From the author of The Red Notebook, described as 'Parisian perfection' by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, The Readers' Room is a thrilling murder mystery set in the world of publishing. 'The plot blends mystery with comedy to great effect'- Daily Mail When the manuscript of a debut crime novel arrives at a Parisian publishing house, everyone in the readers' room is convinced it's something special. And the committee for France's highest literary honour, the Prix Goncourt, agrees. But when the shortlist is announced, there's a problem for editor Violaine Lepage: she has no idea of the author's identity. As the police begin to investigate a series of murders strangely reminiscent of those recounted in the book, Violaine is not the only one looking for answers. And, suffering memory blanks following an aeroplane accident, she's beginning to wonder what role she might play in the story ... Antoine Laurain, bestselling author of The Red Notebook, combines intrigue and charm in this dazzling novel of mystery, love and the power of books.

How's the Pain? is an off-kilter, blackly comic novel about an unlikely duo of a soon-to-be-retired assassin and a deadbeat young man, from the 'slyly funny' [Sunday Times] Pascal Garnier. 'Deliciously dark ... painfully funny' New York Times Death is Simon's business. And now the ageing vermin exterminator is preparing to die. But he still has one last job down on the coast, and he needs a driver. Bernard is twenty-one. He can drive and he's never seen the sea. He can't pass up the chance to chauffeur for Simon, whatever his mother may say. As the unlikely pair set off on their journey, Bernard soon finds that Simon's definition of vermin is broader than he'd expected ... Veering from the hilarious to the horrific, this offbeat story from master stylist Pascal Garnier is at heart an affecting study of human frailty.

From the author of The Red Notebook, described as 'Parisian perfection' by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, The Readers' Room is a thrilling murder mystery set in the world of publishing. 'The plot blends mystery with comedy to great effect'- Daily Mail When the manuscript of a debut crime novel arrives at a Parisian publishing house, everyone in the readers' room is convinced it's something special. And the committee for France's highest literary honour, the Prix Goncourt, agrees. But when the shortlist is announced, there's a problem for editor Violaine Lepage: she has no idea of the author's identity. As the police begin to investigate a series of murders strangely reminiscent of those recounted in the book, Violaine is not the only one looking for answers. And, suffering memory blanks following an aeroplane accident, she's beginning to wonder what role she might play in the story ... Antoine Laurain, bestselling author of The Red Notebook, combines intrigue and charm in this dazzling novel of mystery, love and the power of books.

The story of Venezuela told through the adventures of kindly giant, Octavio. Struggling to conceal his illiteracy, he embarks on a transformative journey that unearths his life's purpose.Winner of several literary awards, this critically-acclaimed and instantly engaging tale reveals Miguel Bonnefoy to be a gifted storyteller.

In a house on a suburban street in Nagasaki, meteorologist Shimura Kobo lives quietly on his own. Or so he believes. Food begins to go missing. Perturbed by this threat to his orderly life, Shimura sets up a webcame to monitor his home. But though eager to identify his intruder, is Shimura really prepared for what the camera will reveal?

At first it feels like a terrible mistake: they're the only residents and it's raining non-stop. Then three neighbours arrive, the sun comes out, and life becomes far more interesting and agreeable. Until, that is, some gypsies set up camp just outside their gated community -

It's a few days before Christmas in Versailles. Olivier has come to bury his mother, but the impending holidays and icy conditions have delayed the funeral. While trapped in limbo at his mother's flat, a chance encounter brings Olivier back in touch with childhood friend Jeanne and her blind brother, Rodolphe. Rodolphe suggests they have dinner together, along with a homeless man he's taken in. As the wine flows, dark secrets are spilled, and there's more than just hangovers to deal with the next morning...

Recently widowed grandmother Eliette is returning to her house in the mountains when her car breaks down. A stranger offers help and Eliette gives him a lift, glad of the company and interruption to her routine. A tale of retirement and calm domesticity, with a hint of menace about to explode.

Praise for "The Red Notebook" "An endearing love story written in beautifully poetic prose. It is an enthralling mystery about chasing the unknown, the nostalgia for what could have been, and most importantly, the persistence of curiosity."San Francisco Book Review"Praise for "The President's Hat" "Its gentle satirical humor reminded me of Jacques Tati's classic films."Library Journal"Irresistibly whimsical, possessed of wit somewhere between that of Alan Bennett's in "The Uncommon Reader "and Muriel Barbery's in "The Elegance of the Hedgehog," and thoroughly entertaining"The King's English Bookshop, Salt Lake CityAntoine Laurain's new novel combines his trademark charm with a satirical take on modern France.Middle-aged doctor Alain Massoulier has received a life-changing letterthirty-three years too late.Lost in the Paris postal system for decades, the letter from Polydor, dated 1983, offers a recording contract to The Holograms, in which Alain played lead guitar.Back then The Holograms had believed in their cutting-edge sound. However, the music industry remained indifferent, and eventually the band split up, each going their own way.Alain is overcome by nostalgia, and is tempted to track down the members of the group. But in a world where everything and everyone has changed ...where will his quest take him?Antoine Laurain is a Parisian screenwriter, antiques collector and the author of six novels, three of which are available in English. "The President's Hat "was a 2013 ABA Indies Introduce choice."

