Family life fiction / Stories about family

Book Synopsis‘If you haven’t read Kate Morton before, do yourself a favour’ – Graham Norton, broadcaster and bestselling author of Home StretchA breathtaking mystery of love, lies and a cold case come back to life, Homecoming is an immersive, twisting epic from the bestselling Kate Morton, told with her trademark intricacy and beauty.Adelaide Hills, 1959. At the end of a scorching hot day, in the grounds of a grand country house, a local man makes a terrible discovery. Police are called, and the small town of Tambilla becomes embroiled in one of the most mystifying murder investigations in the history of Australia.London, 2018. Jess is a journalist in search of a story. Having lived and worked in London for nearly two decades, a phone call summons her back to Sydney, where her beloved grandmother, Nora, has suffered a fall and is seriously ill in hospital.Seeking comfort in her past, Jess discovers a true crime book at Nora’s house chronicling a long-buried police case: the Turner Family Tragedy of 1959. And within its pages she finds a shocking personal connection to this notorious event – a crime that has never truly been solved.An epic novel that spans generations, Homecoming asks what we would do for those we love and how we protect the lies we tell.Readers love Homecoming by Kate Morton . . .‘Will leave you glued to the very last page’‘Plenty of turns to keep you guessing’‘Heartbreaking, beautifully written and superbly constructed’Trade ReviewHomecoming is Kate Morton at her very best. A lush, rich, beautiful novel, set against the vibrant, immense backdrop of Australia -- Kristin Hannah, bestselling author of Firefly Lane and The Four WindsIf you’re a fan of Kate Morton you will love it. If you haven’t read Kate Morton before, do yourself a favour. It is a treat; it is a big deep-dive, twisty-turny yarn. It is fantastic -- Graham NortonKate Morton is the author who made me fall in love with dual-timescale storylines. An epic novel about a 1959 murder case in South Australia that has never fully been solved, this is one to devour on holiday * Prima *An unsolved murder, a host of family secrets and three generations of women shape Morton's captivating novel. It’s a sweeping yet intimate tale of motherhood and belonging, loss and longing . . . * Mail on Sunday *A historical mystery that weaves themes of love, family and secrets in a Gothic Australian landscape * BBC Radio 4's Open Book *Prepare yourself for a thriller that will chill you to the bone * Woman's Own *An eerie epic . . . There are beautiful descriptions of the region’s landscape and canny insights into the neighborhood’s tight-knit community. This is Morton’s best yet * Publisher's Weekly *In true Kate Morton style, this is an immersive and intricately plotted intergenerational historical mystery that weaves themes of love, family and secrets * Culturefly *

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Book SynopsisThe Penguin English Library Edition of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen''No sooner had he made it clear to himself and his friends that she had hardly a good feature in her face, than he began to find it was rendered uncommonly intelligent by the beautiful expression of her dark eyes ...''When Elizabeth Bennet first meets eligible bachelor Fitzwilliam Darcy, she thinks him arrogant and conceited; he is indifferent to her good looks and lively mind. When she later discovers that Darcy has involved himself in the troubled relationship between his friend Bingley and her beloved sister Jane, she is determined to dislike him more than ever. In the sparkling comedy of manners that follows, Jane Austen shows the folly of judging by first impressions and superbly evokes the friendships, gossip and snobberies of provincial middle-class life.The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

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Book SynopsisA masterpiece of Biblical scope, and the magnum opus of one of America s most enduring authors, in a commemorative hardcover edition In his journal, Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck called "East of Eden" "the first book," and indeed it has the primordial power and simplicity of myth. Set in the rich farmland of California's Salinas Valley, this sprawling and often brutal novel follows the intertwined destinies of two families the Trasks and the Hamiltons whose generations helplessly reenact the fall of Adam and Eve and the poisonous rivalry of Cain and Abel. The masterpiece of Steinbeck s later years, "East of Eden" is a work in which Steinbeck created his most mesmerizing characters and explored his most enduring themes: the mystery of identity, the inexplicability of love, and the murderous consequences of love's absence. Adapted for the 1955 film directed by Elia Kazan introducing James Dean, and read by thousands as the book that brought Oprah s Book Club back, East of Ede

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Book Synopsis**DREAM COUNT, the searing new bestselling novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is out now!**A haunting tale of an Africa and an adolescence undergoing tremendous changes from the talented bestseller and award-winning author.''A tale for our times'' DAILY MAILImmensely powerful' THE TIMESThe limits of fifteen-year-old Kambili's world are defined by the high walls of her family estate and the dictates of her fanatically religious father. Her life is regulated by schedules: prayer, sleep, study, prayer.When Nigeria is shaken by a military coup, Kambili's father, involved mysteriously in the political crisis, sends her to live with her aunt. In this house, noisy and full of laughter, she discovers life and love and a terrible, bruising secret deep within her family.This extraordinary debut novel from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, author of Half of a Yellow Sun', is about the blurred lines between the old gods and the new, childhood and adulthood, love and hatred the grey spaces in which truths are revealed and real life is lived.''I could not put it down' IRISH TIMES''An intoxicating story that is at once distinctly feminine, African and universal'' OBSERVERTrade Review‘Immensely powerful.’ The Times 'An intoxicating story that is at once distinctly feminine, African and universal.' Observer ‘There’s a quiet confidence about the writing which is very attractive – it isn’t showy, it isn’t brash, but on the contrary both captivating and mature.’ Margaret Forster ‘A sensitive and touching story of a child exposed too early to religious intolerance and the uglier side of the Nigerian state.’ J. M. Coetzee ‘A beautifully judged account of the private intimate stirrings of a young girl…Adichie is a fresh new voice out of Africa.’ Telegraph ‘Political brutality and domestic violence, religion and witchcraft all merge with subtle force in this memorable novel. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie uses childhood innocence to write Nigerian history with the eye of a family insider.’ Hugo Hamilton ‘One of the finest debut novels of recent years…as punchy and characterful as Monica Ali’s “Brick Lane”.’ Evening Standard ‘Assured and evocative…a tale for our times.’ Daily Mail ‘Grips the reader from start to finish. I could not put it down.’ Irish Times

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Book SynopsisA beguiling novel about three women struggling to determine their own lives in contemporary Tokyo.'Breathtaking' – Haruki Murakami author of Norwegian WoodA New York Times 'Notable Book of the Year' and one of Elena Ferrante's 'Top 40 Books by Female Authors'. Shortlisted for the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation.On a hot summer’s day in a poor suburb of Tokyo we meet three women: thirty-year-old Natsuko, her older sister Makiko, and Makiko’s teenage daughter Midoriko. Makiko, an ageing hostess despairing the loss of her looks, has travelled to Tokyo in search of breast enhancement surgery. She's accompanied by her daughter, who has recently stopped speaking, finding herself unable to deal with her own changing body and her mother’s self-obsession. Her silence dominates Natsuko’s rundown apartment, providing a catalyst for each woman to grapple with their own anxieties and their relationships with one another.Eight years later, we meet Natsuko again. She is now a writer and finds herself on a journey back to her native city, returning to memories of that summer and her family’s past as she faces her own uncertain future.In Breasts and Eggs Mieko Kawakami paints a radical and intimate portrait of contemporary working class womanhood in Japan, recounting the heartbreaking journeys of three women in a society where the odds are stacked against them. Translated from the Japanese by Sam Bett and David Boyd.'Bold, modern and surprising' – An Yu, author of Braised Pork'Incredible and propulsive' – Naoise Dolan, author of Exciting TimesTrade ReviewI can never forget the sense of pure astonishment I felt when I first read Mieko Kawakami’s novella Breasts and Eggs . . . breathtaking . . . Mieko Kawakami is always ceaselessly growing and evolving -- Haruki MurakamiIncredible -- Yoko Ogawa, author of The Memory PoliceBreasts and Eggs, which caused a small sensation upon its publication in the UK and US last year, was a fierce yet thoughtful tale of working-class womanhood * New Statesman *Bold, modern, and surprising -- An Yu, author of Braised PorkIt is Tokyo as it is lived in, not a film set * New York Times *If you like Sheila Heti, you'll love Mieko Kawakami * NPR *A dazzling intellectual thriller by a new Japanese literary star . . . stunning * Financial Times *Breasts and Eggs is stunning - its rage, wry humour and nihilism rendered with real care. -- Olivia Sudjic, author of SympathyIncredible and propulsive -- Naoise DolanFierce and sweet and I would like the rest of Kawakami’s work translated, please -- Sarah Moss, author of Summerwater, in The TimesMieko Kawakami is a writer of rare candour and brilliance -- Rónán Hession, author of Leonard and Hungry PaulAlready a literary sensation . . . Kawakami writes with unsettling precision about the body — its discomforts, its appetites, its smells and secretions. -- Katie Kitamura * New York Times *An original and deeply moving novel—that is by turns hilarious, sexy, devastating, and always unforgettable. Breasts and Eggs crackles with provocative insights into the passage of time, friendship, money, and the pleasures and pains of living in a body. -- Laura van den Berg, author of The Third HotelOne of Japan’s brightest stars is set to explode across the global skies of literature . . . Kawakami is both a writer’s writer and an entertainer, a thinker and constantly evolving stylist who manages to be highly readable and immensely popular. * Japan Times *Mieko Kawakami lobbed a literary grenade into the fusty, male-dominated world of Japanese fiction with 'Chichi to Ran'('Breasts and Eggs') * Economist *Kawakami is emerging as one of Japan’s most prominent young literary voices, with thoughtfulness and eccentricity at the heart of her prose * Culture Trip *So finely crafted, every few lines could be a haiku, and you almost forget how difficult it must have been to create something so perfectly simple. And when you notice the clarity, meditativeness, eccentricity, quirk and wit in her writing, you immediately understand how Murakami could be inspired by a writer like this -- Praise for Ms Ice Cream Sandwich * Ladies Finger *The novel details the lives of three women: the 30-year-old unmarried narrator, her older sister Makiko, who’s obsessed with getting breast implants and her daughter, Midoriko. With humour and compassion, Kawakami explores female oppression in Japan, reproduction rights and motherhood * Now Magazine *Originally published in Mieko Kawakami’s native Japanese, the author’s stellar 2008 novel Breast and Eggs is being translated to English for the first time ever this month, opening her bold writing up to a wider audience * Dazed and Confused *

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Book Synopsis**DREAM COUNT, the searing new bestselling novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is out now!**WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD''A delicious, important novel'' THE TIMES''Alert, alive and gripping'' INDEPENDENTIfemelu and Obinze are young and in love when they depart military-ruled Nigeria. In America, Ifemelu suffers defeats and triumphs, finds and loses relationships, all the while feeling the weight of something she never thought of back home: race. Meanwhile, Obinze plunges into a dangerous, undocumented life in London. Fifteen years later, when they reunite in a newly democratic Nigeria, and reignite their passion for each other and for their homeland they face the hardest decision of their lives.Fearless, gripping, spanning three continents and numerous lives, the National Book Critics Circle Award-winning Americanah is a literary masterpiece, and one of the defining books of the decade.''A love story for our time'' VOGUEA brilliant novel: epic in scope, personal in resonance and with lots to say' OBSERVER''A tour de force. Hugely impressive'' MAIL ON SUNDAYTrade Review‘A brilliant novel: epic in scope, personal in resonance and with lots to say’ Elizabeth Day, Observer ‘A delicious, important novel from a writer with a great deal to say’ The Times ‘A brilliant exploration of being African in America … an urgent and important book, further evidence that its author is a real talent’ Sunday Telegraph ‘An extremely thoughtful, subtly provocative exploration of structural inequality, of different kinds of oppression, of gender roles, of the idea of home. Subtle, but not afraid to pull its punches’ Alex Clark, Guardian ‘A tour de force … The artistry with which Adichie keeps her story moving, while animating the complex anxieties in which the characters live and work, is hugely impressive’ Mail on Sunday ‘Adichie is terrific on human interactions … Adichie’s writing always has an elegant shimmer to it … Wise, entertaining and unendingly perceptive’ Independent on Sunday ‘Adichie paints on a grand canvas, boldly and confidently … This is a very funny, very warm and moving intergenerational epic that confirms Adiche’s virtuosity, boundless empathy and searing social acuity’ Dave Eggers ‘“An honest novel about race” … with guts and lustre … within the context of a well-crafted, compassionate, visceral and delicately funny tale of lasting high-school love and the sorrows and adventures of immigration’ Diana Evans, The Times ‘[A] long, satisfying novel of cross-continental relationships, exile and the pull of home … Adichie’s first novel for seven years and well worth the wait’ FT ‘Alert, alive and gripping’ Independent

