Family life fiction / Stories about family

Book SynopsisFrom the author of Carnegie Hill, comes Jonathan Vatner''s The Bridesmaids Union, a captivating novel of family, Facebook groups, and bridesmaids gone rogue.Iris Hagarty has just about had it with weddings. After witnessing one too many meltdowns over flower arrangements, she takes to the internet to vent about the trials and tribulations of being a bridesmaid to demanding and ungrateful brides. She finds she is not alone, and soon becomes the moderator of a Facebook group full of other bridesmaids, eager to share their own horror stories.Enter Iris's sister Jasmine, the golden child and their parents' obvious favorite, newly engaged and wanting none other than Iris to be her maid of honor. Knowing full well that Jasmine doesn't need a wedding to bring out her spoiled side, Iris buckles in for a bumpy ride. At least now she has an outletone full of new online friends hungry for juicy details.But as the Bridesmaids Union grows, Iris finds

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Book SynopsisFletcher Dukes and Altovise Benson reunite after decades apartand a mountain of secretsin this debut exploring the repercussions of a single choice and how an enduring talisman challenges and holds a family together.On a routine trip to the Piggly Wiggly in Albany, Georgia, widower Fletcher Dukes smells a familiar perfume, then sees a tall woman the color of papershell pecans with a strawberry birthmark on the nape of her neck. He knows immediately that she is his lost love, Altovise Benson. Their bond, built on county fairs, sit-ins, and marches, once seemed a sure and forever thing. But their marriage plans were disrupted when the police turned a peaceful protest violent.Before Altovise fled the South, Fletcher gave her a peach seed monkey with diamond eyes. As we learn via harrowing flashbacks, an enslaved ancestor on the coast of South Carolina carved the first peach seed, a talisman that, ever since, each father has gifted his son on

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Book SynopsisMeg just wants to keep her family together. Her mother is desperately ill and her sister is still in school so it is up to her to support them.   All Meg knows to do is bake and desperation leads her to Ted Lund, the miserly owner of a local bakery. In a moment of uncharacteristic kindness, he takes pity on Meg and offers her a job.   But Ted’s charity ends there. He’ll save money at any costs, cutting corners by using sawdust in his bread, ignoring vermin in his flour, and paying Meg a pittance.  But despite her mistreatment, Meg can see what the bakery might yet be. Using her baking skills, can she turn the shop around?  

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Book SynopsisMeg just wants to keep her family together. Her mother is desperately ill and her sister is still in school so it is up to her to support them.   All Meg knows how to do is bake and desperation leads her to Ted Lund, the miserly owner of a local bakery. In a moment of uncharacteristic kindness, he takes pity on Meg and offers her a job.   But Ted’s charity ends there. He’ll save money at any costs, cutting corners by using sawdust in his bread, ignoring vermin in his flour, and paying Meg a pittance.  But despite her mistreatment, Meg can see what the bakery might yet be. Using her baking skills, can she turn the shop around?  

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Book SynopsisTHE IMMERSIVE AND HEARTFELT EXPLORATION OF FAMILY AND LOVE ''A beautiful bittersweet story of love, loss and families. Tears were shed!'' GRAHAM NORTON ''A moving and powerful novel'' JOHN BOYNE ''Human, graceful and healing, a true gift of a novel'' SEBASTIAN BARRY ''A beautiful story'' SARAH WINMAN ''Lyrical, optimistic and redemptive'' CLARE CHAMBERS''Just loved it . . . so moving on motherhood, depression, family ties and Ireland'' ANNIE MACMANUS __________ On an island off the west coast of Ireland, the Moone family gathers. Maeve is an actor, struggling with her most challenging role yet - as a mother to four children. Murtagh, her devoted husband, is a potter whose craft brought them from the city to this rural life. In the wake of one fateful night, the Moone siblings must learn the story of who their parents truly are, and what has happened since their first meTrade ReviewA beautiful bittersweet story of love, loss and families all set in the most irresistible of locations. Tears were shed! -- Graham NortonA moving and powerful novel from one of Ireland's finest new writers -- John BoyneSuch a true gift of a novel, with its sumptuous forward momentum, and rare precision, and inspired imagery. The Truth Must Dazzle Gradually generates a very bright light, one that is human, graceful, and healing. It's an absolute pleasure to read -- Sebastian BarryJust loved it . . . so moving on motherhood, depression, family ties and Ireland -- Annie MacmanusA beautiful story. I was gripped and held in a state of love for all the characters -- Sarah Winman, Sunday Times bestselling author of Tin ManI devoured this, falling in love with the setting and with every character - and when I reached the end, I wept. It is just glorious. A sweeping family safe and, at the same time, a close-up on the everyday beautiful details that make up love -- Emma Flint, author of Little DeathsWe are seduced by the story of the star-crossed lovers * Sunday Times *Cullen's quietly devastating second novel is both a family saga and a careful exploration of the reality of living with mental health issues * i paper *A beautiful meditation on family life in Ireland -- Elaine Feeney, Irish TimesAn extremely moving read. Handles the complexities of love, grief, family life and mental illness with sensitivity and depth. A truly gorgeous novel. -- Ali Land, author of Good Me, Bad MeIntensely moving, beautifully written and drenched with Irish atmosphere, this novel asks brave and thoughtful questions about mental health * Daily Mail *I really enjoyed Helen Cullen's confident voice and lyrical descriptions and was relieved by the optimistic and redemptive ending as I had become so invested in the characters. I'll look out for more from this author -- Clare Chambers, author of Small PleasuresSo wonderful on the Irish family and the utter complexity of motherhood, family entanglement and love -- Elaine Feeney, poet and author of As You WereAn honest meditation on love and motherhood - this is a story of the confessions that aren't easily made; the secret hopes and desires that can feel too complicated or painful to express. Cullen is a thoughtful writer and she dissects the stubborn optimism of the human heart with skill and sympathy * Irish Independent *A compassionate portrayal of love, support and grief, The Truth Must Dazzle Gradually contains moments so recognisable to anyone who has suffered from depression that credit must be given to Cullen for depicting mental illness in all its senseless brutality while never exploiting it for sentimental reasons... There are many strengths to this novel, not least of which is the author's decision not to fill the pages with anguish . . . a writer whose skill is matched by an ability to surprise with each new work -- John Boyne, Irish TimesPrecise, haunting and, above all, beautiful . . . has the twin ability to inspire you to take delight in the world, yet also cry with the pain that unfolds in its pages . . . a book of rare quality * i magazine *I loved this book so much . . . Gorgeous -- Aisling BeaA powerful and poignant narrative told over a lifetime; exploring unconditional love, heartbreak and the beautiful flaws of human nature set within a family unit. (Cullen) is an astute and empathic writer and an incredible voice in Irish literature. You'll fall in love with the Moone family and they will linger in your heart long after you read the final pages -- Cat Hogan, author of They All Fall Down and There Was A Crooked ManBeautifully-observed [...] charts a family across 37 years, living through a tragedy on a remote island; portraying mental health and the fall-out around it with enormous humanity and integrity. Tonally reminiscent of recent Colm Tóibín -- Caoilinn Hughes, author of Orchid and The WaspA beautiful novel - Helen Cullen writes with such deft care and attention about the things that hold us together when everything falls apart -- Rónán Hession, author of Leonard and Hungry PaulSuch a tender read. Astute and compassionate, it made me cry. It's full of love. And it's quietly magnificent -- Tor Udall, author of A Thousand Paper BirdsA perfect combination of deeply-felt tragedy with great hopefulness -- Anne Youngson, author of Meet Me at the MuseumA remarkable book -- Joy Rhoades, author of The Woolgrower’s CompanionA superb second novel that goes to places you mightn't expect but which ultimately end up making a great deal of sense. It touches on a lot thematically and doesn't ever suggest that any one life path can be a cure for severe mental illness and it does some things that... are very pleasing indeed. I had a LOT OF FEELINGS -- Claire Hennessy, author and editor of Banshee JournalLoved it. Beautiful and original * Sunday Independent *A beautifully observed saga of abandoned dreams, loss and self-discovery -- Alan McGonagle, author of IthacaAbsolute poetry and a love letter to family and to the arts. The depiction of depression is as accurate as any I've read and the empathy in this book is beautiful -- Maggie Smith, award-winning author of Good Bones and Keep MovingPowerful, intimate, moving - a beautiful exploration of love and family -- Maria Dickenson, M.D. Dubray BooksThis will touch your soul * Sainsbury's Magazine *Cullen's atmospheric novel captures beautifully the continuity of life even at times of deepest grief. If we avoid tragedy in literature, we're closing ourselves off to some of the most powerful and moving writing, as exemplified by Helen Cullen's second novel which deals delicately and humanely with the subjects of mental health and the ravaging effects of grief * Business Post *An Irish novel moves from a family's joy to tragedy and back in this poignant yet hopeful novel spanning the late 1970s to 2015 * Shelf Awareness *Cullen's lyrical prose drives the immersive and heart-wrenching narrative. This complex study of depression and its impact on family dynamics will lure readers * Publishers Weekly *Love is here in spades... clear a weekend for this gorgeous read * Library Journal (starred review) *Praise for Helen Cullen * - *If you liked Harold Fry and Me Before You, you will love Cullen's nostalgic debut. This life-affirming book will draw you in and keep you there * Independent *Delightful * Sunday Times *Deeply moving * Irish Times *I found myself totally transported into William's poignant and beguiling world of lost opportunities and loveThis will touch your soul * Sainsbury's Magazine *Cullen's writing is precise, haunting and, above all, beautiful . . . has the twin ability to inspire you to take delight in the world, yet also cry with the pain that unfolds in its pages * i *Deals delicately and humanely with the subjects of mental health and the ravaging effects of grief . . . ultimately a hopeful read that lives long in the memory * Business Post *Cullen's quietly devastating novel is both a family saga and a careful exploration of the realities of living with mental health issues * i *A thoroughly moving and frequently funny story of love and compassion * The New European *A tender and unflinching exploration of mental illness and how it can eat into the heart of a family. Full of empathy and genuinely moving, a novel that will stay with me for a long time -- Christine Dwyer Hickey, prizewinning author of The Narrow Land

