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The best-ever selling novel from the former Yugoslavia, this is a hilarious, anarchic, irreverent black comedy about national aspirations and wanting things you can't have, re-published in the year that Scotland votes on independence. Egon is

It started with a letter... Carol is married to a man she doesn't love and mother to a daughter she doesn't understand. Crippled with guilt, she can't shake the feeling that she has wasted her life. So she puts pen to paper and writes a Letter to the Universe. Albert is a widowed postman, approaching retirement age, and living with his cat, Gloria, for company. Slowly being pushed out at his place of work, he is forced down to the section of the post office where they sort undeliverable mail. When a series of letters turns up with a smiley face drawn in place of an address, he cannot help.

Starter If twenty-six-year-old Hannah Sugarman had her way, she'd be whipping up carrot cakes and running her culinary empire. Instead, she spends her hours cooking up papers on the financial crisis. It doesn't help that no one in her life ta

While Watson has been busy ministering the sick during the war, Holmes has been immersed in a top-secret case. Watson is instructed to take care of the seriously ill Chancellor, Prince Max, who has the potential to overrule General Ludendorff and bring about peace. Yet with Prince Max's condition worsening and so little time, Watson and Holmes must work on decoding the President of the United States letter which contains information and instructions that are essential to restore peace.

When I was first asked to contribute to Exotic Gothic 3 (which was to feature Gothic-influenced stories in non-Gothic environments), I agreed without really thinking about it,'Unsworth explains,'and then spent a long time struggling, trying to work out how, precisely, I was going to manage it or quite how to make a start.'I knew what I wanted to do, sort of, but not exactly how to do it, so one day alarmingly close to the deadline I did a fun thing: I freewheeled through Google. Using a small document about Zambian myths and cultures I found online (I set the story in Zambia for no reason other than an old family friend lives there and it seemed exotic in Gothic terms), I used one Zambian word from it as a search term and read what came up, took one intriguing Zambian term from the search results and searched for that, etc, and disappeared into Google's merry depths.'I ended up with an academic paper about a particular myth, a travel blog about a sort of beer made from corn and a weird little'my God's better than your God'blog by a kid in Africa, and somewhere in the middle of that, the story appeared.

THE WOODS - Michael Kelly Michael Kelly reveals'The Woods'was written for an anthology seeking regional horror and ghost stories. I'd just read Hemingway's'Hills Like White Elephant's'. Now, in no way am I comparing myself to Hemingway but I wanted to write a similarly brief tale, with only two main characters, and where the horror was off-stage. As well, the setting had to be distinctly Canadian. What, I thought, could be more Canadian than the frozen north and allusions to mythical beasts?'MAMI WATA - Simon Kurt Unsworth Unsworth reveals,'When I was first asked to contribute to Exotic Gothic 3 (which was to feature Gothic-influenced stories in non-Gothic environments), I agreed without really thinking about it, and then spent a long time struggling, trying to work out how, precisely, I was going to manage it or quite how to make a start.'I knew what I wanted to do, sort of, but not exactly how to do it, so one day alarmingly close to the deadline I did a fun thing: I freewheeled through Google. Using a small document about Zambian myths and cultures I found online (I set the story in Zambia for no reason other than an old family friend lives there and it seemed exotic in Gothic terms), I used one Zambian word from it as a search term and read what came up, took one intriguing Zambian term from the search results and searched for that, etc, and disappeared into Google's merry depths.'I ended up with an academic paper about a particular myth, a travel blog about a sort of beer made from corn and a weird little'my God's better than your God'blog by a kid in Africa, and somewhere in the middle of that, the story appeared.'THE AXHOLME TOLL - Mark Valentine'In the following story, the book called The MS. in a Red Box really exists,'the author reveals.'All of the legends about the Isle, and about Beckett's assassins, are also genuine, except (so far) that of the Toll, and their final place of rest - or unrest.'TWO STEPS ALONG THE ROAD - Terry Dowling'Two Steps Along the Road'came out of a conversation with US editor Danel Olson,'Dowling explains,'where we discussed me doing a ghost story set in Vietnam for Exotic Gothic 3, and the interesting possibilities it might provide for delivering atmosphere and an interesting perspective on familiar things.'Before I knew it, I was blending two separate elements that were demanding attention: the notion of a root-form behind all hauntings, regardless of what form they took, and the unnerving realization that the eyes of a quite attractive teaching colleague would be truly terrifying to behold if they were set just a tad closer together.'The ideas were intended for very different stories but, as so often happens, they decided they were meant for each other.'