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Book SynopsisOne of those rarest of books: so beautiful I almost couldn't bear it, and so moving I was reading through tears' STACEY HALLSUniquely witty, beautifully observed, intricately woven' MIRANDA HARTA truly glorious life-affirming book, in which love, hope and friendship trump sorrow' DINAH JEFFERIESHad me absolutely sobbing a beautiful, beautiful book' JO BROWNING WROE, bestselling author of A TERRIBLE KINDNESSWorth every tear' WOMAN & HOMEExquisitely tender, powerfully compelling' SARAH HAYWOODOne of my new all-time favourite books an absolute joy' JULIETTA HENDERSONThoughtful, warm and engaging' CHRISTINA SWEENEY-BAIRDHonest, heartfelt and hopeful' MARIANNE CRONINA joy to read' ANNE YOUNGSONA love song to women everywhere' ERICKA WALLERMEET EVA MARTÍNEZ-GREEN, AN ONLY CHILD FULL OF QUESTIONS ABOUT HER BEGINNINGS.Between her emotionally absent mother and her physically absent father, there is nobody to answer them. Eva is convinced that all is not as it seems. Why are there no baby pictTrade Review‘One of the most transporting novels I have read recently’ Patricia Nicol, Daily Mail’s Best Books for Winter Breaks ‘Honest, heartfelt and hopeful, All My Mothers captures the joy and pain of love in all its forms, and reminds us that mothers can be found in the most unlikely of places and people. It broke my heart three times, but I adored it!’ MARIANNE CRONIN, author of One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot ‘Mothers are artists – a beautiful sentiment from a beautiful book that challenges the notion of what a mother should look like. Eva is lost. She's sure her mother doesn't belong to her and, with her father absent, no one seems to have any answers – so she goes looking for them, on an epic journey that takes us to Cordoba in Spain. In a coming-of-age story, we feel the desire Eva has just to belong. Though it's not always an easy read, it is worth every tear’ Woman & Home Praise for The Other Half of Augusta Hope: ’A joy…the humour and pathos in their stories lends real heart and soul’ OBSERVER ‘A moving tale… sure to make you cry… Parfait [is] a convincingly serious, sweet, clever and funny person who ends up carrying the story… an epic hero … It’s going to be all over every book club in Britain before you can say Burundi’ The Times ‘A mesmerisingly beautiful portrait of a young woman discovering what home means to her, and a poignant depiction of how our actions can touch other people's lives in ways we could never have anticipated.’ Sarah Haywood, author of The Cactus ‘Without a doubt one of the best books I have ever read – an extraordinary masterpiece’ Anstey Harris, author of The Truths and Triumphs of Grace Atherton ‘The most gutsy, endearing and entertaining meditation on the meaning of human existence that you're ever likely to read’ Deborah Orr

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Book SynopsisHarper Lee was born in 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. She attended Huntington College and studied law at the University of Alabama. She is the author of the acclaimed novels To Kill a Mockingbird and Go Set a Watchman, and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and numerous other literary awards and honours. She died on 19 February 2016.Trade Review'No one ever forgets this book' * Independent *'Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humor. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable' - Truman Capote'Her book is lifted...into the rare company of those that linger in the mind long after dramas, sagas and sophisticated frolics have coalesced into a blur of half-forgotten fiction' * Bookman *'There is humour as well as tragedy in this book, besides its faint note of hope for human nature; and it is delightfully written in the now familiar Southern tradition' * Sunday Times *Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humour. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable * Truman Capote *

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Book Synopsis**THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER** OVER A MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB PICK OVER 29,000 5 STAR REVIEWS GOOD HOUSEKEEPING BEST BOOKS OF 2022 GLAMOUR BEST BOOKS OF 2022 'Full of heart and humour . . . I loved it.' Ruth Hogan 'Will stay with you for a long time.' Anstey Harris 'I defy you to put it down once you’ve started' Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night cleaner shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium. Ever since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat over thirty years ago keeping busy has helped her cope. One night she meets Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium who sees everything, but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors – until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova. Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late... Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is a reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible. 'You won’t be able to put it down because when you’re not reading this book you’ll be hugging it.' Jamie Ford 'Truly original and touching' Helen Hoang Over a million copies sold worldwide! READER REVIEWS 'I couldn't put it down' 'Marvelous, heartwarming, brilliant' 'I enjoyed every second' 'I was gripped from the first page' ‘Read it, there's no way you won't fall in love with Marcellus the octopus!’ ‘Goodness me, what a unique and wonderful book.’Trade ReviewA winningly totally original feel-good mystery packed with memorable characters that, once started, demands to be finished * Irish Independent *A beautiful examination of how loneliness can be transformed, cracked open, with the slightest touch from another living thing. Shelby Van Pelt makes good on this wild conceit, somehow making me love a misanthropic octopus, but her writing is so finely tuned that it's a natural element of a larger story about family, about loss and the electricity of something found -- Kevin Wilson, author of NOTHING TO SEE HERERemarkably Bright Creatures is the rarest of feats: a book that manages to be wry and wise, charming and surprising, and features one of the most intriguing and satisfying characters I’ve encountered in fiction in a very long time – Marcellus the Octopus. I don’t know how Shelby Van Pelt managed to make this uncommon tale sing so beautifully, but sing it does, and I defy you to put it down once you’ve started -- Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, author of THE NESTA unique and luminous book * Booklist *Truly original and touching, Remarkably Bright Creatures is a story of family, community, and optimism in spite of darkness. Prepare to fall in love -- Helen Hoang, author of THE KISS QUOTIENTShelby’s characters are unique and yet completely relatable ... It is a fresh and fascinating story full of heart and humour and I loved it. -- Ruth Hogan, author of The Keeper of Lost ThingsAn ultimately feel-good but deceptively sensitive debut about what it feels like to have love taken from you, only to find it again in the most unexpected places ... Memorable and tender. * Washington Post *A warm and satisfying book. It wrapped itself around me, luring me into the many mysteries hidden just beneath the surface. -- Polly Crosby, author of The Illustrated ChildRemarkable characters, who will stay with you for a long time. -- Anstey Harris, author of The Trials and Triumphs of Grace AthertonYou’ll bask in this book’s warmth and wit * Spectrum *

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewWow! Loved it. The pace is breakneck. A book where no one is who you think they are. And just when you think you have it all figured out you are thrown another curveball. Highly recommended. I flew through it. All Her Fault will be a huge bestseller. * Patricia Gibney, author of THE LOST CHILD *Immediately compelling, All Her Fault explores every mother's worst nightmare and delivers deftly original twists. * Phoebe Morgan, author of THE BABYSITTER *Andrea Mara's tight plotting and convincing characterisation make her books both compelling and intriguing. * Liz Nugent, author of LYING IN WAIT *A heart-stopping tale . . . Mara's stunningly original plot has its roots in the powerful emotions aroused by motherhood, leading to heartbreak and murder. * Sunday Times, Crime Book of the Month *With a genuinely terrifying opening, fans of Big Little Lies will enjoy this slice of twisty domestic noir with a distinct south Dublin flavour. * Sinead Crowley, author of ONE BAD TURN *

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Book SynopsisFirst published in 1967, this book consists of three short novellas on the theme of women''s vulnerability in the first, to the process of ageing, in the second to loneliness, and, in the third, to the growing indifference of a loved one.THE WOMAN DESTROYED is a collection of three stories, each an exquisite and passionate study of a woman trapped by circumstances, trying to rebuild her life.In the first story, The Age of Discretion', a successful scholar fast approaching middle age faces a double shock her son's abandonment of the career she has chosen for him and the harsh critical rejection of her latest academic work. The Monologue' is an extraordinary New Year's Eve outpouring of invective from a woman consumed with bitterness and loneliness after her son and her husband have left home. Finally, in The Woman Destroyed', Simone de Beauvoir tells the story of Monique, trying desperately to resurrect her life after her husband confesses to an affair with a younger woman.Compassionate, lucid, full of wit and knowing, Simone de Beauvoir's rare insight into the inequalities and complexities of women's lives is unsurpassable.Trade ReviewPraise for THE WOMAN DESTROYED: ‘In these immensely intelligent stories about the decay of passion, Simone de Beauvoir shares with other women novelists the ability to write about emotion in terms of direct experience. What is unique and supremely valuable in her work is the capacity to retain at the same time a coolness and critical detachment towards her material.’ Sunday Times ‘Intensely readable, with a return to warmth and identification with the characters that made THE MANDARINS outstanding’ New Statesman Praise for Simone de Beauvoir: ‘Simone de Beauvoir is a writer whose every work I pounce on eagerly – her vision is so wide, the tale she tells is so interesting, her characterisation so psychologically profound’ YORKSHIRE POST ‘Simone de Beauvoir has the true novelist's gift of selecting detail and creating individuals whilst refusing to sum up situations’ A.S. BYATT

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Book Synopsis**Order the paperback of Bella Mackie''s latest hilarious novel, WHAT A WAY TO GO, now**THE #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERI loved this book' RICHARD OSMANFunny, sharp, dark and twisted' JOJO MOYESChilling, but also laugh-out-loud funny. Another corker' SUNDAY TELEGRAPHThey say you can't choose your family. But you can kill them.Meet Grace Bernard.Daughter, sister, serial killerGrace has lost everything.And she will stop at nothing to get revenge.-Funny and furious and strangely uplifting. Grace is a bitter and beguiling anti-hero with a keen eye for social analysis even in her most grisly deeds, you never stop rooting for her' PANDORA SYKESDeliciously addictivebrilliantly executed' i PAPERAddictive Grace Bernard is one of the most intriguing and bewitching protagonists I''ve read in years' EMMA GANNONA funny, compulsive read about family dysfunction and the media's obsession with murder' SUNDAY TIMES STYLEYou'll be gripped Grace's emotional detachment throughout will give you chills' Rated 5 stars by COSMOPOLITAN?????Hilarious and dark' ELLEIronic twists and caustic commentary on everything from liberal guilt to the consumerist con that is selfcare sharpen this debut novel' OBSERVERBrilliantly tongue-in-cheek stuff from the Vogue columnist' IRISH INDEPENDENTWitty, waspish satire of a murderer with no regrets' GRAZIAOriginal, funny, unique and such a refreshing read' PRIMAA deliciously dark debut novel' REDOne very entertaining read' WOMAN'S WAYHow To Kill Your Family was number 1 in the Sunday Times paperback chart on 26/04/2022Trade Review‘Funny and furious and strangely uplifting. Grace is a bitter and beguiling anti-hero with a keen eye for social analysis – even in her most grisly deeds, you never stop rooting for her’ PANDORA SYKES ‘I loved this book’ RICHARD OSMAN ‘I’ve struggled to recover my reading mojo since lockdown. This turned out to be the thing that sparked it back to life… Funny, sharp, dark and twisted, Grace is a character I found myself rooting for even as she committed the most vile misdeeds’ JOJO MOYES ‘Addictive… one of the most intriguing and bewitching protagonists I've read in years’ EMMA GANNON ‘A funny, compulsive read about family dysfuction and the media’s obsession with murder’ SUNDAY TIMES STYLE ‘You’ll be gripped… Grace’s emotional detachment throughout will give you chills’ Rated 5 stars by COSMOPOLITAN⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Hilarious and dark’ ELLE ‘Ironic twists and caustic commentary on everything from liberal guilt to the consumerist con that is “selfcare” sharpen this debut novel’ OBSERVER ‘Brilliantly tongue-in-cheek stuff from the Vogue columnist’ IRISH INDEPENDENT ‘Original, funny, unique and such a refreshing read’ PRIMA ‘A deliciously dark debut novel’ RED ‘This smart revenge comedy is told through the eyes of the Villanelle-esque anti-hero Grace Bernard… Chilling, but also laugh-out-loud funny. Another corker of a debut’ SUNDAY TELEGRAPH ‘Deliciously addictive… brilliantly executed’ i PAPER ‘Witty, waspish satire of a murderer with no regrets’ GRAZIA ‘Darkly hilarious’ IRISH TIMES MAGAZINE ‘Deliciously dark and twisted’ You magazine, MAIL ON SUNDAY ‘Bella Mackie’s debut novel is by turns pitch-dark and laugh-out-loud funny, with an outrageous final twist’ DAILY MAIL ‘hilarious… skilfully plotted’ Adele Parks The Sun

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Book SynopsisHobb is a remarkable storyteller' GUARDIANThe second volume in this superb trilogy from the author of The Farseer trilogy continues the dramatic tale of piracy, serpents, love and magic.The Vestrit family's liveship, Vivacia, has been taken by the pirate king, Kennit. Held captive on board, Wintrow Vestrit finds himself competing with Kennit for Vivacia's love as the ship slowly acquires her own bloodlust.Leagues away, Althea Vestrit has found a new home aboard the liveship Ophelia, but she lives only to reclaim the Vivacia and with her friend, Brashen, she plans a dangerous rescue.Meanwhile in Bingtown, the fading fortunes of the Vestrit family lead Malta deeper into the magical secrets of the Rain Wild Traders. And just outside Bingtown, Amber dreams of relaunching Paragon, the mad liveship . . .Trade Review‘Fantasy as it ought to be written’ George R.R. Martin ‘Hobb is superb’ GUARDIAN 'Hobb is one of the great modern fantasy writers… what makes her novels as addictive as morphine is not just their imaginative brilliance but the way her characters are compromised and manipulated by politics'THE TIMES

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Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics.''Wouldn''t it be fun if all the castles in the air which we make could come true and we could live in them?''A heart-warming tale of love, sisterhood and hardship during the New England Civil War, Little Women tells the story of the lovable March family. Meg, Beth, Jo and Amy try to support their mother at home while their father is away at war and enter into various scrapes and adventures as they do so. Alcott beautifully interweaves bad times and good as her characters struggle with the trials and tribulations of growing up and their relationships with one another.

