{"title":"Literary fiction","description":"\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eSalt's literary fiction list brings together prize-winning and emerging voices writing some of the most distinctive fiction published in Britain today. From Booker-nominated stylists to fearless debut novelists, our authors share a commitment to language, form and story that rewards close reading. Recent titles have been praised in \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/em\u003e – recognition that reflects Salt's long-standing reputation for editorial care and typographic craft.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThis list spans the intimate and the epic: character-driven domestic fiction, formally adventurous narratives, and novels that reckon with history, place and identity. Whether you're discovering Salt for the first time or following an author across several books, you'll find fiction here that doesn't play safe.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"burnt-island-9781907773488","title":"Burnt Island","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor disillusioned author Max Long, the offer of a writing-fellowship on the mysterious-sounding ‘Burnt Island’ is a godsend. Max is determined that, inspired by his tenure on this windswept outpost, he will produce every writer’s dream — the bestseller. And this time, he plans to subvert his usual genre and write a horror story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut upon arrival, Max’s fantasies of hermetic island life are overturned when he encounters a potential rival living in close proximity – the famously reclusive James Fairfax, author of the internationally-lauded novel, \u003cem\u003eLifeblood\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Angela Carter crossed with the Scottish diffidence of Muriel Spark.’ —Ali Smith — on Justine\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A high-wire act of a novel. Try to resist it and you can’t.’ —Fay Weldon — on Pandora’s Box\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Expertly combining compelling storytelling with a cleverly constructed, elegant and metaphor-ridden style.’ —Camilla Pia — on The Falconer\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The Existential Detective is unsettling, unsettlingly erotic, and somehow sadly beautiful. Thompson is fast becoming one of the most original and formidable writers in the English language today.’ —Sunday Herald — on The Existential Detective\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Haunting, strange, Kafkaesque, poetic mystery.’ —Ian Rankin — on The Existential Detective\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A gothic music video of a novel that whirls with weirdness... madly energetic ... genuinely scary.’ —Stephen King — on Pharos\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘What makes a book happen? Where does literary inspiration come from? These are some of the underlying questions asked by Alice Thompson’s deliciously creepy tale that is almost an homage to surreal horror stories such as Angela Carter’s \u003cem\u003eThe Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman\u003c\/em\u003e and John Fowles’s \u003cem\u003eThe Magus\u003c\/em\u003e.... Her prose style tackles these questions in spare and simple language, devoid of drama and, it would seem, ambiguity, and in that sense, she avoids echoing the richness of both Angela Carter and John Fowles, even as she appears to be paying her tribute to both of them. It’s a wise decision, as this prose style also matches better the sparse landscape of the island itself. This is a simple yet clever tale, gently satirising literary ambition as it explores the darker sources of inspiration, and told with all the supernatural horror of the best Hammer stories.’ —Lesley McDowell\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Thompson’s gripping narrative invites the reader to solve the mystery of Burnt Island and the true purpose of Max Long’s fellowship. A dark, compelling novel with strong themes of paranoia and strange eroticism throughout.’ —Lizzie Greenhalgh\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Burnt Island is steeped in self-awareness, as a book about the process and effect of writing might be. It seems connected by literary electricity to other tales of isolation: \u003cem\u003eThe Shining\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePincher Martin\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Sea, The Sea\u003c\/em\u003e. It might resist \"character development\", but Max does learn that, however bad things can get for him, there is always someone who has had it worse: usually another writer.’ —John Self\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘At the end Thompson seems to be hinting that writing is a parasitic occupation, a form of vampirism even, writers taking the events of others’ lives and using them as raw material, and in the relationship between Fairfax and Long that is taken to an extreme. Exquisitely written, with a real feel for the wide open spaces and the indifference of nature, but at the same time showing how these things are mirrored in the human heart, this is a miniature gem of a book, one that tells us something of the gothic while remaining thoroughly modern in the telling, with a meta-fictional streak that places the practice of writing itself under the microscope.’ —Peter Tennant\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Fractured and lucid as a dream. Creepy and brilliant.’ —Ian Rankin\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alice Thompson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892790785,"sku":"9781907773488","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773488.jpeg?v=1570475299"},{"product_id":"justine-9781784630317","title":"Justine","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJustine is a painting, a doppelgänger and a woman of beguiling beauty. Set in contemporary London, \u003cem\u003eJustine\u003c\/em\u003e is a story of a man’s obsession with a woman – or is it two women? For Justine has a twin sister Juliette, and as the story unfolds, the opium-dazed narrator becomes increasingly unsure as to the identity of the woman he desires.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A lot of flagellation and a matching literary-exquisite style’ —Fay Weldon\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A lush, erotic teasing mystery’ —The Bookseller\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Angela Carter crossed with the Scottish diffidence of Muriel Spark and Emma Tennant … a faultless performance of a first novel’ —The Scotsman\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Beautifully spare, very visual writing … with its own sly, soft sympathetic elegance’ —The Observer\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘And enthuse we must. This is an extraordinarily accomplished book, sharp, focused, highly intelligent’ —The Glasgow Herald\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘So skilfully crafted, its atmosphere so ominous, its end so chilling’ —The Daily Telegraph\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alice Thompson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892791041,"sku":"9781784630317","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630317.jpeg?v=1570475923"},{"product_id":"the-book-collector-9781784630430","title":"The Book Collector","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlice Thompson’s new novel is a Gothic story of book collecting, mutilation and madness. Violet is obsessed with the books of fairy tales her husband acquires, but her growing delusions see her confined in an asylum. As she recovers and is released a terrifying series of events is unleashed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★ With a nod to Angela Carter, Thompson takes the myth of Bluebeard, the murdering husband who keeps a tally of his dead wives, sets it down in that Edwardian summer just before the guns of the First World War go off. It’s a superb settling for betrayal and revenge.’ —Lesley McDowell, The Independent on Sunday\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★ revel in the gothic darkness and inexorable drama’ —John Lloyd, The Bookbag\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The precise Edwardian vocabulary began to assume a more contemporary feel in the wake of Violet’s treatment at the asylum, and this proved an interesting divergence from the general feel of the book. With flayed corpses, books covered with human skin, and raging madness, this is definitely worth checking out…’ —Raven Crime Reads\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Book Collector\u003c\/em\u003e shows a wry and sly mind at work throughout. Scottish literature would be thinner without this kind of challenging and cleverly-wrought writing.’ —Stuart Kelly, The Scotsman\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Alice Thompson, one-time keyboard player for Eighties band The Woodentops, is now an established novelist, who has won praise from Ian Rankin and Stephen King. The horror master would no doubt approve of this slim Edwardian-era gothic, too, recalling as it does both \u003cem\u003eRebecca\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Silence Of The Lambs\u003c\/em\u003e.’ —Stephanie Cross, The Daily Mail\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A brief, but substantial, horror story.’ —Lynsy Spence, The Lady\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Book Collector\u003c\/em\u003e throws the essential elements of the gothic chiller into a blender and what emerges is something between pastiche and critique, in which its author never loses sight of the need to give her readers, first and foremost, an unputdownable yarn.’ —Alastair Mabbott, The Herald\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘With its gothic motifs, this dark portrait of a ‘fairytale’ marriage is full of mystery and suspense … an elegant and bloodily shocking entertainment.’ —Suzi Feay, The Guardian\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Angela Carter crossed with the Scottish diffidence of Muriel Spark.’ —Ali Smith\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A high-wire act of a novel. Try to resist it and you can’t.’ —Fay Weldon\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Expertly combining compelling storytelling with a cleverly constructed, elegant and metaphor-ridden style.’ —Camilla Pia\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Haunting, strange, Kafkaesque, poetic mystery.’ —Ian Rankin\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A gothic music video of a novel that whirls with weirdness... madly energetic ... genuinely scary.’ —Stephen King\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Fractured and lucid as a dream. Creepy and brilliant.’ —Ian Rankin\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Thompson’s gripping narrative invites the reader to solve the mystery of \u003cem\u003eBurnt Island\u003c\/em\u003e and the true purpose of Max Long’s fellowship. A dark, compelling novel with strong themes of paranoia and strange eroticism throughout.’ —Lizzie Greenhalgh, The Lady\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eBurnt Island\u003c\/em\u003e is steeped in self-awareness, as a book about the process and effect of writing might be. It seems connected by literary electricity to other tales of isolation: \u003cem\u003eThe Shining\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePincher Martin\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Sea, The Sea\u003c\/em\u003e.’ —John Self, The Guardian\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alice Thompson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892791233,"sku":"9781784630430","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630430.jpeg?v=1571258724"},{"product_id":"the-existential-detective-9781784630119","title":"The Existential Detective","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eWilliam Blake is a private detective. When he is asked by an eccentric scientist to investigate the whereabouts of his amnesiac missing wife, Louise, Will finds himself entangled in layers of deceptions and disappearances that lead him inexorably back to an unsolved mystery in his own past: the loss of his young daughter Emily. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe case takes Will to brothels, night clubs and amusement arcades in the Scottish seaside resort of Portobello. Identities become confused as his sexual obsession with a night club singer becomes entwined with sightings of Louise, his own torturous memories, and new visions of the lost Emily.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Existential Detective\u003c\/em\u003e is a surreal, dreamlike story of loss, incest and what it means to remember.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘If you can have degrees of uncanniness, \u003cem\u003eThe Existential Detective\u003c\/em\u003e is Thompson's uncanniest – and best – novel yet. Private detective William Blake is hired by an eccentric scientist to find his missing wife, Louise, who may have lost her memory. Just as Freud's theory of the Uncanny insists that a man wandering around lost will repeatedly fetch up in the red-light district, Will's search takes him to a brothel and to a nightclub, where he develops a sexual obsession with a singer.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNicholas Royle\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘The story sounds complicated, but it’s not. In fact, Thompson shows she has a tight grip of plotting and, despite throwing away the rule book, \u003cem\u003eThe Existential Detective\u003c\/em\u003e is as gripping as any potboiler. What does feel simple is the prose itself. Unadorned and mesmerisingly rhythmic, it’s extraordinary how deep Thompson manages to go; how many layers of mood and possible meanings she packs in with such an unaffected style. There are suggestions of several myths – Orpheus, Elektra – of \u003cem\u003eThe Magic Flute\u003c\/em\u003e, and of a whole tradition of Scottish writing from Hogg to Michel Faber. Jack Vettriano gets a mention, and there is something of the mood of his darker paintings in Thompson’s writing. More immediately, when we get to the climax of the novel, we’re reminded of a very real, ongoing, Scottish tragedy. There is nothing sensationalist or expedient here, rather Thompson imagines and communicates the pain of loss and guilt, and the torments of being forever blinkered.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Existential Detective\u003c\/em\u003e is unsettling, unsettlingly erotic, and somehow sadly beautiful. Thompson is fast becoming one of the most original and formidable writers in the English language today.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eChris Dolan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Existential Detective\u003c\/em\u003e is a deeply moving and compelling read, packed with mysterious goings-on and bloodcurdling shocks, all counterbalanced by the author’s trademark subtle and elegant prose. The story is intricately woven and Thompson wastes no time in conjuring up an eerie atmosphere that makes even a simple act seem loaded with meaning. Of course, it’s a departure of sorts for Thompson too, and she subverts the crime fiction genre with aplomb, breaking new ground while still retaining her distinctive voice. Remarkable.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCamilla Pia\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe List\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘It is the novel’s unpredictable nature, as well as Thompson’s natural ability to relay what could have been a baffling story, that makes this one of the most interesting novels of recent years. The setting is familiar and everyday, yet strange enough to unsettle. There is a cast of characters that add to the atmosphere including an amoral scientist, some private dancers, a blind man with second sight and teenage tearaways who are sadly older than their years. Thompson has the ability to create vivid portrayals in a few pages, and although some of the cast only appear in short bursts, they leave lasting impressions and are integral to the mystery that unfolds.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlistair Braidwood\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDear Scotland\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alice Thompson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892791361,"sku":"9781784630119","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630119.jpeg?v=1571258745"},{"product_id":"the-falconer-9781784630096","title":"The Falconer","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAward-winning writer Alice Thompson’s compelling new novel is a story of transformation; an exploration of the shifting borderlands between imagination and reality.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is 1936. Iris Tennant has applied, under a pseudonym, to become personal assistant to Lord Melfort, the Under-Secretary of War, at his estate in the Scottish Highlands. Her plan is to find out why her younger sister Daphne committed suicide there a year previously. As Iris gradually falls under the spell of Glen Almain, she starts to see the apparition of Daphne haunting its glades and begins to wonder about the manner of her death. Is there really a beast that inhabits the woods? Who is the mysterious falconer? What actually happened to Daphne, and is Iris destined for the same fate?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA backdrop of impending war and the spectre of Nazi Germany loom over this strange, dark tale. What ensues is a battle between instinct and reason, fantasy and history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Thompson’s writing is, as ever, the kind that demands full attention – important details are embedded in lyrical description or insinuated into an apparently innocuous observation. This is not a book that is kind to readers – you have to buy into the world its author has created, accept its own very special laws – and that requires effort. But it’s effort that is ultimately rewarded: I doubt you’ll read another book quite like it this year.’\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The world she creates is claustrophobic and hypnotic, recognisably a dream but also rational on its own, admittedly skewed, terms... Many novelists bore readers to sleep. Wake up to \u003cem\u003eThe Falconer\u003c\/em\u003e.’ —The Sunday Herald\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alice Thompson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892791809,"sku":"9781784630096","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630096.jpeg?v=1571258749"},{"product_id":"he-wants-9781907773815","title":"He Wants","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eObserver Book of the Year 2014\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLewis Sullivan, an RE teacher at a secondary school, was approaching retirement when he wondered for the first time whether he ought to have chosen a more dramatic career. He lives in a village in the Midlands, less than a mile from the house in which he grew up. He always imagined living by the sea. His grown-up daughter visits every day, bringing soup. He does not want soup. He frequents his second-favourite pub, where he can get half a shandy, a speciality sausage and a bit of company.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut when a childhood friend appears on the scene, Lewis finds his life and comfortable routine shaken up.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Moore’s inimitable, haunting style, this seemingly simple but in fact multi-layered narrative unfolds with compelling assurance. Moving between Lewis’s current life of cosy habit, his memories of childhood, and his aged father agitating away in a nursing home, plot twists thicken and weave with stealthily increasing tension. Always unexpected, sparely written and beautifully crafted, He Wants deftly dissects the themes of loneliness, anxiety, the weight of recollection and the complex nature of friendship and family ties. A surprising, lingering and intensely moving tale which reflects the prodigious talent of one of our most exciting novelists.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The best novels are the ones that leave you with a sense of yearning, and in \u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e, Alison Moore proves her mastery of the medium... As Lewis's desires are revealed, the reader is drawn into a compelling series of regrets, coincidences and reminders that life doesn't often bestow second chances... Moore's tightly wreathed prose and assured plotting ensure a bittersweet longing for more once the final page is turned.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLynsey May\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe List\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘How she achieves such big impact with such small ingredients is a mystery to me, but she does. She bloody well does.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eGav Collins\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGav’s Book Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘brave and rigorous’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRachel Cusk\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Moore movingly mines the aching gap between aspiration and actuality.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnita Sethi\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e is a funny, touching, life-affirming novel about desire.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnne Goodwin\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eAnnecdotal\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘An elegant story.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSue Magee\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Bookbag\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘As entertaining as it was gripping; Moore walks a tightrope between tragedy-cum-thriller and deadpan comedy and she does not fall.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClare Fisher\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLitro Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It is difficult to pinpoint exactly how she creates such compelling (though often unlikeable) characters, turning their everyday doings into a page-turning story, the atmosphere quietly unsettling.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMarija Smits\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFor Books’ Sake\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Moore is a serious talent. There’s art here. There’s care.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSam Leith\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Financial Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e is an assured and confident second novel which deserves to be reread to fully appreciate its complexities. With sparse prose, astute descriptions, and subtle humour, Moore has cemented herself as one of my favourite authors.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Perfectionist Pen\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘it is a short novel but needs no further chapters; its impact lies, in part, in its brevity and in its silences... There are dark aspects to \u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e and an intensity of emotion that will pull you in until the last page.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eF.C. Malby\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e will easily be one of my books of the year... He Wants left me feeling both completely uplifted and utterly devastated, all at once.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSimon Savidge\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSavidge Reads\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Alison Moore is very good on modern alienation... She doesn’t so much lay bare a life as shine blinding pinpricks into its darkest corners.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClaire Allfree\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMetro\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It’s a quick, compelling read with real depth and heart, and I loved it.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAli Hope\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eShiny New Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘a witty and very moving novel’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJonathan Edwards\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNew Welsh Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I really loved this book... I read it greedily and quickly; I had to force myself to slow down and savour it. And what she's so good at is conjuring a sense of atmospheric, quiet unease. I think it's the kind of book that will really get under people's skin.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKiran Dass\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eRadio New Zealand\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This book went where I didn’t expect it to go, and that’s what made reading it so memorable and an enthralling reading experience. It’s a fairly simple story centred around Lewis, a retired RE teacher who has lived his life doing the opposite of how he imagined things would turn out … He spends many hours looking back, at the things he regrets, the missed opportunities and it’s only when an old school friend appears back in his life, that his rebellious streak shows itself and he starts to live life a little dangerously and throws caution to the wind to see if the life he had always dreamed of would bring him the joy he craved. The attention to the little details throughout really make this short novel sparkle and I found it to be so touching and enchanting.’ —\u003cem\u003eBooks and Me\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alison Moore","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892792001,"sku":"9781907773815","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773815.jpeg?v=1570475889"},{"product_id":"the-lighthouse-9781907773174","title":"The Lighthouse","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner of the 2013 McKitterick Prize\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the 2013 East Midlands Book Award\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2012\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for New Writer of the Year in the 2012 Specsavers National Book Awards\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eObserver Book of the Year 2012\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e begins on a North Sea ferry, on whose blustery outer deck stands Futh, a middle-aged, recently separated man heading to Germany for a restorative walking holiday.