Narrative theme: love / relationships

Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE FRANÇOISE SAGAN PRIZE WINNER OF THE BOOKSTAGRAM PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE GONCOURT PRIZE FOR DEBUT NOVEL 'With this book, Abigail Assor announces herself as one of the most distinctive voices in North African literature. This is a vibrant, sensual, subversive novel with an unforgettable heroine' LEÏLA SLIMANI _______________ Sarah is poor, but at least she's French, which allows her to attend Casablanca's elite high school for expats and wealthy locals. It's there that she first lays eyes on Driss. He's older, quiet and not particularly good looking-apart from his eyes, which are the deep green of thyme simmering in a tagine. Most importantly, he's rumoured to be the richest guy in the city. She decides she wants those eyes. And she wants a life like his. But to get to Driss she will have to cross the gaping divide that separates them and climb to the top of the city's society, from street corner merguez and chips to a mansion overlooking the ocean. Provocative, immersive, sensual, As Rich as the King is a twisted love story and a bittersweet ode to Casablanca.Trade Review'With this book, Abigail Assor announces herself as one of the most distinctive voices in North African literature. This is a vibrant, sensual, subversive novel with an unforgettable heroine' - Leila Slimani'The sounds, the smells, the gritty details of every scene are laid bare in a light as harsh and bright as the sun... A captivating novel' - Le Figaro'Casablanca stretches out before our astonished eyes, humming with rage and life... A captivating debut' - Lire'Abigail Assor's writing is precise, sensual, subversive and wildly lyrical. Astonishing' - Le Parisien'Stunning in its truth, cruelty and style' - Paris Match

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Book Synopsis'A mesmerising debut. Dark, twisted and bracingly empathetic' Diana Reid, author of Love and Virtue Winner of the 2017 Hankyoreh Literary Award ---------------- Who is Jina? The stupid woman who ruined a young man's promising career? The weird loner whose university boyfriend thinks she has a victim complex? The naïve country girl who ignored a friend's cry for help? The survivor? To answer these questions, Jina will have to return to Anjin University and the toxic culture that destroyed the lives of many female students - including one, Ha Yuri, who died tragically and mysteriously not long before she left. ---------------- PRAISE FOR ANOTHER PERSON 'Immaculately crafted, shocking and moving' Sang Young Park, author of the International Booker-longlisted Love in the Big City 'Dark Academia the way I like it... smart and full of suspense' Hanna Bervoets, author of We Had to Remove This Post 'Sharp social commentary and amazing, complex female characters. An unusual, unpredictable thriller' Simone Campos, author of Nothing Can Hurt You NowTrade Review'Dark Academia the way I like it: Another Person is one of those novels where you're never sure who you should be rooting for, or if you should be rooting for anyone at all. Smart, and full of suspense, it will keep you guessing until the end.' - Hanna Bervoets, author of We Had to Remove This Post'Sharp societal commentary and amazing, complex female characters. An unusual, unpredictable thriller' - Simone Campos, author of Nothing Can Hurt You Now'This is not a remote-controlled weapon aiming at us from a distance. This is a novel standing right before us like a stone-age axe, hacking at our blunted hearts. A novel not like a drone, but like dynamite; more like a dagger than an arrow. In an ever-more misogynistic society, day after day feminism plots its self-transformation-Another Person is its latest weapon. I love Kang Hwagil's direct and primal writing style. I love her perseverance and courage, not to gracefully skirt around a topic, but instead to shout out, 'This is not okay' - Cheong Yeoul, writer'This novel exposes and interrogates. Another Person's protagonists Yuri, Jina and Sujin-as well as the countless women within the 'brackets' of the Korean context-are screaming out... This is a novel that will spark debate.' - Young-Sook Kang, author of Rina'A novel so immaculately-crafted, shocking, and moving, it's hard to believe it's the author's first; this is what Kang Hwagil's ANOTHER PERSON is to me' - Sang Young Park, author of the International Booker-longlisted Love in the Big City'A confronting and timely book about consent, toxic masculinity, sexual assault and how women are treated in South Korea, by one of the country's most prominent feminist writers' -Independent

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Book Synopsis‘Strange, intense, brilliant’ S. J. Watson‘A witty, zappy fable ... Powerful’ GuardianDepression can be hell.Heartbroken and lonely, the narrator has made an attempt on his own life. Whether he meant to or not he can't say. But now he’s stuck in his own head, and time is running out.To save himself, he embarks on a journey across an imagined America, one haunted by his doomed relationship and the memory of a road trip that ended in tragedy.Help arrives in the guise of Jon Bon Jovi, rock star and childhood hero. An unlikely spirit guide, perhaps, but he's going to give it a shot...Trade Review 'A witty, zappy fable ... Powerful' Guardian 'A strange and rather lovely debut novel ... What begins as a witty, playful idea grows into a convincing and touching salutary tale of broken love' Big Issue

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Book SynopsisConvinced that real satisfaction can be found only in a relationship with Jesus Christ, the author aims to encourage, inspire and equip all who struggle with same-sex temptations to resist, but ‘make him their greatest treasure and live life to the full’. He invites us to dig deep and discover great truths about our awesome God and his plans and purposes for our lives, for only then can we live bravely, boldly and counter-culturally. He writes candidly, humbly and sensitively, with fellow strugglers in mind, but also their friends, families and the church leaders who support them, interweaving deeply personal stories from real life. God is good. He can be trusted even in the most painful situation. The surprising paradox is that it is the narrow road that leads to the abundant life promised by Jesus.Trade ReviewThe author’s honesty is going to be incredibly helpful for people grappling with these issues. It was for me. * Ed Shaw *Jonathan and Rob write with such warmth and understanding that the fact they call Christians to the "narrow road" in Christ doesn’t seem so bad anymore, as they point to a flourishing of humankind that opens into an infinite enjoyment of the One who gave us sexuality in the first place ... It's a long, hard road, the Christian life. But we'd do well to walk in their footsteps. -- Peter Grier * Al-Jabr *

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Book Synopsis'A bold, funny epic' Observer'Compelling and satisfying . . . At times, incredibly funny, at others, heartrending' Sarah Winman, author of Still Life___Cyril Avery is not a real Avery. At least, that's what his parents make sure to remind him. Adopted as a baby, he feels more and more disconnected with the family that treats him more as a curious pet, rather than a beloved son.So, as a young adult, Cyril decides to embark on a quest to find his place in the world. Sometimes misguided and often in the wrong place at the wrong time, life has dealt him a difficult hand but Cyril is resolute that he can change things, and find the courage to be himself.And in doing so, his story will come across that of Catherine Goggin, a young, pregnant woman finding herself alone and isolated at only sixteen. There is a place in the world for both of them, and Cyril is determined to find it.The new novel by John Boyne, WATER, is available for pre-order now.___What readers are saying:'The story of the life of one man, told against the backdrop of twentieth century Ireland' 'Simultaneously heart-breaking, funny and life-affirming.''Fantastic eccentric characters and dark humour is underpinned by a touching love story, perfect.''The saddest and happiest book I have read . . . told with great compassion and ultimately a great love of life.'Trade ReviewTender, dark, hilarious, heartbreaking—I loved it * Vogue *It’s been a long time since I read anything so compelling and satisfying. At times, incredibly funny, at others, heartrendingthe most beautifully written and crafted novel ... heartbreaking * Santa Montefiore *By turns savvy, witty and achingly sad . . . This is a novelist at the top of his game. * The Mail on Sunday *I ran through the whole range of human emotions while reading this brilliant novel. It's a masterpiece. -- Cathy Rentzenbrink, author of The Last Act of LoveScreamingly funny one minute and heartbreaking the next. * Daily Express *A special read * BBC Radio 4 Front Row *Boyne creates lightness out of doom, humour out of desperately sad situations, creating a compelling page-turner… a terrific read. * The Press Association *An epic novel…. Worthy of the great master of the Irish comic novel, Flann O’Brien. The Heart’s Invisible Furies proves that John is not just one of Ireland’s best living novelists but also one of the best novelists of Ireland. * Sunday Express *Written with verve, humour and heart…at its core, The Heart’s Invisible Furies aspires to be not just the tale of Cyril Avery, a man buffeted by coincidence and circumstance, but the story of Ireland itself * Irish Times *

