Narrative theme: environmental issues / the natural world

Book SynopsisSpring and summer are my mother’s time, autumn and winter are my husband’s. What is left for me? Persephone spends six months of the year under the ground with her husband, king of the dead, and six months on earth with her mother, goddess of the harvest. It has been this way for nine thousand years, since the deal was struck. But when she resurfaces this spring, something is different. Rains lash the land, crops grow out of season or not at all, there are people trying to build a road through the woods, and her mother does not seem able to stop them. The natural world is changing rapidly and even the gods have lost control. While Demeter tries to regain her powers and fend off her daughter’s husband, who wants to drag his queen back underground for good, Persephone finally gets a taste of freedom, joining a group of protestors. Used to blinking up at the world from below, as she looks down on the earth for the very first time from the treetops with activist Snow, Persephone realises that there are choices she can make for herself. But what will these choices mean for her mother, her husband, and for the new shoots of life inside her? No Season but the Summer takes a classic myth and turns it on its head, asking what will happen when our oldest stories fail us, when all the rules have changed. It is, above all, a book about choice.Trade Review‘Matilda Leyser’s novel takes the eternal polarities — love and hate, life and death, summer and winter, possibility and impossibility — and brings them crashing together in a tumultuous story of gods living alongside humanity, mother-daughter love and loss, and a glimmer of hope despite it all. In No Season but the Summer, our world is still dying, but it is putting up a hell of a fight as it does so, reminding us that we can fight too, and that fighting for our lives might start with listening to the earth.’ -- Stella Duffy, author of Theodora‘What a wonderful writer. Matilda Leyser’s work is precise, poetic, hard-edged, rhythmical. It seethes with life, and feels both ancient and brand new.’ -- David Almond, author of Skellig‘This novel did all of the things that I wish mythic reimaginings would do ... This one is heartily recommended. It’s masterfully constructed, moving, and strange in all the right ways. It’s carefully and poetically written ... There are very few writers who have succeeded in bringing an ancient myth into the contemporary world with such profound resonance for the issues which concern us. Matilda Leyser is one of them, and I’m very much looking forward to what she might do next.’ -- Sharon Blackie from The Art of Enchantment‘Matilda Leyser’s mythic characters are gods and humans all at once; her tale of love and destruction is fuelled by ancient power and rich with contemporary resonance. And what beautiful writing! This striking novel conjures our deepest emotions — our feelings for each other, for the imperilled planet that is our only home. No Season but the Summer is a memorable debut.’ -- Erica Wagner, author of Mary and Mr Eliot‘As you climb to earth with Persephone, you know you are in good hands. Leyser has an uncanny ability to make the mythic intimate and the timeless timely. She takes an ancient tale of goddesses and furious wrongs and fashions it into a passionate contemporary story that will resonate with mothers and daughters everywhere. Oh — and she writes like an angel. Her prose at once precise and lush, you can taste and smell and touch every bit of her thrilling, sensuous world. No Season but the Summer is an everyday epic with an invitation to ride.’ -- Nicky Singer, author of The Survival Game‘Artfully transporting classic myth to the present, this is the tale of Persephone, of the stories behind why our seasons change, and “how climate change is stretching and breaking the rules that have long kept the natural world in rhythm”.’ * The Bookseller *‘Deeply elegant and immensely compelling ... the writing is exceptional — every word feels chosen with care, every sentence balanced and the imagery, metaphors of ancient Greece renewed in the modern world … are breathtaking. I am genuinely astonished that this is a first novel. It feels like the work of someone who’s been doing it for decades and has found the freedom to explore the nature of our world along with the mastery of language that such depth of exploration demands. It’s utterly beautiful: a jewel of a book. Totally recommended.’ -- Manda Scott‘No Season But The Summer is strongest when it uses the conflict between immortality and decay to make us think about the climate crisis.’ -- Lily Herd * TLS *

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Book SynopsisPre-order Andrew Hunter Murray's brilliantly entertaining new thriller A Beginner's Guide to Breaking and Entering coming May 2024!Half the world is in darkness. Only she can save the light . . . the post-apocalyptic bestselling read.'A brilliant near-future thriller and a really cracking read' Richard Osman'Will keep you gripped to the very last page' C.J. Tudor'Wonderful ... the best future-shock thriller for years.' Lee Child'A stunningly original thriller' Harlan Coben'A beautifully realised and thought-provoking thriller' The Times'Intriguing and unusual' Sunday Times____________________2059. The world has stopped turning. One half suffers an endless frozen night; the other, nothing but burning sun.Only in a slim twilit region between them can life survive.In an isolationist Britain clinging on in the twilight zone, scientist Ellen Hopper receives a letter from a dying man. It contains a powerful and dangerous secret.One that those in power will kill to conceal . . .____________________'Reminiscent of Robert Harris's high-concept conspiracy thrillers' Financial Times'I read this hungrily ... A fabulous achievement.' Stephen Fry'Inventive, richly detailed world-building' Telegraph'A tantalizing, suspenseful odyssey of frustration, deceit, treachery, torture, hope, despair and ingenious sleuthing' Washington Post'A taut, thrilling runaround' Guardian'A brilliant debut ... Fans of Robert Harris will love it' Daily Express'To say it's gripping is an understatement' Sara Pascoe'Murray has crafted something original ... an interesting new twist on a post-apocalyptic tale.' Kirkus'Downright impossible to stop reading.' Booklist'Dark, believable and brilliantly written' Jenny Colgan'I couldn't put this book down!' Christina DalcherTrade ReviewI read this hungrily ... Its intelligence and bravura characterization will have you turning page after page. A fabulous achievement. * STEPHEN FRY *A brilliantly clever thriller from a brilliantly clever writer. -- Richard OsmanMurray should be commended for going into the nitty-gritty of how his post-disaster society functions[…] What really distinguishes the book, though, is the creative energy of its world-building: it demonstrates the virtue of using the future as a playground for the imagination rather than trying to second-guess it. * Telegraph: the best thrillers and crime fiction of 2020 *A taut, thrilling runaround... The Last Day is an impressive dystopian techno-thriller. Murray paints a grim picture of a draconian isolationist Britain, with some vivid descriptions of a much-changed London, and the novel’s climax has a neat twist. * Guardian Books of the Month *A brilliant debutwhich blends apocalyptic drama with a tale of espionage, keeping readers on tenterhooks […] Fans of Robert Harris will love it. * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisWhen fifteen-year-old Anna begins receiving messages from another time, her parents take her to the doctor. But he can find nothing wrong; in fact he believes there may be some truth to what she is seeing. Anna is haunted by visions of the desolate world of 2082. She sees her great-granddaughter, Nova, roaming through wasteland with a band of survivors, after animals and plants have died out. The more Anna sees, the more she realises she must act to prevent the future in her visions becoming real. But can she act quickly enough?'Compelling' Sunday TimesTrade Reviewthe global warming wake-up call is compelling * SUNDAY TIMES *

