Reads Of Romance
By Ekta Rajagopalan, Anna Robinson, Charlotte Barber and Maisy Twaddle
8 Rules of Love: How to Find it, Keep it, and Let it Go by Jay Shetty
31 January, HarperCollins Publishers
The #1 New York Times bestseller Think Like A Monk author, Jay Shetty, is back with another book for Valentine’s Day. How many of us have only had romance movies and pop culture paint an image of love for us? Standing outside your crush’s house with a boombox, showing cards at their doorstep at Christmas telling them you want to be together; we’ve all seen it (and secretly wished for it). But everyday love is a tad different.
Instead of just muddling through it, Jay Shetty lays out simple and actionable steps to nurture love better than before! His eight rules consist of how to win or lose together, how to define love and why you come back stronger than ever after a breakup. He addresses a relationship as an entire cycle: from first dates to moving in together, breaking-up to starting over. He also shows us how to avoid falling for false promises.
Get this book now so that you can approach love in your most authentic way (not in the way every rom-com tells you to) and so that you can love yourselves (and your partner!)
Brutes by Dizz Tate
2 February, Faber and Faber
For fans of The Florida Project and The Virgin Suicides comes this powerful debut novel from Floridian Dizz Tate. Brutes is a coming-of-age novel about the challenges of girlhood and friendship.
In Falls Landing, Florida – a place of theme parks, swamps and bougainvillaea – something sinister lurks. A group of thirteen-year-old girls obsess over the local television preacher’s daughter, Sammy. She is older, wiser and in love with Eddie. But suddenly, Sammy goes missing. Watching from a distance, the girls edge closer to unveiling a dark secret about their fame-hungry town and the cruel cost of leaving. What they uncover will haunt them for the rest of their lives.
Through a dark and compelling lens, Dizz Tate captures the violence, horrors and highs of girlhood. Her debut novel explores the tight friendships of youth and the moment these friendships are torn apart permanently. Her use of many voices allows for the dangerous stories of the girls and women in Florida to be told in an unsettling Gothic style. Tate is already receiving high praise for her “beautiful and deeply strange novel” that we’re sure will mesmerise readers long after they have finished reading.
Just My Type by Fallon Ballard
7 February, G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Lana Parker is an expert girlfriend, especially when it comes to long-term relationships. Having jumped from relationship to relationship, she is a pro and uses her extensive knowledge as a columnist for one of Los Angeles’ trendiest websites giving advice and tips on dating.
At the age of thirty she once again finds herself single. Yet despite her dating history she’s determined to keep it that way. That is until her ex, Seth, makes an appearance at her work. The assignment he’s taken on pits them against each other, competing for a spot in the magazine that would elevate their careers in a way they could only dream of.
To win the opportunity of her career, Lana must go against everything she knows and write about embracing her new single status. For Seth, it's learning to settle down and become someone worthy of being a boyfriend, reflecting on how he’s handled his previous relationships. However, as the articles progress, things become complicated and suddenly it’s not just their careers they're worried about.
The Love Scribe by Amy Meyerson
7 February, Park Row
New from the author of The Bookshop of Yesterdays is a charming novel about a woman who discovers a power in her writing; her stories help people fall in love.
When Alice’s best friend Gabby is left reeling after a break-up, Alice writes her a heartfelt story to cheer her up. As if by magic, when reading it in a cafe, Gabby meets the man of her dreams. Convinced of a special power written into the words of the story, Gabby shares it with her sister who also finds instant love. As word spreads of Alice’s gift, she finds a new calling – to be a love scribe.
Not all stories can unfold how we expect them to. Summoned to the mansion of the reclusive Madeline Alger and her mysterious library, Alice struggles writing her most demanding story yet. She embarks on a journey of self-discovery and finds that there may also be a story waiting for her.
Full of wisdom and heart, The Love Scribe explores fate and the power that we have over our own stories.