Books

Fiction

Like a Sword Wound

by Ahmet Altan

Volume 1 of the Ottoman Quartet A powerful, beautifully written saga set during the fall of one of history’s greatest empires. Altan’s “Ottoman Quartet” spans the fifty years between the final decades of the 19th century and the post-WWI rise of Atatürk as both the unchallenged leader and visionary reformer of the new Turkey. The quartet tells the gripping stories of an unforgettable cast of characters: an Ottoman army officer, the Sultan’s personal doctor, a scion of the royal house whose Western education brings him into conflict with his family’s legacy, and a beguiling Turkish aristocrat who, while fond of her emancipated life in Paris, finds herself drawn to a conservative Muslim spiritual leader. Intrigue, betrayal, love, war, progress, and tradition provide a colourful backdrop against which the lives of these characters play out. All the while, the society that spawned them is transforming and the Sublime Empire disintegrating. Here is a Turkish saga reminiscent of War and Peace, written in lively, contemporary prose that traces not only the social currents of the time but also the erotic and emotional lives of its characters. Altan is a fearless, caustic writer, who is not afraid to hide in plain sight a critique against arrogant, anti-democratic leadership that exploits religion and bigotry, letting the reader hear in this historical novels an echo of Turkey’s contemporary politics.

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Fiction

June 2022

Still Lives

by Reshma Ruia

The glow of my cigarette picks out a dark shape lying on the ground. I bend down to take a closer look. It’s a dead sparrow. I wondered if I had become that bird, disoriented and lost.’ Young, handsome and contemptuous of his father’s traditional ways, PK Malik leaves Bombay to start a new life in America. Stopping in Manchester to visit an old friend, he thinks he sees a business opportunity, and decides to stay on. Now fifty-five, PK has fallen out of love with life. His business is struggling and his wife Geeta is lonely, pining for the India she’s left behind. One day PK crosses the path of Esther, the wife of his business competitor, and they launch into an affair conducted in shabby hotel rooms, with the fear of discovery forever hanging in the air. Still Lives is a tightly woven, haunting work that pulls apart the threads of a family and plays with notions of identity. Shortlisted for the SI Leeds Literary Prize

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Sagas

The Peshmurian

by Salwa Bakr

The Pashmurian Salwa Bakr The Novelist Salwa Bakr is one of the most famous Egyptian writers who discusses important issues in society and the history of humanity. till the reader has the ability to find an infinite number of messages, And various human meanings in one story feeling connected with it and with all its characters without exception And in that novel, the hero goes through a real test with everything around him. After being lost after a dramatic and highly private attitude, life and thought changes followed him until he scoured the Earth for many existential questions after everything. in the meantime that major events took place in Egypt in the Coptic era, He finds himself bewildered and surrounded by further questions, as for The Pashmurian , the Egyptian peasant in Coptic, The Coptic people used to live in Egypt according to special customs and traditions, where they had their way of love, work, fun and religion. This account lists the events of this mysterious and forgotten period in the Arab region's history. This fascinating novel was selected among the top 100 Arab novels after creating a major controversy once it first appeared to light, and was dealt with in a large number of critical articles, lectures and studies, then translated into several languages, and classified by some as one of the masterpieces of the art of writing the novel .

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Relationships

8 Reasons for Divorce, The

Why Marriages Fail and How to Ensure That Yours Doesn’t

by Thomas G. Papps

Thomas G. Papps is an attorney who argued cases before the United States Supreme Court (U.S. v. Jimmy Johnson) and argued cases that have become the law of the land (”failure of informed consent” from Grey v. Grunnagle). The toughest battles he fought in the courtroom, though, have been his divorce cases. In The 8 Reasons for Divorce, Mr. Papps will share with you his findings as to the true causes for divorce after analyzing almost 2,000 divorce cases in which he was an attorney. Within its pages you will discover… ▪ what marriage really is; ▪ how kissing can ruin—or save—a marriage; ▪ how effective marriage counsellors really are; ▪ the effect of clergy, friends, and family on your marriage; ▪ the significance of age differences; ▪ how children can affect a marriage; ▪ what it takes to have a successful marriage; ▪ the single most important thing you can do to ensure that your marriage will succeed. Finally, you will find two important tests that were developed based on the data from Mr. Papps’s cases: The Pre-Marriage Test (“Should you get married?”) and the Marriage Test (“Will your marriage last?”). These tests have been shown to be accurate in predicting the health of a relationship and the chances for it’s success—or divorce.

