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The Half Life of Valery K
by Natasha PulleyThe truth must come out.In 1963, in a Siberian gulag, former nuclear specialist Valery Kolkhanov has mastered what it takes to survive: the right connections to the guards for access to food and cigarettes, the right pair of warm boots to avoid frostbite, and the right attitude toward the small pleasures of life. But on one ordinary day, all that changes: Valery's university mentor steps in and sweeps Valery from the frozen prison camp to a mysterious unnamed town hidden within a forest so damaged it looks like the trees have rusted from within. Here, Valery is Dr. Kolkhanov once more, and he's expected to serve out his prison term studying the effect of radiation on local animals. But as Valery begins his work, he is struck by the questions his research raises: what, exactly, is being hidden from the thousands who live in the town? And if he keeps looking for answers, will he live to serve out his sentence?Based on real events in a surreal Soviet city, and told with bestselling author Natasha Pulley's inimitable style, The Half Life of Valery K is a sweeping historical adventure.
The Half Life of Valery K
by Natasha PulleyFrom the author of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and The Kingdoms, an epic Cold War novel set in a mysterious town in Soviet Russia. In 1963, in a Siberian prison, former nuclear specialist Valery Kolkhanov has mastered what it takes to survive: the right connections to the guards for access to food and cigarettes, the right pair of warm boots, and the right attitude toward the small pleasures of life so he won't go insane. But one day, all that changes: Valery's university mentor steps in and sweeps him from the frozen camp to a mysterious unnamed city. It houses a set of nuclear reactors, and surrounding it is a forest so damaged it looks like the trees have rusted from within. In City 40, Valery is Dr. Kolkhanov once more, and he's expected to serve out his prison term studying the effect of radiation on local animals. But as Valery begins his work, he is struck by the questions his research raises. Why is there so much radiation in this area? What, exactly, is being hidden from the thousands who live in the town? And if he keeps looking for answers, will he live to serve out his sentence? Based on real events in a surreal Soviet city, and told with bestselling author Natasha Pulley's inimitable style, The Half Life of Valery K is a sweeping new adventure for readers of Stuart Turton and Sarah Gailey.
Half Light: A Novel
by Frances FyfieldElisabeth is a picture restorer. This gives her the solitude and independence she needs - living and working alone in her flat. Despite her skills and reliability, Elizabeth undercharges for her work - valuing the worth of the paintings rather more than herself. Her ambitions are modest: beauty to look upon, unintrusive friendships and complete privacy. But when a mysterious and obviously wealthy man commissions her to restore his fabulous collection, an uncharacteristic combination of curiosity and financial need prompts her to accept his offer. Elisabeth soon realises her error, as the past and the present combine to make privacy her nemesis. As she becomes hostage to her patron, her lover and her friend realise they know nothing about her, or where she might be.
Half Lost (Half Bad #3)
by Sally GreenThe third and final instalment in the breathtaking Half Bad series by Sally Green.Nathan Byrn is running again. The Alliance of Free Witches has been all but destroyed. Scattered and demoralized, constantly pursued by the Council's Hunters, only a bold new strategy can save the rebels from total defeat. They need the missing half of Gabriel's amulet - an ancient artifact with the power to render its bearer invincible in battle.But the amulet's guardian - the reclusive and awesomely powerful witch Ledger - has her own agenda. To win her trust, Nathan must travel to America and persuade her to give him the amulet. Combined with his own Gifts, the amulet might just be enough turn the tide for the Alliance and end the bloody civil war between Black and White witches once and for all...
The Half-Made World (The\half-made World Ser. #1)
by Felix GilmanThe world is still only half-made. Between the wild shores of uncreation, and the ancient lands of the East lies the vast expanse of the West---young, chaotic, magnificent, war-torn.Thirty years ago, the Red Republic fought to remake the West---fought gloriously, and failed. The world that now exists has been carved out amid a war between two rival factions: the Line, enslaving the world with industry, and the Gun, a cult of terror and violence. The Republic is now history, and the last of its generals sits forgotten and nameless in a madhouse on the edge of creation. But locked in his memories is a secret that could change the West forever, and the world’s warring powers would do anything to take it from him.Now Liv Alverhuysen, a doctor of the new science of psychology, travels west, hoping to heal the general’s shattered mind. John Creedmoor, reluctant Agent of the Gun and would-be gentleman of leisure, travels west, too, looking to steal the secret or die trying. And the servants of the Line are on the march.
