{"title":"Salley Vickers Books","description":"\u003cp\u003eBrowse the books by Salley Vickers we have in stock, second-hand, in paperback and hardback. Mostly fiction and literary fiction. Every book ships from our own UK warehouse. Free UK delivery on orders of £10 or more.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"miss-garnet-s-angel","title":"Miss Garnet’s Angel","description":"\u003cp\u003eSalley Vicker's sensational debut novel, 'Miss Garnet's Angel' is a voyage of discovery; a novel about Venice but also the rich story of the explosive possibilities of change in all of us at any time.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eJulia Garnet is a teacher. Just retired, she is left a legacy which she uses by leaving her orderly life and going to live - in winter - in an apartment in Venice. Its beauty, its secret corners and treasures, and its people overwhelm a lifetime of reserve and caution. Above all, she's touched by the all-prevalent spirit of the Angel, Raphael.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe ancient tale of Tobias, who travels to Media unaware he is accompanied by the Archangel Raphael, unfolds alongside Julia Garnet's contemporary journey.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe two stories interweave with parents and landladies, restorers and priests, American tourists and ancient travellers abounding.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe result is an enormously satisfying journey of the spirit - and Julia Garnet is a character to treasure.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2000\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 342\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e HarperCollins\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780006514213\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"HarperCollins","offers":[{"title":"Standard Secondhand — £1.50","offer_id":47907888660657,"sku":"SB-0006514219-C3","price":1.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Poor Condition — £1.00","offer_id":47907888693425,"sku":"SB-0006514219-C4","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0006514219.jpg?v=1789151850"},{"product_id":"miss-garnet-s-angel-1","title":"Miss Garnet’s Angel","description":"\u003cp\u003eIf you spend most of your life alone you do not know that you are lonely.... A shimmering first novel of self-discovery, of redemption from numb solitude, and of the matchless consolations to be found in human connection and spiritual nourishment, Miss Garnet's Angel limns-with uncommon subtlety and an engaging, often subversive wit-the thematic parallels and intersections that bind an ancient tale from the Apocrypha to a modern-day narrative about a retired British spinster on sojourn in Venice. A word-of-mouth bestseller and a critics' favorite on both sides of the Atlantic, Salley Vickers' resonant debut achieves something that has become all too rare in recent years: a wholesale blurring of the line distinguishing the \"popular\" from the \"literary\" on today's fiction shelves.\u003cbr\u003eMiss Julia Garnet is a retired history teacher who, as we learn in the opening pages of the novel, has been practicing economies of the spirit for a lifetime. A virgin in her sixties, she is still haunted by the spectre of her tyrannical, abusive father. It has been her belief that there are two kinds of people in the world: those willing to tangle with their fate, who endeavor to shape the course of life, and those who bear their circumstances with little or no struggle. Now, unmoored by the sudden death of Harriet Josephs-for more than thirty years Julia's companion in a small West London flat-Miss Garnet decides to spend six months in Venice. It is a decision that sparks an exhilarating adventure of the soul. With this opening, author Salley Vickers sweeps us away into a mesmerizing narrative about the dissolution of prudence, the discarding of worn categories, and the challenging of dogmasthat leave no room for wonder or transcendence.\u003cbr\u003eThe greatest wisdoms are not those which are written down but those which are passed between human beings who understand each other.... This is a book of stories-stories within stories, stories complementing stories, stories refracting and reshaping the elements of older stories. The strange beauty of Venice, with its spectacular architecture and abundance of art pregnant with history and ancient mysticism, storms Miss Garnet's staunch English reserve and challenges her socialist ideology. For the first time in her life she falls in love-with Carlo, a charming art dealer with twinkling eyes and a white moustache-and her spirit, once awakened, is liberated further by her friendships with a beautiful Italian boy called Nicco and an enigmatic pair of twins engaged in restoring the fourteenth-century Chapel-of-the-Plague. It is her discovery of a series of paintings in the nearby Church of the Angel Raphael, however, that leads finally to Julia's transformation and reassessment of her past. Intrigued by the paintings, Julia begins unraveling the story they tell of Tobias and the Archangel Raphael, an ancient tale depicting a quest of faith and redemption. At the same time, she embarks on a quest of her own to recover losses-not only personal losses but also a priceless angel panel that goes missing from the Chapel, along with one of the twins restoring it.