June 2020 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for June. The Sight of You, The Catch and The Phone Box at the Edge of the World are all published this month.

The Sight of You

Holly Miller asks the following question in The Sight of You: Would you choose love if you knew how it would end? We meet Joel, who is afraid of the future. Ever since he was a child he has had good and bad visions of people’s lives, and the only way to prevent those visions is to not let anyone close to him. Then he meets Callie, who can’t let go of the past. Together they start a love story and when their lives are about to change, Joel gets one of his visions.

Beth O’Leary, author of The Flatshare, said it’s “Exquisitely written, incredibly moving and impossible to put down”.

The Sight of You has sold worldwide and film rights have gone to a major Hollywood studio. Look out for its publication date on 11 June.

The Catch

The Catch is another unmissable thriller by T.M. Logan, author of Sunday Times bestseller, The Holiday. Logan was a national newspaper journalist before he started writing full-time. His debut, Lies, was on of Amazon’s biggest e-books in 2017.

The Catch features Ed, who meets his daughter Abbey’s fiancé for the first time. Her mother thinks Ryan is smart, successful and handsome and he seems to be the perfect son-in-law. But Ed has doubts about him. There is something dark in Ryan and Ed is the only one who sees it; Abbey and her mother are both charmed.

Ed tries to dig up Ryan’s past but, at the same time, he has to cover up his own. Can Ed convince his own family that Ryan is dangerous before it’s too late? The Catch is full of twists and turns, and it will keep the reader on edge until the end. Published by Zaffre Books on 11 June.

The Phone Box at the Edge of the World

The Phone Box at the Edge of the World is based on a true story, written by Laura Imai Messina.

After Yui looses her mother and daughter in the tsunami, life feels unbearable. But when she hears about a man who has an old phone box in his garden, she is intrigued: he uses it to speak to his late wife. When the news of the phone box spreads, people travel from far to call loved ones whom they have lost. Yui finally makes her way to the phone box, where she finds someone she did not expect to meet.

The Phone Box at the Edge of the World is tremendously gripping and perhaps a well needed read after this year’s tragic events. It’s published by Manilla Press, an imprint of Bonnier Books, on 25 June.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

 

May 2020 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for May. When the lights go out, Dear Child and The Lizard are all published this month.

When the Lights Go Out

Carys Bray had her breakthrough with A Song for Issy Bradley and now she is back with a novel called When the lights go out. Bray examines family life again but this time against the backdrop of Climate Change. Whilst the earth is getting warmer, the Abrams’ marriage is cooling, and Emma tries to engage in her husband’s new eco-system. Emma wants to release Chris from his worries but all he tries to do is drag her down with him. When the lights go out is a story about cultivating hope and weathering change.

Shelley Harris, author of Jubliee, reviewed it as “So timely, and so deeply human, a novel which takes us right into the heart of a marriage and at the same time grapples with the most crucial issue of our age. It’s bursting with compassion and wisdom.”

When the lights go out is published on 7 May by Hutchinson.

Dear Child

Dear Child is mentioned as a thriller between Room and Gone Girl. It’s written by debut author Romy Hausmann, one of Germany’s hottest new talents. It features Lena and her two children, who live in a windowless shack in the woods. Their daily life is controlled by the children’s father. He protects his family from danger and makes sure that the mother always looks after his children. One day Lena escapes but it only leads to more problems. Is she really “Lena”, the woman who disappeared 14 years ago? The police become involved and have to piece together a puzzle that doesn’t quite fit.

Peter James said: “Dear Child is an accomplished thriller, beautifully written, intriguing and very compelling.”

Dear Child is out on 14 May.

The Lizard

The Lizard is a debut thriller written by Dugald Bruce-Lockhart, an Anglo-Scottish stage and screen actor who also works as a director, and most recently played Michael Gove in The Last Temptation of Boris. We meet Alistair Haston in 1988 on his way to the Greek Islands, where his ex-girlfriend is on holiday. He is obsessed about getting her back but becomes swept away by parties, wild sex and drugs. Then a body is found and everything points to Alistair. Arrested, he quickly escapes, but when more bodies are found, all he can do is to run.

Charles Cumming reviewed it as “Full of intrigue, action and excitement… A terrific debut.”

The Lizard is published by Muswell Press on 1 May, published by Quercus Books.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

April 2020 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for April. The Glass Hotel, The Switch and Joy at Work: The Life Changing Magic of Organising Your Working Life are all out in April.