The Half-Mammals of Dixie
by George SingletonGeorge Singleton, who's had many stories published in the best literary journals, has recently burst into the big time with appearances in Playboy, Zoetrope, The Atlantic Monthly, Harper's Magazine and Book. The stories in his new collection are wild and wooly - or maybe we should say wild and half-wooly. In any case, they're definitely not for the creationist crowd or for the laughter impaired. For example: - A self-described "primitive artist," getting rich off religious canvases, is mistaken for a faith healer. - A lovelorn dad woos his third grader's teacher with very special show-and-tells, including long lost love letters to Shakespeare from Anne Hathaway, to Fred Astaire from Ginger Rogers, and to Henry VIII from all of his wives. - A boy's reputation is ruined forever when he accepts the starring role in a documentary on diagnosing head lice. Off-the-wall. But also utterly believable and written with tremendous affection for the people and their place-a place called Forty-Five, part of the contemporary South that's far removed from big city Atlanta or proper Charleston and, in fact, much like Singleton's own hometown of Dacusville, South Carolina. As he says of his characters, "They're regular people just trying to get by. Most of them aren't jaded by everyday life, though perhaps they should have been long ago. There are some with physical and mental limitations, but I hope all of them have heart." They do indeed, just like their stories.
The Half Moon: A deeply moving story about love, marriage and forgiveness from the New York Times bestselling author
by Mary Beth KeaneThe story about a marriage in crisis that you will not be able to put down from the New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes‘A fearless writer’Lisa Taddeo‘Compelling, touching, exquisitely crafted . . . I adored this story’Liane Moriarty'Keane writes to the heart of the human heart. I could not put this book down'Miranda Cowley-Heller, author of The Paper Palace‘A writer of extraordinary depth, feeling and wit’Meg Wolitzer, author of The Female Persuasion‘Luminous . . . She manages to find the extraordinary grace in our achingly ordinary world'New York Times'I fell in love with The Half Moon from the first page, and barely looked up until I'd finished.'Sara Collins‘Such a delicate story about the real heartbreaks of life’Claire Daverley, author of Talking at Night‘One of our finest writers on the interior complexities of marriage and family. I ran my finger over sentences while reading, thinking: Yes, exactly.’Ann Napolitano, author of Hello BeautifulThere are two sides to every story - and every marriage in crisis. . .Malcolm is a bartender at the Half Moon in Upstate New York. He has always dreamed of owning a bar, and so when his boss finally retires, he seizes his chance, despite his wife's protests.Jess has devoted herself to her law career. After years of trying for a baby, she's struggling to accept the idea that motherhood might not be in her future. She finds herself slipping away from both her career and her marriage.When a blizzard hits on the same day that Malcolm learns some shocking news about Jess, and a regular at the bar goes missing, everyone is frozen in place for a single, pivotal week, forcing Malcolm and Jess to confront their uncertain future.A beautiful, unforgettable story of love and second chances, for fans of The Paper Palace, Hello Beautiful and Tom Lake.
Half Moon Investigations
by Eoin ColferMeet Fletcher Moon. Half-pint schoolboy and fully qualified private investigator. Since graduating online, he has solved all sorts of minor mysteries at school and at home. It was only a matter of time before things got serious. When Fletcher investigates a spate of crimes in the town of Lock, the finger of suspicion is soon pointing in the direction of shady brothers Herod and Red Sharkey.
Half Moon Street: A thrilling novel of murder, scandal and intrigue (Thomas Pitt Mystery #20)
by Anne PerryA case reeking of scandal before the body is even cold... Half Moon Street is the twentieth crime novel in the bestselling Thomas Pitt mystery series, by the master storyteller of Victorian society, Anne Perry. Perfect for fans of C. J. Sansom and Sarah Perry.'A splendidly plotted yarn' - Publishers Weekly For Superintendent Thomas Pitt, the sight of the dead man riding the morning tide of the Thames is unforgettable. He lies in a battered punt drifting through the morning mist, his arms and legs chained to the boat's sides. He is clad in a torn green gown and flowers bestrew his battered body.Pitt's determined search for answers to the victim's identity leads him deep into London's bohemia - to the theatre where beautiful Cecily Antrim is outraging society with her bold portrayal of a modern woman - and into studios where masters of light and shadow are experimenting with the fascinating new art of photography. But only Pitt's most relentless pursuit enables him to identify the wildfire passions raging through this tragedy of good and evil, to hunt down the guilty and protect the innocent. What readers are saying about Half Moon Street: 'I found the plot suspenseful and fascinating''Half Moon Street is cleverly plotted and comes to a satisfying and surprising conclusion''Five stars'
Half of a Yellow Sun
by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieTHE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION ‘WINNER OF WINNERS’ ‘A literary masterpiece’ DAILY MAIL ‘An immense achievement’ OBSERVER ‘A gorgeous, pitiless account of love, violence and betrayal’ TIME
Half of a Yellow Sun, Americanah, Purple Hibiscus: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Three-Book Collection
by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieSHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILEY’S WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION ‘A delicious, important novel’ The Times ‘Alert, alive and gripping’ Independent ‘Some novels tell a great story and others make you change the way you look at the world. Americanah does both.’ Guardian
Half of Paradise
by James Lee BurkeA mesmerising novel set in the Louisiana heartland from award-winning author James Lee Burke.Toussaint Boudreaux, a black docker in New Orleans, puts up with his co-workers' racism because he has to, and moonlights as a prize-fighter in the hope of a better life - but the only break he gets lands him in penal servitude. J.P. Winfield, a hick with a gift for twelve-string guitar, finds his break into showbiz leads to the flipside of the American dream. Avery Broussard, descendant of an aristocratic French family, runs whiskey after what remains of his land is repossessed...The interlocking stories of these three men are an elegy to the realities of life in 1950s Louisiana, their destinies fixed by the circumstances of their birth and time. Yet each carries the hope of redemption.
