Happy World Book Night from Pan Macmillan!

We're delighted that books by Lucy Diamond, Ann Cleeves and Cathy Rentzenbrink are amongst this year's World Book Night titles.

Whether you’re after a gripping mystery, a beautiful, touching memoir or just a great read for a sunny day, we’ve got the book for you! Best of all you can start reading all of our World Book Night books right here.

World Book Night is an annual celebration of reading and books that takes place on 23 April. It sees passionate volunteers give out hundreds of thousands of books in their communities.

 

World Book Night is run by The Reading Agency, a national charity that inspires people to become confident and enthusiastic readers to help give them an equal chance in life.


The Beach Café​

by Lucy Diamond

Book cover for The Beach Café​

Lucy Diamond's classic bestseller, a story of new beginnings, love and adventure.

 

Evie Flynn has always been the black sheep of her family - a dreamer and a drifter. Now she's stuck in temp hell, with a sensible, pension-planning boyfriend. Somehow life seems to be passing her by.

 

Then her beloved aunt Jo dies suddenly in a car crash, leaving Evie an unusual legacy - her precious beach cafe in Cornwall. Determined to make a success of something for the first time in her life, Evie heads off to Cornwall to get the cafe and her life back on track - and gets more than she bargained for.

Raven Black

Book cover for Raven Black

Raven Black is the first book in Ann Cleeves' Shetland series - filmed as the major BBC1 drama starring Douglas Henshall, Shetland.

 

It is a cold January morning and Shetland lies buried beneath a deep layer of snow. Trudging home, Fran Hunter's eye is drawn to a vivid splash of colour on the white ground, ravens circling above. It is the strangled body of her teenage neighbour Catherine Ross. As Fran opens her mouth to scream, the ravens continue their deadly dance . . .

 

The locals on the quiet island stubbornly focus their gaze on one man - loner and simpleton Magnus Tait. But when police insist on opening out the investigation a veil of suspicion and fear is thrown over the entire community. 

The Last Act of Love

by Cathy Rentzenbrink

Book cover for The Last Act of Love

In the summer of 1990, Cathy's brother Matty was knocked down by a car on the way home from a night out. It was two weeks before his GCSE results, which turned out to be the best in his school.  Sitting by his unconscious body in hospital, holding his hand and watching his heartbeat on the monitors, Cathy and her parents willed him to survive. They did not know then that there are many and various fates worse than death. 

 

This is the story of what happened to Cathy and her brother.  It's a story for anyone who has ever watched someone suffer or lost someone they loved.  Told with boundless warmth and affection, The Last Act of Love is a heartbreaking yet uplifting testament to a family's survival and the price we pay for love.


Here’s the full list of all of this year's fantastic World Book Night books. Find out more about them and the rest of the World Book Night festivities here

 

1. A Very Distant Shore -  Jenny Colgan 

2. Animal Kingdom  - Millie Marotta 

3. Faded Glory - David Essex

4. False Nine (Scott Manson series) - Philip Kerr 

5. Lies We Tell Ourselves - Robin Talley

6. Mad About the Boy  - Helen Fielding

7. Mr Loverman - Bernardine Evaristo 

8. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck 

9. One False Move - Dreda Say Mitchell 

10. Orangeboy - Patrice Lawrence 

11. Payback - Kimberly Chambers

12. Persepolis - Marjane Satrapi

13. Raven Black - Ann Cleeves 

14. Sofia Khan is Not Obliged - Ayisha Malik

15. Streets of Darkness - AA Dhand 

16. The Beach Café - Lucy Diamond

17. The Bones of Grace - Tahmima Anam 

18. The Girl Who Wasn’t There - Ferdinand von Schirach

19. The Good Son - Paul McVeigh 

20. The Last Act of Love - Cathy Rentzenbrink 

21. The Missing - CL Taylor 

22. The Secret Diary of Henrik Groen 83 1/4 Years Old -  Anonymous

23. The Secret Marriage Pact - Georgie Lee 

24. The Traitor (Carnivia Trilogy) - Jonathan Holt 

25. The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra - Vaseem Khan 

26. Wonder - RJ Palacio 

Happy World Book Night!