Narrative theme: coming of age

Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisSELECTED FOR STYLIST'S FICTION YOU CAN'T MISS IN 2022 - 'AN ESSENTIAL READ' NAMED AS A BOOK OF 2022 BY ESQUIRE, STYLIST, SHEERLUXE AND FOYLES 'A stone-cold masterpiece by a shocking new talent' OLIVIA LAING It’s four in the morning, and our narrator is walking home from the club when they realise that it’s February 29th – the birthday of the man who was something like their first love. Piecing together art, letters and memory, they set about trying to write the story of a doomed affair that first sparked and burned a decade ago. Ten years earlier, and our young narrator and a boy named Thomas James fall into bed with one another over the summer of their graduation. Their ensuing affair, with its violent, animal intensity and its intoxicating and toxic power play will initiate a dance of repulsion and attraction that will cross years, span continents, drag in countless victims – and culminate in terrible betrayal. At Certain Points We Touch is a story of first love and last rites, conjured against a vivid backdrop of London, San Francisco and New York – a riotous, razor-sharp coming-of-age story that marks the arrival of an extraordinary new talent. 'Lauren John Joseph writes with such wit, glamour, and style! I haven’t read a book that so powerfully evokes what it’s like to be a wild young artist among other wild young artists since the Bright Young Things' TORREY PETERS, author of Detransition, Baby 'Lauren's debut novel is so exciting. The writing is so fresh, funny and gripping - and carries the trademark wit that I have always loved from Lauren' TRAVIS ALABANZA 'The struggle to find ones place in the world as an artist and lover, creating self and culture as you go along - At Certain Points We Touch captures this fleeting, dazzling moment with glamour and heart' MICHELLE TEA Trade ReviewA stone-cold masterpiece, which in its scope, frankness and ambition reminds me of The Line of Beauty, retooled for the 21st century. By turns libidinous, hilarious, melancholy and full of feeling, it reveals Lauren John Joseph as a shocking new talent -- OLIVIA LAINGA moving portrait of youth, friendship and first love * OBSERVER, Debut Novelists of 2022 *Described as “a stone-cold masterpiece – The Line Of Beauty retooled for the 21st century” by writer Olivia Laing, this is the story of a destructive love affair played out over years and cities that’s going to be an essential read * STYLIST, Books you can't miss in 2022 *Lauren John Joseph writes with such wit, glamour, and Style! I haven’t read a book that so powerfully evokes what it’s like to be a wild young artist among other wild young artists since the Bright Young Things were publishing -- TORREY PETERS, author of Detransition, BabyLauren's debut novel is so exciting. The writing is so fresh, funny and gripping - and carries the trademark wit that I have always loved from Lauren -- TRAVIS ALABANZAThis vivid debut novel has a live current running through its pages ... An impressive debut with lines that linger with on the page * ESQUIRE, Books of the Year 2022 *The struggle to find ones place in the world as an artist and lover, creating self and culture as you go along - At Certain Points We Touch captures this fleeting, dazzling moment with glamour and heart -- MICHELLE TEAAt Certain Points We Touch is as much a love letter to the glamour and glory of countercultural nightlife as a self-aware sendup of its absurdities and deprivations. This novel is a rollicking study of the stubbornness, irrationality, and dysfunction of the human heart, with prose as extravagant and daring as a Rococo gown. I would spend as many pages with this narrator as Lauren John Joseph cares to write -- KIM FU, author of Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st CenturyA riotous coming-of-age story that marks the arrival of a bold new writer * SHEERLUXE *A searing debut * HARPER'S BAZAAR *

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Book SynopsisTHE UNMISSABLE NEW NOVEL FROM THE AUTHOR OF BESTSELLING PHENOMENON SUCH A FUN AGE * THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * * FEARNE COTTON'S HAPPY PLACE BOOK CLUB PICK FOR FEBRUARY * ‘I couldn’t put it down, and I didn't want to either’ EMILY HENRY ‘The drama is just too juicy – how could anyone resist a binge?’ GUARDIAN ‘Razor-sharp … Packs a huge emotional punch’ DAILY MAIL Everything comes at a price. But not everything can be paid for… Millie wants to graduate, get a job and buy a house. She’s slowly saving up from her job on campus, but when a visiting professor offers her an unusual opportunity to make some extra money, she jumps at the chance. Agatha is a writer, recovering from a break-up while researching attitudes towards weddings and money for her new book. She strikes gold when interviewing the girls in Millie’s dorm, but her plans take a turn when she realises that the best material is unfolding behind closed doors. As the two women form an unlikely relationship, they soon become embroiled in a world of roommate theatrics, vengeful pranks and illicit intrigue – and are forced to question just how much of themselves they are willing to trade to get what they want. Sharp, intimate and provocative, Come and Get It takes a lens to our money-obsessed society in a tension-filled story about desire, consumption and bad behaviour. ‘Smart, funny and perceptive’ i ‘A perfect read’ STYLIST ‘Wonderfully immersive, propulsive and beautifully paced’ PAUL HARDING ‘Quiet and intense … A joy to read’ JESSICA GEORGE ‘Witty and nuanced’ RED ‘[An] incisive novel everyone will be talking about’ TOWN AND COUNTRYTrade ReviewA brilliant book ... Really interesting, looks at the lengths we’ll go to get money, and how it informs our decision making and also our relationships. It’s a really good read -- Fearne Cotton, Happy Place Book ClubAn utter joy * Sunday Times *A deliciously chewy, politically charged novel ... The kind of book I want to debate with a room full of women drinking fishbowl-sized glasses of cheap Pinot Grigio with too much ice in it * Vogue *A zippy, laugh-out-loud campus novel ... Reid’s writing is so very funny, always rooted in the everyday * i *Reading Kiley Reid’s fiction feels a bit like watching a prestige TV series. There are expansive casts of characters ... The plots are pacy and compelling, motored by flashbacks and cliffhangers and twists, while also dealing with social issues – particularly race and class – that add intellectual heft. Dialogue is hyper-realistic ... so that you can hear it aloud in your head ... Reid is a talented comic writer. But it also raises deeper questions about how we view the lives of other people, as material for our own consumption. Are the attractions of books and TV so different from those of eavesdropping? * Guardian *A master storyteller ... As fun to read as it is thought-provoking ... In heart-breaking and deeply recognisable details ... we see Reid’s pen at its sharpest * Stylist *A master plotter who’s engineering a spectacular intersection of class, racism, academic politics and journalistic ethics. Reid spots all the grains of irritation and deceit that get caught in the machinery of social life until the whole contraption suddenly lurches to a calamitous halt. Come and get it, indeed! * Washington Post *A biting comedy of campus manners * Mail on Sunday *With her perceptive eye and ear, Reid imbues her novel with the stuff, literally and figuratively, of life ... As I read Come and Get It I found myself thinking of certain writers who have, over the years, elected themselves as “capital C” Chroniclers of contemporary America. With this book, Reid demonstrates that she deserves a place in the running * New York Times Book Review *At once highly readable and an important comment on the lose-lose decisions millennials face in a bleak economy, this is a book you'll devour in days * Harper's Bazaar *It gets to the heart of what Reid is: a consummate storyteller * Service 95 *Reid brings her sharp gaze to the classic campus novel, and university life provides her with similarly rich material when it comes to deconstructing privilege ... She also cleverly turns some of the genre’s dustier tropes on their heads ... Part of what has always made campus stories so captivating is that they show us character as a work in progress – because our university days have always been about working out our sense of self. But contemporary tales like Reid’s are a necessary reminder: this leisurely exploration is a luxury not everyone can afford * Independent *Reid has an excellent ear for speech: you get the impression that she, like Agatha, has put in the hours listening to 20-year-olds chatter, bitch and plot. She’s also a sharp observer of the way in which money confers power or withholds it, and how this can intersect with race ... The decision to foreground money is unusual, yet Reid pulls it off * Telegraph *A wonderfully written and intimate portrayal of entwined lives on campus. Quiet and intense all at the same time, it was a joy to read -- Jessica George, author of MY NAME IS MAAMEExploring hustle culture and capitalist attitudes, it weaves a compelling story that confronts the consequences of insatiable appetites for success * Elle *Kiley Reid is an expert at teasing apart the messy, complicated, nuanced layers of social dynamics, and has a rare gift for making the unknown feel intimately familiar and the familiar feel brand new. In Come and Get It, she's crafted a story that moves with the momentum and inevitability of a snowball rolling down a mountain. I couldn't put it down, and I didn’t want to either’ -- Emily Henry, No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of HAPPY PLACEKiley Reid’s books make me feel lucky to be a reader. I’m in awe – Come and Get It is a page-turning pleasure – stylish, sharp and breathtakingly smart. I can’t believe that one book can be this clever, cool and this much fun to read -- Daisy Buchanan, author of INSATIABLEAnother razor-sharp, character-driven, coming-of-age story, which packs a huge emotional punch * Daily Mail *Smart, funny and perceptive * i news, Best Books to Read in January *Multi-layered and complex relationships between seriously flawed characters once again take centre stage as its narrative smartly delves into racism, social and economic status, and university campus politics in the 21st century. A perfect read for anyone who loved Netflix’s brilliant The Chair and Jean Hanff Korelitz’s Admission * Stylist *Wonderfully immersive, propulsive, and beautifully paced. On page one, there is a story that is already happening, and you’re plunged right into the novel’s world, already up and running, full of real people, and complicated – that is, substantive – as all hell. Just great -- Paul Harding, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of THIS OTHER EDEN and TINKERSCome and Get It is an engrossing novel full of intimately portrayed characters and the seemingly innocuous choices that lead to life-altering mistakes -- Elizabeth Acevedo, author of FAMILY LORE and THE POET XThe book has a Netflix box-set breezy pace and knowing tone as it satirises staff and student attitudes towards money, hierarchy and status … An absorbingly twisty page-turner * i paper *The pleasure of Come and Get It lies in its plunge into the unfamiliar. This is a society in which poorer students work for richer ones — the Tyler types can call up Millie at all hours to settle dorm disputes or shift furniture — or save money by camping overnight outside a new branch of Chick-fil-A to win a year’s worth of free fried chicken. The tone is breezy and comic, but what’s really happening is shocking * The Times *Reid...masterfully captures the quiet misalignments that stem from a varying sense of what’s at stake…[A] novel of manners that acutely captures the modern moment * Vogue, The Best Books of 2024 So Far *A witty and nuanced exploration of race and female-occupied spaces – I loved the thread of menace running through it * Red *Kiley Reid's next must-read ... It's packed with those awkward moments Reid is so talented at creating, making your toes curl as you read * Grazia, Hot to Drop *A brilliant author who creates ultra-memorable characters * Glamour, Best New Books of January 2024 *If you loved the smash hit Such a Fun Age, don't sleep on Reid's newest ... This is a story of indiscretions and gray areas, power dynamics and privilege that's wound as tight as a violin string. Just don't forget to breathe while you're reading (go ahead and thank us later) * Good Housekeeping *A deft exploration of how microaggressions can lead to macro consequences, Reid’s second outing will appeal to readers who enjoy slow-burn, character-driven novels * Booklist *Kiley Reid returns with another incisive novel everyone will be talking about … A riveting and fascinating tale * Town & Country, Best Books of Winter *Kiley Reid's characters are always layered with ethical dilemmas … Subterfuge, sex and self-seeking make things compellingly messy * Sainsbury’s Magazine *A sardonic and no-holds-barred comedy of manners ... Reid is a keen observer­ – every page sparkles with sharp analysis of her characters. This blistering send-up of academia is interlaced with piercing moral clarity * Publishers Weekly, starred review *An illuminating study of power, responsibility, and the bad choices we sometimes make, written in the fresh, bright language for which she’s known * Library Journal *Reid’s fiction, which highlights the ordinary social interactions in which larger forces – of class and racial inequality, financial and cultural capital – make themselves known. There are few outright villains in her stories; her characters often blunder along with good intentions, to comic and disastrous effect * Guardian *Reading a Kiley Reid novel is like watching a docuseries designed exactly for you. She captures those exceedingly awkward and real human interactions with such precision and specificity that you’re fully invested by the first page. Come and Get It is genius. It’s perfect -- Liz Moore, author of LONG BRIGHT RIVER[A] sharp, edgy social novel … Reid is a genius of mimicry and social observation * Kirkus *Beautifully told through the eyes of multiple characters, this intimate and revealing story from the critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of Such a Fun Age is not to be missed * BookBub, The 22 Best Books of Winter *An exciting new portrait of desire, consumption and recklessness, we have no doubt Reid’s new novel will be just as popular as the first * Luxury London, Best New Books *Come and Get It is a festival of micro-aggressions; it’s uneasy, and Reid doesn’t give any character a free ride. She skewers mean girls, mummy’s girls and freeloaders with both clarity and subtlety ... The dialogue and little details [are] so excruciatingly accurate * AnOther magazine, Best Fiction for 2024 *Come and Get It is a page-turning read filled with vengeful pranks and intrigue, but at its heart, it is a fascinating portrait of our obsession with material wealth * Chicago Review of Books, Must-Read Books of January 2024 *It’s a perfect recipe ... in a college setting, about discretion and desire, about money, want, and, most importantly, it’s by Kiley Reid * LitHub, Most Anticipated Books of 2024 *The result is heartbreak that money can’t fix, and a smart novel that says a lot about race, money and female friendships * Heat *A thrilling, delectable look at wealth, privilege and desire * People Magazine, Best Books To Read in January 2024 *The book is funny …The dialogue is particularly snappy … Most importantly, “Come and Get It” offers a deft examination of how young people negotiate their first brushes with independence and responsibility. Reid is particularly attuned to how her characters navigate matters of money and consumption… Reid’s novel carves its own path, capturing a sort of tragic malaise that itself suggests a state of young adulthood * Arkansas Times *