The Glass Hotel

Emily St John Mandel, the award-winning author of Station Eleven, has written a new book called The Glass Hotel. This time it’s not a dystopian or post-apocalyptic tale, instead it’s a story around a life-changing event; the collapse of a massive Ponzi scheme in New York in 2008.

A New York financier, Jonathan Alkaitis, meets Vincent, a beautiful bartender who works at the Hotel Caiette. It’s the beginning of their life together. On the same day, a mysterious figure leaves a written threat on one of the hotel windows. Thirteen years later, Vincent disappears from the deck of a ship.

The Glass Hotel braids together the stories of the ship, the skyscrapers of Manhattan and the wilderness of British Columbia together. Mandel welcomes the reader into a dream-like landscape of greed, guilt, fantasy and the horrors of our past.

The Glass Hotel is published by Picador on 30 April.

The Switch

The Switch is the follow-up to The Flatshare, Beth O’Leary’s bestselling, breakthrough debut novel. The Switch is a warm and funny story about a grand-daughter, Leena Cotton, and her grandmother, Eileen, who swap houses for two months.

Leena is an over-worked Londoner who is ordered to take a sabbatical. She escapes to her grandmother’s house in a small Yorkshire village for some much needed rest. Eileen is nearly eighty and single and she would like a last chance of love but the village doesn’t have much to offer. Leena comes up with the briliant idea of a life swap but it doesn’t quite turn out how they expected…

Gillian McAllister, bestselling author of The Evidence Against You, reviewed The Switch as “I am blown away. I didn’t think Beth could top The Flatshare but she has. It sparkles with wit, warmth and compassion. It deserves to be huge!”

The Switch is out on 30 March.

 

Joy at Work

Joy at Work is written by the international bestselling author Marie Kondo, who had her breakthrough with The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. This time she focusses on the process of tidying up your work life.

Joy at Work promotes the idea that if you simplify and organise your work life properly once, you will never have to do it again. Kondo teams up with organisational therapist Scott Sonenshein to help you focus on what’s important at work so that you can concentrate on building the career you want. What sparks joy in an open-plan office?

Joy at Work is published on 7 March.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

March 2020 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for March.

March is full of big publications by famous authors. Here are my three top picks for the month: Hamnet, The Mirror and the Light and Wayfinding: The Art and Science of How We find and Lose Our Way.

Hamnet

Maggie O’Farrell brings light to the little-known story behind Shakespeare’s most enigmatic play, Hamnet, which he wrote after his son’s death. Hamnet, Maggie O’Farrell’s first historical novel, is set in 1596. At the centre of the book is Hamnet, Shakespeare’s only son, his sisters Judith and Susanna and their mother, Agnes. Hamnet is a gripping portrait of the children and of Shakespeare’s marriage, but it also gives the reader an unforgettable vindication of Agnes, a woman who has been absent from history. The reviews have been magnificent and Sarah Moss said: “Grief and loss so finely written I could hardly bear to read it.” Hamnet is published by Tinder Press 31 March.

The Mirror and the Light

The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel is the final book in the trilogy that started with Wolf Hall and was followed by Bring Up the Bodies, which both won the Booker Prize. The Mirror and the Light brings the trilogy to its final conclusion and it starts where Bring Up the Bodies ended, with Anne Boleyn’s blood gushing out and Thomas Cromwell wanting his breakfast. Cromwell, the powerful minister in the court of King Henry VIII, finally has England under his sway but he lacks a great family to back him and his enemies are waiting for him in the shadows. How long can Cromwell stay at the height of his power? Hilary Mantel said: “This book has been the greatest challenge of my writing life, and the most rewarding; I hope and trust my readers will find it has been worth the wait.” The Mirror and the Light is strictly embargoed until 5 March, published by Fourth Estate.

Wayfinding: The Art and Science of How We Find and Lose Our Way

Wayfinding: The Art and Science of How We Find and Lose Our Way by Michael Bond explores how our brains make cognitive maps that keep us oriented, even in unfamiliar places. Very few of us today make use of the wayfaring skills that we inherited. Bond answers the question of why some of us are much better at finding our way than others. And he explains how our conception of physical spaces has been crucial to our evolution. Michael Bond won the British Psychology Society Prize in 2015 for The Power of Others. He is a freelance journalist and a former senior editor at New Scientist. Wayfinding is published by Picador on 5 March.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

February 2020 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for February.

