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
Penguin Books Ltd A Good Man in Africa
Book SynopsisWilliam Boyd was born in 1952 in Accra, Ghana and grew up there and in Nigeria. His first novel, A Good Man in Africa (1981), won the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Somerset Maugham Prize. His other novels include An Ice Cream War (1982, shortlisted for the 1982 Booker Prize and winner of the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize), Stars and Bars (1984), The New Confessions (1987), Brazzaville Beach (1990, winner of the McVitie Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize), The Blue Afternoon (1993, winner of the 1993 Sunday Express Book of the Year Award), Armadillo (1998), Any Human Heart (2002, winner of the Prix Jean Monnet) and Restless (2006, winner of the Costa Novel of the Year Award). His latest novel is Sweet Caress (2015). Some seventeen of his screenplays have been filmed, including The Trench (1999), which he also directed, and he is also the author of four collections of short stories: On the Yankee StatioTrade ReviewWickedly funny * The Times *If a widening grin is the test of a novel's entertainment value in retrospect, A Good Man in Africa romps home * Guardian *A delight * Washington Post *Uproariously funny * Observer *
£9.49
Penguin Books Ltd Howards End
Book SynopsisE. M. Forster's meticulously observed drama of class warfare exploring the conflict inherent within English society—the inspiration for the award-winning two-part play The Inheritance, now on BroadwayOnly connect... A chance acquaintance brings together the preposterous bourgeois Wilcox family and the clever, cultured and idealistic Schlegel sisters. As clear-eyed Margaret develops a friendship with Mrs Wilcox, the impetuous Helen brings into their midst a young bank clerk named Leonard Bast, who lives at the edge of poverty and ruin. When Mrs Wilcox dies, her family discovers that she wants to leave her country home, Howards End, to Margaret. Thus as Forster sets in motion a chain of events that will entangle three different families, he brilliantly portrays their aspirations to personal and social harmony. David Lodge's introduction provides an absorbing and eloquent overture to the 1910 novel that established Forster's reputation as an imporTrade ReviewWith a new Introduction by James IvoryCommentary by Virginia Woolf, Lionel Trilling, Malcolm Bradbury, and Joseph Epstein"Howards End is a classic English novel . . . superb and wholly cherishable . . . one that admirers have no trouble reading over and over again," said Alfred Kazin.First published in 1910, Howards End is the novel that earned E. M. Forster recognition as a major writer. At its heart lie two families—the wealthy and business-minded Wilcoxes and the cultured and idealistic Schlegels. When the beautiful and independent Helen Schlegel begins an impetuous affair with the ardent Paul Wilcox, a series of events is sparked—some very funny, some very tragic—that results in a dispute over who will inherit Howards End, the Wilcoxes' charming country home. As much about the clash between individual wills as the clash between the sexes and the classes, Howards End is a novel whose central tenet, "Only connect," remains a powerful prescription for modern life."Howards End is undoubtedly Forster's masterpiece; it develops to their full the themes and attitudes of [his] early books and throws back upon them a new and enhancing light," wrote the critic Lionel Trilling.
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd Men at Arms Penguin Modern Classics
Book SynopsisGuy Crouchback, determined to get into the war, takes a commission in the Royal Corps of Halberdiers. His spirits high, he sees all the trimmings but none of the action. And his first campaign, an abortive affair on the West African coastline, ends with an escapade which seriously blots his Halberdier copybook. Men at Arms is the first book in Waugh''s brilliant trilogy, Sword of Honour, which chronicles the fortunes of Guy Crouchback. The second and third volumes, Officers and Gentlemen and Unconditional Surrender, are also published in Penguin Modern Classics.Trade ReviewA comic genius -- Peter Parker * The Times Literary Supplement *
£9.49
Penguin Books Ltd Embers
Book Synopsis''Wonderful. Immensely moving'' Daily TelegraphAs darkness settles on a forgotten castle at the foot of the Carpathian mountains, two men sit down to a final meal together. They have not seen one another in forty-one years. At their last meeting, in the company of a beautiful woman, an unspoken act of betrayal left all three lives shattered - and each of them alone. Tonight, as wine stirs the blood, it is time to talk of old passions and that last, fateful meeting.''Extraordinary. Elegiac, sombre, musical and gripping. An immensely wise book'' Observer''A masterpiece. Works beautifully as a novel of suspense ... whose denouement is as exciting as a detective tale. It is a thrill to read something so startlingly original'' Evening Standard''Utterly compelling. An extraordinary and beautiful novel'' Scotsman ''One of those novels which stays in the memory long after it has been put down. A masterpiece'' SundayTrade ReviewTwo men who have not seen each other for over 40 years sit down to a final meal together in a forgotten castle at the foot of the Carpathia mountains. The last time they met - in the company of a beautiful woman - an unspoken act of betrayal left all three lives shattered.
£9.49
Penguin Books Ltd Jewell L Vince and Joy
Book SynopsisThe huge bestseller from the author of The Family Upstairs and The Girls - a love story for anyone who adored One Day in December and David Nicholls. Sometimes, finding your destiny is easy. Following it, isn''t...When Vince and Joy meet on holiday, their connection is instant and, before long, they are head over heels in love. But, after two blissful weeks, a misunderstanding forces them apart. When they cross paths seven years later, they realise they've been living very different lives. Yet neither of them has been able to let go of their first love. . .Sometimes you meet the right person at the wrong time. But can you ever know if this is the right time?''Vince and Joy got me through a hard time. Gave me the strength to walk away from my situation. When we read books about characters we can relate to, it makes us feel less alone. An Trade ReviewOne of those rare books with the variety, complexity and unexpectedness of real life . . . Fans of chick-lit will understand when I say that this is a book you simply disappear into * Sunday Telegraph *Magnetic, unpretentious and bursting with one-liners * Cosmopolitan *Fun and witty . . . one of the top chick-lit authors * Reveal *If you believe fate plays a hand in all our love lives, you just won't be able to put Vince and Joy down * Heat *That happy-ending feeling lingers long after the book's back on the shelf. We love Vince and Joy * Prima *Classy, evocative, intelligent and insightful * Company *A perfect holiday book * OK *A gem of a read * Grazia *An easy, feel-good read * Closer *A richly rewarding read * Eve *
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd Forever Amber
Book SynopsisA book to read and reread, this reissue brings back to print an unforgettable romance and a timeless masterpiece.Abandoned pregnant and penniless on the teeming streets of London, sixteen-year-old Amber St. Clare uses her wits, beauty and courage to climb to the highest position a woman could achieve in Restoration England - that of favourite mistress of the Merry Monarch himself, Charles II. From whores and highwaymen to courtiers and noblemen, from the Great Plague and the Fire of London to the intimate passions of ordinary - and extraordinary - men and women, Amber experiences it all. But throughout her trials and escapades, she remains, in her heart, true to the one man she really loves, the one man she can never have ...
