Magical realism
Sourcebooks Landmark Where I Can't Follow
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£16.14
Sourcebooks Landmark Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves
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£16.14
Sourcebooks, Inc How to Be Remembered: A Novel
Book SynopsisFor fans of Matt Haig and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue comes a big-hearted novel following a man who can never be remembered and his journey to become unforgettable...On an ordinary night in an ordinary year, Tommy Llewellyn's doting parents wake in a home without toys and diapers, without photos of their baby scattered about, and without any idea that the small child asleep in his crib is theirs.That's because Tommy is a boy destined to never be remembered.On the same day every year, everyone around him forgets he exists, and he grows up enduring his own universal Reset. That is until something extraordinary happens: Tommy Llewellyn falls in love.Determined to finally carve out a life for himself and land the girl of his dreams, Tommy sets out on a mission to finally trick the Reset and be remembered. But legacies aren't so easily won, and Tommy must figure out what's more important-the things we leave behind or the people we bring along with us.With the speculative edge of How to Stop Time, the unending charm of Maria Semple, and the heart of your favorite book club read, How to Be Remembered is a life-affirming novel about discovering how to leave your mark on the places and people you love most.Trade ReviewHow to Be Remembered wears its heart proudly, earnest in the way of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button or, dare I say, Forrest Gump * The Guardian Australia *Original, engrossing, sweet. * Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Project *
£15.44
Lost Boys Press Ghost River
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£16.99
FriesenPress A Body of Fates
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£25.64
ECW Press,Canada Land Mammals and Sea Creatures: A Novel
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£14.41
Baraka Books Rosa's Very Own Personal Revolution
Book SynopsisRosa Ost grows up in Notre-Dame-du-Cachalot, a tiny village at the end of the world, where two industries are king: paper and Boredom. The only daughter of Terese Ost (a fair-to-middling trade unionist and a first-rate Scrabble player), the fate that befalls Rosa is the focus of this tale of long journeys and longer lives, of impossible deaths, unwavering prophecies, and unsettling dreams as she leaves her village for Montreal on a quest to summon the westerly wind that has proved so vital to the local economy. From village gossips, tealeaf-reading exotic dancers, and Acadian red herrings to soothsaying winkles and centuries-old curses, Rosa's Very Own Personal Revolution is a delightful, boundary-pushing story about stories and the storytellers who make them—and a reminder that revolutions in Quebec aren't always quiet.
£20.85
University of Alberta Press Nuala: A Fable
Book Synopsis“Shh, my Nuala. I am with you. Today I shall teach you the newness of you.” As the Engine breathes life into Nuala, her gaze falls on Teacher-Servant, the chosen one. He alone will be able to hear her thoughts and interpret her emotions. But soon Teacher-Servant starts to worry that Nuala will be able to give away her thoughts freely. Set in an atypical dystopian world, Nuala is startlingly original and inventive, echoing the work of Margaret Atwood, José Saramago, and Kazuo Ishiguro. Beach’s dark, fearless imagination has created a time and space that are at once remote and strange, but absorbing and deeply credible. Nuala leaves the reader with much to consider about the nature of love, possessiveness, jealousy, envy, and autonomy.Trade ReviewWhile it is a highly original tale, many of its themes -- alienation, the search for understanding and companionship, and struggle for independence -- are universal…" -- Lana Michelin * Red Deer Advocate *"From the start, the book has the power to take a reader on a journey that is wonderfully image-laden.... [You] get the feeling that every single word has been meticulously chosen... It's always polished but crackles with authenticity." -- Mark Weber * Red Deer Express *# 1 on Edmonton Fiction Bestsellers list, March 19, 2017# 2 on Saskatoon Fiction Bestsellers list, April 8, 2017# 7 on Edmonton Fiction Bestsellers list, April 23, 2017"... Beach's spare, poetic prose swept me away from the present world of mad dictators into a magical timeless realm like the sweet books of my childhood. I was transported and found myself rationing each page near the end, because I did not want to leave Beach's fictional world. Highly recommended, even if you don't like puppets, poetry or fables. It's all about the craft and the way Beach spins a sharp sensuous story..." -- Bruce Hunter * Goodreads *# 7 on Edmonton Fiction Bestsellers list, September 24, 2017“Nuala: A Fable, by Alberta writer and editor Kimmy Beach, describes a dystopian world where Nuala, a giant puppet, and her Teacher-Servant explore their city and their relationship while Nuala gradually becomes aware of her own complex inner terrain…. Nuala is a departure for Beach, who is well known as a poet… Beach admits to some trepidation about how the book may be received. ‘But it’s too late now. She’s out there, stomping around and demanding attention. Come what may.’” -- Margaret Anne Fehr * Prairie Books Now *
£15.29
University of Calgary Press Refugia
Book SynopsisRelic species extinct everywhere else on the planet thrive on a remote archipelago. Evolution requires isolation, and these islands offer the perfect environment for genetic variation to take place, fostering new and unique forms of flora and fauna. Evolutionary biologists Emily and Roland have come on an extended field expedition to this secluded world, eager to expose its unique biosphere.As they work to gather a large dataset of dead specimens for study and description, Emily and Roland experience growing shifts in their perception, in their bodies, and even in the flow of linear time. The environment they have come to quantify acts upon them, the species they collect observe and comment upon them, and the controlled lens of science cannot save them. Succumbing to the dynamic power of isolation, they find themselves irrevocably changed.A poetic novel told through field notes, letters, and scientific data, Refugia is a story of discovery and transformation that shows the hubris inherent in the idea that humans live both outside, and at the center of, the natural world. This is a book that reveals science in all its imperfect beauty, crossing the line between observer and observed, scientist and subject, between what is known and what is unknowable.
£19.76
Rebellion Publishing Ltd. The Storm's Betrayal
Book SynopsisLies. Treason. Magic.The great Stormhawk—Bourshkanya’s paranoid, fascist leader—is seemingly unkillable. But for the rebellion to succeed, he must die.Celka Prochazka uses magic in ways no one believed possible. She could be the perfect resistance assassin—if she can avoid being discovered as a traitor.Gerrit Kladivo, the Stormhawk’s son, is determined to end his father’s tyrannical rule. But to get Celka close enough to his father he must first prove unflinching loyalty to the regime.Filip Cizek swore his life to protect Gerrit and the regime. But with Gerrit’s actions twisting him into a stranger, Filip must decide how deep his loyalty runs.Together, they will attempt the impossible—but the cost may be everything they hold dear.Trade Review“A sweeping epic of romance, revolution, elegant strangeness, and elemental magic.” -- Jason Heller“Tense, timely, and crackling with urgent energy. I guarantee that by the end of the book, you will be looking for your own resistance to join... or to start.” -- Premee Mohamed -- Premee Mohamed“Lee's debut is a dazzling and timely high-wire act.” -- Ian Tregillis -- Ian Tregillis"Focused and honed as a lightning strike, beautifully balanced and directed; a cutting story of revolution, rebellion, romance, and the sort of strange sorcery that we don't see very often" -- Seanan McGuire, New York Times bestselling author of October Daye -- Seanan McGuire
£10.59
Rebellion Publishing Ltd. The Liar of Red Valley
Book SynopsisDon’t trust the Liar.Do not cross the King.Never, ever go in the River.In Red Valley, California, you follow the rules if you want to stay alive. But they won’t be enough to protect Sadie now that she’s become the Liar, the keeper of the town’s many secrets. Friendships are hard-won here, and it isn’t safe to make enemies.And though the Liar has power — power to remake the world, with just a little blood—what Sadie really needs is answers: Why is the town’s sheriff after her? What does the King want from her? And what is the real purpose of the Liar of Red Valley?Trade Review "Chilling monsters, excellent interiority, and shocking twists" -- Publishers Weekly * Publishers Weekly *"If you like stories of ordinary (and, okay, a little bit extraordinary) people up against supernatural forces, then The Liar of Red Valley comes heartily recommended." * Starburst Magazine *"Thoroughly engrossing and with relentless pace, The Liar of Red Valley takes the reader through unexpected plot twists and false turns towards a surprising and dramatic endgame." -- Apple Books * Apple Books *"A ferocious page-turner that elicits genuine chills" -- SFX Magazine * SFX *"Goodwater is one of [the genre's] finest modern exponents" -- Simon Ings, The Times -- Simon Ings * The Times *"The Liar of Red Valley has everything — a little town hiding secrets, an exciting story and creepy creatures galore." -- Lavie Tidhar, The Washington Post * The Washington Post *
£14.99
Atlantic Books The Book of Speculation
Book SynopsisFor fans of The Night Circus, comes a sweeping and captivating debut novel about a young librarian who discovers that his family labours under a terrible curse.Simon Watson lives alone on the Long Island Sound. On a day in late June, Simon receives a mysterious book connected to his family. The book tells the story of two doomed lovers, two hundred years ago. He is fascinated, yet as he reads Simon becomes increasingly unnerved. Why do so many women in his family drown on 24th July? And could his beloved sister risk the same terrible fate?As 24th July draws ever closer, Simon must unlock the mysteries of the book, and decode his family history, before it's too late.Trade ReviewIn this dazzling debut, the immensely talented Erika Swyler sweeps seamlessly through generations and centuries, moving deftly back and forth and weaving the strands into an exquisite tapestry. I was immediately swept up in this quirky, raucous, and bewitching family saga. I absolutely loved this book * Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants *A luscious experience - dark, sweet and wild * Katherine Dunn, author of Geek Love *Compulsive reading * Elle *
£8.54
Transworld Publishers Ltd D (A Tale of Two Worlds): A dazzling modern
