils and pleasures of love, friendship and family.<
£10.44
Transworld On The Edge
Book SynopsisTHE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLERThe hilarious and heart-wrenching new novel from the Sunday Times bestselling author of STEPPING UP and THE UNMUMSY MUM.*******************Sarah Turner writes family like no one else. With her trademark humour and insight, Turner creates a colourful world of family secrets and misunderstandings, of arguments and avoidance, while also revealing the love that lies beneath. I loved it.' Katie Marsh, author of UNBREAK YOUR HEARTSometimes, in order to move forward, you need to go back.Joni's always felt like an outsider in her blended family, and as an adult she's done all she can to avoid them. The only person she's remained close to is her beloved Nana.When Nana dies, she leaves behind something unexpected: an itinerary of pre-arranged activities for the whole family to complete over the course of a week. After years of trying but failing to bring Joni back into the
£15.29
Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Publishers Daisy Hill
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£11.69
Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Publishers Lullabies for Satan
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£8.54
EnvelopeBooks Mustard Seed Itinerary
Book SynopsisAll roads lead to the Celestial City and when schoolmaster Po Cheng drinks too much and falls into a dream, he finds himself on just such a road. Assisted by teaching colleague Miss Ling, Po Cheng reaches the imperial capital, rising up through the giddy ranks of the Chinese civil service to become Prime Minister. Good fortune appears endless, not least when Miss Ling reappears as an artist’s model who has changed her name to Precious Pearl so she can pose in the Forest of Brushes Academy of Art without her parents finding out. But what Heaven—and alcohol—hand out, they can also claw back. Trouble is brewing inside and outside the city walls, and Po Cheng’s eminence means he must now take the rap and face consequences inevitable from the start. Mustard Seed Itinerary is a brilliant first novel by an important new voice, bringing to the formal conventions of traditional Chinese literature the wry humour of Carrollian satire. As Mullen says, ‘In Daoism and Buddhism, dream journeys serve as voyages of discovery from which only a blockhead would return none the wiser. And Po Cheng is no blockhead.’
£11.69
Everyman A Pelican at Blandings
Book SynopsisBlandings Castle lacks its usual balm for the Earl of Emsworth, as his stern sister Lady Constance Keeble is once more in residence. The Duke of Dunstable is also infesting the place again, along with the standard quota of American millionaires, romantic youths, con artists, imposters and so on. With a painting of reclining nude at the centre of numerous intrigues, Gally's genius is once again required to sort things out.Trade ReviewWodehouse's idyllic world can never stale. He will continue to release future generations from captivity that may be more irksome than our own. He has made a world for us to live in and delight in * Evelyn Waugh *The Everyman edition promises to be a splendid celebration of the divine Plum * The Independent *Sublime comic genius * Ben Elton *The finest and funniest writer the past century ever knew * Stephen Fry *Wodehouse is the greatest comic writer ever * Douglas Adams *
£13.50
Everyman Nothing Serious
Book SynopsisFurther stories of members of the Drones Club and several adventures related by the Oldest Member of the golf club. Many old friends reappear - Bingo Little and Mrs Bingo, Freddie Widgeon, Ambrose Gussett, Agnes Flack, Horace Bewstridge and many more. Including: The Shadow Passes. Bramley is so Bracing. Up From the Depths. Feet of Clay. Excelsior. Rodney Has a Relapse. Tangled Hearts. Birth of a Salesman. How's That, Umpire? Success Story.Trade ReviewIn these handsome volumes, with the pages that smell of real paper and those fine covers by Andrzej Klimowski, you find that the sparkle hasn't dimmed. They are a cause for regular celebration. -- James Naughtie * The Times *
£12.34
Everyman In Search Of Lost Time Volume 3
Book SynopsisIn The Guermantes Way Proust's narrator recalls his initiation into the dazzling world of Parisian high society. Looking back over his time in the glamorous salons of the aristocracy, he satirises this shallow world and his own youthful infatuation with it. His observations, and his experiences with his lover Albertine, also educate him in the volatile nature of desire as he walks the path towards adulthood.
£18.00
Everyman Waiting
Book SynopsisHA JIN left his native China in 1985 to attend Brandeis University. He is theauthor of eight novels, four story collections, four three volumes of poetry, a biography of Li Bai, and a book of essays. He has received the National Book Award, two PEN/Faulkner Awards, the PEN/Hemingway Foundation Award, the Asian American Literary Award, and the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. In 2014 he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He lives in the Boston area and is a professor at the creative writing program at Boston University.