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Biography & True Stories

October 2013

How Blue is my Valley

The Real Provence

by Jean Gill

Humorous travel memoir about moving from Wales to France; amazon bestseller. Appeals to readers who enjoy armchair travel, who love France and Provence, who read Peter Mayle's books, who dream of changing their lives and moving to a rural haven, especially older readers about to retire from work or those wanting to give up their current work. The true scents of Provence? Lavender, thyme and septic tank. There are hundreds of interesting things you can do in a bath but washing dishes is not one of them, nor what writer Jean Gill had in mind when she swopped her Welsh Valley for a French one. Keen to move out of the elephant's stomach, that stew of grey mists called weather in Wales, she offered her swimming certificate to a bemused Provencale estate agent and bought a house with good stars and its own spring-water. Or rather, as it turns out, a neighbour's spring-water that is the only supply to the kitchen, which, according to the nice men from the Water Board, is emptying its dirty water directly and illegally onto the main road... and there's worse ... But how can you resist a village called Dieulefit, `God created it', the village 'where everyone belongs'. Discover the real Provence in good company ... Watch the book trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_Rrn4CGw5A

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Fiction

April 2001

Snake on Saturdays

A Romance for Our Times

by Jean Gill

A contemporary romance, telling of loss and love, set in rural Wales during the farming crisis caused by the foot-and-mouth epidemic Helen Tanner lives alone and likes it that way. She runs her own business, spends her evenings out with friends, and tries to think as little as possible about the tragedy she has left behind. Until, that is, a dark-haired vet walks into her shop and into her life. Her first unpromising encounter with Llanelli vet Dai Evans turns into a tumultuous affair which brings about irrevocable changes for both of them. Dai becomes closer to his farming family, and helps them through the BSE crisis, while Helen is forced not only to consider a new future, but to face up to a troubled past.

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Women's Fiction

August 2013

Stanley Park

by Racine Hiet

STANLEY PARK by Racine Hiet: Forced into a bloody crime by Ace, an isolated girl April buries her past until passionate love drives her to uncover dark secrets and free his hold on her. “Hiet skillfully introduces and intertwines her characters’ lives and passions in a riveting tale of mystery, murder, deceptions, love discovered, love lost. Chronicling several lives from the 1930s to 1960s, Hiet writes energetically, evocatively. Her descriptions and use of metaphor give subtle insights into the characters (and make another writer envious). Stanley Park becomes the symbol intertwined throughout the characters’ lives. The park represents for them escape, renewal of self-nurturance, life-changing liaisons, and courageous revelations. Stanley Park, a powerful thread, becomes the place of dreams proclaimed, true selves revealed, and ultimately freedom from their physical and psychological prisons. In Stanley Park, Hiet faces head-on the abhorrent aspects of life, its physical and emotional cruelties, its disappointments, and its ability to bring out the worst in people. Yet, anchored always in the beauty and freshness of Stanley Park, with the major characters finally finding what they seek, her vision is one of hope and love.” To hear briefly about STANLEY PARK click www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqrLlmzEaBo

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Fiction

On The Ninth Day

by Jenny Gill

This is book number 7 in the Southhill Sagas, set in Surrey to the south of London, although each book in the series stands alone. You know how you have a day when nothing you do goes right? The traffic holds you up, makes you late for work, you snag your tights then you get caught in the rain? ‘Just one of those days’ you say. Well for Annie, a struggling single mum, and her family it is just the opposite – it seems nothing can go wrong. Not just one day, either. And it’s not just the little things but some surprisingly big things too. It all seems too good to be true, to Annie. She is convinced there is an unseen force at work, perhaps something to do with the funny lights she thinks she’s seen between her apple trees. Her friends disagree – they say after all the bad luck she’s had Annie deserves some good luck. It’s only her just deserts. Meanwhile her neighbours, both to the side and behind her, have some surprisingly good fortune of their own. Smudge, Annie’s beautiful tortoiseshell cat, who spreads her favours around the neighbourhood, is the only one who sees the big picture. And if Smudge knows the answer, she isn’t telling.

