FICTION

The entrancing and heart-breaking story of a lost boy, a tragic love affair and a seafaring community's buried secrets finally coming to light. <p>The sea stole him from her. Could it bring him back? Winter, 1900. A little boy washes up on the beach of a small fishing village in Scotland, barely alive. He bears an uncanny resemblance to teacher Dorothy's son, lost to the sea many years before. When the village is snowed in, Dorothy agrees to look after the child until he can be returned home. But, as the past rises to meet the present, long-buried secrets in this tight-knit community start to come to light. And Dorothy finds herself thrown together again with the reclusive fisherman Joseph, after years of keeping their distance. Bursting with tension and tenderness, this is an exquisite love story that delves into the precious moments that can lie behind village gossip. 'A beautiful story of grief, hope and love; of dark snowy nights, the mysteries of the sea and, above all, redemption' Lucy Diamond, Sunday Times bestselling author of Something to Tell You 'Spectacular... a gift to readers everywhere...a treasure' Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Left Undone 'Rich in atmosphere and brimming with mystery... a poignant, spellbinding tale of loss and resilience.' Christina Baker Kline, New York Times No. 1 bestselling author 'Stunning... Gorgeously multi-layered... evocative and heartbreaking, weaving melodic prose with a compelling story... I loved every word.' Fiza Saeed McLynn, author of The Midnight Carousel </p>

From Booker-shortlisted author David Szalay, comes a propulsive, hypnotic novel about a man who is unravelled by a series of events beyond his grasp 'Brilliance on every page' Samantha Harvey, author of Orbital 'Flesh is a wonderful novel - so brilliant and wise on chance, love, sex, money' David Nicholls, author of One Day A propulsive, hypnotic novel about a man who is unravelled by a series of events beyond his grasp. Fifteen-year-old Istvan lives with his mother in a quiet apartment complex in Hungary. New to the town and shy, he is unfamiliar with the social rituals at school and soon becomes isolated, with his neighbour - a married woman close to his mother's age - as his only companion. These encounters shift into a clandestine relationship that Istvan himself can barely understand, and his life soon spirals out of control. As the years pass, he is carried gradually upwards on the currents of the twenty-first century's tides of money and power, moving from the army to the company of London's super-rich, with his own competing impulses for love, intimacy, status and wealth winning him unimaginable riches, until they threaten to undo him completely. Spare and penetrating, Flesh is the finest novel yet by a master of realism, asking profound questions about what drives a life- what makes it worth living, and what breaks it. Chosen as a 'Best Book of 2025' by the Guardian, Observer, Financial Times, Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail 'It's been a long time since I've been swallowed whole by a novel the way I was by this one ... So much searing insight into the way we live now' Observer 'Compelling and elegant, merciless and poignant. David Szalay is an extraordinary writer' Tessa Hadley

New to our Vintage Classics Murakami Collector's Library - a newly translated, unabridged edition of Murakami's most mind-bendingly brilliant novel.  A special hardback edition of Murakami's surreal, mind-bending masterpiece, in a new, unabridged translation from Jay Rubin. A narrative particle accelerator that zooms between Wild Turkey Whiskey and Bob Dylan, unicorn skulls and voracious librarians, John Coltrane and Lord Jim. Science fiction, detective story and post-modern manifesto all rolled into one rip-roaring novel, End of the World and Hard-boiled Wonderland is the tour de force that expanded Haruki Murakami's international following. Tracking one man's descent into the Kafkaesque underworld of contemporary Tokyo, Murakami unites East and West, tragedy and farce, compassion and detachment, slang and philosophy. This edition is a newly unabridged translation from long-time Murakami collaborator, Jay Rubin. 'A remarkable writer...he captures the common ache of contemporary heart and head' Jay McInerney