\u003cbr\u003eIn Salley Vickers' prose, the legendary city of sublimity and light comes to life with an unprecedented sensual clarity. Through Miss Garnet's eyes, we encounter a city swarming with the ghosts of history and enduring even in the face of its own perpetual erosion into the sea. A ravishing novel possessed of an insistent emotional honesty and an infectious curiosity about life's oldest mysteries, Miss Garnet's Angel is that rarest of contemporary novels: kindhearted and complex, subtle and genuinely suspenseful. ABOUTBIO: Salley Vickers, author of Miss Garnet's Angel and Instances of the Number 3, has worked as a university teacher of literature, specializing in Shakespeare and texts of the ancient world. Trained as a Jungian analytical psychologist, she lectures widely on the connections between literature, psychology, and religion. She lives and works in London and\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Audio Cd\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2002\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Harpercollins Pub Ltd\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780007154777\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Harpercollins Pub Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Standard Secondhand — £1.00","offer_id":47907989749937,"sku":"SB-0007154771-C3","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0007154771.jpg?v=1789614874"},{"product_id":"other-side-of-you","title":"Other Side of You","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe brilliant new novel from the bestselling author of 'Mr Golightly's Holiday' and 'Miss Garnet's Angel'.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003e'There is no cure for being alive.' Thus speaks Dr David McBride, a psychiatrist for whom death exerts an unusual draw. As a young child he witnessed the death of his six-year-old brother and it is this traumatic event which has shaped his own personality and choice of profession. One day a failed suicide, Elizabeth Cruikshank, is admitted to his hospital. She is unusually reticent and it is not until he recalls a painting by Caravaggio that she finally yields up her story.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWe learn of Elizabeth Cruikshank's dereliction of trust, and the man she has lost, through David's narration. As her story unfolds, David finds his own life being touched by a sense that the 'other side' of his elusive patient has a strange resonance for him, too.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSet partly in Rome, 'The Other Side of You' explores the theme of redemption through love and art, which has become a hallmark of Salley Vickers's acclaimed work, which includes 'Mr Golightly's Holiday' and 'Miss Garnet's Angel'.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2007\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 292\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Harper Perennial\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780007165452\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Harper Perennial","offers":[{"title":"Poor Condition — £1.00","offer_id":47907999645873,"sku":"SB-0007165455-C4","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0007165455.jpg?v=1789139869"},{"product_id":"the-librarian-the-top-10-sunday-times-bestseller","title":"The Librarian: The Top 10 Sunday Times Bestseller","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e*A \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e Top 10 Bestseller* \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Vickers sees with a clear eye and writes with a light hand; she's a presence worth cherishing in the ranks of modern novelists.' Philip Pullman\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn 1958, Sylvia Blackwell, fresh from one of the new post-war Library Schools, takes up a job as children's librarian in a run down library in the market town of East Mole. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHer mission is to fire the enthusiasm of the children of East Mole for reading. But her love affair with the local married GP, and her befriending of his precious daughter, her neighbour's son and her landlady's neglected grandchild, ignite the prejudices of the town, threatening her job and the very existence of the library with dramatic consequences for them all. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Librarian\u003c\/i\u003e is a moving testament to the joy of reading and the power of books to change and inspire us all. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Underneath the delightful patina of nostalgia for post-War England, there are stern and spiky questions about why we are allowing our children to be robbed of their heritage of story.' Frank Cottrell Boyce \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Vickers has a formidable knack for laying open the human heart' \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 400\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Penguin Books, Limited\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0241330238\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Books, Limited","offers":[{"title":"Poor Condition — £1.00","offer_id":47909756567729,"sku":"SB-0241330238-C4","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0241330238.jpg?v=1789394758"},{"product_id":"the-gardener","title":"The Gardener","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe new novel from Salley Vickers, Sunday Times bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Librarian\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eGrandmothers\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Artist, Hassie Days, and her sister, Margot, buy a run down Jacobean house in Hope Wenlock on the Welsh Marches. While Margot continues her London life in high finance, Hassie is left alone to work the large, long-neglected garden. She is befriended by eccentric, sharp-tongued, Miss Foot, who recommends, Murat, an Albanian migrant, made to feel out of place among the locals, to help Hassie in the garden.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e As she works the garden in Murat's peaceful company, Hassie ruminates on her past life: the sibling rivalry that tainted her childhood and the love affair that left her with painful, unanswered questions.