Contemporary Fiction Books

Book SynopsisShortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction As every schoolboy knows, you can fit the whole of England on the Isle of Wight.Trade ReviewThe sharpest-tasting novel about the modern littleness of England. -- John Sutherland * The Times *Runs at glorious full tilt...delightful stuff * Independent *A brilliant, Swiftian fantasy * The Economist *There is no more intelligent writer on the literary scene. In this novel, he is also moving. He has written nothing more poignant and enticing -- John Carey * Sunday Times *Not only a very funny satire about England and the world... He has also skilfully dissected the discomforting ways in which we have all grown to accept, and even depend on, illusion * Wall Street Journal *

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Book SynopsisPerfect for fans of Cecelia Ahern and Jojo Moyes, a beautiful and moving story about the unbreakable bond between a mother and daughter Brett''s Life List1. Go to Paris2. Perform live, on a super big stage3. Have a baby, maybe two4. Fall in loveBrett Bohlinger seems to have it all: a plum job, a spacious loft, an irresistibly handsome boyfriend. All in all, a charmed life. That is, until her beloved mother passes away, leaving behind a will with one big stipulation: In order to receive her inheritance, Brett must first complete the life list of goals she'd written when she was a naïve girl of fourteen. Grief-stricken, Brett can barely make sense of her mother's decisionher childhood dreams don't resemble her ambitions at age thirty-four in the slightest. Some seem impossible. How can she possibly have a relationship with a father who died seven years ago? Other goals (Be an awesome te

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Book SynopsisAn astonishing discovery is made in the remote African republic of Zangaro, one which could change the course of a nation''s history forever. But such a discovery cannot be kept secret for long and Sir James Manson will stop at nothing to protect this find. A ruthless and bloody-minded tycoon, Manson immediately hires an army of mercenaries and with this deadly crew behind him he sets out to topple the government and replace its dictator with a puppet president. But news of the discovery has reached Russia - and suddenly Manson finds he no longer makes the rules in this power game. A game in which win or lose means life or death.Trade ReviewWhat keeps you reading - absorbed, excited, fearfully tense - is its details of the plotting of the coup * New Statesman *Enormous and convincing detail, and a shattering climax * Sunday Mirror *A super thriller . . . as instantly enthralling as The Day of the Jackal * Publishers Weekly *There is no doubt about it. Frederick Forsyth can write spellbinders * Bestsellers *

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Book SynopsisDonald Ray Pollock, recipient of the 2009 PEN/Bingham Fellowship, made his literary debut in 2008 with the critically acclaimed short-story collection Knockemstiff. He worked as a labourer at the Mead Paper Mill in Chillicothe, Ohio, from 1973 to 2005. www.donaldraypollock.comTrade ReviewHits you like a telegram from Hell slid under your door at three o'clock in the morning -- William Gay, Author of Provinces of Night and The Long HomeDonald Ray Pollock redefines the term 'American Gothic', taking Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner and turning them up to 11...once you start reading it doesn’t let go * Herald *One of the most adventurous and significant writers of our time … If the Coen Brothers want their next Oscar they should buy the rights to this book now * Scotland on Sunday *Terrifying ... an unsettling masterwork * GQ *Superb * The Times *

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Book SynopsisSalman Rushdie is the author of eight novels, one collection of short stories, and four works of non-fiction, and the co-editor of The Vintage Book of Indian Writing. In 1993 Midnight's Children was judged to be the 'Booker of Bookers', the best novel to have won the Booker Prize in its first 25 years. The Moor's Last Sigh won the Whitbread Prize in 1995, and the European Union's Aristeion Prize for Literature in 1996. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres.Trade ReviewA wonderful, rich and humane novel that is safe to call a classic. * Guardian *Midnight's Children is also full of such zest for every messy aspect of life that you can't help but feel inspired * Guardian *Rushdie’s novel took a post-colonial “empire fights back” spirit, and a deep personal understanding of the politics of Indian partition, and exploded them into something teeming with imaginative life… He inhabits a hybrid consciousness, with a telepathic connection to the other children of midnight, and tells its stories for all he is worth. * Observer *The extraordinary alchemy of Midnight’s Children was its miraculous fusion of the fantastical and the historical. * Evening Standard *A magical-realist reflection of the issues India faced post-independence including culture, language, religion, and politics… It’s a truly incredible work. * Verdict *

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Book SynopsisSpiralling into an alcohol-fuelled depression after killing a man in the line of duty, Inspector Kurt Wallander has made up his mind to quit the police force for good. When an old acquaintance seeks Wallander''s help to investigate the suspicious circumstances in which his father has died, Kurt doesn''t want to know. But when his former friend turns up dead, shot three times, Wallander realises that he was wrong not to listen. Against his better judgment, he returns to work to head what may now have become a double murder case. An enigmatic big-business tycoon seems to be the common denominator in the two deaths. But while Wallander is on the trail of the killer, somebody is on the trail of Wallander, and closing in fast...Over 35 million copies of the Kurt Wallander series sold worldwide.Trade ReviewOne of his best * The Times *Vintage Nordic storytelling * Observer *Impeccable plotting * Daily Express *Absorbing, chilling and dripping with evil atmosphere * The Times *Rather in the way that Dire Straits were the Trojan horse that kickstarted the CD industry, Mankell's novels became the standard bearer for foreign crime in translation...the writer is a man of rare skills -- Barry Forshaw * Daily Express *

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Book Synopsis___________________________________ A gripping Temperance Brennan novel from world-class forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs, the international no. 1 bestselling crime thriller writer and the inspiration behind the hit TV series Bones.A full week after death, a barely recognisable body is discovered in a closet. ''Death by self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head'' is the initial assessment, but the victim''s relatives are adamant that this was not suicide.Extreme heat has accelerated decomposition, and Dr Temperance Brennan''s forensic expertise is required. Even for her, it is virtually impossible to determine the trajectory of the bullet.But just as Tempe is attempting to make sense of the evidence, an unknown man slips her a photograph of a skeleton. Could this hold the answer to the victim's death?___________________________________ Dr Kathy Reichs is a professional forensic anthropologist. She has workeTrade ReviewYou’ll want to keep turning the pages long after lights out to find out what happens next … Reichs’ real-life expertise gives her novels an authenticity that most other crime novelists would kill for * Daily Express *Reichs' seamless blending of fascinating science and dead-on psychological portrayals, not to mention a whirlwind of a plot, make [her novels] a must read * Jeffery Deaver *With Kathy Reichs the reader knows they're in the hands of an expert * Sunday Express *Brennan is a winner, and so is Reichs * Daily News *A truly impressive writer * We Love This Book *

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Book SynopsisV.S. Naipaul was born in Trinidad in 1932. He came to England on a scholarship in 1950. He spent four years at University College, Oxford, and began to write, in London, in 1954. He pursued no other profession.His novels include A House for Mr Biswas, The Mimic Men, Guerrillas, A Bend in the River, and The Enigma of Arrival. In 1971 he was awarded the Booker Prize for In a Free State. His works of nonfiction, equally acclaimed, include Among the Believers, Beyond Belief, The Masque of Africa, and a trio of books about India: An Area of Darkness, India: A Wounded Civilization and India: A Million Mutinies Now.In 1990, V.S. Naipaul received a knighthood for services to literature; in 1993, he was the first recipient of the David Cohen British Literature Prize. He received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2001. He lived with his wife Nadira and cat Augustus in Wiltshire, and died in 2018Trade ReviewImpeccable . . . Guerrillas seems to me Naipaul’s Heart of Darkness: a brilliant artist’s anatomy of emptiness, and of despair. * Observer *

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Book SynopsisPowerful and visionary, Keri Hulme has written the great New Zealand novel of our times.Trade Review'In this novel, New Zealand's people, its heritage and landscape are conjured up with uncanny poetry and perceptiveness' Sunday Times

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Book SynopsisThe daughter of a wealthy railway magnate, Paula Power inherits De Stancy Castle, an ancient castle in need of modernization. She commissions George Somerset, a young architect, to undertake the work. Somerset falls in love with Paula but she, the Laodicean of the title, is torn between his admiration and that of Captain De Stancy, whose old-world romanticism contrasts with Somerset''s forward-looking attitude. Paula''s vacillation, however, is not only romantic. Her ambiguity regarding religion, politics and social progress is a reflection of the author''s own. This new Penguin Classics edition of Hardy''s text contains an introduction and notes that illuminate and clarify these themes, and draws parallels between the text and the author''s life and views.

