Gulliver's Wife by Lauren Chater

$34.99 NZD

Category: Contemporary

Birth. Death. Wonder ... One woman's journey to the edge of love and loyalty from the bestselling author of The Lace Weaver London, 1702. When her husband is lost at sea, Mary Burton Gulliver, midwife and herbalist, is forced to rebuild her life without him. But three years later when Lemuel Gulliver is brought home, fevered and communicating only in riddles, her ordered world is turned upside down. In a climate of suspicion, poverty and violence, Mary is caught in a crossfire of superstition and fear driven by her husband's outlandish claims of the wonders he has seen, and it is up to her to navigate a passage to safety for herself and her daughter, and the vulnerable women in her care. But when a fellow sailor, a dangerous man with nothing to lose, appears to hold sway over her husband, Mary's world descends deeper into chaos, and she must set out on her own journey to discover the truth of Gulliver's travels ... and the landscape of her own heart. Praise for The Lace Weaver 'A beautifully written and utterly compelling story of love and war ... exquisite as the lace the women of the story weave' Kate Forsyth 'I was captivated from the first page' Natasha Lester 'Full of hope and heartache' Books+Publishing ...Show more

The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult

$29.99 NZD

$36.99 (18% off)

Category: Contemporary

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Spark of Light returns with a thought-provoking and otherworldly new novel about the fates that we choose for ourselves and what happens when we have the chance to choose again. Dawn Edelstein knows everything there is to know about dying. She specialises i n helping her clients make peace with the end of their lives. But as she's flying home from her latest case, she is forced to confront her own mortality for the first time. Instead of seeing her brilliant quantum physicist husband and their beloved daughter flash before her eyes in what she assumes are her last moments, only one face is shockingly clear: Wyatt Armstrong. Safely on the ground, Dawn now faces a desperate decision. Should she return to Boston, her family and the life she knows, or journey back to an Egyptian archaeological site she left over a decade earlier, reconnect with Wyatt, and finally finish her abandoned magnum opus, The Book of Two Ways? As the story unfolds, Dawn must confront the questions she's never truly answered: What does a life well-lived look like? When we depart this earth, what do we leave behind of ourselves? And who would you be if you hadn't turned out to be the person you are right now? ...Show more

Liar by Lesley Pearse

$29.99 NZD

$37.00 (18% off)

Category: Contemporary

The enthralling new novel from the 10-million-copy, Number One Bestselling author.  Amelia White dreams of being a reporter. The closest she's come is selling advertising in the local paper - until the fateful day she stumbles on a shocking scoop. Round the corner from her home, she discovers the body of a murder victim, dumped among the rubbish. When the police and reporters descend, Amelia is horrified at the lies soon to be spread about the young woman. Determined to protect the victim from these smears, she convinces her paper's editor to let her tell the true story. And when another body is found, Amelia discovers that she may be the only one with any chance of learning the truth and stopping more killings. If only she can work out who the liar is . . . Praise for Lesley Pearse 'Storytelling at its very best' Daily Mail'Evocative, compelling, told from the heart' Sunday Express'Glorious, heartwarming' Woman & Home'Intriguing, heart-tugging, beautifully written' Closer   ...Show more

Code Name Helene: Based on the thrilling true story of Nancy Wake, 'The White Mouse' by Ariel Lawhon