£17.09
Penguin Books Ltd The Good Soldier vejk and his Fortunes in the
Book SynopsisThe inspiration for such works as Joseph Heller''s Catch-22, Jaroslav Hašek''s black satire The Good Soldier Švejk is translated with an introduction by Cecil Parrott in Penguin Classics.Good-natured and garrulous, Švejk becomes the Austro-Hungarian army''s most loyal Czech soldier when he is called up on the outbreak of the First World War - although his bumbling attempts to get to the front serve only to prevent him from reaching it. Playing cards, getting drunk and becoming a general nuisance, the resourceful Švejk uses all his natural cunning and genial subterfuge to deal with the doctors, police, clergy and officers who chivvy him towards battle. The story of a ''little man'' caught in a vast bureaucratic machine, The Good Soldier Švejk combines dazzling wordplay and piercing satire to create a hilariously subversive depiction of the futility of war.Cecil Parrott''s vibrant, unabridged and unbowdlerized translation is accompanied by an intro
£11.69
The New York Review of Books, Inc The Book Of Ebenezer Le Page
Book SynopsisEbenezer Le Page, cantankerous, opinionated, and charming, is one of the most compelling literary creations of the late twentieth century. Eighty years old, Ebenezer has lived his whole life on the Channel Island of Guernsey, a stony speck of a place caught between the coasts of England and France yet a world apart from either. Ebenezer himself is fiercely independent, but as he reaches the end of his life he is determined to tell his own story and the stories of those he has known. He writes of family secrets and feuds, unforgettable friendships and friendships betrayed, love glimpsed and lost. The Book of Ebenezer Le Page is a beautifully detailed chronicle of a life, but it is equally an oblique reckoning with the traumas of the twentieth century, as Ebenezer recalls both the men lost to the Great War and the German Occupation of Guernsey during World War II, and looks with despair at the encroachments of commerce and tourism on his beloved island. G. B. Edwards labored in obscurity all his life and completed The Book of Ebenezer Le Page shortly before his death. Published posthumously, the book is a triumph of the storyteller’s art that conjures up the extraordinary voice of a living man.'Imagine a weekend spent in deep conversation with a superb old man, a crusty, intelligent, passionate and individualistic character at the peak of his powers as a raconteur, and you will have a very good ideas of the impact of The Book of Ebenezer Le Page...It amuses, it entertains, it moves us...” -The Washington Post'A true epic, as sexy as it is hilarious, it seems drenched with the harsh tidal beauties of its setting...For every person nearing retirement, every latent writer who hopes to leave his island and find the literary mainland, its author-quiet, self-sufficient, tidy Homeric-remains a patron saint.' -Allan Gurganus, O Magazine
£12.59
HarperCollins Publishers The Cottingley Secret
Book SynopsisThe New York Times bestselling author turns the clock back to a time when two young girls convinced the world that fairies really did exist1917: When two young cousins, Frances Griffiths and Elsie Wright from Cottingley, England, announce they have photographed fairies at the bottom of the garden, their parents are astonished. But when the great novelist, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, endorses the photographs' authenticity, the girls become a sensation; their discovery offering something to believe in amid a world ravaged by war.One hundred years later When Olivia Kavanagh finds an old manuscript and a photograph in her late grandfather's bookshop she becomes fascinated by the story of the two young girls who mystified the world. As Olivia is drawn into events a century ago, she becomes aware of the past and the present intertwining, blurring her understanding of what is real and what is imagined. As she begins to understand why a nation once believed in fairies, will Olivia find a way to believe in herself?Trade ReviewPraise for The Cottingley Secret ‘Enchanting, magical… This book reminds us that we are never too old to believe in magic.’ Carmel Harrington ‘Perfect fireside read’ Sunday Independent ‘This is a gorgeous, uplifting, magical book that will have you hooked from the start.’ Gill Paul author of The Secret Wife ‘I adored The Cottingley Secret … an enchanting and enthralling tale of childhood magic.’ Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author of The Orphan's Tale ‘An artful weaving of old legends with new realities’ Kate Alcott, author of The Dressmaker ‘Brings the mystery of the Cottingley Fairies thrillingly to life’ Kate Forsyth author of Bitter Greens ‘A magical journey in perfect prose’ Books Ireland Praise for Hazel Gaynor: ‘Addictive, charming and gleaming with Jazz Age glitz’ The Lady ‘Sumptuous, gorgeous, authentic and surprising, Hazel Gaynor has written another hit.’ Sunday Independent ‘Peopled with unforgettable characters…Once begun, I dare you to put it down.’ Kathleen Tessaro, author of The Perfume Collector
£8.99
HarperCollins Publishers The Canal Boat Cafe
Book SynopsisWarm and wonderfulbursting with characters you'll adore' Miranda DickinsonA complete novel, first published as a four-part series.Summer Freeman returns to the waterside village of Willowbeck to rescue the Canal Boat Café, her late mother's picturesque narrowboat, which has run into choppy waters. A family friend, Valerie, has been trying to keep things afloat, but the coffee machine is jammed, the cake offerings are paltry, and not all of the locals want to see the café succeed.Help comes from the boat next door, in the shape of handsome wildlife photographer, Mason and his naughty Border Terrier, who are showing more than a passing interest in Summer and her adorable Bichon Frise, Latte. But is Mason being honest about himself? Or does he have something to hide?As her life and the community of Willowbeck begin to entwine, Summer finds herself setting sail on a new adventure. Will the anchor of a steady life on land be too strong, or can Summer learn to cut loose and embrace life afloTrade ReviewPraise for Cressida McLaughlin: 'A lovely, warm gem of a series that stays with you…I loved it’ Alexandra Brown ‘Like a lovely warm hug in a book.’ Kirsty Greenwood ‘Warm and wonderful…bursting with characters you’ll adore’ Miranda Dickinson ‘This is, without a doubt, my book of the year’BRMAYCOCK’S BOOK BLOG
£9.86
HarperCollins Publishers Whos That Girl
Book SynopsisDon''t miss Mhairi''s brand new sequel to WHO''S THAT GIRL? YOU BELONG WITH ME. Out now!Readers are loving this book:''I just couldn''t put it down'' ?????''The perfect mix of drama, comedy and romance'' ?????''Funny, clever, familiar, intelligent and so relatable'' ?????''The perfect summer holiday read'' ?????''Mhairi McFarlane is in a league of her own'' ?????Edie thought she was in love until he told her he was marrying someone else.Then, when he kisses her on the day of his wedding, life really starts to unravel.Labelled a homewrecker, overnight Edie is the office outcast. To help, her boss offers a chance to get out of town, and she jumps at it.But when this fresh start unexpectedly throws her into the path of Hollywood heartthrob Elliot Owen and the limelight, the question on everyone's lips is: who's that girl?Edie is about to find out.''Mhairi is so ridiculously talented'' EMILY HENRY''I love her books PASSIONATELY'' MARIAN KEYESEverything you want from a romcom She just geTrade Review‘An effortlessly brilliant read – will have you laughing when you shouldn’t and sobbing when you least expect it’ Giovanna Fletcher ‘Totally hilarious and wincingly real’ Jenny Colgan ‘Her best yet. Mhairi is single-handedly dragging romcoms into the 21st century’ John Niven ‘Her best yet – write faster!’ Holly Bourne ‘No-one writes such wry, emotionally complex romantic fiction as Mhairi McFarlane’ RED ‘The perfect balance of romcom and drama… the ultimate holiday read!’ GRAZIA ‘Warm, nuanced, compelling’ STYLIST ‘Intelligent and insightful’ HEAT ‘Sparky, smart, sore-stomach-laughing kind of read’ FABULOUS ‘Hilarious’ HELLO Praise for Mhairi McFarlane: ‘Witty, sharp and giggle-inducing … This is modern and honest romantic fiction at its most accomplished’ HEAT ‘Who will love it? Want-it-funny lit-lovers’ GLAMOUR ‘An engaging read about finding yourself… I loved it’ DAILY MAIL ‘McFarlane’s writing will make you laugh out loud 5*’ SUNDAY EXPRESS ‘Brilliantly funny stuff’ FABULOUS ‘A delicious feast of comic romance … Smart and funny’ SUNDAY MIRROR ‘[McFarlane] has pulled it out of the bag again, crafting an impassioned novel of female self-discovery … Jam-packed with quirky social satire that delights and entertains’ OK “Very very witty and funny. Left me in awe…a total gem.” (Marian Keyes) “The funniest, most romantic book I've read since One Day.” (Lisa Jewell) “I loved this book. It made me laugh and reminded me that anything's possible in love – and in everything else for that matter.” (Minnie Driver) “I loved this: an original, genuinely funny, genuinely moving, modern love story.” (Katy Regan) “Mhairi is darkly funny and quite, quite rude…You Had Me at Hello is a breath of tart, Northern air.” (Sarra Manning) “Bitingly sharp and achingly funny…guaranteed to have you bent double. I absolutely loved it!” (Claudia Carroll)
£8.54
HarperCollins Publishers Purity Jonathan Franzen
Book SynopsisThe Sunday Times bestseller from the author of Freedom and The CorrectionsPip Tyler doesn't know who she is. She knows that her real name is Purity, that she's saddled with student debt and a reclusive mother, but there are few clues as to who her father is or how she'll ever have a normal life. Then she meets Andreas Wolf internet outlaw, charismatic provocateur, a man who deals in secrets and might just be able to help her solve the mystery of her origins.Trade Review‘Dazzling’ Guardian ‘Furiously funny’ Telegraph ‘Superbly readable, it is the work of a novelist at the height of his powers … This new work by an American master of realism has novelistic pleasures in abundance’ Sunday Times ‘Purity makes the most compelling reading, and Franzen reveals himself here to be even more a master than ever’ Evening Standard ‘It has kept me up every night for a week, and now that I’m done, I’ll miss its wit, its messed-up characters and its emotional complexity’ Financial Times ‘Franzen’s most fleet-footed, least self-conscious and most intimate novel yet … Franzen has added a new octave to his voice’ New York Times
£10.44
HarperCollins Publishers Emma
