Narrative theme: social issues / social problems

Book Synopsis** Selected by 8 National Newspapers as a Book of the Year ** ** The New York Times Bestseller ** ‘A page-turner that succeeds both at character and ideas’ Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie A warm and immersive novel about ambition, power, women, friendship and finding your place in the world, from the bestselling author of The Wife and The Interestings. Greer Kadetsky is a shy college student when she meets the person who will change her life.Faith Frank, an influential and glamorous figure from the women’s movement, inhabits a very different world to Greer’s. But after a chance encounter Faith singles Greer out and invites her into her life, leading her down a thrilling path as it winds towards and away from her meant-to-be love story with high school sweetheart Cory and the future she had always imagined. Expansive and wise, compassionate and witty, The Female Persuasion is about the spark we all believe is flickering inside us, waiting to be seen and fanned by the right person at the right time.Trade ReviewThe Female Persuasion has gone straight into my library of favourite novels ever, on a shelf next to David Copperfield, Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, Lonesome Dove, and Love in a Time of Cholera -- Nick Hornby'The novel’s timeliness cannot be understated...tight but inclusive, and deserves to be placed on shelves alongside such ornate modern novels beginning in college as A Little Life, The Secret History and The Marriage Plot... But when all is said and done, Wolitzer is an infinitely capable creator of human identities that are as real as the type on this page, and her love of her characters shines more brightly than any agenda -- Lena Dunham * New York Times Book Review *The Female Persuasion is wonderfully dense and wise, a page-turner that succeeds both at character and ideas. It felt true to life -- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie * Guardian *Deft and funny…trenchant, clever, displaying a pitch-perfect recollection of the idealism of early adulthood and what life subsequently does to undo it -- Emma Brockes * Guardian *From the very first page of any novel by Meg Wolitzer, you feel in safe hands. She is skilful and confident…she is exceptionally gifted in the neglected craft of plotting...like a modern-day Edith Wharton, she has an instinctive understanding that tragedy and comedy are different sides of the same coin... How could you fail to love such a writer? -- Craig Brown * Mail on Sunday *

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Book Synopsis**WINNER OF THE CWA SAPERE BOOKS HISTORICAL DAGGER 2020**'Death in the East is the best so far of an unmissable series' The Times Calcutta police detective Captain Sam Wyndham and his quick-witted Indian Sergeant, Surrender-not Banerjee, are back for another rip-roaring adventure set in 1920s India. 1905, London. When Bessie Drummond, an old flame of Sam Wyndham's, is attacked in the street, he is determined to get to the bottom of it. But the next day, Bessie is found dead in her room and Wyndham soon finds himself caught up in her murder investigation. The case will cost the young constable more than he ever imagined. 1922, India. Leaving Calcutta, Wyndham heads for the hills of Assam, ready to put his opium addiction behind him. But when he arrives, he sees a ghost from his life in London - a man thought to be long dead, a man Wyndham hoped he would never see again. Wyndham knows he must call his friend and colleague Sergeant Banerjee for help. He is certain that this figure from can only be after one thing: revenge...*A SUNDAY TIMES BOOKS OF 2021 PICK*Praise for the Wyndham and Banerjee series : 'A thought-provoking rollercoaster' Ian Rankin 'Cracking... A journey into the dark underbelly of the British Raj' Daily Express 'A brilliantly conceived murder mystery set amidst political and social turmoil - beautifully crafted' C. J. Sansom 'Mukherjee brings sardonic wit to his portrayal of British rule in India, and the action is perfectly paced.' Daily MirrorIf you enjoyed Death in the East further books in the Wyndham and Banerjee series are available now: A Rising Man A Necessary Evil Smoke and Ashes The Shadows of MenTrade ReviewAs ever, Abir Mukherjee brings sardonic wit to his portrayal of British rule in India and the action is perfectly paced, but this volume has a depth that makes it stand out. His best yet -- Jake Kerridge * Sunday Express *In his most accomplished and complex novel yet, Mukherjee keeps the reader enthralled as the duo race towards a brilliant conclusion. Death in the East is a contender for the best thriller of the year. -- Jon Coates * Daily Express *Death in the East is the best so far of an unmissable series -- Antonia Senior * The Times, *Book of the month* *The perfect combination of mystery and history -- Jake Kerridge * Sunday Express, *Books of the Year* *A skilfully blended dual narrative: twice the intrigue, twice the fun. Mukherjee is at the top of his game -- Mick Herron, award-winning author of London Blues

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Book SynopsisWhat if your son was the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll?From the moment she first holds him, Gladys Presley loves her son Elvis ferociously. She is the one by his side when his father is in the jailhouse; as they move from place to place skirting poverty; as Elvis’s obsession with music grows and he begins his whirlwind rise to never-before-seen success. But while he brings audiences across the land to their knees and achieves unimagined wealth and fame, there is another story – of drinking and diet pills, loneliness and loss – and at the height of his power Elvis finds that even kings must go on alone.‘Roberts is an exceptionally tender and empathetic writer, and the story of Elvis Presley and his relationship with his mother is one ripe for her skills… both epic and intimate’ GraziaTrade ReviewAn immediately convincing evocation of time and place, as well as character, colour, sultry heat and complex emotions... Moving effortlessly between the late 1950s and Elvis's straitened upbringing, it vividly conveys his world * Sunday Times *This is an impressive, deceptively gentle novel, full of quiet music and even quieter tragedy -- Claire Allfree * Daily Telegraph *One of the best books about a rock star I've ever readBethan Roberts grew up in a house filled with Elvis’s music and pored over her mother’s Elvis annuals and scrapbooks as a child… its emotional range rings true and its fidelity to a certain strain of wistful melancholy might go deeper than facts... an understated, thoughtful novel about a man who wore suits fashioned from gold leaf on stage, which occasionally prompts the reader to burst into song. -- Susie Boyt * Financial Times *Graceland is an astonishing literary achievement. Bethan Roberts somehow manages to unlock the mystery to that beautiful sadness in the voice of Elvis. Utterly heartbreaking. -- Jake Arnott

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Book SynopsisNOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM APPLE TV+ STARRING TOM HOLLAND Cleveland, Ohio, 2003. A young man is just a college freshman when he meets Emily. They share a passion for Edward Albee and ecstasy and fall hard and fast in love. But soon Emily has to move home to Elba, New York, and he flunks out of school and joins the army. Desperate to keep their relationship alive, they marry before he ships out to Iraq. But as an army medic, he is unprepared for the grisly reality that awaits him. His fellow soldiers smoke; they huff computer duster; they take painkillers; they watch porn. And many of them die. He and Emily try to make their long-distance marriage work, but when he returns from Iraq, his PTSD is profound, and the drugs on the street have changed. The opioid crisis is beginning to swallow up the Midwest. Soon he is hooked on heroin, and so is Emily. They attempt a normal life, but with their money drying up, he turns to the one thing he thinks he could be really good at - robbing banks.Hammered out on a prison typewriter, Cherry marks the arrival of a raw, bleakly hilarious, and surprisingly poignant voice straight from the dark heart of America.Trade ReviewA remarkable accomplishment… [Cherry] will shake your soul. -- Atticus Lish * Harper's Magazine *[An] unforgettable mix of doomed and dazzling... There’s a vivid, repulsive truth in the way Walker renders his subjects—a sort of social truth, stripped of morality, which is rare and riveting. * New Yorker *Cherry is a miracle of literary serendipity, a triumph... In these propulsive pages, Walker draws us right into the mind of an ordinary young man beset by his own and his country’s demons. In the end, his only weapon against disintegration is his own devastating candor. * Washington Post *The first great novel of the opioid epidemic. * New York Magazine *It is full of slapstick comedy, despite gut-wrenching depictions of dope sickness, the futility of war and PTSD... [Walker] writes dialogue so musical and realistic you’ll hear it in the air around you. * New York Times Book Review *

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Book SynopsisDiscover the enthralling Richard & Judy Book Club pick from international bestseller Joseph O'Connor.'The best novel that I've read in the last twenty years... It's fantastic' RICHARD MADELEY'Breathtaking... A hugely entertaining book about the grand scope of friendship and love' Sadie Jones, Guardian__________London, 1878. Three extraordinary people begin their life together - and the idea for Dracula is born.Fresh from life in Dublin, Bram Stoker - now manager of the Lyceum Theatre - is wrestling with dark demons in a new city, in a new marriage, and with his own literary aspirations. As he walks the streets at night, streets haunted by the Ripper and the gossip which swirls around his friend Oscar Wilde, he finds new inspiration. Soon, the eerie tale of Dracula begins to emerge.But Henry Irving, volcanic leading man and impresario, is determined that nothing will get in the way of Bram's dedication to the Lyceum. And both men are growing ever more enchanted by the beauty and boldness of Ellen Terry, the most celebrated actress of her generation.__________Shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2019Winner of the Irish Book Awards Novel of the Year'A colourful tale of secret love and public performance...in a romantic, lost London' The Times'Hugely entertaining and atmospheric' DEBORAH MOGGACH'Extraordinary' SEBASTIAN BARRY'A novel I'd recommend to anyone: a rollicking and moving story' James Naughtie, Radio Times'Fabulous... A truly great book you simply cannot put down' JUDY FINNIGAN'Rich, sad, funny, and a beautiful read. You'll LOVE it' RICHARD MADELEY'Ingenious...hugely impressive and utterly haunting' Sunday Mirror*JOSEPH O'CONNOR'S STUNNING NEW NOVEL, MY FATHER'S HOUSE, IS AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW*Trade ReviewDazzling...the panache and subtlety of his prose perfectly match that gusto and creative finesse of the High Victorian world his novel wonderfully evokes * Sunday Times *A novel I'd recommend to anyone: a rollicking and moving story... Delicious and clever late-Victorian gothic -- James Naughtie * Radio Times *An ingenious novel… O’Connor’s work is hugely impressive and utterly haunting * Sunday Mirror *Joseph O’Connor is a very great artist and storyteller. The quotient of enjoyment in his extraordinary new novel is stupendous -- Sebastian BarryA hugely entertaining book about the grand scope of friendship and love, it is also, movingly – at times, astonishingly – a story of transience, loss and true loyalty -- Sadie Jones * Guardian *A work of Gothic splendour...O'Connor's writing is always intensely atmospheric. As a romp through Ripper-ravaged London, Shadowplay is mightily entertaining. But as a meditation on hidden sexuality, it is powerful and poignant * Literary Review *A fabulous novel that tells the otherwise largely unknown story of the man behind Gothic horror's most enduring character… The narrative stretches decades, and throbs with theatrical vigour. This is writing at its most immersive, full of Dickensian pulchritude and pathos. It should, and might well, win prizes -- Nick Duerden * i *A rollicking tale… an affecting depiction of artistic and social emancipation… O’Connor’s well-researched theatrical caper offers total immersion in a romantic, lost London... be nourished by a colourful tale of secret love and public performance * The Times *There are few living writers who can take us back in time so assuredly, with such sensual density, through such gorgeous sentences. Joseph O’Connor is a wonder, and Shadowplay is a triumph. -- Peter Carey, twice winner of the Booker PrizeGorgeously dark… Shadowplay is an accomplished, compelling read * Herald *A hugely entertaining and atmospheric novel, one can almost smell the greasepaint -- Deborah MoggachA mesmerising read, meticulously researched, with beautiful prose...O'Connor has the gift of conjuring up any location....Wonderful suspense a la Wilkie Collins * Sunday Independent *Wonderful. The writing is beautiful. -- Derek JacobiThis is a marvellous novel: at once freewheeling, exultant, fully inhabiting the momentary, transitory nature of its world; and intensely aware of the limitations – too frequently self-imposed – of our painfully fleeting lives. * Dublin Review of Books *One of Ireland's finest writers -- John Boyne * Washington Post *Three famous Victorians carry this sparkling historical novel: Sir Henry Irving, the great actor-manager; Ellen Terry, his leading lady; and Bram Stoker, the young Irishman who worked for Irving as a theatre manager before writing Dracula. From their entangled lives Joseph O’Connor weaves a story of love and loyalty, rich in wit and imagination. -- 100 Sizzling Summer Books * Daily Mail *One of the best writers working today -- Alice WalkerIn gorgeous sentences, Joseph O’Connor captures the essence of three very different artistic temperaments in all their nobility and glorious absurdity -- Jake Kerridge * Sunday Express *Joseph O'Connor is the only writer I know who can make you laugh and cry in the same sentence. -- Lawrence NorfolkJoseph O'Connor is the only writer I know who can make you laugh and cry in the same sentence. -- Lawrence NorfolkMagnificent -- John BoyneA virtuoso act of literary ventriloquism. Shadowplay is funny, smart, tender, wise and written with inch-perfect precision -- Colum McCannA thrilling novel, exquisitely contrived to show the characters whose loves and lives inspired Dracula. A great tribute, and a work of art. Deeply affecting. -- Essie FoxAs fascinating and memorable as anything O'Connor has done. The writing, too, as thrilling as ever. A great writer performing Olympian literary storytelling. -- Sir Bob GeldofO’Connor is a true master of historical fiction, able to illuminate a bygone age with skill, wit and imagination -- Max Davidson * Mail on Sunday *A lushly enjoyable pastiche of fin-de-siècle prose, in which Victorian euphemism is an authenticating stamp that double as a source of humour -- Anthony Cummins * Observer *A luminous and masterly depiction of Bram Stoker’s time at the Lyceum, this wonderful book explores the complex nature of love and creativity. Utterly captivating. -- Sophia TobinBeautifully written. O’Connor creates a vivid and vigorous world of his own -- Andrew Taylor * Spectator *Beautifully written and gorgeously atmospheric * Best *A beautifully written masterpiece * SHEmazing! *A vividly written and atmospheric meditation on the creative process -- Elizabeth Buchan * Daily Mail *O’Connor is masterly at evoking the late Victorian era; its train journeys, street scenes, formality and banter… O’Connor is masterly at evoking the late Victorian era; its train journeys, street scenes, formality and banter -- Suzi Feay * Financial Times *Rich and vivid * Daily Telegraph *Joseph O'Connor has written an entertaining novel that combines narrative with transcripts of recordings, diary entries and other notes. It steeps viewers in the theatre of Irving and Terry in the late 1870s and beyond, providing much informative colour at the same time as delving deeply and frankly into a series of relationships that are generally convincing. -- Philip Fisher * British Theatre Guide *O’Connor tells his story in rich and stylish prose * Times Literary Supplement *A rousing story about a remarkable woman * Mail on Sunday, *Summer reads of 2019* *Joseph O’Connor’s vivid descriptive writing evokes Stoker’s memories of the post-famine Ireland of his youth and of Irving’s company’s fraught tours of America… [his] fine writing, his wit and sympathy create a richly enjoyable backdrop for some familiar characters * Tablet, *Novel of the Week* *Enthralling… Brings to teeming life the London of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras * Irish Times *Brilliant... alternately deeply moving and laugh-aloud funny -- Peter Marshall * History Today *O'Connor's gift is to weave whimsical moments in between the complexity of relationships and people... a beautiful story -- Tracey Steel * People's Friend *An ambitious celebration of friendship, theatre and the power of darkness, Shadowplay is chilling and dramatic in equal measure -- Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *A wonderfully evocative tale within a tale -- Ben East * Observer *A thrilling novel, exquisitely contrived to show the characters whose loves and lives inspired Dracula. A great tribute, and a work of art. Deeply affecting. -- Essie Fox

