October 'must reads' - find out more now (2)

Christmas is sneaking up, so if you'd like your family to spend it with great books instead of vegetating through EastEnders, try Lovereading's perfect gift suggestions below. But it's not time to start hoovering pine needles just yet...there's a host of interesting literary goings-on this month, including the 'Off the Shelf' Festival in Sheffield where Robert Goddard and Sarah Waters will be appearing among others. Also at the bottom of this email you will find all the best books in your favourite genres.

Other highlights this month:

Do you have or know teenagers who like reading but don't know where to find great books?Then point them to New Generation - 'new gen' - on Lovereading.co.uk. They will be able to find, for themselves, some amazing Young Adult fiction, both new and already published. There has been a recent explosion of wonderful writing for teenagers and 'new gen' aims to fill that gap by providing a single place to view this exciting genre. They will discover authors like Melvin Burgess and Kevin Brooks, whose riveting stories are told through teenage eyes, and woven around real issues. And to make it even easier they can use the Wishlist feature on the site to send you, or a generous relative, an email of their choices - that should make life easier for everyone! Or why not add 'new gen' to your own 'chosen genres'?Next, enter our competition to win a copy of Stardust by master story-teller, Neil Gaiman. Young Tristan falls for the beautiful Victoria Forester and vows to retrieve a fallen star for her. It's an oath that sends him over the ancient wall and into a dangerous world, strange beyond imagining... The new, star-studded movie is just out, but we think this is one of those (frequent) occasions when the book is a much richer experience.

And now for something completely different on our Kids site we thought you might like to know about. Classical Comics wanted to bring classic literature to today's children and are publishing comic-book versions of books such as Henry V and Macbeth with many more to come during 2008. The stories are brought vividly to life in images as exciting as Spiderman, with three versions of each to suit different abilities and tastes: original text, plain text (simple, modern language) and quick text (far fewer words, brilliant for less confident readers). Henry V is the launch title so do take a look at this exciting development - we think they could all be perfect presents.

And looking to Christmas again, here are some perfect gift suggestions, split into three categories...

There's no better present to give (or receive) than a beautiful hardback. We've made a selection of the crème de la crème this year. You can download a free Opening Extract, an ideal way to ensure the only turkey you give this Christmas is on the dinner table and, what's more, you can buy with a 25% discount on the RRP.

Christmas is also a unique time for publishing, not least because of the huge proliferation of obscurely named titles often referred to as 'loo books'. They make perfect stocking fillers, so once you've finished Ho-ho-ho-ing over our Opening Extracts, choose some to stuff in your friends' and family's socks. One of our personal favourites is How to Fossilise Your Hamster.

Finally, our Books of the Year. There was so much good fiction in 2007 that even the most dedicated reader quite likely missed a few. So we thought it would be a perfect time to pull together some of Sarah Broadhurst's favourites. So please browse away and make sure you haven't missed any 'must reads' from 2007.

Buy a Christmas gift here and there with our 25% discount, and when the festive season really is upon us, you'll be able to relax at home, and read a good book yourself.

 

This Month's Featured 'Crime / Whodunit' Books

The Art of DrowningFrances FyfieldA well-paced and tense novel with intriguing characters. A friendship between two women, poles apart in personality, is the basis for the story and inevitably their differences lead to events taking a sinister turn. £5.99 Save 25%

Dexter in the DarkJeff LindsayThoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended this is the 3rd in this darkly comic serial killer series. Dexter has being abandoned by the dark passenger that has made him who he is. Things get worse when its clear it has been... £7.49 Save 25%

Christine FallsBenjamin BlackVery often when an author changes genre and picks a pseudonym so not to confuse his existing fans, he makes a secret of it and the publishers sell it into the trade as a first novel and only sometimes acknowledges... £5.99 Save 25%

Nature GirlCarl HiaasenThis is slapstick satire where one chaotic situation bounces on to another. Full of wacky characters and improbable scenarios and set in the dangerous world of Florida's 'gator-strewn Everglades, it's just the most ludicrous fun you'll have for a long... £5.24 Save 25%

 

This Month's Featured 'Literary / Contemporary' Books

The Almost MoonAlice SeboldOctober 2007 Book of the Month.Alice Sebold's second novel is as moving and beautifully written as her first, The Lovely Bones. She takes some very sad and disturbing subject matter and writes about it in a way that... £12.74 Save 25%

