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The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths
by Olivier Barde-Cabuçon'A splendid mystery with an appealingly enigmatic protagonist, plenty of melodrama and intrigue, and a vivid, pungent evocation of a turbulent time' GuardianEveryone has secrets. Especially the king.When a gruesomely mutilated body is found on the squalid streets of Paris in 1759, the Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is called to the scene. The body count soon begins to rise and the Inspector falls into a web of deceit that stretches from criminals, secret orders, revolutionaries and aristocrats to very top of society.In the murky world of the court of King Louis XV, finding out the truth will prove to be anything but straightforward.Previously published as Casanova and the Faceless WomanOlivier Barde-Cabuçon is a French author and the creator of The Inspector of Strange and Unusual Deaths, who has featured in seven bestselling historical mysteries so far. The Inspector of Strange and Unusual Deaths (previously titled Casanova and the Faceless Woman) won the Prix Sang d'Encre for crime fiction in 2012 and is the first of the series to be translated into English.
Bark: Stories (Vintage Contemporaries Ser.)
by Lorrie MooreIn these eight masterful stories, Lorrie Moore, explores the passage of time, and summons up its inevitable sorrows and comic pitfalls.In 'Debarking', a newly divorced man tries to keep his wits about him as the US prepares to invade Iraq. In 'Foes', a political argument goes grotesquely awry as the events of 9/11 unexpectedly manifest at a fundraising dinner in Georgetown. In 'The Juniper Tree', a teacher, visited by the ghost of her recently deceased friend, is forced to sing 'The Star Spangled Banner' in a kind of nightmare reunion. And in 'Wings', we watch the unraveling of two once-hopeful musicians, who neither held fast to their dreams, nor struck out along other paths.Gimlet-eyed social observation, the public and private absurdities of American life, dramatic irony, and enduring half-cracked love wend their way through each of these narratives, in Moore's characteristic style that is always tender, never sentimental and often heartbreakingly funny.
House Justice: A Joe Demarco Thriller (Joe DeMarco series #5)
by Mike LawsonAn American defense contractor goes to Iran to sell top-secret technology, and the CIA knows all about it thanks to a spy in Tehran. But someone in Washington leaks the story to an ambitious journalist, and the spy is captured, brutally tortured and executed.The director of the CIA isn't about to let the death of his agent go unpunished. Speaker of the House John Fitzpatrick Mahoney has his own reasons to get to the bottom of the leak: it might have come from Congress. Moreover, Mahoney once had an affair with the journalist, and now that she's in jail for refusing to reveal her source, she's threatening to tell the tabloids everything unless he helps her. Joe DeMarco is tasked with getting the journalist off his boss's back, but he soon discovers that he and the CIA aren't the only ones looking for the journalist's source. A killer is following DeMarco's every move, hoping DeMarco will lead him to his prey.
Hawkwood
by David DonachieFourteenth-century Italy: a country in upheaval as desperate cities struggle against both each other and venal Papal rule. Unable to rely on their own citizens to fight their battles, cities and Popes are forced to pay vast amounts of money to mercenary captains to fight on their behalf.Hawkwood, a valiant Englishman, shrewd and relentless on the battlefield, finds himself fighting for and against any state of Italy prepared to pay handsomely. If none will pay, he and the White Company brutally seize what they desire. It is a world of massacre and pillage in which life is less than cheap and no one can be trusted. To survive, a man has to be quick-thinking, fleet of foot and strong in his sword arm: Hawkwood is such a man.
West of Sunset
by Stewart O'NanIn 1937, F. Scott Fitzgerald was a troubled, uncertain man whose literary success was long behind him. In poor health, with his wife consigned to a mental asylum and his finances in ruin, he struggled to make a new start as a screenwriter in Hollywood.With flashbacks to key moments from Fitzgerald's past, the story follows him as he arrives on the MGM lot, falls in love with brassy gossip columnist Sheilah Graham, begins work on The Last Tycoon, and tries to maintain a semblance of family life with the absent Zelda and their daughter, Scottie.Written with striking grace and subtlety, this wise and intimate portrait of a man trying his best to hold together a world that's flying apart, if not gone already, is an American masterpiece.
