FXB Archives - Duckworth Books

River East, River West

9780715655627

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2024
SHORTLISTED FOR THE STANFORDS FICTION WITH A SENSE OF PLACE AWARD 2024
SHORTLISTED FOR THE CAROL SHIELDS PRIZE FOR FICTION 2025
FINALIST FOR THE MAYA ANGELOU BOOK AWARD 2024
LONGLISTED FOR THE DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD 2025

Shanghai, 2007: feeling betrayed by her American mother’s engagement to their rich landlord Lu Fang, fourteen-year-old Alva begins plotting her escape. But the exclusive American School – a potential ticket out – is not what she imagined.

Qingdao, 1985: newlywed Lu Fang works as a lowly shipping clerk. Though he aspires to a bright future, he is one of many casualties of harsh political reforms. Then China opens up to foreigners and capital, and Lu Fang meets a woman who makes him question what he should settle for…

A mesmerising reversal of the east–west immigrant narrative set against China’s economic boom, River East, River West is a deeply moving exploration of race, identity and family, of capitalism’s false promise and private dreams.

Beta Male

Sam Hunt is a confused modern male in his very late twenties. A work-shy, commitment-phobic would-be actor, he is beginning to worry that turning thirty might just be the last straw. Flatmate Alan, the sensible one, has just been proposed to by his girlfriend Jess, with his femme fatale boss looking on with a saucy gleam in her eye. Newly-dumped Ed spends his time tearfully watching ‘Sex and the City’ in a pile of his ex-girlfriend’s pyjamas and plotting his revenge.

Meanwhile unemployed doctor Matt embarks on a dubious bet with Sam to see who can be the first to ensnare a rich wife and enjoy a life of leisure… Are your carefree twenties a retreating memory? Are your friends discussing children and fixed-rate mortgages while you clutch your Xbox, sobbing? You’re not the only one. Beta Male is a riotously funny and painfully honest chronicle about friendship, masculinity, marriage and the beginning of adulthood.

Twenty Something

‘Twenty Something’ introduces us to Jack Lancaster, who, at only 25 is far too young to be having a mid-life crisis, but who’s going to have a pretty good shot at it anyway.

‘A tasty dollop of British wit’ Boston Globe

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You can read a fabulous extract from A Splintering by @dureamna on @wearebookanista! Here is a teaser for you...

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You can read a fabulous extract from A Splintering by @dureamna on @wearebookanista! Here is a teaser for you...

🎉 Happy Publication Day 🎉

Dur e Aziz Amna’s A Splintering is out now — an unforgettable story of motherhood, obsession and ambition.

✨ “Smart and gripping – I read it in one sitting” – Kamila Shamsie ✨ “A lacerating novel… great insight and deep compassion” – Mohsin Hamid

Set against an oppressive backdrop of political violence and natural disaster, A Splintering traces the class struggle of a woman stuck between province and metropolis, motherhood and ambition.

🔥 Gripping, disquieting, and impossible to put down.

📚 A Splintering is available today!
#literaryfiction #bookstagram

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🎉 Happy Publication Day 🎉

Dur e Aziz Amna’s A Splintering is out now — an unforgettable story of motherhood, obsession and ambition.

✨ “Smart and gripping – I read it in one sitting” – Kamila Shamsie ✨ “A lacerating novel… great insight and deep compassion” – Mohsin Hamid

Set against an oppressive backdrop of political violence and natural disaster, A Splintering traces the class struggle of a woman stuck between province and metropolis, motherhood and ambition.

🔥 Gripping, disquieting, and impossible to put down.

📚 A Splintering is available today!
#literaryfiction #bookstagram

The Crack has chosen A Splintering as their book of the month🥳🥳

Perfect timing too... A Splintering is OUT tomorrow

#bookstagram #books #asplintering #literaryfiction

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The Crack has chosen A Splintering as their book of the month🥳🥳

Perfect timing too... A Splintering is OUT tomorrow

#bookstagram #books #asplintering #literaryfiction

Check out this incredible review of A Splintering by @dureamna in The Sunday Times 📰🥳

💬Amna is a witty and spiky writer and A Splintering is a blistering portrayal of a woman unwilling to accept life’s unfairness. Despite Tara’s greed and cruelty, her disdain for the restraints of her society is mesmerising. As her schemes to escape get wilder, you urge her on💬

Out 4th September!!

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Check out this incredible review of A Splintering by @dureamna in The Sunday Times 📰🥳

💬Amna is a witty and spiky writer and A Splintering is a blistering portrayal of a woman unwilling to accept life’s unfairness. Despite Tara’s greed and cruelty, her disdain for the restraints of her society is mesmerising. As her schemes to escape get wilder, you urge her on💬

Out 4th September!!

✨ They’re here! ✨ Fresh from the printers: the very first proof reader copies of I’ll Be the Monster by Sean Gilbert.

Aren’t they gorgeous? Who’s excited to get their hands on a copy.. we will be choosing a select group of book bloggers. Like and leave a comment below if you are interested⬇️

A homicidal couple go on a luxury holiday to save their marriage… need I say more?

Publishing 12 February 2026. 🖤 p.s thanks to everyone who has expressed interest so far, we are collecting a list of book bloggers and noting down their details and will announce who has been chosen to receive a copy soon!

#IllBeTheMonster #SeanGilbert #ProofCopies #Bookstagram #ComingSoon

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✨ They’re here! ✨ Fresh from the printers: the very first proof reader copies of I’ll Be the Monster by Sean Gilbert.

Aren’t they gorgeous? Who’s excited to get their hands on a copy.. we will be choosing a select group of book bloggers. Like and leave a comment below if you are interested⬇️

A homicidal couple go on a luxury holiday to save their marriage… need I say more?

