The Names by Florence Knapp in conversation at Linghams bookshop

WHAT a book!

What an author!

The Names is a beautiful, heartwrenching, utterly original novel - this one will stay with me for years to come -- Miranda Cowley Heller, author of THE PAPER PALACE

A sucker punch of a novel that I think will be one of the biggest books of the year -- Pandora Sykes

The Names is a truly gorgeous, heart-opening novel. I couldn't put it down, and I'm grateful to have Cora and her children living inside my heart now. What a wonderful book! -- Ann Napolitano, multi-million-copy bestselling author of HELLO BEAUTIFUL

This is exquisite storytelling with unforgettable characters and moved me deeply. Watch out for The Names. It's a big one -- Jennie Godfrey, author of THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS

I read it in three greedy gulps . . . a story of a family broken by cruelty but healed by resilience, love and possibility -- Jo Browning Wroe, author of A TERRIBLE KINDNESS

The Names is a tour de force of storytelling. Knapp crafts a world where names are keys that can unlock the truth about who we are and who we can become. At once haunting and revelatory, The Names is a brilliant exploration of the choices-big and small-that define our lives. Each character is drawn with a complexity that lingers long after the last page. A truly mesmerizing and profound book that I'll never forget -- Alison Espach, author of THE WEDDING PEOPLE

One of 2025's most talked-about novels already ― Red

The 2025 book that will be everywhere . . . It may well break your heart but it will piece it back together again, too - this is one of those rare books that shines with humanity and makes you glad to be alive ― Stylist: 26 Must-Read Books That Will Be Massive This Year

omorrow - if morning comes, if the storm stops raging - Cora will register the name of her son. Or perhaps, and this is her real concern, she'll formalise who he will become.'

It is 1987, and in the aftermath of a great storm, Cora sets out with her nine-year-old daughter to register the birth of her son. Her husband intends her to follow a long-standing family tradition and call the boy after him. But faced with the decision, Cora hesitates, questioning whether it is right for her child to share his name with generations of domineering men. Her choice in this moment will shape the course of their lives.

Seven years later, her son is Bear, a name chosen by his sister, and one that will prove as cataclysmic as the storm from which it emerges. Or he is Julian, the name his mother set her heart on, believing it will give him the opportunity to become his own person. Or he is Gordon, named after his father and raised in his image - but is there still a chance to break the mould?

This is the story of three names, three versions of a life and the infinite possibilities that a single decision can spark. It is the story of one family and how love endures, no matter what fate has in store.