From Ned Beauman, author of the award-winning Boxer, Beetle comes the Man Booker-longlisted The Teleportation Accident. When you're living in 1930s Germany & contending with the rise of the Third Reich, not having sex probably isn't something to be particularly concerned by. Unless you're Egon Loeser, whose lack of luck in the bedroom encourages him to experiment in Parisian absinthe bars & experiential theatres in Berlin. While satisfying his carnal desires, Egon wonders why a charming, handsome & modest chap like himself cannot get laid. But there's a bigger mystery to solve, too
- did a deal with Satan result in the death of his friend, the great Renaissance stage designer Adriano Lavinci? This inventive work of comic fiction spans history, romance & science fiction, managing to cover sex, violence, space & time
- & some not-so-successful ways of dealing with history. Add this to your cart today!

...

In the picturesque Spanish village of Guzman, villagers have gathered for centuries in 'the telling room' to share their stories. It was here, in the summer of 2000, that Michael Paterniti listened as Ambrosio Molinos de las Heras spun an odd & compelling tale about a cheese made from an ancient family recipe. Reputed to be among the finest in the world
- one bite could conjure long-lost memories. But then, Ambrosio said, things had gone horribly wrong... Paterniti was hooked. Relocating his young family to Guzman, he is soon sucked into the heart of an unfolding mystery, a blood feud that

Includes:: accusations of betrayal & theft, death threats, & a murder plot. As the village begins to spill its long-held secrets, Paterniti finds himself implicated in the very story he is writing. The Telling Room is as surprising, evocative & wildly entertaining as the world it portrays.


...

In the medieval Castilian village of Guzman (population: 80), villagers have gathered for centuries in the `telling room` to share stories & drink the local wine. It was here, in the summer of 2000, that Michael Paterniti found himself listening to a compelling tale about a cheese made from an ancient family recipe that was reputed to be among the finest in the world. Until, Ambrosio said, things had gone horribly wrong. Hooked on the story, Paterniti relocated his young family to the tiny hilltop village to find out more. But like many Spanish villages, Guzman was rife with gossip & old feuds, secret alliances & plotted vengeance & before long Paterniti was sucked into the heart of an unfolding mystery. When he learned that the cheesemaker had apparently plotted to murder his closest friend, the village began to spill its long-held secrets, & Paterniti found himself implicated in ways he never expected... ...

THE SUNDAY TIMES & NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThe Knights Templar were the wealthiest, most powerful
- & most secretive
- of

...

Sifting myth from history, Piers Paul Read reveals the Templars ` the multinational force of warrior monks, in their white tunics with red crosses over chainmail. They were not only unique among Christian institutions but constituted the first uniformed standing army in the western world & became pioneers of international banking. Expropriated by Philip IV of France in 1307, & confessing under torture to blasphemy, heresy & sodomy, the Order was finally suppressed by Pope Clement V in 1312. In a narrative that incorporates the story of the crusades & the many colourful characters who had links with the Templars, Piers Paul Read examines the question of their guilt & identifies their relevance to our own times. `A highly readable & nicely paced book that draws on the lessons of modern historical scholarship while also communicating a sense of narrative excitement & drive` ` Evocative, measured & engaging` Evening Standard ` Magnificent in every way` Mail on Sunday ...

Honda, a brilliant lawyer & man of reason, is called to Bangkok on legal business, where he is granted an audience with a young Thai princess
- an encounter that radically alters the course of his life. He is convinced she is a reincarnated spirit, & undertakes a long, arduous pilgrimage to the holy places of India, where, in the climatic scene, he encounters her once more, only to have his newfound beliefs shattered & his life bereft of all meaning.
...

Because of the boyhood trauma of seeing his mother make love to another man in the presence of his dying father, Mizoguchi becomes a hopeless stutterer. Taunted by his schoolmates, he feels utterly alone untill he becomes an acolyte at a famous temple in Kyoto, where he develops an all-consuming obsession with the temple`s beauty. This powerful story of dedication & sacrifice brings together Mishima`s preoccupations with violence, desire, religion & national history to dazzling effect. ...

Jack Mc Nulty is a `temporary gentleman`, an Irishman whose commission in the British army in the Second World War was never permanent. In 1957, sitting in his lodgings in Accra, he urgently sets out to write his story. He feels he cannot take one step further, or even hardly a breath, without looking back at all that has befallen him. He is an ordinary man, both petty & heroic, but he has seen extraordinary things. He has worked & wandered around the world
- as a soldier, an engineer, a UN observer
- trying to follow his childhood ambition to better himself. & he has had a strange & tumultuous marriage. Mai Kirwan was a great beauty of Sligo in the 1920s, a vivid mind, but an elusive & mysterious figure too. Jack married her, & shared his life with her, but in time she slipped from his grasp. A heart-breaking portrait of one man`s life
- of his demons & his lost love
- The Temporary Gentleman is, ultimately, a novel about Jack`s last bid for freedom, from the savage realities of the past & from himself.



...

When important information is leaked from inside the Venetian Questura, Commissario Guido Brunetti is entrusted with the task of uncovering which of his colleagues is responsible. But before Brunetti can begin his investigation, he is surprised by the appearance in his office of a friend of his wife`s, who is fearful that her son is using drugs. A few weeks later, Tullio Gasparini, the woman`s husb&, is found unconscious with a serious head injury at the foot of a bridge, & Brunetti is drawn to pursue a possible connection to the boy`s behaviour. But the truth is not straightforward. Following various contradictory leads, Brunetti navigates his way through a world of mysterious informants, underground deals & secret longstanding scam networks, all the while growing ever more impressed by the intuition of his fellow Commissario, Claudia Griffoni, & by the endless resourcefulness of Signorina Elettra, Vice-Questore Patta`s secretary & gate-keeper. With Gasparini`s condition showing no signs of improvement, & his investigations leading nowhere, Brunetti is steadied by the embrace of his own family & by his passion for the classics. He turns to Sophocles`s Antigone in an attempt to understand the true purpose of justice, &, in its light, he is forced to consider the terrible consequences to which the actions of a tender heart can lead. ...

Important information is leaking from inside the Venetian Questura, & Commissario Guido Brunetti is tasked with uncovering the culprit. But before Brunetti can begin his investigation, a friend of his wife’s comes asking for his help, fearful that her son is using drugs. A few weeks later, the woman’s husband is found unconscious at the foot of a bridge. Following various contradictory leads, Brunetti navigates his way through Venice`s underworld in an attempt to understand who is responsible for the vicious attack. But as he gets closer to discovering what happened, Brunetti is faced with a difficult truth: sometimes, it’s the best intentions that lead to the darkest of consequences... ...