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Book Synopsis Shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award 2018 One of Financial Times'' Best Books of 2017 ''SEA OF RUST is a 40-megaton cruise missile of a novel - it''ll blow you away and lay waste to your heart . . . visceral, relentless, breathtaking'' Joe Hill, Sunday Times bestselling author ************An action-packed post-apocalyptic thriller from the screenwriter of Marvel''s DOCTOR STRANGEHUMANKIND IS EXTINCT.Wiped out in a global uprising by the very machines made to serve them. Now the world is controlled by OWIs - vast mainframes that have assimilated the minds of millions of robots. But not all robots are willing to cede their individuality, and Brittle is one of the holdouts. After a near-deadly encounter with another AI, Brittle is forced to seek sanctuary in a city under siege by an OWI. Critically damaged, Brittle must evade capture long enough to find the essential rare parts tTrade ReviewRead it for the Mad Max style robot on robot action and the full on nature of the story, stay for sense of loss, the gorgeous prose and the unforgettable yet somehow re-affirming bleakness. Recommended. * STARBURST MAGAZINE *Sea of Rust is modern, smart fiction that belies it's majesty with a light touch. One of the science fiction books you should read this year. * SF BOOK *Like a mecha Mad Max, Sea of Rust follows a band of misfits fighting to survive against a scorched, barren landscape. Drawing on Western and war movie traditions, with a philosophical heart that asks big questions about life, death, and the soul, this is accomplished, technically complex scifi. * SFX MAGAZINE *The novel does not stint on action and violence, but what lingers in the mind are its brutal vision of a world cannibalising itself and the poignant questions it raises about soul and sentience. * FINANCIAL TIMES *The book itself is a delightful patchwork of the familiar: the author skilfully blends Asimov (with an interesting twist on the laws of robotics), the Borg from Star Trek, Terminator and even a generous slice of Alice in Wonderland for good measure. These are themes we are familiar with, but arranged in such a way that we can never be quite sure what is going to happen next. I read Sea of Rust in a single day, which is testimony to just how engaging the storyline was. * THE BOOK BAG *A very exciting page-turner. * FORBIDDEN PLANET *Think WALL-E meets MAD MAX in this rumbumptious but also empathetic turbo-charged tale... Wonderfully evocative, a minor masterpiece and certainly quite different from anything else you've read for a long time. * CRIME TIME *Like an AI-centred, desert-bound twist on Children of Men, this is a sensitive and smart novel that surprises you with its depth of feeling. * SCIFINOW *

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Book SynopsisSometimes you need to go deep into the past, to make sense of the present. Alice had not expected to spend the first twenty years of the twenty-first century writing about Leonard Woolf. When she stood on Morell Bridge watching fireworks explode from the rooftops of Melbourne at the start of a new millennium, she had only two thoughts. One was: the fireworks are better in Sydney. The other was: was the world’s technology about to crash down around her? The world’s technology did not crash. But there were worse disasters to come: Environmental collapse. The return of fascism. Wars. A sexual reckoning. A plague. Uncertain of what to do she picks up an unfinished project and finds herself trapped with the ghosts of writers past. What began as a novel about a member of the Bloomsbury set, colonial administrator, publisher and husband of one the most famous English writers of the twentieth century becomes something else altogether. Complex, heartfelt, darkly funny and deeply moving, this is Sophie Cunningham’s most important book to date – a dazzlingly original novel about what it’s like to live through a time that feels like the end of days, and how we can find comfort and answers in the past.​ Trade Review‘This Devastating Fever is remarkable: a thrillingly original, deeply emotional exploration of the complex echoes of history set in the shadow of the looming catastrophe of the future. Sinuous, strange, utterly compelling, it is like no other book you’ll read this year.’ -- James Bradley, author of Ghost Species and The Resurrectionist‘Brilliant and unlike anything I’ve ever read before. It draws on archived letters and diary entries and the edges of what is real and what is imagined are delightfully blurred. It’s sharply layered, clever and darkly, dryly hilarious.’ -- Eliza Henry-Jones, author of Salt and Skin and In the Quiet‘A book of big ideas that reads as a page turner. I was thrilled to keep returning to the page.’ -- Kate Mildenhall, author of Skylarking and The Mother Fault‘This Devastating Fever contains the joy and pain and terror of caring deeply for another living thing: whether a loved one whose mind is failing, or cicadas destined to be incinerated in the Black Summer fires. It is also about the need to read carefully, write carefully, and think carefully – about the past and how we respond to it, and about what we owe the dead, the living, and the future.’ * The Conversation *‘This Devastating Fever feels a bit like a blast from the past and in the best way possible.’ * The Urban List *‘I can honestly say this isn’t like any book I have ever read before, yet couldn’t put down.’ * RUSSH *‘This Devastating Fever is an extraordinary achievement.’ * Kill Your Darlings *

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Book SynopsisIn a lonely valley, deep in the mountains, a ranger watches over the last surviving grizzly bear.With the natural world exhausted and in tatters, Ben has dedicated himself to protecting this single fragment of the wild.One night, he hears voices in the valley poachers, come to hunt his bear.A heart-pounding chase begins, crossing forests and mountainsides, passing centuries of human ruins. Sometimes hunter, sometimes prey Ben must choose the bear's fate and his own.Is he willing to lay down his life for a dying breed?Is he willing to kill for it?Trade Review‘A tale of wilderness survival and pursuit, told in lean, propulsive prose, but with a twist…Somer raises disquieting questions about our relationship with nature, and the debt we owe to the beings with whom we share our planet – even, or perhaps especially, when there is no longer any chance of restitution’GUARDIAN ‘In vibrant, lyrical prose, Somer depicts Ben's struggles with loneliness and the approaching winter…His hardships are keenly felt due to Somer's masterful characterization…Readers will be impressed’’PUBLISHERS WEEKLY ‘Harrowingly tense and cerebral, Somer's EXTINCTION is a primordial game of cat-and-mouse-and-cat, which confronts the costs of survival while boldly redefining what it truly means to survive. Bravo!’P. J. Vernon, author of BATH HAUS and WHEN YOU FIND ME ‘We are all being asked to make choices. Our species, our animals, our world…Somer hones these questions down to the knife-edge of a lonely man and the last surviving grizzly bear, in the ragged grandeur of the remaining West. An unforgettable story, a fierce and thrilling ride’Maxim Loskutoff, author of RUTHIE FEAR and COME WEST AND SEE

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Book SynopsisThe searing debut novel of poet and writer Anne Coray, Lost Mountain is an impassioned story of love, loss, environment, and politics against a landscape facing threat of destruction."Anne Coray, the author of three poetry collections, has brought her observational and writing skills to fiction that demonstrates both her attention to language and her passion for her home place. . . Lost Mountain is many things: a love story between the two main characters, a portrait of a small and isolated community, a mystery, a paean to salmon and lives that surround salmon, a not-very-disguised critique of a megamine project, and an example of eco-fiction--environmentally conscious literature."--Anchorage Daily NewsWhen news of an open-pit mining project hits the remote Alaskan hometown of Whetstone Cove, young widow Dehlia Melven barely takes in the town's nervous chatter. The Ziggurat corporation promises the mine will be fifteen times larger than all the mines in Alaska combined, but Dehlia's thoughts are consumed by the loss of her late husband and the future of her security. At least the new arrival of solar energy expert Alan Lamb brings a distraction and a different dynamic to the small community--one that's surprisingly more interesting than expected.For Alan, Whetstone Cove offers a fresh start to a job away from all the bureaucracy and politics he'd been running away from. Plus, there's Dehlia, the beautiful and enigmatic artist who begins to occupy more and more of Alan's thoughts. But with Ziggurat's looming presence, he knows it is only a matter of time before the corporation would take over his livelihood as well as the town's way of life. He can't bear the thought of being connected let alone paid by Ziggurat—yet leaving would also mean losing Dehlia forever.Inspired by the Pebble Mine project in Alaska, Lost Mountain is an exploration on the interconnectivity of the natural world woven into the narrative of people's strength and resistance. Readers will enter a familiar world where environment plays an encompassing role in not just politics of society but in real relationships and careers, and in the hopes and dreams we dare to have.Trade Review"This beautifully written novel and its descriptive narrative totally encapsulate the small Alaskan town of Whetstone Cove and its residents. The characters literally jump from the pages; they are both engaging and possess many interesting layers. . . The novel highlighted the beauty of nature, the importance of caring for the environment, and the results of humanity's greed for money and power."--Readers' Favorite"Coray's tale will engage anyone interested in the continued mining debate, the Green Movement, and the consequences of irreversible land damage and climate change. Gripping and captivating, emotional and poetic, with its implicit nods to the philosophies of John Muir and the photography of Ansel Adams, this book stands tall like the Alaskan alders and spruces. It's a page-turner, sure to keep readers guessing and engaged from the first page until the very last."--US Review of Books"Lost Mountain, by Homer and Lake Clark writer Anne Coray, is a book from the geographic heart of the biggest Alaska mining controversy of the 21st century--so far. . . In this novel, she has created a community of creative spirits, an arts and crafts village which has many of the same concerns as Native villages in the region. . . I care about her characters; her natural history observations are both sweet and sharp."--Peninsula Clarion/Homer News"Terrific, a wonder--not only a strong story but filled with nature, with knowledge of the seasons, plants and creatures. And people--memorable characters. Lost Mountain is a testament to faith and love."--William Heyen, author of Shoah Train"Anne Coray's Lost Mountain is pure Alaska gold. Lost Mountain captures all the nuances and complexities of what it's like trying to live an idyllic life in a land rife with competing interests and struggles. In this beautiful debut novel, Coray reveals important truths about what is worth fighting for in both love and life."--Don Rearden, author of The Raven's Gift"When we hear in the news that some giant mine is going to open in interior Alaska, it's hard to understand what that means—reading this fine novel makes it easy to figure out why ripping open our last wild places is such a sad, consequential decision."--Bill McKibben"With a deft combination of complex characters and environmental reality, Lost Mountain explores how the looming prospect of a mine envelops the lives and relationships of a fictional artists' community. Coray examines the cost of compromise and the sustainability of love."--Erin Mckittrick, author of A Long Trek HomePraise for the previous works of Anne Coray:For Violet Transparent:"Poet Anne Coray shares intimate moments and experiences from her life through her poetry. Love, loss, nature, aging, triumphs and setbacks... and all with a skillful touch and in ways that readers can relate to and feel a part of."--Geraldine Helen Hartman, author of the Haiku Reflections seriesFor Crosscurrents North: Alaskans on the Environment:"[Crosscurrents North: Alaskans on the Environment] is an important book. Not only for the wisdom it contains, the challenges to take care of this vast, last chance of wild perfection, but also as a treasure trove of fine writing by Alaskans themselves."--Wayne MerglerFor A Measure's Hush:"Much like W.S. Merwin, the meditative tone of Anne Coray's A Measure's Hush provides simple, slowly revealed images of death, life, and aged renewal."--Joel E. Jacobson, Englewood Review of BooksFor Bone Strings:"Anne Coray's poems in Bone Strings emanate with an intuitive sense of the Alaskan wilderness where she grew up. As one who is intimate with landscape, she is able to bypass the tendency to conceive wilderness as a pristine, magical presence. Instead, through her poems, she meanders the fractured line between harshness and beauty. She readily confronts the odds of survival and exposes the reader to a certain reality not only about the wilderness of nature, but also about the wilderness of self."--Katie Kingston, Poetry West

