Hodder & Stoughton strana 8 z 74

In the summer of 2020, as Germany slowly emerges from lockdown, a young Japanese woman studying in Göttingen waits at the train station to meet an old friend. Nomiya died a decade earlier in the Tohoku tsunami, but he has suddenly returned without any explanation. The reunited friends share a past that's a world away from the tranquillity of Göttingen. Yet Nomiya's spectral presence destabilises something in the city: mysterious guests appear, eerie discoveries are made in the forest and, as the past becomes increasingly vivid, the threads of time threaten to unravel. With a literary style reminiscent of W. G. Sebald, Yoko Tawada, and Yu Miri, The Place of Shells is an astounding exploration of the strange orbits of memory and the haunting presence of the past.

'Filled with magic, betrayal, and undead horrors' JODI MEADOWS 'A dark fantasy thrillride' AMÉLIE WEN ZHAO THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER Ready your blade. Defeat the undead. Gideon the Ninth meets the Game of Thrones White Walkers in this dark young adult fantasy about a disgraced ghost-fighting warrior who must journey into a haunted wasteland to rescue a kidnapped prince. In the Dominions, the dead linger, violent and unpredictable, unless a bonesmith severs the ghost from its earthly remains. For bonesmith Wren, becoming a valkyr - a ghost-fighting warrior - is a chance to solidify her place in the noble House of Bone and impress her frequently absent father. But when sabotage causes Wren to fail her qualifying trial, she is banished to the Border Wall, the last line of defence against a wasteland called the Breach where the vicious dead roam unchecked. Determined to reclaim her family's respect, Wren gets her chance when a House of Gold prince is kidnapped and taken beyond the Wall. To prove she has what it takes to be a valkyr, Wren vows to cross the Breach and rescue the prince. But to do so, she's forced into an uneasy alliance with one of the kidnappers - a fierce ironsmith called Julian from the exiled House of Iron, the very people who caused the Breach in the first place...and the House of Bone's sworn enemy. As they travel, Wren and Julian spend as much time fighting each other as they do the undead, but when they discover there's more behind the kidnapping than either of them knew, they'll need to work together to combat the real danger: a dark alliance that is brewing between the living and the undead. TROPES Enemies to lovers Necromancy magic Sassy FMC One bed trope

RAISED TO OBEY. DESTINED TO REBEL. The Three Kingdoms are at war, but Meilin's father refuses to answer the imperial draft. Trapped by his opium addiction, he plans to sell Meilin for her dowry instead - but when she discovers that her husband-to-be is violent and ill-tempered, she decides to take matters into her own hands. The very next day, she disguises herself as a boy and enlists in her father's place. In the army, Meilin's hard work brings her recognition, friendship - and a growing closeness with Sky, a prince turned training partner. But as her kingdom barrels towards destruction, Meilin must decide who to trust: Sky, who inspires her loyalty and love; a sea dragon spirit with the power to grant her impossible magic; or an infuriating enemy prince who makes her question everything she once knew - about her kingdom, her loyalty and her own heart.

'With fascinating, interwoven plot lines and brewing romances, Beneath These Cursed Stars will have you flipping pages!!!' REBECCA YARROS From the bestselling author Lexi Ryan comes a romantic fantasy in which a human princess and a fae shifter become unlikely allies when a mission to assassinate an evil king collides with a fatal prophecy. When the stars promise ruin, will love be worth the risk? Princess Jasalyn seeks revenge. Armed with an enchanted ring bestowing death's kiss, she's been sneaking away at night to assassinate her enemies. Felicity needs a miracle. Fated to kill her father, she's been using her ability to shape-shift to evade a fatal prophecy. But when rumours begin circling that the evil king Mordeus is still alive, Jasalyn teams up with the handsome Kendrick - a rebel once imprisoned alongside her. While Felicity must take Princess Jasalyn's form, and her place at court - drawing irresistibly closer to the Wild Fae King, Misha. Soon, their mission is at risk right alongside their hearts. The future of the human and fae realms hangs in the balance. Between perilous tasks, grim secrets, and forbidden romances, Jasalyn and Felicity find that perhaps their stars are the most cursed of all.