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Book SynopsisTHE UNMISSABLE NEW NOVEL FROM THE AUTHOR OF BESTSELLING PHENOMENON SUCH A FUN AGE * THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * * FEARNE COTTON'S HAPPY PLACE BOOK CLUB PICK FOR FEBRUARY * ‘I couldn’t put it down, and I didn't want to either’ EMILY HENRY ‘The drama is just too juicy – how could anyone resist a binge?’ GUARDIAN ‘Razor-sharp … Packs a huge emotional punch’ DAILY MAIL Everything comes at a price. But not everything can be paid for… Millie wants to graduate, get a job and buy a house. She’s slowly saving up from her job on campus, but when a visiting professor offers her an unusual opportunity to make some extra money, she jumps at the chance. Agatha is a writer, recovering from a break-up while researching attitudes towards weddings and money for her new book. She strikes gold when interviewing the girls in Millie’s dorm, but her plans take a turn when she realises that the best material is unfolding behind closed doors. As the two women form an unlikely relationship, they soon become embroiled in a world of roommate theatrics, vengeful pranks and illicit intrigue – and are forced to question just how much of themselves they are willing to trade to get what they want. Sharp, intimate and provocative, Come and Get It takes a lens to our money-obsessed society in a tension-filled story about desire, consumption and bad behaviour. ‘Smart, funny and perceptive’ i ‘A perfect read’ STYLIST ‘Wonderfully immersive, propulsive and beautifully paced’ PAUL HARDING ‘Quiet and intense … A joy to read’ JESSICA GEORGE ‘Witty and nuanced’ RED ‘[An] incisive novel everyone will be talking about’ TOWN AND COUNTRYTrade ReviewA brilliant book ... Really interesting, looks at the lengths we’ll go to get money, and how it informs our decision making and also our relationships. It’s a really good read -- Fearne Cotton, Happy Place Book ClubAn utter joy * Sunday Times *A deliciously chewy, politically charged novel ... The kind of book I want to debate with a room full of women drinking fishbowl-sized glasses of cheap Pinot Grigio with too much ice in it * Vogue *A zippy, laugh-out-loud campus novel ... Reid’s writing is so very funny, always rooted in the everyday * i *Reading Kiley Reid’s fiction feels a bit like watching a prestige TV series. There are expansive casts of characters ... The plots are pacy and compelling, motored by flashbacks and cliffhangers and twists, while also dealing with social issues – particularly race and class – that add intellectual heft. Dialogue is hyper-realistic ... so that you can hear it aloud in your head ... Reid is a talented comic writer. But it also raises deeper questions about how we view the lives of other people, as material for our own consumption. Are the attractions of books and TV so different from those of eavesdropping? * Guardian *A master storyteller ... As fun to read as it is thought-provoking ... In heart-breaking and deeply recognisable details ... we see Reid’s pen at its sharpest * Stylist *A master plotter who’s engineering a spectacular intersection of class, racism, academic politics and journalistic ethics. Reid spots all the grains of irritation and deceit that get caught in the machinery of social life until the whole contraption suddenly lurches to a calamitous halt. Come and get it, indeed! * Washington Post *A biting comedy of campus manners * Mail on Sunday *With her perceptive eye and ear, Reid imbues her novel with the stuff, literally and figuratively, of life ... As I read Come and Get It I found myself thinking of certain writers who have, over the years, elected themselves as “capital C” Chroniclers of contemporary America. With this book, Reid demonstrates that she deserves a place in the running * New York Times Book Review *At once highly readable and an important comment on the lose-lose decisions millennials face in a bleak economy, this is a book you'll devour in days * Harper's Bazaar *It gets to the heart of what Reid is: a consummate storyteller * Service 95 *Reid brings her sharp gaze to the classic campus novel, and university life provides her with similarly rich material when it comes to deconstructing privilege ... She also cleverly turns some of the genre’s dustier tropes on their heads ... Part of what has always made campus stories so captivating is that they show us character as a work in progress – because our university days have always been about working out our sense of self. But contemporary tales like Reid’s are a necessary reminder: this leisurely exploration is a luxury not everyone can afford * Independent *Reid has an excellent ear for speech: you get the impression that she, like Agatha, has put in the hours listening to 20-year-olds chatter, bitch and plot. She’s also a sharp observer of the way in which money confers power or withholds it, and how this can intersect with race ... The decision to foreground money is unusual, yet Reid pulls it off * Telegraph *A wonderfully written and intimate portrayal of entwined lives on campus. Quiet and intense all at the same time, it was a joy to read -- Jessica George, author of MY NAME IS MAAMEExploring hustle culture and capitalist attitudes, it weaves a compelling story that confronts the consequences of insatiable appetites for success * Elle *Kiley Reid is an expert at teasing apart the messy, complicated, nuanced layers of social dynamics, and has a rare gift for making the unknown feel intimately familiar and the familiar feel brand new. In Come and Get It, she's crafted a story that moves with the momentum and inevitability of a snowball rolling down a mountain. I couldn't put it down, and I didn’t want to either’ -- Emily Henry, No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of HAPPY PLACEKiley Reid’s books make me feel lucky to be a reader. I’m in awe – Come and Get It is a page-turning pleasure – stylish, sharp and breathtakingly smart. I can’t believe that one book can be this clever, cool and this much fun to read -- Daisy Buchanan, author of INSATIABLEAnother razor-sharp, character-driven, coming-of-age story, which packs a huge emotional punch * Daily Mail *Smart, funny and perceptive * i news, Best Books to Read in January *Multi-layered and complex relationships between seriously flawed characters once again take centre stage as its narrative smartly delves into racism, social and economic status, and university campus politics in the 21st century. A perfect read for anyone who loved Netflix’s brilliant The Chair and Jean Hanff Korelitz’s Admission * Stylist *Wonderfully immersive, propulsive, and beautifully paced. On page one, there is a story that is already happening, and you’re plunged right into the novel’s world, already up and running, full of real people, and complicated – that is, substantive – as all hell. Just great -- Paul Harding, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of THIS OTHER EDEN and TINKERSCome and Get It is an engrossing novel full of intimately portrayed characters and the seemingly innocuous choices that lead to life-altering mistakes -- Elizabeth Acevedo, author of FAMILY LORE and THE POET XThe book has a Netflix box-set breezy pace and knowing tone as it satirises staff and student attitudes towards money, hierarchy and status … An absorbingly twisty page-turner * i paper *The pleasure of Come and Get It lies in its plunge into the unfamiliar. This is a society in which poorer students work for richer ones — the Tyler types can call up Millie at all hours to settle dorm disputes or shift furniture — or save money by camping overnight outside a new branch of Chick-fil-A to win a year’s worth of free fried chicken. The tone is breezy and comic, but what’s really happening is shocking * The Times *Reid...masterfully captures the quiet misalignments that stem from a varying sense of what’s at stake…[A] novel of manners that acutely captures the modern moment * Vogue, The Best Books of 2024 So Far *A witty and nuanced exploration of race and female-occupied spaces – I loved the thread of menace running through it * Red *Kiley Reid's next must-read ... It's packed with those awkward moments Reid is so talented at creating, making your toes curl as you read * Grazia, Hot to Drop *A brilliant author who creates ultra-memorable characters * Glamour, Best New Books of January 2024 *If you loved the smash hit Such a Fun Age, don't sleep on Reid's newest ... This is a story of indiscretions and gray areas, power dynamics and privilege that's wound as tight as a violin string. Just don't forget to breathe while you're reading (go ahead and thank us later) * Good Housekeeping *A deft exploration of how microaggressions can lead to macro consequences, Reid’s second outing will appeal to readers who enjoy slow-burn, character-driven novels * Booklist *Kiley Reid returns with another incisive novel everyone will be talking about … A riveting and fascinating tale * Town & Country, Best Books of Winter *Kiley Reid's characters are always layered with ethical dilemmas … Subterfuge, sex and self-seeking make things compellingly messy * Sainsbury’s Magazine *A sardonic and no-holds-barred comedy of manners ... Reid is a keen observer­ – every page sparkles with sharp analysis of her characters. This blistering send-up of academia is interlaced with piercing moral clarity * Publishers Weekly, starred review *An illuminating study of power, responsibility, and the bad choices we sometimes make, written in the fresh, bright language for which she’s known * Library Journal *Reid’s fiction, which highlights the ordinary social interactions in which larger forces – of class and racial inequality, financial and cultural capital – make themselves known. There are few outright villains in her stories; her characters often blunder along with good intentions, to comic and disastrous effect * Guardian *Reading a Kiley Reid novel is like watching a docuseries designed exactly for you. She captures those exceedingly awkward and real human interactions with such precision and specificity that you’re fully invested by the first page. Come and Get It is genius. It’s perfect -- Liz Moore, author of LONG BRIGHT RIVER[A] sharp, edgy social novel … Reid is a genius of mimicry and social observation * Kirkus *Beautifully told through the eyes of multiple characters, this intimate and revealing story from the critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of Such a Fun Age is not to be missed * BookBub, The 22 Best Books of Winter *An exciting new portrait of desire, consumption and recklessness, we have no doubt Reid’s new novel will be just as popular as the first * Luxury London, Best New Books *Come and Get It is a festival of micro-aggressions; it’s uneasy, and Reid doesn’t give any character a free ride. She skewers mean girls, mummy’s girls and freeloaders with both clarity and subtlety ... The dialogue and little details [are] so excruciatingly accurate * AnOther magazine, Best Fiction for 2024 *Come and Get It is a page-turning read filled with vengeful pranks and intrigue, but at its heart, it is a fascinating portrait of our obsession with material wealth * Chicago Review of Books, Must-Read Books of January 2024 *It’s a perfect recipe ... in a college setting, about discretion and desire, about money, want, and, most importantly, it’s by Kiley Reid * LitHub, Most Anticipated Books of 2024 *The result is heartbreak that money can’t fix, and a smart novel that says a lot about race, money and female friendships * Heat *A thrilling, delectable look at wealth, privilege and desire * People Magazine, Best Books To Read in January 2024 *The book is funny …The dialogue is particularly snappy … Most importantly, “Come and Get It” offers a deft examination of how young people negotiate their first brushes with independence and responsibility. Reid is particularly attuned to how her characters navigate matters of money and consumption… Reid’s novel carves its own path, capturing a sort of tragic malaise that itself suggests a state of young adulthood * Arkansas Times *Reid’s skillful storytelling and vibrant characters are sure to give you a great time * Book Riot *

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Book SynopsisNow a major motion picture titled Blinded by the Light, directed by Gurinder Chadha, a charming memoir of growing up during the eighties as both a Pakistani Muslim and Bruce Springsteen fan 'Every detail rings so true ... Manzoor's warm, humane, unsensational voice ... makes you want to extend the hand of friendship to him' Sunday Telegraph 'A richly humane, smile-inducing memoir' Observer Sarfraz Manzoor was two years old when his family emigrated from Pakistan to join his father in Bury Park, Luton. His teenage years were a constant battle to reconcile being both British and Muslim. But when his best friend introduced him to Bruce Springsteen, his life changed for ever. In this affectionate and timely memoir, Manzoor retraces his journey from the frustrations of his childhood to his reaction to the tragedies of 9/11 and 7/7. Original, darkly tender and wryly amusing, this is an inspiring tribute to the power of music to transcend race and religion and a moving account of a relationship between father and son.Trade ReviewEvery detail rings so true ... Manzoor's warm, humane, unsensational voice ... makes you want to extend the hand of friendship to him * Sunday Telegraph *A beautiful and absorbing love letter to his family, his culture and his hero Bruce Springsteen * Rob Brydon *A small wonder - like some melancholy refit of Hanif Kureishi's The Buddha of Suburbia, where boredom replaces bohemia and real life is something only glimpsed in a Bruce Springsteen lyric * Mojo *Like Blake Morrison's And When Did You Last See Your Father? ... it's about trying to make sense of the rubble left behind by a father's death... A richly humane, smile-inducing memoir * Observer *While the book is many things - the impact of multi-culturalism, a coming-of-age story and a Nick Hornby-style documentation of musical obsession - it is Manzoor's relationship with his father that lies at its heart * Independent *Beautiful and moving ... A book to make you believe that we are all more alike than we know -- Tony Parsons

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Book Synopsis**SOON TO BE A MAJOR NETFLIX FILM** **THE INTERNATIONAL NUMBER ONE-BESTSELLER** ‘A coming-of-age-story to be loved everywhere in the world’ FREDRIK BACKMAN, author of A MAN CALLED OVE ___________________________________________ The international sensation: the story of a young Sámi girl's coming-of-age, and a powerful fable about family, identity and justice Nine-year-old Elsa lives just north of the Arctic Circle. She and her family are Sámi – Scandinavia’s indigenous people – and make their living herding reindeer. One morning when Elsa goes skiing alone, she witnesses a man brutally killing her reindeer calf, Nástegallu. Elsa recognises the man but refuses to tell anyone – least of all the Swedish police force – about what she saw. Instead, she carries her secret as a dark weight on her heart. Elsa comes of age fighting two wars: one within her community, where male elders expect young women to know their place; and against the ever-escalating wave of prejudice and violence against the Sámi. When Elsa finds herself the target of the man who killed her reindeer calf all those years ago, something inside of her finally breaks. The guilt, fear, and anger she’s been carrying since childhood come crashing over her like an avalanche, and will lead Elsa to a final catastrophic confrontation.Trade ReviewStolen is an extraordinary novel. A coming-of-age-story you'll get lost in, about youth and heritage and the never-ending struggle to be allowed to exist. Although set in the coldest and most northern part of Scandinavia, I'm convinced it’s a universal story to be loved everywhere in the world -- FREDRIK BACKMAN, author of A MAN CALLED OVEBeautiful and devastating, Stolen shines a powerful and important light on the Sámi community and the growing challenges they face in a changing world -- CAROLE JOHNSTONE, author of MIRRORLANDViscerally clear fiction of both the fractured, violent nature of the Sámi’s relationship with their Nordic occupiers and the coming of age of an innocent girl. Written with such cool clarity, Stolen is a perfect metaphor of our slippery grip on humanity and our tenuous relationship with the Earth -- TANYA TALAGA, bestselling author of SEVEN FALLEN FEATHERSSámi author Ann-Helén Laestadius has written a fresh, devastating, and insightful novel about Sámi life and the struggle for justice in a rapidly changing world. A love for the imperiled landscape reverberates throughout this engaging read -- MEGAN MAYHEW BERGMAN, author of HOW STRANGE A SEASONStolen is in equal measure a gripping and thrilling mystery as it is a testament to the continued beating heart of Sámi life. Ann-Helén Laestadius takes her place as an important voice in world Indigenous literature -- MICHELLE GOOD, author of FIVE LITTLE INDIANSLaestadius’s nuanced English-language debut is a story of a family torn apart by cultural tensions ... The sense of place and character development make for an affecting portrait of the Sámi’s disenfranchisement * PUBLISHERS WEEKLY *A revelatory account of not-well-known assaults on the rights of an Indigenous group … The legacies of long-held social prejudices against the Indigenous group - racism, economic insecurity, and the traumas borne by the community’s elders who had been removed from the group in childhood and sent to “nomad schools” - continue to haunt Sámi life with devastating effects … Looming over the tale is the spectre of climate change and its impacts on the traditional Sámi herding methods * KIRKUS *A sharp and socially critical novel with an intensity that makes it powerful and strong ... Whatever you do, don’t miss out on this novel * Dagens Nyheter (SE) *Laestadius writes with burning intensity about a community around the Arctic Circle that is rarely portrayed. Her commitment shines through and constantly urges the reader to continue reading. It may be foolhardy to name this year’s most powerful book as early as February. But that Stolen is one of the most important Swedish books of the year is indisputable * Demokraatti (FI) *Stolen is not only a fierce cry for justice, but also an empathic and beautiful story about the love of and nature * Norra Skåne (SE) *One of the most talked about books this spring ... Stolen is a moving, multifaceted, and important contemporary novel that highlights many serious themes and portrays a society and a situation that needs to be discussed many times over. A well-written story that leaves a lasting impression * P4 Västernorrland (SE) *A deeply gripping and atmospheric novel that will take hold of your heart. Filled with compelling characters and a formidable landscape - this debut is a triumph! -- DANIELLE DANIEL, award-winning author of DAUGHTERS OF THE DEERIn a careful and at times poetic prose [Laestadius] portrays milieus, conflicts, and magic from an area that has long been underrepresented in literary fiction in Sweden * Expressen (SE) *Ann-Helén Laestadius’s writing flows seamlessly, with a piercing psychological and keen eye for societal issues. I am especially happy about the elegant ending, that beautifully ties the circle together and brings hope of a brighter future * Hufvudstadsbladet (FI) *Intimately and vividly portrayed. The novel gives beautiful insights into the life of the Sámi and their struggle for justice. An accessible and at the same time deep, beautiful, and suspenseful tale of a part of the world many of us know very little about. It deserves a large audience * BTJ (SE) *The best trick of fiction is how it can make us feel part of something, and Laestadius does just that ... Incredibly thrilling * Jönköpings-Posten (SE) *Both a thrilling page-turner and a story to remember for a long time to come * Sundsvalls Tidning (SE) *Stolen is an important novel that provides insight into modern Sámi life. This is the first step in a new direction for an author with a crucial message: I will be sure to follow her going forward * Svenska Dagbladet (SE) *A stunningly suspenseful, glowing story, in which a perceptive narrator brings a whole new world to the reader * Helsingin Sanomat *A splendid novel. [...] The characters are lovingly and skillfully portrayed, in such a way that makes it hard to let go of them afterwards * Suomen Kuvalehti *

