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‘Talking Books’ as of August
2012
Aaronovitch, Ben
Rivers of London
My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just another probationary
constable in the Metropolitan Police Service. My only concerns in life
were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit and finding
a way to climb into the panties of WPC Leslie May. Then one night, I tried
to take a statement from a man who was already dead.
Abbott, Jeff
The last minute
Sam Capra is an ex-CIA agent, an ex-husband and a devoted father - to
a child stolen from him by Novem Soles, an intelligence agency as mysterious
as it is powerful. In exchange for his abducted son, the group commands
Sam to commit a high-profile assassination - and his only assistance is
an equally desperate woman.
Ackroyd, Peter
The death of King Arthur
An immortal story of love, adventure, chivalry, treachery and death brought
to new life for our times. The legend of King Arthur has retained its
appeal and popularity through the ages - Mordred's treason, the knightly
exploits of Tristan, Lancelot's fatally divided loyalties and his love
for Guenever, the quest for the Holy Grail.
Adams, Jane
Fragile lives
The battered body of Patrick Duggan is washed up on a beach a short distance
from Frantham. To complicate matters, Edward Parker, who worked for Duggan's
father, disappeared at the same time. Coincidence? Mac, a police officer,
and Rina, an interested outsider, don't think so.
Adams,Jane
The power of one
Why was Paul de Freitas, a games designer, shot dead aboard a luxury yacht
and what secret was he protecting that so many people are prepared to
kill to get hold of? Rina Martin takes it upon herself to get to the bottom
of things, much to the consternation of her friend, DI McGregor.
ADICHIE, Chimamanda Ngozi
Half of a Yellow Sun
The setting is the lead up to and the course of Nigeria's Biafra War in
the 1960's, and the events unfold through the eyes of three central characters
who are swept along in the chaos of civil war. There is Ugwu, the houseboy
of a university lecturer; Olanna, the lecturer's partner; and Richard,
an English journalist who lives with Olanna's twin sister. They are forced
together and separated in unexpected ways throughout the war, each witnessing
events that affect them deeply.
Adie, Kate
Fighting on the Home Front
Best-selling author and award-winning former BBC Chief News Correspondent
Kate Adie reveals the ways in which women's lives changed during World
War One and what the impact has been for women in its centenary year.
ADIE, Kate
Into danger
Ever since her days as a reporter on the front line, Kate Adie has earned
her reputation as one of the most intrepid women of her day. This has
given Kate a curiosity about the people who do the kind of work where
an error is probably lethal. What is really dangerous? Dealing with unexploded
bombs? Trying to milk a king cobra for its venom? On her fascinating quest
she has sought out prostitutes, stuntmen and landmine exploders. All of
them can live knowing they may not make it through the next day - so why
do they do it?
ADLER, Elizabeth
The House in Amalfi
Once Lamour Harrington was a carefree little girl, following her charming,
hard-up, writer father to Italy: first Rome, then the lovely Amalfi coast.
Lamour will never forget the tiny cottage where they spent the happiest
years of her life. Now, nursing a broken heart, she decides to leave Chicago
and her career as a landscape architect to rediscover the Italy of her
memories. In Amalfi, the Castello Pirata with its Japanese garden still
stands; their cottage still waits for her. It even seems as though love
has come back into Lamour's life as the heir to the castello- glamorous
Nico Pirata - sweeps her off her feet. But why does his father Lorenzo
hate a woman he only ever knew as an innocent child? As Lorenzo plots
to make Lamour leave Amalfi forever, long-hidden secrets come to dangerous
life again.
Adler, Elizabeth
It all began in Monte Carlo
Sunny's relationship with Mac is in jeopardy and Monte Carlo beckons.
Soon Sunny is pulled into a web of intrigue involving a series of robberies
of high-end jewellery stores. Then there's her wannabe-new-friend, who
turns out to be a sociopath.
ADLER, Elizabeth
Sailing to Capri
When English tycoon Sir Robert Waldo Hardwick dies mysteriously in a car
accident, he leaves behind a note naming six people he suspects might
have wanted him dead. Daisy Kean, and P.I. Harry Montana team up to take
the suspects—and also six ‘red herrings’—on a
fabulous Mediterranean cruise, all expenses paid by the late Sir Robert.
As they call at Monte Carlo, St. Tropez and Sorrento, the mystery deepens.
And the unexpected twists are just the beginning.
ADLER, Elizabeth
Summer in Tuscany
Gemma, an overworked ER doctor, her mother, Nonna, a typical Italian widow
who spends her week cooking the Sunday supper, and daughter Livvie, a
punked-up but well-adjusted teen, are living normal, unexciting lives
in New York City until Nonna receives a letter informing her of an inheritance
in her childhood village of Bella Piacere. The letter launches the Jerichos
into situations both delicious and funny in a novel in which romance is
detailed as vividly as the landscape of Tuscany.
AKUNIN, Boris
The Winter Queen
Shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award. Moscow, May 1876: What would
cause a talented young musician from a wealthy family to shoot himself
in front of a promenading public in the Alexander Gardens? The commander
of the Criminal Investigation Division thinks that decadence and boredom
are the reasons. But he still finds it curious enough to send Erast Fandorin,
the newest member of the division, to the precinct for more information.
The bizarre and tragic suicide is soon connected to a clear case of murder.
But there are many unresolved questions. Why have both victims left their
fortunes to an orphanage run by the English Lady Astair? Who is the beautiful
"A.B.", whose signed photograph was found in the suicide's apartment?
Relying on his keen intuition, Fandorin plunges into an investigation
that leads him across Europe and to the centre of a terrorist conspiracy
with world wide proportions.
Alison, Rosie
The very thought of you
England, 31st August 1939: the world is on the brink of war. As Hitler
prepares to invade, thousands of children are evacuated from London to
escape the impending Blitz. Eight-year-old Anna Sands is relocated to
a large Yorkshire estate opened up to evacuees by a childless couple.
Soon Anna gets drawn into their unravelling relationship.
Allen, Diane
For a mother's sins
It is 1870 and railway workers and their families have flocked to the
wild and inhospitable moor land known as Batty Green to build a viaduct
on the Midland Railway Company's ambitious new Leeds to Carlisle Line.
Among them are three very different women - tough widow Molly, honest
and God-fearing Mary Pratt, and Helen Parker, downtrodden by her husband
and seeking a better life. When tragedy strikes, the lives of the three
women are bound together, and each is forced to confront the secrets and
calamities that threaten to tear their families apart.
Allen, Diane
For the sake of her family
1912 in the Yorkshire Dales and Alice Bentham and her brother Will have
lost their mother to cancer. Alice gets work at Whernside Manor looking
after Lord Frankland's fragile sister Miss Nancy. For a while everything
runs smoothly, but corruption, attempted murder, and misplaced love are
just waiting in the wings.
ANAM, Tahmimi
A Golden Age
In this striking début novel, set in the nineteen-seventies, a
young widow and her children become caught up in Bangladesh’s war
for independence. Rehana exists on the edge of things: a native of Calcutta,
she was resettled in Dhaka by her husband and speaks Urdu, the language
of West Pakistan, as fluently as Bengali, the language of restive East
Pakistan—soon to be Bangladesh. Her children, though, are fervent
patriots, joining in student marches and making speeches; as rhetoric
becomes revolution, her son joins a guerrilla group and her daughter decamps
to Calcutta to write tracts exposing the atrocities committed by the Pakistani
Army.
ANDREWS, Lyn
Across a Summer Sea
Mary McGann's marriage has always been difficult, thanks to her husband
Frank's drunken, jealous nature. Only because the little money he earns
in the docks keeps food in the mouths of their children is Mary prepared
to put up with him. But when Frank throws them all out on the street,
Mary flees to her family in Dublin. There she meets Richard O'Neill, a
handsome though solitary man. Despite the attraction between them, Mary's
not looking for love, and when she hears that Frank needs her, she returns
to Liverpool, foreseeing a future of yet more hardship. But there are
surprises in store. Though tragedy and danger are looming, a brighter
horizon lies beyond - if Mary's prepared to be strong and take the chances
that come her way.
ANDREWS, Lyn
Angels of Mercy
Blue-eyed, blond-haired, full of smiles and sweetness, even as babies
twins Kate and Evvie Greenway captured the hearts of Liverpool's Scotland
Road slumlands. But now they are almost adults the two girls find that
being pleasant, popular and blessed with a loving family isn't quite enough.
For they've both fallen for men who will break their youthful hearts!
But these sorrows are nothing compared to the tragedies that await them
and so many others when the Great War breaks out. Determined to do their
part, Kate and Evvie sign up for nursing training and are dispatched to
the Front, a terrible world far from the life-affirming energy of their
homes. Can anything, hope, love or the bond that has always united the
sisters, survive all that lies in store for them?
ANDREWS, Lyn
Beyond a misty shore
It is 1945 and the war is finally over. For sisters Sophie and Maria,
though, the upheaval is just beginning. For they have no choice but to
leave their beloved home on the Isle of Man. And, without the men they
love, will the sisters ever find happiness?
Andrews, Lyn
Days of hope
As the Second World War ends, Pat Conroy proposes to 18-year-old Chrissie.
Against her mother's wishes, Chrissie runs away to Ireland to marry Pat.
But life as a housewife isn't what she expected and she finds herself
trapped in an unhappy marriage.
ANDREWS, Lyn
Every Mother’s Son
It's been a good few years since Molly and Bernie left their native Ireland,
and settled in Liverpool. Now, they're both being courted by fine young
men, and the future looks bright. But, 1945 is rapidly approaching, and
soon war is changing everything - destroying homes and lives, and snatching
away long-held dreams...The beautifully evoked backstreets of Liverpool
are the perfect setting for a tale of grit, friendship - and love.
ANDREWS, Lyn
Friends Forever
Best friends Bernie and Molly are just seventeen when they set off from
Ireland in 1928, heading for Liverpool. They quickly find jobs and rooms;
soon both women are in love with local men. Tragically, though, Biddy
is widowed when she's still barely an adult, while Molly has chosen a
bad 'un and faces the deepest shame when he deserts her. But this bad
start only reinforces the bond between the women, and gives them the strength
to build a brighter future.
Andrews, Lyn
From Liverpool with love
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. She finds solace there and the promise of a happy future
when she falls for Joe, their eldest son. But Alfie absconds from the
workhouse and embarks on a life of crime. When their paths cross once
more, Alfie turns on his sister. His plans will jeopardise every happiness
she hoped for.
Andrews, Lyn
Liverpool angels
Born at the turn of the 20th century, Mae Strickland is only a few days
old when her mother suddenly dies. Her aunt Maggie brings Mae up together
with her own children, Eddie and Alice, and the girls become like sisters.
In spite of Mae's unhappy start, life feels full of promise. Then, as
the First World War looms, everything changes. While the local men - including
young Eddie - leave to fight, Mae and Alice train as field nurses. As
they travel to the front line in the wake of family tragedy, nothing can
prepare them for the hardship that lies ahead.
ANDREWS, Lyn
Love and a Promise
Maddy Kiernan knows her situation is desperate. With her parents dead,
her brother Thomas is left as guardian to her and her sister Carmel, and
Thomas, Maddy is all too aware, only cares about himself. When his plans
to marry the daughter of the Protestant canal agent backfire Thomas takes
off to Liverpool, leaving the girls to fend for themselves. Taking the
momentous decision to follow their brother, Maddy leaves for Liverpool.
Within days the girls are destitute, reduced to living in a cellar, their
money gone. Eventually, Maddy finds work as a maid to an old lady, becoming
her unpaid companion and sole beneficiary of her will. But Maddy has to
promise not to marry until the woman who has rescued her and her sister
dies. When Maddy meets a young seaman she realises she may have to choose
between love and that promise.
ANDREWS, Lyn
A Mother’s Love
Eve and Eddie Dobson have been running the George pub in Liverpool for
over twenty years. Now the Depression is taking hold and, with money in
short supply, it's galling for Eve that the barmaid they can barely afford
spends the day making eyes at Eddie rather than pulling her weight behind
the bar. At least her three daughters have never been a worry to Eve.
Lily's dreams of going on the stage haven't led her into trouble, so far.
Sarah seems content to slog away as a waitress, while Maggie's gently
directing her devoted boyfriend to the altar. But when Eddie's flirtation
with the hired help takes an unexpected turn, everything changes, leaving
none of Eve's family untouched! and calling on all the strength of a mother's
love.
ANDREWS, Lyn,
The Queens Promise
An historical epic set in the Tudor court about the most infamous woman
of the age - Anne Boleyn - and the man who loved her before she became
queen. From the moment Henry Percy first glimpses Anne he is captivated
and quickly proposes marriage. But a match of the heart has no place in
a world where marriage is a political manoeuvre.
ANDREWS, Lyn
My Sister’s Child
For the inhabitants of Liverpool's Milton Street a steady income and a
roof over their heads are luxuries. The Ryan family have barely grown
accustomed to such things when a fire destroys their father Jack's modest
coal haulage business, leaving Jack broken and his family facing ruin.
They're forced to turn to Conor, Jack's brother from Ireland, a man whose
noisy joviality seventeen-year-old Ellen Ryan suspects hides a mean viciousness.
She's right, and with her mother sick and her half-sister Annie becoming
increasingly feckless; it's down to Ellen to fight Conor's tyranny. But
when Annie disappears, leaving her baby on their doorstep, Ellen begins
fear for herself and for the life of the innocent child she has learnt
to love...
ANDREWS, Lyn
A Secret in the Family
Dee Campbell and Jean Williams have just left school. They're looking
forward to the future as Liverpool enters the swinging 60s. Living in
a rundown part of the city, soon both their families are reluctantly re-housed
out in Kirkby. But this is just the first of many changes in their lives.
Andrews, Lyn
Sunlight on the Mersey|
The Great War is over, and sisters Iris and Rose are adjusting to life
in their modest Liverpool home after their brother Charlie has returned
from the front. But when their mother sends Rose to the beautiful Welsh
village of Tregarron to recover from an illness she discovers a new world
of possibility at her feet.
Andrews, Lyn
To love and to cherish
Life in 1920s Liverpool for sisters Gloria and Betty Jenkins is secure
and comfortable. Elder sister Gloria finds romance with the boy next door,
until her wealthy, but snobbish and interfering Aunt Sybil steps in, offering
her the opportunity of a lifetime. A trip to New York gives Gloria everything
she desires.
ANDREWS, Lyn
A Wing and a Prayer
For Mary Callaghan marriage has brought heartaches and disappointment.
