New Titles
The Long Song by Andrea Levy
The Long Song, by Orange Prize winner Andrea Levy, is set in Jamaica in the early 19th century. It spans the last turbulent years of slavery and the early years of freedom following abolition. Written in the form of a memoir, the novel recounts the life of July who was born into slavery on the Amity sugar-cane plantation.
Desert by J.M.G. Le Clezio
Desert, by Nobel Prize-winning novelist J.M.G. Le Clezio, is an epic novel which spans the 20th century and ranges across two continents, from the North African desert to the streets of Marseilles. Nour and his tribe, the Blue Men, are forced to leave their lands in 1909 by French Colonial invaders. Guided by a holy man, they travel northwards in search of a new land in which they can again be free. Decades later Lalla, an orphaned descendant of the Blue Men, flees her shanty town on the coast of Morocco in a bid to escape a forced marriage to an older wealthy man. She travels to Marseilles where she experiences both the hardships of immigrant life as a hotel maid and material prosperity when she becomes a successful model.
Love in the Making by Roisin Meaney
Hannah Robinson is about to open her new shop Cupcakes on the Corner when her boyfriend Patrick announces that he is leaving her for another woman. Her best friend Adam sets her a seven-month deadline to make her shop a success. Soon, Hannah is much too busy to think about Patrick or to notice an increasingly regular customer how has recently developed a sweet tooth for all things cupcake. Meanwhile, her friend Alice's marriage to Tom is falling apart. As the seven-month milestone approaches, Hannah must decide her future. While she is figuring out what's really important, it becoomes clear that happiness in life, and in love, is all in the making.
Maya by Alastair Campbell
Maya Lowe and Steve Watkins have been friends since they were teenagers. Maya is now a famous movie star and Steve works for a logistics company in Heathrow. Both swear their relationship hasn't changed, but can their friendship really survive fame as great as Maya's? Set in modern-day Britain, America and France, Alastair Campbell's second novel is part psychological thriller, part exploration of the psychology of fame.
Blood Brothers by Josephine Cox
When she meets the Arnolds, Alice Jacob thinks she has finally found the family she always wanted. The Arnold brothers are very different characters. Frank, devious and brutal, sees Alice as the key to his fortune and is determined to have her for himself. However, his younger borther Joe has fallen in love with Alice. He leaves when Alice and Frank become engaged but is persuaded to return when Frank asks him to be best man. Despite feeling attracted to Joe, Alice goes ahead with the marriage to Frank. His true nature is revealed on their wedding night when he forces Alice to reveal a devastating secret. Consumed by hatred, Frank plans to exact retribution on those who have crossed him.
Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith
This is the tenth book in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. Mma Ramotswe and her assistant Mma Makutsi agree that there are some things that ladies know and men don't, and vice versa. The Agency's newest client is the big-shot owner of the ailing Kalahari Swoopers football team but, unfortunately Mma Ramotswe knows very little about football. When the glamorous Violet Sephotho sets her sights on Mma Makutsi's unsuspecting fiance, it becomes very clear that some men don't know how to recognise a scheming Jezebel. In her attempt to foster understanding between the sexes and find the traitor on Mr Football's team, Mma Ramotswe ventures into new territory, drinks tea in unfamiliar kitchens and learns to trust in the observations of small boys.
Even the Dogs by Jon McGregor
On a still frozen day between Christmas and New Year, a man's body is found lying in his ruined flat. As the state begins its inquest, the man embarks on his last journey through a world he has not ventured into, alive, for years. In his wake, a series of fractured narratives emerge from squats and alleyways across the city. The short and stark story of the man, and of his friends, unfolds. Even the Dogs is an intimate exploration of life at the edge of society, litered with love, loss, despair and a glimpse of redemption.
The Monday Night Cooking School by Erica Bauermeister
On Monday nights eight people gather in Lillian's restaurant for a cooking class. There's Claire, who can barely remember the last time she went out without her two kids; bachelor Ian, who exists on Chinese takeaways; Chloe, the distracted waitress who is forever dropping things; Carl and Helen, getting past a betrayal in their marriage; and Tom, mourning the tragic loss of his wife. Plus Lillian, who taught herself to cook to reach out to her unhappy mother.
The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho
The story is set during the Cannes International Film Festival and the entire action plays out over twenty-four hours. Igor is a wealthy Russian businessman who has never come to terms with the break-up of his marriage to Ewa, who is now remarried to a famous fashion designer. Insanely jealous, Igor follows Ewa and her new husband to Cannes. He embarks on a ruthless killing spree in the demented hope of winning Ewa back. The Winner Stands Alone is a gripping, fast-paced thriller interwoven with elements of social satire