Gossip and rumours begin to circulate in the press concerning Sir Andrew Lewis and the Addleton Barrow. Some claim that the Addleton Barrow has been the subject of evil legends as long as anyone can recall; other sources declare that after Sir Lewis opened the barrow in the village of Addleton, a disease struck the village. Sir Andrew Lewis is a victim of lesions of the skin, headaches, fainting spells, hair loss and eventually his mind is affected, too. Doctors Stamford and Greedom state his condition as an unknown, obscure, tropical disease picked up during his work abroad, and neither doctor is able to save the famous archaeologist from death. Holmes and Watson set out to get to the bottom of the rumours that swirl around this village and it's Black Barrow.

Two blank sheets of writing paper sealed in an envelope with a postmark from Baskerville are brought to Holmes by London publisher Garrison Bolt. The addressee is Newman Musgrave. Together they must investigate why this letter, which contains a hidden secret, was sent with such urgency to a man, who unbeknown to the sender has been dead for number of years. Or is it possible that this note was never intended for the deceased man, but rather deliberately intended to fall into Holmes's hands?

ROLE-PLAY REVERSAL By Chris Westlake Emily has joined the amateur dramatics where she plays the sort of rich spoilt housewife that every milkman longs to meet on his round. The tables are turned when Deana, the sassy ebony minx who plays her meek maid in the play, turns out to be a dominatrix with her own set of handcuffs! When Emily is licked out on stage, it seems that there could be a third role in this production. HOLY MATRIMONY By Chloe Ramsay Chloe's invited to a wedding where she doesn't really know anyone... boring - until she sees Heather in the receiving line! The chemistry is instant. The need is instant. The wedding breakfast was anything but - two minds, two needs across the hall. A slip of paper passed to her.'Room 218'. The need accelerates as she makes her way to her room. Then... crash. A meeting of minds and a collision of bodies. Fire, more fire and ultimate bliss. WOMEN'S TOP FANTASIES by Dominique James Psychologist Dominique uses her knowledge of women's favourite fantasies. Alongside her husband, she coaxes her best friend Debbie into that list of fantasies. Her aim is to inflame her husband, starting with a bit of bondage as she ties him to their bedroom chair. When Debbie arrives, unaware of the plan, the two women get a bit carried away with it, Dominique's husband getting sidelined along the way as the pair get lost in a lesbian free-for-all. SERVING SARA By Angel Propps Sara Dahl hates her job as a member of a caterer's wait staff almost as much as she delights in tormenting the guests at the functions she works at. When she meets beautiful blond Jamie she decides to teach her how much fun and humbling serving others can be!