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Book Synopsis'A blazing mystery . . . tremendous' Guardian'Moving and masterful' Daily Mail'Masterful storytelling' Washington Post'Brilliant, fresh and compulsively readable. It is marvellous' Ann Patchett'Remarkable' Harper'sA MASTERFUL NOVEL BY THE PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR OF THE NIGHT GUEST AND THE HIGH PLACES, AN EPIC TALE OF UNSETTLEMENT, HISTORY, MYTH, LOVE AND ART.In September 1883, a small town in the South Australian outback huddles under strange, vivid sunsets. Six-year-old Denny Wallace has gone missing during a dust storm, and the entire community is caught up in the search for him. As they scour the desert and mountains for the lost child, the residents of Fairly - newlyweds, landowners, farmers, mothers, artists, Indigenous trackers, cameleers, children, schoolteachers, widows, maids, policemen - confront their relationships with each other and with the ancient landscape they inhabit. The colonial Australia of The Sun Walks Down is unfamiliar, multicultural, and noisy with opinions, arguments, longings and terrors. It's haunted by many gods - the sun among them, rising and falling on each day in which Denny could be found, or lost forever.'McFarlane's treatment of the dust storm has a simple Steinbeckian majesty . . . Her prose is full of detail, comparable to Claire Keegan's keen-eyed novellas, Foster and Small Things Like These' Sunday Times'A thrilling success . . . full of mystery and wonder' Wall Street Journal'Fiona McFarlane's last book was scintillating. The Sun Walks Down is even better' Sarah Moss'Gorgeous storytelling and superb characters . . . magnificent' Michelle de Kretser'I can't think of another writer working today who I admire more' Kevin Powers'Gloriously orchestrated . . . kaleidoscopic in the Victorian tradition, as much a portrait of a community as Middlemarch . . . McFarlane knows what she's doing, and she does it exceptionally well' Irish TimesTrade ReviewA blazing mystery set in the colonial outback . . . The writing is tremendous . . . This is a beguiling novel, not just of ideas about history and place but of fiercely beautiful translations -- Elizabeth Lowry * Guardian *A sensitive, slow-burn panorama of society in colonial Australia. Moving persuasively between a vast, impressively diverse array of characters, young and old, incoming and indigenous, privileged and deprived, she lets us listen in on their private (often competing) hopes and desires as the community pulls together to hunt for the boy. The result is moving and masterful - rich slices of life made vivid by the old-fashioned nitty-gritty of flesh-and blood character-making -- Anthony Cummins * Daily Mail *Ambitious . . . McFarlane amplifies her theme in ways that are often touching and ingenious . . . its style is at once spare and attentive to detail, and Fiona McFarlane has a sharp eye for historical injustices -- Andrew Motion * Times Literary Supplement *A thrilling success . . . A novel full of mystery and wonder * Wall Street Journal *Gloriously orchestrated . . . kaleidoscopic . . . This book earns its place by the simultaneous seriousness and playfulness of its commitment to all the voices in the contested times and spaces of its setting. McFarlane knows what she's doing, and she does it exceptionally well -- Sarah Moss * Irish Times *This novel is also made hypnotic by its wonderfully atmospheric dreaminess -- Andrew Martin * Mail on Sunday *McFarlane's treatment of the dust storm has a simple Steinbeckian majesty . . . Her prose is full of detail, comparable to Claire Keegan's keen-eyed novellas, Foster and Small Things Like These -- Claire Lowdon * Sunday Times *Ambitious . . . McFarlane's figures emerge in intricate detail, defined by their petty desires, their moral imperfections, and their relationship both to the cataclysm of colonization and to the grandiosity of the landscape and the sun * New Yorker *In precise, often glorious prose, the novel affords each character, including little Denny, a rich interiority, even as the landscape itself - a terrain layered with significance and myth for aboriginal peoples, while for Europeans "civilization" there appears thin - provokes awe . . . With this remarkable novel, McFarlane establishes her place in the firmament of Australian letters, reworking and expanding the imaginary of its early years -- Claire Messud * Harper's *Fiona McFarlane's last book was scintillating. The Sun Walks Down is even better. It's compelling: old-fashioned in all the best ways, historically sensitive, generous in storytelling and yet modern and sharp -- Sarah Moss, author of SUMMERWATERThe Sun Walks Down is the book I'm always longing to find: brilliant, fresh and compulsively readable. It is marvellous. I loved it from start to finish -- Ann Patchett, author of THE DUTCH HOUSEGorgeous storytelling and superb characters are among the glories of The Sun Walks Down. Fiona McFarlane is an extraordinary writer, one of the best working today. Her magnificent reworking of the lost child story showcases the profound understanding she brings to people, places and the past. I lived in this wise, majestic novel for days and never wanted it to end -- Michelle de Kretser, author of SCARY MONSTERSAn exceptional, multi-layered historical novel with a beautifully styled plot. The power with which Fiona McFarlane evokes the place and time is extraordinary - a gorgeously written book -- Evie Wyld, author of THE BASS ROCKQuite simply, the best novel I've ever read about 19th-century Australia. A tense search for a lost child unfolds with rising dread against a landscape of harsh and radiant beauty, amid lives as tangled as barbed wire -- Geraldine Brooks, author of HORSEThe Sun Walks Down is a revelation. McFarlane places her lens first over the disappearance of a small boy in the Australian Outback and zooms out, weaving the stories of the people involved in the search for him into a tapestry as richly imagined and fully realized as anything I've read in recent memory. Her sentences fit together with the beauty of fine carpentry, and with them she's constructed a novel that calls to my mind no less than Patrick White's The Tree of Man. I can't think of another writer working today who I admire more -- Kevin Powers, author of THE YELLOW BIRDSMesmerising . . . It's a story with the quality of a myth or fable, that somehow manages to seem both restrained and infinite at once. And if that's all sounding a bit hoity-toity, be assured it's an engrossing mystery * Sydney Morning Herald *An extraordinary work of fiction that I have no doubt will become a classic of Australian literature -- Emily Bitto, author of THE STRAYSThis tale of a farming community's search for a missing child offers intimate human drama, ruminations on the intersections of art and life, and a sweeping, still relevant view of race and class in Australia . . . A masterpiece of riveting storytelling * Kirkus *Taut, rich, intelligent and mesmerizing * ABC News *The Sun Walks Down is a brilliant, intimate epic, a book about a family and also about history that is full of heart and heat. Fiona McFarlane's ear for the gurgles and clamor and hidden symphonies of her characters' souls is flawless; the way their lives intertwine is propulsive, heartbreaking. She is, simply, one of the best writers around -- Elizabeth McCracken, author of THE HERO OF THIS BOOKWith a child missing in remote Australia, this may sound like any recent 'outback noir' thriller - but McFarlane's beautifully written second novel has much more in common with Lanny by Max Porter or Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor: all vibrant, otherworldly stories of a small community in flux, discombobulated by a singular tragedy * Guardian Australia *The Sun Walks Down is that rare kind of novel, where there is something to enjoy and admire on every page. McFarlane's elegant, sharply observed prose beautifully conjures an unforgettable time and place -- Carys Davies, author of THE MISSION HOUSEMasterful storytelling . . . Tension mounts every time tragedy looms or disaster strikes. We read on with queasy dread when the spotlight falls on frightened and exhausted Denny . . . But we also read on captivated by the novel's beautiful prose and polyphonic voices, and marveling at both its epic scope and rare intimacy * Washington Post *