MEET THE GRIFFITH BROTHERS YOUR NEXT WILD COWBOY ROMANCE OBSESSION It's Ray's book . . . RAY Back-up plans are for people who plan on losing. Which is exactly why I didn't have one. It took eight seconds for me to win the biggest competition of my life, and then one second to lose everything except that championship buckle. I left my family's cattle ranch at eighteen with no intention of ever returning. But now I was back, stuck in a wheelchair . . . and with a beautiful disaster attempting to burn my house down. BROOKE It was just a little fire. Tiny, even. But that didn't change the fact that Ray Griffith didn't want me anywhere near him. I came here to help him, and I'm determined to do my job anyway. So we came to an agreement: I ignore him, and he doesn't fire me. Easy, right? Not so much when we can't keep our hands off each other . . .

Beautifully told through the eyewitness accounts of those who knew him best. This real-life story will never leave you. Yeshua lived and died over 2,000 years ago, fulfilling expectations that existed long before his birth. His birth had been mystically foretold by astrologers for hundreds of years, yet the rulers of his day dreaded his coming. This humble builder-teacher became a magnet for the poor and down trodden, a symbol of love and mercy, who transformed the lives and restored the health and purpose in all who encountered him. The local elite and governing rulers eventually tortured him and put him to death in the most violent and public of ways. Yet that was only the beginning... Billions of people have dedicated their lives to this man and have testified to his divinity and truth. To others, he is little more than another rebel who was killed by one of the most brutal empires in human history. How we each respond to this story dictates the course of our lives. And it all rests on the great mystery that occurred at the end of his life - a supernatural event that he had predicted with utter clarity. Did this humble man tell the truth? Could one man really be the focal point of the universe? Wherever this journey takes you, this is arguably: THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD.

Stephen King's 'The Life of Chuck' is a 'phenomenal' (USA Today) tale of life and legacy - and now a feature film directed by Mike Flanagan and starring Tom Hiddleston, Mark Hamill, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Karen Gillan out in the UK from August 2025. Available for the first time in a beautiful standalone edition in June. Originally featured in the acclaimed story collection If It Bleeds, this unforgettable, mind-bending tale unfolds in reverse, taking readers through the extraordinary life of Charles 'Chuck' Krantz. In a crumbling world plagued by natural disasters, collapsing infrastructure, and mass panic, bizarre billboards and advertisements appear throughout town: 'Charles Krantz. Thirty-nine great years. Thanks, Chuck!' Marty Anderson, a schoolteacher, becomes obsessed with these messages as the world, inexplicably linked to Chuck's life, seems to be approaching its end. Told in three acts, presented in reverse order, The Life of Chuck explores one man's past. We see him in middle age on a business trip in Boston as he is seduced by a busker into spinning a gorgeous sidewalk dance. And we see him as a child, in a house haunted by a terrible secret, learning to dance with his grandmother. In these pages King reminds us that life's quotidian pleasures are even more glorious because they are fleeting: the outrageous good fortune of a beautiful blue day after a string of gray ones; the delight of dancing when every move feels perfect; a serendipitous meeting. King's ability to describe pure joy rivals his ability to terrify us. Now a major motion picture and winner of the Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award, The Life of Chuck is a glorious story about community and about humanity at its best, a celebration of joy, mystery, existential wonder, and the multitudes contained in all of us.

