Recommended Reads
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The Sixth Wife
Alice Berg is a marketing executive in her mid-20s who has just moved to a big, bustling European city. Her future looks bright until one day, she encounters fate at a traffic crossing, and her life changes forever.
Soon, Alice finds herself caught in the grips of an exciting and erotic, yet toxic, love affair with the famous writer Mikhail, who is twice her age. Despite her repeated attempts to end the relationship, she finds it impossible to leave him. Over the next ten years of their turbulent romance, will Alice manage to save herself, or will she drown in the abyss of Mikhail’s poisoned love, destined to remain in her perpetual role as ‘the other woman’?
Peppered with intimate details, The Sixth Wife is based on true events from the author’s own life. Raw, mystical, and elegant, the novel doesn’t shy away from addressing thought-provoking societal taboos that reflect women’s experiences but are rarely explored in fiction, including abortion, major depression, and the long-term effects of emotional abuse.
£10.99 -
My Psycho Ex
Omphile is trying to free herself from the hands of her abusive baby daddy. She loses faith in love and men, but with the help of her gay best friend and fate, she finds her soulmate, Jelel, who changes her entire perspective about love and men. The problem is her baby daddy won’t leave her alone, and she doesn’t want people she loves getting mixed up with the baby daddy, as he is dangerous. She believed she could handle it until the baby daddy partnered with Jelel’s ex-fiancée to eliminate the threat to getting what they both want. This ends up with Omphile fighting for her life while Jelel shows the partners in crime that they bit off more than they could chew.
£9.99 -
The Mirror of Love
In the “Mirror of Love”, Nomalanga Ndwandwe offers readers a profound tool to reflect on and understand the true nature of love. This insightful guide will help you to identify and distinguish between love and jealousy. Comprehend the motivation behind hurtful actions, and uncover the intricate dynamics that affect relationships.
Questions Explored
How can I differentiate between love and jealousy?
What is the package of loving a person?
What causes unacceptable behaviour problems in marriage?
Why do some workers fail to perform to their maximum?
Why do in-laws often treat each other differently than their biological relatives?
“The Mirror of Love” is not just a book; it’s an enlightening journey into the heart of human interactions and the unseen forces that shape them. Learn to recognise the seeds that yield the behaviours we observe today.
£7.99 -
The Secret Adventures of a Boy Called Alex
In the heart of a Welsh farm, nestled in a very small holding called Church Farm, young Alex stumbles upon a world where the mundane collides with the fantastical. Beneath the shadow of the Bottomless Swamp Pond lies a hidden realm of ancient curses, warring clans, and secrets buried deep within Church Farm’s walls.
When an ancient evil stirs, freed by greed and chance and a war erupts, Alex and a band of unlikely allies, including a heroic rat family, a resurrected horsefly, and the ever-watchful Old Bailey, must navigate perilous dangers to protect the farm and its inhabitants. From the cunning schemes of the Swamp Rats to the haunting spectre of Dalzel, an exiled immortal with a hunger for revenge, the stakes have never been higher.
Will Alex find the courage to confront these dark forces, or will his family’s farm become a battleground for ancient powers?
A tale of bravery, courage, loyalty, friendship, and the extraordinary magic that lies within the heart of a boy who dares to speak up for those who cannot, The Secret Adventures of a Boy Called Alex invites readers of all ages to a world where every shadow holds a story and every dawn a new hope.
£15.99 -
A Boy Who Grew Old But Never Grew Up
Pepper had four older brothers and an older sister but was raised as an only child. The youngest of his siblings was twelve years his senior. Pepper always regarded himself as an afterthought.
Pepper’s father, whom he loved but barely knew, died when he was only nine – Pepper, that is, not his father.
Pepper’s father was eleven years older than his mother – Pepper’s, that is, not his father’s. Pepper inherited his life from his mother. Although she survived two World Wars and the Great Depression, Pepper never wanted for anything. Love you, Mum.
Pepper aged his way through two marriages, a family and a reasonable career. He regrets that some of that time could not have been spent growing up.
£6.99 -
Tipping Point
Obsession, greed and stupidity lead more than one character to do the worst of all possible things in this fast-moving crime thriller about seemingly ordinary people who have the bad luck to get mixed up with some very nasty characters intent on their destruction.
Alan is the anti-hero, a young man without a conscience who has an unpleasant secret and often takes what he believes to be the easy way out of difficult situations. His seemingly respectable way of life, working in an office and pursuing his hobby of rare coin collecting in his spare time, collapses when he is wrongly accused of murdering his girlfriend and parents. Eventually released from prison when an alibi witness comes forward, he returns to his previous way of life. And it all goes downhill from there.
This is an interesting novel with several contemporary themes of interest to readers of all ages.
£9.99 -
Prevention Is Better than Cure
When the Band of Hope was established in Leeds in 1847, its aim was to convince children that alcohol consumption would damage their health and life chances. Membership was confirmed through the signing of a teetotal pledge that required parental consent. The movement’s founders could not possibly have envisaged the extent of its impressive growth throughout the United Kingdom, with particular strengths in northern England counties. Immediately before the start of the First World War in 1914, membership reached 3.7 million spread among over 33,000 societies.
