Welcome to this week’s news, reviews, and ‘all-things-books’ latest from the team at Waterstone’s Ballymena!
This week’s Top 10 bestselling books…
1. Girl from Donegal by Carmel Harrington
2. The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman
3. The Duke and I by Julia Quinn
4. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
5. The Guest by Emma Cline
6. The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
7. The Vanishing Lake by Paddy Donnelly
8. Prophet Song by Paul Lynch
9. The Fraud by Zadie Smith
10. Politics on the Edge by Rory Stewart
Saturday Storytime…
Our next Saturday Storytime will take place on Saturday 29th June at 12pm. We will be reading One Goose, Two Moose by Kael Tudor & Nicola Slater.
We look forward to seeing everyone there!
Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize Shortlist…
We are delighted to announce the shortlist for our Debut Fiction Prize – an award for exceptional first novels, voted for by our booksellers.
This year's six-strong shortlist represents the exciting scope of contemporary storytelling and takes us from ancient Syracuse to present-day New Zealand, and from Cold War Berlin to contemporary America, by way of electrifying time-hopping adventure in near-future London and a haunting tale of desire and belonging that moves between Japan and Britain.
The winner will be announced on Thursday 25 July 2024.
• Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
Dark, mischievous and full of verve, Akbar's electrifying debut follows a newly sober poet adrift in the American Midwest, trying to come to terms with his mother's tragic death decades prior, as the mystery of who she really was begins to unravel.
• The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
Revolving around the titular establishment set up to bring expatriates from the past to near-future London, this extraordinarily assured debut blends love story, time-travelling tale and state-of-the-nation commentary to terrifyingly clever and ferociously funny effect
• The Silence In Between by Josie Ferguson
Moving between WW2 Germany and Cold War Berlin, this hauntingly beautiful debut about a mother separated from her baby boy and the daughter who years later tries to reunite the family is a quietly powerful study in trauma, hope, and individual lives altered by seismic historical moments.
• Mongrel by Hanoka Footman
In strikingly beautiful prose, Footman's luminous debut interweaves the stories of three women in suburban Surrey, London and Tokyo to explore grief, identity and the politics of desire.
• Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon
Set in the Sicily of 412 BC, Lennon's at once riotously funny and incredibly moving novel finds two locals and a bunch of captured Athenian soldiers staging two of Euripides’ greatest tragedies in a quarry.
• Greta and Valdin by Rebecca K. Reilly
Utterly hilarious, ruthless and mesmerisingly original, this delicious debut follows a Maori-Russian-Catalonian family's two titular children navigating multiracial identity, queerness and unattainable love interests in present-day New Zealand.
Half Price This Week…
• The House of Beckham by Tom Bower
The bestselling author of Revenge and Rebel King delivers a captivating, revealing tour of the lives of one of world's most famous and influential power couple, David and Victoria Beckham.
• Astrochimp by David Walliams
David Walliams' side-splitting debut comic book alongside illustrator Adam Stower tells the story of Chump the Chimp, chosen by NASA for a very important space mission.
• Pinch of Nom Air Fryer: Easy, Slimming Meals by Kay Allinson & Kate Allinson
It's the perfect blend of ingredients as the bestselling Pinch of Nom team serve up some truly irresistible air fryer recipes that can all be prepared in less than half an hour.
• Bored of Lunch Healthy Air Fryer: 30 Minute Meals by Nathan Anthony
Nathan Anthony returns with another addition to the mega-selling Bored of Lunch series, this time focusing on delicious air fryer recipes that take thirty minutes or less to prepare.
Out now…
• Shadows in the Moonlight by Santa Montefiore
Set on the Cornish coast, this deeply romantic tale from the bestselling author of the Deverill Chronicles finds Pixie Tate attempting to solve a two-century-old mystery at the stately St Sidwell Manor.
Sci-Fi & Fantasy Book Club…
The next meeting of our Sci Fi & Fantasy Book Club meets on Thursday 18th July at 7pm. We will be discussing Translation State by Ann Leckie.
We look forward to seeing everyone there!