Showing results by author "Marcia Willett" in All Categories

Fresh out of university and right on the precipice of adulthood, El is trying her best to figure out what it is she really wants from life. This is complicated by the fact that she is also dealing with the loss of her father, Martin. After his sudden death, El inherits and moves into his home just outside Tavistock, in the Devon countryside. Her stepbrother and sort-of friend, Will, comes to help her through her grief and to go through her father’s belongings. 

From the opening of A Week in Winter, the listeners are enveloped in a warm and welcoming world teeming with unforgettable characters and enchanting places. Moorgate stands on the edge of the moor in beautiful Cornwall. A charming old farmhouse filled with light and memories, Moorgate captures the heart of all who experience it. But when Maudie Todhunter, the 70-year-old owner of the beloved house, decides to sell, fate is set in motion, bringing old secrets to light and causing a saga to unfold....

Siblings Billa and Ed share their beautiful, grand childhood home in rural Cornwall. Their lives are uncomplicated. With familyand friends nearby and their free and easy living arrangements, they are ascontent as can be. But when postcards start arriving from a sinisterfigure they thought was well and truly in their pasts, old memories arestirred. Why is he contacting them now? And what has he been hiding all theseyears?

The Keep - that beautiful, ancient family home where the Chadwick family has lived for generations - is still a haven from the heartbreaks and storms of life. Jolyon Chadwick, a famous television presenter, takes his new girlfriend, Henrietta, home to meet his extended family - and also to meet Marie, the mother who deserted him and his father many years ago, and who has now reappeared and seems to want forgiveness.

In the big old house overlooking the sea, five small children listened as their mother read them a story. Theirs was an idyllic childhood, as they played on the beach, in the gardens and the woods, before the war and other tragedies disrupted their lives. Now, many years later, Nest and Mina still live at their beautiful childhood home, surrounded by the glorious Devon country side. But, when their sister Georgie comes to stay at Ottercombe, memories of their past start to revisit them.

Pregnant and grieving, twenty-something Tiggy arrives at the remote house of her friend Julia in the middle of a snowstorm. All alone, having lost her mate in a tragic accident, Tiggy finds refuge with Julia's warm and chaotic family. Nurtured and loved at last, Tiggy begins to live again as she eagerly awaits the birth of her son. But nearly thirty years later, when her son is about to become a father himself, the next generation discovers that there are some secrets of the past that still live on…

Matt’s mother kept all his childhood memories in a small box, amongst the many photos of Matt as a child. But something about those photos has always puzzled Matt. Is that really him? Why does he not remember those clothes and toys? And where, in the photos, is his sister Imogen? Imogen, meanwhile, is living with her husband and their baby in a rented cottage. Ever since her childhood she has loved the Summer House, a charming folly in the grounds of a beautiful and ancient house on Exmoor, and now they have the chance of buying it.

Three generations, oneheartbreaking secret - and the past about to be uncovered … Jess Penhaligon is on her way to London to receive an awardfor her botanical painting. Hosting her will be Kate, who gladly welcomes herinto her home. Jess' own family fell apart several years ago, so she is gratefulfor Kate's friendliness - and for her close unit of extended family and friends,who embrace Jess just as warmly.

Childhood friends and cousins Leo and Alice had imagined their whole lives playing out on their beloved Devon beach. But one night when they are teens, sitting on the sand beneath the stars, Alice tells Leo a secret that must never be shared with anybody else...then packs her bag and flees. Leo is left to build his own life - without Alice. He surrounds himself with other family and friends and on the whole is content and fulfilled. But he is left with a sense of what - or who - is missing.

As Christmas approaches, Clem and his five-year-old son, Jakey, move to be closer to Clem's mother, Dossie, in Cornwall. Clem realizes that he has to be strong to keep his family together. Forming a slightly unconventional family setup with Dossie, Jakey, and Clem are the jovial nuns of the local convent. But when an unexpected event threatens to destroy the nuns' way of life, will everyone still be together next Christmas?