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Book Synopsis**SHORTLISTED FOR THE RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE 2020**Two timely novellas exploring male sexual violence, power and corruption‘Victory makes a convincing case for James Lasdun as one of the most incisive investigators of the human heart writing in English today… An instant masterpiece’ Johanna Thomas-Corr, ObserverLove and hate, desire and guilt, friendship and betrayal – these are the coordinates that drive James Lasdun’s two intensely gripping, darkly comic novellas of men and women caught between their irrational passions and the urge for control. In Feathered Glory the seemingly happy marriage of a school principal and his artist wife reveals dangerous fault-lines as an old lover reappears in the husband’s life. The past also haunts the present in Afternoon of a Faun, where an accusation of historic sexual assault plunges Marco Rosedale, an English journalist in New York, into a series of deepening crises. Together these stories offer a sharply observed vision that will resonate with anyone interested in the clash of power and desire in our embattled contemporary lives.Trade ReviewThe word “masterpiece” is not one to throw around lightly but I was enthralled by James Lasdun’s novella Afternoon of a Faun, from his collection Victory… it has the psychological precision of a Chekhov story. -- Johanna Thomas-Corr * Evening Standard *Books of the Year* *Two superb novellas full of contemporary resonance… extraordinarily taut and compelling. * Spectator *[Victory makes] a convincing case for James Lasdun as one of the most incisive investigators of the human heart writing in English today… an instant masterpiece. * Observer *The novellas [in Victory] are united by Lasdun’s signature virtues: a forensic attention to psychological detail, a mastery of dialogue and an all-round fluency that gives his prose a compelling swiftness. It is these virtues, more than the plots, that make Victory a triumph. * Literary Review *Timely and irresistibly unpleasant… sure to provoke passionate discussion… [Afternoon of a Faun] lingers after you have closed the book with a vividness that testifies to the compact virtues of the novella. * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis'A novel like razor-wire...part chase thriller, part psychological suspense' AJ Finn, author of #1 bestseller The Woman in the WindowTWO STRANGERS. DANGEROUS SECRETS. THEIR ONLY CHANCE IS EACH OTHER. Cait's job is to transport women to safety. Out of respect, she never asks any questions. Like most of the women, Rebecca is trying to escape something. But what if Rebecca's secrets put them both in danger? There's a reason Cait chooses to keep on the road, helping strangers. She has a past of her own, and knows what it's like to be followed.And there is someone right behind them, watching their every move...*Named one of the New York Times top 10 crime novels of 2020*____________________READERS LOVE THIS BOOK:'A hard-hitting feminist thriller' *****'Had me racing through the pages' *****'Tense and atmospheric' *****'A masterclass in tension and reader manipulation' *****Trade ReviewA novel like razor-wire...Part chase thriller, part psychological suspense…wholly ingenious. * AJ Finn, author of The Woman in the Window *Gripping….This action-packed story will keep readers riveted. * Publishers Weekly *A nerve-shredding book. Jessica Barry is shockingly perceptive in her portrayal of every day threats to everyday women, every day. * Rosamund Lupton *Hair-raising. * New York Times *Barry’s electric, perfectly paced tale reads like the gritty lovechild of Thelma and Louise and Spielberg’s Duel, and readers will cheer for Cait and Rebecca all the way to the end of the road. An action-packed and fiercely feminist big-screen–ready chiller. * Kirkus Reviews *

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Book Synopsis***LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2019*****SHORTLISTED FOR THE COMEDY WOMEN IN PRINT PRIZE 2020****LONGLISTED FOR THE POLARI PRIZE 2020**'Beware, for I am fearless and therefore powerful.'Inspired by Mary Shelley's gothic classic Frankenstein, discover this audacious new novel about the bodies we live in and the bodies we desire.As Brexit grips Britain, Ry, a young transgender doctor, is falling in love. The object of their misguided affection: the celebrated AI-specialist, Professor Victor Stein. Meanwhile, Ron Lord, just divorced and living with his Mum again, is set to make his fortune with a new generation of sex dolls for lonely men everywhere.Ranging from 1816, when nineteen-year-old Mary Shelley pens her radical first novel, to a cryonics facility in present-day Arizona where the dead wait to return to life, Frankissstein shows us how much closer we are to the future than we realise.'Intelligent and inventive...very funny' The Times 'One of the most gifted writers working today' New York TimesTrade ReviewA riotous reimagining with an energy and passion all of its own that reanimates Frankenstein as a cautionary tale for a contemporary moment dominated by debates about Brexit, gender, artificial intelligence and medical experimentation… While the story has a gripping momentum of its own, it also fizzes with ideas. -- Daisy Hay * Financial Times *A riotous reimagining with an energy and passion all of its own that reanimates Frankenstein as a cautionary tale for a contemporary moment dominated by debates about Brexit, gender, artificial intelligence and medical experimentation… While the story has a gripping momentum of its own, it also fizzes with ideas. -- Daisy Hay * Financial Times *Here, hard science and dreamy Romanticism exist in both tension and harmony… Frankissstein abounds with invention… this is a work of both pleasure and profundity, robustly and skilfully structured, and suffused with all Winterson’s usual preoccupations – gender, language, sexuality, the limits of individual liberty and the life of ideas. -- Sam Byers * Guardian, *Book of the Week* *A modern take on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, it’s a fascinating and engrossing look at AI, science, gender fluidity and, ultimately, what it really means to be human. -- Nicola Sturgeon * New Statesman, *Books of the Year* *Yes, the book we have all been waiting for. Yes, everything Winterson has always done so well. Yes, above and beyond anything that is yet to be written.

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Book Synopsis'Heart and humour in abundance... exquisite' The TimesAfter fifty years in London, Alice wants to live out her days in the land of her birth. Her children are divided on whether she stays or goes, and in the wake of their father's death, the imagined stability of the family begins to fray. Meanwhile youngest daughter Melissa has never let go of a love she lost, and Michael in return, now married to Nicole, is haunted by the failed perfection of the past. As Alice's final decision draws closer, all that is hidden between them rises to the surface . . .Set against the shadows of a city and a country in turmoil, Diana Evans's ordinary people confront fundamental questions. How should we raise our children? How to do right by our parents? And how, in the midst of everything, can we satisfy ourselves?'A gorgeous novel from one of our most outstanding writers' Bernardine Evaristo'Diana Evans is fast proving herself a novelist to rank alongside Anne Tyler' Daily Mail'A warm but devastating narrative... Like any Evans novel, it is unputdownable' Harper's BazaarA New York Times *100 Notable Books of 2023*Shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political FictionSelected in Best Reads of 2023 by The Times, The Guardian, Financial Times, Harper’s Bazaar, New Statesman and Good HousekeepingA Waterstones Book of the YearThe Bookseller Editor’s ChoiceThe New York Times Book Review Editors’ ChoiceStarred Kirkus ReviewGuardian Book of the DayTrade ReviewEvans's writing is...subtle but grounded, lyrical yet accessible. Her characters feel real, their interactions - particularly that tense space where the political and domestic meet - nuanced * Sunday Times *[An] ambitious tale of a family in contemporary London... [Evans's] wide cast of women are deftly drawn. There's heart and humour in abundance * The Times *The sheer vitality of Evans's dynamic prose... renders almost hypnotic her constant toggling between the prosaic and the metaphysical. There are some deft set pieces too, dramatising intimacy's most finely nuanced dynamics * Guardian *A warm but devastating narrative, dealing with the fallout of the Grenfell tragedy... Like any Evans novel, it is unputdownable * Harper's Bazaar, *Books to Look Out For 2023* *One of our most outstanding writers . . . A House for Alice [is] a stunning multi-generational kaleidoscope of London . . . Evans writes with exceptional profundity and is exemplary at exploring the inner workings of her fictional characters through a prose style so poetic you want to languish in her sentences. * Bernardine Evaristo, Vogue *A wise, tender novel about family and love that explores the tension between duty and desire and the question of what 'home' really means * Monica Ali, author of Brick Lane and Love Marriage *I adored it. Her writing is exquisite: every sentence a jewel; every paragraph containing some insight that makes you draw breath with its rightness * Elizabeth Day, author of How To Fail and Magpie *At every point, whether sad or funny, A House for Alice is compassionate and sharp * Telegraph *Ambitious in scope ... The story is engrossing and moving * Independent *Diana Evans is fast proving herself a novelist to rank alongside Anne Tyler, so adept is she at parsing life's longings and upheavals... highly enjoyable, tenderly wrought * Daily Mail *This intimate, melodic novel explores notions of home, family and long-held secrets * Mail on Sunday *A House For Alice is a sharp appraisal of loss. Evans writes deftly about the shifting intimacies between family * Raven Leilani, author of Luster *All is conjured with Evans's keen eye for human behaviour... Her prose is distinguished by its lively, lyrical energy, by its seemingly effortless expansiveness, and by masterful turns of phrase * Sara Collins, author of The Confessions of Frannie Langton *'Diana Evans's writing is so singular, so arresting, characterful, and so beautiful . . . Evans is always, always on the finest of forms' * Candice Carty-Williams, author of Queenie and People Person *Mesmerising... Few writers describe with such inventiveness, eloquence and thoroughness, even in the most seemingly mundane situations. * Michael Donkor *This is a knowingly and at times devastatingly elegiac novel... through the delicacy of her [Evans's] prose, the deftness of her dialogue and the clarity of her observations, she manages to create a novel that measures up to life... A House for Alice...marks itself out as that rare thing: a sequel that feels necessary * Times Literary Supplement *Evans is a profoundly important chronicler of our times. Her velveteen prose is utterly precise, so detailed and artful . . . A writer at the top of her game * Leone Ross *Superb. A deeply enriching and profound novel. Diana Evans is one of our greatest writers. We're so lucky to have her * Irenosen Okojie, author of Nudibranch *'A poignant and elegant unfurling of the intricacies of family life - sensitively observed and beautifully written' * Nicola Rollock, author of The Racial Code *An orchestral, richly textured portrait of interconnected middle-class Black lives in contemporary London . . . Witty, poignant and emotionally acute * The Bookseller *A state-of-the-nation masterpiece... This is rich, multi-layered novel of interconnected lives... another rich, detailed portrait of not-so-ordinary people * Harper's Bazaar *Beautifully conceived, A House for Alice is a luminous, big-hearted novel about the people and things that enable us to find, keep and call somewhere a home * Financial Times *A rich evocation of south London, a poignant account of a dwindling marriage and a lovely celebration of music * Guardian *An impressive sequel to 2018's Ordinary People * Financial Times, *Summer Reads of 2023* *[A] tender yet political tale * Guardian, *Summer Reads of 2023* *Lyrical and excoriating * Guardian, *Books of the Year* *