The Drover's Wives: 101 Re-Tellings of a Classic Short Story
by Ryan O'NeillHenry Lawson’s short story 'The Drover’s Wife' is an Australian classic that has sparked interpretations on the page, on canvas and on the stage. But it has never been so thoroughly, or hilariously, reimagined as by Ryan O’Neill, remixing and revising Lawson’s masterpiece in 101 different ways.The variations include a pop song, a sporting commentary, a 1980s computer game, an insurance claim, a Hollywood movie adaptation, a cryptic crossword and even a selection of paint swatches.Inventive and unexpected, this is laugh-out-loud literature from the author of the award-winning Their Brilliant Careers.'Pitch perfect…hilarious… This is a book that begs to be read aloud’ THE AUSTRALIAN‘More go than Queneau’ DAVID BELBIN 'A cerebrally imaginative tour de force' FRANK MOORHOUSE
Intimacy: A Novel And Stories
by Hanif Kureishi'It is the saddest night, for I am leaving and not coming back.'Jay is leaving his partner and their two sons. As the long night before his departure unfolds he remembers the ups and downs of his relationship with Susan. In an unforgettable, and often pitiless, reflection of their time together he analyses the agonies and the joys of trying to make a life with another person.
Sea of Ink
by Richard WeiheA beautiful novella in 50 short chapters and 10 pictures about the life of Bada Shanren, the most influential Chinese painter of all times.In 1626, Bada Shanren is born into the Chinese royal family. When the old Ming Dynasty crumbles, he becomes an artist, committed to capturing the essence of nature with a single brushstroke. Then the rulers of the new Qing Dynasty discover his identity and Bada must feign madness to escape.Why Peirene chose to publish this book: ‘Fact and fiction arrive at a perfect union in this exquisite novella. A beautiful story about the quiet determined pursuit of inspiration, this is a charming and uplifting book. After reading it, I looked at the world a little differently.’ Meike Ziervogel‘The book is 110 pages (and 11 of those are pictures), but - much like one of Shanren's paintings - contains far more than its small compass might suggest.’ Brandon Robshaw, Independent on Sunday‘Delicate and moving.’ Boyd Tonkin, Independent‘Intriguing, elegant, awesome in its precision and uplifting in its sheer beauty, this is a book to read, enjoy... and then read again.’ Pam Norfolk, Lancashire Evening Post‘The author’s cool, succinct prose and use of short chapters enhance the meditative nature of this beguiling story, which interweaves art theory, history, metaphysics and narrative.’ Shelf Unbound‘A powerful, poetic book. A two-hour enchantment.’ Kulturspiegel
In Defence of the Enlightenment
by Tzvetan TodorovTzvetan Todorov argues that although our liberal democracies are the offspring of the Enlightenment, they also illustrate the ways in which its ideas have been distorted and perverted. People living in contemporary democracies are often baffled by phenomena which resist easy judgement: globalisation and media omnipotence; disinformation and state-sponsored torture; moralism and the right of intervention; the dominance of economics and the triumph of technology. In this book, Todorov shows that we cannot learn lessons from the past unless we know how to relate them to the present. He demonstrates that what remains relevant to today is the spirit expressed in the core principles and values for which the Enlightenment stood. In a period of great uncertainty, In Defence of the Enlightenment could not be more timely.
You Don't Have To Live Like This: A Novel
by Benjamin MarkovitsTen years out of Yale, with an extra degree from Oxford, and all Greg Marnier has to show for it is a rambling academic career that has landed him in Aberystwyth. At his college reunion, jetlagged and drunk, he runs into an old friend who offers him an extraordinary way out.Robert James, wealthy and influential, a success story of the dotcom bubble, wants to become a political player. His plan: to buy up several abandoned neighbourhoods in Detroit - the poster child for urban decline - and build a new America from their boarded-up ruins. For a small investment, Marnier can transform himself into a twenty-first-century pioneer. The realities of life on America's urban frontier soon become apparent. For every hopeful misfit who's come for a fresh start there's a native Detroiter whose patch is being swallowed up by the new colonials. Marnier finds himself caught in the middle of everyone else's battles - between local and outsider, rich and poor, black and white - until a terrible accident forces him to take sides.
Best Served Cold: An original short story featuring characters from See You in September
by Charity NormanWhen Tara farewells her older sister, Cassy, on a trip to New Zealand, she waves goodbye as Cassy calls out, 'See you in September.' But it's many years before Tara and her parents see or even hear from Cassy again. And with her sister's disappearance, Tara's happy family falls apart.Working as a waitress in a strip club has its benefits. It's the people you meet. Like the drunken, red-faced fiancé of Tara's old French teacher, Adele Roberts, a bully who relished humiliating the class misfit, a boy called Rex Jones. Tonight Tara can finally see how to avenge him.As she hunches over her laptop, her index finger hovering over 'send', Tara remembers everything that has led her to this moment.Includes a preview of Charity Norman's highly anticipated novel, See You in September!
