Showing results by narrator "Charlotte Strevens" in All Categories

Jessie Tempest has two main interests: reading books and selling books. Her little bookshop in the seaside town of Staithes is a cosy hideaway from the chilly Yorkshire wind, but it’s also Jessie’s sanctuary from the outside world. When writer Miles Fareham and his son Elijah arrive to stay in the holiday apartment above the shop, it’s a test for Jessie who has always felt clueless when it comes to kids. But as she learns the story of the single father and the inquisitive eight-year-old, Jessie realises that first impressions aren’t always the right ones.

A best-selling novelist since 1921, Georgette Heyer is known across the world for her historical romances set in Regency England. This is the ultimate, definitive guide to Georgette Heyer's novels, her heroines, her villains and dashing heroes, the shops, clubs and towns they frequented, the parties and seasons they celebrated, how they ate, drank and dressed, socialised, shopped and drove. An utterly delightful and fun read, compelling in its historical detail, this is a must-hear for any Georgette Heyer fan.

The stage is set Deborah O'Hara loves her life, leading her troupe of actors. But when she becomes entangled in a web of secrets spun by the rakishly handsome Damian Beaumaris, Duke of Cirencester, she is forced to play the hardest role of her life: that of the stunning but disloyal Paulette, the duke's widowed sister-in-law. To regain the honor of his family, Beau needs Deb's help.

When Eleanor waves her daughter off for a gap-year trip, she finds herself stuck as a satellite wife, spinning in faithful orbit around her domineering husband, with only her clever but judgemental father, Conrad, for comfort Andrew isn’t mastering the art of growing up either. But when he finds his belongings dumped in bin bags on the drive, even he can see that his girlfriend is hinting he should move out. With no other options, he moves back in with his parents.

One, her job at the Blue Olive deli is dull, but at least she gets to work with her best friend. Two, she lives in a cosy cottage in the pretty village of Halston. Three, she’s in love with her boyfriend, Blake. Isn’t she? Because, despite their history, Blake continues to be the puzzle piece in Tess’ life that doesn’t quite fit. And when she meets intriguing local artist Daniel Cavanagh, it soon becomes apparent that, for Tess, love isn’t as easy as one, two, three.

She's only been gone two hours. Her husband, David, was meant to be looking after their two-week-old daughter. But when Alice Fancourt walks into the nursery, her terrifying ordeal begins, for Alice insists the baby in the cot is a stranger she's never seen before. With an increasingly hostile and menacing David swearing she must either be mad or lying, how can Alice make the police believe her before it's too late?

Kate Flynn, 43, has given up her university career to come home and look after her mother in Firenze, their big house by a lake in Cardiff. When Kate meets her old friend David Roberts, she begins to obsess about him: she knows it's because she's bored, but she can't stop. David is married, rational, and dependable: the last type to want an affair. David's marriage isn't as solid as it looks, though, so he takes refuge in Firenze, where he can talk to Kate about music.

Cece is gifted a cottage in the Scottish Highlands. She doesn't want a cottage or to go to Scotland. But Cece learns that another 'unwanted gift' is suddenly very real and forces her to flee to Scotland. Old, rundown and in need of some tender care like Cece, the cottage becomes her bolt hole to lick her wounds. Only, she didn't plan on sharing her home with a runaway orphan or finding herself the interest of the local schoolteacher. And there's a certain brooding Highlander that she can't quite work out.

When her feisty grandmama takes her travelling, Prue is excited to explore outside of England. Determined to make the most of her holiday and have some fun, she wasn't prepared to meet a man who would make her question herself. In need of distraction, Brandon spends his time climbing mountains in Europe. The last thing he expected was to meet an attractive English rose with the same edgy spirit as himself. When Prue reveals past mistakes to Brandon, he must decide if she is the woman for him, but a tragic accident makes them both confront deeper feelings.

Following the death of her beloved mother Jennifer Worth in 2011, Suzannah Worth discovered amongst her manuscripts a folder simply labelled 'Fifth Book'. Imagine her excitement when she sat down to read and her mother's distinctive voice came flooding back. She found herself once again immersed in the world of the 1950s East End of London. The voices of much loved, familiar characters spoke loud and clear, particularly that of Fred the boiler man, who features extensively in this joyful collection.

