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The Sargasso Sea is characterised by its golden brown floating sargassum seaweed. Located in the North Atlantic Ocean the Sargasso Sea is the only sea without a land boundary and is instead bounded by a series of rotating currents on all sides. This open-ocean ecosystem plays a crucial role, acting as a haven to a multitude of marine species, providing habitats, spawning areas, migration pathways and feeding grounds to a diverse range of flora and fauna. The sargassum seaweed itself is holopelagic; never attaching to the seafloor during its lifecycle and instead matting together and creating floating seaweed beds. During early encounters...

Two sisters, two nuclear power stations, one child caught in the middle... Team Parthian are thrilled to announce the official release of this tremendous debut novel by award-winning writer Philippa Holloway!   Described by Alex Lockwood (author of The Chernobyl Privileges) as "a novel that shimmers with compassion, one that crosses borders of both nations and emotions", and by Jenn Ashworth (author of Ghosted) as "a careful, tender and arresting story that explores how we're formed by the places we think we own", The Half-life of Snails is an engrossing story about family, belonging, the legacy of Chernobyl, and how...

Dr Philippa Holloway is writer and senior lecturer at Staffordshire University. The Half-Life of Snails #THLOS, is her debut novel and follows the narratives of two sisters Helen and Jennifer. A bond that has been intertwined and tested by the looming Wylfa Power Station that marked their childhood in Ynys y Mon.  During research for her PhD which examined nuclear psychogeography,  Philippa visited the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. This extensive research shaped the writing in #THLOS and grounded her work in exploring the relationship between the land around us and our sense of belonging.  What are you reading right now? The Scrapbook,...

The sun is beginning to shine consistently and the urge to spend your days sitting in the grass reading a good book is growing. It can mean nothing else  ‒ the countdown to Hay Festival 2022 has begun. And those deckchairs are calling us!  The iconic literary festival situated in the 'book town', Hay-on-Wye, returns with a full in-person programme, since before the pandemic. We are super excited to be back and Parthian have a couple of events that you can go see and enjoy!  #HayFestival2022  Monday 30th May at 7pm ‒ Max Boyce talks to Carolyn Hitt  After a sell-out book tour...