Showing results by narrator "Janine Birkett" in All Categories

Everyone recognises the cry of Meg Sutcliffe as she plies her trade along the back streets of Ryhope. She learnt the ropes from her dad when he returned from the war. But when tragedy struck, Meg had no choice but to continue alone, with only her trusty dog, Spot, and beloved horse, Stella, for company. Now the meagre money she earns is the only thing that stands between her family's safety and predatory rent collector Hawk Jackson....

After the death of their parents, sisters Poppy and Rose are taken in by widow Nellie Harper. But whilst they have a roof over their heads, the young orphans are unloved, unwanted, and always hungry, with only one pair of boots between them. Keen to make money, Nellie hatches a plan to sell the girls to the mysterious Mr Scurrfield. But when the day comes for them to leave, Scurrfield reveals he will take only one of the sisters - and he will decide which it will be on the turn of a sixpence.

The Scottish Highlands, 1899. A life-altering event led Catrina Davies to hide from her family and society. But Travis Millard, the man she used to love, finds her, and she agrees to marry him and to return to her family estate, Davmoor Court in Yorkshire. But while her father clings to life, Davmoor is nearly ruined by her brother's gambling obsession. As Catrina adjusts to her regained position in society, her marriage comes under attack from Travis' grandmother, who has her own reason for loathing the family.

Ivy, Dulcie, Barbara, Ann, Dorothy and Jean all had different reasons for applying to work at Carr’s biscuits, but once they had put on their overalls and walked through the factory gates they discovered a community full of life, laughter and friendship. To those who didn’t know, the biscuit factory that towered over Carlisle might look like just another slice of the industrial North, a noisy and chaotic place with workers trooping in and out at all hours.

Eighteen-year-old Evie arrives at Post Stone Farm in December 1944, and, choosing to join the land army, she longs for quiet days. The other land girls have already formed close friendships, and Evie barely makes a ripple when trying to blend in. But it is there she falls in love with Giorgio, an Italian POW. All this changes one June evening when Corporal Norman Clark arrives at the farm, and a startling revelation thrusts Evie into the spotlight.

A dawn swim turns deadly in a brand-new short story starring DCI Vera Stanhope.... Two bored cell-mates play a game with chilling results.... A hen night in an isolated cottage brings new meaning to 'I will survive'.... Why not treat yourself to a slice of murderously moreish fiction, and join us in wishing the squad many deadly returns. With stories by Ann Cleeves, Martin Edwards, Kate Ellis, Margaret Murphy, Chris Simms and Cath Staincliffe, as well as John Baker, Chaz Brenchley and Stuart Pawson.

Detective Inspector Matthew Venn is standing by his kitchen window when he first spots them. Two young girls, facing away from him, seemingly staring towards something in the distance. They are holding hands, and they are alone. Though not a natural with children, Matthew knows he must find out why the girls are here, on a school day, unsupervised. And so he meets Olivia and Imogen, a pair of sisters whose secrets Matthew must uncover if he hopes to get them home.

Karen Bloom has always wanted the best things in life. And that includes her children; quite simply, she expects them to be perfect. Her son, Ewan, has been something of a disappointment, and she won't be making the same mistake again with her beloved daughter, Bronte. Bronte's every waking hour will be spent at music lessons and dance classes, doing whatever it takes to excel. But as Karen pushes Bronte to the brink, the rest of the family crumbles.

Who is the new family on the Seahills estate? Who is it that spends her days staring out of the window deeply regretting her bid for freedom, yet still plotting? Can Lorraine Hunt put what happened to her three months ago out of her mind to catch a vicious serial killer who scalps his victims? Will Dev be allowed to bring his plan to fulfilment and what is the real reason he turned up fresh from prison three months ago? As the Seahills residents go about their daily lives more than one plot unfurls bringing about a terrifying climax.