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Book SynopsisTHE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AND RADIO 2 SUMMER BOOK CLUB PICK''The new Little Fires Everywhere . . . The perfect summer read'' STYLIST''Stunning! An absolutely brilliant, gorgeously-written novel. A must-read for our time'' LISA TADDEO''Immersive and deeply moving'' ANNA HOPE''I absolutely adored it'' LIANE MORIARTY*Features an extract from Mary Beth Keane''s new novel The Half Moon!*_____________Two ordinary families. One life-changing day . . .When the Gleesons and the Stanhopes become neighbours, lonely Lena Gleeson wants a friend. But Anne Stanhope - cold, elegant, unstable - wants to be left alone.It''s left to their children - Lena''s youngest, Kate, and Anne''s only child, Peter - to find their way to one another.To form a friendship whose resilience and love will be almost broken by the fault line dividing both families, and a Trade ReviewStunning! An absolutely brilliant, gorgeously-written novel by a fearless writer. Ask Again, Yes is both haunting and hopeful, like life itself. It's the consummate epic family story, one I can't stop thinking and talking about. A must-read for our time * Lisa Taddeo, author of Three Women *The new Little Fires Everywhere . . . Exploring mental health, grief, forgiveness and love, this conjures up the work of Celeste Ng and Anne Tyler - and we can't give higher praise than that. The perfect summer read * Stylist *Immersive and deeply moving -- Anna Hope, author of ExpectationA wonderful novel about a lifetime of love . . . Focusing on a small cast over several decades allows Keane to explore universal themes: marriage, family, betrayal and forgiveness. Above all, what is a good life well lived? * Daily Mail *One of the most exceptional novels of the summer . . . Has the makings of a future classic. Keane's prose is spare and elegant and she writes about mental illness and alcholism with compassion. It's a remarkable achievement * Sunday Express *I adored this book. I sank completely into the world of this novel and loved being there from beginning to end. Ask Again, Yes reminds us that after happily-ever-after comes the grit and grief of everyday love: in-laws, illnesses, betrayals and, scariest of all, the flaws that each partner will uncover in the other. It's an absolute stunner, an ode to family and forgiveness that has been crafted with compassion and insight * Sara Collins, bestselling author of The Confessions of Frannie Langton *Compelling . . . it is neighbourly conflict, not love, that drives this quietly devastating story . . . There are multiple twists skilfully delivered. The novel raises a series of profound questions . . . [and] as an exploration of parent-child relationships, the novel is both thoughtful and powerful * Hannah Beckerman, i news *This is one beautiful book. I was wowed by Keane's writing and narrative skill - and by what she knows about trouble -- Stephen KingI absolutely adored Ask Again, Yes. I was only a few chapters in when I knew Mary Beth Keane was about to become one of my favourite authors. I'll read everything she writes * Liane Moriarty *A pleasantly accessible novel that will be popular with book clubs ... Keane is a nuanced observer * The Sunday Times *A novel of great compassion and understanding . . . rich with story * John Boyne, Irish Times *Powerful and moving . . . Mary Beth Keane is a writer of extraordinary depth, feeling and wit. Readers will love this book, as I did * Meg Wolitzer, bestselling author of The Female Persuasion *One of the most exceptional novels of the summer . . . Has the makings of a future classic * Daily Mirror *Leaves one shaking one's head in frank admiration. A triumph * Matthew Thomas, bestselling author of We Are Not Ourselves *Keane takes on one of the most difficult problems in fiction - how to write about human decency . . . a compelling case for compassion over blame, understanding over grudge, and the resilience of hearts that can accept the contradictions of love * Louise Erdrich, National book award winning author of The Round House *A shocking tragedy turns what had been a portrait of domestic tension into a profound story of trauma and blame. Keane's gracefully restrained prose gives her characters dignity * Vogue *A beautiful novel, bursting at the seams with empathy * Elle *A powerful tale * Woman & Home *A captivating, authentic and intricately-woven story . . . Immensely affecting, this book poses big questions. Can we ever escape our history? Are we prisoners of our bloodlines? Ultimately, this book is an examination of love - familial and romantic. It is an epic story, quietly told. And it is all the better for that * Irish Sunday Independent *A story with real heart - moving and subtle and often very touching * Literary Review *If tense family dramas are your thing, you'll love this. I found this story hugely engrossing and the characters so well-drawn, I became completely invested in their lives * Good Housekeeping *A candidate for one of my best books of the year. I savoured every word of this eloquent, lyrical novel, which explores how the secrets that families carry can effect future generations . . . I was swept up in the drama * Prima *An explosive study of family dynamics . . . moving and thought-provoking . . . a gripping family saga that tackles mental illness and addiction and explores how childhood can inescapably shape the future * Daily Express *Fans of Liane Moriarty, meet your new favourite author * Red *Family ties are stretched to breaking point in the baking hot New York summer of 1973 . . . A book that's full of life lessons for people in a particular stage of their lives * Mariella Frostrup, BBC Radio 4 Open Book *Keane draws two families in sharp, moving detail, effortlessly peeling back decades of history to look at friendship, mental health, and the changing and sometimes warped face of love * Sunday Post *A rare example of propulsive storytelling infused with profound insights about blame, forgiveness and abiding love * People *Displaying impressive reach . . . Keane delivers an epic of domestic emotional turmoil . . . Tender and patient, the novel avoids excessive sweetness while planting itself deep in the soil of commitment and attachment. Graceful and mature. A solidly satisfying, immersive read * Kirkus, starred review *An immersive read about family secrets and redemption * Editor's Choice, Bookseller *A gut-wrenching tale centered around the families of two rookie, next-door neighbor NYPD cops and a tragedy that reverberates over four decades. The book revolves around the bond between their children, the daily intimacies of marriage and the power of forgiveness * Good Morning America Summer Reads *One of the most unpretentiously profound books I've read in a long time . . . As a writer, Keane reminds me a lot of Ann Pratchett; Both have the magical ability to seem to be telling "only" a closely-observed domestic tale that transforms into something else deep and, yes, universal. In Keane's case, that "something else" is a story about forgiveness and acceptance - qualities that sound gooey, but are so hard to achieve in life . . . Modestly magnificent * Maureen Corrigan, NPR Fresh Air *An Updikean epic of intertwined families destabilized by grief and estrangement following a mother's breakdown, then redeemed by their enduring compassion for one another * Best Books by Women Summer 2019, OPRAH Magazine *10 new books to read this August * SheerLuxe *A powerful tale of two neighbouring families forever entwined by love and tragedy. . . A touching read * Woman's Weekly *Mary Beth Keane draws two families in sharp, moving detail . . . With hints of Curtis Sittenfeld about it - the way it effortlessly unspools years, but buffets you with a huge amount of detail - it considers friendship and mental ill health, how love changes and warps, and despite a fairly slow start, does so beautifully * The Herald *Poignant and powerful * Image *A miniature epic . . . like Elizabeth Strout, Keane is good at creating distinctive characters - flawed, empathetic men and women whose inner landscapes she captures in powerful, pared-down prose. The novel is a nuanced portrait of the impact of mental illness and addiction, the limitations and endurance of love and of how 'we repeat what we don't repair' * Belfast Telegraph *A thought-provoking read exploring mental illness, alcoholism and violence * Candis *Fans of Celeste Ng will love this modern American novel based on two families linked by tragedy and passion . . . A lovely mix of childhood memories growing in to adulthood, and its really powerful * Stellar *With the author's deftness of touch, characters are rendered as real as those you encounter in daily life, and it's hard not to think about them even after reading the last pages * Connaught Telegraph *An engrossing drama about family, forbidden love, the toll of mental illness and the power of mercy * People Magazine *A powerful novel about mental illness, alcoholism, love and redemption * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisIRRESISTIBLE AND PULSE-POUNDING Karin SlaughterA TENSE, PACY PAGE-TURNER GUARDIANBRILLIANT AND RELENTLESS Don WinslowThe unmissable new thriller from the bestselling author of THE CHAIN.YOU DON''T KNOW WHAT YOU''RE CAPABLE OF UNTIL THEY COME FOR YOUR FAMILY.After moving from a small country town to Seattle, Heather Baxter marries Tom, a widowed doctor with a young son and teenage daughter. A working vacation overseas seems like the perfect way to bring the new family together, but once they''re deep in the Australian outback, the jet-lagged and exhausted kids are so over their new mom.When they discover a remote Dutch Island, off-limits to outside visitors, the family talks their way onto the ferry, taking a chance on an adventure far from the reach of iPhones and Instagram. But as soon as they set foot on the island, which is run by a tightly knit clan of locals, everything feels wrong. Then a shockinTrade ReviewUnforgettable * DON WINSLOW *Heart-stoppingly tense and unpredictable, The Island twists a family vacation to a nightmarish breaking point. Adrian McKinty has written another irresistible and pulse-pounding thriller about the surprising places evil hides and just how far we'll go for those we love. * KARIN SLAUGHTER *A pulsating, nerve-shredding thriller. I loved it! * M.J. ARLIDGE *Wow, this book left me breathless and on the edge of my seat from the very first page-this is thriller writing of a high order. Gripping and unpredictable, prepare to be hooked and pumped full of adrenaline as McKinty deftly weaves a compulsively readable plot with characters that you are rooting for. No one does high- stakes tension like McKinty. Put The Island at the top of your TBR-you won't regret it. * SARAH PEARSE, Bestselling author of THE SANATORIUM *Extraordinary * T.J. NEWMAN *A haunting masterpiece * STEVE CAVANAGH *McKinty delivers another skillful, blade-sharp page-turner. * JAMES SWALLOW *Expertly choreographed and breathlessly exciting . . . both the peril and the family are like no other. The Chain was McKinty's breakthrough novel and this one could be every bit as big. * Booklist (starred review) *Exciting . . . Pulls readers compulsively onward * Kirkus Reviews *Exquisite prose at blistering pace. McKinty strikes again. Absolutely riveting. * Paul Finch *With more than a touch of the gothic, this seat-of-the-pants ride sees an Australian woman bring her American family to an island off the Victorian coast. But a fatal road accident leaves them falling foul of the Deliverance-like family that rules the island and in a battle for survival. (Top 10 Books You Should Read in June) * Sydney Morning Herald *The Baxters fight for survival in this tense, pacy page-turner from the author of The Chain. * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisThe Snow Rose is the gripping story of a woman on the run from her past by Lulu Taylor, author of The Winter Folly.'This is a fantastic, all-consuming read.' - HeatI know they think I shouldn't keep her . . . That's why I've escaped them while I can, while I still have the opportunity . . .Kate is on the run with her daughter Heather, her identity hidden and their destination unknown to the family they've left behind. She's found a place where they can live in solitude, a grand old house full of empty rooms and dark secrets. But they're not alone: in the cottage next door live two strange older ladies, sisters Matty and Sissy. They know what happened here long ago, and are curious about Kate. How long can she hide Heather's presence from them?When an eccentric band of newcomers arrive, led by the charismatic Archer, Kate realizes that the past she's so desperate to escape is abTrade ReviewIt's psychologically intense, brilliantly written and perfect escapism * Daily Mail *This is a fantastic, all-consuming read * Heat *[A] gripping story * Hello! *Slipping between the present day and the house's past as the centre of Victoria cult led by a fantastically creepy religious leader, this brooding psychological thriller makes a rather unlikely scenario wonderfully convincing * Sunday Mirror *Lulu's suspenseful story keeps you guessing throughout * People's Friend *

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Book SynopsisSome secrets won''t let go . . . Is the truth about a devastating family tragedy about to be unveiled?Tragedy strikes a quiet Dorset town when the bodies of Sarah and Charles Drummond are discovered in their home one morning while their two young children, Abby and Mia, sleep upstairs. The police seem certain that Charles killed his wife before taking his own life, and the girls'' grandmother, Cicely Fairfax, makes sure that they are shielded from the horrific truth.Until now. Sixteen years later, an accident at work leads Mia to have disturbing flashbacks to the night her parents met their untimely deaths. What did she see? What really happened that fateful evening? When Mia and Abby eventually share painful memories from the night that changed their lives forever, they get closer to uncovering the truth, and a dark secret from the past is finally revealed . . .

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Book SynopsisA spine-tingling psychological thriller bursting with gasp-worthy revelations. When her mother goes missing, a woman returns to her childhood home after twenty years. But is she walking into a trap?Ruby had to get away. Get away from her mother - a phoney medium and psychic scammer. Get away from her lies, her manipulation, her twisted desire to ruin people''s lives.So, at eighteen, Ruby left her home in Stoneybrook, Montana and vowed she''d never return.Now, twenty years later, she''s back.Her mother is missing. Presumed dead. But Ruby isn''t so sure. Has Ida saved her final, darkest scheme for her own daughter? The jaw-dropping truth will shake Ruby to her core . . .Readers of Colleen Hoover''s Verity, Tana French''s The Searcher and Ashley Flowers'' All Good People Here will love this frighteningly dark, page-turning novel of suspense.

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Book SynopsisReese Witherspoon, Oprah and Roxane Gay LOVE her! Readers love her!Have you discovered New York Times bestseller and Reese''s Book Club pick Jasmine Guillory yet?''The queen of contemporary romance'' OprahMag''She writes the sexiest and smartest romances'' Red Magazine''Just as essential to a good summer holiday as SPF'' Grazia ''Jasmine has done it again. A fun, engaging, light romance'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐''The loveliest little snack from the talented Jasmine Guillory'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐''Like a Hallmark movie in book form'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐............................................................IT''S THE CHRISTMAS ROMANCE YOU WON''T WANT TO MISS!When Vivian Forest gets the chance to tag along on her daughter Maddie''s wTrade ReviewWhat a charming, warm, sexy gem of a novel. I couldn't put The Wedding Date down. I love a good romance and this delivered from the first page to the last... One of the best books I've read in a while -- Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author of HungerWith sharp banter, a well-rounded cast of characters, and plenty of swoony scenes, Jasmine Guillory defends her position as one of the most exciting rom-com writers out there * Buzzfeed *There is so much to relate to and throughout the novel, there is a sharp feminist edge. Loved this one, and you will too -- Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling authorThe Wedding Date brims with personality. It's funny, deeply honest, and above all, truly swoony - the kind of all-consuming romance where you hold your breath with delight as two wonderful people start to find each other, like the best possible version of real life. We can't wait to read more from Jasmine Guillory -- Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan, bestselling authors of The Royal WeA swoony rom-com brimming with humor and charm * Entertainment Weekly *Guillory's debut is as enchanting as her characters-bright, bold, warm and wonderful. Even better, there's a proposal to rival any commercial that Madison Avenue can deliver * WashingtonPost.com *This novel reads like a truly contemporary contemporary romance in that the hero and heroine grapple with issues anyone dating today will relate to * NPR.com *Kudos to Guillory, whose lively dialogue is matched by her multifaceted characters * Essence Magazine *The novel is a light-hearted and quick read with fully drawn characters * Associated Press *A romance novel that will make you believe in happily ever afters * Nylon.com *

