Showing results by narrator "Sarah Ovens" in All Categories

At Montverre, an ancient and elite academy hidden high in the mountains, society's best and brightest are trained for excellence in the grand jeu—the great game—an arcane and mysterious competition that combines music, art, math, poetry, and philosophy. Léo Martin once excelled at Monteverre, but lost his passion for scholarly pursuits after a violent tragedy. He turned to politics instead, and became a rising star in the ruling party, until a small act of conscience cost him his career. Now, he has been exiled back to Monteverre, his fate uncertain.

When Charlie’s longed-for brother is born with a serious heart condition, Charlie’s world is turned upside down. Upset and afraid, Charlie flees the hospital and makes for the ancient forest on the edge of town. There Charlie finds a boy floating face-down in the stream, injured, but alive. But when Charlie sets off back to the hospital to fetch help, it seems the forest has changed. It’s become a place as strange and wild as the boy dressed in deerskins.

It's the end of the summer, which means it's time for Carnival! And Hotel Flamingo, the sunniest hotel in town, is all set to join the party. Animal Boulevard is a riot of colour, and every establishment is preparing a float for the annual procession. Anna is determined to win the prize for Hotel Flamingo for the best display, despite rival hotel the Glitz having won it every year since the Carnival began. But disaster strikes! The rainy season comes early, and high winds and torrential rain lash down across the Boulevard. Can Anna save the Carnival and the day?

Bea is an outspoken English girl determined to break with family tradition and pave her own path. After embarrassing her parents at a dinner party designed to find her a husband, Bea is invited to spend an eye-opening summer in Italy with her uncle's artistic bohemian friends. There, she meets Ben, a brilliant artist - and a brilliant flirt. When sparks fly between them, a challenge is set: Can they create the perfect summer romance? There's just one rule: They absolutely, positively cannot fall in love.

Claire and Matt are no longer together but decide that it would be best for their daughter, Scarlett, to have a "normal" family Christmas. They can’t agree on whose idea it was to go to the Happy Forest holiday park or who said they should bring their new partners. But someone did - and it’s too late to pull the plug. Before you know it, their holiday is a powder keg that ends where this novel begins - with a tearful, frightened call to the police.

When young Anna inherits a dilapidated once-grand hotel from her Great Aunt Mathilde, she's determined to restore it to its former glory. But this is no ordinary hotel - all of her staff and guests are animals! Anna soon rises to the challenge. Whether it's a flamingo, a penguin or a hippo knocking at the door, Anna is ready to welcome them all - with the help of her trusty sidekicks T Bear the doorman, Squeak the friendly elevator mouse, and Lemmy the lemur receptionist.... As she soon finds out, though, running an animal hotel is no easy task.

On Animal Boulevard the snow is finally melting after a long, quiet winter and Hotel Flamingo is ready to embrace the new season and new guests. Anna knows she needs to come up with a plan to get the hotel buzzing again! And what does Hotel Flamingo have that no one else has? One of the best chefs in town - Madame Le Pig! In a stroke of inspiration Anna decides that the hotel will put on a Battle of the Chefs.

Sophia Hepworth arrives in Montana with the promise of a normal American high school experience. But after a turbulent few years abroad with her diplomat parents, forgetting the past is easier said than done. After all, 'normal' high school students aren’t fluent in multiple languages or trained in several forms of combat. Then Sophia meets a group of friends she can really trust and finds herself drawn more and more to mysterious Aksel - who she maybe shouldn’t trust but can’t stop thinking about.

What is competitive gaming, and where did it come from? What makes it so exciting? The bitter esports team and country rivalries, the scandals, the money, the last-minute Hail Mary plays; it’s all here, brought to you with the trademark wit - and access - of the industry’s most respected and experienced broadcaster. He’ll even tell you how to spell it. This is the world of esports according to its most famous presenter.

In Belle and Joni's world, there are two options for girls: One, follow the rules of the Doctrine like Belle: apply your Mask, work hard to be crowned at the Ceremony, be a Pretty. Or two, fight the rules like Joni: leave your face bare, work hard to escape to the Education, be an Objectionable.