Saving Missy

Readers who loved Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine should definitely pick up Saving Missy, written by Beth Morrey. Missy Carmichael is 79 and lonely. Her husband died not that long ago and she is pottering around her big house in Stoke Newington. She blames herself for her own lonliness; her daughter is distant and her son and grandson have emigrated to Australia. An unexpected friendship with a single mum opens a new door for Missy. Is her life about to change?

Nina Stibbe praised it and said “Bittersweet, tender, thoughtful and uplifting. Reminds you that everyone deserves a second chance. I loved it.” Saving Missy is HarperCollins’ biggest debut for 2020 and it’s out on 6 February.

Little Friends

From Jane Shemilt, the bestselling author of Daughter, comes another stunning suspense thriller called Little Friends. Three families are brought together by their children’s friendships. But despite barbeques, dinner parties and a holiday in Greece, their marriages are over. Their resentment leads to an affair and they lose track of their children. Then a tragedy strikes. The couples revert to parenthood and realise what they have done.

Ebook bestselling author Suzy K Quinn reviewed it as: “Extremely clever, readable and elegant…perfect for fans of Big Little Lies. Domenstic noir at its best.” Little Friends is published by Michael Joseph on 20 February.

Grown Ups

Grown Ups is Marian Keyes’ 14th novel. Her debut, Watermelon, was a huge hit and all her following novels have been equally loved. The Caseys are a glamourous family; Johnny Casey, his two brothers, their wives and all their children spend a lot of time together. On the outside, all appears well and happy. But under the surface lurk personality clashes and infatuations, and when Ed’s wife Cara gets concussion, all the secrets are about to leak out. Is it perhaps finally time to Grow Up?

Graham Norton said its “Magnificently messy lives, brilliantly untangled. Funny, tender and completely absorbing!” Grown Ups is published by Michael Joseph on 6 February.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 2020 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for January.

My Dark Vanessa

My Dark Vanessa is a powerful debut about school abuse, written by Elizabeth Kate Russell. The novel alternates between Vanessa’s present and her past and is timely in the era of #MeToo.
In 2000, 15-year old Vanessa becomes involved with her 42-year old English teacher. Vanessa is bright, ambitious and convinced that he is the great love of her life.

Many years later, Vanessa discovers that another former student has accused the same man of sexual abuse. Vanessa feels conflicted when a journalist wants her to tell the real story. Her relationship was loving, wasn’t it?

Stephen King reviewed it as “A hard story to read and a harder one to put down… a well-constructed package of dynamite.” My Dark Vanessa is published by Fourth Estate on 23 January.

American Dirt

American Dirt is a page-turning Mexican migrant novel, written by Jeanine Cummins. It tells the story of how Lydia and her son were forced to flee their home in Acapulco, to then illegally cross the US-Mexico border.

The local drug cartels were always a threat but Lydia was a happily married bookshop keeper, who thought their lives were fairly comfortable- until she made a mistake and the cartel went after her family.

Have Lydia and her eight-year-old son a chance at life? Jeanine’s book is terrifying as she gives a face to migrants everywhere who run for their lives. Don Winslow reviewed it as “A Grapes of Wrath for our times.” American Dirt is Tinder Press’ leading title for 2020 and it’s published on 21January.

The 24-hour Cafe

The 24-hour Cafe is written by Libby Page, the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Lido, which has sold in over twenty territories around the world.

The 24-hour Cafe is the cafe that never sleeps. Stella opens the doors day and night for the lost, the hungry, the morning people and the night owls. It’s a place where everyone is welcome and where anyone can be themselves.

We meet Hannah and Mona, who are best friends, waitresses and day dreamers. On this particular day, their friendship will be tested, the community will come together and their lives will be changed forever. The 24-hour Cafe is published by Orion on 23 January.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

December 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for December.

The Fallout

The Fallout is a thriller about a toxic friendship between mums whose children attend the same primary school. The story begins when a child falls at the local health club as Sarah forgets to check on her best friend’s little boy. A lie sets everything into jeopardy and Sarah is faced with a dilemma. If she tells the truth she will lose her friend.

Rebecca Thornton is a former journalist and her previous novels, The Exclusives and Your Guilty Secret were published by Bonnier Zaffre. This time it’s HarperFiction. Editor Charlotte Brabbin says:

“The Fallout starts with a bang but there’s no let-up in pace as the accident brilliantly wrenches open the cracks in the lives of a group of mums already weighted with secrets and marital tensions. I love how the book takes us behind closed doors but with an addictive, gossipy spin.” The Fallout is published on 5 December.