But with it have come joys, the greatest of which are her daughters, Daisy
and Nell. Mary longs for them to have the one thing denied to her -- a
husband who will offer them kindness, security and love. But when Daisy
confesses she's pregnant, Mary knows the future looks grim, for the father's
a rough, pleasure-loving man. As Nell watches her sister sink into bitter
poverty, and as the world around her grows more uncertain, with war more
likely by the day, risking all for love seems to Nell a foolish game...
ANDREWS, Lyn
The Sisters O’Donnell
Three Irish sisters, red-haired and tempestuous, leave Tipperary for the
Liverpool of the 1920s to seek their fortunes. Their idealism is soon
dashed by the realities of life, and their dreams fade as time and money
begin to run out.
ANDREWS, Lyn
Take these Broken Wings
Thrown into the workhouse at the tender age of 6, Hannah Peckham soon
learns how hard the world is, but she emerges determined to make the most
of what little life has given her. But the deprivations of workhouse life
have left her ill-prepared to fulfill her new position in a prosperous
Liverpool household. Naively she falls in love with a man she can never
have. And when her illusions are finally shattered, she rushes into the
arms of hard-drinking Alfie Duggan and a violent, poverty-stricken marriage
from which there seems no escape.
ANDREWS, Lyn
When Daylight Comes
Maddy and Martin Brennan have a good marriage and two healthy children,
Jess and Patrick. When Martin's lost at sea, though, Maddy's in for a
shock: it transpires that her home is mortgaged and the family's finances
are in a perilous state. Beaten down by a bitter feud with her brother
and by her son Patrick's troublesome behaviour, Maddy carelessly steps
in the path of a runaway horse and loses her life. It's left to young
Jess to make something of the future. From near destitution she launches
a business of her own, earning back the prosperity and respect her mother
had in the end lost. But heartache lies ahead, and when love is on offer,
is the man who wants Jess's heart worthy of it?
ANDREWS, Lyn
Days of Hope
This is a heartwarming story set in 1940s Ireland and Liverpool about
the hurdles two sisters, Chrissie and Grace, must cross on their journey
to finding the happiness they seek. At eighteen, Chrissie runs away to
Ireland to marry the man of her dreams. But life as a housewife isn't
what Chrissie expected and she finds herself trapped in an unhappy marriage.
When Grace goes to visit Chrissie, the last thing she expects is to fall
in love with her sister's husband! Soon all their lives are changed for
ever.
ANDREWS, Virginia
Heart Song
When Melody Logan's mother died in a car accident, Melody lost the last
shred of family she had ever known. She was practically a stranger to
the Logans, her wealthy relatives on Cape Cod, where she now drifted on
a sea of dark secrets. In the eyes of gentle Aunt Sara, Melody was a replacement
for her dead daughter, while for Uncle Jacob she was a reminder of the
family's shameful past. Only good-hearted Cary seemed to care, and since
it was revealed that she and Cary weren't truly cousins, the affection
that had always surged between them now crested in thrilling waves. But
Melody knew she could never truly echo Cary's loving promises until she
discovered her own buried identity.
ANDREWS, Virginia
Runaways
"All for one and one for all" was the girls' motto. In the grim
foster home for orphans run by Louise and Gordon Tooey, at least Brooke,
Crystal, Raven, and Butterfly had each other. Calling themselves "sisters,"
together they could forget the past and dream of a new chance...a real
home. Then they discovered a secret even more haunting than Gordon's heavy
boots pounding on the wooden floors. Their fragile hopes of a better life
shattered, they escaped the only way they could. Soon they were runaways
in a borrowed car, desperately wishing to wake up one morning in a place
of sunshine and love.
Angelou, Maya
I know why the caged bird sings
In this, the first volume of her autobiography, writer and poet Maya Angelou
reflects on her childhood spent growing up in the American South of the
1930s. There she learned the power of the white townsfolk and suffered
the trauma of rape.
ARCHER, Jeffrey
A Prisoner of Birth
A man cannot chose his background, but he can shape his destinyIf Danny
Cartwright had proposed to Beth Wilson the day before, or the day after,
he would not have been arrested and charged with the murder of his best
friend. And when the four prosecution witnesses are a barrister, a known
actor, an aristocrat and a partner in an established firm, who is going
to believe his side of the story? Danny is sentenced to 22 years in Belmarsh
prison - the highest security jail in the land. But it seems that everyone
has underestimated Danny's determination to seek revenge and Beth's relentless
quest to win justice, forcing all four protagonists to fight for their
lives.
Archer, Jeffrey
Be careful what you wish for
'Be Careful What You Wish For' opens with Harry Clifton and his wife Emma
rushing to hospital to learn the fate of their son Sebastian, who has
been involved in a fatal car accident. But who died, Sebastian or his
best friend Bruno? When Ross Buchanan is forced to resign as chairman
of the Barrington Shipping Company, Emma Clifton wants to replace him.
But Don Pedro Martinez intends to install his puppet, the egregious Major
Alex Fisher, in order to destroy the Barrington family firm just as the
company plans to build its new luxury liner, the MV Buckingham. Back in
London, Harry and Emma's adopted daughter wins a scholarship to the Slade
Academy of Art where she falls in love with a fellow student, Clive Bingham,
who asks her to marry him. Both families are delighted until Priscilla
Bingham, Jessica s future mother-in-law, has a visit from an old friend,
Lady Virginia Fenwick.
Armstrong, Campbell
Butcher
This 'private' investigation leads DS Lou Perlman into some places he
could never have anticipated - into illegal surgical operations, and finding
corpses whose bodies have been stripped of their organs and dumped. And
all the while, it's drawing him closer to gang boss Reuben Chuck.
ARMSTRONG, Campbell
White Rage
When a young Asian entrepreneur dies in a suspicious fall from his high-rise
apartment in Glasgow, and an Indian kindergarten teacher is gunned down
in front of her class it's clear to Detective Sergeant Lou Perlman that
he is dealing with racially motivated murder. The emergence of a group
called White Rage and a growing sense of fear across the city of Glasgow
mean that Perlman needs some answers quickly. At the same time, he needs
to make sense of a crime that is closer to home -- the mysterious shooting
of his own brother Colin. Lou's conviction that the killing is connected
to the underworld boss Leo Kilroy nags at his mind almost as much as his
unspoken love for Colin's widow Miriam. And when Lou Perlman looks beneath
the glittering new surface of the city in which he was born, he finds
all sorts of ancient connections, some of them painful, some of them shocking,
many of them disturbing.
Armstrong, David
A pact of silence
In the long, hot summer of 1969, two young men are involved in the accidental
killing of their boss in a Shropshire market town. Traumatized, they conceal
his body, but leave behind a vital clue.
Armstrong, Kelley
Spell bound
Savannah Levine is in danger. Caught in the grip of a disturbing and violent
murder case, Savannah swore to give up her unique gifts if it would save
an innocent young girl. Little did she know that someone - or something
- was listening. Now she has no idea how to restore her powers, just when
she needs them the most.
Armstrong, Kelley
Waking the witch
Columbus is a small, fading town untouched by the 21st century. When three
women are found dead - victims of what appear to be ritual murders, things
get very dark & dangerous. PI Savannah Levine can handle 'dark &
dangerous'. She is the daughter of a black witch & has a lot of power
running through her veins, & she's not afraid to use it.
Asher, Michael
The flaming sword
October 1942 - Egypt. The battle for North Africa rages fiercely along
the length of the Egyptian coast. Punching their way deep behind enemy
lines, the newly formed SAS - under the enigmatic Lt. Col. David Stirling
- carries out daring raids against the Germans.
Ashford, Brenda
Tuppence for paper and string
It is 1945, and victory marches fill the streets of London. Before long
Brenda's skills as a real life Mary Poppins are in demand again. Moving
from house to house, Brenda never stays long, but just enough time to
sprinkle a little magic. Word quickly spreads of this wonder nanny, who
gets up to feed fretful babies in the middle of the night, who delivers
quiet wisdom, and calmly restores order and happiness. Facing tragedy
in her own life, Brenda never gives up on her quest to help the most troubled
homes, changing hundred's of children's lives forever.
Ashford, Jeffrey
Criminal innocence
Steven Drury, a respectable barrister, is in the wrong place at the wrong
time. Returning to his car in a deserted car park after a late night party,
he is taken by surprise and knocked to the ground. As the assailant opens
his own car door, whose light comes on, a partially conscious Drury catches
a glimpse of his attacker's face.
Ashworth, Elizabeth
The de Lacy inheritance
Using characters known to recorded history, Elizabeth Ashworth weaves
a tale of loves lost and found during the exile of Richard the Lionheart.
ASTLEY, Judy
Muddy Waters
This is the story of Stella, an advice columnist for a teenage magazine.
Stella's friends assume she doesn't have any problems of her own and deluge
her with their woes. Abigail, deserted by her husband, moves in with Stella,
but then starts to move in on Stella's husband.
BAGSHAWE, Louise
Destiny
Orphan Kate Fox is determined to make her mark in the world, and what
better way to secure her future than to marry money? When she attracts
the attention of media mogul Marcus Broder, it seems as though all of
Kate's dreams have come true. But marriage to Marcus isn't everything
she imagined.
BAGSHAWE, Louise
Glamour
Texan honey Sally Lassiter, English rose Jane Morgan, and exotic Jordanian
beauty Helen Yanna meet at an exclusive girls’ school in L.A. and
vow that nothing will ever tear them apart. But when catastrophe strikes,
two of the young women find themselves grieving and penniless, and the
third will be forced into a fate she could never have foreseen. In their
struggle to rebuild their lives, Helen, Sally, and Jane come together
to create a high-end department store called Glamour. But as money and
recognition rocket them into the spotlight, they quickly discover what
happens to promises when money is no object, lust has no bounds, and glamour
is worth everything in this seductive rags–to– riches saga.
BAGSHAWE, Louise
Passion
Orphan William Hyde and professor's daughter Melissa Elmet fell passionately
in love as teenagers at Oxford. But, after her family intervenes, their
secret marriage is annulled. Heartbroken, Melissa retreats into her shell,
now a shy academic. Will, on the other hand, joins MI6 - then becomes
a millionaire in New York, with a model girlfriend and only dark memories
of the young woman who broke his heart. Their lives are completely different.
They'll never meet again. And then the killings start. Only Will notices
the link to all four high-profile murders: Melissa's late father, the
secretive professor who died working on a confidential project. And now
he fears the next hit will be Melissa - unless he can get to her first.
BAGSHAWE, Tilly
Flawless
Set in the glittering world of international diamond dealing, Flawless
follows the fortunes of idealistic young designer Scarlett Drummond Murray
as she battles her way through the snake pits of greed and corruption
in the jewellery business. From London to Beverly Hills, New York to Cape
Town, Scarlett finds herself plunged into a world of ruthless mine owners,
shady diamond dealers, and the stunningly beautiful women for whom they
all compete, in business and in bed. All of them, in their different ways,
are prepared to sell their souls and sacrifice everything in pursuit of
that one, elusive, perfect stone, no matter what the cost.
BAILEY, Jane
Mad Joy
In the beginning a small girl runs into a wood, and two years later walks
out of it and into the nearest house. Gracie, the childless spinster who
finds her curled up on her armchair, takes her on as her own, seeing her
as a feral gift of fate. Known as Joy in the Cotswold village that adopts
her, there is endless speculation about her wild past and comical ways.
In this moving and passionate tale, Joy grows into a young woman at the
advent of World War II, and when she becomes romantically involved with
a fighter pilot the extraordinary mystery of her past slowly unravels.
BAINBRIDGE, Beryl
Another Part of the Woods
One would imagine that camping in a lovely cottage in the Welsh countryside
would result in a heavenly holiday for this group of adults and children.
Michael Tudor Barnes provides suspense as he creates the backdrop for
impending disaster. As tension builds among the vacationing eccentrics,
Barnes stays well abreast of their irritating habits, problematic relationships,
and dysfunctional behaviors as they become more and more miserable, despite
the idyllic setting. His performance reflects mounting tension as their
squabbles and self-centered behaviors distract them from a child's severe
personality disorder, resulting in a disastrous culmination of events.
BAINBRIDGE, Beryl
Winter Garden
Quiet and reliable, Douglas Ashburner has never been much of a womaniser.
So when he begins an extra-marital affair with Nina, a bossy, temperamental
artist with a penchant for risky sex, he finds adultery a terrible strain.
He tells his wife that he needs a rest, so she happily packs him off for
a fishing holiday in the Highlands. Only, unknown to her, Douglas is actually
flying off to Moscow with Nina, as a guest of the Soviet Artists' Union.
It is then that things begin to get very complicated indeed...
Baker, Anne
Daughters of the Mersey
With the scars of World War I still fresh, the Dransfield family face
further challenges. When Steven Dransfield loses his fortune in the Depression,
his wife Leonie is forced to save the family from ruin. But Steve resents
the success of her dressmaking business and, trapped in a loveless marriage,
Leonie is drawn into the arms of another man.
BAKER, Anne
Jilted
When Eustacia Hope is jilted at the altar, her parents decide to save
her reputation by sending her to stay with her godmother, Lady Agatha
Rayner, a clergyman's widow. Eustacia's mother warns her to have nothing
to do with Lady Agatha's brother, the notorious Lord Ashbourne, nor with
his son, Lord Ilam. Soon after her arrival, Eustacia meets Lord Ilam.
The two are attracted to one another, and Ilam even takes her to meet
his foster family, who farm locally. But it is only after the arrival
of Eustacia's estranged fiancT and the unexpected appearance of Lord Ashbourne
that matters can be resolved in a way that is satisfactory to all parties.
Baker, Anne.
Let the bells ring
Hannah and her mother Esme are lucky to escape when their home is destroyed
during a bombing raid. Forced to move in with Esme's sister-in-law, they
make the best of things. Soon Hannah falls for Eric Goodwin. Is innocent
Hannah being drawn into an unpredictable and dangerous world of crime?
Baker, Anne
A Liverpool legacy
On a spring day in 1947, Millie and Pete Maynard take their daughter Sylvie
on a boat trip that is to end in tragedy. Poor Sylvie blames herself for
the accident and Millie needs all her strength to comfort her children
and overcome her grief. Then Pete's Will is read and further heartache
lies in store. Meanwhile, Pete's younger brother and his good-for-nothing
sons try to take control of the family business, but they've underestimated
Millie's indomitable spirit. She's worked in Maynard's perfume laboratory
for 18 years and is determined to protect her husband's legacy no matter
what obstacles are thrown in her way.
Baker, Anne
Liverpool love song|
When Helen Redwood is tragically widowed, she and her daughter, Chloe,
move to Liverpool to be closer to her family. But it is tending her beautiful
garden with her handsome young gardener, Rex Kenwright that ultimately
saves Helen from grief.
