Whether your passion is The Ancient Greeks, The Wars of The Roses or The Russian Revolution, you'll find stories of life during these eras and every other, often using factual accounts to build a fictional narrative.
Historical Fiction Books
Vintage Publishing Utz As Seen on BBC Between the Covers
Book SynopsisAs Seen on BBC Between the CoversThis is Chatwin''s unforgettable novel of a man in war-torn Communist Prague, driven to protect his collection of porcelain figurines at any cost.Bruce Chatwin''s bestselling novel traces the fortunes of the enigmatic and unconventional hero, Kaspar Utz. Despite the restrictions of Cold War Czechoslovakia, Utz asserts his individuality through his devotion to his precious collection of Meissen porcelain. Although Utz is permitted to leave the country each year, and considers defecting each time, he is not allowed to take his porcelain with him and so he always returns to his Czech home, a prisoner both of the Communist state and of his collection.''Chatwin at his most erudite and evocative'' New York Times''His final tour de force... a pristine miniature'' IndependentSHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZETrade ReviewNot a word is wasted in the telling of this tale. Each sentence is fashioned, polished, and put into place with microscopic care * Daily Telegraph *This shiny little novel is not just about pretty porcelain figurines but about dirty great issues of life and creativity * The Times *With Chatwin, the real excitement derives from an intellectual drama, in dialogues about art as a surrogate creation, a robbery of divine power, and art collecting as idolatry...For Chatwin, ideas are the supreme fictions * Observer *
£9.49
Cornerstone In Love and War
Book SynopsisA compelling wartime novel of love, loss and remembrance from the bestselling author of The Shopkeeper''s Daughter.August 1914. With the approach of war about to bring tragedy and heartache to families all over England, Elsie longs to do her duty for King and country.She heads to London to act as an interpreter for thousands of Belgium refugees. But although she enjoys her work, she longs to do more. And when the opportunity arises she joins the foreign office, travelling to France as an undercover agent. When circumstances force her to return home, she joins the FANYs. And on the battlefields of Europe, she must find the courage to help save lives, each day hoping that one day she'll be reunited with the man she loves.
£12.74
Penguin Books Ltd Any Human Heart
Book SynopsisDISCOVER THE BOOKER PRIZE LONGLISTED NOVEL ABOUT ONE HEART''S LOVES AND LOSSES FROM ICONIC STORYTELLER WILLIAM BOYD''Superb, wonderful, enjoyable'' Guardian''Full of delights'' The Times_____________________________Every life is both ordinary and extraordinary, and Logan Mountstuart''s - stretching across the twentieth century - is a rich tapestry of both. As a writer who finds inspiration with Hemingway in Paris and Virginia Woolf in London, as a spy recruited by Ian Fleming and betrayed in the war, and as an art-dealer in ''60s New York, Logan mixes with the men and women who shape his times. But as a son, friend, lover and husband, he makes the same mistakes we all do in our search for happiness. Here, then, is the story of a life lived to the full - and a journey deep into a very human heart.''One of the things this book does so brilliantly, is it so authentically recreates historical characters'' Ben Miller, on BBC 2''s Between The Covers____________________________''Astonishing, touching, extremely funny. A brilliant evocation of a past era and an immensely readable story'' Sunday Telegraph''Superb, wonderful, enjoyable'' Guardian''Generous, witty, sneakily profound'' Evening StandardAny Human Heart was adapted for a Channel 4 drama starring Kim Cattrall, Gillian Anderson, Matthew Macfadyen and Jim Broadbent and is perfect for readers of Sebastian Faulks and Hilary Mantel.Trade Review'A terrific journey through the twentieth century. Thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable' - Jeremy Paxman 'Wise, profound and moving. Only the very best novels make you look at your own life and imagine your own future with fresh eyes' - William Sutcliffe, Independent on Sunday 'Superb, wonderful, enjoyable' Guardian 'Sheer, truly brilliant storytelling. He has probably written more classic books than any of his contemporaries' Daily Telegraph 'Astonishing, touching, extremely funny. A brilliant evocation of a past era and an immensely readable story' Sunday Telegraph 'Astounding. One of Boyd's greatest achievements' Mail on Sunday
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers The Hundred Days
Book SynopsisNapoleon has escaped from Elba the Hundred Days have begun.The war is over, the armies dispersed, and the former Emperor of the French has been consigned to a Mediterranean island, yet now he is marching again on Paris with an ever-growing army. Commodore Jack Aubrey and his convoy are tasked with destroying enemy shipyards along the Adriatic coast and cutting off the financial support from that quarter, in a fast and furious race to stop the Corsican from regaining all he's lost.All is to play for and everything is at stake.Patrick O'Brian is far and away the best of the Napoleonic story tellers, and The Hundred Days is one of the best in the series; a classic naval adventure, crammed with incident, superbly plotted and utterly gripping.'BERNARD CORNWELLPatrick O'Brian is a joy to read.'Irish IndependentTrade Review‘If O’Brian’s novels have become a cult, this is because they are truly addictive. . . They are, quite magnificently, adventure yarns whose superb authenticity never distracts from the sheer thrill of the action.’Caroline Moore, Sunday Telegraph ‘The Aubrey–Maturin novels, by Patrick O’Brian, are so addictive that after I finish one I have to hide the next from myself for a little while in order to do anything else but read.’Louise Erdrich ‘In Aubrey and Maturin, Patrick O’Brian has created two of the most enjoyable characters in twentieth-century fiction. Their relationship sustains an absorbing and thrilling sequence of naval stories, unrivalled in their complexity, full of impeccable detail and psychological insight. O’Brian switches from the intimate to the epic with equal assurance. One of the greatest authors to sail with.’Michael Palin ‘My hero is Patrick O’Brian. It’s basically impossible to write that well.’David Mamet ‘One of the most compelling and brilliant novelists of his time . . . Beyond his superbly elegant writing, wit and originality, Patrick O’Brian showed an understanding of the nature of a floating world at the mercy of the wind and the sea which has never been surpassed.’Max Hastings, Evening Standard ‘I devoured Patrick O’Brian’s twenty-volume masterpiece as if it had been so many tots of Jamaica grog.’Christopher Hitchens ‘Written with most engaging enthusiasm that can’t fail to give pleasure to anybody who enjoys historical adventure flavoured with more than a dash of realism.’The Sunday Times ‘One of the most brilliantly sustained pieces of historical fictional writing this century.’James Teacher, Spectator ‘Patrick O’Brian brings depth to his sea-stories with outstanding dialogue, characterisation, humour and a golden thread of romance. You don’t have to love books about naval battles to become entranced.’Katie Fforde
£9.49
Pan Macmillan Jeremy Poldark
Book SynopsisJeremy Poldark is the third novel in Winston Graham's hugely popular Poldark series, which has become a television phenomenon starring Aidan Turner.Cornwall 1790. Ross Poldark faces the darkest hour of his life. Accused of wrecking two ships, he is to stand trial at the Bodmin Assizes. Despite their stormy married life, Demelza has tried to rally support for her husband. But there are enemies in plenty who would be happy to see Ross convicted, not least George Warleggan, the powerful banker, whose personal rivalry with Ross grows ever more intense.Jeremy Poldark is followed by the fourth book in this evocative series, Warleggan. 'From the incomparable Winston Graham.. who has everything that anyone else has, then a whole lot more.' GuardianTrade ReviewRoss is one of literature's great heroes . . . [with] elements of Darcy, Heathcliff, Rhett Butler and Robin Hood -- Debbie HorsfieldFrom the incomparable Winston Graham.. who has everything that anyone else has, then a whole lot more. * Guardian *
