The highly anticipated fourth book in the exciting and atmospheric Shadow of the Raven series. WESSEX 893 AD As the threat of yet another Viking invasion looms over his troubled realm, Alfred, King of Wessex, reviews and strengthens his defences. Among his many concerns is the fate of Edward, his stable boy, who he believes to be the bastard son of revered warrior Matthew, who died serving the Saxon cause. If his heritage can be proved, Edward is not only heir to vast fortune but, more importantly, he has the blood of a warrior in his veins, something the Saxons are likely to need in spades. More worryingly, Alfred fears that if Edward's true lineage ever became known, there would be those who might seek to exploit him or, worse still, use him to usurp Alfred's rule. He confides in just two of his closest advisers and they conspire to send Edward to the relative safety of Wareham on the pretext of having him train Governor Osric's magnificent black stallion, a horse thought to be all but unrideable. Edward is treated with disdain when he reaches Wareham and regarded as being too puny to be a warrior. However when the barely-trained members of the fyrd find themselves outnumbered, isolated and confronting a dreaded Viking warband, it is Edward's quick thinking and extraordinary courage that leads them to victory, leaving no doubt about his true bloodline.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 304

Dimensions: 129 x 198 mm

Publication Date: 18-03-2021

It should have been a relaxing day at the beach for Dr Clair Mercer and her family. But an argument with husband Adam distracts her from watching their four-year-old autistic son, and tragedy strikes when a sneaker wave sweeps him away. Clair's well-ordered life is plunged into madness, and after attempting to murder her husband, she walks into the ocean. Arrested, charged and awaiting trial on a locked psychiatric unit, can she discover a path to forgiveness, for herself and the husband she tried to kill? The Wave is a beautifully-written debut novel that explores the emotional complexity of family life - and how suffering, self-realisation and the power of love can heal even the most wounded bonds of trust.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 320

Dimensions: 129 x 198 mm

Publication Date: 25-03-2021

Roddy Doyle meets The Full Monty in a story of hopes, dreams, love and betrayal - and the football pools. Reggie Kellison loves his family but it's a struggle. He has 5 children with number 6 on the way, his marriage is failing, and he dreams of a better life, a life away from the never-ending humdrum of struggling to make ends meet in 1960s Liverpool. He fantasises about running away with Laura from accounts, about his beloved Tranmere Rovers winning the league and about somehow (this is sketchy) making lots of money. Working at Littlewood's he pitches a cracking idea for a summer cricket pools, giving him the opportunity to win a fair commission if they take up his idea. Littlewoods rejects his proposal, but then, to Reggie's fury, bring out an identical game. Seething, he vows to get his revenge and plots a football pools heist, assisted by his brother-in-law Rodney and the delicious Laura. The scam works and Reggie finally has all the money he ever dreamed of - but he doesn't get the girl. Laura flees to Australia with Rodney, and while Reggie is heartbroken, all is not as it seems. Decades later Reggie and Ronnie's sons dig deeper into this family secret but what does it reveal? And will Reggie finally forgive Laura ? and Rodney ? for breaking his heart?

Bind: paperback

Pages: 288

Dimensions: 129 x 198 mm

Publication Date: 11-03-2021

Thomas Dylan is an unlikely spy. Rejected by MI6 he joins the Ministry of Defence where his first mission is a total failure. Unexpectedly he is then sent to Rio de Janeiro to recover a submarine interrogator stolen from the US Navy. In Brazil he discovers that those supposedly on his side, MI6 and the CIA, have their own priorities and that his life is definitely not one of them. A murderous game which began with the death of a British spy in Argentina is being played out in a city of sun, sea and secret police. When Dylan comes face-to-face with the brutal realities of Brazil's military dictatorship he knows he has to trust somebody. But who? The only thing he knows for sure is that the woman he wants to trust has been lying to him from the very beginning - should he take the risk? This is a fast-paced thriller in the vein of John le Carre and Eric Ambler.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 320

Dimensions: 129 x 198 mm

Publication Date: 25-06-2020

An unreliable first-person narrative in the tradition of noir writer, Jim Thompson, set in the world of art, wine, and provincial retail. Spurned by his lover and mentor, art student Keir Rothwell presents a gruesome effigy of her at his art school's end of year show and is promptly excluded. A job at a local wine shop, In Vino Veritas, gives Keir a lifeline and a delicious opportunity. Resolving to regain his place and his lover's attention, he plots to reinvent the shop as a working art installation under the noses of unwitting customers and colleagues. The repurposed wine critiques make grotesques of the shop's clientele and tension soon builds on both sides of the counter. When conflict turns to murder, the would-be artist is forced to fight a rear guard action against a tenacious detective and inquisitive customers. Will a long buried past now threaten the future of a Cornish seaside town? Murder by the Bottle is a compelling study in character, criminality and truth.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 288

Dimensions: 129 x 198 mm

Publication Date: 17-06-2021

Every year the Boys plan a weekend away. A weekend of drinking, laughter and mickey-taking by the sea - it's been a tradition of the six of them for as more years than they can remember. Now, suddenly, the six has become five. Will - clever, funny, dependable Will - has died. In the months leading up to his death, Will plans the next Boys weekend, knowing he will be unable to be there with them. As always he researches the place, books the accommodation, and prepares his brainmelter quiz - the quiz that slots neatly into the drinking, laughing and mickey-taking and which is the centrepiece to the annual weekend away. Now, the remaining Boys assemble in the house by the sea in Dungeness that Will has booked for them. Already grappling with the grief of losing their friend, the Boys are dreading pressing play on the video, and when they do, their grief turns to horror as Will slowly reveals secrets about each of them in a series of increasingly provocative questions. During their stay the group has become entangled with a volatile local steroid dealer and his abused sister and when he challenges the group once more, just as they face the fallout from the quiz, there are dramatic and disastrous consequences. Some secrets are carried to the grave. Others don't make it as far. Peppered with barbed dialogue and pop cultural references, One Last Question is a blackly humorous story of friendship, loss and men ageing disgracefully.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 288

Dimensions: 129 x 198 mm

Publication Date: 24-06-2021

Dennis Nilsen was one of Britain's most notorious serial killers, jailed for life in 1983 after the murders of 12 men and the attempted murders of many more. Seven years after his conviction, Nilsen began to write his autobiography and over a period of 18 years he typed 6,000 pages of introspection, reflection, comment and explanation. History of a Drowning Boy - taken exclusively from these astonishing writings - uncovers, for the first time, the motives behind the murders, and delivers a clear understanding of how such horrific events could have happened, tracing the origins back to early childhood. In another first, it provides an insight into his 35 years inside the maximum-security prison system including his everyday life on the wings; his interactions with the authorities and other notorious prisoners; and his artistic endeavours of music, writing and drama. It also reveals the truth behind many of the myths surrounding Dennis Nilsen, as reported in the media. Nilsen was determined to have his memoir published but to his frustration, the Home Office blocked publication during his lifetime. He died in 2018, entrusting the manuscript to his closest friend and it is now being published with the latter's permission. Any autobiography presents the writer's story from just one perspective - his own, and as such this record should be treated with some caution. An excellent foreword by criminologist Dr Mark Pettigrew offers some context to Nilsen's words, and this important work provides an extraordinary journey through the life of a remarkable and inadequate man.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 336

Dimensions: 138 x 216 mm

Publication Date: 25-02-2021