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Book SynopsisA mother's secret past collides with her daughter's present in this intoxicating novel from Jane Healey, the author of The Animals at Lockwood Manor.In the summer of 1973, teenage Ruth and her four friends are obsessed with pre-Raphaelite paintings, and a little bit obsessed with each other. They spend the scorching summer days in the river by Ruth's grand family home, pretending to be the drowning Ophelia and recreating tableaus of other tragic mythical heroines. But by the end of the summer, real tragedy has found them.Twenty-four years later, Ruth is a wife and mother of three children, and moves her family into her still-grand, but now somewhat dilapidated, childhood home following the death of her father. Her seventeen-year-old daughter, Maeve, is officially in remission and having been discharged from hospital can finally start acting like a 'normal' teenager with the whole summer ahead of her. It's just the five of them until Stuart, a handsome photographer and old friend of her parents, comes to stay. And there’s something about Stuart that makes Maeve feel more alive than all of her life-saving treatments put together . . .As the heat of the summer burns, how long can the family go before long-held secrets threaten to burst their banks and drown them all? Set between two fateful summers, The Ophelia Girls is a visceral, heady exploration of illicit desire, infatuation and the perils and power of being a young woman.Trade ReviewThis is a potent, mesmerising portrait of girlhood desire, betrayal, beauty and death, sensuously written and passionately told -- Emma Stonex, author of The LamplightersA knowingly put together page-turner; a potent blend of art, beauty, awakening desire and mortality that seduces the reader as much as the cast * Daily Mail *A bruising and beautiful novel about girlhood and desire. Set over two heady summers, The Ophelia Girls perfectly captures the power and vulnerability of being a teenage girl. Within its flower-strewn pages, girls float carelessly down rivers and fall in love with devastating consequences. It's an immersive and intoxicating summer read with the long-lasting feel of a classic. I was captivated by it -- Molly Aitken, author of The Island ChildSet over the course of two stifling British summers, The Ophelia Girls is a dreamy exploration of the interior life of teenage girls and the tangled relationship between mothers and daughters. In her hypnotic prose Jane Healey captures the slipperiness of the adolescence experience, the thirst young women have for independence, and the sometimes perilous ways they attempt to define themselves. A siren song of a novel, The Ophelia Girls seduces as much as it disturbs -- Ellie Eaton, author of The DivinesThe Ophelia Girls is a novel saturated with beauty, menace, longing, secrets -- and with passions deep enough to drown in. It's a sinister, suspenseful page-turner that gripped me tightly and still hasn't fully let go -- Clare Beams, author of The Illness LessonThis is a vivid, sensuous novel that captures the feelings of passion and devastation of girls on the brink of womanhood and life itself, and I can’t recommend it enough -- Anna Bailey, bestselling author of Tall BonesI absolutely adored this exquisite novel. It is dark and sultry and beautiful and terrible. All the good stuff. The characters get tangled in so many complex strands of love, secrecy and obsession. And it perfectly captures the brilliance and terror of being a teenage girl -- Hazel Barkworth, author of HeatstrokeA compelling story of teenage innocence and infatuation, blended with the illicit desires and murky intentions of adults * Woman's Weekly *This novel has a sinewy, enchanting style that draws us into the reverie-like world of the river and its dangers and, like the characters it has so bewitched, never lets us go: it's powerful stuff * The Big Issue *

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Book SynopsisSet between two fateful summers, Jane Healey's The Ophelia Girls is a heady exploration of illicit desire, infatuation and the perils and power of being a young woman.'An immersive, intoxicating summer read with the long-lasting feel of a classic' - Molly Aitken, author of The Island ChildSummer, 1973. Teenage Ruth and her four friends spend the scorching summer days in the river, recreating tableaus of the drowning Ophelia and other tragic heroines. But as autumn draws nearer, real tragedy has found them.Summer, 1997. Ruth returns to her childhood home with her husband and three children, including her eldest daughter seventeen-year-old Maeve. However when Stuart, an old family friend comes to stay, the uneasy relationship between mother and daughter is pushed to its limit. For Stuart's arrival is a reminder of a death in Ruth's past, while Maeve is feeling more alive than ever . . .As the heat of the summer burns, how long can the family go before long-held secrets threaten to burst their banks and drown them all?'A vivid, sensuous novel . . . I can't recommend it enough' - Anna Bailey, bestselling author of Tall BonesTrade ReviewThis is a potent, mesmerising portrait of girlhood desire, betrayal, beauty and death, sensuously written and passionately told -- Emma Stonex, author of The LamplightersA knowingly put together page-turner; a potent blend of art, beauty, awakening desire and mortality that seduces the reader as much as the cast * Daily Mail *This is a vivid, sensuous novel that captures the feelings of passion and devastation of girls on the brink of womanhood and life itself, and I can’t recommend it enough -- Anna Bailey, bestselling author of Tall BonesA bruising and beautiful novel about girlhood and desire. Set over two heady summers, The Ophelia Girls perfectly captures the power and vulnerability of being a teenage girl. Within its flower-strewn pages, girls float carelessly down rivers and fall in love with devastating consequences. It's an immersive and intoxicating summer read with the long-lasting feel of a classic. I was captivated by it -- Molly Aitken, author of The Island ChildSet over the course of two stifling British summers, The Ophelia Girls is a dreamy exploration of the interior life of teenage girls and the tangled relationship between mothers and daughters. -- Ellie Eaton, author of The DivinesThe Ophelia Girls is a novel saturated with beauty, menace, longing, secrets -- and with passions deep enough to drown in. It's a sinister, suspenseful page-turner that gripped me tightly and still hasn't fully let go -- Clare Beams, author of The Illness LessonI absolutely adored this exquisite novel. It is dark and sultry and beautiful and terrible. All the good stuff. The characters get tangled in so many complex strands of love, secrecy and obsession. And it perfectly captures the brilliance and terror of being a teenage girl -- Hazel Barkworth, author of HeatstrokeA compelling story of teenage innocence and infatuation, blended with the illicit desires and murky intentions of adults * Woman's Weekly *This novel has a sinewy, enchanting style that draws us into the reverie-like world of the river and its dangers and, like the characters it has so bewitched, never lets us go: it's powerful stuff * The Big Issue *Deliciously atmospheric and brilliantly constructed, The Ophelia Girls tugs at the reader from the very first page until its satisfying finish. Engrossing and rich in imagery, Jane Healey writes the way dreams feel. I loved it -- Elissa R. Sloan, author of The Unraveling of Cassidy HolmesSensual and lush, The Ophelia Girls captures the dangerous power of approaching the world with an artist's eye, of seeing others and being truly seen in turn . . . a page-turning exploration of girlhood, secrets, desire, and art -- Sara Flannery Murphy, author of The Possessions

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Book SynopsisWinner of the Booker PrizeWinner of 'Book of the Year' and 'Debut of the Year' at the British Book AwardsThe Million-Copy Bestseller'An amazingly intimate, compassionate, gripping portrait of addiction, courage and love.' – The judges of the Booker Prize'Douglas Stuart has written a first novel of rare and lasting beauty.' – ObserverIt is 1981. Glasgow is dying and good families must grift to survive. Agnes Bain has always expected more from life, dreaming of greater things. But Agnes is abandoned by her philandering husband, and as she descends deeper into drink, the children try their best to save her, yet one by one they must abandon her to save themselves.It is her son Shuggie who holds out hope the longest. Shuggie is different, he is clearly no’ right. But Shuggie believes that if he tries his hardest, he can be normal like the other boys and help his mother escape this hopeless place.Shuggie Bain lays bare the ruthlessness of poverty, the limits of love, and the hollowness of pride. For readers of A Little Life and Angela's Ashes, it is a heartbreaking novel by a brilliant writer with a powerful and important story to tell.'A heartbreaking novel' – The Times'Tender and unsentimental . . . The Billy Elliot-ish character of Shuggie . . . leaps off the page.' – Daily MailTrade ReviewA heartbreaking novel, a book both beautiful and brutal . . . All that grief and sadness and misery has been turned into something tough, tender and beautifully sad. * The Times *Leaves us gutted and marvelling: Life may be short, but it takes forever. * New York Times *I think it’s the best first book I’ve read in many years. -- Karl Ove Knausgård * Guardian *Rarely does a debut novel establish its world with such sure-footedness, and Stuart’s prose is lithe, lyrical and full of revelatory descriptive insights. -- Alex Preston * Observer *An astonishing portrait, drawn from life, of a society left to die . . . Shuggie Bain has been longlisted for the Booker Prize. In a just world, it would win. * Daily Telegraph *Shuggie Bain comes from a deep understanding of the relationship between a child and a substance-abusing parent, showing a world rarely portrayed in literary fiction . . . Admirable and important. -- Sarah Moss * Guardian *This is a dysfunctional love story . . . between a boy and his mother . . . what makes his book a worthy contender for the Booker is his portrayal of their bond, together with all its perpetual damage. * Financial Times *Douglas Stuart’s startling Glasgow-set debut novel creates a world of poverty and suffering offset by pure, heart-filling, love . . . It’s a novel that deserves, and will surely often get, a second reading. -- Allan Massie * Scotsman *Shuggie Bain is a novel that aims for the heart and finds it. -- John Self * The Times *Tender and unsentimental . . . and the Billy Elliot-ish character of Shuggie . . . leaps off the page. * Daily Mail *Beautiful and bleak but with enough warmth and optimism to carry the reader through. -- Graham Norton (via Twitter)A boy's heartbreaking love for his mother . . . as intense and excruciating to read as any novel I have ever held in my hand . . . The book’s evocative power arises out of the author’s talent for conjuring a place, a time, and the texture of emotion . . . brilliantly written. * Newsday *An outstanding book . . . Magnificently done . . . Wonderful. -- Lee Child * Sunday Post *A debut novel that reads like a masterpiece, Shuggie Bain gives voice to the kind of helpless, hopeless love that children can feel toward broken parents. * Washington Post *This heartfelt and harrowing debut novel – which has been compared to the work of Édouard Louis, Frank McCourt, and Hanya Yanagihara, and which Kirkus has already called “a masterpiece” . . . is rightly being heralded for its visceral, emotionally nuanced portrayal of working class Scottish life and its blazingly intimate exploration of a mother-son relationship. * LitHub *A formidable story, lyrically told, about intimacy, family, and love. -- 12 Best Books of 2020 So Far * ELLE (US) *The way Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting carved a permanent place in our heads and hearts for the junkies of late-1980s Edinburgh, the language, imagery, and story of fashion designer Stuart's debut novel apotheosizes the life of the Bain family of Glasgow… Readers may get through the whole novel without breaking down—then read the first sentence of the acknowledgements and lose it. The emotional truth embodied here will crack you open. You will never forget Shuggie Bain. Scene by scene, this book is a masterpiece. -- Kirkus Reviews starred reviewA rare and haunting ode to 1980s Glasgow and its struggling communities, Shuggie Bain tells the story of a collapsing family that is lashed together by love alone. Douglas Stuart writes with startling, searing intimacy. I fell hard for these characters; when they have nothing left, they cling maddeningly—irresistibly—to humor, pride and hope * Chia-Chia Lin *Shuggie Bain is an intimate and frighteningly acute exploration of a mother-son relationship and a masterful portrait of alcoholism in Scottish working class life, rendered with old-school lyrical realism . . . I kept being reminded of Joyce's Dubliners. -- Sandra Newman, author of The HeavensThere’s no way to fake the life experience that forms the bedrock of Douglas Stuart’s wonderful Shuggie Bain. No way to fake the talent either. Shuggie will knock you sideways * Richard Russo *A dark shining work. Raw, formidable, bursting with tenderness and frailty. The effect is remarkable, it will make you cry. -- Karl Geary, author of Montpelier ParadeEvery now and then a novel comes along that feels necessary and inevitable. I’ll never forget Shuggie and Agnes or the incredibly detailed Glasgow they inhabit. This is the rare contemporary novel that reads like an instant classic. I’ll be thinking and talking about Shuggie Bain - and teaching it - for quite some time. -- Garrard Conley, New York Times-bestselling author of Boy ErasedGlasgow, Scotland, in the 1980s is the backdrop for this story of the fraught bond between a young boy and his mother. -- ‘The 22 Best Books to Read This Winter’ * Vogue (US) *Compulsively readable… As [the novel] beautifully and shockingly illustrates how Shuggie ends up alone, this novel offers a testament to the indomitable human spirit. Very highly recommended -- Library Journal starred review

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

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Book SynopsisFor fans of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, Joanna Nadin's The Talk of Pram Town tells a story about mothers, daughters and second chances . . .'Beautifully written and deliciously clever - the characters will stay with you for a long time and you’ll find joy on every page.' – Matson Taylor, author of Richard and Judy Book Club pick, The Miseducation of Evie EpworthIt’s 1981. Eleven-year-old Sadie adores her beautiful and vibrant mother, Connie, whose dreams of making it big as a singer fill their tiny house in Leeds. It’s always been just the two of them. Until the unthinkable happens.Jean hasn’t seen her good-for-nothing daughter Connie since she ran away from the family home in Harlow – or Pram Town as its inhabitants affectionately call it – aged seventeen and pregnant.But in the wake of the Royal Wedding, Jean gets a life-changing call: could she please come and collect the granddaughter she’s never met?We all know how Charles and Diana turned out, and Jean and Sadie are hardly a match made in heaven – but is there hope of a happy ending for them?Trade ReviewBeautifully written and deliciously clever - the characters will stay with you for a long time and you’ll find joy on every page. Really can’t recommend it enough -- Matson Taylor, author of Richard & Judy Book Club pick, The Miseducation of Evie EpworthFabulous on mothers and daughters, guilt and ambition and what it means to be alienated from the life you’ve always known * Daily Mail *Another triumph . . . I absolutely loved it -- Kate Eberlen, author of Miss You and Only YouI adored The Talk Of Pram Town. A brilliantly written, emotional and honest novel set in Essex and Leeds about mothers and daughters, dreams and dark secrets. It pulled at my heartstrings and the characters stayed inside my head long after I had finished reading. Highly recommend this wonderful book -- Jenny Quintana, author of The Missing Girl and The Hiding PlaceAn enchanting, heartfelt and nostalgic read -- Prima, on The Queen of Bloody Everything