Book SynopsisNEIL GAIMAN: 'Glorious. A story that will be found and enjoyed and dreamed about for years to come'A celebration of friendship, courage and imagination inspired by Alice in Wonderland, The Chronicles of Narnia and The Wizard of Oz.__________________________It all starts on the morning the letter D disappears from the language. First, it vanishes from her parents' conversation at breakfast, then from the road signs outside. Soon the local dentist and the neighbour's Dalmatian are missing, and even the Donkey Derby has been called off. Though she doesn't know why, Dhikilo is summoned to the home of her old history teacher Professor Dodderfield and his faithful Labrador, Nelly Robinson. And this is where our story really begins. Set between England and the wintry land of Liminus, a world enslaved by the monstrous Gamp and populated by fearsome, enchanting creatures, D (Tale of Two Worlds) is a mesmerising tale of friendship and bravery in an uncertain world. Told with simple beauty and warmth, its celebration of moral courage and freethinking is a powerful reminder of our human capacity for strength, hope and justice.'Dhikilo is a splendid heroine for our time: She stands for kindness, honesty and humanity' DIANE SETTERFIELD'Young adult readers will love it, but Faber's brio and bubbly ingenuity will delight adult readers too.' Daily MailTrade ReviewGlorious. There is such personal and political outrage about the world. But what makes it feel like a Real Story, one that will be found and enjoyed and dreamed about for years to come, is Dhikilo, a fabulous heroine and a real person on the page. Her adventure and bravery as she attempts to restore a missing letter to the world is beautifully written and delightfully told. I loved it * NEIL GAIMAN *In this rather ebullient and lovely new novel by Michel Faber ... older children and fully-grown adults will certainly find much to relish in it * THE SCOTSMAN *Michel Faber never fails to tell his story with wit, intelligence and charm * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *Part affectionate homage, part exhuberant fan fiction, YA readers will love it, but Faber's brio and bubbly ingenuity will delight adult readers too * DAILY MAIL *Dazzling * INDEPENDENT *A firecracker of a novel * STUART KELLY, EDINBURGH LITERARY FESTIVAL 2020 *If ever a book like this was needed, it is now. Dhikilo is a splendid heroine for our time: She stands for kindness, honesty and humanity. Her triumph will have readers rejoicing * DIANE SETTERFIELD *Testament to his storytelling gift and to the charm and the warmth of his writing * TELEGRAPH *The deadpan style makes this more funny than scary. Faber's acknowledged debt to James Thurber's O is clear. It's very enjoyable * SUNDAY EXPRESS *
£8.54
Salt Publishing The Many
Book SynopsisLonglisted for the Man Booker Prize 2016Observer Best Fiction of 2016Den of Geek Top Books of 2016Timothy Buchannan buys an abandoned house on the edge of an isolated village on the coast, sight unseen. When he sees the state of it he questions the wisdom of his move, but starts to renovate the house for his wife, Lauren to join him there.When the villagers see smoke rising from the chimney of the neglected house they are disturbed and intrigued by the presence of the incomer, intrigue that begins to verge on obsession. And the longer Timothy stays, the more deeply he becomes entangled in the unsettling experience of life in the small village. Ethan, a fisherman, is particularly perturbed by Timothy’s arrival, but accedes to Timothy’s request to take him out to sea. They set out along the polluted coastline, hauling in weird fish from the contaminated sea, catches that are bought in whole and removed from the village. Timothy starts to ask questions about the previous resident of his house, Perran, questions to which he receives only oblique answers and increasing hostility. As Timothy forges on despite the villagers’ animosity and the code of silence around Perran, he starts to question what has brought him to this place and is forced to confront a painful truth. The Many is an unsettling tale that explores the impact of loss and the devastation that hits when the foundations on which we rely are swept away.Trade ReviewThe Many unfolds like an unsettling dream, shifting illogically, asking the reader to accept leaps from reality to what seems like it may be fantasy (or may be a matter of perception). But it's not just a strange fable, there is humanity in it too: Ethan's palpable grief for Perran; the locals' struggle to adapt to a world in which their former livelihoods have become obsolete; the touches of tenderness in Timothy and Lauren's scenes together. Its portrayal of a community left behind by technology and bureaucracy, suspicious of the threat represented by 'outsiders', is recognisable and timely – perhaps even more so now than the author may have intended. * Learn This Phrase *Though it was perhaps not written with this in mind, reading the novel during the nightmarish toxicity of the EU Referendum gives it an interesting prescience in its exploration of a failing, unwelcoming community's reaction to an outsider, the decaying environment that surrounds them both and the looming warnings of a distant bureaucracy. That fishing quotas, ecology and environmental regulations are also part of the ongoing debate feeds into that sense of a discussion in microcosm. The sense of loss that permeates here is not just related to the personal, but to the social and communal as well. * Film and Other Assorted Buffery *The sparse prose is dark and intense, strikingly written with a haunting quality that sends shivers through the soul. * neverimitate *This book is powerfully written and haunting. Always teetering on the edge of the gothic, Menmuir describes a coastal community that is dreamlike, slightly out of focus, with its own rules that Timothy never grasps. At the same time, it is rooted in the real world: remote bureaucracy, plummeting fish stocks and maritime pollution have blighted the lives of the fishermen. * Blue Book Balloon *Menmuir’s homespun horror has flashes of Daphne du Maurier’s ghost-gothic and John Wyndham’s dystopia while displaying its own individuality and flair … Menmuir steers a steady course; the result is profound and discomfiting, and deserving of multiple readings. -- Catherine Taylor * The Guardian *At about the two-thirds point, I started to realize that I was not reading a conventional, if slightly off-kilter and moody, story about a man having a hard time getting his life back together in a semi-hostile village. No, The Many is a horrific, beautifully horrific, tale that I cannot shake, as much as I may like to. * The Mookse and the Gripes *It creates an effective sense of tension and psychological suspense along the lines of Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw but passages where the men are out fishing in the gloom also invoke a feelings of intense meditation and a primal self-sufficiency similar to Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea. I was slowly drawn into the novel’s bizarre climate of secrecy and impending doom. The Many is a brisk, impactful novel which poignantly portrays grief, solitude and an inhibited state of consciousness. * Lonesome Reader *an intriguing first novel -- Fiona Wilson * The Times *This is a novel that has to be read at one go but one of those rare stories that once you have reached the end you start reading it all over again. There are moments one has to pause and wonder if it is reminiscent of similar writing in the past and then realise it would be unfair to compare The Many to any other writing. Wyl Menmuir’s style is wholly original, it grips one with its exquisitely chiselled style to create a stunningly beautiful and memorable novel much like the Cornish coast is. -- Jaya Bhattacharji Rose * Confessions of an avid bibliophile *I found myself totally gripped. The kind of book where you end it still wanting answers and yet are unsure of the questions. It’s a wonderful book and the first book I’ve finished this year that I immediately wanted to read again. * Information Overlord *A parable on ecological destruction, a commentary on monotony and parochialness, an obscure examination of sorrow, an investigation into the mysterious workings of the psyche – The Many is weird and disorienting, yes, but original and wonderful too. * On Art and Aesthetics *Paperback of the Week It would be wrong to give away the precise reasons for his protagonist’s state, but as Menmuir’s allegory becomes decipherable, it is increasingly affecting, and the moment when we understand how the bay and its darkly looming ships might be the warped echo of an earlier, shattering scene is one of great power. -- Stephanie Cross * The Observer *He deserves 10 out of 10 when it comes to the creation of atmosphere, and Menmuir can certainly write… A writer to watch. * The Independent *If it is possible to describe a book as being rich on spare detail then The Many is it, like a stock reduced to its very essence, and I suspect it was this lack of extraneous waffle and digression in the company of Wyl Menmuir's beguiling writing style that grabbed my attention and kept me wedded to this novel in the days immediately after Port Eliot festival. * Dovegreyreader *An intriguing, evocative and formally ambitious debut. -- Luke Brown * Financial Times *
£9.89
Vintage Publishing Fen
Book SynopsisRevisit the haunting debut short story collection from the Booker-shortlisted author of Everything Under.'Full of unabashedly, refreshingly angry women... In a year that made me furious, Daisy Johnson’s Fen was a howl I didn’t know I needed' Celeste NgThe Fen is a liminal land. Real people live their lives here. They wrestle with sex and desire, with everyday routine. But the wild is always close at hand, ready to erupt.This is a place where animals and people commingle and fuse, where curious metamorphoses take place, where myth and dark magic still linger. So here a teenager may starve herself into the shape of an eel. A house might fall in love with a girl. A woman might give birth to a, well, what? 'Instant classic...a bold, take-no-prisoners collection situated somewhere between Angela Carter and Deborah Levy' Jeff VanderMeerTrade ReviewDaisy Johnson’s story collection Fen was unanimously beloved... firmly situating her among the UK’s most exciting new voices. -- Marta Bausells * Elle *Just finished rereading Daisy Johnson’s story collection Fen. Just as powerful and beautiful and dark and strange as the first time. One of my favourite books of all time. -- Jeff VandermeerJohnson's heady broth of folklore, female sexuality and fenland landscape reads like a mix of Graham Swift and Angela Carter… For atmosphere, originality and plain chutzpah, this is an impressive first collection. -- Sarah Crown * Guardian *Poetic, risky… Johnson’s slippery and sensual stories-cum-chapters have an amphibious elemental quality and a contemporary provincial witchiness of their own. -- Phil Baker * Sunday Times *There is big, dangerous vitality herein - this book marks the emergence of a great, stomping, wall-knocking talent. -- Kevin BarryReading the stories brought the sense of being trapped in a room slowly, but very surely, filling up with water. You think: this can't be happening. Meanwhile, hold your breath against the certainty it surely is. -- Cynan Jones, author of The Dig
£9.49
Vintage Publishing The Starless Sea: The spellbinding Sunday Times
Book SynopsisTHE TIKTOK SENSATIONDiscover the enchanting, magical bestseller from the author of The Night Circus, now in a stunning new edition.We are all stardust and stories...When Zachary Rawlins stumbles across a mysterious book containing details from his own life among its pages, it leads him on a quest unlike any other.Following the clues inside, he is guided to a masquerade ball, a dangerous secret club, and finally to an ancient library hidden far beneath the surface of the earth. What Zachary finds in this curious place is more than just a buried home for books and their guardians - it is a place of lost cities and seas, lovers who pass notes across time, and of stories whispered by the dead.But when the library is threatened, Zachary must race through its twisting tunnels and sweetly soaked shores, searching for the end of his story.PRAISE FOR THE STARLESS SEA:'Enchanting read... an ode to stories and storytelling itself, and the joy of reading' Guardian'Spellbinding' Daily Mirror'A magical mix of quests and fables...beautifully written' HeatTrade ReviewThe Starless Sea rejects older stories: it makes its own... Rather than a traditional fantasy novel, this is an artificial myth in its own right... the novel's scope and ambition are undeniable -- Natasha Pulley * Guardian *A unique, mind-boggling fantasy -- Kate Saunders * The Times *A magical mix of quests and fables, it's set in a secret world full of bees, keys, swords and secrets... beautifully written -- Deborah Hughes * Heat *Enchanting...Myths and fairytales entwine with Zachary's quest to discover his life's purpose. Spellbinding. * Daily Mirror *[Mogenstern's] second novel is just as enchanting, a lovely, lush voyage through vividly detailed worlds where lost libraries, elegant ballrooms, subterranean seas and covert cities are all beautifully described... The writing is whimsically gorgeous. On every page there’s an image to savour...as Erin Morgenstern celebrates the wonders of imagination and the lure of stories in this spellbinding book. ***** -- Charlotte Heathcote * Sunday Express *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing Swansong