Book SynopsisIt''s comfort reading at its most soothing' IndependentFunny, heartfelt and very readable' Good HousekeepingIn this reimagined modern classic, prepare to meet a young woman who thinks she knows everythingFresh from university, Emma Woodhouse triumphantly arrives home in Norfolk ready to embark on adult life with a splash. Not only has her sister, Isabella, been whisked away on a motorcycle up to London, but her astute governess, Miss Taylor is at a loose end, abandoned in the giant family pile, Hartfield, alongside Emma's anxiety-ridden father. Someone is needed to rule the roost and young Emma is more than happy to oblige.And there is plenty to delight her in the buzzing little village of Highbury. At the helm of her own dinner parties and instructing her new little protégée, Harriet Smith, Emma reigns forth. But there is only one person who can play with Emma's indestructible confidence, her old friend and inscrutable neighbour George Knightley this time has Emma finally met her matTrade ReviewPraise for Emma: ‘Entertaining . . . McCall Smith brings such intelligence and wit’ The Daily Mail ‘Funny, heartfelt and very readable’ Good Housekeeping ‘Funny and clever’ Fabulous Magazine ‘Delightful’ Closer Praise for Alexander McCall Smith: ‘Witty, elegant, gentle, compassionate’Guardian ‘The kind of simplicity one finds in the best children's stories and a fluency which reflects his practice of writing 4,000 words a day in a stint of four hours… A talent for traditional story telling’ Guardian
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers The Malice The Vagrant Trilogy
Book SynopsisThe Malice was entertaining and riveting, with almost never a dull moment. Do yourself a favour, buy this book. And the first one, too, if you don't already own it. You will regret nothing.' Geeks of DoomIn the south, the Breach stirs.Gamma's sword, the Malice, wakes, calling to be taken to battle once more.But the Vagrant has found a home now, made a life and so he turns his back, ignoring its call.The sword cries out, frustrated, until another answers.Her name is Vesper.Trade ReviewReviews of THE VAGRANT: ★★★★★ 'For fans of classic science-fiction literature, this is a must-read.' – SciFi Now ★★★★ 'Come visit this brilliantly imaginative land of winged swords and broken solar cells.' – SFX ‘The Vagrant is a joy to read: an original and engrossing world, a strong story and a protagonist who is intensely charismatic despite – or because of – his silence. Newman’s debut is written with confidence, flair and imagination, bringing his dark world to marvellously macabre life’Adrian Tchaikovsky, Author of Shadows of the Apt series ‘A stunning and ambitious debut novel set in a unique and imaginative world where the only hope rests on the capacity of human beings to love’ Melinda M. Snodgrass
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers So Much for That
Book SynopsisFrom the Orange Prize-winning author of We Need to Talk About Kevin comes the most entertaining novel about illness and death one's ever likely to read and asks the uncomfortable fiscal question: how much is one life worth?Shepherd Knacker has been saving all his working life for a one way ticket away from the daily grind. When he sells his handyman business for $1million, The Afterlife' seems tantalisingly within reach. Yet his wife has concocted one reason after another why now isn't the time to go. Determined to take the plunge, Shep announces that he is leaving for an island off the coast of Tanzania: with or without her. However, Glynis has an announcement of her own she needs his health insurance.Trade Review‘Wide-ranging, sometimes zany and unpredictable, this is a compelling read. And however many twists Shriver shoves in, you always believe her’The Times ‘Many people will like Lionel Shriver's ninth novel – admirers of gripping and clever contemporary fiction, discerning critics and, if there is any justice, literary prize committees’Guardian ‘Shriver proves she is not afraid of anything…’Observer ‘It's a wonder that subject matter on the surface so bleak can be transformed into something so uplifting’Daily Telegraph ‘Yes, a brilliantly funny cancer book! You can rely on Lionel Shriver to upend your expectations’Daily Express ‘Required reading for all mortals’Daily Mail ‘…witty, observant and beautifully controlled. British readers will close this excellent novel feeling grateful for the NHS’Literary Review ‘…a visceral and deeply affecting story, a story about how illness affects people's relationships, and how their efforts to grapple with mortality reshape the arcs of their lives’Michiko Kakutani, New York Times
£10.44
Quercus Publishing The Heart of Man
Book SynopsisAfter coming through the blizzard that almost cost them everything, Jens and the boy are far from home, in a fishing community at the edge of the world. Taken in by the village doctor, the boy once again has the sense of being brought back from the grave. But this is a strange place, with otherworldly inhabitants, including flame-haired Álfheiður, who makes him wonder whether it is possible to love two women at once; he had believed his heart was lost to Ragnheiður, the daughter of the wealthy merchant in the village to which he must now inexorably return. Set in the awe-inspiring wilderness of the extreme north, The Heart of Man is a profound exploration of life, love and desire, written with a sublime simplicity. In this conclusion to an audacious trilogy, Stefánsson brings a poet's eye and a philosopher's insight to a tale worthy of the sagasmiths of old.Trade ReviewOverlays the colours of Dylan Thomas or Thomas Hardy on to spiritual scenery worthy of JRR Tolkien . . . Stefánsson's immersive prose swells, thunders and sparkles with all the shifting moods of the sea on an Icelandic summer's day . . . The Heart of Man completes . . . an epic trilogy -- Boyd Tonkin * Independent *Stefánson brilliantly conjures up the men's constant struggle against the relentless wind and cold, capturing their shifting emotional and physical states -- Lucy Dallas * Times Literary Supplement *Suspended between history and myth, this novel is peopled by uncanny characters roaming vast expanses. At hear this tale of tangled desire speaks lucidly of love, life and loss -- Richard Beard * Monocle *A satisfying showcase of an author critically acclaimed across Europe -- Val Nolan * Irish Examiner *Jón Kalman Stefánsson is a wonderful, exceptional writer. Whenever I read him I remember what writing - and the deceptively simple business of living - are all about. He is a timeless storyteller -- Carsten Jensen
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers By Nightfall Michael Cunningham
Book SynopsisFrom the Pultizer Prize-winning author of The Hours', comes the story of a marriage thrown off course by a moment of mistaken identity.Peter Harris is forty-four, prosperous, the owner of a big New York apartment and a player in the contemporary art scene. He has been married to Rebecca for close to twenty years. Their marriage is sound, in the way marriages are. Peter might even describe himself as happy. But then Rebecca's much younger brother Mizzy shows up for a visit. Beautiful, twenty-three years old, with a history of drug problems, Mizzy is looking for direction. And in his presence, Peter finds himself questioning his marriage, his desires, his career the entire world he has so carefully constructed for himself.Making us think deeply about the uses of beauty and the place of love in our lives, By Nightfall is heartbreaking look at the way we live now.Trade Review‘Cunningham encourages his reader to wrestle with things that interest him by sketching his plots delicately over classic lines. In this case, the arrival of the guest who will change everything is reworked into a discussion about art and decay by a writer who can write a page-turning novel that lingers eloquently in the mind’ The Times ‘This is a book about art, love, marriage and mortality… One of the intriguing and peculiar qualities of ‘By Nightfall’ is that it makes you live with a character who seems never quite at ease with his own identity… One of Cunningham's gifts is to be able to shift gears when he wants, out of banal everydayness into an intense rhapsodic meditation on the meaning and purpose of life.’ Guardian ‘Michael Cunningham is embarked on one of the more satisfying career trajectories of contemporary American novelists…’By Nightfall’ offers the reader an abundance of exquisite, enriching thumbnail sketches’ Times Literary Supplement ‘Constantly surprising … a love letter to New York, a hymn to youth and a meditation on the way art and literature alter our perception of the world’ Evening Standard
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers A Family Secret No. 1 Bestseller of family drama
Book SynopsisThe new No. 1 Sunday Times bestseller from the master storyteller, Josephine Cox.Family secrets can weigh the heaviestAlthough she's surrounded by a loving family, Marie is lonely. The secret she has been carrying for many years is a burden it's telling could ruin the lives of those she loves most.Marie's granddaughter, Cathy, is a cheerful young woman and in the first flush of love. Her grandmother's secret will not only change Cathy's future but rewrite her past.Sister-in-law Beth seems to have a happy life and a goodmarriage but behind closed doors she's heartbreakingly sad. Will she be brave enough to speak out and run away?These three women are at the beginning of a journey one that will change their lives forever.Trade Review‘Family secrets threaten to ruin everything in this beautiful tale of love and sadness’ Woman’s Own ‘This latest novel from Josephine Cox gets straight to the heart of family life . . . Cox pulls at the heartstrings’ Lovereading
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers Family Betrayal
Book SynopsisMeet the Drapers – they're as tough as they come … The gritty drama from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Nobody's Girl. Set on the mean streets of 1960s South London. MENACING… The Drapers rule the streets of South London. Everyone's afraid of them – and that's just how they like it. But when tempers flare and a family feud spirals out of control, tragedy strikes, leaving eldest son Danny in charge. MANIPULATED… But he has shocking plans for the family business and Petula, the baby of the family, becomes the scapegoat for the Draper’s dirty dealings. MISSING… Years later, and the once united family has now split up. Petula returns to the place she once called home to face her family as well as her demons, unleashing a terrible secret that could destroy them once and for all…Trade ReviewPraise for Nobody’s Girl and Sins of the Father: ‘This pageturner is a gritty tale of survival.’ Tesco magazine. 'Heartbreakingly poignant and joltingly realistic. From the first page the characters and their lives drew me in. It combines wonderfully accurate historical detail with true gritty realism in a book that fans of misery lit won't want to miss.' Annie Groves, author of Some Sunny Day. ‘Full of drama and heartache.’Closer Magazine ‘I thought this was a thoroughly enjoyable read. In fact, I couldn’t put it down!’Closer ‘This book kept me in total suspense until the end.’Closer
£13.29
HarperCollins Publishers The Woman Who Upped and Left