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Book SynopsisSusan Dennard’s New York Times bestselling fantasy series continues – with the story of Iseult, the Threadwitch.War has come to the Witchlands . . . and nothing will be the same again.Iseult has found her heartsister Safi at last, but their reunion is brief. For Iseult to stay alive, she must flee Cartorra while Safi remains. And though Iseult has plans to save her friend, they will require her to summon magic more dangerous than anything she has ever faced before.Meanwhile, the Bloodwitch Aeduan is beset by forces he cannot understand. And Vivia – rightful queen of Nubrevna –finds herself without a crown or home.As villains from legend reawaken across the Witchlands, only the mythical Cahr Awen can stop the gathering war. Iseult could embrace this power and heal the land, but first she must choose on which side of the shadows her destiny will lie.Witchshadow is the fourth book in the Witchlands series by bestselling author Susan Dennard.‘Truthwitch by Susan Dennard is like a cake stuffed full of your favourite fantasy treats . . . this book will delight you’ – Robin Hobb, author of Assassin’s ApprenticeTrade ReviewTruthwitch by Susan Dennard is like a cake stuffed full of your favourite fantasy treats: highway robbery, swordplay, deep friendships, treachery, magic, piracy on the high seas, and romance. If you like any or all of the above in fantasy tales, this book will delight you -- Robin HobbSusan Dennard has worldbuilding after my own heart. It’s so good it’s intimidating -- Victoria Aveyard on BloodwitchFeaturing vibrant characters and an innovative system of magic, Susan Dennard’s Truthwitch is a fast-paced adventure and a wonderful tribute to the power of the binding ties of friendship -- Jacqueline Carey on TruthwitchTruthwitch has it all: strong female characters, adventure, magic, romance, and non-stop action that will leave you breathless -- Maria V. Snyder on TruthwitchEpic fantasy, epic adventure, epic friendship -- Kate Elliott on TruthwitchA world you’ll want to inhabit forever! -- Alexandra Bracken on Windwitch[Dennard] sets scenes so skillfully that the descriptions of the geography become immersive, and the characters continually develop along familiar lines. The plentiful action in this exciting fantasy almost makes it feel like one is in a multi-player online game -- Booklist on WindwitchEmotionally charged . . . complicated politics and personal relationships that are full of surprises -- RT Book Reviews on Windwitch

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Book SynopsisBrilliant, bold and thrilling, The Thousand Eyes by A. K. Larkwood is the epic fantasy sequel to The Unspoken Name.Could you sacrifice your dreams to escape a nightmare?Csorwe, Shuthmili and Tal survey abandoned Echentyr worlds to make a living. The empire’s ruins seem harmless but fascinating. Yet disaster strikes when they stumble upon ancient magic during a routine expedition. This revives a warrior who’d slept for an age, reigniting a conflict thousands of years old. And the soldier binds Csorwe to her cause.Shuthmili is desperate to protect the woman she loves. However, as events escalate, she’s torn. Can she help Csorwe by clinging to her own humanity or by embracing her eldritch powers?Tal heads home, but his peace is shattered when a magical catastrophe hits his city. The wizard Sethennai is missing and Tal can’t face seeking his former lover to ask for help. So, he flees – but there’s no escaping the future. For throughout the Echo Maze’s linked worlds, fragments of an undead goddess are waking. Soon all must choose a side.Praise for The Unspoken Name:‘An outstanding debut . . . unlike anything I’ve read before’ – Nicholas Eames‘Richly detailed, enthralling and extraordinary’ – Jenn Lyons‘Stylish, classy and timeless . . . I cannot recommend it enough’ – Tamsyn Muir‘An adventure I couldn’t put down’ – S. A. ChakrabortyTrade ReviewA fun, fresh new take on the traditional fantasy quest and an adventure I couldn't put down! -- S. A. Chakraborty on The Unspoken NameAn astounding debut, written with skill and stunning assurance . . . From its flawless first page to its bittersweet last, The Unspoken Name is unlike anything I’ve read before -- Nicholas Eames on The Unspoken NameThe Unspoken Name is the best kind of modern fantasy – it feels totally fresh, it's full of satisfyingly weird gods and frightening magic; plus it's stuffed with the sort of characters you'll either want to be friends with or run screaming from. I loved this book! -- Jen Williams on The Unspoken NameWhat a glorious book! Richly detailed, enthralling, and extraordinary, with brilliant nods to such luminaries as Ursula K. Le Guin and Diana Wynne Jones . . . Fabulous, in every meaning of the word -- Jenn Lyons on The Unspoken NameA.K. Larkwood’s The Unspoken Name is an epic fantasy in the vein of Le Guin’s magnificent Tombs of Atuan – if Arha the Eaten One got to grow up to be a swordswoman mercenary . . . The action is fast-paced and emotionally compelling; the magic is dangerous, beautiful and utterly compromising. I love this book so much -- Arkady Martine on The Unspoken Name

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Book SynopsisBrilliant, bold and thrilling, The Thousand Eyes by A. K. Larkwood is the epic fantasy sequel to The Unspoken Name.Could you sacrifice your dreams to escape a nightmare?Csorwe, Shuthmili and Tal survey abandoned Echentyr worlds to make a living. The empire’s ruins seem harmless but fascinating. Yet disaster strikes when they stumble upon ancient magic during a routine expedition. This revives a warrior who’d slept for an age, reigniting a conflict thousands of years old. And the soldier binds Csorwe to her cause.Shuthmili is desperate to protect the woman she loves. However, as events escalate, she’s torn. Can she help Csorwe by clinging to her own humanity or by embracing her eldritch powers?Tal heads home, but his peace is shattered when a magical catastrophe hits his city. The wizard Sethennai is missing and Tal can’t face seeking his former lover to ask for help. So, he flees – but there’s no escaping the future. For throughout the Echo Maze’s linked worlds, fragments of an undead goddess are waking. Soon all must choose a side.Praise for The Unspoken Name:‘An outstanding debut . . . unlike anything I’ve read before’ – Nicholas Eames‘Richly detailed, enthralling and extraordinary’ – Jenn Lyons‘Stylish, classy and timeless . . . I cannot recommend it enough’ – Tamsyn Muir‘An adventure I couldn’t put down’ – S. A. ChakrabortyTrade ReviewA fun, fresh new take on the traditional fantasy quest and an adventure I couldn't put down! -- S. A. Chakraborty on The Unspoken NameAn astounding debut, written with skill and stunning assurance . . . From its flawless first page to its bittersweet last, The Unspoken Name is unlike anything I’ve read before -- Nicholas Eames on The Unspoken NameThe Unspoken Name is the best kind of modern fantasy – it feels totally fresh, it's full of satisfyingly weird gods and frightening magic; plus it's stuffed with the sort of characters you'll either want to be friends with or run screaming from. I loved this book! -- Jen Williams on The Unspoken NameWhat a glorious book! Richly detailed, enthralling, and extraordinary, with brilliant nods to such luminaries as Ursula K. Le Guin and Diana Wynne Jones . . . Fabulous, in every meaning of the word -- Jenn Lyons on The Unspoken NameA.K. Larkwood’s The Unspoken Name is an epic fantasy in the vein of Le Guin’s magnificent Tombs of Atuan – if Arha the Eaten One got to grow up to be a swordswoman mercenary . . . The action is fast-paced and emotionally compelling; the magic is dangerous, beautiful and utterly compromising. I love this book so much -- Arkady Martine on The Unspoken Name

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Book Synopsis‘Profane, funny, and uncomfortably honest' – Brandon Taylor, author of Real Life Twenty-year-old Lilja is in love.He is older and beautiful, a Derrida-quoting intellectual.He is also a serial cheater, gaslighter and narcissist.Lilja will do anything to hold on to him.And so she accepts his deceptions and endures his sexual desires. She rationalizes his toxic behaviour and permits him to cross all her boundaries. In her desperation to be the perfect lover, she finds herself unable to break free from the toxic cycle. And then an unexpected ultimatum: an all-consuming love, or the promise of a life reclaimed. Thora Hjörleifsdóttir explores the darkest corners of relationships, capturing an ugly, hidden nature of love. In an era of growing pornification, she deftly illustrates the failings of our culture in recognizing symptoms of cruelty. In visceral, poetic prose, translated from Icelandic by Meg Matich, Magma depicts the unspooling of a tender-hearted young woman aching to love and be loved.'Mesmerizing . . . Hjösleifsdóttir dives deep into the fire-rivers of lust, just how much humiliation we’re willing to tolerate in the name of love.' – Oprah DailyTrade ReviewMagma is profane, funny, and uncomfortably honest about what happens when we substitute someone’s image of us for self-knowledge. -- Brandon Taylor * Vulture *A compulsive, propulsive debut about a young woman’s exploration of love and sex . . . Thora Hjörleifsdóttir’s narrator pulls us into the tale of her near undoing and her struggle to find her own value. -- Lily King, author of Writers & LoversA luminous and poetic novel . . . How to describe the slow escalation by which possession becomes control, and power abuse? [Hjörleifsdóttir] has created a whole new landscape for storytelling. -- John Freeman, author of How to Read a NovelistA novel that speaks directly to its present age . . . An incredibly compelling book * Iceland National Radio *Bulleted, candid, first-person prose that parallels the quickness in which women’s lives can become less their own. * Lit Hub *Unsettling . . . an achingly plausible mix of verve and bluntness . . . Throughout, Hjörleifsdóttir's fresh prose disturbingly evokes the young woman’s unmoored state. The burnished micro-chapters form a narrative necklace of gems. * Publishers Weekly *Hjörleifsdóttir's heart-wrenching American debut is a raw and empathetic depiction of a woman so subtly manipulated into an abusive relationship that she loses her sense of self and cannot find a way out . . . masterfully written * Booklist *Arresting . . . [Magma] urgently explores the challenges and costs of a young woman’s passionate yet toxic relationship. * Time, 'Best Books of Summer 2021' *Beautifully spare prose . . . A powerful excavation of what can go wrong when you love another. -- Literary Hub, '38 Novels You Need to Read This Summer'Mesmerizing . . . Hjörleifsdóttir dives deep into the fire-rivers of lust, just how much humiliation we’re willing to tolerate in the name of love. -- Oprah Daily

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Book SynopsisThe Rose Garden is a richly imagined historical novel full of intrigue and secrets, spanning the luxury and poverty of Victorian England. Perfect for fans of Dinah Jefferies and Rachel Hore.Every house has its secrets . . .For twelve-year-old Ottilie Finch, London is an exciting playground to explore. Her family have recently arrived in Hampstead from Durham, under a cloud of scandal that Otty is blissfully unaware of. The only shadow over her days is her mother’s mysterious illness, which keeps her to her room.When young local girl Mabs is offered the chance to become Mrs Finch’s companion, it saves her from a desperate life on the canals. Little does she know that all is not as picture-perfect as it seems. Mabs is about to become tangled in the secrets that chased the Finches from their last home, and trapped in an impossible dilemma . . .‘Tracy Rees is a natural storyteller . . . What a treat it is!’ – Rachel Hore, author of A Gathering Storm.'In this engrossing novel Tracy Rees takes the reader directly into the drama and action . . . the roles and attitudes to women at the end of the Victorian period and the emerging women’s movement were riveting. Totally unputdownable' – Dinah Jefferies, author of The Tea-Planter’s Wife.Trade ReviewIn this engrossing novel Tracy Rees takes the reader directly into the drama and action, her writing bringing every scene to sparkling vivid life. The rich use of language meant I was fully immersed in the Victorian world of the main women protagonists and didn’t want to leave. Written with empathy and revealing differing sides to even more minor characters, the roles and attitudes to women at the end of the Victorian period and the emerging women’s movement were riveting. Totally unputdownable. -- Dinah Jefferies, author of The Sapphire WidowA warm, original and upbeat novel. Tracy Rees is a natural storyteller and I couldn’t stop turning the pages. I loved the setting of Victorian Hampstead and its vivid range of characters. What a treat it is! -- Rachel Hore, author of A Place of Secrets, on The Rose GardenTracy Rees has a rare gift for creating characters you are rooting for from the first page. The writing is fresh and engaging, with a gentle humour...the research is meticulous, and the women’s stories are told with immense compassion. This is a novel that immerses you in its world as if by magic, and keeps you enthralled till the very end. -- Gill Paul, author of The Secret Wife, on The Rose GardenBeautifully written and vividly imagined, The Rose Garden strikes the perfect balance between period drama to savour and compelling escapism to devour. Tracy Rees has such a talent for writing engaging characters who stay with you. I loved it! -- Hazel Gaynor, author of The Girl Who Came Home, on The Rose GardenA rich, compelling and intricate tapestry of women’s lives . . . their wants, needs and dreams through the characters diverse lives. I couldn’t put it down. -- Liz Fenwick, author of The Cornish House, on The Rose GardenA rich historical drama that is both a subtle study of the treatment of women and an entertaining escape. Pure joy. -- Jo Spain, author of Dirty Little Secrets, on The Rose Gardensuch a treat ... I loved Tracy’s elegant writing and the vivid and relatable characters, and historically-rich story...wonderful and uplifting. -- Nicola Cornick, author of House of Shadows on The Rose GardenIt’s so wonderful, so poignant and oh, the history. I loved delving into these women’s lives, their loves, their individual and very different and difficult plights. It’s eye opening and entertaining and moving all at the same time. Bravo to Tracy. I can’t wait to see this book fly. -- Lorna Cook, author of The Forgotten Village, on The Rose Garden[A] truly captivating tale of female friendship, courage and empowerment, all wrapped up in the wonderful escapism of an exquisite period drama -- Samantha King on The Rose GardenThe Rose Garden is an absolute delight to read and holds you spellbound from cover to cover. Full of wonderful characters woven into a story that tugs at your heartstrings, this is a truly beautiful novel that confirms Tracy Rees is at the height of her game. -- Rebecca Griffiths on The Rose Garden[G]orgeously written, deeply atmospheric, tense and vivid and a total page-turner. -- Jenny Ashcroft on The Rose GardenThe Rose Garden is full of hope and infectious optimism - just the thing for now! -- Kate Griffin on The Rose GardenThe Rose Garden is a joy. Through its cast of memorable female characters, this novel sets the fight for justice against all the colour and optimism which is so characteristic of Tracy Rees' writing. -- Rebecca F John on The Rose GardenTracy’s writing is so fresh, original and authentic -- Bestselling author Rosanna LeyTracy Rees writes from the heart -- Bestselling author Kathryn HughesRees has skilfully interwoven all the joy and pain that comes with families, friends and lovers into a multi-layered story that won't let you go. Bittersweet, compelling and utterly engrossing, I couldn't put it down -- Karen Swan, internationally bestselling authorI absolutely loved it. With its compelling themes of female friendship and empowerment against all odds, The Rose Garden is a fascinating and compassionate story. The settings of well-to-do Hampstead and the poverty of Saffron Hill in Victorian England are both vividly evoked and the main characters of Mabs, Abigail, Ottilie and Olive are warm, authentic and engaging. I was completely immersed in the world of The Rose Garden from beginning to end. -- Rosanna Ley, author of The Orange GroveThe Rose Garden is an absolute joy. I was completely swept up in the lives of Olive, Otty, Mabs and Abigail. Against the backdrop of Victorian London, their story is one of friendship against the odds and of courage that transcends the rules of a flawed society. Written with elegance, charm and wisdom, this book is both unputdownable and unforgettable. -- Hazel PriorI simply loved The Rose Garden. The setting of Victorian London has a Dickensian feel but, unlike Dickens, Tracy Rees peoples her city with a compelling cast of women characters battling poverty, class and gender inequality. The voice of poor but sparky Mabs will remain with me for a long time - she is a terrific creation. -- Liz Trenow, author of The Secrets of the LakeThe Rose Garden is full of heart and a rich, lively cast of characters who transport the reader straight into its Victorian world. Gorgeous. -- Eve Chase, author of The Glass House Tracy is a very skilled storyteller who weaves the vivid strands of her story together against a rich historical background. The Rose Garden has buckets of atmosphere and a cast of beautifully drawn characters. -- Jane Johnson