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Book Synopsis'Toni Morrison was the lodestar who inspired us' Bernadine EvaristoTwyla and Roberta have known each other since they were eight years old, when they were thrown together as roommates in a girls' shelter. Inseparable then, they lose touch as they grow older, only to meet again later at a diner, a grocery store and then at a protest. The two women are seemingly at opposite ends of every problem but, despite their conflict, the deep bond their shared experience has forged between them is undeniable. Recitatif keeps Twyla's and Roberta's races ambiguous throughout the story. We know that one is white and one is black, but which is which? And who is right about the race of the woman the girls tormented at the orphanage? This story is a masterful exploration of what keeps us together and what keeps us apart, of race and the relationships that shape our lives. Now with a new introduction by Zadie Smith, it is as radically compelling and relevant today as it was when first written nearly forty years ago.'Toni Morrison is the greatest chronicler of the American experience that we have ever known' Tayari Jones'Her work is an act of giving her community back to itself, so that people - African-Americans but the diaspora as well - can see and witness themselves' Diana EvansTrade ReviewThis smart slippery tale... [is] highly relevant to our times... [Recitatif] serves as a challenge to contemporary novels that prefer to take refuge in racial orthodoxy than unsettle it, as Morrison so brilliantly does here -- Claire Allfree * Daily Mail *A compelling exploration of race and relationships * i *So thought-provoking you'll want everyone you know to read it * Daily Mail, *Summer Reads of 2022* *Genius -- Bernice McFadden, author of SUGAR * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis'ONE OF THE GREATEST AMERICAN NOVELS EVER WRITTEN''Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.'A lawyer's advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic novel - a black man falsely charged with the rape of a white girl. Through the young eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with exuberant humour the irrationality of adult attitudes to race and class in the Deep South of the 1930s. The conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the stamina of one man's struggle for justice. But the weight of history will only tolerate so much.To Kill a Mockingbird is a coming-of-age story, an anti-racist novel, a historical drama of the Great Depression and a sublime example of the Southern writing tradition.Trade Review'No one ever forgets this book' * Independent *'Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humor. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable' - Truman Capote'Her book is lifted...into the rare company of those that linger in the mind long after dramas, sagas and sophisticated frolics have coalesced into a blur of half-forgotten fiction' * Bookman *'There is humour as well as tragedy in this book, besides its faint note of hope for human nature; and it is delightfully written in the now familiar Southern tradition' * Sunday Times *Someone rare has written this very fine novel, a writer with the liveliest sense of life and the warmest, most authentic humour. A touching book; and so funny, so likeable * Truman Capote *

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Book Synopsis'One of the greatest writers of our time' Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Ngugi wa Thiong'o is renowned for his political novels and plays, yet he honed his craft as a short story writer. First published in 1975, Secret Lives and Other Stories brings together a range of Ngugi's political short stories.From tales of the meeting between magic and superstition, to stories about the modernising forces of colonialism, and the pervasive threat of nature, this collection celebrates the storytelling might of one of Africa's best-loved writers.Trade ReviewA tremendous writer... It's hard to doubt the power of the written word when you hear the story of Ngugi wa Thiong’o * Guardian *One of Kenya's greatest storytellers * Financial Times *A visionary writer * Daily Telegraph *In his crowded career and eventful life, Ngugi has enacted, for all to see, the paradigmatic trials and quandaries of a contemporary African writer, caught in sometimes implacable political, social, racial and linguistic currents * New Yorker *

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Book SynopsisThis is the story of a haunted Irish childhood.The setting is Derry in the Northern Ireland of the 40s and 50s, fraught with political hatred, family secrets and lethal intrigue. As a young boy tries to make sense of life, poverty and violence shift and obscure the facts; meanwhile his night-time reading of Irish legends weaves enchantment through reality. Claustrophobic but lyrically charged, breathtakingly sad but vibrant and unforgettable, this is one of the finest books about growing up – in Ireland or anywhere – that has ever been written.See also: The Green Road by Anne EnrightTrade ReviewReading In The Dark is a swift, masterful transformation of family griefs and political violence into something at once rhapsodic and heartbreaking. If Isaac Babel had been born in Derry, he might have written this sudden, brilliant book. * Seamus Heaney *Marvellous...almost impossible to put down -- Blake Morrison * Independent on Sunday *Go into your nearest bookshop and buy Reading In The Dark... A novel that no reader with any concern for their heart or mind should be without -- A. L. Kennedy * Scotsman *A wonderful evocation of childhood; a vibrant, unforgettable fragment that leaves you aching for more -- Robert McCrum * Observer *A profoundly emotive and seamlessly structured exploration of loss and regret. It is also funny and authentic. What more could one ask of a book? -- Antonia Logue * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis'Powerful as [Richard Wright] was - is - as a writer, nobody can surpass him in doing certain kinds of writing... He is courageous - he was able to look into areas that nobody at that time was willing to look at' Toni Morrison Cross Damon is disenchanted. At odds with society, and with himself, his idealism and sense of alienation have driven him to drink and incessant reflection. But when Cross is mistakenly reported to have died, he is suddenly free to put his ideals to the test - and a reign of terror and destruction ensues. A counterpart to Wright's 1940 novel, Native Son, The Outsider is Wright's existential masterpiece. An epic exploration of criminality and oppression its publication established Wright as America's most daring, and damning writers.

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Book Synopsis'Wright's unrelentingly bleak landscape was not merely that of the Deep South, or of Chicago, but that of the world, the human heart' James Baldwin Natural disasters, cold-blooded murders, political agitation - all haunt these dark, dramatic novellas set in an American Deep South still corrupted by its slave-owning past. But at the heart of each are the stories of the men, women and children whose resistance against oppression will come to define their lives. Originally published in 1938, Uncle Tom's Children was Richard Wright's first published work. It would establish his reputation as both a powerful storyteller and a fierce chronicler of racism, violence and oppression in America at the time.

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Book Synopsis'All eight men and all eight stories stand as beautifully, pitifully, terribly true... This is fine, sound, good, honorable writing rich with insight and understanding, even when occasionally twisted by sorrow' New York TimesHunted by the police for a crime he didn't commit, a man turns to the sewers and a life underground. Struggling to get work, another turns to wearing his wife's clothes in a desperate last attempt. Finding himself the object of derision, yet another man buys a gun only to discover its true power. Here are Richard Wright's stories of eight men - black men, living at violent odds with the white world around them. As suspenseful as they are excoriating, they stand alongside Wright's novels as some of the most powerful depictions of black America in the twentieth century.

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Book Synopsis* READ THE NOVEL THAT INSPIRED THE FILM PRECIOUS *This 25th Anniversary Edition includes a new preface from Tayari Jones, and a new afterword by the author. This is the story of Precious Jones, a sixteen year old illiterate black girl who has never been out of Harlem. She is pregnant by her own father for the second time, and kicked out of school. Placed in an alternative teaching programme, she learns to read and write. This is Precious's diary, in which she honestly records her relationships and her life. 'The Color Purple for the nineties' Vogue 'Sapphire's vibrant, unindulgent first novel has you cheering the awesome Precious on until the last page' Mail on Sunday 'Has all the power and vehemence of rap...brutal in its defence of the vulnerable' Independent 'Part wishful prayer, part manifesto, mingling poetry and humour...splendid, turbulent, bracing language...its music takes you over, its story grips... A voice to remember' Scotland on Sunday 'Harrowing yet hilarious... packs a powerful punch' GuardianTrade ReviewAn inspired and inspiring debut, a The Color Purple for the nineties * Vogue *Sapphire's vibrant, unindulgent first novel has you cheering the awesome Precious on until the last page: her voice is true and the book is cool * Mail on Sunday *Harrowing yet hilarious... packs a powerful punch... The powerful writing makes the book a cracking read... a tour de force * Guardian *Unforgettable...a mesmerising and uplifting read... Has all the power and vehemence of rap...brutal in its defence of the vulnerable * Independent *

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Book Synopsis'When I'd slept enough, I'd be okay. I'd be renewed, reborn.' This is the story of a woman with no name. Young, thin, pretty, a recent Columbia graduate, she lives in an apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan paid for, like everything else, by her inheritance. Yet she longs to lose herself completely. It's the year 2000 in a city aglitter with wealth and possibility; what could be so terribly wrong? My Year of Rest and Relaxation is a savagely funny novel of a woman looking out from the abyss.Meet ten of literature's most iconic heroines, jacketed in bold portraits by female photographers from around the world.Trade ReviewMoshfegh's stunning 2018 novel has a haunting ending... [and] relentlessly vicious humour. -- Gwendolyn Smith * i *This razor sharp satirical novel has achieved near mythical status... [a] compelling and clever take on a female character that isn't afraid to speak her mind * Glamour *Ottessa is one of our newest, most dazzling, daring and outrageous voices in literature -- Gwendoline Christie * Vogue *

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Book Synopsis'I'm alive inside. A bird is my heart. Mama and Daddy is not win. I'm winning.'This is the story of Precious, a sixteen-year-old illiterate Black girl who has never been out of Harlem. Pregnant by her own father for the second time, she is kicked out of school and placed in an alternative teaching programme. Through learning to read and write, Precious begins to find her voice, and fight back.Push is the unflinching diary of a girl whose strength and kindness shines amidst extraordinary adversity.Meet ten of literature's most iconic heroines, featuring bold portraits by female photographers from around the world.Trade ReviewAn inspired and inspiring debut, a The Color Purple for the nineties * Vogue *Sapphire's vibrant, unindulgent first novel has you cheering the awesome Precious on until the last page: her voice is true and the book is cool * Mail on Sunday *Harrowing yet hilarious... packs a powerful punch... The powerful writing makes the book a cracking read... a tour de force * Guardian *Unforgettable...a mesmerising and uplifting read... Has all the power and vehemence of rap...brutal in its defence of the vulnerable * Independent *Harrowing yet hilarious...packs a powerful punch... The powerful writing makes the book a cracking read...a tour de force * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisVINTAGE CLASSICS' HARLEM RENAISSANCE SERIES Celebrating the finest works of the Harlem Renaissance, one of the most important Black arts movements in modern history.'Why not? She's just as a good as the rest, and you know what they say, "the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice"'Growing up, Emma Lou Morgan stuck out - her skin was the darkest in every room, even within her own home. With the encouragement of her uncle, Emma flees smalltown Idaho firstly to study in Los Angeles before travelling to Harlem. Though she enjoys the glamour of attending the theatre and the buzz of cabaret, every excursion is tinged with the fear of discrimination. Even in big cities, Emma cannot escape the bigotry of colourism, but can she change how it makes her feel about herself?The Blacker the Berry is an arrestingly vivid portrayal of how very deeply every facet of prejudice runs.'Thurman's novel presents some of the most layered portrayals of New York City life...from seedy employment agency waiting rooms to swank Harlem hot spots' NPRTrade Review'Thurman's novel presents some of the most layered portrayals of New York City life...from seedy employment agency waiting rooms to swank Harlem hot spots' * NPR *

