Here are just ten that have caught my eye.
The Boy with the Jade by Charles Bush
A young aristocrat's quest for identity amid love, loss, and betrayal in 18th-century China
In the opulent world of 18th-century China, where wealth and power reign supreme, The Boy with the Jade unveils the poignant tale of Baoyu, heir to the illustrious Jia family. Born with a jade pendant in his mouth—a symbol of his destiny—Baoyu's life is one of luxury laced with darkness.
Amidst his family's splendor, Baoyu navigates complex relationships. He shares a deep, intellectual connection with his cousin Daiyu and engages in intense liaisons with Amber, his main maid. Yet, these bonds are marred by mistreatment, deception, and overwhelming societal pressures.
Baoyu's life spirals after a severe beating from his father, Amber's death, and Daiyu's illness. His spirit breaks, plunging him into despair and leading to the loss of his jade pendant. Fate deals another blow when he's duped into marrying Baochai on the day Daiyu dies. Seeking enlightenment, Baoyu turns to Taoist and Buddhist philosophies, finding guidance from mystical mentors who help him reclaim his jade and hope.
With expectations to excel at the Imperial Examination and continue his lineage, Baoyu is trapped by tradition. Craving freedom, he makes a bold escape, embarking on a transformative journey.
The Vanishing Act by Jo Jakeman
Life as a missing person is absolute murder...
When artist Eloise Ford hears that human remains found in an abandoned mine are believed to be those of long-missing teenager Elizabeth King, the shock sends her reeling.
It can't be true. Eloise knows this for a fact because... she is Elizabeth King.
Now, her carefully curated life in Cornwall is falling apart. Her husband is acting strangely, her children aren't speaking to her and she can't sell a painting for love nor money. But much more worrying are the signs that someone knows exactly who she is... and why she had to vanish thirty years ago.
Eloise needs answers. Is her son's ex-girlfriend just plain annoying... or does she know something? Will the detection skills of the online 'Truth Seekers' group prove more than amateurish? What's the real story behind those village newcomers?
And just how far would she go to keep her family, her friends, and her fraudulent life, safe?
The Great Western Railway Girls Do Their Bit by Jane Lark
1940 - As the Nazi invaders race across Europe, the women of the Great Western Railway works pull together like never before.
Catherine wrestles with self-pity after a machine-shop accident. With her fiancé and brothers on the front lines in France, she must find a new way to fight on the home front.
At her side are her steadfast GWR friends, among them Maggie, facing the loss of her father and family home, and Lily, desperate for news of her childhood sweetheart. All are determined to keep morale high and do their bit to win the war.
Amid blackout nights and rationed days, as the war creeps closer to home, these resilient women forge deeper bonds of sisterhood, confronting heartache and embracing joy. Standing up and volunteering to do even more, when hundreds of thousands of exhausted and wounded troops are rescued from Dunkirk and arrive in Dover. Britain’s ships and small boats saved them, now the trains must move them to safety and the women need to help to keep them alive...
An inspiring story of friendship, courage and women’s strength on the home front.
The Teacher Evacuees by Rose Warner
Canadian-born teacher Victoria McKaye takes up a new position at a London school, but soon finds herself coordinating its evacuation to a Norfolk village along with standoffish spinster Beatrice and quiet young Nell. Victoria has to adapt to life in the countryside, petty politics and local busybodies.
When she meets attractive naval officer Louis Grainger, romance blossoms. Victoria is drawn into a clandestine world and told that she is helping the British government, but after she catches Louis covertly meeting a suspicious stranger in nearby woods, she fears the worst – a traitor in their midst.
It’s a race against time for Victoria to discover the truth and keep the village – and the country – safe from invasion.
The Memoirs of Andre Trocme by Andre Trocme
André Trocmé is famous for his role in saving thousands of Jews from the Nazis as pastor of the village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, France, a story celebrated in literature and film. But who was the man behind the legend, and the how did he become an international hero and uncompromising advocate of nonviolence resistance? Appearing in English for the first time, his private memoirs give a colorful and honest account of a person determined to stay true to his faith and convictions, who despite his quirks was ready to stand his ground when world history came knocking.
Written for his children in the 1950s and first published in French in 2020, these memoirs trace André Trocmé’s extraordinary life: a bourgeois childhood; teenage years as a World War I refugee; studies abroad in New York City, where he met his future wife, Magda, and tutored the Rockefeller children; military service in Algeria, which cemented his pacifist stance; postings as a pastor in depressed areas of France; resisting fascism and hiding Jews in Le Chambon; a brief imprisonment and a stint underground; and globetrotting leadership in the International Fellowship of Reconciliation. Trocmé also reveals the impact of personal tragedies: the untimely death of his mother in a car accident for which his father was responsible and, years later, his teenage son’s suicide.
This detailed first-person account from an eyewitness to pivotal moments in history will be of interest not just to scholars of the Holocaust, World War II, and domestic resistance to fascism, but also to those seeking to follow their conscience and the teachings of their faith in trying times.
The Academy by Elin Hilderbrand
Secrets, rumours, and dangerous liaisons - at an elite New England boarding school, they come with the territory.
It's move-in day at Tiffin Academy and amidst the happy chaos of friends reuniting, selfies uploading, and cars unloading, shocking news arrives: America Today just ranked Tiffin the number two boarding school in the country. It's a seventeen-spot jump - was there a typo? The dorms are dingy, the sports teams always come last and Tiffin students are known for being more social than academic. But the campus is exquisite, class sizes are small, and the dining hall is run by a New York chef. And they do have lots of fun . . .
But as the rarefied air of Tiffin is suffused with self-congratulation, scandalous bulletins begin to appear on phones across campus, thanks to a new app called Zip Zap, and nobody is safe. From Davi Banerjee, queen bee and international influencer, to Simone Bergeron, the young new history teacher; to Charley Hicks, a transfer student who seems determined not to fit in, it seems everyone has something to hide.
As the year unfolds, bonds are forged and broken, secrets are shared and exposed, and the lives of Tiffin's students and staff are changed forever.
Clues to You by Claire Huston
One murder mystery weekend. Two rival sleuths.
They’re looking for answers. But will they find love?
Kate Brannon is delighted to be attending her first murder mystery weekend in a movie-worthy Victorian manor house. Still getting over being dumped, cracking the case would be a welcome boost to her flagging confidence. And the prize money wouldn’t hurt either.
But Kate’s dreams of victory become a nightmare with the arrival of Max Ravenscroft. Smart, enigmatic and annoyingly handsome, Max is Kate’s sleuthing nemesis.
When she and Max are forced to work together, Kate despairs. But, as the investigation brings them closer, she finds being his partner in solving crime isn’t all bad.
With growing suspicions that the game is rigged against them, can Kate and Max beat the odds to find the killer? And, as their partnership deepens, can they find romance too?
The Children of the Roses by Warren Adler
Meet Josh and Evie Rose, heirs to the notorious legacy of Barbara and Jonathan. In The Children of the Roses, Adler delivers a darkly comic, razor-sharp sequel about love, family, and the havoc we inherit.
Josh’s marriage to Victoria seems destined to avoid the mistakes of the past. But when a harmless prank involving missing Milky Ways at their son’s elite private school spirals into all-out war, everything changes. Josh and Victoria find themselves caught in a whirlwind of emotional chaos, fueled by a depraved headmaster, hidden affairs, and a meddling mother-in-law with a vendetta against men.
Meanwhile, Josh’s sister Evie, ever loyal and always ready with a comforting meal, tries to hold the family together. As tensions rise, even the children, Michael and Emily, plot their own desperate plan to keep their family from falling apart.
Witty, biting, and unforgettable, The Children of the Roses explores how the ghosts of the past haunt the present and how even the most perfect facades can shatter in an instant.
A Taste of Christmas Spirit by Susan Buchanan
The Sugar and Spice bakery sparkles with holiday spirit as Jacob serves up more mouthwatering festive treats, and Christmas spirit Lara tries to sprinkle her magic over those finding the time of year difficult.
Ollie is at his wits’ end. A debt from years ago comes back to haunt him just as he and his girlfriend are buying their dream home.
Rose is dejected as her college sweetheart has dumped her now they’re in their final year. She’s not looking forward to Christmas alone, nor her twenty-first birthday on Christmas Eve.
Sacha has recently moved to Winstanton following the failure of his business. He’s too embarrassed to confide in his family, but can he find the friendship he so desperately needs and begin to trust again?
Diana tries to find her new normal after the unexpected death of her husband earlier this year. All her plans for retirement have been thrown out the window and she feels lost. She needs a renewed sense of purpose and to find her place in the world.
Can Lara provide the answer to a joy-filled Christmas?
A story of hope, love, friendship, community, and of course, Christmas spirit.
The Irish Midwife by Seána Tinley
Peggy Cassidy is a milly, working in the Belfast linen mills to just about get by. But Peggy also has another job - a secret one. She works as a handywoman - an illegal midwife, tending to the women of her community in their time of need.
When Peggy is offered the chance to leave Belfast to receive formal midwifery training in Dublin, it sets off a chain of events that will change her life forever.
But amongst her middle-class colleagues, Peggy must keep the truth about her past secret at all times. If the realities of her life in Belfast are revealed, she could lose everything she has worked for.
And when she meets a well-to-do doctor down in Dublin, she must make a decision: should she protect her family and her history? Or can she let herself fall in love?
