As we head into the run-up to Christmas, this month’s recommendations include an array of genres from political satire, chilling horror, and a moving memoir. Here at Kemps, we are gearing up for the festive season, so pop in store to browse our range of gifts and chat with our brilliant booksellers who will be happy to provide recommendations! Meanwhile, here are some new releases and familiar names we recommend.

The Proof of My Innocence by Jonathan Coe

With notable novels such as The Rotter’s Club and Thatcherite satire What a Carve-up, author Jonathan Coe is one of the UK’s most well-known satirists. Coe’s work often has political undertones, highlighting current issues humorously, which has won him several awards. The Proof of My Innocence is his latest novel that seamlessly combines cosy crime, mystery, and memoir, centring around the destructive short-tenure Truss government.

English literature graduate Phyl aspires to be a writer, but with few opportunities available, she begins to lose hope. That is until she discovers a forgotten novelist from the 1980s and Chris, an old family friend, comes to visit. Chris has been working on a political story following former Cambridge University students, now members of a right-wing think tank, pushing the British government towards extremism. In order to pursue this story, Chris attends a right-wing conference with the intent of revealing the group's intentions as the ill-fated Liz Truss government enters Downing Street. With Chris receiving threats that could endanger his life and a delegate murdered, Phyl begins to wonder if real life is merging with the novel she is trying to write.

The Proof of My Innocence is a unique novel darting between decades and genres centred around contemporary politics. The well-crafted layers and Coe’s wittiness create an engaging satirical commentary on the issues we face today while incorporating the element of mystery.

The Haunting Season: Eight Ghostly Tales for Long Winter Nights

With best-selling authors such as Elizabeth Macneal, Laura Purcell, and Andrew Michael Hurley, The Haunting Season contains a blend of cosy and sinister ghostly tales for long winter nights. All the authors are master storytellers of the ominous and macabre so this anthology promises to be a chilling read.

From a bustling Covent Garden Christmas market to the frosty Yorkshire moors and the snow-covered grounds of a haunted estate, The Haunting Season is a collection of eight gothic short stories with many following the Victorian theme. Albeit being separate stories, each piece delivers a similar historical gothic trope, with many featuring a haunted house, while still maintaining originality. With unsettling monsters from Elizabeth Macneal to eerie supernatural elements from Natasha Pulley, each author displays a different narrative style, allowing you to differentiate between stories and sample the works of new authors.

With mystery, festivity, and ghosts, this book of short stories is the perfect companion for a dark, cold winter's night with a cosy candlelight ambience.

The Gathering by C. J Tudor

C.J. Tudor’s love of writing started young, especially the dark and macabre. She is the bestselling author of thriller and horror novels, including The Drift, The Burning Girls, and The Chalkman. The Gathering is her latest paranormal thriller.

Deadhart has a population of only 673, alive anyway. In this small town, a boy is found with his throat ripped out and all the blood drained from his body. It has been 25 years since the community has seen a killing like this. Still, they know who is responsible, a member of the vampyr colony ostracised from society living on the periphery of Deadhart. Detective Barbara Atkins, a specialist in vampyr killings, is summoned to determine if this was inflicted by the colony and thus authorise a cull. Barbara faces hostility from the townsfolk, who are eager to take matters into their own hands. As the snow thickens and the nights get longer, a killer stalks Deadhart with longstanding animosities threatening to erupt.

The Gathering is a paranormal thriller offering a new take on vampires, diverting from traditional vampire lore. It is eerily atmospheric and tackles discrimination against a minority community, promising to be a gripping read.

The Place of Tides by James Rebanks

James Rebanks is a Lake District-based farmer, where his family have resided for over six hundred. The Shepherd’s Life was his no.1 bestselling debut novel which won the Lake District Book of the Year.

The Place of Tides is Rebanks’ latest book that centres around his time spent on Fjærøy, a small, uninhabited island on Norway’s west coast. Some years ago, James met an elderly Norwegian woman named Anna who was known as a ‘duck woman.’ Feeling lost and seeking solitude, James reached out to Anna asking if he could return and she agreed to let him accompany her throughout the Spring as she cared for wild eider ducks. This is the true story of the Spring James spent with Anna learning traditional skilled work and the cultural history of the remote Norwegian island south of the Arctic Circle.

The Place of Tides is a moving tale of friendship, redemption, history, and nature, highlighting the story of a remarkable woman who brought the unique and ancient landscape back to life.

We Solve Murders by Richard Osman

Best-selling author of The Thursday Murder Club Richard Osman is back with a new crime series. The television presenter brings us his fifth book, We Solve Murders, which takes us away from the quaint retirement village to an exotic island and features a new detective duo.

Steve Wheeler is a former police officer who is embracing retirement. He enjoys familiarity so will do the odd investigative work and follow the similar routine of the pub quiz, visiting his favourite bench, with his cat waiting at home for him. Meanwhile, his daughter-in-law Amy still endures a life of adrenaline with no fixed habits or routines; she works in private security and is currently on a remote island protecting best-selling novelist Rosie D’Antonio. The pair have a close relationship taking the time to talk to one another no matter where they are in the world and when a body with a bag of money is found on a yacht, Amy calls her father-in-law to enlist his expertise before the killer gets to her first.

Diverting away from a cosy mystery, We Solve Murders embraces thriller elements to bring us another