Fiction in translation

Book SynopsisA dark-skinned young boy is found dead, frozen to the ground in a pool of his own blood. The boy's Thai half-brother is missing; is he implicated, or simply afraid for his own life? While fears increase that the murder could have been racially motivated, the police receive reports that a suspected paedophile has been spotted in the area.Trade ReviewWhat is it with those Scandinavians? For many years they have been producing crime novels of the most chilling and engrossing nature. However, one man stands out for his sense of highly believable drama, suspense and an almost effortlessly simple, yet captivating delivery. He is Arnaldur Indridason... one of the brightest sparks on the international crime writing circuit **** * Mirror *An utterly absorbing detective story. In Erlendur - morose, grouchy, but hugely likeable all the same - Indridason has created a character in the Morse/Rebus mould who could stand comparison with either * Scotsman *Trenchantly written...stripped-down, sinewy prose * Independent *Indridason is as interested in exploring the personalities and the relationships between them as he is in unravelling the mystery...a rounded, suprerior example of the genre * Sunday Telegraph *Its humanity and insight make it truly memorable * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisMia Holl lives in a state governed by The Method, where good health is the highest duty of the citizen. Everyone must submit medical data and sleep records to the authorities on a monthly basis, and regular exercise is mandatory.Mia is young and beautiful, a successful scientist who is outwardly obedient but with an intellect that marks her as subversive. Convinced that her brother has been wrongfully convicted of a terrible crime, Mia comes up against the full force of a regime determined to control every aspect of its citizens'' lives.Trade ReviewThis is a brilliant, disturbing and wildly imaginative picture of the nanny state run mad; how far should the State be allowed to poke its nose into a citizen's business? -- Kate Saunders * Times *Zeh seems to have won every European literary prize going...Three years since its first publication in German (it is translated here with tremendous gusto by Sally-Ann Spencer), Zeh’s novel is even more relevant to our over-structure, over-quantified times. -- Simon Ings * Guardian *An impressively plausible account of a conformist society disguised as a utopia -- Lucy Popescu * Independent *In Sally-Ann Spencer's superb translation from German, Juli Zeh's novel gives form to a dystopia that remains hauntingly recognizable -- Charlotte Ryland * Times Literary Supplement *Thoughtful and intelligent...her main character Mia is an intellectual heroine as much as a physical rebel. -- Lesley McDowell * Sunday Herald *

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Book SynopsisThe novel tells the story of a middle-class UNESCO engineer called Walter Faber, who believes in rational, calculated world. Strange events undermine his security - an emergency landing in a Mexican desert against all odds, his friend Joachim hangs himself in the Mexican jungle, and he falls in love with a woman who dies of a concussion, he has an incestuous affair. Finally Faber becomes ill with stomach cancer, but it is too late for him to change his life.

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Book SynopsisAll Souls is a compelling black comedy of Oxford life by Javier Marías, whose highly-anticipated new novel The Infatuations is published in 2013. This Penguin Modern Classics edition features a new Introduction by John Banville, author of The Sea.The pretty young tutor Clare Bayes attracts many eyes at an Oxford college dinner, not least those of a visiting Spanish lecturer (desperate to escape his conversation with an obese economist about an eighteenth-century cider tax). As they begin an affair, meeting in hotel bedrooms away from the eyes of Clare''s husband, the Spaniard finds himself increasingly drawn into the strange world of Oxford, ''one of the cities in the world where the least work gets done'', in a story of lust, loneliness, vanity and memory. Filled with brilliant set pieces and pin-sharp observation, All Souls is a masterpiece of black humour.Trade ReviewA dazzling example of the Oxford novel, with all the ingenuity and the humour and the nostalgia we could hope for * The Times Literary Supplement *Probably the wittiest novel set in British academia since David Lodge's Changing Places * Daily Mail *An intelligent and well written book with exceptionally funny set pieces * The Indepdent on Sunday *

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Book SynopsisPhilosophy in the Bedroom accounts the lascivious education of a privileged young lady at the dawn of womanhood.

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Book SynopsisHis Excellency Eugène Rougon is the sixth in Zola's famous Rougon-Macquart series of novels. Here, the novel presents a detailed picture of court and political circles during the Second Empire, satirizing the corruption and cronyism at its heart.Trade ReviewIt is easy to savor certain installments in isolation [...] But to read through the Rougon-Macquart in Oxford's fine new translations - fourteen of the twenty volumes retranslated since 2000, seven in the last four years - is to see the mosaic that only Zola's full scheme makes possible. * Aaron Matz, The New York Review of Books *Im going to celebrate the 21st century with a re-read of His Excellency Eugène Rougon. * Swiftly Tilting Planet *

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Book SynopsisIn this volume Paul Vincent presents a compelling collection of prose fiction, memoirs and anecdotes centring on Amsterdam from the seventeenth to the twenty-first century. His selection offers a rare insight into the history and culture of the city. The subjects range from Rembrandt to the persecution of the Jews in World War 2, from barricades in a working-class district during the Depression to a writer''s unhealthy obsession with a massage parlour. These eighteen newly-translated tales give the reader, and the traveller, a tantalizing glimpse of the Amsterdam that lies beyond the tourist guidebooks.Table of ContentsGerard Brandt: Vondel in Hiding Arnold Houbraken: Rembrandt Catches a Pupil Red-Handed J. Colerus: Spinoza is Banned from the Jewish Community J.C. Nomen: Peter the Great as a Ship's Carpenter W. Otto: An Opponent inveighs against the Tram Herman Heijermans: Amstel Jacob Israël de Haan: The Black Cat Anonymous: Barricades in the Jordaan Frans Pointl: Amsterdam 1945-1946 Simon Carmiggelt: Itchy Feet Remco Campert: Single to Amsterdam Abel J. Herzberg: Letter to my Grandson Anton Valens: Goldfish Pieter Olde Rikkert: Who's Afraid of Allah Akbar? Sanneke van Hassel: He Directs the Traffic Thomas Heerma van Voss: Massage Parlour Margriet de Moor: A Stroke of Luck Robert Anker: Pain in the Spleen

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsHis Wife ; A Lady with a Dog ; The Duel ; A Hard Case ; Gooseberries ; Concerning Love ; Peasants ; Angel ; The Russian Master ; Terror ; The Order of St. Anne

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Book SynopsisThe three short fictions in this unique collection, Sarrasine, The Unknown Masterpiece, and The Girl with the Golden Eyes, deal with the relationship between artistic ideals and sexual desires. They show Balzac's mastery of the seductions of storytelling, and are among the 19th century's richest explorations of life and art.Table of ContentsSARRASINE; THE UNKNOWN MASTERPIECE; THE GIRL WITH THE GOLDEN EYES

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Book Synopsis“One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequaled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories.” —The GuardianInspector Maigret must untangle the web of lies left behind by a murdered man whose family didn’t know him as well as they thought When a man is found stabbed to death in an alley off Boulevard Saint-Martin, his identity card shows a workplace that had gone out of business three years earlier. As far as his wife knew, he still worked there, and she insists that the shoes and a tie he was wearing when he was killed “couldn’t be his.” It soon becomes evident that although he had a source of income, he spent most of his time sitting on a bench in the neighborhood, often with the same unknown man. But can Maigret find this mysterious companion?In Maigret and the Man on the BencTrade ReviewPraise for Georges Simenon:“One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequaled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories.” —The Guardian “These Maigret books are as timeless as Paris itself.” —The Washington Post “Maigret ranks with Holmes and Poirot in the pantheon of fictional detective immortals.” —People “I love reading Simenon. He makes me think of Chekhov.” —William Faulkner “The greatest of all, the most genuine novelist we have had in literature.” —André Gide “A supreme writer . . . Unforgettable vividness.” —The Independent (London) “Superb . . . The most addictive of writers . . . A unique teller of tales.” —The Observer (London) “Compelling, remorseless, brilliant.” —John Gray “A truly wonderful writer . . . Marvelously readable—lucid, simple, absolutely in tune with the world he creates.” —Muriel Spark “A novelist who entered his fictional world as if he were a part of it.”lle —Peter Ackroyd “Extraordinary masterpieces of the twentieth century.” —John Banville"Gem-hard soul-probes . . . not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic wizardry, but by the melded powers of therapist, philosopher and confessor" ― Times (London)"Strangely comforting . . . so many lovely bistros from the Paris of mid-20th C. The corpses are incidental, it's the food that counts." ― Margaret Atwood"One of the greatest writers of the 20th century . . . no other writer can set up a scene as sharply and with such economy as Simenon does . . . the conjuring of a world, a place, a time, a set of characters - above all, an atmosphere." ― Financial Times"Gripping . . . richly rewarding . . . You'll quickly find yourself obsessing about his life as you tackle each mystery in turn."-- Stig Abell ― The Sunday Times (London)

