Welcome to my monthly newsletter for July 2025

Hi there,

I hope you’ve had a lovely July. Lots of sunshine, lots of sport (if that’s your thing) and lots to feel good about in general. And look at this! My new book cover – I adore it and I also love these super-cool bookmarks that go with it. Want to win one of each? Then read on.

Book News

Well, the main book news this month is that by the time I write to you next month my new book In Another Life will be out! So, what is it about? Well, imagine going to your mother’s funeral and someone shows up who nobody else knows. Not that surprising, I hear you cry. Who knows everyone at a funeral?

But what if that someone claims to be your mother’s sister?

But wait! Your mother was an only child with no other family at all.

So who is telling the truth, your mother or this stranger? And why would either of them be lying?

This is the central mystery in In Another Life and in order to find out who is telling the truth, we travel to contemporary Ripon, a London newsroom on Fleet Street and Sicily in the 1980s. As ever we have a large cast of characters to meet and secrets to uncover.

I loved writing this one. Setting part of the story in Sicily was a treat. I spent time on the island in the 80s but I also read a number of books about the culture of the place, including The Godfather by Mario Puzo. My husband and I also went on a trip to see how much has changed since I was last there – answer, a lot! And then I used things I had seen and done on my recent Retreat trips to Tuscany for other details to hopefully bring the story alive.

I also needed to imagine what it would have been like to be a junior female reporter on Fleet Street. Again, my first stop was a book but through that I found a journalist of the right age and he talked me through the day to day ins and outs of working on a newspaper before the internet and digital printing.

In Another Life is available to pre-order and will be published on 26th August and I really hope you will buy it and enjoy it. And! If you’re a subscriber to this newsletter you’ll automatically be entered into a draw to win a copy (paper in the UK, digital elsewhere.)

I’ll announce the winners on my socials so keep your eyes peeled.

Where have I been?

There has been a lot of ballet in my life this month. I saw my son dance in Carmen in Zagreb and then Giselle in Dubrovnik. It’s so lovely to see how settled he now is in Croatia and to meet his ballet friends who are a hoot! So many different nationalities all speaking different languages and in a country that is foreign to them all and yet they are all thriving.

I’ve also been to Wells-next-The-Sea a couple of times this month – on my own to write and then again with my husband to do some walking. The weather was super-kind both times. What an extraordinary summer this is turning out to be on that front – certainly here in England at least. Here are a few snaps.

What have I read?

I’ve read some great books this month (and some not so great ones.) Here are my favourite four.

Ripeness by Sarah Moss is a beautiful story. Edith, a very naive 18 year old is sent to Italy to be with her ballet dancer sister who is pregnant and mentally fragile. Once the baby is born it will be up to Edith to carry out the plan that has been set in place by their mother. Decades later Edith, now living in Ireland, is still dealing with the aftermath.

The Names by Florence Knapp might be my favourite book of the year so far. Its central question is what difference does the name we are given at birth make to the way we live our life. Cora goes to register the birth of her baby boy and the story gives us three options and the lives lived as a result of that one key naming decision. As well as being beautifully written, it’s a fascinating idea and would make a wonderful book club choice if you’re looking for one.

I’m a bit late to the party on All The Colours of the Dark by Chris Whitaker but I got there in the end. Patch and Saint are best friends but then Patch is abducted from his bedroom and Saint is determined to find him. When Patch is returned, broken and deeply in love with a girl who was held with him in the pitch dark, Saint knows their relationship is altered irrevocably. The story follows how each of them live their subsequent lives apart and yet together. It’s a beautiful book.

The Death of Us by Abigail Dean is a love story and a murder mystery and a thriller all rolled into one. Edward and Isabel, an unlikely but devoted couple, have their lives devastated by a serial attacker who invades the homes of couples. He chooses Edward and Isabel and the book unravels both what happened and the emotional fall out. It’s a dark read (although possibly not as dark as Girl A) but if you like that kind of thing then I can recommend it.

Book launch party

Finally, I will be having a launch party for In Another Life at The Grove Bookshop in Ilkley on Thursday 4th September at 7pm. Tickets are limited so if you’d like to come, listen to me talking about the book and have a chat about all things writing then please come along. I’ll also be signing copies – they make great gifts! You can get a ticket via the bookshop.

And that’s everything for this month. Make sure you’ve subscribed to this newsletter to be entered in the draw to win a copy of the new book. And because I’m feeling generous, if you email me at imogen@imogenclark.com with where you think I should set a future book and I choose your answer then you too could win a signed copy.

Don’t forget to keep an eye out for the list of winners. You can find me on Instagram and Facebook. And until next month, happy reading.