A Village Vacancy


Book Description

'A Village Vacancy is a tour de force of beautiful, funny and emotional storytelling' Fay Keenan From the bestselling author of A Village Affair comes a warm, witty, wonderful new Westenbury tale... As the Yorkshire village of Westenbury mourns the loss of one of their own, the women can't help but contemplate who will fill the vacancy in handsome widower David's life. Meanwhile, Grace Stevens has decided to move on without her good-for-nothing husband. Right now, she needs to focus less on men and more on wrangling with her unruly class of pre-teens. And thankfully, there's plenty to keep her occupied. Between an accidental dalliance with a pupil's dad, helping close down a drug ring and keeping up with her closest girlfriends, Grace is busier than ever. But as she spends more time with David, her determination to go it alone begins to waver... Praise for Julie Houston: 'A warm, funny story of sisters and the secrets they keep' Sheila O'Flanagan 'Warm, funny and well written, with a page-turning plot, this book has everything! I loved it!' Katie Fforde 'Julie Houston at her best – heartfelt and hilarious' Sandy Barker 'Laugh-out-loud hilarious and heartwarming!' Mandy Baggot 'This book is an absolute gigglefest with characters you'll fall in love with!' Katie Ginger




The Casual Vacancy


Book Description

A big novel about a small town... When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the town of Pagford is left in shock. Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils...Pagford is not what it first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity, and unexpected revelations? A big novel about a small town, The Casual Vacancy is J.K. Rowling's first novel for adults. It is the work of a storyteller like no other.




A Village Secret


Book Description

When Jennifer goes up to Cambridge University with her head full of the Romantic Poets, she never dreams that she will find her very own Byron. But then she meets gorgeous actor Laurie Lewis, and finds herself living a real-life love poem. Fifteen years and two children later, Jennifer and Laurie's relationship is starting to feel more like an epic tragedy. After a series of revelations turn her world upside down, Jennifer will do anything to keep her family together – even if it means moving hundreds of miles away to Laurie's childhood home in Westenbury, Yorkshire. As she reluctantly enters into village life – complete with interfering in-laws, new friends and a surprise delivery of alpacas – Jennifer is amazed to find herself feeling happy for the first time in years. But the village holds one last, devastating secret and Jennifer must decide once and for all what she wants her future to hold. Praise for Julie Houston: 'A warm, funny story of sisters and the secrets they keep' Sheila O'Flanagan 'Warm, funny and well written, with a page-turning plot, this book has everything! I loved it!' Katie Fforde 'Julie Houston at her best – heartfelt and hilarious' Sandy Barker 'Laugh-out-loud hilarious and heartwarming!' Mandy Baggot 'This book is an absolute gigglefest with characters you'll fall in love with!' Katie Ginger




NOPI


Book Description

A cookbook from acclaimed London restaurant Nopi, by powerhouse author Yotam Ottolenghi and Nopi head chef Ramael Scully. Pandan leaves meet pomegranate seeds, star anise meets sumac, and miso meets molasses in this collection of 120 new recipes from Yotam Ottolenghi's restaurant. In collaboration with Nopi's head chef Ramael Scully, Yotam's journey from the Middle East to the Far East is one of big and bold flavors, with surprising twists along the way.




Public Documents


Book Description







The Digested Read


Book Description

Literary ombudsman John Crace never met an important book he didn't like to deconstruct. From Salman Rushdie to John Grisham, Crace retells the big books in just 500 bitingly satirical words, pointing his pen at the clunky plots, stylistic tics and pretensions of Big Ideas, as he turns publishers' golden dream books into dross.




The Empty House Next Door


Book Description

Renowned city planner and housing advocate Alan Mallach presents effective strategies for community leaders, local officials, and nonprofits contending with vacant properties in the United States. Examples illustrate creative ways to reduce the harm caused by vacant properties, jump-start housing markets in struggling neighborhoods, create the potential for future revival, and transform vacant properties into community assets.










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