Spring 1938The Vienna Writers Circle meets at Café Mozart to share hopeful stories during a hopeless time. Mathias and Johannes - fellow writers, cousins, and close as brothers - thrive within this creative group of friends.But when the Nazis take over Austria, everything changes. With their families' lives now under threat, the men hide in plain sight using false identities. The safety of their loved ones and their writing is their only salvation.A local policeman, Inspector Josef Weber, walks a dangerous line, helping 'hidden Jews' like Mathias and Johannes. But Weber faces conflicts of his own: having declared his love for a beautiful Romani-gypsy girl, Deya Reynes, he fears that she too will be sent to her death.When all they have left is courage, will they survive?-----Readers have loved this powerful novel:'A compelling story of bravery, love and survival''One of the best books I have read''The twists and turns will keep you engrossed all the way through'

For readers of Modern Lovers and Conversations with Friends, an addictive, humorous, and poignant debut novel about the shock waves caused by one couple's impulsive marriage. Twenty-four-year-old British painter Cleo has escaped from England to New York and is still finding her place in the sleepless city when, a few months before her student visa ends, she meets Frank. Twenty years older and a self-made success, Frank's life is full of all the excesses Cleo's lacks. He offers her the chance to be happy, the freedom to paint, and the opportunity to apply for a Green Card. But their impulsive marriage irreversibly changes both their lives, and the lives of those close to them, in ways they never could've predicted. Each compulsively readable chapter explores the lives of Cleo, Frank, and an unforgettable cast of their closest friends and family as they grow up and grow older. Whether it's Cleo's best friend struggling to embrace his gender queerness in the wake of Cleo's marriage, or Frank's financially dependent sister arranging sugar daddy dates to support herself after being cut off, or Cleo and Frank themselves as they discover the trials of marriage and mental illness, each character is as absorbing, and painfully relatable, as the last. As hilarious as it is heartbreaking, entertaining as it is deeply moving, Cleopatra and Frankenstein marks the entry of a brilliant and bold new talent.

SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURESet against the backdrop of the 1989 Romanian Revolution, The Art of Making a Forgotten Cup of Tea tells a gripping and deeply personal story of survival, trust, and betrayal in a world on the brink of change. The story follows Elena, a devoted mother fighting to protect her children, Ioana and Beriță, as the country erupts into chaos. As Nicolae Ceaușescu's authoritarian regime collapses, the streets of Timișoara turn into battlegrounds where ordinary people must make impossible choices. Elena's brother, Robi, finds himself drawn into the revolution's violent undercurrents when he places his trust in Dragoș, a charismatic yet enigmatic agent of the secret police. Dragoș presents himself as an ally, but as Robi peels back the layers of deception, he discovers that loyalty and truth are far more dangerous than he ever imagined. As the walls of dictatorship crumble, so does Robi's perception of the people around him-forcing him to question his own complicity in a system built on fear. Meanwhile, two British journalists, Lizzie and Frankie, arrive in Romania, expecting to report on the fall of a dictator from a safe distance. But as they venture deeper into the uprising, they become unwilling participants in a revolution they struggle to fully understand. Through their eyes, the Western world's perception of Romania is confronted with the raw, unfiltered reality of life under an oppressive regime.As Timișoara burns and the people of Romania fight for their future, The Art of Making a Forgotten Cup of Tea weaves together multiple perspectives, showing the cost of revolution-not just in political terms, but in the personal sacrifices made by those who dare to hope for something better. It is a story of love and loss, of trust and betrayal, and of the resilience of those who refuse to be silenced.

A stunning debut novel of music, intoxication, and betrayal inspired by the true story of Anna Maria della Pietà, a Venetian orphan and violin prodigy who studied under Antonio Vivaldi and ultimately became his star musician—and his biggest muse. Anna Maria della Pietà was destined to drown in one of Venice’s canals. Instead, she became the greatest violinist of the 18th century. Anna Maria has only known life inside the Pietà, an orphanage for children born of prostitutes. But the girls of the Pietà are lucky in a most babies born of their station were drowned in the city’s canals. And despite the strict rules, the girls are given singing and music lessons from an early age. The most promising musicians have the chance to escape the fate of the forced marriage to anyone who will have them. Anna Maria is determined to be the best violinist there is—and whatever Anna Maria sets out to do, she achieves. After all, the stakes for Anna could not be higher. But it is 1704 and she is a girl. The pursuit of her ambition will test everything she holds dear, especially when it becomes clear that her instructor, Antonio Vivaldi, will teach Anna everything he knows—but not without taking something in return. From the opulent palaces of Venice to its mud-licked canals, The Instrumentalist is a portrait of opportunities dangled only to be snatched away. It is the story of one woman’s irrepressible ambition and rise to the top. And it is the story of the orphans of Venice who overcame destitution and abuse to make music, and whose contributions to some of the most important works of classical music, including “The Four Seasons,” have been overlooked for too long. For fans of The Queen’s Gambit and Fingersmith , The Instrumentalist is a searing exploration of art and ambition, genius and exploitation, and loss and triumph.

A Good Man Is Hard to Find is Flannery O'Connor's most famous and most discussed story. O'Connor herself singled it out by making it the title piece of her first collection and the story she most often chose for readings or talks to students. It is an unforgettable tale, both riveting and comic, of the confrontation of a family with violence and sudden death. More than anything else O'Connor ever wrote, this story mixes the comedy, violence, and religious concerns that characterize her fiction.