Publishing 12 February 2026. 🖤 p.s thanks to everyone who has expressed interest so far, we are collecting a list of book bloggers and noting down their details and will announce who has been chosen to receive a copy soon!

#IllBeTheMonster #SeanGilbert #ProofCopies #Bookstagram #ComingSoon

✨ The Escape from Kabul by Karen Bartlett OUT NOW! ✨

A gripping story of rescue, survival and female solidarity.

In the twenty years since 2001, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country – tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy. However, when Western forces withdrew in August 2021, the women judges of Afghanistan and their families faced mortal danger.

The Escape from Kabul is the never-before-told story of the escape of nearly 200 women and their families, thanks to a network of professional friends, female judges and lawyers from around the world, who refused to abandon them to the Taliban.

A searing insight into the challenges of safely building a new life overseas and also the captive fate of women in Afghanistan. 📚

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✨ The Escape from Kabul by Karen Bartlett OUT NOW! ✨

A gripping story of rescue, survival and female solidarity.

In the twenty years since 2001, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country – tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy. However, when Western forces withdrew in August 2021, the women judges of Afghanistan and their families faced mortal danger.

The Escape from Kabul is the never-before-told story of the escape of nearly 200 women and their families, thanks to a network of professional friends, female judges and lawyers from around the world, who refused to abandon them to the Taliban.

A searing insight into the challenges of safely building a new life overseas and also the captive fate of women in Afghanistan. 📚

Ready for the new Bundesliga season? 🇩🇪 ⚽

The new and updated edition of PLAYED IN GERMANY is out today – grab your copy!

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Ready for the new Bundesliga season? 🇩🇪 ⚽

The new and updated edition of PLAYED IN GERMANY is out today – grab your copy!

Thinking about TS12 and DUET by Eleanor Chan 🎶

“A sensational book. Chan roves across her vast subject with confidence and grace, thrilling the reader with one eye-opening insight after another. I will never see art, and hear music, in quite the same way again.” James Fox, author of The World According to Colour

Out 18th September, available for pre-order now 💘

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Thinking about TS12 and DUET by Eleanor Chan 🎶

“A sensational book. Chan roves across her vast subject with confidence and grace, thrilling the reader with one eye-opening insight after another. I will never see art, and hear music, in quite the same way again.” James Fox, author of The World According to Colour

Out 18th September, available for pre-order now 💘

📚✨ Two electrifying voices in fiction — one unforgettable evening

Join Dur e Aziz Amna (A Splintering, BBC Radio 2 Book Club Pick) & Gurnaik Johal (Saraswati, Observer Best Debut 2025) in conversation at Waterstones Gower Street, London.

🗓 Wed 22 Oct 2025, 6:30pm 🎟 From £7 – book now before it sells out!

#ASplintering #Saraswati #DureAzizAmna #GurnaikJohal #WaterstonesEvents

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📚✨ Two electrifying voices in fiction — one unforgettable evening

Join Dur e Aziz Amna (A Splintering, BBC Radio 2 Book Club Pick) & Gurnaik Johal (Saraswati, Observer Best Debut 2025) in conversation at Waterstones Gower Street, London.

🗓 Wed 22 Oct 2025, 6:30pm 🎟 From £7 – book now before it sells out!

#ASplintering #Saraswati #DureAzizAmna #GurnaikJohal #WaterstonesEvents

SPIDER, SPIDER by @libbythescribbler

Jet-black and thrilling, Spider, Spider is an unforgettable tale of a woman who has lost herself in the poison of vengeance, and the knife-sharp girl who might just bring her back.

Coming March 2026, available for pre-order now 🕸️

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SPIDER, SPIDER by @libbythescribbler

Jet-black and thrilling, Spider, Spider is an unforgettable tale of a woman who has lost herself in the poison of vengeance, and the knife-sharp girl who might just bring her back.

Coming March 2026, available for pre-order now 🕸️

I’LL BE THE MONSTER by @seangilbertwrites

“The college bars were shuttered. Parties banned. Suicide watch was the new normal. And yet, outside, the air was sweet. Trees exploded in white and pink. Birds sang through long, pastel dusks. When I think of that time, I think of pale skin and outrageous blossoms. I think of choices.”

Sean Gilbert’s razor-sharp debut, coming February 2026 🍽️

Available for pre-order now.

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I’LL BE THE MONSTER by @seangilbertwrites

“The college bars were shuttered. Parties banned. Suicide watch was the new normal. And yet, outside, the air was sweet. Trees exploded in white and pink. Birds sang through long, pastel dusks. When I think of that time, I think of pale skin and outrageous blossoms. I think of choices.”

Sean Gilbert’s razor-sharp debut, coming February 2026 🍽️

Available for pre-order now.

🎶✨ An Evening of Music, Art & Expression at @hatchardspiccadilly ✨🎶

Join Eleanor Chan, Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason & Emily MacGregor for a powerful night of conversation on how music shapes who we are — from ancient flutes to modern memoirs, from Kandinsky to classical brilliance. This will be a very special evening!

📍 Hatchards, Piccadilly 🗓 Wednesday 1 October 2025 🕡 6.30pm BST  🎟️Tickets via the link int he stories or eventbrite

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🎶✨ An Evening of Music, Art & Expression at @hatchardspiccadilly ✨🎶

Join Eleanor Chan, Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason & Emily MacGregor for a powerful night of conversation on how music shapes who we are — from ancient flutes to modern memoirs, from Kandinsky to classical brilliance. This will be a very special evening!

📍 Hatchards, Piccadilly 🗓 Wednesday 1 October 2025 🕡 6.30pm BST  🎟️Tickets via the link int he stories or eventbrite

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