A fresh look at health, habits and longevity from internationally-bestselling author, Nicklas Brendborg - perfect for fans of Ultra-Processed People IT'S NOT YOU. IT'S YOUR BIOLOGY. Modern society is plagued by health epidemics: obesity, record levels of loneliness, increasing mental health problems and various forms of addiction. From the outside, all these issues might seem unrelated. But a single phenomenon actually ties them all together: superstimuli. Superstimuli are exaggerated, unnatural versions of things we have evolved to want and need such as food, sex and social recognition. This hard wired evolutionary response is why we binge on fake ultra-processed food, lust after airbrushed people online, and struggle to stop scrolling on social media, even when it makes us feel bad. Our lack of control isn't because we are weak. It's because powerful companies spend billions creating superstimuli that manipulate our biology for profit, leaving us unhealthy and unhappy as a consequence. Super Stimulated shows how we can resist this hijacking of our natural instincts, recognise superstimulus traps, and take control of our bad habits to live longer, healthier lives.

Blythe Hawthorn has never let anyone tell her what to do... and she's not about to start now. Headstrong and passionate, she won't be ruled by society, or by her overprotective father, and certainly not by the man she's bound herself to, no matter how insufferable he is. She's determined to be a thorn in his side for the rest of her days, even as he ensues that her life in his palace is anything but the decadent fairytale she imagined. But as Blythe discovers a new side of herself linked to his past, she'll have to decide if she's willing to let an unexpected spark ignite... and discover the real truth about who she is inside.

The first book to look at the unstoppable rise of Formula One As one of the world's most popular sports, and with races in far corners of the globe, Formula One is big business. Its drivers are among the world's most highly paid athletes, and it costs more than a billion pounds to keep its ten teams ticking over. This is a sport where money - the spending of it, the flaunting of it, the ruthless pursuit of it - matters. With unparalleled insight and decades of reporting, Christian Sylt and Caroline Reid describe the pivotal moments which have driven the sport to new heights - the influx of tobacco advertising, the first television deals, the reign of Bernie Ecclestone, and much more. Featuring exclusive interviews with the sport's major players and never-before-heard stories, this is a ground-breaking and revolutionary account about how F1 moved from a pastime for wealthy enthusiasts into one of the world's most-watched sports.

From the New York and Sunday Times bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes comes a new breathtaking romantic fantasy inspired by Beauty and the Beast about a girl who paints the future and a cursed dragon lord, bound by love and deception in a plot to bring down the gods. Fortune finds those who leap . . . A gifted art forger, Truyan Saigas has the unique ability to paint the future. But when her father is lost at sea, not even magic can heal her family, or save her two younger sisters from the dangerous consequences of her mother's gambling debts. Then Elang, a mysterious dragon lord, offers her a deal: in exchange for a fresh start for her mother and sisters, Tru must enter a marriage contract and join him in his desolate undersea palace. Once there, Tru will embark on her most dangerous forgery yet. To infiltrate the tyrannical Dragon King's inner circle and paint a future so treasonous, it could upend both the mortal and immortal realms . . . YOUR FAVOURITE TROPES Enemies to lovers Slow burn romance Sassy FMCS Marriage of convenience He falls first (and harder)

In the sequel to The God and the Gumiho, a trickster god must work with his reincarnated lost love to solve the mystery of his brother's murder on board a luxury underworld cruise ship in this charming and clever contemporary fantasy romance. Seokga the No-Longer-Fallen is looking for his love. Since he lost Hani and was reinstated as a god, nothing has felt right - and he's been desperately searching for her reincarnated form ever since. But when the red thread of fate leads Seokga to a cruise down the river of the dead, the woman he finds isn't Hani . . . she's Yoo Kisa, and she has no memory of him whatsoever - with seemingly no interest in regaining it either. But when the Heavenly Emperor of Okhwang is murdered, Seokga and Kisa must solve the crime before the cruise ends. And as the mystery draws them closer, they will have to decide what they truly mean to each other. There's something bigger at play aboard the ship, something that holds the key to their fated connection - and the very fate of the world. TROPES He Falls First Murder Mystery Fated Mates Second chance

