Media Bites September 2023

A Haunting in Venice: Hallowe’en Party AGATHA CHRISTIE The inspiration for A Haunting in Venice – now a major motion picture. When a Hallowe’en party turns deadly, it falls to Hercule Poirot to unmask a murderer… During a night of party games, Joyce Reynolds boasts that she once witnessed a murder. No one believes her, but then she is found drowned, face down in an apple-bobbing tub. Set against a night of trickery and the occult, Hercule Poirot and Ariadne Oliver must race to uncover the real evil responsible for this ghastly murder. Hallowe’en Party is the sensational Agatha

The Library of Broken Worlds ALAYA DAWN JOHNSON A girl matches wits with a war god in this kaleidoscopic, epic tale of oppression and the cost of peace, where stories hide within other stories, and narrative has the power to heal… or to burn everything in its path. In the winding underground tunnels of the Library, the great celestial peacekeeper of the three systems, a terrible secret lies buried. As the daughter of a Library god, Freida has spent her whole life exploring the Library’s ever-changing tunnels and communing with the gods. Her unparalleled access makes her unique – and dangerous.

A Bakery In Paris AIMIE K. RUNYAN

Cult CAMILLA LÄCKBERG & HENRIK FEXEUS A thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat from the first page to the last! A kidnapped boy… A young child is snatched in broad daylight outside his nursery. Nobody in charge sees a thing, but the other children say a Detective Mina Dabiri calls on her close friend Vincent to untangle the puzzle that surrounds the kidnapped boy. As he finds a link between the boy and other others who have gone missing, it becomes clear that time is running out for everyone involved …. A looming threat… Meanwhile, Mina’s estranged daughter gets caught up in the secretive world of Epicura, a shadowy organisation that claims to be a centre for leadership development. Can Mina protect her child – a child who doesn’t even know she exists? From the author of The School for German Brides , this captivating historical novel set in nineteenth-century and post–World 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. 1870: The Prussians are at the city gates, intent to starve Paris into submission. Lisette Vigneau – headstrong, willful, and often ignored by her wealthy parents – awaits the outcome of the war from her parents’ grand home in the Place Royale in the very heart of the city. When an excursion throws her into the path of a revolutionary National Guardsman, Théodore Fournier, her destiny is forever changed. She gives up her life of luxury to join in the fight for a Paris of the People. She opens a small bakery with the hopes of being a vital boon to the impoverished neighborhood in its hour of need. When the city falls into famine, and then rebellion, her resolve to give up the comforts of her past life is sorely tested. 1946: Nineteen-year-old Micheline Chartier is coping with the loss of her father and the disappearance of her mother during the war. In their absence, she is charged with the raising of her two younger sisters. At the hand of a well-meaning neighbor, Micheline finds herself enrolled in a prestigious baking academy with her entire life mapped out for her. Feeling trapped and desperately unequal to the task of raising two young girls, she becomes obsessed with finding her mother. Her classmate at the academy, Laurent Tanet, may be the only one capable of helping Micheline move on from the past and begin creating a future for herself. Released: 30/08/23 TPB | 384pp AU $32.99 NZ $35.00 Imprint: HarperCollins aimiekrunyan.com woman is the culprit … The police find a link …

Christie novel that inspired the brand new feature film directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh. This special edition is introduced by its screenwriter, Michael Green. Released: 30/08/23 BPB | 288pp www.agathachristie.com

When Freida meets Joshua, a mortal boy desperate to save his people, and Nergüi, a Disciple from a persecuted religious minority, Freida is compelled to break ranks with the gods and help them. But in order to do so, she will have to venture deeper into the Library than she has ever known. There she will discover the atrocities of the past, the truth of her origins, and the impossibility of her future… With the world at the brink of war, Freida embarks on a journey to fulfill her destiny, one that pits her against an ancient war god. Her mission is straightforward: Destroy the god before he can rain hellfire upon thousands of innocent lives – if he doesn’t destroy her first. A sparkling, thought-provoking new offering from World Fantasy Award-winning author Alaya Dawn Johnson. Released: 30/08/23 TPB | 448pp alayadawnjohnson.com

AU $22.99 NZ $25.00 Imprint: HarperCollins

AU $29.99 NZ $32.99 Imprint: Magpie Books

Released: 30/08/23 TPB | 592pp AU $32.99 NZ $35.00 Imprint: HarperCollins

FICTION

FICTION