Irving Pardoen Book order (chronological)

Thursday's Children by Nicci French is the fourth novel in the bestselling Frieda Klein series, following Blue Monday, Tuesday's Gone and Waiting for Wednesday. Expect the same satisfyingly rich combination of brilliant, three-dimensional characters, psychological suspense, police procedural and ever-present menace. It's sure to add to Nicci French and Frieda Klein's growing number of fans. Praise for the Frieda Klein series: 'Brilliantly crafted . . . masterly control of suspense' Daily Mirror 'Tense, frightening, gripping' Easy Living 'Nerve-tingling and addictive' Daily Express Nicci French is the pseudonym for the writing partnership of journalists Nicci Gerrard and Sean French. The couple are married and live in Suffolk. There are fourteen other bestselling novels by Nicci French, all published by Penguin. Blue Monday was the first thrilling instalment in the Frieda Klein series, followed by Tuesday's Gone and Waiting for Wednesday.

Deze razend knap, geserreerd geschreven thriller gaat over een man op leeftijd die zich op het eerste gezicht lijkt te hebben teruggetrokken in een prachtig Italiaans dorp in de bergen, om te genieten van een welverdiende oude dag. De inwoners van het dorp kennen hem als signor Farfalla, vanwege de vlinders die hij schildert. Hij is een zogeheten 'schaduwfiguur', een wapenspecialist en hitman op bestelling. Signor Farfalla deelt zijn maaltijden en glazen armagnac met de lokale priester, inspecteert de wijnkelders en huisgerookte prosciutto, schildert en bezoekt regelmatig het bordeel in het dorp, waar hij vriendschap sluit met twee dames. Maar voordat hij echt kan genieten van zijn oude dag, moet hij nog één allerlaatste klus klaren...

Van je familie moet je het hebben bevat een zorgvuldig en kundig samengestelde en ingeleide selectie door Aaf Brandt Corstius van David Sedaris' mooiste, ontroerendste en vooral geestigste verhalen: ze gaan over de dood, over zijn knotsgekke familie, over nudistencampings, over roken, over de zes tot acht zwarte mannen die Sinterklaas assisteren, over dwangneuroses, lichamelijk verval, over shoppen met zijn zus Amy, en over nog meer dood.David Sedaris is een fenomeen in de Verenigde Staten: van zijn boeken zijn meer dan een miljoen exemplaren verkocht. Zijn verhalen verschijnen in The New Yorker, hij leest voor op National Public Radio, en is regelmatig te zien bij David Letterman. Ook in België is zijn faam groot: 'Is David Sedaris de grappigste schrijver ter wereld? Wij zijn er alvast van overtuigd,' schreef Het Nieuwsblad geheel terecht.

Bonnie finds her summer fling boyfriend and fellow band member, Hayden, dead on the floor of a friend's London apartment. She proceeds to hide the corpse and obliterate every sign of her presence at the crime scene. Hayden's well-known involvement with other women could have provided Bonnie a motive for murder. To complicate matters, at least one more person appears to have altered the crime scene.

It's devastating to hear that your husband has died in a horrific car accident. But to learn that he died with a mystery woman as his passenger is torment. Was Greg having an affair? As Ellie tries to prove her husband's innocence, the people around her begin to question her sanity, and her motive. And the louder she shouts that Greg might have been murdered, the more suspicion falls on Ellie herself.

London cycle courier Astrid Bell has known most of her housemates for years, but while they have a tangled history together--romantic pairings, one-night stands, friendships--they each have secrets. Astrid is on her way home one day when her neighbor accidentally knocks her off her bike. Suffering a few bruises, her roommates help her home. The next day, they learn that same neighbor was bludgeoned to death only hours after the accident. Each of them tells the police what little they know and are dismissed. Then a few days later, Astrid is asked to pick up a package from a wealthy woman called Ingrid de Soto. When she arrives, the client is lying in the hall of her luxurious home--and it's apparent she's also been murdered. For the police, it's more than bad luck. For Astrid and her six housemates, it's the beginning of a nightmare: suspicious glances, bitter accusations, and a growing fear that the worst is yet to come. As the difference between friend and stranger grows harder to judge, the line between attraction and danger thins. The housemates--unsure if there's a killer in their midst--guard themselves against becoming the next victim. Because if it's true that bad luck comes in threes--who will be the next to die?

'And in Edinburgh of all places. I mean, you never think of that sort of thing happening in Edinburgh, do you...?' 'That sort of thing' is the brutal abduction and murder of two young girls. And now a third is missing, presumably gone to the same sad end. Detective Sergeant John Rebus, smoking and drinking too much, his own young daughter spirited away south by his disenchanted wife, is one of many policemen hunting the killer. And then the messages begin to arrive: knotted string and matchstick crosses - taunting Rebus with pieces of a puzzle only he can solve.

Elizabeth Costello is an Australian writer of international renown. Famous principally for an early novel that established her reputation, she has reached the stage where her remaining function is to be venerated and applauded. Her life has become a series of engagements in sterile conference rooms throughout the world - a private consciousness obliged to reveal itself to a curious public: the presentation of a major award at an American college where she is required to deliver a lecture; a sojourn as the writer in residence on a cruise liner; a visit to her sister, a missionary in Africa, who is receiving an honorary degree, an occasion which both recognise as the final opportunity for effecting some form of reconciliation; and a disquieting appearance at a writers' conference in Amsterdam where she finds the subject of her talk unexpectedly amongst the audience. She has made her life's work the study of other people yet now it is she who is the object of scrutiny. But, for her, what matters is the continuing search for a means of articulating her vision and the verdict of future generations.

It is 1945. As the German Army retreats and the tide of war sweeps back over Eastern Europe, the lives of the inhabitants are changed forever.

In this extraordinary memoir, readers experience a whirlwind of emotions simultaneously. After the death of their parents, Bill, Beth, and the narrator grapple with grief and anger. Bill, at twenty-four, seeks peace among the siblings, while Beth and the narrator, both consumed by rage, lash out at everyone around them. They arrive in California, determined to seize what they believe is rightfully theirs. The narrator and young Toph, with his backward hat and long hair, feel a sense of responsibility to reinvent their lives, embracing a reckless exhilaration born from their tragic loss. They believe that if they can endure such profound grief, anything is possible, and thus, they embark on a mission of destruction and recreation. Surrounded by a vibrant, chaotic San Francisco, they encounter a community of fellow orphans and dreamers, each with their own wild ideas, and a shared belief in the extraordinary potential of their lives. Amidst this backdrop of public nudity, quirky pursuits, and a palpable sense of urgency, the narrator wrestles with the energy of youth, torn between a desire to connect with others and a darker impulse to escape the chaos.