Chloe Canton has settled into life on the island, so when her friend Maria asks her to help with a celebrity wedding, Chloe is delighted. Reality TV stars Lara Turner and Eddie Bristol want a beach wedding and a golden horse, and Chloe is happy to oblige. But she is unprepared for the celebrity circus that surrounds them, or the unwelcome appearance of her ex-husband, Mark. No sooner have the happy couple arrived on the island than a body is found floating in the crystal ocean waters.

Vita's gift shop would do better if she ran it as a business, not as somewhere to daydream. But she's not one to tell herself off: she leaves that to Tim, her ex. Active, outdoorsy Oliver runs his trees-surgery business as calmly as his home - but his love life is intensely private. When Vita and Oliver's paths cross at a pear tree, there's a chance of something blossoming. As spring turns to summer, both Vita and Oliver are given second chances. Bu will they take them - or walk away?

It was meant to be the perfect romantic holiday. But then Flora Bexton’s boyfriend does the unthinkable, and she responds in the only logical way: she steals his motorbike and escapes for a holiday by herself on the Welsh coast. Far from the lonely trip she imagined, Flora soon finds comfort at the friendly local Art Café, where the legendary hot chocolate and cake help to ease her troubled mind. And when Aussie Welsh lifeguard Jake Foley steps in just when Flora needs help the most, she realises that her ‘holiday’ feels more like home with every passing day.

Jude Shelley, the daughter of a prominent cabinet minister, was assaulted and left for dead in the river Thames. Her attacker was never caught. A year later forensic psychologist Alice Quentin is asked to reexamine the case. Then another body is found: an elderly priest, washed up at Westminster Pier. An ancient glass bead is tied to his wrist. Alice is certain that the Shelleys are hiding something - and that there will be more victims unless she can persuade them to share what they know.

In 1935 Evelyn Shillington started a diary, little knowing the years of turmoil it would cover. Eve joined her beloved husband, Captain Rex Shillington, whenever she could on his postings, giving her a unique view into army life. Through the abdication crisis to the turbulent years of the Second World War, Eve documented it all with an inimitable spirit and brave humour. The diaries lay forgotten in an attic for years until an enterprising antiques dealer discovered them by chance. Published 70 years later, they offer a new perspective into life on the home front, a firsthand account that was almost lost forever.

Sentenced to death for a simple confidence trick, Mary Jebb escapes the gallows...but her reprieve is harsh: seven years in the unforgiving penal colony of Botany Bay. Yet Mary is determined not to be forgotten, sending two pennies, engraved with a promise, to the two men who sealed her fate. Timid artist Grace Moore jumps at the opportunity to marry handsome gentleman Michael Croxon - happy if only to get away from her drunken father.

Autumn, 1839. As the London nights darken, rumours spread about the devil's chariot, which preys on young women walking alone at night. Novice private investigator Liberty Lane has no time for such horror stories, so when a poetic young man begs her to find his missing fiancee, she accepts, suspecting there is a more prosaic explanation. Meanwhile, she is engaged to help prevent a royal scandal involving Prince Albert's worldlier brother, Prince Ernest.

On a moonlit night in 1903, a mysterious young woman flees alone across the Canadian wilderness. Mary Bouton is 19 years old, half mad and widowed - by her own hand. Tearing through the forest, she is desperate, her nerves burning, and she is certain of only one thing - that two red-headed brothers, rifles across their backs, lurch close behind her. She has murdered their brother and their cold lust for vengeance is unswerving.

Covering nearly 2500 years, from 480 BC to 11 September 2001, Days that Changed the World tells the stories of 50 days that truly made history. Included are the Crucifixion, the Battle of Waterloo, the Apollo 11 Moon landing, and the fall of the Berlin Wall. For each, Days that Changed the World explains the events of the day and their causes, providing an insight into the era and an understanding of wider themes of world history.

On May 3rd, 1942, fifteen-year-old Alma Braithwaite and her fellow boarders at Goldwyn's school huddle in an air-raid shelter as bombs rain down on Exeter. When the girls emerge, the school is in ruins. Twenty-one years on, Alma lives alone and teaches music at her old school. The arrival of a new student takes Alma back to that summer and the long shadow it cast on her life.