What Happens When You Wake Up in the Night - Michael Marshall Smith''What Happens When You Wake Up in the Night'was one of those stories which come along once in a while,'reveals Michael Marshall Smith,'the kind that drops straight into your head, fully-formed, as if fulfilling a forgotten order you made from the great Ideas shop in the sky.'The only problem was that, once this one had dropped on my mental doormat, I didn't want it. It wasn't an idea I liked. It was clearly some part of my brain serving up a notion simply because it could, and because it knew it could frighten me with it.'It did frighten me, and so I did what I always do when that happens - which is write it down, in the hope it will go away.'Respects - Ramsey Campbell''Respects'was suggested by a local incident in which a car thief in his early teens killed himself while fleeing the police,'recalls Campbell.'A lamp standard at the site of his demise is still decorated with flowers years after the incident, and the tributes on the obituaries page of one Wallasey newspaper were at least as grotesque as the ones I've invented - the romanticisation of a petty criminal.'How much has this to do with the public hunger for a moment in the media? The tendency has produced its own clichés. There almost seems to be a standard script (created by the demand for sound bites) for grieving parents to deliver at press conferences. A lost daughter inevitably becomes'my little princess', and it isn't uncommon to hear very young children described as'my best friend'.'Does this cheapen the grief? People may need to express their feelings (although not doing so, at least in public, can be useful too), but how much does banality and inaccuracy express?'Cold to Touch - Simon Strantzas'Stories often find their origins in unexpected ways,'Strantzas reveals.'I was inspired in this case by a photograph of a Zen garden I once used as my computer's desktop background. After staring at it day-in and day-out while I worked, I began to wonder about that dark circle of rocks and just what its true purpose might be.'There was something there in the coldness of the photograph, something that brought to mind the barren vistas of the Canadian Arctic, which ended up being the perfect setting for my tale of tested faith.'Along with its appearance here,'Cold to the Touch'will appear in Holy Horrors, a two-volume anthology of religious horror edited by T.M. Wright and Matt Cardin, from Ash-Tree Press. The Reunion - Nicholas Royle''The Reunion'is based on actual events,'reveals the author,'but the story only really came into focus for me when I was invited to contribute to Ellen Datlow's Poe anthology.'Poe is brilliant. I was at a conference recently where a teacher revealed that she had read Poe's'The Black Cat'to a lecture theatre full of schoolchildren. She switched off all the lights and used a torch to read by. A number of parents lodged complaints, which she took as a measure of the event's success. My tale is inspired by a different Poe story.'Granny's Grinning - Robert Shearman'I love Christmas,'says Shearman.'Always have done, and always a bit too passionately. The intensity with which I loved Christmas was delightful when I was eight years old, slightly unusual by the time I was eighteen, and increasingly disturbing thereafter.'Into my thirties I was still wanting my family to celebrate the big day with all the same rituals of yesteryear. Giving out presents in a certain order. Listening to the same gramophone record of carols that we had when I was a kid. (Knock your heart out, Andy Williams.) Pulling crackers at the very same break of courses in the very same turkey meal served at the very same time of day - all of us sitting around the table, wearing colourful paper hats as I read out the jokes and mottoes, and threatened everyone with Trivial Pursuit.'I wa

& B & Glasgow 1492. Gil Cunningham remarked later that if he had known he would find a corpse in the university coalhouse, he would never have gone to the Arts Faculty feast. & /B & In this mysterious adventure Gil Cunningham returns to his old university for the Nicholas Feast, where he and his colleagues are entertained by a play presented by some of the students. One of the actors, William Irvine, is later found murdered and Gil assisted by Alys, begins to disentangle a complex web of espionage and blackmail involving William's tutors and fellow students. Matters are further complicated by the arr.

In Riyadh, against the events of the second Gulf War and Saddam's invasion of Kuwait, we learn the story of Munira—with the gorgeous eyes—and the unspeakable tragedy she suffers as her male nemesis wreaks revenge for an insult to his character and manhood. It is also the tale of many other women of Saudi Arabia who pass through the remand center where Munira works, victims and perpetrators of crimes, characters pained and tormented, trapped in cocoons of silence and fear. Munira records their stories on pieces of paper that she folds up and places in the mysterious bottle given to her long ago by her grandmother, a repository for the stories of the dead, that they might live again. This controversial novel looks at many of the issues that characterize the lives of women in modern Saudi society, including magic and envy, honor and revenge, and the strict moral code that dictates male–female interaction. “Yousef al-Mohaimeed is a rising star in international literature. Munira's Bottle is a rich and skillfully crafted story of a dysfunctional Saudi Arabian family. One of its strengths lies in its edgy characters: Munira, a sultry, self-centered, sexually repressed woman; Ibn al-Dahhal, the bold imposter who deceives and betrays her; and Muhammad, her perpetually angry and righteous brother, a catalyst who forces the events. Western readers will welcome it for its opening door into Arab lives and minds.”—Annie Proulx “Mohaimeed writes in a lush style that evokes a writer he cites as an influence, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. [He] takes on some of the most divisive subjects in the Arab world.”—Washington Post

