The Peculiar Life of a Lonely Postman Read online

  When she turns to her friend Tommy for help, her suspicions are aroused by the mysterious comings and goings of his brothers at their dilapidated boat house. But when she uncovers the reason behind their enigmatic behaviour, her life is opened to the realities of a mindboggling secret.

  The Merman is an exhilarating and beautiful book about sibling love and betrayal – and what happens when the mundane collides with the strange and wonderful.

  ‘An intense little gem’ Dagens Nyheter, Sweden

  ‘Worthy of Stephen King on a good day’ Expressen, Sweden

  ‘Bitterly harsh and beautiful’ Svenska Dagbladet, Sweden

  PRAISE FOR CARL-JOHAN VALLGREN:

  ‘Charged, atmospheric, thought-provoking’ Daily Telegraph

  ‘Challenging and shocking’ The Guardian

  NOW AVAILABLE

  The Best Book in the World

  by Peter Stjernström

  Two authors. One idea. Who will be the first to write the best book in the world?

  Titus Jensen is waiting for his big break. But he’s middle-aged, has a fondness for alcohol and never gets taken seriously.

  Eddie X is cool. Eddie X is a hit with the ladies and loves being the centre of attention. A radical poet and regular on the festival circuit, he is looking for his next big project to gain more adoring fans.

  One night, after a successful literary event at which Titus reads from The Diseases of Swedish Monarchs and Eddie X waxes lyrical to the thrashing tones of metal band The Tourettes, the unlikely pair get horribly drunk together and hatch a plan. There’s only one thing for a budding writer to do to get worldwide recognition: write the best book in the world – a book so amazing that it will end up on all the bestseller lists in every category imaginable, thriller, self-help, cookery, business, dieting… a book that combines everything in one!

  But there is only room for one such amazing book and as the alcohol-induced haze clears Titus and Eddie X both realise they are not willing to share the limelight. Who will win the race to write the best book in the world, and to what unimaginable lengths will they go to get there first…?

  ‘Well written and enjoyable’ Aftonbladbet

  ‘Spot on satire’ Stockholms Fria Tidning

  ‘Funny, original and lovingly disrespectful’ Tidningen Kulturen

  NOW AVAILABLE

  The Hundred-Year-Old-Man Who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared

  by Jonas Jonasson

  Sitting quietly in his room in an old people’s home, Allan Karlsson is waiting for a party he doesn’t want to begin. His one-hundredth birthday party to be precise. The Mayor will be there. The press will be there. But, as it turns out, Allan will not…

  Escaping (in his slippers) through his bedroom window, into the flowerbed, Allan makes his getaway. And so begins his picaresque and unlikely journey involving criminals, several murders, a suitcase full of cash, and incompetent police. As his escapades unfold, Allan’s earlier life is revealed. A life in which – remarkably – he played a key role behind the scenes in some of the momentous events of the twentieth century.

  ‘Arguably the biggest word-of-mouth literary sensation of the decade’

  The Independent

  ‘Imaginative, laugh-out-loud bestseller’

  Daily Telegraph

  ‘Should carry a health warning for spouses or partners who are easily irritated by the sounds of helpless chortling’

  The Irish Times

  NOW AVAILABLE

  Wakolda

  by Lucía Puenzo

  José is hiding a terrifying secret. A seemingly charming doctor, behind his cool exterior lies a calculating, sadistic character.

  On the run from his native Germany, José finds himself in South America where he plans to continue with his secret genetic experimentation. But his vision is put on hold when he meets Lilith in a small, run-down village. Although vivacious and beautifully blonde, she has a growth defect and, for José, represents all that he would like to exterminate from humankind. An anomaly amongst her perfect Aryan siblings, Lilith’s existence intrigues him, and when he discovers that her mother is pregnant again, potentially with twins, the temptation to meddle in their lives and test his medical theories is strong.

  Dark times lie ahead for Lilith and with few places to turn to for comfort, she clings ever tighter to her mysterious doll Wakolda.

  And so begins a dark relationship between the doctor and little girl, the kind of love that simply cannot end well – for José is concealing the fact that he is the Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, infamous for performing experiments on humans at Auschwitz. And sooner or later his past is going to catch up with him.

  NOW AVAILABLE

  Under our three imprints, Hesperus Press publishes over 300 books by many of the greatest figures in worldwide literary history, as well as contemporary and debut authors well worth discovering.

  Hesperus Classics handpicks the best of worldwide and translated literature, introducing forgotten and neglected books to new generations.

  Hesperus Nova showcases quality contemporary fiction and non-fiction designed to entertain and inspire.

  Hesperus Minor rediscovers well-loved children’s books from the past – these are books which will bring back fond memories for adults, which they will want to share with their children and loved ones.

  To find out more visit www.hesperuspress.com

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  Copyright

  Published by Hesperus Nova

  Hesperus Press Limited

  28 Mortimer Street, London W1W 7RD

  www.hesperuspress.com

  First published in French edition © 2005, Facteur émotif / XYZ éditeur

  First published by Hesperus Press, through Allied Authors Agency, Belgium © 2014

  This ebook edition first published, 2014

  English Translation © Liedewy Hawke, 2008

  Typeset by Sarah Newitt

  Cover design by Anna Morrison

  All rights reserved. This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly

  ISBN 978–1–78094–374–9