Odile Demange Books

A vivid, moving, and sometimes humorous account of life during Russia's invasion, this work provides an uplifting and defiant perspective on the ongoing conflict. For centuries, Ukrainians have resisted efforts to erase their language, songs, and history, facing nearly 400 years of Russian aggression. Ten years after Crimea's annexation and two years into the full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian people continue their fight for identity and survival. The second volume of Andrey Kurkov's war diaries chronicles the diverse experiences of Ukrainians amidst Russian hostility, detailing everything from air raid stresses and deportations to Christmas celebrations and trench candle recipes. Kurkov's human-centric view blends satire, tragedy, humor, and heartfelt emotion, offering invaluable insights into Ukraine's history, politics, and culture. This account serves as an essential primer for understanding contemporary life in Ukraine. It captures the transformation of ordinary life into something extraordinary, highlighting themes of survival, hope, and humanity. With a genial yet impassioned voice, Kurkov passionately defends Ukrainian culture against Putin's attempts at erasure, asserting that Ukraine's future hinges on its freedom and independence. His quiet hope for victory resonates throughout this compelling narrative.

In 1558, Kingsbridge Cathedral witnesses a city divided by religious conflict as England's power shifts between Catholics and Protestants. Amidst this turmoil, Ned Willard aspires to marry Margery Fitzgerald, but their love is tested when they find themselves on opposing sides of the conflict. Ned joins Princess Elizabeth's service, and when she ascends to the throne, England faces hostility from all of Europe. Determined to protect her reign, Elizabeth establishes the first secret service to thwart assassination plots and invasions. Over the next fifty years, Ned and Margery's love appears doomed as extremism leads to violence across the continent. Elizabeth's commitment to her principles is upheld by a small group of spies and agents who navigate the treacherous landscape. The true conflict lies not in the rival religions but between those who champion tolerance and those who impose their beliefs by force. Set against a backdrop of revolutionary change, this narrative is one of Ken Follett's most ambitious works, captivating both long-time fans and newcomers alike.

From cultural icon Margaret Atwood comes a brilliant collection of essays -- funny, erudite, endlessly curious, uncannily prescient -- which seek answers to Burning Questions such as- Why do people everywhere, in all cultures, tell stories? How much of yourself can you give away without evaporating? How can we live on our planet? Is it true? And is it fair? What do zombies have to do with authoritarianism? In over fifty pieces Atwood aims her prodigious intellect and impish humour at the world, and reports back to us on what she finds. The roller-coaster period covered in the collection brought an end to the end of history, a financial crash, the rise of Trump and a pandemic. From debt to tech, the climate crisis to freedom; from when to dispense advice to the young (answer- only when asked) to how to define granola, we have no better guide to the many and varied mysteries of our universe.

The grand master of gripping fiction is back. International No.1 bestseller Ken Follett returns to Kingsbridge with an epic tale of revolution and a cast of unforgettable characters.Revolution is in the air1792. A tyrannical government is determined to make England a mighty commercial empire. In France, Napoleon Bonaparte begins his rise to power, and with dissent rife, France’s neighbours are on high alert.Kingsbridge is on the edgeUnprecedented industrial change sweeps the land, making the lives of the workers in Kingbridge’s prosperous cloth mills a misery. Rampant modernization and dangerous new machinery are rendering jobs obsolete and tearing families apart.Tyranny is on the horizonNow, as international conflict nears, a story of a small group of Kingsbridge people - including spinner Sal Clitheroe, weaver David Shoveller and Kit, Sal’s inventive and headstrong son - will come to define the struggle of a generation as they seek enlightenment and fight for a future free from oppression. . .Taking the reader straight into the heart of history with the fifth novel in the ground-breaking Kingsbridge series, The Armour of Light is master storyteller Ken Follett’s most ambitious novel to date.

Despite his overwhelming fear of interacting with people, Christopher, a mathematically-gifted, autistic fifteen-year-old boy, decides to investigate the murder of a neighbor's dog and uncovers secret information about his mother.

Hillary Rodham Clinton is a globally recognized figure, yet few know her personal story. In her candid memoir, she reflects on her upbringing in 1950s suburban America and her evolution from a Goldwater Girl to a student activist and controversial First Lady. This narrative chronicles her life in the White House and her enduring partnership with Bill Clinton, navigating love and politics amid personal betrayal and public scrutiny. Growing up during a period of significant social change, she embraced opportunities that were not available to previous generations of women. As she forged her own path, she became a symbol for some and a target for others. Balancing roles as a wife, mother, lawyer, advocate, and international icon, she witnessed pivotal moments in American political history, from Watergate to Whitewater. Notably, she was the only First Lady to significantly influence domestic legislation, advocating for health care, economic opportunity, and children's needs, while also championing women's rights and democracy globally. Her efforts redefined the role of First Lady and played a crucial part in protecting the presidency from impeachment. Intimate and inspiring, this memoir captures the essence of a remarkable woman and her journey to find her voice in American politics.

For decades, Omar Yussef has been a teacher of history to the children of Bethlehem. When a favourite former pupil, George Saba, is arrested for collaborating with the Israelis in the killing of a Palestinian guerrilla, Yussef is convinced that he has been framed. With George facing execution Yussef sets out to prove his innocence.

When elderly Ailsa Lockyer-Fox is found dead in her garden, dressed only in nightclothes and with blood stains on the ground near her body, the finger of suspicion points at her wealthy, landowning husband, Colonel James Lockyer-Fox. A Coronerâs inquest gives a verdict of ânatural causesâ but the gossip surrounding James refuses to go away. Why? Because heâs guilty? Or because resentful women in the isolated Dorset village where he lives rules the roost? Shenstead is a place of too few people and too many secrets. Why have James and Ailsa cut their children out of their will? What happened in the past to create such animosity within the family? Any why is James so desperate to find his illegitimate grandchild? Friendless and alone, his reclusive behavior begins to alarms his London-based solicitor, Mark Ankerton, whose concern deepens when he discovers that James has become the victim of a relentless campaign which accuses him of far worse than the death of his wife. Allegations which he refuses to challenge....Why? Because theyâre a motive for murder....?

With private security firms providing bodyguards in war zones, the emergence of a sexual psychopath among mercenaries goes unnoticed. When five women are brutally murdered in Sierra Leone, journalist Connie Burns questions the arrest of three rebel soldiers, but her concerns fall on deaf ears. In the aftermath of a brutal civil war, the rape and murder of women are dismissed, and confessions from child soldiers are coerced. Connie suspects a foreigner, a man claiming to be a former SAS member and now a bodyguard for a Lebanese diamond trader, is responsible. She recalls him from Kinshasa, where he served as a mercenary, and believes he exploits the chaos of war to indulge in sadistic fantasies against women. Two years later, her efforts to expose him in Iraq lead to devastating consequences. Traumatized and forced into hiding in England after enduring three days of conditioning in a Baghdad cellar, Connie seeks to reclaim her former self. In her isolation, she befriends Jess Derbyshire, a reclusive neighbor, and finds strength in their shared struggles. Determined to unmask the serial killer once more, Connie knows she is putting herself in danger, as he will inevitably come looking for her.

Her favourite tales are those that conjure ancient worlds - of angry gods and heroic mortals, one of whom will some day come to her rescue.Soon, she will forget where the page ends and her mind begins. 'A full-throttle blast of storytelling mastery' Max Porter