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

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Book Synopsis'Spiky, clever, funny' – Emma Stonex, author of The Lamplighters'Brilliant, propulsive . . . A riot'– Maddie Mortimer, author of Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies'A delicious gallop through 90s tabloid London' – Sam McAlister, author of ScoopsIt’s peak 90s London. Shoulder pads are out, crimped hair is in, supermodels are known by their first names, and Becky Sharp will do anything to escape her past.From mingling with tabloid millionaires to trading favours and fortunes with royalty, she will stop at nothing to reach the top of the career ladder at the Mercury newspaper. Landing scoop after scoop, Becky ruthlessly carves a place for herself in a society determined to ignore her. These are the biggest stories and scandals of the decade, and she has something to do with every one of them.But Becky may have more in common with the people she writes about than she thinks – what takes a lifetime to build takes only a moment to destroy . . .'A Vanity Fair for the mass-media age' - The GuardianTrade ReviewThe luscious draw of the Nineties glitz, the scandal of the press, and the tangibly descriptive jeopardy throughout makes this a true page-turner * The Independent *Addictive reading, [Becky's] darkness provid[es] welcome relief in these over-bright times * The Irish Times *A keenly observed portrait of elite society which skewers snobbery, sexism and celebrity culture . . . A page-turning blockbuster which pulls off its bold premise with panache * Apple Books *Rattles along very enjoyably, as talented Becky sucks up to celebrities and royalty then exploits them ruthlessly for her own ends * The Gloss Magazine *Becky is Sarah May’s sparkling tribute to William Thackeray’s classic novel Vanity Fair . . . entertaining and fast-paced * Daily Express *A scalpel-sharp, visciously funny slice of social comedy fit for our time * Northampton Chronicle *Becky by the supremely talented Sarah May is spiky, clever, funny and dark . . . I’m riveted -- Emma Stonex, author of The LamplightersA brilliant, propulsive novel crafted with just the kind of roaring wit and striking precision Thackeray himself would commend. Becky is a riot, and Sarah May is a genius -- Maddie Mortimer, author of Maps of Our Spectacular BodiesA delicious gallop through 90s tabloid London * Sam McAlister, author of Scoops *A supple, witty take on the tabloid world and on Vanity Fair -- Jo Baker, author of LongbournSharp, brutally funny, coruscating . . . Becky by Sarah May is . . . a tonic -- Sam BakerClever and timely . . . fascinating on the media and power -- Terry Stiastny, author of Acts of OmissionBecky is a darling of the red tops, and a champion of stolen girls. Set against the backdrop of Princess Diana's death, phone tapping scandals and the dripping hot excitement of nineties Britain, Becky is as close to unputdownable as a book could be -- Anna Jean Hughes

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

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Book SynopsisA Sunday Times Book of the Year'A stunning work of historical imagination . . . masterful in its portrayal of love, sex and friendship' - The Observer'Sparrow [is] truly unforgettable' – Daily MailMeet Jacob – aka Sparrow – a boy slave in the Spanish city of New Carthage in the last years of pagan Rome. Raised in a brothel at the edge of a dying empire, a boy of no known origin creates his own identity. He is Sparrow, who sings without reason and can fly from trouble. His world is a kitchen, a herb-scented garden, a loud and dangerous tavern, and the mysterious upstairs where the ‘wolves’ – prostitutes and slaves from every corner of the empire – conduct their business.He spends his days listening to stories told by his beloved ‘mother’ Euterpe, running errands for her lover the cook, and dodging the blows of their brutal overseer and the machinations of the chief wolf, Melpomene. A hard fate awaits Sparrow, one that involves suffering, murder, mayhem, and the scattering of the women who have been his whole world . . .In Sparrow, James Hynes brings the entirety of the Roman city of Carthago Nova – its markets, temples, taverns of the lowly and mansions of the rich – to vivid, brutal life.'Hynes renders this hidden world so powerfully and vividly.' – The GuardianTrade ReviewA stunning work of historical imagination . . . Masterful in its portrayal of love, sex and friendship * The Observer *Utterly engrossing, vivid, and honest, this coming of age story reaches across millennia to grab us by the throat.' -- Emma Donoghue, author of RoomAn unnerving, exhilarating, unflinching portrayal of sex, slavery and sisterhood . . . This is a novel of ancient times for our times. And it is splendid, a work of scorching distinction. -- Jim Crace, author of HarvestSparrow is a brilliantly written page-turner, a complex, vital, sometimes brutal story told with heartrending beauty. -- Kate Christensen, author of The Great ManHynes, using his pen like a cinematic overview, makes us see everything, the streets, the markets, the homes . . . everything is historically documented. * La Stampa *Sparrow feels like an entirely authentic portrait . . . James Hynes renders this hidden world so powerfully and vividly. * The Times *A bleak and brutal story, vividly told by Hynes, who has created a truly unforgettable character in the resilient Sparrow * Daily Mail *

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Book Synopsis'A beautiful and evocative novel about grief, about growing up, about losing and winning. The people and places in this book will stay with me for a long time.' – Sally RooneyA 'Book of the Year' in The Economist, The Independent, The Week, The New York Times and The GuardianA deeply moving novel about grief, sisterhood, squash and a teenage girl's struggle to transcend herself.Eleven-year-old Gopi has been playing squash since she was old enough to hold a racket. When her mother dies, her father enlists her in a quietly brutal training regimen, and the game becomes her world. Slowly, she grows apart from her sisters. Her life is reduced to the sport, guided by its rhythms: the serve, the volley, the drive, the shot and its echo.But on the court, she is not alone. She is with her pa. She is with Ged, a thirteen-year-old boy with his own formidable talent. She is with the players who have come before her. She is in awe.An unforgettable coming-of-age story, Chetna Maroo’s first novel is a moving exploration of the closeness of sisterhood, the immigrant experience, and the collective overcoming of grief.'With this gorgeous debut, Maroo blows most of the competition off the court.' – The Times'Stunning . . . Spare, tender, brilliantly achieved . . . A novel that unfolds in silences . . . and dares to leave much unsaid.' – The GuardianTrade Review'Western Lane is a beautiful and evocative novel about grief, about growing up, about losing and winning. The people and places in this book will stay with me for a long time.' -- Sally RooneyA slim, subtle debut novel of grief and growing up that conjures a powerful panoply of emotions * The Economist, 'The Best Books of 2023' *Stunning . . . Spare, tender, brilliantly achieved . . . A novel that unfolds in silences . . . and dares to leave much unsaid. * The Guardian *A deeply evocative debut about a family grappling with grief, conveyed through crystalline language -- The Judges of the Booker PrizeThis gorgeous tale about a family reeling from loss stands out from the debut crowd… This quiet, elegantly compressed coming-of-age novel . . . operates most powerfully in the gaps outside the plot . . . Few novelists write this simply and richly. With this gorgeous debut, Maroo blows most of the competition off the court. * The Times *Maroo’s quiet sentences contain multitudes on cultural tensions and grief, on the wordless love between a father and a daughter. * The Telegraph *Terrific . . . A symphony of emotion . . . A bold book and a quietly brilliant one * The Economist *The beauty of Maroo’s novel lies in [its] unfolding, the narrative shaped as much by what is on the page as by what’s left unsaid . . . In this graceful novel, the game of squash becomes a way into Gopi’s grief and her attempts to process it. * The New York Times *Melancholy is only one of the moods of this short but brimming book. Squash is also a channel for Gopi’s rage; for connections with other players and her longsuffering father; and for a joyous kind of freedom of expression. The novel ends with the tournament, as it must, and Ms. Maroo’s writing achieves its most graceful rhythms and prescient insights. You’ll want to applaud. * The Wall Street Journal *A vivid depiction of grief, love and sisterhood * Independent *Starting off as an intimate tone poem, this story of a squash-obsessed teenager expands into something with the amplitude, depth, and ringing power of a great symphony. In other words--WOW. Western Lane is glorious. You’ll want to read it over and over again. -- Aravind Adiga, author of The White TigerCombining the precision and the efficiency of an athlete with the mysteries of childhood loss and memory, Western Lane is a novel in which we linger on every breathing line and relish every close observation. What an exceptionally talented writer Chetna Maroo is!' -- Yiyun Li, author of A Thousand Years of Good Prayers and Where Reasons End[A] slim, subtle, moving story . . . about grief and growing up in a Gujarati family in Britain . . . A bold book [and] a quietly brilliant one. -- A D Miller, Booker-shortlisted author of SnowdropsChetna Maroo captures with great poignancy and accuracy the bewilderment and groping for meaning that loss brings—but also how small acts of kindness ultimately redeem us from this loss. Truly a gem of a novel, this deceptively simple story told in a sparse, elegant style kept revealing its depths long after I had closed its pages. -- Shyam Selvadurai, author of Funny BoyLean, agile, and quietly deadly, Western Lane is a coming-of-age story of extraordinary artistic maturity. It is a book of young people muscling themselves through unreconciled grief, and it is a book of simmering intensities, reverberating silences, and exquisite literary timing. This is a book to both share and treasure. -- David Chariandy, author of BrotherThere are no villains in this exquisite novel (unless you include Death); everybody wants what is best and behaves with kindness. It could be syrupy-sweet, like Aunt Ranjan’s gulab jamun, but it isn’t. * TLS *A profoundly resonant novel . . . This is a debut in which Chetna Maroo gets every choice right, even the riskier ones. It reminds me of Kazuo Ishiguro’s A Pale View of Hills in that sense, and it has the same quality of being so calm, so confident, so close to the profound and yet rooted in real experience. The writing is beautiful and wise. * The Irish Times *

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Book SynopsisThe Atlas Six by Olivie Blake is the runaway TikTok sensation – a must-read fantasy novel with gorgeous illustrations. If you loved Ninth House and A Deadly Education, you’ll love this.Secrets. Betrayal. Seduction.Welcome to the Alexandrian Society.When the world’s best magicians are offered an extraordinary opportunity, saying yes is easy. Each could join the secretive Alexandrian Society, whose custodians guard lost knowledge from ancient civilizations. Their members enjoy a lifetime of power and prestige. Yet each decade, only six practitioners are invited – to fill five places.Contenders Libby Rhodes and Nico de Varona are inseparable enemies, cosmologists who can control matter with their minds. Parisa Kamali is a telepath, who sees the mind’s deepest secrets. Reina Mori is a naturalist who can perceive and understand the flow of life itself. And Callum Nova is an empath, who can manipulate the desires of others. Finally there’s Tristan Caine, whose powers mystify even himself.Following recruitment by the mysterious Atlas Blakely, they travel to the Society’s London headquarters. Here, each must study and innovate within esoteric subject areas. And if they can prove themselves, over the course of a year, they’ll survive. Most of them.'As much a delicious contest of wit, will, and passion as it is of magic, this book is half mystery, half puzzle, and wholly a delight' – Holly Black, author of The Cruel PrinceThe story continues in The Atlas Paradox, the heart-stopping sequel.Reader reviews:‘I don’t think anything will ever compare with this’‘To say I can't wait for the sequel is an understatement. Do yourself a favour and buy this immediately!’‘I had to convince myself magic isn’t real’Originally a self-published sensation, this edition has been fully edited and revised.Trade ReviewLethally smart. Filled with a cast of brilliantly realized characters, each entangled with one another in torturously delicious ways, The Atlas Six will grip you by the throat and refuse to let go. Olivie Blake is a mind-blowing talent -- Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent DelightsThe Atlas Six introduces six of the most devious, talented, and flawed characters to ever find themselves in a magical library, and then sets them against one another in a series of stunning betrayals and reversals. As much a delicious contest of wit, will, and passion as it is of magic, this book is half mystery, half puzzle, and wholly a delight -- Holly Black, author of Book of Night and the Folk of the Air seriesCompelling, entertaining, and addictive. This is academic Darwinism – survival of the smartest -- T. L. Huchu, author of The Library of the DeadWith a fascinating magic system explored through the lens of philosophy and morality, narrated by dynamic, enthralling characters, The Atlas Six is a tour de force. I read this book in two sittings – once I picked it up, I found it almost impossible to put down -- Christine Lynn Herman, author of All of Us VillainsThis chilling story of ambition and magic will make you question your own morals as you grow to love (and hate) its fascinating, ruthless cast of characters. I utterly devoured this book -- Amanda Foody, author of All of Us VillainsThe Atlas Six will thrill those who love twisted plots, twisted relationships, and morally grey characters ready to kill for knowledge and power. Dark, ambitious, and engaging -- H. G. Parry, author of The Unlikely Escape of Uriah HeepWith a cast of complicated hate-to-love-them characters and enough delicious philosophizing to satisfy even the pickiest dark academia heart, this book will drag you into its undertow and refuse to let you go 'til morning -- Victoria Lee, author of A Lesson in VengeanceCoolly horrific, brilliantly brainy and utterly compelling -- Daily MailDense with ideas, with a compelling premise . . . a richly satisfying head-trip -- SFX MagazineRich characters and richer prose, The Atlas Six is a fun, twisty page-turner that left me wanting more. Olivie Blake is an author to look out for! -- Susan Dennard, author of The Luminaries

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Book Synopsis‘1993 was the year that Stephen Lawrence got murdered by racists, and I became an angry Black lad with a “chip on his shoulder”’Aeon, a mixed-up and mixed-race teenager from a leafy Liverpool suburb, is desperate to understand the Black identity thrust upon him. He grows dreadlocks and immerses himself in ‘gangsta’ rap. But Aeon’s journey of self-discovery is hampered by the fact that the only Black people in his life are his dad and his cousin, Increase.Aeon’s ambition to find his place in the world takes him to Jamaica. Here, Aeon soon finds that smoking loads of weed, growing messy locks and wearing massive red boots don’t necessarily help him to fit in. Within days of his arrival he is mugged, arrested and banged up in a Jamaican detention centre. Seen as the ‘White boy’, he finds that his journey of self-discovery has only just begun – and he’s going to have to fight for the respect and recognition he deserves . . .A coming-of-age comedy of errors, Locks is an electric debut novel about growing up, wising up, and finding your place in a world of opposites._____'Blends humour and introspection, poetry and the poignant' - Derek Owusu, author of the Desmond Elliott Prize-winning That Reminds Me'Irreverent, authentic and utterly enthralling. A wonderful book' - Jimmy McGovern, creator of the drama series Cracker'Twisty, energetic, voice-led . . . Nugent is pure talent' - Raymond Antrobus, author of the Rathbones Folio Prize-winning The Perseverance'Thought provoking and funny' - David Beckler, author of A Long ShadowTrade ReviewA search for meaning and the complicated expression of multiple cultures. Ashleigh is a born storyteller, able to blend humour and introspection, poetry and the poignant. -- Derek Owusu, author of That Reminds MeI loved Locks. It’s a twisty, energetic, voice-led novel, written with humour and skill and drama . . . Like Virginia Woolf but from the ends. Nugent is pure talent, something else. -- Raymond Antrobus, author of The PerseveranceThought-provoking and funny . . . perfectly captures the sense of being between two cultures, whilst never feeling fully part of either . . . full of larger-than-life characters who jump off the page. -- David Beckler, author of A Long ShadowIrreverent, authentic and utterly enthralling. A wonderful book. -- Jimmy McGovern, creator of CrackerIt's just AMAZING! It's totally gripping, hilarious, wise and poignant . . . -- Matt Lloyd Rose, author of Into the NightAn adventure story like no other . . . Nugent has a fine talent for storytelling, but also for capturing truth. Locks is both funny, and psychologically astute, and really captures the nuanced dynamic between boys pushed to their emotional and physical limits through hardship and misunderstanding. -- Lily Dunn, author of Sins of My Father