Book Synopsis‘Swansong is the real thing, right from the start: spiky, strange and contemporary, but always with a dark undertow of myth and folklore tugging at its telling…this is a brilliant novel by a writer - and musician - of frankly alarming talent.’ Robert MacfarlaneIn this stunningly assured, immersive and vividly atmospheric first novel from the celebrated musician, a young woman comes face-to-face with the volatile, haunted wilderness of the Scottish Highlands. Polly Vaughan is trying to escape the ravaging guilt of a disturbing incident in London by heading north to the Scottish Highlands. As soon as she arrives, this spirited, funny, alert young woman goes looking for drink, drugs and sex – finding them all quickly, and unsatisfactorily, with the barman in the only pub. She also finds a fresh kind of fear, alone in this eerie, myth-drenched landscape. Increasingly prone to visions or visitations – floating white shapes in the waters of the loch or in the woods – she is terrified and fascinated by a man she came across in the forest on her first evening, apparently tearing apart a bird. Who is this strange loner? And what is his sinister secret?Kerry Andrew is a fresh new voice in British fiction; one that comes from a deep understanding of the folk songs, mythologies and oral traditions of these islands. Her powerful metaphoric language gives Swansong a charged, hallucinatory quality that is unique, uncanny and deeply disquieting.Trade ReviewSwansong is the real thing, right from the start: spiky, strange and contemporary, but always with a dark undertow of myth and folklore tugging at its telling. The voice jags at you, and the plot grips: this is a brilliant novel by a writer - and musician - of frankly alarming talent. -- Robert MacfarlaneLike the great storytelling tradition it extends so elegantly, Swansong is all about transformation, whether through love, rage, fear or desperation: a chilling tour de force that draws the old gods and demons from the land, and lets them loose in the most unexpected ways. It is also an utterly compelling psychological thriller, a book you will simply refuse to put down until the last piece of its extraordinary puzzle falls into place. Essential reading. -- John BurnsideI loved Swansong: a subtle, supernatural tale told in a present-day voice, unsettling right from the start. The writing is so vivid and charged with energy, it’s truly a remarkable novel. -- Shirley CollinsI miss my stop on the tube because I'm so engrossed. -- Sophie Gallagher * Huffington Post *Memorably eerie ... When the tension is ramped up in the closing chapters, with false turns and twists galore, we root for [Polly] to the very end. -- Ann-Maria McCarthy * Times Literary Supplement *
£8.54
Vintage Publishing The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock: The spellbinding
Book Synopsis'A cracking historical novel – with a twinge of the surreal – about passion and obsession' The TimesSHORLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2018One September evening in 1785, the merchant Jonah Hancock finds one of his captains waiting eagerly on his doorstep. He has sold Jonah’s ship for what appears to be a mermaid.As gossip spreads through the docks, coffee shops, parlours and brothels, everyone wants to see Mr Hancock’s marvel. Its arrival spins him out of his ordinary existence and through the doors of high society, where he meets Angelica Neal, the most desirable woman he has ever laid eyes on... and a courtesan of great accomplishment. This meeting will steer both their lives onto a dangerous new course.What will be the cost of their ambitions? And will they be able to escape the legendary destructive power a mermaid is said to possess?Trade ReviewA cracking historical novel – with a twinge of the surreal – about passion and obsession, dreams and reality... The story is by turns intriguing, touching, funny, sad and heartwarming. It will make you laugh and it may make you cry. Mostly, though, the cast of endlessly engaging characters will keep you turning the pages until you get to the wholly satisfying ending... The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock is superb. * The Times *From the first page of this dazzling debut novel, you are pitched into a sumptuously detailed adventure set in the bustle and swagger of 18th century London… The result is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novel, its brilliantly drawn characters driven by heady and dangerous desires.***** * Sunday Express *Roll up, roll up, a true wonder is on display: a mermaid magicked out of words. The author of this debut set in Georgian London gulled me, by the zest of her writing and sustained authorial slight of hand, into forgetting for a second that they do not exist... Imogen Hermes Gowar delights in the feminine fakery of mermaids, but as a writer she is the real deal. -- Hermione Eyre, author of Viper Wine * Guardian *A sumptuous historical novel... It was an absolute pleasure to lose myself in this beautifully written Georgian adventureHotly anticipated... a bold, sumptuous doorstopper... Gowar has created a dazzlingly original novel, full of heady pleasures and shot through with the kind of irreverent humour you might expect to find in Georgian London. She’s succeeded in creating a fully-realised world that you want to get lost in. But what’s most refreshing is that she gives all the best lines to women. * Evening Standard *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing Killing Commendatore
Book SynopsisWe all live our lives carrying secrets we cannot disclose. 'Beguiling... Murakami is brilliant at folding the humdrum alongside the supernatural; finding the magic that's nested in life's quotidian details' GuardianWhen a thirty-something portrait painter is abandoned by his wife, he holes up in the mountain home of a famous artist. The days drift by, spent painting, listening to music and drinking whiskey in the evenings. But then he discovers a strange painting in the attic and unintentionally begins a strange journey of self-discovery that involves a mysterious ringing bell, a precocious thirteen-year-old girl, a Nazi assassination attempt and a haunted underworld.A stunning work of imagination, Killing Commendatore is a surreal tale of love and loneliness, war and art.Trade ReviewIt’s safe to say that there’s no one like Murakami * Literary Review *Murakami’s reality has many sides; some plain, some fancy. Translators Philip Gabriel and Ted Goossen capture every colour on this mind-altering palette. No other author mixes domestic, fantastic and esoteric elements into such weirdly bewitching shades. Murakami’s “Land of Metaphor” remains a country where wonders never cease -- Boyd Tonkin * Financial Times *Wild, thrilling. . . Murakami is a master storyteller and he knows how to keep us hooked * Sunday Times *Exhilarating. . . . Only in the calm madness of his magical realism can Murakami truly capture one of his obsessions, the usually ineffable yearning that drives a person to make art * Washington Post *Expansive and intricate . . . touches on many of the themes familiar in Mr. Murakami’s novels: the mystery of romantic love, the weight of history, the transcendence of art, the search for elusive things just outside our grasp * New York Times *
£10.44
Vintage Publishing The Master and Margarita (Vintage Classic
Book SynopsisA masterpiece - a classic of twentieth-century fiction' New York Times Bulgakov paints a powerful picture of Stalin's regime in this allegorical classic. The devil makes a personal appearance in Moscow accompanied by various demons, including a naked girl and a huge black cat. When he leaves, the asylums are full and the forces of law and order are in disarray. Only the Master, a man devoted to truth, and Margarita, the woman he loves, can resist the devil's onslaught. VINTAGE CLASSICS RUSSIAN SERIES - sumptuous editions of the greatest books to come out of Russia during the most tumultuous period in its history.Trade ReviewThis book is absorbing, brilliant slapstick, and looks deep in to the heart of fantasy and longing * Sunday Times *Stunning, superb...Bulgakov is one of the greatest Russian writers, perhaps the greatest * Independent *A masterpiece - a classic of twentieth-century fiction * New York Times *
£11.69
Vintage Publishing The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (Vintage Classics
Book SynopsisEnter the surreal and enchanting world of Haruki Murakami. Toru Okada's cat has disappeared. His wife is growing more distant every day. Then there are the increasingly explicit telephone calls he has recently been receiving. As this compelling story unfolds, the tidy suburban realities of Okada's vague and blameless life, spent cooking, reading, listening to jazz and opera and drinking beer at the kitchen table, are turned inside out. He embarks on a bizarre journey, guided by a succession of characters, each with a tale to tell. 'Mesmerising, surreal, this really is the work of a true original' The Times VINTAGE JAPANESE CLASSICS series - five masterpieces of Japanese fiction in gorgeous new gift editions.Trade ReviewDeeply philosophical and teasingly perplexing, it is impossible to put down * Daily Telegraph *Visionary...a bold and generous book * New York Times *Critics have variously likened him to Raymond Carver, Raymond Chandler, Arthur C. Clarke, Don DeLillo, Philip K. Dick, Bret Easton Ellis and Thomas Pynchon - a roster so ill assorted as to suggest Murakami is in fact an original * New York Times *Murakami writes of contemporary Japan, urban alienation and journey's of self-discovery, and in this book he combines recollections of the war with metaphysics, dreams and hallucinations into a powerful and impressionistic work * Independent *Mesmerising, surreal, this really is the work of a true original * The Times *
£11.69
Vintage Publishing The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
Book SynopsisA special hardback edition of Murakami's epic, magical masterpiece, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, now with a new introduction from the authorToru Okada's cat has disappeared.His wife is growing more distant every day.Then there are the increasingly explicit telephone calls he has recently been receiving.As this compelling story unfolds, the tidy suburban realities of Okada's vague and blameless life, spent cooking, reading, listening to jazz and opera and drinking beer at the kitchen table, are turned inside out, and he embarks on a bizarre journey, guided (however obscurely) by a succession of characters, each with a tale to tell.'Visionary...a bold and generous book' New York Times'Mesmerising, surreal, this really is the work of a true original' The TimesTrade ReviewMurakami writes of contemporary Japan, urban alienation and journeys of self-discovery, and in this book he combines recollections of the war with metaphysics, dreams and hallucinations into a powerful and impressionistic work * Independent *Deeply philosophical and teasingly perplexing, it is impossible to put down * Daily Telegraph *Murakami weaves these textured layers of reality into a shot-silk garment of deceptive beauty * Independent on Sunday *Critics have variously likened him to Raymond Carver, Raymond Chandler, Arthur C. Clarke, Don DeLillo, Philip K. Dick, Bret Easton Ellis and Thomas Pynchon - a roster so ill assorted as to suggest Murakami is in fact an original * New York Times *Mesmerising, surreal, this really is the work of a true original * The Times *
£17.00
Vintage Publishing Cereus Blooms at Night: The Booker-Longlisted
