Matador imprint: 1188 books

This is a collection of varied stories that will make you smile at some experiences of being ’thrown in at the deep end’ of life. We start with a true story about how a very ordinary student set off from Liverpool for London equipped only with a Ford Cortina and a sleeping bag and ended up working...

Whatever you know about ghosts – forget it. They don’t haunt, go headless or vanish in white floaty sheets. But they do have a tendency to reek like foul, rotting flesh – something that Sethaliss, a soul-stealing Grey Ghost masquerading as the village undertaker, is somewhat proud of. With extendable...

A book about the problems of life after death, the phenomenology of death and the question of whether immortality would be truly desirable. Looking at personal identity, the mind-body problem, near death and out of body experiences, Stephen H. Smith, delivers his core thesis that no theory of post-mortem...

Ninety years after the death of its author, Jerome K Jerome’s ever-popular Three Men in a Boat is taken down from the shelf and the dust blown from its pages to reveal surprising facts and stories. John Llewellyn’s debut book explores the life and work of author Jerome K Jerome, exposing the fascinating...

How can a memory so vivid be wrong? In the summer of 1986 Robin and Izzie hold hands under The Faerie Tree and wish for a future together. Within hours tragedy rips their dreams apart. In the winter of 2006, each carrying their own burden of grief, they stumble back into each other’s lives and try...

A light-hearted, illustrated look at the French language, concentrating on the words and phrases that could trip up unwary students. If a French person asks you for ‘assistance’ they are not asking for your help, but your attendance at an event. When they say ‘attendez’, they are not inviting...

Tony Sharp is an ambitious manager in a company leading the creation of a new business unit. Six weeks into the job, his division is under threat, his staff won’t take responsibility and attempts to improve efficiency have had little effect. He realises that a more radical approach is required,...

A compelling story of one man’s quest to solve a hidden mystery, of shady deals and shadowy threats - and discoveries that make him question everything he knows... Matthew Agnew, a school archivist, is conducting a tour of the historic parts of the school when he is approached by a man he...

Retiring from a life in the media, journalist Martha Nelson finds herself feeling lost and struggles to adapt to her new, quieter life. When a local history group asks her to compile a book about her village, Martha stumbles across the dilapidated ruin of Lapston Manor and her curiosity is piqued....

Living with Strangers is a family drama set in England, France and Germany between 1963 and 1978. It deals with loss and restitution in a family still haunted by the shadow of the Second World War and the effect this has on the decisions they are forced to make. The story is told through the eyes...

Orleigh is cursed. Or so the other villagers believe. With each harvest worse than the last, something must be done. And so they consult the Seer. A deal is struck: the village will thrive once more, but in return, Orleigh must be sacrificed to the Earth God, Teymos. ​ Years later, when Orleigh’s...

Just fifteen years from now, the world has become polarized along ethnic and religious lines. Regional low-intensity wars have now been raging for thirty-five years. In the midst of the conflict, an Allied forces team from the 9th Mountain Squadron, being airlifted from the Northern Front for a long-awaited...

Set in the American west from 1860 onwards, The Happening Man follows the journey of Trigg Hemmyng as he utilises his guile, experience and foresight to acquire a fortune that will provide for his family. Vic Chamberlain’s story takes place in the period of Manifest Destiny, when American expansion...

Sardana Encore welcomes the reader back like an old friend. The now thriving Martinez hotel reaches the end of its first season and Pedro – influenced by the family priest to see himself as ‘Peter’, the international traveller – prepares to begin studies in London and life with flatmates,...