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Book Synopsis'. . . seethes with love and brutality, violence and hope . . . a remarkable and timely story of the bonds between women' Sabaa Tahir'An incredibly important and empowering read' Natasha Ngan_____________________________________________THE RESISTANCE STARTS HERE.No one speaks of the grace year.It's forbidden.We're told we have the power to lure grown men from their beds, make boys lose their minds, and drive the wives mad with jealousy. That's why we're banished for our sixteenth year, to release our magic into the wild before we're allowed to return to civilisation.But I don't feel powerful.I don't feel magical.Tierney James lives in an isolated village where girls are banished at sixteen to the northern forest to brave the wilderness - and each other - for a year. They must rid themselves of their dangerous magic before returning purified and ready to marry - if they're lucky.It is forbidden to speak of the grace year, but even so every girl knows that the coming year will change them - if they survive it...A critically acclaimed page-turning feminist dystopia about a young woman trapped in an oppressive society, fighting to take control of her own life.'Beautiful, devastating, and deeply moving' Samira Ahmed, New York Times bestselling author of Internment and Love, Hate & Other Filters'A visceral, darkly haunting fever dream of a novel . . . I couldn't stop reading' Libba Bray, New York Times bestselling author of The Diviners and A Great and Terrible BeautyTrade ReviewPart coming-of-age tale, part adventure story; this is not a cry against oppression - it's a bold, beautiful howl. * Heat Magazine *An incredibly important and empowering read * Natasha Ngan, New York Times bestselling author of Girls of Paper and Fire *A crazy mash-up of Vox, The Hunger Games, Lord Of The Flies and The Handmaid’s Tale. * Daily Mail *A must-read for fans of The Handmaid's Tale and The Power * Bustle *Harrowing and absolutely riveting, an insidious journey from reason to madness that manages to completely refresh the concept of the patriarchal dystopia, with a beautifully realised ending. * Melissa Albert, New York Times bestselling author of THE HAZEL WOOD *

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Book Synopsis_____________________Welcome to the Winter Garden. Open only at 13 o'clock.You are invited to enter an unusual competition.I am looking for the most magical, spectacular, remarkable pleasure garden this world has to offer.On the night her mother dies, 8-year-old Beatrice receives an invitation to the mysterious Winter Garden. A place of wonder and magic, filled with all manner of strange and spectacular flora and fauna, the garden is her solace every night for seven days. But when the garden disappears, and no one believes her story, Beatrice is left to wonder if it were truly real.Eighteen years later, on the eve of her wedding to a man her late father approved of but she does not love, Beatrice makes the decision to throw off the expectations of Victorian English society and search for the garden. But when both she and her closest friend, Rosa, receive invitations to compete to create spectacular pleasure gardens - with the prize being one wish from the last of the Winter Garden's magic - she realises she may be closer to finding it than she ever imagined.Now all she has to do is win.Trade ReviewAn entertaining and thought provoking fable * SFX *Compelling reading in this dark but enchanting historical fantasy * Daily Mail *An enchanting and moving story of love, loss and rivalry . . . the perfect novel to read as autumn settles upon our gardens and the icy chill of winter begins to creep in * Culturefly *A mesmerising, stunningly crafted story of loss and the importance of dreams * Waterstones *Interweaves darkness and whimsy, using the contrasts of painful reality and sparkling magic. * Fantasy Hive *

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Book SynopsisThe Sunday Times bestseller!FINALIST FOR THE LODESTAR AWARDIn the start of an all-new trilogy, the bestselling author of Uprooted and Spinning Silver introduces you to a dangerous school for the magically gifted where failure means certain death - until one girl begins to rewrite its rules.____________Enter a school of magic unlike any you have ever encountered.There are no teachers, no holidays, friendships are purely strategic, and the odds of survival are never equal. Once you're inside, there are only two ways out: you graduate or you die.El Higgins is uniquely prepared for the school's many dangers. She may be without allies, but she possesses a dark power strong enough to level mountains and wipe out untold millions - never mind easily destroy the countless monsters that prowl the school.Except, she might accidentally kill all the other students, too. So El is trying her hardest not to use it . . . that is, unless she has no other choice.With flawless mastery, Naomi Novik creates a heroine for the ages - a character so sharply realized and so richly nuanced that she will live on in hearts and minds for generations to come.____________'Hilarious and wild! Take any fictional magic school, make it as over-the-top dangerous as possible, and populate it with a bunch of snarky teenagers; the result is pure batshit fun.'N.K. Jemisin, three-time Hugo Award winner and author of The Fifth Season'Novik deliciously undoes expectations about magic schools, destined heroes, and family legacies. A gorgeous book about monsters and monstrousness, chockablock with action, cleverness, and wit.' Holly Black, #1 New York Times bestselling author'The Scholomance is the dark school of magic I've been waiting for, and its wise, witty, and monstrous heroine is one I'd happily follow anywhere-even into a school full of monsters.' Katherine Arden, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Bear and the Nightingale'The wonderful cast of characters will grab a hold of your heart and you'll never want to leave this deadly school ... a fantasy that delights on every level. I loved this brilliant book.'Stephanie Garber, #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of the Caraval series'Eyeball-meltingly brilliant. Novik is, quite simply, a genius.'Kiersten White, New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken'Sharp, witty, and darkly effervescent, A Deadly Education is Naomi Novik's fresh take on the concept of the magic school. One of my favorite reads of the year.'Rory Power, New York Times bestselling author of Wilder Girls'Fresh, smart, and delightfully unique. It's Hogwarts with higher stakes and sharper claws, and I absolutely loved it.'Alix E. Harrow'A nightmare from which I never wished to wake. Savage, inventive, and soulful, Novik grasps the totems of childhood that linger in your mind-schools of magic, curses, cutthroat classmates, monsters-only to twist them into a grand new tale that'll make you believe in magic again.' Pierce Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Dark AgeA Deadly Education, Sunday Times bestseller - October 2020Trade ReviewThe Scholomance is the dark school of magic I’ve been waiting for, and its wise, witty, and monstrous heroine is one I'd happily follow anywhere—even into a school full of monsters. -- KATHERINE ARDENSharp as a fang, funny and ruthless, this still manages to conjure up powerful observations about friendship, exclusion and privilege. * DAILY MAIL *From the author of Spinning Silver comes a story set in an austere school for the magically gifted which houses unfathomable secrets and dark challenges for its students. Weaving together suspicion, danger, sorcery, monsters and humour, A Deadly Education is a magnificent return to form from Naomi Novik. * WATERSTONES *Eyeball-meltingly brilliant. Novik is, quite simply, a genius. -- KIERSTEN WHITEA Deadly Education is a nightmare from which I never wished to wake. Savage, inventive, and soulful, Novik grasps the totems of childhood that linger in your mind-schools of magic, curses, cutthroat classmates, monsters-only to twist them into a grand new tale that'll make you believe in magic again.A dark, smart, delicious tale, set to redefine everything you think you know about schools for magic. A Deadly Education is dangerously addictive. * KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE *At Scholomance, monsters are everywhere and the breakfast might kill you, but the wonderful cast of characters will grab a hold of your heart and you’ll never want to leave this deadly school. Naomi Novik skillfully combines sharp humor with layers of imagination to build a fantasy that delights on every level. I loved this brilliant book. -- STEPHANIE GARBERHilarious and wild! Take any fictional magic school, make it as over-the-top dangerous as possible, and populate it with a bunch of snarky teenagers; the result is pure batshit fun. -- N. K. JEMISINSharp, witty, and darkly effervescent, A Deadly Education is Naomi Novik’s fresh take on the concept of the magic school. One of my favorite reads of the year. -- RORY POWERA Deadly Education plunges into the delightfully brutal world of the Scholomance, a magic school unlike anything you've ever seen before, and introduces El, a practical, ruthless heroine with the guts and wits to survive it. Naomi Novik has crafted a transcendent academic fantasy that pulls no punches. * EMILY SKRUTSKIE *Naomi Novik reinvents the magical school story by working a strange, funny, wild, dark magic all her own. This is not just your next great read - it's your new obsession. * GWENDA BOND *Novik is a master at setting up a plot to unfurl in a series of staggeringly well-thought out bursts of action, weaving together into an imaginative climax.A Deadly Education is a book that lives up to its gob smacker of an opening sentence and follows right through to its shocker of an ending that promises more to come. Naomi Novik is relentlessly innovative and entertaining -- TERRY BROOKSFresh, smart, and delightfully unique. It's Hogwarts with higher stakes and sharper claws, and I absolutely loved it. * ALIX E. HARROW *The author's most entertaining novel to date * SFX *Fun and beautifully written * Metro *A story that never stops moving while always remaining focused on developing the characters of both the people and the school itself * Locus Magazine *

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Book Synopsis'A profound examination of friendship, romantic confusion and mortality' John BoyneOne summer's evening, two men meet up in a Dublin restaurant. Old friends, now married and with grown-up children, their lives have taken seemingly similar paths. But Joe has a secret he has to tell Davy, and Davy a grief he wants to keep from Joe. Both are not the men they used to be. As two pints turns to three, then five, Davy and Joe set out to revisit the haunts of their youth. With the ghosts of Dublin entwining around them - the pubs, the parties, the broken hearts and bungled affairs - the men find themselves face-to-face with the realities of friendship.Trade ReviewMasterly... A first-rate novel about the different bonds between men and the ineffable mysteries of love. -- Claire Allfree * Daily Mail *Doyle is justly renowned for his whip-smart dialogue... And there is beauty and compassion in Mr Doyle's sculpted, spare writing. Among all the banter and gags he manages to articulate feelings that are rarely expressed so fittingly... Love is a reminder that its author is one to treasure. * Economist *Fast-paced and deceptively easy to read... Goes down as smoothly as gulps of beer. * Boston Globe *Love is altogether spellbinding... The whole book is audacious, richly layered and often comic, but ultimately deeply moving... Move over Socrates and watch an Irish master of dialogue at work. -- David Monagan * Irish Examiner *So perfectly constructed it is hard to believe it is really just about two old school friends getting drunk, and drunker... [Love] seems to bottle what male friendship can be like. -- Chris Harvey * Irish Independent *

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Book SynopsisOn the train from Karachi, as dusk begins to fall, Fahad's dreams of his summer in London are fading. He is headed to Abad, the family's feudal estate, where his father intends to toughen up his sensitive boy, to teach him about power, duty, family -- to make him a man. Instead, over the course of one shimmering, indolent season, Fahad finds himself seduced by the wildness of the land and by the people he meets: those who revere and revile his father; cousin Mousey, who lives alone with a man he calls his manager; and Ali, a teenager like him, whose presence threatens to unearth all that is hidden. Other Names for Love is a truly exceptional novel: a luminous tale of memory and desire, inheritance and love, and the search for a sense of home. Written with urgency and unusual beauty, it marks the arrival of a stunning new voice in fiction.Trade ReviewA beautiful novel on the desire to leave and the hope to remain, the need to find oneself among one's people and away from them -- HISHAM MATAR, author of The ReturnAn exceptional novel about fathers and sons, desire and love, and the long reach of the past -- SUNJEEV SAHOTA, author of China RoomSuch a deftly told and evocative story of duty, masculinity and desire -- KAMILA SHAMSIE, author of Home FireA twenty-first century variation of Turgenev's Fathers and Sons... Taymour Soomro is a thrilling new addition to international literature -- YIYUN LI, author of Must I GoThis haunted, haunting novel is about the cruelties we commit in our search for freedom and the bonds from which we can never be free. Taymour Soomro's piercing insight is that both the freedom and the bonds are constituent of love -- Garth Greenwell, author of CLEANNESS and WHAT BELONGS TO YOU

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Book SynopsisThe new novel from the bestselling author of The Idiot follows one young woman's quest for self-knowledge, as she travels abroad and tests the limits of her newfound adulthood. 'Elif Batuman is the queen of the campus novel... Enchanting' Sunday TimesSELIN IS THE LUCKIEST PERSON IN HER FAMILY:The only one who was born in America and got to go to Harvard. Now it's her second year, and Selin knows she has to make it count. The first order of business: to figure out the meaning of everything that happened over the summer...On the plus side, her life feels like the plot of an exciting novel. On the other hand, why do so many novels have crazy, abandoned women in them? And how does one live a life as interesting as a novel - a life worthy of becoming a novel - without turning into a crazy, abandoned woman oneself?'Stupendous... Hilarious... Batuman is a genius' Vogue'This novel wins you over in a million micro-observations' New York Times'Searingly smart' Evening StandardTrade ReviewOur funniest overthinker - and the queen of the campus novel... Selin is a droll and disarming narrator, and takes her place as one of the finest hapless scholars in the literary canon. -- Johanna Thomas-Corr * Sunday Times *Batuman has a gift for making the universe seem, somehow, like the benevolent and witty literary seminar you wish it were . . . This novel wins you over in a million micro-observations. -- Dwight Garner * The New York Times *A richly suggestive and amusing book. -- Jonathan Derbyshire * Financial Times *Such an enchanting writer. -- Johanna Thomas-Corr * Sunday Times *Either/Or is both an entertaining campus novel and an engaging disquisition on the very nature and purpose of novels. * Financial Times, *Summer Reads of 2022* *

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE BRITISH BOOK DISCOVER AWARD 2022Where were you when Keisha the Sket first broke the internet?Keisha is a girl from the ends, sharp, feisty and ambitious; she's been labelled 'top sket' but she's making it work. When childhood crush and long-time admirer, Ricardo, finally wins her over, Keisha has it all: power, a love life and the chance for stability. But trauma comes knocking and with it a whirlwind of choices that will define what kind of a woman she truly wants to be.Told with the heart and soul of the inner city, with an unforgettable heroine, Keisha the Sket is a revelation of the true, raw, arousing and tender core of British youth culture.Complete with essays from esteemed contemporary writers Candice Carty-Williams, Caleb Femi and Aniefiok Ekpoudom.Trade ReviewKeisha the Sket is truly a crucial part of not just Black Brit literature, but British literature as a whole. * Bolu Babalola *Our literary foremother. * Candice Carty-Williams *Keisha the Sket accidentally decolonised literature. * Black Ballad *'Reading Keisha the Sket as an adult makes me swoon at the richness of its nostalgia. * Caleb Femi *British answer to Gossip Girl. * Dazed *

