Graceland

An immediately convincing evocation of time and place, as well as character, colour, sultry heat and complex emotions… Moving effortlessly between the late 1950s and Elvis’s straitened upbringing, it vividly conveys his world * Sunday Times *This is an impressive, deceptively gentle novel, full of quiet music and even quieter tragedy – Claire Allfree * Daily Telegraph *One of the best books about a rock star I’ve ever readBethan Roberts grew up in a house filled with Elvis’s music and pored over her mother’s Elvis annuals and scrapbooks as a child… its emotional range rings true and its fidelity to a certain strain of wistful melancholy might go deeper than facts… an understated, thoughtful novel about a man who wore suits fashioned from gold leaf on stage, which occasionally prompts the reader to burst into song. – Susie Boyt * Financial Times *Graceland is an astonishing literary achievement. Bethan Roberts somehow manages to unlock the mystery to that beautiful sadness in the voice of Elvis. Utterly heartbreaking. – Jake ArnottRoberts has done her research and is a loving curator of the legend, but she’s strong, too on the tiny sensual details, which intensify the up-close feel of this sensitive, measured novel – Stephanie Cross * Daily Mail *Roberts is an exceptionally tender and empathetic writer, and the story of Elvis Presley and his relationship with his mother is one ripe for her skills… both epic and intimate * Grazia *One is always in safe hands with Bethan Roberts, especially when the subject is love. – Lynne TrussA beautifully captured portrait – Joanne Finney * Good Housekeeping *Extraordinarily moving * Choice *

Bethan Roberts has published five novels and writes stories and drama for BBC Radio 4. Her books include The Good Plain Cook, which was a Radio 4 Book at Bedtime; My Policeman, the story of a 1950s policeman, his wife, and his male lover (now a major Amazon Original movie starring Harry Styles and Emma Corrin); Mother Island, which received a Jerwood Fiction Uncovered prize; and Graceland, which tells the story of Elvis Presley and his mother, Gladys. She also writes short fiction, for which she has won the Society of Authors’ Olive Cook Prize and the RA Pin Drop Award. Bethan has taught Creative Writing at Chichester University and Goldsmiths College, London. She lives in Brighton with her family.

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