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Book SynopsisWinner of the An Post Irish Novel of the Year 2020Longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award'You have to truly love people to write like this' RACHEL JOYCE'One of the greatest novels of this century' SUNDAY INDEPENDENT'Gorgeously wrought' GUARDIANIn 1973, twenty-year-old Moll Gladney takes a morning bus from her rural home and disappears.Bewildered and distraught, Paddy and Kit must confront an unbearable prospect: that they will never see their daughter again.Five years later, Moll returns. What - and who - she brings with her will change the course of her family's life forever.Beautiful and devastating, this exploration of loss, alienation and the redemptive power of love reaffirms Donal Ryan as one of the most talented and empathetic writers at work today._________'Outstanding ... Tender and beautifully written' INDEPENDENT'All the beauty and sorrow of life can be found in these pages' KATHLEEN MACMAHON'Exquisite . . . Beautiful' ANNE GRIFFIN, author of WHEN ALL IS SAID'Ryan gathers together the fragments of broken lives and makes us something new and beautiful from them' RÓNÁN HESSION, author of LEONARD AND HUNGRY PAULTrade ReviewHere is love as a weapon and a balm. Love as faith, fate and redemption ... a gorgeously wrought book - compassionate without dissolving into nostalgia * Guardian *Endlessly surprising and incredibly moving * David Nicholls *A triumph ... Ryan slowly and beautifully reveals the way that even broken people can open the door fully to the truth of themselves * Independent, Best Books of 2020 *His moving story of love and loss deserves to win a host of awards. It's an outstanding read * Sunday Express *I think you have to truly love people to write like this * Rachel Joyce *A triumph of quiet but devastating power, by some distance the best novel I've read so far this year -- Joseph O'ConnorA big-hearted, beautiful work of art, full of truth and intensity * Kit de Waal *Classic Ryan; poignant and atmospheric storytelling ... quiet but intermittently explosive * Observer *I knew Donal Ryan's latest would be good and I was right - it's a risky act of imagination that works, and the sentences are as beautiful as ever -- Sarah Moss * The Times *The lyricism of Ryan's prose, laced with compassion, is astonishing -- Best Irish Novels of the Year * Irish Independent *With each new novel Donal Ryan's ink seems to sink deeper into the page. In Strange Flowers he gathers together the fragments of broken lives and makes us something new and beautiful from them * Rónán Hession, author of Leonard and Hungry Paul *A book so exquisite in its language it pushes me to want to write better ... you will love the quiet world of Paddy & Kit Gladney and all it is their daughter Moll brings to their door. Beautiful * Anne Griffin, author of When All Is Said *A beautiful, almost unbearably moving novel. Donal Ryan's compassion shines through every word he writes * Louise O’Neill *This is a novel to savour, for its mastery of language, its power of storytelling and its sure hand as it covers the sweep of time. Irish fiction was in a great place already, but Donal Ryan has gone and raised the bar again. All the beauty and sorrow of life can be found in these pages -- Kathleen MacMahonThe lyricism of the prose can be pitch perfect, placing Ryan among the great writers of rural Ireland such as John McGahern and Mary Lavin * Sunday Times *It is the sweetest, gentlest story of love ... each character so tenderly evoked * Saga Magazine *Ryan's beautifully written story reads like coming home and is a breath of fresh air -- Best Novels of 2020 * Image Magazine *Tender and beautifully written ... We read this outstanding book in one sitting and will definitely return to it again * Independent *What a beautiful book, I loved it * Sinéad Morrissey *Beautifully observed Tipperary setting and tenderly created characters telling a story of loss and redemption ... Love permeates Ryan's work * Irish Times *

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Book Synopsis'This is heartache for grown ups. The Weight of Love pulls you in and does not let go' ANNE ENRIGHT'Beautiful and painful, exquisitely written, shot through with nostalgia for our earlier selves' MARIAN KEYESLondon, 1996. Robin and Ruth meet in the staff room of an East London school. Robin, desperate for a real connection, instantly falls in love. Ruth, recently bereaved and fragile, is tentative. When Robin introduces Ruth to his childhood friend, Joseph, a tortured and talented artist, their attraction is instant. Powerless, Robin watches on as the girl he loves and his best friend begin a passionate and turbulent affair. Dublin 2017. Robin and Ruth are married and have a son, Sid, who is about to emigrate to Berlin. Theirs is a marriage haunted by the ghost of Joseph and as the distance between them grows, Robin makes a choice that could have potentially devastating consequences. The Weight of Love is a beautiful exploration of how we manage life when the notes and beats of our existence, so carefully arranged, begin to slip off the stave. An intimate and moving account of the intricacies of marriage and the myriad ways in which we can love and be loved.'Delicate, powerful, hypnotic' DONAL RYAN'Fannin's novel is already likely to be a serious contender for one of the books of the year' SUNDAY TIMESTrade ReviewThis is heartache for grown ups. The Weight of Love pulls you in and does not let go. * Anne Enright *Beautiful and painful, exquisitely written, shot through with nostalgia for our earlier selves. * Marian Keyes *Fannin writes with acute insight on loss, grief, and the ways in which time fold in our lives ... We are not long into 2020, but Fannin's novel is already likely to be a serious contender for one of the books of the year * Sunday Times *Incredibly beautiful, aching; it feels like it’s being whispered to me. The story unfolds so naturally in prose at once delicate and powerful, hypnotic. Gorgeous. * Donal Ryan *A masterful dissection of romantic love ... This novel is still revealing new unexpected depths until the final page * Sunday Independent *

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Book Synopsis'Shot through with compassion . . . this dreamlike, winding tale is a joy.' A. L. KENNEDY 'Moving and unconventionally wise.' Guardian________________________This was how I heard the most important story of my life, the thing that decided me, the story that determined who I was in the end.As snow begins to fall outside, two strangers meet by chance in a bar. She is trying to make sense of a life shaken by heartbreak and ruined dreams. He is on a desperate quest to find something he lost in his youth.From the blustery cliffs of Dover to the confines of a nuclear bunker; from the courtroom witness box to the West End stage, he flits from one life to another, never able to stand still.Extraordinary though his story is, the secret she is keeping is even more surprising, and will take them to a place neither of them - or you - expected.From the bestselling author of FIVE RIVERS MET ON A WOODED PLAIN comes this captivating novel about love, abandonment, and the power of stories to help us find our way in the world.________________________What readers are saying:***** 'I absolutely loved this book - it's beautifully written, very emotional and full of wonderful flights of imagination.'***** 'Unlike anything I've read before.'***** 'A deeply moving account of fragile memory and lost love.'***** 'A completely beautiful book . . . I adored it.'Trade ReviewThe Vanishing Hours is a rare thing: a book shot through with compassion. Norris is more than a fine writer, he conveys a deep belief in humanity and its place in nature. This dreamlike, winding tale is a joy. * A. L. Kennedy *Gripping, humane and funny. The Vanishing Hours is both a stunning work of art, and an extraordinarily important novel for our time. * Sophie Ratcliffe, author of The Lost Properties of Love *A delicate tale of unexpected connection lights up another quiet masterpiece from Barney Norris * Waterstones Weekly *A moving and unconventionally wise account of loss and memory and of how redemption works, even for those who resist it most. * Guardian *Steeped in the powerful idea of personal rebirth through the imaginative engagement in the suffering of others. * Metro *

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Book SynopsisFrom the prizewinning author of God's Own Country and A Natural comes a moving and intimate exploration of marriage, devotion and sacrifice, and a woman's enduring search for freedom.'One of our best novelists' Daily Mail'A superb achievement' Guardian'Moving...and beautiful' Irish TimesAnita is a talented sous-chef at a high-end London restaurant. At home, however, her husband Patrick is suffering from dementia and declining rapidly.As she is thrown between two conflicting worlds, Anita must make a decision: should she free them both by acting on his last plea for mercy, or should she remain faithful to the person Patrick used to be?It's a decision complicated by ambition and the guilt of her own past - and by her intensifying friendship with another man, Peter, and the temptation of a new life.Trade Review[A] beautifully observed heart-wringer... for me there was no better novel published in 2022. * Daily Mail, *Books of the Year* *There can be no doubt he's one of our best novelists...Dealing sensitively with love, ambition and duty - not to mention the bodily experience of womanhood, from youth to late middle age...absolutely not to be missed. -- Anthony Cummings * Daily Mail *Ross Raisin's deeply thought out and beautifully unshowy fourth novel... is a superb achievement. * Guardian, *Book of the Day* *Raisin is ambitious...and impressive in his execution. * Financial Times *Raisin's... most ambitious achievement yet... The attention to detail with which Anita is drawn means she steps outside the pages and lives enduringly in the reader's mind. -- John Self * Observer *

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Book Synopsis'A modern gothic triumph' Max PorterThe Bass Rock has for centuries watched over the lives that pass under its shadow on the Scottish mainland. And across the centuries the fates of three women are linked: to this place, to each other.In the early 1700s, Sarah, accused of being a witch, flees for her life.In the aftermath of the Second World War, Ruth navigates a new house, a new husband and the strange waters of the local community. Six decades later, the house stands empty. Viv, mourning the death of her father, catalogues Ruth's belongings and discovers her place in the past - and perhaps a way forward.Each woman's choices are circumscribed by the men in their lives. But in sisterhood there is the hope of survival and new life...WINNER OF THE STELLA PRIZE_______________PRAISE FOR THE BASS ROCK:'Daring, heartfelt, explosive' Daisy Johnson'A vividly imagined portrait' Sunday Times'Dark, disturbing and very sophisticated' William Boyd 'Wonderfully subtle and magnificently savage' Claire Fuller Trade ReviewLike Ali Smith’s novels crossed with the TV series Fleabag… [The Bass Rock is] a vividly imagined portrait… There’s much to admire in its little miracles of observation… [Evie Wyld] knows how to maintain suspense, what to withhold and when to reveal it — right up to the spine-chilling last line. -- Johanna Thomas-Corr * Sunday Times *A multilayered masterpiece; vivid, chilling, leaping jubilantly through space and time, it’s a jaw dropping novel that confirms Wyld as one of our most gifted young writers. -- Alex Preston * Observer *Wondrous... Expertly chilling... Wyld consistently entertains, juggling the pleasures of several different genres. -- John Williams * New York Times *Searingly controlled…psychologically fearless and…bitterly funny. Wyld is a genius of contrasting voices and revealed connections, while her foreshadowings are so subtle that the book demands – and eminently repays – a second read. -- Justine Jordan * Guardian *A rising star of British fiction… Wyld’s slow, controlled build-up of dread is excellent… Most powerful of all is Wyld’s evocation of a hairs-on-the-neck sense of foreboding when women interact with volatile men. -- Francesca Carington * Sunday Telegraph, *Novel of the Week* *