BAKER, Anne
Love is blind
Patsy Rushton's brother Barney doesn't know the meaning of hard work,
so when their father tragically dies, Patsy has no choice but to save
the family's business. Meanwhile, Barney has got his girlfriend pregnant
and, feeling trapped, he abandons her and leaves Merseyside altogether.
BAKER, Anne
Nancy’s war
When Nancy Seymour's RAF pilot husband, Charles, is killed, her life falls
apart. Not only has she lost the man she loved so dearly, but she also
loses her home and must find a way to support herself and their little
girl, Caro, on her own.
BARKER, Ann
Spoiled
Evangeline Granby is so tired of her aunt's lectures on morality that
she allows a handsome young gallant to take her to an inn where they indulge
in a desperate and very improper flirtation. Never expecting to see him
again, Evangeline is horrified to discover that he is the Reverend Michael
Buckleigh.
BAKER, Anne
Theodora in love
After her father's death, Theodora Buckleigh's new adopted family want
to give her a London season. But though she is a pretty girl, Theodora
has limped from birth, and dreads exposure to the social round. She accepts
an invitation from Dorothy Wordsworth to stay with her and her poet brother,
William, in Dorset.
Baker, Anne
Wartime girls
It is the day of the Grand National, 1933, when Susie Ingram's fiancé,
Danny, is killed in a tragic accident. In a cruel twist of fate, Susie
discovers she is carrying Danny's child and, shunned by his parents, she
turns to her mother for support. Louise Ingram, widowed during the First
World War, knows how hard it is to bring up a family alone, but with the
help of her eldest daughter, Martha, who lives next door, they manage
to survive. When little Rosie is born there is no doubt that she is Danny's
daughter, but it is destined to take many more years of heartache before
the two families are united again.
BAKEWELL, Joan
The View From Here: Life at Seventy
Built loosely on her much-loved Guardian column, Just 70, The View from
Here is Bakewell's discerning and heartwarming account of life at 70 and
beyond. A household name and a popular radio and TV broadcaster, Bakewell
is the ideal ambassador for challenging what being 70 can mean for women
today. All of life, including the taboos of old age, are here - work,
family, love, sex, body and death - written about with humour, warmth,
and Bakewell's characteristic verve and intelligence.
BAKER, Anne
The Best of Fathers
Childhood sweethearts Mary and Jonty have battled against the odds to
be together. Forced to run away from home because Mary's father disapproved
of their relationship, they've built a happy new life for themselves.
Now they long for a child, but it seems that's not to be. Until one stormy
night when a yacht is dashed upon the rocks near their home. Mary and
Jonty rush to the rescue and, amid terrible carnage, save a baby. They
name her Charlotte - and keep her as their own.Charlotte grows up to be
devoted to her parents. But fate intervenes when she decides to train
as a nurse in Liverpool. For Liverpool is where her 'real' family lives:
and it seems that past secrets are to be uncovered -- with shocking consequences.
BAKER, Anne
Echoes across the Mersey
It is August 1914 and the threat of war weighs heavily on the people of
Liverpool, but not on Sarah Hoxton. Sarah risks everything for love, faces
what seem to be insurmountable obstacles, and discovers a light at the
end of the tunnel and it shines from a different direction to what is
expected.
BAKER, Anne
Goodbye Liverpool
A dramatic and gripping Liverpool saga. When Suzy Lunt's widowed mother
Josie marries Luke Palmer, it's mainly to keep a roof over their heads.
But soon Josie realises she's made a mistake, and she and Suzy flee Liverpool
and a man they now fear. But will they be safe from the past in Birkenhead?
Nostatgic scenes of Liverpool life enhance this touching portrayal of
a mother and daughter bound by love and danger.
BAKER, Anne
Keep the Home Fires Burning
Lovely young Cathy is left pregnant with her first child when her husband
is killed in the war. For a while she lives with her in-laws, but she
leaps at the chance to return as a maid to the household where she worked
before her marriage. With the birth of her daughter she is compelled to
return to her parents-in-law, a less than ideal situation, particularly
when in due course Cathy is being courted by dear old friend. When Cathy
marries again and sets up in the antiques business with her husband, it
looks like at last she will find the happiness she deserves, but she has
made an enemy who can't bear to see Cathy enjoying her life...
BAKER, Anne.
Echoes Across the Mersey
It’s August 1914 in Liverpool and the threat of war is looming over
everyone’s minds. But Sarah Hoxton has entirely different concerns
to deal with. She will risk everything for love, and must face obstacles
that seem insurmountable. But Sarah has strengths within her that she
is yet to discover, and when eventually she does find the light at the
end of the tunnel it comes from a different direction that is expected..
BAKER, Anne.
Goodbye Liverpool
When Josie Lunt is tragically and suddenly widowed on the eve of her daughter’s
eleventh birthday, she turns to her husband’s colleague Luke Palmer
for comfort and support. Luke is handsome and compassionate but, unbeknownst
to Josie, he has few friends and many secrets. Luke proposes to Josie
– and with a growing daughter to feed and a single income to survive
on, she eventually decides to accept. But it is not long before she comes
to regret her decision.
BAKER, Keith
Inheritance
When retired RUC officer Bob McCallan is blown up in a gas explosion,
his son Jack inherits an unexpected fortune. He also inherits a key to
the past. The violence in Northern Ireland has been over for 20 years,
but there are still secrets that could shatter the peace.
Ballantyne, Lisa
The guilty one
A little boy is found dead in a children's playground. Daniel Hunter has
spent years defending lost causes. But his life changes when he is introduced
to Sebastian, an 11-year-old accused of murder. As he plunges into the
muddy depths of Sebastian's troubled life, Daniel thinks back to his own
childhood in foster care.
BALOGH, Mary
No man’s mistress
Lord Ferdinand Dudley is accustomed to getting what he wants - that is,
until he appears at the door of Pinewood Manor, attempting to claim his
rightful estate, and is met by the bewitching fury of Lady Viola Thornhill.
She refuses to relinquish the home she calls her own. He refuses to leave
and so the contest begins.
BANKS, Iain
Dead Air
Iain Banks' daring new novel opens in a loft apartment in the East End,
in a former factory due to be knocked down in a few days. Ken Nott is
a devoutly contrarian vaguely left wing radio shock-jock living in London.
After a wedding breakfast people start dropping fruits from a balcony
on to a deserted carpark ten storeys below, then they start dropping other
things; an old TV that doesn't work, a blown loudspeaker, beanbags, other
unwanted furniture...Then they get carried away and start dropping things
that are still working, while wrecking the rest of the apartment. But
mobile phones start ringing and they're told to turn on a TV, because
a plane has just crashed into the World Trade Centre.
Banks, Iain
The quarry
Kit doesn't know who his mother is. What he does know, however, that his
father, Guy, is dying of cancer. Feeling his death is imminent, Guy gathers
around him his oldest friends - or at least the friends with the most
to lose by his death. But what will happen to Kit when Guy is gone? And
why isn't Kit's mother in the picture? As the friends reunite for Guy's
last days, old jealousies, affairs and lies come to light as Kit watches
on.
BANKS, Iain
Stonemouth
Stewart Gilmour is back in Stonemouth. After 5 years in exile his presence
is required at the funeral of patriarch Joe Murston, and even though the
last time Stu saw the Murstons he was running for his life, staying away
might be even more dangerous than turning up.
Banks, Iain
Surface detail
Lededje Y'breq is one of the Intagliated, her marked body bearing witness
to a family shame, her life belonging to a man whose lust for power is
without limit. Prepared to risk everything for her freedom, her release,
when it comes, is at a price, and to put things right she will need the
help of the Cult.
BANVILLE, John
The Sea
Max Morden has reached a crossroads in his life, and is trying hard to
deal with several disturbing things. A recent loss is still taking its
toll on him, and a trauma in his past is similarly proving hard to deal
with. He decides that he will return to a town on the coast at which he
spent a memorable holiday when a boy. His memory of that time devolves
on the charismatic Grace family, particularly the seductive twins Myles
and Chloe. In a very short time, Max found himself drawn into a strange
relationship with them, and pursuant events left their mark on him for
the rest of his life. But will he be able to exorcise those memories of
the past?
BARBER, Ann
Lady of Lincoln
Emily Whittaker’s life in Lincoln is one of good works and the closest
thing to romance in her experience is her lukewarm relationship with Dr.
Boyle. A new friendship with Nathalie Fanshawe brings interest to her
life and makes possible a visit to the seaside which will change everything.
BARCLAY, Alex
Blood runs cold
When the body of FBI agent Jean Transom is found on the frozen slopes
of Quandary Peak, the nearby town of Breckenridge, Colorado, becomes the
focus of a major investigation. A quiet, dedicated agent on the surface,
it soon becomes clear there was another side to Jean Transom, and who
better to uncover it than special Agent Ren Bryce, an expert in violent
crime and a woman with secrets of her own; secrets that could compromise
the entire investigation and put an end to her distinguished career. Ren
needs to know who she can trust - because the last person she can trust
is herself.
Barclay, Alex
Time of death
FBI agent Ren Bryce's work chasing some of the most-wanted killers in
the country becomes a nightmare when family tragedy rears its head. But
there's unfinished business between Ren and those she's pursuing. One
of her closest friends disappears in suspicious circumstances, and suddenly
Ren's biggest secrets are about to be laid bare.
BARCLAY, Tessa
A Better Class of Person
Former crown prince Gregory of Hirtenstein (known as just plain Gregory
Crowne after his father was deposed), and his girlfriend, Liz, have been
invited to an exotic birthday bash on a remote Greek island. The birthday
girl is Elissa Paroskolos, whose recently deceased father was one of the
wealthiest men in the world. Elissa will come into her inheritance now
that she's turning 25, thus the extravagant birthday celebration. But
when Greg and Liz arrive, they sense something's not right. Greg has known
Elissa since she was a child, and she's always been a bad-tempered, selfish
brat. The Elissa who's being feted seems sweet, mild, and slightly disoriented.
And she's grown much taller since Greg saw her a few years ago. Puzzled,
Greg and Liz begin investigating, only to find a bizarre plot involving
elaborate disguises, fraud, and scandal.
BARCLAY, Tessa
The Champagne Girls
They are Champagne Girls, two cousins who enjoy the finest things in life
in France in La Belle Epogue. Yet riches have their responsibilities and,
for Netta, propriety demands that she abandon her one passion - her -music
- to make a socially acceptable marriage. And for the younger Gaby, wealth
cannot protect her from the pain of a broken heart....The second novel
in the sequence that began with The Wine Widow stands on its own as a
dramatic saga of fluctuating family fortunes. From the 1880s to the end
of the Great War, we follow the lives of the Tramont champagne family
as they face the threat to the vineyards posed by the phylloxera beetle
- and the consequences of their involvement in the Dreyfus affair, a scandal
that shakes France to its roots.
BARCLAY, Tessa
Diamonds in Disguise
Gregory, the former crown prince of Hirtenstein, can't say no to his grandmother,
that country's ex-queen mother (who's presently working as a decorator
for a well-known but unpopular Italian politician), when she asks him
to leave Geneva for Rome to investigate the loss of some valuable diamonds.
Viewing the trip as a chance also for a romantic getaway, Gregory invites
his girlfriend, Liz Blair, to join him, in spite of his grandmother's
dislike of Liz and her commoner status. When a female cousin living in
the politician's villa is found dead, the police conclude death by accidental
poisoning, but as Gregory and Liz delve into the lives of family, guests
and staff, it becomes clear the cousin was a victim of foul play. Whodunit
fans will enjoy trying to figure out the puzzle before the dramatic conclusion.
BARCLAY, Tessa
Farewell Performance
Concert agent Gregory Crowne (a.k.a. crown prince Gregory of Hirtenstein)
organizes the Edinburgh Festival, during which an international audience
will hear a work featuring eight cellists. The most famous of these, Talik
Edder, discovers that someone has stolen the Stradivarius cello that he
had just purchased at an Edinburgh auction. The suspects include an adamant
Japanese industrialist, a spurned soprano soloist, an emotional Brazilian
groupie, and others staying at the musicians' hotel until murder eliminates
one of them. Much satisfying entertainment arises from this conglomeration
of musical egos and clever confusion of cellos
BARCLAY, Tessa
A Final Discord
Gregory Crowne, the former Crown Prince of Hirtenstein, might not know
anything about jazz, but he does know that when Auguste Guidon, the president
of one of Switzerland's largest banks, asks him for a favor, the answer
is yes. So despite the fact that Gregory's business involves classical
music, he agrees to help Auguste's son Gilles put together a jazz band.
Gregory is able to engage four other musicians, but things quickly get
complicated. When one of the musicians turns up dead, Gregory finds a
last-minute replacement, but the man shows up with his beautiful sister,
Morena Ferigiano, who soon has Gilles bewitched, bothered, and bewildered.
Then one of the band's most vocal critics, Auguste's old family nurse,
goes missing, and Gilles "disappears" with Morena, leaving Gregory
to try to discover who is trying to break up the band, permanently.
Barclay, Tessa
Richer than rubies
When millionaire businessman Ivan Digby asks jewellery designer Jo Radcliffe
to create a necklace using precious stones from the priceless 'Fieldingley
Necklace', Jo is intrigued. But when the stones are found to be fakes,
it's Jo who finds herself under attack.
BARCLAY, Tessa
Ties of Affection
The Moorfield family was the worst client in the history of Housecare
Helpers. Already four of Olivia Fletcher’s employees had refused
to ever go back to their home, and now Olivia is at her wit’s end.
After Philip Moorfield insists that she honor the yearlong contract his
family has with her firm, Olivia has no option but to take on the task
of cleaning the Moorfield’s home herself. When Olivia arrives at
the Moorfield’s Victorian mansion in Ashgrove, her plan is to stick
to simply cleaning, but before she knows it, Olivia not only finds herself
tidying up the Moorfield’s home but also helping them to tidy up
their disorganized lives.
Barker, Ann
Spoiled
Evangeline Granby is so tired of her aunt's lectures on morality that
she allows a handsome young gallant to take her to an inn where they indulge
in a desperate and very improper flirtation. Never expecting to see him
again, Evangeline is horrified to discover that he is the Reverend Michael
Buckleigh.
BARRETT, Maria
Still Voices
Three lives converge...Charles, a respected professor of History, is writing
a book on a Victorian crime of passion. Lotte is unhappily married to
Gordon, a bully of a man who has reduced her self esteem to an almost
irretrievable low. She stays for the sake of the children, but when she
finds out he has been having an affair that is no longer reason enough.
