Pastures New by Clare Balding

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Sometimes home is where you least expect it...

Alex has perfected the art of dodging responsibility during her almost 40 years - until an unexpected letter turns her life upside down.

She's inherited a crumbling sheep farm in wildest, wettest Wales. This was not her life plan. Not at all.

Now, her closest companion is a stubborn Welsh terrier, she's speed-reading The Idiot's Guide to Farming, and her arrival has set the village gossip mill spinning. With the farm near collapse and its community now relying on her, Alex sets out to uncover the truth behind her mysterious inheritance. Then she can finally get back to the carefree life she thought she wanted.

But as secrets surface, Alex finds her heart pulling her in a direction she never saw coming.

Will she pack her bags - or has she landed exactly where she's meant to be?

Oxford Blood by Rachel Davis Featherstone

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Love, Lies, Legacy...High-achieving state-school pupil Eva has one dream – reading English at Oxford. If she gets in, not only will she receive a world-class education at an elite university, but she will be fulfilling the dreams of her mother and gain some independence from her father, the overprotective Inspector Dawkins.

At the same school, Eva's best-friend George is also hoping to go to Oxford. The attraction between him and Eva is undeniable, but they’ve agreed to put any romance on hold until their places at Oxford are secured. Eva cannot be distracted from her goal – although when they are both invited for interview week, their future together feels oh-so close.

Until George shows up dead.

The police rule his death an accident, but the behaviour of some of the other interview candidates has Eva suspecting foul play. When a shocking secret about George is revealed, Eva finds suspicion falling on her. What was meant to be one of the most important weeks of her life is fast turning into a nightmare.

All eyes are now on Eva, including the anonymous posters behind OxSlay, a gossipy social media forum exclusively for Oxford students. But amongst the conspiracy theories, lurk hidden clues. Could they help Eva clear her name - and catch the killer?

The Compound by Aisling Rawle

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Lily—a bored, beautiful twenty-something—wakes up on a remote desert compound, alongside nineteen other contestants competing on a massively popular reality show. To win, she must outlast her housemates to stay in the Compound the longest, while competing in challenges for luxury rewards like champagne and lipstick, plus communal necessities to outfit their new home, like food, appliances, and a front door.

Cameras are catching all her angles, good and bad, but Lily has no desire to leave: why would she, when the world outside is falling apart? As the competition intensifies, intimacy between the players deepens, and it becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish between desire and desperation. When the unseen producers raise the stakes, forcing contestants into upsetting, even dangerous situations, the line between playing the game and surviving it begins to blur. If Lily makes it to the end, she’ll receive prizes beyond her wildest dreams—but what will she have to do to win?

Addictive and prescient, The Compound is an explosive debut from a major new voice in fiction and will linger in your mind long after the game ends.

Alyce with a Why by Anna James

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England, 1919. Alyce – with a Y – lives with her grandmother, the original Alice, having lost her father during the great war. When a mysterious invitation to a tea party hits her square in the face, Alyce realises her grandmother’s strange stories of a place called Wonderland might have some truth to them after all.

But the land Alyce finds herself in feels different to the Wonderland of her grandmother’s stories – for it is trapped in its own war. The Sun King and the Queen of the Moon are fighting over a stolen hour, and soon Alyce is tasked with setting it right. With the help of the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat and a Sailor Fox, Alyce will have to solve Wonderland’s problems and, eventually, find her way back home.

An enchanting adventure through Wonderland, and featuring new characters as well as old favourites, Alice With a Why is both a celebration of Lewis Carroll’s beloved original story, and a modern masterpiece.

Six Wild Crowns by Holly Race

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As tradition has it, the king of Elben must marry six queens and magically bind each of them to one of the island's palaces or the kingdom will fall.

Clever, ambitious Boleyn is determined to be her beloved Henry's favorite queen. She relishes the games at court and the political rivalries with his other wives. Seymour is the opposite – originally sent to Boleyn's court as a reluctant spy and assassin, she ends up catching Henry's eye and is forced into a loveless marriage with the king.