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Book Synopsis**AS HEARD ON BBC RADIO 4 BOOK CLUB** 'Diana is so amazing when it comes to writing about humans and relationships... I don't know anyone who's as skilled as her' Candice Carty-Williams, Oprah Magazine Two couples find themselves at a moment of reckoning. Melissa has a new baby and doesn't want to let it change her. Damian has lost his father and intends not to let it get to him. Michael is still in love with Melissa but can't quite get close enough to her to stay faithful. Stephanie just wants to live a normal, happy life on the commuter belt with Damian and their three children, but his bereavement is getting in the way. Set in London to an exhilarating soundtrack, Ordinary People is an intimate study of identity and parenthood, sex and grief, friendship and ageing, and the fragile architecture of love. 'I am shouting from the rooftops to anyone who will listen about this book. It's so so good - realistic and funny and so truthful it almost winded me' Dolly Alderton 'I just finished Ordinary People by Diana Evans and it is utterly exquisite. What a writer she is - the depth of her insight, the grace of her sentences' Elizabeth Day, TwitterTrade ReviewDiana Evans is a lyrical and glorious writer; a precise poet of the human heart -- Naomi Alderman, author of The PowerThoughtful and intelligently observed... Evans's delicate prose weaves issues of racial identity and politics into the narrative so that they never feel heavy-handed...a deftly observed, elegiac portrayal of modern marriage, and the private – often painful – quest for identity and fulfilment in all its various guises * Observer *Ordinary People...is very insightful… a detailed, well observed description of modern marriage -- David Nicholls * Good Housekeeping *It could easily be reimagined for the screen, though the film would not capture the sheer energy and effervescence of Evans’s funny, sad, magnificent prose * Guardian *Diana Evans’s fiction is emotionally intelligent, dark, funny, moving. The sheer energy in her novels is enthralling. A brilliant craftswoman, a master of the form, she makes the reader ask important questions of themselves and makes them laugh at the same time -- Jackie KayAchieves a moody, velvety atmosphere, as though events were unfolding under amber-tinted bulbs...offers a precise sketch of the British black middle class, with a daring fifth-act twist -- Katy Waldman * New Yorker *Evans gives us romance going cold with just as pitiless a precision as Flaubert in Madame Bovary... Evans's prose is magnificent: it's as if she measured each sentence, trimmed the excess weight, then fitted it into place * Daily Telegraph *One of the very many things that makes this book exceptional is the even-handed sympathy and unflinching fidelity with which Evans charts the changing weather both of her protagonists’ emotions and family life. She excels at dialogue and she’s also a soulful lyrical chronicler of London in all its moods and guises * Daily Mail *I’m currently very much enjoying Diana Evans’s novel Ordinary People, which takes a forensic look at the pleasures and perils of marriage and parenting and modern London living -- Sarah Waters * Guardian, Best Summer Books *Ordinary People offers a unique insight into the complexities and the challenges of modern life, identity and that lovely little thing we call love. From the moment I started to read it I was absolutely gripped - that’s how good it is. It is a beautifully crafted, honest exploration of how relationships are forged and deconstructed, and how the everyday and the remarkable can exist side by side. * Benjamin Zephaniah, South Bank Sky Arts Awards 2019 *

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Book Synopsis'I was gripped by it' IAN McEWANThree lives collide, not one of them will emerge unchanged - the exhilarating new novel from the author of the Patrick Melrose series.When Olivia meets a new lover, Francis, just as she is welcoming her dearest friend Lucy back from New York, her life expands dramatically. Her connection to Francis, a committed naturalist living off-grid, is immediate and startling. Eager to involve Lucy in her joy, Olivia introduces the two - but Lucy has news of her own that binds the trio unusually close. Over the months that follow, Lucy's boss Hunter, Olivia's psychoanalyst parents, and a young man named Sebastian are pulled into the friends' orbit, and not one of them will emerge unchanged.'Moving and so funny' Observer, Books of the Year 'Heroic and astonishing' Sunday Times'Clever and compassionate... A novel with heart' Spectator 'Entertaining... Immensely pleasurable' Daily MailTrade ReviewIf, as Henry James said, the first duty of the novelist is to be interesting, he would be happy in St Aubyn's company. Double Blind is emotionally cogent and intellectually fascinating. There are reflections and conversations here which adroitly evoke those important intersections where science and our urgent contemporary concerns meet. I was gripped by it. -- Ian McEwanDouble Blind is a book of big ideas, in which the characters experiment with medicine, psychology, narcotics, religion and meditation to understand themselves and find peace. But as cerebral as the book is, it is also deeply felt, because St Aubyn has been thinking about these issues for decades -- Hadley Freeman * Guardian *This is a novel with heart... Double Blind is both clever and compassionate, confirming St Aubyn as among the brightest lights of contemporary British literature -- Alex Preston * Spectator *Shakespearean in scope and tone, moving from the intimate to the universal within paragraphs and providing tragedy, comedy and human frailty... A less practised author would run the risk of over-saturating all the disparate strands, but St Aubyn offers comment on the natural world, genetics, family dynamics, philosophy, psychiatry and ecology without forgetting the tapestry-like threads of the story itself-and provides a satisfying resolution to boot... Brimful of energy, this novel asks big questions-"How could one ever truly enter into another subjectivity?"-without giving us all the answers... Pacey, caustic and self-aware, it is this neatly choreographed dance of themes and ideas that makes for such absorbing and immediate reading. -- Zoe Apostolides * Prospect *Likeable and rounded characters and a celebration of the best things in life: the wilderness of Knepp and a touching but complex love story... St Aubyn's reinvention as a writer is heroic and astonishing. He has emerged from the "very difficult truth" of this childhood to write brilliantly about that and, now, about a lot more. -- Bryan Appleyard * Sunday Times *

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Book Synopsis**THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER**Would you rather love the more, and suffer the more; or love the less, and suffer the less? That is, I think, finally, the only real question.First love has lifelong consequences, but Paul doesn’t know anything about that at nineteen. At nineteen, he’s proud of the fact his relationship flies in the face of social convention.As he grows older, the demands placed on Paul by love become far greater than he could possibly have foreseen.Tender and wise, The Only Story is a deeply moving novel by one of Britain's greatest mappers of the human heart.Trade ReviewA novelist at the height of his powers ... Quietly devastating. -- Robert Douglas-Fairhurst * The Times *Exquisite. -- Kate Clanchy * Guardian *Emotionally acute, profoundly beautiful, as droll as it is deep... this has to be one of the smartest novels that 2018 has to offer. -- Hephzibah Anderson * Mail on Sunday *A gentle, bleak, and brilliant novel. -- Jon Day * Financial Times *Immensely powerful. -- Alex Clark * New Statesman *This intense, taut, sad and often beautiful tale may well be Barnes’ best novel for years. -- Lara Feigel * Spectator *A tender and heartbreaking novel. -- Alex Preston * Observer *As quiet and aching and intimate as a James Blake ballad. -- Rupert GooldA sensitive look at what makes lovers tick. -- Robbie Millen * The Times *A vivid dramatization of the narcissism of obsessive love. * Economist *

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Book SynopsisThe breathtaking short story collection from the Costa-shortlisted Irish writerThree gunshots on the Irish border define the course of a young man's life; a writer clings fast to a star-crossed affair with a woman who has never been fully in his reach; a fisherman accustomed to hard labour rolls up his sleeves to dig a grave for his child; a pair of newly-weds embark on their first adventure, living wild on the deserted Beginish Island. Spanning a century and two continents - from the muddy fields of Ireland to a hotel room in Paris, a dingy bar in Segovia to an aeroplane bound for Taipei - these densely layered tales reveal the quiet heroism and gentle dignity of ordinary life. Ranging from the elegiac to the brutally confrontational, Billy O'Callaghan's stories explore the resilience of the human heart and its ability to keep beating even in the wake of grief, trauma and lost love.'The best fiction I have read this year... Taut, subtle and moving, and brought off beautifully' John Banville, Best Books of 2020, Irish TimesTrade ReviewThe best fiction I have read this year is Billy O'Callaghan's short-story collection The Boatman. The book is old-fashioned in the best sense, in that it is written by a grown-up for grown-up persons, as Virginia Woolf said of Middlemarch. The stories are taut, subtle and moving, and brought off beautifully. -- John Banville * Irish Times *Best Books of 2020* *Wonderful stories… A masterclass... The reader is lulled into a false sense of ordinariness that gives way — sometimes gradually, sometimes abruptly — to a moment of cataclysm…that leaves the reader reeling… There is no denying the power of his words… O’Callaghan’s stories are beautiful, plain and simple, and each one is devastatingly good. -- Kathleen MacMahon * Sunday Times *Billy O'Callaghan writes beautifully... In evoking atmosphere, such a key element in the short story, he is matchless... His prose is a feast after a famine... The luxuriance of the language, the agility of the sentences, and the depth of the reflections. These stories are like classical sonatas... The writing is invariably delightful. -- Eilis Ni Dhuibhne * Irish Times *A shining example of how [short stories] can distil and intensify a writer’s gifts… These 12 stories confirm [O’Callaghan’s] delicate craftsmanship, unflashy narrative and descriptive skill, and his deep understanding of powerful and universal emotions… Breathtaking… Masterly… Irish writing has put out many new and more consciously modernist shoots in recent years, all welcome. But Billy O’Callaghan belongs now in the recognised front rank, along with Bernard MacLaverty, Edna O’Brien, William Trevor and Colm Tóibín. -- Ann Chisholm * Tablet, *Novel of the Week* *[Billy O’Callaghan] makes epics out of the unspoken, the barely said, the half-hinted at, the wordless nod… This is O'Callaghan's quest, to reveal who his characters really are, especially when they're burdened with life's cruelties. And in chronicling the bravery sometimes required in simply putting one foot in front of the other, he makes heroes of the humblest of us. -- Anne Cunningham * Sunday Independent *