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Fiction

A Season, and A Time

by Jenny Gill

The 6th book in the Southhill Sagas, set in Surrey, to the South of London – each book stands alone When Rhona’s family throws a surprise party for her sixtieth birthday, you might think she is the woman who has it all – she has her health, a lovely home, a good marriage, and a loving daughter, even a part time job which she enjoys. But ever present is the tragedy from seventeen years before – the tragedy that has driven a wedge between Rhona and her husband John. Now John seems to be playing a lot more bridge, more evenings and even playing at the weekends, ever since he has found a new partner, a woman called Grace, who even joins him on a bridge club holiday. Then suddenly her world falls apart Not only is Rhona is ousted from her part time job, but only one day later her husband leaves her. He doesn’t spell it out but it is obvious to Rhona that he is leaving her for Grace, that Grace has become more than just his bridge partner. Rhona has to take stock of her life and decide what it is she wants to do, and how she is going to move forward. Meanwhile her daughter Jo has a different agenda – she wants to get her parents back together. A family story of heartache, love, despair but above all hope

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Fiction

Rock-A-Bye Baby

by Jenny Gill

Baby Boomer fiction – No 5 in the Southhill Sagas, set in leafy Surrey, England – each book stands alone Joy and Michael are initially horrified when their beautiful but irresponsible daughter, Rachael, announces that she is pregnant and refuses to say who the father is. She can barely look after herself; how will she be able to care for a child? Michael is convinced it will all fall on Joy’s shoulders, but Joy hopes that having a baby will make Rachael grow up, fast. Custody battle Neither of them actually anticipates that a time might come when they will be consulting a solicitor and battling over custody of little Kelly. Although they love Rachael the welfare of their granddaughter has to be priority number one. A story of three generations, of love, of joy, of pain, of distress and also of hope

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Adventure

July 2011

Someone to Look Up To

The Story of a Special Dog

by Jean Gill

'Nobody writes dog stories better.' Karen Charlton, author of 'The Heiress of Linn Hagh' A dog's life in the south of France. From puppyhood, Sirius the Pyrenean Mountain Dog has been trying to understand his humans and train them with kindness... How this led to their divorce he has no idea. More misunderstandings take Sirius to Death Row in an animal shelter, as a so-called dangerous dog learning survival tricks from the other inmates. During the twilight barking, he is shocked to hear his brother's voice but the bitter-sweet reunion is short-lived. Doggedly, Sirius keeps the faith. One day, his human will come. View the book trailer youtube.com/watch?v=JFPrJbqM4LU

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Adventure

April 2015

The Game Master

by Ian D Copsey

What is it like to be someone else – especially your most hated enemy? Why do they think and do things differently? Tired of arguing over which of them was the best gamer, Josh and Alex stumbled upon a new video game shop, run by an enigmatic and amiable Japanese shopkeeper. He was to be their Game Master in this virtual reality video game that had no game controls. Little did they know it was a game that would change their lives, of their friends… and enemies… forever. “Oh! This game is no ordinary game,” The Game Master explained, “It reads your thoughts, seeks out your weaknesses to give challenges that are right just for you, the challenges you need to help you grow.” "It can read our minds?" puzzled the boys. As they progressed through the game’s levels they found out more about themselves and the lives of everyone around them. Mysteriously, the Game of Life began to spread its influence beyond Josh and Alex’s lives and to their friends. From Josh and Alex switching roles with each other in the game, campfire frolics and ghostly stories from their teachers, the boys learned more about their friends around them. The Game Master’s zany antics as he hosted a T.V. game show, “Hiro’s Happy Heroes” in the Game of Life, released a string of rib tickling gags, teases and tantalising tattles. The climax of the Game of Life came from the school Rube Goldberg challenge in which each grade had to join as a team to build their own whacky, madcap contraption. Would Josh and Alex be able to manage to get the two bullies in the class to work within the team? Patiently, with impish humour, the Game Master guides them through the different levels to a final intriguing twist.