Annie Taylor has been newly promoted to Detective Inspector, but has had
to move from the Met to the provinces in order to get the job. She is
under pressure to perform, her team are antagonistic, her personal life
a mess. Then a student disappears, Claire Thompson, one of Charles' tutorial
group, a loner who has problems dealing with reality. DI Taylor heads
the investigation and Charles finds himself in the frame for abduction…
BAUER, Belinda
Blackheads
Steven Lamb digs holes on Exmoor, hoping to lay to rest the ghost of his
uncle, who disappeared aged 11 and is assumed to have fallen victim to
the serial killer Arnold Avery. Only Steven's Nan is not convinced her
son is dead. Steven is determined to heal the widening cracks in his family
before it's too late. And if that means presenting his grandmother with
the bones of her murdered son, he'll do it. So the boy takes the next
logical step, carefully crafting a letter to Arnold Avery in prison. And
there begins a dangerous game between a desperate child and a bored serial
killer. A game that will have more terrifying consequences than Stephen
could ever imagine...
Bauer, Belinda
Darkside
Shipcott in bleak mid-winter: a close-knit community where no stranger
goes unnoticed. So when an elderly woman is murdered in her bed, village
policeman Jonas Holly is doubly shocked. How could someone have entered
her house, killed her, and left no trace?
Baxter, Lily
Spitfire girl
It is 1940 and 18 year-old Susan longs to do her duty. Her secret ambition
is to learn to fly. She meets Tony, a flying instructor, and friendship
blossoms into love. Susan is forced to flee London and is taken in by
a kindly innkeeper. She then receives news that Tony is missing in action.
Will she realise her dreams of love and flying?
BEEVOR, Antony
The Battle for Spain
To mark the 70th anniversary of the Spanish Civil War’s outbreak,
Antony Beevor has written a completely updated and revised account of
one of the most bitter and hard-fought wars of the twentieth century.
With new material gleaned from the Russian archives and numerous other
sources, this brisk and accessible book provides a balanced and penetrating
perspective, explaining the tensions that led to this terrible overture
to World War II and affording new insights into the war—its causes,
course, and consequences.
BENNETT, Anne
A mother’s spirit
Gloria Sullivan and her Irish husband moved to London after the Wall Street
crash to start again. World War Two was raging and her husband became
injured while fighting fires at night. When an American base begins recruiting
civilians to help in the war, Gloria tells everyone it's her chance to
do her bit but will she be tempted to do more?
BENNETT, Anne
A Mother’s Only Child
Maria is a girl with a great talent for fabric design, and while the world
becomes embroiled in war, all she can think of is her scholarship to the
prestigious Grafton Academy. But then her father has a dreadful accident
and her mother breaks down in guilt and grief. Maria, the only child,
must care for them. Her hopes are dashed, not only of her career, but
of marrying the one who's loved her for years. Reluctantly, Maria is driven
into the arms of the supposedly reliable Barney. But he's no such thing.
This is a superb saga of love, loss and family closeness, set against
the tumultuous years of the war and its aftermath.
Bennett, Anne
To have and to hold
Carmel Duffy is the eldest child of a brutal and abusive marriage, and
she can't wait to leave home. She's equally determined to have no husband
or children of her own - what she wants more than anything is to be a
nurse. As soon as she turns 18, she heads to Birmingham and begins her
training.
BENNETT, Maggie
A Child of her Time
A Child of Her Time is a story of prejudice, passion and one woman's struggle
to fight for what she really wants in life - against all odds. At twenty-five,
teacher Phyllis Bird is still living with her parents in a quiet Hampshire
village. With so many young men lost in the Great War, including her own
brothers, her life is empty and her future without hope. Until, desperate
to break out of her mundane existence, she decides to take up the position
of nursery maid in the London home of acclaimed playwright Harold Berridge.
Betts, Charlotte
The chateau on the lake
As a teacher at her parents' Academy for Young Ladies in the heart of
London, Madeleine Moreau has lived her life sheltered from the outside
world. But on the night of a dazzling Masquerade, tragedy strikes and
she is left alone in the world. Desperate to find the family she never
knew, Madeleine impulsively travels to France in search of them. But with
war around the corner, and fearing for Madeleine's safety, the enigmatic
Comte Etienne d'Aubery offers her shelter at his home, Chateau Mirabelle.
As the Revolution gathers momentum and the passions of the populace are
enflamed, Madeleine must take control of her own destiny and unravel events
of the past in order to secure a chance at future happiness.
Billingham, Mark
The bones beneath
Stuart Nicklin, the most dangerous psychopath he has ever put behind bars,
promises to reveal the whereabouts of a body he buried 25 years before.
But only if Thorne agrees to escort him. Unable to refuse, Thorne gathers
a team and travels to a remote Welsh island, at the mercy of the weather
and cut off from the mainland. Thorne is determined to get the job done
and return home before Nicklin can outwit them. But Nicklin knows this
island well. Soon, new bodies are added to the old, and Thorne finds himself
facing the toughest decision he has ever had to make.
Billingham, Mark
The dying hours
It's been 25 years since Tom Thorne last went to work wearing the 'Queen's
cloth' but now, having stepped out of line once too often, he's back in
uniform. He's no longer a detective, and he hates it. Still struggling
to adjust, Thorne becomes convinced that a spate of suicides among the
elderly in London is something more sinister. His concerns are dismissed
by the Murder Squad he was once part of and he is forced to look into
it alone.
BILLINGHAM, Mark
Good as dead
Police officer Helen Weeks walks into her local newsagent's on her way
to work. Little does she know that this simple daily ritual will change
her life forever. It's the last place she expects to be met with violence,
but as she waits innocently at the till, she comes face to face with a
gunman.
Billingham, Mark
Time of death
Two schoolgirls are abducted in the small, dying Warwickshire town of
Polesford, driving a knife into the heart of the community where police
officer Helen Weeks grew up and from which she long ago escaped. But this
is a place full of secrets, where dangerous truths lie buried.
Billington, Rachel
Maria and the admiral
Valparaiso, June 1822. Thomas Cochrane has led the Chilean fleet to victory,
and as the news spreads of the country's independence from Spain, a British
woman, Maria Graham, watches from her house near Valparaiso Bay. In Maria
Graham Cochrane meets a woman whose intelligence and spirit of adventure
match his own.
BILLINGTON, Rachel
One Summer
K, a middle-aged painter, has returned from a hermit-like existence in
Chile to attend the wedding of a girl he once loved to the point of obsession.
He arrives at the English country church to find it empty and silent.
The wedding has been postponed. He drives back to his hotel - a place
he'd visited many years before - opens a bottle of champagne and with
it, a door to the past. When K first saw Claudia fifteen years before,
he fell instantly and dangerously in love. He managed to forget. He had
a wife and a life already full. It was a coup de foudre; he became consumed
by her. But Claudia was little more than a child then, twenty-four years
his junior, beautiful but unformed. Perhaps it was no surprise that their
love proved to be so destructive and ultimately tragic. Now, years later,
he returns to find this new bride, his old love, is on the verge of a
very different future. But the past, inevitably, awaits them both - and
he is determined to take her back there...
BILLINGTON, Rachel
Theo and Matilda
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. A hundred years later, Abbeyfields has become a psychiatric
hospital, where Theo and Matilda are patients. Today, a new Theo and Matilda
have come home in search of a new page of history on which to write their
story.
BINCHY, Maeve
Nights of Rain and Stars
Four strangers on holiday in Greece band together after witnessing a tragic
boating accident to become friends, and lovers, in an enchanting story
that explores the mercurial nature of friendships and the elusive meaning
of family. Residents of different countries, the four vacationers discover
a commonality: a desire to escape contentious family situations back home.
Serendipitously, two locals, Andreas and Vonni, befriend the travelers
and help them gain perspectives that will put their unsettled lives in
order.
BINCHY, Maeve
Echoes
Set in Castlebay, a village on the coast of Ireland, where class lines
are strictly observed and morals publicly monitored. The youngest daughter
of a shopkeeper, Clare O'Brien is determined to move beyond her present
circumstances. Hard work and the guidance of an irreverent, caring schoolteacher
bring the resolute scholar to a college in Dublin. There, her steps falter
when she enters into an ardent affair with David Power, the son of Castlebay's
only doctor. Although David returns her love, their devotion is sorely
tested when they are forced to marry and return home. As a wealthy, new-fledged
doctor, David easily resumes his privileged position, but Clare is trapped
between her mother-in-law's cold fury and the town's unease.
BINGHAM, Charlotte
Distant Music
Life was tough in England after the Second World War -- at least it was
for those who were not part of some particular elite, the fabulously wealthy
or the tiny coterie of British film and theatre stars. Little wonder then
that Elsie Lancaster, the granddaughter of a theatrical landlady, thinks
of nothing else but trying to become one of that shining constellation.
Surprising therefore, given their very different origins, that Oliver
Plunkett shares the same ambition, for his is the pampered background
of old money. Groomed from an early age by his father's theatre-mad butler,
there is no other world to which he aspires. No such ambition infuses
his best friend, the kooky Coco Hampton. Theatre for her is all about
costume, costume, costume. That they all become involved with Portly Cosgrove
-- sometime manager, and soon-to-be-agent -- is part of the inevitable
flow of theatrical life, as is the fact that they become emotionally entangled
with each other.
Bird, Dickie
80 not out
Dickie Bird remains the most famous umpire of them all and is still highly
respected throughout the world. Here, as he approaches his 80th birthday,
he recalls the highlights of his life in cricket, while also providing
an insight into what he has been up to since his retirement.
Bishop, Patrick|
Bomber boys
Patrick Bishop looks back at the lives, human realities and the extraordinary
risks that the painfully young pilots took during the strategic air-offensive
against Germany from 1939-1945.
Bishop, Patrick
Wings
From one of Britain's bestselling historians comes a compelling narrative
history of the Royal Air Force. Studded with eye-witness accounts of the
epic actions of 20th century aerial warfare, 'Wings' marks the centenary
of this great British institution.
Black, Benjamin
The black-eyed blonde
It is the early 1950s. In Los Angeles, private detective Philip Marlowe
is as restless and lonely as ever, and business is a little slow. Then
a new client arrives: young, beautiful, and expensively dressed, Clare
Cavendish wants Marlowe to find her former lover, a man named Nico Peterson.
Soon Marlowe will find himself not only under the spell of the black-eyed
blonde, but tangling with one of Bay City's richest families and developing
a singular appreciation for how far they will go to protect their fortune.
Black, Benjamin
Holy orders
1950s Dublin. When a body is found in the canal, pathologist Quirke and
his detective friend Inspector Hackett must find the truth behind this
brutal murder. But in a world where the police are not trusted and secrets
often remain buried there is perhaps little hope of bringing the perpetrator
to justice.
Black, Benjamin
The silver swan
Time has moved on for Quirke, the world-weary Dublin pathologist. It is
the middle of the 1950s, that low, dishonourable decade; a woman he loved
has died, a man whom he once admired is dying, while the daughter he for
so long denied is still finding it hard to accept him as her father.
Black, Sean.
The devil's bounty
A blood-soaked woman stumbles into Ryan Lock's hotel, desperately seeking
his help. To bring her attacker to justice, Lock will have to enter the
no-man's land of the Mexican borders, where life is cheap and death comes
quickly.
Black, Tony.
Truth lies bleeding
Four teenagers find the mutilated corpse of a young girl stuffed into
a dumpster in an Edinburgh alleyway. Who is she? Where did she come from?
Who killed her and why? Inspector Rob Brennan is still shocked by the
senseless shooting of his brother. The case of the dumpster girl looks
perfect for getting him back on track.
Blædel, Sara
Blue blood
In an idyllic neighbourhood of Copenhagen, a young woman, Susanne Hansson,
is discovered in her apartment bound and gagged, the victim of an extraordinarily
brutal rape attack. Detective Inspector Louise Rick soon learns that Susanne
met the rapist on a popular online dating site, something Susanne shamefully
tries to hide. Events quickly spiral out of control as a horrified Louise
realises that the rapist is using the website to target specific women
for future attacks.
Blair, Jessica
The road beneath me
When Kate Swan's overbearing father demands that she marry a man she despises,
she refuses and is cast out of her comfortable home in Whitby. Fortunately,
a kindly local widow is looking for a lady companion and, for the moment,
Kate's future is assured.
BLAIR, Jessica
Wings of Sorrow
Jane, unhappy with her life spent at home, sees an opportunity to escape
when Nell invites her to visit her family. Nell’s friends Simon
and Ewan accept Jane as one of their own, but the threat of war soon alters
their friendships irreparably. Simon and his ship are involved in mine
sweeping, Ewan joins the air force and—feeling frustrated at their
helplessness—Nell and Jane join the Land Army so that they can do
something positive for the war effort while remaining together. It is
only when both girls fall for the same man that the strength of their
friendship is pressed to its limits.
BOURNE, Sam
The final reckoning
Tom Byrne has fallen from grace since his days as an idealistic young
lawyer. So when the UN call him in to do their dirty work, he accepts
without hesitation. A suspected bomber shot by UN security staff has turned
out to be a harmless old man and Tom must placate the family.In London,
Tom meets the dead man's alluring daughter, and learns that her father
was not as innocent as he seemed. He unravels details of a hidden brotherhood,
united in a mission that has spanned the world and caused hundreds of
unexplained deaths.Pursued by those ready to kill to uncover the truth,
Tom has to unlock a secret that has lain buried for more than 60 years.
BOYNE, John
The house of special purpose
Russia, 1915: At the age of 16, Georgy Jachmenev steps in front of an
assassin's bullet, intended for a senior member of the Russian Imperial
Family and is instantly proclaimed a hero. Before the week is out, his
life as the son of a peasant farmer is changed for ever when he is escorted
to St Petersburg to take up his new position - as bodyguard to Alexei
Romanov, the only son of Tsar Nicholas II. Sixty-Five years later, visiting
his wife Zoya as she lies dying in a London hospital, memories of the
life they have lived together flood his mind. Their marriage, while tender,
has been marked by tragedy, the loss of loved ones and experiences of
exile that neither can forget.
BRADFORD, Barbara Taylor
Act of Will [2 copies]
This story deals with the often-troubled lives of three generations of
strong-willed women. Artistically talented orphan Audra Kenton leaves
nursing to serve as nanny to precocious Theo Bell. Soon she meets and
weds handsome Vincent Crowther, and they begin a long but unstable life
together. Obsessively determined to give her daughter the best art education
possible, Audra toils long and hard only to see Christina forsake painting
for haute couture as a way to repay her mother's untiring sacrifice. At
length Christina must allow her own headstrong daughter, Kyle, to determine
the direction her own life will follow.