$34.99 NZD

Category: Contemporary

February 29, 1944: I am about to jump out of an aeroplane for the first time … I don’t care that every man is looking at me as though I don’t belong. Besides, I’m hungover. And I think I might throw up … In 1936 intrepid young Australian journalist Nancy Wake is living in Paris after witnessing firstha nd the terror of Hitler’s rise in Europe, firing her resolve to fight against the Nazis. When Nancy falls in love with handsome French industrialist Henri Fiocca, no sooner has she become Mrs Fiocca than the Germans invade France and Nancy takes yet another name, a codename – the first of many. As the elusive Lucienne Carlier she smuggles people across borders and earns a new name ‘The White Mouse’ along with a five million franc bounty on her head, courtesy of the Gestapo. Forced to flee France, Nancy is trained by an elite espionage group under the codename Hélène. Finally, with mission in hand, she is airdropped back into France as the deadly Madame Andrée. But the closer to liberation France gets, the more exposed Nancy – and the people she loves – will become. Based on the true story of an extraordinary woman who saved countless lives, Code Name Hélène is a thrilling tale of danger, intrigue, unfaltering courage, remarkable sacrifice – and love. ‘Magnificent ... Lawhon carries us into the heart of the French resistance [and] into the mind of a badass heroine with uncanny instincts who takes on the Nazis and men’s arrogant sexism with uncommon bravado ... Propulsive ... Emotionally stirring... Even long after the last page is turned, this astonishing story of Wake’s accomplishments will hold readers in its grip.’ Booklist, starred review ‘Underground operative, charmer in red lipstick, loving wife and hard-hitting woman of her times, Nancy Wake will fascinate and thrill fans of fierce, brash, independent women, alike.’ Lisa Wingate, author of Before We Were Yours ...Show more

The Abstainer by Ian McGuire

$37.99 NZD

Category: Contemporary

From the widely acclaimed author of The North Water comes an epic story of revenge and obsession set in 19th century Manchester 'The Abstainer is truly terrific - a can't-put-down book. It's no less than a tight 'n spare 'n suspense-filled noir novel, masterfully set in 1860s Britain and America. And li ke all superb historical novels, it seems as modern and as contemporary as this morning.' Richard Ford   The rebels will be hanged at dawn, and their brotherhood is already plotting revenge. Manchester, 1867: Stephen Doyle, an Irish-American veteran of the Civil War, arrives from New York with a thirst for blood. He has joined the Fenians, a secret society intent on ending British rule in Ireland by any means necessary. Head Constable James O'Connor has fled grief and drink in Dublin for a sober start in Manchester. His job is to discover and thwart the Fenians' plans whatever they might be. When a long-lost nephew returns from America and arrives on O'Connor's doorstep looking for work, he cannot foresee the way his fragile new life will be imperilled - and how his and Doyle's fates will be intertwined. In this propulsive tale of the underground war for Irish independence, master storyteller Ian McGuire once again transports readers to a time when blood begot blood. Moving from the dirt and uproar of industrial Manchester to the quiet hills of Pennsylvania, The Abstainer is a searing novel in which two men, haunted by their pasts and driven forward by the need for justice and retribution, must fight for life and legacy.   Praise for The North Water, longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2016  'Brilliant, fast-paced, gripping. A tour de force of narrative tension and a masterful reconstruction of a lost world' Hilary Mantel   'Utterly convincing and compelling... A startling achievement' Martin Amis   'Riveting and darkly brilliant... McGuire has an extraordinary talent' Colm Toibin 'A stunning novel that snares the reader from the outset and keeps the tightest grip until the bitter end' Financial Times   'A vivid read, full of twists, turns, period detail and strong characters' The Times   'Terrific - McGuire's use of the pitiless, fearsomely beautiful Arctic landscape as a theatre for enduring questions is inspired' Daily Mail   'McGuire has a sure and unwavering touch... a writer of exceptional craft and confidence' Irish Times     ...Show more

Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler

$35.00 NZD

Category: Contemporary

From the bestselling author of A Spool of Blue Thread - an offbeat love story about mis-steps, second chances and the elusive art of human connection. Micah Mortimer isn't the most polished person you'll ever meet. His numerous sisters and in-laws regard him oddly but very fondly, but he has his ways an d means of navigating the world. He measures out his days running errands for work - his TECH HERMIT sign cheerily displayed on the roof of his car - maintaining an impeccable cleaning regime and going for runs (7-15, every morning). He is content with the steady balance of his life. But then the order of things starts to tilt. His woman friend Cassia (he refuses to call anyone in her late thirties a 'girlfriend') tells him she's facing eviction because of a cat. And when a teenager shows up at Micah's door claiming to be his son, Micah is confronted with another surprise he seems poorly equipped to handle. Redhead by the Side of the Road is an intimate look into the heart and mind of a man who sometimes finds those around him just out of reach - and a love story about the differences that make us all unique. ...Show more