The Adventures of Austin the Cornish Miner: The Rescue Of The Dweeble Stone
by Karen M. HoyleAustin knew the stories of magical creatures as well as anyone. 'Knockers' were grubby trolls that stand about two feet high, they wear old miners boots and tatty waistcoats and live on the pasty crusts that miners leave behind. The 'Pixies' were very different, small and could fit in a mans hand, always busy, thinking themselves better than anyone and enjoyed playing pranks on anyone around. 'No', thought Austin there can't be magical creatures, it was all just tittle tattle... But Austin was about to become a hero and change his mind on many things...
Dragonfire Series Books 4-6: Firestar; Witch Silver; Dragon Seeker (Dragonfire #0)
by Anne ForbesThis is an ebook omnibus of books 4, 5 and 6 in the popular Dragonfire series: Firestar, Witch Silver, and Dragon Seeker. Book 4 sees Neil and Clara on holiday near Aberdeen. Little do they know that Firestar, the heart of all magic, is under attack, and their magical friends in great danger. In book 5, Neil and Clara are lead into a nail-biting adventure with witches and a silver amulet. The final installment in the thrilling Dragonfire series finds Neil and Clara joining forces with witches, wolf people, MacArthurs and magicians to stop the Dragon Seeker, Lord Jezail, and his sword Dragonslayer.
Uncle Paul
by Celia FremlinUncle Paul (1959) was Celia Fremlin's second novel, and consolidated the success of her suspenseful debutThe Hours Before Dawn.Fifteen years ago Uncle Paul was exposed as a murderer by his wife Mildred, and sent to prison. Now a seaside holiday for Mildred's half-sister Isabel and her family seems to be the venue for Uncle Paul's revenge. Mildred arrives at a lonely cottage near to Isabel's caravan site, and Isabel's urgent summons to her sister Meg brings the three women together to play out a drama of fear and suspicion, betrayal and revenge.'Beautifully played out to a startling and valid ending... Fremlin is here to stay as a major mistress of insight and suspense.' New York Times'Fremlin puts a keen edge on the reader's curiosity and keeps it there... the writing is so good throughout.'Times Literary Supplement
Hannah in the Spotlight: Star Club Book 1 (Star Club Ser. #1)
by Natasha Mac a'BháirdThe summer holidays are here, and Hannah is wishing she could have gone to drama camp. Instead it looks like she’s going to end up being an unpaid babysitter to her younger brothers and sisters. Then she meets Meg, who has just moved in next door, and together with her friends Ruby and Laura they decide to form Star Club – a drama club of their own, where they’ll all get a chance to practise their acting skills. The girls work hard to get their first show ready for Maisie’s birthday party. Then disaster strikes, and Hannah finds herself torn between Star Club and big sister duty. Meanwhile, something very strange is going on with Meg, who seems to have a lot of secrets she’s not sharing. But whatever happens, the show must go on! '9/10 … makes you keep reading' TheGuardian.com on Missing Ellen
Springtime: A Ghost Story
by Michelle de KretserPicking up her pace, Frances saw a woman in the leaf-hung depths of the garden. She wore a long pink dress and a wide hat, and her skin was a creamy white. There came upon Frances a sensation that sometimes overtook her when she was looking at a painting: space was foreshortened, time stood still.When Frances met Charlie at a party in Melbourne he was married with a young son.Now she and Charlie live in Sydney with her rescue dog Rod and an unshakeable sense that they have tipped the world on its axis. They are still getting their bearings - of each other and of their adopted city. Everything is alien, unfamiliar, exotic: haunting, even.Worlds of meaning spin out of perfectly chosen words in this rare, beguiling and brilliant ghost story by Miles Franklin Literary Award-winning writer Michelle de Kretser.
Network: based on the Paddy Chayefsky film (Faber Drama Ser.)
by Lee HallI'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore.Howard Beale, news anchorman, isn't pulling in the viewers. In his final broadcast he unravels live on screen. But when the ratings soar, the network seize on their newfound populist prophet, and Howard becomes the biggest thing on TV.Adapted for the stage by Lee Hall from the Paddy Chayefsky film, Network premiered at the National Theatre, London, in November 2017.