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Book SynopsisA BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR THE GUARDIAN: ''DEEPLY PLEASURABLE''A BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR THE SPECTATOR: ''WHAT A JOY''''Magnificent'' Guardian''A towering achivement'' Financial Times''Inventive, bold, unexpected'' Sunday Times''Everything that makes the novel worthwhile and engaging is here: warmth, wit, intelligence, love, death, high seriousness, low comedy, philosophy, subtle personal relationships and the complex interior life of human beings''Guardian''Not since William Boyd''s Any Human Heart has a novel captured the feast and famine nature of a single life with such invention and tenderness''Financial Times''There is a pleasing sense of having grappled with the real stuff of life: loss, grief, love, desire, pain, uncertainty, confusion, joy, despair - all while having fun''The Sunday TimesTrade ReviewA masterpiece of love and grief ... Everything that makes the novel worthwhile and engaging is here: warmth, wit, intelligence, love, death, high seriousness, low comedy, philosophy, subtle personal relationships and the complex interior life of human beings ... magnificent - moving, replete, beautiful ... what makes the book special is that The Hummingbird is such an intelligent meditation on life, family, the human heart and the "dictatorship of pain" that comes with grief -- Edward Docx * THE GUARDIAN *A masterpiece of articulation ... a towering achievement ... Not since William Boyd's Any Human Heart has a novel captured the feast and famine nature of a single life with such invention and tenderness. Veronesi explores, with great humour, how the passage of time both expands and expunges the impact of events. And, he suggests, after the pounding of years it is only an individual's character that determines whether or not the edifice will hold -- Christian House * FINANCIAL TIMES *Instantly immersive, playfully inventive, effortlessly wise... a family saga that pays homage to the quiet heroism required by day-to-day existence -- Hephzibah Anderson * THE OBSERVER *A big name in European literature ... Veronesi originally trained as an architect and, rather marvellously, it shows: the structure is inventive, bold, unexpected - slightly bonkers but elegant, and cohesive ... conveys life's messy unpredictability: joy and desperation, simple pleasures, moments of transcendence, much reeling and confusion ... There is a pleasing sense of having grappled with the real stuff of life: loss, grief, love, desire, pain, uncertainty, confusion, joy, despair - all while having fun -- Lucy Atkins * SUNDAY TIMES *A tender, beguilingly epic novel... The complex, subtle design of the novel, with a patchwork of key episodes moving back and forth through time, and its textual variety - partly made up of letters, emails, transcripts of phone calls - disguise its saga-like scale, its epic proportions catching you off guard. It's almost only once you emerge from its acutely painful ending that you realise how much of life you have witnessed - the vastness, as well as the richness, of the story. * NEW STATESMAN *Veronesi's novel has been hotly anticipated by English readers. The bird of the title is Marco Carrera, blessed with the gift of being able to stay still while the world around him turns to chaos. Life-affirming * NEW EUROPEAN *An inventive, a beautiful, complex book. * IRISH EXAMINER *The Hummingbird is a masterly novel, a brilliantly conceived mosaic of love and tragedy. Veronesi creates a thought-rich and ultimately comic meditation on human error and lost chances. It's a cabinet of curiosities and delights, packed with small wonders, strange and sudden turns, insights of great poise and unusual cultural reference points. The Hummingbird in an object lesson in authorial control. Veronesi truly knows and loves all matters of the heart. * Ian McEwan *Somehow or other Sandro Veronesi pulls off the extraordinary feat of making you believe he is writing for your ears alone. I cannot tell you what The Hummingbird is about because that would be to betray a confidence. But I can tell you it's a mightily clever novel. * Howard Jacobson *I love The Hummingbird. A real masterpiece. A funny, touching, profound book that made me cry like a little girl on the last page. * Leïla Slimani *Long considered one of Italy's leading writers, Sandro Veronesi has dazzled both readers and critics with novels that are not only page-turners but profoundly literary. An heir to Italo Svevo, he explores, from book to book, intergenerational conflict, existential anguish and the passage of time. These themes, in Veronesi's hands, burst with vitality. Trained as an architect, he plays inventively with form, producing works that are unconventional, disarming, and profoundly humane. With his latest novel, The Hummingbird, he has re-written the family saga. Ardent, gripping, and inventive to the core, it has already been hailed a classic. * Jhumpa Lahiri *The Hummingbird is a profound story about the myriad ways in which human passions collide with forces beyond human control. From its first page to its last, it's as full of surprises as it is jolts of recognition. Sandro Veronesi has overcome the ultimate, and most difficult, of any novelist's challenges-created a story of such depth and scope that it can stand unembarrassed alongside life itself. It's a remarkable accomplishment, a true gift to the world. * Michael Cunningham *Reading The Hummingbird is a spellbinding experience; it's so clever, funny and deeply moving. * Roddy Doyle *Much more than a novel about a family - which its deceptively unadorned surfaces might suggest it to be - The Hummingbird portrays a subtle and intriguing political vision, depicting the reach of history into the lives of people we might well believe are outside history's notice. * Richard Ford *Sandro Veronesi is a writer I have always admired. He's funny, smart, rueful, deeply feeling. The Hummingbird stands with his finest work. It's some of the most poignant contemporary writing I know of. * Rick Moody *An extremely beautiful and generous novel about time, family, home, love and loss, passion and pain. Funny, heart-breaking, eccentric, tender and completely brilliant. A triumphant, life-affirming novel. Now I want to read everything by Sandro Veronesi. * Edward Carey, author of LITTLE *I love Sandro Veronesi's book, The Hummingbird. A real masterpiece. A funny, touching, profound book that made me cry like a little girl on the last page. * Leila Slimani *Sandro Veronesi's captivating novel is at once a gripping tale of family bonds and a provoking meditation on fate and choice, suffering and endurance, love and hatred, and the elusive nature of happiness. I greatly admired its wit and erudition and its deep charm. * James Lasdun, author of SEVEN LIES *I have known for quite some time that Sandro Veronesi was one of the most skillful and profound Italian storytellers of the past thirty years. But The Hummingbird is the decisive proof of his sensitivity, of his extraordinary strength as a writer. * Domenico Starnone, National Book Award Finalist author of TIES and TRICK *The Hummingbird is a book full of that roller-coaster ride that is life itself, a succession of defeats and unexpected ascents. Crucially, this is a novel that has the courage to pass the baton to the new generations: in the sea of cynicism in which we all risk to drown, it gives us a glimpse of a possible new future. * Nicola Lagioia, author of FEROCITY (winner of the Premio Strega) *Outstanding. A perturbing masterpiece. Absolute beauty in the smallest detail. * CORRIERE DELLA SERA *The novel flits back and forth between multiple decades of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and the narrative is interspersed with letters, emails and transcripts of telephone conversations. Instead of the familiar pattern of trauma, grief and healing, everything seems to happen at once and, indeed, keeps happening. Relationships end before they begin, characters die and are resurrected, only to die again. The reader's foreknowledge of certain events could rob the plot of suspense, but Veronesi uses dramatic irony to poignant effect, and still manages plenty of twists and revelations... Excellent: Marco Carrera is a compelling main character, a devoted father an oblivious husband, a dutiful son and an inadequate brother. The novel's conclusion is a beautiful study of the resilient bonds of flawed love. * TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT *Sandro Veronesi is a gracious, generous and mature writer, and under his guidance the many narrative devices and chronological leaps back and forth (also into the future) grow and mature into a remarkable novel. This piecemeal approach shouldn't work, but Maestro Veronesi is in control: it's a clever structure and the plot twists and turns and thunders along. 'Il Colibrì' won the 2019 Premio Strega, Italy's top literary prize, and thanks to Elena Pala (who was obviously born to translate this novel) it has become The Hummingbird. It is Veronesi's ninth novel and his second Strega. If you don't yet know the work of one of Europe's finest writers, start here -- Rosie Goldsmith * EUROPEAN LITERATURE NETWORK *No other writer in Italy today can tell a story like Sandro Veronesi. * LA STAMPA *Powerful and seductive. * REPUBBLICA *A great novel, vibrating with life and death, happiness and pain, nostalgia and hope for the future. * VANITY FAIR *Reading The Hummingbird is like getting on a rollercoaster: it's a vertiginous ride - almost to the point of physical pain - and then you are left in a state of wonder. * RADIO 24 *Reading The Hummingbird is not just a moving experience: it's almost like a therapy session, a lesson in persevering, in letting go of guilt to find ourselves again. * HUFFINGTON POST *Everything that has made Veronesi one of the greats is distilled in The Hummingbird - just more mature and ambitious. * ESQUIRE *A wonderful book that covers so many bases, while the protagonist keeps his position and moves little in relation to all that is happening around him - he is 'the hummingbird'. The structure is inventive and varied, and contains a rainbow of emotions, played pizzicato across a lifetime of families at their best and worst. It's wry, eccentric, perceptive, creative, nostalgic - you name it, there's many a bell inside the pages that will ring just for you. It really is as good as the stellar list of authors on the back (Ian McEwan, Howard Jacobsen, Jhumpa Lahiri etc) who line up to sing the praises of both the author and this extraordinary book -- David Roche * BOOKBRUNCH *

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Book SynopsisFunny, heart-warming and ultimately triumphant, The Seven Imperfect Rules of Elvira Carr by Frances Maynard is a story for anyone who doesn’t quite fit in – and for everyone who chooses not to. Perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.'Wonderful' – Rosie Walsh, author of The Man Who Didn't Call.Elvira Carr is twenty-seven, neuro-atypical, and has never lived alone. But her father – who she suspects was in the secret service – is dead, and when her mother has a stroke and is taken into care, Elvira suddenly finds herself home alone. In order to cope, Elvira – who knows a lot about biscuits and supermarkets, but not much about life – develops Seven Rules for interacting with others. Not even her rules can help her, however, when she’s faced with solving a mystery she didn’t know existed . . .'Big-hearted and charming' – James Hannah, author of The A to Z of You and Me.Trade ReviewAbsolutely fantastic -- Rosie Walsh, author of The Man Who Didn't CallFunny and heart-warming, Elvira is our new hero * The Sun, Fabulous magazine *Big-hearted and charming . . . Elvira manages to conjure up the one thing we could all do with: a cheat sheet for the painful puzzle of everyday life -- James Hannah, author of The A to Z of You and MeCharming . . . Ellie will make readers smile and occasionally want to take her under a protective arm -- Booklist'A heartwarming coming-of-age story. Perfect for book clubs and for readers who enjoyed The Rosie Project' * Library Journal *A novel which will stick in your mind long after reading, stalking your thoughts as you go about everyday life . . . When I finished the book, I couldn’t help but wish there was a sequel . . . Marvellous -- Ronnie Turner, bloggerFunny and heartwarming * My Weekly *Memorable and touching . . . The Seven Imperfect Rules of Elvira Carr is an important novel and a great read, with elements of mystery, discovering friendship, and working out how to be independent in the world * Siobhan Dunlop, blogger at FiendfullyReading *Sometimes characters come along in books that are so utterly exquisite you feel blessed to have experienced them and indebted to their author for having gifted to them. Such is the case with Elvira Carr . . . A tale that is full of joy, empathy, honesty and warmth -- Jade Craddock, nudge-book.comFans of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and The Rosie Project will love this endearing book . . . Heartwarming with a mystery at its centre . . . Elvira’s character is written with such genuine affection that you can’t help but root for her * bookriot.com *

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Book SynopsisIn Daddy's Girls, Danielle Steel’s thought-provoking novel, three sisters discover the truth about their past and the importance of their unique bond.Many years have passed since ranch hand JT Tucker took his three small daughters to start a new life, eventually building the largest ranch in California. But success comes at a price, and with no mother in their life, Tucker’s relationship with each of his very different daughters was complicated.Caroline, the youngest, was overlooked by her father. She fled the ranch as early as she could to become a wife and mother, pursuing a career writing children’s books. Gemma, his declared favourite, yearned for Hollywood glamour and became a major TV star. Kate, the eldest, stayed to work on the ranch, forsaking relationships and family for a father who took her for granted.When JT dies suddenly, the paper trail he leaves behind reveals more than the sisters could ever have guessed . . .The truth brings a new reality, helping them to understand who they really are and what they really want.