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Book SynopsisThe army of the dead are coming… Avry of Kazan, the last Healer of the mystical Fifteen Realms, has a power that can’t be matched. But in the minds of her friends and foe alike, Avry no longer exists. Now, as the psychotic King Tohon builds an army mightier than any that has been seen before—a league of undead soldiers—Avry must face her toughest, most terrifying battle alone. Fighting to be reunited with her family and her lover Kerrick, Avry must infiltrate Tohon’s troops. But does she have the power, the rare magic; to do what legend says is impossible? FOR FANS OF TRUDI CANAVAN AND GAME OF THRONES

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Book SynopsisFirst published in 1970 and digging the rhythms of the street, where the biggest deal life has to offer is getting high, THE VULTURE is a hip and fast-moving thriller. It relates the strange story of the murder of a teenage boy called John Lee - telling it in the words of four men who knew him when he was just another kid working after school, hanging out, waiting for something to happen. Just who did kill John Lee and why?Trade ReviewFor more than two decades, [Gil Scott-Heron] has been committed to examining those facts of the human condition that most of us would rather forget . . . he is an artist who has crafted witty but crucial insights for Black America. * * Washington Post * *A tense and intriguing murder mystery. Scott-Heron creates a fascinating portrait of late 60s New York. * * Mojo * *They are impressive and ambitious works that vigorously mix street savvy and intellectual flair. * * GQ [On THE VULTURE & THE NIGGER FACTORY] * *With the pace of cleanly constructed thrillers they wield the force of a highly focused political consciousness . . . the clash of voices gives them a potency, both political and literary, which has survived changes in fashion. * * Herald [on THE VULTURE & THE NIGGER FACTORY] * *There's plenty of tension and sex, but also a whole heap of politics. These are ace period pieces. * * Select [on THE VULTURE & THE NIGGER FACTORY] * *The books are drenched with the dark overtones of America's underworld, battered by the storms of politics and race. They are as sexy as they are psychotic. * * City Life [on THE VULTURE and THE NIGGER FACTORY] * *

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARDAN OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICKLila, homeless and alone after years of roaming the countryside, steps inside a small-town Iowa church - theonly available shelter from the rain - and ignites a romance and a debate that will reshape her life.'One of the greatest living novelists' BRYAN APPLEYARD, SUNDAY TIMES'Robinson is frequently named as one of America's most significant writers . . . Her questioning books express wonder: they are enlightening, in the best sense, passionately contesting our facile, recycled understanding of ourselves and of our world' SARAH CHURCHWELL, GUARDIAN'The work of an exceptional novelist' ROWAN WILLIAMS, NEW STATESMAN'A sumptuous, graceful and ultimately life-affirming novel' JAMES KIDD, INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY'Great and luminous beauty . . . a book that leaves the reader feeling what can only be called exaltation' NEEL MUKHERJEE, INDEPENDENTTrade ReviewA masterpiece . . . Lila is a superb creation * Publishers Weekly *A masterpiece . . . Lila is a superb creation * Publishers Weekly *One of the greatest living novelists . . . [Lila is] just as wise, moving and genuine as its predecessors * Harper's Bazaar *One of the greatest living novelists . . . [Lila is] just as wise, moving and genuine as its predecessors * Harper's Bazaar *Robinson brings [the story] to pulsating life in prose of great and luminous beauty . . . a book that leaves the reader feeling what can only be called exaltation * Independent *Robinson brings [the story] to pulsating life in prose of great and luminous beauty . . . a book that leaves the reader feeling what can only be called exaltation * Independent *This superb novel can only add to [Robinson's] already stratospherically high reputation * Daily Mail *This superb novel can only add to [Robinson's] already stratospherically high reputation * Daily Mail *Lila is a really beautiful book: beautiful prose, beautiful story; morally beautiful too. After reading it the world seems more dazzling, fuller of wonder and mystery than it did before, as if you were newly in love. I wish I could persuade everyone who ever buys a book to read this one * Spectator *Lila is a really beautiful book: beautiful prose, beautiful story; morally beautiful too. After reading it the world seems more dazzling, fuller of wonder and mystery than it did before, as if you were newly in love. I wish I could persuade everyone who ever buys a book to read this one * Spectator *Deeply moving, almost transformative . . . frank and direct, but occasionally moved to ecstasy by the spirit * Sunday Times *Deeply moving, almost transformative . . . frank and direct, but occasionally moved to ecstasy by the spirit * Sunday Times *Tinged with heartbreaking beauty * Scotsman *Tinged with heartbreaking beauty * Scotsman *Although Lila revisits the characters of Robinson's previous books, Gilead, a Pulitzer prizewinner, and Home, a finalist in the American National Book Awards, and brings a certain completeness to their journeys, the book stands well on its own as a powerful search for the meaning of life as well as a touching and unlikely story of love and, ultimately, hope * The Times *Although Lila revisits the characters of Robinson's previous books, Gilead, a Pulitzer prizewinner, and Home, a finalist in the American National Book Awards, and brings a certain completeness to their journeys, the book stands well on its own as a powerful search for the meaning of life as well as a touching and unlikely story of love and, ultimately, hope * The Times *Robinson is a glorious writer . . . This novel, different in tone from its predecessors, stands beautifully alongside them * Financial Times *Robinson is a glorious writer . . . This novel, different in tone from its predecessors, stands beautifully alongside them * Financial Times *There is no one quite like this American writer, or quite as good as her . . . extraordinarily fluent and pitch perfect prose * Tablet *There is no one quite like this American writer, or quite as good as her . . . extraordinarily fluent and pitch perfect prose * Tablet *Measured and lyrical; the sound of this book is akin at times to the Cormac McCarthy of The Road . . . Robinson writes brilliantly about the way people dance warily around each other, never quite coinciding, stricken with longing and love * Literary Review *Measured and lyrical; the sound of this book is akin at times to the Cormac McCarthy of The Road . . . Robinson writes brilliantly about the way people dance warily around each other, never quite coinciding, stricken with longing and love * Literary Review *This third novel in the sequence is, in many ways, the most adventurous of all . . . Lila is the work of an exceptional novelist at the peak of her capacity * New Statesman *This third novel in the sequence is, in many ways, the most adventurous of all . . . Lila is the work of an exceptional novelist at the peak of her capacity * New Statesman *Lila is a deeply affecting exploration of existence, love and the inevitability of loneliness. And although enriched by the two preceding books, it has the strength, beauty and originality to be read, enjoyed and appreciated as a standalone work. Written in beautiful, poetic prose, it's a remarkable achievement * List *Lila is a deeply affecting exploration of existence, love and the inevitability of loneliness. And although enriched by the two preceding books, it has the strength, beauty and originality to be read, enjoyed and appreciated as a standalone work. Written in beautiful, poetic prose, it's a remarkable achievement * List *A sumptuous, graceful, and ultimately life-affirming novel * Independent on Sunday *A sumptuous, graceful, and ultimately life-affirming novel * Independent on Sunday *Robinson has made a world so palpable and full that each book can stand alone...Taken together, these books will surely be known as one of the great achievements of contemporary literature * Observer *Robinson has made a world so palpable and full that each book can stand alone...Taken together, these books will surely be known as one of the great achievements of contemporary literature * Observer *Told with measured and absorbing elegance, this account of the growing love and trust between Lila and Reverend Ames is touching and convincing. * Scotland on Sunday *Told with measured and absorbing elegance, this account of the growing love and trust between Lila and Reverend Ames is touching and convincing. * Scotland on Sunday *Searching and full of grace * Daily Telegraph *Searching and full of grace * Daily Telegraph *Robinson explores eternity, and she does so in a quiet, ruminative style that takes over your heart as well as your head. Once you've fallen under her spell, she's not just mesmerising but indispensable * Intelligent Life (The Economist) *Robinson explores eternity, and she does so in a quiet, ruminative style that takes over your heart as well as your head. Once you've fallen under her spell, she's not just mesmerising but indispensable * Intelligent Life (The Economist) *Robinson's writing can light up consciousness, and make even the most passing thoughts feel indelible. Her older sister in American literature is Emily Dickinson * Prospect *Robinson's writing can light up consciousness, and make even the most passing thoughts feel indelible. Her older sister in American literature is Emily Dickinson * Prospect *Lila is a deeply affecting exploration of existence and love * List *Lila is a deeply affecting exploration of existence and love * List *The Gilead novels provide insights into a people whose fates are bound to the land they live on. Iowa must be proud to have such a chronicler among them * Sunday Express *The Gilead novels provide insights into a people whose fates are bound to the land they live on. Iowa must be proud to have such a chronicler among them * Sunday Express *As a reader you feel very well looked after by Marilynne Robinson: you are knocked out by the weight of thought, the care, the worry she puts into her work. You find yourself wandering into vast new rooms, as if you're in a fabulous museum you've dreamt up for your own pleasure. There's really no one else writing like this today . . . Lila is just so damnably beautiful * Herald *As a reader you feel very well looked after by Marilynne Robinson: you are knocked out by the weight of thought, the care, the worry she puts into her work. You find yourself wandering into vast new rooms, as if you're in a fabulous museum you've dreamt up for your own pleasure. There's really no one else writing like this today . . . Lila is just so damnably beautiful * Herald *Lila has a power beyond words * Stylist *Lila has a power beyond words * Stylist *Mesmerising . . . reminiscent of the great Victorian novelists . . . Robinson's exquisitely wrought prose resonates * Mail on Sunday *Mesmerising . . . reminiscent of the great Victorian novelists . . . Robinson's exquisitely wrought prose resonates * Mail on Sunday *Her questioning books express wonder: they are enlightening, in the best sense, passionately contesting our facile, recycled understanding of ourselves and of our world * Guardian *Her questioning books express wonder: they are enlightening, in the best sense, passionately contesting our facile, recycled understanding of ourselves and of our world * Guardian *Subtle shifts of loyalties, strange moral priorities make [Robinson's] books compellingly powerful * New Statesman *Subtle shifts of loyalties, strange moral priorities make [Robinson's] books compellingly powerful * New Statesman *The giant themes and big questions that sit beneath the surface of Lila's incredibly moving story are compelling * Observer *The giant themes and big questions that sit beneath the surface of Lila's incredibly moving story are compelling * Observer *My novel of the year can only be Lila by the inimitable Marilynne Robinson . . .my favourite living author and this once again demonstrates her remarkable gift for psychological depth * Observer *My novel of the year can only be Lila by the inimitable Marilynne Robinson . . .my favourite living author and this once again demonstrates her remarkable gift for psychological depth * Observer *Exquisitely observed, an ultimately optimistic journey through the corrosive power of shame to divide and distort * Observer *Exquisitely observed, an ultimately optimistic journey through the corrosive power of shame to divide and distort * Observer *Lila by Marilynne Robinson is the heartbreaking conclusion to her Gilead trilogy * Observer *Lila by Marilynne Robinson is the heartbreaking conclusion to her Gilead trilogy * Observer *Lila was the book of books this year, an amazing achievement * Sunday Herald *Lila was the book of books this year, an amazing achievement * Sunday Herald *One of the finest writers in America * The Economist *One of the finest writers in America * The Economist *Intricate and beautiful * Evening Standard *Intricate and beautiful * Evening Standard *The novel of the year for me was Lila by Marilynne Robinson, revisiting the fictional Gilead of her three previous novels. The prose, as always, is magnificent, pitch-perfect, carrying a moral authority, a gravitas and a spiritual depth. There really is nobody else writing like this * Herald *The novel of the year for me was Lila by Marilynne Robinson, revisiting the fictional Gilead of her three previous novels. The prose, as always, is magnificent, pitch-perfect, carrying a moral authority, a gravitas and a spiritual depth. There really is nobody else writing like this * Herald *Robinson writes beautifully and, as a sophisticated religious thinker, asks searching questions about faith and doubt * Independent *Robinson writes beautifully and, as a sophisticated religious thinker, asks searching questions about faith and doubt * Independent *