Book Synopsis‘I absolutely adored every page… Hilarious! There were moments that made me laugh out loud, they were just so funny!… Wonderful… Smiles and laughs are guaranteed… Trust me, it's a wonderful story!’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Forget about having it all. Sometimes you just want to leave it all behind. Audrey is often seized by the urge to walk out of her house without looking back – but she can’t possibly do that. She is a single parent. She is needed. She has a job, a home, responsibilities…and a slothful teenage son’s pants to pick up. But no one likes being taken for granted – Audrey least of all – so the time has come for drastic action. And no one’s going to stand in her way… A brilliantly funny and uplifting novel from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Mum Who’d Had Enough and When Life Gives You Lemons. Perfect for anyone who’s ever wanted to escape it all! Readers love The Woman Who Upped and Left: ‘I loved this book and I related to it on so many levels!…Hilarious… I have sent my sister a message saying “buy this, you gotta read it”… Great book’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Laugh out loud… If you like reading warm and funny books like I do then The Woman Who Upped And Left is for you… The novel is so good. I can't highly recommend enough’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘What middle aged housewife can't relate to this? A light-hearted look at the stuff we all face. Loved it’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘What an utter joy this was!… Couldn't have finished this book with a bigger grin on my face. It was an utter, utter treat, … Fabulously feel-good’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Like a breath of fresh air. A lovely, lovely weekend read. A hug in a book’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Loved this! Easy read and made me to want to do exactly the same thing! Never say never!’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Absolutely brilliant… I couldn’t put it down… I absolutely loved Audrey… All in all it was a brilliant book’ Goodreads review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Trade Review‘A terrifically entertaining, cheery romance, with an endearing heroine.’ SUNDAY MIRROR ‘Warm, funny and poignant.’ DAILY MAIL ‘Warm, witty and fun.’ MY WEEKLY ‘The voice of modern woman.’ MARIE CLAIRE ‘More than funny, it’s true.’ ELLE ‘Warm, funny and endearing.’ BEST
£11.07
HarperCollins Publishers You Had Me At Hello The laughoutloud rom com from
Book SynopsisWhat happens when the one that got away comes back? Find out in this sparkling comedy from #1 bestseller Mhairi McFarlaneThink of the great duos of history. We''re just like them.'You mean like Kylie and Jason? Torvill and Dean? Sonny and Cher?'I think you've missed the point, Rachel.'Rachel and Ben. Ben and Rachel. It was them against the world. Until it all fell apart. It's been a decade since they last spoke, but when Rachel bumps into Ben one rainy day, the years melt away.They'd been partners in crime and the best of friends. But life has moved on: Ben is married. Rachel is not. Yet in that split second, Rachel feels the old friendship return. And along with it, the broken heart she's never been able to mend.Hilarious, heartbreaking and everything in between, you'll be hooked from their first hello'.Very very witty and funny. Left me in awe a total gem' Marian KeyesThe funniest, most romantic book I''ve read since One Day' Lisa JewellTrade Review‘Very very witty and funny. Left me in awe … a total gem’ Marian Keyes ‘The funniest, most romantic book I've read since One Day’ Lisa Jewell ‘I loved this book. It made me laugh and reminded me that anything's possible in love – and in everything else for that matter’ Minnie Driver ‘I loved this: an original, genuinely funny, genuinely moving, modern love story’ Katy Regan ‘Mhairi is darkly funny and quite, quite rude … You Had Me at Hello is a breath of tart, Northern air’ Sarra Manning ‘Bitingly sharp and achingly funny … guaranteed to have you bent double. I absolutely loved it!’ Claudia Carroll
£9.49
Canongate Books Trick Baby
Book SynopsisTrick Baby charts the rise of White Folks, a white Negro who uses his colour as a trump card in the tough game of the Con. Blue-eyed, light-haired and white-skinned, White Folks is the most incredible con man the ghetto ever spawned, a hustler in the jungle of Southside Chicago where only the sharpest survive.With his partner Blue, an old hand who teaches him the tricks of the trade, White Folks rises to the top of his profession. The cons he pulls off get more and more lucrative and dangerous until one day they go too far...Trade ReviewOne of the most honest and original writers to emerge from the last century, Slim fully earns his place in the canon of America's greatest. -- Helen WalshTrick Baby is an American classic. * * Publishing News * *Slim always told it as it was, without compromise. -- Irvine WelshHis prose is almost Shakespearean in its inventiveness and his dialogue hums with ghetto jive. * * Scotsman * *Slim belongs to the knuckle-duster-in-the-face school of storytelling. * * Sunday Times * *Iceberg Slim always kept it real. So he will always be relevant. -- Ice T
£9.49
Canongate Books The Seed Collectors
Book SynopsisWhat secrets are hiding in your family tree?Great Aunt Oleander is dead. To each of her nearest and dearest she has left a seed pod. The seed pods might be deadly, but then again they might also contain the secret of enlightenment . . .A complex and fiercely contemporary tale of inheritance, enlightenment, life, death, desire and family trees, The Seed Collectors is the most important novel yet from one of the world's most daring and brilliant writers.Trade ReviewEntrancing -- NEIL GAIMANA family saga of human fallibility, love, eccentricity, sex, spirituality, and of a lost, legendary, coincidentally lethal route to absolute transcendence . . . [Thomas] is a splendid novelist -- WILLIAM GIBSONPositively luminous - funny, daring, fizzing with ideas and altogether captivating * * DAILY MAIL * *A far-out botanical adventure in ways which are brutally funny and profound all at once. Barbed, casually genius, philosophical and intensely readable. A joy -- MATT HAIGFilthily gorgeous . . . Imagine Muriel Spark's disreputable niece * * SPECTATOR * *A delightful compound of fantasy and traditional family saga... a modern fairytale, with flashes that are savagely funny * * THE TIMES * *You won't read a livelier tale about sex, death and out-of-body experiences all year * * SUNDAY TIMES * *This magical family saga will cement Thomas' position at the literary top table * * RED * *Smart, talented, inventive, and diverting . . . This is Thomas' most accomplished novel yet. There is a question at the heart of this novel . . . that captures the paradox of being human * * SLATE * *Her prose is splendidly alive, full of unexpected phrases and delicious cadences . . . like Pratchett, Thomas blends her flippancy and her philosophy perfectly. A fantastical family saga * * GUARDIAN * *Thomas has the mesmerising power of a great storyteller * * FINANCIAL TIMES * *Fun and thoughtful * * EMERALD STREET * *Sharp writing and sharper wit * * THE LIST * *A smart and witty family drama, taking in secrets, sex, suicide, celebrity and the meaning of life * * GLAMOUR * *A mindbending novel of family drama * * GOOD HOUSEKEEPING * *How I love her work! * * GRAZIA * *She has woven her distinct brand of mystery and intrigue into a complex family saga * * OBSERVER * *Extremely good fun...riotous, gorgeous, full of flamboyant escapades * * MONOCLE ARTS REVIEW * *A rewarding family saga * * SCOTSMAN * *With each novel, Thomas's ambitions have grown larger, and this is her most sophisticated... in a world of fading wunderkinds, Scarlett Thomas is proving to be the real deal * * CATHOLIC HERALD * *
£11.07
Canongate Books The Nigger Factory
Book SynopsisThe Nigger Factory is a scornful statement on the way in which human beings are conditioned to think. On the campus of Sutton University, Virginia, the students are trying to carry forth the message of reconstruction to a university resistant to change. The failure of the Sutton to embrace the changing attitudes of the Sixties has necessitated extreme action and the revolution is nigh.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 biting social satire. * * Daily Express * *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] * *
£9.49
Canongate Books The Bones of Grace
Book SynopsisZubaida is on a journey to unearth the past. It will lead her from the corridors of Harvard to the scorching deserts of Pakistan, and the bones of an ancient whale. It will carry her back to Bangladesh, and the dark horrors of a ship-breaking yard. Here - deep inside a beached ocean liner, steeped in mystery and tragedy - lies the key to her story. And a lifeline to the man she loves, but whose heart she may never win back.Echoing with loneliness and longing, The Bones of Grace is a story of lost love and conflicted identity; of the urgent need to discover who we are, before we can truly belong anywhere and truly love anyone.Trade ReviewA tale of conflicted love . . . A superbly written, deeply moving modern love story * * Independent * *One of the most impressive novelists of her generation * * The Times * *Anam's prose is glowing and graceful * * Guardian * *Exquisite ***** * * Daily Telegraph * *Breathtaking . . . Zubaida's journey of self-discovery [has] a real sense of scale * * Sunday Herald * *The Bones of Grace has at its heart not war but the shattering effects of conflicted love . . . Zubaida's choice between love and duty is reminiscent of Anna Karenina * * Financial Times * *A novel of heart, brain, and muscle - the competing pulls of history and love are evoked here with a rare honesty, and great skill -- KAMILA SHAMSIERestrained and powerful * * Observer * *Seemingly disparate stories slowly coming together one by one, until the moment a last piece clicks sweetly into place to give us the revelation of a perfect, satisfying whole * * Spectator * *Expansive yet intimate, weighty yet incisively funny, The Bones of Grace is a powerful examination of what it means to live in a world of collapsing boundaries and conflicting values. Few people write about identity and culture with such elegance and intelligence as Tahmima Anam -- TASH AW, author of Five Star BillionaireAbsolutely beautiful -- GEORGE ALAGAIAFierce and intimate, lyrical and expansive. Tahmima Anam is a mesmerizer -- YIYUN LI
£10.44
Canongate Books We Are Now Beginning Our Descent