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Book SynopsisA gloriously sunny book of family secrets, lost loves and self-discovery, One Summer in Crete by Nadia Marks is an engrossing holiday read.‘If you don’t think you’re about to get to Crete this is the next best thing . . . we’ve never needed books of this kind more’ – Vanessa FeltzCalli’s world has fallen apart – her relationship is suddenly over and her chances of starting a family are gone. So when she’s sent to write a magazine article about the Greek island of Ikaria, it seems the perfect escape.Travelling to Crete, where her family is from, Calli soon realizes there is more to discover than paradise beaches and friendly locals. When her aunt Froso begins to share the story of her own teenage heartache, will the love, betrayal and revenge she reveals change Calli’s life forever?Travel further with Secrets Under the Sun and Between the Orange Groves by Nadia Marks.Trade ReviewMy book of the year. An utterly gripping story of love and family secrets -- Vanessa Feltz on Among the Lemon TreesA sparkling summer read -- Woman magazine on Secrets Under the SunAn atmospheric and emotion-packed sunshine odyssey . . . The perfect travelling companion for this year’s holiday season -- Lancashire Evening Post on Secrets Under the Sun

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Book SynopsisFor fans of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and Queenie Malone’s Paradise Hotel, comes a story about mothers, daughters and second chances . . . It’s 1981. Eleven-year-old Sadie adores her beautiful and vibrant mother, Connie, whose dreams of making it big as a singer fill their tiny house in Leeds. It’s always been just the two of them. Until the unthinkable happens. Jean hasn’t seen her good-for-nothing daughter Connie since she ran away from the family home in Harlow – or Pram Town as its inhabitants affectionately call it – aged seventeen and pregnant. But in the wake of the Royal Wedding, Jean gets a life-changing call: could she please come and collect the granddaughter she’s never met? We all know how Charles and Diana turned out, and Jean and Sadie are hardly a match made in heaven – but is there hope of a happy ending for them? Written in Joanna Nadin’s trademark dazzling prose, The Talk of Pram Town tells the story of three generations of Earnshaws and asks whether it always has to be like mother, like daughter . . .Trade ReviewAnother triumph . . . I absolutely loved it -- Kate Eberlen, author of Miss You and Only YouFabulous on mothers and daughters, guilt and ambition and what it means to be alienated from the life you’ve always known * Daily Mail *I adored The Talk Of Pram Town. A brilliantly written, emotional and honest novel set in Essex and Leeds about mothers and daughters, dreams and dark secrets. It pulled at my heartstrings and the characters stayed inside my head long after I had finished reading. Highly recommend this wonderful book. -- Jenny Quintana, author of The Missing Girl and The Hiding PlaceAn enchanting, heartfelt and nostalgic read -- Prima, on The Queen of Bloody Everything

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Book Synopsis‘Reminiscent of Edna O’Brien, with shades too of Jean Rhys.’ – The Irish TimesThings to Come and Go showcases the incomparable talent of Bette Howland in three novellas of stunning power, beauty, and sustaining humour.‘Birds of a Feather’ is a daughter’s story of her extended, first-generation family, the ‘big, brassy yak-yakking Abarbanels’. Esti, a merciless, astute observer, recalls growing up amid (the confusions and difficulties of) their history, quarrels, judgements, noisy love and inescapable bonds of blood.In ‘The Old Wheeze’ a single mother in her twenties returns to her sunless apartment after a date at the ballet. Shifting between four viewpoints – the young woman, the older professor who took her out, her son, and her son’s babysitter – the story masterfully captures the impossibility of liberating ourselves from the self.In ‘The Life You Gave Me’, a woman at the midpoint of life is called to her father’s sickbed. A lament for all that is forever unsaid and unsayable, the story is ‘an anguished meditation on growing up, growing old and being left behind, a complaint against time.’ (The New York Times)First published in 1984, Things to Come and Go, Bette Howland’s final book, is a collection of haunting urgency about arrivals and departures, and the private, insoluble dramas in the lives of three women.With an introduction by Rumaan Alam, bestselling author of Leave the World Behind.Trade ReviewHowland's striking prose breathes life into the everyday, the domestic world sung with a lyrical note . . . reminiscent of Edna O'Brien, with shades too of Jea Rhys. -- Sarah Gilmartin * Irish Times *Beneath the bright patter and eye-catching descriptions, each story has sadness at its core . . . a flood of energetic storytelling. -- Marion Winik * Washington Post *A writer of unusual talent, power and intelligence . . . A vigorous, original voice, an incisive mind and an uncompromised lyrical vision . . . Stunning power and beauty abound in this book; it is a trove of lyric riches. -- Johanna Kaplan * New York Times *The three novellas that constitute Things to Come and Go feel, at moments, like thinly disguised autobiography. With her flexible stance toward reality, her eye for the amusing, curious minutiae of existence, and her tonal range . . . Howland recalls the short-story writer Lucia Berlin. -- Abigail Deutsch * Harper's Magazine *There is being seen, and then there is seeing. There is no seeing like Bette Howland's. On every page, catching the narrator's every glance, are observations rich in detail and delight—honest, acerbic, alert, and always dazzling in their inventiveness and wry, hard-edged wisdom. -- Amitava KumarOne of the significant writers of her generation -- Saul BellowThere’s no more interesting tale of neglect and rediscovery than that of Bette Howland. -- Lucy Scholes * Paris Review *[Howland's] rhythmic sentences and striving characters resonate as much today as they did when first written in the 1970s and early 80s . . . one of American literature’s rising stars. -- Sarah Hughes * iNews *Howland’s great theme is the shared ache of human existence, a commonality that sometimes unites us, but more often divides and isolates. She captures this paradoxical push-pull between the longing and the resistance to connect -- Diane Cole * New York Jewish Week *

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Book SynopsisIn Eva Carter's How to Save a Life, saving a life is only the start of the story . . .'A sweeping, brave, epic love story. I was hooked from the very first page' – Josie Silver, author of One Day in December'I couldn't put it down until I reached the final page' – Beth O'Leary, author of The FlatshareIt’s nearly midnight on the eve of the millennium when eighteen-year-old Joel’s heart stops. A school friend, Kerry, performs CPR for almost twenty exhausting minutes, ultimately saving Joel’s life, while her best friend Tim freezes, unable to help. That moment of life and death changes the course of all three lives over the next two decades: each time Kerry, Joel and Tim believe they’ve found love, discovered their vocation, or simply moved on, their lives collide again.. . . Because bravery isn’t just about life or death decisions; it’s also about how to keep on living afterwards.Trade ReviewHow to Save a Life is so rich and fully-rounded – a sweeping, brave, epic love story. I was hooked from the very first page. I loved it. All the stars -- Josie Silver, author of One Day in December and The Two Lives of Lydia BirdA gripping love story that doesn't shy away from the mess and complexity of real life. I couldn't put it down until I reached the final page -- Beth O'Leary, author of The Flatshare and The SwitchWe fell head over heels for this sweeping love story * The Sun, Fabulous Magazine *Couldn't put it down. Gripping, unflinching, honest and dramatic -- Jill Mansell, author of And Now You're BackAn enthralling epic that swept me along through the highs and lows. I feel I’ve lived three different but tightly intertwined lives -- Katie Fforde, author of A Springtime Affair and Highland FlingA sliding-doors tale of life and loss * Woman's Own *I was completely swept away by How To Save A Life which truly is a salve for the soul. It’s a beautiful book, full of drama, passion and truth: you’ll remember Joel, Kerry and Tim long after you finish reading their story -- Rowan Coleman, author of The Memory Book and The Girl At the WindowA heart-stopping, heart-wrenching and heart-warming story that kept me reading well into the night. I loved it -- Clare Pooley, author of The Authenticity ProjectA beautiful love story * Bella *How To Save A Life is an epic novel that starts with one life-or-death event and then follows the lives of three complex people to show how that moment changed everything. And this novel will change you. It’s extraordinary — a very, very special book indeed -- Julie Cohen, author of Together and SpiritedImpossible to put down, I adored it. How to Save a Life is heartrending and uplifting, tragic and triumphant.It pulses with pain, passion and exquisite pleasure: I don’t think I've read a love triangle which has been so addictive -- Cathy Bramley, author of The Lemon Tree Cafe and My Kind of HappyA heartwarming page-turner * Closer *A fabulous story of the strength and fragility of life, love and friendships -- Milly Johnson, author of My One True NorthMoving, gripping, with unforgettable characters, How to Save A Life is a beautiful page-turner with a very big heart. I just loved it -- Eve Chase author of The Glass HouseI fell in love with the characters from page one. Eva captured perfectly the impact of a life-changing event when young; how it impacts how we live and love going forwards. How to Save a Life is the very epitome of a life-affirming novel. I absolutely loved it -- Katy Regan, author of Little Big Love and How To Find Your Way Home

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Book Synopsis'A truly moving, uplifting story about love, connection and finding the courage to start over' - Rowan Coleman'The perfect holiday read' - Josie LLoydWhat are you most afraid of . . . ?Gemma is terrified of slowing down, because if she does, she’ll have to admit how lonely she’s felt since losing the love of her life. So she fills her days with work and taking her dog, Bear, to comfort young patients at the local hospital. That's enough, isn't it?Dan is scared of anyone getting to know the real him. He’s the life and soul of every party, but he’s certain that if people find out what he’s done, everything will fall apart.Casey is Dan’s twelve year old daughter – though they barely know each other. She’s starting four weeks of treatment for a benign tumour, and is scared this summer could be her last.When Gemma, Dan and Casey meet one scorching July, the connection is instant. Yet they’re all used to protecting themselves from heartbreak by keeping their distance. Now that fate – and a small, scruffy terrier – have brought them together, can they find the courage to connect?A story of bravery in all its guises, Eva Carter's Owner of A Lonely Heart is about taking the plunge even when it frightens you – because it's never too late to find the people who make your world make sense.'Sensitively and beautifully written. This is a book that will stay with you after the last page is turned' - Milly Johnson Trade ReviewHeartwarming, immersive and hopeful . . . A beautiful read -- Julie CohenA truly moving, uplifting story about love, connection and finding the courage to start over -- Rowan ColemanHeartwarming and full of insight, this book will lift your spirits and make you smile -- Katie FfordeThe perfect holiday read - wonderfully plausible characters, dark secrets and a fabulously teased-out love story. When I got to the end, I gave it a hug -- Josie LloydA gorgeous novel about messy, scary, wonderful love in all its forms -- Katy ReganSensitively and beautifully written. This is a book that will stay with you long after the last page is turned -- Milly JohnsonOne of the most beautiful books of the year. Brilliant * The Sun *'I adored this incredibly moving and touching tale, with an unlikely hero who will steal your heart. Deeply emotional but with a light touch, this should be the love story of summer 2022 - an absolute delight.’ -- Veronica Henry'Eva Carter has done it again. The perfect book to relax, unwind and warm up your heart.' -- Suzy K Quinn

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Book SynopsisAt the Bottom of the River is Jamaica Kincaid’s first published work, a selection of inter-connected prose poems told from the perspective of a young Afro-Caribbean girl.Collecting pieces written for the New Yorker and the Paris Review between 1978 and 1982, including the seminal ‘Girl’, these stunning works announced a fully-formed, generational talent and firmly established the themes that Kincaid would continue to return to in her later work: the loss of childhood, the fractious nature of mother–daughter relationships, the intangible beauty of the natural world, and the striving for independence in a colonial landscape.Powerful and lyrical, this is an unforgettable collection from a unique and necessary literary voice.Part of the Picador Collection, a new series showcasing the best of modern literature.Trade ReviewThis book will burn on your shelf. It is too choked with love to incite envy, too humble for admiration, and still too startling to escape astonishment -- Derek WalcottWhat a writer – elegant, uncompromising, simultaneously direct and layered and complex. -- Ali SmithI’ve read everything by Jamaica Kincaid, and I’ve still never read anyone like her. If you are new to Kincaid, I envy you -- Jackie Kay

