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The Last Days of the Lacuna Cabal
The Last Days of the Lacuna Cabal
Sean Dixon
¥72.99
An original, mischievous rites of passage novel which will delight fans of offbeat fiction such as ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’ and ‘A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian’. The Lacuna Cabal Montreal Young Women's Book Club is THE foremost book club in Canada, no, in the world. Priding themselves on their good taste, intelligent discussions and impeccable opinions, they are a group of misfits and oddballs, living on the edge of normality. There are only two rules: what Missy says goes (ok, there is a nod to democracy but let's be honest here) and NO BOYS. EVER. Of course, the premier book club in the world must read the first book ever written: 'The Epic of Gilgamesh'. But this monumental book leads them to break all their rules, shed members who end up missing out on EVERYTHING, and travel across the open seas to Bahrain in search of a wise man who'll hopefully have all the answers. Original, funny, quixotic and ultimately very moving,The Last Days of the Lacuna Cabal is set in a time of upheaval: the Iraq war is exploding and people across the world are marching in protest. It's the story of a group of friends who find a family of sorts within their book group, who learn to cope with love, and the lack of it, loss, and the lack of that, and with growing up in a world that is falling apart.
Death of a Dancer
Death of a Dancer
Caro Peacock
¥63.18
Duelling, derring-do, and dastardly deeds are all in a day’s work for Liberty Lane, a new heroine for fans of Georgette Heyer and Sarah Waters’s Victorian novels. The Augustus theatre likes to put on a good show. But when a public spat erupts between two dancers on the London stage, it comes to a dramatic conclusion that definitely wasn’t part of the *: one dead, the other arrested for murder. As far as the jury’s concerned, it’s an open-and-shut case, but Liberty Lane believes otherwise. Soon she’s leading her own investigation, in a desperate race against the hangman’s noose. And while the criminal underworld may be no place for a lady, there’s no place for a criminal to hide once Liberty’s on the case…
Blind Faith
Blind Faith
Sagarika Ghose
¥73.58
A stunning and sumptuous tale of the boundaries between love and hate, truth and deception, set against the anticipation for the Kumbh Mela: the biggest festival in India. When Mia, acutely depressed by the suicide of her artist father, meets Karna, a young and mesmeric guru who bears a startling resemblance to a figure in her father’s painting, she feels compelled to follow him all the way from London to India. And if marrying Vik, the suave businessman her mother so approves of, is the way to get there, so be it. Once in India, Mia learns about Vik’s mother, Indi. She is a figure of great power, inordinately beautiful and gifted, but blind. Her rage ensnares and yet rejects anyone who tries to come close. Mia must travel to the Kumbh Mela, the festival on the banks of the Ganges, to make sense of everything: her own confused love for two men, Indi’s anguish, her own family’s history. And yet when she arrives, nothing is as she thought it would be; through a change in perspective, she comes to realise the limitations of vision… This is a remarkable tale of hope, destruction and ultimately of rebirth, as one young woman explores the shifting sands of illusion and truth.
Across the Mersey
Across the Mersey
Annie Groves
¥56.11
From the author of The Grafton Girls comes the story of one Liverpool family preparing for the onslaught of World War Two, but feuding amongst themselves… Jean and Vi are twins but couldn’t be more different. Jean’s proud of her honest, hardworking husband and their children, but there’s never a penny to spare. Vi’s equally proud of her husband’s new role as a local councillor and their elegant new house, and has raised her children to expect the best. As war breaks out, agonising decisions must be faced. Should the oldest children enlist? Should the youngest be evacuated? All the traditional certainties are overturned. Then the twins’ own younger sister, singer Francine, returns home unexpectedly and stirs up the past, even in the midst of present danger. This is a tremendous saga of fighting spirit and family closeness, and the belief that even though today is full of destruction and pain, there is hope for a better tomorrow.
Under Heaven
Under Heaven
Guy Gavriel Kay
¥71.22
An epic historical adventure set in an alternate 8th century China, from the author of the 2008 World Fantasy winner, Ysabel. Under Heaven is a novel of heroes, assassins, concubines and emperors set against a majestic and unforgiving landscape. Honour is beyond measure But its price may be an empire… For two years Shen Tai has mourned his celebrated father and lived like a hermit beyond the borders of the Kitan Empire. There, by a mountain lake, the bones of the soldiers killed in great battles between the Kitai and the Tagurans lie unburied and their wailing ghosts strike terror into the living. Tai has laboured alone, laying to rest the mingled dead of both empires, until a letter arrives. It contains the promise of a poisoned chalice: Tai will be given two hundred and fifty Sardian horses by the Tagurans, legendary steeds from the far west, as a reward for his courage and piety. Now, Tai must try to return alive from solitude to a glittering, dangerous court. For to give a man even one of the famed Sardians is to honour him greatly; to give him so many is a reward which would overwhelm an emperor, and could be Tai's death warrant.