Frédéric Fappani von Lothringen propose ici une histoire « secrète » qui lui a été confiée en Bretagne. Elle est évidemment écrite ici en Breton et en Français. Tout a commencé par la découverte d'un objet familial, venant de la famille bretonne de sa femme, mais qui comportait des symboles « lorrains ». Il n'en fallait pas plus pour que notre Lorrain parte à l'aventure et nous rapporte cette magnifique histoire : la plus bretonne des histoires de Lorraine, la plus lorraine des histoires de Bretagne. Nous découvrons là un petit bijou de légende bretonne, peu connu encore du grand public. À découvrir donc!

Godina je 1967. Odlazeći u Sudan, glavni se junak, kirurg, suočava s novim prostorima svojih izbora, profesionalnih i emotivnih, koji ga obogaćuju odlučnošću, ali mu u život unose i dinamiku trilera. Upravo ta dinamika, rastući i dobro motiviran napon, privlači čitatelja uz tekst i navodi ga da se sa strašću sve više unosi u stranice romanu u iščekivanju raspleta. Situirajući svoj roman u nedavnu, a opet distanciranu prošlost obilježenu odrednicama drugačijeg društvenog sustava, autor osvještava limite ljudskih izbora i strategiju izbjegavanja zamki koje mogu preusmjeriti čovjekovu sudbinu. Poznat kao jedan od najuglednijih hrvatskih prevodilaca i laureat brojnih nagrada Andy Jelčić imao je prilike učiti književni zanat od majstora svjetske književnosti. Kada se upustio u vlastito književno stvaralaštvo, već je bio savladao sve vještine koje se odnose prvenstveno na funkcionalnu upotrebu jezika, ali i na građenje književnih likova putem epizoda fabule, i kako efektno spajati jedno u funkciju drugoga da bi rezultat bio uvjerljiv prozni tekst. Zahvaljujući tim, unaprijed usvojenim vrlinama, Andy Jelčić razvija svoj roman tečnošću kakva karakterizira dobro komponiran film. —Ludwig Bauer Ovaj roman nepovratno mijenja pejzaž hrvatske suvremene književnosti i nudi pogled na vidike po kojima se sliježe prašina a pod njom diše naša živa prošlost. —Ivana Šojat

In this “thrilling, seductive, and utterly absorbing” (Paula Hawkins, #1 New York Times bestselling author) historical suspense novel in the tradition of Agatha Christie's Death on the Nile and Ruth Ware's The Woman in Cabin 10, pre-war tension and forbidden romance abound, and not everyone will survive the journey…The ship has been like a world within itself, a vast floating city outside of normal rules. But the longer the journey continues, the more confined it is starting to feel, deck upon deck, passenger upon passenger, all of them churning around each other without anywhere to go... 1939: Europe is on the brink of war when young Lily Shepherd boards an ocean liner in England, bound for Australia. She is ready to start anew, leaving behind the shadows of her past. The passage proves magical, complete with live music, cocktails, and fancy-dress balls. With stops at exotic locations along the way—Naples, Cairo, Ceylon—the voyage shows Lily places she's only ever dreamed of and enables her to make friends with those above her social station, people who would not ordinarily mingle with her. She even allows herself to hope that a man she couldn't possibly have a future with outside the cocoon of the ship might return her feelings. But Lily soon realizes that she's not the only one hiding secrets. Her newfound friends—the toxic wealthy couple Eliza and Max; Cambridge graduate Edward; Jewish refugee Maria; fascist George—are also running away from their pasts. As the glamour of the voyage fades, the stage is set for something sinister to occur. By the time the ship docks, two passengers are dead, war has been declared, and Lily's life is irrevocably changed. “A vividly descriptive ride” (Marie Claire) with a “jaw-dropping ending” (RT Book Reviews, Top Pick), Dangerous Crossing is a transporting and “gorgeously atmospheric” (Ruth Ware, New York Times bestselling author) story for the ages.