£9.49
Pan Macmillan The Black Moon
Book SynopsisWinston Graham was the author of more than forty novels, including The Walking Stick, Angell, Pearl and Little God, Stephanie and Tremor. His novels have been widely translated and his famous Poldark series has been developed into two television series shown in twenty-four countries. Many of Winston Graham's books have been filmed for the big screen, the most notable being Marnie, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Winston Graham was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and in 1983 was awarded the OBE. He died in July 2003.Trade ReviewRoss is one of literature's great heroes . . . [with] elements of Darcy, Heathcliff, Rhett Butler and Robin Hood -- Debbie Horsfield
£9.49
Pan Macmillan Demelza
Book SynopsisDemelza is the second book in Winston Graham's hugely popular Poldark series, which has become a television phenomenon starring Aidan Turner.Demelza Carne, the impoverished miner's daughter Ross Poldark rescued from a fairground rabble, is now his wife. But in the events of these turbulent years test their marriage and their love. Demelza's efforts to adapt to the ways of the gentry - and her husbane - bring her confusion and heartache, despite the joy in the birth of their first child. Ross begins a bitter struggle for the rights of the mining communities - and sows the seed of an enduring enmity with powerful George Warleggan.Demelza is followed by Jeremy Poldark, the third title in this evocative series set in 18th century Cornwall. 'From the incomparable Winston Graham...who has everything that anyone else has, then a whole lot more' GuardianTrade ReviewRoss is one of literature's great heroes . . . [with] elements of Darcy, Heathcliff, Rhett Butler and Robin Hood -- Debbie HorsfieldFrom the incomparable Winston Graham . . . who has everything that anyone else has, then a whole lot more. * Guardian *
£7.49
HarperCollins Publishers The Scarlet Letter Collins Classics
Book SynopsisHarperCollins is pround to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics.''Ah, but let her cover the mark as she will, the pang of it will be always in her heart.''A tale of sin, punishment and atonement, The Scarlet Letter exposes the moral rigidity of a 17th-Century Puritan New England community when faced with the illegitimate child of a young mother. Regarded as the first real heroine of American fiction, it is Hester Prynne''s strength of character that resonates with the reader when her harsh sentence is cast. It is in her refusal to reveal the identity of the father in the face of her accusers that Hawthorne champions his heroine and berates the weakness of Society for attacking the innocent.
£5.68
Vintage Publishing The Kindly Ones
Book SynopsisDr Max Aue is a family man and owner of a lace factory in post-war France. He is an intellectual steeped in philosophy, literature, and classical music. He is also a former SS intelligence officer and cold-blooded assassin. He was an observer and then a participant in Nazi atrocities on the Eastern Front, he was present at the siege of Stalingrad, at the death camps, and finally caught up in the overthrow of the Nazis and the nightmarish fall of Berlin. His world was peopled by Eichmann, Himmler, Göring, Speer and, of course, Hitler himself. Max is looking back at his life with cool-eyed precision; he is speaking out now to set the record straight.Trade ReviewIt is a great achievement to have made this horrific tale recounted by such a profoundly unsympathetic character so gripping...a great work of literary fiction, to which readers and scholars will turn for decades to come -- Anthony Beevor * The Times *An extraordinarily powerful novel that leads the stunned reader on a journey through some of the darkest recesses of European history...reveals something that is desperate and depressing but profoundly important, now as ever * Observer *Everybody's talking about it...erudite, pitiless and mesmerising * Financial Times *A compelling and savage tale, with a cold dispassionate eye that never flinches from the raw reality of mass-murder... a serious attempt to describe the terrors of the Nazi regime * Independent *The book rises magnificently to its own occasions, building out of its fact-crammed but stately sentences a vast and phosphorescent tableaux vivants seething with Dantesque detail * Guardian *
£13.49
Penguin Books Ltd The Other Side of the Story
Book Synopsis*** CONGRATULATIONS TO THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS AUTHOR OF THE YEAR 2022***Step into the lives of three women whose ambitions collide in the hilarious and heart-warming novel from the No. 1 bestselling author of Grown Ups''Wonderful, subtle, hilarious and highly sophisticated. You can''t stop reading'' EVENING STANDARD''It had me in tears . . . and barking with laughter'' DAILY TELEGRAPH___________''There are three sides to every story. Your side, their side, and the truth . . .''Jojo, a sharkish literary agent, has just made a very bad career move - she''s slept with her married boss Mark.Lily, Jojo''s bestselling author, has blown her advance on a house with new boyfriend Anton, only to come down with writer''s block.Gemma used to be Lily''s best friend until Lily ran off with Anton. Now she''s pouring her heart out, and a certain literary agent likes her style . . .Soon the fortunes of Jojo, Lily and Gemma are horribly entangled.But each is about to discover that there''s more than one side to every story . . .___________''Keyes''s genius lies in making the darkest, most difficult aspects of humanity mentionable and manageable . . . Keyes''s plot is cracking, but the story becomes even bolder and brighter because she lets her characters tell it'' Independent''Packed with sound writing, wit and common sense'' GuardianPraise for Marian Keyes:''Mercilessly funny'' The Times''Funny, tender and completely absorbing!'' Graham Norton''Keyes is in a class of her own'' Daily ExpressTrade ReviewKeyes's genius lies in making the darkest, most difficult aspects of humanity mentionable and manageable . . . Keyes's plot is cracking, but the story becomes even bolder and brighter because she lets her characters tell it * Independent *Another chart-topping blockbuster from goddess Marian Keyes . . . packed with sound writing, wit and common sense * Guardian *Fabulously brilliant * Heat *Wildly funny, romantic and nearly impossible to put down * Daily Mail *
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Empress Orchid
Book SynopsisAn erotic story of Imperial China from the author of Red Azalea and Becoming Madame Mao.Trade Review'Empress Orchid is strong on both sexual chicanery and violent conspiracy ... a fascinating account' Guardian 'A wild, passionate, fearless American writer' New York Times 'An engrossing story ... enhanced by Min's imaginative power ... Like all good novelists, she implies as much as she says, and her characterisation is subtle and worldly-wise' Glasgow Herald 'Rich in detail and historical background, the novel drenches readers in the colours, textures and affluence of the Forbidden City ... a stirring, exotic novel that is a treat for the senses and the intellect alike' Los Angeles Times
£11.69
Headline Publishing Group TheDevils Hunt by Doherty PC Author ON
Book SynopsisThe golden summer of 1303 and Oxford is plunged into chaos. The severed heads of beggars have been tied by their hair to the trees in woods outside the city. John Copsale, the Regent of Sparrow Hall, has been found dead in his bed and it is being whispered that he was murdered by the mysterious ''Bell Man''. Then the college librarian and activist, Robert Ascham is discovered with a crossbow bolt in his chest. King Edward, hearing of the seething unrest in Oxford, arrives unannounced at Sir Hugh Corbett''s country manor, and insists that Corbett go to the city to solve the murderous mysteries. And when the King commands, few can resist even if it means knowingly entering a dangerous and violent world...