From the New York Times bestselling author of Migrations and Once There Were Wolves, a novel about a family living alone on a remote island, when a mysterious woman washes up on shore.  'At once a gripping mystery, an exquisitely written ode to the natural world, and a taut, psychological thriller, Wild Dark Shore is a triumph. Charlotte McConaghy is masterful in her ability to show the intricate connections between place and the human heart, and Wild Dark Shore shows her at the height of her powers. Breathtaking.' HANNAH KENT Dominic Salt and his three children are caretakers of Shearwater, a tiny island not far from Antarctica. Home to the world's largest seed bank, Shearwater was once full of researchers. But with sea levels rising, the Salts are now its final inhabitants, packing up the seeds before they are transported to safer ground. Despite the wild beauty of life here, isolation has taken its toll on the Salts. Raff, 18 and suffering his first heartbreak, can only find relief at his punching bag; Fen, 17, has started spending her nights on the beach among the seals; 9-year-old Orly, obsessed with botany, fears the loss of his beloved natural world; and Dominic can't stop turning back towards the past, and the loss that drove the family to Shearwater in the first place. Â Â Then, during the worst storm the island has ever seen, a woman washes up on shore. As the Salts nurse the woman, Rowan, back to life, their suspicion gives way to affection, and they finally begin to feel like a family again. Rowan, long accustomed to protecting her heart, begins to fall for the Salts, too. But Rowan isn't telling the whole truth about why she set out for Shearwater. And when she discovers the sabotaged radios and a freshly dug grave, she realises Dominic is keeping his own dark secrets. As the storms on Shearwater gather force, the characters must decide if they can trust each other enough to protect the precious seeds in their care before it's too late-and if they can finally put the tragedies of the past behind them to create something new, together. Â Â A novel of heartstopping twists, dizzying beauty and ferocious love, Wild Dark Shore is a story about the impossible choices we make to protect the people we love, even as the world around us is ending.

 The highly anticipated new novel by the bestselling Australian author of The Secrets of the Huon Wren Broome 2023- when Saskia's free-spirited mother leaves her a caravan in her will, it doesn't make sense. Saskia is a schoolteacher, tied to plans and schedules, even if they are beginning to feel restrictive. Then she finds clues in the van about her mother's mysterious past, setting her on a journey to Tasmania with her young daughter Anouk, who shares her late grandmother's fascination with birds. In 1968, teenager Greta De Winter seeks solace in the Stanley wetlands, a swamp that attracts all manner of wildlife. Her father is the local councillor and her mother a taxidermist, working to create bird dioramas for the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. But while the De Winter household seems harmless from the outside, a dark secret hides within. When Saskia and Anouk arrive in Stanley, they search for the missing pieces to the puzzle of Greta's tragic childhood. In the process of uncovering her family history, Saskia realises that her mother's final act might also enable her to rediscover who she really is, and what she is truly capable of.  Set in the breathtaking landscape of Tasmania's majestic north-west, this is a moving and highly evocative novel of family bonds and betrayals, by the bestselling author of The Secrets of the Huon Wren.   'A beautiful story of heartbreak, hope and the long flight home - I loved every moment.' - Anthea Hodgson 'I warmed to not only the characters but alsoto the beautifully written Tasmanian landscape.Claire Van Ryn's book is a great ambassador forTasmania and its wildlife and made me want tovisit and explore the beautiful land.' - Good Reading

Once they were just them. Now they're forty-something and there's kids. Whose time is this? Phil is trying to feel closer to his recently passed mother by spending time alone at his parent's house on the coast. But he is lonely, and stupidly he's invited a bunch of old friends to visit. It's bound to be a mistake. All those children! But it's too late now, and tomorrow Bella and Tim will arrive with their two kids, one on the brink of puberty, and the next day Jo and Lucas will come too, with their little one. Then there's Annie, who will be by herself. The story of a beach holiday told by four different people, Time Together is a novel about different kinds of love, different kinds of loneliness, and the way spending time together can bring out the best and worst in each other.   'Time Together is a slow burn of a novel. Beautifully written and impossible to put down. I loved it.'-Sophie Cunningham, author of This Devastating Fever 'An artful, deliciously acerbic portrait of family, friendship, and the indignities of middle age. Horton is a master of domestic unease.'-Laura Elizabeth Woollett  Praise for The Fogging-'Claustrophobic and vertiginous ... an unshrinking and skilfully drawn portrait of a decaying relationship. In restrained prose, Horton illuminates the darker edges of masculinity. His is a frequency finely tuned to silences, gaps of language and meaning, things left unsaid - and their cumulative weight. Like a brewing storm on an oppressive summer day, The Fogging is quiet but assured, building towards the thunderclap of its final pages.'-Jennifer Down, author of Our Magic Hour

One ordinary extraordinary woman living through a century of massive change, from the bestselling author of The Family Doctor.