Book SynopsisAt the dawn of the twenty-first century Adam Kellas finds himself hurled on a journey between continents and cultures. In his quest from the war-torn mountains of Afghanistan to the elegant dinner tables of north London and then the marshlands of the American South, only the memory of the beautiful, elusive Astrid offers the possibility of hope.With all the explosive drama of The People's Act of Love, this is a spellbinding tale of folly and the pursuit of love from one of today's most talented and visionary writers.Trade ReviewAstonishing. A love story that owes everything to the great collision of Osama bin Laden and Bush Jr's foreign policy. An intensely flavoured excavation of our times . . . wholly original. * * The Times * *A brilliantly constructed contemporary novel, illuminated with wit and intelligence on almost every page. * * Daily Mail * *Damnably hard to put down, with the momentum and trajectory of a well-aimed rocket. A book to keep one reading through the small hours. Terrific. -- Jonathan Raban * * London Review of Books * *A truthful and powerful novel about love, friendship and the struggle to be true in a world that has lost its grip on certainties. * * New Statesman * *Compelling and admirable . . . Kellas is one of the more intriguing anti-heroes of recent fiction. -- Matt Thorne * * Sunday Telegraph * *Genuinely affecting. * * Sunday Times * *Always readable, the book has pace and assurance. A highly intelligent novel and edgily contemporary. * * Independent * *Conscientious and courageous. * * Guardian * *We Are Now Beginning our Descent is really a love story, a fine successor to The People's Act of Love. * * Spectator * *Meek has created not just an entertaining novel, but a valuable comment on some of the most contentious issues of our time. * * Irish Times * *Partly a thought-provoking . . . meditation on writing, modern warfare and moral responsibility, it is also a poignant love story. -- Katie Owen * * Sunday Telegraph * *Marvellous . . . interrogates its subject matter with intensity, seriousness and balance . . . An existential masterpiece. * * Guardian * *Supremely enjoyable and smartly written, with a scale that attempts not only to understand something about the world and the West's place in it, but something more timeless: men and their trouble understanding love. -- Colin Waters * * Sunday Herald * *James Meek's novel is full of startling vignettes, caustic observations and fine black comedy. -- Toby Clements * * Daily Telegraph * *Meek's terrific prose batters the notion of non-combatant neutrality with a couple of explosive set pieces . . . a terse, adrenaline-charged plot that punctures a fragile love story with uncomfortable questions about ideals and reality. -- James Urquhart * * Financial Times * *He skilfully weaves a contemporary take on war, love and the demands of the marketplace on those who seek to be poets, not bards with his characteristic segueing from ont time and place to another, or one perspective to another, that keeps the reader on constant alert. -- Lesley McDowell * * Herald * *
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers The Fields of Grief
Book SynopsisA terrifying psychological thriller in which a spate of suicides could just be the work of a serial killer; featuring homicide detectives Cardinal and Delorme from the award-winning Forty Words for Sorrow'.Photographer Catherine Cardinal's fatal fall from a high building one moonlit night is ruled an act of suicide. She has a history of depression, a note is found and her psychiatrist is not surprised. But her husband, John Cardinal, won't accept this conclusion.Driven by grief and guilt, he launches his own investigation, helped by his reluctant colleagues. And when vicious notes appear, taunting him for his loss, his theory that she was murdered suddenly seems to be credible.Cardinal revisits his past, searching for a possible suspect among his previous arrests. Someone with a grudge, a person twisted enough to target his innocent wife in revenge.But could he be looking in the wrong place? The mystery deepens when he uncovers a spate of tragic suicides, leading him to investigate a sTrade ReviewPraise for ‘The Fields of Grief’: ‘It’s not easy to invent an original way to commit murder but the crime in “The Fields of Grief” is extraordinary… Blunt has turned a conventional whodunit into a fascinating psychological duel between the detective and the murderer’ Sunday Telegraph ‘An emotionally involving and intellectually challenging journey from night into day. A fine and moving novel about bereavement’ Reginald Hill Praise for Giles Blunt: ‘Intensely vivid characters, terrible crimes and a brutal deep-frozen landscape all prove beyond a reasonable doubt that cold nurtures good and evil as readily as heat…and that Giles Blunt is a really tremendous crime novelist.’ Lee Child ‘One of the finest crime novels I’ve ever read. Giles Blunt writes with uncommon grace, style and compassion and he plots like a demon. This book has it all – unforgettable characters, beautiful language, throat-constricting suspense.’ Jonathan Kellerman ‘A superior Canadian police procedural with an evocative sense of place: the frozen lakes and forests are as integral to the plot as the flawed detective…an impressive achievement.’ Guardian ‘A highly professional tour de force: excellently plotted, with fleshed-out characters and a well-portrayed interesting setting.’ Independent ‘As fine a police procedural as any written in the USA…as fresh as morning dew…never less than fascinating throughout.’ Independent on Sunday
£999.99
HarperCollins Publishers The Time of My Life
Book SynopsisLose yourself in the magical world of No.1 bestselling author, Cecelia Ahern.Are you taking your life for granted?Lucy Silchester is. She's busied herself with other stuff: friends' lives, work issues, her deteriorating car, that kind of thing. But she's stuck in a rut and deluding everyone. Only Lucy knows the real truth.Time for a wake-up call a meeting with life. And life turns out to be a kindly, rather run-down man in an old suit, who is determined to bring about change and won't let Lucy off the hook.Sometimes we all need to make time for our lifeTrade Review‘Ahern pull it off with panache… Sick of being overlooked, Lucy’s life play a blinder as he insists on accompanying her to the office, meets her flabbergasted friends and even does a little matchmaking along the way’ Daily Express ‘A wonderfully enchanting, tender and beautifully penned tale’ Candis Magazine ‘ A warm and thought-provoking read’ Good Housekeeping ‘Unique and magical’ Heat ‘Funny, touching, insightful’ Daily Express
£9.49
Birlinn General John MacNab: Authorised Edition
Book SynopsisIn 1925, John Buchan published his second most famous novel, John Macnab; three high-flying men – a barrister, a cabinet minister and a banker – are suffering from boredom. They concoct a plan to cure it. They inform three Scottish estates that they will poach from each two stags and a salmon in a given time. They sign collectively as ‘John Macnab’ and await the responses. This novel is a light interlude within the Leithen Stories series – an evocative look at the hunting, shooting and fishing lifestyle in Highland Scotland. With an introduction by Andrew Greig. This edition is authorised by the John Buchan Society.Trade Review'Perhaps [Buchan's] peculiarly Scottish combination of Romanticism and Calvinism - daring living and high thinking - is due to return to fashion' * The Independent Magazine *
£9.49
Birlinn General Whisky from Small Glasses: A D.C.I. Daley
Book SynopsisWhen the body of a young woman is washed up on an idyllic beach on the west coast of Scotland, D.C.I. Jim Daley is despatched from Glasgow to lead the investigation. Far from home, and his troubled marriage, it seems that Daley’s biggest obstacle will be managing the difficult local police chief; but when the prime suspect is gruesomely murdered, the inquiry begins to stall. As the body count rises, Daley uncovers a network of secrets and corruption in the closeknit community of Kinloch, thrusting him and his loved ones into the centre of a case more deadly than he had ever imagined. The first novel in the D.C.I. Daley series, Whisky from Small Glasses is a truly compelling crime novel, shot through with dark humour and menace.Trade Review'Has the ability to give even the least important person in the plot character and the skill to tell a good tale' * Scots Magazine *'This is a great gritty crime novel and deserves to be up there with the best' - -- Jane Brown * LoveReading *‘Touches of dark humour, multi-layered and compelling’ * Daily Record *'The right amount of authenticity ... gritty writing ... most memorable’ * Herald *‘Gritty, witty, and full of action and intrigue, it’s a brilliant start to the Daley and Scott series and got me well and truly hooked’ * JenMed's Book Reviews *'WHISKY FROM SMALL GLASSES comes with a unique setting and some dark humour into the bargain. There's also more than enough intrigue, marital issues, and police politics to keep a reader amused' * AustCrimeFiction.org *'This had me gripped from the start - a great crime novel. . . It's full of twists and turns - you think you know where the plot is heading - but you probably don't.' -- Alison Bisping * LoveReading *'This is a great gritty crime novel and deserves to be up there with the best' -- Jane Brown * LoveReading *
£8.99
HarperCollins Publishers Journeys End
Book SynopsisFollowing the fortunes of some of the much-loved characters from her bestseller The Journey', Josephine Cox's powerful novel spans continents, decades and generations of one family.Like a ghost from the past, she walked along the platform towards themIt has been over twenty years since Vicky Maitland set foot on English soil. Twenty years since she left Liverpool with her three children, bound for a new life in America, leaving her beloved husband Barney behind.But this long journey home is the hardest of all. She is here in search of the truth, afraid of what she may find. Why did Barney turn against his family so suddenly, so cruelly? Only her old friend Lucy Baker knows what happened. And Lucy promised Barney she would never tell his secret. Is it time she broke her silence and explained the events of so long ago?Trade Review‘This latest novel from the nation's biggest-selling saga writer is…one for true romantics.’ You 'Cox's talent as a storyteller never lets you escape the spell.' Daily Mail 'Impossible to resist.' Woman's Realm
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers Kinder Than Solitude