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Book Synopsis''His artistry is supreme'' John Banville''This was natural. It is the same everywhere. Rarely, however, had Maigret had such a strong sense of a clique. In a small town like this, of course there are the worthies, who are few and who inevitably meet each other several times a day, even if it is only in the street.Then there are the others, like those who stood huddled on the sidelines looking disgruntled.''Maigret''s impromptu visit to an old college friend draws him into a murky investigation in a small provincial town ruled by snobbery, fear and intimidation. ''One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories'' GuardianTrade ReviewPraise for Georges Simenon:“One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequaled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories.” —The Guardian “These Maigret books are as timeless as Paris itself.” —The Washington Post “Maigret ranks with Holmes and Poirot in the pantheon of fictional detective immortals.” —People “I love reading Simenon. He makes me think of Chekhov.” —William Faulkner “The greatest of all, the most genuine novelist we have had in literature.” —André Gide “A supreme writer . . . Unforgettable vividness.” —The Independent (London) “Superb . . . The most addictive of writers . . . A unique teller of tales.” —The Observer (London) “Compelling, remorseless, brilliant.” —John Gray “A truly wonderful writer . . . Marvelously readable—lucid, simple, absolutely in tune with the world he creates.” —Muriel Spark “A novelist who entered his fictional world as if he were a part of it.”lle —Peter Ackroyd “Extraordinary masterpieces of the twentieth century.” —John Banville"Gem-hard soul-probes . . . not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic wizardry, but by the melded powers of therapist, philosopher and confessor" ― Times (London)"Strangely comforting . . . so many lovely bistros from the Paris of mid-20th C. The corpses are incidental, it's the food that counts." ― Margaret Atwood"One of the greatest writers of the 20th century . . . no other writer can set up a scene as sharply and with such economy as Simenon does . . . the conjuring of a world, a place, a time, a set of characters - above all, an atmosphere." ― Financial Times"Gripping . . . richly rewarding . . . You'll quickly find yourself obsessing about his life as you tackle each mystery in turn."-- Stig Abell ― The Sunday Times (London)

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Book SynopsisAcute psychological insight and a distinctive, spare, atmospheric style Simenon ought to be spoken of in the same breath as Camus, Beckett and Kafka' Independent on SundayFaced with a house of tight-lipped witnesses to a murder, Simenon's legendary Inspector Maigret must change his methods to uncover the truth The family and the house had turned in on themselves, acquiring a hostile face in the process' The once-wealthy Lachaume family closes ranks when one of their own is shot dead, claiming to have heard and seen nothing of the murder. This leaves Maigret along with a troublesome new magistrate who has waded into the case to pick his way through their shameful secrets. 'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century' GuardianGem-hard soul-probes . . . not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend' Boyd Tonkin, The TimesTrade ReviewPraise for Georges Simenon:“One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequaled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories.” —The Guardian “These Maigret books are as timeless as Paris itself.” —The Washington Post “Maigret ranks with Holmes and Poirot in the pantheon of fictional detective immortals.” —People “I love reading Simenon. He makes me think of Chekhov.” —William Faulkner “The greatest of all, the most genuine novelist we have had in literature.” —André Gide “A supreme writer . . . Unforgettable vividness.” —The Independent (London) “Superb . . . The most addictive of writers . . . A unique teller of tales.” —The Observer (London) “Compelling, remorseless, brilliant.” —John Gray “A truly wonderful writer . . . Marvelously readable—lucid, simple, absolutely in tune with the world he creates.” —Muriel Spark “A novelist who entered his fictional world as if he were a part of it.”lle —Peter Ackroyd “Extraordinary masterpieces of the twentieth century.” —John Banville"Gem-hard soul-probes . . . not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic wizardry, but by the melded powers of therapist, philosopher and confessor" ― Times (London)"Strangely comforting . . . so many lovely bistros from the Paris of mid-20th C. The corpses are incidental, it's the food that counts." ― Margaret Atwood"One of the greatest writers of the 20th century . . . no other writer can set up a scene as sharply and with such economy as Simenon does . . . the conjuring of a world, a place, a time, a set of characters - above all, an atmosphere." ― Financial Times"Gripping . . . richly rewarding . . . You'll quickly find yourself obsessing about his life as you tackle each mystery in turn."-- Stig Abell ― The Sunday Times (London)

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewOne of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories * Guardian *A supreme writer . . . unforgettable vividness * Independent *The most addictive of writers . . . a unique teller of tales * Observer *

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA disconcertingly funny book . . . both original and edgily entertaining * The New York Times Book Review *Vivid and spooky * Kirkus Reviews *Original and edgily entertaining. It confirms Abe as the best Japanese novelist (along with Shusaku Endo) since the deaths of Yukio Mishima and Yasunari Kawabata. * The New York Times *

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE NOBEL PRIZE FOR LITERATURE''One of Europe''s great writers'' Karl Ove KnausgaardOne evening Marianne, a suburban housewife living in an identikit bungalow, is struck by the realization that her husband will leave her. Whether at that moment, or in years to come, she will be deserted. So she sends him away, knowing she must fend for herself and her young son. As she adjusts to her disorienting new life alone, what she thought was fear slowly starts to feel like freedom.''Knifelike clarity of evocation ... Handke is a kind of nature poet, a romantic whose exacerbated nerves cling like pained ivy to the landscape'' John UpdikeTranslated by Ralph ManheimTrade ReviewHandke became the enfant terrible of the European avant-garde, denouncing all social, psychological and historical categories of experience as species of linguistic fraud. But [he] has aged well and now...is regarded as one of the most important writers in German -- Richard Locke * The New York Times *

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Book Synopsis''A funny, sad novella about how we got here from there, and how, in our youth, our eyes saw things differently'' The TimesA private meeting, chance encounters and a mysterious tour of Lisbon haunt this moving homage to Tabucchi''s adopted cityIn the city of Lisbon, Requiem''s narrator has an appointment to meet someone on a quay by the Tagus at twelve. Misunderstanding twelve to mean noon as opposed to midnight, he is left to wait. As the day unfolds he has many unexpected encounters - with a young drug addict, a disorientated taxi driver, a cemetery keeper, the mysterious Isabel and the ghost of the late great poet Fernando Pessoa - each meeting travelling between the real and illusionary. Part travelogue, part autobiography, part fiction, Requiem becomes an homage to a country and its people, and a farewell to the past as the narrator lays claim to a literary forebear who, like himself, is an evasive and many-sided personality.Trade ReviewTabucchi is a master of illusion and allusion, and this is a literary puzzle that teases, amuses and provokes * Sunday Telegraph *A funny, sad novella about how we got here from there, and how, in our youth, "our eyes saw things differently" . . . a light summer read with enough weight to stop it blowing away -- John Self * The Times *Reading this is like having a buzzed after-dinner conversation with a mind too brilliant to get into nuts and bolts. And yet the streamlike writing, spliced by endless commas, contains a charm that shines through the monochrome * Kirkus Reviews *Beautifully translated ... perhaps his most accessible work to date * The Nation *In the narrator's conversations and in his memories of the past, there is created a personal requiem for the old Lisbon, Tabucchi's Lisbon, not the traditional, solemn celebration of the mass for the dead, with its organ music and cathedrals, but the street music of mouth-organs and barrel-organs -- Jack Byrne * Review of Contemporary Fiction *Elegant, cosmopolitan, inventive and disquieting; his writing is, paradoxically, sensuous and economical * Boston Review *This imagined world is created with elegance and complexity -- Robert Gray * Publishers Marketplace *Tabucchi's books are economical surreal-comic novellas. There's a cosmopolitan eeriness here -- Amit Chaudhuri * Times Literary Supplement *Winner of the 1991 Italian PEN Prize, this playful bagatelle translated from the original Portuguese, is partly homage to Portuguese culture, partly a mellow autobiographical fantasy * Publishers Weekly *A wonderful, enchanting tribute to the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa ... aptly subtitled, this book brilliantly creates a story that, like a delicious cocktail, most readers will finish in one gulp and will return to savor * Library Journal *

