{"product_id":"the-levels-1","title":"The Levels","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis book will be released in September 2026.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePre-orders are charged at time of order and the book will be posted to you as soon as it becomes available.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUK postage is 99 pence per order.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eOne day in winter a military drone on a training flight hurtles out of the sky and smashes into a holiday park. A young mother living in a static caravan is killed instantly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eWhile all the initial reports suggest a tragic accident, Abby Hughes suspects the crash was a deliberate act of sabotage by a homeless man who made maps and hated war. Determined to find the truth, she has to contend with the powerful forces trying to bury it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e'...this is an assured novel and marks Helen Pendry as an important new literary voice.' – Kirsti Bohata, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.walesartsreview.org\/books-the-levels-by-helen-pendry\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eWales Arts Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e'\u003cem\u003eThe Levels\u003c\/em\u003e is a timely and engaging book about the politicization of the land [...] Do not come here for picturesque panoramas, or tourist board, photoshopped images. This is a place where people live, work and die. The Levels offers a steely-eyed look at the brutal reality of country life which is never that far away or sufficiently remote to not somehow be in thrall to the dictats or desires of Whitehall.' – Jon Gower, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/nation.cymru\/culture\/review-the-levels-is-a-timely-and-engaging-book-about-the-politicization-of-the-land\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eNation.Cymru\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e '...an outstanding debut... a novel of real texture and nuance, its feet firmly planted in a mid-Wales landscape that is instantly recognisable and intimately probed. This is an elegant, wise and warm story that stays with you long after finishing it.' – Mike Parker\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e'...with all the tension and plot twists and turns that you would expect from a gripping crime novel, makes an unsettling, compelling read.' – \u003ci\u003eMorning Star\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e‘A moving and angry quest for a kind of justice in an unstable world, \u003cem\u003eThe Levels\u003c\/em\u003e de-romanticises and politicises its beautifully and harshly drawn mid-Wales communities and landscapes. As the local and the international tangle and snag, trust in institutions and between individuals shifts and splinters. Helen Pendry looks our unequal society full in the face, but threads her compelling story with the filaments of fragile hope.’ – Mary-Ann Constantine\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e'Helen Pendry’s astonishingly assured first novel, \u003ci\u003eThe Levels\u003c\/i\u003e, ends with a plan to retrieve not so much national identity – though that plays a significant part in her narrative – as political parity with those whose shady military affairs ride roughshod over local concerns.' – \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.yorkshiretimes.co.uk\/article\/A-Sense-of-Not-Belonging-The-Levels-by-Helen-Pendry\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eThe Yorkshire Times\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"float: left;\"\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"author photo\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1097\/7086\/files\/P1020526_medium.JPG?v=1548157354\" style=\"float: left; margin: 10px;\" width=\"176\" height=\"203\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"float: left;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"float: left;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"float: left;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHelen Pendry\u003c\/strong\u003e has worked in higher education, research and editing. She has also worked in a zoo, a hostel, a bookshop and the European Parliament. Her articles and reviews have appeared in \u003ci\u003ePlanet Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNew Welsh Review\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eWales Arts Review\u003c\/i\u003e, and she has been the recipient of a Literature Wales Bursary Award. She lives in Machynlleth.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Helen Pendry","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55501849428344,"sku":null,"price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1097\/7086\/files\/The_Levels_2026_Low-Res.jpg?v=1774273704","url":"https:\/\/www.parthianbooks.com\/products\/the-levels-1","provider":"Parthian Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}