But when the two queens become the unlikeliest of things – friends and allies – the balance of power begins to shift. Together, they uncover a dark and deadly truth at the heart of the island's magic. Boleyn and Seymour's only hope of survival rests on uniting all six of the rival queens – but Henry will never let that happen.

Badger Books by Paddy Donnelly

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‘Badger Books’ is a bookshop, run by a badger. You can find books about every animal. From bears to elephants, tigers to dinosaurs and pandas to narwhals. But there’s one book they don’t have ... and it’s one that Rory the Fox really, really wants.

17 Martin Street by Marilyn Taylor, Alan Nolan and Jason Browne

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Graphic novel adaptation of the classic wartime novel

When Hetty Golden’s family move to Martin Street near Portobello bridge in Dublin, they’re not sure of their welcome. And next door, Ben Byrne’s family are not sure about their new Jewish neighbours: it’s the Emergency and they are suspicious of strangers.

To repay a debt, Ben agrees to do odd jobs for the Goldens, keeping it a secret from his family. But there’s a bigger secret: Renata, a refugee from Nazi Germany, is on the run in the city, and Hetty is determined to rescue her.

Can Hetty and Ben overcome their differences and save Renata, or are they just meddling in things they know too little about?

Solo by Gráinne O'Brien

A YA verse novel about first love and friendship, lost and found.

Daisy can feel like a solo act at home. On the outside of her twin brothers' intense relationship, she leans towards her parents, particularly her father, for support. As a passionate classical musician, she is not wildly popular at school, but she has one close friend and a life filled with musical performance. Her life is turned upside down when her boyfriend suddenly breaks up with her, and Daisy is left disconnected from her one true love, music.

When she makes a new friend at school, mysterious Flora, Daisy finds a glimmer of peace in her chaotic life. Just as everything seems to be getting better, they all fall apart. Family tensions heighten as Daisy's dad falls ill and Daisy needs to decide should she find her way back to who she was or look towards who she is going to become.

My Dog by Olivia Wakefield

Ten-year-old Rhys really loves dogs. When he finds a lost black Labrador with big conker eyes and ears like soft velvet, he can’t quite believe his luck. Nobody comes forward to claim Worthington, giving Rhys the perfect opportunity to prove he’s a good owner. But when Rhys moves to London to live with his estranged dad who hates dogs, Rhys decides to keep Worthington secret.

Struggling to connect with his dad in a new city, Rhys takes comfort in Worthington. But he soon discovers that looking after a secret dog is anything but easy, and he knows that before long he’ll have to confront his fears and find a way to tell Dad…

Phenomenally moving and beautifully written, My Dog shows us that accepting the present doesn’t mean forgetting the past – in a story that will live with you for ever.

Giant by Judith McQuoid

Davy, a working-class boy living in East Belfast in 1908, is sent to work at the wealthy Lewis household. When he meets Jacks – the name by which CS Lewis was known to friends and family – Davy is captivated by his friend’s world of books and stories. Together the boys plunge into imagining and adventuring, and Davy discovers his own artistic talent.

But when Davy is offered a job at the shipyard, and Jacks’s mother falls gravely ill, their wondrous days of make-believe seem numbered. Will they lose their extraordinary shared world forever?

Nordic Runes by Paul Rhys Mountfort

A comprehensive and practical guide to the ancient oracle based on the runic alphabet of the Norse

• Reveals the symbolism and divinatory significance of the 24 rune "staves"

• Provides clear instructions on how to craft your own rune stones

• Explains the role of runes in the Norse wisdom tradition and its influence on such works as Tolkien's Lord of the Rings

Nordic runes are a potent and profoundly transformative magic system that gives contemporary readers access to the ancient wisdom tradition of Northern European cultures. The runes have deep resonances within the pagan Norse world of gods and goddesses, giants, dwarves, warriors, and wizards, which have greatly influenced the work of J.R.R. Tolkien, among others. Norse tradition attributes the discovery of the runes to the "All-Father" Odin--a god of inspiration and secret wisdom and the mythical prototype for runecasters, who established the pattern for gaining his knowledge.