Cloth GirlMarilyn Heward MillsOctober 2007 Debut of the Month.Shortlisted for the Costa First Novel award, this is a delight. Set on Africa's Gold Coast in the 1940s during the ten years leading up to Independence, it centres on two very different women,... £5.99 Save 25%

The Good FatherMarion HusbandA thought provoking and moving story exploring the relationships between fathers and their children. Marion Husband creates accessible characters and captivates the reader with her writing style. She keeps getting better with each successive novel. £5.99 Save 25%

What I LovedSiri HustvedtA book you will either love or hate, find long and tedious or be captivated and charmed. It is the story of two families involved in New York's artistic life and reflected upon by a half-blind, elderly Jewish professor who... £5.99 Save 25%

 

This Month's Featured 'Mystery / Thriller' Books

The WoodsHarlan CobenA great stand alone thriller from Harlan Coben with two plot lines to follow. One is the case that lawyer, Paul Copeland, is prosecuting now and the other the murder investigation he was involved in as a teenager. Thoroughly gripping,... £5.24 Save 25%

The Shakespeare SecretJ L CarrellOkay, this is straight down The Da Vinci Code territory but sans religion. Instead it takes murders echoing Shakespeare's plots as its contemporary adventure, and revelations from his life as its intriguing historical background. It is well-written, compulsive page-turning stuff... £5.24 Save 25%

MeltdownMartin BakerJanuary 2008 Debut of the Month.A slick fast paced financial thriller from a journalist turned novelist. Samuel Spendlove is a brilliant but bored academic lured into the world of high finance by a controlling media mogul in the mood... £7.5 Save 25%

The ReincarnationistM J RoseA complete change from the last novel from this author,The Venus Fix. This book is almost like a gothic horror with it's themes of murder, greed, religion and love. The idea of reincarnation is dealt with in a very... £5.24 Save 25%

A Quiet Belief in AngelsR J ElloryJanuary 2008 Book of the Month. Due to be reviewed on Richard & Judy on Wednesday 30 January 2008.I am championing this author. I think he is very special. His publisher claims he writes crime novels, and there certainly... £5.24 Save 25%

The Patience of the SpiderAndrea CamilleriAndre Camilleri's series about Inspector Montalbano has been adapted for television in Italy, how brilliant it would be if they could do that for British TV, allowing us to see the beautiful Sicilian scenery for ourselves, the gorgeous food that... £9.74 Save 25%

 

This Month's Featured 'Historical Fiction' Books

Measuring the WorldDaniel KehlmannThe fascinating true story of two German scientists - Alexander von Humboldt and Carl Friedrich Grauss - and their quest to discover facts about the world that we take for granted today. The two eccentrics are completely different characters from... £5.99 Save 25%

The PrincipessaChristie DickasonA sweeping, glorious evocation of Jacobean London and Renaissance Italy incorporating real historical figures alongside fictional creations in a dramatic tale of high politics, rivalry and conspiracy, all that a good historical novel should be.Comparison: Philippa Gregory, Jude... £5.24 Save 25%

The LonerJosephine CoxInterestingly, from this queen of the gritty saga, a genre that normally takes a young girl as its central character, comes a meaty story with a man in the leading role! Comparison: Lesley Pearse, Lyn Andrews, Katie Flynn. £5.24 Save 25%

 

This Month's Featured 'Horror / Fantasy / SciFi' Books

Friday Night in Beast HouseRichard LaymonThe final nightmare in the Beast House Chronicles - a nightmare in which your worst fears and darkest desires collide ... sadly the author died in 2001 but apparently he had completed this himself before doing so.Comparison: Stephen King,... £5.99 Save 25%

Into a Dark Realm : Darkwar Book 2Raymond E FeistDarkwar Book 2, his new series of The History of Mid Kemian - a must for his fans.Comparison: David Gemmell, Terry Goodkind, Robert Jordan. £5.24 Save 25%

Keeping It RealJustina RobsonA half robot female agent with balls, attitude and an arsenal of weapons in a wonderful, sexy adventure.Similar this month: none.Comparison: Laurell K Hamilton, Richard Morgan, Andy Secombe. £5.24 Save 25%

The WakingT M JenkinsRarely does a sci fi novel with a totally plausible presage of Earth within our children's lifetimes disturb and engage quite in the way that The Waking managed. At the brink of a fuel crisis with the threat of global... £5.24 Save 25%

 

Happy Lovereading !