Half of the Human Race
by Anthony QuinnSummer of 1911. English society is on the brink of change. The streets of London ring with cheers for a new king's coronation and the cries of increasingly violent suffragette protests. Connie Callaway, fired up by the possibilities of independence, wants more than the conventional comforts of marriage. Spirited and courageous, she is determined to fight for 'the greatest cause the world has ever known'.Will Maitland, the rising star of county cricket, is a man of traditional opinions. He is both intrigued and appalled by Connie's outspokenness and her quest for self-fulfilment. Their lives become inextricably entangled just as the outbreak of war drives them further apart. Buffeted and spun by choice and chance, Connie and Will struggle against the aftershocks of war and the changes it wreaks. This is a deeply affecting story of love against all the odds.
Half of What I Say
by Anil Menon Himanjali SankarConflicted over his sinister duties with the Lokshakti, Vyas writes a confessional love-letter to his wife. But how did the letter end up with the scholar-politician, Durga Dhasal? And when the Lokshakti murders Dhasal, Vyas has to find the incriminating letter before it's too late. The trail leads Vyas to various people, including: the passionate scientist torn between exit and loyalty; the businessman who collects ruins; the beguiling actress who was once Shahzadi Jahanara; the eunuch poet fond of Jewish jokes. It leads him to a powerful, subversive new myth. The lost letter leads Vyas to himself.
Half Of A Yellow Sun (PDF)
by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieWINNER OF THE BAILEYS PRIZE BEST OF THE BEST Winner of the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction 2007, this is a heartbreaking, exquisitely written literary masterpiece Ugwu, a boy from a poor village, works as a houseboy for a university professor. Olanna, a young woman, has abandoned her life of privilege in Lagos to live with her charismatic new lover, the professor. And Richard, a shy English writer, is in thrall to Olanna's enigmatic twin sister. As the horrific Biafran War engulfs them, they are thrown together and pulled apart in ways they had never imagined. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's masterpiece, winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction, is a novel about Africa in a wider sense: about the end of colonialism, ethnic allegiances, class and race - and about the ways in which love can complicate all of these things.
Half-Off Ragnarok: An Incryptid Novel (Incryptid Ser. #3)
by Seanan McGuireWhen Alex Price agreed to go to Ohio to oversee a basilisk breeding program and assist in the recovery of his psychic cousin, he didn't expect people to start dropping dead. But bodies are cropping up at the zoo where he works, and his girlfriend--Shelby Tanner, an Australian zoologist with a fondness for big cats--is starting to get suspicious.Worse yet, the bodies have all been turned partially to stone...The third book in the InCryptid series takes us to a new location and a new member of the family, as Alex tries to balance life, work, and the strong desire not to become a piece of garden statuary. Old friends and new are on the scene, and danger lurks around every corner.Of course, so do the talking mice.
Half Past Human (S.F. MASTERWORKS)
by T. J. BassA novel of dystopian future in the tradition of SOYLENT GREEN and H.G. Wells' THE TIME MACHINE, with an introduction by Ken MacLeodTinker was a good citizen of the Hive - a model worker. But when he was allowed sexual activation he found Mu Ren who, like him, harboured forbidden genes. And so began the cataclysm.But in a world where half-wild humans are hunted for sport - and food - can anyone overthrow the Hive? Greater by far than its stunted, pink-blooded citizens, the Hive is more than prepared to rise and crush anyone who challenges its supremacy ...
Half-Past Tomorrow
by Chris McGeorgeShirley Steadman, a 70 year old living in a small town in the North East of England, loves her volunteer work at the local hospital radio. She likes giving back to the community, and even more so, she likes getting out of the house. Haunted by the presence of her son, a reluctant Royal Navy officer who was lost at sea, and still in the shadow of her long dead abusive husband, she doesn't like being alone much.One day, at the radio station, she is playing around with the equipment and finds a frequency that was never there before. It is a pirate radio station, and as she listens as the presenter starts reading the news. But there is one problem - the news being reported is tomorrows. Shirley first thinks it is a mere misunderstanding - a wrong date. But she watches as everything reported comes true. At first, Shirley is in awe of the station, and happily tunes in to hear the news. But then the presenter starts reporting murders - murders that happen just the way they were reported. And Shirley is the only one who can stop them.