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Book SynopsisDuckling's a nickname Lucy has never been able to shake off.And, if she's honest, maybe it suits her.She just isn't the type to socialise with other people.You might say she's reluctant to leave her nest.Lucy's life is small, but safe. She's got a good routine. But all that's about to change...When Lucy's neighbour asks her to look after her little girl for a couple of hours - and then doesn't come back - Lucy is suddenly responsible for someone other than herself.It takes courage to let the outside world in, and Lucy's about to learn there's much more to life - but only if she's brave enough to spread her wings...________________________________Praise for Duckling'A poignant read' Woman's Own'[I] loved this gorgeous, funny, poignant and very human book' Rowan Coleman'Underlines the importance of friendship, community and family while maintaining a galloping plot that keeps you gripped until the last page' Sarah J Harris'A lovely, heart-warming story about the importance of friendship and family, the power of forgiveness and about learning to love yourself' Clare Swatman'Duckling is joyous, life-affirming and refreshing' - Joanne Harris'Combines uplifting and poignant moments with a plot that is so gripping it had me feverishly turning the pages!' Jessica Ryn'Charming and compassionate, dark at times yet peppered with joy' Eleanor RayTrade ReviewUplifting, heart-warming and with characters you truly root for, I couldn't put [Duckling] down. It underlines the importance of friendship, community and family while maintaining a galloping plot that keeps you gripped until the last page. Highlight recommend a read -- Sarah J HarrisI love a story about an underdog, and Lucy is definitely one of those! I loved watching her blossom - or learn to fly - throughout the course of the novel, and was with her all the way on her journey of self-discovery. Duckling is a lovely, heart-warming story about the importance of friendship and family, the power of forgiveness and about learning to love yourself. It's a warm, satisfying read with a great, relatable cast of characters and, even though it deals with some gritty issues, it does so with real intelligence and understanding. A great story. -- Clare SwatmanThis beautiful story combines uplifting and poignant moments with a plot that is so gripping it had me feverishly turning the pages! -- Jessica Ryn[I] loved this gorgeous, funny, poignant and very human book -- Rowan ColemanCharming and compassionate, dark at times yet peppered with joy. I fully expect Duckling to spread its wings and fly! -- Eleanor Ray

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Book SynopsisTHE INSTANT NUMBER ONE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERFROM THE AUTHOR OF RULES OF CIVILITY AND A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW'Deserves a place alongside Kerouac, Steinbeck and Wolfe as the very best of the genre' OBSERVER'An absolute beauty of a book. As soon as I finished it, I wanted to read it again' TANA FRENCH'Welcome to the enormous pleasure that is The Lincoln Highway . . . in which the miles fly by and the pages turn fast' ANN PATCHETTIn June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett returns home to his younger brother Billy after serving fifteen months in a juvenile facility for involuntary manslaughter. They are getting ready to leave their old life behind and head out to sunny California.But they're not alone. Two runaways from the youth work farm, Duchess and Wolly, have followed Emmett all the way to Nebraska with a plan of their own, one that will take the four of them on an unexpected and fateful journey in the opposite direction - to New York City.'Already feels like an American coming of age classic' RED'The best novel I've read in years' CHRIS CLEAVE'Wise and wildly entertaining . . . permeated with light, wit, youth' THE NEW YORK TIMESTrade Review[A] novel that is as much about the literary history of the American road as it is about the journey itself, and deserves a place alongside Kerouac, Steinbeck and Wolfe as the very best of the genre * Observer *The best novel I've read in years. Epic and original, mesmeric and life-affirming, in The Lincoln Highway Amor Towles takes his unmatched gift for storytelling and puts it on the road. Every beautiful paragraph takes the reader a mile further into a world where our choices matter, where life surprises us, and where people are worth the trouble. This is one of those rare and special books that drive us home to ourselves -- Chris CleaveAn absolute beauty of a book. Every character is a gem, the many locations spring to vivid life, the book is an intricate and moving exploration of journeys and the infinite unexpected turns they can take - and somehow Towles makes it all seem effortless. As soon as I finished it, I wanted to read it again. -- Tana FrenchWelcome to the enormous pleasure that is The Lincoln Highway, a big book of camaraderie and adventure in which the miles fly by and the pages turn fast. Set over the course of ten riveting days, the story of these four boys unfolds, refolds, tears, and is taped back together. When you aren't actually reading the book, you'll be worrying about the characters, so you might as well stay in your chair and keep reading -- Ann PatchettFinely observed and beautifully written. Amor Towles is that rare combination of writer and storyteller. -- Jeffrey ArcherWise and wildly entertaining . . . permeated with light, wit, youth * The New York Times Book Review *A big hearted adventure told with brio * Mail on Sunday *Magnificent . . . Towles is a supreme storyteller, and this one-of-a-kind kind of novel isn't to be missed * Publishers Weekly *Amor Towles's third novel is fantastic!...Wise, witty and entirely wonderful, this is a superlative slice of storytelling * Daily Mail *A delight from beginning to end * Good Housekeeping *With exquisitely drawn characters, beautiful writing and a real sense of moral integrity, The Lincoln Highway already feels like an American coming of age classic to sit alongside The Catcher In The Rye and To Kill A Mockingbird * Red *CRAMMED full of emotion, madcap escapades and hugely endearing characters, Towles' outstanding third novel criss-crosses 1950s America as three wayward young men, and one sweet kid brother, go in search of fresh starts and family fortunes. Damaged by their pasts and heading into uncertain futures, their unruly ten-day odyssey is a beautiful, bittersweet adventure * Daily Mail *Towles's myth-making, masterful storytelling is no humane, uplifting and compelling that I didn't want the journey to end * Church Times *This deeply enjoyable read cements Towles' reputation as one of the best of today's historical novelists * Express *'[A] gorgeously crafted novel' * The Washington Post *A sweet, charming and wonderfully astute take on humanity and its foibles, this is gorgeous storytelling * Psychologies, Book of the Month *The Lincoln Highway is a joyride...[a] delightful tour de force .. There's so much to enjoy in this generous novel packed with fantastic characters * NPR.org *Following the runaway success of A Gentleman in Moscow, Amor Towles returns with his third major novel, and we're pleased to say it's another stunner... A gem of a book * Woman and Home, Book of the Month *[The Lincoln Highway] is reason to rejoice for Towles's millions of fans, who made his first two novels, Rules of Civility and A Gentleman in Moscow, runaway international bestsellers * The Millions *Towles' third novel is even more entertaining than his much-acclaimed A Gentleman in Moscow (2016)... A remarkable blend of sweetness and doom, Towles' novel is packed with revelations about the American myth, the art of storytelling, and the unrelenting pull of history. An exhilarating ride through Americana. * Kirkus starred review *"[The] notion of American openness, of ever-fractalizing free will, coming up against the fickle realities of fate is the tension that powers Towles' exciting, entertaining [...] picaresque . . . Stories can bring us back to ourselves, Towles seems to say, if only we are open to receiving their power . . . Anyone who follows The Lincoln Highway will relish the trip * Los Angeles Times *An enthralling odyssey * People *Absorbing * USA Today *A wild ride through Americana * BuzzFeed *History [and] adventure collide in The Lincoln Highway . . . The pace is fast and writing concise, making it a digestible read whether in bed or at a loud coffee shop * Associated Press *Magnificent . . . Towles is a supreme storyteller, and this one-of-a-kind kind of novel isn't to be missed * Publishers Weekly *[A] playfully thought-provoking novel . . . [Towles] juggles the pieces of his plot deftly, shifting from voice to voice, skirting sentimentality and quirkiness with a touch of wistful regret, and leading up to an ending that is bound to provoke discussion * Booklist *A new author to me- but I'll be reading Amor's A Gentlemen in Moscow, as I was blown away by this... A heartfelt read, one that makes me think of coming of age film Stand By Me * Prima *A natural storyteller, Towles keeps the plot ticking over nicely in a solid holiday listen destined for the big screen * Irish Examiner *A perfect paperback * The Herald *A book to lose yourself in * Muddy Stilettos *

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Book Synopsis'Catherine Cookson soars above her rivals' Mail on Sunday'Her characters have the grit of real life' Sunday Times'Queen of raw family romances' TelegraphA rags-to-riches story of a young woman who must overcome the scandal of her past to forge a new life.In Heap Hollow cottage in County Durham live what appears to be a close and loving family. But across the happy façade lies a shadow that has lengthened and darkened with the passing years. Their narrow-minded neighbours disapprove of the family's choices because of their illegitimacy, their mother and father never having married.Anna, the eldest daughter, is determined to face the challenging legacy of her birth and prove herself to those in the community who look down on her. Will her strength of character and zest for life be enough to put the scandal of her past behind her and forge a new life?Previously published as The GillyvorsTrade ReviewCatherine Cookson soars above her rivals * Mail on Sunday *Her characters have the grit of real lif * Sunday Times *Queen of raw family romances * Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisA story of hope, forgiveness and kindness, Lost Property reminds us to keep our loved ones (along with our bags and umbrellas) close...'An enthralling read, full of rich descriptions and characters you can't help but love' Hazel Prior, bestselling author of Away with the Penguins'A lovely novel about loss and reconnection...both satisfying and joyful' Lissa Evans----------------One lost purse. One lost woman.A chance encounter that changes everything.Dot Watson has lost her way. Wracked with guilt and struggling with grief, she has tucked herself away in the London Transport Lost Property office, finding solace in the process of cataloguing misplaced things. It's not glamorous or exciting, but it's solitary - just the way Dot likes it.That is, until elderly Mr Appleby walks through the door in search of his late wife's purse and Dot immediately feels a connection to him. Determined to help, she sets off on an extraordinary journey, one that could lead Dot to reclaim her life and find where she truly belongs...Perfect for fans of Matt Haig, Rachel Joyce and AJ Pearce, this is a moving and uplifting novel about finding your place in the world.Readers have fallen in love with Lost Property:***** 'A beautiful book and one of my best reads this year'***** 'An emotional journey that had me hooked'***** 'A wonderful, uplifting debut novel'***** 'Dot is an inspiration'***** 'Full of sorrow, love and a light humour'***** 'I am so pleased to have found Dot'Trade ReviewAn enthralling read, full of rich descriptions and characters you can't help but love * Hazel Prior, bestselling author of Away with the Penguins *A wonderfully rich, funny book. Shades of Eleanor Oliphant and Dear Mrs Bird, but also entirely its own. Dot is a treasure waiting to be found * Beth Morrey *A lovely novel about loss and reconnection...both satisfying and joyful * Lissa Evans *Emotionally rich and character-led, Lost Property is a sharply funny, wise and warming story * Anne Cater, The Daily Express *A deeply moving and richly detailed story that genuinely tugs at the heartstrings * CultureFly *A beautifully written book ... a truly uplifting read * NB Magazine *Filled with beautiful prose, this is a life-affirming novel * My Weekly *Gentle and warm * Magic Book Club *

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Book Synopsis'Short but very special. ... funny, touching and quite beautiful.' Matt Cain'A powerful finale to her classic trilogy of heartbreak and healing.' Clare Chambers'An unforgettable story. It's beautiful all through, but the closing chapters are just astonishing, transcendent and hope-filled and life-affirming.' Donal Ryan'Just brilliant' Patrick Gale'Profoundly moving and deeply human, this story of self-discovery and forgiveness is essential reading. I loved every word.' Bonnie Garmus'Astonishingly powerful... Truly stunning' Ruth Jones......................................................................................................................................Ten years ago, Harold Fry set off on his epic journey on foot to save a friend. But the story doesn't end there. Now his wife, Maureen, has her own pilgrimage to make.Maureen Fry has settled into the quiet life she now shares with her husband Harold after his iconic walk across England. Now, ten years later, an unexpected message from the North disturbs her equilibrium again, and this time it is Maureen's turn to make her own journey.But Maureen is not like Harold. She struggles to bond with strangers, and the landscape she crosses has changed radically. She has little sense of what she'll find at the end of the road. All she knows is that she must get there.Maureen Fry and the Angel of the North is a deeply felt, lyrical and powerful novel, full of warmth and kindness, about love, loss, and how we come to terms with the past in order to understand ourselves and our lives a little better. Short, exquisite, while it stands in its own right, it is also the moving finale to a trilogy that began with the phenomenal bestseller The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and continued with The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy.This is a slender book but it has all the power and weight of a classic.Trade ReviewJoyce bestows tenderness and grace, revealing how forgiveness and a reckoning with the past can transform the present for the better. -- Eithne Farry * Mail on Sunday *Joyce is a fearless explorer of emotional landscape; Maureen's pilgrimage north becomesa moving account of healing and acceptance. -- Patricia Nicol * Sunday Times *Exquisite and beautifully crafted -- Ruth Jones * Daily Mail *A beautiful novella ... with compassion and tenderness ... the novel's conclusion is deeply moving and life-affirming. -- Hannah Beckerman * Observer *Very rarely, there is a writer who can touch the deepest and most hidden parts of the soul, by using the everyday matter of our daily lives to reveal the sacred that always surrounds us. This writer is Rachel Joyce, and her trilogy starting with The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, then The Love Song of Queenie Hennessy and finally Maureen Fry and the Angel of the North does just that, as well as delighting by her assured story-telling. To read her work is to think at first you are being invited to a perfect and delicious afternoon tea - then realise that you are intimate communion with what it means to be human: to suffer, to love, and to be understood. There is beauty, and the reason for art. -- Laline Paul

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Book SynopsisState Street Chicago, 1999. One summer that changes everything. An unlikely trio: Felicia 'Fe Fe' Stevens, daughter of fiercely protective mother; Precious Brown, daughter of a prominent church Elder; and Stacia Buchanan, daughter of a Gangster Disciple Queen-Pin.They have a simple friendship, whiling away sunny days with games of Double Dutch. But when Fe Fe invites mysterious Tonya into their fold, life as they know it will never be the same again.Last Summer on State Street is a profound coming-of-age story about the restorative power of community, the claiming of one's own past, and the defining friendships which form the heartbeat of our lives.Trade ReviewLast Summer on State Street is a beautifully observed portrait of family and female friendship. Toya Wolfe is a marvellous writer. * Audrey Niffenegger, New York Times bestselling author of The Time Traveler’s Wife *Tragic, hopeful, brimming with love, Wolfe's debut is a remarkable achievement. * New York Times *Toya Wolfe is a storyteller of the highest order-a wise and compassionate chronicler of girlhood, of Chicago, and of the things that make us human. Last Summer on State Street is a stunning debut. * Rebecca Makkai, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Believers *Last Summer on State Street is an ode to Black girls who are often forgotten. Toya Wolfe tells a compelling, warm, and funny story about a group of girls growing up in a Chicago public housing development. * Natalie Y. Moore, author of The Billboard *I can't stop thinking of Toya Wolfe's novel Last Summer on State Street. Wolfe writes with such grace and such restraint, I felt like I was sitting on the front porch listening to a story told by a friend. What a spectacular debut. * Alex Kotlowitz, author of An American Summer *Last Summer on State Street is a love letter to girlhood, the tenuous bonds of friendship, and the places we call home. * Nancy Johnson, author of The Kindest Lie *Wolfe's arresting and atmospheric narrative comes fully realized. This is a gut punch. * Publishers Weekly *First-time novelist Wolfe writes with lacerating precision and authenticity. Wolfe's deeply compelling characters, sharply wrought settings, and tightly choreographed plot create a concentrated, significant, and unforgettable tale of family, home, racism, trauma, compassion, and transcendence. * Booklist *LAST SUMMER ON STATE STREET is an astonishing debut, and Toya Wolfe is a remarkable talent. The novel is a hymn to girlhood, a loving and nuanced portrait of a place and a clear-eyed dissection of brutal social forces that catch Fe Fe, Tonya, Stacia and Precious in their crossfire. Wolfe's prose is rich, elegant and assured - a joy to read. * Jessica Moor *