Nordic Runes addresses three major areas: Runelore, the history of this 2000-year-old Norse oracle; Runestaves, the meaning of the individual runes of the Elder Futhark alphabet and their powerful mythological, magical, and practical lessons for daily life; and Runecasting, a comprehensive guide to the oracular application of the ancient runes, including their crafting, divination, and self-development. As Nordic Runes shows, the runes do more than simply reflect the path of fate; they help develop and enhance intuition. By learning to cast and interpret the runes, the user becomes receptive to the energy currents in material reality and empowered in the arts of its transformation.

Runes for the Green Witch by Nicolette Miele

A magickal guide to working with runes and plant allies for manifestation, healing, and spellwork

• Examines the herb and plant connections of each of the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark as well as correspondences with deities, astrology, tarot, and crystals

• Provide examples and tips on how runes and plants may be combined within spells and ritual for manifesting, protecting, healing, banishing, and more

• Explains how runes and plants can be worked with for the soulful process of rewilding and connecting with Mother Nature

In this magickal grimoire, herbalist witch Nicolette Miele immerses readers in the wisdom and folklore of the 24 Elder Futhark runes as well as their correspondences with deities, astrology, tarot, crystals, and plants. Each chapter begins by discussing the etymology, meanings, mythology, divination, correspondences, and magick of a particular rune and culminates with profiles of several herbs and plants that possess similar magickal energies. Each plant profile delves into the magickal, metaphysical, traditional, and medicinal applications as well as how to work with these incredible plant allies.

For example, the author connects Fehu, the rune of wealth and value, with the practice of altar-building, making offerings, and with alfalfa, cedar, dandelion, and other plants traditionally used in abundance and prosperity magick. In the chapter on Kenaz, the rune of heat and illumination, the nature connection is nurtured through the element of fire and a step-by-step bindrune candle ritual. The plants connected with Kenaz are those that embody the characteristics of fire—such as passion, ferocity, and sexuality— and include clove, damiana, and kava kava.

Guiding the green witch through the benefits and strengths of synergistic magick, this book helps eclectic magickal practitioners advance their craft through folk magick and medicine, rituals, meditations, spells, and the soulful process of rewilding and connecting with Mother Nature.

Tilt by Emma Pattee

Annie is nine months pregnant.

She’s shopping for a crib at IKEA.

That’s when the massive earthquake hits.

There’s nothing to do but walk.

Annie is 37 weeks pregnant, standing in IKEA, finally about to take home the crib she should have bought months ago. That’s when it happens – the long-anticipated Cascadia Earthquake, dismantling Portland and the entire Pacific Northwest in a matter of minutes.

Propulsive, disruptive, funny, terrifying, Tilt is a novel about how the foundations of our lives are built and shaken. About a woman trying to walk back to the husband she’s long been pushing away. About put-off dreams and inevitability and what makes us keep moving forward.

Graffiti Girls by Elissa Soave

(This book was due to publish in November, but has been moved to March, and there's no cover image yet.)

A sharp, empowering novel about a group of women who refuse to go quietly when society tells them they’re no longer valuable beyond the age of 40, from the author of Ginger and Me.

Amy, Carole, Lenore and Susan have been best friends since school. Back then they couldn’t wait for the future, for the amazing lives they’d have.

But things haven’t worked out how they expected. Now in their forties, they’re fed up with being taken for granted by their families, being passed over for promotions at work and being told that they’re past their best. And they’re not going to go quietly anymore.

Fuelled by female rage and their charismatic leader Amy, the four embark on a campaign of graffiti in their hometown of Hamilton, scrawling feminist slogans on the walls of local buildings.

But is Hamilton ready for the feminist revolution the Graffiti Girls have in store?