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSpending his first night in Hellhaus at a small, family-run hotel, he finds the landlady hospitable but is troubled by an encounter with an inexplicably hostile barman.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the morning, Futh puts the episode behind him and sets out on his week-long circular walk along the Rhine. As he travels, he contemplates his childhood; a complicated friendship with the son of a lonely neighbour; his parents’ broken marriage and his own. But the story he keeps coming back to, the person and the event affecting all others, is his mother and her abandonment of him as a boy, which left him with a void to fill, a substitute to find.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe recalls his first trip to Germany with his newly single father. He is mindful of something he neglected to do there, an omission which threatens to have devastating repercussions for him this time around.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the end of the week, Futh, sunburnt and blistered, comes to the end of his circular walk, returning to what he sees as the sanctuary of the Hellhaus hotel, unaware of the events which have been unfolding there in his absence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Melancholy and haunting. The sense of loneliness and discomfort and rejection is compelling, the low key prose carefully handled. It’s a serious novel with a distinctive and unsettling atmosphere.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMargaret Drabble\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A haunting and accomplished novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKaty Guest\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Independent on Sunday\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It is this accumulation of the quotidian, in prose as tight as Magnus Mills’s, which lends Moore’s book its standout nature, and brings the novel to its ambiguous, thrilling end.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePhilip Womack\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Telegraph\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘No surprise that this quietly startling novel won column inches when it landed on the Man Booker Prize longlist. After all, it’s a slender debut released by a tiny independent publisher. Don’t mistake \u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e for an underdog, though. For starters, it’s far too assured ... Though sparely told, the novel’s simple-seeming narrative has the density of far longer work. People and places are intricately evoked with a forensic feel for mood. It’s title becomes a recurring motif, from the Morse code torch flashes of Futh’s boyhood to the lighthouse-shaped silver perfume case that he carries in his pocket, history filling the void left by its missing vial of scent. Warnings are emitted, too – by Futh’s anxious aunt and an intense man he meets on the ferry. It all stokes a sense of ominousness that makes the denouement not a bit less shocking.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eHephzibah Anderson\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Daily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is powerful writing likely to shine in your memory for a long time.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEmily Cleaver\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLITRO Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Alison Moore's writing is exquisite, the prose simple and powerful, but it's the use of imagery which really marks it out as something special.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSue Magee\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Bookbag\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘In \u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e Alison Moore has created an unsettling, seemingly becalmed but oddly sensual, and entirely excellent novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlan Bowden\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWords of Mercury\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Alison Moore's debut novel has all the assurance of a veteran, a strong contender for the prize, its sense of despair will either be its making or its undoing: 9\/10.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRoz Davison\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDon't Read That Read This\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ultimately, what drew me into this bleak tale of sorrow and abandonment was the quality of the writing – so taut and economical it even looked different on the page somehow – and so effective in creating a mounting sense of menace and unease. It never flinches.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eIsabel Costello\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eOn the literary sofa\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Moore’s writing has a superb sense of the weight of memory.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKate Saunders\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e is a spare, slim novel that explores grief and loss, the patterns in the way we are hurt and hurt others, and the childlike helplessness we feel as we suffer rejection and abandonment. It explores the central question about leaving and being left: even when it feels inevitable, why does it hurt so much, and why is this particular kind of numbness so repellent to others? The brutal ending continues to shock after several re-readings.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJenn Ashworth\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e looks simple but isn't, refusing to unscramble what seems a bleak moral about the hazards of reproduction, in the widest sense. Small wonder that it stood up to the crash-testing of a prize jury's reading and rereading. One of the year's 12 best novels? I can believe it.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnthony Cummins\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is a book that might have vanished had it not been picked up by the Booker judges. It deserves to be read, and reread. No laughs, no levity, just a beautiful, sad, overripe tale that lingers in the mind.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eIsabel Berwick\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘What must have gone some way to earning \u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e a place on the longlist, though, is the admirable simplicity of Moore’s prose. Like Futh, its without flourishes, yet beneath its outward straightforwardness lies a hauntingly complex exploration of the recurring patterns that life inevitably follows, often as a consequence of one’s past.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eFrancesca Angelini\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Sunday Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e, Alison Moore’s melancholic debut, would eventually have found admiring readers through the great network of word of mouth. That it has been shortlisted, deservedly, for the Man Booker Prize will quicken the process. This is a beautiful short novel sustained by muted urgency, nuance and the exactness with which Moore conveys the paralysing levels of depression that Futh battles. In order to deal with the present he attempts to make sense of his past, which refuses to fade away. His thoughts throb with humiliating episodes from his boyhood, cut short when his bored, dissatisfied mother left, leaving his father to voice his anger at his only audience, the bewildered boy.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEileen Battersby\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Irish Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A debut novel from a high-achieving independent publisher, \u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e has surprised some observers with its place on the Man Booker Prize shortlist. Disquieting, deceptive, crafted with a sly and measured expertise, Alison Moore's story could certainly deliver a masterclass in slow-burn storytelling to those splashier literary celebs who take more pains over a pyrotechnic paragraph than a watertight plot.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBoyd Tonkin\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The originality, structure and neat prose of this first novel justify its shortlisting, but it doesn't do much to lift the soul.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKate Green\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eCountry Life\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The menacing atmosphere Moore builds up is masterful, in that Futh only partly perceives it, through his own preoccupations. A pair of silky knickers he finds under his bed only makes him think squeamishly that the dust on them is ‘strangers’ dead skin’. Rarely is dullness so dangerous.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLaura Marsh\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLiterary Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Highly recommended.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eHarriet Harman\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alison Moore","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892792193,"sku":"9781907773174","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773174.jpeg?v=1571258775"},{"product_id":"listen-close-to-me-9781844718313","title":"Listen Close to Me","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSubtitled Hidden Lives of Love, Madness, Murder, Loss and Deception, this new collection by Catherine Eisner traces often with darkest black humour the misadventures and behavioural tics of women driven by bizarre and sometimes criminal compulsions. An asexual niece becomes the love interest of her erotica-collecting uncle; the mistress of an army Intelligence Officer assumes the modus operandi of a spy to outwit her lover; a cat-obsessed wife of a commodities broker is suckered into a human-trafficking scam in Hong Kong; an eighteen-year-old governess becomes a suspect in a notorious case of serial murder and begins to harbour suspicions about the budding sociopath in her charge, a sinister nine-year-old boy. These are tales that probe the intimate lives and crimes of unreliable narrators to prompt disturbing confidences told in voices from the sidelines that we wouldn’t normally hear. ‘Extraordinary writing. Mesmeric reading.’ Ambit magazine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I've long been an admirer of Catherine Eisner's piquant and highly original fictions in the literary journal, 'Ambit', and of her singularly rich pictorial and sensuous prose (she's an academically trained painter, I understand). Here at last she is given a very much broader canvas for her character studies of women at the end of their tether, though it's the minute detail of their dysfunctional, drug-dependant (and even criminal) lives I admire so much.’ —Johanna Behrendt\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘entertaining and finely spiced …’ —Times Literary Supplement\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Extraordinary writing. Mesmeric reading.’ —Ambit magazine\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Catherine Eisner","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892798593,"sku":"9781844718313","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781844718313.jpeg?v=1570475938"},{"product_id":"septembers-9781907773785","title":"Septembers","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Annabel was a black and white figure in the distance, going in through the front doors. She worked behind the reception. I was a history teacher.’\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs we meet Matt, lying across the backseat of his on\/off girlfriend’s car, he begins a long confession. It starts with wrestling moves and continues past statue fires, reaching bomb threats and assault via episodes in the life of Franz von Papen, the Chancellor of interwar Germany. Piece by piece, Matt presents us with a map of his failures. Or is he part of some grander, universal fuck-up? \u003cem\u003eSeptembers\u003c\/em\u003e, Christopher Prendergast’s debut novel, is a simmering tale of upheaval, revolt and loss.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Prendergast reanimates the ailing spaces of the City: with vision, tenderness and terrific writing.’ —James Sheard\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The pleasure of \u003cem\u003eSeptembers\u003c\/em\u003e lies in its wisdom, honesty and warmth. It isn’t a eulogy for lost worlds or ideas, or an attack on the world we’re confronted with. Prendergast’s England, hollowed by peak-capitalism, feels fraught with possibility. Life baffles his antiheroes, yet they’re stalked by hopeful conspiracies. \u003cem\u003eSeptembers\u003c\/em\u003e is the smartest, freshest novel I’ve read in some time. Prendergast is a new and important voice.’ —Joe Stretch\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Prendergast's debut is part love story, part social commentary on an urban world failing its inhabitants like history teacher Matt and his girlfriend Annabel. Prendergast cites Kurt Vonnegut as an influence, and some of that can be seen in the way he moves between the past and the present.’ —Lesley McDowell\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Christopher Prendergast","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892801153,"sku":"9781907773785","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773785.jpeg?v=1570476056"},{"product_id":"vault-9781907773112","title":"Vault","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eA pre-war amateur cycling career is cut short by call-up. Trained as a sniper, the man, whose name we never know for sure, embarks for war-torn Europe. Undecided how to resume his life at the war’s close, and disturbed by what he has left behind on the Continent, he is compelled to return, dispensing first medical aid, then something quite different.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA further attempt to take up his cycling career is thwarted when he is inveigled into playing his minor part in a new – Cold – war. Finally settling for a retreat into peaceful obscurity, he discovers even this is not to be.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHis story, he learns, has been turned into a novel. without his knowledge or approval. As he now reads, comments on and corrects the novel, he begins to struggle to distance himself from the false heroics, and above all, to reclaim his own death.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘In recent years every magazine worth its salt has featured a David Rose short story. Although bewilderingly various and multiphonic they were always unmistakably him… Now comes Vault, a strange, spare tale of army snipers, nuclear espionage and competition cycling. The Tour de France features but this is closer to Flann O’Brien or Alfred Jarry than Lance Armstrong, with its shifting narrators continually mutinying against their creator – Rose, God or themselves. Although it has the drive of a Len Deighton thriller it also contrives to be simultaneously playful and tragic, giddily comic and heartbreakingly sad, making one suspect that there are no limits to what this writer may do.’ —Bill Broady, author of The Swimmer (Flamingo, 2000)\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"David Rose","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892802625,"sku":"9781907773112","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773112.jpeg?v=1571258873"},{"product_id":"too-many-magpies-9781844717217","title":"Too Many Magpies","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eCan we believe in magic and spells? Can we put our faith in science?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA young mother married to a scientist fears for her children’s safety as the natural world around her becomes ever more uncertain. Until, that is, she meets a charismatic stranger who seems to offer a different kind of power… But is he a saviour or a frightening danger? And, as her life is overturned, what is happening to her children whom she vowed to keep safe? Why is her son Danny now acting so strangely? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this haunting, urgent and timely novel, Elizabeth Baines brings her customary searing insight to the problems of sorting our rational from our irrational fears and of bringing children into a newly precarious world. In prose that spins its own spell she exposes our hidden desires and the scientific and magical modes of thinking which have got us to where we are now.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Moving and compelling’ —Sarah Salway\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘On “Balancing on the Edge of the World’:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA stunning debut collection’ —Melissa Lee-Houghton\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘On “Balancing on the Edge of the World’:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eImpressive collection... She finds and plucks out important and remarkable moments from the otherwise ordinary. It is quite a skill.’ —Scott Pack\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Elizabeth Baines is a superb stylist – a latter-day fabulist in fact – and her writing reminded me of Chekhov's in that it was spare and paid attention to the subtleties of everyday experience.’ —Clare Dudman\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Elizabeth Baines has led me through a myriad of seemingly ordinary moments and invested them with extraordinary power… It is the microscopic quality of Elizabeth Baines' eye that makes each and every one of these stories so special.’ —Dovegreyreader\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘'One of those books I had to force myself to put down just so the experience of reading it wouldn't end.’ —Tania Hershman\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Each story strikes to the heart.’ —Sue Guiney\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘An innovative and committed writer of distinctly pure talent.’ —The Short Review\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Elizabeth Baines","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892803777,"sku":"9781844717217","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781844717217.jpeg?v=1571258854"},{"product_id":"the-fat-of-fed-beasts-9781784630249","title":"The Fat of Fed Beasts","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Fleshing out the shadowy metaphysical hints of Beckett’s novels, this intellectual romp is the best debut I have read in years’ Nicholas Lezard, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMonday lunchtime: a bank is being robbed. The gunmen tell everyone to get down on the floor, but an old man refuses. Behind him in the queue is Rada Kalenkova, an investigator for the Office of Assessment, recording everything she sees. Shots are fired and a woman is killed. Or maybe two. But Rada ignores the murders and pursues the old man instead.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNothing about the robbery or the putative killings makes sense. The robbers might be police. The bank manager denies anyone was hurt, despite the blood on the walls. Every subsequent enquiry leads towards Edward Likker, a renowned fixer. But Likker is dead.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Fat of Fed Beasts\u003c\/em\u003e is an ambitious literary mix of existential uncertainty, murder, bureaucracy, unreliable father figures and disaffected policemen. It asks why we do what we do, whether it matters, and what, if anything, our lives are worth. And it’s funny.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ware has an uncluttered prose style and a willingness to stretch the boundaries of fiction. His sensibility is finely tuned to those grey areas of experience where identities shift, where people forget who they really are. No other writer springs to mind as a ready comparison to Ware: already he has defined a unique thematic territory.’ Aiden O’Reilly, \u003cem\u003eThe Short Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘4\/5 Rating. Alex, Rada, and D are ‘loss adjusters’ – they deal with lives that have ended, reporting on the worth. Alex gets up later than D and Rada. He wanted to be with Rada but she chose Gary. D is sick of Rada’s detailing and just completely sick of Alex, and hopes for better. Rada is in the bank when it’s robbed, can’t get the old man to lay on the floor and her following suspension leaves her aloof in the world. And then there are the demoted police who want to give something unlawful a try.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Worm Hole\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Fleshing out the shadowy metaphysical hints of Beckett’s novels, this intellectual romp is the best debut I have read in years.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNicholas Lezard\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘But, this being a book set in 21st-century Britain, it is not only concerned with the fate of the soul and the nature of narrative, but also with guns, the ennui of daily life, minutely observed trivia and deep and dark matters; Quentin Tarantino is in the mix, as well as eschatology, the branch of theology concerned with the end of days. If you liked Tom McCarthy’s \u003cem\u003eRemainder\u003c\/em\u003e, you’ll love this. Guy Ware is also very good at black humour (“I’ve either got to actually hit someone or find some other way to calm myself down,” says the most violent and yobbish of the narrators, “because if I go on like this, I’m going to make myself ill”), and corny humour: on being told that the first stage of grief, in Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s formula, is denial, a character replies “No, it’s not,” which got a laugh from me at least. The result of all this is the best debut novel I have read in years. I am now going to polish my shoes.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNicholas Lezard\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The staff of the office are revealed as gatekeepers to the afterlife, setting up a neat reversal in which determining the resting place of recently departed souls is treated like any normal job – employees rock up late and use work computers for their own projects – while mundane tasks, such as making couscous salad, are addressed with scholastic intensity.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSam Kitchener\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Literary Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘About halfway through the book, Ware sheds light on the mysterious title. The fed beasts are from the Book of Isiah, one of those bloodthirsty sections about offerings and livestock slaughter and so on. But Ware’s disdain for the corporate world’s overfed beasts is apparent but rendered with enough empathy and humour that it does not overbear this delightful book.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJudith Sullivan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSHOTS Crime \u0026amp; Thriller Ezine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Guy Ware’s debut short story collection is called You Have 24 Hours To Love Us. It took me roughly that amount of time to read through it for the first time and immediately fall in love with the author’s style.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMaia Nikitina\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBookmunch\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ware has an uncluttered prose style and a willingness to stretch the boundaries of fiction. His sensibility is finely tuned to those grey areas of experience where identities shift, where people forget who they really are. No other writer springs to mind as a ready comparison to Ware: already he has defined a unique thematic territory.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAiden O’Reilly\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Short Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Guy Ware","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892809473,"sku":"9781784630249","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630249.jpeg?v=1571258750"},{"product_id":"the-beginning-of-the-end-9781784630263","title":"The Beginning of the End","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVisiting Thailand to marry a sex worker, Raymond is informed that his father’s body has been discovered in an isolated villa on the Belgian coast. While his bride embarks on a career in the Dutch and German porn industries, Raymond moves into the villa with the intention of renovating the property.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLife by the sea, however, does not go according to plan.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Beginning of the End\u003c\/em\u003e marks the arrival of a bold new talent.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I was totally gripped when reading it and was absolutely determined to publish it.’ —Nicholas Royle\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Like Camus’s \u003cem\u003eL’Etranger\u003c\/em\u003e rewritten by Michel Houllebecq, with JG Ballard looking over his shoulder …’ —Nicholas Royle\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The anomie and alienation of Ian Parkinson’s \u003cem\u003eThe Beginning of the End\u003c\/em\u003e is delivered with such stripped down and unforgiving sureness of touch that it becomes hypnotic and deeply disturbing. Somewhere beyond J.G. Ballard’s “death of affect” and the cold, clear eye of the nouveau roman is an endgame territory of shifting dunes, dog walkers, flickering porn channels in empty houses occupied by rodents and foil trays of melting frozen meals-for-one. Venture if you dare.’ —Iain Sinclair\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Delicious, reckless melancholy reminiscent of Houellebecq.’ —Joe Stretch\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Written in a spare, dissociated style and including a fair amount of wearily squalid hard-core explicitness, \u003cem\u003eThe Beginning of the End\u003c\/em\u003e won’t be to everyone’s taste, but those who enjoy a good, bleak tale of anomie and alienation can’t go wrong – I found it utterly captivating.’ —Laura Wilson, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is a weird, wonderful, troubling concoction of a novel that is utterly compelling. It is hard not to fall on the old page-turner cliché but you really do want to know what happens next and where the story is going. Sometimes it requires the broadest of broad minds. It is an excellent piece of work and I recommend it for originality and freshness and for Ian Parkinson’s talent for making disturbing material so enjoyable.’ —Joe Cushnan\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The Beginning of the End is not a cosy read, certainly, but it’s brave in subject matter and assured in style. If you are truly put off by graphic sex scenes, it’s probably not for you, but if you don’t mind that, lurking underneath the shock-and-awe tactics is a novel with something unique to say.’ —Elle Thinks Blog\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘There are hints of JG Ballard floating around here, most easily seen in the way his characters engage in detached sex that's just an extension of their porn-watching habits. And the beach on which Raymond lives, the foundations of his beach-house being rapidly eaten away by erosion, awakens memories, intentionally or not, of Camus's \u003cem\u003eL'Etranger\u003c\/em\u003e. Parkinson nails the tone, telling his story in prose that's spare and functional but not short of style or rhythm either.’ —Alastair Mabbott, \u003cem\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ian Parkinson's debut novel The Beginning of the End details one man's social alienation and his ultimate descent into severe depression. With its explicit depiction of hard-core sex and its relentless nihilism, this book will not be to everyone's taste. But for those readers who admire JG Ballard's themes of dystopian modernity, they will find Parkinson's debut to be a confident and well-written addition to the genre.’ —BookTrust\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Both deadly funny and serious in turn, this frantic and scandalous novel marks the arrival of a refreshingly bold new literary voice.’ —Lee Rourke, \u003cem\u003eNew Humanist\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It’s a horrifying tale of degradation and decline set in a haunting, modern-gothic landscape of dunes and ruined villas on the Belgian coast. it's a deeply sinister story of transgressive sex and violent death told in sparse, affectless language that invites comparisons with JG Ballard … Certainly the outstanding debut I've read this year.’ —Will Wiles, \u003cem\u003eGuardian Books Blog\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e'\u003c\/em\u003eIn Belgium, a social outcast has a debilitating nervous breakdown. Think American Psycho crossed with Limmy’s Dee-Dee. Immersive and gruesome insight into the mind of a man not coping terribly well with mental illness. Rating 4½ out of 5.' —\u003cem\u003eJim’s Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e'Ian Parkinson has done an excellent job of portraying Raymond, and even the pornographic scenes are narrated in Raymond’s clinical, matter-of-fact tone, as if he was describing the weather. The sparse, pared-down narrative is effective and the short chapters also mean that the novel is an easy read.' —\u003cem\u003eNudge\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ian Parkinson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892810049,"sku":"9781784630263","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630263.jpeg?v=1571258713"},{"product_id":"entertaining-strangers-9781907773273","title":"Entertaining Strangers","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the 2013 East Midlands Book Award\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eEntertaining Strangers\u003c\/em\u003e is a tragi-comedy about the eccentric Edwin Prince – a depressive intellectual obsessed with high culture and ants – and the mysterious, homeless narrator Jules, who gradually unravels Edwin’s impossible relationships with his landlady, neurotic mother, psychotic brother, domineering ex-wife, dead grandfather and, above all, his ant-farm. At the same time, Jules continually experiences traumatic memories full of fire and water, and gradually a terrible pre-history emerges from beneath all of the other stories, which seems somehow to shape both Jules’s fiery dreams and Edwin’s obsessions – a great fire, massacre and one girl's drowning in Smyrna, 75 years earlier.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/52410701\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"\" mozallowfullscreen=\"\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/vimeo.com\/52410701\"\u003eEntertaining Strangers\u003c\/a\u003e from \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/vimeo.com\/saltpublishing\"\u003eSalt Publishing\u003c\/a\u003e on \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/vimeo.com\"\u003eVimeo\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eEntertaining Strangers\u003c\/em\u003e made me laugh. If you are interested in landladies, eccentrics, philosophers, bad families, music, degenerates, and ants, Jonathan Taylor's entertaining and illuminating novel will make you laugh too.’ —Kate Pullinger\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘... gripping tale of deeply strange and obsessive characters, funny and horrifying, great read.’ —Michele Hanson\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Original, strange, funny, profound.’ —Louis De Bernières\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Taylor achieves a heartfelt yet unsentimental memoir that is also a reconciliation.’ —Carol Birch\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A brave and unsentimental book.’ —Diana Athill\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Riveting, detailed, moving account of his father’s Parkinson’s, mysterious past, and his own response to it.’ —Michele Hanson\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A literary novel, with prose like music.’ —Sophie Duffy\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Somehow Taylor has created a penniless, snobbish autodidact who’s completely adorable. Prince is the kind of character who comes along once in a lifetime, the kind who echoes in your thoughts for days after reading. The initial absurdity of his preoccupation with ants (and the ensuing repetition of the word ‘ants’, unleashing laughs which I thought I’d reserved exclusively for Stewart Lee) develops into a more profound leitmotif and ultimately a poignant symbol of his self-destructiveness. The line between tragedy and comedy is redrawn in satisfyingly unexpected ways.’ —Fiction Uncovered\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is not to dumb down the novel at all, but to big it up: A literary novel, with prose like music. A novel that demands a reader response. A novel whose many many expletives swirl around hurt lives and confused emotions. A novel that deals with the crunchiness of living on the edge. That deals with families. And the way families can pass on their baggage of abusive behaviour and guilt to the next generation. And the one after that…And it is the stranger who falls through time and space through the front door that holds the key to the past.’ —Sophie Duffy\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eEntertaining Strangers\u003c\/em\u003e is probably one of the more creative and original novels I've ever read. It's definitely an intellectual's book: one clever and gigantic allegory full of surprises, and an abundance of intriguing information about ants.’ —Dreamworld Book Reviews\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Jonathan Taylor","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892817601,"sku":"9781907773273","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773273.jpeg?v=1570475363"},{"product_id":"the-black-country-9781784630348","title":"The Black Country","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eChristmas 2015: The top 10 debut fiction books, \u003cem\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMaddie and Harry: she’s an estate agent, he’s a teacher. They’ll say they live in the Black Country. They’ll say how they met Jonathan Cotard, explain how they later argued, had a car accident, thought they’d killed someone. Thought they had. And as they search for a truth, they’ll tell us their secrets, their mistakes. And we’ll judge them. We'll judge Harry's fling with a schoolgirl and Maddie's previous life. We'll judge the nature of love and violence, good and evil. The Black Country. For Maddie and Harry, it’s darker than it should be.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Begs to be read in one go, tugging the reader onwards through its intense and strangely intimate world.’ —Alison Moore\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Obliquely yet menacingly told, increasingly horrific, and full of humour as dark as its title.’ —M John Harrison\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is an addictive book that deserves to be up there with the likes of \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eGirl On The Train\u003c\/em\u003e it's as good, if not better, than both. A dark and unsettling read that leaves you feeling like a voyeur of a car crash relationship (where you wouldn't look away even if you could), I really enjoyed it – 9\/10 stars’ —Andrew Angel, Ebookwyrm's Book Reviews\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A couple whose uneasy relationship seems as unreliable as that in \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e are driving home, a little the worse for drink, when they accidentally knock someone over, someone they know – but they choose to drive quickly on. The story, and their relationship, becomes increasingly bizarre ...’ —CrimeTime\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e is a macabre triumph, whether you read it as a horror fable about love or a meditation on the controlling character of the artist. Either way, this ambitious and memorable first novel loiters like a rotting fish left behind the fridge. I mean this in a good way. \u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e really is something else.’ —James Kidd, The Independent on Sunday\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Every so often a novel lands from out of nowhere and grabs you by the eyeballs. Gillian Flynn's \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e was one such, but at least Flynn had some previous form. Kerry Hadley-Pryce's haunting and unnerving \u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e is a debut of gothic ambition. The cover hints at David Lynch, and this twisted portrait of a marriage in continual breakdown, of distrust, paranoia and love turned to contempt is a little as though \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e had been reimagined by Lynch.’ —James Kidd, South China Morning Post\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e is an excellent book, written in an astonishing voice by a very good writer, and deserves a wide audience.’ —Graeme Shimmin\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kerry Hadley-Pryce","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892827073,"sku":"9781784630348","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630348.jpeg?v=1571258720"},{"product_id":"deaf-at-spiral-park-9781907773167","title":"Deaf at Spiral Park","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDeaf at Spiral Park\u003c\/em\u003e is a book about a bear that shaves off his fur to join humanity. The novel uses a range of generic approaches, such as comedy and philosophy, to question the humanity of the bear, and conversely the animalistic behaviour of those around him. A cast of characters such as a clown, an invalid, a farmer and a philosopher transcend their stock types and become involved in the complex world of the bear. The antagonist, a recruitment consultant, dies several times, and, ultimately, this teaches her nothing. This is a fresh and original novel which remains accessible and funny in spite of its experimental and philosophical concerns.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Surreal, touching, and very very funny.’ —Rob Shearman\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Kieran Devaney's brilliant first novel.’ —Nicholas Royle\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eDeaf at Spiral Park\u003c\/em\u003e leaves a lingering nausea familiar to anyone who has ever had a performance review. But the dark humour of the novel sustains it. Tiny flashes of joy are there though only fleetingly, the shafts of sunlight on a pavement, a minor victory for someone on the ‘shitlist’ (only called on for the worst of jobs), and an ‘impossibly moving’ moment for the bear at a concert. All soon swallowed up, but some moments to hold on to.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePerhaps what is most telling is that I read Deaf at Spiral Park on a long commute either side of a day’s work that at times felt like just another surreal episode in the novel.’ —Cultural Outpost\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘It takes a vivid imagination to come up with the central premise of \u003cem\u003eDeaf at Spiral Park\u003c\/em\u003e and Kieran Devaney clearly has that imagination.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt follows the misadventures of a bear, who shaves off all his fur, clips his claws, buys the biggest clothes he can find, and tries to join the world. We find him trying to hold down a series of temporary jobs, while interacting with the recruitment consultant, whose frequent deaths have no educational value, and a myriad of other characters, add the human elements to this novel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs you can probably tell, it is definitely in the genre of magic realism, but it is none the worse for that. This conceit, such as it is, allows for the very nature of what makes us human to be fully explored, and although the book does not have a strong plot (it is the whole grass is greener on the other side, no it isn't type hero quest) it does pose more questions and ideas than perhaps ninety percent of the books that find their ways onto the shelves of our bookshops do.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is a worthwhile read, and if your reading tastes fall somewhere between \u003cem\u003eThe Life of Pi\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eVernon God Little\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eThen We Came To The End\u003c\/em\u003e, then you should definitely give this book a try.’ —Ben Macnair\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kieran Devaney","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892827777,"sku":"9781907773167","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773167.jpeg?v=1570475329"},{"product_id":"clara-s-daughter-9781907773792","title":"Clara’s Daughter","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMichele is a successful business woman with a troubled private life. She has a high-powered job, a family, a husband, yet she is defined by a term of possession: she is ‘Clara’s daughter’. Nameless. When Michele moves her mother into the basement, her husband slams the door and disappears into the night. Michele increasingly hides away upstairs, as Clara weaves her conspiracies beneath.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eClara’s Daughter\u003c\/em\u003e begins in terraced houses and city parks of North London but develops, through sharp-edged monologues and surreal visions, into a primeval stand-off between mother and daughter. Eventually, Clara – the controlling matriarch – finds a way to release her daughter. But can Michele release herself?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeike Ziervogel is a master of suspenseful storytelling. In Clara’s clandestine power games and Michele’s increasingly fraught dealings with both her mother and her own highly-strung sister, Hilary, there emerges a chilling, yet poignant family tableau. Devastating in its psychological insights, \u003cem\u003eClara’s Daughter\u003c\/em\u003e reveals unnerving truths about relationship anxieties on many levels, which emerge not only from Ziervogel’s elegant, succinct descriptions, but build steadily from the tense, silent spaces between the unfolding of main events. A divinely-crafted, almost cinematic novella, \u003cem\u003eClara’s Daughter\u003c\/em\u003e is at once startling, moving and intensely enduring.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘From the author of \u003cem\u003eMagda\u003c\/em\u003e, an incisive dissection of matriarchal power-play set in the leafy suburbs of North London. Ziervogel evokes the age-old mother-daughter struggle – cast in contemporary role anxieties. Is Michele destined to be mother, wife, high-powered business woman or merely ‘Clara's Daughter’? A moving read for our times.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMorag Charlwood, Shoreham Wordfest\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A taut and compelling drama about the place of the elderly in family life and about how, in one way or another, it's the destiny of the old to be hidden away. It’s also about how much a marriage can take, and what it eventually boils down to – clothes in bin liners. I enjoyed \u003cem\u003eClara's Daughter\u003c\/em\u003e hugely; in this novella length story Meike Ziervogel has achieved a lot with, relatively speaking, a little. Reading it was like watching a very good play.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eIsabel Wolff, Sunday Times bestselling author of ‘Ghostwritten’\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A quietly devastating book about the disintegration of a marriage. Moving the mother into the basement and then having the backwards and forwards structure creating a sense of the will-she-won't-she move in and detonate like a bomb down there or merely sit and rot like a huge dark fish while the marriage falls apart above is a stroke of genius.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNatalie Young, author of ‘Season to Taste’\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Meike Ziervogel is becoming one of the most interesting figures in the contemporary British and European world, not just because she is a publisher of imagination and daring, but a writer of grace, forensic precision, and power. Rarely has someone given so much from sheer enthusiasm, and talent, and been so worth watching.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNicholas Lezard\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel is the brave woman who set up Peirene Press five years ago … Her own debut novel displays similar nerve … This is an ambitious and queasily unsettling novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDAVID MILLS\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Sunday Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This frank, disturbing novel is an intriguing mix of fact and fiction and pulls no punches. The author sets out to use the story to examine the psychological theory that unloved daughters destroy the people they love and then themselves … Ziervogel explores this disturbing theory with haunting originality and real flair.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCHRISTENA APPLEYARD\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Daily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is an intelligent, acute and horrifically intense book. It didn't so much take my breath away as make me gasp for air.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSAM JORDISON\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The deftly arranged sequence of scenes gradually reveals the fears and needs of each protagonist and their relationships with each other, outlined with a careful, thoughtful style that creates an unusual atmosphere of charged bleakness. Strange, but oddly impressive.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eHARRY RITCHIE\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel’s prose is generally superb, with true flair and an originality that is rare when confronting such an everyday subject.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eROISIN O'CONNOR\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eIndependent on Sunday\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Stark and acutely observed realism... The result is visceral, bleak and moving.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCLAIRE KOHDA HAZELTON\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGuardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Clara’s Daughter is a devastating tale of our times… beautifully written, compelling and emotionally intelligent, it is a masterful achievement and represents the work of an author with a deep understanding of the frailty of human nature.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePAM NORFOLK\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLancashire Evening Post\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This searching, beautifully written novel gets to the heart of woman's attempts to step out of the role of her mother's daughter, and make sense of the person she has become. Terrific.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKATE SAUNDERS\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘At a striking pace, the narrative switches between the perspectives of different characters, and the sense of emotional disconnect between them becomes ever more visceral and claustrophobic.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eANNA SAVVA\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Lady\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Meike Ziervogel","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892841473,"sku":"9781907773792","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773792.jpeg?v=1570475309"},{"product_id":"kauthar-9781784630294","title":"Kauthar","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOur Book Reviews Online: Top Ten Books of the Year 2015\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLydia, a woman in her early thirties, lives in London. She lacks a purpose and loses herself in a string of affairs. When she meets Rabia, a convert to Islam, the Moslem rituals and the Arabic language offer her a new beginning. Lydia becomes Kauthar. She falls in love with Rafiq, an Iraqi-born doctor, and her life seems complete. But the terrorist attacks of 9\/11 tests their relationship. While Kauthar becomes increasingly fundamental in her beliefs, Rafiq returns to war-torn Baghdad to work in a hospital. Kauthar follows her husband – and the consequences are terrifying.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKauthar charts the life of a white British woman who converts to Islam. The story explores the reasons why and analyses the psychological factors that lead her to distort and misuse her religious faith. Ultimately, Kauthar is a novel about how longing for love can result in violent delusion.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/134491966\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" frameborder=\"0\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"\" mozallowfullscreen=\"\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Meike Ziervogel brings courage and delicacy, as well as deep cultural and psychological insight, to a terrifying theme. The imagination in impressive service, this is both a necessary and an astonishing novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMoniza Alvi\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Meike Ziervogel really gets under the skin of her female protagonist. She has created a searing portrait of one woman’s psychic collapse and descent into religious extremism. A highly readable and timely narrative.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLucy Popescu\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘In a story that is grounded in recent current events, yet profoundly metaphysical and philosophical in the questions it poses about love, faith and aggression, Meike Ziervogel once again raises the bar of contemporary literary fiction.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMorag Charlwood\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is a novel that cuts into the heart of a modern taboo – the white British female who choose to become a Muslim – with sensitivity and insight… Meike Ziervogel grew up in Germany and came to London to study Arabic; her strong, spare writing cuts to the heart of a shocking story.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKate Saunders\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eKauthar\u003c\/em\u003e, as much an exploration of breakdown and collapse as of the lines between devotion and delusion, faith and fundamentalism, does not shy away from suffering and darkness; instead, as in Magda and Clara’s Daughter, Ziervogel goes bravely to the bleakest points of humanity and illuminates them with her lyrical and enthralling prose.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClaire Kohda Hazelton\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel writes with insight and fluency, articulating a profound empathy with those at the extreme reaches of their endurance. Searingly contemporary, Kauthar sketches out a humane and subtle counterpoint to the distorted debate surrounding religious radicalisation, and in doing so is resonant and timely.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLettie Kennedy\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Uniquely qualified to write this tale of a woman’s conversion to Islam, Ziervogel is able to write and speak Arabic and holds an MA in Arabic Literature. Her portrayal of Kauthar’s faith is both sensitively and acutely observed, with fascinating insight into the daily prayers and rituals which make up Islamic life.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJennifer Acton\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFor Books’ Sake\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★ An intriguing and intimate read.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJohn Lloyd\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Bookbag\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eKauthar\u003c\/em\u003e is a beautiful book, Ziervogel writes as though each word were a deep consideration, though the prose is sparse. Religion is treated with respect and honesty, highlighting the good and the bad that can come from devotion.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlice Farrant\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWe Love This Book\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★ Visceral and compelling, Ziervogel draws on the traditions of Islamic and Christian mysticism, and on sharp observations of contemporary society, to give a deeply uncomfortable glimpse into the mind of a misfit-turned-extremist.