Book SynopsisEVERYONE THINKS MALA IS A MURDERER'A Caribbean classic' Monique Roffey, author of The Mermaid of Black Conch-------Everyone in Paradise thinks Mala Ramchandin is a murderer. But with no body, no evidence and no witnesses, Mala is sent to an Alms House as a madwoman instead of prison. Here she meets Tyler, the only openly queer person on the island of Lantanacamara with whom she feels an affinity as an outsider. Despite Mala's muteness, she manages to communicate with Tyler about her missing sister, Asha.This is Mala's story, and an appeal to find Asha, told in Tyler's words. He dives deeply into Mala's family history, uncovering years of trauma passed down through generations and - staggeringly, beautifully - the love that has survived through it all.With an introduction by Ingrid Persaud.'Visceral, sensual and heartbreakingly tender' Ayanna Lloyd Banwo, author of When We Were Birds'A story of magical power' Alice Munro, author of Dear Life'Will remind many readers of Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things' Kirkus'Clearly ahead of its time' BooksellerFINALIST FOR THE GILLER PRIZEFINALIST FOR THE ETHEL WILSON FICTION PRIZELONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZETrade Review'A novel about otherness, queerness, and hidden domestic crimes, Shani Mootoo was writing well ahead of her peers around taboo subjects. Cereus Blooms at Night is of Trinidad's finest novels, a portrait of how things really are on an island where there's been so much past hurt. A Caribbean classic' -- Monique Roffey * author of THE MERMAID OF BLACK CONCH *'Visceral, sensual and heartbreakingly tender, Cereus Blooms at Night is that rare book which is not only critically acclaimed but has the devoted following of a cult classic. A generation of us in the Caribbean have held it close and pressed it into the hands and hearts of fellow readers knowing that it may never be returned, so strong was our desire to have others share in its wonder. It changed me, utterly, the first time I read it and there have been echoes of Mala Ramchandin and her teeming, crumbling house in everything I have written or tried to write since' -- Ayanna Lloyd Banwo * author of WHEN WE WERE BIRDS *'A story of magical power' -- Alice Munro * author of DEAR LIFE *'Vigorously inventive prose... The sinuous unwinding of Mootoo's clever plot will remind many readers of Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things' * Kirkus *'My first experience of reading this novel was at university. Revisiting it, the novel was clearly ahead of its time, dealing with the complex issues of racial identity, diaspora, colonialism, desire and trauma' * Bookseller *
£9.49
Vintage Publishing A Wild Sheep Chase: the surreal, breakout
Book SynopsisA beautifully packaged hardback edition of Haruki Murakami's brilliantly surreal, detective-story classic, now with a new introduction by the author.The man was leading an aimless life, time passing, one big blank. His girlfriend has perfectly formed ears, ears with the power to bewitch, marvels of creation. The man receives a letter from a friend, enclosing a seemingly innocent photograph of sheep, and a request: place the photograph somewhere it will be seen.Then, one September afternoon, the phone rings, and the adventure begins. Welcome to the wild sheep chase.'Murakami's style and imagination are closer to that of Kurt Vonnegut, Raymond Carver and John Irving' New York TimesTrade ReviewWonderfully easy to read and just as wonderfully difficult to make sense of...like the narrator, who slowly accepts the presence in his life of mystery, we slowly recognize the possibility of a new kind of world. Like him, we lean forward and topple headlong into magic * Washington Post *It begins as a detective novel, dips into a screwball comedy, and at its close becomes a tale of possession...A highly accomplished piece of craftsmanship * New Yorker *Mr. Murakami's style and imagination are closer to that of Kurt Vonnegut, Raymond Carver and John Irving * New York Times *A Wild Sheep Chase has the conventional hull of a thriller - a quest, a mystery, an extraordinary woman, and plenty of elegant duress - but its fantastic superstructure transforms it into something quite different...a science fiction fantasy, a romance, a metaphysical tease, or a dramatisation of philosophical ideas * Independent *If you consider yourself an intelligent, sensitive common reader but wish to accommodate something a little removed from your experience, and probably your imagination, I dare you to turn your eyes towards Murakami and head off on a wild sheep chase. * Glasgow Herald *
£17.00
Legend Press Ltd The Blackbird Singularity
Book Synopsis
£8.54
Cornerstone Killing Commendatore
Book SynopsisThe epic new novel from the internationally acclaimed and best-selling author of 1Q84.In Killing Commendatore, a thirty-something portrait painter in Tokyo is abandoned by his wife and finds himself holed up in the mountain home of a famous artist, Tomohiko Amada. When he discovers a strange painting in the attic, he unintentionally opens a circle of mysterious circumstances. To close it, he must complete a journey that involves a mysterious ringing bell, a two-foot-high physical manifestation of an Idea, a dapper businessman who lives across the valley, a precocious thirteen-year-old girl, a Nazi assassination attempt during World War II in Vienna, a pit in the woods behind the artist’s home, and an underworld haunted by Double Metaphors.A tour de force of love and loneliness, war and art – as well as a loving homage to The Great Gatsby – Killing Commendatore is a stunning work of imagination from one of our greatest writers.Trade ReviewIt’s safe to say that there’s no one like Murakami * Literary Review *Murakami’s reality has many sides; some plain, some fancy. Translators Philip Gabriel and Ted Goossen capture every colour on this mind-altering palette. No other author mixes domestic, fantastic and esoteric elements into such weirdly bewitching shades. Murakami’s “Land of Metaphor” remains a country where wonders never cease -- Boyd Tonkin * Financial Times *Wild, thrilling. . . Murakami is a master storyteller and he knows how to keep us hooked * Sunday Times *Exhilarating. . . . Only in the calm madness of his magical realism can Murakami truly capture one of his obsessions, the usually ineffable yearning that drives a person to make art * Washington Post *Expansive and intricate . . . touches on many of the themes familiar in Mr. Murakami’s novels: the mystery of romantic love, the weight of history, the transcendence of art, the search for elusive things just outside our grasp * New York Times *
£27.00
Rebellion Publishing Ltd. The Liar of Red Valley
Book SynopsisDon’t trust the Liar.Do not cross the King.Never, ever go in the River.In Red Valley, California, you follow the rules if you want to stay alive. But they won’t be enough to protect Sadie now that she’s become the Liar, the keeper of the town’s many secrets. Friendships are hard-won here, and it isn’t safe to make enemies.And though the Liar has power — power to remake the world, with just a little blood—what Sadie really needs is answers: Why is the town’s sheriff after her? What does the King want from her? And what is the real purpose of the Liar of Red Valley?Trade Review "Chilling monsters, excellent interiority, and shocking twists" -- Publishers Weekly * Publishers Weekly *"If you like stories of ordinary (and, okay, a little bit extraordinary) people up against supernatural forces, then The Liar of Red Valley comes heartily recommended." * Starburst Magazine *"Thoroughly engrossing and with relentless pace, The Liar of Red Valley takes the reader through unexpected plot twists and false turns towards a surprising and dramatic endgame." -- Apple Books * Apple Books *"A ferocious page-turner that elicits genuine chills" -- SFX Magazine * SFX *"Goodwater is one of [the genre's] finest modern exponents" -- Simon Ings, The Times -- Simon Ings * The Times *"The Liar of Red Valley has everything — a little town hiding secrets, an exciting story and creepy creatures galore." -- Lavie Tidhar, The Washington Post * The Washington Post *
£10.78
Canongate Books Things in Jars
Book SynopsisLondon, 1863. Bridie Devine, the finest female detective of her age, is taking on her toughest case yet. Reeling from her last job and with her reputation in tatters, a remarkable puzzle has come her way. Christabel Berwick has been kidnapped. But Christabel is no ordinary child. She is not supposed to exist.As Bridie fights to recover the stolen child she enters a world of fanatical anatomists, crooked surgeons and mercenary showmen. Anomalies are in fashion, curiosities are the thing, and fortunes are won and lost in the name of entertainment. The public love a spectacle and Christabel may well prove the most remarkable spectacle London has ever seen.Things in Jars is an enchanting Victorian detective novel that explores what it is to be human in inhumane times.Trade ReviewI loved Himself and The Hoarder but this book takes things to another level - thrilling, mysterious, twisted but more than anything, beautifully written and filled to bursting point with heart -- GRAHAM NORTONThis unusual Victorian detective tale is hugely satisfying and beautifully written . . . Kidd gives the world what is instantly one of fiction's great spectral double acts * * The Times * *Jess Kidd's stories are so magical, she should be a genre all to herself . . . Things in Jars is exquisite. Perfect storytelling -- JOANNA CANNON, author of THE TROUBLE WITH GOATS AND SHEEPThis pacy piece of Victorian crime fiction delivers chills galore . . . done with panache . . . Her imagination runs wild, in tightly controlled prose. Her concision makes the book feel like a high-pressure jar * * Guardian * *A twisting, precis-defying plot . . . Arresting, funny and well-written * * Sunday Times * *An extraordinary tale full of dark magic, wicked humour and hugely entertaining characters. An absolute treat! -- RUTH HOGAN, author of THE KEEPER OF LOST THINGSKidd writes prose that is full to the brim with life, and overflowing. Victorian London is rendered lavishly in all its stench and glory . . . Features the most endearing of heroines . . . Kidd excels at atmospheric description . . . Kidd's sentences contain so much delight in the language, whether conveying brutality or rescue and repair, that there are frequent jolts of pleasure for the reader . . . Revel in the rich, wild text * * Financial Times * *A masterclass in storytelling. One of those books that truly does make you laugh out loud, that shakes and remakes what you think a story can be. It's rare to find a book so satisfying -- KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVEJess Kidd writes gorgeously Gothic novels in the kind of prose that makes you sigh with its loveliness, as a cast of charismatic characters venture into extraordinary situations . . . A terrifically imaginative writer . . . There's danger aplenty, wistful love and longing, unstinting friendship and the kind of writing that offers something to cherish on every page. Utterly unique, entirely beguiling * * Sunday Express * *Bridie is a marvellous creation, imbued with a deeply romantic spirit, and the words used to describe her are often beautiful and inspired. This book has a rare attraction . . . Kidd has a brilliant imagination and she's fearless in her use of it: her no. 1 job as writer seems to be to astonish the reader, and she certainly does that * * Spectator * *
£13.49
Canongate Books Sharks in the Time of Saviours