The Doomsday Club by Kevin Moran

Conan swallowed hard. The creature stood taller than the archway, a silhouette of darkness against the spiral of light behind it … And it looked directly at him.

Jack and Conan's friendship is officially dead. Stuck in detention with Yash and Jerry after an all-out brawl in the toilet, it’s a terrible start to sixth class. And that’s before they witness a monstrous beast step out of a portal outside their school. When it wanders into the crumbling mansion across the road, where the sinister Mr Kilroe lives, the boys follow. They have to investigate, right?

Unlocking Mr Kilroe’s secrets is only the beginning. Because there’s more than one otherworldly horror hiding in that house and confronting it will put Jack and Conan in mortal danger – that’s if they don’t kill each other first!

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

'I did an evil thing to be put in here, and I’m going to have to do an evil thing to get out.’

They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood House in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.

Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. There, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to keep her baby and escape to a commune. Zinnia, a budding musician who plans to marry her baby’s father. And Holly, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who.

Every moment of their waking day is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid . . . and it’s usually paid in blood.

The Great Irish Biodiversity Book by Éanna Ní Lamhna and Barry Falls

Join much-loved wildlife expert Éanna Ní Lamhna as she takes us on a trip through Irish wildlife habitats – from bogs to beaches and woodland to grassland. Discover how habitats work and which creatures and plants to look out for in each one, from the very rare to the most common, all brought to life with amazing illustrations by Barry Falls.

The latest book in the bestselling and award-winning Gill Books series of big topics tackled by experts, this beautifully illustrated guide introduces Ireland’s plants, animals, trees and insects to readers of all ages.

Ireland's Wild Beauty by Carsten Krieger

From mountain to sea and bog to forest, this perpetual diary shows the ebb and flow of life on our beautiful island.

Alongside Carsten Krieger’s photographs of spectacular landscapes, flora and fauna from across the country, the reader has space to mark birthdays, anniversaries and other important dates or simply journal their thoughts as the seasons change.

From the author and photographer behind many books including Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s Islands, Ireland’s Ancient East and this year’s Wild Ireland: A Nature Journey from Shore to Peak.

An Absolute Casserole: The Taskmaster Compendium

How many eggs have been broken in the making of this programme? What is the worst thing Alex has eaten? Are you more likely to win Taskmaster if you wear a hat? Why is the Taskmaster always right?

This hilarious compendium celebrates a decade of Taskmaster's inspired chaos. Relive the most outrageous tasks, iconic meltdowns, and ingenious victories from your favourite contestants.

Inside you'll find:

- Unforgettable challenges: From the brilliantly bizarre to the wonderfully pointless, revisit the tasks that left us howling with laughter.

- Comedy gold moments: Contestant blunders, inspired madness and Greg Davies' withering put-downs

- Behind the scenes: Get the inside scoop on the show's creation, meet the show's creators and find out which tasks nearly set the Taskmaster house on fire.

- Statistical analysis: 17 series, 85 contestants and thousands of smashed eggs - what's the best star sign to be if you want to win?

This is the ultimate gift for any Taskmaster fanatic. So grab a cup of 'warm milk' (or something stronger) and relive ten years of comedic chaos!

I See the Moon by Sarah Webb and Paul Delaney

Oranges and lemons, dancing sausages, little kittens, ducks and turtles; golden slumbers, lullabies and Irish eyes –

they’re all here, and plenty more.

A wonderful collection of nursery rhymes to treasure, songs and poems to share, gathered by Sarah Webb and with joyful illustrations by Paul Delaney that jump off every page.

Enjoy childhood favourites like ‘Old Mother Hubbard’ and ‘Sing a Song of Sixpence’, classic ditties like ‘When Irish Eyes Are Smiling’ and ‘Skip to My Lou’, and funny rhymes like ‘I Made You Look’ and ‘Hot Dog’ that will cheer up any bedtime, as well as magical verses for children written by Spike Milligan and Gordon Snell and a beautiful lullaby by singer-songwriter Lisa O’Neill.