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Book SynopsisFrom beloved and best-selling novelist Tom Robbins comes a collection of non-fiction essays and short fiction, many in print for the first time ever! From tributes such as an ode to redheads, kissing, Diane Keaton, Leonard Cohen, tomato sandwiches and The Doors - to musings, travel essays and art critiques, from short stories to poems and country song lyrics - this is a real treat for Tom's numerous and loyal fans.Trade Reviewone of the wittiest and most entertaining novelists in the world * The Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisFinalist for the Man Booker International Prize 2015 The history of Credit Gone West, a squalid Congolese bar, is related by one of its most loyal customers, Broken Glass, who has been commissioned by its owner to set down an account of the characters who frequent it. Broken Glass himself is a disgraced alcoholic school teacher with a love of French language and literature which he has largely failed to communicate to his pupils but which he displays in the pages of his notebook. The notebook is also a farewell to the bar and to his fellow drinkers. After writing the final words, Broken Glass will go down to the River Tchinouka and throw himself into its murky waters, where his lamented mother also drowned. Broken Glass is a Congolese riff on European classics from the most notable Francophone African writer of his generation.Trade ReviewA dizzying combination of erudition, bawdy humour and linguistic effervescence -- Melissa McClements * Financial Times *Broken Glass is a comic romp that releases Mabanckou's sense of humour... Although its cultural and intertextual musings could fuel innumerable doctorates, the real meat of Broken Glass is its comic brio, and Mabanckou's jokes work the whole spectrum of humour -- Tibor Fischer * Guardian *Deserves the acclaim heaped upon it... self-mocking and ironic, a thought-provoking glimpse into a stricken country * Waterstone's Books Quarterly *Broken Glass proves to be an obsessive, slyly playful raconteur... the prose runs wild to weave endless sentences, their rhythm and pace attuned to the narrator's rhetorical extravagances... With his sourly comic recollections, Broken Glass makes a fine companion -- Peter Carty * Independent *This bar-room yarn-spinner tells his fellow tipplers' tales in a voice that swings between broad farce and aching tragedy. His farewell performance from a perch in "Credit Gone West" abounds in scorching wit and flights of eloquence... vitriolic comedy and pugnacious irreverence. -- Boyd Tonkin * Independent *A book of grubby erudition... full of tall tales that can entertain readers from Brazzaville to Bognor. -- James Smart * Guardian *Selected as one of the 100 best books of the 21st century * The Guardian *

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Book SynopsisFrom one of Britain's best-loved literary novelists comes a magical, lyrical tale of the young orphan Silver, taken in by the ancient lighthousekeeper Mr. Pew, who reveals to her a world of myth and mystery through the art of storytelling.Motherless and anchorless, Silver is taken in by the timeless Mr. Pew, keeper of the Cape Wrath lighthouse. Pew tells Silver ancient tales of longing and rootlessness, of the slippages that occur throughout every life. One life, Babel Dark's, a nineteenth-century clergyman, opens like a map that Silver must follow, and the intertwining of myth and reality, of storytelling and experience, lead her through her own particular darkness.A story of mutability, talking birds and stolen books, of Darwin and Stevenson and of the Jekyll and Hyde in all of us, Lighthousekeeping is a way into the most secret recesses of our own hearts and minds. Jeanette Winterson is one of the most extraordinary and original writers of her generation, and this shows her at her lyrical best.Trade Review‘The importance of stories, the urge to create ourselves through stories, is one of Winterson’s abiding themes, along with the supremacy, the redemptive power of love.’ Daily Telegraph ‘A marvelously skilful juggling act of ideas and emotion … Winterson’s prodigious talent brings the book alive.’ Evening Standard ‘The power of Lighthousekeeping is in … the pared-down precision of its language, each word smoothed into a finely polished pebble.’ Observer

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Book SynopsisJoseph Conrad's enduring portrait of the ugliness of colonialism. Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American ReadHeart of Darkness is the thrilling tale of Marlow, a seaman and wanderer recounting his physical and psychological journey in search of the infamous ivory trader Kurtz. Traveling upriver into the heart of the African continent, he gradually becomes obsessed by this enigmatic, wraith-like figure. Marlow's discovery of how Kurtz has gained his position of power over the local people involves him in a radical questioning, not only of his own nature and values, but of those that underpin Western civilization itself. This edition also includes Conrad’s Congo Diary, a glossary, and an introduction discussing the author’s experiences of Africa, critical responses, and the novel’s symbolic complexities.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading p

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Book SynopsisA breathtaking collection of reflections from one of the world''s best loved storytellers, Paulo Coelho.In this riveting collection of thoughts and stories, Paulo Coelho, the author of The Alchemist', offers his personal reflections on a wide range of subjects from archery and music to elegance, traveling and the nature of good and evil.An old woman explains to her grandson how a mere pencil can show him the path to happinessinstructions on how to climb a mountain reveal the secret to making your dreams a realitythe story of Ghengis Khan and the Falcon that teaches about the folly of anger and the art of friendshipa pianist who performs an example in fulfilling your destinythe author learns three important lessons when he goes to the rescue of a man in the street Paulo shows us how life has lessons for us in the greatest, smallest and most unusual of experiences.Like the Flowing River' includes jewel-like fables, packed with meaning and retold in Coelho''s inimitable style. Sharing his thoughts on spirituality, life and ethics, Paulo touches you with his philosophy and invites you to go on an exciting journey of your own.Trade ReviewPraise for Paulo Coelho: ‘An exceptional writer.' USA Today ‘His books have had a life-enhancing impact on millions of people.’ Times ‘One of the few to deserve the term “Publishing Phenomenon”.’ Independent on Sunday ‘Coelho’s writing is beautifully poetic but his message is what counts…he gives me hope and puts a smile on my face.’ Daily Express ‘“The Alchemist” is a beautiful book about magic, dreams and the treasures we seek elsewhere and then find on our doorstep.‘ Madonna ‘It’s like music, really, the way he writes, it’s so beautiful. It’s a gift that I envy above all others.’ Julia Roberts