BRADFORD, Barbara Taylor
Being Elizabeth
The final novel in the bestselling Ravenscar seriesElizabeth Turner carries
the red-gold hair of her ancestors, but that's not all she has inherited
from Edward Deravenel. She is charismatic and ambitious, with the same
ruthless streak. Aged just 25, she stands to inherit the family business,
Deravenels, a bastion of male chauvinism. Her greatest ally is her married
childhood friend, Robert Dunley. He is her match in every way - and there
is a spark between them that is impossible to resist. When they begin
an affair it scandalises those around them. From the family seat perched
high on the Yorkshire moors to the glamour of London as the twentieth
century draws to a close, Elizabeth fights for her birthright and her
inheritance.
BRADFORD, Barbara Taylor
Emma’s Secret
At the bequest of her dying grandmother, young American Evan Hughes arrives
at Emma's magnificent English clothing store, Hartes, only to find out
that Emma has long since died. She is soon hired as a store assistant
to Linnet O'Neill, Emma's great-granddaughter, who can't help but notice
the American's resemblance to her own mother, Paula. Evan and Gideon Harte,
Paula's cousin, fall in love amid whispers that Evan might be the descendant
of one of Emma's husbands. The truth lies in Emma's diary, but Paula is
reluctant to read it. Curiosity finally gets the better of her, and the
journal takes Paula to Emma's life during World War II, and at least partially
answers the family's questions about Evan's heritage. It is up to Paula
to figure out the rest.
BRADFORD, Barbara Taylor
Three Weeks in Paris
As students at the prestigious Anya Sedgwick School of Decorative Arts
in Paris, Alexandra Gordon, Kay Lenox, Jessica Pierce and Maria Franconi
share the challenges and excitement of developing their artistic talents
to the fullest under Sedgwick's caring and demanding guidance. But once
best friends, they part enemies, and after graduation they go their separate
ways, pursuing careers and establishing lives in different corners of
the world. For each of them, the arrival of an invitation to Paris to
celebrate Anya Sedgwick's eighty-fifth birthday stirs up complicated feelings…
BRADFORD, Barbara Taylor
Where You Belong [2 copies]
A contemporary novel about a young woman finding herself and her place
in life, in love and in the world. Valentine Denning is a courageous photojournalist
on the frontline in Kosovo. Her colleagues -- Tony Hampton and American
Jake Newberg -- are her comrades-in-arms, men whom she loves and trusts.
One is her best friend; one her lover. In a nightmarish ambush, all three
are shot, Tony fatally, and for Val an even worse nightmare begins. For
there are memories and lies -- lies which force Val to find herself again
by leaving her past life of heart-breaking war-danger for what seems like
the gentler world of celebrity-shoots: but this too brings danger…
BRADFORD, Barbara Taylor
Heirs of Ravenscar
As the First World War draws to a close, all seems golden for young Edward
Deravenel, charismatic head of the family empire and master of Ravenscar.
Yet beneath the surface lies discord. Elizabeth Deravenel, his beautiful
wife, is jealous and her lies and gossip damage the family name. Worse
still is Edward's brother George. His reckless behaviour and treachery
lead to blackmail and betrayal. The fortunes of the house of Deravenel
begin to suffer. It is up to Edward's daughter Bess, and her son Harry
to secure the Ravenscar inheritance - whatever it takes.
BRADSHAW, Gillian
A Corruptible Crown
It is 1648, and the Civil War has been resurrected by a king still determined
to be an absolute ruler and a parliament unable to agree how to govern
without him. Jamie Hudson is weary but faced with prison if he refuses
to re-enlist. Meanwhile, Jamie's wife Lucy is struggling to survive as
a lone woman in London.
Bradshaw, Rita
Beyond the veil of tears
As an only child, 15-year-old Angeline Stewart is heartbroken when her
beloved parents are killed in a coaching accident and she is given into
the care of her uncle. Naive and innocent, Angeline is easy prey for the
handsome and ruthless Oswald Golding who is looking for a rich heiress
to solve the money troubles his womanizing has caused. On her wedding
night, Angeline enters a nightmare from which there is no awakening. Oswald
proves to be more sadistic and violent than she could ever have imagined.
On learning she is expecting a child, Angeline makes plans to run away
and take her chances fending for herself and the baby. But then tragedy
takes over.
BRADSHAW, Rita.
Break of dawn
Her mother's death in childbirth leaves Sophy Hutton at the mercy of her
cruel aunt and uncle. At 16, Sophy learns the shocking truth behind her
birth and escapes to London to forget her past. But life for women at
the turn of the century is fraught with danger and Sophy soon discovers
the darker side to the capital.
Bradshaw, Rita
Dancing in the moonlight
On her deathbed, Lucy Fallow's mother makes her 12-year-old daughter promise
to look after her four younger siblings and keep house for her father
and two older brothers. When the Fallow men folk lose their jobs they
take work wherever they can. But it's not long before they are working
on the wrong side of the law and under the watchful eye of Tom McKenzie.
Meanwhile, through the hardship, Lucy begins to form a relationship with
Jacob McKenzie, the boy next door. However, as their love grows, so does
the resentment from Jacob's older brother, Tom.
Bradshaw, Rita.
Forever yours
A tragic house fire kills her parents, but Constance Shelton escapes,
rescued by her 8-year-old neighbour, Matt Heath. She is brought up by
her grandparents, but the two children become inseparable and these strong
feelings turn into love. But Matt sees her only as a sister and Constance
can do nothing when he proposes to another girl.
BRADSHAW, Rita
Gilding the Lily
Lily and Sarah Brown's childhood is an unhappy one. Sarah escapes by marrying
Ralph Turner, a Sunderland dock worker, but Lily doesn't trust Ralph -
a dark volatile man with a hidden cruel streak. When he tries to seduce
Lily on his wedding day, her worst fears are confirmed. Ralph's younger
brother John is cut from a different cloth, though, and Lily is increasingly
drawn to him. But just when Lily sees a future for them, a terrible incident
destroys her happiness. Heartbroken, Lily agrees to accompany the family
she works for as a nursemaid to New York. As Lily boards RMS Titanic little
does she realise that her decision will change the course of her life
for ever...
Bradshaw, Rita.
The rainbow years
Born during World War 1, Amy Shawe gets off to a bad start as her unmarried
mother dies in the 1919 flu epidemic and Amy is only spared the workhouse
because her uncle takes her in. Her cousin torments her and when she gets
the chance to marry a man she seizes the chance to escape a dangerous
situation.
Brand, Max
Bad Man's Gulch
During his writing career, Max Brand penned some 30,000,000 words, enough
to fill 530 ordinary books. These stories are amongst the best work of
this prolific author.
Brand, Max
The Black Muldoon
On a stormy night in title story, 'The Black Muldoon', a notorious outlaw
shows up at the home of the storekeeper, Jefferson Peters. The Black Muldoon
has strange cargo, an infant boy. This Western trio includes Max Brand's
sequel to 'Iron Dust', 'When Iron Turns to Gold'.
Brand, Max
Red Rock's secret
'Red Rock's Secret' contains three of Max Brand's finest short novels.
The stories included are 'Cuttle's Hired Man', 'The Girl They Left Behind
Them', and 'Red Rock's Secret'.
Bredow, Hasso von
In the blink of an eye
In May 2000 Hasso von Bredow's life was forever changed. The young and
active father of three suffered a massive stroke at the base of his brainstem,
leaving him totally paralysed and unable to speak. With his mind as cognitive
and as active as always, his body became his painful prison. This is Hasso's
life-affirming memoir.
Brockmann, Suzanne
Love with the proper stranger
FBI agent John Miller was on the trail of a notorious female serial killer,
and he couldn't blow his cover to anyone. Not even the beguiling Mariah
Carver, who had unwittingly entangled herself in a web of deadly deceit.
The daring lawman couldn't deny his feelings for Mariah, but he was poised
to wed another woman: the ruthless Black Widow, who marries - then murders
- her victims.
Brogan, Alan.
Not without you
Powerful and moving, this is the remarkable true story of two children
who helped each other survive their cold, unloving children's home only
to be cruelly separated. Forty-five years on, they have found each other
again and are happily married.
BROMIGE, Iris
Golden Summer
Jean had loved Adrian with the happy simplicity of a child. Four weeks
before their wedding day, he was lost to her, and in circumstances which
she did not understand. If the answers lay anywhere, they lay in the West
of Ireland, in that enchanting country to which he had been so devoted.
She went there expecting nothing beyond finding out what had really happened;
only then, she felt, could she accept the situation. By the end of the
summer, a new future opened up. None of it had been easy, but now she
could put the past behind her. Somehow, she had reached the point where
she could truthfully say she would not have changed places with anyone
in the world.
BRONTE, Charlotte
Shirley
Set during the Napoleonic wars at a time of national economic struggles,
Shirley is an unsentimental yet passionate depiction of conflict among
classes, sexes, and generations. Struggling manufacturer Robert Moore
considers marriage to the wealthy and independent Shirley Keeldar, yet
his heart lies with his cousin Caroline. Shirley, meanwhile, is in love
with Robert’s brother, an impoverished tutor. As industrial unrest
builds to a potentially fatal pitch, can the four be reconciled?
BRONTE, Charlotte
Villette
With neither friends nor family, Lucy Snowe sets sail from England to
find employment in a girls’ boarding school in the small town of
Villette. There she struggles to retain her self-possession in the face
of unruly pupils, an initially suspicious headmaster, and her own complex
feelings, first for the school’s English doctor and then for the
dictatorial professor, Paul Emmanuel. Charlotte Brontë’s last
and most autobiographical novel is a powerfully moving study of isolation
and the pain of unrequited love, narrated by a heroine determined to preserve
an independent spirit in the face of adverse circumstances.
BRONTE, Emily
Wuthering Heights
The classic tale of the all-encompassing and passionate, yet thwarted,
love between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, and how this unresolved
passion eventually destroys them and many around them.
Brown, Benita
Counting the days
After the fall of France, Hazel, Irene and Carol are sent from the east
end of Newcastle to the safety of a country village. Billeted in a grand
house with a spinster and her niece, the three young evacuees' futures
will be irrevocably changed by their new lives. When peace is declared,
and Hazel and Irene return to the families they were forced to leave,
they find Newcastle very different to the home they remembered. Mourning
the people they loved, they try to leave the past behind and start again.
But it's never easy to forget.
Brown, Benita
Dreaming out loud
When Kay Lockwood is left a small inheritance by her mother's old friend,
actress Lana Fontaine, she travels to London, leaving behind her Northern
hometown and the boyfriend she doesn't quite trust. She falls in love
with Lana's ramshackle house, and the excitement of post-war London, but
soon discovers a deeper mystery - who was Lana, and why was Kay so important
to her? As she unravels the past, her handsome new neighbour Tom seems
to offer her a bright future, but when his own dark secret is revealed,
Kay feels hurt and betrayed. Can she ever forgive him?
BROWN, Benita
I’ll be seeing you
Village girl Linda Bellwood has always been in awe of the glamorous Hylton
family. So when they hire her as companion to the grandmother, she's thrilled.
However, when her friendship with the youngest son Florian blossoms into
something more, the rest of the family are not so welcoming.
BROWN, Benita
Memories of You
Following the death of their parents, the Norton siblings are tragically
split up. While Helen is taken in by their selfish aunt, her twin brothers
find themselves in a soul-destroying orphanage while their younger sister
is adopted by the wealthy Partingtons. Years later, Helen begins the long
and difficult search for her lost family.
Brown, Bill.
Billy Brown, I'll tell your mother
By the time he was 10-years-old Billy Brown was running a successful little
business on the black market: whatever you needed, from bricks & fire
wood to condoms & dress material, Billy Brown could get it - or knew
a man who could. This is the entertaining and eye-opening memoir of a
young boy growing up in 1950s post-war London.
BROWN, Dan
The Lost Symbol
Robert Langdon flies to Washington after an urgent invitation to speak
in the Capitol building. The invitation appears to have come from a friend
with copper-bottomed Masonic connections, Peter Solomon. But Langdon has
been tricked: Solomon has, in fact, been kidnapped, and (echoing the grisly
opening of the last book) a macabre mutilation plunges Langdon into a
tortuous quest. His friend’s severed hand lies in the Capitol building,
positioned to point to a George Washington portrait that shows the father
of his country as a pagan deity. The ruthless criminal nemesis here is
another terrifying figure in Brown’s gallery of grotesques: Mal’akh,
a powerfully built eunuch with a body festooned with tattoos. Mal’akh
is seeking a Masonic pyramid that possesses a formidable supernatural
power, and a pulse-pounding hunt is afoot, with Langdon stalled rather
than aided by the CIA.
BROWN, Dan
Deception Point
When a new NASA satellite detects evidence of an astonishingly rare object
buried deep in the Arctic ice, the floundering space agency proclaims
a much-needed victory...a victory that has profound implications for U.S.
space policy and the impending presidential election. With the Oval Office
in the balance, the President dispatches White House Intelligence analyst
Rachel Sexton to the Arctic to verify the authenticity of the find. Accompanied
by a team of experts, including the charismatic academic Michael Tolland,
Rachel uncovers the unthinkable - evidence of scientific trickery - a
bold deception that threatens to plunge the world into controversy...
Brown, Sandra
Charade
A medical miracle gives TV personality Cat Delaney more than a new heart.
She trades Hollywood for San Antonio, where she hosts a TV show for children
with special needs. Here she meets Alex Pierce, an ex-cop turned crime
writer - and the first man since her surgery to see her not only as a
survivor but as a woman.
BROWN, Sandra
The thrill of victory
Stevie Corbett's life is on the line but her fate rides on keeping the
truth a secret. Judd Mackie's job is to uncover secrets and after dogging
Stevie for years, he now has the story of the year. He only has to betray
her trust.
BROWN, Sandra
Tempest in Eden
Read by Renée Raudman
Brown, Sandra
Temptation's kiss
Megan, young widow and workaholic at a television station, desperately
tries to avoid her late husband's former boss - with whom she once shared
a kiss - but Josh wants her again and will stop at nothing to have her.
BROWN, Sandra
Tomorrow’s promise
Read by Renée Raudman.
BRUEN, Ken
Cross
A boy has been crucified in Galway. People are shocked. The Church is
scandalised. Jack Taylor agrees to help search for the killer. His investigations
take him to many old haunts, where he encounters ghosts - dead and living.
Everyone seems to want something from him, but Jack isn't sure that he
has anything left to give. Then the sister of the murdered boy is burned
to death. Jack knows that he must persevere and hunt down the killer,
if only to administer his own brand of rough justice.