The Sacrament

The Sacrament is a haunting story of a nun whose past returns to her. She is sent by the Vatican to investigate allegations of misconduct at a Catholic school in Iceland. During her time there as a young student, she watched the headmaster fall to his death from the church tower. Two decades later she is called back to the scene of the crime and her complex past catches up with her.

Olaf Olafsson is an Icelandic businessman, writer and scientist. The Sacrament is his sixth novel, in which he looks deeply at our past lives, selves and the traumas of youth. Olaf consistently surprises and challenges the reader. Booklist reviewed it as “A gripping, masterfully constructed story toward redemption and justice.” The Sacrament is out on 3 December.

One Moment

One Moment is a moving coming of age novel about two strangers who change each other’s lives. Ten year old Finn, who is having a tough time at school and at home, is a highly sensitive boy who only eats at 5-star hygiene cafes. At one of them they meet big-hearted and funny fifty-nine year old Kaz, who works there. Little did they know that one moment would turn their lives around.

Linda Green is a bestselling author of nine novels, all translated into twelve languages. Her previous novel, While My Eyes Were Closed, sold over 450 000 copies across all editions. The review said “I sobbed my heart out and I will look out for her next book.” One Moment is published by Quercus on 1 December.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

November 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for November.

A Game of Birds and Wolves

A Game of Birds and Wolves: The Secret Game that Won the War is the story of the game of battleships that won the Second World War. In 1941, the Battle of the Atlantic was a disaster. Prime Minister Winston Churchill concealed from the country how many British ships were sunk and the number of British men killed. Unless something changed, Britain would be forced to surrender to the Nazis.

The story of Operation Raspberry and its heroines hasn’t been told before. The British writer and journalist, Simon Parkin, brings hidden figures into the light in this gripping tale of war at sea. A film deal with “Fleabag” co-writer Vicky Jones, is already in place. A Game of Birds and Wolves is out on 7 November.

The Starless Sea

The Starless Sea is the follow-up to Erin Morgenstern’s bestselling debut The Night Circus, which was translated into 37 languages. The Starless Sea follows graduate student Zachary as he discovers a strange book hidden in the university library. The book tells him about lost cities and prisoners. Zachary follows the clues on the cover which leads him to a masquerade party and to a library hidden under New York. Is it perhaps also a recollection of his own childhood?

Erin Morgenstern has built the novel from fables, myths and fairlytales, and elements of fantasy take place in this long-awaited, fantastic sequel. The Starless Sea is published by Harvill Secker on 5 November.

Priya Basil (authors for peace, theguardian.com, UK), Foto: Stephan Röhl

Be My Guest

Be My Guest: Reflections on Food, Community and the Meaning of Generosity is written by the shortlisted author of the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize, Priya Basil, who is also the co-founder of Authors for Peace. Be My Guest is an uplifting book as we approach the festive season. It states the hospitality of today; a time when most of us spend less and less time cooking and eating and when the meaning of hospitality is more often referred to hotels and catering businesses than our own homes.

Priya Basil was born in London to a family with Indian Sikh roots, she grew up in Kenya in the 70’s and 80’s and she now lives in Berlin. Basil frames her comments through the subject of food and she wants us to be kinder, more welcoming and realise that we have more in common that what divides us. Be My Guest: Reflections on Food, Community and the Meaning of Generosity is published by Canongate on 7 November.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

October 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for October.

The Giver of Stars

Jojo Moyes’ Me Before You sold over 14 million copies and was followed by After You and Still Me. Her new novel, The Giver of Stars, is historical and opens in 1937. Alice Wright marries a handsome American to escape her dull life in England but the small town in Kentucky proves to be equally insufferable. So when a request goes out for a team of women to deliver books as part of Eleanor Roosevelt’s traveling library, Alice signs up immediately.

The ladies soon become known as the Horseback Librarians of Kentucky and a classic drama of loyalty, passion and justice unfolds. The Giver of Stars is based on a true story rooted in America’s past and is both funny and heartbreaking. The Bookseller reviews it as Jojo Moyes best yet. The Giver of Stars is out on 3 October.

The Lying Room

Nicci Gerrard and her husband Sean French write together under the name Nicci French. As a couple they are known to most people as ‘the bestselling author Nicci French’. The Lying Room is a standalone thriller by the bestselling author Nicci French. In a modern London apartment, Neve Connolly looks down at a murdered man but doesn’t call the police. Instead she cleans it. Thoroughly.

