When two ancient skulls disappear from under the noses of archaeologists, Eryn finds herself caught in a whirlpool of bias and bigotry. As she digs deeper, she has to ask herself: Who did the bones belong to, and where did they really come from?The job is clear: Return the skulls to the client. But when Eryn uncovers the truth, she must decide whet.. More
New York, summer of 2007. The Iraq War still rages. Domestic terror threats abound. The iPhone is about to launch. But the biggest story is straight bananas flooding the city, overtaking crack and heroin. Rich or poor, no one can resist peelin’ straight. Is it a plot? Immigrants are being rounded up. Fifth Avenue parties become brawls. Paranoia rul.. More
A novel, with a strong rural New Zealand setting, about three generations of women: one who rides a motorbike into the past, her mother who communicated only through the poetry she wrote and a grandmother who came to live in an isolated farming community with a war damaged soldier beyond the Bridge to Nowhere. .. More
It is the time of the stupefying. Just when we least expected it, when we thought the show was over, it clonked out into the limelight, and the world was split in two. The Stupefying is a bruised arm firmly removed from its sling. It isn’t funny ha-ha but funny that-can’t-be-true-but-I-know-it-is. In poems of eavesdropping and invention, defla.. More
'I can be of use beyond myself. There is no questionof my right to board a ship, or take a room.It is as though I were a ghost and I have now been given form.'Dr James Barry was many things. He was a pistol-toting dueller, an irascible grudge-holder, a vegetarian, an obsessive cleaner – and a brilliant, humane military surgeon who served throughout.. More
Erin’s mother has motor neurone disease and has decided to take her fate into her own hands. As Erin looks back at her twenty-six-year-old self, she can finally tell the story of the unimaginable task she faced one winter.‘Chloe Lane’s The Swimmers is by turns touching, resonate, fiercely candid, and beautifully written. In this novel about a daugh.. More
You pick one up at the Tip Shop: oblivion’s final sieve meets your lucky day.James Brown shakes out oblivion’s final sieve in The Tip Shop. Found poems jostle with autobiographical poems, essayistic with epigrammatic, formally expert with some of his very best freeform sprawls. Alternately poignant and indignant, weary and exuberant – but can the J.. More
Damien and Ali are pawns in an ethereal game of tug of war.As a Guardian Angel, Damien has made it his goal to find a better way to defeat the daemon horde once and for all. Through his struggles he learns the history of Heaven and why God and Lucifer came to war.As a daemon of the horde, Ali must manipulate the innermost thoughts and desires of pe.. More
“Are we calling it ‘encouragement’ now? I like it. Less in your face than ‘blackmail’.”Becky, unlucky in love and facing unemployment, won’t let life get her down. Anahera, stepmum to three boisterous boys, has found love but is struggling to find her place in the world.When Anahera’s life is unexpectedly turned upside down, she and Becky recruit t.. More
2023: a true dystopia.Fear is the dominant emotion. Those who use fear as their weapon can rule the world and manipulate most people. The few that are left must stand their ground and find a way to help wake the others from their nightmare before the Inquisition gets them... More
Medieval Chinese poet Li He lived in the last brief flowering of the T’ang dynasty from 790-816, his evocations of the heavenly and the netherworlds are unique, possibly in the whole of the Chinese canon, and are the source of his honorific title, ‘the demon talented one’. Working from this fertile source, Mike Johnson has produced a collection of .. More
Bill Manhire’s first new book since Lifted shows him building on the themes and expanding the techniques of that prize-winning collection. Here are finely crafted lyrics, found poems, and even a bracket of songs. The Victims of Lightning is Bill Manhire at the height of his powers.
Praise for Lifted: ‘Manhire shows not only his m.. More
One summer evening in 1808, Sobran Jodeau stumbles through his family's vineyard in Burgundy, filled with wine and love sorrows. As Sobran sways in a drunken swoon, an angel appears out of nowhere to catch him.Once he gets over his shock, Sobran decides that Xas, the male angel, is his guardian sent to counsel him on everything from marriage.. More
The VUP Home Reader is everything we’re working on at the moment—extracts of books which were published in February and March, books which are in the warehouse or on the water, final proofs and uncorrected proofs, manuscripts and work-in-progress—stretching into 2021. We offer it as company, as entertainment, as a promise.Stay safe and well.Stay ho.. More
Inspired by a real life murder mystery, this classic “Who dunnit?” is populated by easily recognized and believable characters. Women throw themselves at Kevin. Is Martin a genuine SNAG or just an opportunist? Emily discovers the father of her child has become a brutal gang leader.
Ordinary Kiwis take a walk outside the law. They.. More