Being closely linked to church Sunday Schools, when numbers of scholars declined, Band of Hope membership also fell. The huge numbers of wartime deaths and serious injuries, and the consequent loss of many former volunteers, exacerbated the membership decline. That decrease accelerated through the latter decades of the 20th century, despite strenuous efforts by countless dedicated people.
A reconstituted organisation named Hope UK was established in 1995, which continues to work tirelessly with young people on alcohol and drug prevention.
£10.99 -
Mr In-Between
They say things get easier in your second year.
Peter Corby, Director of the International School of Ndwalowe in the beautiful African country of Awanza, may beg to differ.
Parents are still demanding, teachers are sometimes more problem than solution, students never cease to surprise, and now the PTA has gone rogue.
The Board remains a critical friend, sometimes very critical.
And who is stalking Anna Street?
At least Peter can escape from it all by marvelling at the fabulous wildlife of Africa from a bloody-minded elephant to a pugnacious caterpillar.
Praise for The Needful:
“This book is a ‘must read’ for staff and Board members in international schools; for aspirant Heads – to see what they are letting themselves in for, and for experienced Heads – who will take comfort from the resonance of past and future battles with Board members, staff, parents and local bureaucracy. Peter MacKenzie, I salute you. I wish I had written this book.”
– Wilf Stout, International School Magazine.
“The Needful is both a highly entertaining read and a serious consideration of the aims and realities of international education. It should appeal not just to the international education community but also to a more general audience.”
– David Wilkinson, International Schools Journal.
£13.99 -
Necronomicon Ex-Mortis
This is a book of the Dead. Prepare yourself to be immersed in, or more bluntly, banished to an endless and surreal journey through the deepest, darkest, fiery pits of Hell itself, where Satan resides.
As you wander across the cold and barren landscape, you will encounter the masters and mistresses of the underworld. From A to Z, these demons take on countless forms and perform a variety of duties in service of Beelzebub.
Along the way, you may find yourself asking: ‘Am I dead?’ ‘Is this why I am here?’ or ‘What did I do to deserve this?’
In Hell, you are cold, exposed, and vulnerable. As you push forward, desperate to escape and clinging to your sanity, you will soon realise the truth. This is your fate. You are here to meet and be judged by Beelzebub, lord of the flies, better known as Satan.
You have been warned. Think carefully before you open the first page.
£8.99 -
Skimp and Skarpa
Skimp & Skarpa Construction, a mid-sized Manchester building company, is run by the Managing Director, Arthur Skarpa and a small management team.
Geoffrey Palmer, a contracts manager, seems to be, in his eyes, the only competent person in charge of building projects. Palmer, therefore, is constantly running around putting out the mistakes Arthur and his nephew, Walter, have created. Chaos, incompetence and very poor organisation are the daily challenges for ‘Super Geoff’ to overcome, as one farce after another has to be met and overcome. Every evening after work, ‘Super Geoff’s’ long-suffering wife, Jill, has to listen to Geoff’s ranting and raving about the day’s events and how he heroically, single-handedly, once again saved Skimp & Skarpa’s skin.
A laughable, disastrous comedy of errors awaits the reader.
£6.99 -
The Salve of Love
The Salve of Love offers a transformative perspective on true spiritual love, narrated through Haridas, a seeker on a quest to uncover life’s meaning. During his journey, he meets a monk skilled in revealing profound philosophical and spiritual truths through ancient and contemporary stories.
Weaving a fabric of enlightenment, the monk equips Haridas with the knowledge and tools that intensify his desire to journey within through a timeless practice of consciousness transformation that is both fulfilling and empowering.
Presented as a series of semi-standalone short stories, the book illustrates how daily challenges can be understood, navigated, and transcended. Drawing from Vedic theology, these anecdotes illuminate Haridas’s struggles and triumphs.
With eyes initially anointed with the salve of knowledge, it evolves into eyes anointed with the salve of love, wherein he sees the godliness in every sentient being and respects and deals with people from a place of love, compassion, and kindness.
The narrative’s depth fosters emotional and mental connection, awakening parts of the self numb to regressive identitarian evolution. Blending ancient tales, theology, fiction, and autobiographical insights, the writing paints vivid imagery and strikes a resonant chord within, creating a harmonious pedagogical masterpiece.
£8.99 -
Poems in a Bottle
Calling this new poetry may seem unusual, given that this self-curated collection spans five decades of writing. Covering a wide range of subjects, from timeless emotions to political and social issues, these poems are presented with a distinctive voice that reflects years of poetic exploration.
This marks the poet’s first standalone collection, bringing together works that, until now, have only appeared in small selections. Between 2010 and 2012, no more than three of these poems were published in poetry anthologies and on the Poetry Library website.
Now, for the first time, these poems are gathered in a single volume, offering readers a journey through a lifetime of verse.
£5.99
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