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewNot just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic wizardry, but by the melded powers of therapist, philosopher and confessor. -- Boyd Tonkin * The Times *One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories. * Guardian *One of Simenon's masterpieces ... Simenon's subject is how people who are pushed to the edge push themselves over it; the force of the sleuthing is that of psychoanalysis, not police interrogation. -- Adam Gopnik * The New Yorker *

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Book SynopsisDiscover the new Penguin Crime and Espionage seriesA stolen weapon. A troubled young man. A race against time...Inspector Maigret receives a call from his wife to say he has a visitor at their apartment. But when he gets home, the young man has already gone, along with Maigret''s prized Smith and Wesson .45. The trail to find the culprit - and the woman who may become his victim - takes Maigret across Paris and all the way to the Savoy Hotel in London. But getting to the truth may be even more complicated than he had first imagined.Trade ReviewOne of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories. -- GuardianA supreme writer . . . unforgettable vividness. * Independent *

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Book SynopsisIn Evil Hour is the thrilling story of a Colombian society menaced by rumour and paranoia by the Nobel Laureate Gabriel García Márquez, author of the One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera. As a small South American town sweats under an oppressive heat, an unknown person creeps through the night sticking malicious posters to walls and doors. When the contents of one poster lead to a murder, everyone knows that the town is threatened by a malevolent presence - but is there anything that the mayor, the doctor or the priest can do about it?''In Evil Hour was the book which was to inspire my own career as a novelist. I owe my writing voice to that one book!'' Jim Crace''Belongs to the very best of Márquez''s work...should on no account be missed'' Financial Times''A splendid achievement'' The TimesTrade ReviewA masterly book * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis''The most subtle and gifted writer in contemporary Spanish literature'' Boston Globe''No one else, anywhere, is writing quite like this'' Daily Telegraph A thrilling new literary offering from the acclaimed author of The Infatuations and A Heart So White''For a while, she wasn''t sure that her husband was her husband. Sometimes she thought he was, and sometimes not...''Berta Isla and Tomás Nevinson meet in Madrid. Young and in love, they quickly decide to spend their lives together - never suspecting that they will grow to be total strangers, both living under the shadow of disappearances. Tomás, half-Spanish and half-English, has an extraordinary gift for languages and accents. Leaving Berta to study at Oxford, he catches the interest of a certain government agency, and its mysterious agent, Bertram Tupra. Tomás is determined to evade the agent''s attentions but his fate is sealed by an escalating series of events that will affect the rest of his life - and that of his beloved Berta. Finishing his time at Oxford, he returns to Madrid to marry her, already knowing that the life they planned has been lost forever.Darkly gripping, Berta Isla examines a relationship condemned to secrecy and concealment, to pretence and conjecture, to resentment mingled with loyalty. With meticulous insight and understanding of the human soul, Marías examines the urge to change our destiny, and the hopeless exile we bring upon ourselves.Trade ReviewMarías weaves a thrilling and desolate meditation on the psychic costs of the deep state's dark arts. * 1843 Magazine *Magical...finest novel to date * Alex Clark *Compelling * Tatler *A twisty, thought-provoking tale that puts notions of truth and morality under pitiless scrutiny * The Guardian *elegant, discursive, persuasively vivid novel...powerful and indelible * The National *

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Book Synopsis''Intriguing and very scary'' Ken Follett Abducted at thirteen.Returned at twenty-eight.Is it time to go back into the labyrinth?A young woman named Samantha Andretti wakes up in a hospital bed.Samantha was abducted when she was thirteen.She was kept prisoner for fifteen years.The man by her side, Dr. Green, believes that Samantha''s memories contain the clues that will lead to the capture of her abductor. But why does she keep referring to a labyrinth?Outside the hospital, private investigator Bruno Genko does not have long to live. Bruno was assigned to Samantha''s case many years ago, and now it is his chance to make amends.Can Samantha be persuaded to go back into the labyrinth? And how did the man at its centre vanish so quickly?Praise for The Girl in the Fog by Donato Carrisi:''A coldly brilliant exposé of the depths of human nature'' Sunday Times''CompeTrade ReviewIntriguing and very scary -- Ken Follett

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Book SynopsisTranslated from the French, a multilayered novel of high passion and low light, tracing two young lovers who must both come to terms with their inherited bonds and the paths that shape the future.

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Book SynopsisA man is locked inside an abandoned house - but he's not the only one. This atmospheric, edge-of-your-seat rural crime starring local detective Eira Sjodin will keep you guessing till the end.

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Book Synopsis In 1927, the great and the good of Paris gather at the funeral of the wealthy banker, Marcel Péricourt. His daughter, Madeleine, is poised to take over his financial empire (although, unfortunately, she knows next to nothing about banking). More unfortunately still, when Madeleine's seven-year-old son, Paul, tumbles from a second floor window of the Péricourt mansion on the day of his grandfather's funeral, and suffers life-changing injuries, his fall sets off a chain of events that will reduce Madeleine to destitution and ruin in a matter of months. Using all her reserves of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and a burning desire for retribution, Madeleine sets about rebuilding her life. She will be helped by an ex-Communist fixer, a Polish nurse who doesn't speak a word of French, a brainless petty criminal with a talent for sabotage, an exiled German Jewish chemist, a very expensive forger, an opera singer with a handy flair for theatrics, and her own Trade ReviewAn epic inhabited by flamboyant characters and imbued with an all-consuming drama * Figaro *Literature with conviction; a furious talent * L'Obs *Confirms the genius of a great novelist and storyteller * Express *Terrific . . . Easily the most purely entertaining novel I have read so far this year -- David Mills * The Sunday Times *A perfectly orchestrated comédie humaine * Journal du Dimanche *Lemaitre is always readable and his caustic wit shines through -- Antonia Senior * The Times *Pierre Lemaitre: unleashed * Libération *

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Book SynopsisA literary phenomenon The TimesDespentes'' writing is intelligent, outspoken, witty, shocking, propulsive and streetwise Times Literary SupplementTHE FINAL VOLUME IN THE EPIC ROCK AND ROLL TRILOGY BY CULT AUTHOR VIRGINIE DESPENTESAlthough it means leaving behind the community of disciples who have followed him on his travels and assembled at his raves and gatherings, Vernon Subutex is compelled to return to Paris to visit the dentist.Once back in the city, he learns that Charles, his old friend from his days on the Paris streets, has died and left him half of a lottery win. But when Vernon returns to his disciples with news of this windfall, it does not take long before his followers start to turn on each other, and his good fortune provokes ruptures in his once harmonious community.Meanwhile, storm clouds are gathering for Aïcha and Céleste: Laurent Dopalet is determined to make them pay for their attack Trade ReviewInvigorating ... there isn't really anything else like it right now * Observer *A literary phenomenon . . . [an] outrageous, often funny and frequently foul-mouthed trilogy * The Times *Brings the story of Vernon to a sometimes bleak, often very funny and possibly optimistic conclusion * The i *Despentes' writing is intelligent, outspoken, witty, shocking, propulsive and streetwise * Times Literary Supplement *Raw and rewarding * New European *Oddly magnificent * The Sunday Times *Despentes' achievement is French realism rebooted: a modern-day Comédie humaine stacked with profanity and fury * The Times *Either you're already onboard with this series and need no convincing, or you've somehow missed the fact that a cool French writer has been pumping out hilarious and corrosive novels about contemporary urban life at the center and fringes of Paris. Despentes writes like Armistead Maupin, but about aging Gen-Xers instead of hippies and New Agers. -- Molly Young * Vulture *Three addictive, intelligent volumes. Comedy, a way with words, and the collision of registers of language combine to make Vernon irresistible -- RAPHAËLLE LEYRIS * Le Monde *Reflecting our chaotic times, Vernon Subutex 3 is a powerful, shocking, captivating work. Despentes completes her epic with a rare mastery. Where will she take us next? -- BRUNO CORTY * Figaro *A zigzagging novel that likes to let the intrigue wander, all the better to tug it back by the hair a few portraits later -- CLAIRE DEVARRIEUX * Libération *A final volume even more explosive than the previous ones -- NELLY KAPRIÈLIAN * Les Inrockuptibles *An analysis of a startling harshness, which does not lessen the relentless, furious humanity pulsing through every page, every sentence -- NATHALIE CROM * Télérama *One of the most striking literary epics of the early 21st century -- MARIANNE PAYOT * L’Express *

