Bookmark 01/2023

13
STILL WATERS RUN DEEP
In Metronome by Tom Watson, the main characters’ story begins
with a crime and, as their secrets begin to unravel, the theme of trust
is expertly explored through an eerie plotline you simply won’t be
able to get out of your head. Aina and Whitney are exiled on an island
in Scotland far away from society as punishment for something
they did twelve years ago. They must take a cocktail of pills every
eight hours to stay alive on their island and over time they have created
a somewhat enjoyable life for themselves.
But things are not what they seem, and when
a sheep shows up on their island, Aina begins
to question everything, even though her
partner believes it’s all just a test. As Aina
unravels the truth about the dystopian place
they’ve been exiled to for years, she also
discovers secrets that have been hidden in her
relationship, showing that you never truly
know a person, even if you spend your every
waking hour with them.
METRONOME
Tom Watson,
CHF 18.90,
Bloomsbury Publishing
Still Waters Run Deep
As the summer fast approaches us, it’s easy to imagine what life will soon look like:
our social media flooded with posts of highlight reels painting perfect lives of
friends on holiday and relaxing weekend breaks at the seaside, soaking up the sun
by pools of crystal clear, perfectly still water. But if there’s one thing any book
lover knows, it’s that not all things are what they seem, and sometimes all it takes
is to dive under the water’s still-looking surface to unravel its hidden secrets.
Text by Christine Modafferi
As the ancient Latin proverb that Shakespeare loved goes: still
waters run deep. And, boy, do waters run deep when it comes to some
of the latest book releases we’ve seen over
the past year! As with most art, literature
reflects the anxieties, changes and underlying
turmoil of our society. Considering the past
years, never has a saying felt more relevant,
or has the unexpected come hand in hand with
each new day.
So begins Silent Waters by L.V. Matthews,
where at the crack of dawn police diver and
protagonist Jen Harper finds herself standing
by a river after a spell of what she can only
SILENT
WATERS
L. V. Matthews,
CHF 17.90, Welbeck,
Release Date:
14 September 2023
suspect is sleepwalking. But less than two days later, she is called on
site to inspect that very river in search for a missing woman, who
also happens to be an old family friend. In this addictive, suspenseful
and unsettling story that readers claim to have raced through in
one sitting, no one is who they seem and it’s hard to trust even those
Jen loves most …
Also set in a dystopian world is Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng,
the New York Times bestselling author of Little Fires Everywhere,
now also a popular TV series. In this world, people must follow
PACT laws, strict rules that intend to preserve
‘American culture’ and leave no room for
other cultures, especially Chinese culture.
In this society, the brutality of racism is
conveniently veiled by supposed national
values. All work by Bird’s Chinese-American
mother, who has now been gone for years,
is therefore viewed as nothing but unpatriotic
and banned. Bird learns early on that he
shouldn’t wonder about his long-lost mother.
He lives with his father, who fails to call
out the injustices of the world they live in,
OUR MISSING
HEARTS
Celeste Ng, CHF 19.90,
Little, Brown
encouraging Bird to ignore his roots and keep his head down. But
then Bird receives a mysterious letter that takes him to overcome his
fears and find his mother, proving that family bonds can overcome
anything, no matter how dangerous it is.
Relationships are messy, complicated and
often more nuanced than they look on surface
level. Just when you think you know someone,
the reassuring bubble of familiarity is
burst. This is the kind of inciting incident that
makes for a brilliant premise in Two Nights
in Lisbon by Chris Pavone, hailed by Steven
King himself as a book you will struggle to
put down. By the New York Times bestselling
author of The Expats, this thriller begins
with a wife’s quest to find her husband after
waking up alone in a hotel room in Lisbon.
TWO NIGHTS
IN LISBON
Chris Pavone,
CHF 18.90,
Bloomsbury Publishing
When she receives a ransom letter, we find out her past is just as
mysterious as her husband’s disappearance. To get the money
she needs and find out where he is, she might need help from someone
she wished she’d never have to turn to. Prepare to be guessing
until the very end of this suspenseful book, moving at a racing
pace with the gorgeous city of Lisbon as your backdrop.
These are the first of quite a few brilliant titles from the past
year that explore secrets in connection to family ties. Ink Blood
Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs, The Covenant of Water by Abraham
Ver ghese, Arthur and Teddy Are Coming Out by Ryan Love and
Landlines by Sunday Times bestseller Raynor Winn all make for
fantastic reads about family relationships.
In Ink Blood Sister Scribe, readers are
transported to a fantastical world, where,
similarly to Our Missing Hearts, the protagonists
are librarians. But this time, our main
characters are guarding ancient and rare
books of magic that give great knowledge
and power to those who possess them. If they
end up in the hands of wrong people, the
consequences could be irrevocable.
Joanna and Esther are our heroes in this
story, initially living apart but coming together
to uncover the mystery behind the book
that their father died of after reading. Dark
INK BLOOD
SISTER
SCRIBE
Emma Törzs,
CHF 28.90,
HarperCollins
Publishers US
academia mixes with fantasy and thriller, as the two sisters slowly
discover that the magic their family has been guarding is much
more dangerous than they could have ever imagined, and that their
family has been keeping secrets for centuries.
Century-long secrets also float to the surface
in The Covenant of Water, a family
saga by Abraham Verghese, the bestselling
author of Cutting for Stone. This spellbinding
book follows three generations of a family
over the course of seventy-seven years. The
common thread of this family is death by
drowning. This is a heavy read, where the still
waters of South India’s Malabar Coast truly
run deep. Through the drownings, this book
intensely explores Indian culture, Christianity
and morality, traditions and the progress
of medicine, British colonialism and the caste system.
THE COV-
ENANT OF
WATER
Abraham Verghese,
CHF 29.90,
Atlantic Books
One of the most beautiful concepts fleshed out in this books
is how rivers, lakes, lagoons, backwaters and ponds are
all connected, just as the many characters of this book are,
and humanity at its core. If you’re looking for a book with deep
meaning that will stay with you for a very long time, this 700-
page tome will not disappoint.
BOOKMARK 1/2023 – ORELLFÜSSLI.CH
BOOKMARK 1/2023 – ORELLFÜSSLI.CH