Half Seven on a Thursday
by Roisin Meaney'A novelist who has a gift for conveying the charm of the ordinary' Irish Independent on Number One bestselling author Roisin MeaneyAs opening night nears for a local amateur production, the cast begin to realise that the real drama is taking place off-stage -- and in life there's no such thing as a dress rehearsal ...When Edward Bull agreed to direct the amateur production of Death by Dying, he thought it would take his mind off his wife's recent affair. He was soon to discover, however, that all the real drama was taking place off-stage ... Maria, trapped in a loveless marriage to an older man, makes an appalling discovery. If pushed, she knows she will do whatever it takes to protect her vulnerable son, Pat. But will she find the strength to do the one thing that would save them both? Her sister Ellen, scarred after a tragic motorbike accident, seeks comfort where she can find it. Will she finally come to terms with what happened . . . and, perhaps, open her heart to love again? Handsome, charming Robert glides through life. When Caroline threatens to take his sons away from him, however, he realises that everything he ever wanted was right under his nose. But is it too late? As the weeks pass, the cast members of Death by Dying are brought together and their lives intertwine. And, as opening night draws near, they learn that in life there's no such thing as a dress rehearsal.
Half-Sick Of Shadows
by David LoganOn the eve of Granny Hazel’s burial in the back garden, a stranger in his time machine – a machine that bears an uncanny resemblance to a Morris Minor – visits five year-old Edward with a strange request. And Edward agrees to be his friend. But Edward is not alone in the world. His twin sister Sophia is about to bring future tragedy upon herself through an all-too-literal misunderstanding of a promise she’s made to their father. So while Sophia stays at home, seemingly condemned to spend the rest of her days in The Manse – a world untouched by modern trappings – Edward is sent to boarding school. There he encounters the kind and the not-so-kind, and meets the strangest child. His name is Alf, and Alf is a boy whose very existence would seem to hint at universes of unlimited possibilities...and who might one day help Edward liberate Sophia.With its Gothic backdrop, Half-Sick of Shadows is a novel of many parts: at once a comical tragedy, a dark and dazzlingly told tale of childhood wonder and dismay, of familial dysfunction, of poetry, the imagination and theoretical physics.
The Half Sister
by Catherine ChanterWhen she was sixteen, Diana left her unhappy family and set out to make a new life. Twenty-five years later, she has arrived. Recently married to Edmund, she lives with him at his family’s historic country home. But when Diana hears that her mother has died, she impulsively asks estranged half-sister Valerie and her nine-year-old son to stay. The night of the funeral, fueled by wine and years of resentment, the sisters argue and a terrible accident occurs. The foundations of a well-ordered life start to crack and the lies begin to surface, one dangerous secret after another. And then there’s the boy, watching, waiting. The Half Sister is a profound and haunting portrayal of those who are imprisoned by their past and by the struggle to find the words which will release them.
The Half Sister
by Sandie JonesThe Half Sister is the compelling, twisty novel from Sandie Jones, the author of The Other Woman, perfect for fans of Sally Hepworth’s The Mother-in-Law and Michelle Frances’ The Daughter.Her arrival will ruin everythingKate and Lauren. Sisters who are always there for each other. But as they gather for their weekly Sunday lunch, a knock on the door changes everything.The new arrival, Jess, claims to be their half-sister, but that would mean the unthinkable . . . That she’s the secret daughter of their beloved, recently deceased father Harry. Their mother Rose is devastated and Kate and Lauren refuse to believe Jess’s lies. But as the fall-out starts it’s clear that each is hiding secrets and that perhaps this family isn’t as perfect as they appear.Where there was truth, now there are lies and only one thing is certain, their half-sister’s arrival has ruined everything . . .
Half Swimmer
by Katja OskampHalf Swimmer. Noun. A German term for one who has recently learnt to swim but hasn't yet mastered the technique. Growing up in 1980s East Germany, as the daughter of an army officer and a teacher, Tanja seems set to become a model citizen of the German Democratic Republic. Except she has other ideas. And so, it turns out, does the course of history. Half Swimmer is a collection of stories from one life, following a young girl as she attempts to forge her own identity under the social pressures of both the GDR, and the capitalism of a unified Germany.
Half the World: Half A King, Half The World, Half A War (Shattered Sea #2)
by Joe Abercrombie‘Grabbed me and refused to let go’ George R.R. Martin