Guernsey, 1940. As war storms through Europe, Churchill orders the evacuation of all military personnel from the island. Boats ferry soldiers and vulnerable young children to England, leaving their parents and loved ones behind to face the invading German army on their own. One of the few remaining policemen on the island, Jack must protect not only his friends and family, but also the woman he loves: Johanna, a Jewish nurse from Germany, whose secret faith could prove fatal to them both.

Fact: Ember and Ness are best friends. There’s nothing more to say about it. It is what it is. It is what will always be. Ember and Ness. Then Ness dies. It is sudden and unexpected and leaves Ember completely empty. How can this be? When Ember finds a way into the Afterworld, she determines to bring Ness back. Because that’s what friends do, isn’t it? They rescue each other. They help. They never give up. Ember and Ness. That don’t change. A powerful, poignant, darkly comic and deeply moving story about friendship at its most extraordinary.

During a New Year’s Eve party on a large, luxurious cruise ship in the Caribbean, the ship’s dancer, Lola, goes missing. Two weeks later, the ship is out of service, laid up far from land with no more than a skeleton crew on board. And then more people start disappearing....

Thrilling adventures and hilarious capers from three brilliant children’s authors in one audiobook collection. That Time I Got Kidnapped. When 14-year-old Jacob misses his connecting flight in Chicago, he tries to complete his journey to LA by Greyhound bus. But on board he meets American teenager Jennifer, who is carrying a mysterious package and being chased by an enigmatic pursuer known only as ‘the Cowboy’...and she needs a partner in crime. The unlikely pair soon finds themselves on the road-trip of a lifetime - a funny, filmic, gripping adventure.

Paddington Bear has a magical moment, the animals of Brambly Hedge are struggling at the dusty mill. Lara’s godmother sorts out a noisy lion, and Rapunzel is rescued from the tower.

They say I'm a murderer. Six years ago, Kate Reynolds was found holding the body of her best friend, covered in blood, and clutching the knife that killed her. I plead guilty. Kate has been in prison ever since, but now her sentence is up. She is being released. But the truth is, I didn't do it. There's only one person who can help: Private Investigator Madison Attallee, the first officer on the scene all those years ago. But there's someone out there who doesn't want Kate digging up the past.

Keladry of Mindelan dreams of becoming squire to the famous female knight Alanna the Lioness, but she worries that she will not be selected by her hero - perhaps not by any knight master. When Kel is picked instead by the legendary Lord Raoul, the unexpected honor shocks her enemies across the realm. Kel must quickly prove herself up to the task, mastering her fighting and leadership skills while discovering what it takes to be part of the royal guard.

Daine has always had a special connection with animals, but only when she’s forced to leave home does she realise it’s more than a knack...it’s magic. With this wild magic, not only can Daine speak to animals, but she can also make them obey her. Daine takes a job handling horses for the Queen’s Riders, where she meets the master mage Numair and becomes his apprentice. Under Numair’s guidance, Daine explores the scope of her magic. But she encounters other beings, too, who are not so gentle.

Gwen, the quick-witted Princess of England, and Arthur, future lord and general gadabout, have been betrothed since birth. Unfortunately, the only thing they can agree on is that they hate each other. When Gwen catches Art kissing a boy and Art discovers where Gwen hides her diary (complete with racy entries about Bridget Leclair, the kingdom's only female knight), they become reluctant allies. By pretending to fall for each other, their mutual protection will be assured.

Wes Anderson has quickly become one of the auteurs of modern American cinema, creating his own distinctive world with pastel colour palettes, meticulous set design, nostalgic soundtracks and a kooky troupe of actors. In this pocket guide, Sophie Monks Kaufman navigates his off-kilter world, strolling across the quadrangles of Rushmore Academy, diving beneath the sea with Team Zissou and checking in to the Grand Budapest Hotel to discover how an awkward indie film nerd from Texas became the most celebrated director of his generation.