{"title":"Gwendoline Riley","description":"\u003cp\u003eGwendoline Riley's work offers a profound exploration of human relationships and the complexities of family life. Her novels, such as \u003cem\u003eFirst Love\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eMy Phantoms\u003c\/em\u003e, delve into emotional honesty with a sharp, unflinching prose style that reveals the often uncomfortable truths beneath everyday interactions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReaders can expect narratives that balance intimacy with restraint, rich in psychological insight and subtle tension. Riley’s writing invites contemplation on memory, identity, and the quiet dramas that shape our lives, making her a distinctive voice in contemporary general fiction.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"first-love-by-gwendoline-riley-9781783783243","title":"First Love","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShortlisted for the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction 2017\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFirst Love\u003c\/em\u003e follows Neve, a writer in her mid-30s, married to an older man, Edwyn. For now, they are in a place of relative peace, but their past battles have left scars. As Neve recalls the decisions that led her to this marriage, she narrates stories of other loves and other debts, from her bullying father and self-involved mother to a musician who manipulated her, along with her successive lonely journeys from place to place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDrawing the reader into the battleground of her relationship, Neve spins a story of helplessness and hostility, an ongoing conflict in which both husband and wife have played a part. Yet, amidst the turmoil, the question remains: is this, nonetheless, also a story of love?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46530482929900,"sku":"9781783783243","price":23.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/2447263482823.jpg?v=1749258958"},{"product_id":"my-phantoms-by-gwendoline-riley-9781783783274","title":"My Phantoms","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the Women's Prize-Shortlisted author of \u003cem\u003eFirst Love\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHelen Grant has always been a mystery to her daughter. Twice-divorced, with few friends, her desire to join in is matched only by her need to stand apart. As Bridget looks back over their fractious relationship, she is forced to confront the cruelties inflicted on both sides.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMy Phantoms\u003c\/em\u003e is an insightful, compelling and painfully funny account of a family strained to breaking point; a reckoning with the damage we do over the course of a life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'What a phenomenal ear she has, and how remorselessly funny she is - \u003cem\u003eMy Phantoms\u003c\/em\u003e is unmissably good' - Kevin Barry, author of \u003cem\u003eNight Boat to Tangier\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46532100489452,"sku":"9781783783274","price":23.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/2447573482823.jpg?v=1749305122"},{"product_id":"the-palm-house-by-gwendoline-riley-9781035021055","title":"The Palm House","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Palm House\u003c\/em\u003e follows Edmund Putnam, who is just days away from the end of his 50th year. His solitary life is on the brink of change. The magazine to which he has dedicated his best decades faces closure, and Edmund is likely to lose his job this coming Monday morning. However, before this fateful event can occur, there are other equally daunting prospects to face: a date and a birthday.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEdmund's close friend, Laura, is concerned for him. She is about a decade younger, also employed by the same magazine, but she has the chance to escape. Laura has been offered the opportunity to leave the country and work abroad, but can she bring herself to take it?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMeanwhile, Edmund's father, Martin, has discovered a new zest for life. He has fallen in love with a waitress at a local café and has decided to rescue her from her brutish husband.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUnfolding over the course of a single weekend, as these three drifters reassess their fates and futures, \u003cem\u003eThe Palm House\u003c\/em\u003e reads between the lines of modern life in a country slipping back into its past. Gwendoline Riley presents a novel that showcases her heartfelt and bravura style at its best.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"The Distribution and Logistics Company (TDLC)","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47269594235116,"sku":"9781035021055","price":31.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/e48ecb4e3d6fc4b27afa62407abe9b7f.jpg?v=1769985711"},{"product_id":"first-love-by-gwendoline-riley-9781803513560","title":"First Love","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA singular, devastating journey into the ungovernable reaches of the heart\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cem\u003eObserver\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILEYS WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2017\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFirst Love\u003c\/em\u003e is centred around Neve, a writer in her mid-30s married to an older man, Edwyn. For now, they are in a place of relative peace, but their past battles have left scars. As Neve recalls the decisions that led her to this marriage, she tells of other loves and other debts, from her bullying father and her self-involved mother to a musician who played her and a series of lonely flights from place to place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDrawing the reader into the battleground of her relationship, Neve spins a story of helplessness and hostility, an ongoing conflict in which both husband and wife have played a part. But is this, nonetheless, also a story of love?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin Aotearoa New Zealand","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47548193669356,"sku":"9781803513560","price":27.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/c663b0f292afd8a9c3b49fbba6a778be.jpg?v=1776908964"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/gwendoline-riley.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}