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Book SynopsisIntroduced by Paul McCartneyABOUT THE AWFULI was bored on the 9th of Octover 1940 when, I believe, the Nasties were still booming us led by Madalf Heatlump (Who only had one). Anyway they didn't get me. I attended to varicous schools in Liddypol. And still didn't pass-much to my Aunties supplies. As a member of the most publified Beatles my and (P, G, and R's) records might seem funnier to some than this book, but as far as I'm conceived this correction of short writty is the most wonderfoul larf I've ever ready.In His Own Write is John Lennon's literary debut, a book of stories, drawings and poems that was first published in 1964 to great critical acclaim and became a phenomenon, selling over 600,000 copies in the UK alone and revealing a hitherto unseen side to Lennon's artistic output and talent.Trade ReviewIt owes something to Edward Lear's nonsense books, but from there on in Lennon is on his own . . . Zany, offbeat, and illustrated by his grotesque spidery pen. It jolts the reader into gusts of laughter * * GUARDIAN * *Irresistible . . . the drawings are marvellous * * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH * *Lennon's marvellously clever In His Own Write was the surprise literary sensation of 1964 . . . you get Lennon's biting humour and brilliant puns: Lewis Carroll as rock star * * TAMPA TRIBUNE * *

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Book SynopsisA highly contagious book virus, a literary society and a Snow Queen-like disappearing author 'She came to realise that under one reality there's always another. And another one under that.' Only very special people are chosen by children's author Laura White to join 'The Society', an elite group of writers in the small town of Rabbit Back. Now a tenth member has been selected: Ella, literature teacher and possessor of beautifully curving lips. But soon Ella discovers that the Society is not what it seems. What is its mysterious ritual, 'The Game'? What explains the strange disappearance that occurs at Laura's winter party, in a whirlwind of snow? Why are the words inside books starting to rearrange themselves? Was there once another tenth member, before her? Slowly, disturbing secrets that had been buried come to light... In this chilling, darkly funny novel, the uncanny brushes up against the everyday in the most beguiling and unexpected of ways.Trade ReviewWonderfully knotty... a very grown-up fantasy masquerading as quirky fable. Unexpected, thrilling and absurd -- Catherine Taylor Sunday Telegraph Unnerving, enigmatic... Hints of Let the Right One In and Haruki Murakami's elliptical early science fiction novels flavour a creepy tale about mutating books, buried secrets and ghostly encounters -- James Lovegrove Financial Times The Rabbit Back Literature Society is a lobster pot of a book... an exquisite balance of suspense, precision-engineered structure and darkly playful humour... fascinating. And fun. -- 5-star review SFX Charming and intriguing, switching from playful to creepy to heartfelt and back again... good fun Bookbag Mixes the small-town surrealism of Twin Peaks with the clandestine-society theme of Donna Tartt's The Secret History The List Charming, chilling and gripping from its very first page Bizarre A novel about big questions ... wonderful characters... amazing TQR Stories Sly wit... characterises The Rabbit Back Literature Society Metro A witty Finnish novel Observer I can't even begin to try to describe this book. Nor... to do justice to its eerie nuttiness. But if, like me, you're still a little bit obsessed with who killed Laura Palmer, you'll love it Harper's Bazaar A playful fantasy... [Jaaskelainen] deftly plumbs the neuroses of artistic vanity and obsession... I felt the slow pulse that guided the book; it skirts genres and stays refreshingly weird Quadrapheme Veering between infectious comedy and dark thriller, this is a beguiling read The Lady Is Jaaskelainen the new Murakami? Answers to the editor Glasgow Herald Thrilling Shortlist Lola Rogers' admirable translation catches both the darkness and playful wit of Jaaskelainen's original Tablet It's all rather brilliant Worm Hole Deliciously dark metafiction Sydney Morning Herald A very odd but engaging book by a Finnish author with an extraordinary imagination The Westmorland Gazette

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Book SynopsisThe first novel from the bestselling author of The Dutch House, Commonwealth and Bel Canto, Winner of The Women’s Prize for Fiction and the Pen/Faulkner Award. It is 1968. Rose Clinton arrives at St Elizabeth’s, a Roman Catholic home for unwed mothers in Habit, Kentucky. Rose has fled her dull but loving husband without telling him she is pregnant and has decided to be ‘a liar for the rest of my life’. As penance, she has also abandoned her widowed and much loved mother, with no mention of her condition. Rose plans to give her baby up because she knows she cannot be the mother it needs. But St. Elizabeth’s is home to a healing spring, and when Rose's time draws near, she realises that she cannot go through with her plans. Nor can she remain untouched by those she has left behind; by the ever-watchful Sister Evangeline; by the love of Son, the handyman at St. Elizabeth; or later by the birth of her daughter Cecilia. Enchantingly graceful, Ann Patchett’s first novel is about sanctuary and pilgrimage, pain and healing and the helping hand of chance.Trade Review‘A fairy tale. A delight’ New York Times Book Review ‘Beautifully written…a first novel that second and third time novelists would envy for its grace, insight and compassion’ Boston Herald ‘Patchett is unique; a generous, fearless and startlingly wise young writer’ New York Times

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Book Synopsis From the author of the Man Booker prize-winners Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies comes a story of suburban mayhem and merciless, hilarious revenge. Barricaded inside their house filled with festering rubbish, unhealthy smells and their secrets, the Axon family baffle Isabel Field, the latest in a long line of social workers. Isabel has other problems too: a randy, untrustworthy father and a slackly romantic lover, Colin Sidney, history teacher to unresponsive yobs and father of a parcel of horrible children. With all this to worry about, how can Isabel begin to understand what is going on in the Axon household?Trade Review‘Strange…rather mad…extremely funny…she reminded me of the early Muriel Spark’ Auberon Waugh ‘Abrasive and amusing…crisp and intelligent’ Barbara Trapido ‘What a terrific book’ Fay Weldon

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Book SynopsisOne of Sidney Sheldon's most popular and bestselling titles, repackaged and reissued for a new generation of fans.A gripping, glamorous novel of scorching sensuality and heart-stopping evil.A beautiful French actress whose craving for passion and vengeance takes her from the gutters of Paris to the bedroom of a powerful billionaire; a dynamic Greek tycoon who never forgets an insult, never forgives an injury; and a handsome war hero lured from his wife by another woman.From Paris to Washington, Hollywood to the islands of Greece, The Other Side of Midnight is the story of four star-crossed lives enmeshed in a deadly ritual of passion, intrigue and corruption.Trade Review'A master storyteller' Daily Mail 'Sheldon is a writer working at the height of his power' New York Times

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Book Synopsis A Book of the Decade, 2010-2020 (Independent) A LAUGH-OUT-LOUD SATIRE ABOUT RACE, CLASS AND INEQUALITY IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICA, BY A LITERARY GENIUS AT THE TOP OF HIS GAME Winner of the Man Booker Prize, 2016 In his trademark absurdist style, Paul Beatty will make you laugh and cry in this outrageous – and outrageously entertaining – indictment of our time. Born in Dickens on the southern outskirts of Los Angeles, the narrator of The Sellout spent his childhood as the subject in his father's racially charged psychological studies. He is told that this work will lead to a memoir that will solve their financial woes. But when his father is killed in a drive-by shooting, he discovers there never was a memoir. All that’s left is a bill for a drive-thru funeral. What’s more, Dickens has literally been wiped off the map to save California from further embarrassment. Fuelled by despair, the narrator sets out to right this wrong with the most outrageous action conceivable: reinstating slavery and segregating the local high school. The results will take him from Dickens to the Supreme Court, in the trial of the century. ‘Outrageous, hilarious and profound.’ Simon Schama, Financial Times ‘The longer you stare at Beatty’s pages, the smarter you’ll get.’ Guardian ‘The most badass first 100 pages of an American novel I’ve read.’ New York TimesTrade Review‘Outrageous, hilarious and profound… It takes a whole other level of sheer audacity to expose atrocious things through the play of wit.’ FT‘The most caustic and the most badass first 100 pages of an American novel I’ve read in at least a decade... The riffs don’t stop coming in this landmark and deeply aware comic novel.' New York Times‘A book of coruscating satire and the darkest humour whose bilious narrative voice leaves you at once enthralled and exhausted’. Observer, Best Books of 2016‘A hilarious, anger-fuelled cadenza that feels as if it were written in one manic burst’. Mark Haddon, Observer, Best Books of 2016‘Brilliant. Amazing. Like demented angels wrote it.’ Sarah Silverman‘A breathtakingly confrontational American race satire with a big laugh and a gasp on every page’. Peter Bradshaw, Guardian‘One of the few books of recent years that has made me choke with laughter’. Daily Mail, Best Books of 2016‘A compelling act of demonstrative rhetoric, a masterful show of verbal energy that questions just how far equality has come and where it hopes to go’. New Statesman‘It will make you laugh, but most of all it will make you think.’ The Sunday Times‘Beatty’s sharp humour challenges pieties from all sides…Intelligent…entertaining…exhilarating’. Daily Telegraph‘Bitterly funny and finely layered…[The Sellout] seems even more essential after the racially demarcated “whitelash” of Donald Trump’s victory.’ New Statesman, Books of the Year 2016'[An] outrageous, riff-strewn satire on race in America…[The Sellout] combines effervescent comedy and stinging critique, but its most arresting quality is the lively humanity of its characters.’ The New Yorker'Brutal and full of very dark humour, it tells us so much about the state of American race relations and, by extension, our attitude to colonialism and black history. Powerful stuff.' Kit de Waal‘Hilariously caustic.’ Rolling Stone‘There’s satire and then there’s satire, and without question Paul Beatty’s caustic third novel, The Sellout, definitely falls into the latter category…brutally honest and very funny’. Independent