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Book Synopsis*Shortlist, Debut Fiction, 2023 Nero Book Awards * The Sunday Times Novel of the Year * A Times and Guardian Book of the Year *London, 1894. John and Henry have a vision for a new way of life. But as the Oscar Wilde trial ignites public outcry, everything they long for could be under threat.'Beautifully written' Graham Norton'Clever and kind... A book of wonderful generosity and compassion' Alice Winn'Subtle, sexy and beautifully crafted' Sarah WatersAfter a lifetime spent navigating his desires, John has finally found a man who returns his feelings. Meanwhile, Henry is convinced that his new unconventional marriage will bring freedom.United by a shared vision, they begin work on a revolutionary book arguing for the legalisation of homosexuality.Before it can be published however, Oscar Wilde is arrested and their daring book threatens to throw them, and all around them, into danger. How high a price are they willing to pay for a new way of living?'Lavishly imagined' Sunday Times'A very fine new writer' Kate Atkinson'I loved this book' Zadie Smith'Some of the best writing on desire I've read' Douglas Stuart'Filled with nuance and tenderness . . . charting the lives of men and women who inspired not only political progress but an entire new way of living and loving' Colm TóibínTrade ReviewI loved this book -- Zadie SmithCompletely engrossed by this fascinating story of gay life in the London of the 1890’s. Beautifully written with fantastically complicated characters -- Graham Norton'Tom Crewe inhabits the minds, lives and bodies of his visionary late-nineteenth century characters with almost eerie precision and intensity. The result is subtle, sexy and beautifully crafted - a wonderful book' * Sarah Waters *'Clever and kind, The New Life is a book of wonderful generosity and compassion' * Alice Winn, author of In Memoriam *It is a pleasure to discover a young novelist with such a wise sensibility - and also, one who can construct such convincing characters. * Sunday Times *This is a corker... one of the literary debuts of the year * The Times, *Books to Look Out For 2023* *'Extraordinary in its depiction of reform and liberalism in Britain in the late-1800s' * Jonathan Bailey, star of Bridgerton *The New Life is filled with nuance and tenderness, steeped in the atmosphere of late nineteenth century London, a world on the brink of social and sexual change. Tom Crewe's brilliant novel dramatizes the relationship between the visionary and the brave, charting the lives of men and women who inspired not only political progress but an entire new way of living and loving. -- Colm Tóibín'A beautifully written debut set in Victorian London... some of the best writing on desire I've read' * Douglas Stuart *[Tom Crewe is] a very fine new writer -- Kate AtkinsonElectrifying. Tom Crewe's forensic love of the physical puts the body back into history and makes the past a living, changing place -- Anne EnrightAn excellent debut . . . It's extraordinary to think that this impeccably crafted, lyrically phrased and muscular book is Crewe's first . . . a brilliant evocation of the radical politics of turn-of-the-century Britain * Michael Donkor, Guardian *Emotionally vivid and erotically charged, The New Life brilliantly reveals a 'seething and boiling' world of 'loneliness and anger and lust,' as Crewe's complicated, compelling protagonists battle the restrictive mores of the day * Daily Mail *Powerful themes and lovingly polished prose . . . a fictional debut of rare quality and promise * Daily Telegraph *Intense and precise . . . It is refreshing to find any contemporary novel, let alone a debut, which is first and foremost one of ideas * Financial Times *[An] excellent new novel * Independent *'[An] intricate and finely crafted debut novel . . . The New Life brims with intelligence and insight, impressed with all the texture (and fog) of fin de siècle London' * New York Times *'Crewe distinguishes himself both as novelist and as historian . . . He has, more unusually, found a prose that can accommodate everything from the lofty to the romantic and the shamelessly sexy' * New Yorker *Unflinchingly bold . . . Crewe's language is striking in its originality, his protagonists are colourful and passionate, and their principles are brilliantly drawn * i paper *Sexy, cerebral and moving * Mail on Sunday *'Atmospheric . . . Extraordinary . . . Crewe's taut prose is shot through with descriptive vividness' -- James Cahill * TLS *Exhilarating . . . An adroit novel of ethics * New Statesman *'Lyrical, piercing . . . The New Life is a fine-cut gem, its sentences buffed to a gleam . . . [Crewe's book] brims with élan and feeling, an ode to eros and a lost world, and a warning about the dangers ahead' * Hamilton Cain, Washington Post *'Crewe deserves applause for his vivid scene-setting . . . There's much to admire in this meticulously researched, boldly envisioned debut' * Prospect *'Nothing less than remarkable . . . A beautiful, brave book that reminds us of the terrible human cost of bigotry; this is a novel against forgetting' * Michael Schaub, Boston Globe *

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Book SynopsisAtwood's first new fiction publication since The Testaments, this deeply personal collection includes a stunning sequence that follows a married couple as they travel the road together, the moments big and small that make up a long life of love -- and what comes afterThe stories explore the full warp and weft of experience, from two best friends disagreeing about their shared past, to the right way to stop someone from choking; from a daughter determining if her mother really is a witch, to what to do with inherited relics such as World War II parade swords.They feature beloved cats, a confused snail, Martha Gellhorn, George Orwell, philosopher-astronomer-mathematician Hypatia of Alexandria, a cabal of elderly female academics, and an alien tasked with retelling human fairy tales.The glorious range of Atwood's creativity and humanity is on full beam in these tales, which by turns delight, illuminate and quietly devastate.'Gripping... a writer in full possession of her powers' Financial Times'These reflections on marriage, mortality and many-tentacled aliens show Atwood's mastery of the short form' Guardian'She's Margaret Atwood, and she can do anything' Ann Patchett'There is no greater living writer' Daily Telegraph'The outstanding novelist of our age' Sunday Times 'A living legend' New York Times Book ReviewTrade ReviewVitality and virtuosity have been the hallmarks of Atwoods literary career - and, as Old Babes in the Wood, published in her 84th year, shows, triumphantly continue to be so... Mortality shadows the book. Vivacity makes it shine -- Peter Kemp * Sunday Times *If you consider yourself and Atwood fan and have only read her novels: Get your act together. You've been missing out * New York Times Book Review *Atwood shows mastery of the short form . . . [The] stories unwrap what TS Eliot called the gifts reserved for age. There are chips and fragments of lives, full of sass and sadness -- Sam Leith * Guardian *A gripping read... Old Babes in the Wood is further evidence of a writer in full possession of her powers. Atwood will never struggle to find readers, but this collection really is worth their attention * Financial Times *Atwood... is a brilliant and spiky storyteller who can seamlessly turn big issues into page-turners... These are Atwood's most personal tales so far * Sunday Times *The Booker winner writes beautifully about ageing and death . . . the silence after the best stories here is akin to how she describes the aftermath of a calamitous event -- John Self * The Times *Nell and Tig are the ageing couple whose small dramas and deep feelings bookend this new story collection... brought achingly to life and sharpened by Atwood's dry wit and wily wisdom * Mail on Sunday *To be honest, we would read anything this woman writes, but Old Babes in the Wood is one of her best * Glamour *This set of interweaving short stories is a perfect way to get a more bite-sized read... There's a story in here that everyone can relate to * Woman & Home *The inimitable author of The Handmaid's Tail is spectacular at short stories * i *Atwood...writes infectiously... page after page proving that...[her] lavish literary talents remain wholly undiminished * Reader's Digest *[Old Babes in the Wood] showcase[s] Atwood's spiky wit and imagination * Sunday Express *The 15 stories in this collection from the stellar Margaret Atwood are book-ended by the touching, tender, grief-tinged tales of Tig and Nell -- Eithne Farry * Daily Mail *There are authors we turn to because they can uncannily predict our future; there are authors we need for their skillful diagnosis of our present; and there are authors we love because they can explain our past. And then there are the outliers: those who gift us with timelines other than the one we're stuck in, realities far from home. If anyone has proved, over the course of a long and wildly diverse career, that she can be all four, it's Margaret Atwood . . . Long may she reign * New York Times Book Review *As affecting as any of Atwood's strongest work * Wired *