"I got what I wanted. I became buddy-buddy with my boss in an instant. But the cost will be hefty . . . finding a husband by tomorrow." Scottie Price just started a new job, and it's a real sausage fest. She's the only woman on a team filled with Brads and Chads and so, expecting a bachelor-pad atmosphere, she is surprised when she finds out that everyone around her is happily married. In an effort to try and impress her new team, Scottie mentions her own husband. The only problem? He doesn't technically exist. So when her boss offers her and the supposed love of her life a one-on-one session with the best counsellor money can buy - who just happens to be her boss's partner - she has to think quickly. Enter Wilder Wells. Her best friend's brother. And next thing she knows, the two of them are on an eight-day marriage camp. With all her co-workers. Sharing a cabin. And unfortunately for Scottie, Wilder's even more handsome than she remembers . . . From New York Times bestselling author comes a brand new sizzling summer read that will have you laughing, swooning . . . and sweating.

From master storyteller Stephen King comes an extraordinary new novel with intertwining storylines - one about a killer on a diabolical revenge mission, and another about a vigilante targeting a feminist celebrity speaker - featuring the beloved Holly Gibney and a dynamic new cast of characters. When the Buckeye City Police Department receives a disturbing letter from a person threatening to 'kill thirteen innocents and one guilty' in 'an act of atonement for the needless death of an innocent man', Detective Izzy Jaynes has no idea what to think. Are fourteen citizens about to be slaughtered in an unhinged act of retribution? As the investigation unfolds, Izzy realises that the letter writer is deadly serious, and she turns to her friend Holly Gibney for help. Meanwhile, controversial and outspoken women's rights activist Kate McKay is embarking on a multi-state lecture tour, drawing packed venues of both fans and detractors. Someone who vehemently opposes Kate's message of female empowerment is targeting her and disrupting her events. At first, no one is hurt, but the stalker is growing bolder, and Holly is hired to be Kate's bodyguard - a challenging task with a headstrong employer and a determined adversary driven by wrath and his belief in his own righteousness. Featuring a riveting cast of characters both old and new, including world-famous gospel singer Sista Bessie and an unforgettable villain addicted to murder, these twinned narratives converge in a chilling and spectacular conclusion - a feat of storytelling only Stephen King could pull off. Thrilling, wildly fun and outrageously engrossing, Never Flinch is one of King's richest and most propulsive novels.

MEET THE GRIFFITH BROTHERS YOUR NEXT WILD COWBOY ROMANCE OBSESSION It's Christian's book . . . CHRISTIAN As a young widower and single dad trying to raise two daughters while also keeping my family's cattle ranch afloat, yet another problem to solve is the last thing I need. And then Cassandra Parker turns up on my ranch. But the biggest problem of all isn't actually the beautiful stranger sticking her nose in my operations. It's not even the bulldozer she's driving over my way of life. Or the fact that she's literally living in my house. My biggest problem? The engagement ring on her finger. CASSANDRA To be clear, I didn't want to be Christian Griffith's problem. But here I am: exiled from New York, stranded on a cattle ranch, and desperate to salvage what's left of my career. Living with a single dad and his children is certainly a downgrade from my high-rise office and city comforts, but I agreed to it for one simple reason: to save my job. Work has always come first for me, and that's not about to change, even in the middle of nowhere, Texas. There's absolutely no way a hot cowboy could ever lasso me into staying a second longer than necessary. Or so I thought . . . TROPES . . . Single Dad; she hates kids Workplace romance Forced proximity Country boy x city girl (Major) opposites attract Dad bod That fence scene . . . Dust Storm is the first book in the Griffith Brothers series. If you can't get enough of Christian and his brothers, make sure you look out for Down Pour and Fire Line too!

Burnt out and in need of retreat, a middle-aged woman leaves Sydney to return to the place she grew up, taking refuge in a small religious community hidden away on the stark plains of rural Australia. But disquiet soon interrupts this secluded life. First, the skeletal remains of a sister who disappeared decades before are returned to the monastery, resurfacing years of grief and pain. And then, an unexpected and troubling visitor plunges the narrator further into her past...