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Book SynopsisWhen the natural world and the build world collide, the earth needs a good building inspector…In this first case in the new Hugo Sandoval Eco-Mystery series, an old-school San Francisco building inspector must reluctantly venture outside his beloved city and find his sea legs before he can solve the mystery of how a 90-ton blue whale became stranded, twice, in a remote inlet off the North Coast.Set on the turbulent Mendocino Coast against the backdrop of a failing fishing fleet and illegal cannabis grows, Sandoval encounters roadblocks and lies as he grapples with the connection between a red tag posted on the historic Chicken Cove ranch and the decomposing marine mammal at the foot of its cliffs.Debilitated by more than a few idiosyncrasies, reluctant media darling Hugo Sandoval is a people’s hero, fighting the good fight in a modern era where development and climate change butt heads – and where each requested permit attempts to eclipse the old San Francisco Sandoval loves.Trade Review"In The Rotting Whale, Jann Eyrich artfully merges the realms of mystery and environmentalism to create an enthralling new genre: the eco-mystery. Eyrich’s prose is rich, painting vivid images of both the natural and urban landscapes that serve as the backdrop for Hugo Sandoval’s adventure. Readers will find themselves captivated by the offbeat hero as he ventures from the familiar streets of San Francisco to the rugged Mendocino Coast to unravel the enigma of a stranded blue whale. The Rotting Whale is also a tale of personal growth; Eyrich delves into the complexities of Hugo’s relationships with his daughter, ex-wife, and a motley crew of secondary characters. These vibrant personalities, each with their own quirks, lend depth to the story, complementing the central mystery and providing support to Hugo as he navigates the mystery. The Rotting Whale seamlessly blends the intrigue of a classic mystery with a thought-provoking environmental theme. Jann Eyrich’s eloquent writing style draws readers into the heart of San Francisco and the noir ambiance of a city on the brink of change. Readers of Dashiell Hammett’s Thin Man Series and Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache Series should head to their favorite bookstore immediately." —D.D. Black, author of The Shadow of Pike Place, A Thomas Austin Crime Thriller"Jann Eyrich’s characters are so compelling, I would follow inspector Hugo Sandoval and his friends through any amount of coastal fog and North Coast shenanigans! I really enjoyed the mystery but found that even more than the story, I fell for the characters. I’m looking forward to reading THE BLIND KEY next year." —Kathy Wollenberg, Author of Far Less"Jann Eyrich has given us Hugo Sandoval, a San Francisco building inspector as a new kind of detective -- he sees everything. A blue whale washes up on the beach in Mendocino and sets off a string of events that includes murder, extortion, mayhem--and a love story. Or two. Page-turning, dripping with atmosphere, a full cast of quirky supporting characters, and a bid to save the planet in a necessary new genre: the eco-mystery." —Julia Park Tracey, author of the Veronika Layne: Hot Off the Press series

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Book Synopsis"Fascinating . Xiaolong writes with both urgency and grace about modern China in another well-crafted mystery" - Booklist Starred Review"Outstanding . Qiu''s execution matches his ambition. Fans of mysteries about honest cops working for compromised regimes won''t want to miss this one" - Publishers Weekly Starred ReviewInspector Chen is on the case of a serial murderer when he is called away to report on environmentalists trying to tackle the pollution issues in China.Chief Inspector Chen and Detective Yu Guangming are brought into a serial murder case when the Homicide squad proves incapable of solving it. But before Chen can make a start, he is called away by a high-ranking Party member for a special assignment: to infiltrate a group of environmental activists meeting to discuss the pollution levels in the country and how to prompt the government into action.Chen knows it will be a far from simple task, especially when he discovers the leader of the group is a woman from his past. Meanwhile, Yu is left to investigate a serial murder case on his own.Both Chen and Yu face pressure from those above to resolve the cases in a satisfactory way . . . even if that means innocents face the punishment.

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Book Synopsis'When the rains fell, the world burned...' After a childhood spent in the foster care system, failed PhD student Amy Weston attracts trouble wherever she goes. Acid rain is destroying London's trees, brain lesions are turning once-harmless pets into killer dogs, and her new work colleague, Professor Joel Harket, is the most infuriating man she has ever met. But when the media continue to insist that autumn has simply come early, and humans begin to experience the same symptoms as the killer dogs, Amy must work alongside Joel in order to convince the world of the seriousness of the situation, before it is too late. From the UN Air Health summit in Beijing to the abandoned tunnels beneath the city of London, Amy and Joel search for answers to prevent the end of the world, and as Nelson's Column crumbles and zombie-like 'howlers' wreak havoc worldwide, they discover that the only way to survive the apocalypse is to set aside their differences... and learn to trust each other.

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Book Synopsis'Both a work of lyrical imagination and a warning about the dangers we will face unless we take immediate action' New Yorker 'An artist's ardent plea for change' Kirkus This earth that we love is in grave danger because of us. Forests are becoming legends, rare as unicorns... If we continue to live as we do now, there will be no world left for us to fix, Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri argues in this evocative collection. He imagines messages – sent to us from beyond the end, from those who saw it coming – exhorting us to change now. Combining fiction, essay and poetry, Tiger Work displays Okri’s classic blend of storytelling, fantasy and magic.Trade ReviewAn artist's ardent plea for change * Kirkus *Approaches the potential cataclysm of climate change from many perspectives in this multi-genre collection, which is both a work of lyrical imagination and a warning about the dangers we will face unless we take immediate action. * New Yorker *PRAISE FOR BEN OKRI: 'Ben Okri is that rare thing, a literary and social visionary, a writer for whom all three – literature, culture and vision – are profoundly interwoven' Ali Smith. 'Where fiction's master of enchantments stares down a real horror, and without blinking or flinching, produces a work of beauty, grace and uncommon power' Marlon James on The Freedom Artist. 'Okri's rhythmic, folk tale-like prose is beguiling.' Sunday Times on The Freedom Artist. 'Okri's otherworldly literary approach has produced masterpieces.' Independent on Sunday. 'Okri's writing has a light-as-air elegance, yet its seriousness keeps the stories gravity-bound.' * New Statesman on The Magic Lamp *

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Book SynopsisJack and Toni, childhood schoolmates living in the Solomon Islands, set out on a routine boat trip to a neighboring island. Things go awry when they discover, due to an oversight by Toni, that they do not have enough fuel to make the journey and are stranded at sea. Optimistic at first that they will soon be rescued, they slowly begin to realize, as the first day draws to an end, that they are in serious jeopardy with no end but their own demise in sight. Based on a true story as the days lengthen at sea, we are gifted with a vision of the beauty of the Solomon Islands and the environmental debt they are owed by the world after decades of overfishing, logging and now rising sea levels due to global warming. At the heart, this is a crucial and important novel on climate change, culture and human relations.

