About

From the bestselling author of Mr B's fave, The List of Suspicious Things, Jennie Godfrey returns with The Barbecue at No. 9, another startling novel of community and family in the 1980s, as the residents of Delmont Close gather, with secrets in tact, to watch the biggest night in music history: Live Aid.

**The first 45 orders for a book+ticket will receive the signed Independent Exclusive Limited Edition with sprayed edges**

Jennie will be in conversation with Samuel Burr, author of the Sunday Times bestselling novel The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers.

About the book:

It's the summer of 1985 and the residents of Delmont Close are preparing a neighbourhood barbecue to watch the biggest music event in history: Live Aid. A day like no other that will end having reached millions and changing the lives of all who attend.

House-proud Lydia Gordon, whose idols are Princess Di and Delia Smith, is determined to put on a show that will impress everyone – with her posh garden and state-of-the-art television, and her sweet husband and two children, Hanna and David.

But as the guests flood into number nine, so do all of the secrets that have been kept in the close.

Rita, a new neighbour from Australia, is hoping for a fresh start but harbours a shocking event in her past; Steve, a young Falklands veteran, battles his own demons; and Mr Wilson is surely too good-looking to ever be trusted.

But as the hours count down to the last performance of the night, it's Lydia who faces the heart-breaking truth that her immaculate home and flawless family might not be so perfect after all.

"From the very first page I was in awe. I LOVED it."– Marian Keyes

"A beautiful story about secrets, lies and community." – Graham Norton

"A delicious and irresistible story. An utter treat." – Rachel Joyce

"Gripping, suspenseful, moving, perfectly constructed." – Sophie Hannah

About the author: Jennie Godfrey was raised in West Yorkshire in a mill-working family and her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things, was inspired by her childhood there in the 1970s. In 2020, Jennie gave up her corporate career to build a life around books. She is now a writer and part-time bookseller who lives, and writes, in the Somerset countryside.