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Book SynopsisFrom the Oscar-nominated screenwriter (When Harry Met Sally) and successful director (Sleepless in Seattle), Nora Ephron comes a bittersweet autobiographical book about love and loss. Published as part of a beautifully designed series to mark the fortieth anniversary of the Virago Modern Classics.Trade ReviewI am not a great reader of comic novels, but Ephron's hilarious, recipe-strewn, semi-autobiographical account of a heavily pregnant woman whose husband has left her for a woman with a 'neck as long as an arm' is a treat. A perfect example of Ephron's gift for turning tragedy into comedy, Heartburn is evidence that revenge is indeed a dish best served cold[Ephron] chatters up a storm, always on the verge of wisecracking up * Guardian *What really interested Ephron, for all her clever writing about food, politics and overcluttered purses, were matters of the heart. She is the exact opposite of Dorothy Parker. She is wit without cynicism, the ultimate romantic -- Gail Collins * New York Times *I have bought more copies of this book to give to people, in a frenzy of enthusiasm, than any other . . . Heartburn is the perfect, bittersweet, sobbingly funny, all-too-true confessional novel. There is not a wrong word - about food, marriage, life, love, lossFull of cynicism and gags, this autobiographical novel is comic writing at its finest -- Andrew Billen * The Times *Heartburn took the most miserable personal situation and made it hysterically funny, inspiring and utterly relatable to women of all ages. I became obsessed with its author and thinly disguised heroine * Stylist *Heartburn is as hilarious as it is heartbreaking and as brittle (very) as it is steely (even more)It is snortingly funny in its depiction of the death throes of a relationship. And it bursts with recipes. What more could you ask for?Not just the funniest novel ever written about divorce, but the funniest novel ever. Only the truly talented make writing as good as this look easy -- Hadley Freeman * The Week *I kept a copy of Nora Ephron's Heartburn next to me as a reminder of how to be funny and truthful, and all I ended up doing was ignoring my writing and rereading Heartburn -- Amy PoehlerThe real magic of the novel comes from Ephron's nonchalant conversationalism -- Helen Rosner * New Yorker *Simply one of the greatest novels involving food ever written from the writer of When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle. It's about love, sex, adultery and key lime pie -- Jay RaynerThis book taught me about love, loss and writing. It's a timeless classic * Independent *

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Book Synopsis'There is only one book to a man' Steinbeck wrote of East of Eden. Set in the rich farmland of the Salinas Valley, California, this powerful, often brutal novel, follows the interwined destinies of two families - the Trasks and the Hamiltons - whose generations hopelessly re-enact the fall of Adam and Eve and the poisonous rivalry of Cain and Abel. Here Steinbeck created some of his most memorable characters and explored his most enduring themes: the mystery of indentity; the inexplicability of love, and the murderous consequences of love's absence.

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Book SynopsisCasey McQuiston's instant New York Times and USA Today bestseller. Now a Prime Original movie starring Nicholas Galitzine, Taylor Zakhar Perez, and Uma Thurman.What happens when America's First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales?Alex Claremont-Diaz is handsome, charismatic, a genius – pure millennial-marketing gold for the White House ever since his mother first became President of the United States. There’s only one problem. When the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an altercation between Alex and Prince Henry, U.S./British relations take a turn for the worse.Heads of family and state devise a plan for damage control: stage a truce. But what begins as a fake, Instagrammable friendship grows deeper, and more dangerous, than either Alex or Henry could have imagined. Soon they are hurtling into a secret romance that could derail the presidential campaign and upend two nations.'Red, White & Royal Blue is outrageously fun. It is romantic, sexy, witty, and thrilling. I loved every second.' - Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of Daisy Jones & The SixTrade ReviewRed, White & Royal Blue is outrageously fun. It is romantic, sexy, witty, and thrilling. I loved every second -- Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The SixI took this with me wherever I went and stole every second I had to read! Absorbing, hilarious, tender, sexy—this book had everything I crave. I’m jealous of all the readers out there who still get to experience Red, White & Royal Blue for the first time! -- Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling author of The Unhoneymooners

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Book SynopsisFrom the New York Times number one bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Great Alone, Kristin Hannah, comes Wild, a remarkable story about the resilience of the human spirit, the triumph of hope and the promise of new beginnings.In the rugged Pacific Northwest of the United States lies the Olympic National Forest – a vast expanse of impenetrable darkness and impossible beauty. From deep within this mysterious woodland, a six-year-old girl appears. Speechless and alone, she offers no clue as to her identity, no hint of her past. Having retreated to her hometown after a scandal left her career in ruins, child psychiatrist Dr Julia Cates begins working with the extraordinary little girl. Naming her Alice, Julia is determined to free her from a prison of unimaginable fear and isolation, and discover the truth about Alice’s past. The shocking facts of Alice’s life test the limits of Julia’s faith and strength, even as she struggles to make a home for Alice – and find a new one for herself. ‘One of Kristin Hannah's most compelling and riveting novels’ – Booklist ** Published in the US as Magic Hour ******Here’s what readers love about Wild:‘I was moved to tears and devoured this book in a day’‘Couldn’t put it down’‘Gritty and thought-provoking’Trade ReviewA rich, compelling novel of love, sacrifice and survival, as epic as the Alaskan landscape it so vividly describes -- Kate Morton on The Great AloneHannah has delivered a masterclass in all the different ways love can both save us and destroy us [. . . ] She perfectly captures and evokes the majesty and splendid isolation of Alaska and it feels a privilege to have journeyed there with her. This is a story that will stay with me for a long, long time -- Karen Swan on The Great AloneEpic . . . By the end, I was surrounded by snow drifts of tissues damp with my tears -- Washington Post on The Great AloneGreat characters, great plots, great emotions, who could ask for more in a novel? -- Isabel Allende on The NightingaleMovingly written and plotted with the skill of Greek tragedy. You’ll keep turning the pages until the last racking sob -- Daily Mail on The Nightingale

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Book SynopsisFrom the Orange Prize-winning author of Half of a Yellow Sun' come twelve dazzling stories that turn a penetrating eye on the ties that bind men and women, parents and children, Nigeria and the West.In ''A Private Experience'', a medical student hides from a violent riot with a poor Muslim woman whose dignity and faith force her to confront the realities and fears she''s been pushing away.In ''Tomorrow Is Too Far'', a woman unlocks the devastating secret that surrounds her brother''s death.The young mother at the centre of ''Imitation'' finds her comfortable life threatened when she learns that her husband back in Lagos has moved his mistress into their home.And the title story depicts the choking loneliness of a Nigerian girl who moves to an America that turns out to be nothing like the country she expected; though falling in love brings her desires nearly within reach, a death in her homeland forces her to re-examine them.Searing and profound, suffused with beauty, sorrow and longingTrade Review‘“The Thing Around your Neck”, with its warm and sympathetic heroines and its finely cadenced un-American English prose, demonstrates that she is keeping faith with her talent and with her country.’ Lindsay Duguid, Sunday Times ‘Her particular gift is the seductive ability to tell a story…Adichie writes with an economy and precision that makes the strange seem familiar. She makes storytelling seem as easy as birdsong.’ Jane Shilling, Telegraph ‘Adichie’s spare, poised prose, the coolness of her phrasing, ensures these scenes are achieved without melodrama. And though she writes very specifically about Nigeria, the stories have a universal application.’ FT ‘An elegant collection. From beginning to end the prose is serene and the characterization deft.’ TLS ‘The powerful themes close to Adichie’s heart shine through, but never over-shadow writing of clarity and brilliance.’ Aminatta Forna, Guardian

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Book SynopsisFROM THE AWARD-WINNING TRANSLATORS RICHARD PEVEAR AND LARISSA VOLOKHONSKYDostoevsky''s beautiful writing style and universal themes make this epic 19th century novel unmissable. The Brothers Karamazov is a murder mystery, a courtroom drama, and an exploration of erotic rivalry in a series of triangular love affairs involving Karamazov and his three sons - the impulsive and sensual Dmitri; the coldly rational Ivan; and the healthy young novice Alyosha. Through the gripping events of their story, Dostoevsky portrays the social and spiritual strivings in what was both a golden age and a tragic turning point in Russian history.Trade ReviewDostoevsky makes Martin Amis seem as if he was writing 130 years ago and that Dostoevsky is writing now. Read all of Dostoevsky. These books are for now and they matter, because it's up to us to call a halt to our TV producers, politicians, gutless artists, poets and writers: these "teenagers of all ages" who are propelling us towards a consumerist hell of disposability over qualityDonne, Herbert, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, George Eliot, Dostoevsky, Henry James - these are the great psychologists - far greater than Freud or Klein or JungNo reader who knows The Brothers Karamazov should ignore this magnificent translation. And no reader who doesn't should wait any longer to acquaint himself with one of the peaks of modern fiction * USA Today *It returns us to a work we thought we knew - made new again * Washington Post *In this new translation one finally gets the musical whole of Dostoevsky's original * New York Times Book Review *

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Book Synopsis''A coming-of-age story filled with magic in language and plot: beautiful and devastating''Observer, Books of the Year''I felt consumed by this book. I loved it, you will love it''Daisy Johnson, author of Sisters''A page-turning Appalachian coming-of-age story told in undulating prose that settles right into you''Naoise Dolan, author of Exciting Times ''Vivid and lucid, Betty has stayed with me''Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Mercies''I loved Betty'' Fiona Mozley, author of Hot Stew''Breahtaking''Vogue ''A GIRL COMES OF AGE AGAINST THE KNIFE''So begins the story of Betty Carpenter. Born in a bathtub in 1954 to a white mother and a Cherokee father, Betty is the sixth of eight siblings: the world they inhabit in the rural town of BreathTrade ReviewBreathtaking. * Vogue *Despite the beauty of the landscape and the poetry of the language, this is not an easy read. Yes, it flows beautifully, but there are depths to explore and layer upon layer of meaning. It is worth the journey... At one stage, I put the novel aside but Betty kept calling me back. I wanted to know what happened. I'm glad I did. Once I had finished the book, I wanted to start again simply so that I could savour some of the language and the Cherokee wisdom. (I also wanted to give Betty a hug and tell her it would be OK.) This is a book that will stay with you. * Irish Independent *There's a good chance you haven't read a family saga like Betty... Their story is simultaneously extraordinary (they are subjected to unthinkable racism, financial hardships, and untimely deaths) and run-of-the-mill (at the heart, they are a family like any other). Each day in their life is supplanted with the mysticism and interconnectedness of their father's traditions, offering a light at the end of a very dark plot tunnel. * Entertainment Weekly *Vivid. * Los Angeles Times *So engrossing! Tiffany McDaniel's Betty is a page-turning Appalachian coming-of-age story steeped in Cherokee history, told in undulating prose that settles right into you. * Naoise Dolan, Sunday Times bestselling author of EXCITING TIMES *I felt consumed by the ambitious enormity and sadness of this book. Betty is about the power of words and the language it is written in rings with this. I loved it, you will love it. * Daisy Johnson, Booker Prize shortlisted author of EVERYTHING UNDER and SISTERS *I loved Betty: I fell for its strong characters and was moved by the story it portrayed. McDaniel deals with the passage of time with subtlety and skill and the descriptions of the rolling hills of Ohio were really beautiful. * Fiona Mozley, Booker Prize shortlisted author of ELMET *Betty is woven of many things, light and dark, and most of all it is life in all its shades: all its brilliances and disappointments, sadnesses and hopes. Vivid and lucid, Betty has stayed with me. * Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of THE MERCIES *Tiffany McDaniel has given us a vivid and haunting portrait of the writer as a young girl. Betty Carpenter survives the brutality of her childhood through her father's stories and his steadfast belief in her own. A novel of tragedy and trouble, poetry and power, not a story you will soon forget.Magical, densely lyrical and often disturbing. Tiffany McDaniel follows in the tradition of The Color Purple with her unflinching portrayal of the generational ripples of racism, poverty, and abuse. Shot through with moonshine, Bible verses, and folklore, Betty is about the cruelty we inflict on one another, the beauty we still manage to find, and the stories we tell in order to survive. * Eowyn Ivey, author of THE SNOW CHILD *This novel broke my brain. The lush, hypnotic prose, the voice, so authentic and compelling, as Betty Carpenter holds your hand and leads you through a world filled with familial tragedy. Each more haunting than the last, until you're left holding your breath, with a tourniquet on your heart. This is powerful, relentless storytelling at its best. * Jamie Ford, author of HOTEL AT THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET *Betty is Betty Carpenter's gripping coming of age story and is bold, inventive and profoundly moving. It is not a story blind to the character's abuse, but also reveals the love, sweetness, and magic in her life. Betty is too brown, too female and too poor for the world, but her story reminds us that despite all obstacles there are those blessed times when we can still manage to find our voices and sing. A triumph! * Stephanie Powell Watts, author of NO ONE IS COMING TO SAVE US *A painful, powerful, transcendent story . . . Tiffany McDaniel's distinctive, poetic prose lets us know at the outset that something unique is going on in these pages. Bit by bit, she draws us into her 'other world' with amazing skill; and, before we realize it, we are like wide-eyed children, enthralled as we once were, as we listened to a story from Grimm's Fairy Tales. Yet, this is no fairytale for children. Rather, it is an intricate, complex mosaic of myths that explores the ways in which the imagination can bring hope into our lives during difficult times. With her depth as a poet and her boldness as a storyteller, the author has created an unforgettable novel. It stays in our imagination, long after we've read the last word. * Gwyn Hyman Rubio, author of THE WOODMAN'S DAUGHTER *Tiffany McDaniel gives voice to those on the fringes. Betty is a coming-of-age novel that has the courage to look into the darkness and to find the light. Betty Carpenter tells the story of her family with empathy and passion and heart. This is a book for anyone who's ever stood on the outside looking in, or for anyone who's ever scorned the unfortunate. It's a book for our uncertain times, one that has much to show us about family, about want, about love. * Lee Martin, author of THE BRIGHT FOREVER *Betty is an unforgettable story about the bonds that bind families and the power of words when it feels like all hope is lost. * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisA haunting tale of an Africa and an adolescence undergoing tremendous changes from the talented bestseller and award-winning author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.Fifteen-year-old Kambili''s world is circumscribed by the high walls of her family compound and the frangipani trees she can see from her bedroom window. Her wealthy Catholic father, although generous and well-respected in the community, is repressive and fanatically religious at home. Her life is lived under his shadow and regulated by schedules: prayer, sleep, study, and more prayer. She lives in fear of his violence and the words in her textbooks begin to turn to blood in front of her eyes.When Nigeria begins to fall apart under a military coup, Kambili''s father, involved in mysterious ways with the unfolding political crisis, sends Kambili and her brother away to their aunt''s. The house is noisy and full of laughter. Here she discovers love and a life dangerous and heathen beyond the confines of her father''s authority. The vTrade Review'A beautiful and often harrowing story.' Observer Books of the Year ‘A sensitive and touching story of a child exposed too early to religious intolerance and the uglier side of the Nigerian state.’ J. M. Coetzee ‘Political brutality and domestic violence, religion and witchcraft all merge with subtle force in this memorable novel. Chimammanda Ngozi Adichie uses childhood innocence to write Nigerian history with the eye of a family insider.’ Hugo Hamilton ‘“Purple Hibiscus” is the best debut I've read since Arundhati Roy's “The God of Small Things”.’ Jason Cowley, Literary Editor of the New Statesman ‘This debut ensnares the reader from the first page and lingers in the memory…in soft, searing voice, Adichie examines the complexities of family, faith and country through the haunted but hopeful eyes of a young girl on the cusp of womanhood.’ Publishers Weekly