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Book SynopsisVINTAGE CLASSICS' HARLEM RENAISSANCE SERIESCelebrating the finest works of the Harlem Renaissance, one of the most important Black arts movements in modern history.'She could neither conform nor be happy in her unconformity'Nella Larsen wrote two novels in her lifetime, both of which are collected here. The first, Quicksand, follows a mixed-race woman who runs from the fictional town of Naxos to Chicago to Harlem to Copenhagen. It becomes easy for her to leave behind places but the discrimination she's running from is inescapable. In Passing, two childhood friends reconnect later in life. One, slightly more light-skinned than the other, lives her life passing for a white person, married to a flagrant racist while her friend observes uneasily.Masterfully plotted and infinitely illuminating, Quicksand and Passing are two of the finest works of the Harlem Renaissance.'A beloved novel from the Harlem Renaissance that follows the fraught relationship between two childhood friends, one who passes for white and one who chooses not to' Brit Bennett'Absolutely absorbing, fascinating and indispensable' Alice Walker'Buy the book' W. E. B. Du BoisTrade ReviewA beloved novel from the Harlem Renaissance that follows the fraught relationship between two childhood friends, one who passes for white and one who chooses not to -- Brit Bennett'Absolutely absorbing, fascinating and indispensable' -- Alice Walker'Buy the book' W. E. B. Du Bois -- W. E. B. Du Bois

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Book Synopsis***AS HEARD ON BBC RADIO 4's OPEN BOOK***The 'propulsive, haunting' and 'gripping' (Oprah) rediscovered classic that exposes the dark heart of America for an inncocent Black man on the run from the policeFred Daniels, a black man, is randomly picked up by the police after a brutal murder in a Chicago suburb. Taken to the local precinct, he is tortured -- until he confesses to a crime he didn't commit.But when he sees his chance, Fred Daniels, makes a run for it. With the world now against him, there is only one place left to hide: Underground. Taking residence in the sewers below the streets of Chicago, Fred's new vantage point takes him on a journey through America's unjust, and inhumane underbelly.PRAISE FOR THE MAN WHO LIVED UNDERGROUND'Propulsive, haunting...gripping' Oprah Daily'A tale for today' New York Times'Absolutely not to be missed' BookRiot'A masterpiece' Time 'Wright's most brilliantly crafted, and ominously foretelling, book.' Kiese LaymonThe Man Who Lived Underground was a New York Times Bestseller on 24/04/2022Trade ReviewThe Man Who Lived Underground is a masterpiece * Time Magazine *Moves continuously forward with its masterful blend of action and reflection, a kind of philosophy on the run... Whether or not The Man Who Lived Underground is Wright's single finest work, it must be counted among his most significant * Wall Street Journal *Not just Wright's masterwork, but also a milestone in African American literature... The Man Who Lived Underground is one of those indispensable works that reminds all its readers that, whether we are in the flow of life or somehow separated from it, above- or belowground, we are all human * CNN *Propulsive, haunting... The graphic, gripping book ends with a revealing companion essay that further explains the themes of this searing novel * Oprah Daily *The Man Who Lived Underground reminds us that any 'greatest writers of the 20th century' list that doesn't start and end with Richard Wright is laughable. It might very well be Wright's most brilliantly crafted, and ominously foretelling, book -- Kiese LaymonA tale for today... [Wright's] restored novel feels wearily descriptive of far too many moments in contemporary America * New York Times *This is a significant work of literary fiction from a legendary author that's absolutely not to be missed * Book Riot *

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Book SynopsisA beautiful hardback edition of the hilarious, dark, ingenious novel that changed the face of British fiction.Choose us. Choose life. Choose mortgage payments; choose washing machines; choose cars; choose sitting oan a couch watching mind-numbing and spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing fuckin junk food intae yir mooth. Choose rotting away, pishing and shiteing yersel in a home, a total fuckin embarrassment tae the selfish, fucked-up brats ye've produced.Choose life.'The best book ever written by man or woman... Deserves to sell more copies than the Bible' Rebel Inc'Welsh writes with a skill, wit and compassion that amounts to genius' Sunday TimesVINTAGE QUARTERBOUND CLASSICS: Bound to be beautifulTrade ReviewAbhorrently dark and raw to the core, Trainspotting is an insight into one of life’s many ugly personalities — addiction and the accompanying domino effect of grim inevitabilities… Irvine Welsh’s novel will always be a cult classic.—Tori Chalmers, Culture TripWelsh’s skill as a storyteller is undeniable, bringing both wit and compassion to a grim subject matter. If you liked Danny Boyle’s film adaptation, you’ll love the original.—Maddy Searle, iThe voice of punk, grown up, grown wiser and grown eloquent—Sunday TimesThe best book ever written by man or woman... Deserves to sell more copies than the bible—Rebel IncWelsh writes with a skill, wit and compassion that amounts to genius. He is the best thing that has happened to British writing for decades—Sunday Times

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Book Synopsis''Packed with heart and suspense; I absolutely loved it'' Jenny AshcroftThings aren''t always as they seem... A small town can be a refuge, but while its secrets are held, it''s hard to know who to trust and what to believe.The Teacher''s Secret is a tender and compelling story of scandal, rumor and dislocation, and the search for grace and dignity in the midst of dishonor and humiliation. Suzanne Leal draws us into a public school in the intimate town of Brindle, Australia in which vice principal Terry comes to generational loggerheads with stand-in principal Laurie concerning teachers and their treatment of their pupils. Told over four semesters, this conflict will slowly change their lives.Perfect for fans of The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas, Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty and A Song for Issy Bradley by Carys BrayWhat Reviewers and Readers Say:''Delicately woven a big-hearted book,'' Joanne FedlerElegantly structured, unsettling, yet with moments of surprising wit,' Kathryn HeymanMasterfully constructed, this moving novel warns us of our capacity to make or break the lives of those around us Drawn with wit and clear-eyed affection, the inhabitants of this wonderful novel will remain with you long after you have put it down.' Mark LamprellA rich interweaving of beautifully drawn characters told so gently and in such exquisite detail that they grew on me until I was lost in their world.' Robin de Crespigny''The Teacher's Secret is a gutsy yet intricate examination of one of society's nightmares, filled with strong characters and relationships interwoven in a storyline that has the reader engrossed to the last page,' Robert WainwrightSuzanne Leal writes with her hand on her heart, writing according to its beat translating the ordinary into the extraordinary. An Australian talent, universally understood.' Charles WaterstreetSuspenseful, moving and full of heart. I couldn't put it down.' Richard GloverAn eloquent story of a life thrown into disarray; it drew me in and held me, page after page.' Rachel SeiffertSuzanne Leal is a writer of unusual sensitivity, with a rare ability to shed light on the dark tangle of emotional attachments which lies just below the surface of everyday life.' John Colle''What a great read! I could not put it down. I can imagine this book being talked about and passed around from teacher to teacher in the school staff room and from parent to parent in the school car park ...'' Schooldays Magazine

