War Damage

London in the aftermath of WW2 is a beaten down, hungry place, so it's no wonder that Regine Milner's Sunday house parties in her Hampstead home are so popular. Everyone comes to Reggie's on a Sunday: ballet dancers and cabinet ministers, left-over Mosleyites alongside flamboyant homosexuals like Freddie Buckingham. And when Freddie turns up dead on the Heath one Sunday night there is no shortage of suspects. War Damage is both a high-class thriller and a wonderful evocation of Britain staggering back to its feet after the privations of the War. And in Regine Milner it possesses a truly memorable heroine. She's full of secrets - just what did happen in Shanghai before the war? - and surprises - Reggie's living proof that sexual experimentation was alive and well long before the sixties.

A haunting thriller which vividly evokes the bohemian artistic community of post-war London.

Kirkus Reviews

In the brutal winter of 1947, a young Londoner sets out to vindicate a friend convicted of murder. Dinah Wentworth feels responsible for Colin's plight because she discovered the corpse of surrealist painter Titus Mavor and didn't report it. She was delivering a letter for her boss, who persuaded her it would be safest to keep quiet, but she never imagined the police would accuse Colin, a communist who recently had a loud political argument with Mavor in a cafe. Feminist cultural historian Wilson's mystery is long on atmosphere (perhaps thanks to her research for Bohemians, 2001). She captures the dank austerity of bombed-out, postwar London, cleverly counterpointing this bleakness with the giddiness of being young and avant-garde in such a time, contemplating what might arise from the rubble. Dinah, her husband, Alan, and his filmmaking partners, Colin and Hugh, are idealists who intend to remake the world with their art. But at the novel's start, their alliance is already splintering. Dogmatic Colin and eager-to-sell-out Hugh are at odds as they try to secure funding with the help of enigmatic Romanian director Radu Enescu and his muse-girlfriend, Gwendolen Grey. The combination of Enescu's Hollywood ambitions and Colin's arrest severs their bonds for good. Dinah, a feminist who often runs up against the limits of men's (and her own) freethinking, is an appealing character. Unfortunately, the story is not as compelling as its setting, and the novel soon loses the subtlety and verve of its opening chapters. Fluidly, even elegantly written, sharply evoking a time, place and mindset. But the promising setup gives way to a workaday mystery.

Tennis's gladiatorial beauty, its stylish duelling and fashionable court-wear make it a romantic's dream. Ever since young men and women first came together to play on vicarage lawns, this most Victorian of games has always had a peculiarly passionate undercurrent - love even makes it into the scoring system. And passion in other forms - the rivalry of Federer and Nadal, and John McEnroe's legendary angry outbursts. Beyond the romance, tennis has always been a barometer of the times. French star Suzanne Lenglen was a celebrity trailblazer, Jimmy Connors channelled punk, and Henman Hill is unrecognisable from the days when the All England Club ostracised working-class Fred Perry - and the great English tennis champion who is now more famous as a leisure clothing brand than a sportsman. Love Game is the must-have companion for tennis fans during Wimbledon 2015. It tells the story of tennis' journey from upper-middle-class hobby to global TV spectacle, taking in the innovators and trendsetters, the great players, heroes and iconoclasts, and the politics, class wars and culture clashes of what could rightfully be called the 'beautiful game'. Which side are you on? This is a novel about spies, lies and unearthing the truth. Summer 1951. The Cold War is at its height. Burgess and Maclean have just disappeared, and the nation is obsessed with the story of their probable defection. Colin Harris, a member of the Communist Party who has been exiled in Germany for several years, arrives back in England with news: he has fallen in love with a girl in Berlin and plans to return to the UK permanently with his bride-to-be. Then Konrad Ebershardt, a German scientist, living in England for the past two decades, is found dead, and it emerges that Harris was one of the last people to see him alive. What does Harris known about Burgess and Maclean? Was he involved in Ebershardt's murder? And who is this girl in Berlin? A novel about secrets and spies, about making choices and living with the consequences, "The Girl In Berlin" is a reminder that when nothing is as it seems, no-one can be trusted - even, sometimes, those you think you know best.

London, 1947: it's freezing winter in the shabby, bomb-damaged city. Young socialite Dinah Wentworth, a bright, innocent newcomer to the Fitzrovia scene, becomes embroiled in a dark scandal when she discovers the corpse of surrealist artist Titus Mavor. Not wanting to explain her reasons for being at Mavor's flat that evening, she decides against reporting her grim discovery to the police.

But her silence has terrible consequences. Dinah's husband's friend, Colin Harris, is linked to the crime and arrested on suspicion of murder. Dinah realises someone is trying to frame him and knows she must uncover the real villain before Harris is hanged.

