The Barbecue at No.9

FROM THE NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS . . . In the summer of 1985, the entire country is poised for the biggest music event in history - Live Aid. The residents of Delmont Close are preparing for a neighbourhood barbecue to celebrate this historic moment, but someone uninvited is watching them closely, getting ready to make their move. But who are they watching, and why?The Gordons - Hanna, her highly-strung mother, Lydia, and sweet father, Peter - have opened the doors to their home. And when their neighbours flood in, so do all the secrets that have been kept in the close. Among them is Rita, a new resident from Australia, Steve, a young man who is battling his own demons, and Aunty Beverley, who has come to pass judgement on her relatives. The Barbecue at No.9 explores family, friendship and love with Jennie Godfrey's signature wit, warmth and bite.

Jennie Godfrey was raised in West Yorkshire and her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things, is inspired by her childhood there in the 1970s. Jennie is from a mill-working family, but as the first of the generation born after the mills closed, she went to university and built a career in the corporate world. In 2020 she left and began to write. She is now a writer and part-time Waterstones bookseller and lives in the Somerset countryside.