Kirjahaku

"History doesn't repeat itself, but it often rhymes."It's August 1994, in Limerick, Ireland and Jonathan Musgrave is 15, going on 16, and loves his girls, his music, and his booze - among other things. When his rock band finally find the drummer they've been looking for, a chance to compete in a local battle of the bands comes their way, with a prime spot at a local music festival among the prizes.Life is pretty sweet for Jon, until he meets a girl who looks like trouble, and has what would be a night to remember - if he could remember it. From there, he finds himself entangled in a local mystery, a possible crime, and a love affair that takes him by surprise, teaches him who he is, and shows him what he wants to be. But somewhere, behind the scenes, a secret he is keeping threatens to destroy everything he loves.After almost four years West returns to the universe of his debut The Boys of Summer, with a new lead character, the return of some old favourites, and a story that will make you laugh, make you cry, but above all, keep you reading until the final page.

Poppy Riley is missing. The man who has her wants no ransom, has made no contact with her family, and has no intention to do so. His plan for Poppy is far more sinister. In a locked room, somewhere in London, the ten year old girl sits and wonders how she came to be there.Alice wakes up to a call from Frank. He is not a friend, but he knows everything about her. He is not a kidnapper, but he knows how to get Poppy back. The worst day of her life has already started, and he is her only guide through the horror. She knows she cannot trust him, but time is running out.All over the capital, several men are waiting for confirmation that everything has gone according to plan. Strangers to each other, they are tied by a sickening common interest. An interest in Poppy Riley. Alice and Frank have less than twenty-four hours to stop them.

Darkly funny, shocking, heartwarming, brutal, manic, touching, emotional, and exciting - Ciar n West's fourth novel is many things, but it's certainly not a romance, in the traditional sense. Through the lenses of excess, addiction, psychosis, and worse, it tells the story of Tom - a man who has lost everything, is plagued by his demons, and in the grip of the compulsions over which he has no control. Coming back home to a country he no longer recognises, his inevitable downward spiral is halted by a face from fifteen years before - a lost love that was never his to lose in the first place. A glimmer of hope that might be the one thing that can save him. She's the key to what could be a happy future for Tom, but only if he can put his past to rest for good. A Certain Romance is a book that you may find hard to describe to other people, but also one that you'll never forget.