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e But as she begins to explore the history of the house and the mysterious nearby wood, old hurts begin to fade as she experiences the healing power of nature and discovers other worlds.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e In her haunting new novel, Salley Vickers, the bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Librarian\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Cleaner of Chartres,\u003c\/i\u003e writes with the profound psychological insight and sense of the numinous power of place that is the hallmark of all her novels.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e'Salley Vickers sees with a clear eye and writes with a light hand. She's a presence worth cherishing' Philip Pullman\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e '\u003ci\u003eThe Gardener\u003c\/i\u003e is a novel of regrowth \u0026amp; regeneration, of sisters overcoming a toxic parental legacy \u0026amp; of the healing power of seed packets. The perfect fictional promise to draw us through a harsh winter' Patrick Gale\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e 'Steeped in a sense of the redemptive power of place, Sally Vickers's 11th novel is a paean to green-fingered regeneration that is both rigorous and charming' \u003ci\u003eObserver\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Hardback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 304\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Penguin Books, Limited\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780241482797\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Books, Limited","offers":[{"title":"Poor Condition — £1.00","offer_id":47909783306417,"sku":"SB-0241482798-C4","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0241482798.jpg?v=1789678629"},{"product_id":"the-cleaner-of-chartres","title":"The Cleaner of Chartres","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A lovely book . . . wise at heart and filled with colourful characters' Joanne Harris, author of \u003ci\u003eChocolat\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSalley Vickers, the top ten bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eMiss Garnet's Angel\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDancing Backwards\u003c\/i\u003e, returns with \u003ci\u003eThe Cleaner of Chartres\u003c\/i\u003e, a perfect book club book, for readers who loved Joanne Harris's \u003ci\u003eChocolat\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThere is something special about the ancient cathedral of Chartres, with its mismatched spires, astonishing stained glass and strange labyrinth. And there is something special too about Agn�s Morel, the mysterious woman who is to be found cleaning it each morning.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e No one quite knows where she came from - not the diffident Abb� Paul, who discovered her one morning twenty years ago, sleeping in the north porch; nor lonely Professor Jones, whose chaotic existence she helps to organise; nor Philippe Nevers, whose neurotic sister and newborn child she cares for; nor even the irreverent young restorer, Alain Fleury, who works alongside her each day and whose attention she catches with her tawny eyes, her colourful clothes and elusive manner. And yet everyone she encounters would surely agree that she is subtly transforming their lives, even if they couldn't quite say how.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBut with a chance meeting in the cathedral one day, the spectre of Agn�s' past returns, provoking malicious rumours from the prejudiced Madame Beck and her gossipy companion Madame Picot. As the hearsay grows uglier, Agn�s is forced to confront her history, and the mystery of her origins finally unfolds.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Cleaner of Chartres\u003c\/i\u003e is a compelling story of darkness and light; of traumatic loss and second chances. Told with a sparkling wit and captivating charm, but infused throughout with deeper truths, it speaks of the power of love and mercy to transform the tragedies of the past.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e'Subtle and utterly joyous...a contemporary moral and psychological drama every bit as absorbing as \u003ci\u003eMiss Garnet's Angel\u003c\/i\u003e' \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e'A magical and at times sinister story about love, loss, secrets and forgiveness . . .with \u003ci\u003eChocolat\u003c\/i\u003e-type charm' \u003ci\u003eScotland\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eon Sunday\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e'If you're looking for a book to take you by surprise, Salley Vickers' latest is the perfect choice' \u003ci\u003ePsychologies\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSalley Vickers is the author of the word-of-mouth top 10 bestseller \u003ci\u003eMiss Garnet's Angel\u003c\/i\u003e and several other bestselling novels including \u003ci\u003eMr Golightly's Holiday, The Other Side of You\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDancing Backwards\u003c\/i\u003e as well as a collection of short stories \u003ci\u003eAphrodite's Hat.\u003c\/i\u003e She has worked as a cleaner, a dancer, a university teacher of literature and a psychoanalyst and is an Impac award winning novelist. She is currently a RLF fellow at Newnham College Cambridge and she divides her time between Cambridge and London.