When her mother remarries, she jumps at the chance to tag along on the concert tour that just might be Gil and the Kills’ wild ride to glory. But fame has sharper fangs than anybody realized, and as the band blazes up the charts, internal power struggles set Gil and his group on a collision course destined for a bloody reckoning – one shrouded in mystery and lore for decades to come.

The only witness to a desperate act of violence, Suzanne spends the next twenty-nine years trying to disappear.

She trades the music and mayhem of her youth for the quiet of the suburbs and the company of her mild-mannered husband Rob. But when her father’s sudden death resurrects the troubled past she tried so hard to bury, she leaves it all behind and hits the road in search of answers.

Hitching her fate and Gil’s beloved car to two vagabonds who call an old Airstream trailer home, she finds everything she thought she’d lost forever: desire, adventure, and the woman she once wanted to be.

But Rob refuses to let her go. Determined to bring her back where she belongs, he chases her across the country – and drives her to a desperation all her own.

A coach stops in the main square of Lizzanello, a tight-knit village where everyone knows each other. A couple gets off: The man, Carlo, a child of the South, is happy to be back home after a long time away; the woman, Anna his wife, is a stranger from the North. Carlo’s brother is there to meet them, and he and everyone else can’t help but notice that Anna is as beautiful as a Greek statue.

But Anna is not like the other wives. She doesn’t gossip or attend church. She reads books no one else has ever heard of.

She even wears pants, just like a man, and thinks a woman should have rights just like a man. There aren’t many options for a woman with Anna’s sensibilities, so when she learns that the post office is hiring, she leaps at the opportunity. A female letter carrier? It is unthinkable.

But Anna soon becomes the invisible thread connecting the town as she delivers letters between clandestine lovers, families waiting to hear news of loved ones away at war, even helping those who can’t read. But for some in Lizzanello, letters come too little and too late. The seamstress, who was Carlo’s first love, can’t help but look at Anna as having taken her rightful place.

Carlo’s niece has put herself in a loveless marriage after an impetuous act of jealousy. And Carlo and his brother find themselves trying to cover up a recently unearthed surprise that could shatter all of their lives.

Salento, Italia, giugno 1934.

Una carrozza si ferma nella piazza principale di Lizzanello, un paese molto unito dove tutti si conoscono. Scende una coppia: l’uomo, Carlo, figlio del Sud, è felice di essere tornato a casa dopo tanto tempo; la donna, Anna, sua moglie, è una straniera del Nord. Il fratello di Carlo è lì ad accoglierli, e lui e tutti gli altri non possono fare a meno di notare che Anna è bella come una statua greca.

Ma Anna non è come le altre mogli. Non spettegola né va in chiesa. Legge libri di cui nessuno ha mai sentito parlare.

Indossa persino i pantaloni, proprio come un uomo, e pensa che una donna debba avere gli stessi diritti di un uomo. Non ci sono molte opzioni per una donna con la sensibilità di Anna, quindi quando scopre che l’ufficio postale sta assumendo, coglie al volo l’opportunità. Una postina? È impensabile.

Ma Anna diventa presto il filo invisibile che collega la città, consegnando lettere tra amanti clandestini, famiglie in attesa di notizie dei propri cari in guerra, e persino aiutando chi non sa leggere. Ma per alcuni a Lizzanello, le lettere arrivano troppo poche e troppo tardi. La sarta, che è stata il primo amore di Carlo, non può fare a meno di considerare Anna come se avesse preso il suo posto legittimo.

La nipote di Carlo si è messa in un matrimonio senza amore dopo un impetuoso atto di gelosia. E Carlo e suo fratello si ritrovano a cercare di nascondere una sorpresa appena scoperta che potrebbe sconvolgere tutte le loro vite.

Her twin brother, Hamnet, searches everywhere for help. Why is nobody at home? Their mother, Agnes, is over a mile away, in the garden where she grows medicinal herbs. Their father is working in London.

Neither parent knows that Hamnet will not survive the week. Hamnet is a novel inspired by the son of a famous playwright: a boy whose life has been all but forgotten, but whose name was given to one of the most celebrated plays ever written.

Elphaba grows up to be smart and prickly, a lonely outsider with an extraordinary talent for magic. Arriving at university, she dares to believe she might finally fit in. But Oz isn’t the haven she’d dreamed of.

Some of its citizens are in grave danger, and Elphaba is determined to protect them from the Wizard’s power. And when the world declares her a wicked witch, Elphaba takes matters into her own hands… This is the original novel by Gregory Maguire, first published in 1995.

It is a reimagined prequel to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and contains adult content

Driving along the coastal ‘instep’ of southern Italy in her trusty purple car, she travels between little fishing ports and explores the beaches of Puglia’s west coast, then heads into the wild hills of Basilicata and Calabria’s high Sila, famed for its chestnuts and mushrooms, and ends her journey in the bergamot orchards clustering around Reggio. In this book, award-winning author, Sophie Grigson charts the local delicacies, ingredients and producers; through recipes and stories, she immerses you in the beauty, culture, food and characters of southern Italy. Full of delicious, traditional recipes from the different regions, from Puglian Beans in Red Winte Tomato Sauce to Calabrian-style Cheesy Stuffed Aubergines and from Super-Speedy Lemon Ice Cream to Chocolate and Almond Biscuits, discover the south coast of Italy with Sophie.

Chapters include: * Ingredients* Puglia * Basilicata* Calabria* Recipes course by course