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Book SynopsisThe Number One Sunday Times Bestseller and one of Barack Obama’s Favorite Books of 2022.From Hanya Yanagihara, author of the modern classic A Little Life, To Paradise is a bold, brilliant novel spanning three centuries and three different versions of the American experiment, about lovers, family, loss and the elusive promise of utopia.'Three stories far apart in space and time but each unique in their power to summon the joy and complexity of love, the pain of loss . . . It’s rare that you get the opportunity to review a masterpiece, but To Paradise, definitively, is one.' – The Observer'Awe-inspiring . . . The characters are so well drawn and the plot so well paced, I couldn’t put it down.' – Daily TelegraphIn an alternate version of 1893 America, New York is part of the Free States, where people may live and love whomever they please (or so it seems). The fragile young scion of a distinguished family resists betrothal to a worthy suitor, drawn to a charming music teacher of no means. In a 1993 Manhattan besieged by the AIDS epidemic, a young Hawaiian man lives with his much older, wealthier partner, hiding his troubled childhood and the fate of his father. And in 2093, in a world riven by plagues and governed by totalitarian rule, a powerful scientist’s damaged granddaughter tries to navigate life without him – and solve the mystery of her husband’s disappearances.These three sections are joined in an enthralling and ingenious symphony, as recurring notes and themes deepen and enrich one another: A townhouse in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village; illness, and treatments that come at a terrible cost; wealth and squalor; the weak and the strong; race; the definition of family, and of nationhood; the dangerous righteousness of the powerful, and of revolutionaries; the longing to find a place in an earthly paradise, and the gradual realization that it can’t exist. What unites not just the characters, but these Americas, are their reckonings with the qualities that make us human: Fear. Love. Shame. Need. Loneliness.To Paradise is a fin-de-siecle novel of marvellous literary effect, but above all it is a work of emotional genius. The power of this novel is driven by Yanagihara’s understanding of the aching desire to protect those we love – partners, lovers, children, friends, family and even our fellow citizens – and the pain that ensues when we cannot.'This magisterial follow-up to A Little Life offers three books in one . . . Yanagihara weighs up damage and privilege - social, emotional, political, colonial in a gripping, immersive ride through alternative Americas.' – The Guardian 'Best Reads For Summer'Trade ReviewAfter the painfully affecting [A Little Life] To Paradise gives us three stories far apart in space and time but each unique in their power to summon the joy and complexity of love, the pain of loss. I’m not sure I’ve ever missed the world of a book as much as I miss To Paradise now I’ve left it. * Observer *To Paradise is a transcendent, visionary novel of stunning scope and depth. A novel so layered, so rich, so relevant, so full of the joys and terrors – the pure mystery – of human life, is not only rare, it’s revolutionary. -- Michael Cunningham, author of The HoursHanya Yanagihara's To Paradise is as good as War and Peace -- Edmund White, author of A Boy's Own Story One of the most anticipated books of 2022 – if not the decade . . . Prepare to weep in public and be utterly transformed. * Stylist *To Paradise becomes unputdownable . . . Amidst the worst travails and political pressures, the primacy of human bonds is irreducible, a truth that lies at the heart of this frightening and very beautiful novel.' * Literary Review *A future classic . . . For those captivated by Yanagihara’s A Little Life, her next is equally gripping . . . Ultimately, it asks the question: is love really all we need? * Telegraph *A bravura achievement . . . Behind this impressive, significant novel stands the question: what is a life, if it is not lived in freedom? * Guardian *A very unusual sensibility and a burning subject matter have come together here . . . Highly affecting. Read it and hope not to revisit it in your dreams. * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisMike Gayle: emotions you'll never forget, stories you'll want to shareHelen and Ben parted as heartbroken 18-year-olds and went their very separate ways.Twenty years later, mother-of-two-teenagers Helen is still in Manchester, a part-time primary teacher, stunned by the behaviour of her love-rat husband. In an old T shirt and scruffy jeans, she feels at the lowest point in her life.And suddenly, impossibly, Ben is standing on her doorstep. Tired maybe, lonely even, but clearly still the world-famous, LA-based multi-millionaire rockstar he has become.Can you ever go back?For Helen and Ben, so much has happened in the years between. But just to sit in the kitchen for a while and talk - that would be nice.Before the world comes crashing in.Friendship, love, heartache and hope collide in this unforgettable emotional journey, from the author of Half A World Away.'The escapist pageturner of the summer' The Sunday Times Your favourite writers are already falling in love with this story . . . 'Moving, uplifting, unforgettable. Mike always writes from the heart and creates stories we fall in love with' Lisa Jewell'Full of relatable characters and as Mike takes us on a journey through all their high and lows and we're with them every step of the way . . . A wonderful story' Ruth Hogan'Poignant. Powerful. Beautiful' Milly Johnson'Funny, real and unexpected, a story that will keep you hooked to the very last page' Alexandra Potter Fans love this new story . . . 'I've always been a fan of Mike's books BUT this one is my absolute favourite'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Mike writes so well and creates the best, most memorable characters'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Had me absolutely gripped'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Outstanding. Loved it and devoured every page'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Trade ReviewMike Gayle creates real, warm characters you will recognise. Amid real human dilemmas, the heart and goodwill always shines through * Jojo Moyes *A Song of Me and You is vintage Mike Gayle! It's full of relatable characters and as Mike takes us on a journey through all their high and lows and we're with them every step of the way. A Song of Me and You is a wonderful story about the things that really matter in life - family, friendship and falling in love - and a poignant reminder to cherish them while we can. It's the perfect book to celebrate Mike's 25 years as an author! * Ruth Hogan *Poignant and powerful. Gorgeous! * Milly Johnson *Poignant, uplifting and utterly charming, I was swept away by Ben and Helen's story, equal parts relatable and fantastic but always, always pulling on my heart strings. Mike Gayle, then, now and forever one of the best * Lindsey Kelk *Moving, uplifting, unforgettable. Mike always writes from the heart and creates stories we fall in love with * Lisa Jewell *Funny, real and unexpected, a story that will keep you hooked to the very last page * Alexandra Potter *A Song of Me & You is a heartbreaking and utterly compelling second-chance love story. Brimming with emotion, it has much to say about loss, loyalty, and the power of self-belief. An unforgettable read * Holly Miller *This second-chance romance comes from the sure hands of Mike Gayle, known for his ability to pluck the heartstrings * Daily Mail *Public service announcement: Mike Gayle's latest is going to toy with your emotions, churn you up, and spit you out - but it's totally worth it . . . powerful storytelling and well-drawn characters * Heat *Gayle's 19th novel is a rollercoaster of emotion - wise, insightful and bittersweet in the best of ways * CultureFly *A joyful celebration of life, it's also a study in grief, second chances, and what can happen when you truly believe in yourself. * Heat *Tender and unforgettable * Woman and Home *A wonderful story about first love and second chances * Good Housekeeping *A glorious story about the power of love, friendship and roots * Sun *Wonderful * Prima *Emotional and engrossing, do not miss this top read * Fabulous *With Gayle's ability to illustrate how people are thinking and feeling, this is a story of love and friendship, heartache and hope * My Weekly *Mike Gayle's stunning novel takes the reader on a journey of joyful highs and heartbreaking lows * Sunday Express *Touching, funny, beautifully characterised and undeniably romantic, this may be the escapist pageturner of the summer * The Sunday Times *Mike Gayle is a natural storyteller, he gifts us these fully rounded, painfully honest characters and allows us to live with them for a short period of time but that's enough to care about them and to almost grieve when we reach the end of the novel and have to say goodbye to them, hoping things will be OK. His books may be fiction, but the themes he writes about are real and the issues and questions raised are those that we face day to day. * The Leader *An absolutely wonderful read - a gorgeous, touching story with characters you root for fervently * Tracy Rees *This was wonderful, and a testament to true friendship. * Prima (Book of the Year 2023 roundup) *Mike Gayle creates real, warm characters you will recognise. Amid real human dilemmas, the heart and goodwill always shines through * Jojo Moyes *

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Book Synopsis‘A sublime gift’ MEG MASONA taut, ground-breaking new novel about a writer's relationship with her larger-than-life mother - and about the very nature of writing.Ten months after her mother’s death, the narrator of The Hero of This Book walks across London on a quiet Sunday. The city was a favourite of her mother’s, and as the narrator wanders the streets, she finds herself recalling all that made her complicated mother extraordinary. Even though the woman, a writer, wants to respect her mother’s nearly pathological sense of privacy, she must decide whether making a chronicle of this remarkable life constitutes an act of love or betrayal.* A New Yorker, Time, Washington Post, Oprah Daily and NPR Book of the Year *‘I absolutely loved it. A moving portrayal of daughterhood…suffused with warmth and love’ MEGAN HUNTER, author of The Harpy‘Confirms McCracken as among the finest contemporary chroniclers of everyday life… wonderful’ GUARDIAN‘Tender, funny, heartbreaking… a writer who always delights’ RUMAAN ALAM, author of Leave the World BehindTrade ReviewInto a single, most singular novel, McCracken fits everything we adult daughters know and feel and love and fear about our beautiful, complicated mothers, and could never say. A sublime gift. -- Meg Mason, author of Sorrow and BlissWhat could be better value than a book set over one day that you can read in one day, but that will stay in your heart and refuse to go... One of the greatest memoirs of a parent. * The Times *Confirms McCracken as among the finest contemporary chroniclers of everyday life. Like Elizabeth Strout and Ann Patchett, she combines a blistering intelligence with deep humanity. * Guardian *Easily one of the best novels (or is it actually a memoir?) that will be published this year... It is touching and funny, and full of sharp-eyed observations about family life and parents and how your childhood forms you. * The Times *A more loving and moving tribute to its subject is hard to imagine. * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisI wanted to lose myself in the small town of Pelion, Maine. To forget everything I had left behind. The sound of rain. The blood. The coldness of a gun against my skin. For six months, each breath has been a reminder that I survived--and my dad didn't. I'm almost safe again. But the moment I meet Archer Hale, my entire world tilts on its axis . . . and never rights itself again.Until I trespass into his strange, silent, and isolated world, Archer communicates with no one. Yet in his whiskey-coloured eyes, something intangible happens between us. There's so much more to him than just his beauty, his presence, or the ways his hands communicate with me. On me. But this town is mired in secrets and betrayals, and Archer is the explosive centre of it all.So much passion. And so much hurt. But it's only in Archer's silence that we might just find what we need to heal . . . and live.Includes an exclusive extended epilogue from Archer's POV!A Goodread's "Top Romance Novel of All Time"A New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of Three More Months comes a moving novel about hope, loss, the power of memories, and the enduring bonds of family. It’s been two years and two months since trauma shattered hospital chaplain Isabel Myles’s world. Since that day, she has stopped answering calls. She’s shut out her family, friends, and coworkers. Even her faith seems to have faded. Except for her connection with her younger sister, Chantel, Isabel copes by forgetting. Then she takes on a summer job as a home caregiver for Opal, a dementia patient who is struggling to remember. The more invested Isabel becomes in Opal’s vanishing world—and in her devastated grandson, Evan—the more open she is to forming bonds, old and new. She reaches out to her best friend. She repairs the damage between her and her estranged parents. And with Evan she feels emotions she thought were lost forever. But the trauma Isabel’s kept buried for so long will be rediscovered too. What Isabel learns could change her life again, forever. This time, though, she won’t have to face the past alone.Trade ReviewPraise for Three More Months “A heart-wrenching novel about family and love.” —Booklist (starred review) “Readers will laugh and cry…” —Library Journal “Echavarre (Three More Months, 2021) once again delivers a spectacular novel that will have readers overcome with emotion.…Family, love, trauma, and friendship are themes in this novel, which will appeal to those who like Emily Giffin.” —Booklist “Sarah Echavarre’s debut women’s fiction is a moving story about second chances and the precious time we have with loved ones. This was a page-turner, immersive, and all-consuming…a must-read.” —Tif Marcelo, USA Today bestselling author of In a Book Club Far Away

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Book Synopsis*Winner of the NYPL Young Lions Award**Winner of the CLMP Firecracker Award*Finalist for the NBCC John Leonard PrizeA New York Times Writer to Watch This SummerNamed a Best Book of the Year by Literary Hub and Library JournalIn 1990, three boys are born, unrelated but intertwined by circumstance: Dayo, Iseul and Youssef. They are adopted as infants and live in a shared bedroom perched atop a mosque in Staten Island. The boys are a conspicuous trio: Dayo is of Nigerian origin, Iseul is Korean and Youssef indeterminately Middle Eastern, but they are so close as to be almost inseparable. Nevertheless, Youssef is keeping a secret from his brothers: he has an imaginary double, a familiar who seems absolutely real, a shapeshifting creature he calls Brother. The boys' adoptive father, Imam Salim, is known for his radical sermons extolling the virtues of opting out of Western ideologies. But he is uncharismatic at home, a distant father who spends evenings in his study with whiskey-laced coffee, writing letters to his former compatriots back in Saudi Arabia. Like Youssef, he too has secrets, including the cause of his failing health, the reason for his nighttime excursions from the house and the truth about what happened to the boys' parents. When Imam Salim's path takes him back to Saudi Arabia, the boys will be forced to follow. There they will be captivated by an opulent, almost futuristic world and find traces of their parents' stories. But they will have to change if they want to survive in this new world, and the arrival of a creature as powerful as Brother will not go unnoticed.With stylistic brilliance and intellectual acuity, in Brother Alive Zain Khalid brings characters to vivid life with a bold energy that matches the great themes of his novel - family, capital, power, sexuality and the possibility of reunion for those who are broken.Trade ReviewBeguiling...Khalid's sentences abound with florid, poetic metaphors while maintaining the clipped, declarative tempo of Scripture....a searing collage of the profound and the mundane * New York Times *[An] auspicious debut...Khalid brilliantly reveals new shades of truth from each character's point of view, and perfectly integrates the many ideas about capitalism and religious extremism into an enthralling narrative. It's a tour de force * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *One of the most exciting debuts in recent years...That Khalid executes a novel this intricate, elegant, and compassionate with such masterly prose all but guarantees that this will be one of the finest works of literature this year * Library Journal *This wildly ambitious novel seeks to break new ground in big-issue territory like provenance, race, class, birth and rebirth...that it succeeds in some of its lofty aspirations is impressive. To do so while creating memorable characters is even more of a feat. * Big Issue *Zain Khalid's imagination and talent are a marvel to behold in these pages. Brother Alive bristles with a kinetic, hypnotic energy that also manages to ask profound questions about love, faith, family, and loyalty. Hallucinatory and electrifying, Brother Alive announces the arrival of a writer with an impassioned and fearless vision. -- Maaza Mengiste, author of THE SHADOW KING, shortlisted for the Booker PrizeBrother Alive is a hallucinatory revelation. With beautifully-written prose, characters that truly leap from the pages, and a rendering of love, both familial and romantic, that made my heart ache, Zain Khalid has announced himself as a writer the world needs to sit up and pay attention to. An exquisitely told, breathtaking, revolutionary book, I barely blinked while reading it and was bereft when I finished it. -- Kasim Ali, author of GOOD INTENTIONSA rigorously intelligent, wholly sensitive and quietly rebellious work of art, with prose as profound as it is beautiful. What an inspiring examination of the waywardness of life and the grounding of love this story is. What a wise, thoughtful writer Zain Khalid is. What a gift to humanity this book is. -- Robert Jones, Jr., New York Times-bestselling author of THE PROPHETSBrother Alive is a remarkable work. Zain Khalid creates an immersive world rich in compelling detail. But even more impressively, Khalid achieves a kind of resistance text against our endemic inhumanity. The thrill lies in witnessing such a cogent and powerful intellect tune in to the music of life. An inspiring reminder of the great capacity of novels. -- Sergio de la Pava, author of A NAKED SINGULARITYThis genre-defying novel, and the intelligence, originality, and awareness of the mind that produced it, astonished me. I was reminded of Günter Grass, of Viet Thanh Nguyen. Through the consciousness of an unforgettable narrator, Youssef, Khalid begins by subtly illuminating the contours of a globalized world in which the personal is geopolitical; he ends by turning up the light and refusing to let us look away. -- Vauhini Vara, author of THE IMMORTAL KING RAO

