Graham Lord Bücher

Ein „wunderbar satirischer Roman unserer raffigen Zeit“ (Sunday Times) und eine rabenschwarze Komödie. Peter ist ein glücklicher Mann, der seine Frau und Tochter anbetet, sein Eigenheim genießt und in seinem Job als Verkaufsleiter erfolgreich ist. Doch als der flegelhafte Sanierer Jason Skudder neuer Geschäftsführer wird, beginnt Peters Leidensweg. Skudder betrachtet alle Mitarbeiter über 40 als „Grufties“, die schnell und kosteneffizient entfernt werden müssen. Obwohl Peter einen Zweijahresvertrag hat, setzt Skudder alles daran, ihn zur Kündigung zu treiben. Peter verliert schließlich alles: Frau, Familie, Haus und Freunde. Er wird ausgenutzt und gedemütigt, doch er findet unerwarteten Beistand bei seiner Schwiegermutter Monica. Diese 71-Jährige, die sich wie ein Teenager kleidet, raucht und trinkt, zeigt überraschende Tatkraft und Erfindungsreichtum. Sie wettet erfolgreich bei Pferderennen und verfasst frivole Limericks. „Dieser wunderbar satirische Roman betrifft jeden. Mit Jason Skudder hat Lord einen schaurig-schönen Schurken geschaffen, und Peters Schwiegermutter Monica ist eine wunderbare Gestalt“ (Sunday Times). „Ein zynischer Einblick in die Welt der Konzerne. Rundum zu genießen“ (Manchester Evening Star). „Eine sehr lustige Satire auf unser Leben im Büro“ (Mail on Sunday).

For nearly 40 years, from 1962 to 1999, a new Dick Francis horseracing thriller was published every autumn, delighting millions worldwide. His books sold 60 million copies in 34 languages, garnering numerous awards and praise from notable figures like Sir Kingsley Amis and the Queen Mother. Francis, an ex-champion jockey who left school at 15 without qualifications, achieved bestseller status each Christmas with significant support from his wife, Mary, who passed away in 2000. He often expressed a desire to credit her as co-author on his books. Together, they formed a remarkably successful literary partnership, and their story is intertwined with the legacy of his works. Graham Lord, who knew the Francises for nearly 30 years, presents a revealing double biography that chronicles Dick’s extraordinary life—from his horsey Welsh childhood and champion jump-jockey triumphs to the 1956 Grand National tragedy involving the Queen Mother’s horse, Devon Loch. The biography also uncovers the fascinating story of Mary, who captured Dick’s heart at first sight. Their 50-year marriage was not only a successful collaboration but also a close, idyllic partnership, raising two sons and inspiring those around them. Lord’s affectionate and insightful portrayal of Dick and Mary Francis is both romantic and deeply moving, highlighting one of the great love stories of our time.

For more than forty years, Niven portrayed on screen the impeccable values of a lost breed of English gentlemen - handsome, beautifully spoken, elegantly dressed, witty, with perfect manners and utterly charming. Niv, according to his friends, was much the same off-screen. Both men and women were enchanted by his charisma, humour and joie-de-vivre.Yet Niv's life was punctuated by tragedy. From the death of his father when Niven was five, to his mother's neglect and the stepfather he loathed, through to the death of his beloved first wife and his volatile and disturbing second marriage, unhappiness was never far away.Using new material from Niven's private papers, Graham Lord has written a fresh, revealing, funny and poignant portrait of a brave and brilliant man.

Peter Hallam has it all—a good job with all the perks, a loving wife, a comfortable circle of friends, and financial security. The only blots on the horizon are a layabout son and a dotty mother-in-law hunkered down in the spare room. But within days of the appointment of a new M.D. he is out of work, and at 45 it seems his working life is over. As his debts mount at the same rate as his job applications are rejected, the rest of his life falls apart—his friends drop him, his son sneers at him, and when he is forced to put the house on the market his wife leaves him for his best friend. Spiralling into despair and possibly destitution he discovers the hideous reality of how failures are treated in the caring '90s, but he also discovers a stalwart and highly unlikely ally—Monica, his mad mother-in-law.