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Book SynopsisAn empowering, thought-provoking feminist novel that will change the way you see the world. Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Day, Claire Fuller and Joanna Cannon.1968. Veronica Moon, a junior photographer for a local newspaper, is frustrated by her (male) colleagues' failure to take her seriously. And then she meets Leonie on the picket line of the Ford factory at Dagenham. So begins a tumultuous, passionate and intoxicating friendship. Leonie is ahead of her time and fighting for women's equality with everything she has. She offers Veronica an exciting, free life at the dawn of a great change.Fifty years later, Leonie is gone, and Veronica leads a reclusive life. Her groundbreaking career was cut short by one of the most famous photographs of the twentieth century.Now, that controversial picture hangs as the centrepiece of a new feminist exhibition curated by Leonie's niece. Long-repressed memories of Veronica's extraordinary life begin to stir. It's time to break her silence, and step back into the light.Praise for The Woman in the Photograph:'Imaginative and moving novel - a must-read for any feminist'Katie Fforde'I absolutely loved The Woman in the Photograph, a compelling,original and thought-provoking look at feminism and the power of female friendships'Sarah Franklin'What a glorious combination: Stephanie's warm intelligence brought to bear on the complexities of second-wave feminism. I ate the book up'Shelley Harris'Refreshing and thought-provoking . . . a stirring exploration of female friendship and the fight for equality'Carys Bray'Brilliantly researched, thought-provoking, and written straight from the heart, this is undoubtedly Butland's best book yet'Lancashire Evening PostTrade ReviewThe Woman in the Photograph is a powerful and empowering appeal to women to trumpet their achievements, and to keep on calling out sexism and inequality, in a modern world that has probably not changed as much as those second wave Women's Libbers had hoped for . . . Brilliantly researched, thought-provoking, and written straight from the heart, this is undoubtedly Butland's best book yet * Lancashire Evening Post, on The Woman in the Photograph *One of the best books of the summer . . . A fantastic read! * Jo Good, BBC Radio London, on The Woman in the Photograph *This is an imaginative and moving novel - a must-read for any feminist. It taught me so much * Katie Fforde, on The Woman in the Photograph *The Woman in the Photograph is an absorbing meditation on friendship and feminism, bringing the women at the heart of the story so clearly into focus that their struggles feel urgent and compelling, as well as acknowledging that we can measure the slow march of justice and equality by extraordinary moments in ordinary lives as much as by the milestones selected by the history books * Sara Collins, on The Woman in the Photograph *Refreshing and thought-provoking . . . a stirring exploration of female friendship and the fight for equality. * Carys Bray, on The Woman in the Photograph *What a glorious combination: Stephanie's warm intelligence brought to bear on the complexities of second-wave feminism. I ate the book up. It was especially great to see those iconic moments in civil rights history through Stephanie's lens - it brought back so many memories for me. What else? I loved Vee from the start, and found her development utterly believable and compelling. And the book contains one of the best father-daughter relationships I've read * Shelley Harris, on The Woman in the Photograph *I absolutely loved The Woman in the Photograph, a compelling, original and thought-provoking look at feminism and the power of female friendships * Sarah Franklin, on The Woman in the Photograph *Loveday is a marvellous character and she captured my heart from the very first page . . . and her bookshop is the bookshop of readers' dreams. * Julie Cohen, bestselling author of Dear Thing, on Lost for Words *It is such a beautiful read and Loveday's voice is so compelling . . . an exquisite story that I couldn't put down. * Liz Fenwick on Lost for Words *Burns fiercely with love and hurt. A quirky, rare and beautiful novel, one you'd be delighted to unearth in any bookshop. And Loveday Cardew is a character who leaps from the pages into our hearts. * Linda Green, bestselling author of While My Eyes Were Closed, on Lost for Words *I loved it so much, I couldn't put it down. I wish I hadn't read it so quickly, really, then I'd still have it to read! It felt completely authentic and was really interesting as well as moving, funny and romantic. I also want to take up tango. Utterly engaging from the first line to the last . . . impossible to put down * Katie Fforde, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *Loveday is an incredible character.Oh, the w riting . . .Vibrant, vivid, sometimes visceral;Engaging, funny, searing.Dares to mix prose and poetry seamlessly.Archie had me head-over-heels in love.You can't help but hurt w hen it's over * Helena Sheffield, author of The Art of Wearing Hats, on Lost for Words *I loved it! Spent all day today engrossed in Loveday . . . a superbly drawn character. * Alex Gray, bestselling author of The Darkest Goodbye, on Lost for Words *I very quickly fell in love with the protagonist, Loveday Cardew . . . This is a story about hurt and self-preservation but above all else love . . . * Boofs Books on Lost for Words *Utterly wonderful . . . quirky, heart-warming and emotional . . . loved it!! * Liz Fenwick, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *A funny, heart-wrenching and life-affirming story that's brave and beautifully written. And made me want to dance the tango. Bravo! * Zoë Folbigg, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *It completely knocked my socks off - I devoured it in a single sitting! Wow. Just wow * Claudia Carroll, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *If you loved Lost for Words you'll be pleased to know that Ailsa Rae is exactly as warm-hearted and compassionate as you'd expect * Carys Bray, on THE CURIOUS HEART OF AILSA RAE *I loved it so much . . . the thing that most struck me was the sheer human-ness of that moment after the crisis . . . It rang incredibly true * Shelley Harris, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *A lovely, heartbreaking story of given second chances. Her characters are so vulnerable, so unsure of themselves and at the same time so lovable. I love this unusual story * Bookseller reviewer, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *Loveday is a compelling character, you love her in the way you love a cat who always scratches but you love it anyway . . . this book is quirky, clever and unputdownable. I really enjoyed it. * Katie Fforde on Lost for Words *Loveday is so spiky and likeable. I so loved Archie, Nathan and the book shop and the unfolding mystery * Carys Bray, author of A Song For Issy Bradley and The Museum of You, on Lost for Words *Beautifully written and atmospheric. Loveday is an endearing heroine, full of attitude and fragility. The haunting story of her past is brilliantly revealed. * Tracy Rees, Sunday Times top ten bestselling author of Amy Snow, on Lost for Words *What an absolute stunner of a book. I LOVED it and cried like a motherf***er. If you care about books (or humans) read it! * Shelley Harris, author of Jubilee, on Lost for Words *A beautiful, touching, moving, sweet treat of a book. Sad, intriguing, cleverly plotted, sometimes shocking, compelling read. I was with Loveday all the way. I absolutely loved it * Jane Wenham-Jones, author of Prime Time, on Lost for Words *I just finished. I can totally see why you fell in love with it. What a unique, beautiful novel that cleverly builds to a heart-stopping climax. Any book lovers out there would be mad not to adore the quirkily drawn character of Loveday who pulls you in right from the get go with her distinctive voice! * Tracy Buchanan, number one bestselling author of My Sister' s Secret, The Atlas Of Us and No Turning Back, on Lost for Words *I enjoyed Lost For Words; I found it readable, humane and rather perceptive . . . it's so well done that it felt very fresh and involving to me. Loveday's narrative voice is authentic and very engaging . . . it is intelligent and thoughtful and almost entirely without implausible sentimentality. There is a distinct whiff of a Richard Curtis film about the plot . . . I found it genuinely funny in places and very touching in others . . . an engaging and quite gripping read which I can recommend. * Sid's Book Reviews on Lost for Words *Wonderful. So many beautiful one-liners too! * Ayisha Malik, author of Sofia Khan is Not Obliged, on Lost for Words *Oh poor, brilliant Loveday. Gorgeous, gorgeous bookshop book . . . So, so lovely! * Sarah Franklin, author of Shelter and Costa Book Awards judge, on Lost for Words *Love at first word! Fascinating. Truly fascinating and spectacular * Articles and More on Lost for Words *A wonderful read for a holiday or weekend. It's a great, immersive read with a big heart. What more could you want? * Hannah Bullimore on Lost for Words *'This is the perfect read for any bookworm . . . The story is warm, effortless, and comfortable. Most of all, it was lovely to be able to connect to a character that felt exactly the same way about books as you do . . . Read this book. Even if you think this 'might not be your thing' like I did, give it a chance. You might just have found your new favourite book' * A Literary Mind on Lost for Words *I loved so many things about this book. It is narrated by the most appealing heroine named Loveday. Loveday is a fantastic character, defensive and spirited . . . a brilliant story about surviving, and full of hope. I loved this author's way with words and her astute observations. It is surprising, affecting and beautifully finished but the main thing is that it is brilliant and I suspect my voice will be one of many shouting about how good it is. * Kitty Loves Books on Lost for Words *A beautiful book * Prima magazine on Lost for Words *Lost for Words is a book I adored. It's full of warmth with wonderful characters and it's full of the magic and power of books. If you love books set in bookshops, you'll love it. If you love books about damaged people learning to love again, you'll love it. If you love books with quirky characters, you'll love it. In fact, if you love any beautifully written story, you'll love Lost For Words! * Portobello Book Blog on Lost for Words *Fierce, tender, quirky, well-written - Lost for Words is all this and more. There's much to love in this book, but what really makes it stand out is its appeal for readers who don't just read books but adore them: the bookstagrammers, the paperback hoarders, the page sniffers. * The Book Specialist on Lost for Words *I could gush for hours about Lost For Words; the setting, the characters, the quite dark and disturbing themes . . . I'd just like everyone to go out and buy a copy and savour it and love it as much as I did. I expect most people will shed a tear or two, and I know that there will be laughs and gasps along the way too. This really is a poignant and beautiful story, told by an author who can captivate an audience so easily. Wonderful. Highly recommended from me. * Random Things Through My Letterbox on Lost for Words *Oh how I adored this book. I loved everything about it. The only thing wrong with it was that I could have read another 100 pages. This is a novel that is an ode to the written word, to the beauty of poetry and the solace that books can provide. But it is not just a celebration of books. It is a novel about how our history shapes us, but doesn't have to define us. It is a novel about love, in its many guises, of friendship and of how we can always re-write our own story. Simply beautiful. * From First Page To Last, on Lost for Words *I truly liked Loveday, Nathan and Archie. I wanted to unwrap Loveday's past and find out what keeps her so guarded and untrusting. A wonderful, heartfelt story that pulls on your heart strings and leaves you bereft when finishing it. I could have read on after the book finished, I'm still hungry for more. * Lip Squid Book Blog, on Lost for Words *LOST FOR WORDS by Stephanie Butland is such a heartbreaking story...the author perfectly portrays the significance that a book can play in someone's life - the memories they invoke, the connection they can make with the reader, the emotions, the dreams, just everything...a must read for fiction fans everywhere, but especially for those who find books their connection to the world. A beautiful, all-consuming read! * Books of All Kinds, on Lost for Words *And oh, how I absolutely loved it. I was completely drawn in from the beginning, loosing track of what was going on around me and completely involved in Loveday's story. Seriously, I can't remember the last time I cared for a fictional character as much as I did this one. It made me laugh and cry, it's both heartbreaking and heartwarming, and it's sad yet filled with hope. And I guarantee you will fall in love with Loveday Cardew too. * Cosy Books, on Lost for Words *this is a story with a mystery at its heart, that deals with some hard-hitting subjects... heartwarming and heartbreaking in equal measure with more than one heart stopping moment. I have no hesitation in recommending this book, it is quite simply brilliant. * Jill's Book Cafe, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *Lost For Words is that rare thing . . . a warm, wise and funny tale of our times with a dark and shocking twist . . . truly is a book lover's dream . . . an intriguing story set in an irresistibly charming bookshop, packed with literary references, featuring a cast of eclectic characters and with a gripping and unexpected dénouement guaranteed to keep readers on the edge of their seats. * Lancashire Evening Post, on Lost for Words *Intriguing and touching story * Sunday Express, S Magazine, on Lost for Words *an easy, breezy read... Loveday is an appealing character with a fascinating hinterland. * Daily Mail, on Lost for Words *I enjoyed reading this story. The premise is a good one, the ending was heartfelt and I loved the poetry included as part of what helps brings two people together in this story. * Layered Pages, on Lost for Words *Yes, I really loved everything about this novel and it's one of my favourite releases of 2017 so far. All in all, 'Lost for Words' is a compelling and lovely read that will warm your heart and leave you with a smile on your face. If you love books about book shops, then definitely do not miss out on this one! * A Spoonful of Happy Endings, on Lost for Words *I'm just going to go ahead and say, if you love books, read this one. Seriously it's beautiful and sweet and comforting and heartbreaking. * Is this Real Life, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *BOOK OF THE MONTH: Loveday Cardew is a quirky, fiery, likeable character who works at the Lost for Words Bookshop in York. Preferring books to people, she keeps the memories of her painful childhood to herself, hiding her scars deep within her. Warm and spiky, beautifully written and plotted, you'll be swept along by the bitter-sweet storyline to the very end. * Candis Magazine, on Lost for Words *Oh, wow. Just...wow... Butland has created such an unforgettable character...To create ONE storyline full of endless emotions, good memories and bad memories, multiple layered characters, AND an exceptional plot and setting, is just...mind-blowing. Stephanie Butland's outstanding writing style is what makes this storyline stand out from the rest, alongside her beautiful creation that is; Loveday. Poignant, heart warming, and totally unforgettable; 'Lost for Words' is the soul-searching, exceptional novel that I have been waiting for. * The Writing Garnet, on Lost for Words *If you like something more than just romance in your chick-lit then maybe Loveday's story is one for you. * Shhh we're reading *There was so much more to this story than I was expecting and I loved how it took me as a reader on a roller-coaster of emotions - I may have shed a few tears! The supporting cast of characters are also beautifully created and add so much to the story of Loveday and it captured my heart as I followed her story. * Books and Me *I have a fatal weakness for books set in bookshops and whimsical heroines for Lost For Words pushes all my bookish buttons. Loveday Cardew infinitely prefers books to people; she works in a second-hand bookshop called Lost For Words and has her favourite lines from her favourite novels tattooed on her skin. But then mysterious packages begin to arrive for Loveday, each one containing a book that stirs up unsettling memories for her, especially as someone seems to know the secret that Loveday has been hiding for so many years. * Red Magazine on Lost for Words *I found myself faced with the question of how much you can hold a mentally ill person accountable for their violent tendencies, and how do you measure whether its their illness or just their evil? If you're looking for a light read with a dark twist I'd recommend Lost for Words. It was a comfort read for me, especially because of the familiarity that comes from a bookish protagonist. * Sumaiyya Reads on Lost for Words *The past is handled so very well, and makes the present scenes very understandable and real. As I said, by the time I got to the last few chapters I was invested enough to be teary about it all * Little Frog Scribbles on Lost for Words *'As soon as I read the first few pages though I realized that this book was something special. In fact, I would say it is a book lover's dream, with endless references to all our favorite books, charming and really interesting characters and the perfect setting, a bookshop full of rarities, surprises and secrets... All in all, I cannot recommend this story enough. It had been a while since I had felt so involved in a story like this one. It is inspiring but heat-breaking, a real gem of a book that I have no doubt will be on my top ten books of the year.' * Alba In Bookland *My favorite thing about Lost for Words was how powerful some scenes were... This book is not a fast read, but then again neither is one of my favorite books of all time...Not all books have to be, when the author can find the right pace and divulge the inner workings of their characters in the proper moment. * The Hermit Librarian *This is the second novel I've read by Stephanie Butland and she is fast becoming one of my favourites. Her characters are so raw and real you become truly engrossed in them. I love that chance to really fall into a novel and become the character. * Life Has A Funny Way *A book that contrives to be both a serious and empathetic story about Ailsa and her life-defining illness, but at the same time is an uplifting and humorous tale of her struggles as both a blue and a pink heart * The Bouncing Tigger Reviews *an enjoyable, easy to read, good story. I hope when you finish it the first thing you do is google the organ donation register * The Bookbag *warm writing and wonderful characterisation * From First Page To Last *An emotive and joyous read. It is such a beautiful book. A bold story that is gently told * Brew and Books Review *Such an open and inspiring story * Emma's Chapter *Brave, intuitive, incredibly grounded and funny... A clever book that is unputdownable * Candis Magazine *Sensitive and thought provoking, but at the same time rather quirky - it's a well researched story about life, death, grief, hope and love * Gem's Quiet Corner *A warm-hearted story (and yes, I do use that phrase intentionally), funny at times and always feels very grounded in reality. It is a hopeful yet frank look at learning to live with new expectations * Portobello Book Blog *Stephanie Butland really seems to have a talent for creating seemingly tough characters with soft centres * Elementary Watson *Warm, funny and well-researched * Culturefly *Given that a large chunk of the plot and emotional development is around medical conditions, transplants, and dying or not-dying, Butland has written a book that is thoughtful, humorous, and whatever the opposite of maudlin is * Sunshine and Readbows *The novel and its key protagonist displayed a refreshing perspective on life as the reader encounters Ailsa Rae's new start in life as she learns to live again and live her life to the fullest * Sarah Kettleborough *WOULD I RECOMMEND? Yes, for its humour, insight into the life of someone dealing with chronic illness and beyond as well as its delightful characters. This is one of those books I want a physical copy of for my bookshelf so I can indulge again in the future * Duvet Dwellers Books *I really enjoyed how this book didn't sugar coat things and didn't get over emotional with the issues that faced the character and just dealt with things with warmth and humour. It's a book about being braver and following your heart - even if that heart isn't yours! * Books and Me *It has touched me in a way that I didn't expect * The Readathon *This is a book that I will be recommending to everyone. It's been a while since I've read a book that's made me feel this much. It's simply fantastic and it has everything I look for in a contemporary novel. It's addictive, touching and brilliantly written. Have I just found a new favourite book? I think so. It's definitely in my top ten reads of 2018 so far (out of 25 books, and yes it's only April but I'm certain it will still be in my top ten by the end of the year!) * Janay Brazier *The relationships in this book are just wonderful. I loved the introduction of the tango, its passion and the moments it led to - and the focus on Romeo and Juliet was just wonderful, and rather inspired. And I really loved the book's ending - I felt I was watching the characters walk into their future, knew I had to leave them, and wanted to wish them well. A beautiful, uplifting read that I really enjoyed * Being Anne *Fun, warm-hearted, touching story. The main character Ailsa Rae will endear the reader with her honesty and bravery as she starts to truly live her life after a heart transplant. This book reminded me of one of my favourite movies, Return To Me, with a hint of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, and a twist of The Fault In Our Stars. You'll be entertained from the very first page. If you're looking for a feel good book, with likeable characters and a heart-warming story of second chances and a change of heart (no pun intended) this book won't disappoint * Ramblings of a Red Headed Snippet *Beautifully written, this will touch even the hardest - and healthiest - of hearts. I really can't find anything to criticise and I know this is one of those books which is going to stay with me. It's a very special read, and one which I'm happy to recommend. There is so much positivity in this one, I suspect it will do more to get people to sign up to the donor register than any media campaign. And, just as importantly it will make you want to get out there and live your life! * Reviewer Lady *I found this a moving and thought-provoking story of a girl coping with an enormous change in her life, told with a fair amount of humour that balances out the serious nature of the topic....It does bring home the message that organ donation is an important choice for us all and that having a transplant is not the end of the journey. * Fabulous Book Fiend *Brimming with hope, drama, friendship, love, and new beginnings and I read this book from cover to cover in one evening. This book is stunning and special and everyone should read it as soon as possible * Books of All Kinds *a story which is full of warmth, sensitivity and humour * Nudge Books *Butland's delightfully quirky novel delivers on many levels. A fascinating and informative medical drama, relayed with the help of an entertaining flow of public blogs and private emails, The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae is also a warm and witty romance, a tender and uplifting tale of hope, and a gentle but persuasive reminder of the critical importance of organ donation * Lancashire Evening Post *An engaging read with a relatable and realistic heroine * The Lady *A fascinating story that will make you appreciate the little things in life that we all take for granted * Chaz Bookworm *The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae is a cleverly crafted story, it's uplifting, often funny, sometimes very emotional, but most of all it is a sensitive and charming story that deals with some serious issues. Heart-warming, and a lovely read * Random Things Through My Letterbox *Really clever and heartfelt . . . I loved Seb, a flawed hero but a hero nonetheless * Claire Dyer *This is a heartwarming and uplifting book, though don't be fooled, it has it's darker moments. But then that's life, a balance of light and shade, but happily the book is definitely running towards the light * Jill's Book Cafe *This book left me tingling in a way that only happens when I know I've just read something special. The Curious Heart Of Ailsa Rae is a beautiful (I don't want to say heartwarming, given the nature of the beast), wonderfully written, touching journey...I'm predicting big things for this book - if the film rights haven't been bought yet I think someone will snap them up very soon * After The Rain *An enchanting read that will make you shed tears of sadness and joy in equal measure * Woman's Own, on the previous work of Stephanie Butland *A well-researched and uplifting tale of friendships and victory. * Candis *Stephanie Butland has created an important and powerful novel. Well-researched and cleverly combining history with a deeply moving and poignant story of so many dimensions, this is a book that will stay in your mind long after you finish reading it. Highly Recommended! * Hot Brands, Cool Places *Beautifully written, it draws you into the period from the first page. Such evocative writing and careful attention to detail really brought the 1970s to life. * Frost Magazine *A fascinating window on the women's movement, in a touching emotional tale. * Sunday Mirror *

