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      • Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945)

        The Sicilian Woman's Daughter

        Four generations of mafia women

        by Linda Lo Scuro

        "If you loved My Brilliant Friend, The Godfather and Montalbano, you'll love this utterly gripping novel about women in organised crime in Sicily." Most victims of the mafia are the Sicilians themselves. The role of women both as perpetrators and victims has been grossly overlooked. Until now. As the daughter of Sicilian immigrants, in her teens Maria turns her back on her origins and fully embraces the English way of life. Notwithstanding her troubled and humble childhood in London, and backed up by her intelligence, beauty and sheer determination, she triumphantly works her way up to join the upper middle-class of British society. There she becomes a bastion of civility. But a minor incident wakes up feelings of revenge in her like those lurking in Maria's Sicilian origins. As she delves deeper into her mother's family history a murky past unravels, drawing Maria more and more into a mire of vendetta.

      • Crime & mystery

        Sherlock Holmes & The Hentzau Affair

        by David Stuart Davies

        This novel is an exciting fusion of a Sherlock Holmes mystery with the Ruritanian world of intrigue and skulduggery of Anthony Hope’s novel The Prisoner of Zenda. Colonel Sapt of the Ruritanian Court journeys to England on a secret mission to save his country from anarchy. His mission is to engage the services of Rudolph Rassendyll once more to impersonate the king while the monarch recovers from a serious illness. But Rassendyll has mysteriously disappeared. In desperation Sapt consults Sherlock Holmes who, with his faithful companion Watson, travels to the Kingdom of Ruritania in an effort to thwart the plans of the scheming Rupert of Hentzau in his bid for the throne. Represented for translation rights sales by Sparkling Books. Some English rights also available.

      • Crime & mystery

        The Darkness

        by Bill Kirton

        DCI Jack Carston is faced with a series of disappearances then a murder. But thereʹs a problem... He feels sympathetic towards whoever is responsible. If he does not solve the case in a hurry, the endgame will be chilling and the darkness will fill him too. The trailer was voted the most intriguing in the New Covey Awards. This title is represented by Sparkling Books for translation rights sales.

      • Crime & mystery

        When Anthony Rathe Investigates

        by Matthew Booth

        The original Anthony Rathe stories of courtroom criminal cases appeared on American public radio, syndicated by the late Jim French through his Imagination Theater. When Anthony Rathe Investigates continues where the radio stories finished. Prosecuting criminal cases, barrister Anthony Rathe convinced a jury to imprison an innocent man, who subsequently took his own life. Horrified at his mistake, Rathe abandons his glittering legal career, vowing to truly serve justice. A series of cases come his way. These four stories, linked by how Rathe is racked with guilt over the suicide, explore crime from a different angle: determination to find the truth, no matter how inconvenient to the investigating officer, Inspector Cook. The reader is invited to join Rathe in solving these complex mysteries. The first story, Burial for the Dead, exposes sordid family history that led to a murder in a church. In A Question of Proof, Inspector Cook needs Rathe to unravel an underworld murder; in Ties that Bind Rathe solves a crime of passion; and in The Quick and the Dead, modern slavery intrudes into his own personal life.

      • Thriller / suspense

        A Taste for Blood

        by David Stuart Davies

        The sixth novel in the Detective Johnny (One Eye) Hawke series. Two laser-sharp detectives, two thought-provoking cases and two skilful plots.Featuring private investigator Johnny (One Eye) Hawke, and his one-time colleague in the police force Detective David Llewellyn. Llewellyn is investigating the chilling crimes of a top psychiatrist and his scheming patient who the doctor believes has knuckled under his authority. In the meantime, Hawke is on the case of a mysterious suicide in Edgware Road... soon discovered as not your average suicide.The guts and insight of the two investigators bring both cases to a head - though you won't even begin to see how until you have turned the last pages.Review:“This is a delightful read because you are not quite sure what will happen and you are hooked enough to keep on reading. Enjoyable.” – J Robert Ewbank, author