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Book Synopsis'ONE OF THE GREATEST AMERICAN NOVELS EVER WRITTEN''Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.'A lawyer's advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic novel - a black man falsely charged with the rape of a white girl. Through the young eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with exuberant humour the irrationality of adult attitudes to race and class in the Deep South of the 1930s. The conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the stamina of one man's struggle for justice. But the weight of history will only tolerate so much.To Kill a Mockingbird is a coming-of-age story, an anti-racist novel, a historical drama of the Great Depression and a sublime example of the Southern writing tradition.Trade Review'No one ever forgets this book' * Independent *'Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humor. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable' - Truman Capote'Her book is lifted...into the rare company of those that linger in the mind long after dramas, sagas and sophisticated frolics have coalesced into a blur of half-forgotten fiction' * Bookman *'There is humour as well as tragedy in this book, besides its faint note of hope for human nature; and it is delightfully written in the now familiar Southern tradition' * Sunday Times *Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humour. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable * Truman Capote *

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Book SynopsisThe brand new page-turner from the bestselling author of The Life You Left Behind.'When the world says “give up”, hope whispers, “try it one more time”.’Callie’s always been the least ambitious of her sisters but also the happiest, until fate snaps her fiancé away before they can say I do.One year later, she is still putting her life back together, but she might be ready for more. With so much life left to live, she has to find a way to be happy.Nathan knows not everyone gets a second chance at life and he’s not going to waste his. He’s left the city behind, moved to Cornwall and is starting over. When he meets a beautiful woman at the beach it feels like fate, but her heart belongs to someone else. Could Callie and Nathan be just what each other needs?

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Book SynopsisMeg, Jo, Amy and Beth - four 'little women' enduring hardships and enjoying adventures in Civil War New England.Trade Review"The American female myth."—Madelon Bedell

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA deeply emotional love story that follows one day in the life of Elle Bishop as she navigates the unravelling of secrets, lies and a very complex love triangle * Reese Witherspoon *It's glorious and gorgeous. I was absolutely immersed and gripped and I'm devastated to have finished it -- Marian KeyesThis accomplished family saga is gripping and poetic, capturing the complexity of the human heart * Daily Mirror *A family drama, a forbidden love story, a childhood tragedy, The Paper Palace is a stunning literary debut that will eat you up and leave you reeling - you won't want it to end * Independent *

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Book Synopsis** Shortlisted for the 2020 International Dublin Literary Award **One of Barack Obama's best books of 2018, the New York Times bestselling novel about contemporary America from a bold new Native American voice'A thunderclap' Marlon James'Astonishing' Margaret Atwood, via Twitter'Pure soaring beauty' Colm TóibínJacquie Red Feather is newly sober and hoping to reconnect with her estranged family. That's why she is there. Dene is there because he has been collecting stories to honour his uncle's death, while Edwin is looking for his true father and Opal came to watch her boy Orvil dance.All of them are connected by bonds they may not yet understand. All of them are here for the celebration that is the Big Oakland Powwow. But Tony Loneman is also there. And Tony has come to the Powow with darker intentions.'An exhilarating, polyphonic debut novel... Dazzling' Daily Telegraph'Lyrical and playful, shaking and shimmering with energy... Orange creates beauty out of tragedy' Guardian'Bold and engrossing... Orange has got under his characters' skins, allowing them to speak for themselves' Financial TimesA New York Times Top 10 Best Book 2018An Oprah Magazine Top 15 Best Book 2018Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2019Shortlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize 2019Winner of the Writer's Center First Novel Award 2018Trade ReviewHow do you rewrite the story of a people? This question shapes Tommy Orange’s sorrowful, beautiful debut novel . . . There There itself is a kind of dance. Even in its tragic details, it is lyrical and playful, shaking and shimmering with energy. The novel dips into the tiniest personal details and sweeps across history. Orange creates beauty out of tragedy. -- Rowan Hisayo Buchanan * Guardian *[A] bold and engrossing debut… [Orange] has got under his characters’ skins, allowing them to speak for themselves… This is a powerful novel of pain and possibility -- Erica Wagner * Financial Times *A magnificent achievement… Orange has created a remarkable work, and I have little doubt that he will be ranked in the pantheon of 21st century American novelists -- Stuart Kelly * Scotland on Sunday *It is optimism that lingers after finishing the book. Fragile and flawed though this hope might be, it remains moving and powerful, just like the rest of Orange’s impressive achievement -- Alexander Larman * Observer *Compelling and affecting… It’s a searing, haunting read – all the way to its violent, intense climax -- Hephzibah Anderson * Mail on Sunday *

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Book Synopsis'Shoot all the Bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a Mockingbird.' Atticus Finch gives this advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of this classic novel - a black man charged with attacking a white girl. Through the eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Lee explores the issues of race and class in the Deep South of the 1930s with compassion and humour. She also creates one of the great heroes of literature in their father, whose lone struggle for justice pricks the conscience of a town steeped in prejudice and hypocrisy.This edition of one of the world’s best-loved books features the original text. **One of the BBC’s 100 Novels That Shaped Our World**Trade ReviewHarper Lee announced she would be releasing a sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird this summer – 55 years after her debut. Go Set a Watchman, completed in the mid-50s but lost for more than half a century, was written before To Kill A Mockingbird and features Scout as an adult * Guardian *No one ever forgets this book * Independent *Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humour. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable * Truman Capote *There is humour as well as tragedy in this book, besides its faint note of hope for human nature; and it is delightfully written * Sunday Times *A hundred pounds of sermons on tolerance, or an equal measure of invective deploring the lack of it, will weigh far less in the scale of enlightenment than a mere eighteen ounces of new fiction bearing the title To Kill a Mockingbird * The Washington Post, 1961 *

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Book SynopsisA missing girl. A buried secret. From the ten-million-copy bestselling author comes a brand new look for this compulsively twisty psychological thriller that will keep you hooked to the very last page.‘A tense, clever page-turner that everyone will be talking about.’ Adele Parks‘Dark and claustrophobic but also heartfelt and moving ... packs a huge emotional punch that will leave you winded. I loved it.’ C. L. Taylor‘Both utterly gripping and startlingly original. Prepare to be hooked.’ Sun_____________Ellie was her mother's golden girl.She had her whole life ahead of her.And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone.Ten years on, Laurel has never given up hope of finding Ellie. And then she meets a charming and charismatic stranger who sweeps her off her feet.But what really takes her breath away is when she meets his nine-year-old daughter.Because his daughter is the image of Ellie.Now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back.What really happened to Ellie? And who still has secrets to hide?_____________OVER 180,000 5* RATINGS - this is why readers love this book:'Breathtaking. Compulsive. Suspenseful. Poetic.''One of the top 5 thrillers I’ve ever read.''I wanted the book never to end.''Suspense filled… edge of my seat… I could not put this down!!''This was my first Lisa Jewell book, and it will definitely not be my last.''Dark, winding and haunting, I couldn't put this one down.'Lisa Jewell, Sunday Times bestseller, October 2023Trade ReviewA MISSING GIRL. A BURIED SECRET.From the acclaimed author of I Found You and the Richard & Judy bestseller, The Girls, comes a compulsively twisty psychological thriller that will keep you gripped to the very last page. * from the publisher's description *Both utterly gripping and startlingly original. Prepare to be hooked. * Sun *I defy you to put this addictive book down until you reach the final heart-breaking page * Daily Express *What begins as a story about the mother of a missing girl starting a new relationship as she comes terms with her grief morphs into a gripping, disturbing and utterly fascinating tale about what really happened to young Ellie Mack. I've been a Lisa Jewell fan for a long time and in this book, as in all her others, she deftly weaves a compelling plot with an emotional depth that leaves you gasping. In Then She Was Gone she has created a book that is dark and claustrophobic but also heartfelt and moving. Then She Was Gone packs a huge emotional punch that will leave you winded. I loved it. -- CL Taylor, author of The Escape, The Lie and The MissingA dark, compulsive psychological thriller, yet one which is also uplifting and tender. I absolutely loved Then She Was Gone. -- Rachel Rhys, author of Dangerous Crossing 9733A tense clever page-tuner that everyone will be talking about. -- Adele ParksShe has departed from her usual chick lit and gone full tilt into a psycho thriller, but she’s lost none of her brilliance. Indeed, I think this is my favourite of hers so far… Deeply emotional and incredibly clever. Bravo * Mail Online *Unnerving, and with a juicy reveal, this is rightly a modern classic * Grazia *Jewell builds a gripping novel around a maze of dark secrets, a tautly wound psychological thriller in which the suspense builds slowly. Her storytelling is immaculate, hopping between past and present, and in and out of characters. It’s a tough read at times, but Jewell always keeps everything moving. The intrigue never flags as she pushed towards a redemptive resolution. As astute and emotionally charged read, riddled with creepiness. Fully recommended * Irish News *Smart and engrossing * Sunday Mirror *After last year’s fantastic I Found You, Lisa Jewell is on a roll with another fast paced and cleverly plotted psychological thriller … If this sounds quite run of the mill, it’s not. Lisa Jewell writes with such a keen eye for detail, so much heart and yet deviousness that I can’t wait to read what she comes up with next * Red *If you're looking for something darker and twistier Girl On The Train style, Lisa Jewell's new thriller, Then She Was Gone … is one to buy * Voucher Codes *Smart and engrossing, this deftly plotted thriller will tug at your heartstrings * The People *This compulsive psychological read from one of our favourite authors will leave you breathless * Fabulous Magazine *pleasingly twisted… I gulped this in one long, thirsty session, sitting by the pool on holiday. * The Pool *This book was simply perfect – easy to fall into, hard to escape, and with so much to figure out you barely wanted to leave anyway. * Bookbag *Chilling and heartbreaking * Good Housekeeping *Jewell builds a gripping novel around a maze of dark secrets, a tautly wound psychological thriller in which the suspense builds slowly. Fully recommended * Dorset Echo *Jewell has always been a favourite writer. Seeing her fully embrace her dark side is a massive treat. A dark, sad and deeply disturbing exploration of the aftermath of the loss of a beloved child, Then She Was Gone deserves to be a huge hit.an engrossing read * Mature Times *beautifully told… the reader is taken from heartbreak to hope via a series of twists and turns worthy of the best thrillers * LivingEDGE *highly entertaining * In Style *‘In this dark and captivating novel, the different strands slowly but surely come together, and the result is that rare thing – a thriller that will break your heart’ * Metro *

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Book SynopsisAs the men fight and the war rages, there are some new arrivals on the farm… Cambridgeshire – 1942As a new year begins and the war continues, young Artie Talbot feels trapped. In his heart he longs to fight, like his two brothers, for his king and country but is duty tied to Blackberry Farm.As feelings grow between Artie and Jeanie Salmons, Artie wonders if marriage will help him to finally accept his lot and settle down.Meanwhile, his brother John Talbot must come to terms with the tragic loss of a lost love. Can he overcome his trauma and begin to build a new life for himself and his new born son?Frances Grant, a new mysterious land girl arrives hoping to escape a violent past. Surely the countryside will offer her the safety and anonymity she craves. But someone is vengeful and eager to settle an old score…As a terrible shock rocks the family, will love and duty be enough to get the family through the dark days ahead?Praise for Rosie Clarke:'Brilliant read. Wonderful characters that draw you into Harpers world. Thoroughly enjoyable.' Kitty Neale'When it comes to writing sagas, Rosie Clarke is up there with some of the best in the business' Bookish Jottings'A thoroughly enjoyable read.'- Reader Review'Another cracking read from Rosie Clarke... I heartily recommend that you read her books.' - Reader Review'I love Rosie Clarke's books and this did not disappoint.' - Reader Review'I didn't want the book to end.' - Reader Review'I can't wait to read the next book in the series.' - Reader Review'A delightful addictive read.' ** - Reader Review**'Best book I have read in a while' - Reader Review'A wonderfully written tale of friendship, romance and the ties that bind' - Reader Review'I felt as though I had been reunited with old friends' - Reader Review