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Fiction

January 2017

Finding Kyler

The Kennedy Boys Book One

by Siobhan Davis

Two fractured hearts and a forbidden love they can’t deny.You shouldn’t want what you can’t have…Faye Donovan has lost everything. After her parent’s tragic death, she’s whisked away from her home in Ireland when an unknown uncle surfaces as her new guardian. Dropped smack-dab into the All-American dream, Faye should feel grateful. Except living with her wealthy uncle, his fashion-empire-owning wife, and their seven screwed-up sons is quickly turning into a nightmare—especially when certain inappropriate feelings arise. Kyler Kennedy makes her head hurt and her heart race, but he’s her cousin. He’s off limits. And he’s not exactly welcoming—Kyler is ignorant, moody, and downright cruel at times—but Faye sees behind the mask he wears, recognizing a kindred spirit. Kyler has sworn off girls, yet Faye gets under his skin. The more he pushes her away, the more he’s drawn to her, but acting on those feelings risks a crap-ton of prejudice, and any whiff of scandal could damage the precious Kennedy brand. Concealing their feelings seems like the only choice.But when everyone has something to hide, a secret is a very dangerous thing.Will I enjoy this book?Full of scandal, dysfunctional families, teen soap-opera-style angst and drama, secrets and lies, mean girls and catfights, lust and love, book one in the unputdownable Kennedy Boys series will have you flipping the pages’ way beyond bedtime! Only suitable for readers aged seventeen and older due to mature content and language. Please note this book contains a forbidden love theme featuring first cousins and a cliff hanger. It is not a standalone read.Books in this SeriesFinding KylerLosing Kyler Keeping Kyler The Irish Getaway - optional novellaLoving KalvinSaving BradThe three Kyler books must be read together. Thereafter, every book in the series will focus on a single Kennedy boy and his love interest, and they will be standalone titles with an HEA and no cliff hanger.

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Romance

Bonded Heart

by Jane Jackson

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Romance

Honeysuckle House

by Christina Jones

After nearly 25 years of marriage, Rosie’s life seems to be falling apart. Her husband, Leon, tells her he’s leaving her, her three children are very unhappy and unsettled, and even her beloved home, Honeysuckle House, is at risk. Without Leon and the painful disruption to everyone’s lives, the family is also finding it hard to cope with the running of the family restaurant, Cookery Nook. However, although Rosie could never have imagined it, Leon’s leaving isn’t the end, but a new beginning for everyone…

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Fiction

September 2019

La hijas de la tierra

by Alaitz leceaga

THE DAUGHTERS OF THE LAND/ No secret remains uncovered forever After the spectacular success of her debut novel The Forest Knows Your Name, with over 100,000 copies and translation and audio-visual rights sold, Alaitz Leceaga returns with an excellent novel recounting the beginnings of the most important wineries of La Rioja at the end of the 19th century. In The Daughters of the Land the readers will again find powerful women, attractive settings, intriguing family mystery and expressive prose. The year of 1889, La Rioja. There are some people who say that a curse hangs over the vineyards, infertile for years, on the property of Las Urracas. While for the big wineries in the region it is the beginning of their golden age, Gloria, a young daughter of the owner, languishes in the old family mansion foreseeing another autumn without harvest. Oppressed by a cruel aunt and with an absent father, Gloria will see how her life changes from one day to the next when she becomes the head of the family business. In that moment a long battle will begin with the wine producers and local bigwigs who cannot conceive that their rival could be a woman. With the help of her sisters, Gloria will fight for the recovery of the glory of her vineyards and at the same time she will get to the bottom of the secrets hidden in the closed rooms and infertile land in Las Urracas Estate. In the shadow of a curse, unafraid of anything and anybody, the female protagonists of this novel will struggle for the power which is their due.

