The Hired Man
Aminatta Forna
Bloomsbury Publishing
<span>A  powerful novel about the indelible effects of war and the memories  which stir beneath the silence of a quiet Croatian town, from </span><span>Orange Prize-shortlisted and </span><span>Commonwealth Writers' Prize-winning author Aminatta Forna</span><span> </span><span>'Supremely masterful'</span><span> </span><span>INDEPENDENT</span><span> </span><span>'The Hired Man</span><span> seals her reputation as arguably the best writer of fiction in this field' </span><span>EVENING STANDARD</span><span> </span><span>'Terrific skill and insight' </span><span>DAILY MAIL</span><span>  Gost is surrounded by mountains and fields of wild flowers. The summer  sun burns. The Croatian winter brings freezing winds. Beyond the  boundaries of the town an old house which has lain empty for years is  showing signs of life. One of the windows, glass darkened with dirt,  today stands open, and the lively chatter of English voices carries  across the fallow fields. Laura and her teenage children have arrived. A  short distance away lies the hut of Duro Kolak, who lives alone with  his two hunting dogs. As he helps Laura with repairs to the old house,  they uncover a mosaic beneath the ruined plaster and, in the rising heat  of summer, painstakingly restore it. But Gost is not all it seems;  conflicts long past still suppurate beneath the scars.</span>