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Book SynopsisDelight the bookworm in your life with the gift of this hilarious and heartbreaking modern-day adaptation of Nancy Mitford''s classic, The Pursuit of Happiness.---Marooned in a sprawling farmhouse in Norfolk, teenage Linda Radlett feels herself destined for greater things. She longs for love, but how will she ever find it? She can''t even get a signal on her mobile phone. Linda''s strict, former rock star father terrifies any potential suitors away, while her bohemian mother, wafting around in silver jewellery, answers Linda''s urgent questions about love with upsettingly vivid allusions to animal husbandry.Eventually Linda does find her way out from the bosom of her deeply eccentric extended family, and she escapes to London. She knows she doesn''t want to marry ''a man who looks like a pudding'', as her good and dull sister Louisa has done, and marries the flashy, handsome son of a UKIP peer instead.But this is only the beginninTrade ReviewIt takes a brave author to attempt a contemporary reimagining of such a beloved novel. Luckily, India Knight [...] has courage and talent in spades ... It's beautifully and meticulously done, echoing the detail of the original plot as far as feasible, but with contemporary twists ... Knight is warmer than Mitford, and more comforting * Sunday Times *Fans of Nancy Mitford's The Pursuit Of Love will adore this brilliant contemporary take ... The writing is as sharp, the details as perfect, the jokes as funny as [the] original * Daily Mail *The delight is in the details. Knight's are bang on, and there's joy in spotting them ... There's heart as well as humour: it was, and remains, a sincere romance ... Pursuit of Love diehards can rest easy: your blood vessels are safe with this faithful, fiercely funny homage * Spectator *In less talented hands, Knight's retelling of this classic novel might have gone horribly wrong. But Darling is a treat, with whip-smart dialogue, larger-than- life characters, witty observations and a heart-breaking twist ... Fans will love Knight's clever re-imagining of this classic tale - and new readers will relish the chance to discover the glorious Radletts * Daily Express *What could have been a disaster - a modern reimagining of Nancy Mitford's superlative comedy of manners The Pursuit of Love - is an absolute triumph. Romantic, clever and oh-so funny * The i Paper, What We're Reading *A perfect comfort read: the kind of book you take into the bath and keep reading even when the water has gone cold, a one-sitting, dark-at-four joy ... Darling is a very human book, full of feelings and heartbreak and humour and joy -- Ella Risbridger * Guardian *Beguiling reimagining ... Spry and wry Darling is delicious * Mail on Sunday, Best New Fiction *[A] lively modern update of a passionately loved classic ... A sizzling modern-day comedy of manners. Plenty of Mitfordian wit but with Ukip peers and mobile phones * The Times, Best Fiction to Read This Autumn *I found myself tearing through, beguiled by Knight's faithful channelling of Radlett ways, wiles and speech patterns ... Reinventing anything so beloved is a formidable challenge, and Knight has risen to it admirably * The Bookseller *A modern retelling of Nancy Mitford's beloved The Pursuit of Love ... Knight nails the wit and satire * Grazia *Sheer brilliance. Darling is hilarious and heartbreaking and vivid and and clever and utterly compulsive - I absolutely loved it * Francesca Segal, author of Mother Ship *Total escapist bliss. A joyous updating of the Mitford classic. I loved every page * Sabine Durrant, author of Finders Keepers *A savagely funny, bracingly sad, dazzlingly clever reimagining of The Pursuit of Love. I loved it * Meg Mason, author of Sorrow and Bliss *A triumph! Brilliantly done, faithful but imaginative, tremendously romantic and very funny. Meeting the Radlett family again in the 21st century was an absolute a treat, rather like hearing a new arrangement of beloved old carol and hearing it anew, with trumpets * Nina Stibbe, author of Reasons to be Cheerful *Darling is a black forest gateau of a book: rich characters, sumptuous prose, delicious dialogue, and layered throughout with sharp wit and intelligence (which are even better than the cherry liqueur the gateau calls for). Somehow, India Knight's writing manages to be hilarious, melancholy, insightful, and romantic all at the same time. Treat yourself to this novel * Katherine Heiny, author of Early Morning Riser *

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Book SynopsisHarper Lee was born in 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. She attended Huntington College and studied law at the University of Alabama. She is the author of the acclaimed novels To Kill a Mockingbird and Go Set a Watchman, and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and numerous other literary awards and honours. She died on 19 February 2016.Trade Review'No one ever forgets this book' * Independent *'Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humor. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable' - Truman Capote'Her book is lifted...into the rare company of those that linger in the mind long after dramas, sagas and sophisticated frolics have coalesced into a blur of half-forgotten fiction' * Bookman *'There is humour as well as tragedy in this book, besides its faint note of hope for human nature; and it is delightfully written in the now familiar Southern tradition' * Sunday Times *Harper Lee announced she would be releasing a sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird this summer – 55 years after her debut. Go Set a Watchman, completed in the mid-50s but lost for more than half a century, was written before To Kill A Mockingbird and features Scout as an adult * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN''S PRIZE FOR FICTIONTHE BOOK EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT''Just read it. It''s unforgettable''India Knight, The Sunday Times''It is impossible to read this novel and not be moved. It is also impossible not to laugh out loud... Extraordinary''Guardian''Full of snappy one-liners but, at the same time, remarkably poignant''Craig Brown ''Probably the best book you''ll read this year''Mail on Sunday''Completely brilliant. I think every girl and woman should read it''Gillian Anderson''Exactly the book to read right now, when you need a laugh, but want to cry''Observer''The most wonderful, heartbreakingly gorgeous novel of the year''Elizabeth Day, author of Magpie''A raucously funny, beautifully written, emotion-bashing book''The TimesTrade ReviewThis richly spiced novel is a pleasure from the first page to the last... Its beautifully understated, airy style conceals the fiercest intelligence. I loved it so much that I stalked the author on social media - a first. Just read it. It's unforgettable. -- India Knight * SUNDAY TIMES CULTURE *The most wonderful, heartbreakingly gorgeous novel of the year. -- Elizabeth Day * THE MAIL ON SUNDAY, YOU MAGAZINE *It is impossible to read this novel and not be moved. It is also impossible not to laugh out loud... Mason pulls off something extraordinary in this huge-hearted novel, alchemising an unbearable anguish into something tender and hilarious and redemptive and wise, without ever undermining its gravity or diminishing its pain. -- Clare Clark * GUARDIAN *Inspired storytelling... a devastating and sharply funny love story... it is Martha's voice itself - her woeful deadpan narration always teetering between the comic, the tragic and the downright unlikable - that makes this novel sing. -- Julie Myerson * OBSERVER *Probably the best book you'll read this year... Brilliant, bleak, hilarious: the book of the summer. -- Natasha Poliszczuk * THE MAIL ON SUNDAY *Sorrow and Bliss, Meg Mason's first novel to be published in the UK, is as wonderful as everyone says it is. Blunt, tender, hilarious, and so very good on the trickiness of families, it is that rare perfect balance of fun (commercial) and difficult (literary), and exactly the book to read right now, when you need a laugh, but want to cry. -- Eva Wiseman * THE OBSERVER MAGAZINE *Summer's must-read novel... We can't recommend Sorrow And Bliss highly enough. -- Francesca Brown * STYLIST *A Fleabag-esque novel being raved about by Gillian Anderson and Ann Patchett... Expect this one to light up the WhatsApp chats. -- Louisa McGillicuddy * SUNDAY TIMES STYLE *You know that book that only comes along every so often, that seems to unite everyone who has read it in a sort of delirious fervour? Sorrow and Bliss is that book... It's utterly compelling and darkly funny: the book you have to read this summer. -- Jessie Thompson * EVENING STANDARD *Meg Mason has achieved something remarkable - Sorrow and Bliss is a raucously funny, beautifully written, emotionbashing book about love, family and life's curveballs that leaves you, satisfyingly, with what feels like wisdom forged in fire. -- Siobhan Murphy * THE TIMES *This is a story of mental illness reflected through the prism of an uproarious, big-hearted family comedy. It is fiercely intelligent and absolutely sublime. -- Anne Cunningham * IRISH INDEPENDENT *Rarely have the excoriating effects of mental illness been articulated quite so beautifully - as heartbreaking as it's funny, Sorrow And Bliss is one for the keeper shelves. -- Sarra Manning * RED MAGAZINE *Deeply moving but also darkly funny, Mason has created the sort of story that you savour the last pages of and long for once it's over. -- Olivia Ovenden * ESQUIRE *Completely brilliant, I loved it. I think every girl and woman should read it. * Gillian Anderson *Sorrow and Bliss is a brilliantly faceted and extremely funny book about depression that engulfed me in the way I'm always hoping to be to be engulfed by novels. While I was reading it, I was making a list of all the people I wanted to send it to, until I realized that I wanted to send it to everyone I know. * Ann Patchett *Sharp yet humane, and jaw-droppingly funny, this is the kind of novel you will want to press into the hands of everyone you know. Mason has an extraordinary talent for dialogue and character, and her understanding of how much poignancy a reader can take is profound. A masterclass on family, damage and the bonds of love: as soon as I finished it, I started again. * Jessie Burton *Sorrow and Bliss is a thing of beauty. Astute observations on marriage, motherhood, family, and mental illness are threaded through a story that is by turns devastating and restorative. Every sentence rings true. I will be telling everyone I love to read this book. * Sara Collins, author of THE CONFESSIONS OF FRANNIE LANGTON *A sharply observed, darkly hilarious and merciless portrait of a thoroughly messed-up family. Patrick Melrose meets Fleabag. Brilliant. * Clare Chambers, author of SMALL PLEASURES *Meg Mason writes about the slow bleed of life-long depression with candour, humour and stark precision. Sorrow and Bliss is about what happens when your illness pushes everyone away - leaving you with only the sorest parts of yourself for company. It will, as the title suggests, shatter your heart, before mending it with infinite love. I've never read anything like it and will be pressing it into the hands of every reader I know. * Pandora Sykes *Compulsively readable, Sorrow and Bliss is one of the funniest books I've read... Martha is such a brilliant, singular creation - as Patrick says, "The idea that you might be ordinary is unbearable" - that it is more interesting to imagine not the characters that have inspired her but the ones she will inspire. -- Francesca Steele * I NEWSPAPER *Sharp, stylish and revelatory, this novel is sure to be one of the big success stories of the year. -- Sarah Gilmartin * IRISH TIMES *Consistently funny and sharp and dark: it's wonderful. * Charlotte Mendelson, author of ALMOST ENGLISH *[A] razor-sharp exploration of mental health and identity. Hilarious and heartbreaking, this is best enjoyed over a large glass of rosé on a sunny afternoon. * COSMOPOLITAN *The unforgettable novel you need to read this summer. * TIMES BOOKS NEWSLETTER *I've never read a novel about the impact of mental illness on the life of a woman, and those around her, like this. It is simply brilliant, and Martha's voice is a joy: hilarious, sharp and devastating. A must read. -- Alice O'Keefe * THE BOOKSELLER, Editor's Choice *Nina Stibbe meets Fleabag -- Charlotte Heathcote * DAILY EXPRESS *Blisteringly good... a novel that manages to be psychologically complex, yet still an utter joy to read. Sorrow and Bliss bristles with great one-liners and setpieces that are sometimes alarming, sometimes comic, but more often both. * READER'S DIGEST *Heartbreakingly sad and yet screamingly funny. -- Deirdre O'Brien * BEST *I very much enjoyed Meg Mason's witty, affecting Sorrow and Bliss. -- David Nicholls * GUARDIAN - Hot Summer Books feature *This is a beautiful depiction of a marriage, with all of its ugliness and joy. But its also a brilliant depiction of a whole family, wounded by a legacy of mental illness, and tender, witty, and loving, in spite of it, So funny, and so very, very sad. * Abigail Dean, bestselling author of GIRL A *An incredibly funny and devastating debut ... enlivened, often, by a madcap energy. Yet it still manages to be sensitive and heartfelt, and to offer a nuanced portrayal of what it means to try to make amends and change. * Guardian *With its finger on the modern pulse, Sorrow and Bliss blisters with its prose which manages to be both hilarious and heartbreaking in the same line. I kept having to stop to underline sentences. It reminded me of a cross between Fleabag and My Year of Rest and Relaxation, but really, Meg Mason has crafted a protagonist who feels completely her own person. Fresh and alive. * Jodie Chapman, author of ANOTHER LIFE *Sorrow and Bliss is a moving and poignant story about mental illness, family and love. It made me laugh and cry; a bittersweet read that will stay with you for a long time. * Libby Page, bestselling author of The Lido *I devoured this book, with all its humour and pain and cock-eyed hope. It's a funny and excruciating portrayal of mental illness, family dysfunction and love, all told through the point of view of a narrator who is in turn frustrating and endearing, but always fascinating. I adored it from the first page. * Julie Cohen, author of TOGETHER *Sorrow and Bliss is hilarious, haunting, and utterly captivating. Meg Mason has created a heroine as prickly as Bernadette in Where'd You Go, Bernadette. Her humor is as arch and wise as the best work of Joan Didion and Rachel Cusk, yet completely original. What a thrilling new voice! * Amanda Eyre Ward, New York Times bestselling author of THE JETSETTERS *Brutal, tender, funny, this novel - a portrait of love in all of its many incarnations - came alive for me from the very first page. I saw myself here. I saw the people I love. I am changed by this book. * Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of ASK AGAIN, YES *So dark, so funny, so true. You will see your sad, struggling, triumphant self in this deeply affecting novel * Laura Zigman, author of SEPARATION ANXIETY *This is a romance, true, but a real one. It's modern love up against the confusing, sad aches of mental illness, with all its highs, lows, humour and misery. Comparisons to Sally Rooney will be made, but Mason's writing is less self-conscious than Rooney's, and perhaps more mature. Her character work is outstanding, and poignant-the hairline fractures, contradictions and nuances of the middle-class family dynamic are painstakingly rendered with moving familiarity and black humour, resulting in a combination as devastating and sharply witty as Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Fleabag. * Bookseller+Publisher *Exploring the multifaceted hardships of mental illness and the frustrating inaccuracy of diagnoses, medications, and treatments, Sorrow and Bliss is darkly comic and deeply heartfelt. Much like the narrator of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, Martha's voice is acerbic, witty, and raw. Fans of Marian Keyes should put this on their to-read lists. * Booklist *Martha's anecdotes, simultaneously funny and sad, are stacked with observations that alternate between brutally cutting-especially when directed at her mother and at the patient and supportive Patrick-and aching, as when her oblique descriptions of her sister's growing family increasingly belie her true feelings about motherhood. Witty and stark, Martha's emotionally affecting story will delight fans of Sally Rooney. * Publishers Weekly, Starred Review *Martha Friel, the narrator of this improbably charming novel about mental illness, will have you chortling and reading lines aloud. * PEOPLE *Meg Mason has the ability to keep the reader alongside and sharing in the hope every step of the way. * WOMAN & HOME *A sharp-eyed look at the impact of mental illness that's heartbreaking but also bitterly funny. -- Jo Finney * GOOD HOUSEKEEPING *Deliciously dark and fantastically funny. * THE SUNDAY POST *Martha tells the sotry of the end of her marriage, her fiercely close relationship with her sister and her terrifying experiences of mental chaos in this brilliant, painful and unexpectedly comic novel. Narrated with insight and sensitivity by actor Emilia Fox, it looks set to become one of the hits of the year. -- Alex Clark * FINANCIAL TIMES, Audio Books review round up *A viciously funny novel about mental illness that combines acute social satire with warmth and insight. -- Claire Allfree * METRO *Without a doubt the book of the summer. By turns dryly funny and breathtakingly sad, it is a compulsive, exquisitely written look at mental illness and relationships. -- Gwendolyn Smith * I NEWSPAPER - #1 pick in summer reading roud up *Brilliant, bleak and hysterically funny. Tackling mental illness, families, sisterly love and failing marriages... it's universally being proclaimed "The book of the summer". -- Suzannah Ramsdale * EVENING STANDARD *Meg Mason's debut novel is tender and dark as a bruise, coloured with complicated emotions but also wryly funny. And, as it takes a candid look at the way mental illness can derail a person, it also brims with hope as Martha looks to the future, determined to pick up the pieces of her broken life. -- Eithne Farry * SUNDAY EXPRESS S MAGAZINE *Unputdownable - one of the darkest, sharpest novels you will find this year. -- Nadine O'Regan * THE SUNDAY BUSINESS POST *This debut from Meg Mason is a brilliant, many-faceted diamond of a book. * SAINSBURY'S MAGAZINE *Martha Friel is one of those fictional characters that you can't get out of your head... The moment we'd finished this dazzling, spiky, darkly funny book, we wanted to read it all over again. -- Emma Lee-Potter * INDEPENDENT *The most recommended book of the summer, and with good reason. Meg Mason's novel about mental health, marriage and sisterhood is told in a singular voice of wry wit and blackly comic frankness. One of those 'read it in one sitting and tell all your friends' kind of books. -- Jessie Thompson * EVENING STANDARD, Best Fiction of 2021 *It is a subtle and sensitive writer who can make you shout with laughter as she wrings your heart. Mason's characters are exquisitely drawn. Sorrow, yes, but also utter bliss. -- Rose Shepherd * SAGA *Must-read stuff: clever, sparkling and funny. * STRONG WORDS *This account of a life derailed by mental illness is both darkly funny and deeply touching... A brilliantly faceted and funny book that will engulf you. * BEST MONTHLY *It made me laugh and cry. I loved it so much - I need to read it again. * Emilia Clarke *The summer of 2021's most (justifiably) hyped novel... is a beautifully paced, darkly funny, heart-thuddingly moving portrait of family, marriage and chronic illness. Its pithy protagonist-narrator, Martha, is a memorable creation. -- Patricia Nicol * THE SUNDAY TIMES, Best Fiction of the Year *Simply unforgettable. -- Francesca Steele * I NEWSPAPER, Best Books of 2021 *The summer's word-of-mouth hit was Meg Mason's Sorrow and Bliss (W&N), a wisecracking black comedy of mental anguish and eccentric family life focused on a woman who should have everything to live for. -- Justine Jordan * GUARDIAN, Best Books of 2021 *Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason is a knockout. An unnamed mental health illness and a struggling marriage are both rendered by Mason with devastating honesty and laugh-out-loud wit. -- Louise O'Neill * IRISH EXAMINER *

