Joanne Harris, bestselling author of Chocolat, returns to Lansquenet in her new book Peaches For Monsieur Le Cure, which is being released by Doubleday on 24th May 2012. To celebrate this exciting launch, Joanne Harris will be visiting literary festivals, libraries and bookshops around the country, the details of which can be found below. Hope to see you there!
Friday 18th May
7.15pm DERBYSHIRE LITERARY FESTIVAL
New Beetwell Street, Chesterfield Library, Chesterfield,S40 1QN
Tickets are £5 for adults. Now on sale and can be booked through any Derbyshire library or by contacting Call Derbyshire on 08456 058 058 or 01629 533190.
Thursday 24th May
7.00pm THE HUNGERFORD BOOKSHOP
The Corn Exchange at The Town Hall, High Street, Hungerford, RG17 0NF
Tickets are £5 from the bookshop (redeemable against ‘Peaches..’ on the night).
Monday 28th May
7.00pm PETERBOROUGH LIBRARY
John Clare Theatre, Peterborough Library, The Broadway, Peterborough, PE1 1RX
Tickets £3 (£2 concessions) available from Central Library and Waterstones.
Tuesday 29th May
7.00pm WATERSTONES, LINCOLN
297a High Street, Lincoln, LN2 1AF
Tickets £3
Wednesday 30th May
7.00pm URMSTON BOOKS
The Portico Library, 57 Mosley Street/corner of Charlotte Street, Manchester, M2 3HY
Tickets are now available £7.
Thursday 31st May
8.00pm HEXHAM LITERARY FESTIVAL
The Pavilion, Alnwick Castle, Alnwick, NE66 1NQ
Tickets can be booked directly through the Queen’s Hall box office (Phone: 01434 652477, Email: boxoffice@queenshall.co.uk) or online. £6 adults, £4 concessions.
Wednesday 6th June
2.30pm HAY LITERARY FESTIVAL
Hay-on-Wye
Tickets are £5.25 and available online or call the box office on 01497 822 629 quoting Event 262
Thursday 7th June
11.30am GOOD HOUSEKEEPING LITERARY LUNCHEON
The Swan Hotel, Church Street, Hay, HR3 5DQ
Sunday 17th June
5.00pm THE BIG BOOKENDS FESTIVAL
The Carriageworks, The Electric Press, 3 Millenium Square, Leeds, LS2 3AD
Tickets: £5.00. Book online at www.carriageworkstheatre.org.uk Or call (0113) 224 3801
Wednesday 11th July
8.00pm TOPPING & CO
The Paragon, Bath, BA1 5LS
Contact: Saber Khan (01225 428 111; bath@toppingbooks.co.uk)
Tickets £7 with £7 off Peaches for Monsieur le Curé when booked by phone (01225) 428111 or £6 with £6 off when booking in person at the bookshop, before Wednesday 11th July.
Thursday 12th July
1.00pm DARTINGTON WAY WITH WORDS FESTIVAL
Dartington Hall, Dartington
For details Tel: 01803 86 73 73 or: www.wayswithwords.co.uk/festivals/the-telegraph-ways-with-words-festival-at-dartington-hall-24
7.30pm SHERBORNE LITERARY SOCIETY
The Butterfly House, Castle Gardens, Sherborne
Tickets £15 (£13.50 members) from Winstone’s Books, Chapter House Books, Winstone’s Books. For further details: www.sherborneliterarysociety.com
To find out more about Joanne, please visit her website
Now out in paperback – The Good Wife’s Castle by Roland Vernon
With fabulous reviews such as:
‘Do buy and read, but be warned, if you do you will have to read it right through – once started you won’t be able to put it down… Five stars all round.’ – RandomJottings.com
‘Utterly compelling, psychological drama’ – Books Monthly
…this is a must read this May.
Against the backdrop of a sedate, respectable rural community, a dark and disturbing tale of obsession and twisted spirituality unfurls…
The unexpected suicide of an apparently happy family man; a woman held captive for three years in a forgotten underground bunker; a middle aged clergyman at a crisis point in his life, drawn into an uncomfortable relationship with a teenage girl. Against the backcloth of these interwoven tales comes the story of two very different men who meet accidentally and are dramatically thrown together.
Piet Steyn and Granville St Clair happen both to be out walking at dawn on a country lane when they unintentionally become joint witnesses of a domestic tragedy. There is one aspect of what they see that morning which they feel compelled to keep secret – a decision that will later have appalling repercussions for them both. As the layers of their private lives begin to peel away, they find themselves unwillingly bound together in a conspiracy with deadly consequences.
The Good Wife’s Castle is a tense thriller that explores a clash of human evil and goodness, of despair, murderous obsession and twisted spirituality, all of which co-exist beneath the veneer of seemingly respectable people in a quiet rural community.
