pre ordered

Helena Scheuberin should be doing what every other young wife is keeping house, supporting her husband, bearing his children. But when her husband's footman, Leopold, with whom she was having an affair, is found dead, Helena is accused of killing him. Worse, she is accused of being a witch. Imprisoned with six other women, Helena is plunged from her bejewelled life of comfort into a world of terror. When a cursed witch totem is smuggled into the prison, the prisoners attempt to use it to conjure escape. But the totem is the severed hand of a murdered woman, and when a ghost appears to possess each of the prisoners, Helena realises her life is in danger both inside and outside the dungeon. Does Helena risk her life and the lives of others by standing up to a man determined to paint her as the most wicked of all? Or is the world beyond this one the real threat? Based on a real-life event, this historical horror offers a jewel-bright portrait of female power in the thick of wide-spread female disempowerment, a thrilling addition to the canon of witcherature and silenced voices from the past.

For fans of Michelle Paver and Sarah Waters, the first in a haunting quartet of ghost stories set in the wilds of Scotland. 'I was so impressed' MICHELLE PAVER, author of Dark Matter 'Reminded me of The Little Stranger . . . a hugely entertaining and evocative treat' BRIDGET COLLINS, author of The Binding 'A new classic' SARA SHERIDAN, author of The Fair Botanists Caithness, October 1871. The Ordnance Survey are charting Scotland's most remote north-easterly county, a bleak landscape of endless moorland and lonely crofts. When a strange vision leads cartographer Robert Sutherland out onto the moor, an accident leaves him inches from death. He is taken to Leask House, to recuperate under the care of Mrs Sinclair and her beautiful daughter Isabel. At first, Robert thinks the dreadful visions that plague him at Leask House are the result of the laudanum he has been prescribed. But as events take ever stranger and more terrifying turns, Robert begins to wonder whether his presence at Leask House is really a coincidence at all. Someone - or something - has summoned him here. And they don't intend for him to leave.

WHAT IS YOUR ONE TRUE WISH? Satomi is torn between her career in Tokyo and her relationship with her country-loving boyfriend, who plans to propose on Christmas Day. Meanwhile, Koyuki, Satomi's lowly intern, has been playing the role of the good girl, pretending to love her stepfather ever since her real father passed away last Christmas. Satomi's sister-in-law, Junko, who lives in a small town with her husband and their toddler, Ayu, has a strained relationship with her abusive father who she hasn't seen since university. Her brother also left home after a particularly big fight. When their father becomes ill, both siblings return home - and discover something they never knew about him. What are they truly wishing for? In Best Wishes from The Full Moon Coffee Shop the characters confront their past and present struggles while trying to find happiness and contentment in their lives.

After the sudden death of her boyfriend, Vera would have been happy to spend the rest of her days curiously unnoticeable, washing bed sheets and cleaning toilets in present day Glastonbury. But when the strange new guest at her hotel reveals himself to be Merlin and drags her back to seventh century Camelot, a place she knows only from legends, only Vera (or Queen Guinevere as Merlin calls her) can right the course of history and save Arthur’s kingdom from the will of a power-hungry mage. There’s one enormous problem: Guinevere was the sole witness to the curse that’s now draining the kingdom of its magic, and Vera doesn’t remember anything of her supposed life as Queen Guinevere. With Camelot’s peace ebbing ever closer to shattering, the clock is ticking. But working with Merlin’s magic to retrieve her long-lost memories and save the kingdom brings more questions than answers: why is it that King Arthur, who treats his subjects with loving benevolence, can’t even stand to look at her? And why does that make Vera’s soul feel like it’s splitting in two? What robbed her of her memories in the first place... And most importantly... Why? As Vera is about to discover; in a world of legend and power, the secrets of her memories are only the beginning.

Perfect for lovers of The Midnight Library and Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, this is an unforgettable novel about the power of books – and a mysterious bookshop that gives you the chance to rewrite your story… If you could relive the past with the time you have left – what would you choose? Jiwon’s life has been slowly disintegrating since her mum died. Until one day, caught in a downpour, Jiwon comes across a mysterious bookstore. Uneasy, she turns to leave when a voice calls ‘If you open that door—You can leave, but you can never come back here.’ The Memory Bookshop stores all of one’s memories within an infinite number of books and appears to those who are looking for a reason to live. Its manager, 'K', offers visitors the chance to travel back three times, in exchange for part of their futures. Browsing the shelves, Jiwon must choose whether to revisit three chapters of her life. But will changing the past really rewrite her future? Only The Memory Bookshop has the answers – and it’ll teach Jiwon about what it really means to live…

An allegorical fable of love, sacrifice and selfishness. As with all of Wilde's short stories it embodies strong moral values and is told with an effervescence akin to that of the 1001 nights. It is the tale of a lovestruck student who must provide his lover with a red rose in order to win her heart. A nightingale overhearing his lament from a solitary oak tree is filled with sorrow and admiration all at once, and decides to help the poor young man. She journeys through the night seeking the perfect red rose and finally comes across a rambling rose bush but alas, the bush has no roses to offer her. However, there is a way to MAKE a red rose, but with grave consequences. This story can be found freely on many websites: http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-sto... http://www.literaturepage.com/read/th... http://www.oscarwildecollection.com/

Edie O’Sullivan ha smesso di odiare il Natale ma non di risolvere enigmi e omicidi. È il periodo più pericoloso dell’anno... Edie O’Sullivan è pronta a godersi una vacanza di tre giorni in un hotel su una remota isola scozzese e non vede l’ora di trascorrere un Natale da cartolina, ricco di passeggiate invernali, camini accesi con fuochi scoppiettanti, ottimi libri e whisky ancora migliore. Ma quando un ospite muore in circostanze misteriose, Edie capisce che il killer si nasconde tra i clienti dell’hotel. E l’incubo è appena cominciato. Con il mistero che si infittisce e la tensione alle stelle, per fermare la scia di omicidi Edie dovrà risolvere i complicati enigmi trovati nei cracker di Natale – i tradizionali piccoli gadget delle feste – che a quanto pare l’assassino ha confezionato per ciascuna delle vittime. Ma avvicinandosi alla verità, si avvicina anche pericolosamente a un killer astuto e ingegnoso. Edie riuscirà a risolvere questi delitti natalizi prima di diventare lei stessa la prossima vittima?

Once upon a time, the enchanting creature that is the cat infiltrated our lives – and our folklore. Cats have a long association with the supernatural – from being worshipped as gods in ancient Egypt to vilified as witches' familiars in Europe – and they appear in countless fairy tales throughout history. Every part of the world has its own stories, whether it's 'Dick Whittington and His Cat' in England; the Irish 'Demon Cat'; Japan's 'The Boy Who Drew Cats'; or the Icelandic story of 'The Cottager and His Cat'. These felines might appear as companions, guides or demons; they are contrary, malevolent, enigmatic; they are both friends and foes, beloved and reviled. But whether winning kingdoms, falling in love, or outwitting giants, they are all the epitome of what we know the cat to mysterious, roguish and endlessly lovable. The Cat's Tales is a beautifully illustrated collection of fairy tales from around the world, bringing together much-loved classics and more unfamiliar gems – the perfect companion for cat lovers everywhere.