Adult Non-Fiction

‘Don’t go Mammy please.’ Stuttered words filled her ears, sent frissons of guilt through her as she bent over him; held him to her thumping chest. Tears sliding from her face to his.Raef is left behind in Grenada when his mother, Cilla, follows her husband to England in search of a better life. When they are finally reunited seven years later, they are strangers – and the emotional impact of the separation leads to events that rip their family apart. As they try to move forward with their lives, his mother’s secret will make Raef question all he’s ever known of who he is.

A Trace of Sun is, in part, inspired by the author’s own family experiences.

It is late September in 2001 and the walls of New York are papered over with photos of the missing. Cora Brady’s father is there, the poster she made taped to columns and bridges. Her mother died long ago and now, orphaned on the cusp of adulthood, Cora is adrift and alone. Soon, a letter will arrive with the offer of a new life: far out on the ragged edge of Ireland, in the town where her parents were young, an estranged aunt can provide a home and fulfil a long-forgotten promise. There the story of Cora's family is hidden, and in her presence will begin to unspool…

An essential, immersive debut from an astonishing new voice, Confessions traces the arc of three generations of women as they experience in their own time the irresistible gravity of the past: its love and tragedy, its mystery and redemption, and, in all things intended and accidental, the beauty and terrible shade of the things we do.

The war is drawing to a close, but life for the Caldwell sisters is far from peaceful...

Still waiting for her fiancé, James, to return from fighting in North Africa, Imogen focuses her attention on driving for the Auxiliary Territorial Service General. Between work and looking out for her sisters, she soon finds she has very little time left over to worry.

Meanwhile, Elsie continues to nurse her husband back to health, finally content with her quiet family life in Yorkshire. But she is nostalgic for happier times, before the war, and longs to be reunited with her sisters again.

Daisy is also desperate for an end to the war - she fears for her love, Glenn, and longs to see him return home safely. In these uncertain times, she needs all the support Imogen and Elsie can give to her.

When yet another tragedy befalls the Caldwell family, will the sisters be able to lift each other up to carry on?

The captivating finale to the Second World War set Caldwell Sisters series, perfect for fans of Emma Hornby, Elaine Everest and Katie Flynn.

Can true love conquer all?

Sisters Bette Tredinnick and Sara Marrack live quiet lives, content with the comings and goings of their small Cornish hometown. But when hundreds of US Marines arrive, everything changes.

Bette, footloose and fancy free, embarks on a whirlwind romance and finds herself bound for America as a GI bride. Meanwhile, married woman Sara finds herself falling for officer Charles Denham, despite her better judgement and her husband's jealous attempts to control her.

As the GIs prepare to invade Normandy it becomes clear that this is a bigger operation than ever before - one that they might not come back from, one that will change the lives of both sisters forever...

An emotional saga of sisterhood set in wartime Cornwall, perfect for fans of Betty Walker, Donna Douglas and Tracy Baines.

When Warren has the opportunity to live with a female roommate, he instantly agrees. It could be an exciting change.

Or maybe not.

Especially when that roommate is the cold and seemingly calculating Bridgette. Tensions run high and tempers flare as the two can hardly stand to be in the same room together. But Warren has a theory about Bridgette: anyone who can hate with that much passion should also have the capability to love with that much passion. And he wants to be the one to test this theory.

Will Bridgette find it in herself to warm her heart to Warren and finally learn to love?

Maybe.

Maybe not.

What is more important? Friendship, loyalty, or love?

Ridge and Sydney are thrilled to finally be together guilt-free. But as the two of them navigate this freedom, Warren and Bridgette's relationship is as tumultuous as ever, and Maggie grapples with her illness.

When she comes across an old list of things she wanted to do "maybe one of these days," Maggie decides to live life to the fullest and accomplish these dreams. Maggie keeps Ridge updated on her adventures, but he can't help but worry, even as Sydney grows more and more suspicious about their friendship. But if she's going to move past this jealousy, she'll need to reconcile how she and Ridge came together with the fact that Maggie will always be in their lives somehow...or end up walking away from the man she loves so much.

A mother and son, estranged for many years, reckon at last with the secret that has kept them apart in this highly anticipated novel by one of the most talented American writers of his generation

At forty, Peter, an asylum lawyer in New York City, is overworked and isolated. He spends his days immersed in the struggles of immigrants only to return to an empty apartment and occasional hook-ups with a man who wants more than Peter can give. But when the asylum case of a young gay man pierces Peter's numbness, the event that he has avoided for twenty years returns to haunt him.

Ann, his mother, who runs a women's retreat centre she founded after leaving his father, is wounded by the estrangement from Peter but cherishes the world she has built. She long ago banished from her mind the decision that divided her from her son. But as Peter’s case plunges him further into the fraught memory of his first love and the night of violence that changed his life forever, he and his mother must confront the secret that tore them apart.

With unsurpassed emotional depth, Mothers and Sons reveals all that is lost by looking away from the past and the love that might be restored by facing it. In his spellbinding new novel, Adam Haslett demonstrates yet again his mastery of “a rich assortment of literary gifts” (New York Times).