Book Synopsis'As vivid as it is splendid' New York Times'Beautifully written and completely absorbing' Sarah Moss, GuardianA BARACK OBAMA BOOK OF THE YEARWINNER OF THE PEN/HEMINGWAY AWARD FOR DEBUT NOVEL and SHORTLISTED FOR THE KITSCHIES GOLD TENTACLE AWARDA BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR in the NEW YORK TIMES, GUARDIAN, IRISH TIMES, OPRAH MAGAZINE and BBC CULTUREAt seven years old, Nainoa falls into the sea and a shark takes him in its jaws - only to return him, unharmed, to his parents. For the next thirty years Noa and his siblings struggle with life in the shadow of this miracle.Sharks in the Time of Saviours is a brilliantly original and inventive novel, the sweeping story of a family living in poverty among the remnants of Hawai'i's mythic past and the wreckage of the American dream.Trade ReviewThe novel you never knew you were waiting for. Old myths clash with new realities, love is in a ride or die with grief, faith rubs hard against magic, and comic flips with tragic so much they meld into something new. All told with daredevil lyricism to burn. A ferocious debut -- MARLON JAMESSharks in the Time of Saviours is a brilliant novel and one of the most engaging and memorable books I've read this year. Sentences sparkle, the narrative voices remain distinctive and complete, and the deep notes of magic sound under the realism of poverty and loss. I didn't want it to end -- SARAH MOSSAs vivid as it is splendid . . . This may be his debut, but he proves himself an old hand at dissecting the ways in which places - our connections to them, our disconnections from them - break us and remake us . . . With prose that can be breathy and sweaty in one paragraph before gliding softly and tenderly into the next, this passionate writer cries out for us to see Hawaii in its totality: as a place of proud ancestors and gods and spirits, but also of crumbling families and hopelessness and poverty. Of mystery and beauty at every corner -- IMBOLO MBUE * * New York Times * *Sharks in the Time of Saviours bursts with life. It is bright and beautifully noisy. It's so good it hurts and hurts to where it heals. It is revelatory and unputdownable. Washburn is an extraordinarily brilliant new talent. This family saga is shark tooth sharp. Its pages shoot off crackles and sparks, and you come out of it changed. It is sublime -- TOMMY ORANGE, author of THERE, THEREAdjusted my understanding of the world . . . Beautifully written and completely absorbing -- Sarah Moss * * Guardian * *[Hawai'i's] ancient history and lush natural beauty pulses through the book. Washburn is an assured and agile stylist, creating a unique and urgent voice for each member of the family . . . An electrifying, heart-wrenching exploration of how life, hope and goodness persist in the aftermath of loss * * Daily Mail * *Radiant . . . Immediately grips you in its jaws, plunges you into Hawaiian waters, and finally releases you, breathless and changed . . . There's something bewitching, too, in Washburn's prose - the furious, lively spell of it * * O, The Oprah Magazine * *Epic in scope, it throbs with magic realism and urban misery . . . [Written with] style and swagger . . . Told with such loquacious vigour that the reader is swept along, utterly rapt. It marks Washburn out as a writer with talent to burn * * i * *A beautifully written debut novel * * Vogue * *Mixes hardscrabble Hawaiian reality with flights of wonder and the supernatural in a way that is wholly original * * Vanity Fair * *
£9.49
Canongate Books Himself
Book SynopsisA BBC Radio 2 Book Club Choice Shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards 2016Shortlisted for the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award 2017Longlisted for the John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger 20171950. A teenage girl is brutally murdered in a forest. But, somehow, her baby survives.1976. A mysterious and charming young man returns to the remote coastal village of Mulderrig, seeking answers about the mother who, it was said, had abandoned him on the steps of a Dublin orphanage.With the help of its oldest and most eccentric inhabitant, he will force the village to give up its ghosts. Nothing, not even the dead, can stay buried forever.Trade ReviewKidd's brilliantly bold debut mixes up murder and mayhem with the eerily supernatural. It's a tender, violent and funny story told in prose that is lyrical, lush and hugely imaginative. Utterly unputdownable * * Sunday Express * *Diabolical deeds, ferociously kept secrets, black humour and magical realism abound in Jess Kidd's richly textured, thronging debut . . . Kidd has imagination to die for and a real command of plot and character * * Guardian * *Wonderfully entertaining . . . the ghosts are not the main attraction in this delightful first novel; it is also a detective story, in which Mahony and Mrs C make an unlikely Holmes and Watson * * The Times * *A genuinely intriguing mystery, with moments of real tenderness . . . otherworldly and wonderfully original * * Stylist * *Very funny, very profound, very moving . . . One of the finest books of the year -- SIMON MAYO * * BBC Radio 2 Book Club * *[Kidd] has imagination to spare. The forest feels alive at times. There is magic in the air . . . As a noirish thriller with a supernatural edge, Himself is atmospheric and intriguing. As a portrait of village hypocrisy and the dark things that lurk beneath the surface, it's also compelling * * Observer * *An intriguing story of family secrets and haunting -- ANDREW MICHAEL HURLEY, author of The LoneyThis striking literary debut is a darkly comic tale of murder, intrigue, haunting and illegitimacy . . . wickedly funny * * Daily Express * *I love this book. It's a magic realist murder mystery set in rural Ireland, in which the dead play as important a part as the living. It's one of those books that has you smiling as you read, and that you plan to read again very soon. -- LOUIS DE BERNIÈRES, author of Captain Corelli's MandolinIn lyrical prose that is by turns touchingly tender and violent, Kidd's brilliantly bold debut mixes murder and mayhem with the eerily supernatural, and throws in a dash of laugh-out-loud humour for good measure * * Psychologies * *
£8.54
Europa Editions (UK) Ltd Beautiful
Book Synopsis“Massimo Cuomo’s writing, not the protagonist’s beauty, is what’s truly wonderful about this book.” - Coooperazione “Intense, engaging, psychologically deep. Beautiful lives up to its title.” - Ex Libris “With this Márquezian novel Massimo Cuomo outdid himself.” - Corriere del Veneto A magical tale of love and rivalry between two brothers. Miguel is beautiful. His beauty is so rare and miraculous that it has made him the object of cult-like devotion in the city. Santiago, his older brother, watches with a mix of admiration and disquiet the prodigious effect that Miguel’s looks have on his mother and father, on passersby, their neighbours, and the droves of female suitors that follow him everywhere. With Miguel constantly under the spotlight, Santiago is left to inhabit darker, hidden places, from where he will finally learn that life is not easy for anyone, even his prodigiously handsome brother. Set in Mexico, this story shines at every turn with the colours and mythical light of magical realism. The conflict between brothers, the role of the parents, the loves, the violence, the journeys are presented with realism and deep psychological insight yet possess an aura of legend. Disappointments, flights, regrets, reunions, goodbyes, epiphanies make up this story, as we follow the two brothers, and the people around them—all forever marked, each in their own way, by their extraordinary encounter with Beauty. “In contemporary Italian literature, never has the theme of the close-knit yet ambivalent relationship between two brothers been addressed with such clarity, depth, and ability to bring to light the conflict raging within each soul.” - AvvenireTrade Review“A book to be savoured.” * Sololibri *“Truly beautiful.” * Il Manifesto *“The surrealism of the best of magic realism within the frame of a bildungsroman.” * Gioia *“A tale à deux, told by Cuomo with great tenderness, sorrow, and emotion.” * La Nuova Venezia *
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Thief On the Winged Horse
Book SynopsisA dazzling mixture of crime, romance, magic and myth from the author of the bestselling The Psychology of Time Travel. The Kendricks have been making world-famous dolls for over 200 years. But their dolls aren't coveted for the craftmanship alone. Each has an emotion laid on it; a magic that can provoke bucolic bliss or consuming paranoia at a single touch. Persephone Kendrick longs to learn her ancestors' craft, but only men may know the secrets of the workshop. So when a handsome stranger arrives claiming doll-making talent and blood ties to the family she sees a chance to grasp all she desires. But then, one night, the firm's most valuable doll is stolen. Only someone with knowledge of magic could have taken her. Only a Kendrick could have committed this crime... 'Captivating, inventive and tender' ADELE PARKS 'An atmospheric examination of gender inequality' GUARDIAN 'A magical tale that blends very human people with a hidden world of enchantment' WOMAN & HOME 'An addictive fantasy with a smart feminist twist' iNEWSTrade ReviewBringing magic realism to a contemporary Oxford setting in an atmospheric examination of gender inequality * Guardian *Mascarenhas's lushly inventive second novel is an addictive fantasy with a smart feminist twist * iNews *Captivating, inventive and tender... A dazzling mix of crime, romance, magic and myth' -- Adele ParksThis magical tale blends very human people with a hidden world of enchantment * Woman *[A] vividly imagined second novel * The i *I adored this beautifully crafted and thought-provoking magic realist novel... Multi-faceted, challenging, and entirely captivating... A truly lovely read' * LoveReading *There's a wonderful sense of magic and tradition, but the story as a whole has a very contemporary feel * Waterstones *[A] dazzling mixture of crime, romance, magic and myth... Captivating, inventive and tender' * Platinum *Kate Mascarenhas' striking visual images and characters will have you casting the movie whilst reading... This is simply a great and original tale that put me in mind of such as Stardust by Neil Gaiman. The magic lingers along with the family issues. The ending is surprising and clever and I look forward to more by Kate Mascarenhas' * SF Crowsnest *
£8.54
Independently Published The Complete Book of Dzi Beads
Book Synopsis
£37.02
Simon & Schuster Audio Gwendy's Final Task
Book Synopsis
£22.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Every Leaf a Hallelujah
Book SynopsisA Guardian Children's Book of the Year An environmental fairytale made for our times, written to be read by adults and children, from the Booker Prize-winning author of The Famished Road. In the forest near Mangoshi's village in Africa there grows a very special flower. Mangoshi knows that only this flower can save her mother's life. It can save her village too. All she has to do is find it. Ben Okri and Diana Ejaita have created a magical world of beauty and colour, an enchanting array of extraordinary trees, each with its own personality and voice. The chief among them, the great baobab, invites us into his branches to travel the world and see for ourselves the perils of not listening to nature. All around us, forests are vanishing, and no one is listening. 'It was a sheer joy to be able to read this. It is mysterious and magical and true. Children and those who read it to them will love it and long remember it. The illustrations are woven wonderfully around the words; the trees are with you, telling it, writing it. Once read we will know never to take trees or leaves for granted again. A powerful symphony of a story that will resonate for every reader. We hear the wind in the trees on every page. We only have to listen' MICHAEL MORPURGOTrade ReviewA love letter to nature and trees... Evocatively illustrated' * The Big Issue North *All the authority of an established folk tale * Observer *A beautifully lyrical kids' fable by the Booker Prize winner about the importance of the natural world with vibrant artwork form Diana Ejaita * The Sun *This meditative environmental fairytale conveys a sense of humanity's deep reliance on the natural world * Guardian *A vivid tale ... Okri can distil language to its essence, which makes him an ideal children's writer. Written in clear prose form, his sentences have a careful simplicity, but not at the expense of eloquent writing ... Okri speaks directly and with passion, but without loosening his grip on hope ... Every Leaf a Hallelujah is made more enchanting by Diana Ejaita's illustrations ... She decorates the narrative with bold, colourful prints, evocative of Matisse's cut-outs and the bright textile traditions of Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal * Financial Times *
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The World Doesn't Require You