      • Adult & contemporary romance

        The Eloquence of Desire

        by Amanda Sington-Williams

        "I have just stumbled onto the nicest surprise" - Susan Abraham "an atmospheric novel with thought provoking themes" - Bookish Magpie "A good read" - Book Pleasures"For those who know me, giving a book a 5 is something I don't do. My belief is if a book receives a 5 rating, it better be worthy of a Nobel Prize in literature. The Eloquence of Desire is one such book. Ms. Sington-Williams has written a book that flows rhythmically, lyrically, like poetry or a song, but touches on every facet of human nature. This is not an easy read. Filled with emotion and every facet of human nature laid bare before the reader, this story will grip your heart and bring your emotions to the foreground. I don't think anyone will come away from this story untouched." - Romance Writers United. "an engrossing and atmospheric novel... has the sharp edge, clarity and narrative drive of Somerset Maugham... Thoroughly recommended!" - Dr. Stephen Wyatt, Award-winning writer of Memorials to the Missing.The book Set in the 1950s, The Eloquence of Desire explores the conflicts in family relationships caused by obsessive love, the lost innocence of childhood and the terror of the Communist insurgency in Malaya. Richly descriptive and well-researched, the story told by Amanda Sington-Williams unfolds as George is posted to the tropics in punishment for an affair with the daughter of his boss. His wife, Dorothy, constrained by social norms, begrudgingly accompanies him while their twelve year old daughter Susan is packed off to boarding school. Desire and fantasy mix with furtive visits, lies and despair to turn the family inside out with Dorothy becoming a recluse, George taking a new lover, and Susan punishing herself through self-harm. The Eloquence of Desire is written in Sington-Williams' haunting and rhythmical prose.

      • Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945)

        Featherbones

        by Thomas Brown

        The bookFelix walks the same way to work through Southampton every morning, and the same way home again in the evenings. His life up to this point feels like one day repeated over and over; a speck of silt caught in the city's muddied waters. Sometimes it is all he can do to sit and watch while the urban sprawl races indifferently around him. But when the city stares back at him, one evening after work, everything changes.He doesn't see the statue's head move, but he feels its eyes on him, studying him from its lofty perch in East Park. From then on he continues to glimpse it, or something like it, encroaching with every visitation. With it come memories, spilling through the streets, crawling through the dark, haunting his night-time flat, until he isn't quite sure what is real anymore and what is imagined, in this hard, grey place where the gulls watch him sleep...

      • Classic crime

        Further Exploits of Sherlock Holmes

        by David Stuart Davies, Matthew Booth

        This exciting anthology brings together the work of two much admired Sherlock Holmes writers. In these stories Holmes and Watson are engaged in daring exploits applying their razor-sharp intelligence in new cases. By David Stuart Davies The Reichenbach Secret The Adventure of the Brewer's Son The Secret of the Dead Murder at Tragere House Sherlock Holmes and the Ghost of Christmas Past #A Certain Notoriety # By Matthew Booth The Dragon of Lea Lane The Fairmont Confession The Mornington Scream The Riddle of Satan's Tooth The Tragedy of Saxon's Gate The Verse of Death # These two stories are available for translation rights but excluded from our published book

      • Thriller / suspense

        Ellipsis

        by Nikki Dudley

        “It's a tale that will keep them wondering, gasping, thinking, smiling, grimacing, rereading. What more can a reader ask for?"Spinetingler Magazine”I wouldn't have stopped reading if my house was on fire!” Cas Peace"Right on time," Daniel Mansen mouths to Alice as she pushes him to his death. Haunted by these words, Alice becomes obsessed with discovering how a man she didn't know could predict her actions. On the day of the funeral, Daniel's cousin, Thom, finds a piece of paper in Daniel's room detailing the exact time and place of his death.Ellipsis is a disturbing thriller stemming from what is left unsaid, what bounces around in the mind and evaporates when trying to remember. Can there be a conclusion when no-one seems to know the truth?

      • Horror & ghost stories

        Lynnwood

        by Thomas Brown

        FINALIST in the PEOPLE'S BOOK PRIZEThe unthinkable is happening in Lynnwood – a village with centuries of guilt on its conscience.Who wouldn't want to live in an idyllic village in the English countryside like Lynnwood? With its charming pub, old dairy, friendly vicar, gurgling brooks, and its old paths with memories of simpler times. But behind the conventional appearance of Lynnwood's villagers, only two sorts of people crawl out of the woodwork: those who hunt and those who are prey. Reviews: 'A dark horror story set in a picturesque village. I would recommend this to fans of classic English horror as well as fans of Stephen King.' – Lucy O'Connor, Waterstones "A quintessentially British folk horror chiller, with an escalating power of dread that is rendered deftly. A new voice in British horror, that you'll want to read, has entered the field." – Adam Nevill > 'The plot line is new and exciting ... I was surprised more than once at what was happening. If you are looking for a good book, definitely pick up this one.' – Alison Mudge, Librarian, USA " … A dark journey not only of the mind, but of the soul. Mr. Brown's extraordinary talent is evident as he paints a virtual feast for the reader with eloquently chosen prose in this powerfully engaging novel." – Nina D'Arcangela 'An exciting, on the edge of your seat gothic that will have readers begging for more.' – Rosemary Smith, Librarian 'An exciting début from a new young writer with a dark imagination. Thomas Brown's beautifully written novel proposes a modern gothic forest far from the tourist trail, a place filled with strange events and eerie consequences.' – Philip Hoare. 'This book was great! I loved the author's writing style - the words flowed perfectly. Reading this was less like reading a book and more like watching the movie in my mind's eye. Fantastic!' – Laura Smith, Goodreads Reviewer

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