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Book Synopsis‘Beatty insistently finds poetry in the projects, dignity on the street.’ Guardian ‘Beatty’s blunt, impious, streetwise eloquence [is] transfixing’ New York Times ‘The writing here is seamless and teeming with momentum’ New York Times Book Review Winston ‘Tuffy’ Foshay is a 19-year-old, 24-stone ‘player-king’ to a hapless gang in Spanish Harlem, a denizen who breaks jaws and shoots dogs. His best friend is a disabled Muslim man who wants to rob banks, his guiding light is an ex-hippie Asian woman who worked for Malcolm X, and his wife he married over the phone whilst in jail. When the frustrated Tuffy agrees to run for City Council, so begins a zany, riotous concoction of nonstop hip-hop chatter and brilliant mainstream social satire, as the indomitable Beatty again demonstrates why he is hailed as one of the shrewdest cultural commentators and hilarious cutups of his generation.Trade Review‘If there really were a hip-hop nation, Paul Beatty would be its poet laureate.’ * Vibe *An extravagant, satirical cri de coeur from the inner city.... Tuff is a funny book, and Mr. Beatty’s blunt, impious, streetwise eloquence has a...transfixing power.’ * New York Times *

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Book Synopsis"A furious, fun, action-packed superhero story" - Broken FrontierThe beloved UK superheroine finally pounces into her own collection! From the pages of classic 1960s girls' comic Sally comes the first ever collection of beloved British superheroine The Cat Girl! Cathy Carter is not your average teen. She can jump further, fight longer and climb higher than anyone she knows – with the aid of a magic suit, she is Cat Girl! Facing off in glamorous, globetrotting adventures against supervillains and master criminals, Cathy often finds the hardest fight comes from her bumbling detective father, who doesn’t believe Cathy can fend for herself. Can Cathy save the world when the person trying to hold her back – is her dad? This collection contains Cat Girl's latest adventure, Cat Girl Returns from the Tammy & Jinty special, as well as a purrfect selection of the best classic Cat Girl stories from Sally, and a brand new cover from Elkys Nova. Trade Review"A furious, fun, action-packed superhero story" - Broken Frontier"Wildly entertaining" - Comicbooknews.co.uk

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Book Synopsis"Action and adventure across the dimensions" - Comicon.com Tech Whizz Cadet Afua is the newest intern at Mega-City One's Department K. A team made up of geeks, robots and misfits, their job is to protect our dimension at all costs! For beyond the fabric of reality lies a multitude of multiverses and monsters, determined to reach our world. But when a routine mission goes wrong, Afua and her new team become stranded in a different dimension. If Afua is to survive - let alone pass - this internship, she'll have to find her way home from the furthest corners of the multiverse.Trade Review"Action and adventure across the dimensions" - Comicon.com

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Book SynopsisIn The Son Johnny Alpha is assigned to mentor Kenton Sternhammer, one of the new recruits to the ranks of the Strontium Dogs. Johnny knows that Kenton Sternhammer is his old partner Wulf’s offspring and while Kenton understandably wants to follow in his father's footsteps, Johnny is reluctant to allow it, knowing the fate that has befallen many a Strontium Dog, including Wulf, a death which still eats away at Johnny's conscience. This brand-new collection showcases all-time comics legend Carlos Ezquerra's final work on the character he co-created for Starlord in 1978, drawn before his death in 2018.

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Book SynopsisThe Nguyen family are nursing deep wounds and secrets. Escaping war-torn Vietnam has left scars that no one is willing to talk about. As the family gradually integrates into their new life in Britain, the youngest daughter Mai turns to photography, her camera becoming a conduit through which she navigates her dual identity as a second generation immigrant and chronicles her community's experiences.

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Book SynopsisJade isn't even my real name. Jade began as my Starbucks name, because all children of immigrants have a Starbucks name.'A raw, compulsive and nuanced novel' i newspaper‘Ela Lee is a remarkable new voice in fiction ... JADED made me laugh, cry and really bloody furious’ Stacey Halls, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Familiars'One of 2024's hottest reads' Sunday Times'Authentic' Daily Mail------------------ Jade has become everything she ever wanted to be. Successful lawyer. Dutiful daughter. Beloved girlfriend. Loyal friend. Until one night after a work event she suffers an unspeakable attack. As she tries to confront what happened to her, she finds herself caught between her parents who can’t understand, her boyfriend who feels betrayed, and her job that expects silence. The world Jade has constructed starts to crumble. This raw, darkly funny novel explores the ‘grey-area’ of consent and recovery that’s far from linear, and will leave you asking yourself: what would you have done in Jade’s situation?'JADED is a thoughtful, hard-hitting exploration of race, identity, and the rippling effects of sexual assault. Ela Lee writes with an urgency and clarity that will have you hooked until the last page.' Cecile Pin, Women's Prize longlisted author of Wandering Souls 'This raw, dark novel explores racism, class and sexism and you'll want to savour every word on every page' Refinery 29'Moving' CosmoContent warning: this novel features themes of sexual assault and violence. Trade ReviewEla Lee is a remarkable new voice in fiction. I tore through JADED – it made me laugh, cry and really bloody furious * Stacey Halls *JADED is a thoughtful, hard-hitting exploration of race, identity, and the rippling effects of sexual assault. Ela Lee writes with an urgency and clarity that will have you hooked until the last page. * Cecile Pin, author of WANDERING SOULS *A raw, compulsive and nuanced novel about identity, race and consent * i *One of 2024's hottest reads * Sunday Times *This raw, dark novel explores racism, class and sexism and you'll want to savour every word on every page * Refinery 29 *