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Book SynopsisFrom the international bestselling author of Home and Fool Me Once. Mistaken identities, dark family secrets and mysterious conspiracies lie at the heart of this gripping thriller.'The master of the double-twist' The Times'Simply one of the all-time greats' Gillian Flynn'The modern master of the hook and twist' Dan Brown'As moreish as ever' Sunday Times______________Secrets can kill. But will the truth set him free?Fifteen years ago, Detective Nap Dumas' twin brother was found dead on the railway tracks near his home.Most people concluded it was a tragic suicide. Nap did not.Now, after years of searching for answers, he believes he may have finally found what he's been looking for.But Nap is a cop who plays by his own rules.And when the past comes back to haunt him, he discovers secrets can kill . . .______________Readers can't get enough of Don't Let Go ...***** 'An absolutely superb, stand-alone thriller to add to his (and my) collection.'***** 'Don't Let Go is one of the best books Harlan Coben has ever written.'***** 'An ingenious, potent, and disturbing thriller.'***** 'All the stars and wow this was one awesome book with a main character that I absolutely loved!!'***** 'I highly recommend it to thriller readers young and old and I look forward with baited breath for Harlan's next book.'Trade ReviewThe brilliant new novel from the international bestselling author of Home and Fool Me Once. Mistaken identities, dark family secrets and mysterious conspiracies lie at the heart of this gripping new thriller. * from the publisher's description *The modern master of the hook and twist, luring you in on the first page only to shock you on the last * Dan Brown *Simply one of the all-time greats - pick up any one of his thrillers and you’ll find a riveting, twisty, surprising story with a big, beating heart at its core. * Gillian Flynn *Coben is a phenomenon - the most reliable of American thriller-writers, the least likely to disappoint ... the true mystery is Coben's extraordinary capacity to keep writing such wonderful thrillers * The Times *As moreish as ever * The Sunday Times *

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You’ve just passed someone on the street who could be the love of your life, the person you’re destined for – what do you do? In Murakami’s world, you tell them a story. The five weird and wonderful tales collected here each unlock the many-tongued language of desire, whether it takes the form of hunger, lust, sudden infatuation or the secret longings of the heart.Selected from Haruki’s Murakami’s short story collections The Elephant Vanishes, Blind Willow Sleeping Woman, Men Without WomenVINTAGE MINIS: GREAT MINDS. BIG IDEAS. LITTLE BOOKS.A series of short books by the world’s greatest writers on the experiences that make us human Also in the Vintage Minis series: Love by Jeanette WintersonPsychedelics by Aldous HuxleyEating by Nigella LawsonSummer by Laurie Lee

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Book Synopsis'Marvellous entertainment' Sunday TimesJust married and newly arrived in Los Angeles are Paul and Katherine Cattleman. Paul responds immediately to the sunny, sprawling cosmopolitan city but to Katherine the main impression is of dirt and smog. Paul explores his surroundings and discovers Ceci, a girl who could be the incarnation of the city's uninhibited ways, while Katherine meets Iz a psychiatrist who recognises her unhappiness and sets out to help her. Under the bright west coast sun, the city begins to affect the couple in separate, subtle but significant ways, shining new light on their marriage with moving, funny and unexpected consequences.Trade ReviewI’m mad about Lurie… I have a thing for over-educated adulterers in fiction * Guardian *I am re-reading with enormous delight and greed. If you're new to them, lucky you: marvellously astute comedies of social, moral and sexual manners, their witty exuberance is nothing short of inspirational. -- Helen SimpsonLurie shows some really fine ironic humor… An incisive and very witty novel * Kirkus Reviews *Perhaps more shocking than she knows - shocking like Jane Austen, not GenetThe Queen Herod of contemporary fiction

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Book Synopsis'A brilliant and seemingly effortless accomplishment...steady uninterrupted delight' Sunday TelegraphFaculty wife Emily Stockwell Turner is beautiful, rich, and principled. However, five years in a marriage devoid of passion is enough to propel Emmy, despite her principles, into an affair with a silver-tongued self-confessed libertine. Her husband, a dull, hard-working lecturer, suspecting everyone but the right man, sends himself half mad with jealousy. The shocking, unforeseen consequences of their affair shatter Emmy's most cherished delusions about friendship, romance, and the ties that bind.'Lurie is and really is, different. She writes with great elegance, as frostily clear as the climate she describes; and with sharp intelligence piercing through every sentence. She is very funny as well' ObserverTrade ReviewAwesomely good * Sunday Times *A brilliant and seemingly effortless accomplishment...steady uninterrupted delight * Sunday Telegraph *Lurie is and really is, different. She writes with great elegance, as frostily clear as the climate she describes; and with sharp intelligence piercing through every sentence. She is very funny as well * Observer *I am re-reading with enormous delight and greed. If you're new to them, lucky you: marvellously astute comedies of social, moral and sexual manners, their witty exuberance is nothing short of inspirational. -- Helen SimpsonNot for the prim, this is definitely adult education, as well as a bright entertainment * Kirkus Reviews *

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Book SynopsisWhen Andrée joins her school, Sylvie is immediately fascinated. Andrée is small for her age but walks with the confidence of an adult.The girls become close. They talk for hours about equality, justice, war and religion; they lose respect for their teachers; they build a world of their own. But as the girls grow into young women, the pressures of society mount, threatening everything.This novel was never published in Simone de Beauvoir's lifetime. It tells the story of the real-life friendship that shaped one of the most important thinkers and feminists of the twentieth century.'Slim, elegant, achingly tragic and unaffectedly lovely in its evocation of the closeness between girls - and the pressures that sunder them' SpectatorTRANSLATED BY LAUREN ELKIN - INTRODUCED BY DEBORAH LEVYTrade ReviewThis 'lost' novel by a giant of 20th-century letters reads surprisingly like a French Elena Ferrante... Lauren Elkin's translation is undistractingly smooth * Daily Telegraph *Translated by Lauren Elkin with exquisite finesse, it utterly conveys both de Beauvoir's heady sensuality and its immediate opposite, observant restraint... The Inseparables is a ravishing work of art * Financial Times *A succulent taster for those who don't know de Beauvoir's work and, for everyone else, a treat * Daily Mail *A poignant and sensitive portrait of female friendship which acutely captures the agonizing mysteries of intimacy. The translation was gorgeous, and there were lines that absolutely punched me in the gut -- Anbara Salam author of BelladonnaSlim, elegant, achingly tragic and unaffectedly lovely in its evocation of the closeness between girls - and the pressures that sunder them * Spectator *

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Book Synopsis'He must know by now, I should think, that I can give as good as I get!'This is the story of Gigi, educated as a future courtesan in Paris, her days are filled with cigars, lobster, lace and superstitions. Bored and unconvinced by what she's taught, Gigi surprises everyone with her earnest approach to love.In this classic turn-of-the-century novella, Colette unveils Gigi's journey into womanhood in rich and supple prose.Meet ten of literature's most iconic heroines, jacketed in bold portraits by female photographers from around the world.Trade Review“A perpetual feast to the reader…her prose is rich, flawless, intricate, audacious and utterly beautiful.” -- Raymond Mortimer

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Book Synopsis'She wanted to die, and she wanted to live in Paris.'This is the story of Emma, trapped in a disappointing marriage with a dull country doctor, she dreams for a life more like the sentimental novels she reads. In an attempt to break from the drab reality of her provincial life in Normandy, Emma takes a lover, and disaster soon follows.Greedy, delusional and selfish, the character of Emma Bovary scandalised readers from the novel's first publication in 1857, yet her magnetism is undeniable. A landmark work in modern realism, Madame Bovary vibrates with the inner life of a woman hungry for more.Meet ten of literature's most iconic heroines, jacketed in bold portraits by female photographers from around the world.Trade ReviewA work of brilliance * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisDiscover Michael Ondaatje's debut novel, 'a beautifully detailed story, perhaps the finest jazz novel ever written' Sunday TimesBased on the life of cornet player Buddy Bolden, one of the legendary jazz pioneers of turn-of-the-twentieth-century New Orleans, Coming Through Slaughter is an extraordinary recreation of a remarkable musical life and a tragic conclusion. Through a collage of memoirs, interviews, imaginary conversations and monologues, Ondaatje builds a picture of a man who would work by day at a barber shop and by night unleash his talent to wild audiences who had never experienced such playing. But Buddy was also playing the field with two women, and inside his head was a ticking time-bomb which he was unable to stop.Trade ReviewThe downtown world of bars, whores, streetlife bursting with music is evoked so vividly, so pungently you seem to breathe in the atmosphere... I haven't been so excited by a new writer for a long time * Time Out *A beautifully detailed story, perhaps the finest jazz novel ever written * Sunday Times *Not only the best jazz novel ever written, but one of the best novels of any kind published in English in the last ten years * The Musician *Michael Ondaatje is a novelist with the heart of a poet * Chicago Tribune *

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Book Synopsis'She was a fool and he knew it and because he loved her it had made no difference'Kitty Fane is the beautiful but shallow wife of Walter, a bacteriologist stationed in Hong Kong. Unsatisfied by her marriage, she starts an affair with charming, attractive and exciting Charles Townsend. But when Walter discovers her deception, he exacts a strange and terrible vengeance: Kitty must accompany him to his new posting in remote mainland China, where a cholera epidemic rages...VINTAGE DECO: Nine blazing, daring novels to celebrate the 1920s - 100 years on. Trade ReviewReveals many of Maugham's strengths: an understanding of women, meticulous craftsmanship and raw emotion' * Daily Mail *A work of art * Spectator *An expert craftsman... His style is sharp, quick, subdued, casual * New York Times *