Any Survivors?: A Lost Novel of World War II
by Martin FreudIn 2008 a faded typescript was discovered in a suitcase in the attic of one of Martin Freud's grandchildren. It was a satirical novel about the Second World War written by Sigmund Freud's son Martin, but never published and apparently forgotten about. Freud and his family had escaped from Nazi-occupied Vienna in 1938, narrowly avoiding losing everything, including their lives. Arriving in England, Martin, formerly an eminent lawyer in Vienna, was interned as an 'enemy alien,' and later ran a shop near the British Museum (his son, Walter, fought for the British in the SOE during the war). It is known that Martin wrote numerous poems and pieces of fiction, but the only books he ever published were a fictionalised account of his experiences during the First World War, Parole d'Honneur, in 1939 and an autobiography, Glory Reflected, in 1957. Now translated into English and published for the first time, Any Survivors? is not only a satirical and dramatic novel about a refugee who returns to Hitler's Germany as a rather inept spy, but also the testament of a man who lived through the most dramatic moments of this period as part of a famous and fascinating family.
Detective Nosegoode and the Kidnappers
by Marian OrłońThe second in a series of irresistibly charming, beautifully illustrated children's classics - the adventures of Detective Nosegoode and his talking dog, CodyDetective Nosegoode is very proud that his faithful hound Cody makes an appearance in the new book Portraits of Extraordinary Dogs.But with Cody’s newfound fame as ‘the world’s most extraordinary dog’ comes danger... A mysterious letter arrives, inviting Detective Nosegoode to a meeting at the secluded Birch Grove, and when he returns his canine companion is nowhere to be found!Detective Nosegoode immediately sets to work, determined to use his legendary sleuthing skills to track down the culprits and save his friend. But the puzzle is a tricky one. Who are the mysterious letter- writers? Why have they taken Cody? And, most importantly of all, where are they hiding him?This charmingly illustrated classic of children’s literature is part of the Detective Nosegoode series.Marian Orłoń (1932-1990) worked as a teacher, and then a librarian while pursuing an extremely successful career as a children’s writer. His subtle sense of humour and exciting plots made the stories in his Detective Nosegoode series bestsellers in Poland. His books have now been translated into six languages. In 1981 he was given Poland’s highest literary honour, the Council of Ministers Award, for his life’s work.
Magic Toyshop: My Magical Teddy
by Jessie LittleThere are surprises and adventures in store for Willow and Freddie when they go to stay with their Aunt Suzy by the sea. They love the special Hoozle toys she makes in her shop, but never would have guessed that they're magical toys! But now Freddie's Hoozle has lost his magic pocket heart, and it's up to Willow to find it ...
Butchers Hill: A Tess Monaghan Novel (Tess Monaghan #3)
by Laura LippmanTess Monaghan has finally made the move and hung out her sign as a private investigator for hire, complete with an office in Butchers Hill. Maybe it's not the greatest address in Baltimore, but you've got to start somewhere. Then in walks Luther Beale, the notorious vigilante who five years ago shot a boy for vandalising his car. Just out of prison, he wants to make reparations to the kids who witnessed his crime, so he needs Tess to find them. But once she starts snooping, the witnesses start dying. Is the 'Butcher of Butchers Hill' at it again? Like it or not, Tess is embroiled in a case that encompasses the powers-that-be, a heartless system that has destroyed the lives of children, and a nasty trail of money and lies leading all the way back to Butchers Hill.
Hudson's Kill: The Alienist meet Gangs of New York in this thrilling historical crime drama (Lawless New York #2)
by Paddy Hirsch'A wild horse-and-carriage ride through early 19th century New York... Meticulously researched, the novel brings the city to life in lurid sensory detail.' Noel O'Reilly, author of WreckerNew York, 1803. The expanding city is rife with tension, and violence simmers on every street as black and Irish gangs fight for control. When a young girl is found brutally murdered, Marshal Justy Flanagan must find the killer before a mob takes the law into their own hands.Kerry O'Toole, Justy's friend and ally, decides to pursue her own inquiries into the girl's murder. When they each find their way into a shadowy community on the fringes of the city, Justy and Kerry encounter a treacherous web of political conspiracy and criminal enterprise. As events dangerously escalate, they must fight to save not only the city, but also themselves...
