‘Beautifully rendered’ GRAZIA

‘Magnificent … melds sharp insight with great heart’ NICOLA DINAN

‘Thoughtful and beautifully compelling’ ALICE WINN

A beautiful, heartbreaking novel about ambition, love and space from the award-winning author of the Women’s Prize longlisted Wandering Souls.

28 January, 1986: Moments after launch, the Challenger shuttle falls from the sky. At the same time, in a small English village, Oliver Ines is born.

Ollie spends his childhood in a bedroom covered in glow-in-the-dark wallpaper, bearing the planets and stars. Decades later, he has become one of the most renowned astronauts of his time. When an enterprising billionaire approaches him to lead a landmark, ten-year mission to the distant moon Europa, Ollie cannot resist the call of history.

As the mission advances deeper into uncharted territory, Ollie finds himself retreating into the past: his school days and years in the Navy, relationships found and lost, becoming a husband and father. But will the world he remembers still be waiting for him when he returns?

Celestial Lights is a breathtaking story of fate, love, and sacrifice that questions what we owe ourselves and our loved ones, when our ambitions and loyalties collide.

‘Truly lovely … the scope of an epic’ JO HAMYA, author of The Hypocrite

‘A wonderful and singular reading experience’ JENNY MUSTARD, author of What A Time To Be Alive

‘Incredible … stayed with me long after the page’RED MAGAZINE

‘Atmospheric, original, and beautiful’ ELA LEE, author of Minbak

‘Masterful … I was totally absorbed from start to finish’ JYOTI PATEL, author of The Things That We Lost

‘A moving story that stays with you’ ROMALYN ANTE, author of Agimat

‘Stunning, exhilarating and unforgettable’ ELIANA RAMAGE, author of To the Moon and Back

‘A mighty achievement’ OCEAN VUONG

‘Beautiful, brilliant’ R. F. KUANG

‘Dazzling’ OBSERVER

‘Will shatter your heart’ GLAMOUR

‘Powerful’ SUNDAY TIMES

An extraordinary story of the journey of one young family through love, loss and unwavering hope.

There are the goodbyes and then the fishing out of the bodies – everything in between is speculation.

One night, not long after the last American troops leave Vietnam, siblings Anh, Thanh and Minh flee their village and embark on a perilous journey in hope of a new life. Separated from their parents and fearing the worst they find themselves travelling alone in the world without a home to return to. After a twist of fate lands them in Thatcher’s Britain, they must somehow build new lives there. Will the love they have for each other be enough to keep them together?

Wandering Souls is a stunning, life-affirming testament to the healing power of stories.

A Time and Guardian book of the year

Shortlisted for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize 2023

‘Poignant and lyrical’ DAVID NICHOLLS

‘A powerful story of courage, love and unwavering hope’ MARIE CLAIRE

‘Beautiful? I loved every word‘ PHILIPPA PERRY

‘A deeply affecting reckoning with history’ i-D

‘Tells one of the most important stories of our times’ LUCY CALDWELL

‘Special ? Reading it is like watching a writer at work’ NEW YORK TIMES

‘A deeply humane and genre-defying work of love and uncompromising hope’ Ocean Vuong

‘I raced through it. Beautiful, brilliant’ Rebecca F. Kuang, author of Babel

‘A dazzling new talent’ Observer

‘Will shatter your heart’ Glamour

‘Powerful ? a bold debut that breaks new ground’ Sunday Times

An extraordinary story of the journey of one young family through love, loss and unwavering hope.

There are the goodbyes and then the fishing out of the bodies – everything in between is speculation.

One night, not long after the last American troops leave Vietnam, siblings Anh, Thanh and Minh flee their village and embark on a perilous boat journey to Hong Kong. Their parents and four younger siblings make the crossing in another vessel but as weeks go by it becomes clear that only one party has survived the voyage.

Anh, Thanh and Minh suddenly find themselves alone in the world, without family or home. They travel on, navigating refugee camps and resettlement centres until, by a twist of fate, they arrive in Thatcher’s Britain. Here they must somehow build new lives with only each other to turn to, but will that be enough in a place that doesn’t seem to want them?

In this piercing debut, the siblings’ faltering journey is deftly interwoven with the voice of their lost younger brother, Dao, following them from a place between the living and the dead, and the records of an unknown researcher intent on gathering the strands of their story.  Wandering Souls  paints a heart-wrenching portrait of a family in crisis while exploring the healing power of stories.

A most anticipated book of 2023 in Vogue, AnOther Magazine, i-D, Independent, Evening Standard and Huffington Post

‘A powerful story of courage, love and unwavering hope’ Marie Claire

‘An ambitious and promising new talent’ Sharlene Teo, Guardian

‘Heartbreaking ? a deeply affecting reckoning with history’ i-D

‘Tells one of the most important stories of our times’ Lucy Caldwell, author of These Days

‘Something special ? Reading it is like watching a writer at work’ New York Times