Set against the background of the Cold War, post-war shortages, and the struggling British film industry, Elizabeth Wilson's elegant noir vividly evokes the fashions and politics of a bohemian community flourishing in defiance of austerity. The Twilight Hour is a riveting thriller with a corkscrew twist.

London, 1947: it's freezing winter in the shabby, bomb-damaged city. Young socialite Dinah Wentworth, a bright, innocent newcomer to the Fitzrovia scene, becomes embroiled in a dark scandal when she discovers the corpse of surrealist artist Titus Mavor. Not wanting to explain her reasons for being at Mavor's flat that evening, she decides against reporting her grim discovery to the police. But her silence has terrible consequences. Her husband's friend, Colin Harris, is linked to the crime and arrested on suspicion of murder. Dinah realises someone is trying to frame him and knows she must uncover the real villain before Harris is hanged. Set against the background of the Cold War, post-war shortages, and the struggling British film industry, Elizabeth Wilson's elegant noir vividly evokes the fashions and politics of a bohemian community flourishing in defiance of austerity. "The Twilight Hour" is a riveting thriller with a corkscrew twist

Summer, 1951. Two suspected spies, Burgess and Maclean, have disappeared, and the nation is obsessed with their whereabouts.

Speculation is at fever pitch when Colin Harris, a member of the Communist Party who has been in Germany for several years, turns up to see his old friends Dinah and Alan Wentworth. He has news: he has fallen in love with a girl in East Berlin, and is coming home - with her - for good. Meanwhile, Jack McGovern, who sometimes feels like the only decent man in Special Branch, has a rendezvous with a real spy. Miles Kingdom thinks there's a mole at MI5, and he wants McGovern's help.

A novel about secrets, betrayal and unearthing the truth, The Girl in Berlin is a reminder that when nothing is as it seems, no-one can be trusted - even those you think you know best.

London in the aftermath of WW2 is a beaten down, hungry place, so it's no wonder that Regine Milner's Sunday house parties in her Hampstead home are so popular. Everyone comes to Reggie's on a Sunday: ballet dancers and cabinet ministers, left-over Mosleyites alongside flamboyant homosexuals like Freddie Buckingham. And when Freddie turns up dead on the Heath one Sunday night there is no shortage of suspects.

War Damage is both a high-class thriller and a wonderful evocation of Britain staggering back to its feet after the privations of the War. And in Regine Milner it possesses a truly memorable heroine. She's full of secrets - just what did happen in Shanghai before the war? - and surprises - Reggie's living proof that sexual experimentation was alive and well long before the sixties.

Summer, 1951. Two suspected spies, Burgess and Maclean, have disappeared, and the nation is obsessed with their whereabouts. Speculation is at fever pitch when Colin Harris, a member of the Communist Party who has been in Germany for several years, turns up to see his old friends Dinah and Alan Wentworth. He has news: he has fallen in love with a girl in East Berlin, and is coming home - with her - for good. Meanwhile, Jack McGovern, who sometimes feels like the only decent man in Special Branch, has a rendezvous with a real spy. Miles Kingdom thinks there's a mole at MI5, and he wants McGovern's help. A novel about secrets, betrayal and unearthing the truth, The Girl in Berlin is a reminder that when nothing is as it seems, no-one can be trusted - even those you think you know best. Tennis is defined by its head games, its demands for physical prowess, and its plethora of outsized personalities. It mixes chess and dance, intellectual geometry and aesthetic joy. People who love tennis love it like few others love other sports. Some fans build their lives around the calendar of tourneys, and events like Wimbledon and the U.S. Open remain, year after year, popular and well attended. Wilsons captivating cultural history embraces the rich and intertwining stories of the sport, and tells the story of its evolution from upper-middle-class hobby to global TV spectacle. Wilson marshals and conveys all the passion for a game known for its players grunting, growling, sweating, and pursuit of sweet spots. No wonder, as Wilson says, each match starts with love. This is an atmospheric book in which foggy, half-ruined London is as much a character as the artists and good-time girls who wander through its pages. Time Out Elizabeth Wilsons elegant noir vividly evokes the fashions and politics of a bohemian community flourishing in postwar London. The Twilight Hour is a riveting thriller with a corkscrew twist. Visiting professor at the London College of Fashion, Elizabeth Wilson is a well-known UK writer on feminism and popular culture. A novel about secrets and spies, about making choices and living with the consequences. It is a reminder that when nothing is as it seems, no-one can be trusted - even, sometimes, those you think you know best.