Showing results by narrator "Jilly Bond" in All Categories

At the age of 16, Catherine Tylney Long became the wealthiest heiress in England, and the public found their 'angel'. Witty, wealthy and beautiful, Catherine married for love. Her choice of husband was the charming but feckless dandy William Wellesley Pole, nephew of the Duke of Wellington. But their happiness was short-lived; just a decade later, William had frittered away Catherine's inheritance, and the couple were forced to flee.

With her awful secondhand uniform and stuck-up classmates, Binny's new school is horrible. And life gets even worse when a storm damages the roof of her house, forcing Binny and her family to move to the countryside whilst it's being fixed. Binny; her sensible older sister, Clem; and her rambunctious brother, James (and his chickens) begin adjusting to life in the country. Then one of James' beloved chickens vanishes, and Binny finds strange footprints in the mud. What kind of creature is lurking in the undergrowth?

The debut novel by a British writer with nearly two decades of African experience - a compelling courtroom drama and a gritty, aromatic evocation of place, inspired by recent events. British lawyer Paula Shackleton is mourning a lost love when a small man in a lemon-coloured suit accosts her over breakfast in a Boston hotel. Winston Peabody represents the African state of North Darrar, embroiled in a border arbitration case with its giant neighbour.

Norah Thornby can no longer afford to live in her grand family home - unless she can find a respectable lodger. But Nurse Lettie Quick is not nearly as respectable as she seems. Meanwhile the beautiful Rae Grainger is staying in an isolated house miles away from the town. It’s certainly rather creepy, but Rae knows that all she has to do is stay out of sight until paid-professional others take her little problem away.

The latest novel from best-selling author Jean Ure - perfect for fans of Jacqueline Wilson and Cathy Cassidy. A warm-hearted story of friendship, school life, and drama - and the perils of sharing a secret… After all, even best friends don't tell each other everything…

When Bea Bishop slips while walking down the aisle on her wedding day, she is momentarily knocked unconscious. And in a flash, her world splits and two separate parallel lives take her on two very different journeys. In one, Bea flees back down the aisle and out of the church. In the other, she glides blissfully towards Adam, her intended. Which story will lead to her happy-ever-after?

Yesterday, Sally was living in an idyllic South African farmstead with her teenage daughter, Gigi. Now Sally is dead, murdered, and Gigi is alone. But Sally lingers unseen in her daughter's shadow. When Gigi moves in with her aunt, Sally comes, too. When Gigi's cousin develops an obsession with African black magic. Now Sally must find a way to stop her daughter from making a mistake that will destroy the lives of everyone.

The death of the King’s son aboard the doomed White Ship, left the ageing Henry I again without an heir. Henry’s daughter, the Empress Matilda, could not succeed her father while her own German husband still lived – but she could hope. Henry’s nephew, the affable, charming Stephen was also looking towards the English throne.

Violet Dimond, the Holy Terror, has delivered many of the town children in her capacity as handywoman. But Violet’s calling is dying out with medicine’s advances. Grace, Violet’s adopted daughter, is a symbol of change herself. In the place where she has grown up and everyone knows her, she is accepted, though most of the locals never before saw a girl with skin that colour. For Violet and Grace the coming war will bring more upheaval: can they endure it, or will they be swept aside by history’s tide?

Tess believed matrimonywasis for life - until her husband decided that their marriage was the relationship equivalent of a starter home: cramped, claustrophobic, and something he'd outgrown. Now, at thirty-five, Tess is in the biggest mess of her life. Known to her friends as "Tip-Top Tess" because of her pursuit of the perfect home, she's now a candidate for How Clean is Your House? But there's a life raft on the horizon: the Divorce Survival Class - a boot camp for the broken-hearted.

Scheming social climber Alexa may be humbly born. But only a title, mansion and family tiara will do. Befriending feckless aristo Florrie (three surnames plus black hole where her brain should be) means the grandest doors swing open and the prince of her dreams is in sight. But has Florrie’s mother, the formidable Lady Annabel, rumbled what Alexa is up to? Beautiful but penniless student Polly, meanwhile, is in love.

Finland, 1901. Eeva, the young orphaned daughter of a revolutionary, is sent from the orphanage to work as housekeeper for Thomas, a widowed country doctor. Her enigmatic presence disturbs Thomas as much as it fascinates him, shattering all the certainties of his life. Eeva longs to be back in Helsinki with the comrades of her childhood, particularly Lauri. But life there is full of danger.

King Casimiro harbours a secret. No one in the kingdom of Zaffirinthos knows that a devastating accident has left his memory clouded in darkness. And Casimiro himself cannot answer why Melissa Maguire, the enigmatic English rose before him, stirs such feelings in him. Questioning his ability to rule, Casimiro decides he will renounce the throne. But Melissa has news she knows will rock the palace to its core....

Like a princess in a fairytale, Grace Hamilton has been showered with blessings: professional success, a happy marriage, and she even lives in a beautiful castle. But the only thing she really wants – her heart’s desire – is the one thing she can never have. Her sister, the beautiful Susannah, has made a mess of her life. Like a reverse Midas, everything she touches turns sour. But fate puts Grace’s future in Susannah’s hands, changing the balance of power between the sisters forever.

Lizzy Baxter is thrilled when her family moves to Cornwall-she's always loved the beach. Lizzy doesn't realise, but she has a special connection with the sea-and the mystical mermaids and silver dolphins who swim there. But there's much more to the beautiful blue-green world than magic. The veil sea queen is plotting to steal something precious-something that belongs to Lizzy. The Mermaid Curse is a perfect blend of fantasy and reality.

Early on a grey November morning in 1941, only weeks after the German invasion, a small Ukrainian town is overrun by the SS. Deft, spare and devastating, Rachel Seiffert's new novel tells of the three days that follow and the lives that are overturned in the process. Penned in with his fellow Jews, under threat of transportation, Ephraim anxiously awaits word of his two sons, missing since daybreak. Come in search of her lover, to fetch him home again, away from the invaders, Yasia must confront new and harsh truths.

Eversleigh Manor provides the perfect location for a hit new television show called Lady Jane Investigates. But before the film crew descended en masse, no-one could have predicted that romance would be brewing before the clapperboard has snapped its last.

In the faraway land of Miracula, the early dawn mist drifts around Newt Castle: home of a young Sand Witch called Ivy Newt, her familiar Tom Wolf, and her parents King Lucius and Queen Fenella. Every Halloween at sunrise, a spooky haunted house appears, only to disappear again at the stroke of midnight. Ivy and Tom set out to solve the mystery, stumbling upon an imprisoned witch, a powerful sorcerer and a curse they must break before time runs out.

This family secret means the end of everything they've ever known. But could it also be the chance for a new beginning? Verity seems to have it all. A beautiful home, two grown-up sons and a husband who has always been her rock. But one day, the doorbell rings. And it changes Verity's life forever. Saskia has nowhere else to go. Before she died, her mother left her with her father's name and nothing else. The only way for Saskia to take care of herself – and her unborn baby – is to find the father she never knew. And the family that didn't know she existed.

Hello Computer is the story of a working-class girl who begins a lifelong love affair with technology after seeing a computer for the first time in 1967. It tells of her quest to become a professor of computing in one of the top universities in England. Empowered as a programmer on pioneering hospital systems, she learns that computer code can change lives. Her story is a journey from 1967 to 2017, through exciting times and epic events, from the dawn of the internet to the dotcom boom, from punch cards to the raspberry pi and virtual worlds.