The Folio Society

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BEAUTIFUL BOOKS FROM THE FOLIO SOCIETY

In our disposable age of cheap materials and a publishing world bloated with BookTok trends and celebrity memoirs, it’s a joy to find The Folio Society still going strong, almost 80 years after its foundation. London-based, independent publishers, The Folio Society produces exquisite hardback editions of classic books, with an emphasis on traditional bookbinding and printing techniques. Old favourites take on aesthetically beautiful new physical forms, with specially commissioned artwork and insightful forewords. These are books designed to last a lifetime, books as heirlooms and miniature works of art. Take a look at our quartet of recommended titles.

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Little Novels of Sicily by Giovanni Verga

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Little Novels of Sicily

Bitter lemons

At first glance, the striking cover of Little Novels of Sicily by Giovanni Verga appears to suggest sunshine, lemon groves, perhaps a dash of heartwarming whimsy. But Verga’s Sicily was a 19th-century island of grinding poverty, widespread corruption and disease. In these dozen short stories, first published in 1883, the author draws inspiration from the villages and people of his youth. Each tale is touched with the beauty of the landscape but has a sting in the tail, as clergy, landowners and peasants variously thrive, struggle, revolt, and often succumb to malaria in this superb collection, translated by none other than D. H. Lawrence in 1925 and republished by Pushkin Press Classics.

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Bad Blood by John Carreyrou

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Bad Blood

A peek into the dark corners of Silicon Valley

Twenty-one-year-old Stanford drop-out Elizabeth Holmes had a game changing idea for the health care industry, a steely determination and seductive powers of persuasion; she also had an execution problem and questionable ethics. In Bad Blood by John Carreyrou, an investigative journalist at The Wall Street Journal, we get the shocking story of Theranos, the largest health care start-up fraud in recent history. A page turning real-life thriller which has been turned into the highest-grossing US documentary in 15 years just two weeks after it’s release. Read it now, before the rest of the world does.

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The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

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The Big Sleep

The original whiskey drinking sleuth

The cynical, whiskey drinking, mac-wearing sleuth Philip Marlow is one of crime literature’s most enduring characters. Written in 1936, The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler has stood the test of time despite a dash of homophobia and sexism which, today, seem so outlandish it just makes you laugh. The story involves the wealthy General Sternwood, his spoilt, unruly daughters Carmen and Vivian, and blackmail. Chandler was in a league of his own when it came to astute observations of people and places and it’s this that sets The Big Sleep apart from so many others in the genre.

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The Castle- Adventures in a World of Unravelling Men by Jon Ronson

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The Castle: Adventures in a World of Unravelling Men

It’s a mad, mad world out there

Jon Ronson writes books about the same dark corners of the world that Louis Theroux explores in his documentaries. This time, his subject is toxic masculinity, anti-wokeness, shouting on social media, male anger, sexual deviancy and just plain weirdos. The Castle: Adventures in a World of Unravelling Men by Jon Ronson takes us deep into a world whose contours we glimpse in the comments sections on social media. It’s ugly, shocking, utterly mad – and at times, very, very funny.

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Matrix by Lauren Groff

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Matrix

The Original Girl Power

At seventeen, Marie is kicked out of Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine’s court in France and exiled to a godforsaken abbey in the English countryside. Deemed too ugly to marry, Marie, an orphaned ‘bastard’ with royal blood, is stowed away for life. There’s far more to Marie than meets the eye, however, and soon enough, she has turned the poverty-stricken abbey into a powerhouse. The question is: how does Eleanor feel about that?  And, anyway, are women really meant to achieve this much? If a story about nuns in a 12th century abbey sounds dull to you, think again; Matrix by Lauren Groff is an absolutely riveting read.

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Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel by Lucy Foley

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Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel

Miss Marple is back on the case

2026 marks fifty years since the death of Dame Agatha Christie and the posthumous publication of her last Miss Marple detective story. Since then the legendary Jane Marple has been portrayed countless times on screen and stage, knitting needles click-clacking as the imperturbable elderly sleuth solves yet another crime. Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel by Lucy Foley is the first Marple continuation novel. On holiday in a luxury hotel in the Swiss alps, Marple steps in when a fellow guest is murdered. Written with wit and élan, abuzz with drama and red herrings, Foley’s first Marple outing is the perfect weekend sofa read.

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The Door

Housekeeper from hell?

I’ve been enjoying this very unusual and utterly absorbing (thinly veiled, true) story about a Hungarian writer (the narrator and Magda Szabó herself) and her housekeeper Emerence. It’s a novel about a precarious relationship, mutual respect (and some disrespect), balance of power and the secrets of a remarkable life, all under the magnifying glass.

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Summer Light and Then Comes the Night by Jon Kalman Stefansson

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Summer Light and Then Comes the Night

Humanity distilled

Truly original novels are few and far between. All the more reason to hail the wonderfully quirky Summer Light and Then Comes the Night by Jon Kalman Stefansson. It’s the portrait of a remote Icelandic town set in the 1990s and if that fails to excite you, I promise that this unexpected, humorous, warm story is worth reading.  Stefansson describes dreams and aspirations, crushed or fulfilled; love and desire, unrequited or reciprocated. Life, basically. His tone in playful, conversational and above all, funny. A breath of literary fresh air.

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Hidden Creatures by Dino Martins

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Hidden Creatures

The thrillingly repulsive world of parasites

One of our favourite books of the year to date, Hidden Creatures by Dino Martins takes us on a journey into the enigmatic world of parasites. These unsettling critters are camping out on practically every square inch of our planet, frolicking in our intestines, gorging on our blood and nibbling away at our animals. We join Dr Martins, often in the company of his eager students, crossing continents and studying them at depth, from the tiniest tick to the largest parasitic worm. Filled with both gloriously poetic descriptions of the natural world and thrillingly repulsive accounts of parasite behaviour, it’s a unique and fascinating read.

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