Akan Books – serie

'Jenny Knight's writing is brilliant – telling it like it is, full of warmth and humour' Cathy Rentzenbrink'Powerful … A moving story of female desire, ambition and renewal' Kit de Waal'A beautiful tale about friendship and reinvention' Fabulous, The Sun ***** A powerful and moving debut novel about coming of age again post-marriage and post-menopause. Claire's life isn't how she thought it would be when she moves into Hunter's Moon. Her long marriage is over, her children have flown the nest, and her work as an illustrator no longer satisfies her. She isn't sure who she is now or what she wants from her life.It wasn't always like this. Once, she had desires and ambitions.When her octogenarian neighbour, Tansy, suffers a fall, Claire’s solitude is broken. Under the older woman’s guidance, she finds solace and a new sense of purpose in regenerating her wild garden. And as the plants grow, Claire retreads the bittersweet journey that brought her to the second half of her life. This is a story of love. Of friendship and desire, of art and nature, of finding love for yourself and for life itself. It is a story of coming of age, once again, of giving up one’s safety net and embracing a new life beyond.

Tender, brutal, devastating, OVERSPILL is the debut novel from incredible new literary talent, Charlotte Paradise, perfect for fans of Sally Rooney and Coco Mellors *********************************************Sara doesn’t live a reckless, wild London life. She does live with a wildness, though, an unrestrainable and ferocious flurry of thoughts. She wants nothing more than to love fiercely and impolitely, even if the thought of being physical conjures anxiety as well as yearning.When she starts dating Miles, they don’t touch. She desires him, but she knows the limits of her body. Miles respects her boundaries, though he longs for them to melt away.As they grow closer, she must ask herself, how do you love someone when you feel like your body is not your own?****************************************** Your favourite authors love OVERSPILL… 'Paradise brings the reader on a journey of both pleasure and pain' Madeline Docherty, author of Gender Theory‘With fluid prose reminiscent of both Jessica Andrews' watercolour-esque writing and Coco Mellors' sculpted syntax’ Jessie Elland, author of The Ladie Upstairs‘Raw, heart-breakingly precise and utterly luminous' Ella McLeod, author of Rapunzella, Or, Don't Touch My Hair'I was more emotionally invested in the characters that I have been in a long' Molly Aitken‘A groundbreaking debut and one that readers will love to share between friends' NB Magazine‘Equal parts tender and unflinching’ BUZZ Magazine * * * * Readers adore OVERSPILL… 'This book is not just an incredible read it's essential'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Unashamedly explores the barriers to female desire and the ways our bodies tell us what we've been trying to ignore'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'One of the most tender, powerful and emotionally heavy books I've read. I couldn't give this any less than five stars and I'd recommend it to everyone'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Hugely moving'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'This book has made me face some of my own hang ups and encouraged me to have open conversations. It’s not the point of the story, but it’s made me feel braver. I’m very very glad I read it' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The groundbreaking story of the BBC’s first Black woman broadcaster — finally brought to light.Una Marson was unstoppable—a poet whose words lit up hearts, a broadcaster who made history in 1941 as the first Black woman on the BBC, and an activist who fought fiercely for racial and gender equality. She brought Caribbean culture to the global stage, challenged prejudice head-on, and dared to imagine a better world. Yet history nearly erased her.From the streets of 1920s Kingston, Jamaica, to the heart of British broadcasting during World War II, Una’s journey was one of resilience, ambition, and brilliance. She shared ideas with George Orwell, held her ground with T.S. Eliot, and used her voice to amplify the silenced while navigating a world unprepared for her genius.Calling Una Marson restores this trailblazing woman to her rightful place in history. Through meticulous research and vivid storytelling, it celebrates her dazzling, difficult life and the legacy of courage, creativity, and justice she left behind.

'With rich settings, finely drawn characters and skillful storytelling, this impressive debut is a winner' Tracy Chevalier, author of The Glass Maker* * * *1972. The Philippines. Teenager Grace is a loving daughter, tending to chores and caring for younger siblings. But when her family becomes caught in a conflict that threatens their place in the village, Grace is forced to make an unspeakable decision.Fifty years later, in England, her adult daughter Nina has still not moved on from her own troubled youth. From her struggles to fit in to the loss of her best friend, she has spent a decade avoiding her childhood home and the memories that haunt her.Brought together at a family reunion, Nina sees a chance to reconnect with her mother. But Grace has her own secrets that might stand in the way. Secrets tangled in her heritage that lead back to the witch doctors and headhunting tribes of the Philippines…A sweeping and intimate story about trust, renewal, and confronting mistakes of the past.* * * * Praise for The Butterfly Beats its Wings ‘A beautifully haunting, deeply evocative story about identity, memory, and the ghosts we carry’ Freya Sampson, USA Today bestselling author‘Atmospheric, creepy, heartbreaking and healing. You will not want to put it down’ Natalie Gregory, author of Mother Ghost Mango Seed‘An immersive novel that explores how history is always never that far behind us.’ Mahsuda Snaith, author of The Things We Thought We Knew‘Visceral, tender, and impossible to forget’ Hannah Tovey, author of Is this It?