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2013\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 296\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Penguin Books, Limited\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780241963326\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Books, Limited","offers":[{"title":"Poor Condition — £1.00","offer_id":47909825446065,"sku":"SB-024196332X-C4","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/024196332X.jpg?v=1789140798"},{"product_id":"the-gardener-1","title":"The Gardener","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe new novel from Salley Vickers, Sunday Times bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Librarian \u003c\/i\u003eand\u003ci\u003e Grandmothers \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eArtist, Hassie Days, and her sister, Margot, buy a run down Jacobean house in Hope Wenlock on the Welsh Marches. While Margot continues her London life in high finance, Hassie is left alone to work the large, long-neglected garden. She is befriended by eccentric, sharp-tongued, Miss Foot, who recommends, Murat, an Albanian migrant, made to feel out of place among the locals, to help Hassie in the garden. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs she works the garden in Murat's peaceful company, Hassie ruminates on her past life: the sibling rivalry that tainted her childhood and the love affair that left her with painful, unanswered questions. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut as she begins to explore the history of the house and the mysterious nearby wood, old hurts begin to fade as she experiences the healing power of nature and discovers other worlds. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn her haunting new novel, Salley Vickers, the bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Librarian\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Cleaner of Chartres, \u003c\/i\u003ewrites with the profound psychological insight and sense of the numinous power of place that is the hallmark of all her novels. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Salley Vickers sees with a clear eye and writes with a light hand. She's a presence worth cherishing' Philip Pullman \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'\u003ci\u003eThe Gardener\u003c\/i\u003e is a novel of regrowth \u0026amp; regeneration, of sisters overcoming a toxic parental legacy \u0026amp; of the healing power of seed packets' Patrick Gale \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Steeped in a sense of the redemptive power of place, Sally Vickers's 11th novel is a paean to green-fingered regeneration that is both rigorous and charming' \u003ci\u003eObserver \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'\u003c\/p\u003eProfoundly moving, healing and wise, this is the perfect antidote to our urban anxiety' Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat \u003cbr\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2022\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 304\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Penguin Books, Limited\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780241991176\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Books, Limited","offers":[{"title":"Poor Condition — £1.00","offer_id":47909835997361,"sku":"SB-024199117X-C4","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/024199117X.jpg?v=1789394807"},{"product_id":"the-cleaner-of-chartres-1","title":"The Cleaner of Chartres","description":"\u003cp\u003e'A lovely book . . . wise at heart and filled with colourful characters' Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat A beautifully beguiling new novel from Salley Vickers, author of the bestselling Miss Garnet's Angel and winner of the 2007 IMPAC Dublin award, as heard on Radio 4's Book at Bedtime.There is something special about the ancient cathedral in Chartres, with its mismatched spires, astonishing stained-glass and strange labyrinth. And there is something special too about Agnès Morel, the mysterious woman who is to be found cleaning it each morning.No one quite knows where she came from - not the diffident Abbé Paul, who discovered her one morning twenty years ago, sleeping in the north porch; nor lonely Professor Jones, whose chaotic existence she helps to organise; nor Philippe Nevers, whose neurotic sister and newborn child she cares for; nor even the irreverent young restorer, Alain Fleury, who works alongside her each day and whose attention she catches with her tawny eyes, her colourful clothes and elusive manner. And yet everyone she encounters would surely agree that she has touched their lives in subtly transformative ways, even though they couldn't quite say how.But with a chance meeting in the cathedral one day, the spectre of Agnès' past returns, provoking malicious speculation from the prejudiced Madame Beck and her gossipy companion Madame Picot. As the rumours grow more ugly, Agnès is forced to confront her history, and the mystery of her origins finally unfolds.The Cleaner of Chartres is a compelling story of darkness and light; of traumatic loss and second chances. Told with a sparkling wit and beguiling charm, but infused throughout with deeper truths, it speaks of the power of love and mercy to transform the tragedies of the past.'Salley Vickers is a novelist whose imaginative journey always promises magic and mystery. The Cleaner of Chartres shows her on top form in a rich weave of loss and redemption spiked with Ms Vickers' irrepressible wit' Robert McCrum, Observer'With its subtle combination of explorations of faith and love, The Cleaner of Chartres is something of a return to the terrain of Vickers's first novel, Miss Garnet's Angel. Certainly, it's another gem' Independent'Salley Vickers sees with a clear eye and writes with a light hand and she knows how the world works. She's a presence worth cherishing' Philip Pullman'Reveals itself as a surprising exploration of the mysteries of imagination