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJuanita Coulson\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Lady\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Meike Ziervogel","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892841921,"sku":"9781784630294","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630294.jpeg?v=1570475925"},{"product_id":"magda-9781907773402","title":"Magda","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIrish Times Books Of The Year 2013\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eObserver Books Of The Year 2013\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGuardian Readers' Books Of The Year 2013\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShort Listed For Guardian's Not The Booker Prize 2013\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnloved sons turn their aggression on the outside world. Unloved daughters destroy the people they love, and then themselves.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn this daring portrayal of Magda Goebbels – wife of Hitler’s propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels – Meike Ziervogel unveils an historical tale of abusive mother and daughter relationships that reaches a terrifying conclusion in the last days of Nazi Germany.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMagda is born at the beginning of the 20th century, the illegitimate child of a maidservant who feels burdened with a daughter she does not want. The girl grows up to become an ambitious woman, desperate for love and recognition. When Magda meets Joseph Goebbels, he appears to answer all her needs, and together they have six children. Towards the end of the Second World War, Magda has become physically and emotionally sick. As she takes her children into the Führer’s bunker, her eldest daughter Helga experiences an overwhelming sense of foreboding.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Straddling historical fact and fiction, this gem of a novel probes the dark material of malignant relations between mothers and daughters across generations. It’s a gripping read, a subtle portrait of a woman history made monstrous, here reinvented with intelligence and story-telling flair.’ —Lisa Appignanesi, author of Mad, Bad and Sad\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘For a novelist to dare approach the human side of a historical monster is always brave, and in this disturbing short novel Meike Ziervogel takes a huge gamble. Her protagonist — one hesitates to say 'heroine' — is Magda, wife of Josef Goebbels, troubled adventuress, fanatical acolyte of Hitler, killer of her own children. Does the gamble succeed? For this reader it emphatically does. This is a convincing and sometimes agonisingly raw depiction both of the Nazi ruling circle and, on an intimate personal level, of the way in which abuse breeds abuse through generation after generation.’ —Frederick Taylor, author of Exorcising Hitler\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A daring and intelligent debut.’ —Pam Norfolk\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘History has painted Magda Goebbels as the Medea of the Third Reich, but that hasn't dissuaded Meike Ziervogel from constructing a psychological profile that attempts to explain how a woman can murder her own children.’ —Alfred Hickling\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A disturbing book but one I'd recommend to anyone with interests from psychological profiling to Hitler's Germany.’ —Our Book Reviews\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘9 out of 10 – I found this a truly unique, fascinating read and one which has prompted me to seek out more literary studies and research on Magda Goebbels.’ —The Friendly Shelf\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Meet a woman who, despite praying to remain virginal, had seven children. Meet a woman whose mother thought her hoity-toity, and spoilt, and who thought she should go to work in a factory at school age to know her place better. Meet a woman of whom her oldest daughter would write I don't care what Mother says. Mother isn't always right. No, she definitely isn't. All three women are, of course, one and the same, and they're Magda Goebbels, the woman who epitomised more than anyone the Nazi wife.’ —The Bookbag\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel is the brave woman who set up Peirene Press five years ago ... Her own debut novel displays similar nerve ... This is an ambitious and queasily unsettling novel.’ —David Mills\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This frank, disturbing novel is an intriguing mix of fact and fiction and pulls no punches. The author sets out to use the story to examine the psychological theory that unloved daughters destroy the people they love and then themselves ... Ziervogel explores this disturbing theory with haunting originality and real flair.’ —Christena Appleyard\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Told in spare, simple prose, Ziervogel's depiction of a likely afterlife for Magda and her children, in which Helga must prostitute herself so that her family can eat, is particularly powerful.’ —Lesley McDowell\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The book left me with many questions about Magda’s decisions, but filling in the gaps gave the story an enduring quality and left me wanting to know even more about the women in Hitler’s bunker. This is a brief, but powerful book. I highly recommend it.’ —Farm Lane Books Blog\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eMagda\u003c\/em\u003e is a short, dark book, filled with unhappy people who go on to create other unhappy people. But it is also subtle and quiet and creeping. It’s the sort of book that I think would be described as ‘ambitious’, given how many different styles and how much is touched upon in its 115 pages, but ‘ambitious’ feels like a word you apply to something that doesn’t quite meet its goals. I think this does.’ —Debbie Kinsey\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Where Ziervogel really shines is in her expert handling of the narrative’s chronology; weaving back and forth over different points in the three women’s lives, she enables the reader to piece together an innate understanding of the motives behind Magda Goebbels, the woman who was capable of murdering her six children when she knew Germany has been defeated. While this makes for uneasy, and sometimes agonising reading, the end result is worth it; one comes away unable to forget Ziervogel’s haunting insight into one of the Nazi’s most notorious female members.’ —Sadie Levy Gale\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘But are Magda's own crimes committed out of love and fear, or selfish madness? Ziervogel has given us a novel which is frustratingly fragmentary, but also challenging, clever, and fascinating as an insight into how generations of Germans are summoning the courage to address the horror of the last century.’ —Amanda Craig\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘After initially reading \u003cem\u003eMagda\u003c\/em\u003e I was hugely impressed by it and thought it a very brave and often uncomfortable tale but one which needs to be so. Since then the book has lingered with me and my admiration of what Meike has done has grown and grown. It has made me ask myself a lot of questions about perceptions and how we look at and deal with history. It has also seen me go off and read other books, such as Laurent Binet’s HHhH (review coming soon), and documentaries and films, such as Downfall, which look at these horrendous events yet with more impartiality. A book which does that is one we should all be reading, so find a copy. It has been one of my reading experiences of the year.’ —Simon Savidge\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Observer Books of the Year. You might think that you've heard a lot in recent years about the dreadful final days in Hitler's bunker and Magda Goebbels's murder of her own children. I know I did when I started Meike Ziervogel's novel Magda (Salt) – but I soon realised that it still had the power to shock and surprise. This is an intelligent, acute and horrifically intense book. It didn't so much take my breath away as make me gasp for air.’ —Sam Jordison\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Meike Ziervogel","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892842241,"sku":"9781907773402","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773402.jpeg?v=1570475947"},{"product_id":"the-knife-drawer-9781844717255","title":"The Knife Drawer","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for The Authors’ Club Best First Novel Award 2012\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the house where Marie lives, the cutlery is running wild …\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMadness and fairy story creep hand in hand in this darkly comic tale. At the top of a narrow driveway there is a shambling Victorian house full of dust and stairs. 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All elements to the fore in this creepy, gothic first novel about a house and its mice.’ —Suzi Feay\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Padrika Tarrant","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892850497,"sku":"9781844717255","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781844717255.jpeg?v=1571258771"},{"product_id":"the-good-son-9781784630232","title":"The Good Son","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner of The Polari First Book Prize 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFinalist for The People’s Book Prize 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the Authors’ Club Best First Novel Award 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eChosen for City Reads 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the Guardian Not the Booker prize\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eELLE Best Books of 2015\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Reading Agency: Books of 2015\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMickey Donnelly is smart, which isn’t a good thing in his part of town. Despite having a dog called Killer and being in love with the girl next door, everyone calls him ‘gay’. It doesn’t help that his best friend is his little sister, Wee Maggie, and that everyone knows he loves his Ma more than anything in the world. He doesn’t think much of his older brother Paddy and really doesn’t like his Da. He dreams of going to America, taking Wee Maggie and Ma with him, to get them away from Belfast and Da. Mickey realises it’s all down to him. He has to protect Ma from herself. And sometimes, you have to be a bad boy to be a good son.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ciframe width=\"600\" height=\"338\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IFVA5VzU5ng?rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; encrypted-media\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I was knocked out by this stunningly intelligent, compassionate, and mordantly funny debut novel. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is a brilliant portrait of both political and familial unrest, and Paul McVeigh is a wildly important new talent.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLaura van den Berg\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Paul McVeigh has created a strong, unique, and funny protagonist, able to reveal the everyday intricacies and the broader politics of the Troubles in a fresh, engaging way. I fell in love with Mickey Donnelly.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSarah Butler\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘With his debut \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e, Paul McVeigh, long a champion of writers, proves himself a writer to be championed. There are flashes of both Roddy Doyle’s Paddy Clarke and Patrick McCabe’s Francie Brady in the character of Mickey Donnelly, who cartwheels fully-formed from the very first page, a spirited, exuberant and utterly engaging young narrator. The circumscribed world he inhabits – a few streets in North Belfast at the start of the Troubles – is vivid and fresh, brought fully to life, and McVeigh’s ear for the rhythms of his characters’ speech is second to none. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son \u003c\/em\u003eis a coming-of-age story written with a sharp eye and a big heart, and will establish Paul McVeigh as an important new Irish voice with stories to tell.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLucy Caldwell\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A real page-turner. Mickey Donnelly is a brilliant creation – a captivating, complex boy on the cusp of young adulthood. A poignant, devastating, funny, unforgettable read.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eVanessa Gebbie\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I meant to dip into \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e and ended up reading it all the way through in a matter of days. I love it. It’s brilliantly sparky and original, the story trips along effortlessly, the characters are all wonderfully alive and Paul McVeigh has a real ear for the music of dialogue and prose. The Good Son fairly ripples with wicked humour, warmth and coming-of-age wonder.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSarah Hilary\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I opened Paul McVeigh’s novel just to get a flavour of it and was then unable to put it down until I’d finished. It was like falling down a rabbit hole. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e reminded me in many ways of Pigeon English – the extraordinary way the voice of the young narrator immediately pulls you into his world, as though that world, dangerous and unforgiving as it is, is the most natural place on earth. From the very first page I knew I was in the hands of an accomplished storyteller, McVeigh’s vibrant and irreverent prose carrying along a novel that is both hopeful and big hearted at its core. It deserves to be widely acclaimed and widely read.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClaire King\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Paul McVeigh brilliantly achieves a very difficult thing: he turns a coming of age novel into high art, with complex yearnings. His young Mickey Donnelly navigates the Troubles like Huck Finn navigates the Mississippi River, prematurely becoming a fully-flighted adult and thereby letting us see the human condition through penetratingly fresh eyes. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is a work of genius from a splendid writer.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRobert Olen Butler\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Paul McVeigh has created a strong, unique, and funny protagonist, able to reveal the everyday intricacies and the broader politics of the Troubles in a fresh, engaging way. I fell in love with Mickey Donnelly.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSarah Butler\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Mickey Donnelly is one of those characters you believe in with all your heart. He is a boy who is both confused and astute, both sensitive and brave, and after I’d finished reading, I found I really missed his voice. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is a robust, funny, and truly charming first novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlison Moore\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘An intensely moving, often riotously funny coming-of-age story that merges the personal and political to create a novel that resonates long after the final page is turned.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlex Preston\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A vivid, poignant and thrilling tale of troubled boyhood, \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is a lot better than good – it’s outstanding.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eToby Litt\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A highly commendable debut, convincing in its realism’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLesley McDowell\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Mickey is the funniest, most endearing human being for whom we feel huge compassion as he faces each adversity. This novel envelops the reader with its humanity and its down-to-earth humour leaves you laughing.’ —\u003cem\u003eBookTrust\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It’s about a boy called Mickey who lives in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. It’s set in the summer holidays in between him leaving primary school and him starting secondary school. He’s wise beyond his years. He doesn’t fit in at all in this brutal society. He likes acting and dancing and he’s creative. You will completely fall in love with Mickey.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnna James\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWe Love This Book\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It’s easy to have on the commute. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is about a 10-year-old boy called Mickey and it’s set during The Troubles in Northern Ireland. I can’t overstate how much I fell for Mickey as a voice, he’s one of the most engaging, captivating voices that I’ve read in a novel this year. So it’s set in the period between primary school and secondary school, so it’s during his summer holidays, and Mickey is this clever, compassionate, smart boy who likes dancing, whose best friend is his little sister, which means he doesn’t really fit in very well in quite a brutal, violent society that he lives in ... His voice is so warm and the book is so funny, quite dark humour. You will completely fall in love with this voice.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnna James\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDavid Prever at Drivetime, BBC Radio Oxford\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is bursting with action, love, loss, betrayal and so much more – it is the sort of book you pick up and hours later emerge from, wondering where the time went. Like a fine point of light, the desire to be loved and accepted drives \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e toward an ending that leaves the reader satisfied, if somewhat unsettled.’ —\u003cem\u003eCulture Northern Ireland\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Paul McVeigh has written a terrific book that uses Northern Ireland's troubles to give the story tension and backbone.  It is honest, raw, emotional and hilarious.  He has filled the novel with great characters ranging from relatively good to relatively evil and his use of Mickey as the lynchpin is a triumph. It is impossible not to love this kid and how he thinks about and copes with his struggles. To repeat myself, the book crackles with comedy and drama, excellent dialogue and a conclusion that, as the blurb rightly says, underlines the notion – sometimes you have to be a bad boy to be a good son.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJoe Cushnan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDropped the Moon Blog\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘His depiction of the time and place – collecting for the black babies, roller discos up the Falls – and the peculiarities of NI vernacular – gazing at girls’ diddies, hoping for a lumber – is transportingly vivid. The effect is often very funny and then touching; the injustice of a line spent half in fear, the pleasure of a life lived half in laughter.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJane Graham\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Big Issue\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e delivers a real sense of a damaged child within a broken family constrained by his society, while also presenting a refreshing portrait of the troubles through the eyes of one of the most beguiling and endearing narrators I have encountered in a long time. McVeigh and \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e are destined for prizes.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePhil Clement\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eStructo Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The summer holidays are a time of dread for Mickey Donnelly. Secondary education is looming, but the prohibitive cost of the grammar school uniform has deprived him of his best chance to escape from Belfast’s turbulent Ardoyne neighbourhood. This isn’t the only cloud hanging over the delightful narrator of Paul McVeigh’s debut novel, however: \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e’s early-80s backdrop is one of poverty, paranoia and violence, both sectarian and domestic, a terrifying world for a boy whose best friend is his little sister and whose favourite film is \u003cem\u003eThe Wizard of Oz.\u003c\/em\u003e’ —\u003cstrong\u003eVictoria Segal\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘McVeigh’s debut novel \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e (Salt publishing, April 2015) is a triumph of vivid recall, a wrenching-off of the protective scabs that I, and many like me, have allowed to grow over the wounds of an upbringing in the sectarian streets of Northern Ireland during the Troubles. With a good dose of survivor guilt, and a shame-faced glance in the direction of IS and Boko Haram, we mutter to ourselves, “It wasn’t really that bad.” The Good Son is a swift and savage reminder that for so many of my countrymen and women, it really was that bad and there is little need for exaggeration.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eOrla McAllinden\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWriting.ie\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Books of the Month: \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e is a truly affecting and absorbing novel. It not only explores the personal journey Mickey goes on during the summer months before he starts secondary school but it also offers a eye opening social commentary on the Troubles. It is quite horrific to see how apathetic and numb Mickey and his community have become to the house raids, bombs and murders they witness on a frequent basis, especially now that we have garnered some distance from this tense period in Northern Irish history. Although only his debut novel, The Good Son perfectly illustrates what a masterful storyteller Paul McVeigh is and I personally can’t wait to see what he does next.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKellie Chambers\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eUlster Tatler\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Considering the strong emotional attachment that McVeigh forces us to feel towards his hero, it would be tempting to allow him a fairy tale ending similar to the films and TV shows he obsesses over. However the story to the very end remains true to the complex characters and messy realities of Mickey's life, and while some small happiness seems to prevail he is no less conflicted than he was in the beginning. While there are a few reasons for celebration Mickey doesn't escape the story unscathed, and his youthful innocence is replaced by a sad and adult realisation that “no miracles are coming out of the sky.” The story of a young boy and his family's negotiation of the Troubles would be a satisfying enough experience for a reader, yet McVeigh successfully manages to carry this already weighted subject further. \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e goes beyond surface politics and stereotypes of Northern Ireland, and is instead an impressive and insightful novel about the inextricable nature of guilt and innocence.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJoanne O’Sullivan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Incubator\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘With this first novel, McVeigh has set himself a high standard. Despite its horrors, The Good Son has a warm heart, and had this reader hoping against hope that somehow Mickey will survive and will carry his integrity and love through his teenage years and into adulthood.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClariss Burden\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Tablet\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Mickey Donnelly’s voice still rings loud and shrill in my ears, weeks after reading \u003cem\u003eThe Good Son\u003c\/em\u003e. His painful negotiation of the physical and psychic battlefields of late childhood and 1980s Belfast; his whip-crack analyses of the vagaries and vicissitudes of the explosive adult world; his disappointments and heartbreaks and adventures, form a vibrant yet strangely gentle chorus in my memory. It’s one of those books that’s written in such an accomplished and natural way that it seems not like a book at all, but a perfect, fully-formed rendering of reality through another’s eyes. It’s a triumph of storytelling, an absolute gem.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDonal Ryan\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The book is a fantastic and moving journey into the mind of a young boy who knows he is different and is trying to make sense of himself and the difficult world around him. Through Mickey’s first person narration, we gain a vivid insight into the atmosphere of the Troubles and their impact on everyday family and community life.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMatt Beavers, Literature Programme Manager\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBritish Council Literature Blog\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Beautiful and very moving.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlison Moore\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘How moving and stunning that story is. It's so raw and incredibly human.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJess Richards\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Funny, moving, poignant. Brilliant.’ —\u003cem\u003eMetro\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A pearl of quality … highly original … haunting … superior’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Irish Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Paul McVeigh","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892851649,"sku":"9781784630232","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784630232_64c6e3aa-38c1-42af-a76d-6f2ae8b47ce0.jpg?v=1571258762"},{"product_id":"red-earth-9781844712687","title":"Red Earth","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eNative American men and women who wound up in Vietnam were very different from traditional warriors. Many had been removed from that traditional culture as many of these warrior traditions had been removed from these new societies and the old traditions had been replaced by Christian practices of various types. The sacred preparations were no longer practiced and the warriors left vulnerable and lacking pertinent knowledge. They were also lacking the homecoming ceremonies. These ceremonies would take place after the warrior was kept from the main camp for four days. In those four days they would fast and purify themselves. Once they returned to the village the warrior was given the opportunity to tell his story in a healing ceremony. His immediate family would be near, or surrounding him. Around them would be the next level of family. Around them would be the remainder of the tribe. Everyone would listen, and remember. That was their duty to him, to listen, and to remember. Each warrior was given this opportunity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter this ceremony it was understood that this person was now different and would be treated so from then on. This “different” person was now accepted as having been permanently changed. What had happened to him would never go away. His people knew this and they would never go away either. The relationship was understood and bound.