Neve is a wife, a mother, and a trusted collegue. But she has made a mistake. Her mistake escalates and brings those around her into danger. She can’t tell the truth and becomes a liar and a cheat. Could she also be a murderer? Novelist and poet Sophie Hannah said “Nicci French’s sophisticated, compassionate and gripping crime novels stand head and shoulders above the competition”. The Lying Room is also published on 3 October.

Akin

Emma Donoghue, bestselling author of Room, is back with a contemporary novel called Akin. A retired New York professor, Noah Selvaggio, receives a phone call from social services, as his young great nephew is suddenly an orphan. Noah feels obligated and takes Michael to the French Riviera in the hopes of uncovering his own mother’s war time secrets.

Noah comes to appreciate the boy’s wit and they both find that they are more akin than they thought as they share their painful life stories and start to write a new one together. Akin has both psychological tenderness and humour, published by Picador on 3 October.

Anna Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

September 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for September.

The Testaments

The Testaments is the sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale and also one of the most exciting publishing stories of the year. The Testaments picks up the story 15 years after Offred stepped into the unknown and three female narrators bring different perspectives on the life in Gilead.

Margaret Atwood’s work has been published in more than forty-five countries and she has written over fifty books of fiction, poetry, critical essays and graphic novels. She has received numerous awards, including the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, the Franz Kafka Prize, the PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Award and the Los Angeles Times Innovator’s Award.

Atwood’s editor, Becky Hardie, said “Atwood has truly expanded her world for us, and her legendary vision. She has created a novel for the world we live in today. It’s a phenomenal achievement and I cant wait for you to be able to read it and start talking about it.” Drum roll for 10 September! 

The Confession

From the million-copy bestselling author of The Miniaturist (Waterstones Book of The Year 2014) and The Muse, comes The Confession, Jessie Burton’s third novel. The Confession is told through two parallel narratives – 1980s Hollywood and present-day – London and it is a luminous, powerful and deeply moving novel about secrets and storytelling, motherhood and friendship.

One winter’s afternoon on Hampstead Heath in 1980, Elise meets Constance and quickly falls under her spell. Three decades later, Rose is seeking answers about her mother, who disappeared when she was a baby. The last person who saw her mother was Constance and Rose is drawn to her house in search of a confession… The Confession is out on 19 September.

Breaking and Mending

Breaking and Mending: A Memoir of Burnout, Recovery and the Journey to Become a Doctor is Joanna Cannon’s first work of non-fiction. She is known for her bestselling books The Trouble with Goats and Sheep and Three Things About Elsie. “A few years ago I found myself in A&E. I was mentally and physically broken but I knew I had to carry on. Because I wasn’t the patient. I was the doctor.”

Joanna Cannon’s memoir from her time as a medic, articulates the need for better care for those we rely on to care for us. Cannon has included case studies of some of the patients who provided her with what she calls “Kodak moments”. Breaking and Mending is out on 26 September.

Anna Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

 

August 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for August.

If You Were Here

Alice Peterson is best known for her novel A Song For Tomorrow, a book that stayed with its readers for a long time. Now she is back with a novel that will break your heart and put it back together again. If You Were Here is an emotional, inspiring and uplifting novel about living life to the fullest. Peggy’s daughter Beth suddenly dies and she is left to take care of her granddaughter, Flo.

When Peggy goes through her daughter’s things she discovers a secret; Beth had the same genetic condition that took her father’s life. Peggy has to either keep their secret or reveal to Flo that her life might be at risk. If a test could decide your future, would you take it? If You Were Here is out on Thursday 22 August.

Mudlarking: Lost and Found on the River Thames

It is the tides that make mudlarking in London unique, says Lara Maiklem, when she talks about her new book Mudlarking: Lost and Found on the River Thames. For 15 years mudlark Lara Maiklem has been walking the Thames foreshore at all times of the day and in all seasons, finding items discarded by generations of Londoners. Roman hair pins, Medieval shoe buckles, Tudor buttons and Georgian clay pipes are some of many treasures she has rescued from the river.

The book is part memoir, as she threads her own story through the history of the Thames. “It is often the tiniest of objects that tell the greatest stories”, she writes. The Bookseller reviews it as “An enthralling and evocative history of London and its people.” It’s also their Book of the Month. Mudlarking: Lost and Found on the River Thames is out on Thursday 22 August.

