Duckworth Overlook

'I am not sick. I am broken. But I am happy to be alive as long as I can paint.' For many she represents triumph over suffering, but to Frida Kahlo, life, body and art were entirely intertwined. Kahlo – friend, lover, teacher, patient, survivor, revolutionary – endured polio and scoliosis as a child, and then, at the age of 18, survived a catastrophic bus accident. Over the next 19 years she was to undergo over thirty surgeries. Yet her work, her magical, jewel-coloured paintings, her heartfelt, visceral art, continued to flow. Using new translations from her diary, letters and interviews, Wings to Fly juxtaposes Kahlo’s paintings with her writings, and illuminates links between the personal and universal, the physical and imaginative, the pain and resolve – to truly inspire. 'Feet what do I need them for, if I have wings to fly?'

'The White Lotus meets My Sister, the Serial Killer: I'll Be The Monster is a menacingly funny, daring debut that deserves a spot at the top of every 2026 TBR pile. With humour so biting and unease this sun soaked, this brilliantly vile pager turner cements Sean Gilbert as a bold new voice in literary fiction' Lucy Rose, author of The Lamb A homicidal couple embarks on a luxury holiday to save their marriage. After years of secrets and self-restraint, they've reached breaking point. But three days into the trip, they run into Benny, an acquaintance from their Cambridge days. And Benny is desperate to reminisce about a time - and a person - they would rather forget. Darkly funny and razor-sharp, I'll Be The Monster follows a dangerous game of cat and mouse as it plays out under the stifling heat of the Mediterranean sun. From a major new talent in literary fiction, this gripping debut is a love story about the worst people you know - and of what happens when a change of heart occurs too late.

'The sort of story you want to climb inside so you can hang out with all the characters. Hilarious, warm and kind!' Louie Stowell, author of the Loki series In a dark alleyway in an alternative Elizabethan London, Fang's heart stops. Moments later, it magically restarts again. A grumpy traveller from the Ming empire, Fang is disappointed to discover that not only is he still alive, but he's also become another creature entirely: an immortal. The first of his kind. That is until he meets Lazare de Quitte-Beuf, an annoyingly cheerful - and undeniably handsome - Frenchman who shares the same curse. But in a world where immortality is a coveted commodity, Fang and Lazare quickly realise that eternal life is far from a blessing. With both of their futures at risk, will they ever admit that they have finally found something - or someone - to live for? Tropes: Grumpy x Sunshine Found family Dragons, vampires and supernatural beings Mild spice

The world is full of ruins. From the Colosseum of Rome to the crumbling suburbs of Detroit, the vine-wreathed temples of the Maya to the shell-pocked buildings of Bakhmut and Gaza. Each of these ruins have a different history, but they share a single truth: they are all places where, one day, the future ended. In Fall of Civilizations, historian Paul Cooper tells the stories behind our greatest civilizations, how they rose to power and what life was like for the people who witnessed their downfall. Based on the critically acclaimed podcast, this extraordinary book turns a clear eye on to humanity’s past mistakes – and whether we are doomed to repeat them.

From the bestselling author of Death and Croissants comes a murder mystery perfect for fans of Richard Osman, Julia Chapman, or MC Beaton On the surface, Richard Ainsworth has life where he wants it. Middle-aged navel gazing and Olympic levels of procrastination are exactly what rural life in France should be about. Then crisis hits his posh B&B when redoubtable housekeeper, Madame Tablier, is accused of murder. Even more surprisingly, it's the murder of a former fiancé, turned brother-in-law. None of which the stubborn old woman denies. Valérie d'Orçay is having none of it and their investigation leads them to a strange tourist garden village, where backbiting, recriminations and even former colleagues provide a deadly scenario more tangled than knotweed.

Philosopher Travis Rieder outlines a new ethics for the age of humanmade catastrophe. We are all asking, in a hyperglobalised world hurtling towards environmental destruction: how do we determine the right actions? Do our individual efforts to avoid plastic or air travel, or to drive electric, make any real difference? We urgently need to expand our ethical toolkit. The mental tools most of us rely on to 'do the right thing' just don't work when it comes to reasoning about large collective problems. From the small stuff like single-use plastics to major decisions like whether to have children, Rieder defines exactly how we can change our thinking and lead a decent, meaningful life in a scary, complicated world.