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Book SynopsisOphelia's story in a way you've never heard it before, and seven more ways as well.Ophelia is trapped, stuck inside the machinery that has created her consciousness, fighting to be heard. Hamlet, overwhelmed by the ceaseless flood of media, mindlessly watches TV, consuming a mish-mash of beauty and horror; a daily soup of innocence and violence. The two of them hopelessly confined, and separated by the Atlantic Ocean.A polemic response to Heiner Mueller's Hamletmachine, Opheliamachine is a postmodern tale of love, sex and politics in a fragmented world of confused emotions and global, virtual sexuality. Since its premiere in 2013, Magda Romanska's celebrated experimental play has been performed and studied around the world, with each culture and language feeding into and responding to Opheliamachine's collage of modern existence.This edited collection brings together eight different translations of the play, offering English, GermaTrade ReviewDifficult comedy of ideas and ideologies. * The Hollywood Reporter *An uncompromising vision. . . . fiercely confrontational new play. * Los Angeles Times *Relentlessly provocative and challenging. * LA Weekly *Table of ContentsHow to Lose a Guy in Ten Wars: Introduction to Opheliamachine by Ilinca Todorut From Elsinore to American Techno-Solitude by Maria Pia Pagani, translated by Margaret Rose Production History Opheliamachine (English) Opheliamaschine (German) Ophéliemachine (French) Opheliamachine (Italian) La Máquina de Ofelia (Spanish) Opheliamachine (Japanese) Opheliamachine (Korean) Opheliamachine (Romanian) Maszynofelia (Polish) Bibliography

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Book Synopsis''So biting and refreshingly honest that the real world feels just a little more ridiculous by comparison''Jinwoo Chong, author of Flux''Honest, intelligent and funny''Andrea Abreu, author of Dogs of SummerLife is like a supermarket.Her name is Meryem, but you''d be surprised at how difficult people find that to spell. Meryem is twenty-five years old and has just started working at the offices of Supersaurio: the most important supermarket chain in the Canary Islands. Watched over by the chain''s benevolent blue dinosaur logo, Meryem contends with co-workers who don''t mean to sound sexist, but aren''t women just harder work than men?, a boss who seems determined to make Meryem''s life as miserable as possible, and Omar - smart, funny, very-senior-but-nevertheless-seems-like-a-normal-person Omar, who also happens to be devastatingly handsome.We follow Meryem as she makes the transition from intern, to temp, to arrive finally at the promised land of fixed employment - only to find that she might have left part of her soul behind. ''My relationship with this book has been a bit like the friendships you make in the bathrooms of nightclubs. Meryem, I don''t know you but I love you as if you were my lifelong friend'' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐''I want to meet Meryem for lunch''Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐''Down with work''Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

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Book SynopsisTHE NEW NOVEL FROM THE NO. 1 BESTSELLING AUTHORSet on a sun-kissed island off the coast of France, this a take on classics like Agatha Christie and Donna Tartt - with a deliciously meta twist.Trade ReviewPRAISE FOR THE REUNIONA MAIL ON SUNDAY '100 HOTTEST BOOKS OF SUMMER'Had me turning the pages well into the night' Harlan Coben'Extraordinary' Sunday Times'Breathtakingly good' Daily Mail'Stylish... More please!' The Times

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Book SynopsisA cult classic of Italian literature published in English for the first time, with a foreword by André Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name In the late 1960s, Leo Gazzara left his family in Milan and moved to Rome for work. Soon unemployed, he has spent his time in an alcoholic haze, bouncing between hotels, bars, romantic entanglements, and the homes of his rich and well-educated friends. Rome is indifferent. Leo drifts, aimless and alone.On the evening of his thirtieth birthday, he meets Arianna, a young woman who is both fragile and seductive. All night they drive the city in Leo’s run-down Alfa Romeo, talking and talking. They eat brioche for breakfast, drink through the dawn, drive to the sea and back. A whirlwind beginning. This is the story of the year Leo fell in love and lost everything.Intense, brief, witty and devastating, Last Summer in the City is a newly rediscovered classic of Italian literature. Translated into English for the first time by Howard Curtis, Gianfranco Calligarich’s romantic and despairing debut is reminiscent of The Great Gatsby, The Sun Also Rises and The Catcher in the Rye.Trade ReviewThe true quality of this novel is the way it enlightens, with a desperate clearness, a relationship between a man and a city, that is, between crowd and loneliness -- Natalia GinzburgThe most beautiful love story of the year * Il Giornale *A masterpiece * Le Figaro *Dazzling in every detail * Elle *[A] sublime text, of extraordinary languid beauty and sadness * Sud Ouest *Calligarich’s time capsule of love and existential drift in a lost Rome, translated into sparkling prose by Curtis, is ripe for a rediscovery * New York Times Book Review *A sad, seductive declaration of love for Rome * Il Messaggero *Romantic, raw and lyrical, this is a novel of rare honesty which depicts with devastating accuracy a world of missed connections and failed intimacy -- Alice JollyA short, gorgeous, moving and magnificent story of love and solitude -- Il Sole 24 OreThis book, at once painful and ironic, remains a small gem * La Repubblica *A heartrending marvel * L’Echo *Charming, decadent, and emotionally ruthless . . . equal parts Fitzgerald and Antonioni . . . It's wonderful to have this devastating gem at large in the world again -- Andrew Martin, author of Cool for AmericaDeeply haunting . . . A marvel of a novel * Booklist *Calligarich’s rendering turns la dolce vita into something more akin to Camus’s L’Etranger in a contemporary-ish urban setting. Out of print for years, this welcome new translation is elegiac and heart-rending * Vogue, Best Books to Read This Summer 2021 *The account of a lost generation in Rome in the early 1970s (possibly the children of the children of Hemingway’s lost generation) carries the weight of both family history and generational saga * Kirkus *Evocative . . . Calligarich conjures Italy’s piazzas, parties, beaches, and bars with a mood reminiscent of A Movable Feast . . . the feeling that Leo is alone in the world is poignantly conveyed * Publishers Weekly *

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Book Synopsis'One of the most exquisite debuts I've read' Daily Telegraph'Affecting and haunting' ObserverAfter the death of his wife, a father in a forgotten corner of France raises his two sons alone. But their town is not one of opportunity, and the boys are heading down different paths. Gillou sets his sights on university in Paris while Fus falls in with the local far-right group, searching for meaning and belonging with dangerous friends.How can a father and son find common ground when everything seems set to break them apart? A sudden act of violence will force them to find an answer.Tense, sharp and ultimately heartbreaking, Laurent Petitmangin's first novel, What You Need From The Night, asks what acts can truly be forgiven.'A tragedy of unconditional love' - L'Obs'Heartbreaking . . . haunts you long after you've put it down'- Libération'As sublime as it is painful' - Le ParisienTrade ReviewA triumph of tamped power and unsutured emotion . . . one of the most exquisite debuts I’ve read for some time * Daily Telegraph *Affecting and haunting * Observer *A short blast of a novel: a howl of pain, impotence and rage. The prose, fluently translated by Shaun Whiteside, is precise and unadorned * Spectator *Heartbreaking . . . haunts you long after you've put it down * Libération *A tragedy of unconditional love * L'Obs *As sublime as it is painful * Le Parisien *A poignant, modest, moving book * Télérama *It's impossible not to devour this heartbreaking and beautiful short text in one gulp * Psychologie Mag *An unforgettable first novel, Laurent Petitmangin writes as one lives. And it's dazzling * L'Est Républicain *Petitmangin tells his story of generational shock with a painful quality, a deep voice charged with sadness and a touching efficiency. Memorable * El País *A block of raw emotion * Paris Match *He describes with inifinite accuracy the violence of a father not being able to recognise his son anymore * Femme Actuelle *It shines with the dazzling yet minimalist style that probes hearts and consciences * La Provence *Magnificent! * France Inter *Everytime, Laurent Petitmangin finds the right word * Le Figaro *