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Book SynopsisFrom the Number One bestselling author of The Four Winds and The Nightingale. Kristin Hannah's Winter Garden is a haunting and compelling novel illuminating the intricacy of mother-daughter bonds and the enduring links between past and present.‘A tearjerker . . . a journey as lovely and haunting as a snow filled winter’s night’ – PeopleMeredith and Nina Whitson are as different as sisters can be. One stayed at home to raise her family and manage the family apple orchard; the other followed a dream and travelled the world to become a famous photojournalist. But these two estranged women come together at their father’s deathbed standing alongside their cold, disapproving mother, Anya, to hear the one last promise he extracts from the women in his life.It begins with a story like no other. A captivating, mysterious love story that spans sixty-five years and moves from war torn Leningrad in the 1940s to modern-day Alaska. The three women are brought together by a story so unexpected and extraordinary that when Meredith and Nina finally learn the secret of their mother’s past and uncover a truth so terrible, it will shake the very foundation of the family and who they think they are.Trade ReviewIt’s a tear-jerker, but the journey is as lovely – and haunting – as a snow filled winter’s night * People *A gripping read * Booklist *Readers will find it hard not to laugh a little and cry a little more as mother and daughters reach out to each other just in the nick of time * Publishers Weekly *This tear-jerker weaves a convincing historical novel and contemporary family drama * Library Journal *Winter Garden is Kristin Hannah’s best written and most deeply affecting novel yet * The Huffington Post *A master storyteller -- Delia Owens, Author of Where the Crawdads SingCompelling. Moving. -- Karen Swan, Author of The Last Summer

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Book SynopsisHis best novel yet A Middlemarch-like triumph' TelegraphA pleasure bomb of a novel' VogueA true modern master' IndependentIt's 23 December 1971, and the Hildebrandts are at a crossroads. Fifteen-year-old Perry has resolved to be a better person and quit dealing drugs to seventh graders. His sister Becky, the once straight-laced high school social queen, has veered into counterculture, while at college, Clem is wrestling with a decision that might tear his family apart. As their parents Russ, a suburban pastor, and Marion, his restless wife tug against the bonds of a joyless marriage, Crossroads finds a family, and a nation, struggling to do the right thing.Funny, moving, crackling with life, it has what all great fiction should have' Financial TimesIntoxicating a luxuriant domestic drama' GuardianTHE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A GUARDIAN BEST FICTION BOOK OF 2021 AN INDEPENDENT BOOK OF THE YEAR A WHITE REVIEW BOOK OF THE YEAR A LIT HUB BOOK OF THE YEARTrade Review‘[Franzen’s] talents as a comic storyteller are such that his capacious tales are a treat to get lost in. This one is no exception … This is a novel whose momentum often derives from the altered states of its characters — obsession; intoxication; lust; religious fervour; mania — and the humour is usually of the painful variety as their lives uniformly crumble and they agonise over how — or indeed whether — to be good’ Daily Mail ‘[A] pleasure bomb of a novel … Few [writers] can take human contradiction and make it half as entertaining and intimate as Franzen does … A magnificent portrait of an American family on the brink’ Vogue ‘In Crossroads, Jonathan Franzen goes back to family-anatomising basics – and it's his best novel yet … The result is a Middlemarch-like triumph’ Telegraph ‘Franzen has laid the ground beautifully, and his first act is intoxicating – a luxuriant domestic drama that opens out into politics, running against the grain of the counterculture with its focus on the friction between conservatism and radicalism, Christianity and social activism’ Guardian ‘Crossroads is classic Franzen fodder: a slice of suburban life ripe not for satire but for the far deadlier scrutiny that comes from taking it seriously’ New Yorker ‘A mellow, marzipan-hued ’70s-era heartbreaker. Crossroads is warmer than anything [Franzen has] yet written, wider in its human sympathies, weightier of image and intellect’ New York Times Book Review ‘The compelling dialogue, the authenticity of place, time and character, the assured insights and the exquisite minutiae of description, all confirm that the reader is in the hands of a true modern master … a simply stunning novel’ iNews ‘A firecracker’ Irish Times ‘A mesmerising tale … he writes sentences that are as addictive as opioids’ Herald

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Book SynopsisAPRIL 2024 REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICKLONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN''S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2020AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER''A literary love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler . . . outstanding and highly enjoyable'' Observer''The Most Fun We Ever Had is as good as books come'' Telegraph''I loved this book'' Bryony Gordon''The perfect, engrossing holiday read'' RED''A gripping and poignant ode to a messy, loving family in all its glory'' Madeline Miller''A moving, immersive, often very funny study of family and sisterhood'' Sunday Times''Like Meg Wolitzer. A forensic dissection of family past and present, I loved it. If you like reading about relationships, this one is for you.'' Pandora SykesMEET THE SORENSON FAMILY.MARILYN has somehow fallen into motherhood and spTrade ReviewLombardo's impressive debut is a gripping and poignant ode to a messy, loving family in all its glory. She juggles a huge cast of characters with seeming effortlessness, bringing each to life with humour, vividness and acute psychological insight. -- Madeline Miller, author of CIRCEIf ever there were to be a literary love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler, then Claire Lombardo's outstanding debut, which ranges from ebullience to despair by way of caustic but intense familial bonds, would be a worthy offspring...This is a novel epic in scope-emotionally, psychologically and narratively. Combining a broad thematic canvas with impressive emotional nuance, it's an assured and highly enjoyable debut. -- Hannah Beckerman * GUARDIAN *Beware this book, that will enmesh you in the psychic DNA of this utterly convincingly imagined family. You will encounter characters whose stories you're compelled to follow, you will recognise the bitterest and sweetest tastes of life, you will laugh, and you will want to discuss it with other people. (Possibly not your own family). John Irving has a literary daughter, and her name is Claire Lombardo. -- Laline Paull, author of THE BEESI adored The Most Fun We Ever Had. It is such a shockingly tender and uncannily knowing novel about the reality of long term love and affection, and the sweetness and claustrophobia of relationships between sisters. Lombardo's writing is so elegant - she makes our most complex and fragmented feelings tangible, which is a very rare skill. This book will stay with me forever. -- Daisy Buchanan, author of HOW TO BE A GROWN UPRemarkably alive and wise, Claire Lombardo's story of the Sorensons is a stunning vision - not just of family or love, but the funny, tender mystery of human connection itself, with all its intensity, charm, and wonder. -- Affinity Konar, author of MISCHLINGClaire Lombardo has created a wonderful, subtle and sophisticated portrait of a family. The nuances, the secrets, the triumphs and tragedies light up this narrative with the many ways we love and the unremitting clarity with which we are known by our siblings. Epic and intimate, funny and delicate, this is a best friend of a book: curl up with it and lose yourself in the easy intimacy of the magnetic, loveable and flawed family of Sorensons. -- Raffaella Barker, author of SPRINGTIMEI cancelled appointments to keep reading this totally gripping portrait of a marriage and the four daughters that it has produced. It is excellent on sisterhood, motherhood, marriage - in fact on all human relationships. Highly, highly recommended. -- Clover Stroud, author of THE WILD OTHERIn The Most Fun We Ever Had Claire Lombardo has given us a truly unforgettable American family. The book bristles on every page with intelligence and fierce wit. What a debut! -- Richard Russo, Author of EVERYBODY'S FOOLThis amazing, sexy, moving, transfixing novel sweeps you up into the epic range of human emotion, from tenderness to exasperation, bafflement to pride, anger to unconditional love that is intrinsic to family life. And how those oh-so-familiar hairpin bends of parenthood and of marriage are so beautifully juxtaposed with the infinite complexities and blind corners of being a daughter, a sister, a friend, a lover! I couldn't quite think of what to do with myself when I came to the last page except read it all over again. -- Juliet Nicolson, author of A HOUSE FULL OF DAUGHTERSA novel to make a note to pack for summer travels ahead -- Laura Bailey * VOGUE *A rich, engrossing family saga, spiked with sisterly malice...[rendered] with such skill and finely tuned interest that it feels like a quiet subversion of the traditional family saga. * The New York Times Book Review *Ambitious and brilliantly written -- Jane Smiley * The Washington Post *A wonderfully immersive read that packs more heart and heft than most first novels...A deliciously absorbing novel with-brace yourself-a tender and satisfyingly positive take on family. * NPR *The big family saga of the summer * EW *You'll be glad this loopy family isn't yours, but reading about them is a treat. * People magazine *A sharp, sly family story of feminine guile and guilt...A fun and brimming tale...Divine * Kirkus *An expansive U.S. family saga, expertly rendered * Daily Mail *Lombardo has a wry, often spiky humour and tightly written style that should appeal to fans of Maria Semple, Emma Straub and Jennifer Egan ... A moving, immersive, often very funny study of family and sisterhood. * Sunday Times *A spry, sly and funny read * Sunday Express *A funny, complex, tragic and immersive family sage which spans forty years. This is the perfect, engrossing holiday read * Red *An exploration of the complex tapestry that is family life, full of delights and difficulties * Cosmopolitan *I love this book, and the Sorensons, so much * Bryony Gordon *