Can the touch of a rock god last forever? Music journalist Bryan Gallagher's life has completely changed in an unexpected way. Not only has he snagged a dream assignment as the memoirist to alternative music's rock superstar Aubrey King, but he's also promised to give the beautiful and enigmatic musician a chance for them to forge a relationship. It's all very overwhelming for Bryan since, up until he spent a sexually charged day and night with Aubrey, Bryan has never even dreamed of being with a man. Aubrey is completely smitten with the boyishly handsome, young rock writer, Bryan. After their instant spark grows into something more, Aubrey is desperate to keep Bryan by his side for always. He's promised Bryan that their love is for real, that Bryan isn't simply one of his rock star conquests. Their road isn't an easy one, though. Despite their deepening bond and growing need for each other, other factors intrude. Neither Aubrey nor Bryan is ready to come out, and their relationship needs to remain a carefully guarded secret. In addition, Aubrey has to answer to the demands of his profession and Bryan has to traverse the shifting waters between his personal and business relationship with his famous lover. Then a secret is revealed and everything in their joint world implodes. When a love is so strong that two men can barely take a breath without thinking of the other, will that be enough to bridge the loss of trust? The only way they can rock their love forever is if Aubrey can reach Bryan before it's too late.

Wang Bin, a young teacher and ornithologist from Beijing, travels to Pingyang, a rural town nestled in the mountains between Sichuan and Hunan, to try and photograph the Mountain Phoenix, a rare Chinese bird with a blaze of rich colours that has never before been captured on film. Pingyang's chief of police is as corrupt as he is sadistic and he rules the town with an iron fist. He soon learns of the new arrival in town and fleeces Wang Bin for all he's worth. Wang Bin narrowly escapes Pingyang with the help of Xiao Zhou, a pretty young receptionist at the seedy hotel in which he is staying and for whom he is developing feelings, and the Beijinger vows to return to the town, his mind set on causing the crooked police chief's downfall. Together with Xiao Zhou and a cast of other victimised townsfolk from Pingyang, Wang Bin concocts a plan that is so far-fetched all agree it might just work. The Phoenix and the Crow is an exquisitely crafted short tale of morality and corruption in smalltown China, which reads like a contemporary fable.

Things haven't been going well for Charlie Miner. His work as a private investigator involves him with an endless roster of shady characters. His ex-wife is borderline crazy. And he hasn't been getting to spend anywhere near enough time with his teenage daughter Mindy, the one person in his life who truly matters to him. When he wakes up on a slab in the morgue with a hole in his head, though, things get even worse. Just before the shooting, Charlie was investigating a case involving fraud, gold, religious zealots, and a gorgeous woman who seemed to be at the center of everything. Even with a fatal bullet wound, Charlie can connect the dots from the case to his attack. And when his daughter is abducted by someone involved, the stakes get exponentially higher. Charlie needs to find Mindy before the criminals do the same thing to her that they did to him. After that, maybe he'll try to figure out how he's walking around dead. Irreverent, circuitous, and surprisingly touching, Down Solo introduces a crisp new voice to suspense fiction.

Nobody likes a loan shark and the list of people who wanted Ged Salkeld dead would fill the Newcastle phone book. But who would go to the extreme of torching his house while his wife and kids were sleeping upstairs? This is the question facing DCI Theo Vos and his team of detectives from the Bug House as they search through the charred wreckage for clues to the identity of a cold-blooded multiple murderer. Newcastle, it seems, is a city up to its eyes in debt and, for once, there is not shortage of suspects. But are the dead as innocent as they seem?

Here is the deeply moving and entirely irresistible story that introduces Coleman and Dinah Greene, the stars of Reba White Williams's widely acclaimed mystery series that includes the novels Restrike and Fatal Impressions. Set in small-town North Carolina, it tells of orphaned cousins who discover each other and believe that angels are watching them and guiding them through their most important moments. Seven-year-old Dinah has been blessed with a loving grandmother and great aunt. Five-year-old Coleman has not been so lucky. But now that the two have been united the wonders of the world begin to reveal themselves.Touching, thoughtful, and rewarding, Angels is a treasure.