Carys Bray

Clover Quinn was a surprise. She used to imagine she was the good kind, now she's not sure. She'd like to ask Dad about it, but growing up in the saddest chapter of someone else's story is difficult. She tries not to skate on the thin ice of his memories. Darren has done his best. He's studied his daughter like a seismologist on the lookout for waves and surrounded her with everything she might want - everything he can think of, at least - to be happy. What Clover wants is answers. This summer, she thinks she can find them in the second bedroom, which is full of her mother's belongings. Volume isn't important, what she is looking for is essence; the undiluted bits: a collection of things that will tell the full story of her mother, her father and who she is going to be. But what you find depends on what you're searching for.

The Museum of You

_________________________________________________________ If you believe your world is going to end, how should you live? And what if, while preparing for disaster, you unwittingly precipitate it? While Emma Abram prepares for Christmas, her husband Chris frets about starvation and societal collapse. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Chris has turned off the heating. He treks his sons across the Moss in the drubbing rain. And he has other plans that, if voiced, Emma would surely veto. But it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. Emma longs to lower a rope and winch Chris from the pit of his worries. But he doesn't want to be rescued or even reassured - he wants to pull her in after him. 'So timely, and so deeply human, a novel which takes us right into the heart of a marriage and at the same time grapples with the most crucial issue of our age. It's bursting with compassion and wisdom.' Shelley Harris, author of JUBILEE 'Through exquisite use of language and observation, she examines the intricacies of family life in ways which have you laughing one moment and biting your nails with worry the next.' Sarah Franklin, author of SHELTER 'With characteristic wit and humanity, Bray shows us the necessity and the impossibility of preparing for disaster, and reminds us of both the fragility and capacity of love.' Jenn Ashworth, author of A KIND OF INTIMACY and FELL

When the Lights Go Out

They say there's no place like home. It's where the heart is... Meet the little boy who believes in miracles. Meet the mother who loves to bring babies home from the newborn aisle of her supermarket. Meet the husband who carves a longed-for baby out of ice as a gift for his wife. Meet the widow who is reminded of romance whilst pegging out the washing. Awarded the Scott Prize for short story writing, Sweet Home weaves together moments of joy, heartache, sadness and unwavering love as told through seventeen very different notions of home.

Sweet Home

Bernardine Evaristo

Nikesh Shukla

Donal Ryan

Grace McCleen

Rowan Hisayo Buchanan

D. W. Wilson

'Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold.' Zelda Fitzgerald Love is not a singular concept. In this collection, seven award-winning authors explore seven concepts of love: from Philautia, self-love, to Agape, love for humanity; and from Storge, a natural affection for family, to Mania, a frenzied, obsessive love. Seven authors; seven short stories; seven flashes of love. The publication of How Much the Heart Can Hold is heralded by a Sceptre short story competition. The winning story, based on a concept of love, will be published in the paperback edition.

Seven Stories on Love

How Much the Heart Can Hold

A devastating tragedy challenges the close family bond and faith of a convert to the Mormon religion, her ministry-driven bishop husband and their three children, who respectively balance, rebel against and embrace their father's beliefs. A first novel by the award-winning author of Sweet Home.

A Song for Issy Bradley

Tells the story of seven-year-old Jacob. His faith is bigger than a mustard seed, probably bigger than a toffee bonbon and he's planning to use it to mend his broken family with a miracle.