Oscar Wilde’s Stories for All Ages
Oscar Wilde’s Stories for All Ages
Oscar Wilde,Stephen Fry
¥95.75
One of the world’s best loved presenters meets one of the world’s greatest authors in this beautiful selection of timeless, haunting stories. Vividly brought to life through abundant illustrations and Stephen’s masterly introductions, Oscar Wilde’s short stories are here made accessible to an entirely new generation. Whether you know it or not, the stories in this book are familiar. Like old friends whose charm and warmth never fade, Oscar Wilde's short stories have enchanted generations of readers, and this beautiful book makes them accessible to an entirely new readership. Selected and presented by one of Wilde's biggest fans, the book includes a foreword from Stephen Fry, who will also supply short introductions to the stories themselves, explaining why they mean so much to him and why they should mean a lot to you too. Meet the selfish giant, whose garden was cloaked in perpetual winter until he allowed the children to enter and play, the happy prince whose statue stood overlooking his city, who gave the rubies and sapphires embedded in his eyes and clothing to feed the poor, and the tiny swallow who helped him. And let's not forget the remarkable rocket who was so convinced that he would be the brightest, most remarkable rocket of all, yet who ended up in a ditch. There's also the Canterville ghost, so inept at being scary that every attempt to spook his American visitors results in failure. Stephen Fry has always been passionate about Oscar Wilde's writing but he has a particular fondness for his short stories. In this beautifully illustrated book he shares with us what each story means to him and what he feels the reader can take away with them, whether they're five or fifty years old. As well as a general introduction, Stephen offers introductions to the stories themselves, taking the reader through his selection. Illustrated by Nicole Stewart, stunning artwork accompanies each story to give shape to the reader's imagination. Whether you are buying this for yourself, for your wife, your son or daughter, for your nephew, your niece, your mother, your brother or your sister, the book will be a gift that you or they will cherish forever and return to time and time again. These are stories for adults and children of all ages, for all time.
The Ipcress File
The Ipcress File
Len Deighton
¥32.08
Len Deighton’s classic first novel, whose protagonist is a nameless spy – later christened Harry Palmer and made famous worldwide in the iconic 1960s film starring Michael Caine. The Ipcress File was not only Len Deighton’s first novel, it was his first bestseller and the book that broke the mould of thriller writing. For the working class narrator, an apparently straightforward mission to find a missing biochemist becomes a journey to the heart of a dark and deadly conspiracy. The film of The Ipcress File gave Michael Caine one of his first and still most celebrated starring roles, while the novel itself has become a classic.
Daughter of Mine
Daughter of Mine
Anne Bennett
¥68.67
A heartrending and heartwarming saga of the Birmingham blitz, from the author of DANNY BOY. Lizzie is finding that life in the Birmingham blitz is hard. Her husband is away fighting in the Second World War and she has regretfully sent her two young children away to her parents in Galway, knowing that they will be safe there. She's grateful for her job in munitions but not so happy when that means getting home in the blackout, dodging the bomb damage. Then Lizzie is attacked on one such journey. She comes around battered and bruised, unable to remember the full extent of the attack – but she fears the worst, and is right to. Turning to her family in desperation, she is told she has brought them nothing but disgrace. Yet help is at hand, from the most unlikely place…
Jimmy Coates: Sabotage
Jimmy Coates: Sabotage
Joe Craig
¥51.50
Jimmy Coates embarks on his fourth adventure in his ongoing mission to out-think / out-manouevre and outwit NJ7. If you think it’s over, think again… “Jimmy closed his eyes, searching for that power inside him. He had to forget that he was terrified – that was only the human part of him, the 38 per cent that was a normal, frightened boy. He willed the assassin to take him over. He knew that somewhere within him was enough strength, resilience and expert knowledge to survive this crisis.” The cold and calculating Miss Bennett has had enough of Jimmy Coates. NJ7’s greatest invention has turned into it’s greatest enemy, and it’s time someone put an end to him. But Jimmy’s next mission is to foil a secret plan – and who could be better at this than someone who officially doesn’t exist!
The Watcher
The Watcher
Grace Monroe
¥54.25
When you see him, it's already too late… Four days before Christmas, a young woman's body is found in a ditch in the grounds of Edinburgh Castle, the discovery rendered even more terrifying by the message 'More Will Die' written on her body in blood. Soon, the prophecy is fulfilled, more young women disappear - all redheads - their bodies later found bludgeoned to death, their feet severed. Quickly dubbed 'The Edinburgh Ripper', the murders bring the city to its knees. It might be the season of goodwill but its citizens live in fear of becoming the latest victim. Headstrong young lawyer Brodie McLennan teams up with DI Duncan Bancho in an effort to discover the identity of this warped killer. Soon, their investigations uncover a ring of human traffickers, selling Eastern European women as sex slaves, a depraved group called the ‘Hobbyists’ and a clandestine internet chat room. Unbeknownst to Brodie, the killer's web is spinning ever closer to her and her teenaged half sister Connie, recently back in her life. When Connie is reported missing, Brodie must quickly uncover the Ripper's identity - before her own flesh and blood becomes the latest victim.