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Vietnam “warriors” were afforded none of these opportunities. They were essentially on their own. For example, when I returned, my unit landed at McChord Air Force Base near Tacoma, Washington at midnight in the winter of 1972, and released for leave; Sprung upon The World. My sister picked me up at the base and we went to downtown Tacoma and had a pizza and a several beers before going to her home. A cousin-by-marriage, whom I had met and served with In-country, was with us. We stayed with my sister for a few days and eventually I went home to Sitka to complete my 45 days leave. My cousin left for his home in Canada at the same time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis story is repeated over and over again by most everyone that I had a chance to talk, or listen to. In many of these cases, the Vietnam Vet was released and sent home to resentment and hostility. He was not listened to and what ever was expressed was not heard. Many went home on drinking binges that started on the plane or as soon as they were off the plane. No comfort given, not a friendly ear was to be found. At most American Legion Posts beer was free for a while, but after it was determined “these new guys” were really different, the free drinks stopped. What little comfort was given was soon withdrawn.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSoon, the prisons began to fill up with the “new guys”. Violence had become the major expression of this generation of warriors. So many of these new guys were dead, or in prison, not long after their arrival “home”. It was, and still is, a national tragedy.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘This is truly an important work. Philip Red Eagle’s two novellas under the title \u003cem\u003eRed Earth\u003c\/em\u003e capture not only what combat was in Vietnam but detail the levels of adjustment that a Native veteran of the war had to go through. In the long run, the book is about courage and healing. What it says about Native healing should be examined very carefully. In the western tradition, healers attempt to cure the body, mind, and spirit. Red Eagle reminds Native and informs western readers that Native healing practices add a forth layer—the environment—to medicine. Without the support of those around him and the understanding of his own people’s sacred geography, the Native veteran’s spirit wanders and is sometimes lost. \u003cem\u003eRed Earth\u003c\/em\u003e is about strong hearts, wandering spirits, and ultimate healing.’ —Tom Holm\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘These novellas are how I’ve always imagined indigenous post colonial literature from this continent. They are raw and painfully truthful, as well as stunningly beautiful. Phil Red Eagle has translated the depth, power and beauty of a journey from hell to paradise and back, with a point of view based in tribal realities. In his telling the spirit world does indeed live with us, and in us, despite the severe testing. I often cried as I read, recognized us on these pages. This is the real stuff.’ —Joy Harlo\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘The days of the Indian warrior did not end at Wounded Knee. However, few writers have presented us with a realistic picture of the contemporary Native American in war. Philip Red Eagle’s personal experience and his narrative gifts blend to make these stories of blood and honor, pain and spiritual renewal as searing as the flash of a hand grenade at night. The first work of Native American fiction to come out of the Vietnam conflict, Red Earth is a unique, powerful and ultimately healing journey.’ —Joseph Bruchac\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Philip H. Red Eagle","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892853505,"sku":"9781844712687","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781844712687.jpeg?v=1570476022"},{"product_id":"ghost-moon-9781907773778","title":"Ghost Moon","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLonglisted International Dublin Literary Award 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHaving been thrown out onto the Edinburgh streets by her family, Maggie knows she must fight to survive. Many years later, the struggles she had to endure can be kept a secret no longer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSet mostly in post-war Britain and inspired by a real-life story, Ghost Moon is narrated with humour and compassion. A life-affirming read.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘One of the most powerful and compelling pieces to emerge from the pen of this superb writer.’ —Alexander McCall Smith\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Handled with Butlin's skill and compassion, the dark material in Night Visits is anything but sensationalised. He is ever seeking to acquire and encourage understanding of even the most wretched souls.’ —Nicholas Royle\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The Sound of My Voice is the sound of a writer at the peak of his power, and one of the most inventive and daring novels ever to have come out of Scotland. Playful, haunting and moving, this is writing of the highest quality.’ —Ian Rankin\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘An assured, beautifully written novel.’ —Iain Banks\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Butlin is a novelist capable of making the improbable ring true … remarkable powers of description … compellingly written.’ —Allan Massie\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Poetic genius . . . Ron Butlin is the voice of Edinburgh.’ —FringeReview.com\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Butlin is the best, the most productive Scottish poet of his generation.’ —Douglas Dunn\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘On “Belonging”: A gripping read . . . a real page-turner.’ —Guardian\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘On “No More Angels”: an emotional roller-coaster. . . If you love great books, read this, then everything Ron Butlin has penned.’ —Daily Record\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It has become something of a cliché for the reviewer to shake their head in bewilderment at the continued status of Ron Butlin as ‘Scotland’s Best Kept Literary Secret’. Each new publication adds evidence for Butlin’s elevation to the pantheon of recognised Scottish greats and each subsequent book brings further disbelief that this hasn’t happened yet. Ghost Moon is no different.’ —Totoro\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The book’s strength is its pace and its vivid drawing of a mother’s battle with social exclusion. The rather staccato style was not what I was expecting from the Makar, although there are touches of memorable lyricism and poignant symbolism: the Ghost Moon of the title is the name Maggie gives to the emerging Moon as she pushes Tom in his pram: seemingly as distant as her dreams.’ —Michael North\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Five stars. This may be a short, compact novel but the slim tome is miraculously obese with feelings, life and a story that must have been repeated over and over during the last 50-plus years. Indeed this is how Ron makes a difference: before Ghost Moon I didn't fully understand the effects of the 'moral society' of the 50s that many still hark back to but now I do. Perhaps I'm not the only one.’ —Ani Johnson\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘He captures the atmosphere and geography of 1950s Edinburgh, its streets and trams and shops, with panache, and whilst the subject matter is fraught with sorrow, Butlin's stylish writing means the painful events of Ghost Moon, though never less than affecting, can be read with relish.’ —Jacqueline Thompson\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Heroism is often too obvious and glib in fiction, but Maggie's is indefatigable. Some may argue that her actions are selfish, but those people must be cynical in the extreme. Everything she does is for her son or for Michael, and although she believes that it is with them that her chance for happiness lies, that is secondary to their well being. Butlin's triumph is to make the reader desperate to know what happens next, and how Maggie deals with everything put in front of her. This is thrilling writing about a subject which some may feel would be weighed down in sentiment and nostalgia, but Butlin keeps the pace by refusing to allow Maggie to stand still when others would simply give up. She is an unforgettable creation from a writer who once again proves that he is one of the best around, and Ghost Moon is a timely reminder of this.’ —Scots Whay Hae!\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ron Butlin","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892862593,"sku":"9781907773778","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773778.jpeg?v=1570475406"},{"product_id":"whatever-happened-to-harold-absalon-9781907773341","title":"Whatever Happened to Harold Absalon?","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eHarold Absalon, the Mayor’s Transport Advisor, has gone missing. Down-at-heel detective Marguerite is trying to find him. Aware that his every action is being monitored by those reading the novel, Marguerite’s mind and world is at constant risk of disintegration. Disturbed by attempts to understand himself and the nature of the objects he encounters, Marguerite’s minute and comically digressive inquiries threaten his very existence.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs he follows and then is followed by Harold’s wife Isobel around the city, Marguerite discovers startling evidence of her involvement in the disappearance and becomes increasingly compromised by his feelings for her. Finding himself cornered by Isobel on a speeding bus, it emerges that Marguerite may be more closely implicated than we think. The resolution of the case brings a discovery that will shatter his world and well-being forever.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhatever Happened to Harold Absalon?\u003c\/em\u003e is a unique take on the world of category, cliché and identity and heralds the emergence of a truly original new voice.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘I love your novel... It's very bold ... experimental but accessible.’ —Nicholas Royle\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘You embark on this book expecting a certain fictional route, then notice the author has taken a wrong turning, then another... Do you jump off, or stay on and enjoy the slow-motion ride and new perspectives? Okotie here takes the art of digression to a new, surprising and witty level.’ —David Rose\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘... charming and fresh; indeed, the only recent comparable fiction would be Will Self’s Booker-shortlisted \u003cem\u003eUmbrella\u003c\/em\u003e, which also features a prolonged, digressive sequence set on a London bus. Simon Okotie’s book will receive less attention, but it is equally audacious, and in its own, low-key way, just as compelling.’ —David Evans\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Okotie’s protagonist, Marguerite, is an investigator (of some kind) charged (by someone) with following the wife of Harold Absalon after the disappearance (perhaps) of her husband. Hardly a nail-biting procedural, the action such as it is goes no further than up and down in an elevator and onto a bus—a timespan of a few minutes, at most. It’s a marvel of compression, not in the manner of Jean Echenoz and others who strip the detective novel down to its bones, but by taking a few minor, even meaningless moments of a larger investigation and exploding them to the point of rewarding absurdity.’ —Necessary Fiction\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Simon Okotie","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892866881,"sku":"9781907773341","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773341.jpeg?v=1571258885"},{"product_id":"a-place-to-stop-9781907773075","title":"A Place to Stop","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn an idyllic village in south-west France, a web of lives interconnect, ready to unravel at the first touch. Alex is running from a teenage love-affair that went badly wrong at home in England. Julien, the retired village schoolmaster, is struggling with loneliness and insomnia. Pete has everything – a wife who loves him, an existence of ease and freedom – yet he’s frightened of something. Magali wants so much more than the life her parents had. And Damien’s angry with all of it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd then through their world passes a walker, or a pilgrim, on the old Santiago de Compostela pilgrim path. He accidentally moves a rock a couple of metres and continues on his way. And by the time he has travelled a few more slow days towards Santiago, the lives of every inhabitant of this small community will be irrevocably changed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘The stories in the novel intersect and reflect on one another. Nothing is fixed, these are lives still being lived by people in a sensuously present locality which, like dreamers, they go beyond.’ —David Constantine\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘I was compelled: impressed by the mixture of gravity and vivacity that informs every aspect of the novel. I recognised the world it portrays and yet I learned from it too. And all spun from a capacious, fine prose that sounds the depths and resonances of its sentences with admirable clarity.’ —Rachel Cusk\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘This is a morality tale, in its most satisfying guise: a commentary on the disposition of our times, its temptations and its punishments, and at the same time a book of human character, of people's needs and losses, expectations and disappointments, of their weaknesses and their fragile unexamined strengths. I recognised the world it portrays and yet I learned from it too. And all spun from a capacious, fine prose that sounds the depths and resonances of its sentences with admirable clarity.’ —Rachel Cusk\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘What a treat: at last someone has solved the problem of how to experiment, con brio, with time and form in the novel and yet keep it readable, accessible and full of heart.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(of: Little Thing)’ —Jo Shapcott\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Susan Wicks’s prose works find haunting new shapes for the practical and emotional dilemmas specific to modern women’s lives.’ —Stephen Burt\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘She is neither naïve nor inexperienced, and yet her writing has a bloom on it. There’s a fine surprise at the act of writing itself, and what it can accomplish.’ —Helen Dunmore\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Susan Wicks","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":3892871745,"sku":"9781907773075","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781907773075.jpeg?v=1570475206"},{"product_id":"bodies-of-water-9781784630713","title":"Bodies of Water","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for Best Novella in the 2017 British Fantasy Awards\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDen of Geek Top Books of 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGinger Nuts of Horror Top 20 Books of 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter ministering to fallen women in Victorian London, Evelyn has suffered a nervous breakdown and finds herself treated by the Water Doctors in the imposing Wakewater House, a hydropathy sanatorium.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYears later, Wakewater House is renovated into modern apartments and Kirsten moves in, fresh from a break up and eager for the restorative calm of the Thames. But her archivist neighbour, Manon, fills her head with the river’s murky past and with those men of science and art who were obsessed with the drowned women who were washed up on its banks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs Kirsten learns more about Wakewater’s secrets, she becomes haunted by a solitary figure in the river and increasingly desperate to understand what the water wants from her.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A gorgeously gothic intrigue, whose watery world draws in and seeps into its heroines and the reader alike.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlison Moore\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Relishing in its genre coding and richly atmospheric, \u003cem\u003eBodies of Water\u003c\/em\u003e is a fascinating debut and demonstrates the promise of V.H. Leslie as a novelist. It's a book for reading by the fire with a blanket ready to draw around yourself as the brilliant chill sets in and takes hold.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBecky Lea\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFilm and Other Assorted Buffery\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eBodies of Water\u003c\/em\u003e is a modern Gothic masterpiece, a haunting and moving story filled with rich, tender writing and an ending that manages to be both melancholic and uplifting at the same time, it is a confident start to Leslie's novel writing career.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJim Mcleod\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGinger Nuts of Horror\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘it excels is in its commentary on the treatment of Victorian women as well as its hair-raising and unsettling tone.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eErin Hull\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Bookbag\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eBodies Of Water\u003c\/em\u003e is a solid article. It’s well-researched and it puts a different spin on a well-used format. It’s got enough of the history that intrigues many people without treading the same path. Recommended.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Worm Hole\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘And, in the end, neither the heart of this book nor the nature of woman can possibly be reached, for to reach such ends would be to destroy them. The book’s ramifications shimmer on – frightful and transcendent in tidal irresistibilities.’ —\u003cem\u003eDreamcatcher\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The writing is simply gorgeous, at times lyrical and beautiful in its simplicity, with hints of magical realism\/folklore and fantasy and the tension was always present throughout. It is quite a creepy, eerie and very atmospheric read and, for someone who has never liked the water much, a damn scary one at times.’ —\u003cem\u003eBook Magpie\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘✭✭✭✭ Millie remains a haunting presence and influences both outcomes for Evelyn and Kirsten. A real ghostly presence or imagined through some mental disintegration of our protagonists? I’m not quite sure and I don’t think it matters. For some reason that I can’t articulate, I really liked the book, even though it is a million miles from my preferred reading genre.’ —\u003cem\u003eCol’s Criminal Library\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘V.H. Leslie’s fiction builds in intensity, but at the same time possesses a strange, silky kind of calm.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eConrad Williams, author of The Unblemished\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The strange and vivid worlds in V.H. 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When he sees the state of it he questions the wisdom of his move, but starts to renovate the house for his wife, Lauren to join him there.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen the villagers see smoke rising from the chimney of the neglected house they are disturbed and intrigued by the presence of the incomer, intrigue that begins to verge on obsession. And the longer Timothy stays, the more deeply he becomes entangled in the unsettling experience of life in the small village.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEthan, a fisherman, is particularly perturbed by Timothy’s arrival, but accedes to Timothy’s request to take him out to sea. They set out along the polluted coastline, hauling in weird fish from the contaminated sea, catches that are bought in whole and removed from the village. Timothy starts to ask questions about the previous resident of his house, Perran, questions to which he receives only oblique answers and increasing hostility.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs Timothy forges on despite the villagers’ animosity and the code of silence around Perran, he starts to question what has brought him to this place and is forced to confront a painful truth.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e is an unsettling tale that explores the impact of loss and the devastation that hits when the foundations on which we rely are swept away.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ominous, subtle and beautiful – an intensely resonant trawling of suffering’s deep currents.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMichael Marshall Smith\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘In this beautiful and frightening novel, Wyl Menmuir understands that loss is an enormous anchor from which everyone swings on the tide. His characters know they can never hoist this anchor, they only know they must try; otherwise the lifting lines become heavy chains dragging them to the bottom. \u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e then captures the ecstasy observed on the faces of the drowning in the moment they surrender themselves to the sea.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMark Richard, author of Fishboy\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e unfolds like an unsettling dream, shifting illogically, asking the reader to accept leaps from reality to what seems like it may be fantasy (or may be a matter of perception). But it's not just a strange fable, there is humanity in it too: Ethan's palpable grief for Perran; the locals' struggle to adapt to a world in which their former livelihoods have become obsolete; the touches of tenderness in Timothy and Lauren's scenes together. Its portrayal of a community left behind by technology and bureaucracy, suspicious of the threat represented by 'outsiders', is recognisable and timely – perhaps even more so now than the author may have intended.’ —\u003cem\u003eLearn This Phrase\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Though it was perhaps not written with this in mind, reading the novel during the nightmarish toxicity of the EU Referendum gives it an interesting prescience in its exploration of a failing, unwelcoming community's reaction to an outsider, the decaying environment that surrounds them both and the looming warnings of a distant bureaucracy. That fishing quotas, ecology and environmental regulations are also part of the ongoing debate feeds into that sense of a discussion in microcosm. The sense of loss that permeates here is not just related to the personal, but to the social and communal as well.’ —\u003cem\u003eFilm and Other Assorted Buffery\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The sparse prose is dark and intense, strikingly written with a haunting quality that sends shivers through the soul.’ —\u003cem\u003eneverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This book is powerfully written and haunting. Always teetering on the edge of the gothic, Menmuir describes a coastal community that is dreamlike, slightly out of focus, with its own rules that Timothy never grasps. At the same time, it is rooted in the real world: remote bureaucracy, plummeting fish stocks and maritime pollution have blighted the lives of the fishermen.’ —\u003cem\u003eBlue Book Balloon\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Menmuir’s homespun horror has flashes of Daphne du Maurier’s ghost-gothic and John Wyndham’s dystopia while displaying its own individuality and flair … Menmuir steers a steady course; the result is profound and discomfiting, and deserving of multiple readings.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCatherine Taylor\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘At about the two-thirds point, I started to realize that I was not reading a conventional, if slightly off-kilter and moody, story about a man having a hard time getting his life back together in a semi-hostile village. No, \u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e is a horrific, beautifully horrific, tale that I cannot shake, as much as I may like to.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Mookse and the Gripes\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It creates an effective sense of tension and psychological suspense along the lines of Henry James’ \u003cem\u003eThe Turn of the Screw\u003c\/em\u003e but passages where the men are out fishing in the gloom also invoke a feelings of intense meditation and a primal self-sufficiency similar to Hemingway’s \u003cem\u003eThe Old Man and the Sea\u003c\/em\u003e. I was slowly drawn into the novel’s bizarre climate of secrecy and impending doom. \u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e is a brisk, impactful novel which poignantly portrays grief, solitude and an inhibited state of consciousness.’ —\u003cem\u003eLonesome Reader\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘an intriguing first novel’ —\u003cstrong\u003eFiona Wilson\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is a novel that has to be read at one go but one of those rare stories that once you have reached the end you start reading it all over again. There are moments one has to pause and wonder if it is reminiscent of similar writing in the past and then realise it would be unfair to compare \u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e to any other writing. Wyl Menmuir’s style is wholly original, it grips one with its exquisitely chiselled style to create a stunningly beautiful and memorable novel much like the Cornish coast is.