{"title":"Books by Kathryn Hughes","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781472265951","title":"The Memory Box","description":"A heartbreakingly beautiful novel, \u003ci\u003eThe Memory Box\u003c\/i\u003e unlocks an unforgettable epic story of love and war, from the million-copy-selling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Letter\u003c\/i\u003e, Kathryn Hughes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eSome love stories can't be forgotten...\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJenny Tanner opens the box she has cherished for decades. Contained within are her most precious mementoes, amongst them a pebble, a carving and a newspaper cutting she can hardly bear to read. But Jenny knows the time is finally here. After the war, in a mountainside village in Italy, she left behind a piece of her heart. However painful, she must return to \u003ci\u003eCinque Alberi\u003c\/i\u003e. And lay the past to rest.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter a troubled upbringing, Candice Barnes dreams of a future with the love of her life - but is he the man she believes him to be? When Candice is given the opportunity to travel to Italy with Jenny, she is unaware the trip will open her eyes to the truth she's been too afraid to face. Could a place of goodbyes help her make a brave new beginning?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReaders adore the bestselling novels of Kathryn Hughes:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Hope rises from despair and new beginnings are forged in the most extraordinary and unexpected way. Kathryn Hughes delves deeply into the heart and soul of her characters, making them totally relatable...like friends you really care for. My addiction to this novel was total and uncompromising *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Wonderful! First book I have read by Kathryn Hughes and will now read her previous stories. I loved it *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Another great story from Kathryn Hughes *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"As always, a lovely story by Kathryn Hughes *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"An amazing, heartwrenching, unforgettable story *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"This beautiful story will bring tears and joy *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Loved this story !! It kept me totally gripped although I was sobbing in places as well *****\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A tale of love and hope with lots of twists and turns. A great story! *****\"","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43204413325490,"sku":"9781472265951","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472265951.jpg?v=1786020437"},{"product_id":"9780008365141","title":"Catland","description":"*Shortlisted for the Pol Roger Duff Cooper Prize*                    A Times and Sunday Times Book of the Year          A Wall Street Journal Book of the Year          A Spectator Book of the Year          A Times Literary Supplement Book of the Year          A New Yorker Book of the Year                      ?Some called it a craze. To others it was a cult. Join prize-winning historian Kathryn Hughes to discover how Britain fell in love with cats and ushered in a new era.                                   'Smart, gorgeously written cultural history’ TLS                                ‘Delightful’ Guardian                                ‘Excellent’ Spectator                                ‘Joyous cultural history’ The Times                    ‘He invented a whole cat world’ declared H. G. Wells of Louis Wain, the Edwardian artist whose anthropomorphic kittens made him a household name. His drawings were irresistible but Catland was more than the creation of one eccentric imagination. It was an attitude – a way of being in society while discreetly refusing to follow its rules.             As cat capitalism boomed in the spectacular Edwardian age, prized animals changed hands for hundreds of pounds and a new industry sprung up to cater for their every need. Cats were no longer basement-dwelling pest-controllers, but stylish cultural subversives, more likely to flaunt a magnificent ruff and a pedigree from Persia. Wherever you found old conventions breaking down, there was a cat at the centre of the storm.             Whether they were flying aeroplanes, sipping champagne or arguing about politics, Wain’s feline cast offered a sly take on the restless and risky culture of the post-Victorian world. No-one experienced these uncertainties more acutely than Wain himself, confined to a mental asylum while creating his most iconic work. Catland is a fascinating and fabulous unravelling of our obsession with cats, and the man dedicated to chronicling them.             ‘Through humour, elegance and sheer knowledge, Hughes builds something remarkable’ Literary Review          ‘If a Louis Wain cat were reading this book, he would raise his topper in tribute’ The Times          ‘Catland is a tour de force of (cat) history: sleek, elegant and razor-sharp when needed’ History Today          ‘Excellent … Hughes reveals a fascinating, forgotten aspect of late Victorian and Edwardian Britain: how the British fell in love with felines’ Daily Mail          ‘An entertaining and often surprising cultural history … typically delivered in an inviting spirit of delight’ New Yorker","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56221459775861,"sku":"9780008365141","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780008365141_c59086fd-2643-4979-ac23-b1239a485335.jpg?v=1785658583"},{"product_id":"9781472229953","title":"The Letter","description":"\u003cp\u003eEvery so often a love story comes along to remind us that sometimes, in our darkest hour, hope shines a candle to light our way. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe No. 1 million-copy bestseller which has captured thousands of hearts worldwide, \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eTHE LETTER \u003c\/i\u003etells the story of two women whose paths are destined to cross, and how one woman's devastation leads to the other's salvation...\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ \u0026amp;#11088 'An amazing, heartwrenching, unforgettable story'\u003cbr\u003e⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ \u0026amp;#11088 'This beautiful story will bring tears and joy'\u003cbr\u003e⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ \u0026amp;#11088 'Loved this story !! It kept me totally gripped although I was sobbing in places as well'\u003cbr\u003e⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ \u0026amp;#11088 'Heartbreaking but utterly romantic'\u003cbr\u003e⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ \u0026amp;#11088 'A tale of love and hope with lots of twists and turns!'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTina Craig\u003c\/b\u003e longs to escape her violent husband. She works all the hours God sends to save up enough money to leave him, also volunteering in a charity shop to avoid her unhappy home. Whilst going through the pockets of a second-hand suit, she comes across an old letter, the envelope firmly sealed and unfranked. Tina opens the letter and reads it - a decision that will alter the course of her life for ever...\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBilly Stirling\u003c\/b\u003e knows he has been a fool, but hopes he can put things right. On 4th September 1939 he sits down to write the letter he hopes will change his future. It does - in more ways than he can ever imagine...