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Fiction

May 2018

El bosque sabe tu nombre

by Alaitz Leceaga

THE FOREST KNOWS YOUR NAME / A surprising debut, a different novel, magical, realistic, feminist, picaresque. For a long time there has not emerged a literary debut as refreshing as this first novel by Alaitz Leceaga. El bosque sabe tu nombre even with the elements typical of some trends in the Spanish narrative of recent years, departs essentially from any well-known path and takes the reader along innovative and suggestive tracks. An enchanted place, a dream mansion, a cruel father, twin girls at variance with each other, a lineage of magnificent women fighting for survival, a family saga set in Basque Country in 1928. El bosque sabe tu nombre tells the family saga of the marquises of Zuolaga, owners of a grand mansion, the Villa Soledad, and of a profitable iron mine in a town in Basque Country region. Estrella is a daughter of the Zuloagas: she is capricious, egoistic and has a strong character. She and her twin sister, Alma lead the life of the privileged in the family mansion amongst the parties, the balls, the luxury and also many family secrets. But Estrella and Alma are not like other girls: they can see and talk with the ghosts in the mansion or know exactly when the first spring flower will bloom. Their relationship, however, is tainted with malice, rivalry, jealousy and dangerous power games and it deteriorates when the girls reach adolescence. After a tragic incident and on the eve of the Civil War, Estrella abandons the family mansion and sets on a long trip that will take her from a boarding school in England to the dry lands of California and the glamour of Los Angeles and on her return trip she will have a taste of lavish parties in the Madrid of a new regime. On her way, Estrella will have to do all she can to survive, to retain her land and the family business.

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Fiction

June 2018

REGRETS

by Sharon Chung

Twenty-five years in the making, REGRETS is Sharon Chung’s literary masterpiece and a once-in-a-lifetime publishing event. This is DOWNTON ABBEY meets MATCH POINT in pre-handover Hong Kong, both a haunting family saga and a dark retelling of the classic Chinese novel A DREAM OF RED MANSIONS. When Yat-Ping visits his aunt, Chun, at the Wong Mansion on Victoria Peak, he has no idea he is about to enter a world of passion, intrigue, and madness. Chun is Mr. Wong’s second wife, a frail and sickly woman who cannot set foot outside. She beseeches Yat-Ping to look after her willful daughter, Po-Chuen, by becoming her private tutor. A bond develops between the cousins, yet Mr. Wong deems it inappropriate and fires Yat-Ping, unexpectedly triggering a string of tragic events. Although forced to leave, Yat-Ping remains inseparable from the Wongs’ affairs. In the years that follow, he is befriended by Cheng-Yiu, Mr. Wong’s adopted son and designated heir, who is a shrewd and cold-blooded manipulator; he falls in love with Kam-Chuen, daughter of Mr Wong and his first wife, only to discover that she’s pregnant with someone else’s child; he is beaten up by Ching Hon, the family driver and son of the housekeeper, who sees him as a threat; he is seduced by Wang-Tai, the sexy Portuguese heiress about to marry Cheng-Yiu; and he is equally confused and enamored by Po-Chuen, now a beautiful young woman, who still recalls his tutor sessions with fondness. Soon, a death in the swimming pool will threaten to shatter the whole family, and a kidnapping plot gone awry will reveal something far more sinister.

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by Ahmet Altan

by Reshma Ruia

by Salwa Bakr

Why Marriages Fail and How to Ensure That Yours Doesn’t

by Thomas G. Papps

The Real Provence

by Jean Gill

A Romance for Our Times

by Jean Gill

by Racine Hiet

by Jenny Gill

by Jenny Gill

by Jenny Gill

The Story of a Special Dog

by Jean Gill

by Ian D Copsey

The Kennedy Boys Book One

by Siobhan Davis

by Jane Jackson

by Christina Jones

by Alaitz leceaga

by Alaitz Leceaga

by Sharon Chung

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