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Book Synopsis'As cryptic and compelling as a fever dream... Bae Suah is one of the most unique and adroit literary voices working today' Sharlene TeoFinishing her last shift at Seoul's only audio theatre for the blind, Kim Ayami heads into the night with her former boss, searching for a missing friend. The following day, she looks after a visiting poet, a man who is not as he seems. Unfolding over a night and a day in the sweltering summer heat, their world's order gives way to chaos, the edges of reality start to fray, and the past intrudes on the present in increasingly disorientating ways. Untold Night and Day is a hallucinatory feat of storytelling from one of the most radical voices in contemporary Korean literature.'Highly original... Once I finished it, much of it slipped into my subconscious' Daily TelegraphTrade ReviewHypnotic… an uncannily affecting and dreamlike story of parallel lives and worlds. -- Chloe Ashby * Guardian *[A] highly original novel, full of unsolved mysteries, repeated motifs and startling prose… Remarkably fresh… Exhilarating… Once I finished it, much of it slipped into my unconscious. All that remains is a sense of Bae's boundless yet precise imagination. -- Luiza Sauma * Daily Telegraph *A metaphysical detective story, Untold Night and Day...draws on ideas from Korean shamanism...to venture in style and ambition far from the conventions of mystery narratives... Storylines echo one another and are braided into multilayered fictional universe with extraordinary skill… Bae’s novel complicates the boundaries between self and other reality and make-believe, night and day. -- Sarah Shin * Observer *Bae Suah is one of Korea’s most radical contemporary writers… Untold Night and Day is a hallucinatory novel propelled by the logic of dreams… Bae masterfully layers [her] themes into an almost hidden code beneath the novel’s meditative surface. -- Jay G Ying * Guardian *Bae Suah’s disturbing, beautifully controlled novel Untold Night and Day is a book of doubles, shadows and parallel worlds... a slim yet labyrinthine twist on a “choose your own adventure” story that disarms even as it disorients. -- Catherine Taylor * Financial Times *

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Book Synopsis'Magical and disturbing' Adam ThirlwellAn astonishing, mind-bending novel about a woman discovering a community of swan-people from one of Iceland's greatest writers.*SHORTLISTED FOR THE ICELANDIC WOMEN'S LITERATURE PRIZE*In the not-too-distant future, a young spy named Elísabet Eva is about to discover something that will upend her life.Elísabet likes to take long solitary walks near the lake. One day, she sees two creatures emerging from the water, half-human, half-swan. She follows them through tangles of thickets into a strange new reality.Pulled into the monomaniacal, and often violent, quest of the swanfolk, Elísabet finds her own mind increasingly untrustworthy. Soon, she is forced to reckon with the consequences of her involvement with these unusual beings, and a past life she has been trying to evade.'Ómarsdottir's skills as a poet and playwright are evident' Helen Oyeyemi, New York Review of BooksTrade Review'Magical and disturbing' Adam Thirlwell -- Adam ThirlwellA wild adventure... Ómarsdóttir's novel is kaleidoscopic; the more you look at it, the more you see. * Lucy Writers *One of the most original authors in contemporary Icelandic literature...known for subverting traditional binaries like fantasy and realism, feminine and masculine, good and evil, and the animal and the human. * Orð um bækur *One of [this country's] most respected authors. -- Egill Helgason * Kiljan *A master of the unexpected. -- Steingerður Steinsdóttir * Vikan *

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Book SynopsisOne girl missing. Another found dead. Only one detective can solve this case.'One of the greats of modern crime fiction' Sunday TimesWhen a young woman known for drug smuggling goes missing, her elderly grandparents have no choice but to call the retired Detective Konrád.Still looking for his own father's murderer, Konrád agrees to investigate the case.But digging into the past reveals more than he set out to discover, and a strange connection to a little girl who drowned in the Reykjavík city pond decades ago recaptures everyone's attention.A brilliant, chilling tale of broken dreams and children who have nowhere to turn.'The undisputed king of the Icelandic thriller' Guardian'An international literary phenomenon - and it's easy to see why. His novels are gripping, authentic, haunting, and lyrical' Harlan CobenTrade ReviewThe second novel in Arnaldur Indridason's intriguing new series, The Girl by the Bridge...is as darkly brilliant as anything he has written * Sunday Times *Short, crisply written chapters move the action briskly along while keeping all the seemingly disparate pieces of the puzzle in the mix. Veteran Indridason weaves all these eerie elements together masterfully. Superb crime fiction from an acclaimed virtuoso. * Kirkus Starred review *

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Book Synopsis"Marie NDiaye is so intelligent, so composed, so good, that any description of her work feels like an understatement" - Madeleine Schwartz, New York Review of Books"Rich, meandering . . . NDiaye excels at luscious, forensic descriptions of the ritualistic preparation of food" - Catherine Taylor, Mail on SundayThe Cheffe is born into an impoverished family in Sainte-Bazeille in south-western France, but when she takes a job working in the kitchen of a couple in the Landes region, it does not take long before it becomes clear that the Cheffe has an unusual, remarkable talent for cooking. She dreams in recipes, she's always imagining new food combinations, she hunts down elusive flavours and aromas, and she soon usurps the couple's cook.But for all her genius, the Cheffe remains very secretive about the rest of her life. She becomes pregnant, but will not reveal her daughter's father. She shares nothing of her feelings or emotions. And when the demands of her work and caring for her child become too much, she leaves her baby in the care of her family, and sets out to open her own restaurant, which will soon win rave reviews and be lauded by all.But her relationship with her daughter will never be easy, and before long, it will threaten to destroy everything the Cheffe has spent her life perfecting.Translated from the French by Jordan Stump.Trade ReviewThere's the evenness of her prose, eminently polished, deliciously rhythmic, that seems to glide over the violence underneath . . . Who is this writer? And how did she get to be so good? * New York Review of Books *Rich, meandering . . . NDiaye excels at luscious, forensic descriptions of the ritualistic preparation of food * Mail on Sunday *A magnificent novel. A story of slow, violent beauty * Elle *Seared with incandescent prose, imbued with generosity, The Cheffe is the work of a supreme writer * Obs *A virtuoso novel that borrows from the classics to create the life of a cheffe. Subtly sublime * Les Inrockuptibles *The Cheffe joins the remarkable procession of intense, passionate heroines of Marie NDiaye * Télérama *