‘Contemporary, sinister obsession, dark psychological stuff which I am thoroughly enjoying…he is a talent well worth watching’ – Sarah Broadhurst, The Bookseller
Roland Vernon lives and writes in Somerset. His previous books include a biography of the philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti and two other acclaimed novels, the award-winning A Dark Enchantment and The Maestro’s Voice.
To order your copy of The Good Wife’s Castle today click here
Sometimes the truth is even stranger than fiction….world-famous scientist Richard Dawkins will talk about The Magic of Reality at a series of events this autumn.
In his first book for a family audience, Richard Dawkins, with illustrator Dave McKean, has created a dazzling celebration of our planet. With its explanations of space, time, evolution and more, it will amaze and inspire readers of all ages.
Richard says ‘I want to show you that the real world, as understood scientifically, has a magic of its own – the kind I call poetic magic: an inspiring beauty which is all the more magical because it is real and because we can understand how it works… The magic of reality is – quite simply – wonderful. Wonderful, and real. Wonderful because real.’
Richard will be talking about The Magic of Reality at a series of speaking events throughout the UK (details below). Ticket prices range from free to £30 (which includes a complimentary copy of the book, priced £20).
Thursday 15th September
6.30pm FOYLE’S
113-119 Charing Cross Rd, London WC2H OEB
Event with Dave McKean only
Tickets: Free event, but must reserve online
http://www.foyles.co.uk/Public/Events/Detail.aspx?eventId=1272
Foyles will be running an exhibition of Dave’s artwork in the Gallery for two weeks from 11th – 25th September
Sunday 18th September
10.30am THE INDEPENDENT WOODSTOCK FESTIVAL
Venue: The Orangery, Blenheim Palace , Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1PP
Tickets, £12, includes coffee and cake
Box Office: 01865 305305
http://www.woodstockliteraryfestival.com/
Wednesday 21st September
7.30pm Talk
Venue: THE OCTAGON THEATRE, Hendford, Yeovil, Somerset BA20 1UX
Tickets: £6/£4 for Times+ subscribers, quoting “Times+”
Available from The Octagon Box Office 01935 422884
http://www.octagon-theatre.co.uk/what’s-on.aspx
Wednesday 19th October
8.30pm THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL
Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AP
Organiser: See Tickets
Tel: 020 7087 7749
Tickets: from £30, includes a free copy of The Magic of Reality, price £20
http://www.seetickets.com/Event/RICHARD-DAWKINS/Royal-Albert-Hall/570552/?src=dawkins
Thursday 20th October
7pm THE DURHAM BOOK FESTIVAL
Venue: The Gala Theatre, 1 Millennuim Place, Durham DH1 1WA
Tickets: £12/£10/£4; Family ticket: £20 from
The Gala Theatre Box Office: 0191 332 4041 or
Online: www.galadurham.co.uk
Saturday 22nd October
5-7pm THE CAMBRIDGE FESTIVAL OF IDEAS
Venue: Lady Mitchell Hall, Sidgwick Site, Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge CB3 9DA
Events.tst@heffers.co.uk
Tickets are free but need to be booked via their online booking service – awaiting details
Wednesday 26th October
7pm UNIVERSITY OF EAST ANGLIA LITERARY FESTIVAL
Venue: Lecture Theatre One, University of East Anglia
Tickets: £6 individual tickets, season tickets £42/£36
01603 508050 www.uea.ac.uk/litfest
Friday 28th October
5-6.30pm THE OXFORD PLAYHOUSE
Beaumont St, Oxford OX1 2LW
Tickets: £11; concessions £6
http://www.oxfordplayhouse.com/show/?eventid=1979
Box office: 01865 305305
Thursday 3rd November
8pm TOPPING & CO @ Bath Central Library
19-23 The Podium, Bath BA1 5AN
Tickets: £8 from the shop, by phone or in person on:
Tel: 01225 428111
http://www.toppingbooks.co.uk/events/
BOOK 1: THE SANDALWOOD TREE by Elle Newmark
So many Reading Challengeers began their challenge with Elle Newmark’s The Sandalwood Tree and there have been many fabulous reviews. For a selection see below!
About the book
It is 1947 and Evie and Martin Mitchell have just arrived in the Indian village of Masoorla with their five-year-old son. But cracks soon appear in their marriage as Evie struggles to adapt to her new life and Martin grapples with unbearable wartime memories.
When Evie finds a packet of damaged letters concealed deep in the brickwork of their rented bungalow, she finds herself drawn to another world, a hundred years earlier, and to the extraordinary friendship of two very different young women.
And as Evie’s fascination with her Victorian friends deepens, she unearths powerful secrets. But at what cost to her present, already fragile existence?
What did you think? The News of the World said of this book ‘Elle Newmark tells a powerful tale of romance and mystery’ but did you agree?
Helen Skinner said: ‘Reading The Sandalwood Tree is an excellent way to learn about India’s history and culture and Elle Newmark makes everything easy to understand. But it’s also a great story with a beautiful setting, fascinating plot and complex characters who grow and change over the course of the novel.’