£9.49
Little, Brown Book Group Someone to Watch Over Me Bow Street Runners
Book SynopsisThe first novel in the sensational Bow Street series from New York Times bestselling historical romance author Lisa Kleypas tells the story of a scandalous beauty with no memory of who she is and the man determined to unravel the secrets of her past . . . ''Lisa Kleypas is the best'' Sarah MacLean She couldn''t remember who she was . . . A temptingly beautiful woman awakens in a stranger''s bed, rescued from the icy waters of the Thames, her memory gone. Told that she is Vivien Rose Duvall, one of London''s most scandalous beauties, she finds herself in the protection of enigmatic, charming Grant Morgan. Her life is in his hands. Deep in her heart, she knows he has mistaken her for someone else . . . He was the only man she could trust. As one of London''s most eligible and unattainable catches, Grant Morgan is a man who has known every kind of woman. And the one in his arms now seems so
£9.49
Transworld Publishers Ltd Wings of the Storm
Book SynopsisA Viking saga of warmongering, honour and loyalty from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Lancelot, Giles Kristian. Perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell and Games of Thrones.A fitting end to a trilogy that fans of Bernard Cornwell should devour -- THE TIMESThe master storyteller...whose books throw the reader headlong into the Viking age. -- BEN KANEThis remains Viking writing at its best: thrilling in it truest sense, heart-rendering and, yes, glorious. -- MANDA SCOTTProbably the best Viking saga I have ever read -- ***** Reader review Wonderfully written and researched, the whole series makes the entire Nordic world come alive -- ***** Reader reviewThis trilogy is gripping from start to finish -- ***** Reader review*****************************************THE GODS MUST BE FAVOURED...Norway, AD 785. A wild place, a plaTrade ReviewA fitting end to a trilogy that fans of Bernard Cornwell should devour. The big set-piece battle that completes the book is one of the best that I have ever read. -- Antonia Senior * THE TIMES *‘Warrior-like and bloody, homely and heartfelt, ranging across oceans, yet nestled around hearth fires, Giles Kristian’s writing transports you through the Viking world as the thrum, rhythm and holler of the battle field rings out from the page. Wings of the Storm isn't simply an historical novel – it is the glorious embodiment of a time of adventure and passion, of dying old worlds and thrilling new encounters.’ * DR JANINA RAMIREZ *This concludes, in magnificent fashion, Giles Kristian's mighty Viking saga . . . with this marvellous trilogy complete, now is the time to immerse yourself in it, beginning with God of Vengeance. -- Kate Atherton * SUNDAY EXPRESS *What more could we ask for than a thrilling conclusion to Giles Kristian’s epic saga of vengeance and betrayal? Written in his glorious poetic prose with the lift and lilt of the waves beneath every sentence, the sense of the gods pressing in on each page, this remains Viking writing at its best: thrilling in its truest sense, heart-rending, and, yes, glorious… * MANDA SCOTT *Nobody writes Viking adventures with the panache, power and sheer plausibility of Giles Kristian . . . with supreme skill and a genuine passion, Kristian weaves what little we know about the religion, culture and codes of Dark Ages Scandinavia into a novel that grips like a limpet on the rocky Norwegian coast and rings absolutely true from first to last. The book plunges you into a gore-drenched, glory-decked time of treacherous jarls and lethal shieldmaidens; a time of dark magic and human sacrifice, of wild hunts and vicious feuds, a time of blood-letting and betrayal. But it is also a time of comradeship and selflessness, when the bonds forged between men, and women, can endure beyond death. It’s a time you may never want to leave. * ANGUS DONALD *
£9.49
Little, Brown Book Group Burr
Book SynopsisGore Vidal''s classic novel of Aaron Burr - the man who shot Alexander Hamilton.In 1804, Colonel Aaron Burr, Vice-President of the United States, shot and killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel. Three years later, on the order of President Thomas Jefferson, he was tried for treason: for plotting to dismember the United States.Gore Vidal, romping iconoclastically through American history, debunks, in this historical novel of Burr''s life, the common and casually held notion of the man as a scoundrel and an adventurer. Instead he appears as one of the ''host of choice spirits'' forced to live among coarse, materialistic, hypocritical people, among them Jefferson and Hamilton. Here, the latter appears as a power-hungry ''parvenu'' from the West Indies and the former as a semi-literate slave-owning tyrant. American politics, suggests Vidal, had a penchant for the vulgar. Even then.Veering backwards to the revolution and the early days of the republic, stoppin
£13.49
Hodder & Stoughton Destinys Path
Book SynopsisThe final part of the Blake sisters saga set in Lancashire and Western Australia in the 1860s, following on from FAREWELL TO LANCASHIRE AND BEYOND THE SUNSET.Trade Review'A compelling read' * Sun (FREEDOM'S LAND) *Impressive grasp of human emotions. * The Sunday Times *Anna Jacobs' books are deservedly popular. She is one of the best writers of Lancashire sagas around. * Historical Novels Review *Jacobs excels at creating vivid, memorable characters. * Booklist USA *Vivid insight into family relationships * Coventry Evening Telegraph *'A gripping storyteller.' * Sunday Star Times, Auckland, NZ *'This is a fascinating insight into a piece of Australia's history that receives little attention.' * Newcastle Herald, Australia (FREEDOM'S LAND) *
£8.99
Hodder & Stoughton Kingdom
Book SynopsisThe Insurrection trilogy is based on the breath-taking true story of Robert the Bruce's battle to become king.Trade ReviewPraise for the Insurrection trilogy - . . .Immaculately researched and carefully written, evoking a very particular - and largely unexplored - time and place. The fights are sensational. - Daily TelegraphThe learning is never cumbersome, a deft trick when describing medieval warfare. - ScotsmanThis is a big book, and the trilogy a huge project to undertake. From the evidence so far, Young's fans will not be disappointed . . . she brings to life one of [history's] most enigmatic characters. - Daily MailA cracking plot and charismatic characters are set against the convincingly researched background of the violent, gory Anglo-Scottish civil wars. - Saga
£9.49
Random House USA Inc Cloud the Atlas Paperback
Book SynopsisBy the New York Times bestselling author of The Bone Clocks Shortlisted for the Man Booker PrizeA postmodern visionary and one of the leading voices in twenty-first-century fiction, David Mitchell combines flat-out adventure, a Nabokovian love of puzzles, a keen eye for character, and a taste for mind-bending, philosophical and scientific speculation in the tradition of Umberto Eco, Haruki Murakami, and Philip K. Dick. The result is brilliantly original fiction as profound as it is playful. In this groundbreaking novel, an influential favorite among a new generation of writers, Mitchell explores with daring artistry fundamental questions of reality and identity.Cloud Atlas begins in 1850 with Adam Ewing, an American notary voyaging from the Chatham Isles to his home in California. Along the way, Ewing is befriended by a physician, Dr. Goose, who begins to treat him for a rare species of brain parasite. . . . Abruptly, the action jumps to Bel
£15.60
New York Review Books Time of Silence
Book Synopsis
£14.32
Seven Seas Entertainment, LLC My Dear Detective Mitsukos Case Files Vol. 2
Book SynopsisENFANT TERRIBLE!