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Book Synopsis"Set to be one of the best books of 2023" GQ Magazine "Soaring, spellbinding, utterly epic" MUSA OKWONGA"A time-travelling wonder of a read" PATERSON JOSEPH WHERE IS ADA? In a small village in West Africa, in what will one day become Ghana, Ada gives birth again, and again the baby does not live. As she grieves the loss of her child, Portuguese traders become the first white men to arrive in the village, an event that will bear terrible repercussions for Ada and her kin. WHEN IS ADA? Centuries later, Ada will become the mathematical genius Ada Lovelace; Ada, a prisoner forced into prostitution in a Nazi concentration camp; and Ada, a young, pregnant Ghanaian woman with a new British passport who arrives in Berlin in 2019 for a fresh start. WHO IS ADA? Ada is not one woman, but many, and she is all women - she revolves in orbits, looping from one century and from one place to the next. And so, she experiences the hardship but also the joy of womanhood: she is a victim, she offers resistance, and she fights for her independence. This long-awaited debut from Sharon Dodua Otoo paints an astonishing picture of femininity, resilience and struggle with deep empathy and humour, with vivid language and infinite imagination."An impressive and highly original work, brimming over with energy" TLS "Ada's Realm pushes boundaries . . . More power to her pen!" MARGARET BUSBY "Thrillingly, astonishingly original." R. O. KWON "A work of fierce imagination" NII AYIKWEI PARKES "A rule-shattering novel" Kirkus ReviewsTranslated from the German by Jon Cho-PolizziTrade ReviewAda's Realm is a time-travelling wonder of a read. Spanning centuries and lifetimes, this novel manages to both humorously and effortlessly lead the reader through a landscape of time, place and trauma that never feels forced . . . for anyone who loves their history packing a darkly funny punch -- Paterson JosephSet to be one of the best books of 2023 . . . Each narrative is connected by an underlying thread, with all of them exploring the misery and joy of womanhood, as well as themes of emancipation, resistance, and freedom. * GQ Magazine *It's always exciting to discover new talent in the global literary arena, and Sharon Dodua Otoo's writing defies expectations. Ada's Realm pushes boundaries in terms of language, form, character and time, challenging perceptions of what it means to be African, an African woman, in both historical and contemporary terms. More power to her pen! -- Margaret Busby * editor of NEW DAUGHTERS OF AFRICA *Thrillingly, astonishingly original. You will not have read anything quite like this before. -- R. O. Kwon * author of THE INCENDIARIES *A work of fierce imagination, by turns visceral, measured and experimental. -- Nii Ayikwei ParkesOtoo's captivating use of language is the thread that ties these varying yet overlapping tales together . . . An impressive and highly original work, brimming over with energy. -- Jen Calleja * Times Literary Supplement *Operates both on earth and in a heavenly in-between space . . . [W]ry, caring, funny . . . [T]he story's time-jumping, identity-shedding slipperiness is reminiscent of Woolf's Orlando. -- Annelisa Quinn * New York Times *Intriguing, mysterious, and charming -- 10 AFRICAN WRITERS TO READ THIS YEAR * Oprah Daily *Fast-moving and never dull, all in the service of highlighting the injustices faced by women through history -- John Self * Guardian *Its boldness and ambition leave an indelible imprint . . . A rule-shattering novel about the presentness of the past. * Kirkus Reviews *[Otoo] finds a form that uses the possibilities of storytelling and the joy of experimentation to open up space for her characters. -- Sabine Rohlf * Berliner Zeitung *A singular voice in contemporary German-language literature -- Andreas Busche * Tagesspiegel *Otoo blasts established narrative boundaries. * eigermonchjungfrau.blog *A absolutely astonishing story -- Frankfurter Allgemeine * Andreas Platthaus *

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Book Synopsis"Stridsberg has perfected a kind of contemporary fairy tale with a bracing Scandinavian edge, here elegantly translated by Deborah Bragan-Turner" Christian House, Financial TimesA young woman becomes obsessed with her psychoanalyst's daughter. A police officer's mistress clandestinely cares for his dying wife. A boy goes missing from the Swedish town of Huskvarna after he was last seen walking with a wolf. From the inside of a dead whale's belly, to an industrial town emptied out after its factory's closure, to a Texan prison where a young man visits his sister's murderer on death row, Stridsberg approaches both the strange and the mundane with a fairy-tale sensibility that lights our world anew.Time runs through this collection like water, variously ebbing, flowing and rippling beneath the shimmering surface of Stridsberg's prose. These genre-spanning stories are held together by a sense of longing: for escape from the narrow margins of a prescribed life, for a past which promises an undiscovered future, for a place or a person that feels like home. Translated from the Swedish by Deborah Bragan-TurnerTrade ReviewThere's a dreamy quality to these death-stalked tales from Swedish author Stridsberg, which marry old-world mysteriousness to modern sensibilities * Daily Mail *Stridsberg has perfected a kind of contemporary fairy tale with a bracing Scandinavian edge, here elegantly translated by Deborah Bragan-Turner...This is storytelling with an eye for the uncanny -- Christian House * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisA tender and beautifully observed novel about a family turned upside down by the arrival of a severely disabled baby boy. Perfect for readers of Jaap Robben and Claire Oshetsky

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Book SynopsisShortlisted for The Man Booker International Prize 2018 On April 4th 1968, Martin Luther King was murdered by a man named James Earl Ray. Before Ray's capture and sentencing to 99 years' imprisonment, he evaded the FBI for two months as he crossed the globe under various aliases. At the heart of his story is Lisbon, where he spent ten days attempting to acquire an Angolan visa. Like a Fading Shadow traces three journeys to the city: Ray's desperate attempt to evade justice in 1968; a research trip undertaken by the young Muñoz Molina for his breakthrough novel Winter in Lisbon in 1987; and the return journey taken by the novelist as he attempts to reconstruct these twin stories from the instability of the past, and interrogates his own obsession with one of the twentieth century's most notorious figures. Aided by the recent declassification of James Earl Ray's FBI case file, Like a Fading Shadow boldly weaves a taut retelling of Ray's assassination of King, his time on the run and his eventual capture together with a highly original, fearlessly honest examination of the novelist's own past.Trade ReviewAntonio Muñoz Molina is a true original and has written a book unlike anything else: part fiction, part memoir, part meditation, in which the interiority of a murderer on the run - and not just any murderer but James Earl Ray, the assassin of Martin Luther King - is set against the interiority of the writer, when young, trying to find his voice. The stories of the killer and the writer circle each other, interrogate and echo each other, and then diverge. A novel is a kind of refuge too, Muñoz Molina suggests. Only one of the two men in this terrific book will find the refuge he seeks. -- Salman RushdieExhilarating ... exceptional ... a necessary novel -- Adam Feinstein * Financial Times *Praise for In the Night of Time: 'Sweeping, magisterial ... an astonishingly vivid narrative that unfolds with hypnotic intensity by means of the constant interweaving of time and memory ... Tolstoyan in its scale, emotional intensity and intellectual honesty * Economist *An immense, luminous panorama ... one of the many wonders of this novel is how Molina integrates the personal so closely with the political ... compellingly seductive * Independent *

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Book SynopsisMaría and her granddaughter Alicia have never met. Decades apart, both make the same journey to Madrid in search of work and independence. María, scraping together a living as a cleaner and carer, sending money back home for the daughter she hardly knows; Alicia, raised in prosperity until a family tragedy, now trapped in a poorly paid job and a cycle of banal infidelities. Their lives are marked by precarity, and by the haunting sense of how things might have been different. Through a series of arresting vignettes, Elena Medel weaves together a broken family's story, stretching from the last years of Franco's dictatorship to mass feminist protests in contemporary Madrid. Audacious, intimate and shot through with razor-edged lyricism, The Wonders is a revelatory novel about the many ways that lives are shaped by class, history and feminism: about what has changed for working class women, and what has remained stubbornly the same.Trade Review'The Wonders is a poet's novel, delicate but strong, impressing its images firmly on the imagination.' - Hilary Mantel'A mesmerizing read. Medel's prose is hypnotic, it's hard to believe this is her first novel. I was completely engrossed in this story, in the shadow each generation casts on the one that comes after it, in the tension between caring for oneself and caring for others' - Avni Doshi, author of the 2020 Booker Prize-Shortlisted Burnt Sugar'Completely unsentimental and with a harshness that hides the most radiant and painful of scars... brings to life several generations of working women: it's a serene and impious novel that puts class, feminism, and the eternal complexity of family ties at the fore' - Mariana Enriquez, author of the International Booker Prize-shortlisted The Dangers of Smoking in Bed'Full of brilliant moments of illumination... The effect of [the book's] fragmentation is to make of these individual women's lives a collective picture of working-class Spanish womanhood. With light touches Medel conveys gradual but tremendous change... it has a boldly ingenious structure and flashes of beauty' - The Guardian'A beautifully written novel that examines the lives of three generations of working-class women living precariously in Madrid' - Stylist

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Book SynopsisPrague, 1995: journalist Ludvík Slaný is assigned to make a documentary about a truly bizarre case. Vera Foltýnova, a middle-aged woman with no musical training, claims she has been visited by the ghost of great composer Frederic Chopin - and that he has been dictating dozens of compositions to her, to allow the world to hear the sublime music he was unable to create in his own short life. With media and recording companies taking the bait, Ludvík enlists the help of ex-Communist secret police agent Pavel Cerny? to expose Vera as a fraud. Soon, however, doubt creeps in, as he finds himself irrationally drawn towards this unassuming woman and the eerily beautiful music she plays. Could he be witnessing a true miracle? An intricately plotted mystery imbued with the dusky atmosphere of autumnal Prague, The Ghost of Frederic Chopin is an engrossing story of art, faith and the quiet accompaniment of the past.Trade Review"[The Ghost of Chopin] has the depth and elegance of a nocturne... Éric Faye makes his hero and his story alternate between the meticulous realism of the investigation and a delicate fantasy, quietly opening an unlimited field of possibilities" Le Croix"A noir novel imbued with mystery and elegance... invites us to discover a Prague, rainy and unsettling, but terribly bewitching" ActuaLitté