The day that Hilary and David have been waiting for has finally arrived and as the church bells ring out for the arrival of the bride, everyone's fingers are crossed for the day to go without a hitch. The festivities set the tone for the year ahead and there's more love in the air in Burracombe so planning continues for both Dottie and Joe's and Frances and James's nuptials. There's nothing like a wedding to bring the village together.

When Britain declares war on Germany in 1939, Carolyn Maddison is still a schoolgirl. Her elder brother, Alastair, wastes no time in joining the RAF as a flying officer, and Carolyn decides that when she is 18 she will follow him into the service by joining the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. While reporting to the Air Ministry in London, she meets a good-looking, charismatic pilot, Charlie Wade, currently employed in propaganda work.

Winters End should have been the perfect place for me and my husband Neil to start again. To leave the terrible secrets and guilt of our past far behind us. But from the moment we arrived in the small, isolated community, it becomes clear to me that we are not welcome here. That someone wants us to leave…

Natty and Sean Wainwright are happily married. Rock solid in fact. So when Natty's oldest friend, Eve Dalladay, appears - just as their daughter collapses on a school trip in France - Natty has no qualms about leaving Eve with Sean to help out at home. Two weeks later and Natty finds Eve has slotted into family life too well - her husband has fallen in love with Eve. He's sorry, he tells her, but their marriage is over. With no option but to put a brave face on things for the sake of the children, Natty embarks on building a new life for herself.

A new century brings change to Eden Harris's ordered world. Despite years of service to the Bradburys, she hides a secret that would affect them all. When an enemy returns, her world is shattered and her secret exposed. Torn and provoked, she strains to protect her family until a devastating accident leaves her alone and frightened. As the threat against her grows, Eden takes her precious daughters and flees from the only place she's called home. But her attempt to start anew is not so simple.

Aurora Pettigrew has a loving family, a nice home, a comfortable life. She's waiting for the right man to offer marriage, and the man for her is Reid Sinclair, heir to the Sinclair fortune. But Reid's mother is against the match and unearths a secret that will tear Aurora's world apart. Unwilling to bring shame on her family and needing answers, Aurora moves to York. By chance, she reconnects with a man from her past, and before he leaves with the army to war in South Africa, he offers her security through marriage.

Even as a child Barbara was beautiful, but as her beauty grew so did the affliction which shadowed it. She was becoming deaf. Yet living in an almost silent world protected her from what could be a worse affliction - to know the truth of her own origins. Barbara had another protector in Anna Brigmore, who knew that truth and was haunted by the thought it must one day be revealed to this girl she cherished like her own child. And among the surrounding hills and valleys of Northumberland, it was a long-relished scandal....

In the heart of Ashington - a bustling Geordie mining town - a handsome red-brick vicarage, surrounded by rambling gardens, stands proudly among the rows of terraced houses. It is the perfect place for playing games, keeping secrets and chasing the ghosts of previous occupants, and it will be nine-year-old Barbara's new home now that her father is to be vicar in this strange new place.

Each generation of the Mallen family has been cursed with a dramatic white streak in their jet-black hair. Barbara does not have the visible streak to identify her as a Mallen, but she has spent her life trying to forget her parentage - and the horrific circumstances behind her birth. When her triplets - the Mallen litter - were born, she hoped that it would herald a new beginning. But it seems that one of her sons bears the Mallen streak - and that the Mallen curse will never die out....

Transport yourself to 1920s Liverpool, to be moved and delighted by this wonderful novel from one of the UK's best-loved saga authors. In 1920s Liverpool, Jane, her little brother Alfie and their mother Ellen have faced the horrors of the workhouse together. But when Ellen dies, two very different paths open up for the siblings. Jane is sent to work in the Empire Laundry and builds a new life for herself with the neighbours who take her in.

August, 1955. Janice Butler is working as a waitress at her mother’s Blackpool boardinghouse before she heads off to university. When Val and Cissie, both from Walker’s woollen mill in Halifax, come to stay for a week, the three young women form an instant friendship. They attend a local dance at the Winter Gardens, which changes all their lives, both for better and for worse.