While wandering through a Paris auction house, avid collector Pierre-Francois Chaumont is stunned to discover the eighteenth-century portrait of an unknown man who looks just like him. Much to his delight, Chaumont's bid for the work is successful, but back at home his jaded wife and circle of friends are unable to see the resemblance. Chaumont remains convinced of it, and as he researches into the painting's history, he is presented with the opportunity to abandon his tedious existence and walk into a brand new life...

A prize-winning author's magical realist fable about greed and corruption in Venezuela, Black Sugar gives a fascinating view of the country's social and economic development throughout the twentieth century through the story of a family of sugarcane growers. It tells of buried treasure and the legendary privateer Henry Morgan.

"Every note of the characters' correspondence rings true."--"Le Nouvel Observateur"

"A page-turning novel with a skilfully woven plot."--"Page des Libraires"

"Rich in deftly turned prose and subtle character study."--"Sud-Ouest"

"A wonderful book about the archaeology of memory."--"Le Magazine Litteraire"

"Elegant, restrained, and poetic."--"France Inter"

"The three figures in the photograph are frozen forever, two men and a woman bathed in sunlight . . ."

The chance discovery of a newspaper image from 1971 sets two people on the path to learning the disturbing truth about their parents' pasts.

Parisian archivist Helene takes out a newspaper advert calling for information about her mother, who died when she was three, and the two men pictured with her in a photograph taken at a tennis tournament at Interlaken in 1971. Stephane, a Swiss biologist living in Kent, responds: his father is one of the people in the photo. Letters and more photos pass between them as they embark on a journey to uncover the truth their parents kept from them. But will the relics of the past fill the silences left by the players?

Winner of fifteen literary awards, this dark yet touching drama deftly explores the themes of blame and forgiveness, identity and love.

Helene Gestern lives and works in Nancy, France. "The People in the Photo" is her first novel.

A crime author writing the story of Louis, who decides to do his cash-strapped friends a favor by hastening their parents' demise, finds reality and fiction overlapping during a stay in Normandy.Pascal Garnier combines the style of Simenon, the insight of Camus with a wit that is all his own.

'Shifting from psychological thriller to absurd road trip tinged with black humor, A Long Way Off is the odyssey of an anti-hero' France-Amerique 'Rich and abundant in dark comedy' Strong Words Magazine 'Masterly' John Banville 'Wonderful . . . properly noir' Ian Rankin Marc dreams of going somewhere far, far away - but he'll start by taking his cat and his grown-up daughter, Anne, to an out-of-season resort on the Channel. Reluctant to go home, the curious threesome head south for Agen, whose main claim to fame is its prunes. As their impromptu road trip takes ever stranger turns, the trail of destruction - and mysterious disappearances - mounts up in their wake. Shocking, hilarious and poignant, the final dose of French noir from Pascal Garnier, published shortly before his death, is the author on top form.

Volume 1 includes How's the Pain?, the tale of an ageing `pest exterminator' taking on one last job on the French Riviera; The Panda Theory, in which a stranger, Gabriel, arrives in a Breton town and befriends the locals ... but is he as angelic as he seems?; and The A26, in which a new Picardy motorway brings modernity close to a flat in which a brother and sister live together, haunted by terminal illness and the events of 1945.

Bookseller Laurent Letellier comes across an abandoned handbag on a Parisian street, and feels impelled to return it to its owner. The bag contains no money, phone or contact information. But a small red notebook with handwritten thoughts and jottings reveals a person that Laurent would very much like to meet. Without even a name to go on, and only a few of her possessions to help him, how is he to find one woman in a city of millions?

Written over a 15-year period from the mid '90s, Garnier's short novels weave a profound and darkly comic tapestry of human experience. Volume 2 includes Boxes, which tells the story of Brice, `the sole survivor of the natural disaster that at one time or another strikes us all, known as `moving house''; The Front Seat Passenger, in which a widower discovers his wife had a lover and decides to track down his widow; The Islanders, whose protagonist Olivier finds himself thrown back together with a childhood friend with whom he shares a dark secret; and Moon in a Dead Eye, in which the paranoia of the residents of a gated retirement village spins out of control.

Just a few months ago, Tom Boyd was a multi-million-selling author living in LA, in love with a world-famous pianist. But after a very public break-up he's shut himself away, suffering from total writer's block, with only drink and drugs for company. One night, a beautiful, naked stranger appears in Tom's house. She claims to be Billie, a character from his novels, who has fallen into the real world because of a printer's error in his latest book. Crazy as her story sounds; Tom comes to see that this must be the real Billie. And she wants to strike a deal with him: if he writes his next novel she can go back to the world of fiction; in return she will help him win back his beloved Aurore. What does he have to lose?