Finer Things

David Wharton author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Sandstone Press Ltd

Published:27th Jun '19

£7.99

Available to order, but very limited on stock - if we have issues obtaining a copy, we will let you know.

Finer Things cover

Full UK marketing campaign by the Sandstone Press in-house team.Early reading copies will be available for booksellers and press. Author available for signings and events.

London: 1963. The lives of a professional shoplifter and a young art student collide.

Delia must atone for a terrible mistake; Tess is desperate to be a real artist. With the threat of the criminal underworld encroaching, only their friendship can save them from disaster.

London: 1963. The lives of a professional shoplifter and a young art student collide. Delia needs to atone for a terrible mistake; Tess is desperate to convince herself she really is an artist.

Elsewhere in London, the Krays are on the rise and a gang war is in the offing.

Tess’s relationship with her gay best friend grows unexpectedly complicated, and Delia falls for a man she’s been paid to betray. At last, the two women find a resolution together – a performance that is both Delia’s goodbye to crime and Tess’s one genuine work of art.

A vivid, satisfying walk through sixties London.

* The Wee Review *

Bloody excellent.


Beautiful... A truly brilliant debut novel.

* The Caffeinated Reader blog *

Utterly captivating... Absolutely hilarious, this is a rich and fulfilling story that leaves you eager for more. Wharton’s writing style is oozing with eloquence, wit and nuance.

* CommonSpace *

Strong characters and a vivid recreation of the times.

* The Herald *

Vibrant, absorbing and bursting with the unexpected, Finer Things is a sideways look at 1960s London, in which art school bohemia meets the gangster underworld. It is full of spot-on observations about the subtle power play in human interaction. I was immediately drawn into its vivid world.


An evocative portrait of two women navigating 1960's London.


David Wharton's novel unfolds with all the style, pace and drama of a British New Wave movie. It is a very fine thing indeed.

ISBN: 9781912240685

Dimensions: 195mm x 130mm x 20mm

Weight: 214g

288 pages