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Book SynopsisYou'll tell her your darkest secretsSusan Svendsen has an unusual talent. She is an expert in finding out secrets. People feel compelled to confide in her and unwittingly confess their innermost thoughts. Her whole life, she has exploited this talent, but now her family is in jeopardy and there is a prison sentence hanging over her head.Then Susan gets a timely offer from a former government official: use her power one more time and have all charges dropped. But there are some powerful people determined to stop her.Trade ReviewAn artfully written, exuberant thriller with a mercurial and interesting central character -- Barry Forshaw * Guardian *It's a rare treat to read a book by the far-from-prolific Danish author Peter Høeg. . . His latest novel is an offbeat futuristic thriller. . . the challenges Hoeg sets his readers are well worth taking on * Express *A well-tuned and clever femi-thriller. * Politiken *A continually surprising conspiracy thriller. -- THRILLER OF THE WEEK * The Mail on Sunday *Peter Høeg is back. And better. And with a novel that is both a thriller, a social critique, and existentially provoking – and on top of that, wonderful and funny. * Dagbladenes Bureau *

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Book SynopsisA spectacular display of this key European writer's early workThis dazzling collection of stories follows the individual adventures of a varied cast of characters and masterfully illustrates Calvino's unique perspective and narrative gifts. As well as the thirteen tales from his Difficult Loves collection this volume also includes 'Smog', 'A Plunge into Real Estate' and 'The Argentine Ant'.'The quirkiness and grace of the writing, the originality of the imagination at work, the occasional incandescence of vision, and a certain loveable nuttiness make this collection well worth reading' Margaret Atwood'If this is not a masterpiece of twentieth-century prose writing, I cannot think of anything better' Gore Vidal on 'The Argentine Ant'Trade ReviewA beautifully translated collection of early stories by the highly regarded Italian writer. The earliest were written in 1945 when Calvino was twenty-two and the latest date from the 1950s when he was in his early thirties. The quirkiness and the grace of the writing, the originality of the imagination at work, the incandescence of vision, make this collection well worth reading, and for more than archaeological reasons * New York Times Book Review *The greatest Italian writer of the twentieth century * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2014 Finlandia Prize A FAMILY UNDER THREAT. A FATHER'S WORST NIGHTMARE... On the surface, Joe Chayefski has it all. A great job, a beautiful wife and two perfect daughters. But when the lab he works in as a neuroscientist is attacked, Joe is forced to face the past and reconnect with the son he abandoned twenty years earlier. As Joe struggles to deal with the sudden collision of his two lives, he soon finds he needs to take drastic action to save the people he loves. Gripping and suspenseful, They Know Not What They Do skilfully weaves together the big issues of the day- the relationship between science and ethics, and people's increasing inability to communicate - into an ambitious page-turner of a novel.Trade Review‘Classy and engrossing drama.’ * Daily Mail *'Smart, slightly futuristic, nicely plotted.' -- Mail on Sunday'A hugely ambitious book. Literary fiction meets sci-fi meets thriller in a gripping exploration of animal rights, the light and dark of new technologies, international academia, and the dynamics within modern families. Excellent.' * Will Dean, author of Dark Pines *'Remarkable... Valtonen’s grip on plot and character is so masterful that his storytelling easily contains his restless speculation about influences on how we live now and where we might end up as our old value systems begin to crumble.' * Anna Paterson, World Literature Today *'A contemporary novel that doesn’t lose sight of perennial dilemmas.' * Kirkus *'Contemporary literature simply doesn’t get better than this. A stunning work.' * Helsingin Sanomat, Finland *'Well-crafted... They Know Not What They Do is a page-turner, skilfully translated by Kristian London.' * Otago Daily Times (New Zealand) *'They Know Not What They Do is neither indulgent, nor self-satisfied, nor glib, but charts its own course toward an understanding of contemporary society and the importance of perspective. And a page turner to boot – huzzah!' * Words Without Borders *'A perfect novel for our time, They Know Not What They Do is a satirical critique of our contemporary infatuation with innovation, fuelled by corporate greed and a desire to do everything faster. With a sympathetic hand, Valtonen skillfully creates a perfect storm of ethical conundrums...all tied into a cautionary tale about a man struggling with the consequences of his decisions.' * Shelf Awareness *'This Scandinavian thriller is the perfect read for long winter nights. Winner of the 2014 Finlandia Prize, They Know Not What They Do weaves family drama and high stakes with chilling results.' * Paste *'This hugely ambitious work of contemporary realism offers a dramatic warning about the influence of digital culture.' * Booklist *‘An engaging and fascinating exploration of the difficulties of modern parenting in the face of social media and technological advancements.’ * Guy Bolton, author of The Pictures *‘The novel addresses a multitude of themes wrapped up in a carefully plotted story with a thread of suspense running through it... The organisations whose tentacles are deeply embedded in so many aspects of our lives are unsettlingly well drawn – step forward Google – and the plotting is cleverly executed.’ * A Life in Books *'A portrait of our society and a futuristic thriller, the Finnish writer Jussi Valtonen draws a picture of our times as brilliant as it is chilling.' * L’Express, France *'One of the most extraordinary books of recent times.' * Könyvutca, Hungary *'Valtonen creates a frightening dystopian suspense that keeps readers spellbound, all the while inciting them to reflect on ethics and morals.' * L’Obs, France *'An ambitious, nuanced plea for compassion.' * De Standaard, Belgium *‘This is one of the most satisfying literary thrillers I have read, and I am not surprised it won the Finlandia Prize.’ * BookOxygen blog *'A thrilling, full-fledged, revolutionary, well-crafted work.' * Vilmos Csányi, Est Ujság, Hungary *'They Know Not What They Do is a great novel that shows ambition and the willingness to take risks.' * Sand am Meer, Austria *'They Know Not What They Do speaks to a large audience. There are few contemporary novels that can address both adolescents and middle-aged people, university professors and young green activists, parents and children, Europeans and Americans. […] Different opinions collide, but no one is right and no one is wrong. They simply see things differently, as if they were living in another dimension. That's what their tragedy is about.' * Olvass bele literary blog, Hungary *'They Know Not What They Do is an arresting study of the relationship between science and ethics, and of people’s inability to communicate with one another.' * Finlandia Prize 2014 jury *

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Book SynopsisThe third instalment in a prize-winning series charting the rise of the House of Medici as they become Masters of Florence and progenitors of the Renaissance. Fontainebleau, 1536. Francis II, Dauphin and heir to the French throne, is dead. Poisoned. And the royal court believe Catherine de' Medici to be the murderer. Catherine's husband Henry will now be the next King of France – and the Medici are known to stop at nothing in the pursuit of power. But not yet queen and without an heir of her own, seventeen-year-old Catherine cannot be sure of securing her family's legacy. To ensure the conception of an heir, she will need to seek help from an unexpected ally: Nostradamus, the reclusive astronomer and purported seer. Dismissed by most as a charlatan and a heretic, Catherine knows he will be her only hope in becoming a mother to the future king. Amid court intrigues, betrayals, and humiliations, Catherine waits. She awaits the death of her father-in-law, King Francis, and the birth of a son to carry her name. For once she is queen, Catherine de' Medici's power will only grow. But that power comes at a heavy cost, one she might ever regret. 'Strukul has a brilliant style and a rare imagination' Tim Willocks 'Matteo Strukul has arrived with a bang. His historical saga, Medici, is a worldwide success' Il VenerdìTrade ReviewPRAISE FOR MATTEO STRUKUL: 'Strukul has a brilliant style and a rare imagination' Tim Willocks, bestselling author of Green River Rising. 'Matteo Strukul is one of the most important new voices in Italian crime fiction' Joe R. Lansdale, Edgar Winner for The Bottoms. 'Matteo Strukul has arrived with a bang. His historical saga, Medici, is a worldwide success' Il Venerdì. 'The story of a important dynasty, one made of conspiracy and betrayal. But also the story of the great cultural revolution of the Renaissance' La Repubblica. 'Writing that lives, pulsates and excites. This is a novel full of thrills and realistic dialogue, as well as a solid historical narrative' * La Stampa *