Book SynopsisWelcome to Cross River, Maryland. Established by the leaders of the country's only successful slave revolt in the mid-nineteenth century, its residents thump out a beat that echoes its violent founding. Among them – spanning decades, perspectives, and species – are David Sherman, a struggling musician who just happens to be God's last son; Tyrone, a ruthless Ph.D student channelling the insurrections of his forebears through a childhood game; Jim, a Robot Personal Helper desperate to escape the master who enslaves him; and James-my-man, who travels the path of the Underground Railroad year after year.Not to forget the water women who lure men to their watery graves and the screecher birds who cry out for sacrificial flesh...Contemporary and essential, The World Doesn't Require You announces the arrival of a generational talent, as Rion Amilcar Scott shatters rigid genre lines to explore larger themes of race, violence, and love – all told with sly humour and a dash of magical realism.PRAISE FOR THE WORLD DOESN'T REQUIRE YOU: 'I wandered into Cross River, not knowing a damn thing. Now I'm shuddering, gasping in wonder, reading stories over and over, and doing just about anything so that I never leave' MARLON JAMES'A musical and visceral explosion. The book makes you laugh even as it stabs. The truth told in a completely new way' NANA KWAME ADJEI-BRENYAH'Flat-out unputdownable' LAURA VAN DEN BERG'Rion Amilcar Scott doesn't hold back or tiptoe around issues about race. He's the most courageous writer I know; and this collection is an excellent example and significant achievement. He's now made his mark as a force to reckon with' NICOLE DENNIS-BENN'Surreal, intertextual, and darkly comical ... With breathtaking cruelty and devastating humor, Scott adduces the whole world in one community' NAFISSA THOMPSON-SPIRESTrade Review'Rion Amilcar Scott proves himself an impressive myth-slayer and fable-maker ... The World Doesn't Require You reminds us that having to fight racism has a strange way of distorting everything one touches' New York Times Book Review.'A rich, genre-splicing mix of alternate history, magical realism and satire that interrogates issues of race, sexism and where both meet here in the real world' Los Angeles Times.'Bizarre, tender and brilliantly imagined, The World Doesn't Require You isn't just one of the most inventive books of the year, it's also one of the best' NPR.'A bleak and beautiful collection of short stories ... Scott demonstrates the skill and long-range vision of a writer we need right now. The World Doesn't Require You requires a commitment from readers, one that will be greatly repaid in literary satisfaction' USA TODAY.'Surreal, intertextual, and darkly comical stories ... Rion Amilcar Scott writes in the tradition of George Schuyler and Ishmael Reed but with a distinctive wry, playful voice that is wholly his own. With breathtaking cruelty and devastating humor, Scott adduces the whole world in one community' Nafissa Thompson-Spires, author of Heads of the Colored People.'I wandered into Cross River, not knowing a damn thing. Now I'm shuddering, gasping in wonder, reading stories over and over, and doing just about anything so that I never leave' Marlon James, Booker Prize-winning author of A History of Seven Killings.'A musical and visceral explosion. The book makes you laugh even as it stabs. The truth told in a completely new way' Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, author of Friday Black.'A bold new talent emerges with this boundary-shattering collection' Esquire.'Scott joins a growing tradition of African-American authors fusing the folksy dystopian humor of George Saunders with the charged satire of Ishmael Reed and expands on it brilliantly' New York magazine.'God may have forsaken [these characters], Scott does not. The World Doesn't Require You is full of horrible, ridiculous people, but it's full of grace, too' A.V. Club.'A major unique literary talent' Entertainment Weekly.'Flat-out unputdownable' Laura van den Berg, author of The Third Hotel.'Rion Amilcar Scott doesn't hold back or tiptoe around issues about race. He's the most courageous writer I know; and this collection is an excellent example and significant achievement. He's now made his mark as a force to reckon with' Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Patsy.'Powerful and revelatory' Salon.'Weaves incisive criticism, dark humor, and magical realism in profound explorations of belief, love, justice, and violence' BuzzFeed.'We have so far to go and so little time to get there, Scott seems to say. Maybe spending a few hours in Cross River will help build a bridge. Or blow one up, if need be' Washington Post.'An 'impressive myth-slayer' ... [Scott] shows that 'sidelining' white racist characters doesn't erase the effects of slavery' New York Times Sunday.'Thought-provoking tales that will flow from page to page, steeped in abstract mysticism' Bad Form Review.'Threading together tales of adrenaline, violence and rhythm, American writer Rion Amilcar Scott presents a stunning narrative that bestows its shine from its sharp edges ... The World Doesn't Require You reminds us of the fruitful space between the surreal, the horrific and the run-of-the-mill. Rion Amilcar Scott is a writer that we will continue to expect great things from' Glass.
£12.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The World Doesn't Require You
Book SynopsisWelcome to Cross River, Maryland. Established by the leaders of the country's only successful slave revolt, history casts a long shadow over its residents. Among them are David Sherman, a struggling musician who just happens to be the last son of God; Jim, a Robot Personal Helper desperate to escape the master who enslaves him; and James-my-man, who travels the path of the Underground Railroad year after year.Not to forget the water women who lure men to their watery graves and the screecher birds who cry out for sacrificial flesh... PRAISE FOR THE WORLD DOESN'T REQUIRE YOU: 'I wandered into Cross River, not knowing a damn thing. Now I'm shuddering, gasping in wonder, reading stories over and over, and doing just about anything so that I never leave' MARLON JAMES 'A musical and visceral explosion. The book makes you laugh even as it stabs. The truth told in a completely new way' NANA KWAME ADJEI-BRENYAH 'Flat-out unputdownable' LAURA VAN DEN BERG 'Rion Amilcar Scott doesn't hold back or tiptoe around issues about race. He's the most courageous writer I know; and this collection is an excellent example and significant achievement. He's now made his mark as a force to reckon with' NICOLE DENNIS-BENN 'Surreal, intertextual, and darkly comical... With breathtaking cruelty and devastating humor, Scott adduces the whole world in one community' NAFISSA THOMPSON-SPIRESTrade ReviewRion Amilcar Scott proves himself an impressive myth-slayer and fable-maker... The World Doesn't Require You reminds us that having to fight racism has a strange way of distorting everything one touches' * New York Times Book Review *A rich, genre-splicing mix of alternate history, magical realism and satire that interrogates issues of race, sexism and where both meet here in the real world * Los Angeles Times *Bizarre, tender and brilliantly imagined, The World Doesn't Require You isn't just one of the most inventive books of the year, it's also one of the best * NPR *A bleak and beautiful collection of short stories... Scott demonstrates the skill and long-range vision of a writer we need right now. The World Doesn't Require You requires a commitment from readers, one that will be greatly repaid in literary satisfaction' * USA TODAY *Surreal, intertextual, and darkly comical stories... Rion Amilcar Scott writes in the tradition of George Schuyler and Ishmael Reed but with a distinctive wry, playful voice that is wholly his own. With breathtaking cruelty and devastating humor, Scott adduces the whole world in one community' -- Nafissa Thompson-Spires, author of Heads of the Colored PeopleI wandered into Cross River, not knowing a damn thing. Now I'm shuddering, gasping in wonder, reading stories over and over, and doing just about anything so that I never leave -- Marlon James, Booker Prize-winning author of A History of Seven KillingsA musical and visceral explosion. The book makes you laugh even as it stabs. The truth told in a completely new way -- Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, author of Friday BlackA bold new talent emerges with this boundary-shattering collection * Esquire *Scott joins a growing tradition of African-American authors fusing the folksy dystopian humor of George Saunders with the charged satire of Ishmael Reed and expands on it brilliantly * New York magazine. *God may have forsaken [these characters], Scott does not. The World Doesn't Require You is full of horrible, ridiculous people, but it's full of grace, too * A.V. Club. *A major unique literary talent * Entertainment Weekly *Flat-out unputdownable -- Laura van den Berg, author of The Third HotelRion Amilcar Scott doesn't hold back or tiptoe around issues about race. He's the most courageous writer I know; and this collection is an excellent example and significant achievement. He's now made his mark as a force to reckon with -- Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of PatsyPowerful and revelatory * Salon *Weaves incisive criticism, dark humor, and magical realism in profound explorations of belief, love, justice, and violence * BuzzFeed *We have so far to go and so little time to get there, Scott seems to say. Maybe spending a few hours in Cross River will help build a bridge. Or blow one up, if need be * Washington Post *An 'impressive myth-slayer'... [Scott] shows that 'sidelining' white racist characters doesn't erase the effects of slavery' * New York Times Sunday *Thought-provoking tales that will flow from page to page, steeped in abstract mysticism * Bad Form Review *Threading together tales of adrenaline, violence and rhythm, American writer Rion Amilcar Scott presents a stunning narrative that bestows its shine from its sharp edges... The World Doesn't Require You reminds us of the fruitful space between the surreal, the horrific and the run-of-the-mill. Rion Amilcar Scott is a writer that we will continue to expect great things from' * Glass *
£9.49
Troubador Publishing I’ll Weave a Song for You
Book SynopsisShe holds the verse in the palm of her hand and tells a story she died in. When Megan dies, she leaves a promise with her twin Emily: ‘I’ll weave a song for you…it may take a while, but I’ll come back to you Em, somehow’. Her song threads a tapestry, spinning through a mosaic of memories and weaving into the present day, touching the lives of Alice and Jon. The Café by the Oak is in the heart of Crayshead, a Cornish seaside town with a sleepy tortoise, a vocal parrot, and a dog named Wellington. Emily is charmed by Alice, an old lady with secrets hidden behind the walls of a convent. Jon’s life lacks purpose. After taking up a new teaching post he feels settled enough to begin unravelling his past, but when he finds something he isn’t looking for it causes him to question everything. Emily seeks comfort in her art, reflecting on her childhood, and helping Jon pursue his past. And as Alice slowly reveals her secret, Emily breathes life into a painting on canvas… Can Megan weave a song without leaving them all with a sense of betrayal?
£9.49
Troubador Publishing Marigold’s Tale: Book 2 of the Lonely Island
Book SynopsisFor the first nine years of her life, she was held in modern day slavery. She saw violence, she knew cold and hunger, she experienced the death of those close to her. It was no life for a child. And now she is free. But freedom isn’t so easy to adapt to, and there is so much to learn about life, about friendship, about being loved and valued. Nor can those first years of her life be easily forgotten. There is grieving to do, there are ghosts to be exorcised. Marigold is a quaint mix of wisdom and naivety, a child who has seen too much, but not enough. That she could not settle easily is not surprising, but nobody expected her to run away. Nor is it clear that the man who finds her can be trusted.
£9.50
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Not Even God is Ripe Enough
Book SynopsisCollected by Yoruba poet Bakare Gbadamosi and scholar Ulli Beier, Not Even God Is Ripe Enough is a mesmerising collection of traditional oral stories and lighthearted Yoruba fables. Including stories such as 'Kindness won't kill you but it can give you a lot of worries', 'He who shits on the road will meet flies on his return' and 'You can fool others but can you fool yourself?' Not Even God is Ripe Enough is a wide-ranging selection of amusing Yoruba proverbs and tales of magical realism. From bizarre stories of talking animals to wise parables passed down from generation to generation, these stories are full of surprising twists, humour, and the surreal.