From the deserts of Egypt to the rolling hills of South Australia, The Limestone Road is a captivating novel about one soldier's courageous journey 'home'. In the summer of 1944 returning soldiers Canning Christie and his father Michael arrive in South Australia from the desert sands of North Africa.  Canning carries the trauma of war and a fractured memory of a terrible event, while charismatic Michael resumes his womanising ways, intent on concealing his own secret wound.  Inexplicably drawn to a vineyard on their land, Canning dreams of producing his own wine. And a chance meeting with Grace Huntley, daughter of the local landowner, offers him hope for that future.  But dormant memories keep rising up- his childhood with his mother, the years traversing the interior with his father and his time at the front. Soon, viniculture becomes an obsession - one he suspects lies in a hazy recollection of a night in battle. To move forward Canning must reconcile the past, even if that means working with Italian POWs and accepting help from an immigrant German . . . . . . And ultimately taking a stand against his own father, whose increasingly reckless behaviour is threatening to destroy their new life.  'Bears all the hallmarks of a modern Australian classic.' Christine Wells, author of Sisters of the Resistance 'Stirring and authentic. Heartbreaking and uplifting.' Tania Blanchard, author of An Undeniable Voice 'Nicole Alexander's exquisite prose made this book a joy to read.' Lauren Chater, author of The Beauties

Whether it's escaping boarding school, or buying hormones from the local speed dealer, Geraldine is open to all the world has to offer - even if the world doesn't quite know what to make of her. This is the story of a woman who changes the world that wants to change her. Geraldine is born with an adventurer's heart. Whether it's escaping from boarding school in Rhodesia, or buying hormones from the local speed dealer in Weston-super-Mare, Geraldine is open to all the world has to offer - even if the world doesn't quite know what to make of her. Arriving in Australia as an adolescent, Geraldine finds solace and self-discovery through music. As she grows into a woman, she not only inspires others but also learns to be accepted for who she truly is.

In this darkly ironic novel, a dead man walks back through four generations of family estrangements to recover his lost identity. The journey will be long and difficult, one thousand miles. Try not to be too obvious. Stick to the backroads. You'll know you've arrived when you get there. Stephen Bolin leaves a bizarre note by his deathbed, asking his sisters to take his body back to his birthplace in Far North Queensland. When they ignore his request, Stephen's corpse makes the nocturnal pilgrimage alone. But what is compelling him and what will he find there? His journey, as a kind of jiangshi, takes him back through his turbulent family history- from his Chinese great-grandfather's life on the goldfields in 1860s Queensland, to his Scottish grandparents' migration to Australia as ten-pound Poms, and to his own coming of age and coming out in Brisbane and London. Original and satirical, First Name Second Name follows four generations of one family through a reckoning with racial, familial and sexual identity.

A woman's midlife reinvention and a beach village of eccentric Aussies collide with stupendous results in this witty, razor-sharp and immensely enjoyable debut from author Catherine Greer.

Can she forgive when she can’t forget?<p>After the death of her best and childhood friend, Millie is in pieces. Then she receives a 'grateful jar' in the post - from Fliss - filled with messages and happy memories. With each memory, there is an instruction to go to the named place and ‘be grateful’ for the good times they shared.</p><p>The jar is a beautiful distraction and takes her mind off her grief and the other grim things in her life, such as her stale job, her toxic relationship and her on-off arguments with Jay – a man she used to love, but who Fliss loved too.</p><p>As the memories dwindle, and Millie bumps into Jay at more and more locations, they begin to patch up the scars of their past. But some wounds are too deep to heal - and Fliss was hiding secrets as well as happy memories. Will Millie have the strength to forgive when all is revealed?</p><p>A spellbinding and emotional novel of friendship, second chances and secrets, for fans of PS I Love You, The Memory of Us and The Last Letter from Your Lover.</p>