and faith' Joanna Trollope, Book of the Year, Daily Telegraph'Rich, complex and haunting' Sunday Times'Subtle and utterly joyous...a contemporary moral and psychological drama every bit as absorbing as Miss Garnet's Angel' Sunday Times'A magical and at times sinister story about love, loss, secrets and forgiveness...with Chocolat-type charm' Scotland on Sunday'The Cleaner of Chartres is a return to form' Sunday Express 'Combining grace with gravity and wisdom with wit, this latest novel by Salley Vickers simply radiates soul' Red'If you're looking for a book to take you by surprise, Salley Vickers' latest is the perfect choice' PsychologiesSalley Vickers is the author of the word-of-mouth bestseller Miss Garnet's Angel and several other bestselling novels including Mr Golightly's Holiday, The Other Side of You and Dancing Backwards as well as a collection of short stories Aphrodite's Hat. She has worked as a cleaner, a dancer, a university teacher of literature and a psychoanalyst. She is currently a RLF fellow at Newnham College Cambridge and she divides her time between Cambridge and London.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Hardback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2012\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 296\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Viking\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780670922123\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Viking","offers":[{"title":"Very Good — £1.00","offer_id":47912521662641,"sku":"SB-0670922129-C2","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0670922129.jpg?v=1789161437"},{"product_id":"kiss-and-part-short-stories","title":"Kiss and Part: Short stories","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhat does it mean to 'kiss and part'? This collection of previously unpublished short stories from a stellar list of contemporary women novelists is a literary celebration of the spirit of place.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEach contributor shares one thing in common - they have all stayed at a small cottage in the village of Clifford Chambers near Stratford-upon-Avon, courtesy of a trust set up to provide women writers with ‘a room of one’s own’, as Virginia Woolf put it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eClifford Chambers was the home of the Jacobean poet Michael Drayton, who incorporated the phrase ‘Kiss and part’ into a sonnet. Each of the ten short stories in this collection takes this as its theme and the result is wonderfully eclectic mix of storytelling of the highest quality.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll royalties go the Hosking Houses Trust to further encourage women’s writing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eContents List\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePreface\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Kiss and Part’ by Michael Drayton\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntroduction by Margaret Drabble\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBuck Moon Marina Warner\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘A Merrie Meeting’ Salley Vickers\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Incumbent Elizabeth Speller\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Colossal Wreck’ Maria McCann\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Visitation Maggie Gee\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd the River Flows On Joan Bakewell\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Creature Jill Dawson\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Turn Catherine Fox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Fabric of Things Jo Baker\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Place of Dreams’ Lucy Durneen\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Writers\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfterword by Sarah Hosking\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAcknowledgements of Photographs\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Hardback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 224\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Canterbury Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9781786221926\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Canterbury Press","offers":[{"title":"Very Good — £1.84","offer_id":47917103349937,"sku":"SB-1786221926-C2","price":1.84,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/1786221926.jpg?v=1789691128"},{"product_id":"instances-of-the-number-3","title":"Instances of the Number 3","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe fantastic new edition of the bestselling second novel from the author of 'Miss Garnet's Angel'.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eBridget Hansome and Frances Slater have only one thing in common. 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Following on from 'Miss Garnet's Angel', this brilliant novel confirms Salley Vickers as a writer who transcends generations.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/salley-vickers-books\"\u003eSalley Vickers\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2002\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 307\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Fourth Estate\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9781841156590\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Fourth Estate","offers":[{"title":"Standard Secondhand — £1.00","offer_id":47917506592945,"sku":"SB-1841156590-C3","price":1.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/1841156590.jpg?v=1789441041"}],"url":"https:\/\/sellbooks.co.uk\/collections\/salley-vickers-books.oembed","provider":"Sell Books .co.uk","version":"1.0","type":"link"}