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Book SynopsisThe Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller, longlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction.From the acclaimed author of Ghost Wall, Sarah Moss' Summerwater is a devastating story told over twenty-four hours in the Scottish highlands . . . 'Superb' - The Times'Sharp, searching . . . utterly of the moment' - Hilary Mantel'So accomplished' - GuardianIt is the summer solstice, but in a faded Scottish cabin park the rain is unrelenting. Twelve people on holiday with their families look on as the skies remain resolutely grey. A woman goes running up the Ben as if fleeing; a teenage boy chances the dark waters of the loch in his kayak; a retired couple head out despite the downpour, driving too fast on the familiar bends.But there are newcomers too, and one particular family, a mother and daughter with the wrong clothes and the wrong manners, start to draw the attention of the others. Who are they? Where are they from? Should they be here at all? As darkness finally falls, something is unravelling . . .'A masterpiece' - Jessie Burton'One of her best' - Irish Times'Beautifully written, intense, powerful' - David NichollsTrade ReviewSharp, searching, thoroughly imagined, it is utterly of the moment, placing its anxious human dots against a vast indifferent landscape; with its wit and verve and beautiful organisation it throws much contemporary writing into the shade! -- Hilary Mantel, Man Booker winning author of Wolf HallNothing escapes her sly humour and brilliant touch. Deft and brimming with life, Summerwater is a novel of endless depth. A masterpiece. -- Jessie Burton, author of The MiniaturistMoss’s ability to conjure up the fleeting and sometimes agonised tenderness of family life is unmatched . . . there is an artfulness to her writing so accomplished as to conceal itself. -- Melissa Harrison, GuardianSummerwater is a triumph and confirms Sarah Moss as one of the best writers at work in Britain today. -- Fiona Mozley, author of ElmetMoss is a writer who can say more than most others in half the space. Her latest, a haunting story of alienation set on a Scottish campsite, is the summer’s most interesting read * Independent *Summerwater is a beautiful book, written with delicacy and grace, yet with an undertow as dark as the Scottish loch by which its characters are holidaying in ignorance of the tragedy to come. If you are a huge fan of Moss's work, as I am, you will find yourself parceling it out, to read a chapter a day, like a gift. -- Louise Doughty, author of Apple Tree YardSuffused with fascination . . . this latest display of Moss’s imaginative versatility shine[s] with intelligence * The Times *This novel - about crisis and isolation in its own ways - moved and encouraged me in difficult times. Another deft, sensitive, crystalline book by Sarah Moss; I loved it. -- Megan Hunter, author of The End We Start FromA masterful and immerse exercise in tension; here are the many conflicting voices of modern Britain in microcosm. Sarah Moss reminds us that society is only ever two short steps away from collapse. -- Benjamin Myers, author of The OffingFor more than a decade, Sarah Moss has been crafting quiet, complex novels that make an indelible impression on the reader. This is one of her best, and most accessible, and should bring her work to a wider audience. * Irish Times *I read this brilliant novel in one greedy gulp. Sarah Moss is an acute observer of modern life and puts humanity on the page with deep understanding and wit. -- Cathy Rentzenbrink, author of The Last Act of Love With delicate precision, Summerwater takes the moral and emotional temperature of a whole society. It is matchless, too, in its blending of steely insight with humour and compassion. -- Pankaj Mishra, author of The Age of AngerMoss is the most brilliant writer. She deserves to win all the prizes. -- Joanna Trollope, author of City of FriendsMoss has quietly, and it must be said remarkably quickly, been putting out some of the most interesting and carefully sculpted novels of recent years. * Financial Times *One of our very best contemporary novelists. * Independent *Moss’s star is firmly in the ascendant * Guardian *One of the finest contemporary writers working in Britain today * Stylist *A brilliant, confounding writer * New Yorker *A brilliant story of dysfunctional families * The Times *

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Book SynopsisOne of the most iconic fictional debuts of all time turns 25 this year!What's past is prologue'First published in the year 2000, Zadie Smith's White Teeth was one of the most celebrated novels of the new millennium. Adored by critics and readers alike, it remains a perennial bestseller, which still delights with the audacity of its scope and vision, its fresh-minted style, and the wit and warmth of its voice.Funny, generous and big-hearted, it deals among many other things with friendship, love, war, three cultures and three families over three generations, one brown mouse, and the tricky way the past has of coming back and biting you on the ankle.A life affirming, riotous must-read of a book, it won the Guardian First Book Award, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction and the Whitbread First Novel Award.Curl up with it, savour every sentence, then turn around and reread' The TimesThe outstanding debut of the new millennium' ObserveTrade ReviewFunny, clever ... and a rollicking good read * Independent *Do believe the hype, buy into it, curl up with it, savour every sentence, then turn around and re-read * The Times *An impressive début, not only for its vitality and verve, but mainly for the sheer audacity of its scope and vision ... an epic tale ... swooping, funny ... it has ambition, wit and is unafraid -- Meera Syal * Express *Announces the debut of a preternaturally gifted new writer ... street-smart and learned, sassy and philosophical all at the same time * The New York Times *Relentlessly funny ... idiosyncratic, and deeply felt * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisEvan S. Connell''s Mrs Bridge is an extraordinary tragicomic portrayal of suburban life and one of the classic American novels of the twentieth century.Mrs Bridge, an unremarkable and conservative housewife in Kansas City, has three children and a kindly lawyer husband. She spends her time shopping, going to bridge parties and bringing up her children to be pleasant, clean and have nice manners. And yet she finds modern life increasingly baffling, her children aren''t growing up into the people she expected, and sometimes she has the vague disquieting sensation that all is not well in her life. In a series of comic, telling vignettes, Evan S. Connell illuminates the narrow morality, confusion, futility and even terror at the heart of a life of plenty.The companion novel Mr Bridge, telling the story from the other side of the marriage, is also available in Penguin Modern Classics.''A perfect novel ... Its tone - knowing, droll, plaintive, shuttliTrade ReviewIf you have already read it, that's wonderful, for chances are you love it too, and know how brilliant it is. And if you haven't read it, or perhaps have never even heard of it, well, that's wonderful too, because you are still lucky enough to be able to read it for the first time ... A perfect novel ... What writing! Economical, piquant, beautiful, true .... Mrs Bridge is one of those books that can suffuse a room with happiness when someone brings it up -- Meg Wolitzter * The New York Times *This is the first time that I have finished reading something and then immediately returned to the beginning to read it again. It's incredible. It's one of the best books I've ever read -- Ross Raisin, author of 'God's Own Country' and 'Waterline'How it is done I only wish I knew -- Dorothy Parker * Esquire *It is very, very funny, often moving and sad, and written with an uncompromising realism that one rarely comes across. To me the Bridges were a revelation: I cannot recommend them too highly * Daily Telegraph *Written from a kind of tilted, ironic angle, it's often very funny... and if this were all Mrs Bridge was, it would still be one of the sharper novels about mid-20th-century domestic life. But Mrs Bridge is so much more than that...It's a book that is smart and knowing and makes its reader feel as if they're in on a joke, while at the same time gradually coaxing them to feel more and more empathy for its vaguely absurd main character, and ultimately playing them like an emotional Stradivarius * Guardian *Intimate ... affecting ... very funny ... Mrs Bridge is a reflection of you and me, an exemplar of our shared humanity -- Joshua Ferris, author of 'Then We Came to the End' and 'The Unnamed'Connell never mocks or condescends, but wrings every drop of comedy and pathos from his hidebound heroine's predicament * Sunday Telegraph *Evan S. Connell's portrayal of the decline and fall of a 1950s Kansas City housewife charts perfectly the tragedy of the unexamined life * Observer *An exquisite mixture of sympathy and ironic detachment ... Connell's writing has a terse, hard-bitten flavour, but the chapters tend to resolve themselves into resonant, Austen-like aphorisms: "While marriage might be an equitable affair, love itself was not" * Independent *

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Book SynopsisSilent Night is an unforgettable story of love, heartache, and the strength we draw from those we love. Escape with the world’s favourite storyteller, Danielle Steel, at her most moving and compelling.Paige Watts is the ultimate stage mother. The daughter of Hollywood royalty, Paige channels her own acting dreams into making her daughter, Emma, a star. By the age of nine, Emma is playing a central role in a hit TV show. Then everything is shattered by unforeseeable tragedy.Now Emma is living with her Aunt Whitney, who had chosen a very different path from Paige. Whitney was always the career-driven older sister, loving a no-strings relationship and hating the cult of celebrity that enveloped her family. But at a moment’s notice, Whitney must change her life in every way. Will the rewards of motherhood make up for the life she left behind?Emotionally involving and deeply inspiring, Silent Night explores how the heart has mysterious healing powers of its own, and that sometimes the best things happen when we think all is lost . . .

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Book Synopsis**THE LOST LOVE SONGS OF BOYSIE SINGH - THE NEW NOVEL FROM INGRID PERSAUD - IS AVAILABLE NOW**WINNER OF THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD 2020LONGLISTED FOR THE OCM BOCAS PRIZEAS SEEN ON BBC''S BETWEEN THE COVERSONE OF STYLIST''S BEST NEW BOOKS FOR 2020''A beautiful book. I adored it.'' RICHARD OSMAN''Full of wit and soul.'' TRACY CHEVALIER''Unforgettable'' MARLON JAMES''It made me ugly cry'' JESSIE BURTON''Glorious'' RACHEL JOYCE''Spellbinding'' ANDRÉ ACIMANMeet the Ramdin-Chetan family: forged through loneliness, broken by secrets, saved by love.Irrepressible Betty Ramdin, her shy son Solo and their marvellous lodger, Mr Chetan, form an unconventional household. Happy in their differences, they build a home together. Home: the place keeping these three safe from an increasingly dangerous world until the night when a glass of rum, a

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Book SynopsisTwo children get on the train. Only one gets off...*A NO.1 BESTSELLER**A RICHARD AND JUDY BOOKCLUB PICK**A TOP 10 BESTSELLER IN IRELAND FOR TWENTY-FIVE WEEKS IN A ROW*'Probably the most suspenseful book I will read all year.' Liz NugentNo one saw it happen.Your two little girls jump on the train ahead of you. As you try to join them, the doors slide shut and the train moves away, leaving you behind.Everyone is lying.It's only when you reach the next stop that you truly begin to panic. Because there aren't two children waiting for you on the platform. There's only one.Someone is to blame.Has your other daughter got lost? Been taken by a passing stranger? Or perhaps the culprit is closer to home than you think?Everyone is talking about No One Saw a Thing:'You will look hard to find a more searing opening 15 pages of a thriller this year.' Irish Independent'This sharply observed novel manages to be at once an intricate puzzle and an involving race against time' The Sunday Times'I was hooked by the end of chapter one.' Jane Casey'Such a clever page-turner' Cara Hunter'I DEVOURED it.' Fiona CumminsReaders can't get enough of No One Saw a Thing:'A roller coaster ride of a read where the twists are relentless right up until the very end. Brilliantly done!' ? ? ? ? ?'A fast-paced, gripping thriller that I devoured in one sitting' ? ? ? ? ?'Wow! Best book I've read in 2023 so far. . .I'll absolutely be reading more of Andrea Mara's books because this was BRILLIANT!' ? ? ? ? ?'This is in my opinion Andrea Mara's best book so far. She just keeps getting better and better. There's so many twists that even the twists have twists!' ? ? ? ? ?'I lost sleep not wanting to put this book down. Lots of plot twists and enough turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. Would highly recommend!' ? ? ? ? ?Number 1 Sunday Times original fiction bestseller, July 2023Shortlisted for the Irish Independent Crime Novel of the Year, 2023Richard and Judy Book Club pick, February 2024Irish bestseller, May - November 2024Trade Review'The pace never flags, the tension racks up and the pages turn themselves. Probably the most suspenseful book I will read all year.' * Liz Nugent *'Andrea Mara has a gift for turning 'what if' into 'uh-oh' - No One Saw a Thing is a fantastic example of her compelling plotting. I was hooked by the end of chapter one.' * Jane Casey *'Utterly gripping... You will look hard to find a more searing opening 15 pages of a thriller this year... A sure-fire winner from start to finish.' * Irish Independent *'Such a clever page-turner, drawing on every parent's darkest fears' * Cara Hunter *'This sharply observed novel manages to be at once an intricate puzzle and an involving race against time' * The Sunday Times *'As soon as I started reading this, I had no choice but to continue reading until the last page. I DEVOURED it. Such a tense, thrilling ride of a novel that played into my darkest fears and captured the emotions of panicked parents so evocatively.' * Fiona Cummins *'I dare, nay defy, you to try and put this thriller down!' * Red Magazine *'Twisting, frightening and impossible to put down. No One Saw A Thing is Andrea Mara at her nerve-shredding best. I loved it.' * Chris Whitaker *'From the first chapter of this Andrea Mara novel, I had shivers. Twisty, clever, impossible to put down.' * Louise O'Neill *'A clever tale about a modern family under extraordinary pressure' * Literary Review *