Book SynopsisThe new novel from Yiyun Li, author of The Vagrants and the Guardian First Book Award-winning A Thousand Years of Good Prayers.When Moran, Ruyu, and Boyang were young, they were involved in a mysterious accident' in which a young woman was poisoned. Now grown up, the three friends are separated by this incident, and by time and distance. Boyang stayed in China, while Moran and Ruyu emigrated to the United States. All three remain haunted by what really happened.A breathtaking page-turner, Kinder Than Solitude resonates with provocative observations about human nature and the virtues of loyalty. In mesmerizing prose, and with profound philosophical insight, Yiyun Li unfolds this remarkable story, even as she explores the impact of personality and the past on the shape of a person's present and future.Trade Review‘The surface of Yiyun Li's prose is deceptively still, but just beneath the surface is the sadness, pain and tragedy of three lives … Her characters are portrayed with a harsh beauty, and one's emotions become deeply engaged with their fates … This is an exceptional novel and Yiyun Li has grown into one of our major novelists.’ Salman Rushdie ‘This riveting novel from our leading fictional informant on latterday China is a masterly investigation of personal and social damage wrought by the country’s recent history.’ Peter Kemp, Sunday Times, Books of the Year ‘Bold and unsettling … The messiness of the human condition is presented in all its complexity, with moral judgment often suspended in favour of a more nuanced probing of the way people respond to turbulent times … A finely wrought novel that never shrinks from laying bare the messiness and fragility of the human condition.’ Tash Aw, Financial Times ‘Yiyun Li has produced a thrilling mystery in “Kinder Than Solitude”’ Sunday Telegraph ‘A fine, taut Beijing novel’ James Lasdun, Guardian ‘A stunning, dark, and beautiful book. Yiyun Li writes with characteristic genius and hard, clear-eyed insight about characters ravaged by family and culture … Tragic and true and soul-wrenching … The reader’s own heart feels exposed, fragile, and all the more precious for having taken part in Li’s mysterious, artful novel.’ Paul Harding, author of ‘Tinkers and Enon’ ‘I can't remember the last time I read a novel at once so relentless and elegant, so precise and ranging … A search light, blazing into every dark corner of its characters' psyches, and ours. I couldn't look away.’ Ayana Mathis, author of ‘The Twelve Tribes of Hattie’
£9.49
Wetlands
Book SynopsisWith her jaunty dissection of the sex life and the private grooming habits of the novel's 18-year-old narrator, Helen Memel, Charlotte Roche has turned the previously unspeakable into the national conversation in Germany.Trade Review‘Profoundly unsettling’ Rowan Pelling, Daily Mail ‘If you ever wondered what you'd be like if you weren't shy, polite, tolerant, modest, sexually repressed, logical and constrained by modern standards of hygiene, this may be the book for you…This is not a beautiful or perfect book, but an enterprising one, and its cumulative effect is admirable…Our bodies mean a lot to us – even the asshole, about which far too little has been written. Every writer needs to claim a bit of territory, and assholes are there for the grabbing. Boldly, Roche takes them for her own’ Guardian ‘“Wetlands”, in the tradition of Plath's “The Bell Jar”, is a remarkable novel about mental illness that has been mistaken for feminist literature’ Alice O’Keefe, New Statesman ‘The cause of the fuss is the novel's extreme obscenity – though “obscenity” doesn't quite catch the particular, pungent flavour of the thing. “Grunginess” is nearer the mark’ Adam Lively, Sunday Times ‘Literary news this week suggests that when it comes to women writing about sex, reviewers are still reacting in the same way as Dr Johnson to his walking dog, surprised that it’s being done at all. So hats off to Charlotte Roche, who has managed to give both the “Sunday Times” and the “Guardian” the willies by cheerfully confessing to consuming pornography with her husband and starting her book “Wetlands” with a graphic discussion of hemorrhoids’ Lisa Hilton, Spectator ‘Maeve Binchy is famous for her unique humour and insight; Cecelia Ahern is popular for her unlikely twists and touches of magic; Charlotte Roche has a different formula for success – haemorrhoids, hairy armpits and halitosis, mixed together into an unlikely erotic pot-pourri’ Irish Independent
£9.49
Hodder & Stoughton Lancashire Lass
Book Synopsis''Another riveting book from Anna Jacobs'' - 5-star reader reviewSeventeen-year-old Liza is happy working as a lady''s maid - until her employers decide to emigrate and her father makes up his mind that she is to wed an older widower whom she detests. Determined to avoid a loveless marriage, Liza plans to run away. But when the widower rapes her to force her to marry him, she flees back to the family for whom she worked. She feels she has no choice but to go with them to Australia, and they all set out on the long voyage.On board ship, Liza discovers to her horror that she has fallen pregnant. Even if she can survive the journey, the demanding life of a settler in 1850s Western Australia will be made even harder by an illegitimate child. But Liza is to find that in addition to deprivation of the worst sort, Australia will offer her opportunities she could never have dreamt of back home in Lancashire.Trade ReviewCatherine Cookson fans will cheer! * Peterborough Evening Gazette on Like No Other *'Catherine Cookson fans will cheer!' Peterborough Evening Gazette on Like No Other'A well-told, well paced story' Historical Novel Society on Lancashire LassA well-told, well paced story * Historical Novel Society *'Spectacular saga' Peterborough Evening Telegraph on Lancashire Lass'A powerful absorbing saga' Hartlepool Mail on Spinners Lake'A vivid saga' Northern Lights on Spinners Lake'Impressive grasp of human emotions' The Sunday Time on Spinners lake'A well told, captivating story' Dorset Evening Echo on Jessie'A stirring saga' Peterborough Evening Telegraph on Like No Other'Wonderful stuff' Telegraph & Argus
£8.99
Little, Brown Book Group Our Spoons Came From Woolworths: A Virago Modern
Book Synopsis'Comyns's world is weird and wonderful . . . a neglected genius' LUCY SCHOLES, OBSERVER'A curious hybrid: a mixture of domestic disaster, social commentary, comedy, and romance . . . ' KATHERINE A. POWERS, BARNES & NOBLE REVIEW 'I defy anyone to read the opening pages and not to be drawn in, as I was . . . Quite simply, Comyns writes like no one else' MAGGIE O'FARRELL Pretty, unworldly Sophia is twenty-one years old and hastily married to a young painter called Charles. An artist's model with an eccentric collection of pets, she is ill-equipped to cope with the bohemian London of the 1930s where poverty, babies (however much loved) and husband conspire to torment her. Hoping to add some spice to her life, Sophia takes up with Peregrine, a dismal, ageing critic and comes to regret her marriage and her affair. But in this case virtue is more than its own reward, for repentance brings an abrupt end to the cycle of unsold pictures, unpaid bills and unwashed dishes . . .Trade ReviewFor anyone who is interested in stories of everyday concerns, poverty, marriage, love, happiness, fulfilment, peace or joy, this is the book for you -- Snowswick * Guardian *A curious hybrid: a mixture of domestic disaster, social commentary, comedy, and romance . . . What I find so really excellent in this novel, in addition to Comyns's powers of description and the slow fuse of her comedy, is her ability to show the cold world and its indecencies without spelling everything out . . . -- Katherine A. Powers * Barnes & Noble Review *Comyns's world is weird and wonderful . . . there's also something uniquely original about her voice. Tragic, comic and completely bonkers all in one, I'd go as far as to call her something of a neglected genius -- Lucy Scholes * Observer *I defy anyone to read the opening pages and not to be drawn in, as I was . . . Quite simply, Comyns writes like no one else -- Maggie O'Farrell
£9.49
Little, Brown Book Group Mrs Palfrey At The Claremont: A Virago Modern
Book SynopsisNamed by the Guardian as one of 'the 100 best novels,' and shortlisted for the Booker Prize, Mrs Palfrey At The Claremont is a humorous and compassionate look at friendship between an old woman and a young man from a 'magnificent...writer, the missing link between Jane Austen and John Updike' (David Baddiel, Independent)On a rainy Sunday in January, the recently widowed Mrs Palfrey arrives at the Claremont Hotel where she will spend her remaining days. Her fellow residents are magnificently eccentric and endlessly curious, living off crumbs of affection and snippets of gossip. Together, upper lips stiffened, they fight off their twin enemies: boredom and the Grim Reaper.Then one day Mrs Palfrey strikes up an unlikely friendship with an impoverished young writer, Ludo, who sees her as inspiration for his novel.'Elizabeth Taylor's exquisitely drawn character study of eccentricity in old age is a sharp and witty portrait of genteel postwar English life facing the changes taking shape in the 60s . . . Much of the reader's joy lies in the exquisite subtlety in Taylor's depiction of all the relationships, the sharp brevity of her wit, and the apparently effortless way the plot unfolds' -Robert McCrum 'the 100 best novels', GuardianTrade ReviewElizabeth Taylor's exquisitely drawn character study of eccentricity in old age is a sharp and witty portrait of genteel postwar English life facing the changes taking shape in the 60s . . . Much of the reader's joy lies in the exquisite subtlety in Taylor's depiction of all the relationships, the sharp brevity of her wit, and the apparently effortless way the plot unfolds . . . Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont is, for me, her masterpiece -- Robert McCrum * 'the 100 best novels', Guardian *Jane Austen, Elizabeth Taylor, Barbara Pym, Elizabeth Bowen - soul-sisters allElizabeth Taylor is finally being recognised as an important British author: an author of great subtlety, great compassion and great depth. As a reader, I have found huge pleasure in returning to Taylor's novels and short stories many times over. As a writer I've returned to her too - in awe of her achievements, and trying to work out how she does it -- Sarah WatersOne of the most underrated novelists of the twentieth century, Elizabeth Taylor writes with a wonderful precision and grace. Her world is totally absorbing -- Antonia FraserShe's a magnificent and underrated mid-twentieth-century writer, the missing link between Jane Austen and John Updike * Independent *
£13.49
Little, Brown Book Group The Stranger The twisty and exhilarating new
Book SynopsisFrom Richard and Judy bestselling author Saskia Sarginson, The Stranger is a devastating love story full of intrigue and dark secrets. ''Immersive, gripping, will pull at your heartstrings'' Gilly Macmillan, international bestselling author We all have our secrets. Eleanor Rathmell has kept one her whole life. But when her husband dies and a stranger arrives at her door, her safe life in the idyllic English village she''s chosen as her home begins to topple. Everyone is suspicious of this stranger, except for Eleanor. But her trust in him will put her life in danger, because nothing is as it seems; not her dead husband, the man who claims to love her, or the inscrutable outsider to whom she''s opened her home and her heart. Praise for Saskia Sarginson:''Outstandingly good. Part thriller, part love story, I guarantee you will not be able to put it down'' Sun on The Twins Trade ReviewImmersive, gripping, will pull at your heartstrings * Gilly Macmillan, international bestselling author *Outstandingly good. Part thriller, part love story, I guarantee you will not be able to put it down * Sun on The Twins *Atmospheric, readable, beautifully evoked * Sunday Mirror on Without You *Stunning in its insight and beautifully written * Judy Finnigan on The Twins *A stunning writer with deep insight into people, their thoughts and behaviour * NZ Women's Weekly *A devastating love story! * My Weekly *Tightly plotted, intelligent and full of menace. * Sunday Mirror *'Immersive, gripping, will pull at your heartstrings' * Gilly Macmillan, international bestselling author *A stunning writer with deep insight into people, their thoughts and behaviour * NZ Women's Weekly *Outstandingly good. Part thriller, part love story, I guarantee you will not be able to put it down * Sun on The Twins *Stunning in its insight and beautifully written * Judy Finnigan on The Twins *Atmospheric, readable, beautifully evoked * Sunday Mirror on Without You *Tightly plotted, intelligent and full of menace - a cracking thriller. * The People *Both a thriller and a love story, [The Stranger] lives up to the reputation [Saskia Sarginson] has built up since her debut bestseller The Twins. * Evening Telegraph *