Nanako Hanada's life is in crisis. Recently separated from her husband, living in youth hostels and internet cafes, her work is going no better. Book sales at the eccentric Village Vanguard bookstore in Tokyo, which Nanako manages, are dwindling. Fallen out of love in all aspects of her life, Nanako realises how narrow her life has become, with no friends outside of her colleagues, and no hobbies apart from reading and arranging books.

That's when Nanako, in a bid to inject some excitement into her life, joins a meet-up site where people meet for 30-minute bursts to find romance, build a network, or just share ideas. She describes herself as a sexy bookseller who will give you a personalised book recommendation. In the year that follows, Nanako meets an eclectic range of strangers, some of whom wanted more than just a book, others she became real friends with.

Written with a subtle but sharp sense of humour, The Bookshop Woman is a heart-warming book about a bookseller's self-discovery. It offers a glimpse into bookselling in Japan and the quirky side of Tokyo and its people. Books, once again, offer inspiration and serve as channels for human communication.

They must band together to get through the toughest of times...

Imogen Caldwell is excelling in her role as an Auxiliary Territorial Service driver, trying her hardest to distract herself from worrying about her fiancé, James Church, who is off fighting in North Africa.

Meanwhile, the Bristol Blitz finally persuades sister Elsie to move her family to Yorkshire in an attempt to leave the war behind. But her husband's physical and emotional wounds make it far harder than she imagined...

Daisy, trying to choose between her dreams of the stage and her nursing career, struggles with her feelings for gorgeous Canadian pilot Glenn Fraser. His job puts his life on the line every day, and Daisy can't handle the uncertainty.

With the sisters terrified by how much they have to lose, can they see each other through such hardship? Or will they be pulled further and further apart?

A gripping historical saga set in wartime Britain, perfect for fans of Emma Hornby, Rosie Clarke and Pam Howes.

MOST FAMILY REUNIONS END IN TEARS. THIS ONE WILL END IN MURDER.

Lucy Foley meets Succession in this atmospheric new murder mystery that will keep you hooked right until the last page . . .

'Original, compelling, and utterly unputdownable.' ANDREA MARA
I absolutely loved The Inheritance!’ LISA JEWELL
‘A pacy, page-turning thriller' SARAH PEARSE
‘I couldn’t put it down and WOW – the ending!’ RUTH MANCINI
‘Echoes of the TV dramas Succession and The White Lotus, but also of Agatha Christie and The Traitors’ THE TIMES

The last time Esther Wilding’s beloved older sister Aura was seen, she was walking along the shore towards the sea. In the wake of Aura’s disappearance, Esther’s family struggles to live with their loss.

To seek the truth about her sister’s death, Esther reluctantly travels from Tasmania to Copenhagen, and then to the Faroe Islands. On her journey, Esther is guided by the stories Aura left behind in her treasured journal; seven fairy tales about selkies, swans and women, alongside cryptic verses Aura wrote and had secretly tattooed on her body.

The Seven Skins of Esther Wilding is about the far-reaches of sisterly love, the power of wearing your heart on your skin and the way life can transform when we find the courage to feel the fullness of both grief and joy.

1916. Young artist Sam Burke is spared death by firing squad on the battlefields of France and brought to a remote castle by the Irish Sea. At the "Tin Nose Shop" he is tasked with creating intricate masks to hide the mutilated faces of his fellow soldiers from the Front. While he tries to come to terms with the death of his best friend and the promise he failed to keep, Sam and the disfigured soldiers struggle to return to their former lives and their loved ones.

A stirring and emotional tale based on the real-life story of the Tin Nose Shop.

"Will both break your heart and give it wings as it explores the healing powers of friendship, love, hope and purpose" —Robin Wells, author, She Gets That From Me

"One of the best historical novels I have read in a long time... I have never read anything quite like it" —Mark Sullivan, author, Beneath a Scarlet Sky

In the ruins of Nineveh, that ancient city of Mesopotamia, there lies hidden in the sand fragments of a long-forgotten poem, the Epic of Gilgamesh.

In Victorian London, an extraordinary child is born at the edge of the dirt-black Thames. When his brilliant memory earns him a spot as an apprentice at a printing press, the world opens up far beyond the slums and across the seas.

In 2014 Turkey, Narin, a Yazidi girl living by the River Tigris, waits to be baptised. The ceremony is cruelly interrupted, and soon she and her grandmother must journey across war-torn lands in the hope of reaching the sacred valley of their people.

In 2018 London, broken-hearted Zaleekhah, a hydrologist, moves to a houseboat on the Thames to escape the wreckage of her marriage – until an unexpected connection to her homeland changes everything.

She won't let anything stand in her way...

After Pearl's home is destroyed in the Exeter Blitz, so too are her dreams of performing onstage. Finding work as a bus conductress instead, a chance encounter revives her hopes once more, and soon she is singing for the troops alongside new friend Ivy.