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Book SynopsisThe CIA take on Colombian drug lords in Tom Clancy's fifth No 1 bestseller now reissued with a new cover.Colombian drug lords, tired of being harassed by US law enforcement agents, have assassinated the American Ambassador and the visiting head of the FBI. Their message is clear: leave us alone. But they have pushed too far. The decision is made to send undercover teams into Colombia.Back in the USA, men armed with the most sophisticated tools their country can devise prepare to take the fight to the enemy. But does anyone know who the real enemy is? Jack Ryan and CIA field officer John Clark must find the answer. They expect danger from without, yet the greatest danger of all may come from withinTrade ReviewFrom the reviews of Clear and Present Danger: ‘A jump ahead of the headlines – moves with the speed of light.’New York Times ‘Clancy’s most politically sophisticated and philosophically complex thriller.’Time

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Book SynopsisIt is off-season in a remote Highland sea port: twenty-one-year-old Morvern Callar, a low-paid employee in the local supermarket, wakes one morning to find her strange boyfriend has committed suicide and is dead on their kitchen floor. Morvern's laconic reaction is both intriguing and immoral. What she does next is even more appalling...WINNER OF THE SOMERSET MAUGHAM AWARDTrade ReviewBrilliant, tender, a stylistic dazzler -- Hilary MantelA dazzling achievement * Time Out *Morvern is a brilliant creation... more than a stunning debut novel; to my mind it establishes Alan Warner as one of the most talented, original and interesting voices around -- Irvine WelshMorvern is a compelling creation; elusive, enigmatic and opaque. Both ordinary and extraordinary, she gleams out like onyx from a vivid, macabre and lyrical book * Guardian *Not since Camus' The Outsider has a voice with so many angles hopped and fluttered from the pages, has a note risen to chill in its opening breath * Scotland on Sunday *

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Book SynopsisA captivating volume of over forty short stories full of love, hope, and fear, from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Lady of Hay.Trade ReviewPraise for Barbara Erskine: ‘Her forte is mood, atmosphere and the toe-curling frisson’, Sunday Times ‘Barbara Erskine’s storytelling talent is undeniable’ The Times ‘Marvellous escapist stuff’ Woman and Home

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Book SynopsisA full-length novel by Charles Osborne adapted from Agatha Christie's stage play, in which a diplomat's wife finds a body that mustn't be discoveredFollowing BLACK COFFEE and THE UNEXPECTED GUEST comes the final Agatha Christie play novelisation, bringing her superb storytelling to a new legion of fans.Clarissa, the wife of a Foreign Office diplomat, is given to daydreaming. Supposing I were to come down one morning and find a dead body in the library, what should I do?' she muses.Clarissa has her chance to find out when she discovers a body in the drawing-room of her house in Kent. Desperate to dispose of the body before her husband comes home with an important foreign politician, Clarissa persuades her three house guests to become accessories and accomplices. It seems that the murdered man was not unknown to certain members of the house party (but which ones?), and the search begins for the murderer and the motive, while at the same time trying to persuade a police inspector that theTrade Review‘Reads like authentic, vintage Christie. I feel sure Agatha would be proud to have written it.’Mathew Prichard, Agatha Christie’s grandson, on BLACK COFFEE ‘Osborne has again enhanced the original.’Sunday Telegraph, on THE UNEXPECTED GUEST

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Book SynopsisA weekly dinner partyTen amateur sleuthsThe Tuesday Night Club murdersOn a quiet Tuesday in St Mary Mead, a group of friends gather for dinner.A policeman, a clergyman, a solicitor, an author, an artist, and an unassuming lady with a shrewd gaze Miss Jane Marple. Conversation naturally turns to crime.Each recounts a seemingly unsolvable mystery. Each thinks they know the answer.But it's the one they least expect who understands the true nature of each wicked actNever underestimate Miss MarpleBillions of readers can't be wrong.'Dreda Say MitchellThe plots are so good that one marvels . . . most of them would have made a full-length thriller.'Daily MirrorTrade Review‘Without a doubt, the greatest mystery writer of all time’ – Ragnar Jonasson ‘A hundred years after her first novel, and we are all still standing in her shadow’ – Andrew Taylor ‘She gives us an insight into human nature that few, if any, have surpassed’ – Susan Lewis ‘Dame Agatha has sold more books than all besides Shakespeare and the Bible’ – David Baldacci ‘All crime fiction writers around the globe owe Agatha Christie a massive debt’ – Peter James ‘Reading a perfectly plotted Agatha Christie is like crunching into a perfect apple: that pure, crisp, absolute satisfaction.’ – Tana French

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Book SynopsisPurposefully imitating Voltaire's classic Candide, another dark comedy which derives its humour from life's tragedies, Habiby's The Secret of Saeed the Pessoptimist is a classic of Arab literature. The story of Saeed, a Palestinian who becomes a citizen of Israel, is a story of fact and fantasy, tragedy and comedy. At once a comic hero and luckless fool, his life is full of terror, aggression, resistence and heroism. As an informer for the Zionist state, Saeed's stupidity, candour and cowardice make him more the victim than a villain; but in a series of tragicomic episodes, blundering from disaster to disaster, he is slowly transformed from gullible collaborator into a Palestinian intent on survival. The novel, informed by the author's own experience in Israeli politics, is both biting and funny. The Secret Life of Saeed the Pessoptimist was named in the top ten novels set in the Arab world by The Guardian in 2010, won the Al-Quds Prize in Palestine in 1992 and The Israel Prize for Literature, awarded by the State of Israel. It is the only novel to have the top literary award in both countries.Trade ReviewAmazing story from a most unconventional perspective. An entertaining and thought-provoking classic.A" Kirkus Review

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of Little Children' and now a major new TV series, The Leftovers' asks what if one day some of us simply vanished? And some were left behind?Following the sudden disappearance of thousands of citizens, Kevin Garvey, Mapleton's new mayor, wants to bring a sense of hope to his traumatised community, but his family has fallen apart in the wake of disaster. Kevin's wife has joined a homegrown cult, and his son is a disciple of the prophet Holy Wayne. Only Jill, Kevin's daughter, remains, and she's no longer the sweet student she once was.Written with a rare ability to illuminate our everyday struggles, The Leftovers' is a startling novel about love, connection and loss.Trade Review‘There are few writers more entertaining or adept than Tom Perrotta at explaining the frustrations, ennui and creeping darkness at the heart of American suburbia’ Vogue Magazine ‘The Steinbeck of Suburbia’ Time ‘Read The Leftovers. Don’t get left behind’ USA Today ‘The champion of stateside suburbia’ Observer