Vilija said: ‘I ended up LOVING this book’
Christy wrote: ‘The themes I got from the blurb appealed to me instantly when I first found this book: India, history, tumultuous love… and it does not disappoint!’
Yvann gave it a 9 out of 10 and said: ‘I adored this. It seemed to be just the right mix of exotic lands, adventure, mystery and family life/romance/interpersonal conflict to tick all my boxes.’
We would’ve of loved to have posted all the reviews but there were too many! Keep an eye out for your review in the upcoming posts.
For more information head over to the Elle Newmark website or join the continuted discussion on What Shall I Read on Facebook.
Next, Book 2: BLACK SWAN RISING by Lee Carroll
by Lynsey on Aug 31, 2011 at 4:40 pm
As August ends so does the chance to take part in our Book Group Reading Challenge. The challenge last until the end of October so don’t worry if you’ve entered already you have plenty of time to read your four books!
To enter now comment on the original article which has details of the books and how to take part. From tomorrow we will be featuring each book and author in a special Between the Lines spotlight, highlighting some of the fabulous reviews we’ve recieved and to spark some lively debates! Over to you…
by Kate on Aug 26, 2011 at 1:11 pm
Local author and forager
ANDY HAMILTON
will launch his latest book
Booze for Free
on Thursday 8th September
at Blackwell
89 Park Street, Bristol BS1 5PW
6:30pm
All are invited
Come along to see a brilliant homebrewing demonstration from Andy
and have the chance to sample a tipple or two.
For more infromation on Andy visit his website: www.selfsufficientish.com
To pre-order your copy of Booze for Free click here
Theo Walcott was at the Arsenal club shop yesterday to sign copies of his new book, Theo: Growing Up Fast. Fans turned out in their hundreds to meet Theo, and he proved his reputation as the nice guy of football by staying until he’d made sure every single person had their copy signed.
Speaking before the signing, Theo explained that writing the book had given him the chance to “revisit the highs and lows” of his career, and that he was glad for the chance to get all his emotions down in writing.
To order your copy of Theo: Growing Up Fast click here
** Contains Spoilers **
Snuff
Terry Pratchett
‘The goblin experience of the world is the cult or perhaps religion of Unggue. In short, it is a remarkably complex resurrection-based religion founded on the sanctity of bodily secretions. Its central tenet runs as follows: everything that is expelled from a goblin’s body was clearly once part of them and should, therefore, be treated with reverence and stored properly so that it can be entombed with its owner in the fullness of time. In the meantime the material is stored in unggue pots, remarkable creations of which I shall speak later.
A moment’s distasteful thought will tell us that this could not be achieved by any creature, unless in possession of great wealth, considerable storage space and compliant neighbours.
Therefore, in reality, most goblins observe the Unggue Had – what one might term the common and lax form of Unggue – which encompasses earwax, finger- and toenail clippings, and snot. Water, generally speaking, is reckoned as not unggue, but something which goes through the body without ever being part of it: they reason that there is no apparent difference in the water before and after, as it were (which sadly shines a light on the freshness of the water they encounter in their underground lairs). Similarly faeces are considered to be food that has merely undergone a change of state. Surprisingly, teeth are of no interest to the goblins, who look on them as a type of fungus, and they appear to attach no importance to hair, of which, it has to be said, they seldom have very much.’
Last week we said our farewells to Tess Gerritsen who travelled up and down the UK for packed events and signings.
Thursday saw her last two events in Liverpool where fans queued down the street to have their copy of The Silent Girl personalised by the queen of the chiller thriller herself. People had come from all corners of the UK bringing gifts, US editions of the Rizzoli & Isles TV series DVD (coming to our screens in September) and even a personalised The Silent Girl UK tour 2011 jumper to be signed.
After exploring the windy Albert Docks in the afternoon Tess finished the day with a packed out evening event at the beautiful independent bookshop Lingham’s in Heswall on the Wirral. With standing room only Tess told the captivated audience about her interest in forensic anthropology and how she takes her ideas from real life news. During the event she revealed to her readers that the character Iris Fang in her latest novel The Silent Girl is based on a real person, Bow Sim Mark. Inspired by news that she read in The Boston Globe, Tess chose to use a non stereotypical Chinese character in her thriller. Bow Sim Mark is in her seventies and a grandmaster in wushu (a form of Chinese martial arts), Iris is little younger at 55 but still a formidable woman. Read more by clicking here.
Fans queue outside Waterstone’s Bold Street in Liverpool
A fan brings a personalised 2011 tour jumper to be signed
A packed crowd at Linghams in Heswall
Having a few minutes before her flight, Tess signed copies at London Heathrow airport
To buy you copy of The Silent Girl click here.
Back by popular demand we have reinstated the Transworld Book Group Reading Challenge! With a new set of completely fabulous titles. Do you love to review books? Do you post reviews on Amazon? Are you an avid blogger? If you answered yes to any of these questions then the Transworld Book Group Reading Challenge is for you! Read the rest of this entry »