£5.99
Little, Brown Book Group Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky London
Book Synopsis''I recommend Hamilton at every opportunity, because he was such a wonderful writer and yet is rather under-read today. All his novels are terrific'' Sarah Waters''If you were looking to fly from Dickens to Martin Amis with just one overnight stop, then Hamilton is your man'' Nick HornbyPatrick Hamilton''s novels were the inspiration for Matthew Bourne''s new dance theatre production, The Midnight Bell.The Midnight Bell, a pub on the Euston Road, is the pulse of this brilliant and compassionate trilogy. It is here where the barman, Bob, falls in love with Jenny, a West End prostitute who comes in off the streets for a gin and pep. Around his obsessions, and Ella the barmaid''s secret love for him, swirls the sleazy life of London in the 1930s. This is a world where people emerge from cheap lodgings in Pimlico to pour out their passions, hopes and despair in pubs and bars - a world of twenty thousand streets full of cruelty and kind
£12.34
Little, Brown Book Group The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds
Book SynopsisAs a mother, wife, employer and editor of the Review of Applied Ethics, Isabel Dalhousie is aware that to be human is to be responsible. So when a neighbour brings her a new and potentially dangerous puzzle to solve, once again Isabel feels she has no option but to shoulder the burden.A masterpiece painting has been stolen from Duncan Munrowe, old-fashioned philanthropist, father to two discontented children, and a very wealthy man. As Isabel enters into negotiations with the shadowy figures who are in search of a ransom, a case where heroes and villains should be clearly defined turns murky: the list of those who desire the painting - or the money - lengthens, and hasty judgement must be avoided at all cost. Morals, it turns out, are like Scottish clouds: complex, changeable and tricky to get a firm grip on; they require a sharp observational eye, a philosophical mindset, and the habit of kindness. Fortunately for those around her, Isabel Dalhousie is in possession o
£9.49
Little, Brown Book Group Invitation To The Waltz
Book SynopsisA diary for her innermost thoughts, a china ornament, a ten-shilling note, and a roll of flame-coloured silk for her first evening dress: these are the gifts Olivia Curtis receives for her seventeenth birthday. She anticipates her first dance, the greatest yet most terrifying event of her restricted social life, with tremulous uncertainty and excitement. For her pretty, charming elder sister Kate, the dance is certain to be a triumph, but what will it be for shy, awkward Olivia? Exploring the daydreams and miseries attendant upon even the most innocent of social events, Rosamond Lehmann perfectly captures the emotions of a girl standing poised on the threshold of womanhood.Trade ReviewEvery emotional ripple is beautifully observed: the hideous anticipation, the agony of the empty dance card, the brief flutters of hope as various men take her for a turn around the dance floor, the many small disappointments that follow and the sudden vivid need to escape from the crowd, to flee, to breathe * Guardian *Lehmann legitimised a type of writing that took on deep personal themes -- English PENA novelist in the grand tradition, and, more than this, an innovator, the first writer to filter her stories through a woman's feelings and perceptions -- Anita BrooknerLehmann has always written brilliantly of women in love, of mothers, of daughters, of suffering -- Margaret DrabbleNo English writer has told of the pains of women in love more truly or more movingly than Rosamond Lehmann -- Marghanita LaskiA novelist in the grand tradition, and, more than this, an innovator, the first writer to filter her stories through a woman's feelings and perceptions * Anita Brookner *Lehmann has always written brilliantly of women in love, of mothers, of daughters, of suffering * Margaret Drabble *No English writer has told of the pains of women in love more truly or more movingly than Rosamond Lehmann * Marghanita Laski *
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Hodder & Stoughton A Pennyworth of Sunshine
Book SynopsisLove can cross oceans . . .Keara Michaels doesn''t want to leave her family in Ireland, but fate sends her first to Lancashire, then across the sea to Australia, pregnant and penniless. And Theo Mullane, the man who loves her, is married, with an ailing baby son, so cannot follow her as he longs to.Mark Gibson leaves Lancashire to avoid marriage. But gold prospecting is a dangerous pursuit, and when his gentle young wife dies in childbirth, his father-in-law kidnaps the baby. So Mark runs away again, this time to Western Australia, where he employs Keara in his country inn.But danger threatens them all, even in the bush, as Keara searches for her lost sisters, Theo comes looking for the woman he loves, and Mark at last confronts his past.**********************What readers are saying about A PENNYWORTH OF SUNSHINE''I couldn''t put it down'' - 5 stars''An excellent read from start to finish'' - 5 stars''Brilliant, as always . . . Anna Jacobs never fails to keep the story line motivated, gripping, and endearing'' - 5 starsTrade ReviewPraise for Anna Jacobs[Anna Jacobs' books have an] impressive grasp of human emotions * The Sunday Times *Anna Jacobs' books are deservedly popular. She is one of the best writers of Lancashire sagas around * Historical Novels Review *[Anna Jacobs is] especially big on resourceful, admirable women. Great stuff! * Daily Mail *Reader reviews on A PENNYWORTH OF SUNSHINEAnother joy from the pen of Anna Jacobs. ***** * Reader review *A brilliant read. ***** * Reader review *A captivating read. ***** * Reader review *Catherine Cookson fans will cheer * Peterborough Evening Telegraph *
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Hodder & Stoughton The Well of Lost Plots
Book SynopsisThe third book in the phenomenal Thursday Next series from Number One bestselling author Jasper Fforde. In the words of one critic: ''Don''t ask. Just read it.''Leaving Swindon behind her to hide out in the Well of Lost Plots (the place where all fiction is created), Thursday Next, Literary Detective and soon-to-be one parent family, ponders her next move from within an unpublished book of dubious merit entitled ''Caversham Heights''. Landen, her husband, is still eradicated, Aornis Hades is meddling with Thursday''s memory, and Miss Havisham - when not sewing up plot-holes in ''Mill on the Floss'' - is trying to break the land-speed record on the A409. But something is rotten in the state of Jurisfiction. Perkins is ''accidentally'' eaten by the minotaur, and Snell succumbs to the Mispeling Vyrus. As a shadow looms over popular fiction, Thursday must keep her wits about her and discover not only what is going on, but also who she can truTrade ReviewJasper Fforde has gone where no other fictioneer has gone before. Millions of readers now follow ... Thank you, Jasper * John Sutherland, Guardian *A born wordsmith of effervescent imagination * Christina Hardyment, Independent *[Fforde's] brand of inspired lunacy truly stands on its own ... this new book completes his creation of a world of true literary comic genius * Sunday Express on The Well of Lost Plots *The third of this cult series sees Jasper Fforde hitting his stride ... should be a joy to anyone who loves reading * Time Out on The Well of Lost Plots *An immensely enjoyable, almost compulsive experience * New York Times on Lost in a Good Book *Douglas Adams would be proud * Scotsman on Lost in a Good Book *Don't ask, just read it. Fforde is a true original * Sunday Express on Lost in a Good Book *This year's grown-up JK Rowling * Sunday Times *The Eyre Affair is a silly book for smart people; postmodernism played as raw, howling farce * Independent *It is always a privilege to watch the birth of a cult, and Hodder has just cut the umbilical cord ... There are shades of Douglas Adams, Lewis Carroll, 'Clockwork Orange' and '1984'. And that's just for starters * Time Out, on 'The Eyre Affair' *Ingenious - I'll watch Jasper Fforde nervously * Terry Pratchett on The Eyre Affair *This year's grown-up JK Rowling * Sunday Times on Lost in a Good Book *
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Little, Brown Book Group The Miracle At Speedy Motors
Book SynopsisBOOK 9 IN THE BELOVED NO.1 LADIES'' DETECTIVE AGENCY SERIESThe one with the poison pen letter . . . For the first time in her career as Botswana''s no. 1 lady detective, Mma Ramotswe suffers a blow to her faith in the goodness of humanity (and of her neighbours in particular) when she receives a threatening letter. But she does not let this swerve her from the sad plight of an orphan who hopes to find her true family. Meanwhile, at Zebra Drive, Mma Ramotswe''s beloved husband Mr J. L. B. Matekoni is also searching for an expensive miracle for their own foster daughter Motholeli.''Exceptional charm'' Daily Mail''As fluent and gracious as ever'' Sunday Times''Irresistible - there will indeed be miracles'' New York Times Book ReviewTrade ReviewWritten with the gentleness of its predecessors and with a charm that is quite exceptional in modern detective fiction * Sunday Telegraph *The writing is as fluent and gracious as ever, and charmingly conveys the practical wisdom of much of African life * Sunday Times *Nothing spoils McCall Smith's vision of Botswana as a place where decent people triumph over mischief-makers * Daily Telegraph *Irresistible - there will indeed be miracles * New York Times Book Review *Charming, warmly affective... As comfy cozy as can be * Philadelphia Inquirer *The pleasure of these sweet books lies in the clarity and gravity with which the characters reason through everyday dilemmas * Entertainment Weekly *A fitting part of the tiny miracle the entire series has been * Star-Telegram *
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Little, Brown Book Group Property
Book Synopsis* Winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction 2003. * A powerful, startling novel set in America's Deep South in the early 19th century - a story of freedom, both political and personal.