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Book Synopsis“By turns revealing, hilarious, dishy, and razor-sharp, Impersonation lives in that rarest of sweet spots: the propulsive page-turner for people with high literary standards.” —Rebecca Makkai, author of The Great Believers Allie Lang is a professional ghostwriter and a perpetually broke single mother to a young boy. Years of navigating her own and America’s cultural definitions of motherhood have left her a lapsed idealist. Lana Breban is a powerhouse lawyer, economist, and advocate for women’s rights with designs on elected office. She also has a son. Lana and her staff have decided she needs help softening her public image and that a memoir about her life as a mother will help. When Allie lands the job as Lana’s ghostwriter, it seems as if things will finally go Allie’s way. At last, she thinks, there will be enough money not just to pay her bills but to actually buy a house. After years of working as a ghostwriter for other celebrities, Allie believes she knows the drill: she has learned how to inhabit the lives of others and tell their stories better than they can. But this time, everything becomes more complicated. Allie’s childcare arrangements unravel; she falls behind on her rent; her subject, Lana, is better at critiquing than actually providing material; and Allie’s boyfriend decides to go on a road trip toward self-discovery. But as a writer for hire, Allie has gotten too used to being accommodating. At what point will she speak up for all that she deserves?   A satirical, incisive snapshot of how so many of us now live, Impersonation tells a timely, insightful, and bitingly funny story of ambition, motherhood, and class.  

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Book SynopsisRecipient of the 2019 Alex Award??“Mike Muñoz Is a Holden Caulfield for a New Millennium--a '10th-generation peasant with a Mexican last name, raised by a single mom on an Indian reservation' . . . Evison, as in his previous four novels, has a light touch and humorously guides the reader, this time through the minefield that is working-class America.” --The New York Times Book ReviewFor Mike Muñoz, life has been a whole lot of waiting for something to happen. Not too many years out of high school and still doing menial work--and just fired from his latest gig as a lawn boy on a landscaping crew--he’s smart enough to know that he’s got to be the one to shake things up if he’s ever going to change his life. But how? He’s not qualified for much of anything. He has no particular talents, although he is stellar at handling a lawn mower and wielding clipping shears. But now that career seems to be behind him. So what’s next for Mike Muñoz?In this funny, biting, touching, and ultimately inspiring novel, bestselling author Jonathan Evison takes the reader into the heart and mind of a young man determined to achieve the American dream of happiness and prosperity--who just so happens to find himself along the way.

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Book SynopsisIn this tale of fresh starts in the Escape to France collection from bestselling author Fiona Valpy, Gina has lost everything. Can a crumbling old cottage offer her a new life, new love—and new hope? Revised edition: Previously published as The French for Love, this edition of Light Through the Vines includes editorial revisions. Gina’s London life lies in tatters: she has lost her father, her steady job as a wine buyer and her suave but unfaithful boyfriend. When she also suffers the loss of her beloved aunt, a silver lining dawns in the shape of an unexpected legacy: Aunt Liz has left Gina her beautiful, if slightly ramshackle, house in the heart of Bordeaux wine country. With nothing left to lose, Gina takes a chance on a fresh start. Throwing herself into her new life in the beautiful French countryside, Gina discovers the warmth of a close-knit—sometimes too close-knit—rural community and the exhausting exhilaration of the grape harvest under the late-summer sun. But just as she is beginning to feel like she belongs in her crumbling but charming home, she uncovers a long-hidden secret that makes her question the one person she used to trust the most. While she’s worrying that this is a sign to pack her bags and run, a storm blows a hole in the roof, and Gina finds herself with nowhere else to turn except her neighbour’s capable son for help. Before long Gina finds herself admiring handsome Cédric for more than just his stonemasonry skills…But everyone she’s ever held dear has left her or betrayed her. And as the grapes ripen on the vine, can Gina find her way to forgiveness, and could it finally be time for her to open her heart to love again?

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Book SynopsisA bighearted romantic comedy about family and finding the perfect match set against the exuberant backdrop of contemporary Delhi. Home has always been a temporary arrangement for Samara Mansingh, a wayfaring wedding photographer and the daughter of a diplomat. When her father is uprooted once again, Samara needs a place to stay in Delhi. Next stop: the Khanna family. Samara’s memories of the Khannas are vague at best, but she doesn’t remember their home feeling so much like a war zone. And the last thing their surly eldest son, Sharav, wants is a houseguest eavesdropping on the chaos. Sharav has a melodramatic sister pushing back on an arranged marriage, a withdrawn lead-singer brother who won’t sing, and a widowed mother hiding her grief in the garden. Sweeping into the household like a tornado, irrepressible Samara is a practically perfect distraction. She has a mind to help a girl find true love, push a young man to find his voice, and bring a lonely and loving widow out of mourning. Maybe Samara can even get on Sharav’s ruggedly handsome good side. The only sure thing is that the Khanna family will never be the same again. Neither will Samara, who may finally find what she’s been missing her entire life: a home.Trade Review“This quick-paced and refreshing tale will have readers rooting for Samara and Sharav’s love story—and for the entire Khanna clan.” —Publishers Weekly “Filled with quirky and lovable characters and sexual chemistry so hot it will leave you breathless. Unputdownable and delightful—a must read!” —Sonali Dev, bestselling author of The Vibrant Years “Never Meant to Stay is a sumptuously layered feast for the senses—part fam-dram, part romance. Trisha Das portrays Indian family dynamics with thoughtful, tender care, especially the ways in which love gets tangled up with past hurts, romantic relationships, and familial and societal expectations. As much about belonging as it is falling in love, Never Meant to Stay follows Samara Mansingh, a transient Mary Poppins–esque heroine who (unlike Poppins herself) is very much meant to stay. Das writes the Khanna family with empathy and warmth, from their squabbles to the fierce way they claim Samara as one of their own. Das’s Delhi setting bursts onto the page with vibrancy, with almost every chapter liberally sprinkled with dishes you’ll salivate for. You’ll gobble up this book.” —Lillie Vale, author of Wrapped with a Beau and The Shaadi Set-Up

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Book SynopsisCassy smiled, blew them a kiss. 'See you in September,' she said. It was a throwaway line. Just words uttered casually by a young woman in a hurry. And then she'd gone. It was supposed to be a short trip - a break in New Zealand before her best friend's wedding. But when Cassy waved goodbye to her parents, they never dreamed that it would be years before they'd see her again. Having broken up with her boyfriend, Cassy accepts an invitation to stay in an idyllic farming collective. Overcome by the peace and beauty of the valley and swept up in the charisma of Justin, the community's leader, Cassy becomes convinced that she has to stay.As Cassy becomes more and more entrenched in the group's rituals and beliefs, her frantic parents fight to bring her home - before Justin's prophesied Last Day can come to pass.A powerful story of family, faith and finding yourself, See You in September is an unputdownable new novel from this hugely compelling author.Trade ReviewThis is a big, gripping and heartbreaking read... I couldn't put it down. * Daily Mail *A riveting, fascinating read. I was absolutely gripped. * Julie Cohen *See You in September is one of those novels that really gets beneath the skin... I love the way Charity Norman is able to show the greys between the obvious black and whites; how she draws such multi-layered characters; and, of course, how she describes her stunning but often sinister locations. * Tracy Buchanan *Norman does a fine job delving into the insidious psychology of cults. But this is no human freak show: it's a creepy portrayal of an ordinary young woman, feeling the lure of total belonging, who is groomed into accepting a sinister price for it. * Sydney Morning Herald *This is the author's fourth book and although I've said it before, it's her best. I can't wait to see what subject she'll tackle next. * The Sun on THE NEW WOMAN *Completely brilliant - you won't be able to turn the pages fast enough. * Bella on THE NEW WOMAN *I shouted at this novel. I cast it away, abandoned, only to return to its beguiling pages. * Buzz on THE NEW WOMAN *Engrossing * Woman and Home on THE SON-IN-LAW *A gripping tale that would appeal to fans of Jodi Picoult and Joanna Trollope... A page turning book to while away a winter's evening. * Red Online on AFTER THE FALL *Easy to read, hard to put down, it'll move you to tears. * Easy Living on FREEING GRACE *

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Book SynopsisA heartbreaking story of love, loss and survival following the unforgettable Daniel Pitt. From the multi-million copy bestselling author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin.Returning from life as a fighter pilot in the First World War, Daniel Pitt is struggling to put the trauma of the Western Front behind him.As the 1920s dawn, he and his wife Rosie move to a tea plantation in Ceylon with their small daughter to make a fresh start. Yet navigating their new world could test their marriage to its limits.Back in England, Rosie's sisters are dealing with impossible challenges in their searches for family, purpose and happiness. These are precarious times, and taking unconventional means may be the only way to get what they want. Around them the world changes, and events in Germany take a dark and forbidding turn. And soon there is no going back...For more adventures with flying ace Daniel Pitt, see The Dust That Falls From Dreams and The Autumn of the Ace.Trade ReviewA wonderful… vividly peopled novel… De Bernières is a generous storyteller * Daily Telegraph *This tragicomic romp has a winning glint in its eye, delivering oodles ofDownton-esque entertainment as it portrays a changing Britain poised uneasily on the brink of modernity * Mail on Sunday *Richly enjoyable…it is written with such vitality….I would guess that many readers, once they have launched themselves into it, will read it straight through * Scotsman *

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Book SynopsisThe sequel to Bernice L. McFadden's incredible classic debut and the Richard and Judy 2021 Book Club pick, SugarIn This Bitter Earth, Sugar Lacey is on her way out of Bigelow, Arkansas, where she'd come to break with the past. With her worn leopard-print suitcase and her head held high, she walks past the prying eyes of its small-minded, cruel-hearted townsfolk, praying for the strength to keep going. She doesn't stop until she arrives at her childhood home in Short Junction. Here she learns the truth about her parentage: a terrible tale of unrequited love, of one man's enduring hatred, and of the black magic that has cursed generations of Lacey women. A powerfully realised novel that brings back the unforgettable characters from Sugar, McFadden's bestselling debut, This Bitter Earth is a testament to the ultimate triumph of the human spirit.Reader reviews for Sugar'Such an enjoyable read... beautifully written, raw and impactful''Riveting, heart-breaking''Very powerful, poignant''Beautifully written... brutal and moving... a must read book''Well-written with rich characters and many twists and turns''So descriptive yet easy to read, and it made me fall in love with all the characters'Trade ReviewA moving story on loss and learning to heal, which will leave you rooting for Sugar as she uncovers each hardship the townsfolk around her are secretly battling * UK Press Syndication *

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'A powerful and truthful story about hope and how to find it' The Times 'A gem of a book' Emily MaitlisEmma's husband Chris is fretting about starvation and societal collapse. He's turned off the heating and is stockpiling off-label medicines and tins of baked beans.Chris, certain that society will soon spiral to its doom, finds Emma's optimism exasperating. Emma finds Chris's obsession with disaster relentless. She's beginning to wonder whether relationships, like mortgages, should be conducted in five-year increments. But when Chris's mother turns up for a visit, the cracks begin to show. Will Emma and Chris be able to find their way back to each other?