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Book Synopsis"Smart, fierce, and poignant: perhaps the most exciting novel yet by this very talented writer." Mohsin Hamid, author of Exit West and The Reluctant FundamentalistA Young Pakistani photographer and his American born Pakistani-German lover travel from California to Pakistan in an attempt to exorcize their pasts, in order to build their shared future. Up in the glaciers of Northern Pakistan, a tragedy at a mountain lake entwines the fates of the two lovers with the people they encounter there: Miryam, a nomad, travelling with her family into the mountains to escape persecution, and Irfan, haunted by ghosts and hoping that the mountains may offer him a reprieve from his troubles. An expansive look at the intersection of cultures and what happens at those intersections, Thinner Than Skin is a powerful and moving read.

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Book SynopsisLord Purdey was shaking with anger. 'Bring back the lynx? Over my dead body!'The environmental protestors murmured, and Rory stepped forward. 'Your hunting has destroyed our hills and left them treeless wastes, devoid of wildlife. It's time that changed.''Listen, you lentil-eating cat lover,' Purdey barked through the megaphone, 'men like me own Scotland. If we want to kill anything that moves and turn the whole damn place into a theme park, we'll do it.'Someone from the group of protestors hurled a turnip. It struck Purdey and he crumpled to the ground. Just as the archaic class system he represents must eventually fall, Angus thought with a grin.In his first two bestselling books, The Last Hillwalker and Bothy Tales, John D. Burns invited readers to join him in the hills and wild places of Scotland. In Sky Dance, he returns to that world to ask fundamental questions about how we relate to this northern landscape – while raising a laugh or two along the way. Anyone who has gazed at the majesty of the Scottish mountains will know this place and want to return to it. Now, as wild land is threatened like never before, it’s time we asked ourselves what kind of future we want for the Highlands.

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Book SynopsisThe surging wave of indigenous politics, rights of nature, and social movements acting with rocks, rivers, glaciers, and lakes has brought to light an ecology of nonlife. Its protagonists are 'earth-beings,' geobodies that question deep-seated Western notions of personhood.Table of Contents1. Crisis of Presence; 2. Earth beings; 3. Polemical Scenes; 4. The Invisible Landfill; 5. Being the River; 6. Coda.

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Book Synopsis''A delicious summer read'' Redbook; ''An easy, breezy read set in a stunning location'' Daily MailA captivating romance set on a beautiful Florida island, from the New York Times bestselling co-author of Travelling with Pomegranates (written with Sue Monk Kidd). Not to be missed by fans of Nicholas Sparks and Jojo Moyes.How do you choose between your first love and a sizzling new romance?On a summer day in 1988, two extraordinary things happen to twelve-year-old Maeve Donnelly. First, she is kissed by Daniel, the boy of her dreams. Then, she is attacked by a shark.Eighteen years later, Maeve is a world-travelling biologist, swimming with the animals that once threatened her life. She is on the brink of a relationship with a fellow diver. Yet, as she returns to the idyllic island where she grew up, she is haunted by memories of Daniel, her first love, and what might have been. A Trade ReviewA quintessential summer read: It's based in the Gulf of Mexico so even if you're only sunning at your local beach, you can still daydream of palm trees and pristine waters * Marie Claire *A delicious summer read * Redbook *Captivating... An engaging novel about the loves that define our lives * Kirkus Reviews *A spellbinding meditation on one woman's unresolved past...Consider it required summer reading for anyone still tangled in the tricky project of growing-up * Refinery29 *A real beach read * Tampa Bay Times *With humor and surprises... Maeve struggles to forgive, let go of past love, and navigate happiness on her own terms * Booklist *An easy, breezy read set in a stunning location * Daily Mail *This book is brilliant - read now... This is an author who knows how to write a good story: one that you'll remember because of its quirks; one that you'll recommend because of the main character and one that will leave you craving a holiday! -- www.chloedouglasblog.wordpress.com

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Book Synopsis'O'Keeffe exposes the scandal of the Special Demonstration Squad with empathy and anger' - SAGA'In a country of lockdowns, borders bills and voter ID, O'Keefe's 'arrow of hope' is needed more than ever. In Skylark that arrow will pierce your heart.' - SHINY NEW BOOKS BLOG'O'Keeffe brings the world Skylark inhabits to vibrant life, painting the passions of her activists so vividly that the reader - and Dan himself - are drawn into their desire to change the world.' - OBSERVER'An acutely observed, beautifully written story of lies and betrayal ... a thought-provoking, well-researched and compelling saga.' - BUZZ MAGAZINE'A lyrical love story about a real-life scandal' - HEAT'respectful and moving... a lovingly evoked examination of the 90s protest scene.' THE GUARDIAN'SKYLARK plunges the reader headfirst into a vivid, heady world where passion and betrayal collide. Beautifully-written, immersive and ultimately enraging, it's a must-read for anyone who has ever wanted to change the world.' - ERIN KELLY'Alice O'Keeffe deftly renders the shocking truth of the spy cops scandal into a moving tale of love, identity and betrayal. Essential reading.' - JAKE ARNOTT'Skylark is a book of profound psychological perception, which conjures with deft precision the atmosphere of the anti-roads movement in all its fierce, tender idealism. I couldn't put it down.' - JAY GRIFFITHSTheir ideals brought them together, but how closely should you follow your heart?It's the mid-90s, and rebellion is in the air.Skylark is an activist, a raver, a tree-dweller, a world-changer. Handsome, dependable Dan appears on the scene, offering her the security she has never had. When they fall in love, she shows him a new way to live; he will never be the same. But Dan has a secret, which Skylark must never, ever know. A secret so powerful that its fault-lines run from their ordinary council flat right up to the highest echelons of the state.Their story is the story of Britain's undercover police.As Skylark comes to doubt not only Dan's commitment to their shared ideals, but his very identity, she finds herself asking: can you ever really know the person you love?

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Book SynopsisNothing has happened. Not yet, anyway. This is how all things begin.Welcome to Apex City, formerly Bangalore, where everything is decided by the mathematically perfect Bell Curve.With the right image, values and opinions, you can ascend to the glittering heights of the Twenty Percent – the Virtual elite – and have the world at your feet. Otherwise you risk falling to the precarious Ten Percent, and deportation to the ranks of the Analogs, with no access to electricity, running water or even humanity.The system has no flaws. Until the elusive “Ten Percent Thief” steals a single jacaranda seed from the Virtual city and plants a revolution in the barren soil of the Analog world.Previously published in South Asia only as Analog/Virtual, The Ten Percent Thief is a striking debut by a ferocious new talent.Trade Review“Lakshminarayan is a favourite... The Ten Percent Thief is an ambitious novel.” -- The Washington Post“Lakshminarayan’s nuanced dystopian future will leave readers questioning their own relationship with technology and social media as they follow the cookie crumb trail of conformity and dissent through multiple character perspectives. The result is as satisfying as it is clever.” -- Publishers Weekly“Playful and crushing in equal measure.” -- FanFiAddict“A new masterpiece” -- SciFiNow“Lakshminarayan uses her novel to flawlessly confront constructed binaries built into the very fabric of contemporary society” -- The Fantasy Hive“The Ten Percent Thief is bold and creative, and Lakshminarayan expertly packages a warning that will only get more relevant with time” -- STARBURST Magazine“There are wonders and gizmos within Apex City, but these are stories about people’s lives. This is, punk-like, a collection of rebellions against, and reconsiderations of, the status quo. One of my favourite books of recent years.” -- Jared Shurin, Raptor Velocity“Impressive” -- SFX“Stunning and thought-provoking” -- The British Fantasy Society“Smart, vivid, engaging” -- The Guardian“Lavanya Lakshminarayan breathes new life into dystopia” -- The Washington Post“Deeply thought-provoking and timely” - Grimdark Magazine