£11.89
Headline Publishing Group Somewhere Someday
Book SynopsisOne of the nation''s best-loved storytellers brings us an unforgettable drama about love, loss and facing the demons from your past.Only when she has layed the ghosts to rest can she set herself free . . .Barney craves adventure, and though he will always love Kelly, he cannot stay. For one long, agonising moment, Kelly watches the man she adores walk away, left wondering if she will ever see him again.Alone with her memories, Kelly begins to look to the past and the fateful autumn of 1877, when she was just a girl, recalling all that happened to tear her family apart. Now, filled with regrets, Kelly realises she must face the past she has hidden from for so long.She must go back to where it all began, face her demons and lay to rest the ghosts that haunt her. Only then will her heart be free.
£9.89
Cornerstone Eaters Of The Dead
Book SynopsisThe Eaters of the Dead is a brilliant, stirring tale of historical adventure which deserves a place on readers bookshelves alongside Michael Crichton''s bestselling techno-thrillers. It is AD922 and Ibn Fadlan is sent north from Baghdad as a peaceful ambassador. But before he reaches his destination, he falls in with some Vikings and when they are attacked by mystical bloodthirsty creatures in the midst of a terrible fog, he reluctantly agrees to become the prophesied 13th warrior in order for them to survive.Later turned into a major Hollywood film, Eaters of the Dead is an imaginative and breathlessly exciting retelling of the Beowulf myth that rescues the story from dry academic analysis and resurrects it as an action-packed story of adventure.Trade ReviewCrichton certainly has the Midas touch * Spectator *A giant of a writer * Daily Express *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing The Innocent
Book SynopsisIan McEwan is the critically acclaimed author of nineteen novels and two short story collections. His first published work, a collection of short stories, First Love, Last Rites, won the Somerset Maugham Award. His novels include The Child in Time, which won the 1987 Whitbread Novel of the Year Award; The Cement Garden; Enduring Love; Amsterdam, which won the 1998 Booker Prize; Atonement; Saturday; On Chesil Beach; Solar; Sweet Tooth; The Children Act; Nutshell; Machines Like Me; and Lessons. Atonement, Enduring Love, The Children Act and On Chesil Beach have all been adapted for the big screen.Trade ReviewPowerful and disturbing...a tour de force * New York Times *To call The Innocent a spy novel would be like calling Lord of the Flies a boy's adventure yarn...it ensure McEwan's major status * Sunday Times *The sheer cleverness of the book is dazzling, and only fully to be appreciated as you turn the last page * London Review of Books *It's the most tightly plotted of Ian McEwan's novels, and to argue properly for its excellence would involve showing how the political and emotional themes are inseparable from its narrative ingenuity, the patterns of revelation and about-turn which mark its final pages * Guardian *Generous in scale, simple in its hideous impact... Ironically, he has celebrated the obsequies of the East-West spy thriller by writing one of the subtlest * Mail on Sunday *
£9.49
Cornerstone The Agony And The Ecstasy
Book SynopsisIrving Stone was born in San Francisco in 1903 and received his B. A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1923 and his Master's degree from the University of Southern California in 1924. He wrote plays and supported himself by writing detective stories until the publication of Lust for Life, his first novel, in 1934, Stone called his work 'bio-history' and based his novels on meticulous and extensive research into the lives of the historical characters at the heart of his novels. He married his editor, Jean Factor, in 1934. He founded the Academy of American Poets in 1962. He died in Los Angeles in 1989.
£10.44
Cornerstone Lustrum
Book SynopsisRobert Harris is the author of fifteen bestselling novels: the Cicero Trilogy - Imperium, Lustrum and Dictator - Fatherland, Enigma, Archangel, Pompeii, The Ghost, The Fear Index, An Officer and a Spy, which won four prizes including the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, Conclave, Munich, The Second Sleep, V2 and Act of Oblivion. His work has been translated into forty languages and nine of his books have been adapted for cinema and television. He lives in West Berkshire with his wife, Gill Hornby.Trade ReviewHarris is the master. With Lustrum, [he] has surpassed himself. It is one of the most exciting thrillers I have ever read * Evening Standard *Harris communicates such a strong sense of imperial Rome - the book is awesomely well-informed about the minutiae of everyday life * Guardian *Thoroughly engaging ... The allure of power and the perils that attend it have seldom been so brilliantly anatomised in a thriller * Sunday Times *Harris never makes his comparisons between Rome and modern Britain explicit, but they are certainly there. And that's the principal charm of his ancient thrillers - their up-to-dateness * Sunday Telegraph *Magnificent ... Better than Robert Graves's Claudius novels * Standpoint *
£9.49
Hodder & Stoughton To Serve Them All My Days
Book SynopsisThe classic story of an English public school between the wars and an inspirational teacher, repackaged as a Hodder Great Read.Trade ReviewPraise for R F Delderfield:Mr Delderfield's manner is easy, modest, heartwarming * Evening Standard *He built an imposing artistic social history that promises to join those of his great forebears in the long, noble line of the English novel. His narratives belong in a tradition that goes back to John Galsworthy and Arnold Bennett * Life Magazine *R F Delderfield is a born storyteller * Sunday Mirror *Sheer, wonderful storytelling * Chicago Tribune *It is always a pleasure to read R F Delderfield, because he never seems to be ashamed of writing well . . . Today he is a bestseller wherever English language books are read * Books and Bookmen *Highly recommended. Combines tension with a splendid sense of atmosphere and vivid characterisation. An excellent read * Sunday Express *
£9.49
Cornerstone Red Sorghum
Book SynopsisMo Yan was born in 1956 in Shandong, northeastern China. The author of over forty short stories and five novels, he is the most critically acclaimed Chinese writer of his generation, in both China and the West. The critically acclaimed film version of the novel, Red Sorghum, won first prize in the Golden Bear Awards at the Berlin Film Festival in 1988. He won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2012.Trade ReviewMo Yan deserves a place in world literature. His voice will find its way into the heart of the reader, just as Kundera and Garcia Marquez have. -- Amy TanHis idiom has the spiralling invention and mytho-maniacal quality of much world literature of a high order, from Vargas Llosa to Rushdie. * Observer *Brilliant, lyrical and intoxicating. * San Francisco Chronicle *One of China's leading writers... Mo Yan stands out in China's literary scene. His work rings with refreshing authenticity. * Time *A real heir to Lu Xun, a fine Chinese writer deeply concerned with the gate of his fellow men. * Times Literary Supplement *
£9.49
Hodder & Stoughton Green Darkness
Book Synopsis''Seductive, atmospheric, intriguing, Green Darkness is one of those classic novels you come back to time and again'' (Kate Mosse) The hugely popular historical novel from the author of Katherine.England, 1552. Protestant king Edward VI has been on the throne for five years. Almost two decades after Henry VIII''s brutal reformation of the monasteries, Catholics in England still live in fear. When 13-year-old Celia da Bohun first meets Stephen Marsdon, a young Catholic priest, she falls hopelessly in love. Against his will, Stephen returns her affection. As the years pass, their childish adoration deepens into a passionate love that will not be extinguished - not even by Celia''s violent death.Centuries later, history seems poised to repeat itself. Celia, the young, rich wife of Richard Marsden, finds her marriage and happiness threatened by the tragedies of the past. Celia can only be saved by piercing the green darkness of the past and rTrade ReviewHer most intriguing and ambitious novel . . . an exciting and suspenseful story * Liverpool Post *Perhaps the greatest gifts Anya Seton brings to her historical novels are the zest of her narrative, the life she breathes into the most insignificant characters and the atmosphere of the era she evokes around them. * Books and Bookmen *To read Seton is to enter into another time with such conviction that it seems as real as the present * Philippa Gregory *Seductive, atmospheric, intriguing, GREEN DARKNESS is one of those classic novels you come back to time and again. * Kate Mosse *'Wonderful historical novels' * Alison Weir *
£10.44
Ebury Publishing Orphan Girl
Book SynopsisShe''s no more than an unpaid servant...Lorinda is only a child when tragedy deprives her of her true family and, sent to live with her aunt in her boarding house, she grows up desperately craving affection.And although she finds friendship - and even love - in the boarding house, she finally sees a chance to escape her drab surroundings and unkind family. But is a marriage of convenience better than a love that''s true?