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2015 International Frank O’Connor Short Story AwardWinner of the 2015 Jerwood Fiction Uncovered PrizeShortlisted for the 2015 Wales Book of the Year: FictionShortlisted for the 2015 Edge Hill Short Story PrizeThe Globe 100: The Best International Fiction of 2017In a remote Australian settlement a young wife with an untellable secret reluctantly invites her neighbour into her home. A Quaker spinster offers companionship to a condemned man in a Colorado jail. In the ice and snows of Siberia an office employee from Birmingham witnesses a scene that will change her life. At a jubilee celebration in a northern English town a middle-aged alderman opens his heart to Queen Victoria. A teenage daughter leaves home in search of adventure. High in the Cumbrian fells a woman seeks help from her father’s enemy.Spare, precise, charged with a prickly wit, the stories in Carys Davies's sparkling second collection remind us how little we know of the lives of others.Trade ReviewExtraordinarily powerful -- VS Pritchett Prize judges Jane Gardam, Penelope Lively and Jacob Ross on The Redemption of Galen PikeThis story of brutal murder and rough justice in the American Wild West carried a real punch. As if Mark Twain and Annie Proulx had sat down at a desk together. But an original voice too. I shall be looking out for more. -- Piers PlowrightKaren E Bender, Carys Davies, Tony Earley, Kirsty Gunn and Alejandro Zambra on shortlist for world’s richest short story prize … Jennifer Hamilton-Emery of Salt Publishing said: “We were completely bowled over when we heard the news that Carys Davies' book, The Redemption of Galen Pike, had been shortlisted for the Frank O'Connor prize. It is, without doubt, the world's most prestigious prize for short stories and to have a book placed up there with the best collections internationally is something we've dreamt of for many years. We are delighted for Carys, it is a fantastic achievement, and delighted too that her book has received such recognition.” -- Martin Doyle * The Irish Times *Outstanding...perfectly distilled, intense...exquisite. * The Yorkshire Post *Confirms beyond doubt her position among the finest British exponents of a particularly challenging form. * The Irish Examiner *This delicate, magical collection won the Frank O’Connor Award for Short Stories and the Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize and it’s easy to see why. They are precise but full of beautifully observed details that fill compact vignettes with incident and emotion. -- Charlotte Heathcote * Daily Express *This book is so wonderful! It’s fantastic. -- Sarah Jessica Parker * Read It Forward! *Her collection, The Redemption of Galen Pike, is published by the small UK independent press Salt. Its subjects span the world, with stories set everywhere from a remote Australian settlement, where a young wife has a secret, to a Colorado jail, where a Quaker woman meets a condemned man in his final hours in the title story. -- Alison Flood * The Guardian *One of the things that I loved so much about The Redemption of Galen Pike is one of the things that makes it incredibly difficult to write about – the scope of these stories in both time and place are epic… It is simply a stunning collection of stories. -- Simon Savidge * Savidge Reads *This sophisticated collection observes that everyone contains multitudes, and people’s darkest corners are what make them interesting. The book never falters in its delicate touch and confident, nuanced observations about the human condition. * Publishers Weekly *It’s little wonder that Davies was winner of the 2015 Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award, a prize previously given to the likes of Yiyun Li, Jhumpa Lahiri, Haruki Murakami and Edna O’Brien. The Redemption of Galen Pike is a stunning achievement, and Carys Davies a writer to celebrate. -- Stephen Finucan * The Star *Table of Contents The Quiet On Commercial Hill Jubilee The Travellers Myth Bonnet First Journeyman Precious The Taking of Bunny Clay Miracle at Hawk’s Bay In the Cabin in the Woods The Coat The Redemption of Galen Pike Wicked Fairy Creed Nothing Like My Nightmare Sibyl Notes & Acknowledgements Note on ‘Bonnet’

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of the internationally acclaimed, Whitbread Award-winning The Harmony Silk Factory' comes an enthralling new novel that evokes an exotic yet turbulent and often frightening world.Sixteen-year-old Adam is an orphan three times over. He and his older brother, Johan, were abandoned by their mother as children; he watched as Johan was adopted and taken away by a wealthy couple; and he had to hide when Karl, the Dutch man who raised him, was arrested by soldiers during Sukarno's drive to purge 1960s Indonesia of its colonial past.Adam sets out on a quest to find Karl, but all he has to guide him are some old photos and letters, which send him to the colourful, dangerous capital, Jakarta. Johan, meanwhile, is living a seemingly carefree, privileged life in Malaysia, but is careening out of control, unable to forget the long-ago betrayal of his helpless, trusting brother.Map of the Invisible World' is a masterful novel, and confirms Tash Aw as one of the most exciting young wrTrade Review'Aw's first novel was a sublime piece of work that Doris Lessing called "unputdownable". She will find this one similarly mesmerising…This is absolutely stunning writing – Aw is emerging as a master storyteller.' The Times 'Aw's prose can be powerful and mesmerising in its sense of place…and psychological acuity. Haunting and memorable.' Maya Jaggi, Guardian 'Aw is a writer of great power and delicacy, as able to conjure stampeding crowds as the glow of fireflies.' Daily Mail 'Aw's sinuous writing vividly brings the turbulent social backdrop to life.' Sunday Times 'His prose is vividly lyrical; and one can almost feel the heat and smell the sweat of Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur.' Independent 'Buoyant, limber, confidently told…a book embodying huge ambition, jostling with love, betrayal and guilt, all set poignantly and subtly against the politics of turmoil in post-colonial Indonesia circa 1964.' Scotsman ‘An intelligent second novel…Aw’s characteristic tone is a fine lyricism that, at best owes something to Michael Ondaatje or Anne Michaels…Aw has an exceptional talent for set pieces.’ Sunday Telegraph

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE BAILEYS WOMEN''S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2016Growing up in Zagreb in the summer of 1991, 10-year-old Ana Juric is a carefree tomboy; she runs the streets with her best friend, Luka, helps take care of her baby sister, Rahela, and idolizes her father. But when civil war breaks out across Yugoslavia, football games and school lessons are supplanted by sniper fire and air raid drills. The brutal ethnic cleansing of Croats and Bosnians tragically changes Ana''s life, and she is lost to a world of genocide and child soldiers; a daring escape plan to America becomes her only chance for survival. Ten years later she returns to Croatia, a young woman struggling to belong to either country, forced to confront the trauma of her past and rediscover the place that was once her home.Trade Review[A] powerful, superbly written debut * Paperbacks of the Week, Mail on Sunday *Set against the backdrop of the Bosnian Croat war, this vivid debut recalls Half of a Yellow Sun. Main character Ana's journey from a ten-year-old tomboy to young woman will leave you reeling * Stylist *I read it in one night...devastating...Novic excels at distilling visual poetry from action scenes . . . [she] has breathed fire and ice into these pages. Immersing herself in the darkest materials, she has given us the real stuff dystopian fantasies are made of * Guardian *An outstanding first novel . . . Girl at War performs the miracle of making the stories of broken lives in a distant country feel as large and universal as myth * New York Times Book Review (Editor's Choice) *Astonishing . . . Girl at War is an extraordinarily poised and potent debut novel, a story about grief and exile, memory and identity, and the redemptive power of love * Financial Times *A shattering debut . . . The book begins with what deserves to become one of contemporary literature's more memorable opening lines. The sentences that follow are equally as lyrical as a folk lament and as taut as metal wire wrapped through an electrified fence * USA Today *Novic's debut novel draws on her personal experiences of the break-up of the former Yugoslavia to craft a fiction that is heartfelt, in places harrowing, but ultimately redemptive * Mail on Sunday *From its first sentence, Sara Novic's debut novel unfolds on both intimate and immense scales . . . The first section ends with a brilliantly abrupt, devastating event that essentially ends Ana's childhood. It's a scene that haunts the rest of the book . . . [Novic is]a writer whose own gravity and talent anchor this novel * New York Times *The first third of this gripping debut novel depicts the start of the Yugoslavian civil war through the eyes of Ana Juric, a ten-year-old girl residing with her family in Croatia's capital . . . Through Ana's journey, Novic, in tender and eloquent prose, explores the challenge of how to live even after one has survived * Oprah magazine *If we looked for and celebrated a "book of the summer" as we do that one song every year (what will it be this year?!), this novel would surely be this summer's star. This debut work from a rising author examines in painful, tender detail the cost of war on a young woman, many years after her simple life with her family in Croatia was interrupted by war. Ana, the main character, is haunted by the memories of what she thought her country once was, and how to deal with the secrets of what really happened to her and her family. * Vanity Fair *Powerful and vividly wrought . . . Novic writes about horrors with an elegant understatement. In cool, accomplished sentences, we are met with the gravity, brutality and even the mundaneness of war and loss as well as the enduring capacity to live * San Francisco Chronicle *A powerful and unforgettable novel that made me see Croatia in a whole new light * Stylist *Sara Novic's powerful debut novel, Girl at War, is a superb exploration of conflict and its aftermath, and a stark reminder that while ceasefires and peace treaties may end the fighting, they don't always end the suffering * The National *There is something about a child's loss...that, done the right way, positively sears...Sara Novic rises to the challenge beautifully...Note perfect and ambitious in scope...make no mistake, at once visceral, tender and affecting, Novic and her debut are sitting pretty in a league of their own * Irish Independent *Novic's narrative is matter of fact, a chillingly effective way of describing the damage done by the war and its emotional impact on Ana * Sunday Express *Remarkable -- Julia Glass * Boston Globe *A searing debut novel, one whose content lingers with you long after you have closed the pages * Herald *I think that if you are going to read only one book this year, you should make it Girl at War. Highly recommended! * Onmybookshelf *If there's one good thing about the Booker Prize opening to American novels, it's that Girl at War can go up for it * Workshyfop *Novic's debut novel is a stunning account of how the horrors and atrocities of war creep into everyday life and slowly tear apart the world of a young girl * Postgraduate Contemporary Women's Writing Network *A truly powerful, haunting debut . . . that has made an unforgettable impression upon me * Laura's Little Book Blog *It always feel weird to call a book with such tragic subject matter a favourite, but I don't know a better way to explain just how highly I think of this book and how much it got under my skin. It is now, without doubt, one of my all-time favourite books. I stayed up all night just to read it and it was so beautiful and sad and heartbreakingly honest. I'd rate the book 5 stars out of 5 and I can't wait until I can buy a physical copy so it can take its well-earned place on my favourite's shelf * Bloggers-Heart-Books *Girl at War depicts the still-fresh nightmare of the Yugoslavian civil war, survived by a girl much too young to know all she knows. Sara Novic writes with ruthless understatement not only about a modern city subjected to primitive horrors, but about young Ana's subsequent war against the American urge to forget. Sentence after perfectly weighted sentence lands with the sound of a gavel. The first fifty pages might be the best fifty pages you read this year * Jonathan Dee, author of the Pulitzer Prize finalist The Privileges and A Thousand Pardons *a searing debut novel, one whose content lingers with you long after you have closed the pages * Herald *Girl at War performs the miracle of making the stories of broken lives in a distant country feel as large and universal as myth. It is a brutal novel, but a beautiful one * New York Times *