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Book SynopsisShe felt their eyes, all those executioners...Enter a world where, watched by millions, prisoners fight like gladiators for the ultimate prize: their freedom.SHORTLISTED FOR THE WATERSTONES DEBUT FICTION PRIZE 2023SHORTLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD 2023'The new maestro of dystopian lit has arrived' WIRED'America's new Hunger Games' SUNDAY TIMES'Criminally entertaining'GUARDIANWelcome to Chain-Gang All-Stars, the popular and highly controversial programme inside America's private prison system. In packed arenas, live-streamed by millions, prisoners compete as gladiators for the ultimate prize: their freedom.Fan favourites Loretta Thurwar and Hamara 'Hurricane Staxxx' Stacker are teammates and lovers. Thurwar is nearing the end of her time on the circuit, free in just a few matches, a fact she carries as heavily as her lethal hammer. As she prepares for her final encounters, as protestors gather at the gates, and as the programme's corporate owners stack the odds against her - will the price be simply too high?A FINANCIAL TIMES BEST BOOK OF 2023'A pure fire page turner' MAX PORTER'Electrifying' GEORGE SAUNDERSREADERS CAN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT THE BOOK OF 2023:'I've waited my whole life for a sapphic Hunger Games!''An explosive page-turner that's also a chilling social commentary.''This novel is alive and glorious. Give it all the awards.''Had me cheering and weeping, unable to tear my eyes from the page.''A masterpiece that packs a mighty punch.'Trade ReviewSo good. Brutal subject matter, beautiful writing. This one is from the heart. -- Stephen KingAn exuberant circus of a novel, action-packed and expansive...fuelled by a sense of thrilling, righteous rage. -- Xan Brooks * Guardian *Magnificent. A radical interrogation of incarceration, racism, entertainment, the whole fabric of American injustice, as well as a pure fire page turner. -- Max Porter, author of SHYNana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah is one of the most exciting young writers in America. His work is urgent, engaging, wildly entertaining, formally bold and politically electrifying. Read one page, any page, and you'll see what I mean. -- George Saunders, author of LINCOLN IN THE BARDOA rumbustious satire of the criminal justice system, a book that is far more entertaining than an attempt to convince its readers of the case for prison abolition has any right to be. -- David Shariatmadari * Guardian *Adjei-Brenyah is clearly a writer of substance, with something to say. * Observer *Adjei-Brenyeh's sentences are nimble, his chapters brisk yet full of brio. He knows what he's doing, and it's this innate authority that makes Chain-Gang All-Stars so compelling - right up to the final, fatal blow * Sunday Telegraph *Adjei-Brenyah's piercing satirical takedown on the current state of the US penal system is grimly funny, epically violent and - at times - surprisingly tender. Quite the ride. * Marie Claire *We simply couldn't put it down... enthralling and engaging -- Leanne Fridd * The Times, * Bookseller Summer Reads of 2023* *Brutal, thrilling, devastating and beautiful -- Amanda Truman * The Times, *Bookseller Summer Reads of 2023* *Compelling... The range of different narrators provides a smart 360-degree perspective of the too-familiar society that demands murder for entertainment * SFX *The new maestro of dystopian lit has arrived. * Wired *While physical imprisonment - its degradations, its inefficacy - is central to this fantastically confident, nimble, entertaining and impassioned novel, Adjei-Brenyah is alert to more metaphorical and conceptual manifestations of incarceration, too. He ultimately asks us to reassess our tired, harmful thinking about what prison is really for. He demands that we imagine something better. -- Michael Donkor * TLS *A hugely imaginative read - the world-building is masterful - while also making a powerful point about incarceration in America today...Unmissable. * Independent *An incredible feat - Adjei-Brenyah has created a completely built world that is rooted in reality, but also allows the imagination to expand on the silences and fallacies of a country hell-bent on glamorising the cruel practice of incarceration. -- Leila Mottley, author of NIGHTCRAWLINGA defiant, awe-inspiring novel that will be read, studied and celebrated for generations, Chain-Gang All-Stars leads with love. Readers will be forever changed by this book. -- Jessamine Chan, author of THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD MOTHERSTerrific. A blistering exploration of a near future world that feels by turns bonkers and achingly prescient. -- Irenosen Okojie, author of NUDIBRANCHLike Orwell's 1984 and Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Adjei-Brenyah's book presents a dystopian vision so upsetting and illuminating that it should permanently shift our understanding of who we are and what we're capable of doing... So raw and tragic and primal is Chain-Gang All-Stars that despite its futuristic elements, it has the patina of some timeworn epic...Shockingly intimate and moving. * Washington Post *You cannot applaud Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah's debut novel without getting blood on your hands... [Adjei-Brenyah] fills the characters' inner lives to the brim... The society in which they live defines them by their worst deeds, but the writer of this novel refuses to. * New York Times Book Review *Deservedly acclaimed, Adjei-Brenyah is as commanding a storyteller as he is a world-builder. * Daily Mail *Vividly imaginative and startling in its clarity of intent...A sort of The Hunger Games meets Gladiator meets WWE meets the modern private prison system. * Elle *Adjei-Brenyah may have the buzziest book of the year . . . A ferocious attack on America's for-profit prison systems. * Goodreads' Most Anticipated Books of 2023 *Beautiful and brutal, with a really furious social commentary underpinning it. -- Bea Carvalho * Independent, debut authors for 2023 *Chain-Gang All-Stars surpasses all expectations...Adjei-Brenyah's acerbic vision lands like a lightning bolt of truth. * Esquire *Chain-Gang All-Stars should pique your interest if titles like Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower and Atwood's Handmaid's Tale are more your vibe. * The Week *Makes explicit how the spirit erodes as the body becomes currency. Adjei-Brenyah writes sharply about the economy of spectacle and the fickle alchemy between futility and hope. -- Raven Leilani, author of LUSTERTold with bold, muscular prose, this book is filled with surprising tenderness. As big as it is dazzling. It's just wild how good and original this book is. A revelation! -- Tommy Orange, author of THERE THEREThis book will change you!...A masterpiece. * The Today Show’s #ReadWithJenna *Adjei-Brenyah is...[an] acclaimed master of our futuristic nightmares...a keen observer of racial and socioeconomic disparities that result in a high number of Black people incarcerated. While this is set in the future, it feels uncomfortably close to the present. * Oprah Daily *A brutal, heart-wrenching story that feels so close to reality...A tale of survival and resistance in an unfair prison system. * Cosmopolitan *[A] blazing debut novel...A damning indictment of mass incarceration, systemic racism, and the grotesqueries of unfettered American capitalism, Chain-Gang All-Stars is also a breathless dystopian thriller. * Lit Hub *In a narrative world where the real is growingly more unbelievable than the make believe, Chain-Gang All-Stars is an uncanny, singular feat for literature. I've never read satire so bruising, so brolic, so tender and, really, so pitch-perfect. It's nuts brilliant. Just read it! -- Kiese Laymon, author of HEAVY: An American MemoirAs vital as it is brutal. Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah illuminates darkness with the electricity of his prose. The massive weight of the subject is matched by the sheer scope of Adjei-Brenyah's imagination. A startling, important novel that will inspire and inform many conversations. -- Charles Yu, author of INTERIOR CHINATOWN[A] ferocious debut novel...Adjei-Brenyah does not flinch. Neither does he miss his targets, because he has the stiff winds of history at his back...With Chain-Gang All-Stars he lets us think we're reading a satire, but soon reveals a mirror of our dystopian days that lie not too far away. * Boston Globe *A complex, brutal, beautiful, panoramic takedown of the prison-industrial complex... At once original, its own fresh creation, and clearly part of a lineage of American literature that links the opening 'Battle Royal' chapter in Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man to Native Son by Richard Wright, Soul on Ice by Eldridge Cleaver and Soledad Brother by George Jackson... Adjei-Brenyah's distinguished novel updates this tradition to encompass our dizzying, barbaric, performative and capitalistic digital age. * Minneapolis Star Tribune *With his sharp eye for satire and reverence for humanity, Adjei-Brenyah's latest explores the exploitation, violence, and false promises of the prison industrial complex, capitalism, and the country itself. * The Millions *A chillingly dystopian tale. * Culture Whisper *A clear-eyed critique of our country's prison system, along with the profit and racism inherent in them. * Salon *At once a kaleidoscopic, imaginative examination of America's unjust prison system, and a fantasy-tinged spectacle, Chain-Gang All-Stars is likely to excite and provoke in equal measure. * Our Culture *A searing debut with an unforgettable voice, Chain Gang All-Stars will force you to reevaluate what freedom in America really means. * Lit-Reactor *It is an up-to-the-minute j'accuse that speaks to the eternal question of what it truly means to be free. And human. Imagine The Hunger Games refashioned into a rowdy, profane, and indignant blues shout at full blast. * Kirkus *Breathtaking and pulse-pounding... Both the political allegory and the edge-of-your-seat action work beautifully. Readers will be wowed. * Publishers Weekly *[An] enthralling debut... An unmissable read * UK Press Syndication *Adjei-Brenyah compels the reader to look beyond the page, blurring the lines between modern America and the hellscape he so energetically imagines * Economist *[Adjei-Brenyah’s] punch is as powerful as ever… [a] gripping story * Big Issue *Few others this year have touched Adjei-Brenyah for ideas and ambition… perhaps the most indelible novel of 2023 * Daily Mail, *Books of the Year* *A scintillating, seat-of-the-pants thriller…which will make you angry but will also keep you hooked because the characters are so well drawn and sympathetic * Big Issue, *Books of the Year* *

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Book Synopsis**SHORTLISTED FOR THE CWA IAN FLEMING STEEL DAGGER 2019****LONGLISTED FOR THE GOLDSBORO BOOKS GLASS BELL AWARD 2019**What happens when a man of absolute integrity finds himself trapped in a world of absolute corruption?During a weekend spree in Cape Town a young, rich Afrikaner fatally injures a teenage street girl with his Range Rover but is too drunk to know that he has hit her. His companions – who do know – leave the girl to die. The driver’s mother, a self-made mining magnate called Margot Le Roux, intends to keep her son in ignorance of his crime. Why should his life be ruined for a nameless girl who was already terminally ill? No one will care and the law is cheap. But by chance the case falls to the relentless Warrant Officer Turner of Cape Town homicide. When Turner travels to the remote mining town that Margot owns – including the local police and private security force – he finds her determined to protect her son at any cost. As the battle of wills escalates, and the moral contradictions multiply, Turner won’t be bought and won’t be bullied, and when they try to bury him he rediscovers, during a desperate odyssey to the very brink of death, a long-forgotten truth about himself... By the time Willocks's tale is finished, fourteen men have died. He shows once again that he is the laureate of the violent thriller.Trade ReviewIt’s 24 years since Willocks’s Green River Rising was published. Memo From Turner is even better. It’s a devastating indictment of modern South Africa. -- Mark Sanderson * Evening Standard *Marked out by the elegance of the writing coupled with the brutality of the action... A ferocious read. * Mail on Sunday *A violent thriller that pits integrity against corruption in an arid, pitiless landscape. As the corpses and moral contradictions multiply, Memo from Turner ticks all the boxes for righteous machismo. -- Laura Wilson * Guardian *Delivered with unrelenting impact… there are echoes here of the late American novelist Robert Stone in this picture of endemic corruption. -- Barry Forshaw * Financial Times *A brutal tale that is part modern Western, part Jack Reacher adventure. * The Sun *

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Book Synopsis*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2019 T. S. ELIOT PRIZE*Following her recent Odes, the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet gives us a new collection of poems that sing of a woman’s intimate life and political conscience. The atom bomb, Breaking Bad, the cervix, Trayvon Martin, her mother’s return from the dead: the peerless Sharon Olds once again takes up subject matter that is both difficult and ordinary, elusive and everywhere. Each aria is shaped by its unique melody and moral logic, as Olds stands centre stage to account for her own late romance and chance wisdom, and faces the tragic life of our nation and our planet. ‘I cannot say I did not ask / to be born,’ begins one aria, which considers how, with what actions, with what thirst, we each ask for a turn, and receive our portion on earth. Olds delivers these pieces with all the passion, anguish, and solo force that make a great performance, in the process enlarging the soul of her readers. ‘Olds is a supreme poet of the body; I’ll be reading her till I die’ Fiona BensonTrade ReviewSharon Olds goes where many poets would fear to tread and others not dream of treading. Like a curious child, she wanders past No Entry signs on to private land… Arias is a phenomenal achievement, the most moving collection of her career, the most open of books. -- Kate Kellaway * Observer, *Poetry Book of the Month* *On my Christmas list? Sharon Olds’s Arias. Olds is a supreme poet of the body; I’ll be reading her till I die. -- Fiona Benson * Guardian, *Books of the Year* *A generous collection… sexy, pained, conversational, always bringing the reader along for the ride. -- Tristram Fane Saunders * Telegraph *

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Book Synopsis***SHORTLISTED FOR FICTION - 2023 NERO BOOK AWARDS***After the death of a young girl, the finger of suspicion is pointing at one reclusive family…‘Gripping… A triumph’ SUNDAY TIMES‘Heartbreaking’ VOGUEIt’s 1990 in London and, after the death of a young girl on an estate, the finger of suspicion is pointing at one reclusive Irish family: the Greens.At their heart sits Carmel: beautiful, other-worldly, and once destined for a future beyond her circumstances until life – and love – got in her way. Now, as the scandal unfolds and the tabloids hunt their monster, she must confront the secrets and silences that have trapped her family for so many generations.***A DAILY TELEGRAPH, TIMES, NEW STATESMAN AND SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023***‘Daring, brilliant… Bold and beautiful’ DAILY TELEGRAPH‘Ambitious and original’ DAVID NICHOLLS‘A compulsive read’ THE TIMESTrade ReviewMegan Nolan's debut novel saw her grouped with other Irish millennial women such as Sally Rooney and Naoise Dolan. But with her ambitious and insightful second novel, Ordinary Human Failings, Nolan makes it clear she is not a manifestation of a type, but rather a writer to be read on her own terms * Financial Times *One masterful novel... Nolan has excelled herself: Ordinary Human Failings is a raw, pulsing thing... A writer who's still at the start of what promises to be a splendid career. Ordinary Human Failings is a bold and beautiful second novel... daring in all the right ways, but compassionate when it needs to be * Daily Telegraph *There is something wonderfully ordinary about this book... Nolan has set out to make a plain three-legged stool rather than an ornate grandfather clock. The corridors of contemporary literature are stuffed with grandfather clocks with faulty mechanisms. How much more valuable is this modest, well-made thing * Sunday Times *Nolan’s novel is dark in subject, yet retains a tender faith in a person’s, or a family’s, capacity for change * New Statesman, *Books of the Year* *Ambitious and original… I loved its humanity and generosity… I can’t wait to read whatever comes next -- DAVID NICHOLLS, author of One Day and You Are HereTightly written, full of wisdom, insight and sympathy – terrific! -- CLARE CHAMBERS, author of Small PleasuresAs much of a compulsive read as the first novel * The Times *A subtle, accomplished and lyrical study of familial and intergenerational despair, a quiet book about quiet lives... An excellent novel: politically astute, furious and compassionate... A genuine achievement * Guardian *The millennial author everyone should be watching right now * Daily Telegraph *Nolan has crafted a novel full of brutal, illuminating truths * Sunday Times, *Books of the Year* *

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Book SynopsisAn explosive and daring novel about bodies, sex, politics and disability by the prize-winning Spanish writer Cristina MoralesÁngela, Patricia, Marga and Nati are cousins living together in Barcelona. As women branded as disabled who share a state-subsidised flat, they must fight every day to retain their independence and find new and inventive ways - from dance to underground zines - to stop the state from managing every aspect of their lives.Funny and furious, Easy Reading is an indictment of the institutions that stigmatise individuals as disabled and of the language that marginalises them. It is also a portrait - visceral, vibrant, combative - of contemporary Barcelona. But, above all, Easy Reading is a feminist celebration of the body in all its forms, of female desire and queer sexuality, and of the transgressive and revolutionary power of language.Translated from the Spanish by Kevin Gerry DunnTrade ReviewA force of nature. * ABC *Punk rock has arrived in Spanish literature. * El Pais *Offensive, playful, transgressive, hilarious, visceral, combative, brutal, and yet somehow tender... A book that shook me to my core. * Esquire *The most brutal, provocative and hilarious voice in contemporary Spanish literature. Like an unexpected meeting between Kathy Acker and Camilo José Cela in a gynaecologist's waiting room. Extraordinary. -- Paul B. PreciadoA radical, radically original novel with no precedent in Spanish literature. Remarkable for its recreation of orality, its extraordinary characters and its reading of the current political climate. -- Jury for the Herralde Prize

