An unexpected phone call brings the walls of Amelia's life crashing down around her. Her relationship with boyfriend Mark already hangs precariously in the balance when her estranged grandfather arrives unexpectedly with nothing but his journal and a broken clock. Stuck between the conflicting interests of the two men in her life, Amelia spends her time reading her grandfather's journal and disappears into the fantasy world he created to hide himself from his past. As Amelia goes deeper into his fantastical world she starts to believe he could be telling the truth as her world overlaps with his and her life with Mark reaches a volatile crossroad. Inspired by authors such as Heller, Vonnegut, Marquez, Chatwin, Kurkov, Murakami and more, Alasdair Vale delivers an ultimately believable journey into the absurd in his debut novel. Smashing Clocks charts the life of an un-named protagonist who we first meet designing yoghurt pots in Bangkok through a fast-paced and intriguing story. Smashing Clocks is an epic tale set globally and one which is constantly pushing the reader's boundaries of belief.