£12.34
New Generation Publishing Felix Unbound - new edition
Book Synopsis
£10.79
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC White Cat, Black Dog
Book SynopsisSeven modern fairytales from Pulitzer Prize finalist Kelly Link, featuring illustrations by award-winning artist Shaun Tan. Leaving behind the enchanted castles, deep, dark woods and gingerbread cottages of fairytales for airport waiting rooms, alien planets and a cannabis farm run by a team of hospitable cats, White Cat, Black Dog offers a fresh take on the stories that you thought you knew. Here you’ll find stoner students, failing actors and stranded professors questing for love, revenge or even just a sense of purpose. Poised on the edges between magic, modernity and mundanity, this collection will remind you once again of why Kelly Link is incomparable in the realm of short fiction. Don’t stray from the path! Not without Kelly Link as your guide. 'Uncanny brilliance' Sunday Times 'An expert illusionist' New Yorker 'Link is a genius' LA Times 'Thrilling... glittering' Spectator 'A short story sorceress' Washington Post 'Joyful... awe-inspiring' Jessamine Chan 'Contains all the good stuff' Bustle 'Magically transporting' Salon 'Wonderfully told' BuzzFeed 'Liable to linger in your mind' Today 'Enchanting' Publishers Weekly 'Wondrous' Stephen Graham Jones 'This book is sublime' Emma Straub 'Enchanting... unsettling' Kiersten White 'Glorious and bewitching' Clare Beams Tales you live inside' Victor Lavalle 'Luminous... surreal' Kate MascarenhasTrade ReviewA billionaire is a king, a housesitting gig is a portal, and fans of 'Station Eleven,' speculative fiction or simply anyone who needs a brief escape from the hard, cold world will find the prose here magically transporting. Under Link's hand, the stories promise to be wild, wicked and utterly unforgettable. -- Alison Stine * Salon *Kelly Link is the master of the modern fairytale. This collection of short stories is deceptively easy to read – you'll be turning the pages of strange events quickly, but the stories and their strange events are liable to linger in your mind. * Today *Link’s most direct engagement with the fairytales and folk legends that have always inspired her work... as intense, absorbing and weird as the best dreams * The Guardian *Like Angela Carter, Link understands the psychological (and narratological) powers of her raw material, and makes thrilling shapes while also dissecting modern society . . . White Cat, Black Dog marks a glittering new height in the literature of the weird * The Spectator *'MacArthur Genius Grant fellow Kelly Link’s latest collection reworks seven fairy tales... in fantastic modern contexts. Hansel and Gretel must escape a very different sort of hunger on a planet of vampires; a house-sitting gig is the setting for a portal fantasy; and the white cat of the title turns out to run a weed dispensary. There are layovers in airports (familiar) and wealthy fathers sending sons on absurd quests – also familiar, but in a much more bone-deep way in the retellings of such symbolic stories' * LitHub *The maestro fantasist of short fiction brings us more mystical stories – of animals, human and not, and the unattainable desires that make up all our lives. Each story reworks a folk tale, sourced from the Brothers Grimm, Scottish ballads, and beyond, then sprints off in surprising new directions. The collection contains all the good stuff: doppelgängers right and left, puppies that might be foxes, foxes that might be embroidery, and divine swimming sessions in a dinky hotel pool.' * Bustle *Link refashions classic fairy tales, myths, and adventure sagas for contemporary settings in her wondrous collection.... [she] delivers the kind of off-the-cuff oddness her readers expect, and her reworkings take the clockwork of familiar stories and give them bloody, beating hearts... This is enchanting. * Publishers Weekly *Reading Kelly Link makes my heart burst with gladness. Perfect for longtime fans as well as new readers, these seven mischievous, nimble, joyful, wise, awe-inspiring, soul-enriching, positively Linkian fairy tales will make you feel like you’re discovering the power of stories for the very first time and will expand your capacity for enchantment in our jaded world. White Cat, Black Dog is a book I will read, reread, and treasure all my life. -- Jessamine ChanLink has produced a body of work that is formally original and emotionally rich... in her hands, the Grimms’ enchanted animals are still enchanted animals, but straight princes and princesses are fabulous gay men and lesbian professionals, the ominous woods are airports with endless delays or post-apocalyptic landscapes... This is fiction that pulls you swiftly into its world and then holds you completely, lingering like an especially intense dream * Kirkus *Reading Kelly Link is stepping onto a slide that spirals you down into the heart of the kaleidoscope, splashes you into a technicolor fairy tale, and either makes you smile wide enough that you cry, or the other way around. Her storytelling is wondrous and fanciful, full of longing and terror. -- Stephen Graham JonesKelly Link’s stories are spooky and funny, grounded and floating, and, as always, completely her own. There is no mistaking a story by Kelly Link. This book is sublime. -- Emma StraubLink is one of America’s most respected – and original – short story writers... Her latest book contains her updated takes on seven fairy tales, featuring a cast of characters who are all searching for something elusive. * The OC Register *If I could find a way to use every superlative in a never-ending Borges-ian Carter-esque sentence, I would. Kelly Link’s stories are generous with their intellect, wit, humanity, and the hope and dread of what was, of what might be, of what is. White Cat, Black Dog is a marvel -- Paul TremblayKelly Link’s stories wriggle under your skin and take up a permanent home there, and somehow you’re grateful to be infested. An enchanting collection from one of the most astonishingly funny, unsettling, insightful, and brilliant writers of our time -- Kiersten WhiteWith White Cat, Black Dog, Kelly Link puts her sui generis magic to work on the older magic of fairy tales, forging something revelatory. These stories delight and terrify and seem to ask us, Yes, this is the way the world works — haven’t you been paying attention? I am now. What a glorious and bewitching gift this book is. -- Clare BeamsIf Kelly Link writes a book, I am reading that book. White Cat, Black Dog is a glorious book, full of grand journeys across times, lives and realities. These are big stories, tales you dive into, live inside, and come out the other end changed. Kelly Link is the Alice Munro of the fantastic. And we readers are so lucky to have more of her writing in our lives. -- Victor LaValleA luminous and unsettling collection of fables, with flashes of surreal humour -- Kate MascarenhasThe Brothers Grimm meet Black Mirror meets Alice in Wonderland in White Cat, Black Dog. Kelly Link, a MacArthur Grant recipient and Pulitzer Prize finalist, is an expert in the art of darker, sci-fi-infused magical realism and shows off her skills in her new short story collection. In seven remixed fairy tales, Link delivers wit and dreamlike intrigue. One story follows a cat who runs a weed dispensary and enchants the three sons of an aging billionaire. In another, a reimagined version of “Hansel and Gretel,” a brother and sister wait for their parents to return to an alien planet where vampires and handmaidens run amok. And even “Snow-White and Rose-Red” gets an update in which a grad student housesits a cabin — and is visited by beguiling guests. * TIME *Link displays her usual uncanny brilliance...in these generous reimaginations that reflect our own world, darkly * The Sunday Times *Link is a genius, and not just according to the MacArthur Foundation. A small-press publisher, bookstore owner and producer of a zine, she consistently publishes stories that upend expectations. In her new collection, the author both reinvents and reclaims fairy tales, and the results are pure modern folklore — eccentric, taut and tapped into the collective subconscious. Dive in to meet Hansel and Gretel on a planet of vampires, as well as a cat who runs a weed dispensary. * LA Times *There's a distinct pleasure in discovering what kind of monster is waiting to be encountered next * SFX *Right up there with the very best stories she has ever written * Book Munch *'Link has already proven herself the fairy godmother of fairy-tale retellings in her previous four short story collections, expertly updating and humanizing them into enchanting, perfectly contained vignettes. Her latest collection so seamlessly entwines the real with the surreal that the stories threaten to slip into reality, resonating long after reading... Thought-provoking and wonderfully told' * BuzzFeed *'In the stories of Kelly Link, strange things happen in otherwise ordinary settings. Her stories do not abide by the rules of conflict and resolution — they make sense in the way that dreams make sense.' * New York Times *Link is a genius, and not just according to the MacArthur Foundation. A small-press publisher, bookstore owner and producer of a zine, she consistently publishes stories that upend expectations. In her new collection, the author both reinvents and reclaims fairy tales, and the results are pure modern folklore — eccentric, taut and tapped into the collective subconscious. Dive in to meet Hansel and Gretel on a planet of vampires, as well as a cat who runs a weed dispensary. * LA Times *'Kelly Link is a writer whose work is easy to revere and difficult to explain. She began her career by publishing stories in sci-fi and fantasy magazines in the mid-nineteen-nineties, just when the boundary between genre fiction and the literary mainstream was beginning to erode, and, in the years since, her work has served to speed that erosion along….Through it all, the essential qualities of her work have remained unchanged. To those familiar with her writing, ‘ Linkian' is as distinct an adjective as 'Lynchian,' signifying a stylistic blend of ingenuousness and sophistication, bright flashes of humor alongside dark currents of unease, and a deep engagement with genre tropes that comes off as both sincere and subversive . . . To read Link is to place oneself in the hands of an expert illusionist, entering a world where nothing is ever quite what it seems.' -- Kristen Roupenian, The New Yorker'Kelly Link is something of a short story sorceress. The 2018 MacArthur fellow refuses rules, subverts conventions, and in so doing, delivers unpredictable adventure. “White Cat, Black Dog,” her fifth collection, is a set of seven slipstream short stories that edge, in length, toward novelettes. Where her earlier collections were anchored by a zany, wondrous youthfulness (as well as vampires, faeries, and other fantastical genre staples), this one seems to convey: Never fear, aging has entertaining horrors all its own.' * Washington Post *Classic fable retold with a modern twist, breathing new life into old favourites with Kelly’s signature imagination and wit * Damian Barr's Literary Salon *Gives Black Mirror, Alice in Wonderland and the Brothers Grimm a run for their money * ES Magazine *Overflowing with beauty and stinging ferocity...White Cat, Black Dog contains the most wonderful storytelling, of the deepest dark kind * LoveReading, Star Book *Shows just how much life there is left in fairy tale retellings if the writer is bold and inventive enough. The stories delight, frighten and disrupt in equal measure, and serve as an ample reminder of Link’s remarkable talents * The Fantasy Hive *A selection of fairytales for the modern world... Link's signature weird and uncanny style results in a delightful collection * The Sunday Times *Link has carved out a unique niche, somewhere where the strands of fantasy, weird fiction, and the speculative combine and become inextricably entangled. These are stories in which the fairy tale and the mundane world we live in overlap and mix together, rendering both of them freshly uncanny * Tor.com *Drawing inspiration from fairy tales… Link contemporises them and shapes them in the unexpected forms that only she knows how * Esquire Singapore *By turns unsettling and delightful, White Cat, Black Dog captures the essential poetry at the heart of fables * Charlie Jane Anders, Washington Post Best SFF of 2023 *Eerie, confounding retellings of Scottish ballads, Grimm fairy tales, and cottagecore horror full of stumbles into the otherworldly, the uncanny swirling around the mundane... a leap in Link’s creative muscles and an excellent taste of her forthcoming, eagerly-awaited debut novel The Book of Love * Den of Geek, Books of the Year 2023 *
£9.49
Troubador Publishing The Blood Countess
Book SynopsisTwo women separated by five hundred years, each with a secret - the infamous ‘Blood Countess’(1560-1614), notorious for bathing in the blood of six-hundred-and-fifty women in Renaissance Hungary and Transylvania; and the woman driven to re-write her story in the present - an academic who lives in and out of time because of a near death experience and who escapes ruin at the hands of rival scholars desperate to see her and her world destroyed at any cost. But Bathory’s story will be told! Not as a murderer or a dark witch, as history would have us believe today, but as a woman who became a subversive printer and smuggler of banned books, rocked the religious foundations of the Austro-Hungarian Empire with only a band of faithful refugee women to help her, and who’s revolutionary ideas would challenge even the Emperor himself! Bathory’s modern day chronicler becomes the cipher of this secret history, uncovering the real life of the Blood Countess. What she doesn’t know is that the Blood Countess is rewriting her across time… Based on 100s of hours of original historical research, this novel is a transformational account of not only of the infamous story of the so-called Blood Countess, but a searing exploration of what history is and what history does to women.