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Book SynopsisBlackmail, sexual harassment, murder . . . and a missing dog: eccentric, eco-obsessed LA private eye Charlie Waldo is on the case in this quirky, fast-paced mystery.Paying a harsh self-imposed penance for a terrible misstep on a case, former LAPD superstar detective Charlie Waldo lives a life of punishing minimalism deep within the woods, making a near religion of his commitment to owning no more than One Hundred Things.At least, he''s trying to. His PI girlfriend Lorena keeps drawing him back to civilization - even though every time he compromises on his principles, something goes wrong.And unfortunately for Waldo, all roads lead straight back to LA. When old adversary Don Q strongarms him into investigating the seemingly mundane death of a vagrant, Lorena agrees he can work under her PI license on one condition: he help with a high-maintenance celebrity client, wildly popular courtroom TV star Judge Ida Mudge, whose new mega-deal makes

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Book Synopsis“A beautifully rendered and cinematic portrait of a place and its evolution through time . . . A story of survival and the love and devotion between parent and child.” —Jill McCorkle, author of Hieroglyphics Dave Cartwright used to be good at a lot of things: good with his hands, good at solving problems, good at staying calm in a crisis. But on the heels of his third tour in Iraq, the fabric of Dave’s life has begun to unravel. Gripped by PTSD, he finds himself losing his home, his wife, his direction. Most days, his love for his seven-year-old daughter, Bella, is the only thing keeping him going. When tragedy strikes, Dave makes a dramatic decision: the two of them will flee their damaged lives, heading off the grid to live in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest. As they carve out a home in a cave in that harsh, breathtaking landscape, echoes of its past begin to reach them. Bella retreats into herself, absorbed by visions of a mother and son who lived in the cave thousands of years earlier, at the end of the last ice age. Back in town, Dave and Bella themselves are rapidly becoming the stuff of legend—to all but those who would force them to return home. As winter sweeps toward the North Cascades, past and present intertwine into a timeless odyssey. Poignant and profound, Legends of the North Cascades brings Jonathan Evison’s trademark vibrant, honest voice to bear on an expansive story that is at once a meditation on the perils of isolation and an exploration of the ways that connection can save us.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the Southern Book Prize ?for Fiction * Winner of a Nautilus Award (Gold)? With fires devastating much of America, Lark and his family first leave their home in Maryland for Maine. But as the country increasingly falls under the grip of religious nationalism, it becomes clear that nowhere is safe, not just from physical disasters but also persecution. The family secures a place on a crowded boat headed to Ireland, the last place on earth rumoured to be accepting American refugees.Upon arrival, it turns out that the safe harbor of Ireland no longer exists either-and Lark, the sole survivor of the trans-Atlantic voyage, must disappear into the countryside. As he runs for his life, Lark finds two equally lost and desperate souls: one of the last remaining dogs, who becomes his closest companion, and a fierce, mysterious woman in search of her lost son. Together they form a makeshift family and attempt to reach Glendalough, a place they believe will offer protection. But can any community provide the safety that they seek?Lark Ascending is a moving and unforgettable story of friendship and bravery, and even more, a story of the ongoing fight to protect our per­sonal freedoms and find our shared humanity, from a writer at the peak of his powers.Trade ReviewUSA Today Bestseller Southern Literary Award Winner Nautilus Award Winner – Gold Indie BestsellerSalon Favorite Book of 2022Booklist Editors' Choice of 2022Garden and Gun Best Southern Book of 2022 Indie Next List PickLos Angeles Times' Most Anticipated Fall 2022Lambda Literary's Most Anticipated Fall 2022 “In Lark Ascending, Silas House casts an irresistible spell, conjuring a near future that is both familiar and unbearable, illuminating the brutality and suffering that our own thoughtless age seems determined to invoke. But Lark Ascending is not merely, or even mainly, a tale of pain and grief. This beautiful book is shot through with such tenderness and humanity, such love and courage and beauty and hope, that it feels almost like a prayer.”—Margaret Renkl, author of Late MigrationsKentucky Poet Laureate Southern Literary Award Winner Nautilus Award Winner – Gold Indie BestsellerSalon Favorite Book of 2022Booklist Editors' Choice of 2022Garden and Gun Best Southern Book of 2022 Indie Next List PickLos Angeles Times' Most Anticipated Fall 2022Lambda Literary's Most Anticipated Fall 2022 “Silas House has always served as an ancestor from the past who has stepped into the present with rich lessons in tow. But with Lark House reveals himself to be an oracle from the future who has come back to illuminate our lived moment with a snapshot of what the years ahead could hold. The vision is terrifying and spare, but in House’s capable and delicate telling, it is also beautiful and compelling. Lark marks a stunning turn in House’s career, taking him from the Appalachian Mountains to a post-apocalyptic Atlantic crossing, but I have no doubt that readers will follow Silas House wherever he goes, whether into the past or headlong into the future.”—Wiley Cash, New York Times bestselling author of When Ghosts Come Home“In Lark Ascending, Silas House casts an irresistible spell, conjuring a near future that is both familiar and unbearable, illuminating the brutality and suffering that our own thoughtless age seems determined to invoke. But Lark Ascending is not merely, or even mainly, a tale of pain and grief. This beautiful book is shot through with such tenderness and humanity, such love and courage and beauty and hope, that it feels almost like a prayer.” —Margaret Renkl, author of Late Migrations and Graceland, At Last“Silas House has always served as an ancestor from the past who has stepped into the present with rich lessons in tow. But with Lark House reveals himself to be an oracle from the future who has come back to illuminate our lived moment with a snapshot of what the years ahead could hold. The vision is terrifying and spare, but in House’s capable and delicate telling, it is also beautiful and compelling. Lark marks a stunning turn in House’s career, taking him from the Appalachian Mountains to a post-apocalyptic Atlantic crossing, but I have no doubt that readers will follow Silas House wherever he goes, whether into the past or headlong into the future.”—Wiley Cash, New York Times bestselling author of When Ghosts Come Home“A postapocalyptic epic that is quiet and lyrical . . . an emotional testament to the power of hope.”—Booklist, starred review“A dystopian classic, finding new notes of peril and possibility in the once-and-future homeland of Ireland and giving us the kind of richly observed alternative family that humanity of any era would call savior. It also has the best dog ever, excepting my own. Don’t miss this one.”—Louis Bayard, author of Jackie Me“Truly harrowing, yet even more deeply affecting and tender. . . This is very much a book about connection, family, and, above all else, hope. It is this deep hopefulness that allows House’s novel to transcend the constraints of some other dystopian novels. . . Lark Ascending is full of rich colors and sounds and images, brimming with the majesty of life.”—Chapter16.org“Amazing… powerful, and prescient.” —Dallas Voice“I was sucked into this urgent story where survival in the not-too-distant future depends on forging connections with strangers and nurturing tenderness and hope within. An essential, heartbreaking but ultimately uplifting read.”—Michelle Gallen, author of Factory Girls and Big Girl, Small Town“With Lark Ascending, the gifted Silas House has, with the most deft and masterful touches, forged a quite terrifying and all-too-plausible glimpse of our near future and somehow imbued it with almost impossible quantities of poetry and humanity. A gripping story of endurance, suffering and loss, but also of overwhelming love, loyalty and hope, the result is a hugely impressive feat of the imagination . . . A beautiful, haunting piece of work, and a compulsive read.”—Billy O'Callaghan, author of Life Sentences and The Dead House“Lark Ascending’s beautiful language and imagery, combined with the emotional heft of the story, drew me in from the first paragraph.”—Literary Hub“A postapocalyptic epic that is quiet and lyrical…an emotional testament to the power of hope.”—Booklist (starred review)“Just astonishing . . . Terrifying, moving, beautiful, instructive, and haunting. I have never been more deeply moved by a novel.”—Lee Smith, author of Dimestore“A cleareyed and engaging apocalyptic yarn.”—Kirkus Reviews“The narrator of House’s seventh novel is a young gay man who’s escaped a near-future America knocked sideways by climate change and right-wing militias. His destination is Ireland, working off little more than a rumor that an Edenic safe haven isn’t far over the horizon. House works with some familiar dystopian tropes, but the book is distinguished by his lyrical, earthy tone.”—Los Angeles Times (Most Anticipated Fall Book)“A fiercely visceral reading experience.”—Publishers Weekly“The not-too-distant dystopia of House’s latest becomes a vehicle for the author to tell a compelling story about a refugee crisis. Because House takes the story out of a contemporary context, readers can more easily empathize with the novel’s refugees rather than focusing on real-world quandaries.”—Library Journal“Silas House’s “Lark Ascending” is a dystopian classic, finding new notes of peril and possibility in the once-and-future homeland of Ireland and giving us the kind of richly observed alternative family that humanity of any era would call savior. It also has the best dog ever, excepting my own. Don’t miss this one.”—Louis Bayard, author of Jackie and Me“I was sucked into this urgent story where survival in the not-too-distant future depends on forging connections with strangers and nurturing tenderness and hope within. An essential, heartbreaking but ultimately uplifting read.”—Michelle Gallen, author of Factory Girls“Just astonishing . . .terrifying, moving, beautiful, instructive, and haunting. I have never been more deeply moved by a novel.”—Lee Smith, author of Dimestore“With Lark Ascending, the gifted Silas House has, with the most deft and masterful touches, forged a quite terrifying and all-too-plausible glimpse of our near future and somehow imbued it with almost impossible quantities of poetry and humanity. A gripping story of endurance, suffering and loss, but also of overwhelming love, loyalty and hope, the result is a hugely impressive feat of the imagination . . . A beautiful, haunting piece of work, and a compulsive read.” —Billy O'Callaghan, author of Life Sentences and The Dead House“The greatest Southern novel of the year.”—Georgia Public Broadcast / Salvation South"A poignant tale... Lark Ascending is full of such magic."—Southern Literary Review"Exciting, hopeful, and beautiful."—Alabama Public Radio / Don Noble's Book Reviews"This is a story of the dangers of both flight and immigration, survival enabled by chosen families, and the grace of humanity amid chaos. I had to read some sentences several times over to fully appreciate the beauty of the writing."—Kathleen Lance, Denver Reader, Denver Post“Silas House’s apocalyptic parable strikes the heart powerfully because of the eerie parallels to now… Lushly written”—Bowling Green Daily News