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Book SynopsisIn 2017 Hodder published Frank White's There Was A Time, surely the last novel about the Second World War to be written by someone who actually served in it. Now at the age of 93, Frank has written a poignant, nostalgic novella of coming of age in a Yorkshire village in the sixties and it is paired with another short novel set in Manchester at the outbreak of war and first published by Hodder in 1964. Innocence and A Morse Code Set are beautifully complementary in theme and show Frank White to be an author of extraordinary insight and tenderness.Trade ReviewA wonderful read * Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisTwo wonderfully evocative short novels from the author of There Was A Time - surely the last novel about the Second World War to have been written by someone who served in it.Innocence is paired here with a complementary story, A Morse Code Set, first published in 1964 and available recently only as an eBook.In A Morse Code Set, set in Manchester in 1939, a boy finds his world turned upside down by the outbreak of war. When his own father is called up by the Army and Freddy accepts an offer from the father of one of his friends to repair his beloved morse code set, the youngster sets in motion a potentially tragic turn of events.In Innocence, young Tony grapples with the consequences of his father leaving his family, and a growing awareness of his own sexuality. The narrative brilliantly conjures a place and time - a Yorkshire village in the 1960s - and is yet quite universal, a story of family, community and heartbreak, of growing up and growing away.Trade ReviewA wonderful read * Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisA tender and unflinching portrait of modern adolescence told through the shifting perspectives of nine female students, All Girls explores what it means to grow up in a place that promises you the world - when the world still isn't yours for the taking.An all-girls boarding school in a hilly corner of Connecticut, Atwater is a haven for progressive thinking and feminist intellectuals. The students are smart, driven and worldly; they are also teenagers, learning to find their way. But when they arrive on campus for the start of the Fall term, they're confronted with startling news: an Atwater alumna has made a troubling allegation of sexual misconduct against an unidentified teacher. As the weeks wear on and the administration's efforts to manage the ensuing crisis fall short, these extraordinary young women come to realise that the adults in their lives may not be the protectors they previously believed.All Girls unfolds over the course of one tumultuous academic year and is told from the point of view of a small cast of diverse, interconnected characters as they navigate the social mores of prep school life and the broader, more universal challenges of growing up. The trials of adolescent girlhood are pitched against the backdrop of sexual assault, consent, anxiety and the ways that our culture looks to young women as trendsetters, but otherwise silences their voices and discounts their opinions. The story that emerges is a richly detailed, impeccably layered, and emotionally nuanced depiction of what it means to come of age in a female body today.'A sincere and poignant and moving story of a group of teenage girls coming to terms with the world they've inherited' Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones and the SixTrade ReviewThe pages turn fast and the girls are complex, compelling and written with incredible tenderness. Layden excels at rendering the everyday details of boarding school life * Kate Elizabeth Russell, New York Times *An exciting, innovative debut from a fresh and assured new voice * Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones and the Six *A shimmering, intelligent portrait of young women on the cusp of adulthood * Therese Anne Fowler, New York Times bestselling author of Z *An engrossing novel from start to finish, with characters who feel as real as your best friends * Carola Lovering, author of Tell Me Lies *All Girls kept me turning pages * Chloe Benjamin, New York Times bestselling author of The Immortalists *Sexual awakening and institutional reckoning intertwine in Emily Layden's rich, kaleidoscopic debut * Elizabeth Ames, author of The Other’s Gold *Incisive, astute . . . Layden succeeds at bringing the effects of an institutional cover-up into sharp relief * Publishers Weekly *An important take on sexuality and #MeToo from the perspective of the young * Library Journal *Astutely captures the claustrophobic and toxic culture of conformity among teenage girls * Observer *Readers will find themselves thinking about the vividly and compassionately rendered characters long after their chapters end . . . Give it to grown-up fans of Gossip Girl and readers of Curtis Sittenfeld and Emma Straub * Booklist *Call it a 21st-century Prep or a Litchfield County Gossip Girl, but don't miss what's sure to become a touchstone among the beloved niche of boarding-school novels * Town & Country *Diving into the unprocessed underworld of adolescence, Layden creates space for a conversation about feminism and the unsung difficulties of surviving in a male-dominated world. Intelligent, evocative, and empathetic * Kirkus *

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Book Synopsis'A sincere, poignant and moving story of a group of teenage girls coming to terms with the world they've inherited' Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones and the SixAn all-girls boarding school in a hilly corner of Connecticut, Atwater is a haven for progressive thinking and feminist intellectuals. The students are smart, driven and worldly; they are also teenagers, learning to find their way. But when they arrive on campus for the start of the fall term, they're confronted with startling news: an Atwater alumna has made a troubling allegation of sexual misconduct against an unidentified teacher. As the weeks wear on and the administration's efforts to manage the ensuing crisis fall short, these extraordinary young women come to realise that the adults in their lives may not be the protectors they previously believed.All Girls unfolds over the course of one tumultuous academic year and is told from the point of view of a small cast of diverse, interconnected characters as they navigate the social mores of prep school life and the broader, more universal challenges of growing up. The trials of adolescent girlhood are pitched against the backdrop of sexual assault, consent, anxiety and the ways that our culture looks to young women as trendsetters, but otherwise silences their voices and discounts their opinions. The story that emerges is a richly detailed, impeccably layered, and emotionally nuanced depiction of what it means to come of age in a female body today.Trade ReviewThe pages turn fast and the girls are complex, compelling and written with incredible tenderness. Layden excels at rendering the everyday details of boarding school life * Kate Elizabeth Russell, New York Times *An exciting, innovative debut from a fresh and assured new voice * Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones and the Six *A shimmering, intelligent portrait of young women on the cusp of adulthood * Therese Anne Fowler, New York Times bestselling author of Z *An engrossing novel from start to finish, with characters who feel as real as your best friends * Carola Lovering, author of Tell Me Lies *All Girls kept me turning pages * Chloe Benjamin, New York Times bestselling author of The Immortalists *Sexual awakening and institutional reckoning intertwine in Emily Layden's rich, kaleidoscopic debut * Elizabeth Ames, author of The Other’s Gold *Incisive, astute . . . Layden succeeds at bringing the effects of an institutional cover-up into sharp relief * Publishers Weekly *An important take on sexuality and #MeToo from the perspective of the young * Library Journal *Astutely captures the claustrophobic and toxic culture of conformity among teenage girls * Observer *Readers will find themselves thinking about the vividly and compassionately rendered characters long after their chapters end . . . Give it to grown-up fans of Gossip Girl and readers of Curtis Sittenfeld and Emma Straub * Booklist *Call it a 21st-century Prep or a Litchfield County Gossip Girl, but don't miss what's sure to become a touchstone among the beloved niche of boarding-school novels * Town & Country *Diving into the unprocessed underworld of adolescence, Layden creates space for a conversation about feminism and the unsung difficulties of surviving in a male-dominated world. Intelligent, evocative, and empathetic * Kirkus *

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Book SynopsisThirty-something Parisian artist Billie is working towards her next exhibition when she receives the news that her mother, with whom she has had no contact for years, has drowned in the river near her nursing home. In an attempt to understand the circumstances of her death, she returns to V, the village where she grew up in the parched, sun-drenched hills above the Mediterranean. When she arrives there, Billie finds herself reliving memories of another river drowning, 20 years earlier, memories she had tried to obliterate. What happened to Billie's dear friend Lila back then, at the age of 16, and why is Billie stalked by guilt? Sunlight Hours paints a picture of three generations of women, united by the secrets of a river.Trade ReviewA paticularly well-done opus which marries sharp writing, narrative depth and an original subject - L'Express (France)The book's strings are pulled one by one to unfurl untold secrets, and, like a thriller, the book becomes impossible to put down - Femmes Magazine (Luxembourg)

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Book SynopsisTHE WORD-OF-MOUTH PHENOMENON THAT EVERYONE HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT:'Intelligent, moving and darkly comic . . . taking us deftly from serious explorations of trauma to riotously funny scenes of modern life' The Sunday Times'Haunting and hilarious' Daily Mail'A brilliant debut' Cariad Lloyd'Full of heart, wit and feeling' Caroline O'Donoghue'I loved it!' Lauren Bravo'Heartfelt, sharp-but-tender' Erin Kelly'I couldn't stop reading' Angela Scanlon'A glorious new talent has arrived' Emma Gannon'Raw and utterly brilliant' Otegha Uwagba'Absorbing and clever . . . I fell in love with Mathilda' Cathy Rentzenbrink'Will be read for years by any and all young women looking for a friend' Scarlett Curtis__________________________________ There is something wrong with Mathilda.She's still reeling from the blow of a gut-punch break up and grieving the death of a loved one. But that's not it. She's cried all her tears, mastered her crow pose and thrown out every last reminder of him. But that's not helping.Concerned that she isn't moving on, Mathilda's friends push her towards a series of increasingly unorthodox remedies. Until the seams of herself begin to come undone. Tender, unflinching and blisteringly funny, What a Shame glitters with rage and heartbreak, perfect for fans of Emma Jane Unsworth, Dolly Alderton and Holly Bourne.__________________________________'Ever-so-relatable' Cosmopolitan'Delightfully frank' The Skinny'A modern story of grief and loss' Refinery29'Dazzling . . . By turns funny, sharp, raw and overwhelming' Heat'Fizzes with energy, rage and love' Jessica Moor'A book that beautifully balances the light and the dark' Chloe Ashby'Dark, nuanced and provocative' Laura Jane Williams'An extraordinary novel that will stay with me for a long time' Laura KayTrade ReviewAn intelligent, moving and darkly comic debut, taking us deftly from serious explorations of trauma and consent to riotously funny scenes of modern life - it's like Fleabag with a sprinkling of the occult. * The Sunday Times *Tipped to be THE hit book of 2022 * Daily Mail *Affecting, clever and blisteringly humorous... a riveting read about heartbreak, female shame and self-acceptance -- Sarra Manning * Red Magazine *Hits the nail on the head . . . above all it's a really beautiful portrayal of female friendship. -- Laura Hackett * Times Radio *Dazzling . . . By turns funny, sharp, raw and overwhelming, this is one of those novels where you think you are exploring someone else's pain, only to realise you are actually exploring your own -- Read of the Week * Heat *Alternately haunting and hilarious . . . an original and zeitgeisty story about grief, friendship, secrets, shame and self-acceptance. * Daily Mail *It's LOL, ever-so-relatable and will also have you weeping into a snotty tissue. Love, love, love * Cosmopolitan *A modern story of grief and loss * Refinery29 *Bergstrom's prose, and especially the core dynamic of Mathilda and her friends (a coven of voice notes and anxious love) has a sweet verisimilitude that is delightfully frank, (re)inscribing warmth and intimacy for warmth and intimacy's sakes. And if it all seems a bit familiar - the millennial hodgepodge of tarot, bad dates, housemates and female trauma - well, maybe this is also the point. Maybe these stories are more common than we want to believe. * The Skinny *Absorbing and clever . . . I fell in love with Mathilda -- Cathy RentzenbrinkRaw and unexpected and weird and utterly brilliant -- Otegha UwagbaAs soon as I finished the final page of What a Shame a deep ache set in. Written by one of the cleverest and boldest writers I've ever read, it is a powerful, beautiful, fascinating novel that will be read for years by any and all young women looking for a friend. I already miss Mathilda. -- Scarlett CurtisComparisons to Sally Rooney are inevitable, but this heartfelt, sharp-yet-tender novel earns its own place in the spotlight -- Erin KellyWhat A Shame weaves eternal themes of grief and heartbreak against a modern canvas that is clear and recognisable. There's a piercing sense of what happens when your tragedy becomes your anecdote, and your anecdote becomes tiring to the people around you. Full of heart, wit and feeling, Bergstrom is a new voice but sure to be an enduring one. -- Caroline O'DonoghueA brilliant debut -- Cariad LloydRaw, poignant, haunting (and hilarious!)... In Mathilda, Bergstrom has created a clear-eyed heroine for a new generation. -- Sam BakerTruly captivating, blisteringly funny, so clever and perceptive and beautifully written. It made me want to voicenote all my friends immediately. I loved it! -- Lauren BravoA book that simultaneously punches you in the gut and makes you snort with laughter. It's beautifully raw in its delivery. A glorious new talent has arrived -- Emma GannonDark, nuanced and provocative, this is a sterling debut that fans of Caroline O'Donoghue, Holly Bourne and Emma Jane Unsworth are sure to love. Mathilda's chilling - but ultimately redemptive - story will stay with me. -- Laura Jane WilliamsRazor-sharp, compelling and darkly funny. An extraordinary novel that will stay with me for a long time. -- Laura KayWhat a Shame fizzes with energy, rage and love, burrowing deep into those experiences that define us at our core. Bergstrom writes with wit and wisdom, and Mathilda's voice is ever-incisive, fresh and compelling. -- Jessica MoorI fell hard for Mathilda and her tale of heartache, grief and acceptance. Like most of us, she's a bit weird and a bit wild, and you'll be so glad you met her. -- Laura PearsonA wry and zeitgeisty look at grief, heartbreak and the fix-you industry, What a Shame asks whether we can ever expect closure from our worst and most secret pain and fear. A must-read for anyone who has ever felt defined by a break-up. -- Harriet WalkerCrackles with wit and emotional insight . . . so good on tangled webs of feeling, the power of female friendships, and hope -- Emma HughesDark, complex and very funny. A dazzling debut about the power of self-belief, sisterhood and letting go -- Hannah ToveyA book that beautifully balances the light and the dark. I loved spending time with Mathilda, a heroine who's funny, wise, wonderfully weird and brave, and who feels like a friend. -- Chloë AshbyTender, searingly honest and widely vulnerable. I couldn't stop reading -- Angela ScanlonAn absolute corker - tender, sexy and weird. I can't wait to see what she writes next -- Michelle ThomasMy favourite kind of book: the kind that you can't help but race through, leaves you immediately devastated when you finish it and envious of everyone who has yet to read it. -- Dr SophA painfully exquisite book, by a unique talent that has single handedly rewritten the narrative of female shame -- Camilla PangAbigail Bergstrom's assured debut is a forensic excavation of the female psyche - on friendship, grief, and the secrets we keep to survive. -- Laura BaileyA beautiful, raw story of self-acceptance and shame that haunted me until I finished the last page. Reading Abigail's debut captured the pain and release that comes with laughing at a funeral. I swallowed the story in big gulps and will push it towards my friends. An ambitious, beautifully balanced novel that manages to strike laughter and heartache in equal measure. -- Abigail Mann[A] wry, poignant meditation on female shame, healing and friendship * Culture Whisperer *What a Shame is an absorbing experience; the story is strange yet brilliant . . . it's dark and raw and funny, with a woman on an emotionally engulfing journey at its centre . . . like Sorrow and Bliss on acid . . . A real gem. * Well Read with Anna Bonet *Abigail Bergstrom's darkly funny debut is a sharply observed account of a group of young women finding their way and discovering that they are more powerful than they imagined * Daily Mail *

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