The Girl Before You is said to be the new Girl on The Train. Nicola Rayner has written a clever, psychological crime thriller, told in two different time frames. The main character Alice is haunted by the women from her husband’s past. And there is one ex in particular that she can’t get out of her head; the beautiful Ruth, who went missing. Alice thinks she sees Ruth on a train.

Is she alive? Or dead? Will she just turn up one day? The Observer reviewed it as “Note-perfect prose and an ending that will leave you gasping. So addictive, it should come with a health warning”. The Girl Before You is published on Thursday 22 August.

Anna Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

July 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for July.

Sweet Sorrow

David Nicholls, bestselling author of One Day, has written a new, funny, coming-of-age novel called Sweet Sorrow. The book is a tragicomedy about the rocky path to adulthood and the confusion of family life. It is narrated by Charlie Lewis, who is looking back at his 16-year old self. He meets Fran and their relationship becomes a brief, blinding explosion of love.

Sweet Sorrow is also about Charlie’s teenage mates, their banter and his complicated relationship with his father. Clare Mackintosh said “Astutely observed, and almost painfully nostalgic, Sweet Sorrow reads like a true story.” Sweet Sorrow was published by Hodder & Stoughton on 11 July.

The Holiday

The Holiday is the ideal summer thriller. It’s written by the bestselling author T. M. Logan, who was a national newspaper journalist before he started writing novels full-time. His debut thriller Lies was one of Amazon UK’s biggest e-books of 2017.

The plot unfolds over seven days. There are three families and in one of them is a killer- someone who is prepared to kill to keep their secret hidden. It was supposed to be the perfect holiday but there is trouble in paradise. Lee Child described it as “Hypnotically readable – with a twist you won’t see coming.” The Holiday is out on 25 July.

The Carer

Deborah Moggach, the bestselling author of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, is back with a new novel called The Carer. James is an elderly widower who needs help at home, and his children employ Mandy as his carer; a chatty 50-year-old. James and Mandy get on really well but his children start to notice that their father’s private papers have been moved. What is Mandy up to?

The story is full of twists and turns. Marian Keyes reviewed it as “Unputdownable, fun and tender with characters that jump off the page. Perfection.” The Carer was published by Tinder Press on 11 July.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

June 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for June.

Big Sky

Kate Atkinson is back with a new Jackson Brodie novel called Big Sky. Jackson has relocated to a quiet seaside village in North Yorkshire, in the company of his teenage son and an ageing Labrador. It’s a picturesque setting but something dark lurks behind the scenes. A woman hires Jackson to find out who is following her. The story is dark and old secrets and new lies intersect with its main theme; human trafficking.

Kate Atkinson won the Whitbread Book of the Year prize in 1995 for Behind the scenes at the Museum and the Costa Book Awards in 2013 for Life after life and again in 2015 for A God in Ruins. The first four Jackson Brodie novels have been adapted for the BBC under the series called Case Histories, starring Jason Isaacs as Brodie. Big Sky is out on 18 June.

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous is a debut novel written by the poet Ocean Vuong, who won both the Forward Prize for Best First Collection and the T S Eliot Prize for Night Sky with Exit Wounds. Vuong’s literary masterpiece is a shattering portrait of a family in Vietnam and it’s told in the form of a letter from a son to his illiterate mother. The story is heartbreakingly beautiful and brings up the question of how to survive.

Michael Cunningham said “One is not often given the chance to apply words like “brilliant” and “remarkable” to any novels, certainly not first novels. Thank you, Ocean Vuong, for this brilliant and remarkable first novel.” Vuong is coming to the UK for the publication date on the 20 June.

Stalingrad

Stalingrad is the prequel to Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman, the book which by some critics was held to be the greatest Russian novel of the 20th century. Stalingrad isn’t only about war but all of human life. The characters are mothers and daughters, husbands and brothers, generals and tractor girls.

It is tender and epic; Grossman brings us another testament to the power of the human spirit. There will be a four-hour dramatisation on BBC Radio 4 in the autumn. Stalingrad is published on the 6 June and this is its first publication in English.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

May 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for May.

The Porpoise

Mark Haddon plays with myth and meaning in his new novel, The Porpoise. The story is contemporary but mirrors the ancient legend of Antiochus. Members of a shattered family are adrift in a violent world; it’s a novel that almost drowns in grief but swims ashore towards a place called home.

