As well as its advantages, there are drawbacks to the enlightened village that is twenty-first-century Edinburgh, where every Saturday night ears burn at dinner parties across the city, and anyone requiring the investigative abilities of a philosophical soul knows where to find her.
Despite inhabiting a great city renowned for its impeccable restraint, the extended family of 44 Scotland Street is trembling on the brink of reckless self-indulgence.
Mr Ali's flourishing marriage bureau seems to have chalked up another success when his ward, Pari, receives a surprise proposal from a rich, handsome aristocrat.
Mrs Ali's much loved home is suddenly under threat - a road widening scheme threatens to destroy both it and the family business, the Marriage Bureau for Rich People.
Seventeen-year-old Veronica 'Ronnie' Miller's life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina.
FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF REBECCA'She wrote exciting plots, she was highly skilled at arousing suspense' GUARDIAN'The novel explores incest in a manner that is entirely unexpected for that period' JUSTINE PICARDIE 'One of the last century's most original literary talents' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'His first instinct was to stretch out his hands to the sky.
A HEART-BREAKING, HOPEFUL NOVEL FROM THE MASTER STORYTELLER WHOSE BOOKS HAVE TOUCHED THE HEARTS OF OVER 40 MILLION READERS'Mitch Albom sees the magical in the ordinary' Cecilia AhernDon't miss Mitch Albom's new novel, Twice, a beautiful and heartbreaking story about lost loves and second chances__________As a child, Charley Benetto was told by his father, 'You can be a mama's boy or a daddy's boy, but you can't be both.
Isabel Dalhousie, philosopher and amateur solver of other people's problems, meets an old foe, Minty Auchterlonie, at a birthday party attended by their young children.
To the casual observer, the great enlightened city of Edinburgh, home of no-nonsense philosophers and cream teas, might appear immune to the rollercoaster of strong emotions.
The key to contentment in the Scottish climate is the right attitude to rain - just as in life the key to happiness lies in making the best of what you have.
BOOK ONE IN THE MUCH-LOVED ISABEL DALHOUSIE SERIESIsabel Dalhousie knows that behind Edinburgh's Georgian facades, its moral compasses spin with greed, dishonesty and lust.
Poor put-upon Bertie is still struggling to escape his overbearing mother's influence, his yoga lessons and his pink bedroom while wondering why new baby brother Ulysses looks uncomfortably like his psychotherapist.
With his characteristic warmth, inventiveness and brilliant wit, Alexander McCall Smith gives us more of the gloriously entertaining comings and goings at 44 Scotland Street, the Edinburgh townhouse.
In Espresso Tales, Alexander McCall Smith returns home to Edinburgh and the glorious cast of his own tales of the city, the residents of 44 Scotland Street, with a new set of challenges for each one of them.
For philosophically minded Isabel Dalhousie, editor of the Review of Applied Ethics, getting through life with a clear conscience requires careful thought.
A tale of delicate beauty and deceptive simplicity by one of the greatest Scandinavian writers of the 20th century The Birds tells the story of Mattis, who has mental disabilities and lives in a small house near a lake with his sister Hege who ekes out a modest living knitting sweaters.
*** CONGRATULATIONS TO THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS AUTHOR OF THE YEAR 2022***Discover the seriously funny, stunningly written novel about one woman's attempts to put her past behind her, from the No.
From the multi-million copy bestselling author of BIG LITTLE LIES, NINE PERFECT STRANGERS and APPLES NEVER FALL, discover this irresistible story of love, lies and obsession .
The Number One bestselling author of The Reading Group will capture your heart with this heartrending yet magical exploration of love, loss and family*A Richard & Judy Book Club Pick*For Maggie and Bill it was love at first sight .
One woman's hidden past will be exposed in the intense and gripping story from the international bestseller Lesley Pearse'If you want a gripping, enthralling, wonderful read, full of characters crafted to perfection, this is it' 5***** READER REVIEW'Intriguing, heart-tugging, beautifully written' CLOSER'One of those books that can hardly be out down .
WINNER OF THE CARNEGIE MEDALFINALIST FOR THE PULITZER PRIZEFINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARDSWINNER OF THE STONEWALL BOOK AWARD - BARBARA GITTINGS LITERATURE AWARDFINALIST FOR THE LA TIMES FICTION AWARD'Stirring, spellbinding and full of life' T a Obreht, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiger's WifeIn 1985, Yale Tishman, the development director for an art gallery in Chicago, is about to pull off an amazing coup: bringing an extraordinary collection of 1920s paintings as a gift to the gallery.
Shortlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize and Portico Prize for Literature'As funny and sad as anything by Dunbar herself' Observer, Books of the Year'One of the great debut novels of the century, and one of my very favourite books ever.
From the author of The School for German Brides, this captivating historical novel set in nineteenth-century and postWorld War II Paris follows two fierce women of the same family, generations apart, who find that their futures lie in the four walls of a simple bakery in a tiny corner of Montmartre.
A stunning novel, spanning generations and continents, Ghana Must Go is a tale of family drama and forgiveness, for fans of Zadie Smith and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.