BRUEN, Ken
The guards
Still stinging from his unceremonious ouster from the Garda Siochana,
and staring at the world through the smoky bottom of his beer mug, Jack
Taylor is stuck in Galway with nothing to look forward to. He is teetering
on the brink of his life's sharpest edges, his memories of the past cutting
deep into his soul and his prospects for the future non-existent. Until
a dazzling woman walks into the bar with a strange request and a rumour
about Jack's talent for finding things. Odds are he won't be able to climb
off his barstool long enough to get involved, but when he surprises himself
by getting hired, Jack has little idea of what he's getting into
BURGH, Anita
The Heart’s Citadel
It is 1913 and the world is on the brink of war. Yet on the estate of
Cresswell Manor in Devon, the summer seems endless. Hannah, only daughter
of the Cresswells, becomes involved with the suffragettes and dreams of
falling in love; headstrong and spoiled Esmerelda deceives her husband
for the strangest of reasons; Lettice longs for freedom from her brute
of a husband; young Mortimer Cresswell appalls his mother by falling in
love with an estate worker's daughter, while his brother, Felix, causes
heartbreak in his pursuit of pleasure. Caught up in their own lives, the
Cresswells seem ignorant that war is looming, and that soon the world
will alter beyond their wildest dreams - or fears...
BURGH, Anita
The Stone Mistress
The casual society and relationships of 1940s Britain suit the wilful
Juniper. Spoilt as a child in New England, emotionally crippled by marriage
and motherhood, Juniper continues her frenetic search for distraction
and love. Once again, she betrays her friendship with Polly Frobisher,
and threatens the fragile contentment of her remarkable grandmother Alice
Tregowan. Through it all, Gwenfer, the magnificent granite house at the
end of the Atlantic, endures, exerting its implacable hold on those who
love and covet it, as Juniper is launched into a helter-skelter of passion
and betrayal which is dangerous not only to lovers and family, but to
herself.
BURGH Anita
The visitor
Following her wonderful nineteenth century saga THE HOUSE AT HARCOURT,
Anita Burgh has written another soaring, dramatic tale of innocence and
passion, money and love. A young girl from Devon, Phoebe Drewitt, has
escaped her brutal father and a hard life on Dartmoor, her head full of
dreams. She is rescued by the reclusive, middle-aged Kendall Bartholomew,
whose motives may not be as innocent as they appear. For Arnold Randolph-Smythe,
life is more than satisfactory. His shop is successful and his daughter
adores him, though his rich wife does not. When Dulcie, his wife, meets
Phoebe she invites her to their home. The arguments, hatreds and loves
that follow have profound repercussions for all involved.
Burnett, Frances Hodgson
The secret garden
A young British girl born and reared in India loses her neglectful parents
in an earthquake. She is returned to England to live at her uncle's castle.
Her uncle is very distant due to the loss of his wife ten years before.
Neglected once again, she begins exploring the estate and discovers a
garden that has been locked and neglected. Aided by one of the servants'
boys, she begins restoring the garden, and eventually discovers some other
secrets of the manor.
Burns, Patricia.
Follow your dream
'Follow Your Dream' is an enthralling saga, bringing 1950s Southend-on-Sea
to dazzling life.
BUTLER, Gwendoline
Coffin on Murder Street
Big trouble in the Docklands area of London where Chief Commander John
Coffin heads the Police Force, living nearby in an old church that's been
converted into apartments and a theater complex. His neighbor is actress
Stella Pinero, longtime friend, onetime lover, who runs the repertory
company recently joined by TV and stage actress Nell Casey, just back
from the US with small son Tom and nanny Sylvie. Here, Coffin's problems
start with the disappearance of a tour bus, passengers aboard, all of
them found drugged--and one of them dead- -when the bus surfaces. The
fatality is elderly loner Jim Lollard. He lived on Regina Street, whose
murderous history and present-day perfidies were his life's work. Then
Nell Casey's son is kidnapped, climaxing a series of chilling minor incidents,
amid rumors of a known child molester in the area. Days later, Nell vanishes--and
Coffin's job is on the line. A hard look into the past uncovers a lurid
secret, and teamwork does the rest.
CALDWELL, Ian
The Rule of Four
Two Princeton University Seniors are struggling to solve the mysteries
of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, a cryptic text that has baffled scholars
for 500 years. When a long-lost clue surfaces, they have a chance to decipher
the final secret. But when a fellow scholar of the text is murdered for
knowing too much, Tom and Paul make a frightening realization: they know
even more.
Campbell, Karen
Proof of life
The girl in the foyer could not hear them, could not possibly have heard
Anna, or know that she was there through two thick doors, but her pale
neck flexed and her head came up, longer and higher as her profile turned,
as her face took form to stare directly at the camera. And Anna's life,
her future, froze.
CAREY, Peter
True History of the Kelly Gang
Set in the desolate settler communities north of Melbourne in the late
19th century, the novel is told in the form of a journal, written by the
famous outlaw and "bushranger" Ned Kelly, to a daughter he will
never see.The salty, colloquial, unpunctuated style of Kelly's journal
is reproduced with great skill, as Carey recounts the outlaw's early life
with a cross-dressing, Irish immigrant sheep worker, and a beautiful but
headstrong mother, always on the wrong side of the law. Inadvertently
causing the arrest and death of his father, Ned realises that "there
were a drought and nothing flourishing there but misery I were the oldest
son I thought it time to earn my place", a decision that ultimately
leads him into conflict with the law, and to form the notorious Kelly
Gang.
CARR, Irene
Rachel
Orphaned at a young age, Rachel is left penniless and alone in the streets
of turn-of-the-century Newcastle. In the depths of despair, she is delighted
to learn that her eccentric Uncle Joshua has left her his house in Sunderland.
But it comes with a strict provision—she must marry her sworn enemy
Martin, or her dangerous cousin Saul Gorman will inherit the lot. And
Saul will stop at nothing to claim inheritance.
CARR, J. L.
A Month in the Country
Protagonist Tom Birkin is a broken man. Haunted by his experiences in
the trenches of World War I and recovering from a divorce, Birkin accepts
a job restoring a medieval mural of the apocalypse in a church located
in a remote corner of Yorkshire. It is here, however, that Birkin, though
alone with only an interpretation of the world's end for company, learns
to live again.
CARSON, Paul.
Ambush
Scott Nolan enjoys a flourishing career as a doctor, a rising media profile
as a campaigner against drug abuse, and a beautiful new wife. But one
wintry Dublin morning Scott’s is changed forever when a contract
killer and his team of assassins attempt a daring double strike on Ireland’s
anti-drugs minister and his medical spokesman. Scott vows revenge. But
how can one man take on Ireland’s notoriously ruthless drug barons.
CARTLAND, Barbara
Etiquette Handbook
Written nearly 50 years ago, this handbook conjures up a period when addressing
work colleagues by their first names was frowned upon, wives could expect
to receive a weekly allowance from their husbands, and hats were ubiquitous.
Laced throughout is Barbara Cartland's wit and wisdom, this is a wonderfully
evocative insight into manners that have largely disappeared
Carver, Tania.
Choked
Detective Inspector Phil Brennan and criminal psychologist Marina Esposito
have just returned from their honeymoon and are spending the Easter weekend
in Suffolk. But their rural idyll is cruelly destroyed by a devastating
arson attack and a kidnapping.
Casey, Jane
The kill
When a police officer is found shot dead in his car, DC Maeve Kerrigan
and DI Josh Derwent take on the investigation. But nothing about the case
prepares them for what happens next: a second policeman dies - and then
another. The Metropolitan Police struggle to carry out their usual duties,
but no one knows where or how this cop killer will strike again. While
London disintegrates into lawlessness, Maeve's world starts to fall apart
too. For if the police can't keep themselves safe, how can they protect
anyone else?
CASEY, Jane
The missing
When Sarah Finch was a little girl, her older brother went out to play
and never came back... Not knowing what happened to Charlie has ripped
her family apart. Now a teacher, Sarah's back living at home, trapped
with an alcoholic mother who keeps her brother's bedroom as a shrine.
Then twelve-year-old Jenny Shepherd disappears and it's Sarah who discovers
her pupil¡s body, abandoned in the woods near her home. As Sarah
becomes more involved in the inquiry, suspicions are aroused. But it's
not just the police who are watching her...
Casey, Jane
The stranger you know
He meets women. He gains their trust. He kills them. That's all Maeve
Kerrigan knows about the man she is hunting. Three women have been strangled
in their homes by the same sadistic killer. With no sign of a break-in,
every indication shows that they let in their attacker. But the evidence
is pointing at a shocking suspect: DCI Josh Derwent, Maeve's colleague.
Maeve refuses to believe he could be involved, but how well does she really
know her partner? After all, this is hardly the first time Derwent's been
accused of murder.
CASTLE, Jane
Midnight crystal
For many earthly centuries, a legendary curse has plagued the Winters
family, stemming from the tumultuous founding of the Arcane Society. But
now, on the futuristic world of Harmony, the curse's final mystery will
be unravelled.
CHADWICK, Elizabeth
The Greatest Knight
William Marshal, the younger son of a wealthy family, shows early prowess
with a sword and uncommon chivalry, which he puts to good use saving the
life of Eleanor of Aquitaine. Afterward, she makes him arms tutor to her
sons, the young princes. Marshal pledges his service to heir Henry and
stays with the prince, out of loyalty to Eleanor, throughout Henry's turbulent
manhood and rebellion against his father. When Henry dies, Marshal swears
loyalty to Henry's brother Richard, putting him at odds with his own brother,
who is loyal to Prince John. When Richard leaves on crusade and John conspires
to take the crown, Marshal must decide between family and honor. A true
historical hero, if little known, William Marshal served under some of
England's most famous kings and proved himself again and again throughout
the troubled 12th century.
CHADWICK, Elizabeth
Lady of the English
Two different women are linked by the struggle for the English crown.
Matilda, daughter of Henry I, is determined to win back her crown. Adeliza,
Matilda's stepmother, is now married to William D'Albini, a warrior of
the opposition. How can Adeliza obey her husband while supporting Matilda,
the rightful queen?
Chadwick, Elizabeth
Lords of the white castle
This novel is based on a true story of honour, treachery and love spanning
the turbulent reigns of four great medieval kings. A violent quarrel with
Prince John disrupts Fulke's life ambition and leads him to rebel.
Chadwick, Elizabeth
The summer queen
Young, golden-haired and blue-eyed Eleanor has everything to look forward
to as the heiress to wealthy Aquitaine. But when her beloved father dies
suddenly in the summer of 1137, her childhood is over. Forced to marry
the young Prince Louis of France, she barely adjusts before another death
catapults them to being crowned King and Queen of France. Leaving everything
behind, Eleanor must face the complex and vivacious French court. She
is only 13. Barely out of childhood, and forced to deal with great scandals,
fraught relationships and forbidden love at every turn, Eleanor finally
sees what her future could hold if she could just seize the moment.
CHADWICK, Elizabeth
The time of singing
One woman forced to make a heartbreaking sacrifice...When Roger Bigod,
heir to the powerful earldom of Norfolk, arrives at court in 1177 to settle
a bitter inheritance dispute with his half-brothers, he encounters Ida
de Tosney, young mistress to King Henry II. A victim of Henry's seduction
and the mother of his son, Ida is attracted to Roger and sees in him a
chance of lasting security; but in deciding to marry Roger, she is forced
to make a choice. As Roger's importance as a mainstay of the Angevin government
grows, it puts an increasing strain on his marriage. Against a volatile
political background the gulf between them threatens to widen beyond crossing,
especailly when so many bridges have already been burned.
Chadwick, Elizabeth
The winter crown
It is the winter of 1154 and Eleanor, Queen of England, is biding her
time. While her husband King Henry II battles for land across the channel,
Eleanor fulfils her duty as acting ruler and bearer of royal children.
But she wants to be more than this - if only Henry would let her. Instead,
Henry belittles and excludes her, falling for a young mistress and leaving
Eleanor sidelined and angry. Frustrated at Henry's hoarding of power,
Eleanor is forced into a rebellion of devastating consequences.
CHAPPLE, Margaret
Cookley Green
When a new school teacher settles in Cookley Green with her young son
Sammy, she finds herself neighbours with old Pearl, a former workhouse
inmate whose memory goes back to the Great War, when Cookley Green was
a village nestling innocently in the Suffolk countryside.
CHEKHOV, Anton
In the Ravine
Anton Chekhov is regarded by many as the most outstanding short story
writer. This may be a surprise at the first encounter with even his most
famous stories, because they are rarely driven by plot or anticipation.
They are often gentle in character, elusive in purpose; but they create
a resonance in the imagination that rings long. Here are 12 stories, from
the brightly comic to the overtly tragic, each full of the sharpest observations
of personality and situation, and with implications beyond their brief
form; the dying actor, the children playing a game, the cabman with his
tragedy, the orator's mistake and, perhaps most richly of all, the family
laid bare in 'In The Ravine'.
CHEVALIER, Tracy
Girl with a Pearl Earring
One of the best-loved paintings in the world is a mystery. Who is the
model and why has she been painted? What is she thinking as she stares
out at us? Are her wide eyes and enigmatic half-smile innocent or seductive?
And why is she wearing a pearl earring? Girl with a Pearl Earring tells
the story of Griet, a 16-year-old Dutch girl who becomes a maid in the
house of a painter Johannes Vermeer. Vermeer slowly draws her into the
world of his paintings and the chaotic household run by his volatile wife.
Their intimacy soon spreads disruption and jealousy within the ordered
household and even – as the scandal seeps out – ripples in
to the world beyond.
CHEVALIER, Tracy
Falling Angels [2 copies]
When Maude Coleman and Lavinia Waterhouse, both five years of age, meet
at their families' adjoining cemetery plots on the day after Queen Victoria's
death, the friendship that results between sensitive, serious-minded Maude
and narcissistic, melodramatic Livy is not unlikely, despite the difference
in social classes. But the continuing presence in their lives of a young
gravedigger, Simon Field, is. Far too cheeky for a boy of his age and
class, Simon plays an important part in the troubles that will overtake
the two families. Other characters are gifted with insights inappropriate
to their age or station in life. Yet Chevalier again proves herself an
astute observer of a social era, especially in her portrayal of the lingering
sentimentality, prejudices and early stirrings of social change of the
Victorian age. When Maude's mother, Kitty, becomes obsessively involved
with the emerging suffragette movement, the plot gathers momentum.
Child, Lee.
The affair
March 1997. A woman has her throat cut behind a bar in Carter Crossing,
Mississippi. Just down the road is a big army base. Is the murderer a
local guy - or is he a soldier? Jack Reacher, still a major in the military
police, is sent in undercover.