Pat Barker reviewed it as “Staggeringly ambitious, innovative, beautifully written…The Porpoise has the pace of a really good thriller but combined with a subtlety and depth that few thrillers possess.” The Porpoise is published by Vintage on 9 May.

Those who are loved

Those who are loved is a historical novel by the bestselling author Victoria Hislop. It’s set during the German occupation of Greece, which left deep scars. The main character is a woman whose fury with the Nazis drives her to fight for the communists. She is imprisoned and her life is haunted by her actions.

Hislop brings light to Greece’s complex and traumatic past and tells the story of a woman’s lifelong fight for justice. Ten million readers love her books and they have been translated into over 30 languages. Those who are loved is out on 30 May.

Cari Mora

The creator of Hannibal Lecter and The Silence of the Lambs has written a new story of evil, greed and the consequesces of dark obsession. Thomas Harris’s novels have sold millions of copies but Cari Mora is his first novel in over a decade.

Cari Mora has escaped from her native country and she stays in Miami on a Temporary Protected Status. But Cari has surprising skills and she has had to fight for her survival before. Only Thomas Harris can create monsters with such terrifying brilliance. Cari Mora is out on 16 May.

Annaklarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

 

 

 

 

 

 

April 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for April.

The Parisian

The Parisian is a written by Isabella Hammad, who won the 2018 Plimpton Prize for fiction for her story ‘Mr. Can’aan’. Her finest review is from Zadie Smith, who said “That this remarkable historical epic should be the debut of a writer in her twenties seems impossible, yet it’s true. Isabella Hammad is an enormous talent and her book is a wonder.”

As the first world war shatters families, destroys friendships and kills lovers, a young Palestinian dreamer sets out to find himself. He discovers that everything is fragile; love turns to loss, friends become enemies and everyone is looking for a place to belong. The Parisian is published by Vintage on 11 April.

Machines like me

Machines like me is a thought-provoking novel about a love triangle between Charlie, Miranda and Adam, one of the first batch of synthetic humans in an alternative 1980’s London. Britain has lost the Falklands war, Margaret Thatcher battles Michael Foot for power and Alan Turing achieves a breakthrough in artificial intelligence.

The writer is of course Ian McEwan, the master story teller of our time. Dan Franklin, who acquired the book, said it was “totally compulsive, funny, sorrowful and intensely engaging.” Machines like me is out 18 April.

Things in Jars

Things in Jars is an enchanting Victorian detective story that explores what it is to be human in inhumane times. Jess Kidd’s third novel is set in London in 1863 and it follows Bridie Devine, the finest female detective of her age, taking on her toughest case yet. Christabel Berwick has been kidnapped. But Christabel is no ordinary child. She is not supposed to exist.

Jess Kidd was brought up in London and has been praised for her original fictional voice. Her first novel, Himself, was shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards in 2016 and she was the winner of the Costa Short Story Award in the same year. Things in Jars is published on 4 April.

Annaklarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

 

 

 

March 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for March.

The Road to Grantchester

The Road to Grantchester is published by Bloomsbury on 21 March and is a prequel to the treasured Grantchester series.  The year is 1938 and eighteen-year-old Sidney Chambers is dancing the quickstep with Amanda Kendall at the Caledonian Club. No one can believe that there could ever be another war. 

Written by James Runcie, who is an award-winning film-maker and the author of ten novels that have been translated into twelve languages. His novels have also been turned into a TV series called Grantchester, starring James Norton as Sidney Chambers.

The reviews are full of praise. The Guardian said: “A perfect accompaniment to a sunny afternoon, a hammock and a glass of Pimm’s” and our loved William Boyd described it as “A tremendous novel – shrewd, compelling and full of insight. James Runcie elevates the genre to impressive new heights.”

Spring

Spring is the next book in the Seasonal Quartet, following Autumn and Winter, which both had great reviews. Ali Smith is apparently “flat-out brilliant and on fire these days…” What unites Katherine Mansfield, Charlie Chaplin, Shakespeare, Rilke, Beethoven, Brexit, the present, the past, the north, the south, the east, the west, a man mourning lost times, a woman trapped in modern times?

Spring– the great connective. The time we’re living in is changing nature but will it change the nature of story? Spring is published by Penguin on 28 March and is definitely one to bring to those first, warmer days in the park.

Before She Knew him

Before She Knew him is written by Peter Swanson, who is most known for his book The kind worth killing, which won the New England Society Book Award. Before she knew him is a chilling tale of a young suburban wife with a history of psychological instability whose fears about her new neighbour could lead them both to murder.