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Book SynopsisThe sixth book in the multi-million copy bestselling No. 1 Ladies'' Detective Agency seriesThe one where Mma Makutsi finds a dancing partner . . . Although Mma Ramotswe and Mr J. L. B. Matekoni have finally settled down, at the shared premises of the No. 1 Ladies'' Detective Agency and Speedy Motors, the staff - especially Mma Makutsi and Charlie the garage apprentice - are not mixing in a perfectly peaceful manner. But in the course of investigating her latest case, of a very unhappy young lady, Mma Ramotswe''s tiny white van comes into contact with a man on a bicycle who might be able to restore harmony. And Mma Makutsi does at last seem to have found someone special... ''A rare pleasure'' Daily Telegraph''Gentle, rich'' Sunday Times''A strong, independent and endearing model for contemporary women'' Boston Globe''A literary confection... there is no end to the pleasTrade ReviewA rare pleasure * Daily Telegraph *Forget the library - the body is in the mud hut. An African Miss Marple created by a Scottish lawyer . . . superb * Sunday Times *One of the most entrancing literary treats of many a year * Wall Street Journal *A strong, independent, and endearing model for contemporary women anywhere . . . A crowded fictional genre will have to make room for Precious Ramotswe. In the best sense possible, she's a heavyweight * Boston Globe *McCall Smith's style melts words into instant meaning and the music of all the novel's principal voices is a chorus you cannot resist * Scotsman *A literary confection... Fortunately, since texts aren't cakes, there is no end to the pleasure * New York Times Book Review *Enchanting... In the Company of Cheerful Ladies may be the most compelling of the lot * Daily News *Beguiling, lyrical... blessed with McCall Smith's richly detailed portraits of life in Africa and his flair for storytelling with an engaging cast of fully realized characters * Los Angeles Times *A rare pleasure * Daily Telegraph *Forget the library - the body is in the mud hut. An African Miss Marple created by a Scottish lawyer . . . superb * Sunday Times *One of the most entrancing literary treats of many a year * Wall Street Journal *A strong, independent, and endearing model for contemporary women anywhere . . . A crowded fictional genre will have to make room for Precious Ramotswe. In the best sense possible, she's a heavyweight * Boston Globe *

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Book SynopsisFrom the highly-acclaimed author of SMALL PLEASURES - winner of the 2022 British Book Awards Page-TurnerWithout even noticing, Esther Fairchild has become locked into routine.Living with her adored brother, Christian, she divides her time between illustrating children''s books, nightly shifts as a waitress, weekly visits to her father and fortnightly meetings with her married lover.Then one day she encounters a face in the crowd which jolts her out of her mundane existence and makes her question both her life and the past that has helped to shape it. Memories she had long chosen to forget begin to resurface. Memories of an eccentric childhood in a large and shabby house, where the children were left to fend for themselves within the loose boundaries of their parents'' unorthodox values. A chaotic existence peopled by a rich collection of feckless ''guests''.And into this shambolic world came Dono

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Book SynopsisThe Gingerbreadman - psychopath, sadist, convicted murderer and cake/biscuit - is loose on the streets of Reading. It isn''t Jack Spratt''s case. Despite the success of the Humpty Dumpty investigation, the well publicised failure to prevent Red Riding-Hood and her Gran being eaten once again plunges the Nursery Crime Division into controversy. Enforced non-involvement with the Gingerbreadman hunt looks to be frustrating until a chance encounter at the oddly familiar Deja-Vu Club leads them onto the hunt for missing journalist Henrietta ''Goldy'' Hatchett, star reporter for The Daily Toad. The last witnesses to see her alive were The Three Bears, comfortably living out a life of rural solitude in Andersen''s wood. But all is not what it seems. Are the unexplained explosions around the globe somehow related to missing nuclear scientist Angus McGuffin? Is cucumber-growing really that dangerous? Why are National Security involved? But most important of all: How could theTrade Review'With its witty literary allusions, social satire and blurred boundaries between fiction and reality, it's all completely mad, very funny . . . It also adds to Fforde's growing reputation as one of Britain's most inventive novelists and the thriller element keeps you guessing too.' * Word *'What makes Fforde a star is not his ebullient cleverness, but the elusive sympathy factor. However ridiculous his themes seem, his characters have a compelling immediacy.' * Independent *'What makes Fforde a star is not his ebullient cleverness, but the elusive sympathy factor. However ridiculous his themes seem, his characters have a compelling immediacy.' * Independent *'It would be hard not to be won over by Fforde's undeniable energy and the sheer, unrelenting number of gags' * Daily Mail *'THE FOURTH BEAR sees one of our funniest and most inventive authors at the height of his powers. The jokes come so fast that it is clear the author simply let his imagination off the leash and had a great time while writing it. You will have a great time reading it too.' * Daily Express *'Fforde is inventive and hugely funny.' * The Times *'It would be hard not to be won over by Fforde's undeniable energy and the sheer, unrelenting number of gags' * Daily Mail *'THE FOURTH BEAR is a great choice as it has everything - humour, intrigue and cucumbers as a matter of national security . . . will have you wondering how you haven't discovered Fforde before.' * Anys Scoular, Observer *'THE FOURTH BEAR is a great choice as it has everything - humour, intrigue and cucumbers as a matter of national security . . . will have you wondering how you haven't discovered Fforde before.' * Anys Scoular, Observer *'THE FOURTH BEAR sees one of our funniest and most inventive authors at the height of his powers. The jokes come so fast that it is clear the author simply let his imagination off the leash and had a great time while writing it. You will have a great time reading it too.' * Daily Express *'Fforde is inventive and hugely funny.' * The Times *'With its witty literary allusions, social satire and blurred boundaries between fiction and reality, it's all completely mad, very funny . . . It also adds to Fforde's growing reputation as one of Britain's most inventive novelists and the thriller element keeps you guessing too.' * Word *Praise for Jasper Fforde's new crime series * : *'Fforde's dexterously tailored nonsense has an underlying thread of shrewd satire, and the author's own wry, dry narration helps to compensate for the omission in this abridgement of so many of his gloriously surreal jokes.' * The Times *'Jasper Fforde is flavour of the comedy month, and this genial spoof whodunit if a fine example of his style... Fforde is a relaxed, polished storyteller who never falls in love with his own cleverness' * Sunday Telegraph *I love it. THE BIG OVER EASY is great not just because it's very funny...but also because it works properly as a whodunit...Comic genius. * Observer *A riot of puns, in-jokes and literary allusions that Fforde carries off with aplomb * Daily Mail *'This novel is a wonderful combination of silliness and cleverness, and a delightful holiday from reality. It's got such a good comic premise that it would work even if played straight, but virtually every page is adorned with puns, gags, tongue-twisters or comic setpieces, keeping the reader in a perpetual state of amusement.' * Independent on Sunday *'This is the first of best-selling Fforde's hilarious, absurd and utterly compelling new series of nursery crimes for adults.' * Daily Mirror *'This book, energetic, entertaining and packed with gags, is unlike anything you'll ever read.' * Telegraph *'Fforde's dexterously tailored nonsense has an underlying thread of shrewd satire, and the author's own wry, dry narration helps to compensate for the omission in this abridgement of so many of his gloriously surreal jokes.' * The Times *'This novel is a wonderful combination of silliness and cleverness, and a delightful holiday from reality. It's got such a good comic premise that it would work even if played straight, but virtually every page is adorned with puns, gags, tongue-twisters or comic setpieces, keeping the reader in a perpetual state of amusement.' * Independent on Sunday *

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Book Synopsis''Destined to provide many hours of pleasurable reading'' Woman & HomeWhat will happen when the party''s over?The autumn leaves are beginning to fall just as Alexa arrives back in Scotland for the first time in years, looking forward to seeing her family at her grandmother''s birthday party. But then Pandora turns up. Pandora, the wild child who ran away many years ago. The one who might have had an affair with Alexa''s father . . .As secrets come out and old wounds are laid bare, the family must come together in love and forgiveness - or risk being torn apart forever.READERS ADORE SEPTEMBER:''The writing is so lyrical. Pilcher made me remember being a kid again'' Reader review ?????''Pilcher''s descriptions of Scotland are beautiful. You can feel the chill in the September air as Autumn begins to settle over the countryside'' Reader review ?????''SuchTrade ReviewA wonderful, not-to-be-missed novel that is destined to provide many hours of pleasurable reading * Woman and Home *Pilcher's storytelling skills are serene and beguiling * The Times *It is never too soon to discover Rosamunde Pilcher * Good Housekeeping *Whether she is being poignant, wry or perceptive, Rosamunde Pilcher is always gentle * Woman's Realm *