CHILD, Lee
Bad Luck and Trouble
Bad Luck and Trouble is your typical Jack Reacher novel from author Lee
Child. Once again Reacher, our hard as nails, itinerant former Military
Policeman hero, gets caught up in a twisting plot involving murderous
and irredeemable bad guys, a hidden conspiracy (this time with links to
the global war on terrorism) and a mounting body count. This time the
twist is that events require Reacher to reunite and work with former colleagues
from his army days; colleagues almost as hard nosed and capable as he
is.
CHILD, Lee
The Enemy
Child's usual protagonist, the tough and resourceful Jack Reacher, is
in North Carolina on New Year's Day, 1990. Elsewhere, world-shaking events
are underway, such as the tearing down of the Berlin Wall. But Jack's
job as a Military Police Duty Officer has him concerned with what initially
seem to be less significant happenings: a soldier has been found dead
in a sleazy motel and when Jack goes to the house of the soldier (a two-star
general) to inform his wife, he finds her also dead. Needless to say,
events in another part of the globe are having fatal repercussions in
the US, and Reacher is soon up to his neck, with the body count rising.
CHILD, Lee
First Thrills
New York Times bestselling author Lee Child has teamed up with the International
Thriller Writers for 'First Thrills', a showcase of many of the organization's
bestselling authors as well as rising stars in the genre.
CHILD, Lee
Gone tomorrow
Suicide bombers are easy to spot. They give out all kinds of tell-tale
signs. Mostly because they're nervous. By definition they're all first-timers.
There are twelve things to look for. No one who has worked in law enforcement
will ever forget them. Riding the subway in New York at two o'clock in
the morning, Reacher knows the signs. Watching one of his fellow passengers,
he becomes sharply aware: one by one, she ticks off every bulletpoint
on his list. The train brakes for Grand Central Station. Will Reacher
intervene, and save lives? Or is he wrong? Will his intervention cost
lives - including his own?
Child, Lee,
Make me
Jack Reacher has no place to go, and all the time in the world to get
there, so a remote railroad stop with the curious name of Mother's Rest
seems perfect for an aimless one-day stopover. He expects to find a lonely
tombstone in a sea of nearly-ripe wheat, but instead there is a woman
waiting for a missing private investigator, a cryptic note about 200 deaths,
and a small town full of silent, watchful people. His one-day stopover
looks about to turn into something more complicated ...
Child, Lee
Never go back
After an epic journey all the way from South Dakota, Jack Reacher has
finally made it to Virginia. His destination: the headquarters of his
old unit, the 110th MP. Why? He wants to meet the new commanding officer,
Major Susan Turner. He liked her voice on the phone. But the officer sitting
behind Reacher's old desk isn't a woman. Reacher doesn't expect what comes
next: he is accused of homicide. And he certainly doesn't expect to hear
these words: 'You're back in the army, Major. And your ass is mine.'
CHILD, Lee
Nothing to Lose
After having Reacher team up with his former army colleagues in "Bad
Luck and Trouble", Lee Child has gone back to Reacher's loner roots.
"Nothing to Lose" opens with Reacher literally walking into
the small town of Despair, Colorado, where he's promptly arrested and
run out of town. What are the secrets that the residents of Despair are
so desperate to keep hidden? Reacher is equally determined to find out...
Child, Lee
One shot
A lone gunman unleashes pandemonium when he shoots into a crowd of people
in a public plaza in Indiana. Five people are killed in cold blood, shot
through the head. But he leaves a trail of evidence behind him, and soon
the local police chief tracks him down. The shooter says he wants Jack
Reacher.
Child, Lee
Personal
Jack Reacher walks alone. Once a go-to hard man in the US military police,
now he's a drifter of no fixed abode. But the army tracks him down. Because
someone has taken a long-range shot at the French president. Only one
man could have done it. And Reacher is the one man who can find him.
CHILD, Lee
Persuader
Jack Reacher, the taciturn ex-MP, returns in this explosive tale of an
undercover operation set up by the FBI to rescue an agent investigating
Zachary Beck, a reclusive tycoon believed to be a kingpin in the drug
trade. The novel begins with a bang as Reacher rescues Beck's son from
a staged kidnapping in order to get close to his father--and trace the
connection between Beck and Quinn, a former army intelligence officer
who tried to sell blueprints of a secret weapon to Iraq but was murdered
before he could pull it off. Or so Reacher thinks, until he spots Quinn
in the crowd at a concert in Boston...
CHILD, Lee
A Wanted Man
Nebraska - and Jack Reacher, huge, hulking and with a freshly busted nose,
is still trying to hitch a ride east to Virginia. He's picked up by three
strangers - two men and a woman. Immediately he knows they're all lying
about something.
CHILD, Lee
61 hours
Winter in South Dakota. A bus skids and crashes and is stranded in a storm.
There's a small town 20 miles away, where a vulnerable witness is guarded
around the clock. There's a strange stone building five miles further
on, all alone on the prairie. There's a ruthless man who controls everything
from the warmth of Mexico.
CHRISTIE, Agatha
And Then There Were None
Considered the best mystery novel ever written by many readers, And Then
There Were None is the story of 10 strangers, each lured to Indian Island
by a mysterious host. Once his guests have arrived, the host accuses each
person of murder. Unable to leave the island, the guests begin to share
their darkest secrets--until they begin to die
CHRISTIE, Agatha
Murder in Mesopotamia
When nurse Amy Leatheran agrees to look after American archaeologist Dr
Leidner’s wife Louise at a dig near Hassanieh she finds herself
taking on more than just nursing duties – she also has to help solve
murders. Fortunately for Amy, Hercule Poirot is visiting the excavation
site but will the great detective be in time to prevent a multiple murderer
from striking again?
CHRISTIE, Agatha
Poirot Investigates
A capital collection of Poirot mystery stories, ingeniously constructed.
What do a movie star, an archaeologist, a French maid, a prime minister,
a wealthy dowager, and an Italian count have in common? Half of them have
fallen victim to a terrible crime. The others have fallen under suspicion.
Leave the deductions to Hercule Poirot.
CHRISTIE, Agatha
Sad Cypress
The story concerns Elinor Carlisle, accused of murdering another young
woman while in a jealous rage. The evidence against Elinor is overwhelming,
and she seems destined for prison until a friend and admirer engages Poirot.
What follows is the usual Christie puzzle, which readers/listeners are
invited to help solve.
Clancy, Tom
Locked on
Although his father had been reluctant to become a field operative, Jack
Ryan Jr. wants nothing more. But what neither father nor son knows is
that the political and the personal have just become equally dangerous.
Clancy, Tom
Threat vector
Jack Ryan has only just moved back into the Oval Office when he is faced
with a new international threat. An aborted coup in the People's Republic
of China has left President Wei Zhen Lin with no choice but to agree with
the expansionist policies of General Su Ke Quiang. They have declared
the South China Sea a protectorate and are planning an invasion of Taiwan.
CLEAVE, Chris
The other hand
'The Other Hand' is a novel by Chris Cleave, the author of 'Incendiary'.
Deeply moving, yet light in touch, it explores the nature of loss, hope,
love and identity with atrocity as its backdrop.
CLEEVES, Ann
The glass room
DI Vera Stanhope is not one to make friends easily, but her hippy neighbours
keep her well-supplied in homebrew and conversation so she has more tolerance
for them than most. When one of them goes missing she feels duty-bound
to find out what happened. But her path leads her to more than just a
missing friend.
CLEEVES, Ann
Raven Black
On the remote island of Shetland, teacher Fran Hunter is walking home
when she spots a splash of red in the deep, white snowdrifts, with black
ravens flying above. What a perfect picture it makes, she thinks. But
on closer inspection, she finds that the "perfect picture" is
the dead body of local teenager Catherine Ross, whose red scarf has been
used to strangle her. Suspicion immediately falls on recluse Magnus Tait,
who was accused--but never convicted--of kidnapping another girl eight
years earlier. Policeman Jimmy Perez, assigned to the case, isn't convinced
of Magnus' guilt. As he investigates, he uncovers a web of sinister secrets,
strange superstitions, petty rivalries, thwarted love, and illicit affairs--the
dark underbelly of Shetland's tight-knit community.
Cleeves, Ann
Murder in paradise
The honeymoon was over and Jim and his English bride, Sarah, had come
home to Kinness to settle down. But first there was to be one huge celebration
for the newlyweds, with the whole island present. And before the party
was over, there would be a shockingly unexpected death. Somehow, in the
dark of the night, Jim's young sister, Mary, slipped off Ellie's Head
to the rocks below. A terrible end to a boisterously cheerful evening.
But did Mary fall, or was she pushed? George Palmer-Jones, retired birdwatcher
and amateur detective, suspected the latter, but proving it would be difficult:
no one wanted to upset the balance of the island's ancient relationships.
Yet those with something to hide inevitably try to hide it, and George,
helped by Sarah, began to piece together a tragic story he wished he had
never heard. Kinness was a paradise lost.
CLEVERLY, Barbara.
The Blood Royal
On his return from India, Commander Joe Sandilands, now adept at the arts
of dynamic diplomacy, finds himself up to his neck in a tricky political
situation. A war-weary London is reeling from IRA atrocities and Joe is
further plagued by the machinations of a spy-ring being run under his
nose by a Russian emigree princess.
Cliff, Ann
Summer by the sea
When Helen Moore gets a job in a charming seaside guesthouse she expects
a life of smooth domestic routine, but there is trouble in store. James
is writing a book about the fishing community and he asks Helen to help
him with his research. Thus it comes to pass that Helen meets some of
the fisher girls and is drawn into their harsh lives.
COBEN, Harlan
Hold Tight
Tia and Mike Baye never imagined they'd become the type of overprotective
parents who spy on their kids. But their sixteen-year-old son Adam has
been unusually distant lately, and after the suicide of his classmate
Spencer Hill - the latest in a string of issues at school - they can't
help but worry. They install a sophisticated spy program on Adam's computer,
and within days they are jolted by a message from an unknown correspondent
addressed to their son: "Just stay quiet and all safe." Meanwhile,
browsing through an online memorial for Spencer, Betsy Hill is struck
by a photo that appears to have been taken on the night of her son's death
and he wasn't alone. She thinks it is Adam Baye standing just outside
the camera's range, but when Adam goes missing, it soon becomes clear
that something deep and sinister has infected their community...
COLE, Martina
The business
Imelda Dooley is scared. She's pregnant and now she's on her own. Her
father, not a man to mess with, will see that somebody pays. So Imelda
Dooley tells a lie that literally causes murders. When Mary Dooley's husband
is killed, she knows she must graft to keep the family afloat. And graft
she does, becoming a name in her own right. But she still has to watch
her daughter's life spiral into a vicious cycle of drugs and prostitution.
Caught up in the carnage are Mary's grandchildren, Jordanna and Kenny.
Jordanna isn't yet three and she already knows far too much. All she can
do is look after her baby brother, and try not to draw attention to herself.
COLE, Martina
Dangerous Lady
Ducking and diving is a way of life down Lancaster Road; all the Ryans
are at it. But Michael, the eldest, has ambitions way beyond petty crime.
Then his little sister Maura decides to follow her beloved brother into
the family firm. At 17, she's tough, clever and beautiful - a dangerous
lady.
COLE, Martina
Faceless
Eleven years ago Marie Carter was convicted of killing her two best friends.
And she's paid the price. Now she is being released from prison. It's
time to go home. But life has moved on, and Marie has nowhere to go. Her
parents have disowned her, her friends have abandoned her, even her kids
don't want to know. But some people out there are watching her, following
her every move - they know that Marie Carter wants retribution.
Cole, Martina
The faithless
To the outside world, Cynthia Tailor is a woman to envy; she
has a devoted husband, a lovely home and two children. But Cynthia is
deeply unhappy; she has always craved the best things in life, and is
determined to get them. She will let nothing stand in her way, even if
it means devastation and tragedy for those nearest to her.
Cole, Martina
The good life
Cain Moran wanted Jenny Riley more than he had ever wanted anyone or anything
before in his life. But loving Jenny Riley was the easy part; it was telling
his wife he wanted a divorce that was going to be the killer. Jenny is
not just any girl. She cares nothing for Cain's hard-man reputation -
she just wants to be with him. But Cain is not a free man. And he's about
to find out that when his wife Caroline said 'til death us do part, she
meant it. When Cain is sentenced to life in prison it seems that Caroline
might have got her wish. All Cain and Jenny know is that if their love
can survive such separation, then one day they will have a chance at the
good life together again. But there are greater trials ahead than either
can foresee. They're about to learn the hardest lesson of all: live the
good life, pay the price.
COLE, Martina
Hard girls
When a prostitute's body is found mutilated and brutally raped, DCI Annie
Carr has never seen anything like it. Kate Burrows, retired DCI now consultant,
has plenty of experience when it comes to murder - after all she caught
the Grantley Ripper and broke the biggest paedophile ring in the South
East. She is determined to help put the killer behind bars. But when another
girl's body is found, even more disfigured than the last, it's clear the
killer is just warming up... In a ruthless world where everyone's out
for themselves, Annie and Kate must dig deep if they hope to catch a callous
serial killer who knows no limits. For some, prostitution is seriously
big business. But how many people will pay the ultimate price?
COLE, Martina
The Know
Joanie Brewer' s children meant the world to her. She'd do anything to
protect them, even resorting to prostitution and petty crime in order
to feed and clothe them. So when her beautiful teenage daughter is raped
and murdered, only one thing will stop Joanie's pain - seeing her daughter's
killer brought to justice. Joanie knows who he is and she'll do whatever
it takes to nail him...
Cole, Martina
Revenge
Michael Flynn is untouchable in a world of power, money and violence.
He fights for what he wants and he takes it, whatever the cost. He learns
the rules of the Life from the best and when his mentor, legendary Face
Patrick Costello, is taken out, no one questions that Michael Flynn is
his natural successor. For Michael, loyalty - and crime - pays. Michael
rises to heights beyond anything the criminal underworld has seen. He
owns everyone and he rules his empire with an even but fierce hand. No
one would dare challenge him. Then the unthinkable happens.
COLE, Martina
The Runaway
When Cathy Connor and Eamonn Docherty are thrown together as children
in the East End their fate is sealed. Cathy's miserable life as a prostitute's
child changes forever when she's forced into care. The ordeal that follows
leaves her with no choice but to run away to Soho, and she learns to survive
in the violent heart of London's underworld. Meanwhile, Eamonn, who fled
to New York, has gained a reputation as a ruthless villain. But when their
paths cross again, Cathy's an equal match for Eamonn.