When agent Gordon Gold approaches them, Ivy jumps to sign with him and sets off for the bright lights of London. But Pearl is wary of the charming man and decides to stay, watching her friend go with a heavy heart.

A year later, while Pearl is struck mute by an illness, Ivy returns - and is quick to seize the chance to fill Pearl's place, singing with the band. Once more, Pearl's dreams are threatened. Will she ever become a star?

An emotional Second World War saga about family, friendship and following your heart. Perfect for fans of Betty Walker, Fenella J. Miller and Katie Flynn.

It’s the day before her daughter’s wedding and things are not going well for Gail Baines. First thing, she loses her job – or quits, depending who you ask. Then her ex-husband Max turns up at her door expecting to stay for the festivities. He doesn’t even have a suit. Instead, he’s brought memories, a shared sense of humour – and a cat looking for a new home.

Just as Gail is wondering what’s next, their daughter Debbie discovers her groom has been keeping a secret…

As the big day dawns, the exes just can’t agree on what’s best for Debbie. Gail is seriously worried, while Max seems more concerned with whether to opt for the salmon or prime rib at the reception, if they make it that far.

The day after the wedding, Gail and Max prepare to go their separate ways again. But all the questions about the future of the happy couple have stirred up the past for Gail. Because ‘happy’ takes many forms, and sometimes the younger generation has much to teach the older about secrets, acceptance and taking the rough with the smooth.

'A touching celebration of the beauty and endurance of female friendship. There is nothing mightier. Fact.' DAWN FRENCH

The new novel from Ruth Jones, co-creator of Gavin & Stacey and author of the smash-hit, number one bestselling debut, Never Greener.

Friends forever is a difficult promise to keep...

Meet Lana, Judith and Catrin. Best friends since primary school when they swore an oath on a Curly Wurly wrapper that they would always be there for each other, come what may.

From the international Number One bestselling author of "Someone Else's Shoes" - thirty years after Lila's father ran away to Hollywood, he's back to wreck - or save - her life . . . Lila Kennedy has a lot on her plate. A recently broken marriage, two wayward daughters, a house that is falling apart, and an elderly stepfather who seems to have quietly moved in.

'One of the most profound and skilled writers working on the contemporary world stage' Deborah Levy

Beginning one morning in December, WE DO NOT PART traces the path of a young woman, Kyungha, as she travels from the city of Seoul into the forests of Jeju Island, to the home of her old friend Inseon. Hospitalised following an accident, Inseon has begged Kyungha to hasten there to feed her beloved pet bird, who will otherwise die.

Kyungha takes the first plane to Jeju, but a snowstorm hits the island the moment she arrives, plunging her into a world of white. Beset by icy wind and snow squalls, she wonders if she will arrive in time to save the bird - or even survive the terrible cold which envelops her with every step. As night falls, she struggles her way to Inseon's house, unaware as yet of the descent into darkness which awaits her.

There, the long-buried story of Inseon's family surges into light, in dreams and memories passed from mother to daughter, and in a painstakingly assembled archive documenting a terrible massacre on the island seventy years before.

We Do Not Part is a hymn to friendship, a eulogy to the imagination and above all an indictment against forgetting.

So asks Tokyo’s most enigmatic librarian, Sayuri Komachi.

But she is no ordinary librarian.

Sensing exactly what someone is searching for in life, she provides just the book recommendation to help them find it.

We meet five visitors to the library, each at a different crossroads:

• The restless retail assistant eager to pick up new skills
• The mother faced with a demotion at work after maternity leave
• The conscientious accountant who yearns to open an antique store
• The gifted young manga artist in search of motivation
• The recently retired salaryman on a quest for newfound purpose

Can she help them find what they are looking for?

Which book will you recommend?

Sis Cotter has lived her whole life in a small house by her beloved beach. Here, she grew up, reared her family, and buried her husband. Now her children are far away and, in three days, her house will be taken from her.

Next door, Lydia has withdrawn from her husband, her friends, her life. She watches the sea as her own private penance for a wrong she can never put right.

Peter’s best friend is dying, and his long-time foster mother is slowly forgetting who he is. Adrift without his two anchors, and struggling with the ethics of displacing people for a living, he looks for something to remind him of who he is and who he wants to be.

Winter People is a story of forgiveness, resilience, and the power of the sea to unlock what we are most afraid to say.

On the hottest day of the summer of 1934, thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis sees her sister Cecilia strip off her clothes and plunge into the fountain in the garden of their country house. Watching her is Robbie Turner, her childhood friend who, like Cecilia, has recently come down from Cambridge. By the end of that day, the lives of all three will have been changed for ever. Robbie and Cecilia will have crossed a boundary they had not even imagined at its start, and will have become victims of the younger girl's imagination. Briony will have witnessed mysteries, and committed a crime for which she will spend the rest of her life trying to atone.

"From this new and intimate perspective, she learned a simple, obvious thing she had always known, and everyone knew; that a person is, among all else, a material thing, easily torn, not easily mended.”