The Sound of It - An extraordinary and extremely readable novel
Publishing 1st DEcember 2022 From Bench Press
When Su, a divorced mother of one daughter, falls in love with Jeremy, a widowed father of two sons, they want to build a life together, but neither of their houses in Worcester is big enough for a family of five. They decide to build a dream house in farmland outside the city, in which to live happily ever after. For sound designer Su, it’s an opportunity to create an embracing home and heal past wounds of betrayal and loss, while failed entrepreneur Jeremy sees a chance to impress his overbearing father.
But what happens when financial misjudgements cloud the horizon? What happens when some family ties grow strong and others don’t grow at all?
The Sound of It looks at blending a family, when expectations are high, dreams are big, and the Internet is very dangerous.
It’s wonderful on relationships, parenting and deception, and especially piercing on the consequences of moving too fast.
The Daily Mail
An honest and gripping look at parenting, step-parenting and later-in-life love.
#1 bestselling author Adele Parks
I’ve never read anything quite like it. Hilarious, desperately sad, and utterly compelling. An extraordinary and extremely readable novel.
Fiona Mitchell, author of The Swap and The Maid’s Room
Read more about The Sound of It and access The Sound of It playlist here.
“Creepy and tense but also full of love and friendship and family.”
- Ian Rankin
“Glide is a novel with all the building menace of the best Stephen King told with the style and compassion of Ann Patchett. The book is as revealing as one of Leo’s photographs: full of choices, perfectly observed details, and, at the core, a deeply human truth.” - Chris Huntington - Author of Mike Tyson Slept Here
"It’s funny, warm, scary — and thoroughly recommended."
- John Harding for the Daily Mail
"A mystery, a love story and a fascinating encounter with a different culture, Yuki Means Happiness is an outstanding novel." - John Boyne
"Like the waitress who pulls the bottom of her kimono “into the perfect position” for kneeling by Diana’s table in a restaurant, Lester has constructed her novel like an elegant piece of origami, every element deftly arranged into something as close to perfection as I can imagine." - Lucy Scholes for The National
"What a great voice, what energy and wit. I enjoyed Lillian's travels, her various jobs, and her lovers. She had moments of great wisdom and I was drawn especially to those. In the midst of the humor and the happenings, a sentence or two of such profundity. I thought the book was very original and often extremely funny, but always with an edge. My favorite kind of humor. I completely loved it!" - Karen Joy Fowler
"Dazzling . . . Spiked with unflinching observations, riotous riffs and poignant reflections."
- The Washington Post
"I absolutely loved Lillian on Life. It was a delight. The style of it so fresh and clever and subversive and there’s something very brave about it." - Kate Atkinson
Get your copies from:
US: Amazon - Barnes & Noble - Books-A-Million - iTunes - Google play
UK: Waterstones - Amazon - Hive - WHSmith Singapore: Kinokuniya