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Book SynopsisA brilliant, bittersweet novel about love and family, husbands and wives, parents and children.From beloved bestselling author David Nicholls.Trade ReviewThose who loved Nicholls's last novel, One Day, will not be disappointed. Us has many of the same qualities, including an almost magical readability. Though it is an ambitious novel, intricately patterned, which tackles complex and subtle themes, it has the furious pace of a thriller . . . I was having to ration myself for fear of coming to the end too soon * Mail on Sunday *I loved this book. Funny, sad, tender: for anyone who wants to know what happens after the Happy Ever After -- Jojo MoyesA literary and anthropological tour de force . . . astute and packed with brilliant observations, about life, art, culture and the infinite possibilities for human disappointment. I honestly can't imagine loving a novel much more -- Christina Patterson * Sunday Times *Us is a work of Cheever-esque perfection that absolutely captures the exquisite horror of not being able to do right for wrong -- Damian Barr * Observer *A perfect book * Independent *Nicholls, it seems, was born to write about love, in all its sweetness and bitterness . . . thoughtful, funny, authentic . . . Us begins as a sweet read, but evolves into an examination of love's complexities - the battle between the heart and the brain . . . The kind of book that reminds us what it means to be alive * Good Housekeeping *Nicholls writes with such tender precision about love, this time about a type of relationship often neglected as unsexy - the long-married couple . . . wry, plaintive but ever hopeful * The Times *Very funny, wise and bittersweet * Daily Express *As he proved in One Day, Nicholls is brilliant at picking apart modern life with all its hopes, disillusionments and regrets, and marrying it to a gently heartbreaking narrative * Observer *He doesn't just have a sharp eye for a story, his characters also have real depth and his books are a delicate balance between warmth and edge. No-one ever gets too easy a ride. Us . . . is no exception -- John Crace * Guardian *Even better than One Day * The Times *A compulsively readable, formally inventive, extremely funny yet achingly melancholy love story -- Andrew Billen * The Times *Nicholls has raised his game . . . the clear writing often dazzles with truth . . . a sad, funny, soulful joy of a book -- Matt Haig * Observer *I read it through tears in maybe two sittings . . . at the heart of the book is one man's plight to just get things right. And whoever you are, however logical, or practical with your emotions, most of us just want to get things right when it comes to the people we love * Candice Carty-Williams *I read it through tears in maybe two sittings . . . at the heart of the book is one man's plight to just get things right. And whoever you are, however logical, or practical with your emotions, most of us just want to get things right when it comes to the people we love -- Candice Carty-Williams, author of QUEENIEAn emotive romantic comedy, ingeniously structured * Evening Standard *Us is a quiet joy, written with an undemonstrative simplicity that is hard to achieve * Sunday Telegraph *Wonderful. A novel that manages to be both truly hilarious and deeply affecting. I loved it -- S. J. Watson, author of BEFORE I GO TO SLEEPA wrenching examination of a journey through Europe that goes terribly wrong and a consideration of what it means to be a parent today -- Philip Hensher * Guardian *It's the perfect follow-up to One Day because it takes romance to a middle-aged place. It's funny and sweet - a lovely, lovely book -- Graham NortonFew authors do messed-up relationships better than Nicholls * People *Bittersweet, beautifully rendered * Sydney Morning Herald *I enjoyed Us immensely. David has a sublime talent for illuminating the murky causeway that most of us have to navigate between darkness and light, happiness and sadness; the place where fatigue is, and restlessness, where love is tested and strained and sometimes broken -- Donal Ryan, author of FROM A LOW AND QUIET SEABeautiful, funny and brilliant -- Dan StevensNicholls has captured, with rare accuracy, the hopes, fears, compromises and silly jokes that make up our lives. The title says it all: he really is writing about Us * Daily Telegraph *Never has a book about the end of a love affair been so heartrendingly romantic and bittersweet. Rich in pathos, humour and steeped in the wisdom of maturity * Sunday Mirror *Us is an entertaining and clever crossover read . . . one of the best portrayals of the complexities of a long-term relationship I've seen in a contemporary novel -- Viv Groskop * Observer *Nicholls is a delightfully funny writer . . . Us evolves into a poignant consideration of how a marriage ages, how parents mess up and what survives despite all those challenges * Washington Post *Nicholls is a master of the braided narrative, weaving the past and present to create an intricate whole, one that is at times deceptively light and unexpectedly devastating . . . this is a funny and moving novel perfect for a long journey * Kirkus *His organisation of the story is impeccable . . . The narrative neatly weaves present and past with a perfect rhythmic sense of when to leave or revisit a particular strand. The dialogue is always bouncy . . . acute and astute about the dynamics of relationships -- Mark Lawson * Guardian *Nicholls's superior brand of romantic comedy, shot through with dark shards of truth, gets under the skin -- Rachel Hore * Independent *Nicholls's ability to create and then subvert the traditional plot for a comedy is the secret of his success. It makes us confront the gap between what we expect from storytelling and what happens in real life . . . it is this frank exploration of some of the unromantic realities of marriage and growing old that makes this book moving and thought-provoking * Spectator *A spectacularly well observed, funny and often heartbreaking account of the difficulties of marriage and parenting * Heat *Clever and likeable * Literary Review *It's funny, moving and, of course, wonderfully written * Sun *A great combination of laughs and heart -- Sophie Kinsella, author of THE PARTY CRASHERA happier, lighter, more well-adjusted version of Gone Girl . . . For all of their burdens and battles, Douglas and Connie have moments of real joy in their marriage and while it doesn't always seem like a pleasure, reading about it sure is * Time *Nicholls again deals with love lost and possibility found, offering an unpredictable ending . . . a poignant story of regret in middle age * New York Times *Peerless at mixing eye-smarting tragedy with ebullient comedy * Metro *Well worth the wait . . . A poignant and acutely observed portrayal of a marriage that's lost its way * Express *A stylish comedy delivered with all of Nicholls's customary aplomb * Mail on Sunday *David Nicholls has such finesse with character that he can create two central figures who are self-deceiving, funny, awful and touching - and who pull you through the narrative like magnets -- Helen Dunmore, author of BIRDCAGE WALKA great novel . . . Nicholls is a master of nuanced relationships. He's also a pro at delivering a tight, clever structural narrative * Entertainment Weekly *Us is the tender, sometimes funny, often heartbreaking journey of two adults experiencing one of those growing-up moments in life that is somehow all the more poignant because they think they're too old to grow up -- Thea Sharrock, director of ME BEFORE YOU

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Book SynopsisA TIMES and INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE IRISH NOVEL PRIZE Soon to be a major BBC film starring Sir Lenny Henry, Malachi Kirby, Monica Dolan, Olivia Williams and Christopher Eccleston. It''s 1981, a year of riots and royal weddings. The Dukes of Hazzard is on TV. Curly Wurlys are in the shops. And trying to find a place in it all is nine-year-old Leon. He and his little brother Jake have gone to live with Maureen. They''ve lost one home, but have they found another? Maureen feeds and looks after them. She has wild red hair and mutters swearwords under her breath when she thinks they can''t hear. She claims everything will be okay. But will they ever see their mother again? Who are the couple who secretly visit Jake? Between the street violence and the street parties, Leon must find a way to reunite his family . . . ''Startlingly funny. Balances the gritty with the feel good'' Observer ''Vivid and endearing - a very powerful book'' Emma Healey, bestselling author of Elizabeth is Missing ''Authentic and beautiful, urgent and honest, this novel makes room in your heart'' Chris Cleave, bestselling author of The Other Hand SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD & THE DESMOND ELLIOT PRIZETrade ReviewTender and heart-breaking -- Rachel Joyce, bestselling author of 'The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry'A beautiful story told with compassion, urgency and wit -- Stephen Kelman, author of the Booker-shortlisted 'Pigeon English'Vivid and endearing - a very powerful book -- Emma Healey, bestselling author of 'Elizabeth is Missing'Leon is pure goodwill in a wicked world, and he won't leave you when you put this unique book down. Authentic and beautiful, urgent and honest, this novel does what only the best do: it quietly makes room in your heart. At the end of the story I couldn't bear to close the book on Leon. I felt I was abandoning him. I wanted to talk about it straight away with someone else who'd read it, and I know a great many readers will feel the same. -- Chris Cleave, bestselling author of 'The Other Hand'Beautiful and heartbreaking - I cried buckets of tears for Leon and his family -- Cathy Rentzenbrink, author of 'The Last Act of Love'The unforgettable story of a boy struggling to belong, and the author captures both his mindset and the period impeccably. Heartbreaking and uplifting - just read it * Daily Mail *Everything in My Name Is Leon rings true. It's an everyday story and this actually makes it more powerful: these are the lows and joys of real life. Someone will be living them as you read * Emerald Street *Beguiling, tender, funny, compassionate ... entirely heartbreaking without being bleak * Sunday Express *

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Book SynopsisAN IRISH TIMES BEST IRISH BOOK OF THE 21ST CENTURY SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZESHORTLISTED FOR THE KERRY GROUP IRISH NOVEL OF THE YEAR AWARDLONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2022Vivid and memorable.' SARAH MOSS''Luminous.'' Observer''I utterly ADORED it.'' MARIAN KEYESHe handed the easel to the boatman, reaching down the pier wall towards the sea.Mr Lloyd has decided to travel to the island by boat without engine the authentic experience.Unbeknownst to him, Mr Masson will also soon be arriving for the summer. Both will strive to encapsulate the truth of this place - one in his paintings, the other by capturing its speech, the language he hopes to preserve.But the people who live on this rock three miles long and half-a-mile wide have their own views on what is being recorded, what is being taken and what is given in return. Soft summer days pass, and the islanders are forced to question what they value and what they desire. As the autumn beckons, and the visitors head home, there will be a reckoning.''Beautifully written.' STELLA, The Telegraph''The Colony contains multitudes. . . with much of it just visible on the surface, like the flicker of a smile or a shark in the water.'' The TimesThe Colony is a novel about big, important things.' Financial Times''Beautiful, haunting and incredibly powerful book.'' FÍONA SCARLETTTrade Review'I've always believed that good fiction can go to the beating heart of human reality in ways more likely to resonate with a reader than any textbook. A good novel strengthens empathy as well as the imagination and encourages us to see another world from a perspective that travels beyond our own interests. And this novel is better than good. Its beautifully realised lament for lost language and cultural sustainability has universal relevance.' - Canberra Times'Intelligent and provocative . . . What a relief it is to find a novel that treats the reader as a grown-up, that is fresh without chasing literary fashion, provocative but not shouty, and idiosyncratic but fully satisfying from the strange comedy of its opening pages to its decisive conclusion . . . The Colony contains multitudes - on families, on men and women, on rural communities - with much of it just visible on the surface, like the flicker of a smile or a shark in the water.' - The Times'Austere and stark . . . a story about language and identity, about art, oppression, freedom and colonialism. The Colony is a novel about big, important things.' - Financial Times'A vivid and memorable book about art, land and language, love and sex, youth and age. Big ideas tread lightly through Audrey Magee's strong prose.' - SARAH MOSS'The Colony: so brilliant in its quiet tragedy, so revealing in its precision. It haunts me.' - TSITSI DANGAREMBGA'A careful interrogation, The Colony expertly explores the mutability of language and art, the triumphs and failures inherent to the process of creation and preservation.' - RAVEN LEILANI'The Colony is brimming with ideas about identity and soul; a canny, challenging, and never less than engrossing read.' - LISA MCINERNEY'The Colony is a brilliant and thoughtfully calibrated commentary about the nature and balance of power. There is violence here, but, most impressively, Audrey Magee captures that more insidious cruelty-the kind masked as protection, as manners.' - MARY BETH KEANE'Audrey Magee has written a lyrical, rich, and emotionally powerful novel. The Colony comes alive like a brooding and beautiful canvas painted off the Irish coast.' - DOMINIC SMITH

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZERECIPIENT OF THE PRIX FEMINA ÉTRANGERSHORTLISTED FOR THE GOVERNER GENERAL''S AWARD''The most singular book ... a psychodrama that is both timeless and up-to-the-minute.'' Guardian''A classic, but with contemporary urgency thumping through it.'' Claire-Louise Bennett''A novel of deep insight and scarring honesty.'' IndependentA woman invites a famed artist to the remote coastal landscape where she lives. Drawn to his paintings, she believes his vision may penetrate the mystery at the centre of her life. But as a long, dry summer sets in, his provocative presence soon twists the patterns of her secluded household.

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Book Synopsis'Beautifully told and gripping from first page to last' Sunday Express'An incredible feat of storytelling... and an old-fashioned page-turner' Donal Ryan'Gripping and well-honed...consummately constructed, humming with tension' Guardian'You can't prepare yourself for the magnitude and emotional impact of this powerful novel' John Irving________________________________From the author of the globally bestselling, multi-million-copy classic, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, comes its astonishing and powerful sequel.Gretel Fernsby is a quiet woman leading a quiet life. She doesn't talk about her escape from Germany seventy years ago or the dark post-war years in France with her mother. Most of all, she doesn't talk about her father, the commandant of one of the most notorious Nazi concentration camps.But when a young family moves into the apartment below her, Gretel can't help but befriend their little boy, Henry, though his presence brings back painful memories. One night, she witnesses a violent argument between his parents, which threatens to disturb her hard-won peace.For the second time in her life, Gretel is given the chance to save a young boy. To do so would allay her guilt, grief and remorse, but it will also force her to reveal her true identity.Will she make a different choice this time, whatever the cost to herself?The new novel from John Boyne, WATER, is available for pre-order now._______________________________Praise for John Boyne'A master storyteller' Daily Express'One of the best novelists of Ireland' Sunday Express'Boyne offers writing of insight and beauty' Observer'John Boyne is a maestro of hisoritical fiction' John IrvingTrade ReviewGripping and well-honed...consummately constructed, humming with tension... a defence of literature's need to shine a light on the darkest aspects of human nature and it does so with a novelist's skill, precision and power * The Guardian *'What an incredible feat of storytelling. All the Broken Places is a stark confrontation of evil, an examination of guilt and deflection, and an old-fashioned page-turner. John treads the finest of narrative lines with skill and grace and proves himself yet again to be among the world's greatest storytellers. ' * Donal Ryan *An eloquent meditation on guilt, complicity and redemption.. a remarkable novel, with humanity at its core * Mail on Sunday *Beautifully told and gripping from first page to last * Sunday Express *This novel, this exceptional, layered and compelling story, is built on modern history and all of us people who live it. The protagonist, the elderly, forthright and mysterious Mrs. Fernsby, is more than memorable and every one of Boyne's characters, and every scene, dark or light, is limned in truth and insight. This book moves like a freight train,with force and consequence for the reader. * Amy Bloom *

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