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJaya Bhattacharji Rose\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eConfessions of an avid bibliophile\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I found myself totally gripped. The kind of book where you end it still wanting answers and yet are unsure of the questions. It’s a wonderful book and the first book I’ve finished this year that I immediately wanted to read again.’ —\u003cem\u003eInformation Overlord\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A parable on ecological destruction, a commentary on monotony and parochialness, an obscure examination of sorrow, an investigation into the mysterious workings of the psyche – \u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e is weird and disorienting, yes, but original and wonderful too.’ —\u003cem\u003eOn Art and Aesthetics\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003ePaperback of the Week\u003c\/strong\u003e It would be wrong to give away the precise reasons for his protagonist’s state, but as Menmuir’s allegory becomes decipherable, it is increasingly affecting, and the moment when we understand how the bay and its darkly looming ships might be the warped echo of an earlier, shattering scene is one of great power.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eStephanie Cross\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘He deserves 10 out of 10 when it comes to the creation of atmosphere, and Menmuir can certainly write… A writer to watch.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘If it is possible to describe a book as being rich on spare detail then \u003cem\u003eThe Many\u003c\/em\u003e is it, like a stock reduced to its very essence, and I suspect it was this lack of extraneous waffle and digression in the company of Wyl Menmuir's beguiling writing style that grabbed my attention and kept me wedded to this novel in the days immediately after Port Eliot festival.’ —\u003cem\u003eDovegreyreader\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘An intriguing, evocative and formally ambitious debut.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLuke Brown\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Wyl Menmuir","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":8126392193,"sku":"9781784630485","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/files\/9781784630485_75c66a4d-f73f-401d-bd6f-3bf7faf85c02.jpg?v=1695200067"},{"product_id":"sky-hooks-9781784630379","title":"Sky Hooks","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA young warehouseman, his promising football career cut short by injury, counts flanges, valves and couplings for a living. 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It is a book about a working class Mancunian negotiating, in a kind of sustained daze, the pieces of a life subtly shattered by destiny, and how he takes those pieces and tentatively, waywardly, turns himself into someone else.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eColin Barrett\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The work it does is largely done through flat description and that description is as close to the interior monologue of a young Mancunian lad of a particular generation as it is possible to get and still end up with a saleable book. For that alone, this novel is surely already a regional classic of some sort.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Manchester Review of Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A heartfelt account of one man’s journey of self discovery. 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Clever and really quite disturbing.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMel Mitchell\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNew Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It is a gripping tale of two women, of stories, memories and suggestibility.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNat Marshall\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Owl on the Bookshelf\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘✭✭✭✭✭ Moore’s masterful blend of genres and influences makes her third novel feel, as many great novels do, quite unlike anything else I’ve read. In entwining Bonnie and Sylvia’s tales, Death and the Seaside delves deep into its characters’ psyches; the result is quiet and brilliant, unsettling yet thoughtful, dreamlike and thrilling.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBlair Rose\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNudge\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eDeath and the Seaside\u003c\/em\u003e is a tense, tightly plotted and darkly comical novel about writing, creativity, the power of suggestion and the quaint postcard version of the British seaside. Moore’s writing is electric, it sizzles, and is alive with things unsaid. Though it’s not a long novel, it is powerful and it certainly lingers, moving in and out of your mind like the tides.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEleanor Baggley\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBook Smoke\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003eBook of the day\u003c\/strong\u003e. Dense, complex, thought-provoking, it manages to be at once a fairytale and a philosophical treatise, high-octane thriller and literary interrogation. Like the dreams that haunt Bonnie’s night-times, it holds its secrets close, and repays careful rereading. The end of the novel, abrupt and death-haunted, feels as neat and tight as a key in a lock, and sheds light on the mysteries that have gone before.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSarah Crown\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘She is both gifted stylist and talented creator of a new English grotesque.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eIsabel Berwick\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The best novels are the ones that leave you with a sense of yearning, and in \u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e, Alison Moore proves her mastery of the medium... As Lewis's desires are revealed, the reader is drawn into a compelling series of regrets, coincidences and reminders that life doesn't often bestow second chances... Moore's tightly wreathed prose and assured plotting ensure a bittersweet longing for more once the final page is turned.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLynsey May\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe List\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘How she achieves such big impact with such small ingredients is a mystery to me, but she does. She bloody well does.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eGav Collins\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGav’s Book Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Moore is a serious talent. There’s art here. There’s care.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSam Leith\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Financial Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eHe Wants\u003c\/em\u003e will easily be one of my books of the year... 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The detective story as existential crisis took form with Beckett’s \u003cem\u003eMolloy\u003c\/em\u003e more than 60 years ago; and the concept of the novel as crazed digression was first incarnated in \u003cem\u003eTristram Shandy\u003c\/em\u003e, over 250 years ago. Okotie is in very good company – and has also set himself a high bar. He succeeds. Superbly.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNicholas Lezard\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Okotie’s labyrinthine syntax and meandering thought loops bring to mind the works of David Foster Wallace and Nicholson Baker; but the clearest nod is to Samuel Beckett’s \u003cem\u003eWatt\u003c\/em\u003e. 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Orphaned Lucy Marsh climbs into the back of an old army truck and is whisked off to the woods north of London – a land haunted by the past, where lost souls and monsters conceal themselves in the trees.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn a sunlit clearing she meets the ‘funny men’, a quartet of disfigured ex-soldiers named after Dorothy’s companions in \u003cem\u003eThe Wonderful Wizard of Oz\u003c\/em\u003e. Here are the loved and the damaged, dark forests and darker histories, and the ever-present risk of discovery and violent retribution. Xan Brooks’ stunning debut is heartbreaking, disturbing and redemptive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The assurance and skill with which Xan Brooks tells his tale in \u003cem\u003eThe Clocks in This House All Tell Different Times\u003c\/em\u003e makes it difficult to believe that this is a first novel. 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This dark, magical tale explores the chasm between the two, and how a nation ravaged by “the storms of the things they once did, the people they once were” seeks redemption.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePhilly Malicka\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Telegraph\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Genuinely amazing: quirky, thought-provoking, a wonderful read.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnne Goodwin\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The Pink Earl’s stately home, where the clocks all tell different times, may be a relic from a vanished past, but the future is massively present there – and it’s the one we recognise, in which everyone is “embarked on their own adventure” and in which the rhetoric of constant change at one level disguises the perpetuation of entrenched power at another.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eM. John Harrison\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This will be familiar to fans of \u003cem\u003eDecline And Fall\u003c\/em\u003e. But what Evelyn Waugh treated satirically isn’t so funny any more, and this well-written novel is more tender and sad than bitingly hilarious.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eFanny Blake\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘With its finely judged atmosphere of tainted innocence, Brooks’s novel frames the real horrors of post-conflict trauma as episodes of near-fairytale jeopardy: the grown-up terrors in the dark wood and the poisonous intoxications of the great house are trials in which his heroine’s strength of character is forged. As in fairy stories, the happy-ever-after consists of the simplest of fulfilled desires: a home, work, a family: love as ordinary and essential as bread.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJane Shilling\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eEvening Standard\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The novel is a rich tapestry that interweaves the social fabric of interwar England with fairy tale touches. Lucy comes to feel that “the world is confusing, but the forest is not”, poignantly conveying the strangeness of the period. The author has a fabulously visual style, and I loved the ensemble of characters - some haunted, some scarred, all of them nimbly conjured by a debut author with considerable talent.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJoanne Owen\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLovereading\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The opening section and the overall premise of Xan Brooks’s debut novel is fascinating. Taken away from the pub she lives in with her grandfather for the afternoon, orphaned Lucy Marsh goes into the woods to meet ‘the funny men’. Alongside four other young people whose life circumstances have left them equally vulnerable, Lucy goes for a picnic with these funny men who she will soon know as The Tin Man, Toto, the Scarecrow, and The Lion. It doesn’t take a genius to realise that there is something sinister about five pre-teen children being taken to the woods to meet with four men who disguise themselves as characters from a children’s classic, but Brooks does a fantastic job of drip-feeding us the necessary information until we come to see the true nature of these interactions and realise that the ‘funny men’ are actually traumatised war veterans no longer comfortable in the real world.’ —\u003cem\u003eBookmunch\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I don’t know what I was expecting going in to this book, but honestly what I got wasn’t anything like I imagined. Trying to explain what this book was is difficult – because honestly it’s very unlike anything I’ve ever read before. It was absolutely mesmerising, but also quite an uncomfortable read in places, and I really enjoyed it.’ —\u003cem\u003eAshleigh’s Bookshelf\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Brooks writes stunningly and paints a dark, imaginative picture so vivid I could see it made into a film.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCaz Roberts\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGrazia\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Set after the first world war, is a macabre and unsettling tale of a young girl who is made a plaything of the “funny men”, a group of damaged soldiers, so badly injured they have removed themselves from the world completely. The novel has a woozy, tainted fairytale quality – Brooks calls these molten men of his the Tin Man and the Scarecrow – and a heightened aspect, like looking at the world through a cracked magnifying glass. 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Read it and see for yourself.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRebekah Lattin-Rawstrone\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eRead and Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Absent, slippery or suspect ‘facts’ are central to this unapologetically knotty novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eStephanie Cross\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Stories passed down through generations can shape a family but are also subject to the distorting lenses of memory and perspective. Author Guy Ware’s grandfather worked for MI6, escaped from Norway in 1940 and kept a diary, but his new book Reconciliation (Salt, £8.99) is fiction. It follows Holly Stanton, whose grandfather was a spy and happened to be in Norway when the Germans invaded, and who kept a diary. It’s a well-known family story but it only becomes tangible to Holly when she finally gets her hands on the diary. 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She writes in a style scarcely encountered in fiction, addressing the reader as 'you' throughout the novel, and thus managing to make us feel unnerved that we have not done more to liberate women like the Returned Girl and the Kosovan Wife. This guilt adds to the sympathy we already feel for the protagonists, with their lack of names and characteristics failing to stop us connecting with them. The stories of the recent war are equally harrowing, and once again, the lack of the specific names of those they feature only serves to make them more moving, as we realise they could have been experienced by almost anyone who suffered through the conflict.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLuke Marlowe\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Bookbag\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eHow To Be A Kosovan Bride\u003c\/em\u003e is a good look at a country in conflict and the people on the wrong side of it, as well as a country still coming into its own. 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Fluent and powerful, I loved this book, just as I adored her first and hope that I don't have to wait quite so long for her next!’ —\u003cem\u003eRandom Things Through My Letterbox\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Weaning\u003c\/em\u003e is a well written suspense novel focusing on loss, betrayal and mental health. It may be short however Hannah Vincent has carefully described events and characters to provide a page-turning story that does not disappoint.’ —\u003cem\u003eJera’s Jamboree\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★★ This book is dark in the best possible way. Even if, as I did, the central tenet is guessed before it is revealed, tension is retained. The denouement packed an unexpected punch. I was momentarily felled. The writing flows, succinct and penetrating within a structure that perfectly balances compulsive engagement with storytelling. A stunning work that I read in one time forgotten sitting. Highly recommended.’ —\u003cem\u003eneverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘If you read only one book a year make it Hannah Vincent's \u003cem\u003eThe Weaning\u003c\/em\u003e. I wondered whilst reading just where this story was taking me, then I arrived.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMarion Horvath\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Bloody brilliant – so sweet and so creepy. Read it now!’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJulia Crouch\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘An original, beautifully-written tale that lingers in the mind.’ —\u003cem\u003eSussex Life\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eAlarm Girl\u003c\/em\u003e is quite a short read at just under 200 pages but it is packed with drama and emotion as the story of Indigo and Karen unfolds. The book switches between Indigo’s recount of her South African holiday and Karen’s story, detailing her past and her relationship with Ian as well as her death. I loved the childlike voice of Indigo and felt for her as she struggled to come to terms with the loss of her mother as well as trying to adjust to her father’s new life… A compelling read I enjoyed immensely.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJennifer Joyce\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNovelicious\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The South African setting is exquisite, and the contrast between the wealthy neighbourhood and the slum-like dwellings is stark and pulls no punches and hides nothing. I am incredibly impressed by this fabulous little novel. It's short, but deals with so many issues, and the story unravels slowly but quite perfectly.’ —\u003cem\u003eRandom Things Through My Letterbox\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eAlarm Girl\u003c\/em\u003e is concerned with themes of mental health and grief, as well as the relationships between parents and children. Vincent writes convincingly in both a pre-adolescent and an adult voice and there are some powerful scenes in this promising debut. I look forward to reading whatever she does next.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Writes of Women\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘You cannot miss out this coming-of-age story that will only arrest your mind and soul with intrigue and compassion seen through the eyes of an 11-year old girl.’ —\u003cem\u003eBook Stop Corner\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A book of heat, loss, wit and aching tenderness.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eTim Crouch\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Rarely has a child narrator been written so convincingly, and with so much obvious (and deserved) affection from its author… a novel slender in form, it’s a hugely sating read.’ —\u003cem\u003eBook group info\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Beautifully written, the heat and landscapes of South Africa leap off the page as Indy’s story unfolds.’ —\u003cem\u003eBella Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Perfectly evoking the South African setting and written with such emotional intelligence that the characters are entirely real.’ —\u003cem\u003eSpirit FM\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Sensitively written, this is a heart rending tale of a young girl trying to make sense of her life.’ —\u003cem\u003eWe Love This Book\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘In tone and content I could compare it to Nathan Filer’s \u003cem\u003eThe Shock of the Fall\u003c\/em\u003e.’ —\u003cem\u003eWriter’s Hub: Ten Books to Read This Summer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Readable holiday fiction with a literary edge.’ —\u003cem\u003eTurnaround: Book of the Month\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I am incredibly impressed by this fabulous little novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnn Cater\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Beautifully paced […] compelling but never sentimental.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKaren Rose, Sweet Talk Productions\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Hannah Vincent","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49249351956,"sku":"9781784631208","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631208.jpg?v=1571258839"},{"product_id":"the-third-reel-9781784631505","title":"The Third Reel","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for The Sunday Times Literary Awards (South Africa)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTwenty-two-year-old Etienne is studying film in London, having fled conscription in his native South Africa. It is 1986, the time of Thatcher, anti-apartheid campaigns and Aids, but also of postmodern art, post-punk rock, and the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. Adrift in a city cast in shadow, he falls in love with a German artist while living in derelict artists’ communes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen Etienne finds the first of three reels of a German film from the 1930s, he begins searching for the missing reels, a project that turns into an obsession when his lover disappears in Berlin. It is while navigating this city divided by the Wall that Etienne gradually pieces together the history of a small group of Jewish film makers in Nazi Germany.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is a desperate quest amid complications that pull him back to the present and to South Africa. However, his search for the missing film continues.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAmbitious and cosmopolitan, the material of S. J. Naudé’s \u003cem\u003eThe Third Reel\u003c\/em\u003e is as disparate as the cities in which the book is set. Architecture, cinematography, sex, music, illness, loss and love all collide in this exquisitely wrought, deeply affecting novel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I read this haunting and brilliant book in a white heat of wonder ... \u003cem\u003eThe Third Reel\u003c\/em\u003e gives that rare excitement peculiar to great novels: the thrill of discovering a new and necessary world.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eGarth Greenwell, author of What Belongs to You \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Part thriller and mystery, a story of becoming oneself and then seeing oneself undone. 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However, it is compelling reading and is just as compulsive as Etienne’s search for the missing reel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBrian Joss\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Gremlin\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Reading this book I was thunderstruck, with all that it implies: humidity, lightning, sweat, frissons of fear, the commanding of attention. Look at me, hear me. Reading SJ Naudé's \u003cem\u003eThe Third Reel\u003c\/em\u003e pinioned me throughout, exhausting, exhiliarating. It is a magnificent, brilliant feat of writing, visceral and unflinching, and marks the point at which Naudé moves to the front line of the best of South African writers … Few books in the past years have I thought of more highly, or affected me as much.”’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBeverley Roos-Muller\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eCape Argus\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A work that definitely pushes the boundaries of convention, hope and desire, it is written in an eminently readable and beautiful style … The story is intricate, ambitious and haunting. Reflective of the cities in which the book is set, you’ll relive the sights and smells of an era that was fraught with sex, music, illness, loss and love. The construction is that of a fine piece of architecture, brilliantly fashioned and held together, taking us on a step-by-step journey through all the rooms of the psyche … Without doubt a book of great literary standing and one that holds the reader in its thrall, never losing its grip on you.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBeryl Eichenberger\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Books Page\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A magisterial novel … rarely have I been so captivated by an Afrikaans novel, so fascinated and impressed, kept so busy by it, even after a second read. With S J Naude's \u003cem\u003eThe Third Reel\u003c\/em\u003e, we have a formidable new voice in Afrikaans, firmly established. The fact that he is writing in Afrikaans, and on the black wall of pessimism descending around us, takes one's breath away -- and provides a peeping hole to the light beaming on the other shore.”’ —\u003cstrong\u003eHelize van Vuuren\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLitNet\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘To describe this novel as captivating would be a euphemism … People will be talking about this novel for a long time … With this book, Naudé’s talent as a writer is confirmed. In my view, it is one of the literary highlights of 2017.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDewald Koen\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDie Burger\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Like all good art, \u003cem\u003eThe Third Reel\u003c\/em\u003e does not conform to conventional expectations. It is a novel that is unsettling due to its uniqueness and delivers a real punch. It belongs on a shelf with the best Afrikaans novels.