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Book SynopsisHere is a collection of sexy, brief, fleeting poems about love, lust and longing. They originate from a time in Japanese history where aristocratic women of the Heian court were free to marry and conduct love affairs according to their desires. Education and refinement were so highly valued that the courtly manner of expressing oneself, whether to give condolences for a death, to send back a forgotten fan, or to heighten the anticipation of a lover's visit, was with a poem of just five lines. A convention of secrecy surrounding love affairs fills these verses with palpable emotion.These vivid and erotic poems express love in all its forms, and do so with amazing economy of words, unforgettable imagery and breath-taking modernity.INTRODUCED BY NIKITA GILL'They are full of dreams, of autumns, of lovers known or not yet met, of desire, wonderment, loneliness' Irish Times Translated by Jane Hirshfield with Mariko Aratani, this is an edition that brings the story of the poems to life with a detailed introduction and notes on the translation.Trade ReviewThese poems take us to the back corridors of Heian Period life and reveal the sexual intrigues that so often occurred under the cover of darkness... the seductive, free-spirited erotic environment unfolds through these sensuous poems * Japan Times *A thousand years later we can read poems that remain absolutely accurate and moving descriptions of our most common and central experiences: love and loss, their reflection in the loveliness and evanescence of the natural world, and the effort to understand better the nature of being -- Jane Hirschfield

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Book SynopsisEVERYONE THINKS MALA IS A MURDERER'A Caribbean classic' Monique Roffey, author of The Mermaid of Black Conch-------Everyone in Paradise thinks Mala Ramchandin is a murderer. But with no body, no evidence and no witnesses, Mala is sent to an Alms House as a madwoman instead of prison. Here she meets Tyler, the only openly queer person on the island of Lantanacamara with whom she feels an affinity as an outsider. Despite Mala's muteness, she manages to communicate with Tyler about her missing sister, Asha.This is Mala's story, and an appeal to find Asha, told in Tyler's words. He dives deeply into Mala's family history, uncovering years of trauma passed down through generations and - staggeringly, beautifully - the love that has survived through it all.With an introduction by Ingrid Persaud.'Visceral, sensual and heartbreakingly tender' Ayanna Lloyd Banwo, author of When We Were Birds'A story of magical power' Alice Munro, author of Dear Life'Will remind many readers of Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things' Kirkus'Clearly ahead of its time' BooksellerFINALIST FOR THE GILLER PRIZEFINALIST FOR THE ETHEL WILSON FICTION PRIZELONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZETrade Review'A novel about otherness, queerness, and hidden domestic crimes, Shani Mootoo was writing well ahead of her peers around taboo subjects. Cereus Blooms at Night is of Trinidad's finest novels, a portrait of how things really are on an island where there's been so much past hurt. A Caribbean classic' -- Monique Roffey * author of THE MERMAID OF BLACK CONCH *'Visceral, sensual and heartbreakingly tender, Cereus Blooms at Night is that rare book which is not only critically acclaimed but has the devoted following of a cult classic. A generation of us in the Caribbean have held it close and pressed it into the hands and hearts of fellow readers knowing that it may never be returned, so strong was our desire to have others share in its wonder. It changed me, utterly, the first time I read it and there have been echoes of Mala Ramchandin and her teeming, crumbling house in everything I have written or tried to write since' -- Ayanna Lloyd Banwo * author of WHEN WE WERE BIRDS *'A story of magical power' -- Alice Munro * author of DEAR LIFE *'Vigorously inventive prose... The sinuous unwinding of Mootoo's clever plot will remind many readers of Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things' * Kirkus *'My first experience of reading this novel was at university. Revisiting it, the novel was clearly ahead of its time, dealing with the complex issues of racial identity, diaspora, colonialism, desire and trauma' * Bookseller *

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Book SynopsisThe definitive translation of a truly great French novel - Proust's beautiful, atmospheric story of memory and loss.This is the first volume of In Search of Lost Time, one of the greatest French novels of the twentieth century. Travelling back through time, the narrator tells the story of events long since past - his childhood happiness and sadness, and memories brought famously back to life by the taste of a madeleine. His family's friend and neighbour, the aristocratic Swann, weaves through the tale. We learn of Swann's passionate love affair with Odette, a jealous love that creates a model for the narrator's own relationships. All Proust's great themes begin here: time and memory, love and loss, art and the artistic vocation.THE ACCLAIMED FULLY REVISED EDITION OF THE SCOTT MONCRIEFF AND KILMARTIN TRANSLATIONThe best translation available: 'A really major, significant achievement, and one that you should put on your Christmas list immediately' GuardianVINTAGE FRENCH CLASSICS - six masterpieces of French fiction in collectable editions.Trade ReviewMy advice is to plunge straight into Volume 1, Swann's Way there are many who swear the experience has permanently enriched their lives * Daily Mail *One of the cornerstones of the Western literary canon * The Times *Surely the greatest novelist of the 20th century * Sunday Telegraph *As close to being a definitive English version of the great novel as we are likely to get * Scotsman *Proust isn't just the most profound of novelists, but the most entertaining, too. No reader ever forgets his most killingly funny scenes... Proust sinks deepest in readers because the book is so exhaustively analytical, so ceaselessly truthful. Not the least of it is the book's heavenly length, so that it inevitably takes over your life for a long stretch... the experience of reading it becomes, in itself, an unforgettable thing * Independent *

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Book SynopsisMadame Bovary is one of the greatest, most beguiling novels ever written.Emma Bovary is an avid reader of sentimental novels; brought up on a Normandy farm and convent-educated, she longs for romance. At first, Emma pins her hopes on marriage, but life with her well-meaning husband in the provinces leaves her bored and dissatisfied. She seeks escape through extravagant spending sprees and, eventually, adultery. As Emma pursues her impossible reverie she seals her own ruin.'A great novel that is also an inexhaustible pleasure to read' GuardianA NEW TRANSLATION BY ADAM THORPEVINTAGE FRENCH CLASSICS - six masterpieces of French fiction in collectable editions.Trade ReviewA work of brilliance * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisWhen Andrée joins her school, Sylvie is immediately fascinated. Andrée is small for her age but walks with the confidence of an adult.The girls become close. They talk for hours about equality, justice, war and religion; they lose respect for their teachers; they build a world of their own. But as the girls grow into young women, the pressures of society mount, threatening everything.This novel was never published in Simone de Beauvoir's lifetime. It tells the story of the real-life friendship that shaped one of the most important thinkers and feminists of the twentieth century.'Slim, elegant, achingly tragic and unaffectedly lovely in its evocation of the closeness between girls - and the pressures that sunder them' SpectatorVINTAGE FRENCH CLASSICS - five masterpieces of French fiction in gorgeous new gift editions.TRANSLATED BY LAUREN ELKIN - INTRODUCED BY DEBORAH LEVYTrade Review[An] exquisitely simple tale... The Inseparables invites us to cherish friendship, and how it makes and breaks us in a precarious and cruel world. * Church Times *A short novel that will bring most to tears, it's loving, it's tender, it's heart wrenching and absolutely worth reading * Left Lion *

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Book SynopsisCan she find somewhere to call home?Victoria Wild is only four years old but already knows about heartbreak, having been abandoned by her unwed mother when she was only a baby. Luckily her Aunt Eliza was there to take her in but times are still hard on Pit Lane and while Eliza does her best to make sure there is always food on the table, Victoria bears the stigma of her illegitimacy. Her aunt also fears the day when Victoria will start to ask about her father…But even when Eliza is offered a chance to make a better life for herself and her niece, there are sacrifices to be made. And more trouble is around the corner – in the form of Victoria’s mother, Mary-Anne Wild, who is finally coming home not to be a proper mother to her daughter but to exact her revenge on the man who ruined her life…A gritty, heart-warming saga perfect for fans of Dilly Court and Maggie Hope

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Book SynopsisA cheeky chappy comedianCharlie is most comfortable playing the funny man in front of boisterous crowds in London’s comedy clubs. But he’s about to be swapping his routine for wedding speeches. And his new acquaintance Sarah thinks he is anything but amusing.The woman who’s got it coveredWeddings are always a difficult time for widow Sarah, but you would never tell – she’s too focused on making the week of her best friends’ wedding as perfect as possible. She definitely has no time for the grumpy and surly Charlie, who it's clear her friends are trying to set her up with.And only one room left at the rental...When a drunken invitation adds more people to the pre-wedding holiday house than Sarah organized for, she finds herself spending A LOT more time with Charlie than she intended. If only they could both let their guards down, they might find they have more in common than they think.