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Little, Brown Book Group Live by Night
Book SynopsisJoe Coughlin is nineteen when he meets Emma Gould. A smalltime thief in 1920s Boston, he is told to cuff her while his accomplices raid the casino she works for. But Joe falls in love with Emma - and his life changes for ever.That meeting is the beginning of Joe''s journey to becoming one of the nation''s most feared and respected gangsters. It is a journey beset by violence, double-crossing, drama and pain. And it is a journey into the soul of prohibition-era America...A powerful, deeply moving novel, Live By Night is a tour-de-force by Dennis Lehane, writer on The Wire and author of modern classics such as Shutter Island, Gone, Baby, Gone and The Given Day.Trade ReviewDennis Lehane's speciality is the fast-paced gangster thriller that's also a deeply felt novel. His latest, about a Boston criminal, doesn't disappoint on either count... I guarantee that all you'll be able to do is keep on turning the pages. The prose crackles with Chandleresque jokes, the narrative never flags and there's even a genuinely heart-stopping love story. In addition to all that, the book beautifully evokes the entire era of early Thirties Prohibition America * Readers' Digest *This is a book that should put [Lehane's] name right up there where it belongs, right up there alongside Doctorow and Dreiser * Scotland on Sunday *This is noir with added value: Lehane is terrific on family ties and at conveying the buzz of a city powered by immigrant labour of often dubious legality * Guardian *History is merely a backdrop in a story that seeks just to be exciting, sexy and atmospheric. The author's trademark combination of dark deeds, graceful pose and sassy dialogue ensures it succeeds * Sunday Times *Lehane's tough, muscular prose captures the era well; and his dialogue brings to life the inhabitants of its underworld * Spectator *This is not just brilliant period crime writing, but brilliant writing full stop * Independent *The crime writer's crime writer; with a spare, stark edge to his work that lifts it into the truly great class... The gangster world is superbly evoked and the story is as tight and powerful as the trigger on a Thompson sub-machine * Daily Mail *Sophisticated, literary and barbed enough... it makes this book a sentence-by-sentence pleasure. You are in the hands of an expert. And you'll know it * Scotsman *Exciting, sexy and atmospheric. Lehane's combination of dark deeds, graceful prose and sassy dialogue ensures it succeeds * Sunday Times *
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Little, Brown Book Group A Long Way From Verona
Book SynopsisI ought to tell you at the beginning that I am not quite normal having had a violent experience at the age of nine''Jessica Vye''s ''violent experience'' colours her schooldays and her reaction to the world around her- a confining world of Order Marks, wartime restrictions, viyella dresses, nicely-restrained essays and dusty tea shops. For Jessica she has been told that she is ''beyond all possible doubt'', a born writer. With her inability to conform, her absolute compulsion to tell the truth and her dedication to accurately noting her experiences, she knows this anyway. But what she doesn''t know is that the experiences that sustain and enrich her burgeoning talent will one day lead to a new- and entirely unexpected- reality.
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Hodder & Stoughton Bone Clocks
Book Synopsis''ONE OF THE MOST BRILLIANTLY INVENTIVE WRITERS OF THIS, OR ANY, COUNTRY'' INDEPENDENTWinner of the World Fantasy Award and longlisted for the Booker and Folio Prizes''A triumph''GUARDIAN''Fantastical''OBSERVER''Epic''EVENING STANDARD''Mind-spinning''INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY''Dazzling''NEW YORK TIMESThe internationally bestselling novel from the author of Cloud Atlas, at once the kaleidoscopic story of an unusual woman''s life, a metaphysical thriller and a profound meditation on mortality and survivalRun away, one drowsy summer''s afternoon, with Holly Sykes: wayward teenager, broken-hearted rebel and unwitting pawn in a titanic, hidden conflict.Over six decades, the consequences of a moment''s impulse unfold, drawing an ordinary woman into a world far beyond her imagining. And as life in the near future turns perilous, the pledge she made to a stranger may become the key to her family''s survival . . .PRAISE FOR DAVID MITCHELL''A thrilling and gifted writer''FINANCIAL TIMES''Dizzyingly, dazzlingly good''DAILY MAIL''Mitchell is, clearly, a genius''NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW''An author of extraordinary ambition and skill''INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY''A superb storyteller''THE NEW YORKERTrade ReviewAn epic in many voices . . . a globe-trotting, mind-bending, hair-raising triumph * Guardian *He is funny, hip and full of life . . . a beautiful explosion of adventurous ideas * The Times *If only real life were as elegant and generally encouraging as a Mitchell novel! He writes with scintillating verve and abundance * Daily Telegraph *600 pages of metafictional shenanigans in relentlessly brilliant prose . . . Death is at the heart of this novel. And there lies its depth and darkness, bravely concealed with all the wit and sleight of hand and ventriloquistic verbiage and tale-telling bravura of which Mitchell is a master . . . It's a whopper of a story -- Ursula K. Le Guin * Guardian *Fantastical, ambitious, bold and exuberant -- Viv Groskop, Books of the Year * Observer *An epic read * Evening Standard *No one, clearly, has ever told Mitchell that the novel is dead. He writes with a furious intensity and slapped-awake vitality, with a delight in language and all the rabbit holes of experience -- Pico Iyer * New York Times Book Review *A mind-spinning, genre-splicing time-travelling epic * Independent on Sunday *Mitchell's mesmerizing saga is evidence of the power of story to transport us, and even to stop time entirely * Vanity Fair *An extraordinary piece of storytelling -- Books of the Year * Evening Standard *A return to the exuberance and genre-hopping of Cloud Atlas, and a proper page-turner -- Stephanie Merritt, Books of the Year * Observer *Mitchell is a consummate craftsman . . . For sci-fi fantasists, the imaginary world Mitchell creates might be a thing of wonder, a Dungeons and Dragons for literate grown-ups. For others, I suspect the flesh and blood anguish of a long life lived well against the odds will prove the greater pleasure * Independent *Every page fizzes with energy and humour. Wildly imaginative and truly magical, this is a big, chunky feast of a book * Sunday Mirror *Dazzling . . . Mitchell's heavy arsenal of talents is showcased in these pages: his symphonic imagination; his ventriloquist's ability to channel the voices of myriad characters from different time zones and cultures; his intuitive understanding of children and knack for capturing their solemnity and humor; and his ear for language - its rhythms, sounds and inflections -- Michiko Kakutani * New York Times *Intellectually rigorous and stunningly imaginative . . . a rich and dense, inventive and witty thriller * Daily Express *With The Bone Clocks, Mitchell rises to meet and match the legacy of Cloud Atlas . . . interconnected lives stretch across time; human contact is both frightening and vital. This novel electrifyingly unites Mitchell's fictions into one universe while telling the story of Holly Sykes, an ordinary young woman whose chance encounters give her life meaning * Los Angeles Times *At once a gripping thriller and a far-out fantasy, a brilliant mash-up that pulsates with energy, satire and wit * Tatler *Combines fantastic inventiveness with depth and heart -- Books of the Year * Guardian *A divinely inventive author . . . This new novel offers up a rich selection of domestic realism, gothic fantasy and apocalyptic speculation, stretching around the world from the Margaret Thatcher era of the 1980s to the Endarkenment of 2043 . . . Some of these narrators are moving and sympathetic; others radiate the metastasizing creepiness of a Patricia Highsmith villain * Washington Post *If I could file a review that consisted only of the word "wow" 900 times over, it still wouldn't quite capture my delirious response to David Mitchell's stunning, funny, sad, prophetic, fantastical, satirical, achingly real and gloriously fictitious new novel * Scotsman *It's massively bold and ambitious, but also thoroughly readable, funny and moving * Heat *Our most accomplished inventor of multitudinous worlds, which are filled with complex, vital people . . . The Bone Clocks features a gyre-works inventiveness that's well matched by (bizarrely) cerebral substance . . . his most sinewy, fine and full book to date, a Mobius strip-tripping great novel that will reward bleary-eyed rereading * Financial Times *One of the most entertaining and thrilling novels I've read in a long time . . . an extraordinary fun house of a novel -- Meg Wolitzer * NPR *A ludicrously ambitious, unstoppably clever epic told through a chorus of diverse narrators that is both outrageous in scope and meticulous in execution * The Atlantic *Is The Bone Clocks the most ambitious novel ever written, or just the most Mitchell-esque? . . . From gritty realism to far-out fantasy, each section has its own charm and surprises. With its wayward thoughts, chance meetings, and attention to detail, Mitchell's novel is a thing of beauty * Publishers Weekly *Great story, great words, all good * Stephen King *Great fun . . . a tour de force * San Francisco Chronicle *Mitchell is one of the most electric writers alive. To open a Mitchell book is to set forth on an adventure . . . In his latest novel, The Bone Clocks, Mitchell has spun his most far-flung tale yet . . . Strange and magical * Boston Globe *Mind-bendingly ambitious . . . The force of [Mitchell's] storytelling makes The Bone Clocks a joy * Time *Mitchell is a superb storyteller . . . One of the reasons he is such a popular and critically lauded writer is that he combines both the giddy, freewheeling ceaselessness of the pure storyteller with the grounded realism of the humanist. There's something for everyone, traditionalist or postmodernist, realist or fantasist * New Yorker *Magical . . . [it] perfectly illustrates the idea that we're all the heroes of our own lives as well as single cogs in a much larger and more beautiful mechanism * Entertainment Weekly *Deeply meaningful . . . The Bone Clocks has everything you might expect to find in a David Mitchell novel: Great characters in settings far-flung over space and time, all tied together by ambitious ideas and gorgeous writing * BuzzFeed *A sweeping epic . . . that, like Cloud Atlas, spans the ages and tinkers with the hidden gears of human history * GQ *
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Hodder & Stoughton An Air That Kills The Lydmouth Crime Series Book
Book SynopsisThe first in the acclaimed Lydmouth crime series, set on the Welsh/English border in the years after World War IITrade ReviewThe most under-rated crime writer in Britain today * Val McDermid *Captures perfectly the drab atmosphere and cloying morality of the 1950s . . . Taylor is an excellent writer. He plots with care and intelligence and the solution to the mystery is satisfyingly chilling * The Times *There is no denying Taylor's talent, his almost Victorian prose exudes a quality uncommon among his contemporaries... his eye for detail and an enviable ability to dissect relationships and communal habits make for a pleasurable read * Time Out *Engrossing launch of a series . . . Taylor subtly weaves the threads of this thoughtful, melancholy tale until they become an interlaced whole before the reader's eyes * Publishers Weekly *
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