£9.49
Transworld Publishers Ltd A Scandal at Christmas
Book Synopsis'Catherine Cookson soars above her rivals' Mail on Sunday'Her characters have the grit of real life' Sunday Times'Queen of raw family romances' Telegraph_____________________________At fifteen years old, Gail Blenheim is the truly the apple of her father, Harry's, eye. Sweet, mild-mannered, with the promise to grow into a true beauty, she'll always bring her father joy, which is something he'll never take for granted. But Gail knows that her father is unhappy. Stuck under his odious father-in-law's thumb and resigned to a near-loveless marriage, Gail can see that he feels trapped. But when Harry lets his loneliness get the better of him at a Christmas party, he sparks a scandal with such far-reaching repercussions that he may lose everything, including his own daughter. But Gail's devotion for her father is stronger than he realises and she refuses to give up on the man she's looked up to for her whole life. Can a daughter's love save her father from ruin?________________________
£8.54
Penguin Publishing Group Only the Beautiful
Book Synopsis
£15.29
Orion Publishing Co The Paris Affair
Book SynopsisMarch 1941. As the war rages on, the Buckingham Hotel has become a microcosm of the world. Its ballroom and restaurant are peopled with exiled royal families, politicians and dignitaries, but the beating heart of the Buckingham remains its hardworking, talented staff. With the heroic Raymond de Guise away fighting in North Africa, his beloved wife Nancy must balance her new position in life- as Head of Housekeeping at the Buckingham, but also as a new mother to their child. And all the while, mysterious new figures are beginning to take centre stage: a secretive new bandleader from across the Atlantic, an unknown thief pilfering luxury goods from the Buckingham's larders, and a charismatic ghost from Raymond's past, stirring up old memories from his time on the circuit in 1920s Paris. As tensions flare and dark secrets rise to the surface, it's all the Buckingham staff can do to retain their trademark elegance a
£9.49
Transworld Publishers Ltd The Silence In Between
Book SynopsisThe gripping historical debut about a family separated by the Berlin wall - perfect for fans of All the Light We Cannot See, In Memoriam and Alone in BerlinSHORTLISTED FOR THE WATERSTONES DEBUT FICTION PRIZE 2024'A tautly plotted, deeply involving novel that packs a real emotional punch I can't recommend this novel highly enough' Laura Barnett, author of The Versions of Us'A hauntingly beautiful exploration of love, family and societal unrest all set against the backdrop of the Berlin Wall' Glamour_____Imagine waking up and a wall has divided your city in two. Imagine that on the other side is your child... Lisette is in hospital with her baby boy. The doctors tell her to go home and get some rest, that he'll be fine. When she awakes, everything has changed. Because overnight, on 13 August 1961, the border between East and West Berlin has closed, slicing the city - and the world - in two. Lisette is trapped in the east, while her newborn baby is unreachable in the west. With the streets in chaos and armed guards ordered to shoot anyone who tries to cross, her situation is desperate. Lisette's teenage daughter, Elly, has always struggled to understand the distance between herself and her mother. Both have lived for music, but while Elly hears notes surrounding every person she meets, for her mother - once a talented pianist - the music has gone silent. Perhaps Elly can do something to bridge the gap between them. What begins as the flicker of an idea turns into a daring plan to escape East Berlin, find her baby brother, and bring him home.... Based on true stories, The Silence in Between is a page-turning, emotional epic that will stay with you long after you finish reading. ______BOOKSELLER LOVE for THE SILENCE IN BETWEEN:Without a doubt one of the best books I have read this year I can't recommend this book enough'Abbey RowlinsonAbsolutely heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time. A must-read'Dominika A sublime story, told beautifully'Kurde, HorshamA truly compelling and moving novel with two incredible female characters I won't forget in a hurry'Tilly Fitzgerald Kind, thoughtful and poignant an uplifting and hopeful story'LaurenA powerful and emotional book'Neil Challis, Windsor A thought provoking, ultimately kind and beautifully researched debut'Beth, Chesterfield I genuinely loved this it's definitely a stand out novel of 2024'Helen, Scarborough A cracking debut from this talented new author'Jen Mackay, Windsor This truly has the potential to be the next big story, so full of heart as it is!'Libby LowA powerful story of human resilience and family bonds'Emma Smith, Bedford A beautiful but heart-breaking read from a wonderful new voice in historical fiction'Victoria, Aviemore An excellent novel a sensitive retelling of two critical and terrible periods of Berlin history'Sean FarrellAn incredible book full of heartbreak, hope, unbreakable love I don't think this book will ever leave me. I will be recommending it to customers as a must read'Hayley Ralls, St Neots
£9.49
Pan Macmillan Whale Fall
Book SynopsisElizabeth O'Connor lives in Birmingham. Her short stories have appeared in The White Review and Granta, and she was the winner of The White Review Short Story Prize in 2020. She has a Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of Birmingham, on the modernist writer H.D. and her writing of coastal landscapes. Whale Fall is her first novel.