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Book Synopsis'Tender, beautiful and bold. A very special novel.' LIZZIE HUXLEY-JONES, author of Make You Mine This Christmas'Fun, fresh and clever . . . a huge treat for all fans of Jane Eyre.' KATIE LUMSDEN, author of The Secrets of Hartwood Hall'A sublime and tenderly written novel.' BEA FITZGERALD, author of Girl, Goddess, QueenAll Brontë Ellis has ever known is life at St. Mary's all-boys boarding school, where he lingered first as a student and then as a teaching assistant. So when a chance to forge a new life in Cambridge presents itself, he seizes it with both hands. Arriving at Greenwood Manor as the new live-in tutor, Bron finds himself welcomed by all - the gregarious Mr Edwards, his precocious pupil Ada . . . except for Darcy, the elusive and tempestuous eldest son. Despite the rumours about him, Bron cannot help feeling drawn to the one person who seems determined to avoid him.When tragedy strikes the house, Bron begins to sense dark secrets smouldering beneath Greenwood Manor's surface. Soon he's not sure what to believe, or whether he even has a future at Greenwood. Only Darcy holds the key, if he can be persuaded to reveal his heart to Bron . . .'A love letter to the period drama, and one I could not put down.' WILLIAM HUSSEY, author of Broken Hearts and Zombie Parts'Clever and beautifully written, I loved this.' EMMA CARROLL, author of The Week at World's EndTrade ReviewTender, beautiful and bold. A deeply nostalgic modern classic with a bibliophile, genderqueer Jane Eyre protagonist. Brilliant queer anachronism and deep longing blended with Castle's prose and storytelling prowess make for a very special novel. * Lizzie Huxley-Jones, author of Make You Mine This Christmas *Fun, fresh and clever. A fantastic coming of age story, and a huge treat for all fans of Jane Eyre. * Katie Lumsden, author of The Secrets of Hartwood Hall *A love letter to the period drama, and one I could not put down. * William Hussey, author of Broken Hearts and Zombie Parts *The Manor House Governess is a sublime and tenderly written novel that is at once an interrogation of and love letter to the literary classics. I am so happy this book exists. * Bea Fitzgerald, author of Girl, Goddess, Queen *A brilliantly queer take on the Victorian governess archetype. Conceptually clever & beautifully written, I loved this homage to Jane Eyre & Jane Austen. * Emma Carroll, author of The Week at World's End *In turns spooky, funny, and romantic, C. A. Castle's debut novel is sure to be a hit with readers across genres and generations. * Mackenzi Lee, Stonewall Honor and New York Times-bestselling author of The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue *C.A. Castle's The Manor House Governess weaves past and present together to create a queer story of love and intrigue that feels thrillingly new and boldly relevant. * Abdi Nazemian, author of Stonewall Honor book Like a Love Story and Only This Beautiful Moment *Atmospheric and emotional, this is a mystery that feels at once timeless and totally modern. This slow-burner will keep you guessing until the final pages. An assured debut. * Justin Myers, author of The Last Romeo, The Fake-Up and The Magnificent Sons *Brimming with lush prose and multi-dimensional characters, The Manor House Governess is a reimagining unlike any other. A modern classic about identity, love, and boldly walking one's own path. * Ashley Herring Blake, author of Delilah Green Doesn’t Care *

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Book SynopsisJane Austen''s classic tale of love overcoming preconceptions centres on the two eldest daughters of the Bennet family: Jane and Elizabeth. Elizabeth has to fend off an unwelcome offer of marriage from the Rev. Collins, while mistakenly falling for the charms of the dashing Mr Wickham, before realising that appearances are deceptive and that her prejudice against Mr Darcy has blinded her to his real character. Witty, humorous and ultimately satisfying, this masterpiece of classic fiction has endured for more than two hundred years.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Arcturus Classics series brings together high-quality paperback editions of classics works, presented with contemporary graphic cover designs. Together they make a wonderful collection which is perfect for any home library.

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Book SynopsisThis new novel from Marion Husband, best-selling author of the Boy I Love trilogy, is a story of adultery, love and redemption.'Husband's stunning writing and inspired prose lend well to her honest characters . . . read when you're in the mood for something intense and moving' Three Dollar Bill Reviews USAIn my more lucid moments I know I'm dead . . . So begins Edwina's story, a young woman whose spirit is trapped by guilt. Set between the present day and the First World War, Edwina's ghost tells the story of Gaye and David Henderson, the adulterous couple whose house she haunts. But she also has her own story to tell, gradually revealing the terrors that keep her from finding peace.Just some of the amazing GOODREADS REVIEWS: 'An absorbing page-turner.''Thoroughly enjoyable and only gets better the more you read.''This beautifully understated novel will keep you guessing until the last page.'

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Book SynopsisNev Bourne is a hotshot programmer for the latest and greatest tech invention out there: SavePoint, the brain implant that rewinds the seconds of all our most embarrassing moments. She’s been working non-stop on the next rollout, even blowing off her boyfriend, her best friend and her family to make SavePoint 2.0. But when she hits go on the test-run, she wakes up the next day only to discover it's yesterday. She's falling backwards in time, one day at a time.As things spiral out of control, a long-lost friend from college reappears in her life claiming they know how to save her. Airin is charming and mysterious, and somehow knows Nev intimately well. Desperate and intrigued, Nev takes a leap of faith. A friendship born of fear slowly becomes a bond of deepest trust, and possibly love. With time running out, and the whole world of SavePoint users at stake, Nev must learn what it will take to set things right, and what it will cost.Trade Review“Fascinating and compelling.”—Booklist“The authors infuse this plausible near future with clever science and heartwarming explorations of love and second chances. At the heart of this brilliant sci-fi conundrum is a deeply human story.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

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Book SynopsisEven saints need second chances...Discover the new heartwarming Christmas adventure with the Sisters of Saint Philomena, about friendship, family, and forgiveness. Perfect for fans of AJ Pearce, Katie Fforde and Call the Midwife.Everyone loves Sister Bridget. The cheerful Mother Superior of St Philomena's convent is friend to many in the town of Fairbridge and the irrepressible caller at the weekly Parish Bingo. There is nothing she can't sort out with a kind word, a cup of tea and a slice of her amazing chocolate cake.But as the Christmas tree goes up and festive cheer rises, a visitor arrives at the convent who doesn't like Sister Bridget one bit. Sister Bridget soon learns that secrets are bubbling to the surface back home in Ireland - especially for her younger sister Mary. She will need to face up to past deeds, however well-intended.With the help of her friends, and the power of love and forgiveness, maybe she can finally make things right.Sweet Mercies reminds us that none of us is perfect, and everybody deserves another chance at finding peace and happiness.Praise for Anne Booth:'Charming, witty and warm, Small Miracles is a gentle gem of a novel, a cheery balm in troubling times.' AJ Pearce, bestselling author of Dear Mrs Bird'With gentle humour, and surprising twists and turns, this is just the book we need in these difficult times. I didn't want it to end' Katie FfordeReaders adore Sweet Mercies:‘A lovely feel good story…I raced through this’‘The whole book left me smiling’‘This book is like receiving the best Christmas present all wrapped up with a bow!’‘This book was a joy to read, full of community and kindness’‘What a lovely hug of a book!’Trade ReviewAlthough this charming book is indeed heartwarming, it has the spice of reality which prevents it from becoming too sweet. I really enjoyed it -- Katie FfordeA wonderful, cheering Christmassy book about forgiveness and faith of all kinds. A perfect gift! -- Julie Mae CohenI absolutely adored Sweet Mercies, which is if possible, even better than its predecessor, Small Miracles. Beautifully drawn characters, full of a resounding zest for life, mingle with others not so lucky. The result is uplifting, joyful and bursting with hope.... A triumph! -- Celia Anderson, author of 59 Memory LaneOn one level, Sweet Mercies is an accessible, light read, ideal to curl up with at Christmas. There's lots of laughter - the havoc unwound by two playful kittens; Sister Bridget's shenanigans with the bingo balls; the tragi-comic decapitation of a statue. But like its predecessor, the book touches on deeper themes... When the folk of Fairbridge experience divine tenderness and forgiveness through people of faith they are encountering for themselves the sweet mercies of God * Inverness Courier *Charming, witty and warm, Small Miracles is a gentle gem of a novel, a cheery balm in troubling times -- AJ Pearce, bestselling author of Dear Mrs Bird, on Small Miracles

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Book Synopsis** LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2023 **** SHORTLISTED FOR IRISH NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2023 ****AS SEEN ON BBC BETWEEN THE COVERS**Meet Jamie and his community on the west coast of Ireland, in the most uplifting and tender book of the year'Heart-rending and delightful' LOUISE KENNEDY, no.1 bestselling author of Trespasses'A gorgeous gift of a novel' DOUGLAS STUART, no.1 bestselling author of Shuggie BainJamie O'Neill loves the colour red. He also loves tall trees, patterns, rain that comes with wind, the curvature of many objects, books with dust jackets, cats, rivers and Edgar Allan Poe. At age 13 there are two things he especially wants in life: to build a Perpetual Motion Machine, and to connect with his mother Noelle, who died when he was born. In his mind these things are intimately linked. And at his new school, where all else is disorientating and overwhelming, he finds two people who might just be able to help him.How to Build a Boat is the story of how one boy and his mission transforms the lives of his teachers, Tess and Tadhg, and brings together a community. Written with tenderness and verve, it's about love, family and connection, the power of imagination, and how our greatest adventures never happen alone.'Beautifully rendered and imagined' - Anne Enright'A heart-stopping read' - Sinéad Gleeson'Bursting with soul' - Lisa McInerney'I can't wait for readers to fall in love' - Jan CarsonTrade ReviewOne of those rare books that leaves you feeling less lonely. An uplifting tale of community, healing and the small connections that can change a life. A gorgeous gift of a novel, hopeful and full of humanity. -- Douglas Stuart, Booker Prize winning author of SHUGGIE BAINA heart-stopping read and a stunning, resonant exploration of a community, a motherless boy and living an authentic life. -- Sinéad GleesonWhat a gorgeous book. Unsentimental but generous, sharp as a teacher's side-eye and bursting with soul. -- Lisa McInerneyHow to Build a Boat is a gentle tsunami of a novel, so beautifully and tenderly crafted you don't even notice you're being swept along. It gets right to the heart of what it means to be broken and searching for community. I can't wait for readers to fall in love with Jamie's refreshingly sideways take on life. -- Jan CarsonA story of absence, love, loss, courage and resilience lit up from within, Elaine Feeney's How To Build A Boat is an emotionally resonant tour-de-force very much in keeping with the unforgettable spirit of her debut As You Were. -- Alan McMonagleUtterly absorbing... so intelligent and human... sharp and subtle with beautiful poetic language. Feeney is one of those rare authors who can perform linguistic acrobatics while her characters tenderly break your heart. -- Edel CoffeyA hopeful, uplifting story of people reclaiming power over their own lives, celebrating creativity and diversity in the face of those who would punish difference. A poignant and exhilarating story exquisitely told in Feeney's stunning prose. -- Danielle McLaughlinI really loved How to Build a Boat. It's a beautiful, moving, uplifting book about the ways people differ and the ways they connect. It will make you feel better. -- Patrick FreyneSensitive and insightful about those who help us to rediscover our sense of wonder. Full of beautiful human complexity. -- Rónán Hession, author of PANENKAThe portrayal of Jamie's struggle is extraordinarily poignant, and the book sails to a tender and almost heart-breaking crescendo of hope forged through honesty and imagination * Daily Mail *A heart-rending and delightful voyage... Elaine Feeney has a poet's way with words and uncanny understanding of human frailty -- Louise Kennedy, author of TRESPASSES * Observer, *Summer Reads of 2023* *