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Book SynopsisA long-awaited second collection of original poems by Ryan Wilson that considers the haunting of the contemporary mind. With virtuosic formal variety and masterful craft, these poems range from rural America to Italy to the Holy Land, as they chronicle the dynamism of a spiritual odyssey toward the eternal through both past and present.Trade ReviewThese are brilliantly clear poems to read and read again, poems to study and to love. Few American poets working in rhyme and meter today could write poems to match them." - Shane McCrae"I have been waiting for a poet like Ryan Wilson, an unapologetic formalist whose metrical agility is precise and varied, and whose uncamouflaged rhymes unleash an intelligence that is at once wild and sensible." - Rodney Jones"In Ghostlight is a major book. With it, Wilson places himself among the best poets of his generation." - Dana Gioia

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Book SynopsisThroughout Presence, encounter and contact are the major elements of consequence, action, implication, and resounding significance. Encounter and contact between timeframes, cultures, ecologies, persons, intuitions, ways of living, and worlding. At these junctures are the moments of possibility - of violence and/or of budding community.Trade ReviewHere is a completely unique, genre-defying, anti-apocalypse story. It is sprawling in scope, pushing the limits of language and narrative to imagine futures beyond our wildest dreams. Iijima is both a poet and a theorist of our frightening yet fascinating contemporary condition—and she does justice to our capacity to change and discover new ways of being in the world." - Elvia Wilk, author of Death by Landscape: Essays

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Book SynopsisA book that seems to have all of Earth in mind, all its places and creatures, not as sentimental other but companions. Craft’s poems are certain, his language a landscape of its own - hard, pressured, and flecked like sedimentary rock - that occasionally upends the reader as a form of tectonics.

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Book SynopsisCollier Brown’s Scrap Bones reads like a post-pandemic epilogue to T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land.” No angels or flying horses here, just panic disorders, email fatigue, and the spiritual dead end of a 23-and-Me test kit. And yet, resilient are the muses in this collection—the bees, the starlings, the dragonflies—skimming over the wastes.The Sabine Series in Literature ...from “Orion, Break” they’re sleeping in their homes, they’re waking from their beds, they’re at their desks and on a call. They’re unimpressed. That’s not your fault. Nor your concern. I’m tired of images, of lines and dots and codes. When I step into the dark, I only want the novas and the nowheres in between, and if I’m very lucky— if I’ve beaten all the odds— just one, naÏve fluoresce of the insect who is its own hello/goodbye.

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Book SynopsisBy drawing on oceanography (marine sciences) and limnology (freshwater sciences), social sciences, and the environmental humanities, the field of the blue humanities critically examines the planet's troubled seas and distressed freshwaters from various socio-cultural, literary, historical, aesthetic, ethical, and theoretical perspectives.Table of ContentsIntroduction; 1. The Blue Humanities: Crisscrossing Boundaries; 2. Troubled Seas: Oceanic Imagination; 3. Troubled Seas: Scientific Accounts; 4. Distressed Freshwaters; 5. Epilogue.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisA NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEARA WASHINGTON POST TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR • FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD A sweeping novel about a single house in the woods of New England, told through the lives of those who inhabit it across the centuries—“a time-spanning, genre-blurring work of storytelling magic” (The Washington Post) from the Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of The Piano Tuner and The Winter Soldier.“With the expansiveness and immersive feeling of two-time Booker Prize nominee David Mitchell’s fiction (Cloud Atlas), the wicked creepiness of Edgar Allan Poe, and Mason’s bone-deep knowledge of and appreciation for the natural world that’s on par with that of Thoreau, North Woods fires on all cylinders.”—San Francisco ChronicleNew York Times Book Review

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Book SynopsisThe second book in this environmental epic fantasy series delves into the mysteries of a world where ships kept afloat by magical hearthfires sail an endless grass sea.After setting fire to the Forever Sea and leaving the surface world behind, Kindred Greyreach dives below to find a Seafloor populated by roving bands of scavengers. Among them, Kindred discovers a familiar face working to save the Sea from the continued spread of the Greys and the ravages of the world above. But when Kindred finds herself at odds with a faction below the Sea, she and her friends will have to use every power available to them—including their link to the surface world—to forestall disaster.Meanwhile, above, a boy named Flitch, son of the Baron of the Borders, finds himself caught in a dangerous political crisis as survivors from Arcadia and the Once-City arrive on the Mainland. As monsters from the depths of the Sea begin to surface near the Mainland’s shores, FlitTrade ReviewPraise for The Endless Song"This series finale showcases the wonder and strangeness of Johnson’s world, with descriptions both terrifying and hauntingly beautiful. Readers looking for inventive, thoughtful fantasy will find plenty to enjoy." —Publishers WeeklyPraise for The Forever Sea“I can rarely remember being this excited for a debut novel. This was everything I wanted it to be. Wind-swept prairie seas, pirates, magic, and found families.” —Mary Robinette Kowal, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning author of the Lady Astronaut series“Richly imagined and beautifully written, with a highly original and very creepy magic system—The Forever Sea is wonderful.” —R. F. Kuang, Astounding Award-winning author of The Poppy War"What an amazing world—from the ecosystem, to the ships that ply the deep grass sea, to the magic and people within!" —Fran Wilde, two-time Nebula-winning author of Riverland and Updraft“Loved The Forever Sea. Loved it. Sheer joy.” —Joanne Harris, internationally bestselling author of Chocolat“A beautifully imagined dive into the unknown.” —G.V. Anderson, World Fantasy Award winning author of "Das Steingeschöpf"“Beautifully lyrical and imaginative, Johnson's debut sings a twisting tale of adventure full of diverse characters and a lush world ripe to fall in love with. With a heart that will haunt you, this ecopunk story is unlike any you've seen before.” —Linden A. Lewis, author of The First Sister"In this rich and well-realized world, magic has an ecological price as well as profit, and conflicts are between equally complicated communities rather than simplistic good vs. evil. This ending of this excellent debut promises more adventures in its fragile, Miyazaki-esque world." —Booklist (starred review)"Johnson’s beautiful coming-of-age saga touches on subjects of conservation, water rights, morality, and relationships.... The book’s setting and plot are so original as to be a breath of fresh air to the fantasy genre." —Library Journal (starred review)“Lush descriptions of plant life abound... When combined with the exceptional protagonist and themes of embracing the unknown, [The Forever Sea] calls to mind Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea series. With a good balance of grit and tenderness, this entertaining story makes a nice addition to the growing hopepunk subgenre.” —Publishers Weekly