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Book Synopsis'A book of deep reckoning' New York Times'Becomes a way of looking honestly at what mourning really feels like' GuardianA man in tumult returns to Ordesa, the small mountain town where he was born, and where his parents have recently died. He sits down to write. Newly sober, his career on the wane, his relationship with his own children strained, what he produces is a dizzying chronicle of his childhood and an unsparing account of his life's trials, failures and triumphs. He reckons with the ghosts of his parents, the pain of loss and, as the pages fill with words, he tries to piece together the bits of himself. What is a person without a family? What is a person when faced with memories alone?An autobiographical novel by a Spanish literary icon, written with the intimacy of a diary, Ordesa is a beautiful, redemptive meditation on identity, grief and the passing of time.Trade ReviewA meditation on yearning, solitude and family . . . A book of deep reckoning - of the meaningful and mundane - but written with an airy, even whimsical touch . . . Radiantly evokes both a golden age and its slow deterioration * * New York Times * *Vilas paints an affecting portrait of a middle-aged man alone - divorced, estranged from his children, his parents deceased - and attempting to chronicle his childhood. A persistent sense of longing for that which is lost pervades the book, making it feel particularly fitting this year * * Vanity Fair * *The narrator of this sober yet elegant autobiographical novel is a middle-aged man reckoning with his past and with his encroaching mortality. Painfully observant and poetically inclined * * New Yorker * *Ordesa is a smack in the chops and a swim in the sea, a desolate memento mori and a warm, consoling hug . . . There is so much love in this book, for life and for language, that it bursts the seams even in translation. If you're remotely responsive to this, it will make a holy mess of you * * Herald * *Vilas has written a book that is soaked through with humanity. An intimate, comforting, painful and deeply beautiful tour de force. He is an enhancer of life -- JAMES RHODES author of INSTRUMENTALOne of Spain's finest modern writers . . . [Ordesa] offers a humane and intimate account of his divorce, family problems, and addictions * * Independent, Books of the Month * *Ordesa is a poet's novel, or maybe a novelist's prose poem. It's both things at once, and also the saddest and most candid autobiography I've read in recent times. I've been through this book twice and I still don't know how Vilas does it. I know, however, that this book is a gift, and maybe that's enough -- JUAN GABRIEL VÁSQUEZ, author of THE SHAPE OF THE RUINSBecomes a way of looking honestly at what mourning really feels like - some of [Vilas'] observations on grief, along with the self-hatred and guilt that can follow a death, will strike a chord with anyone who has experienced a similar rupture -- Lucy Ellmann * * Guardian * *A philosophically brave and emotionally-intelligent novel par excellence. There is rigour in the thought and deep scrutiny in the lyrical musings and reflections, which make it surely a classic which has sought no easy route to the reader's soul * * RTÉ * *This is the album, the archive, the memory without lies or consolation of a life, a time, a family, a social class condemned to so much effort for very little obtained. A lot of precision is needed to tell these things, the acid, the sharpened knife, the exact needle to burst the balloon of vanity. What's left in the end is the clean emotion of truth and the distress of everything lost -- ANTONIO MUÑOZ MOLINA author of the Man Booker International Prize-shortlisted LIKE A FADING SHADOW

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Book SynopsisOn an island in the shape of a teardrop live two sisters. One is admired far and wide, the other lives in her shadow. One is the Oracle, the other is destined for the Underworld.But what will happen when she returns to the island? Based on the Japanese myth of Izanami and Izanagi, The Goddess Chronicle is a fantastical tour de force about ferocious love and bitter revenge.The Myths series brings together some of the world's finest writers, each of whom has retold a myth in a contemporary and memorable way. Authors in the series include Karen Armstrong, Margaret Atwood, A.S. Byatt, David Grossman, Natsuo Kirino, Alexander McCall Smith, Philip Pullman, Ali Smith and Jeanette Winterson.Trade ReviewKirino's retelling is a taut, disturbing and timeless tale, filled with rage and pathos for the battles that women have to fight every day, battles which have, apparently, existed from the moment of creation -- TAN TWAN ENG * * Guardian * *Daring and disturbing . . . [Kirino is] prepared to push the human limits of this world . . . Remarkable * * Los Angeles Times * *Lyrical, with an impelling storyline that demands attention . . . a compelling tale, with foundations in an allegory-rich fable that more than deserves its rejuvenation * * Independent on Sunday * *A dark and lovely feminist retelling of the Japanese creation myth * * NPR * *Enthralling . . . In telling Namima's story, the author reworks the ancient tale of Izanami and Izanaki into one of female solidarity and determined strength . . . Natsuo Kirino eloquently reveals that far from being the weaker sex, women shoulder responsibilities that men are not strong enough to bear * * Washington Independent Review of Books * *An eerie tale of joy and sorrow, light and darkness, love and vengeance . . . Dark and elemental, it's the perfect kind of tale for Kirino's pen . . . a tantalising introduction to an unfamiliar creation myth * * The Idle Woman * *In her wildly far-reaching tale of relations between gods and men, men and women, life and death, darkness and light, Natsuo Kirino tells a peripatetic, global, and truly satisfying love story of how it is to be human -- STELLA DUFFYIt is one of the most unexpected and playful novels to emerge from Japan in recent years . . . a triumph. In its boldness and originality, it broadens our sense of what modern Japanese fiction can be * * Telegraph on Real World * *Be prepared for a book utterly unlike anything we are used to in crime fiction * * Independent on Real World * *Got my heart beating * * Daily Telegraph on Out * *

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Book SynopsisNow in paperback, Katharina Winkler’s heartbreaking saga of a tenacious woman trapped in an abusive marriage. Blue jewelry is private property. Not to be seen. Not to be talked about. It is worn like a bracelet around the wrists, on ribs, legs, arms. Blue jewelry is another name for the marks left on women’s bodies, inflicted by the men around them. This novel tells the story of Filiz and Yunus. When Filiz meets Yunus, he is young and beautiful, and Filiz is proud that he wants her. Against her father’s wishes, they marry when she is thirteen. Yunus is her entire universe, all encompassing, all powerful. Soon after the wedding, Filiz’s dream of living in the West with her husband, of escaping their small village in Anatolia for freedom and autonomy, comes crashing down around her. Yunus, only a few years older than his bride, turns their marriage into a prison of dependency and violence. Trapped in her mother-in-law’s house, Filiz is subjected to physical and mental abuse, forced to veil herself, and treated as a house slave. When she becomes pregnant, Filiz seems to have reached her breaking point. But she endures. When Yunus moves his young family first to Istanbul and then to Austria, the life he had once promised her seems to be within reach. But there is no escaping the spiral of violence and love, which, to Filiz, have become inseparable. Katharina Winkler’s powerful story of a marriage dominated by violence gives voice to a tenacious young woman whose will to survive is never broken. Trade Review“A debut in a class of its own . . . The narrative rhythm develops a fascinating pull that one cannot escape. Again and again, the author enhances the power of her imagery into poignant maxims with downright lyrical character. She works virtuously with reduction and consolidation, with hard cuts and the art of effective omission.” * Christian Schacherreiter, OON *

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Book SynopsisAn old soldier carves a croft out of the Finnish forest and calls it home, but try as he might to tame the land, its wild magic endures. For centuries his descendants will work the farm, through days of plenty and famine, love and war, their fates entangled with the rhythms of the ancient wilderness, where mysterious shapes flit between the trees and danger lurks in the treacherous fen... Like dragonflies darting over the marsh, their lives glimmer briefly and then are gone: a young girl entranced by the forest folk, a faithless fiancé who meets his match beneath the age-old branches, a farmhand with a strange obsession.... What endures is the wild, and the certainty that wherever we put down roots, the land will grow roots in us too.

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