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Book Synopsis From the author of Wolf Hall, Bring Up the Bodies and The Mirror & the Light, comes the true story of the 18th Century Irish giant, Charles O’Brien, who was exhibited in London and eventually dissected by the surgeon John Hunter. Charles O’Brien, bard and giant. The cynical are moved by his flights of romance; the craven stirred by his tales of epic deeds. But what of his own story as he is led from Ireland to seek his fortune beyond the seas in England? The Surprising Irish Giant may be the sensation of the season but only his compatriots seem to attend to his mythic powers of invention. John Hunter, celebrated surgeon and anatomist, buys dead men from the gallows and babies’ corpses by the inch. Where is a man as unique as The Giant to hide his bones when he is yet alive? The Giant, O’ Brien is an unforgettable novel; lyrical, shocking and spliced with black comedy.Trade Review‘[A] novel that magically creates an illusion of the Age of Enlightenment. Hilary Mantel puts the stink of the eighteenth century into our nostrils’ Independent ‘A novelist of remarkable diversity…She writes about curiosity, companionship, art, love, death and eternity. She writes with wit, compassion and great elegance. Her books never fail to surprise, nor to delight: in this one she is at her very best – so far’ Independent on Sunday ‘Mantel can out-write most writers of her generation, male and female. What she has done here is disturbing, grievous and extraordinary.’ Maggie Gee, Sunday Times 'Filled with bizarre happenings, brazen images and characters whose earthiness you can smell.' TES 'Hilary Mantel has felt herself into the poetics of history with singular intensity.' New York Review 'Pathos and humour as they are elsewhere in the book are blended to perfection.' Sunday Telegraph 'Simultaneously vigorous and poetic, full of satisfying earthy details.' Sunday Independent (Ireland)

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Book SynopsisAt moments when reality shows itself to be unstable or uncanny, we experience a form of vertigo. This experience is further complicated when we try to transform experience into writing, and fact clashes with memory. Sebald's novel, part fiction, part travelogue explores this theme.Trade ReviewNothing like Vertigo is likely to be encountered in the course of one's regular reading. One emerges from it shaken, seduced, and deeply impressed * Spectator *Where has one heard in English a voice of such confidence and precision, so direct in its expression of feeling, yet so respectfully devoted to "the real"? * Times Literary Supplement *Possessed of a richness and strangeness that would put most other writers to shame. Sebald's journey into himself and his past is compelling, puzzling, unique * The Times *As a reader, you find his prose wrapping itself, wraith-like, round your imagination, casting a baffling and indefinable spell.it works triumphantly well. The fact that W.G. Sebald chooses to tease, dazzle and mystify should not blind us to the fact that he does the one thing that every novelist should do: he entertains, provokes, stimulates and inspires * Observer *

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Book SynopsisShe''s a catwalk model who has everything: a boyfriend, a career, a loyal best friend. But when a sudden motor ''accident'' leaves her disfigured and incapable of speech, she goes from being the beautiful centre of attention to being an invisible monster, so hideous that no one will acknowledge she exists. Enter Brandy Alexander, Queen Supreme, one operation away from being a real woman, who will teach her that reinventing yourself means erasing your past and making up something better, and that salvation hides in the last place you''ll ever want to look. The narrator must exact revenge upon Evie, her best friend and fellow model; kidnap Manus, her two-timing ex-boyfriend; and hit the road with Brandy in search of a brand-new past, present and future.Trade ReviewChuck Paluhniuk is on outstanding writer, who has never failed, in my eyes, at producing beautiful novels… [Invisible Monsters] never fails to shock as you follow the twists and turns of this revenge filled novel -- Abi Donoghue * Pluto Online *Maybe our generation has found its Don DeLillo -- Bret Easton EllisThis is a wild ride of a novel * Booklist *Palahniuk is one of the freshest, most intriguing voices to appear in a long time. He rearranges Vonnegut's sly humour, DeLillo's mordant social analysis and Pynchon's antic surrealism into a gleaming puzzle palace all his own * New York Newsday *

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Book SynopsisGraham Greene was born in 1904. He worked as a journalist and critic, and in 1940 became literary editor of the Spectator. He was later employed by the Foreign Office. As well as his many novels, Graham Greene wrote several collections of short stories, four travel books, six plays, three books of autobiography, two of biography and four books for children. He also wrote hundreds of essays, and film and book reviews. Graham Greene was a member of the Order of Merit and a Companion of Honour. He died in April 1991.Trade ReviewThe most ingenious, inventive and exciting of our novelists - V S Pritchett, The TimesThe only book I have ever written just for the fun of it -- Graham GreeneNo serious writer of [the twentith century] has more thoroughly invaded and shaped the public imagination than Graham Greene - Time Rich in exactly etched and moving portraits of real human beings...the tragic and comic ironies of love, loyalty and belief * The Times *

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Book SynopsisA BBC Two Between the Covers Pick'A tragicomic masterpiece' Daily TelegraphAll that stands between one man and murder by the mafia is a penguin.Viktor is an aspiring writer in Ukraine with only Misha, his pet penguin, for company.Although Viktor would prefer to write short stories, he earns a living composing obituaries for a newspaper. He longs to see his work published, yet the subjects of his obituaries continue to cling to life.But when Viktor opens the newspaper to see his work in print for the first time, his pride swiftly turns to terror. Viktor and Misha have been drawn into a trap from which there appears to be no escape.'A striking portrait of post-Soviet isolation... In this bleak moral landscape Kurkov manages to find ample refuge for his dark humour' New York TimesTrade ReviewA tragicomic masterpiece * Daily Telegraph *The deadpan tone works perfectly and it will be a hard-hearted reader who is not touched by Viktor's relationship with his unusual pet * The Times *A black comedy of rare dinstinction and the penguin is an invention of genius * Spectator *A chilling black comedy * Guardian *A striking portrait of post-Soviet isolation... In this bleak moral landscape Kurkov manages to find ample refuge for his dark humour * New York Times *

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Book Synopsis* THE ELEVENTH NOVEL IN THE BESTSELLING MODESTY BLAISE SERIES * 'The finest escapist thrillers ever written' THE TIMES 'Before Buffy, before Charlie's Angels, before Purdy and Emma Peel, there was Modesty Blaise' OBSERVERThe headquarters of 'The Hostel of Righteousness' is an old monastery on the small Greek island Kalivari. But there is nothing holy about the organisation. On the contrary, Dr. Thaddeus Pilgrim and his followers are among the most unholy people you could have the misfortune of meeting.Willie Garvin and Modesty Blaise are targeted by Dr. Pilgrim, who has an obsession for creating 'interesting scenarios'. Willie is kidnapped and brought to Kalivari under heavy sedation, then brainwashed to believe that Modesty has been murdered by a woman called Delilah. The twist? Willie is convinced that 'Delilah' is a woman who looks exactly like Modesty herself. Now the two comrades are pitted against one another, and Dr. Pilgrim's diabolical plan may well lead to their deaths.Trade ReviewThese books are the finest escapist thrillers ever written * The Times *In the beginning there was Modesty. Cooler than the pretentious James Bond, tougher than the brain-dead Mike Hammer -- Lauren Henderson, author of Dead White FemaleBefore Buffy, before Charlie's Angels, before Purdy and Emma Peel there was Modesty Blaise. For almost 40 years, Peter O'Donnell's iconic heroine drop-kicked her way through a swath of villains and into a unique place in popular culture * Observer *One of the great partnerships in fiction, bearing comparison with that of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson -- Kingsley AmisO'Donnell is one of those rare popular writers, like Josephine Tey or P.G. Wodehouse, who inspire not just fandom but love * New York Times *Modesty Blaise was the comic-strip criminal genius, turned occasional secret service operative, who managed to combine timeless beauty and elegance with the ability to break every bone in your body... there's never been a better time to become acquainted * The Crack *The continuing renaissance of the immortal heroine: thrilling, humorous and timeless adventures, the Modesty Blaise series are seminal British crime novels * Crime Time *The stories of Modesty are better than James Bond and funnier * Tribune *

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Book SynopsisThe tortured face of a young killer, one of seven boys on trial for a brutal murder, started country preacher David Wilkerson on his lonely crusade to the most dangerous streets in the world.Violent gangs ruled by warlords, drug pushers and pimps held the streets of New York's ghettoes in an iron grip. It was into this world that David Wilkerson stepped, armed only with the simple message of God's love and the promise of the Holy Spirit's power.Then the miracles began to happenThe Cross and the Switchblade is one of the most inspiring and challenging true stories of all time. It has sold millions of copies throughout the world and has been made into a feature film.

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