£14.39
Atlantic Books And Then She Fell
Book Synopsis'Mesmeric, intoxicatingly original' Hannah Kent, bestselling author of Burial Rites'Haunting and surreal... With its sharp wit and beautiful writing, this book had me flying through the pages.' Ana Reyes, New York Times bestselling author of The House in the Pines'A towering achievement, stunningly good storytelling.' Melissa Lucashenko, Miles Franklin Award winning author of Too Much LipOn the surface, Alice is exactly where she should be in life: she's just given birth to a beautiful baby girl; her ever-charming husband - an academic whose area of study is conveniently her own Mohawk culture - is nothing but supportive; and they've moved into a home in a wealthy neighbourhood. But strange things have started happening. Alice finds herself hearing voices she can't explain and speaking with things that should not be talking back to her, all while her neighbours' passive aggression begins to morph into something far more threatening... Told in Alice's raw and darkly funny voice, and infused with Native American myth and legend, And Then She Fell is a wild, fierce novel.Trade ReviewAlice and her husband have woven a lattice pattern of silence and secrets that slowly implodes in this fierce, remarkable debut. Elliott's meticulous prose is an agile portal through the narrator's complex inner life, the tensions, and fractures that surface when the trappings of success hide the weight of intergenerational trauma, racism, sexism, and the unwieldy expectations of Motherhood. And Then She Fell saves us from devastation by the grace it shows its characters and, ultimately, by the strength of their connections. -- Eden Robinson * Eden Robinson, bestselling author of RETURN OF THE TRICKSTER *And Then She Fell is an unblinking look at the complex and often terrifying journey of new motherhood and what we're told we should want, with moving insights into connecting with our ancestors and our own identity. Alicia Elliott is a powerful storyteller, and this book is both suspenseful and heartfelt, with haunting elements that linger long after the final page is turned. -- Vanessa Lillie, bestselling author of LITTLE VOICE and BLOOD SISTERSA towering achievement, stunningly good storytelling. -- Melissa Lucashenko, Miles Franklin Award winning author of TOO MUCH LIP * Melissa Lucashenko *And Then She Fell is an incredible and indelible novel. It's full of wonder and surprise, full of life and heart. This book is a gift that breathes life into the reader. Alicia Elliott has given us a knockout - a book so good you can't put it down. -- Morgan Talty, bestselling author of NIGHT OF THE LIVING REZI could not put this book down. And Then She Fell is one of the most mesmeric, intoxicatingly original novels I have read in recent years, with a central character I will carry with me for a very long time. -- Hannah KentFamiliar and ethereal. Brutal and beautiful. And Then She Fell is the fulfilment of the promise of Alicia Elliott 's storytelling prowess. . . . A soundtrack for the gorgeous nightmare that is both motherhood and belonging in and of itself, stitched together by the depths only grief and love can hook together. The Naked Lunch meets Rosemary's Baby . . . and shot together with the golden humour and philosophy of Haudenosaunee story like an intimate lifeline, And Then She Fell is remarkable, and a world unto itself. What an accomplishment. What a gift. -- Cherie Dimaline, author of ThE MARROW THIEVES and VENCOAnd Then She Fell is a stunning, propulsive novel that complexly folds generational love and mental health into a story about relationships: the ones we have with our ancestors, our family and friends, and ourselves. Through Alice's strong and unforgettable voice, Alicia Elliott highlights the macro and micro aggressions, gaslighting, and violence that Indigenous women often face from white people, even the ones who claim to love us. I laughed, cried, and rooted for the women in these pages. For their unending love for each other in every timeline of life, and for the ways in which they continue to choose each other in spite of trauma, disorder, and colonial forces who hope they don't. I'm so happy that a novel like this exists, and I am excited to see the future of writing that this work inspires. And Then She Fell is a triumph of a debut. -- Jessica Johns, author of BAD CREEAnd Then She Fell is an unblinking look at the complex and often terrifying journey of new motherhood and what we're told we should want, with moving insights into connecting with our ancestors and our own identity. Alicia Elliott is a powerful storyteller, and this book is both suspenseful and heartfelt, with haunting elements that linger long after the final page is turned. -- Vanessa Lillie, bestselling author of LITTLE VOICES and BLOOD SISTERSHaunting and surreal, And Then She Fell had me questioning reality alongside Alice as she grappled with motherhood, being a writer, a wife, and feeling like an outsider in her own life. With its sharp wit and beautiful writing, this book had me flying through the pages. -- Ana Reyes, New York Times bestselling author of THE HOUSE IN THE PINESAnd Then She Fell is an outstanding debut novel by an eminent literary voice. Alicia Elliott's thorough and thoughtful examination of motherhood, intergenerational trauma, and modern Indigenous realities is a caring salve for Indigenous readers and an important enlightenment for others. I loved its profound exploration of the spaces we navigate as Indigenous peoples - from the rez to the city and beyond - and I greatly appreciated the depth of humanity with which Elliott was able to portray her rez characters. This novel is a triumph of Indigenous truths and experiences. -- Waubgeshig Rice, author of MOON OF THE CRUSTED SNOW and MOON OF THE TURNING LEAVESAnd Then She Fell is at once engrossing and profound, terrifying and empathetic. Like The Bell Jar, it sheds new light on the trope of the mad woman, laying bare the million blows it takes to leave a person unhinged. * The Walrus *
£15.29
Everyman His Dark Materials: Gift Edition including all
Book SynopsisFantasy, mystery, war and love - it's all here in the magical trilogy His Dark MaterialsThis BEAUTIFUL GIFT collection features ALL THREE titles in the award-winning trilogy: Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and THE AMBER SPYGLASSThe Amber SpyglassWill and Lyra, whose fates are bound together by powers beyond their own worlds, have been violently separated. But they must find each other, for ahead of them lies the greatest war that has ever been - and a journey to a dark place from which no one has ever returned . . .Northern LightsLyra Belacqua lives half-wild and carefree among the scholars of Jordan College, with her daemon familiar always by her side. But the arrival of her fearsome uncle, Lord Asriel, draws her to the heart of a terrible struggle - a struggle born of Gobblers and stolen children, witch clans and armoured bears.The Subtle KnifeLyra finds herself in a shimmering, haunted otherworld - Cittàgazze, where soul-eating Spectres stalk the streets and wingbeats of distant angels sound against the sky. But she is not without allies: twelve-year-old Will Parry, fleeing for his life after taking another's, has also stumbled into this strange new realm.On a perilous journey from world to world, Lyra and Will uncover a deadly secret: an object of extraordinary and devastating power. And with every step, they move closer to an even greater threat - and the shattering truth of their own destiny.Trade ReviewOne of the supreme literary dreamers and magicians of our time * The Guardian *Philip Pullman. Is he the best storyteller ever? * The Observer *
£21.25
Everyman The Famished Road
Book SynopsisThe narrator, Azaro, is an abiku, a spirit child, who in the Yoruba tradition of Nigeria exists between life and death. He is born into a world of poverty, ignorance and injustice, but Azaro awakens with a smile on his face. Nearly called back to the land of the dead, he is resurrected. But in their efforts to save their child, Azaro's loving parents are made destitute. The tension between the land of the living, with its violence and political struggles, and the temptations of the carefree kingdom of the spirits propels this latter-day Lazarus's story. Despite belonging to a spirit world made of enchantment, where there is no suffering, Azaro chooses to stay in the land of the Living: to feel it, endure it, know it and love it. This is his story.
£13.49
Little, Brown Book Group Mad Puppetstown
Book SynopsisIn the early 1900s Easter lives with her Aunt Brenda, her cousins Evelyn and Basil, and their Great-Aunt Dicksie in an imposing country house, Puppetstown, which casts a spell over their childhood. Here they spend carefree days taunting the peacocks in Aunt Dicksie's garden, shooting snipe and woodcock, hunting, and playing with Patsy, the boot boy. But the house and its inhabitants are not immune to the 'little, bitter, forgotten war in Ireland' and when it finally touches their lives all flee to England. All except Aunt Dicksie who refuses to surrender Puppetstown's magic. She stays on with Patsy, living in a corner of the deserted house while in England the cousins are groomed for Society. But for two of them those wild, lost Puppetstown years cannot be forgotten.Trade ReviewShe was . . . marvellous * Guardian *I admired many authors. But Molly, I loved -- Diana AthillKeane's distinctive blend of elegant savagery and deep affection . . . its human relationships tortured like bonsai by good form, its open-hearted, sensual passion for horses, dogs and landscape * Evening Standard *A writer of genius * Wall Street Journal *
£21.54
Vintage Publishing The Stone Raft
Book SynopsisWhat if, one day, Europe was to crack along the length of the Pyrenees, separating Spain and Portugal from the rest of Europe?In Saramago's fable, a new island is sent spinning through the ocean like a great stone raft. While the authorities panic and tourists flee, three men, two women and a dog are drawn together by omens that burden them with a peculiar responsibility. In this magical realist tale, the six take to the road, finding themselves adrift in a world now unfamiliar and forced to reckon with their relationships, human psychology and the shakiness of belief itself.Trade ReviewAn irresistible blend of shrewd detail and lyrical fantasy... A seductive novel that needs to be savoured -- Helen Dunmore * Observer *An invitation to one of the richest bodies of work by a living writer -- Amanda Hopkinson * New Statesman *Jose Saramago's brilliant evocation...is magical realism of a sort that stirs real wonder -- James Park * Time Out *Saramago's lovely and original questing story, in a lineage of others such as Don Quixote and Kipling's Kim, is a journey of the spirit told as a journey of the feet -- Richard Eder * Los Angeles Times *Tremendous wit is always apparent in his imaginative conceits, comic digression and verbal and narrative games -- Ian Critchley * Sunday Times *
£9.49