Te Kaieke Tohorā (The Whale Rider Maori language edition) by Witi Ihimaera; Timoti Karetu i whakamaori

$26.00 NZD

Category: Contemporary

Whakamiharo ana tera te tirohanga atu ki a ia, ki te kaieke tohora. I rere atu te wai i a ia, ka hamama tona waha kia taea ai te hau makariri te kupa iho. Ko ana karu e kohara ana i te ahurei. Korekoreko katoa ana te tinana i te rehu taimana. I runga i taua taniwha ano nei he tekoteko paku kua whakairot ia, e tino haura ana, e koratarata ana, e tu torotika ana. Ano nei na tona tino kaha, e to ake ana ia i te tohora ki te rangi . . . Ko Kahutia-te-rangi te kaieke tohora, te tipuna o nga iwi o Te Tai Rawhiti. I haere mai ia i Hawaiki, te kainga o nga Tawhito, ki te tai rawhiti o Aotearoa. No muri mai ko Kahu, te matamua o nga mokopuna tuarua a te whanau. I arohaina ia e ona whanaunga katoa engari ko tera i tino pirangi ia kia aroha atu, kaore i aroha atu - ara, ko tona tipuna tane tuarua.Kua rongo au i a Kui Putiputi e tiwe ana i te hau, 'E Kahu!'I te toia iho au e oku putu. Me tu rawa au ka wetewete. I moumou noa iho te wa ki tenei mahi engari he pai ake tera i te toromi. Riro atu ana nga putu i nga au pioi.Ka titiro ake au. I te kimi au i hea ke ra a Kahu. I hikitia ake au e nga ngaru ka tuku iho ano.Ka tiwaha atu au, 'E Kahu, kaua.'Kua tae ke atu ia ki te tohora, a, e pupuri ana i te kauwae.Mama noa iho te huri mai i te ao purakau ki te ao tuturu, mai i te whakatangi ki te whakakata. Ko tenei pukapuka ko Te Kaieke Tohora ka whakamanaru i te kaipanui ahakoa pehea te pakeke. ...Show more

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

$37.00 NZD

Category: Contemporary

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove comes a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined. Viewing an apartment norma lly doesn't turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage. As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers begin slowly opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths. First is Zara, a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else until tragedy changed her life. Now, she's obsessed with visiting open houses to see how ordinary people live--and, perhaps, to set an old wrong to right. Then there's Roger and Anna-Lena, an Ikea-addicted retired couple who are on a never-ending hunt for fixer-uppers to hide the fact that they don't know how to fix their own failing marriage. Julia and Ro are a young lesbian couple and soon-to-be parents who are nervous about their chances for a successful life together since they can't agree on anything. And there's Estelle, an eighty-year-old woman who has lived long enough to be unimpressed by a masked bank robber waving a gun in her face. And despite the story she tells them all, Estelle hasn't really come to the apartment to view it for her daughter, and her husband really isn't outside parking the car. As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed. Before long, the robber must decide which is the more terrifying prospect: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people. Rich with Fredrik Backman's "pitch-perfect dialogue and an unparalleled understanding of human nature" (Shelf Awareness), Anxious People's whimsical plot serves up unforgettable insights into the human condition and a gentle reminder to be compassionate to all the anxious people we encounter every day. ...Show more