Richard Ainsworth's French B&B has been taken over by a production company shooting a historical film at the Château de Valençay. But everything grinds to a halt with the sudden passing of an actor under suspicious circumstances. To get to the bottom of things, Valérie Dorçay and Richard offer catering services to the hastily resumed production. There they discover that the vanity, duplicity and murder of an 18th century French court is nothing compared to that of a 21st century film set, with more heads yet to roll.

The extraordinary true story of a West African girl’s upbringing in North Korea under the protection of President Kim Il Sung In 1979, aged only seven, Monica Macias was transplanted from West Africa to the unfamiliar surroundings of North Korea. She was sent by her father Francisco, the first president of post-Independence Equatorial Guinea, to be educated under the guardianship of his ally, Kim Il Sung. Within months, her father was executed in a military coup; her mother became unreachable. Effectively orphaned, she and two siblings had to make their life in Pyongyang. At military boarding school, Monica learned to mix with older children, speak fluent Korean and handle weapons on training exercises. After university, she went in search of her roots, passing through Beijing, Seoul, Madrid, Guinea, New York and finally London – forced at every step to reckon with damning perceptions of her adoptive homeland. Optimistic yet unflinching, Monica’s astonishing and unique story challenges us to see the world through different eyes.

Richard is a middle-aged Englishman who runs a B&B in the Vallée de Follet. Nothing ever happens to Richard, and really that’s the way he likes it. Until scandal erupts in the nearby town of Saint-Sauver when its famous restaurant is downgraded from three ‘Michelin’ stars to two. The restaurant is shamed, the town is in shock and the leading goat’s cheese supplier drowns himself in one of his own pasteurisation tanks. Or does he? Valérie d’Orçay, who staying at the B&B while house-hunting in the area, isn’t convinced that it’s a suicide. Despite his misgivings, Richard is drawn into Valérie’s investigation, and finds himself becoming a major player.

An optimistic account of how the Nordic countries can teach us to live easier, healthier, happier lives. From childcare to healthcare to provision for the elderly and the homeless, the Nordic countries are world leaders in organising society - no wonder Finland has been ranked among the happiest places on the planet. In The Nordic Theory of Everything, Finnish journalist and US immigrant Anu Partanen sets out to understand why America - and much of the Western world - suffers from such stark inequality and struggling social services. Filled with fascinating insights, advice and practical solutions, she makes a convincing argument that we can rebuild society, rekindle optimism and become more autonomous citizens by following in the footsteps of our neighbours to the North.

Richard is a middle-aged Englishman who runs a B&B in the fictional Val de Follet in the Loire Valley. Nothing ever happens to Richard, and really that’s the way he likes it. One day, however, one of his older guests disappears, leaving behind a bloody handprint on the wallpaper. Another guest, the enigmatic Valérie, persuades a reluctant Richard to join her in investigating the disappearance. Then things become really serious and someone murders Ava Gardner, one of his beloved hens. The disappearance of a guest is one thing, but you don’t mess with a fellow’s hens!

At a 2012 conference on social mobility, Ed Miliband said: `If you want the American dream, go to Finland.' For decades, the country best known for opportunity had been the United States, but that crown has now been taken by our Nordic neighbours. When journalist Anu Partanen moved from her Scandinavian home to the US in 2008, she quickly went from being a confident, successful professional to a wary, self-doubting mess. She found that navigating the basics of everyday life - buying a mobile, filing taxes, education and childcare - were more complicated and stressful than anything she had encountered before. As Partanen got to know Americans better, she discovered that they shared her deep apprehension, and to learn why she looked closely at the differences between life in her Nordic home country and the US. In The Nordic Theory of Everything, Partanen focuses on four key relationships: between parents and children, men and women, employees and employers, and the government and its citizens. She debunks the criticism that the Nordics are socialist nanny states, revealing instead that it is we who are far more enmeshed in unhealthy dependencies than we realise. Her conclusion: the Nordic approach allows citizens to enjoy more individual freedom and independence. Filled with fascinating insights, advice and practical solutions, The Nordic Theory of Everything makes a convincing argument that we can rebuild society, rekindle optimism and restore true freedom to our lives, while pursuing the `American' dream by following the Nordic way of life.