Jess Penhaligon is on her way to Devon to receive an award for her botanical painting. Hosting her will be Kate, who gladly welcomes her into her home. Jess's own family fell apart several years ago, so she is grateful for Kate's friendliness - and her close unit of extended family and friends, who embrace Jess just as warmly. As this group begins reminiscing on their pasts and sharing their stories with Jess, it becomes apparent that her family history may be linked with theirs.

A broken marriage inspires Roly Carradine to leave his busy London life and find refuge in Cornwall, in the mellow stone house of his childhood. Here in Cornwall he welcomes Kate, also seeking refuge from the grief of losing her husband, and young Daisy Quin, a dancer recovering from a back injury. Roly's son Nat lives not far away and is plagued by the unsympathetic visits of his mother Monica, Roly's ex-wife. Roly, Kate, Daisy and Nat all try to find resolution in the beauty and peace of the Cornish countryside.

Sweeping powers of description transport her listeners to another time and place. Rosanna Ley, author of best-selling The Villa and Return to Mandalay. Some memories can be forgotten.... Others won't ever go away. For renowned actor Sir Mungo, his quiet home village in Devon provides the perfect retreat. Close by are his brother and his wife, and the rural location makes his home the ideal getaway for his old friends in London.

It was Felix who named it The Birdcage, the tall house in Bristol where Miss Pidgeon lived with her tenant, the beautiful and talented actress Angel, and Angel's daughter, Lizzie. It was Felix whom they all adored and who was so in love with Angel, but while Lizzie longed for a father, Felix had other commitments: to his insecure, possessive wife Marina and to their son Piers, both living at beautiful, mellow Michaelgarth, the family home on the edge of Exmoor.

It was in the middle of a snowstorm when Tiggy arrived at the remote house on Bodmin Moor. She was alone, her partner tragically dead in an accident, and Julia, her dearest friend, welcomed her into her warm and chaotic family.

Barndomsvennerne Leo og Alice havde altid forestillet sig et liv sammen ved deres elskede strand i Devon. Men en nat, da de to unge mennesker sidder og kigger op mod stjernerne, fortæller Alice Leo en hemmelighed, som aldrig må komme for dagens lys. Kort efter pakker hun sine ting og stikker af. Leos liv går videre - uden Alice. Han nyder tilværelsen med familie og venner og er i det store hele glad og tilfreds. Alligevel får han fra tid til anden en fornemmelse af afsavn efter noget... eller nogen.

Evie loved the house. The bright, sunny rooms looking across the river. The terraced gardens with fruit trees growing against the high stone walls. The scent of lavender at the end of a hot day. It was a family house. As summer beckons, Evie's family gathers once more at the beautiful old riverside house they all adore. But when Evie discovers a secret that threatens their future, a shadow falls over them all: this summer by the river could be their last together.

At the end of the row of fishermen’s cottages by the harbour’s edge stands an old granite house. First it belonged to Ned’s parents; then Ned dropped anchor here after a life at sea and called it home. His nephew Hugo moved in too, swapping London for the small Cornish fishing village where he’d spent so many happy holidays. It’s a refuge - and now other friends and relations are being drawn to the the house by the sea. 

After her husband dies, Cara no longer wishes to live in their London home. On impulse, she sells it and goes to stay with her brother in Salcombe, Devon, while she plans her next move. There, she begins to look back at her life and reflect on the choices that have led her to this moment. Cosmo has also escaped - temporarily - from his life in the city, finding the south-west a relaxing and appealing fit, especially when he meets local girl, Amy. But is he being entirely truthful about what he’s left behind? 

As Christmas approaches, everything seems to be falling into place for Dossie. Her son Clem and his adorable five-year-old son Jakey have moved to Cornwall to be closer to her. She runs her own successful catering business. All she needs now is for the run of bad luck in her romantic life to end.Forming a slightly unconventional family setup with Dossie are the jovial nuns of the local convent and the wonderfully eccentric Janna.