The Literary Lounge

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In the final pages of The Reacher Guy, Heather Martin’s expansive biography of Lee Child, she includes a ‘final rumination’ from the mega author, in his words a ‘kind of epitaph’: ‘People ask, am I happy now I have retired? The truth is, I retired because now I’m happy. The times I grew up in, … Continue readings

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    My grandmother, a wise woman and some would say witch, used to say, treat the plants with the most beautiful flowers with respect and care, as they hide the best and worst of secrets. Of course, as a child, I ignored her – to my detriment, in fact, when I stupidly consumed a … Continue readings

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    We’ve great fans of Karen Sullivan’s Orenda list, partly because of the inclusion of so many very fine books published in translation.We first came across the writing of acclaimed French-Canadian author Roxanne Bouchard in 2018, when Orenda published the lyrical We Were the Salt of the Sea in English. We adored it. It’s … Continue readings

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  When I was asked if I wanted to review The Archers: Ambridge at War, penned by novelist Catherine Miller, it was a no-brainer. Like so many, growing up, Sunday mornings were given over to listening to The Archers’ omnibus on Radio 4. As soon as the iconic music came on, everyone would fall silent: … Continue readings

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    There’s a great sense of nostalgia and loss pervading Tara Gould’s short story, The Haunting of Strawberry Water, published by Myriad Editions as a small format paperback. Paying more than a nod to the Gothic tradition, from the very first words, we are made aware of the narrator’s longing for the mother she … Continue readings

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The return of the native, Erin Kinsley’s Found

  Erin Kinsley’s Found centres on every parent’s nightmare, the abduction of an eleven-year-old boy from a bus stop on his way back home from school. The book details the devastating impact on Evan’s immediate family and the best friend who had just been with him and the reality of an over-subscribed police force, crying … Continue readings

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Phoebe Locke’s summer success The July Girls

  We’re great lovers of reading books with strong locations. London has particular resonance for us as it’s our home, and so we probably would have liked Phoebe Locke’s The July Girls for its setting alone. The city informs the book, the locations – Brixton, north London or elsewhere – used to frame the plot. … Continue readings

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    We’re utterly delighted to welcome wonderful Welsh–Canadian romantic-historical fiction writer Mary Balogh to The Literary Lounge. Described as the ‘superstar heir’ to the legacy of late, great Georgette Heyer, Mary is the recipient of numerous awards and has graced the New York Times bestseller list thirty-six times in her career thus far. Her … Continue readings

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