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

$24.99 NZD

Category: Contemporary

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2020.   Colson Whitehead brilliantly dramatizes another strand of American history through the story of two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida.   As the Civil Rights movement begins to reach the black enclave of Frenchtown in segreg ated Tallahassee, Elwood Curtis takes the words of Dr. Martin Luther King to heart: He is "as good as anyone." Abandoned by his parents, but kept on the straight and narrow by his grandmother, Elwood is about to enroll in the local black college. But for a black boy in the Jim Crow South of the early 1960s, one innocent mistake is enough to destroy the future. Elwood is sentenced to a juvenile reformatory called the Nickel Academy, whose mission statement says it provides "physical, intellectual and moral training" so the delinquent boys in their charge can become "honorable and honest men." In reality, the Nickel Academy is a grotesque chamber of horrors where the sadistic staff beats and sexually abuses the students, corrupt officials and locals steal food and supplies, and any boy who resists is likely to disappear "out back." Stunned to find himself in such a vicious environment, Elwood tries to hold onto Dr. King's ringing assertion "Throw us in jail and we will still love you." His friend Turner thinks Elwood is worse than naive, that the world is crooked, and that the only way to survive is to scheme and avoid trouble. The tension between Elwood's ideals and Turner's skepticism leads to a decision whose repercussions will echo down the decades. Formed in the crucible of the evils Jim Crow wrought, the boys' fates will be determined by what they endured at the Nickel Academy.Based on the real story of a reform school in Florida that operated for one hundred and eleven years and warped the lives of thousands of children, The Nickel Boys is a devastating, driven narrative that showcases a great American novelist writing at the height of his powers. ...Show more

Good Dogs Don't Make it to the South Pole by Hans-Olav Thyvold

$32.99 NZD

Category: Contemporary

The best thing you can aspire to in this world, is company. Whether it's for pleasure or pain, a crowning or an execution: everything is better with company. You might say it all went to hell with Mrs. Thorkildsen, but you know what? It could have been worse, because Mrs. Thorkildsen had me to keep her company. And I had her. That's what we had in common, her and me, what bound us together. We were company. The Major, a World War II veteran, breathes his last. Watching over him are his wife and his faithful companion, Tassen, the story's narrator, who is, by his own admission, a couch potato and a one-man dog. After the Major is gone, Tassen and Mrs Thorkildsen settle into their new life surrounded by books and stories of the 1911 race between Norway's explorer Roald Amundsen and Britain's Captain Robert F. Scott to reach the South Pole first. Regular visits to the local library and the bar next door provide all types of enlightenment. However, when Mrs Thorkildsen becomes ill, Tassen's world begins to wobble. Beguiling, poignant, funny and thoughtful, this novel is destined to become a favourite. ...Show more

Tiny Pieces of Us by Nicky Pellegrino

$29.99 NZD

$34.99 (14% off)

Category: Contemporary

My heart is less than 1% of my body, it weighs hardly anything; it is only a tiny piece of me, yet it is the part everyone finds most interesting. Vivi Palmer knows what it's like to live life carefully. Born with a heart defect, she was given a second chance after a transplant, but has never quite dare d to make the most of it. Until she comes face-to-face with her donor's mother, Grace, who wants something in return for Vivi's second-hand heart: her help to find all the other people who have tiny pieces of her son. Reluctantly drawn into Grace's mission, Vivi's journalist training takes over as one by one she tracks down a small group of strangers. As their lives intertwine Vivi finds herself with a new kind of family, and by finding out more about all the pieces that make up the many parts of her, Vivi might just discover a whole new world waiting for her... ...Show more

A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende

$36.99 NZD

Category: Contemporary | Reading Level: near fine

September 2, 1939, the day of the Spanish exiles' splendid arrival in Chile, the Second World War broke out in Europe. Victor Dalmau is a young doctor when he is caught up in the Spanish Civil War, a tragedy that leaves his life - and the fate of his country - forever changed. Together with his sister-i n-law, the pianist Roser Bruguera, he is forced out of his beloved Barcelona and into exile. When opportunity to seek refuge in Chile arises, they take it, boarding a ship chartered by the poet Pablo Neruda to the promised 'long petal of sea and wine and snow' over the seas. There, they find themselves enmeshed in a rich web of characters who come together in love and tragedy over the course of four generations, destined to witness the battle between freedom and repression as it plays out across the world. A masterful work of historical fiction about hope, exile and belonging, A Long Petal of the Sea is Isabel Allende at the height of her powers.   ...Show more