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Book SynopsisA SUNDAY TIMES BEST CRIME BOOK OF 2022 In a grand old mansion in the middle of the Sussex countryside, seven people have seen more than they should... The new chilling thriller from Lesley Thomson. In a small community James Ritchie was looking forward to spending the day with his son, though he was a little late picking him up from his ex-wife, Anna. In the middle of nowhere Later that afternoon, they are found dead, the victims of a double stabbing. Anna will never see her family again. You need to keep your secrets close... As DI Toni Kemp unravels the case, she is brought to a grand country mansion, long ago converted into flats. In this quiet, peaceful place, seven long-term residents have seen more than they should. But this is a tight-knit group – and they are good at keeping secrets... PRAISE FOR THE COMPANION: 'Like the best of Barbara Vine and Agatha Christie crossed with the unique Lesley Thomson brilliance.' Elly Griffiths 'This modern take on the country-house mystery shocks from the off.' The Times 'Colourful characters and devious plotting.' Ian Rankin 'Electrifying, gritty.' Woman's OwnTrade ReviewThis modern take on the country-house mystery shocks from the off * The Times *An eerie thriller * Choice Magazine *This is a thoroughly entertaining and very contemporary take on the traditional country-house mystery, switching from sinister to comic with practised ease * Daily Mail *An electrifying, gritty read * Woman's Own *What more could any crime fiction fan want? Provocative characters, most of whom have excellent motives for committing the murders and all of whom make you smile or wince; a location straight out of Agatha Christie; a mystery that will keep you guessing right to the end as the clues point in one direction then another, then another; and even a hint of romance before the end. It all adds up to the best kind of crime novel * Promoting Crime Fiction *

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Book Synopsis'If Emma Murray writes it, I want to read it. Hilarious!' Cathy KellyBrand new from the bestselling author of Time Out and The Juggle.When her husband David announces he’s been offered a job in New York, Saoirse is thrilled. The glamour of the big city, the shopping, the culture, not to mention the free Manhattan apartment and business class air fare – what’s not to like? There’s just the small matter of making it work for their daughter, five-year-old Anna, who isn’t so keen to leave her friends and school behind.The Big Apple in the middle of summer isn’t quite the holiday Saoirse envisaged, and with David away with work, New York apartment sizes on the miniscule side, and the pace of life faster than the sleepy London suburbs, solo ex-pat parenting pushes Saoirse to her limits. And as the pressure builds and ‘faking it till she makes it’ isn’t cutting it, there’s only one thing for it – Saoirse and Anna need a new plan, and ‘Winging It’ might be their best option…Emma Murray returns with this laugh-out-loud funny, compulsively page-turning adventure about parenting, travelling, and finding your tribe – on both sides of the pond. Praise for Emma Murray:'With wit, brio and fabulous humour, Emma Murray again delivers a page-turner about travel, parenthood, trying to fit in and finding your own tribe. If Emma Murray writes it, I want to read it. Hilarious.' Cathy Kelly'A fabulous series full of laughter, witty observations' Jessica Redland'Emma Murray’s writing is so deft: rib ticklingly funny and also heartbreakingly poignant at times that the reader is swept along with Saoirse and her cast of supporting characters as they navigate their increasingly hectic lives.' Fay Keenan 'Emma tells it how it is with real honesty, and it made me laugh out loud.' Janet Hoggarth 'Witty, fun, beautifully-written. Very highly recommended. Excited to see what comes next from Emma Murray.' Jessica RedlandReaders loved Emma’s first book Time Out:‘Compelling, Uplifting and so very relatable. The characters are superbly written, and I really hope we get to read more from Saoirse.’‘I really related to the Saoirse, the main character in this book. I loved her humour, her insecurities, her strengths, her flaws and of course most importantly how she formed a fantastic friendship over a morning bottle of Prosecco.’‘Emma Murray has written a 5-star 'how-to' book on being part of the village ... 'it takes a village to raise a child' but it also takes that village to raise up a mom!’‘A fabulous read that had me hooked and also made me feel glad that my children were born prior to the arrival of Facebook and social media. But a refreshing read and one I would definitely recommend.’

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Book SynopsisPerfect for fans of Sarah Morgan, Jessica Redland and Kate Forster.Do only fools rush in?When Myles and Darcy first met there were fireworks and ever since then it’s been a rollercoaster ride, sweeping them both off their feet.Myles is determined to do things differently from his own parents, but he’s hard wired to give his career on Wall Street his all. Is he capable of taking his foot off the pedal?Darcy has established herself as a fine hotelier, co-managing The Inglenook Inn in the heart of Greenwich Village. She strongly values her independence, but is it time she made room in her life for something else?Fierce ambition drew Myles and Darcy together, yet could it be the thing that drives them apart? In the meantime, close friends Cleo and Dylan are having their own troubles.Can either couple find their happy ever after despite busy lives, a crisis, and what looks like a wedding that’s never going to happen?Fall in love with the city that never sleeps as love blooms in New York.*Please note this is a re-release of Wedding Bells on Madison Avenue, previously published by Helen J Rolfe*Praise for Helen Rolfe’s heartwarming stories:'Beautiful, magical and incredibly moving’ The Writing Garnet‘It's a book version of a Hallmark movie’ Amazon Reviewer‘A warm romantic feel-good read’ Goodreads Reviewer‘The perfect festive romance’ Jessica's Book Biz‘What a wonderful festive read!’ Goodreads Reviewer

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Book SynopsisRun.Moonlight slants through the trees on the ancestral Dunlow estate, where a young woman runs for her life. Gunshots break the silence.The next morning, the body of seventeen-year-old student Melanie Pirt is found.DS Gabe Martin is more than ready to take the lead on her first murder case. Determined to prove herself to the cold and mysterious DI Juliet Stern, Gabe can’t afford any distractions – especially not ones that wake her in the night, reminding her of a past she’d rather forget.Because while Gabe and Juliet have few leads, there are plenty of suspects. And every one of them is lying…The first in a new detective series featuring an unforgettable female detective partnership, Shot in the Dark is perfect for fans of Cara Hunter and Gytha Lodge.Praise for Shot in the Dark:‘I absolutely loved this banger of a police procedural - clever, fresh, with great characters and a killer ending. Perfect for fans of Cara Hunter and I can't wait for book 2’ Jo Callaghan‘The characters were standout (especially Gabe)... I devoured it in one sitting’ Angela Marsons‘A cracking new police procedural dripping with authenticity and fascinating investigative detail. A superb addition to the crime fiction scene’ Marion Todd‘This is a cracking debut. Gabe and Juliet are a sharp investigative duo. A compulsive read with such an unexpected ending’ Casey King‘Twisted, compulsive - a powerful and fresh new voice for the crime thriller bookshelf!’ D. E. White‘Great start to a brand new crime series. Blew away the cobwebs of my reading slump that's for sure! Five stars from me!’ Kerry Watts‘A twisty corkscrew of a story... My new favourite gritty detective series’ A.M. Castle‘This is the best police procedural I have read in years. It’s complex, gripping, believable and intensely chilling. The characterisation is razor-sharp. I could hardly turn the pages fast enough to discover what happened next.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review‘A cracking read. Had everything you could ever want with a police procedural. A completely gripping storyline with fantastic twists. Excellent.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review‘Full of twists and turns. The team dynamic between Gabe and Juliet was well thought out. I will be recommending this to other readers.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review‘Wow and wow again. An excellent police procedural… wonderfully well written. I didn’t guess the perpetrator and for me, a person who reads a lot of crime novels, that is the mark of a 5 star read.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader review

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Book Synopsis‘A compelling, passionate and captivating must read!... I thoroughly enjoyed reading this beautiful book’ Dash Fan Book ReviewsWould you tell the truth, if it meant losing your one true love?Soma is a shy young woman adrift in a strange new country. After moving from Sri Lanka to Yorkshire to become a nanny to baby Louis, Soma tries to settle into life in the U.K., even if every day presents her with a new challenge, from trying new food or getting to grips with the language.But the one thing Soma never counted on was falling in love. When she meets Sahan, a Sri Lankan student at the local university, the two feel an instant attraction. Meeting in secret so that Sahan can teach Soma English, their friendship quickly blooms into something more. But their differing backgrounds – Soma is from poverty, while Sahan is the son of a wealthy family and cousin to Soma’s employer – means they have to hide their love from the world.While they bare their souls to each other, Sahan has no idea that Soma is hiding a huge secret from him – but as her lies come crashing down, Soma is faced with an impossible choice. Should she tell the truth – even if means losing Sahan?A moving, unique and utterly engrossing love story, previously published as This Stolen Life, about how well we really know the person we fall in love with – readers of Amanda Prowse, Jojo Moyes and Diane Chamberlain will be captivated.Readers are loving When Soma Met Sahan:‘When Soma Met Sahan is a journey that is not to be missed...this story moved me beyond measure…I just know it will be one book that will stay with me in the coming months.’ Stacy is Reading‘I loved this book... Jeevani Charika has created such soulful characters that they make reading this book an absolute pleasure… This is a heart-warming 5 star read.’ (5 stars) Jan’s Book Buzz‘truly engaging characters that are believable and a story that is applicable the world over. I found myself not wanting to put the book down.’ Jen Med’s Book Reviews‘filled with emotional turmoil and love, this is a story that took me completely by surprise. A gorgeous and memorable gem of a book with well written and likeable characters who will stay with me for some time to come.’ Cal Turner Reviews‘The story is gripping, emotional and really unique… I loved it and I heartily recommend it.’ Goodreads reviewer‘From the very first few pages I was hooked… This was just beautiful in many ways. Perfect for a holiday read.’ (5 stars) Goodreads reviewer‘It was a simple story with plenty of twists to keep a reader hooked, and the added dash of culture that may be unfamiliar to some, but gives it the spice to make you savour it.’ (5 stars) Goodreads reviewerI really enjoyed reading about these two women, Soma and Yamuna…The opening was tense and exciting, and there was a definite pageturner aspect to the story as I waited for Soma’s past to catch up with her.’ Goodreads reviewer‘What a captivating story…it pulled me instantly with its heart wrenching emotion’ Netgalley reviewer‘The story was not complex, it was not simple, it was just perfect. The characters were relatable and real.’ A Soccer Mom’s Book Blog

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Book SynopsisTHE NINETEENTH CLIFFEHAVEN NOVEL BY SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ELLIE DEANCliffehaven, 1946. The war is over and those who have spent years fighting behind enemy lines are finally coming home.Peggy Reilly is over the moon that her husband Jim is safely back from Burma. But after the horrors he has endured, adjusting to life at Beach View will not be easy. Can he and Peggy find a way through?Meanwhile evacuee Ruby Clark has much to contend with when her estranged mother turns up, having completed a long prison sentence. There is huge heartache still to come for Ruby, and she will need her Beach View family more than ever.Will the sanctuary of home give them each the strength they need to face the challenges ahead?

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Book SynopsisIn this beautifully packaged anthology A. S. Byatt, Alice Munro, Elizabeth Bowen, Sherwood Anderson, Edith Wharton, Anita Desai, Colm Tóibín, Lorrie Moore and many others reflect upon all aspects of motherhood in stories lyrical and satirical, realistic and fantastic, hilarious and heartbreaking. Here at last is a gift-book that is neither sentimental nor 'inspirational', offering instead high-quality literary fiction which will continue to entertain long after the chocolates have been eaten and the flowers thrown away.

