Literary Fiction Bargain Book Box

Literary Fiction Bargain Book Box

This diverse collection of seventeen contemporary novels offers exceptional value for readers of literary fiction. Featuring award nominees, psychological thrillers, and sweeping historical sagas, this box provides a curated selection of acclaimed titles that explore complex human relationships, history, and the creative mind.

1. The Marsh Queen by Virginia Hartman Loni Murrow, a bird artist at the Smithsonian, returns to her family home in the Florida wetlands to care for her injured mother. There, she becomes entangled in the mystery surrounding her father's death years earlier, navigating a landscape of dark family secrets and lush, dangerous nature.

2. The Incredible Events in Women's Cell Number 3 by Kira Yarmysh A sharp and absurdly funny novel set in a Russian detention center. Anya, arrested at an anti-corruption rally, spends ten days in a cell with five other women. As they share their stories, the boundary between reality and hallucination begins to blur in a powerful critique of modern Russia.

3. A Flaw in the Design by Nathan Oates A tense psychological thriller about a creative writing professor whose life is upended when he takes in his wealthy, estranged nephew. Convinced the boy is a sociopath who threatens his family, the professor becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth in a battle of wits and narratives.

4. You'd Look Better as a Ghost by Joanna Wallace A darkly comic thriller featuring Claire, a part-time serial killer who attends a bereavement support group to blend in. When a blackmailer threatens to expose her "hobby," Claire must outwit her enemies in this unique and twisted cat-and-mouse game.

5. A Good House for Children by Kate Collins A chilling gothic mystery set in a Dorset house known as The Reeve. The narrative weaves together the stories of a nanny in 1976 and a mother in the present day, both of whom realize the house poses a terrifying threat to the children in their care.

6. Sourdough by Robin Sloan Lois Clary, a software engineer in San Francisco, is bequeathed a sourdough starter by two mysterious brothers. As she learns to bake, she is drawn into a secret underground market that fuses food and technology, changing her life in unexpected ways.

7. Signs for Lost Children by Sarah Moss Set in the late 19th century, this novel follows a newly married couple separated by continents. While Tom builds lighthouses in Japan, Ally works as a doctor in a cornish asylum. The story explores their parallel lives of isolation, work, and the struggle to connect.

8. My Brilliant Sister by Amy Brown A witty and inventive novel that reimagines the life of Australian author Miles Franklin through the eyes of her sister. It explores the tension between the pursuit of art and the demands of domestic life, blending biography with fiction.

9. We're Alone by Edwidge Danticat A collection of powerful essays from the acclaimed author, blending personal history with reportage. Danticat reflects on the pandemic, her childhood in Haiti, and literary heroes, offering a profound meditation on resilience, community, and the state of the world.

10. Monument Maker by David Keenan An ambitious and hallucinatory epic that spans centuries and continents. From the siege of Khartoum to the present day, this novel creates a "cathedral of words," exploring religion, art, and the nature of history itself.

11. The Hypocrite by Jo Hamya A sharp satire on the generation gap. A young playwright stages a new play based on a holiday she took with her father, a once-famous novelist. As the father watches from the audience, he is forced to confront his own legacy and his daughter's ruthless interpretation of their shared past.

12. Even If Everything Ends by Jens Liljestrand A gripping climate-fiction novel set in Sweden during a summer of catastrophic wildfires. It follows four characters—a media consultant, an influencer, a vengeful teenager, and a rebellious daughter—as they try to survive the crisis and their own personal meltdowns.

13. A Cage Went in Search of a Bird by Ali Smith (and others) A collection of ten short stories inspired by Franz Kafka, written by leading contemporary authors including Ali Smith and Elif Batuman. These tales explore themes of alienation, bureaucracy, and the surreal, paying tribute to Kafka's enduring influence.

14. No Country for Love by Yaroslav Trofimov A sweeping historical drama set in Ukraine between the 1930s and the 1950s. It follows the life of a young woman navigating the brutal regimes of Stalinism and the Nazi occupation, highlighting the cost of survival in a land torn apart by totalitarianism.

15. Day by Michael Cunningham From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Hours, this novel captures a family's evolution over three specific days—April 5th in 2019, 2020, and 2021. It offers an intimate look at love, loss, and the constraints of domestic life during the pandemic.

16. The House of Fever by Polly Crosby A mysterious and atmospheric novel set in a sanatorium for the creative elite. A young woman uncovers the dark secrets of the facility, where the treatments are as experimental as the guests are eccentric.

17. In a Thousand Different Ways by Cecelia Ahern Alice Kelly has synesthesia, allowing her to see people's emotions as colours. This novel follows her journey as she learns to navigate a world that overwhelms her senses, exploring themes of empathy, identity, and finding one's place in the world.