Emily Paull

All That Is Lost Between Us Sara Foster Simon and Schuster 2016 Domestic thriller writer Sara Foster returns in 2016 with her fourth novel, which might just be her best yet, though it would be a close call between this novel and her second, Beneath the Shadows.  All That is Lost Between Us  is the story of Anya, a school counsellor at a prestigious Lake District school in the UK, and her daughter Georgia who is a budding champion fell-runner.  Georgia has a secret, but when a car accident puts her cousin in the hospital, the entire family is forced to realise that sometimes keeping secrets can do more harm than good. The story is told in a multitude of voices; Georgia, her brother Zac, her father Callum, and Anya, though it is only Anya's parts which are told in first person.  While it is Georgia whose actions set a lot of the plot into motion, it is Anya who is the driving personality behind the story, and who lends her perspective to the themes surroundin...

Now available for pre-order, the latest anthology from For Books' Sake will be available in February 2016.  The collection features stories of empowerment, revolution, escape, and most importantly, Rebel Girls! Most excitingly, this will be my print debut, as my story 'A Thousand Words' has been selected for the collection. You can pre-order your copy here. The collection has been edited by For Books' Sake co-founder, Jane Bradley. For Books' Sake is an organisation based in the United Kingdom who aim to empower women of all backgrounds through the work that they publish.   You can learn more about them here.

The Life and Death of Sophie Stark Anna North Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 2015 (I own a copy courtesy of the publisher) With a title like "The Life and Death of Sophie Stark", there will be no prizes for guessing what this book will be about.  But what is striking about this remarkable book is not the story that it tells but the way it tells it.  Sophie Stark, enigmatic film director, is represented to the reader through the testimonies of those who knew her, with each chapter forming in its way a short story.  Only two of the voices are given more than one opportunity to speak, and the portrait of Sophie which emerges is fragmented and not always flattering.  Yet the overall impression given by each voice is that Sophie is the kind of person who inspires fierce love in those around her; and given the trouble she seems to cause wherever she goes, this speaks of a very special character indeed. The book begins with Allison, a young woman who performs a scary sto...