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Book Synopsis'Anti-Social is brutally honest, exceptionally funny and terribly sad - a scything indictment of broken 21st century Britain. I could not put it down.' THE SECRET BARRISTER'A fascinating insight into a job that stitches together the cracks in compassion in our communities' RENI EDDO-LODGE, bestselling author of Why I Am No Longer Talking To White People About Race'Superb. This hysterically funny and moving memoir of an anti-social behaviour officer is a real eye-opener that hits all the right notes' FRANKIE BOYLE__________________Anti-Social is the diary of a disillusioned local authority worker whose job it is to keep people happy, or at least away from each other's throats. That's hard enough at the best of times, but when your day features secret hoarders, violent disputes over dance music and litigious arms dealers, the total breakdown of local society is never far away. The only thing keeping it together are the chronically underfunded officers charged with patching the fraying threads of civilisation, and they have a hard enough time keeping themselves together. This is an urgent, timely but, most of all, hysterically funny memoir of a life spent working with the people society wants to forget and the problems that nobody else can resolve. This book will make you laugh, cry and boil with rage, all within a single sentence. Updated with a new chapter for the paperback edition__________________'Get this book ... I'm telling you now, you will absolutely love this guy, what he has to say and the book that he has written. In equal parts devastating and dark and incredibly funny.' NIHAL ARTHANAYAKE'Laugh-out-loud funny. The delivery is punchy and the humour dark - think Irvine Welsh minus the Scottish vernacular' EXPRESS'Think Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt but with more dead bodies ... It's a gloriously cynical read but it's also sympathetic and deeply empathetic.' KATHY BURKE'Riveting and brilliantly written... a potent cocktail of heartbreak and horror; wickedly funny, wearily endearing and absolutely enraging' CAROLINE SANDERSON, Bookseller'A funny, thoughtful look into one of the toughest jobs I can imagine' SHAPPI KORSANDI'I absolutely loved it. It reads like a novel, has that page-turning quality everyone looks for in a good book but it delivers the punch that only true life can - funny obviously but with humanity and warmth for people at the edges of society most in need of our understanding and compassion' KIT DE WAAL, author of My Name Is Leon'Brilliant. This deserves to be a huge success - funny, sad and heartbreaking' LORRAINE KELLY__________________Reader reviews for Anti-Social:'The timing of this book could not be better''Politicians of all hues should be made to read this book''Readable and compulsive''Well written and stunningly well observed''The author and all his long-suffering, dedicated colleagues deserve dustbin lid-sized medals''It had me in stitches, it had me in tears''Top-drawer stuff ... utterly riveting''I don't often take the time to review books here, but would very much recommend Anti-Social.'Trade ReviewAnti-Social is brutally honest, exceptionally funny and terribly sad - a scything indictment of broken 21st century Britain. I could not put it down. -- The Secret BarristerSuperb. This hysterically funny and moving memoir of an anti-social behaviour officer is a real eye-opener that hits all the right notes -- Frankie BoyleI absolutely loved it. It reads like a novel, has that page turning quality everyone looks for in a good book but it delivers the punch that only true life can - funny obviously but with humanity and warmth for people at the edges of society most in need of our understanding and compassion.A fascinating insight into a job that stitches together the cracks in compassion in our communities -- Renni Eddo-Lodge, author of Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About RaceA gruesome and darkly comic insight into the life of a ASB Officer. Think Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt but with more dead bodies (and not just human ones) and an abundance of cat shit. It's a gloriously cynical read but it's also sympathetic and deeply empathetic. Being an ASB Officer comes across as one of those "rotten but somebody's got to do it jobs" and I was glad that in these cases, that that somebody was the author. -- Kathy Burke

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Book SynopsisLittle treasures, the FLAME TREE COLLECTABLE CLASSICS are chosen to create a delightful and timeless home library. Each stunning, gift edition features deluxe cover treatments, ribbon markers, luxury endpapers and gilded edges. The unabridged text is accompanied by a Glossary of Victorian and Literary terms produced for the modern reader. Hard Times was published in 1854 and is set in Northern England in Coketown, a polluted and suffering place with smoke-filled factories and soulless workers who have been downtrodden by the cruel and heartless Thomas Gradgrind and Josiah Bounderby. The novel was published to mixed criticism, with many feeling at the time that it was too distressing. However, many modern critics have praised the book, calling it a gripping and revealing exploration of Victorian society.

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Book Synopsis'Dark, timely and thought-provoking. It's a must-read' THE SUN'Visceral and raw. Buy it' GLAMOUR'Reminiscent of HBO's hit The White Lotus... The obvious read-alike is My Dark Vanessa' BOOKLIST'Packs an incredible punch' THE TIMES'It's set to be a big summer hit' The IndependentAn idyllic island. An all-consuming romance. The best summer of your life . . .But what if everything you remember was a lie?**********Rachel has loved Alistair since she was seventeen.Even though she hasn't seen him for sixteen years and she's now married to someone else.Even though she was a teenager when they met.Even though he is almost twenty years older than her.Now in her thirties, Rachel has never been able to forget their golden summer together on a remote, sun-trapped Greek island. But as dark and deeply suppressed memories rise to the surface, Rachel begins to understand that Alistair - and the enigmatic, wealthy man he worked for - controlled much more than she ever realized.Rachel has never once considered herself a victim - until now.**********For fans of GIRL A, MY DARK VANESSA and LUCKIEST GIRL ALIVE, The Girls of Summer is a bold compulsive exploration of sex, power and consent, and what happens when we revisit the past with rose-tinted glasses.'Beautifully written, transportive, and thought-provoking' LUCY CLARKE, author of THE CASTAWAYS'A mesmerising, unsettling and gripping debut' CATHERINE RYAN HOWARD, author of RUN TIME'Thought-provoking, timely' SARAH TURNER, author of STEPPING UP***********Readers are talking about THE GIRLS OF SUMMER:* 'In the age of #MeToo, this book is one that will ring true with so many people'* 'Beautifully written with a tense, emotive plot that will be relatable to so many women'* 'An excellent debut. Raw, real, and gut-wrenchingly familiar'* 'Wow wow wow! I am still thinking about it, it's one of those stories that stays with you'Trade ReviewIt's been a long time since I've read such a compelling debut. Beautifully written, transportive, and thought-provoking, THE GIRLS OF SUMMER sizzles with suspense. It's the book I'll be recommending that all my girlfriends pack for their holidays this summer * Lucy Clarke, Sunday Times bestselling author of THE CASTAWAYS *This startling debut...packs an incredible punch. The dark undertow of an idyllic summer and the lies girls are told and tell themselves are captured with stark, affecting honesty and evocative prose * The Times *This debut should be on every summer reading list... THE GIRLS OF SUMMER explores consent, the power discrepancies in relationships, control, and the intoxication of lust in a gripping read that is visceral and raw. Buy it * Glamour *Reminiscent of HBO's hit The White Lotus... The obvious read-alike is My Dark Vanessa, by Kate Elizabeth Russell, and the plot-driven tension will appeal to fans of psychological suspense * Booklist *A mesmerising, unsettling and gripping debut * Catherine Ryan Howard, bestselling author of RUN TIME *

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Book Synopsis'A debut collection of such precocity and aplomb that it stands comparison to the likes of Junot Díaz and Bryan Washington' Observer 'Moving, truthful, straight from the heart' Neel Mukherjee 'These are excellent stories, told with skill and verve' Jon McGregor Here, beneath the planes circling Heathrow, various lives connect. Priti speaks English and her nani Punjabi. Without Priti's mum around they struggle to make a shared language. Not far away, Chetan and Aanshi's relationship shifts when a woman leaves her car in their drive but never returns to collect it. Gujan's baba steps out of his flat above the chicken shop for the first time in years to take his grandson on a bicycle tour of the old and changed neighbourhood. And returning home after dropping out of university, Lata grapples with a secret about her estranged family friend, now a chart-topping rapper in a crisis of confidence. Mapping an area of West London, these stories chart a wider narrative about the movement of multiple generations of immigrants. In acts of startling imagination, Gurnaik Johal's debut brings together the past and the present, the local and the global, to show the surprising ways we come together.Trade ReviewMoving, truthful, straight from the heart (and a very capacious heart too), the stories in WE MOVE announce the arrival of a promising young writer we will be talking about for years to come. Gurnaik Johal, welcome. * Neel Mukherjee *Delicate, controlled and moving portraits of the strange, poignant dislocation wrought by both distance and proximity * Colin Barrett *A stunning collection * Evening Standard *A whole universe of lives intricately connected and woven together in a way that is wholly surprising and unobvious * Huma Qureshi, author of Things We Do Not Tell the People We Love *An assured and profoundly humane collection, rich in character and story * Jo Lloyd, author of The Earth, Thy Great Exchequer, Ready Lies *'These are excellent stories, told with skill and verve. Gurnaik Johal has a sharp eye for details, an ear for the gaps and evasions in real dialogue, and a heart for the hopes and regrets that carry us through our lives. But most of all, he has the instincts of a storyteller, and in We Move he has put those instincts to great effect' * Jon McGregor *Deft and defiant. These stories are told with real heart and dazzling speed * John Patrick McHugh, author of Pure Gold *With this beautiful, kaleidoscopic, moving, staggeringly full-of-life debut collection of stories, Gurnaik Johal has catapulted himself into the front rank of the chroniclers of the country we live in. You don't know Britain until you've read We Move * Rahul Raina, author of How to Kidnap the Rich *Conversational, brimful of beautifully observed descriptions of the sights and sounds of this world. * Daily Mail *To describe Johal as a writer to watch would be true but misleading, implying that we need to wait for better things to come. Better to say that he's a writer to read now. -- John Self * Observer *

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Book SynopsisWhen N meets a charismatic outsider called Farzaneh, he realises that something has been missing in his life.They fall for each other and begin an intense and passionate relationship. However, Farzaneh starts to isolate herself, becoming obsessed and embroiled in her mysterious connection with the moon.N is forced to reappraise everything he knows, searching for meaning and identity while he violently collides with the limits of intimacy and love.Matt Wilven''s Farzaneh and the Moon captures all the frantic rhythms and passions of student life in its lively narrative, and adds a dark twist with its inflection of the obsessional and mystical' Professor Philip Tew

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Book Synopsis‘A strange, original and unusual novel, which takes two unlikely worlds and yokes them together. Remarkable … I’ve never read anything quite like it’ Carlo GeblerDolly Considine runs a late-night drinking establishment catering to the needs of thirsty politicians and theatricals in Dublin's legendary drinking area, the Catacombs.Julian Ryder (aka Paddy Butler) is an eighteen-year-old aspiring writer in need of shelter from his bullying older brother.As the new live-in lounge assistant at Dolly Considine’s Hotel, Julian soon embroils himself in the shebeen’s gossip – and the guests’ bedsheets – and turns Dolly’s entourage into fodder for his literary ambitions. Reality quickly becomes difficult to separate from fantasy…Set against the run-up to the Pro-life Constitutional Amendment of September 1983 and moving fluidly between the 1950s of Dolly’s youth and Julian’s Summer of Unrequited Love, the hotel becomes a stage for farce and tragedy. Between Julian’s fictions, Dolly’s Secrets, and narrow party politics – and featuring a papier-mâché figure of Mother Ireland giving birth and clashing sword-wielding dancers – this rich cocktail threatens to blow them, and even Ireland itself, wide apart.Trade Review‘A strange, original and unusual novel, which takes two unlikely worlds and yokes them together. Remarkable … I’ve never read anything quite like it’ Carlo Gebler

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Book SynopsisMarvel Super Graphic is a delightfully entertaining and fresh look at the Marvel comics universe through the mighty metrics of colorful infographics.How many stomach-soothing tablets would Galactus need if he ate the Earth? Clobber versus smash: Who won each fight between the Thing and the Hulk? How worthy is each individual who has hefted Thor’s hammer? Which Marvel heroes play musical instruments? What’s on the Kingpin’s mind?   Author and designer Tim Leong has creatively visualized dozens of deep dive data points and witty “I wonder” subjects ranging from character speed rankings to the length Mister Fantastic can stretch before it hurts to the overlapping stories of the Spider-Verse. Through playful and informative pie charts, bar graphs, Venn diagrams, scatter plots, timelines, story arc guides, and more, Marvel Super Graphic shines a fun and fascinating new light on beloved comics, characters,

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Book SynopsisThe early days of the Dark Knight as envisioned by the legendary Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo!

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Book SynopsisThe Dynamic Duo by the all-star creative team of Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason! Damian and Bruce Wayne have always had their differences, but they can t let that stop them from fulfilling their duties as Gotham City s protectors. Unfortunately that gets a little tricky when Damian s mom, Talia al Ghul, and the League of Assassins come into play!

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Book SynopsisStatic, Hardware, Blood Syndicate, and more. Read the original stories of the characters that became Milestone icons in this massive compendium.

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Book SynopsisGotham City is no stranger to the strange and unusual, but a cult that worships Man-Bat is certainly a new one for the Dynamic Duo!

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