£9.49
St. Martin's Publishing Group The Queens of Crime
Book SynopsisINSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER AND INDIE BESTSELLER!From the New York Times bestselling author of The Mystery of Mrs. Christiea thrilling story of the five greatest women writers of the Golden Age of Mystery and their bid to solve a real-life murder. London, 1930. The five greatest women crime writers have banded together to form a secret society with a single goal: to show they are no longer willing to be treated as second class citizens by their male counterparts in the legendary Detection Club. Led by the formidable Dorothy L. Sayers, the group includes Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy. They call themselves the Queens of Crime. Their plan? Solve an actual murder, that of a young woman found strangled in a park in France who may have connections leading to the highest levels of the British establishment. May Daniels, a young English nurse on an excursion to France with her friend, seemed to vanish into thin air as they prepared to board a ferry home. Months later, her body is found in the nearby woods. The murder has all the hallmarks of a locked room mystery for which these authors are famous: how did her killer manage to sneak her body out of a crowded train station without anyone noticing? If, as the police believe, the cause of death is manual strangulation, why is there is an extraordinary amount of blood at the crime scene? What is the meaning of a heartbreaking secret letter seeming to implicate an unnamed paramour? Determined to solve the highly publicized murder, the Queens of Crime embark on their own investigation, discovering they're stronger together. But soon the killer targets Dorothy Sayers herself, threatening to expose a dark secret in her past that she would do anything to keep hidden. Inspired by a true story in Sayers' own life, New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict brings to life the lengths to which five talented women writers will go to be taken seriously in the male-dominated world of letters as they unpuzzle a mystery torn from the pages of their own novels.
£14.62
Penguin Books Ltd An Icecream War William Boyd Penguin Essentials
Book SynopsisAn Ice-Cream War is William Boyd''s sparkling debut novel on the grimly comic side of conflict, published as a Penguin Essential for the first time.''What do you think would happen if I shot an elephant in the balls?''''I think it would hurt a great deal.''Millions die on the Western Front but in East Africa a quite different war is being waged - one with little point and which is so ignored that it will carry on after the Armistice because no one bothers to tell both sides to stop.As the conflict sweeps up natives and colonials, so those left at home and those fighting abroad find themselves unable to escape the tide of history bearing down on them.
£8.54
Penguin Books Ltd Noonday
Book SynopsisFrom the Booker Prize-winning and Women''s Prize-shortlisted author of The Silence of the Girls The final novel in Pat Barker''s acclaimed ''Life Class'' trilogy - an unforgettable story of art and war, from one of our greatest writers on war and the human heart''Bold, hard-hitting, unforgettable, with luminous and unsparing insight'' Independent on Sunday''Barker''s command of detail and gift for metaphor are as sharp as ever... Noonday is in the first rank'' Mail on Sunday''[There is] no end to her talent in describing how conflicts rupture the soul'' Arifa Akbar, IndependentLondon, the Blitz, autumn 1940. As the bombs fall on the blacked-out city, ambulance driver Elinor Brooke races from bomb sites to hospitals trying to save the lives of injured survivors, working alongside former friend Kit Neville, while her husband Paul works as an air-raid warden. As the bombing intensifies, the constant risk of deatTrade ReviewPublisher's description. Pat Barker brings the besieged and haunted city of Blitz-era London to electrifying life in Noonday, the third and final novel in her 'Life Class Trilogy'. Bombs are falling on London and, still suffering from the losses of the Great War, Elinor, Paul and Kit must face war's horrors once again... * Penguin *Barker's command of detail and gift for metaphor are as sharp as ever: her evocation of the bombed city is steeped in drama... Noonday is in the first rank * Mail on Sunday *Tremendously good * Daily Mail *This is the first time the author of the Regeneration Trilogy has written about the Second World War and it's a triumph * Stylist *Many strokes of genius from Barker... accessible and moving * Sunday Times *Noonday's Blitz-era setting gives Barker ample opportunity to do what she does best * Spectator *Powerful and vivid, with nuanced characters and Barker's unerring eye for detail * Women and Home *Bold, hard-hitting, unforgettable... a virtuoso rendition of the bombing, as huge swathes of London blaze away with the brightest of bright lights... Barker shows us how the city's finest moment was indubitably also its most terrifying, with luminous and unsparing insight * Independent on Sunday *Ambitious, vivid, sharp... The closer you get to the end, the more lives need saving and the more thwarted and complicated the domestic backdrop... Barker's chronological leap is a sophisticated bridge between the drama of the present and the haunted history of the past * Daily Telegraph *Colourfully alive, fizzes with energy... the novel's point of view swivel[s] like a torchbeam to illuminate London's devastated streets * Independent *The book has its own inherent power thanks to Barker's skilful rendering of the texture of the period but it is richer and more rewarding if read with the other two volumes of this beautifully crafted trilogy * Daily Express *
£9.49
HarperCollins Sharpes Prey
Book SynopsisThe greatest writer of historical adventures today. —Washington PostCritically acclaimed, perennial New York Times bestselling author Bernard Cornwell (Agincourt, The Fort, the Saxon Tales) makes real history come alive in his breathtaking historical fiction. Praised as the direct heir to Patrick O''Brian (Agincourt, The Fort), Cornwell has brilliantly captured the fury, chaos, and excitement of battle as few writers have ever done—perhaps most vividly in his phenomenally popular novels following the illustrious military career of British Army officer Richard Sharpe during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In Sharpe''s Prey, Sharpe must prove his mettle once again after performing courageously on Wellesley''s battlefields in India and the Iberian Peninsula, as he undertakes a secret mission to Copenhagen, Denmark in 1807 to prevent a resurgent Napoleon from capturing the Danish fleet. Perhaps the San Francisco Ch
£15.29
Random House USA Inc Some Luck
Book Synopsis
£14.53
Pan Macmillan Shallows
Book SynopsisTim Winton has published twenty-six books for adults and children, and his work has been translated into twenty-eight languages. Since his first novel, An Open Swimmer, won the Australian/Vogel Award in 1981, he has won the Miles Franklin Award four times (for Shallows, Cloudstreet, Dirt Music and Breath) and twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize (for The Riders and Dirt Music). He lives in Western Australia.Trade ReviewAll this is dazzling, dazzling. It makes the heart pound. * Los Angeles Times *A moving and powerful elegy . . . Winton writes vividly, and with courage, about serious matters in a cynical world. * Observer *A major work by anyone’s standards . . . mysterious, painful and beautiful. * Washington Post *
£9.49
Penguin Books Ltd Honour