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Book Synopsis'Loot held me spellbound from the first page...an expertly-plotted, deeply affecting novel ' Maggie O’FarrellAn epic tale of plundered treasure, savage empire, lasting love and a young man's dream to make his mark on the world.Meet Abbas. Woodcarver, toy maker, dreamer. Abbas is seventeen when he is whisked away to Tipu Sultan's glorious palace in Mysore. Apprenticed to the clockmaker Monsieur Du Leze, he is ordered to create an ingenious musical tiger to delight Tipu's sons.In the eccentric Du Leze, Abbas finds an unexpected friend who encourages his skill and hunger for learning, and through whom he also meets the unforgettable Jehanne, who has questions and ambitions of her own.But when British soldiers attack and loot Mysore, Abbas's world is turned upside down and his prized tiger is shipped off to a country estate in England. In order to carve out his place in the world, he must follow.A hero's quest, a love story, an exuberant heist novel that traces the bloody legacy of colonialism across the world, Loot is a dazzling, wildly inventive and irresistible feat of storytelling from a writer at the height of her powers.'A cinematic novel of empire, colonialism and romance...Through transporting prose, and with wit and charm, Loot asks who gets written out of history and why' Guardian''Immersive and beautifully written...a clever and absorbing novel about empire and belonging’ Sunday Times'A thrilling, absorbing and immersive tale of artistry, adventure and romance' Claire Fuller'A wild, dazzling eighteenth-century romp across continents with profound things to say about invention and self-reinvention, class and fate, and the deeply human hunger to create family.' Lauren Groff'Elegantly crafted and beautifully written... exciting... Highly recommended' Mail on SundayTrade Review[An] epic sweep of a novel, which travels from India to Europe in the company of a fascinating range of characters...Niftily constructed, the novel packs in doomed romance, the horrors of colonialism and palace plots * Daily Mail *Strongly recommending this exquisitely crafted and rich historical story to everyone I know . . . Tania James has created such a visceral, powerful story that it felt like I was in a time travelling machine -- Nikita GillAddictively absorbing * New York Times Book Review *A real-life object of fascination — an 18th-century automaton depicting a tiger biting into an Englishman’s neck — is the basis for this novel...lush with the sights, sounds and smells of India, France and England, and always laced with Dickensian wit * Washington Post, *Ten Best Books of the Year* *Loot held me spellbound from the first page. This is an expertly-plotted, deeply affecting novel about war, displacement, emigration, and an elusive mechanical tiger. -- Maggie O’FarrellA novel of wonder and terror and beauty - I was completely captivated by it. -- Kamila ShamsieElegantly crafted and beautifully written, James’s exciting adventure story considers the legacy of colonial oppression and the ownership of plundering historical artifacts. Highly recommended * Mail on Sunday *Richly researched and full of heart, LOOT is a beautifully crafted novel, artfully realised and deeply compelling. Abbas and Jehanne (and Rum!) are captivating characters who positively leap from the pages, and I felt bereft when their story came to an end. I just loved it. -- Susan Stokes-Chapman, author of PandoraJames's ravishing prose and trademark blend of lyricism and suspense animate this ingenious caper meets politically acute coming-of-age story * Oprah Daily *I read Loot in a single sitting; it is a wild, dazzling eighteenth-century romp across continents with profound things to say about invention and self-reinvention, class and fate, and the deeply human hunger to create family as both bulwark against loneliness and constant source of light and warmth. -- Lauren Groff

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Book SynopsisAn uncoming-of-age in New York City‘How to Be Somebody Else has literary oomph’ SUNDAY TIMES‘Brilliant… Luscious prose’ ANNIE LORD, author of Notes on Heartbreak‘Unsettling and original’ TESSA HADLEY, author of Free LoveSpring 2015, New York.On the surface Dylan has achieved the impossible - a life in New York, eight years of making this stick. And yet it is not the thing she'd imagined (what had she imagined?). When she walks out of her career, then apartment, and into a housesit for an artist she's never met, she does not tell her friends, her parents back in England, or Matt, her boyfriend, living on the West Coast.Job-free, rent-free, she'll make good on her book, herself, other things too, she's thinking, when her neighbour Kate shows up and invites her to a party. There she meets Gabe, who happens to be married to Kate but insists, 'it's not a thing'. The affair that follows consumes her and she begins to consider what is fixed and what is variable. Can a person be both? Is Gabe the thing he seems? Is she?As spring turns to summer, her experiments in living test loyalties and boundaries until an unexpected encounter between the two couples forces her to confront her future.***A MARIE CLAIRE BEST BOOK OF 2024***Trade ReviewHow to Be Somebody Else has literary oomph... What sets this debut apart is the way it sustains its sparky style to the last page without stinting on the serious stuff * Sunday Times *Sharp and entertaining * Daily Mail *Brutal and brilliant, in luscious prose, How to Be Somebody Else shows us what happens when life starts to unfurl -- Annie Lord, author of Notes on HeartbreakUnsettling and original -- Tessa Hadley, author of After the FuneralSo sharp and well observed. I loved the wry, understated humour, and how perceptive the book is about female desire. In its exploration of a woman trying to make sense of herself it is moving without being sentimental, and clever without seeming to try too hard -- Rebecca Wait, author of I'm Sorry You Feel That WayA stunning novel. Remarkable and real. Every single line is supercharged with a kind of cerebral eroticism, a zinging inventive intelligence. The sentences buzz and hum -- Samantha Harvey, author of OrbitalCompulsive. It makes its moves with such assurance that it’s hard to believe this is Pountney’s first novel. A wild mess of sex and feeling is here given beautiful form -- Adam Thirlwell, author of The Future Future

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Book Synopsis‘Funny and barbed, and the twists at the end had me shocked’ MONICA HEISEY, author of Really Good, ActuallyWIFE. HUSBAND. BEST FRIEND. What if your two favourite people hated each other with a passion?A nice house, a carefree life, a doting husband, a best friend who never leaves your side. What more could you ask for? There's just one problem: your husband and best friend love you, but they hate each other.Set over a single day, husband, wife and best friend Temi toe the lines of compromise and betrayal. Told in three parts, three people's lives, and their visions of themselves and one another begin to slowly unravel, until a startling discovery throws everyone's integrity into question.'Dazzling, dextrous and droll, this millennial noir is a taut exploration of culture and the politics of relationships’ BOLU BABALOLA, author of Love in Colour'Sharp, astute... Packs a serious punch' YOMI ADEGOKE, author of The List'Wickedly enjoyable' NAOISE DOLAN, author of Exciting Times'Has that elusive Sally Rooney style of writing' STYLISTTrade ReviewSharp, astute and wickedly funny - Ore Agbaje-Williams' sharp wit and perfectly realised protagonists make for a taut, darkly comic read that packs a serious punch -- Yomi Adegoke, author of THE LISTA funny, terrifically entertaining read * Daily Mail *A treat of a debut. Agbaje-Williams has a gift of gliding between the sharpest driest humour and damning emotional revelations that incisively exposes the vulnerabilities, fallacies and messiness that line the relationships with those we are closest to. Dazzling, dextrous and droll, this millennial noir is a taut exploration of culture and the politics of relationships -- Bolu Babalola, author of LOVE IN COLOURDeftly plotted and wickedly enjoyable... I tore through this, and you will, too. The triad of voices seems to flow spontaneously, but is intricately assembled to result in maximum drama -- Naoise Dolan, author of EXCITING TIMESOre Agbaje-Williams has that elusive Sally Rooney style of writing: it seems simple and easy to do but is incredibly difficult to pull off... Enjoy * Stylist *Unique and completely captivating, The Three of Us absorbed me. When I finished I wanted to go back and read it from the beginning again -- Annie Lord, author of NOTES ON HEARTBREAKAn astute, composed and quietly hilarious observation of identity, marriage and friendship from a unique storyteller -- Diana Evans, author of ORDINARY PEOPLESwitching points of view among the three, this debut is viciously funny, different than anything you’ve read lately, and at the same time, strangely relatable * Oprah Daily *Taut and precise, as honest as it is hilarious, I consumed The Three of Us in a single sitting. Not to be missed -- Caleb Azumah Nelson, author of OPEN WATERRich, dazzling and deeply possessive... At just 192 pages, The Three of Us is as short and sharp as a paring knife * Washington Post *

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