NotwithstandingWelcome to the village of Notwithstanding, where a lady dresses in plus fours and shoots squirrels, a retired general gives up wearing clothes altogether, a spiritualist lives in a cottage with the ghost of her husband, and people think it quite natural to confide in a spider that lives in a potting shed. Based on de Bernires' recollections of the village he grew up in, Notwithstanding is a funny and moving depiction of a charming vanished England.

and the mysterious upstairs where the wolves prostitutes and slaves from every corner of the empire conduct their business

the most dangerous track in Europe

but they must put their personal feelings to one side

With each crime writer picking up the story in their usual locale

and helped by Kaz's bi-curious lover

* * * * * PRAISE FOR CAROLINE HULSE (and Fiona Larson)

and underpinned by an ecological message

Sam Vimes is out of time and already out of breath

lay theologian

surprisingly poignant

the ones who consider themselves to be important

or someone with a grudge from long ago