Book SynopsisFrom Booker-shortlisted author Elif Shafak, Honour is a gripping tale of love, betrayal and clashing cultures.''My mother died twice. I promised myself I would not let her story be forgotten''Pembe and Adem Toprak leave Turkey for London. There they make new lives for their family. Yet the traditions and beliefs of their home come with them - carried in the blood of their children, Iskender and Esma. Trapped by past mistakes, the Toprak children find their lives torn apart and transformed by a brutal and chilling crime.Set in Turkey and London in the 1970s, Honour explores pain and loss, loyalty and betrayal, the clash of tradition and modernity, as well as the love and heartbreak that can tear any family apart.''One of the best writers in the world today'' Hanif Kureishi''Vivid storytelling... that explores the darkest aspects of faith and love'' Sunday Telegraph *** ELIF SHAFAK''S NTrade ReviewA powerful book; thoughtful, provoking and compassionate * Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat *Fascinating and gripping - a wonderful novel * Rosamund Lupton, author of Sister *Elif Shafak has woven with masterful care and compassion one immigrant family's heartbreaking story - a story nurtured in the terrible silences between men and women * Sarah Blake, author of The Postmistress *Honour is a powerful tale of family connection and heartbreak, offering us insight and delight in equal measure . . . an exquisite and deep rendering of the fullness of life. * Aurelie Sheehan, author of The Anxiety of Everyday Objects *[Elif Shafak] joins writers such as Hanif Kureishi, Zadie Smith, Monica Ali, Aamer Hussein, Andrea Levy, Hanan al-Shakyh and Leila Aboulela, who offer us fictional glimpses of London's Others * The Independent *An honour killing is at the centre of this stunning novel . . . Exotic, evocative and utterly gripping * The Times *Lushly and memorably magic-realist . . . This is an extraordinarily skilfully crafted and ambitious narrative * The Independent *Shafak treats an important, absorbing subject in a fast-paced, internationally familiar style that will make it accessible to a wide readership * Sunday Times *Compelling -- Mariella Frostrup
£9.49
Penguin Books Ltd Perfume
Book SynopsisPatrick Süskind''s Perfume is a classic novel of death and sensuality in Paris, published as a Penguin Essential for the first time. ''In eighteenth-century France there lived a man who was one of the most gifted and abominable personages in an era that knew no lack of gifted and abominable personages. His name was Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, and if his name has been forgotten today, it is certainly not because Grenouille fell short of those more famous blackguards when it came to arrogance, misanthropy, immorality, or, more succinctly, wickedness, but because his gifts and his sole ambition were restricted to a domain that leaves no traces in history: to the fleeting realm of scent . . .''''An astonishing tour de force both in concept and execution'' Guardian''A fantastic tale of murder and twisted eroticism controlled by a disgusted loathing of humanity ... Clever, stylish, absorbing and well worth reading'' Literary Review''A meditation on the nature of death, desire and decay ... a remarkable début'' Peter Ackroyd, The New York Times Book Review''Unlike anything else one has read. A phenomenon ... Everyone seems to want to get a whiff of this strange perfume, which will remain unique in contemporary literature'' Figaro''An ingenious and totally absorbing fantasy'' Daily Telegraph''Witty, stylish and ferociously absorbing'' Observer
£9.49
Transworld Publishers Ltd Hero of Rome Gaius Valerius Verrens 1
Book SynopsisA journalist by profession, Douglas Jackson transformed a lifelong fascination for Rome and the Romans in to his first two highly-praised novels, Caligula and Claudius. His third, Hero of Rome, introduced readers to a new series hero, Gaius Valerius Verrens. Eight further acclaimed 'Rome' novels followed, confirming Doug as one of the UK's foremost historical novelists. His latest novel, The Wall, was published to coincide with the 1900th anniversary of the construction of Hadrian's Wall. A member of the Historical Writers Association and the Historical Novel Society, Douglas Jackson lives near Stirling in Scotland.Trade ReviewIf I were Conn Iggulden or Simon Scarrow, I'd be rather worried by the new Scottish kid on the block * The Scotsman *A master of his discipline rightly hailed as one of the best historical novelists writing today * Daily Express *A splendid piece of storytelling and a vivid recreation of a long-dead-world -- Allan Massie
£11.69
Hodder & Stoughton Down Weavers Lane
Book Synopsis''Best period book I have EVER read! - 5-star reader review''Emmy Carter''s mother is a prostitute - and her life has made Emmy determined to avoid the same fate. But Emmy is beautiful, so attracts unwanted attention; her mother''s protector has his eye on her, as does evil Marcus Armistead, her employer''s nephew. Marcus is excited by Emmy''s virginity and has her kidnapped, but Emmy hits him over the head and escapes. Marcus, futher enraged, kills her mother and becomes even more determined to rape Emmy, but the combined efforts of the local parson and Emmy''s young suitor manage to keep her safe from harm. Finally Emmy sees Marcus get his just desserts, finds out who her father was, and attains the respectability she has so longed for.***********************What readers are saying about DOWN WEAVER''S LANE''Could not put this book down'' - 5 stars''Kept wanting to read it all in one goTrade ReviewCatherine Cookson fans will cheer! * Peterborough Evening Telegraph on Our Polly *Industrial Lancashire in the 1830s with the daughter of a prostitute determined to avoid her mother's plight * The Bookseller - Paperback Preview *Brilliant, no one can match her writing ability . . . I have just finished reading it, couldn't put it down, it held me absorbed on every page. * Amazon reader on Lancashire Lass *
£8.99
Hodder & Stoughton Noble House
Book Synopsis''Breathtaking. Only terms like colossal, gigantic, titanic, unbelievable, gargantuan are properly descriptive'' Chicago TribuneOver one hundred years have passed since Dirk Struan founded Hong Kong''s oldest trading company. But now, the Noble House is in danger. As Hong Kong itself becomes the deadly playground of the CIA, the KGB and the People''s Republic of China, rival tai-pans, seeking revenge for blood feuds over a century old, gather for the kill.''Fiction for addicts . . . A book that you can get lost in for weeks. Not only is it as long as life, it''s also as rich with possibilities'' New York TimesTrade ReviewBreathtaking. Only terms like colossal, gigantic, titanic, unbelievable, gargantuan are properly descriptive * Chicago Tribune *Seethes with drama, sex, crime . . . Clavell is, as always, a matchless talespinner * Cosmopolitan *A grand drama, with the glamour, mystique and perils of the Orient . . . it has such breadth and power that at the end you will want to start at the beginning again. * Manchester Evening News *NOBLE HOUSE totally fulfils the function of a novel, taking me out of myself and transporting me into a majestic sweep of intrigue and excitement * David Niven *Fiction for addicts . . . A book that you can get lost in for weeks. Not only is it as long as life, it's also as rich with possibilities * New York Times *
£13.49
Little, Brown Book Group Crusoes Daughter
Book SynopsisIn 1904, when she was six, Polly Flint went to live with her two holy aunts at the yellow house by the marsh - so close to the sea that it seemed to toss like a ship, so isolated that she might have been marooned on an island. And there she stayed for eighty-one years, while the century raged around her, while lamplight and Victorian order became chaos and nuclear dred. Crusoe''s Daughter, ambitious, moving and wholly original, is her story.Trade ReviewShe does fiction as it should be done, with confidence and insight -- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie * Observer *
£8.99
Little, Brown Book Group The Secret Chord
Book Synopsis''A thundering, gritty, emotionally devastating reconsideration of the story of King David'' New York TimesLONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN''S PRIZE FOR FICTION 20161000 BC. The Second Iron Age. The time of King David.Anointed as the chosen one when just a young shepherd boy, David will rise to be king, grasping the throne and establishing his empire. But his journey is a tumultuous one and the consequences of his choices will resound for generations. In a life that takes him from obscurity to fame, he is by turns hero and traitor, glamorous young tyrant and beloved king, murderous despot and remorseful, diminished patriarch. His wives love and fear him, his sons will betray him. It falls to Natan, the courtier and prophet who both counsels and castigates David, to tell the truth about the path he must take.Peeling away the myth to bring David to life in Second Iron Age Israel, Brooks traces the arc of his journey from obscurity to fame, Trade ReviewWhat Mary Renault did with Alexander the Great, Geraldine Brooks has done with King David: breathed life into an ancient hero. Haunting, exciting and as satisfying -- Tom HollandHere is a man who is both great and flawed, just like those tragic heroes Oedipus and King Lear. But in making David so satisfyingly human, Brooks has crafted from The Secret Chord a compelling read, contemporary in relevance -- Meredith Jaffe * Guardian *A haunting, memorable novel * Sunday Times *The Secret Chord paints a portrait so layered and rich in detail it makes you feel you can reach out and touch him * Woman's Own *Vividly drawn . . . a beautiful and thoughtful book -- Antonia Senior * The Times *This David is ecstatic, visceral and virile * Independent *The Secret Chord is sensual historical fiction, full of rich descriptive language * Third Way *