\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56300028068213,"sku":"9781472229953","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472229953_1784b33e-3737-4dbc-8a82-08662b7fd4a0.jpg?v=1786020778"},{"product_id":"9781472265937","title":"Her Last Promise","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"Storytelling at its finest with characters that come alive and a plot that dances with intrigue. An absolutely first-class read that does not disappoint\" --\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003ePrima\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"A gripping summer read\"\u003c\/b\u003e --\u003ci\u003eWoman \u0026amp; Home\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eTara Richards was just a girl when she lost her mother. Years later, when Tara receives a letter from a London solicitor its contents shake her to the core. Someone has left her a key to a safe deposit box. In the box lies an object that will change everything Tara thought she knew and lead her on a journey to deepest Spain in search of the answers that have haunted her for forty years.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eViolet Skye regrets her decision to travel abroad leaving her young daughter behind. As the sun dips below the mountains, she reminds herself she is doing this for their future. Tonight, 4th June 1978, will be the start of a new life for them. This night will indeed change Violet's destiny, in the most unexpected of ways...  \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFall in love this summer with \u003ci\u003eHer Last Promise\u003c\/i\u003e, a page-turning, heart-wrenching story of how hope can blossom in the ruins of tragedy and of the redeeming power of love from No. 1 bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Letter\u003c\/i\u003e, Kathryn Hughes. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56300175425909,"sku":"9781472265937","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472265937_94107c6b-d765-4b73-941b-d871d1747f5f.jpg?v=1786020436"},{"product_id":"9781472229991","title":"The Secret","description":"\u003cp\u003e* \u003ci\u003eTHE MEMORY BOX\u003c\/i\u003e, THE BRAND NEW NOVEL FROM KATHRYN HUGHES, IS AVAILABLE NOW *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Riveting' Lesley Pearse on \u003ci\u003eThe Letter. 'Gripping' Good Housekeeping \u003c\/i\u003eon\u003ci\u003e The Secret. \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrom the #1 bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Letter \u003c\/i\u003ecomes \u003ci\u003eThe Secret\u003c\/i\u003e - a powerful, twisting novel that you won't be able to put down. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMary has been nursing a secret. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eForty years ago, she made a choice that would change her world for ever, and alter the path of someone she holds dear.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBeth is searching for answers. She has never known the truth about her parentage, but finding out could be the lifeline her sick child so desperately needs. When Beth finds a faded newspaper cutting amongst her mother's things, she realises the key to her son's future lies in her own past. She must go back to where it all began to unlock...The Secret.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat readers are saying about the unputdownable stories of Kathryn Hughes:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Get set to be hooked' \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A page-turner from the very beginning'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'This is one of the BEST BOOKS I have \u003ci\u003eever\u003c\/i\u003e read'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'I cried buckets of tears reading it'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A beautifully told, tragic tale'\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56301117079925,"sku":"9781472229991","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472229991_109c4933-2579-49ea-8b97-01b2761bef0a.jpg?v=1786020780"},{"product_id":"9781472248848","title":"The Key","description":"\u003cp\u003e* \u003ci\u003eTHE MEMORY BOX\u003c\/i\u003e, THE BRAND NEW NOVEL FROM KATHRYN HUGHES, IS AVAILABLE NOW *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA hidden note. A lost love. A second chance...\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A wonderful, enthralling story; one that I didn't want to end' Lesley Pearse on \u003ci\u003eThe Key \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A heartbreakingly powerful read'\u003ci\u003eThe Sun\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eThe Key\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrom the #1 bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Letter,\u003c\/i\u003e Kathryn Hughes, comes \u003ci\u003eThe Key, \u003c\/i\u003ean unforgettable story of a heartbreaking secret that will stay with you for ever.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1956 \u003cbr\u003eIt's Ellen Crosby's first day as a student nurse at Ambergate Hospital. When she meets a young woman admitted by her father, little does Ellen know that a choice she will make is to change both their lives for ever...\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e2006\u003cbr\u003eSarah is drawn to the now abandoned Ambergate. Whilst exploring the old corridors she discovers a suitcase belonging to a female patient who entered Ambergate fifty years earlier. The shocking contents, untouched for half a century, will lead Sarah to unravel a forgotten story of tragedy and lost love, and the chance to make an old wrong right . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Oh wow! This story broke my heart then filled it with joy then broke it all over again! I adored \u003ci\u003eThe Letter\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Secret\u003c\/i\u003e but this I have to say was my favourite. Heartfelt and poignant an absolute joy' A reader on \u003ci\u003eThe Key\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt's time to discover what a million readers already know. No one grips your heart like Kathryn Hughes . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'You will find it hard to put down. I cried buckets of tears reading it'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A beautifully told, tragic tale . . . restoring your faith in the kindness of strangers and the strength of the human spirit'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'From start to finish, a lovely, sometimes heartbreaking read'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A sheer joy to read . . . Wonderfully romantic with beautiful characters'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'I have finished this book with tears in my eyes but a smile on my face'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'I couldn't put it down. So beautifully written. I feel like I'm a better person for reading it' \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'I cried with this book - it tugged at the heart all the way through'   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'This must be one of the best books I have ever read'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'You will be thinking of this book long after you've finished it'\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56301125239157,"sku":"9781472248848","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472248848_8b0220f2-0155-4d11-857b-606055100d8c.jpg?v=1786020952"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-kathryn-hughes.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}