£13.50
Poolbeg Press Ltd Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married
Book Synopsis
£8.98
Saqi Books Metropole
Book SynopsisA linguist flying to a conference in Helsinki has landed in a strange city where he can't understand a word anyone says. As one claustrophobic day follows another, he wonders why no one has found him yet, whether his wife has given him up for dead, and how he'll get by in this society that looks so familiar, yet is so strange. In a vision of hell, unlike any previously imagined, Budai must learn to survive in a world where words and meaning are unconnected. This is a suspenseful and haunting Hungarian classic.Trade Review'A masterpiece.' Magazine Litteraire'A stunning novel.' Liberation'With time, Metropole will find its due place in the twentieth-century library, on the same shelf as The Trial and 1984.'G. O. Chateaureynaud
£8.54
Everyman The Aeneid
Book SynopsisThe Aeneid is a journey of Aeneas, a survivor of the siege of Troy. The themes within this classic work include piety, respect, destiny, war and peace. The city of Rome and its empire, its formation, and its history is a central character among others - including Dido, Venus, Juno the queen of heaven, Helen of Sparta , Jupiter and a host of other gods. This epic tale takes the hero through battles on the field and in the mind to the underworld and back and finally arriving at his destiny in Rome.Trade ReviewI love the Fitzgerald translations of classic works and this is no exception. Also the quality of the book including the smooth pages and nice print also make this a very nice edition * Amazon Reviewer *
£14.24
Everyman The Mystery Of Edwin Drood
Book SynopsisAs in many of Dickens's greatest novels, the gulf between appearance and reality drives the action. Set in the seemingly innocuous cathedral town of Cloisterham, the story rapidly darkens with a sense of impending evil. Central to the plot is John Jasper: in public he is a man of integrity and benevolence, in private he is an opium addict. And while seeming to smile on the engagement of his nephew, Edwin Drood, he is, in fact, consumed by jealousy, driven to terrify the boy's fiancée and to plot the murder of Edwin himself. Though The Mystery of Edwin Drood is one of its author's darkest books, it also bustles with a vast roster of memorable-and delightfully named-minor characters: Mrs. Billikins, the landlady; the foolish Mr. Sapsea; the domineering philanthropist, Mr. Honeythunder; and the mysterious Datchery. Several attempts have been made over the years to complete the novel and solve the mystery, but even in its unfinished state it is a gripping and haunting masterpiece.
£999.99
MOIST UH HUH HER
Book SynopsisAn unnamed, female narrator travels through school, then art school, then art school teaching jobs, finding or fashioning the selves of herself via encounters with PJ Harvey, the ghosts of Ann Quin, Susan Sontag, and a mansplaining Analyst that she first encounters in her grandparents' garden
£13.77
Tortoise Books Fly Over This: Stories From the New Midwest
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£9.74
Artemesia Publishing, LLC The Spinster the Rebel the Governor
Book SynopsisMurderous rebels and bigoted gentlemen can't prevent spinster Lady Margaret Brent from wielding her power to defend Maryland settlers from plunder and obliteration.Lady Margaret Brent, compelled to right wrongs, risks her life by illegally educating English women, placing her family at risk. She fights to have a voice, yet her father and brothers exclude her from discussions. Worried the king's men may know of her illegal activities, she flees to the New World where she can enjoy religious tolerance and own land, believing she will be allowed a voice. Once in Maryland, she presents cases in provincial court where she's hired as the first American woman attorney, but there she uncovers perilous actions, prompting her to build a fort to shield those within from being murdered. Can Margaret Brent's integrity and ingenuity protect Maryland from being destroyed?
£12.76
Gallimard Ma reine
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£15.02
Didier Pas dOscar pour lassassin A2
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£10.95
Ediciones SM El ladron de mentiras
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£12.95
Penguin Random House SEA ROOM 216
Book SynopsisA compelling story of friendship that starts in a university dormitory and stretches over time and across continents as each roommate chases her unique destinyRoom 216 is about four strong female characters and their complex experiences. It tells the story of university roommates, each with a unique motivation and struggle. After graduation, Sandy, Tintin, Serene, and Issa embark on separate journeys that take them to different parts of the world. Over time and across continents, the roommates chase their respective destiniessome pursuits end in triumph, while others in unbearable loss.
£12.56
Austin MacAuley Publishers Fze Missing Parts
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£9.49
Bonnier Books Ltd The Uncommon Life of Alfred Warner in Six Days
Book SynopsisApproaching 80, frail and alone, a remarkable man makes the journey from his sheltered home in England to Berlin to meet his granddaughter. He has six days left to live and must relate his life story before he dies...His life has been rich and full. He has witnessed firsthand the rise of the Nazis, experienced heartrending family tragedy, fought in the German army, been interred in a POW camp in Scotland and faced violent persecution in peacetime Britain. But he has also touched many lives, fallen deeply in love, raised a family and survived triumphantly at the limits of human endurance. He carries within him an astonishing family secret that he must share before he dies... a story that will mean someone else’s salvation.Welcome to the moving, heart-warming and uncommon life of Alfred Warner.
£8.54
Troubador Publishing The Cards Youâre Dealt
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£9.49
