Showing results by publisher "ISIS Audio Books" in Literature & Fiction

It is 1930, and the sleepy Hampshire village where Emma Pearson lives with her husband and two daughters is untouched by the Depression. When the villagers are asked to offer a rural holiday to orphaned children from the poorest parts of London, they welcome the opportunity to share their good fortune. John and Tommy, two lads from the charity orphanage, come to stay with the Pearsons for a holiday in the countryside.

Tina returns for her brother's wedding to the Fenland village where she grew up. A moment of panic about her 10-year-old daughter triggers a vision of her best friend, Mandy Baker, who went missing without a trace at the same age three decades ago. The more Tina replays events and relives her tempestuous upbringing, the more she believes she knows what happened to Mandy and who was responsible.

Sixteen-year-old Lisa moves to London at the close of the 70s, hoping to follow in her older sister Ruby's footsteps. Ruby has cropped hair, a drug habit and not one but two unsuitable men. Enrolling on an acting course, Lisa decides that she too will enjoy living life to the full. But Lisa finds herself burdened by responsibility. Whatever her own problems, those of her mother, her sister and even her small brother Max always seem greater and more urgent.

Maeve O'Donavan has arrived in Edinburgh from County Cork, trying to forget her unrequited love for the man who has since married her cousin. Shocked by the prejudice she encounters, Maeve finds life in a strange city difficult. When she loses her job as a maid, she is delighted to find a job as an assistant in the wardrobe department of the Queen's Theatre.

Twentysomething Poppy became a cliché when an accidental pregnancy presented her with a 49-year-old husband. But Luke Norton isn’t any old husband – he’s the anchorman for television’s SevenThirty News and his ruggedly handsome face is beloved by the nation. Life isn’t coming up roses thanks to the first Mrs Norton’s popular column, “Diary of a Divorce” about her ex, “the Cad”, and his new wife, “the Bimbo”.

In Miami Beach, all hell is breaking loose. First, a swimmer makes a gruesome discovery, and soon after the city is rocked by an explosion. When detective Sam Becket’s sister-in-law Claudia becomes a blackmail victim, Sam wants to help her, but he has a vicious killer to find. His only lead is Mildred Bleeker, a local character who’s seen a frightening stranger: a young man, silver from head to toe, shimmering in the night, who put her in mind of the angel of death.

For Rose Lucas, a spirited, intelligent girl born into a large family in the slums of pre-war Birmingham, life is hard. But through her friendship with Diana, daughter of a vicar from middle-class Moseley, she learns to aspire to a different and better existence. But life seldom follows dreams, and after losing a love she has fought hard for, and after travelling in Italy, she returns to Birmingham with her hopes shattered. But Rose's powerful spirit will not be defeated.

Freeman has agreed to report back on his friend to a clandestine agency interested in Omar's finances.

Meanwhile, in Washington, DC, Aliyah Rahim is spying on her husband, Abbas. A brilliant doctor, Abbas is crushed by the death of their daughter, which he blames on the post-9/11 mood of hostility towards Arab-Americans. Aliyah fears he may be planning a terrifying act of revenge.

Ten years after a massive oil crisis, the world lies devastated. The towns and cities of Britain are skeletal ghosts and very few humans have managed to survive. But sitting quietly amidst the ravaged landscapes are a few communities that have managed to fashion a new way of living. Jenny Sutherland leads one of these groups. Based on a series of decaying offshore oil-rigs, she has helped a few hundred people rebuild a semblance of normality.

The year is 1909, and 15-year-old Rhiannon Hughes and her young stepsister, Mair, find themselves abandoned and alone. They are forced to leave their cottage in the Welsh Valleys and take refuge with Rhiannon’s aunt, a popular music hall star. Rhiannon is instantly dazzled by this glamorous new world, and by the handsome young master of ceremonies, Gus Davenport. But Mair’s feckless mother, Nellie, unexpectedly returns and lures Mair into Cardiff’s sleazy underworld.

Barbara Bosgrove is looking forward to the annual Harvest Ball. Her widowed father will be her escort, but it is not long before George Kennett seeks her out for a dance. George vows to win Barbara’s hand in marriage and begins a slow and steady courtship. Little by little, Barbara is won over. Worn down by several years of marriage to the unfaithful George, Barbara feels she has lost all the vitality of her youth. But her old friend Simon is not prepared to let Barbara lose sight of the woman she really is.

An unexpected visit from the police to inform her that her aunt, her only living relative, had been murdered was not the sort of birthday present Angela Divine wanted. She was relieved, then shocked, when told she did not have to identify the body because it had already been done – by Grace’s son. But Grace did not have a son, so who had come forward with that claim? Ultimately it would be her aunt’s little dog that would provide the key to the mystery…

When girl-about-town Charlotte discovers her husband has been arrested for fraud, she flees to Exmoor to nurse her broken heart – and finds she’s not the only person whose life is in turmoil. There’s bad boy artist Sebastian, determined to drink the pub dry while his wife lives it up in London. Then Fitch, who is struggling to keep up with his wife’s outrageous demands. And finally recent divorcee Penny, who is quietly determined to have more fun the second time around.

Folkestone, 1921. Newly-wed Maude Brent couldn't be happier. When her much-loved elderly housekeeper Aunt Biddy starts to grow forgetful, her husband Lionel suggests that Maude hire a companion - and he knows just the girl. Initially reluctant, Maude trials the young Alice, and soon it's as if she'd always been part of the family. But when Lionel takes Maude on holiday to Hastings, tragedy strikes and he disappears.

Hannah has always felt in the shadow of her older sister. Cat is the flamboyant one, the one who can make everyone laugh. Hannah is so quiet that her parents used to joke about it. Now Hannah has a daughter of her own, who is about to get married. On the day of the wedding, Cat's caustic tongue is once again let loose - but with devastating consequences. As Hannah is compelled to examine her past and try to make sense of her complicated relationship with her sister.

A love story played out over the ages, this is a compelling novel about five couples whose romances span more than twelve centuries. In the year 1770, a young man named Theo is taken into the Abbeyfields monastery, where he finds his love, Princess Matilda. In 1540, a young woman named Matilda Whitfield meets Brother Theodore, a monk who has nearly lost his faith. In 1880, Theo and Matilda are the proprietors of a sprawling mansion, Abbeyfields Hall.

No one could understand why George Calder had committed suicide. He left a note, but it was too cryptic to provide any clue as to the reason. In her determination to solve the mystery behind her husband's death, Margaret Calder turned to an old friend for help. Keith Brooke was only too willing to do what he could, especially as he too had become intrigued by the strange circumstances surrounding George's death. The search for an answer led him to far-flung destinations.

Nina Todd keeps her head down and tries to live a quiet life: dull job, dependable boyfriend, no disruptions. If there are questions about Nina that remain unanswered, they are questions that even those closest to her don't dare to ask.

When Meg returns to Dublin after three years following sailor boyfriend Simon around the globe with two toddlers, Lily and Dan, she realises that all her friends have moved on. And now she only has her kooky family and Dan's flaky but dangerously gorgeous father, Sid, to rely on for help and support.

Moscow, 1939. In the recesses of the infamous Lubyanka prison is the writer Isaac Babel. The great author of Red Cavalry is spending his last days forbidden to write, his final works consigned to the archivist, Pavel Dubrov - who will ultimately be charged with destroying them.