No One Listened
No One Listened
Isobel Kerr,Alex Kerr
¥53.76
When Isobel and Alex came home from school to find their abusive father had brutally murdered their mother, their world was thrown into chaos. Plunged into a care system that neglected them, Isobel and Alex were expected to come to nothing, and had only each other to rely on. Isobel and Alex’s mother used to do everything with them. A full-time teacher, she dedicated herself to her children, partly in order to give them every possible opportunity in life, and partly to keep them out of the way of their increasingly eccentric, erratic and unpleasant father. Their father, a violent and frightening man, spent most of his time locked in his bedroom, a room the rest of the family never ventured into. He became increasingly bitter and angry at the outside world in general, and at his wife and children in particular. The local community feared his outbursts as much as Isobel and Alex did, but the neighbours saw far less of him as he became increasingly housebound. No one came to the Kerr’s house to visit. When Isobel was 15 and Alex 13, they came home from school to find police everywhere. Their father had stabbed their mother between fifty and sixty times with a sharpened chisel. As far as anyone could tell the attack was unprovoked and of incredible savagery, but the children were given the minimum amount of information. No one wanted to upset them unnecessarily. Their mother had been an only child and they had never been in contact with their father's family. There was no one else for them to turn to - except each other. This is an inspiring story of a brother and sister who only had each other, and a powerful testament to what can be achieved through courage and love.
The Exodus Quest
The Exodus Quest
Will Adams
¥59.15
Fact collides with fiction in Will Adams second pulse-pounding adventure featuring the enigmatic Daniel Knox – hero of The Alexander Cipher Fact collides with fiction in Will Adams second pulse-pounding adventure featuring the enigmatic Daniel Knox. On the trail of a Dead Sea Scroll, Knox stumbles across an ancient temple being surreptitiously excavated by evangelical Christians outside Alexandria. A chase ends in tragedy with the death of Alexandria's senior archaeologist, and Knox the chief suspect. Meanwhile, Knox's partner Gaille Bonnard is baby-sitting a television crew around the ancient city of Amarna, home of the multiple mysteries of Pharaoh Akhenaten. Kidnapped by rogue soldiers, her time fast running out, she sends Knox a message hidden in a hostage video, pleading with him to come to her rescue. But Knox has problems of his own, under arrest on suspicion of murder, locked in a police cell half a country away. And the only way for him to find and save her is to crack one of the great unsolved mysteries of the ancient world.
The Gift
The Gift
Cecelia Ahern
¥58.47
Step into the magical world of Cecelia Ahern in this heartwarming bestseller. If you could wish for one gift this Christmas, what would it be? Lou Suffern wishes he could be in two places at once. His constant battle with the clock is a sensitive issue with his wife and family. Gabe wishes he was somewhere warm. When Lou invites Gabe, a homeless man who sits outside his office, into the building and into his life, Lou’s world is changed beyond all measure… An enchanting and thoughtful Christmas story that speaks to all of us abut the value of time and what is truly important in life.
Beautiful Losers
Beautiful Losers
Leonard Cohen
¥73.58
One of the best-known experimental novels of the 1960s, this uninhibited tale centres on the hapless members of a love triangle, and their sexual obsession and shared fascination with a mythic saint. Revolving around four central – and intrinsically flawed – characters, ‘Beautiful Losers’ is the frank and humorous story of a nameless narrator, his wife Edith, their domineering friend and mentor ‘F’ and Catherine Tekakwitha, a mythic 17th-century Mohawk virgin saint. The complexities of this three-way love, pain and lust are sent spiralling by the death of Edith and ‘F’ at the novel’s start, leading the damaged narrator to question the nature of love, sexuality and spirituality in a series of explicit flashbacks. The extraordinary and inimitable singer-songwriter’s classic novel, this is Leonard Cohen’s most critically acclaimed literary work, echoing the dark poetry and wry humour of his timeless songs of loss, love, sex and religion. Not just an extremely funny novel, but an incredibly original and explicit examination of friendship, sex and spirituality.