Alphabet of the Night
by Jean-Eulphèle MilcéPort-au-Prince: another dull morning tinged with violence and black magic. Jeremy Assaël, a Jewish shopkeeper, sees his friend and lover, Lucien, gunned down outside his shop by a vengeful policeman. In a Haiti that exists in a perpetual night of social unrest and oppression, Jeremy wonders whether he has any other option but to go into exile. He decides, however, to solve the mystery of the ominous disappearance of his best friend from school, Fresnel, and embarks on a quest to discover his fate. His search for answers leads him to a corrupt pastor, a shady revolutionary and a voodoo priest - and uncovers along the way truths not only about himself, but also about contemporary Haiti, a land where everything and nothing is possible. Alphabet of the Night (L'Alphabet des nuits), translated by Christopher Moncrieff, is the first novel by Milcé published by Pushkin Press. Jean-Euphèle Milcé lives in Port-au-Prince and has, it seems, survived the catastrophe. His novel Alphabet of the Night (Pushkin Press) captures the blended sensuality and sorrow of that accursed city. --BOYD TONKIN The Independent Christopher Moncrieff's fine translation effectively conveys this book's heady, poetic style. Jean-Euphèle Milcé('s) powerful and affecting first novel paints a terrifying picture of a society spiralling inexorably downwards. --CHRIS SCHULER The Independent
Outremer I: Revelation Cometh (Outremer #1)
by D. N. CarterWho Controls The Past Controls The Future An epic love story must overcome religious divide and a plot to eradicate two blood lines, as the Crusades and the search for the ancient mysteries of the Holy Grail gather momentum. Raised by his father in La Rochelle, France, Paul Plantavalu is known for his artistic nature, inquisitive mind and Christian faith. He also has an unshakable love for his Muslim childhood friend, Alisha al Komaty. Courageous and outspoken, she returns Paul’s love. But their path is paved with obstacles; religion, war, political chaos and a mysterious enemy determined to destroy their family lines. Sometime between 1110 AD and 1120 AD in the aftermath of the first crusade, a small band of nine knights — the founding knights Templar — recover ancient precious artefacts left by a former, advanced civilisation, beneath the City of Jerusalem. Ruthlessly guarded, the secrets revealed by this discovery are highly prized by powerful and dangerous forces far and wide; the repercussions of their capture are inextricably linked to Paul and Alisha. As Paul starts to experience dark and vivid dreams and the fragile balance of peace starts to crumble, it will fall to an enigmatic man known as Kratos and his female warrior protégée Abi Shadana, to safeguard Paul and Alisha. Paul and Alisha’s love story weaves between the threads of our reality and other realms — from the Druids to the Sufi mystics, the Magi of the East, the secret political arm of the Knights Templar and the Isma’ilis, the Assassins. Knights and pilgrims alike will witness some of the darkest battles ever fought. The discovery of a unique sword’s lethal power and whispered connections to King Arthur and the Holy Grail lead Paul and Alisha to question if their lives ever be the same again. The first of a four-part series, Outremer is an historical epic, which sweeps across England, Scotland and France, to Syria, Jerusalem and Egypt. Discover the truth — and crack the ancient code — behind the great mysteries of the High Middle Ages for yourself.
The Odd Couple: The Curious Friendship between Kingsley Amis and Philip Larkin
by Richard BradfordKingsley Amis was a mimic, jester, father, husband, atheist, pseudo-socialist and clubland Tory boozer with a limitless taste for adultery; Philip Larkin a glum misanthrope who lived in self-imposed solitude. And yet, after meeting at St John's, Oxford in 1941, this unlikely pair struck up a friendship to endure for more than forty years, despite a period of acrimony in the 1960s. From their early days of undergraduate ambitions and enthusiasms through to the bitterness of middle age, Richard Bradford charts the progress of a remarkable friendship, and shows how crucial it was to the making of these two literary giants. Without Larkin's inspiration and input, Amis would never have written his award-winning debut, Lucky Jim; if not for Amis's overnight success, Larkin would never have abandoned his hopes of becoming a novelist and turned instead to verse. Larkin's ensuing resentment would simmer beneath the surface of their relationship for years to come. Drawing on an enormous archive of letters, manuscripts and interviews, The Odd Couple not only offers a rare glimpse into the private correspondence of two controversial and eccentric men, it also illuminates some of the finest novels and poems of the twentieth century.