Böcker av Stephanie Bretherton

"Cracking stories....I was so impressed" Linda Hill, Linda's Book BagAncient gods in conflict and a zombie on welfare, a disappearing boyfriend and AI with daddy issues, a balloon bound for icy danger and a mysterious theft at the museum, a sinister woodland cabin and a pleasure house that'll cost much more than you can afford.Raiding parties in dystopia, art classes in the city, opposites attracting and love catching fire. Separations and siblings, life and death decisions, flying into trouble and traveling to self-discovery...Which comes first, chaos or order? The cycles between may seem inevitable, and change may be the only constant, but what does that mean for the human experience?Sixteen authors from the Breakthrough Books collective explore our relationships with nature and technology, science and the sacred, each other and ourselves, offering an array of stories as individual as every reader.Contributors: Eli Allison, Mark Bowsher, Stephanie Bretherton, Jamie Chipperfield, Jason Cobley, Stevyn Colgan, Sue Clark, Samuel Dodson, Miles Hudson, A.B. Kyazze, Pete Langman, Virginia Moffatt, Eamon Somers, Nicole Swengley, Damon L. Wakes, PJ Whiteley.Also from the Breakthrough Books collective, Taking Liberties, a short story anthology on the theme of freedom.

"A collection that is full of surprises. But it is no surprise that this talented group of authors have found so many unexpected and entertaining ways to write on the theme of freedom. A great read." - Lulu Allison, author of Twice the Speed of Dark and Salt Lick (Women's Prize for Fiction 2022 Long List)A daring rescue. A time-trapped forest. Paranormal problems for a down-to-earth detective.War waged over wi-fi. An app to die for and a fateful shirt. Musing on the rails. Hermits, caves and epic tales. Roboboats aimlessly afloat. Passengers and paintings. The keys to sunlight, and young love in sunlit Santiago. Freedom has many faces. In Taking Liberties it is met in a dozen different guises and in worlds where nothing is what it seems.Threaded through with the theme of freedom, the stories explore what it means to yearn for escape and to search for the true self, whether in the DNA or in the human soul. Mirth and myth, mystery and magic, noir and memoir shape this first offering from the Breakthrough Book Collective, a group of established and emerging authors embarking on its own journey of creative liberty.Contributors: Stephanie Bretherton, Jamie Chipperfield, Sue Clark, Jason Cobley, Stevyn Colgan, Samuel Dodson, A.B. Kyazze, Virginia Moffatt, Ivy Ngeow, Eamon Somers, Paul Waters and PJ Whiteley.¿ Join the adventure and take liberties today. ¿

A young woman walks alone through a barren landscape in a time before history, a time of cataclysmic natural change. She is cold, hungry and with child but not without hope or resources. A skilful hunter, she draws on her intuitive understanding of how to stay alive... and knows that she must survive.In present-day London, geneticist Dr Eloise Kluft wrestles with an ancient conundrum as she unravels the secrets of a momentous archaeological find. She is working at the forefront of contemporary science but is caught in the lonely time-lock of her own emotional past.Bone Lines is the story of two women, separated by millennia yet bound by the web of life. A tale of love and survival - of courage and the quest for wisdom - it explores the nature of our species and asks what lies at the heart of being human.Although partly set during a crucial era of human history 74,000 years ago, Bones Lines is very much a book for our times. Dealing with themes from genetics, climate change and migration to the yearning for meaning and the clash between faith and reason, it also paints an intimate portrait of who we are as a species. The book tackles some of the big questions but requires no special knowledge of any of the subjects to enjoy.Alternating between ancient and modern timelines, the story unfolds through the experiences of two unique characters: One is a shaman, the sole surviving adult of her tribe who is braving a hazardous journey of migration, the other a dedicated scientist living a comfortable if troubled existence in London, who is on her own mission of discovery. The two are connected not only by a set of archaic remains but by a sense of destiny - and their desire to shape it. Both are pioneers, women of passion, grit and determination, although their day to day lives could not be more different. One lives moment by moment, drawing on every scrap of courage and ingenuity to keep herself and her infant daughter alive, while the other is absorbed by work, imagination and regret. Each is isolated and facing her own mortal dangers and heart-rending decisions, but each is inspired by the power of the life force and driven by love. Bone Lines stands alone as a novel but also marks the beginning of the intended 'Children of Sarah' series.