Horse Under Water
Horse Under Water
Len Deighton
¥63.18
The dead hand of a long-defeated Nazi Third Reich reaches out to Portugal, London and Marrakech in Deighton’s second novel, featuring the same anonymous narrator and milieu of The IPCRESS File, but finds Dawlish now head of the secret British Intelligence unit, WOOC(P). The Ipcress File was a debut sensation. Here in the second Secret File, Horse under Water, skin-diving, drug trafficking and blackmail all feature in a curious story in which the dead hand of a long-defeated Hitler-Germany reaches out to Portugal, London and Marrakech, and to all the neo-Nazis of today's Europe. The detail is frightening but unfaultable; the story as up to date as ever it was. The un-named hero of The Ipcress File the same: insolent, fallible, capricious - in other words, human. But he must draw on all his abilities, good and bad, when plunged into a story of murder, betrayal and greed every bit as murky as the waters off the coast of Portugal, where the answers lie buried.
Girl on the Platform
Girl on the Platform
Josephine Cox
¥9.71
A quick read from the bestselling storyteller, Josephine Cox. Love at first sight and a mysterious disappearance. Best friends Mark and Pete board a train to London for a night out. As Pete finds a seat he notices a girl sitting on a bench. She looks sad and lonely. When the train leaves, he can't get her out of his mind because in her he has seen a glimpse of himself. Over the coming months Pete sees the girl often, but when tempted to speak to her, his courage fails. Then one day she simply disappears. Hopelessly besotted by this girl he believes to be his kindred spirit, Pete will not rest until he finds her…
Caught in the Act
Caught in the Act
Gemma Fox
¥54.25
A warm and sexy read about the fun and danger of meeting your first love, second time around – for all fans of Carole Matthews and Jill Mansell. Who could resist the chance to go to their old school reunion? To find out who got on? Who got fat? Who got famous and who got off with who? Carol French is lured by the promise of a get-together through oldschooltie.com, and it’s better than just old school friends – it’s the old sixth-form drama group that twenty years ago took ‘Macbeth’ on tour. A tour that was dramatic in more ways than one, and Carol has carried a torch for the leading actor ever since. Not that it has stopped her marrying, having kids, divorcing – but that memory just won’t go away. Now she is about to be brought face to face with the adolescent love god himself, except now he’s nearly forty… Old loves, lusts and rivalries are waiting in the wings in this marvellously warm tale from top talent Gemma Fox.
Azincourt
Azincourt
Bernard Cornwell
¥58.47
An extraordinary and dramatic depiction of the legendary battle of Agincourt from the number one historical novelist Azincourt, fought on October 25th 1415, St Crispin's Day, is one of England’s best-known battles, in part through the brilliant depiction of it in Shakespeare's Henry V, in part because it was a brilliant and unexpected English victory and in part because it was the first battle won by the use of the longbow - a weapon developed by the English which enabled them to dominate the European battlefields for the rest of the century. Bernard Cornwell’s Azincourt is a vivid, breathtaking and meticulously well-researched account of this momentous battle and its aftermath. From the varying viewpoints of nobles, peasants, archers, and horsemen, Azincourt skilfully brings to life the hours of relentless fighting, the desperation of an army crippled by disease and the exceptional bravery of the English soldiers.
The Dark Crusader
The Dark Crusader
Alistair MacLean
¥54.25
A classic tale of espionage, secret missions and exotic locations which out-Bonds Bond, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense. Eight job advertisements. Eight jobs. Eight specialists in modern technology required. Eight scientists to fill them. Applicants to be married, with no children, and prepared to travel. Highly persuasive salaries. One criminal mastermind. Eight positions filled. Eight scientists - and their wives - disappear. Completely. One secret agent to stop him. Advertisment no.9. Sydney, Australia. Fuel specialist required. Looks like a job for John Bentall…
Goodbye California
Goodbye California
Alistair MacLean
¥57.09
The classic tale of terrorism, where a criminal fanatic is hell-bent on blasting San Francisco into the ocean, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense. 'Earthquake country,' said the Professor. 'San Francisco is geologically and seismologically a city that waits to die. Los Angeles is ringed by earthquake centres - seven massive quakes so far. We have no idea where the next, the monster, will hit…' …until a criminal fanatic kidnaps a nuclear scientist and builds his own atomic bombs. If exploded on California's fault lines they could trigger off the mightiest earthquake of them all - killing half its population and dumping the entire city of San Francisco into the sea. Goodbye California…
You and No Other
You and No Other
Maxwell, Cathy
¥55.31
The constraints of quiet widowhood have become too much for Lady Caroline Pearson to bear especially now that her brother-in law has idiotically, and illegally, gambled away her house. Boldly, she confronts the new owner in person. But not only does the dashing rogue, James Ferrington, refuse to return Caroline's deed, he tries to take scandalous advantage of her as well. Sheepish and repentant, James arrives on Caroline's doorstep to make amends unaware that the young widow and her eccentric aunt are intent on retaliation. James merely meant to seduce a bewitching minx and have done with it and, suddenly, he's a kidnapped prisoner in Caroline's cellar. But most shocking of all, James realizes that he has no desire whatsoever to be free for the audacious Caroline has inflamed his senses, destroyed his reason . . . and completely captured his heart.