They have a secret, the two of them, and there is no better way to start a friendship than with a secret. Peter Swanson’s books have been translated into 30 languages and they are known for their twisted, dark and fast-paced “killer” suspense. Before she knew him is out on 7 March.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

February 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for February.

To Kill the Truth

To Kill the Truth is a new political thriller from the author of To Kill the President. It’s written by a British journalist, Jonathan Saul Freedland, who goes under nom de plume Sam Bourne. To Kill the Truth takes us to the edge of anarchy, a world without truth in which the history will be re-written.

Taking on the hot-topics of Black Lives Matter protest, Holocaust denial and deception at the highest level, this is an explosive cat-and-mouse thriller to look out for. Charles Cumming calls it “A dazzling thriller” and Jeffrey Archer simply said “Read this book.” To Kill the Truth is out on 21 February.

The Buried Girl

The Buried Girl is a haunting, psychological, standalone thriller from the bestselling author Richard Montanari. His writing is known for his fast-paced story line that is easy to pick up and hard to put down ie. the perfect commute read. Dr Will Hardy and his daughter move to the country town of Abbeyville, after the death of his wife. The chief of police is investigating a series of missing young people that goes back decades.

Is Will’s past somehow linked to the missing girls? The Buried Girl is published on 14 February, and with James Ellroy calling him “A master storyteller” and Publishers Weekly saying ”A specialist in serial killer tales… a wonderfully evocative writer”, this is one to get caught up in.

The Secretary

The Secretary, which is also published on 21 February, is written by Renee Knight. Her widely acclaimed debut novel, Disclaimer, was a Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller. Renee Knight worked as a documentary-maker for the BBC before turning to writing. The Secretary is a shivery tale of psychological suspense, featuring characters both disturbing and compelling.

Christine, “The Secretary”, has been hired to be the personal assistant to well-known and wealthy Mina. Christine is devoted and loyal but she hears and sees everything, which will eventually come with a high price. Fiona Barton said “Clever, clever, clever. Renee leads us on a deeply unsettling exploration of the limits of loyalty. Believe me, chats by the photocopier will never be the same…”

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna is a literary agent based in Chiswick who is keen to hear from authors trying to get their books published. Contact her on anna@intersaga.co.uk. She used to run the Waterstones bookshop in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here

January 2019 Books

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What’s new and good to read this month? Annakarin Klerfalk has a look at what’s on offer and chooses three good reads for January.

Freefall

Freefall is a stunning debut thriller that explores the deep and complex bond between mothers and daughters. It is written by Jessica Barry, pseudonym for an American author, who has lived and worked in London for the past fifteen years. Freefall is coming out on 8 January but has sold in more than seventeen territories around the world and has also secured a major Hollywood film deal. Recommended by Karin Slaughter, who has sold over 35 million copies of her crime novels, says it “opens a full throttle and never lets up” – this is one to keep an eye out for in the bookshops.

The Suspect

The Suspect is written by the Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author, Fiona Barton. Her debut, The Widow, was published in thirty-five countries and optioned for television. The Suspect is published on 24 January and is Fiona’s third thriller. Two eighteen-year-old girls go missing during their gap year in Thailand and as the case unfolds, they will all find that even this far away, danger can lie closer to home than you might think… Gillian McAllister, author of ‘Everything but the truth’ reviewed it as “Superb writing, often blackly funny, with characters I feel I know. A fast-paced whodunnit with heart”.

Elastic

And finally, Elastic, a non-fiction book that is about the power of flexible thinking. Written by Leonard Mlodinow, a winner of the PEN/E. O Wilson Award and the author of The Grand Design, together with Stephen Hawking. Leonard is a trained physicist, but he has also been writing for television series, such as Star Trek. By unlocking the secrets of our flexible minds, Elastic, explains how to thrive in a world full of change, when the ability to adapt is key. Mark Williams, author of Mindfulness, reviews it as “A book of sparkling intelligence, written with humour and grace. If you only read one book of accessible science this year, let it be this one.” Elastic is published on 8 January.

Annakarin Klerfalk

Anna Klerfalk runs the Intersaga literary agency and used to run the Waterstones bookstore in Chiswick. You can read more about her and Intersaga here.

intersaga.co.uk

See more of Anna’s book choices here

Read about the annual Chiswick Book Festival here