£9.49
Little, Brown Book Group Landfalls
Book SynopsisAn epic voyage, undertaken with the grandest of ambitions.Lapérouse leaves France in the Spring of 1785 with two ships under his command, knowing that he sails with the full backing of the French government. This is to be a voyage of scientific and geographical discovery - but every person on board has their own hopes, ambitions and dreams. As the ships move across vast distances in their journey of nearly four years, the different characters step forward and invite us into their world. From the remote Alaskan bay where a dreadful tragedy unfolds, to the wild journey Barthélemy de Lessups undertakes from the far east of Russia to St Petersburg, the reader is irresistibly drawn into a extraordinarily vivid world. Landfalls is a profoundly moving and intensely evocative novel about scientific exploration, human endeavour and individual tragedy,Trade ReviewAudacious . . . Immersive . . . A marvel of inventive storytelling -- Jane Ciabattari * BBC *Beautifully written...Clever without being worthy or pretentious, Landfalls is an engrossing read you will want to linger over -- Sara Manning * Red *[An] impressive debut... Williams manages her huge cast with skill, drawing compelling characters from the lists of the lost... unfailingly interesting and intelligent... The best parts, however, are sublime. Williams soars when she has the courage to let go of her prodigious research, and let her characters take flight... Williams's writing is luminous, lit with tenderness, wisdom and a sly humour that glints between the words, even at their darkest. No quantity of painstakingly assembled facts could rival the intensity of her richly imagined reality then, the astonishing vividness and immediacy with which she conjures up the long-forgotten past. * Clare Clark, Guardian *The expedition is told from the viewpoints of the scientists, the seamen, and the natives they encounter. A book as ambitious as the voyage it describes but wildly more successful. * The Times, Historical Fiction Books of the Year 2015 *A beautiful tale of adventure, anchored in tragedy * Vanity Fair *Naomi Williams brings it all to life with accomplished, vivid storytelling . . . The tantalising storytelling, solid research, wit and humanity at the heart of this thoroughly engaging book leave you desperate to know more about every single character - as well as many we don't even get to meet properly - for a very long time after the story has ended. It deserves a huge audience * Scotland on Sunday *This remarkably assured first novel offers much more in its careful, oblique approach and with some truly scintillating passages . . . an original and hugely accomplished book -- Harry Ritchie * Daily Mail *[A] pin-sharp, elegant debut. The book is packed with intricate detail, from the description of a snug cabin to the look of the landscape hidden by fog, and full of adventure and misadventure. But it's really the misinterpretations and misconceptions of the explorers and the people they encounter - often woefully, catastrophically at odds with each other - that give the novel its emotional power * Psychologies, Book of the Month *The cast of characters and changes in tone are reminiscent of David Mitchell . . . the story cracks along like a frigate with the wind behind it * Emerald Street *An imaginative, encyclopedically researched and elegantly written experiment in fly-on-the-wall historical reconstruction * Sunday Times *Keen to avoid the fate of Captain Cook, the technologically advanced ships are filled with the finest scientists, engineers, navigators, artists and chefs, many of whom have their say in this thoroughly engrossing novel. Through these individual reports, a colourful and sometimes tragic picture forms of this extraordinary voyage * Sunday Express *A magnificent reflection of the genuine mystery that surrounded the expedition for centuries, it's one of the most unusual books this year * Manchester Evening News *Broad and bursting with detail * Financial Times *A dazzling recreation of a real-life 18th century French expedition...How does a 21st-century California author know so persuasively what went on in an 18th-century French maritime captain's mind? Or in the thoughts of a headstrong indigenous Alaskan teenage girl circa 1786? Or in the heart of a young Solomon Islands woman married to a French castaway whose origins she can scarcely understand? Yet somehow, thanks to her meticulous research and prodigious imagination, Williams pulls off one miracle of historic recreation after another...Williams has delivered a bona fide masterpiece * Seattle Times *Ms. Williams brilliantly moves across continents and gives each landfall a distinct and evocative voice...Landfalls is intelligent and utterly human. Ms. Williams has written a seductive page-turner that, although we know the story ends tragically, draws the reader in and doesn't let go. * Wall Street Journal *The craftsmanship is so good, it's hard to believe this is a first novel. That alone makes the book award worthy. On top of the outstanding technical execution, it tells its tale so well that it becomes interesting and emotionally gripping to readers with zero interest in 18th-century maritime history * New York Journal of Books *This suspenseful debut novel tracks the route of the doomed Lapérouse expedition..It's a tragic narrative, filled with calamities, yet never somber or dreary. The drama in "Landfalls" is unrelenting: there's petty infighting, rampant egotism, insufferable personalities, drunkenness, heartbreak and rivalries - sort of a maritime version of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." * New York Times *Every expedition is a drama, in which the souls caught by the war and peace of human curiosities become master storytellers of their own tales and one another's fate. What a joy to see these characters, long-buried by sea or by land, come alive in Landfalls. Naomi J. Williams is an astute observer of both actions and psychologies, and this brilliant book brings us closer to our fellow explorers before our time * Yiyun Li *Sometimes a first novel arrives with an outpouring of excitement and praise. That's the case with Naomi J. Williams's innovative historical novel * The Literary Hub www.lithub.com *In fiction, Williams is able to reinvent this lost diversity of perspectives, albeit with far more gritty realism that might be found in 18th-century versions. Her eclectic and literary approach is personal and psychological rather than philosophical and political. Rather than revealing character through observations or externalities, Williams takes us into the fraught interior world of her characters' psyches, with all their anxieties, fears, prejudices and passions. . . The unreliable and often contradictory voices of the narrative give even implausible scenarios the strangely authentic flavour of rumour and hearsay * The Australian *Williams' multi-voiced approach is the perfect medium to introduce perspectives excluded from the historical record, particularly women and indigenous people - and it is here she creates some of her most compelling characters. -- Danielle Clode * Weekend Australian *Literary art of the first order, intelligent and evocative in the way of the best of historical fiction * Kirkus *Williams' exceptional debut isn't your traditional seafaring yarn and is all the stronger and more penetrating for it . . . alternately charming, invigorating, and heartbreaking, and always thoughtful and humane. Even readers who don't seek out nautical adventures will find themselves drawn in, especially if they love high-quality literary fiction * Booklist *
£9.74
