Author:William Boyd,Pippa Bennett-Warner

Brought to you by Penguin.
WINNER OF THE JAMES TAIT BLACK MEMORIAL PRIZE
On Brazzaville Beach, on the edge of Africa, Hope Clearwater ponders the strange circumstances that led her to leave her husband John, and his mathematical obsessions, in England and venture to Africa to help world-renowned scientist Eugene Mallabar with his studies of wild chimps.
But the more Hope studies Mallabar, the more she comes to believe that something isn't right. That behind Mallabar, and his obsessive work, there lies another, more sinister truth: one that might also help explain Hope's reasons for leaving England . . .
'A brilliant storyteller . . . a book which stretches, tantalizes and delights' Financial Times
'A most extraordinary parable about mankind. Quite unlike anything else I have read' Sunday Express
'Brilliant, daring. A gripping and compulsive story' Herald
'Hilarious and edgy' Sunday Times
© William Boyd 1990 (P) Penguin Audio 2020
A middle-aged film producer, a novelist with writer's block and a glamorous young actress come together to make a Swinging Sixties movie in this jaunty page-turner. But everyone is living a double life. Even names can't be taken on trust. Full of neat phrases and quirkily funny scenes, it's an elating read
—— The Times, Best Paperbacks of 2021What could be more reassuring in troubling times than a new William Boyd novel? Trio is immensely readable, its descriptions full of light and colour, its humour spot on, its mood a perfect mix of frolicsome and melancholy
—— Sunday TelegraphAn absorbing novel about lives spiralling out of control and the drastic measures required to right them
The characters are wonderfully written and I loved escaping to the gossipy world of the film set
—— Good Housekeeping, Book of the MonthBoyd keeps the plot racing along, yet for all the twists, the real delight is in William Boyd's wry portrait of a bygone age . . . Boyd's usual sure touch is evident throughout this tender, gently comic work
—— IndependentOne of our best contemporary storytellers. . . Trio embraces comedy, tragedy and redemption. It succeeds impressively because of its dramatic, often sensational, revelations
—— SpectatorI am a huge fan of William Boyd and the tender way he writes about the flaws and frailties of his characters. Trio is his best novel in years
—— Red, The Best Books to Read this OctoberReading William Boyd's Trio is like shrugging on a worn leather jacket on the first brisk morning of autumn: cosy but cool . . . He has enormous fun with the worlds - and egos - of page and screen
—— The TimesEnormous fun . . . Boyd's characters are vibrant, his prose elegant, comedy excellent: the result is a book that's compassionate and compelling
—— TatlerBoyd's writing is as fluent as ever but it's the ideas pulsing beneath the surface that distinguish Trio
—— Financial TimesTrio is an intricate set of variations on the idea of alternative selves, well beyond the title's trio, unobtrusively elegant in its formal beauty
—— New Statesman, Books of the YearSending an affably satiric shimmer over the ceaseless rewrites, grotesque miscastings and behind-the-scenes chicanery, William Boyd simultaneously explores deeper issues of duplicity and divided personality
—— Sunday Times, Best Fiction Books of the YearA very funny and touching story of a friendship and a mystery unravelled
Casey Cep’s painstakingly researched book is a gripping account of both the trial and Lee’s obsession with it.
—— ObserverCasey Cep has created a book that’s totally astounding and deeply moving.
—— StylistAstounding
—— Emerald StreetSuperb, sparklingly intelligent
—— Daily TelegraphIn Furious Hours, her brilliant and gripping account, Casey Cep details and analyses [Harper] Lee’s increasingly desperate efforts to write that second book … Furious Hours is probably the nearest we will get to the book Harper Lee tried so hard to complete. It is a tacit tribute to Harper Lee but even more, an attempt, largely successful, to bring her abandoned project to final fruition … A book of compelling portraits … Cep’s narrative swarms with other characters, all credibly realised in their often cantankerous and eccentric ways … Painstakingly researched and beautifully written.
—— Times Literary SupplementIt’s as gripping as a thriller and as coolly dissected as a forensics report.
—— Robert Doulgas-Fairhurst , The SpectatorThe inside scoop on Harper Lee’s long, post-Mockingbird silence. After working with Truman Capote on his true-crime book In Cold Blood, Lee attempted something similar, taking a murderous preacher, the Rev Willie Maxwell, as her subject. Despite years of research, Lee never produced a book – but Cep’s beautifully written offering goes a long way to making up for that. Utterly gripping, this is the ideal Christmas treat for anyone who loves Harper Lee.
—— Claire Lowdon , Sunday Times, Best Literary Books of the YearAn ingeniously structured, beautifully written double mystery
—— The EconomistFascinating true story
—— The TimesThe astonishing account of murders in Alabama and Harper Lee's attempt to unravel the story.
—— Hugo Vickers , The TelegraphFascinating ... Riveting.
—— Evening StandardA glorious book of heart-warming philosophy and heart-rending sadness
—— Sainsbury’s MagazineAn excellent novel...thrilling reading...incredibly entertaining
—— Bookgeeks.co.ukSurely one of the most versatile novelists writing today
—— Daily ExpressVivid, original and always engaging
—— The TimesRose Tremain writes comedy that can break your heart
—— Literary ReviewSteps inside the mind of Sir Robert Merivel
—— Sunday Business PostFor a second time this is one to cherish
—— Boyd Tonkin , IndependentA Pepysian romp of the first order
—— Independent RadarContinues in the same superior vein as Restoration… The fusion of such an engrossing character, and the minutiae of another time, remains a marvel
—— Daily TelegraphIn this evocative and beautifully drawn novel of family and loyalty in the face of an uncertain future Tremain continues the story of a wonderfully unique character
—— Hannah Britt , Daily ExpressHugely enjoyable
—— Reader's DigestMerivel’s hapless charm remains intact in this tour de force of literary technique
—— Sunday Telegraph (Seven)A sequel that looks back to the earlier novel without ever quite recapturing its spirit is the perfect form in which to evoke that feeling of having to carry on, and of trying to make yourself have fun even with it eventually begins to hurt
—— Colin Burrow , GuardianA marvelllously rollicking good read, and it is such a pleasure to meet Robert Merivel again. Rose Tremain brings the character to life in a way that makes you want to find out even more about the period. Enormously skilled and deft
—— Good Book Guide