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNeil Cochrane\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eRapport\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Into a mid-1980s London of Thatcherism, post-punk, Aids, anti-apartheid campaigning and general greyness comes Etienne, a 22-year-old South African who has fled his homeland to avoid conscription and escape his homophobic father. He finds love there, meeting a taboo-breaking German artist named Axel while living in run-down squats and studying film. When Etienne discovers the first of three reels of an obscure German film from the 1930s, he becomes determined to find the other two. His quest takes him to pre-unification Berlin, where Axel has disappeared and where Etienne finds evidence of a group of Jewish filmmakers who operated during the Nazi era. Naudé’s second novel is a multi-layered work that delves deeply into the themes of identity and love, in which Etienne’s quest for truth becomes an exploration of himself and ultimately draws him back to the land of his birth. This is an outstanding, accomplished novel with both literary depth and a powerful emotional charge.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlastair Mabbott\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Naudé’s honest confrontation of [complex] questions is unsettling . . . the response he is guiding us towards in these disturbing yet uplifting stories is openness.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlison Kelly\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eTimes Literary Supplement\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A writer who will reshape the contours of South African literature in years to come.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNeel Mukherjee\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘In Naudé, openness and sincerity create surprising moments of great emotional authenticity.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnneke Rautenbach\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eL.A. 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By night, she explores a forbidding forest, pursued by a shadowy figure.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSymbolism, dreams and violence abound in this spellbinding unsnaring of a soul.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eLiminal\u003c\/em\u003e is a novel that swallows the reader instantly. Part literary thriller, part eco-cry, it’s a book of mysteries and nature, and the way the two entwine to create both beauty and havoc. Esther, new to the Scottish Highlands, is struggling with the gaps left by various griefs and betrayals, as well as trying to understand an elusive, mercurial husband. She straddles a dangerously vibrating line between past traumas and vivid dreams. Lush prose, a haunting landscape and slippery menfolk – who prefer to follow their own compulsions – combine to make this a captivating, irresistible read. Bee Lewis has written a splendid début.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNuala O’Connor, author of Joyride to Jupiter\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A mysterious and atmospheric literary thriller with complex and fascinating characters, which explores themes of marriage and family, loss and grief, and the power of dreams.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Owl on the Bookshelf\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘No spoilers here: it’s enough to say that Lewis is adept at showing not telling, and sewing items of unfinished business into the fabric of the narrative, which pique the readers desire to read. It’s a dark thriller, which unfolds within the timeframe of a single week. Fay Weldon meets Steven King? 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Lewis’s prose is vivid and assured and Liminal offers provocative ideas, emotional clout and a gripping plot.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAndy Hedgecock\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMorning Star\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bee Lewis","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":5015899373599,"sku":"9781784631383","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631383.jpg?v=1570475937"},{"product_id":"you-9781784631444","title":"You","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eBig Issue in the North\u003c\/em\u003e Summer Reading Recommendation\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA man boards a train, hoping to see the daughter he has heard nothing from for seven years. 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The premise may sound familiar but its execution soars above similar tales, offering the reader an incisive portrayal of family breakdown and the damage caused by a vindictive parent from a father’s point of view.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJackie Law\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eneverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The “you” of Whitaker’s emotionally charged novel is the narrator’s daughter. Stevie Buchanan, fiftysomething art therapist, is a victim of “parental alienation”, a severing of relations between parents and children as a result of marriage or relationship breakdown. In urgently, insistently addressing his daughter, a 21-year-old student, Stevie does the very thing he is prevented from doing in person, as he has been estranged from her for seven years. His desperation fuels flights of imagination in which, together, the pair revisit scenes of family history going back generations to examine the domino effect of traumas that repeat themselves with devastating effect.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJane Housham\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eYou\u003c\/em\u003e can be appreciated on a number of levels. Firstly the language and the writing which is of the highest quality. Whitaker seems to put his prose together effortlessly creating word pictures and word thoughts that stay with you for several pages. Secondly his ability to characterise again seems to be effortless. I’m sure it isn’t! But for the reader it’s the end result that resonates and the characters here, especially Stevie, are real and substantially drawn. Thirdly, and arguably most importantly the theme of this book, parental alienation. If it’s not a term you’re familiar with, take heart. Neither was I. 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And most, like Bridie and her, contending with the mess and muddle that lies between.’’ —\u003cem\u003eCatholic Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘While maintaining the fast-paced missing-person investigation, Whitaker also manages to weave in a separate timeline of Elodie’s memories of her sister. There are snapshots of their parents’ abusive marriage, an awkward 18th-birthday disco and euphoric experiences watching the electronic dance act Faithless. 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Her husband walked out almost a year ago, leaving a note written in steam on the bathroom mirror, and Jessie hasn’t seen her son for years. When Jessie meets Robert, a local outreach worker, they are drawn to one another and begin a relationship; meanwhile, Jessie has begun receiving messages telling her \u003cem\u003eI’m on my way home\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs a translator, Jessie worries over what seems like the terrible responsibility of choosing the right words. It isn’t exactly a matter of life and death, said her husband, but Jessie knows otherwise. This is a novel about communication and miscommunication and lives hanging in the balance (a child going missing, a boy in a coma, an unborn baby), occupying the fine line between life and death, between existing and not existing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Like Moore’s other works, \u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e starts out as a spare and seemingly simple psychological drama. But stay with it and dig deeper, for beneath the surface lurk immensely satisfying hidden depths.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMalcolm Forbes\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Sunday Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e is a triumph.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnthony Cummins\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘In \u003cem\u003eThe Lighthouse\u003c\/em\u003e, the reader is drip-fed information about two very different lives, both charged with unhappiness, that intersect explosively in a hotel in Germany. So compelling is the build-up, that the climax is silent — as if the explosion had beaten the reader to the punch. The same highly engineered, drip-feed technique is applied in \u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e, but the crisis never comes. What does come is more drift-like, rhythmical and mysterious: change.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eHamish Robinson\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Spectator\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The novel exudes loneliness and a sense of disintegration. The progression of a hairline crack in Jessie’s kitchen window appears especially fatalistic, as does the constant sighing of the autumn leaves outside her spooky spare room. In under 200 pages Moore skilfully delivers a twisty, suspenseful story in the manner of a defeatist thriller, full of the reckoning and regret of middle age, nowhere more apparent than in Jessie’s brief, rather excruciating relationship with Robert, a local outreach worker.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCatherine Taylor\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘As losses accumulate and ghosts multiply, the book begins to resemble a gothic tale, conflating the tragic and the mundane, betrayal and cooking, loneliness and “newspapers and phones and children and meal deals”. You suspect that some of these leads might be false, but the current of Moore’s prose is stronger than the pull of any potential plot twists. The main narrative is interspersed with flashbacks to 1985 and with anonymous messages, in which someone tells Jessie they are coming home. The interruptions grow longer; the tension increases. And then, without breaking the rhythm, Moore swiftly brings the story to an end, reminding you that life can be a realist drama and a romance, a horror story and an existential novel – often all of these things at once, and more.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnna Aslanyan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Reading \u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e for the second time I found it multi-layered, full of reflection on the nature of our experience, and yet written with such immediacy and freshness that the pages fly past. There is tragedy at its core, and yet the characters carry on, as people do.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eCath Barton\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWales Arts Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘There are books which, when you finish reading them, force you to stop everything for a moment to acknowledge their excellence, to mark a personal encounter with something special. \u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e is one of those books, and it gives me great joy to say that it hit me hard. Alison Moore was famously shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2012 for her debut novel The Lighthouse. \u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e deserves equal attention. More than that though, Moore deserves considerably more attention as a writer than she is currently getting.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNina Allen\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Spider’s House\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e is certainly a quiet book, and if you hate evasiveness and lack of resolution in a story, then it may be one to avoid. Moore’s is a style that gradually seduces rather than throwing out twists and cliffhangers to keep you glued to the page. Don’t be fooled, though, into thinking this means it is uneventful. The brilliance of Missing lies in the fact that its calm surface conceals vicious barbs.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBlair Rose\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNudge Book Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eMissing\u003c\/em\u003e is full of everyday minutiae: supermarket shopping, train travel, a halting relationship between Jessie and a local outreach worker. But there’s a constant undercurrent of tension and uncertainty: you can never be quite sure how each individual element will resolve. As a result, reading Moore’s novel feels like being on a knife-edge.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDavid Hebblethwaite\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDavid’s Book World\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Alison Moore persuades you, gently, to look at words and language anew, to question the nature of the very structures you have inhabited for so long. She has marshalled a multitude of images, all sliding together under the surface, all apparently unstable, isolated, yet touching, like the infinite parallel universes that Jessie reads about. With her apparently simple, artless style, she has achieved something remarkable.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePhilip Womack\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eTimes Literary Supplement\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is a glorious evocation of alienation and misunderstanding. Jessie could be deemed tragic but she is also a survivor. The author has created a masterpiece. A haunting tale of devastating insight and depth.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJackie Law\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e","brand":"Alison Moore","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":5016004984863,"sku":"9781784631406","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631406.jpg?v=1570475962"},{"product_id":"gamble-9781784631307","title":"Gamble","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/files\/Encore-Award.jpg?115\" align=\"right\" width=\"150px\" padding=\"10x\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for The Encore Award 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGreg Gamble: he’s a teacher, he works hard, he’s a husband, a father. He’s a good man, or tries to be. But even a good man can face a crisis. Even a good man can face temptation. Even a good man can find himself faced with difficult choices.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGreg Gamble: he thinks he can keep his head in the game. He thinks he’s trying to be good. Until he realises everyone is flawed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd for Gamble, trying to be good just isn’t enough.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘You’ll say, after you’ve read it, that you had no sympathy for him at all, for any of them, perhaps, and were not complicit in any way, but you’ll be lying, of course. And it’s that sense of complicity, of being pulled into the intense, claustrophobic disintegration of this selfish man, and the people around him, that makes reading this novel such a vivid experience. I found Greg Gamble’s thoughts sticking to my own like towpath mud. With sensual, nuanced detail Kerry Hadley-Pryce creates an unrelenting portrait of a man’s dissolution into the dark waters of the Stourbridge Canal. Gamble’s unnerving syntax of justification and exoneration – reminiscent in style of Antonio Tabucchi’s \u003cem\u003ePereira Maintains\u003c\/em\u003e or Mohsin Hamid’s \u003cem\u003eThe Reluctant Fundamentalis\u003c\/em\u003et – builds on the Black Country edgeland noir of her first novel, with painful psychological honesty and bite.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAnthony Cartwright\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A stunning read.’ —\u003cem\u003eBlue Book Balloon\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Some readers may sympathise with Greg in his loveless marriage, with the child that was a mistake, with the threat of bad news hanging over him and a longing to be free of his domestic shackles. Others might really dislike him. I did. However, I was compelled to read to the end to find out exactly what he’d had done, and it’s because of the quality of writing. Read it yourself and see.’ —\u003cem\u003eNudge\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A quietly chilling depiction of what lies just below the surface of an outwardly ordinary and respectable family. A desolate yet riveting read.’ —\u003cem\u003eNeverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Landscape is a cauldron for Kerry Hadley-Pryce’s intensely creepy and evocative writing.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eGeorgina Bruce\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBlack Static\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is an addictive book that deserves to be up there with the likes of \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eGirl On The Train\u003c\/em\u003e it’s as good, if not better, than both. A dark and unsettling read that leaves you feeling like a voyeur of a car crash relationship (where you wouldn’t look away even if you could), I really enjoyed it – 9\/10 stars’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAndrew Angel\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eEbookwyrm’s Book Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A couple whose uneasy relationship seems as unreliable as that in \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e are driving home, a little the worse for drink, when they accidentally knock someone over, someone they know – but they choose to drive quickly on. The story, and their relationship, becomes increasingly bizarre …’ —\u003cem\u003eCrimeTime\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e is a macabre triumph, whether you read it as a horror fable about love or a meditation on the controlling character of the artist. Either way, this ambitious and memorable first novel loiters like a rotting fish left behind the fridge. I mean this in a good way. \u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e really is something else.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJames Kidd\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Independent on Sunday\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Every so often a novel lands from out of nowhere and grabs you by the eyeballs. Gillian Flynn’s \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e was one such, but at least Flynn had some previous form. Kerry Hadley-Pryce’s haunting and unnerving \u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e is a debut of gothic ambition. The cover hints at David Lynch, and this twisted portrait of a marriage in continual breakdown, of distrust, paranoia and love turned to contempt is a little as though \u003cem\u003eGone Girl\u003c\/em\u003e had been reimagined by Lynch.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJames Kidd\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSouth China Morning Post\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Black Country\u003c\/em\u003e is an excellent book, written in an astonishing voice by a very good writer, and deserves a wide audience.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eGraeme Shimmin\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kerry Hadley-Pryce","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":5016005115935,"sku":"9781784631307","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631307_20de6935-a039-4170-b6ff-ac7d65c2c717.jpg?v=1570475400"},{"product_id":"the-book-of-alexander-9781784631321","title":"The Book of Alexander","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA post-modern puzzle about self and identity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlexander embarks on a remarkable experiment, the likes of which no one has attempted before, maybe that's why there is a detective watching him. With Penny, Alexander is a gadfly, mucking her about, unable to see past her beauty; but with Melanie, he has met his match. It is remarkable how quickly the mood shifts from talk of big questions (religion, God, beauty, how mirrors lie) to the perfectly ordinary nuances between a couple.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Raymond Chandler meets Maurice Sendac. A private investigator develops his latest assignment into a more complex exploration of the exterior and interior worlds of his ‘watch’. It’s vastly more invasive, but no one gets hurt. Mark Carew’s book is mysterious yet understated, and the reader cannot but stick with him as the intrigue develops. Exquisite.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlison Baverstock, author of Is there a book in you?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Book of Alexander\u003c\/em\u003e was an interesting novel, very much a thought experiment in fictional form. We’re always wondering about the detective as much as his quarry and this makes for a rather mysterious read, another very enjoyable debut from Salt.’ —\u003cem\u003eShiny New Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘[A] disturbing, self-reflective chiller. The shifting perspectives demonstrate how filtered any observation of people will be. Alexander seeks subjects for his art. The reader may find themselves captured by his gaze.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJackie Law\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eneverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Mark Carew’s debut novel is written with a wit and compassion that is second to none. Alexander is about to embark on a remarkable never before attempted experiment – he will find who he is by writing a book as if he were a detective. The more you read of Alexander’s story, the more you fall in love with him and with Carew’s humor, which is deeply embedded into his writing.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDaniel George\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBig Issue in the North\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The detective begins the job, he spies on Alex and Penny too, they seem to be rowing. The detective makes notes in what will become \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Alexander\u003c\/em\u003e. Penny is soon gone, Ruth replaces her within hours, there are other women interested in Alexander and vice versa. The book contains Alexander’s reading preferences, the contents of his computer, his sexual partners and connections to the outside world and a wider view of his philosophical understanding of the world. 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Searing prose and caustic humour from a tramping Mancunian flâneur.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePeter Kalu\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Neil Campbell’s \u003cem\u003eZero Hours\u003c\/em\u003e is a poetic, emotionally-charged reflection of what it means to live and work in the city today. Its Mancunian voice is so distinct it’s not like reading a novel at all but like having a conversation with modernity itself. \u003cem\u003eZero Hours\u003c\/em\u003e is sharp, funny and moving – a wonderful evocation of Manchester life.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLee Rourke\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A 21st century Mancunian take on Post Office by Charles Bukowski. If you liked \u003cem\u003ePost Office\u003c\/em\u003e then you'll almost certainly like this.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eScott Pack\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Campbell’s narrator is a young working-class man from Manchester. Throughout the novel he works a number of zero hours jobs, first at a mail-sorting depot, later at a number of libraries. There is nearly always something to dishearten our man, be it his duties, colleagues, managers, or just the constant uncertainty that comes with this kind of employment. Besides work, the narrator has a number of unsuccessful attempts at relationships, and sees the face of his city change, losing its character to gentrification. There’s a stop-start feel to reading the novel itself: as with zero hours work, the present moment is all, and even the immediate future uncertain.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDavid Hebblethwaite\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDavid’s Book World\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Campbell is a realist writer, and \u003cem\u003eZero Hours\u003c\/em\u003e is probably even more true to life and purposefully undramatic than its predecessor. 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If there was any justice it should be jumping off the bookshelves.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJoe Phelan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBookmunch\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Surely already a regional classic of some sort … This book has its nearest equivalent in Mark Hodkinson’s northern writing. It is unpretentious and powerful, cuttingly honest … It tightens its grip on you by loosening its hold. It achieves high results by not trying … It silently slides its tentacles around you, showing you how life in structural poverty feels … All of this is achieved through very workaday description, interior monologue and dialogue … The author has mastered the art of tiny details that do massive amounts of work. 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Now 800 years old, John wants to tell his story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLooking back over his life, from its beginnings with a medieval anchoress to his current lodgings beside the deathbed of a Cold War spy, John pieces together his tale: the love that held him together and, in particular, the reasons for a murder that took place in Moscow fifty years earlier, which set in train a shattering series of events.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSamuel Fisher’s debut, \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e is a love story about books like no other, weaving texts and lives in a family tale that leads the reader on an extraordinary historical journey, a journey of words as much as of places, and a gripping romance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Riffle, rifle, browse, devour – an immersive and profoundly engaging debut, \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e demands a place on your bookshelf’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEley Williams\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A book narrated by a constantly transmuting, text-shifting book? I was quickly won over by the bibliophiliac verve and deep humanity of this Borgesian novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eDavid Rose\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e could be considered something of a love story, both about books, and between the people that read them. It follows the story of a family through the years, the memories that shaped them, and the impact of past events on their relationship through the years. In the early stages of the novel we meet a man who is approaching the final days of his life, but in this novel a man’s mortality is portrayed from the perspective of someone infinite, someone who has lived for centuries.’