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Book SynopsisTo his parents' dismay, Colin Keith - out of the noble but misplaced sense of duty peculiar to high-minded young university graduates - chooses to quit his training for the Bar and take a teaching job at Southbridge School. Little does Colin imagine that he will count among his pupils the demon in human form known as Tony Morland; or that the master's ravishing, feather-brained daughter Rose will, with her flights of fancy and many admirers, spread chaos throughout school and village. Humorous, high-spirited and cleverly observed, Summer Half is a comic delight.Trade ReviewAngela Thirkell is perhaps the most Pym-like of any twentieth-century author, after Pym herself -- Alexander McCall SmithWhat sings out is the ebullience and charm of her characters, deliciously sparkling dialogue, a romping plot, her wit and gentle satire, and the escapist satisfaction of neatly tied-up happy endings * bookoxygen.com *Angela Thirkell is perhaps the most Pym-like of any twentieth-century author, after Pym herself -- Alexander McCall Smith

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Book SynopsisDon’t miss this gloriously feel-good and funny read from the No.1 bestselling author of The Christmas Invitation. Perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley and Katie Fforde Tying the knot can leave you in a tangle… James is everything Tish has ever wanted in a husband – he’s handsome, dependable, and will make an excellent father. Unlike Tish’s first love, the disreputable Fergal, who abandoned her for a music career and now lives a lavish celebrity lifestyle. Fergal broke her heart and James helped to mend it. Tish and James have just bought a cottage in the country. The next step? Kids and a lifetime of domestic bliss. Well, that’s the plan. And even if James has a slight tendency to view the village pub as a second home, their relationship is still in pretty good shape after seven years of marriage … So why is marriage to Mr Right making her long for Mr Wrong? Escape with this warm and witty read – the perfect pick-me-up! ‘One of the best writers around!’ Katie Fforde Trade ReviewPraise for Trisha Ashley: ‘Full of down-to-earth humour’ Sophie Kinsella ‘One of the best writers around!’ Katie Fforde ‘Fast-paced and seriously witty’ The Lady

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD. 'Everything changed after Mama found Father lying on top of another woman.'Blessing and her brother Ezikiel adore their larger-than-life father, their glamorous mother and their comfortable life in Lagos. But all that changes when their father leaves them for another woman. Their mother is fired from her job at the Royal Imperial Hotel - only married women can work there - and soon they have to quit their air-conditioned apartment to go and live with their grandparents in a compound in the Niger Delta.Adapting to life with a poor countryside family is a shock beyond measure after their privileged upbringing in Lagos. Told in Blessing's own beguiling voice, Tiny Sunbirds Far Away shows how some families can survive almost anything. At times hilarious, always poignant, occasionally tragic, it is peopled with characters you will never forget.'This is not a bleak book: there is humour and love, especially in the growing relationship between Blessing and her grandmother, a traditional midwife. Absorbing and passionate' GuardianTrade ReviewAn immensely absorbing novel. It is both heart-wrenching and consoling * Chika Unigwe *The gripping, triumphant tale of a girl who chooses life over loss, in a sweet but savage world where oil is bled from the earth -- Lola Shoneyin, author of The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's WivesWatson's descriptions of character and place are beautifully observed * Independent *Heart-warming * Telegraph *Absorbing and passionate * Guardian *Readability and literary merit go hand in hand in this vibrant gem of a novel * Costa Judges *An excellent novel. It takes the reader deep into the reality of ordinary life in Nigeria and is also funny, moving and politically alert -- Giles Foden, author of The Last King of ScotlandA fascinating, poignant story that had me laughing in places and deeply moved in others -- Ike AnyaSkilfully treading the fine line between gritty hardship and homespun warmth ... Christie Watson's affecting but unsentimental debut earns its place in the sun * Independent *Funny, tragic and moving all in the right places * Pride *

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Book Synopsis‘The writer who saved my life — or my soul.’ Merve Emre, The New Yorker ‘A true living hero of the American avant-garde.’ Jonathan Franzen ‘One of the very few contemporary prose writers who seem to be doing something independent, energetic, heartfelt.’ Lydia Davis A new collection of stories from the ‘godmother of flash fiction’ (The Paris Review). In Williams’ stories, life is newly alive and dangerous; whether she is writing about an affair, a request for money, an afternoon in a garden, or the simple act of carrying a cake from one room to the next, she offers us beautiful and unsettling new ways of seeing everyday life. In perfectly honed sentences, with a sly and occasionally wild wit, Williams shows us how any moment of any day can open onto disappointment, pleasure, and possibility.Trade Review‘[Williams] writes an unmistakable type of story: short, tightly wrought, each sentence a small masterpiece — a three-act play in miniature … With flying narrators and women whose hair drags on the floor as they walk, there’s something of Leonora Carrington’s visions about the stories.’ -- Francesca Peacock * The Spectator *‘As proved by I Hear You’re Rich, Diane Williams’s fiction, long beloved by those in the know, is joyful, unnerving, and linguistically spry.’ -- Leo Robson * The Telegraph *‘Williams explores the pleasures and disappointments of adulthood in this distinctive collection … Williams’ blend of precision and understatement make her insights on her characters’ fears and limitations cut deeply while leaving the stories open to interpretation. This will leave readers aching in all the best ways.’ * Publishers Weekly *‘Miniscule stories from a master of the form … It’s nearly impossible to categorise Williams’ work. She interrogates both the mundane and the metaphysical. In story after story, she upends what readers have grown to expect from traditional narratives — a beginning, middle, and end, to say the least — sometimes leaving us without any of those elements at all. A Williams story might be made up of a fragment of dialogue, a thought, a description, or some combination of these … Mysterious, gemlike, and strange.’ * Kirkus Reviews *‘You can always count on Diane Williams, head literary weirdo and “godmother of flash fiction” for a good time — if you consider having your mind blown to be a good time, which you should. Her latest book has 33 short pieces guaranteed to shift the world around you, if only for a moment.’ * Lit Hub *‘Spry, sly, and spirited, Williams’ very short stories — most are a couple of pages long — are brilliantly unsettling … Williams’ clean sentences are uncluttered, but strangely surprising, and the stories themselves have mysterious depths, a teasing sense of meaning and connection that can never be quite explained or articulated.’ -- Eithne Farry * Daily Mail *‘How much can one writer do with how little? Williams is so intelligent, fearless, and tough, she does extraordinary things within the constraints of her own stringent rules.’ -- Heather Cass White * Times Literary Supplement *‘Every event, thought, image, phrase, and word are given equal opportunity to claim or elude your attention. Turn the pages and see what stands out to you. You might be surprised.’ * Chicago Review of Books *‘The short stories in Williams’ eleventh collection — I Hear You’re Rich— are some of her very best. Alluring and allusive, the 33 beautifully wrought literary miniatures in this volume — the shortest of which is a single sentence of 23 words — are characteristically attuned to what Williams describes as “those exigencies, calamities that underpin everyday life”. Taken together, these distinctive — and sometimes surprisingly comedic — stories confirm Williams is indeed one of the most important US writers working today.’ -- Alexander Howard * The Conversation *‘Williams delights … What a treat! Life is rendered immediate and fresh through her eyes as she takes on the simplest of subjects — affairs, a request for money, the act of carrying a cake — with precision and gusto.’ * RUSSH Magazine *‘Mesmerising.’ * Tertulia *‘These 33 stories, a few as short as a paragraph, pack inordinate complexity into tiny spaces and take unpredictable turns toward unexpected conclusions … From the elusiveness of love to the desire for escape, the themes here are hard to mine in flash fiction. That Williams does so is a tribute to her talent.’ -- Shelf Awareness, starred review‘Like looking into the deep, expressive eyes of a person … struggling against forces that are not always clear to them.’ * The New York Times Book Review *‘Williams’s sentences are syntactically flexible, spasmodic, surprising … Flip to a random page and you’ll likely find at least one question. The world for Williams’s characters is an endlessly baffling place — which might be another way of saying it’s endlessly interesting.’ * Southwest Review *‘It takes a master of the short story form to craft truly incisive slice-of-life fiction, and Diane Williams proves that she’s among the best with her latest collection, I Hear You’re Rich … In each brief story, we see the entirety of the human experience bubbling underneath.’ * West Trade Review *‘You might call Diane Williams’s plots dreamlike — they proceed according to their own mysterious logic, interrupting themselves — but they’re not hazy … [Williams] turn[s] the everyday stuff of realist fiction into props for existential fun houses … I Hear You’re Rich will please fans of Lydia Davis and David Lynch.’ * Vulture *‘Stories that offer glimpses into the mundane and exhilarating beauty of everyday life.’ * The Millions *Praise for The Collected Stories of Diane Williams: ‘Full of funny, libidinal, and invigorating enigmas … Readers who love the arresting phrase, the surprising word, will gravitate to her … It’s perfect to leave on the bedside table, to be consulted before one’s dreamlife begins.’ -- Ange Mlinko * The London Review of Books *Praise for The Collected Stories of Diane Williams: ‘Erudite, elegant, and stubbornly experimental. For any writer, an omnibus collection is a triumph. To see years of Ms Williams’ confounding fictions collected in so hefty a volume is like seeing snowflakes accrue into an avalanche.’ -- Rumaan Alam * The New York Times *Praise for How High? — That High: ‘Williams is a magician of the miniature … Don’t let their diminutive stature fool you: these pieces pack a punch. Brief, elliptical, steeped in longing — or is that lust? — they offer slices of life that rely on interior more than exterior details, which is to say they are small road maps of the soul … All the pieces here … are rigorous in both language and emotion, using nuance and inference to explore the implications, the contradictions, that people rarely share aloud … Williams’ small gems are as dense and beautiful as diamonds, compressed from the carbon of daily life.’ * Kirkus Reviews *Praise for How High? — That High: ‘Williams returns with a collection showcasing her mastery of succinct and suggestive stories … Williams’ prose evokes both strangeness and familiarity as she gets at the core of what it means to live into one’s later years. This is by no means for everyone, but it will surely satisfy fans of well-wrought fiction.’ * Publishers Weekly *Praise for Diane Williams: ‘I would describe Williams as the writer who saved my life — or my soul, if one believes such a thing exists ... [Williams’] stories, many no longer than a page, suggest that what is left unsaid between people remains more powerful than what they have the capacity to articulate. Although Williams studied with Gordon Lish (and before that, with Philip Roth), her minimalism is distinctive for its sublimity and its spirituality, its ability to evoke the laws of a world apart.’ -- Merve Emre * The New Yorker *Praise for Diane Williams: ‘Williams can do more with two sentences than most writers can do with two hundred pages.’ * The New York Review of Books *Praise for Diane Williams: ‘Not a single moment of the prose, here, is what you expect, and even the ordinary is, in the context created by Diane Williams, no longer ordinary: it is fresh, happy, and peculiar — or is it we who are refreshed, happy, and more peculiar than before after reading her?’ -- Lydia DavisPraise for Diane Williams: ‘This book will rewire your brain.’ * NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour *

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Book Synopsis"This is one beautiful book."—Mia CoutoKnown and celebrated in Brazil and abroad for his novel Resistance , Julián Fuks returns to his auto-fictional alter ego Sebastián in a narrative alternating between the writer’s conversations with refugees occupying a building in downtown São Paulo, his father’s sickness, and his wife’s pregnancy. With impeccable prose, the author builds associations that go beyond the obvious, not only between glimpsing a life's beginning and end, but also between the building’s occupation and his wife's pregnancy — showcasing the various forms of occupation while exposing the frailty of life, the risk of solitude and the brutality of not belonging.Trade Review"Fiction to look out for in 2021." —The Observer"...a thoughtful, intimate exploration of how people literally and figuratively occupy their own stories and those of others." —Publishers Weekly"Poignant, thought-provoking and engaging." —The Scotsman"Wholly mesmerising." —Irish Times"Best books of 2021" —The Financial Times"This is one beautiful book."" —Mia Couto"A slender yet striking novel." —Hopscotch Translation"Occupation asks a lot of its readers, but it gives in equal measure; and when you do come up for air, you look around you with a renewed and invigorated sense of the space you occupy in your own life. Superb." —Lunate"A quiet masterpiece." —Asymptote"In Fuks’ prose occupation and resistance walk hand-in-hand." —Full Stop**********Praise for Julián FuksPart of The New York Times' The Decameron Project: New Fiction.International Dublin Literature Prize (Longlist)English PEN (Award)José Saramago Literary Prize (Winner)Jabuti Award for Best Foreign Edition (Winner)Oceanos Prize for Literature in Portuguese (Winner)Jabuti Award for Book of the Year (Winner)Anna Seghers Prize (Winner)"This small book carries a big punch...Fuks is a young writer to watch." —The Guardian"Fuks’s skill lies in his quiet exploration of how exclusion — willed or imposed — shapes experience within families." —New York Times"Fuks’ prose is rythmic and patterned." —The Times Literary Supplement"Eloquent, unsettling and deeply philosophical." —The Financial Times"This elegant, essayistic novel, the first translated into English by this Brazilian writer, is a family drama with the dramatic parts deliberately quieted.... Fuks impressively inhabits the near despair that comes with the fragmentation of family and country." —Kirkus"Fuk’s work, while challenging in form, comes together in a powerful way. This is a thoughtful novel about identity and exile." —Publishers Weekly"Resistance is an urgent and profound novel, a meditation on family, home and dislocation. Fuks focuses on a single family living in Brazil, years after fleeing Argentina. One of the best novels I've read concerning the generation after Brazil's military regime. Fuks' writing is sharp and humane, intimate and lyrical. A stunning work." —Mark Haber, Brazos Bookstore"A brilliant achievement." —Le Monde**********

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Book Synopsis

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