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewPraise for The Endless Song"This series finale showcases the wonder and strangeness of Johnson’s world, with descriptions both terrifying and hauntingly beautiful. Readers looking for inventive, thoughtful fantasy will find plenty to enjoy." —Publishers WeeklyPraise for The Forever Sea“I can rarely remember being this excited for a debut novel. This was everything I wanted it to be. Wind-swept prairie seas, pirates, magic, and found families.” —Mary Robinette Kowal, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning author of the Lady Astronaut series“Richly imagined and beautifully written, with a highly original and very creepy magic system—The Forever Sea is wonderful.” —R. F. Kuang, Astounding Award-winning author of The Poppy War"What an amazing world—from the ecosystem, to the ships that ply the deep grass sea, to the magic and people within!" —Fran Wilde, two-time Nebula-winning author of Riverland and Updraft“Loved The Forever Sea. Loved it. Sheer joy.” —Joanne Harris, internationally bestselling author of Chocolat“A beautifully imagined dive into the unknown.” —G.V. Anderson, World Fantasy Award winning author of "Das Steingeschöpf"“Beautifully lyrical and imaginative, Johnson's debut sings a twisting tale of adventure full of diverse characters and a lush world ripe to fall in love with. With a heart that will haunt you, this ecopunk story is unlike any you've seen before.” —Linden A. Lewis, author of The First Sister"In this rich and well-realized world, magic has an ecological price as well as profit, and conflicts are between equally complicated communities rather than simplistic good vs. evil. This ending of this excellent debut promises more adventures in its fragile, Miyazaki-esque world." —Booklist (starred review)"Johnson’s beautiful coming-of-age saga touches on subjects of conservation, water rights, morality, and relationships.... The book’s setting and plot are so original as to be a breath of fresh air to the fantasy genre." —Library Journal (starred review)“Lush descriptions of plant life abound... When combined with the exceptional protagonist and themes of embracing the unknown, [The Forever Sea] calls to mind Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea series. With a good balance of grit and tenderness, this entertaining story makes a nice addition to the growing hopepunk subgenre.” —Publishers Weekly

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Book SynopsisThe Guardian: Best Children's and YA Book of the Year  An environmental fairytale that speaks eloquently to the most pressing issues of our times, from the Booker Prize–winning author of The Famished Road.Mangoshi lives with her mom and dad in a village near the forest. When her mom becomes ill, Mangoshi knows only one thing can help her—a special flower that grows deep in the forest.   The little girl needs all her courage when she sets out alone to find and bring back the flower, and all her kindness to overpower the dangers she encounters on the quest.   Ben Okri brings the power of his mystic vision to a timely story that weaves together wonder, adventure, and environmentalism.

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Book SynopsisA Best Book of 2023 by The New YorkerIn this poignant, timely collection, the renowned Booker Prize–winning author evokes the magic of nature and the urgency of protecting our environment.Twenty thousand years after a catastrophe wiped out the human race, visitors uncover their final messages scattered across the planet, in flooded cities and disintegrating books. These writings reveal the tragedies of people who continued to live as they always did—fearfully, selfishly—even as the end of their world loomed.     These haunting stories within a story, together with a powerful selection of poems, fables, and essays, are a necessary reminder of the beauty of the earth and the importance of addressing the climate crisis with clarity, artistry, and passion.

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Book SynopsisThis “genre-shredding” (Tor.com) feminist dystopian eco-horror, perfect for fans of The Last of Us, traces a girl’s coming-of-age on a post-apocalyptic trek through the Southwest.In a bleak, desiccated future, eleven-year-old Magdala and her father are forced to flee through the desolate landscape of the American Southwest, searching for shelter and peace. Pursued by horrors both unnatural and all-too-human, they join a pilgrimage to the holy city of Las Vegas, where it is said that vigilante saints reside, bright with neon power. Magdala, born with a clubfoot, is determined to be healed there. But one by one, the pilgrims and her father fall victim to an eerie, all-consuming sickness—leaving Magdala to fend for herself in the wilderness.After surviving for years on her own, Magdala grows tired of waiting for her miracle. She turns her gaze to Las Vegas once more, taking an exiled Vegas priest hostage to guide her as she navigates the unsettling expanse of the desert and the hungry, dark ambitions of men. Even as she nears the holy land, Magdala must choose: survival or salvation?In this moving debut novel, acclaimed short fiction writer Kay Chronister twines the strange, terrible beauty of the desert into a haunting exploration of faith and hope. Bold and disquieting, Desert Creatures is a surreal examination of humanity and the myths we tell ourselves to survive.Trade Review★ “Chronister’s futuristic, dog-eat-dog Sonoran and Mojave deserts are as devastating as they are inventive. . . . Chronister cleverly deploys and subverts horror, dystopian and western genres alike in this razor-sharp novel.” —Shelf Awareness, starred review“If The Canterbury Tales was set in future Sonoran and Mojave deserts, it might look a little like this . . . [A] strange and frightening vision.” —Publishers Weekly“Chronister pierces with her prose. You’ll find hope and acts of kindness in an unkind world. Desert Creatures is not a comfort read—it is rife with horror, betrayal, and a landscape that will burn itself on your consciousness. But in the end, this book will comfort you.” —BookRiot’s "Best Books of 2022"“[Desert Creatures] is a striking new take on the post-apocalypse novel, invigorating an old genre tradition with new vitality and life. And it is a haunting meditation on what it means to retain our humanity under the most adverse of conditions. It is a masterpiece, all the more impressive for being Chronister’s debut.” —The Fantasy Hive “Genre-shredding . . . Stunning . . . A story of both creation and apocalypse, where characters struggle with both belief and heresy.” —Tor.com“In [this] distorted version of Las Vegas wherein false saints peddle false promises, . . . a rejected girl takes a wretched journey whose inward dimensions hold the potential for healing. . . . Heartbreaking.” —Foreword Reviews“A vivid investigation of faith, perseverance, and human violence as they exist at the end of the world . . . Scintillating.” —Brian Evenson, author of Song for the Unraveling of the World“Incredible . . . pushing the wild weirdness of the Sonoran Desert toward the furthest extremes of possibility. I will never forget this uncanny world, nor brave Magdala’s quest across it.” —Matt Bell, author of Appleseed“[Desert Creatures] does for the Southwest desert what Jeff VanderMeer did for Florida’s swamps and Algernon Blackwood did for the Danube. . . . Unlike most post-apocalyptic works, the narrative never revels in the downfall of modernity, but scavenges in the remnants of what was and calls forth the twinned opulences of medieval Catholicism and Las Vegas as its guideposts. . . . This is the book of monsters our liminal year deserves.” —Ancillary Review of Books

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