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Owl on the Bookshelf\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A fantastic new talent (recommended by Eley Williams!) … [a] mesmerising debut novel (and it really is brilliant).’ —\u003cem\u003eThe Book Hive\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Over the weekend I read and hugely enjoyed \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e by Samuel Fisher. It is a novel narrated by an 800-year-old shapeshifting book. It can turn into any book it wants to. It tells the story of the people who have owned it down the years.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eScott Pack\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘As well as being a new novelist, Fisher is also a founder of Peninsula Press, a small independent publisher whose list to date shows a predilection for innovative and experimental voices. It’s a partiality replicated in this wonderful, funny and audacious debut. Who knows what my copy of \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e will turn into while my back is turned but I look forward to discovering whatever voice or artefact Samuel Fisher will throw himself into next.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJohn Boyne\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Irish Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘You might expect a debut by a bookseller to be a hymn to the joy of books, but writing from the actual viewpoint of a book (here the narrator, who can transform himself into any combination of words, places himself at the centre of various events over the past 800 years) takes that love to a whole new level. Fisher has so much fun with this tricksy conceit that the very human story he settles on (amid nods to Virginia Woolf, Jorge Luis Borges and Dylan Thomas), of a cold war spy looking back on a life, takes time to hit home. That it eventually does is testament to his infectious enthusiasm for the power of the novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eBen East\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Be it a love story, a thriller or a work of history, a written account makes those it depicts last forever. Revelling in its own wizardry, \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e weaves a captivatingly reflexive tale around the life-giving possibilities of the printed word … Fisher practices a deft sampling technique, mixing in snippets of literary classics into his tale and reflecting on their relevance. The result is a compelling narrative and a subtle meditation on literary history.’ —\u003cem\u003eHackney Citizen\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘It seems only natural that if a bookseller was going to write a novel, it should be about books. Fortunately that's exactly what Wivenhoe’s Samuel Fisher has done although \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e, which was released by cool indie publishers Salt this week, is a very different kind of book altogether. That’s because Samuel’s main character John can become any book, any combination of words, every though, act and expression that has ever been, or will ever be, written.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNeil D’Arcy Jones\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eColchester Gazette\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is undoubtedly a literary novel about a family and relationships, but also it’s about a love of books and it’s a spy story. It’s not surprising that the author set up a bookshop, you can almost imagine him spending time rooting through the stock and absorbing stories for this novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePaul Burke\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNudge-Book Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The concept of a self-aware book is the kind of literary conceit that, in the wrong hands, could lead to the worst excesses of post-modern fiction. The book does, after all, identify with Borges’ tale of the infinite library as though it’s “an autobiography written by a future version of myself”. Roger’s story, in turn, is essentially quite a slight vignette that would struggle to fill a novel on its own. But by marrying them together, Fisher balances and intermingles the two strands so that they sustain an engrossing, satisfying and quite touching novel. Greater love hath no book than that it would transform itself into a biography of its most cherished owner.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlastair Mabbott\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Writing a book as the Book is no small feat. One would expect it to be formally inventive, rich with the works of others yet boundlessly original – replete with unusual vocabulary and recourse to every image ever written. It is a credit to the author and to Salt Publishing that \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e carries it off with aplomb.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eVenetia Welby\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eReview 31\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Fisher’s handling of tone, dialogue and prose that allows the story to be the star of the show. The narrative of Roger and Margery’s relationship, and the affect of the wars of the 20th century on multiple generations of their family is compelling and genuinely pulls at the emotions, while the depiction of 1950s Moscow and London creates an atmospheric noir backdrop. The book’s playfulness and wit allow the novel time to breathe and to entertain. Its stylistic peculiarities augment and bring depth to the plot, rather than usurping its role as the main event.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRobert Greer\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLondon Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Like its namesake, this little book slithers and slips away from categorisation. Refusing to be pinned down, it is uniquely mischievous and marvellous. I’m quite sure Fisher could have made extremely good novels out of any one of its stories in \u003cem\u003eThe Chameleon\u003c\/em\u003e. Instead, he chose to tell them all, and in doing so gave us a masterpiece.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eElanor Dymott\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eJudge, The Betty Trask Prize\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Samuel Fisher","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":5016009179167,"sku":"9781784631246","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631246_fc87538e-b759-4d90-9d6e-3ef4616c8c51.jpg?v=1571258731"},{"product_id":"a-perfect-explanation-9781784631642","title":"A Perfect Explanation","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/files\/DEP_2019_Longlisted.jpg?32\" alt=\"Desmond Elliott Prize 2019\" width=\"20%\" align=\"right\" margin=\"15px\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLonglisted for the Not the Booker Prize 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLonglisted for The Desmond Elliott Prize 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eObserver: Fiction to look out for in 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe i Paper’s 30 of the best new debut novels to read in 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eScottish Review of Books: 2019 in Prospect\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAs featured on BBC Woman’s Hour, Sky Sunrise and London Live\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Filled with cerebral intensity and scintillating dialogue’ —The Desmond Elliott Prize\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eInterweaving one significant day in 1964 with a decade during the interwar period, \u003cem\u003eA Perfect Explanation\u003c\/em\u003e gets to the heart of what it is to be bound by gender, heritage and tradition, to fight, to lose, to fight again. In a world of privilege, truth remains the same; there are no heroes and villains, only people misunderstood. Here, in the pages of this extraordinary book where the unspoken is conveyed with vivid simplicity, lies a story that will leave you reeling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A riveting story about class and inheritance that explores how chance events can kick off a chain of consequences and seemingly minor decisions create catastrophes. Take note folks, Eleanor Anstruther is the real deal.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eTor Udall\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Gripping and beautifully written, this is a story about motherhood, privilege and women who simply won’t, or can’t, fit in. A brilliant read. I loved it.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEve Chase\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘I read \u003cem\u003eA Perfect Explanation\u003c\/em\u003e almost between my fingers – such a haunting story, beautifully told, about an exceptional situation that somehow goes to the heart of the many truths, deceptions and lies recognisable in many families. Eleanor Anstruther has written a fascinating debut and an imaginative reconstruction of her own family history.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAmanda Craig\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Although it’s not a happy read, the emotional intensity drives the reader on … and on. The journey of the beautiful socialite in the spotlight, to the sociopath in the shadows is compelling and will, I am sure, hit a nerve for many of the novel’s readers. An intense and thought-provoking read.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEssie Fox\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘What a task to take on – diving into the inner world of desperately flawed and broken people and still finding a way to elicit our sympathy. Such a brave, unflinching portrait of a family.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMatthew Tynan\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Anstruther exhumes the skeleton in her family closet with devastating skill. A captivating, chilling, deeply insightful portrait of a family torn apart by responsibilities both taken on and pushed aside.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSam Bain\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Eleanor Anstruther’s superb debut, \u003cem\u003eA Perfect Explanation\u003c\/em\u003e (Salt, March), the fictionalised story of the granddaughter of the eighth Duke of Argyll, who sold her son to her sister for £500.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlex Preston\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘A riveting tale of grown children damaged by the relentless actions of their entitled parents. Well paced and skilfully written, this is a haunting, recommended read.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJackie Law\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eneverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Eleanor has cherished her role as the family’s retrospective therapist. In her head she listened to the voices of all her relatives; she tried to understand the culture that surrounded them, and she feels she’s finally put their pain and agonies to rest.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJoanna Moorhead\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eYou Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★★ It’s a quirk of fiction that the most extraordinary stories are those that have their origins in real human affairs and this is a prefect example of truth proving stranger than fiction. In lesser hands this story could come across as a curio or an idiosyncratic tale but Anstruther has taken something that might appear marginal and imbued it with psychological depth and great emotional understanding.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePaul Burke\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNB Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘★★★★★ A moving exploration of a life plagued by mental illness, A Perfect Explanation is a tale of historical fiction told through modern eyes – sympathetic, studied, and beautifully written.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLuke Marlowe\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Bookbag\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eA Perfect Explanation\u003c\/em\u003e, is a fictionalised account of how her father, Ian, came to be sold to her great aunt Joan for £500. 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Anstruther’s writing is elegant and intelligent, and the closest possible thing to a perfect explanation.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eKate Saunders\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Almost all the protagonists were dead by the time Miss Anstruther was born, but, armed with the facts revealed to her by her father before he died, as well as family archives, she has used her imagination to bring her family vividly back to life through a novel that is both beautifully written and transfixing.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRichenda Miers\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eCountry Life\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Eleanor Anstruther","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":13553775312958,"sku":"9781784631642","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631642.jpg?v=1570475204"},{"product_id":"your-fault-9781784631802","title":"Your Fault","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMetro: Best Fiction of 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLonglisted for the Not the Booker Prize 2019\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e‘Elegant, unsparing, meticulously detailed novel in which a conscientious boy grows up with bedeviled parents. 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A year older in each chapter, Peter’s story is told to him by his future self as he attempts to recreate the optimism and futurism of the 1960s, and to reveal how that utopianism fares as it emerges into the Seventies. It’s an untold story of British working class experience, written with extraordinary precision and tenderness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Beautifully crafted, unsettling and vivid, this book perfectly highlights the subtleties and mysteries of everyday life, creating a world which seems ordinary even while something ominous bubbles just beneath the surface. The narrative balances between a kind of universality and an arresting specificity, exploring the relationship between memory and guilt, as it builds towards its electrifying ending.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eEmma Healey\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Cowan’s writing is observant and unsentimental, wryly funny and tragic, and his portrait of post-war Britain finds humour and heart in the most unlikely details.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eD. W. Wilson\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Andrew Cowan’s latest novel is a brilliant guided tour of a childhood, full of his typically sharp insights into family tenderness and regret. Technically daring, emotionally rewarding, I haven’t read anything quite like it.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRichard Beard\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is an exceptional work of fiction.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNaomi Wood\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Written in the second person singular, and with a chapter devoted to each year of Peter’s life from two to 13, this is a terse, bitterly poignant novel about guilt and the art of retrospection.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClaire Allfree\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Elegant, unsparing, meticulously detailed novel in which a conscientious boy grows up with bedevilled parents. Where do men come from? They come from boys. Look again.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMargaret Atwood\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Four things attracted me to Andrew Cowan’s \u003cem\u003eYour Fault\u003c\/em\u003e: its working class, ‘60s setting; its unusual structure; its length and its publisher, Salt Publishing whose list is never anything but interesting.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSusan Osborne\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA Life In Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Cowan embraces every detail of the “buttery shades” of the Sixties with his trademark meticulousness, from the layout of the brand-new estate Peter lives on – “short terraces of four and six houses are oriented at a thirty-degree angle to the road” – to the rented television, the Tri-ang bricks, the ICI polyester slacks, the budgerigar (one in four British homes had one in 1966).’ —\u003cstrong\u003eMarkie Robson-Scott\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Tablet\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eYour Fault\u003c\/em\u003e is a fascinating novel in which a man looks back on his childhood with the self-awareness denied him at the time, and in which the act of remembering matters as much as the events themselves.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAlastair Mabbott\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Corby writer Andrew Cowan made a big splash with his 2002 debut, coming-of-age tale \u003cem\u003ePig\u003c\/em\u003e. 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Trapped in the moment between an intolerable past and so much worse to come, Exley finds there’s nothing he can do but live.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cem\u003eThe Faculty of Indifference\u003c\/em\u003e is both funny, diverting, exhausting and baffling all at once. Whatever your tastes, Guy Ware is a writer whose name should be part of the contemporary literary discussion. His is a post-modernism that pushes the past into our increasingly confusing world.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRebekah Lattin-Rawstrone\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eByte the Book\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Ordinary life is a terrifying prospect in this existential satire about a London spook … \u003cem\u003eThe Faculty of Indifference\u003c\/em\u003e is a book of dark shadows and dry humour. It’s a comedy about torture, death and loneliness, and an existential drama about a world that swirls and twists and turns on us without provocation.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJames Smart\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Fleshing out the shadowy metaphysical hints of Beckett’s novels, this intellectual romp is the best debut I have read in years.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eNicholas Lezard\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘The staff of the office are revealed as gatekeepers to the afterlife, setting up a neat reversal in which determining the resting place of recently departed souls is treated like any normal job – employees rock up late and use work computers for their own projects – while mundane tasks, such as making couscous salad, are addressed with scholastic intensity.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eSam Kitchener\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Literary Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘About halfway through the book, Ware sheds light on the mysterious title. The fed beasts are from the Book of Isiah, one of those bloodthirsty sections about offerings and livestock slaughter and so on. But Ware’s disdain for the corporate world’s overfed beasts is apparent but rendered with enough empathy and humour that it does not overbear this delightful book.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJudith Sullivan\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSHOTS Crime \u0026amp; Thriller Ezine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Absent, slippery or suspect ‘facts’ are central to this unapologetically knotty novel.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eStephanie Cross\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Stories passed down through generations can shape a family but are also subject to the distorting lenses of memory and perspective. Author Guy Ware’s grandfather worked for MI6, escaped from Norway in 1940 and kept a diary, but his new book \u003cem\u003eReconciliation\u003c\/em\u003e (Salt, £8.99) is fiction. It follows Holly Stanton, whose grandfather was a spy and happened to be in Norway when the Germans invaded, and who kept a diary. It’s a well-known family story but it only becomes tangible to Holly when she finally gets her hands on the diary. Moving between various real-life events, each laced with errors and lies, Ware demonstrates to the reader how easily we can be misled as he explores the ethics of storytelling in this wartime thriller.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eAntonia Charlesworth\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBig Issue North\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘This ingenious novel succeeds in being both a highly readable story of second world war derring-do and its aftermath and a clever Celtic knot of a puzzle about writing itself… Just who is telling this story? There are different narrators, but verbal tripwires indicate that all is not as it seems: impossible echoes from one person’s account to the next alert us to the, yes, fictional nature of what we are being drawn into and pull us up short. The complexity of who saw what and wrote what is maddening but also exhilarating, and very funny in places.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJane Housham\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Guy Ware","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":18020978655294,"sku":"9781784631765","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631765.jpg?v=1571258746"},{"product_id":"flotsam-9781784631789","title":"Flotsam","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e‘By turns beguiling and unsettling, \u003cem\u003eFlotsam\u003c\/em\u003e examines grief and loss through the eyes of an extraordinary child’ Rachel Seiffert\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTrine and her mother live in a cottage on the German coast. The mudflats that surround them disappear and reappear with the North Sea tides. 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A place where people pretend not to notice the ghosts.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘By turns beguiling and unsettling, \u003cem\u003eFlotsam\u003c\/em\u003e examines grief and loss through the eyes of an extraordinary child.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eRachel Seiffert\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews of this Book\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel grew up in Germany and this taut, mysterious novel not only conjures female subjectivities and grief, but it also paints a haunting portrait of the country in the 1950s Germany, with its greater sense of loss, and the looming spectre of crimes committed during the war.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eArifa Akbar\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘The writing has a dark and haunting quality yet there is much beauty in its concise construction. The story ebbs and flows with the ghosts of the past and the effects of the isolated location. Both Trine and Anna show a resolve that can be unsettling, beguiling – perhaps because young women are not expected to behave as they do. An astute and arresting tale…’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJackie Law\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eneverimitate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘This is not an easy book to write about without muffling the small shocks and perplexities which readers should experience for themselves. Told first from Trine’s perspective then Anna’s, it’s the briefest of novellas yet it provokes more thought than many books three times its length. 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Heart breaking and thought provoking, this elegiac and insightful novella is poignant, timely and deeply intelligent.’ —\u003cstrong\u003ePaul Burke\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNB Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Anna’s experience of World War Two and the consequences of an event in the War, dominates her daughter’s life. Flotsam asks how will the next generation live in the shadow of such destruction, when so much of that history is left silent? Wonderfully concise yet powerful, \u003cem\u003eFlotsam\u003c\/em\u003e seems simple while offering a layered intelligence that should be valued.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eJames Doyle\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBookmunch\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePraise for Previous Work\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Haunting originality and real flair.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eChristena Appleyard\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Daily Mail\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel goes bravely to the bleakest points of humanity and illuminates them with her lyrical and enthralling prose.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eClaire Kohda Hazelton\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Ziervogel shines a humanising light into the dark spots of her country’s history.’ —\u003cstrong\u003eLucy Ash\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem\u003eObserver\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Meike Ziervogel","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":18020981702718,"sku":"9781784631789","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0851\/7222\/products\/9781784631789_bc5d9835-dd89-4b03-8601-eb024bb2546f.jpg?v=1570475384"},{"product_id":"the-complex-9781784631628","title":"The Complex","description":"\u003ch3\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe countryside, the near future.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGabrielle Hunter, husband Leo and son Stefan drive to a remote luxury retreat for a spring break at the invitation of new client Art Fisher, who will be there with his wife, Polly, and daughter Fleur. 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