A song for Issy Bradley

_________________________ 'This is a powerful and truthful story about hope and how to find it' THE TIMES 'Wry, beautifully written . . . it works on many levels' DAILY MAIL 'Bray's satire shines with observation and subtlety' GUARDIAN 'She writes with a quiet formidable brilliance. Her observations on relationships are acute, painful and extremely funny. This is a gem of a book.' EMILY MAITLIS _________________________ Global temperatures are rising. The climate of the Abrams' marriage is cooling. Emma is beginning to wonder whether relationships, like mortgages, should be conducted in five-year increments. She might laugh if Chris had bought a motorbike or started dyeing his hair. Instead he's buying off-label medicines and stockpiling food. Chris finds Emma's relentless optimism exasperating. A tot of dread, a nip of horror, a shot of anger - he isn't asking much. If she would only join him in a measure of something. The family's precarious eco-system is further disrupted by torrential rains, power cuts and the unexpected arrival of Chris's mother. Emma longs to lower a rope and winch Chris from the pit of his worries. But he doesn't want to be rescued or reassured - he wants to pull her in after him. Darkly funny and beautifully written, When the Lights Go Out is a novel for our times: a story about cultivating hope and weathering change. _________________________ 'So timely, and so deeply human, a novel which takes us right into the heart of a marriage and at the same time grapples with the most crucial issue of our age. It's bursting with compassion and wisdom.' SHELLEY HARRIS, author of JUBILEE 'Through exquisite use of language and observation, she examines the intricacies of family life in ways which have you laughing one moment and biting your nails with worry the next.' SARAH FRANKLIN, author of SHELTER 'With characteristic wit and humanity, Bray shows us the necessity and the impossibility of preparing for disaster, and reminds us of both the fragility and capacity of love.' JENN ASHWORTH, author of A KIND OF INTIMACY and FELL 'I think WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT is exactly the novel we need in these times: it's complex, nuanced, and compassionate, frightening and heartening. I think Carys has written something truly extraordinary and I hope it flies. I'll certainly be cheering it on.' STEPHANIE BUTLAND 'Gorgeously written... funny and compassionate... I found it very affecting.' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, 2020 Pick of the Year

A mesmerizing literary debut novel of doubt, faith, and perseverance in the aftermath of a family tragedy—for fans of Me Before You, Little Bee, and Tell the Wolves I’m Home. The Bradleys see the world as a place where miracles are possible, and where nothing is more important than family. This is their story. It is the story of Ian Bradley—husband, father, math teacher, and Mormon bishop—and his unshakeable belief that everything will turn out all right if he can only endure to the end, like the pioneers did. It is the story of his wife, Claire, her lonely wait for a sign from God, and her desperate need for life to pause while she comes to terms with tragedy. And it is the story of their children: sixteen-year-old Zippy, experiencing the throes of first love; cynical fourteen-year-old Al, who would rather play soccer than read the Book of Mormon; and seven-year-old Jacob, whose faith is bigger than a mustard seed—probably bigger than a toffee candy, he thinks—and which he’s planning to use to mend his broken family with a miracle. Intensely moving, unexpectedly funny, and deeply observed, A Song for Issy Bradley explores the outer reaches of doubt and faith, and of a family trying to figure out how to carry on when the innermost workings of their world have broken apart. Praise for A Song for Issy Bradley “I loved A Song for Issy Bradley. It’s wry, smart . . . moving and comforting. . . . A terrific book [about] faith, and what happens to that faith when the unimaginable happens.”—Nick Hornby, The Believer “The Book of Mormon with an English accent.”—New York Post “Bray fully inhabits each of her characters, displaying an admirable range of narrative talent rare in a first novel. Fans of The Lonely Polygamist and Where’d You Go, Bernadette will savor this thrilling glimpse behind the scenes of a family in crisis.”—Booklist (starred review) “With wit and compassion, plus insider knowledge of the Mormon way of life, Bray exposes the raw emotions of a family in crisis. An intriguing and heartbreaking story from an author to watch.”—Library Journal “An absorbing, beautifully written debut novel with surprising moments of humor.”—Kirkus Reviews “In this wry, original, generous-spirited debut novel, members of a family come to terms with grief, each in his or her own way. They wrestle with belief and disillusionment, desire and hopelessness, pervasive sorrow and moments of transcendent joy. The result is riveting, powerful, and quietly devastating. Quite simply, A Song for Issy Bradley took my breath away.”—Christina Baker Kline, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Orphan Train “A Song for Issy Bradley is that rarest of things—a book that is beautiful, tender, and a page-turner. Carys Bray made me fall hopelessly in love with each and every one of the Bradleys.”—Carol Rifka Brunt, New York Times bestselling author of Tell the Wolves I’m Home “I cannot remember the last time I have felt so emotionally invested in a novel. It is brilliant and profoundly moving, utterly compelling and almost unbearably real.”—Nathan Filer, author of The Shock of the Fall

A Novel

D.W. Wilson

The perfect alternative Valentine's gift Startlingly original stories S Magazine Together they assert that love is more heart-breaking and transforming that the word necessarily conveys. Observer Love is not a singular concept. In this collection, seven award-winning authors explore seven concepts of love: from Philautia, self-love, to Agape, love for humanity; and from Storge, a natural affection for family, to Mania, a frenzied, obsessive love. Seven authors; seven short stories; seven flashes of love. 'Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold.' Zelda Fitzgerald This paperback edition of How Much the Heart Can Hold includes the winning short story from the SceptreLoves short story Prize.

Carys Bray

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