COLE, Martina
Close
Patrick Brodie knows exactly how far he's prepared to go to get what he
wants. And he wants it all. Now. Before long, Patrick has become a legend
in his own lifetime. Violently. Lily Diamond is different from the kind
of woman Patrick is normally attracted to. But together they are determined
that their children will have everything they didn't. Until the unthinkable
happens and Lily is left on her own to look after their family in a dangerous
world. The Brodies must stay close to survive. But as everyone knows,
your sins will find you out.
COLEMAN, Vernon
Bilbury Village
A young doctor arrives to begin work in the small village of Bilbury which
is home to some memorable characters who have many a tale to tell. Vernon
Coleman weaves a superb story full of humour and anecdotes transporting
you back to the days of old-fashioned village life where you never needed
to lock your door, and when a helping hand was only ever a moment away.
Colgan, Jenny
Christmas at Rosie Hopkins sweetshop
Rosie Hopkins is looking forward to Christmas in the little Derbyshire
village of Lipton, buried under a thick blanket of snow. Her sweetshop
is festooned with striped candy canes, large tempting piles of Turkish
delight, crinkling selection boxes and happy, sticky children. She's going
to be spending it with her boyfriend, Stephen, and her family, flying
in from Australia. She can't wait - but when a tragedy strikes at the
heart of their little community and all of Rosie's plans for the future
seem to be blown apart. Can she build a life in Lipton? And is what's
best for the sweetshop also what's best for Rosie?
Colgan, Jenny
The Christmas surprise
Rosie Hopkins, newly engaged, is looking forward to an exciting year in
the little sweetshop she owns and runs. But when fate strikes Rosie and
her boyfriend, Stephen, a terrible blow, threatening everything they hold
dear, it's going to take all their strength and the support of their families
and their Lipton friends to hold them together. After all, don't they
say it takes a village to raise a child?
COLGAN, Jenny
Welcome to Rosie Hopkins
Rosie Hopkins' elderly aunt Lilian needs her help, so Rosie is moving
to the depths of the countryside for a few months to look after her. Lilian
has spent her life running Lipton's village sweetshop. As she struggles
with the idea of selling up, she also wrestles with the secret history
hidden behind the jars of sweets
Collier, Catrin
Bobby's girl
1968. British students Penny & Kate and Americans Bobby & Sandy
have a wonderful summer on Cape Cod. Then Bobby's car crashes, and a bitter
old woman takes control, changing the survivors' lives forever. One was
killed, another damaged and a third disappeared. 20 years later, a letter
arrives, stirring up old memories.
CONLON-McKENNA Marita
Mother of the bride
What could be more exciting than planning a daughter's wedding? But as
the countdown to the Big Day begins, and mother and daughter throw themselves
into creating the wedding of their dreams, not everyone's prepared for
the commotion this involves.
Conlon-McKenna
The rose garden
Molly's perfect life comes crashing down following the unexpected death
of her husband David. She is left alone with a big old house to maintain,
finances in disarray and her hopes for happiness in a heap. But Molly
is a survivor. Despite objections from her two daughters, Molly fears
that the only solution will be to sell their beloved home. But as she
finds herself drawn to the old neglected and overgrown walled rose garden
and the dilapidated gardener's cottage attached, she suddenly sees a future
as she decides to restore them. As the rose garden takes on a new life
and starts to bloom again, Molly finds that she can look to the future
with new confidence and hope.
CONLON-McKENNA, Marita
The Stone House
Everything changes for Kate, Moya and Romy when they receive word that
Maeve Dillon, their mother, is critically ill. It is time to return from
Dublin, London and New York to Dunmore and the old stone house overlooking
the Irish Sea where they grew up. But ancient jealousies surface as each
sister confronts the past and the decisions they have made. For work-driven
Kate it is time to take stock of her role as a high-flying ambitious lawyer
and single parent; life is a battle between work and looking after Molly
with little time for a proper relationship. Even Patrick, the man she
once fell for, has ended up marrying her sister. Beautiful and intense
Moya must take a hard look at her marriage to the charming but unfaithful
Patrick and consider her own worth. For wild child Romy who has travelled
the world and hasn't put a foot on Irish soil for years, it is time to
finally stop running and find the courage to confront her family. A good
and caring mother, Maeve Dillon has somehow over the years labelled each
of her three daughters: Moya the beautiful, Kate the brains, and Romy,
the bold and wild one. Now it is finally time for all three to break out
of the box.
Conlon-McKenna, Marita
A taste for love
Chef Alice loves to cook. When she married Liam she was happy to cook
only for family and friends. But now her marriage is over, and Alice finds
herself struggling not only emotionally but also financially. She decides
to open a cookery school and begins to teach a group of strangers how
to create food that is tasty and delicious.
Conlon-McKenna, Marita
Three women
Kate has kept a secret for 25 years which is about to be discovered. Erin
is discovering who she really is. Nina's daughter is running off to find
a woman she doesn't know. There is no escaping the past. Kate, Erin and
Nina all have to come to terms with what happened so many years before,
and to find a way of dealing with it.
CONNELLY, Michael
The Black Echo
When the body of a former ``tunnel rat'' from Vietnam is found in a drainpipe,
Harry is the detective on duty and is called to the scene. His identification
of the body begins an investigation that leads to more murder, bank robbery,
heroin, diamonds, and betrayal. Connelly's descriptions of autopsies,
murder scenes, and police procedure are vivid and realistic. The use of
acronyms and police jargon puts readers in the middle of the action. A
real page turner with gutsy realism and an unusual twist.
CONNOLLY, John
Bad Men
The small island of Sanctuary, off the coast of Maine, was once the scene
of a bloody massacre. Now, three centuries later, evil has again come
to the island, a modern-day evil with strange, eerie connections to the
events of the late 1600s. Do two police officers have even a remote chance
of stopping the carnage? This is one of those novels that refuses to be
pigeonholed. It's a thriller; it's a mystery; it's a tale of the supernatural
(sort of). At its center is Joe Dupree, the (literal) gentle giant of
a cop, a man whose kindness and compassion would appear to make him a
bad choice to defend the citizens of Sanctuary from the marauding evil
that approaches.
Connolly, John
The burning soul
Randall Haight has a secret: when he was a teenager, he and his friend
killed a 14-year-old girl. He did his time and built a new life in the
small Maine town of Pastor's Bay. Now somebody has discovered the truth
and he is being tormented by anonymous messages. He hires private detective
Charlie Parker to make them stop.
CONNOLLY, John
The gates
The gates of hell are about to open...mind the gapSamuel Johnson has a
number of problems. Samuel's dad cares more about his car than his family,
Samuel's mother is lonely, and only Samuel's dog, Boswell, truly understands
him. Oh, and as if things couldn't get any worse, Samuel's neighbours,
led by the villainous Mrs Abernathy, are trying to open the gates of hell.
It's up to Samuel to stop them, except nobody will believe him, and time
is running out... Now the fate of humanity lies in the hands of one small
boy, an even smaller dog, and a very unlucky demon named Nurd...
CONNOLLY, John
Hell’s bells
Samuel Johnson - with a little help from his dachshund Boswell and a very
unlucky demon named Nurd - has sent the demons back to Hell. But the diabolical
Mrs Abernathy is not one to take defeat lying down. When she reopens the
portal and sucks Samuel and Boswell down into the underworld, she brings
an ice-cream van full of dwarfs as well.
CONNOLLY, John
The reapers
A Charlie Parker novel. They are the Reapers, the elite among killers
- men so terrifying that their names are mentioned only in whispers. The
assassin Louis is one of them. But now Louis and his partner, Angel, are
themselves targets. And there is no shortage of suspects. A wealthy recluse
sends them north to a town that no longer exists on a map - a town ruled
by a man with very personal reasons for wanting Louis's blood spilt. There
they find themselves trapped, isolated and at the mercy of a killer feared
above all others. Thanks to former detective Charlie Parker, help is on
its way. But can Angel and Louis stay alive long enough for it to reach
them?
CONNOLLY, John
The Unquiet
Daniel Clay, a psychiatrist alleged to have worked with a child-abuse
ring, is missing and presumed dead. His grown daughter, Rebecca, is being
stalked by an ex-con whose own daughter is missing. Rebecca hires Portland,
Maine, investigator Charlie Parker to protect her and dissuade her stalker,
a former contract killer named Merrick who is intent on either finding
his daughter or avenging her death. The case leads to a very dark chapter
in Maine's rural history and to the still-operational remnants of a syndicate
of highly organized child abusers. Connolly weaves elements of the supernatural
into a disturbing, very dark tale.
Connolly, John
The wolf in winter
The community of Prosperous, Maine has always thrived when others have
suffered. Its inhabitants are wealthy, its children's future secure. It
shuns outsiders. It guards its own. And at the heart of Prosperous lie
the ruins of an ancient church, transported stone by stone from England
centuries earlier by the founders of the town. But the death of a homeless
man and the disappearance of his daughter draw the haunted, lethal private
investigator Charlie Parker to Prosperous.
CONNOR, Alexandra
The Face in the Locket
A spoilt child learns the lessons of life the hard way, in this warm family
saga set in Wigan from 1920s to 1950s. Our heroine is brought to live
with her maiden aunts as a young child. They are formidable sisters, counting
themselves a cut above the neighbours, because they run a genteel hairdressing
salon. They dote on their pretty niece, although they're also devoted
to their brother -- something not right with him, but nobody likes to
talk about it. The girl grows into a beautiful woman, who knows how to
make the most of her charms. But when tragedy, family shame and betrayal
force her to confront the real world, she shows everyone that there's
more to her than a pretty face after all.
Connor, Alexandra
Mask of fortune
Zoe Mellor seems to have everything - looks, money and a top job in a
Bond Street gallery. Yet life hadn't always been this way. Motherless
at 15, Zoe had spent her teens looking after her father and adored brothers
in Lancashire. It was there that she and her brother Victor had learned
to exploit her talent for painting and art appreciation. Her meteoric
rise in the glamorous world of international art is mirrored by her phenomenal
but highly illegal success as a forger.
CONNOR, Alexandra
The Soldier’s Woman
When Faith Granger-s husband Samuel comes back from the First World War
he is a changed man. Although still loving to his wife and daughter, Samuel
struggles to settle down to normal, civilian life, and Faith seems unable
to re-ignite their old passion. Then Leonie Bonnard, a shy young Frenchwoman,
arrives, telling Faith she is a war widow looking for a room to rent for
herself and her young child. Faith takes her in, but when Samuel comes
face to face with the -lodger- he realises that his past has caught up
with him: he is the father of her child. Leonie threatens to tell Faith
everything, and insists that Samuel leave his family for her. How will
Faith react when she realises her life has been wrecked by a trusted interloper?
Connor, Alexandra.
The well of dreams
A saga of determination and hope, 'The Well of Dreams' is the story of
one woman's fight to inherit her dreams.
COOK, Claire
Best Staged Plans
As a professional home stager, Sandy Sullivan is an expert at transforming
cluttered rooms into attractive houses ready for sale. If only reinventing
her own life were as easy as choosing the perfect paint colour. She's
eager to put her family's suburban Boston home on the market, to downsize,
and to simplify her own life.
COOK, Gloria
Holding the light
Seth Kivell is furious when he loses out in the race to buy the Poltraze
estate, but when Poltraze Farm is bequeathed to his 16-year-old daughter,
Clemency, he sees his chance, moving the family there and renaming it
Trenbarvear. But his vindictive bullying causes anguish and tragedy, and
one by one, the family deserts him.
Cook, Gloria.
Leaving shades
After a miscarriage, Beth Tresaile returns to Owles House, the place of
her miserable childhood, accompanied by her best friend, Kitty Copeland.
Beth feels she can no longer go on unless she gets revenge on her estranged
mother, who neglected and abandoned her on a cold winter's night. But
there are many shocks in store for Beth.
COOK, Gloria
A Whisper of Life
Life in the small Cornish village of Hennaford is still difficult in 1948,
as the latest dramatic installment in Cook's family saga begins. Several
new characters have entered the scene, among them 16-year-old Kate, who
limps owing to a childhood bout with polio that left one leg longer than
the other and who has just been cruelly cast off by her unloving family
because they want her room, miserable as it is. Jonny Harvey, Tristan's
son and an RAF officer maimed in the war, has returned home to consider
his options. He finds himself attracted to worldly Abbie Rothwell, a recently
widowed artist and distant connection. But he is equally drawn to Kate's
unspoiled innocence as she finds her way among the kind folk at Ford Farm
who have taken her in after Jill Harvey's ectopic-pregnancy miscarriage.
COOKMAN, Lesley
Murder at the Laurels
Elderly Eeanor Bridges dies on her birthday at The Laurels nursing home,
no-one except her niece, Fran Castle, suspects anything. But when the
will goes missing, and Fran s newly discovered relatives appear to be
doing everything in their power to hamper the investigations, she enlists
the help of her friend Libby Sarjeant. Together, they uncover sinister
events in the past, greed and elements of witchcraft, all of which provide
a multiplicity of motives, and it isn t until a second body is discovered
that the murderer is unmasked.
COOKMAN, Lesley
Murder in the green
Libby Sarjeant and her friend Fran become involved in the strange rituals
of the local Morris Men after one of them is found dead on May Day and
another seems to have vanished into thin air.
COOKSON, Catherine
The Branded Man
Fourteen-year-old Marie Anne Lawson, youngest daughter of a prosperous
Northumbrian family, fleeing from something she couldn't bear to see,
fell and broke her ankle. She was discovered by a local man who, because
of a disfigurement, was known thereabouts as 'the branded man'. Her mother
impatiently awaited her recovery, for she had already planned to send
her wayward daughter to London, where her Aunt Martha could encourage
the child's natural talent for the piano. But Aunt Martha's regime was
so harsh that only the friendship of her aunt's companion, Sara Foggerty,
stopped Marie Anne from plunging into despair--that and the encouragement
she received from her music tutor. Why, then, did his sudden disappearance
make it necessary for her to return to Northumberland, this time into
the care of her grandfather?
COOKSON, Catherine
Just a Saying
From the earliest poem included here, written in 1925 when she was 19
years old, to poetry written just before her death in 1998 at the age
of 91, this anthology spans the gamut of Catherine Cookson's life and
work. The collection draws on many themes that will be familiar to the
readers of this well-loved writer: love, work, class and the beauty of
nature. She also shares more personal thoughts, reflections on her own
writing, marriage to her beloved Tom and life in the north of England.
COOKSON, Catherine
Riley
This story explores the complicated relationship between a younger man
and an older woman. After a difficult childhood, