Explore the latest books of this year!
Bookbot

Laura Grandi

    Blackberry Wine
    The Girl with No Shadow
    Gentlemen & Players
    Five Quarters of the Orange
    Chocolat
    Peaches for Monsieur Le Curé
    • The Gospel of Loki

      • 302 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      With his notorious reputation for trickery and deception, and an ability to cause as many problems as he solves, Loki is a Norse god like no other. Demon-born, he is viewed with deepest suspicion by his fellow gods who will never accept him as one of their own and for this he vows to take his revenge. But while Loki is planning the downfall of Asgard and the humiliation of his tormentors, greater powers are conspiring against the gods and a battle is brewing that will change the fate of the Worlds. From his recruitment by Odin from the realm of Chaos, through his years as the go-to man of Asgard, to his fall from grace in the build-up to Ragnarok, this is the unofficial history of the world's ultimate trickster.

      The Gospel of Loki2016
      3.8
    • Blueeyedboy

      • 528 pages
      • 19 hours of reading

      A dark and intricately plotted tale of a poisonously dysfunctional family, a blind child prodigy, and a serial murderer who is not who he seems. Told through posts on a webjournal called badguysrock, this is a thriller that makes creative use of all the multiple personalities, disguise and mind games that are offered by playing out a life on the internet.

      Blueeyedboy2012
      3.3
    • Sleep, Pale Sister

      • 416 pages
      • 15 hours of reading

      Set in a gothic atmosphere, the story weaves a dark and compelling narrative reminiscent of Joanne Harris's earlier work, Holy Fools. It explores themes of intrigue and the macabre, showcasing Harris's signature style that combines rich storytelling with a haunting sensibility. This novel precedes her more celebrated works like Chocolat and Blackberry Wine, offering readers a glimpse into her early literary prowess and ability to evoke deep emotions through vivid characters and settings.

      Sleep, Pale Sister2012
      3.3
    • After a years long absence, chocolatier Vianne Rocher returns to the village of Lansquenet in south-west France, to find that newcomers from North Africa have brought big changes to the community, and a minaret is now situated next to the church of Saint-Jerome, calling people to prayer.

      Peaches for Monsieur Le Curé2012
      4.1
    • Jigs & Reels

      • 288 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      In these 22 short stories by Joanne Harris, the miraculous goes hand-in-hand with the mundane, the sour with the sweet, and the beautiful, the grotesque, the seductive and the disturbing are never more than a step away

      Jigs & Reels2011
      3.6
    • The Evil Seed

      • 448 pages
      • 16 hours of reading

      In this romantic suspense novel the reaappearance of a diary ensures that past and present intertwine, paving the way for unknown consequences. Joanne Harris is also the author of 'Chocolat'. Originally published: London: Warner, 1992.

      The Evil Seed2009
      3.1
    • Runemarks

      • 544 pages
      • 20 hours of reading

      The major fantasy debut from bestselling author Joanne Harris, now in paperback. Seven o'clock on a Monday morning, five hundred years after the end of the world, and goblins have been at the cellar again. Not that anyone would admit it was goblins. In Maddy Smith’s world, order rules. Chaos, old gods, faeries, magic—all of these were supposedly vanquished centuries ago. But Maddy knows that a small bit of magic has survived. The “ruinmark” she was born with on her palm proves it—and makes the other villagers fearful and suspicious that she is a witch. But the mysterious traveler One-Eye sees Maddy’s mark not as a defect, but a destiny. And Maddy will need every scrap that One-Eye can teach her about runes, cantrips, and glamours—every ounce of magic she can command—if she is to survive that destiny. * “Harris creates a glorious and complex world replete with rune-based magical spells, bickering gods, exciting adventures and difficult moral issues.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred

      Runemarks2008
      3.8
    • The Girl with No Shadow

      • 444 pages
      • 16 hours of reading

      The wind has always dictated Vianne Rocher's every move, buffeting her from the French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes to the crowded streets of Paris. Cloaked in a new identity, that of widow Yanne Charbonneau, she opens a chocolaterie on a small Montmartre street, determined to still the wind at last and keep her daughters, Anouk and baby Rosette, safe. But the weather vane soon turns, and Zozie de l'Alba blows into their lives. Charming and enigmatic, Zozie provides the brightness that Yanne's life needs--as her vivacity and bold lollipop shoes dazzle rebellious and impressionable preadolescent Anouk. But beneath their new friend's benevolent facade lies a ruthless treachery--for devious, seductive Zozie has plans that will shake their world to pieces.

      The Girl with No Shadow2007
      3.9
    • At St Oswald's, a long-established boys' grammar school in the north of England, a new year has just begun. For the staff and boys of the school, a wind of unwelcome change is blowing. Suits, paperwork and Information Technology rule the world; and Roy Straitley, the eccentric veteran Latin master, is finally - reluctantly - contemplating retirement. But beneath the little rivalries, petty disputes and everyday crises of the school, a darker undercurrent stirs. And a bitter grudge, hidden and carefully nurtured for thirteen years, is about to erupt.

      Gentlemen & Players2006
      3.9
    • Blackberry Wine

      • 336 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      Jay Mackintosh is trapped by memory in the old familiar landscape of his childhood, to which he longs to return. A bottle of home-brewed wine left to him by a long-vanished friend seems to provide the key to an old mystery. As the unusual properties of the strange brew take effect, Jay escapes to a derelict farmhouse in the French village of Lansquenet . There, a ghost from the past waits to confront him, and the reclusive Marise - haunted, lovely and dangerous - hides a terrible secret behind her closed shutters. Between them, a mysterious chemistry. Or could it be magic?

      Blackberry Wine2006
      3.9
    • Five Quarters of the Orange

      • 432 pages
      • 16 hours of reading

      Beyond the main street of Les Laveuses runs the Loire, smooth and brown as a sunning snake - but hiding a deadly undertow beneath its moving surface. This is where Framboise, a secretive widow named after a raspberry liqueur, plies her culinary trade at the cr�perie - and lets memory play strange games. Into this world comes the threat of revelation as Framboise's nephew - a profiteering Parisian - attempts to exploit the growing success of the country recipes she has inherited from her mother, a woman remembered with contempt by the villagers of Les Laveuses. As the spilt blood of a tragic wartime childhood flows again, exposure beckons for Framboise, the widow with an invented past. Joanne Harris has looked behind the drawn shutters of occupied France to illuminate the pain, delight and loss of a life changed for ever by the uncertainties and betrayals of war.

      Five Quarters of the Orange2003
      3.9
    • Chocolat

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      Try me...Test me...Taste me. When an exotic stranger, Vianne Rocher, arrives in the French village of Lansquenet and opens a chocolate boutique directly opposite the church, Father Reynaud identifies her as a serious danger to his flock - especially as it is the beginning of Lent, the traditional season of self-denial. War is declared as the priest denounces the newcomer's wares as instruments of murder. Suddenly Vianne's shop-cum-cafe means that there is somewhere for secrets to be whispered, grievances to be aired, dreams to be tested. But Vianne's plans for an Easter Chocolate Festival divide the whole community in a conflict that escalates into a 'Church not Chocolate' battle. As mouths water in anticipation, can the solemnity of the Church compare with the pagan passion of a chocolate éclair? For the first time here is a novel in which chocolate enjoys its true importance, emerging as a moral issue, as an agent of transformation - as well as a pleasure bordering on obsession. Rich, clever and mischievous, this is a triumphant read.

      Chocolat2002
      4.0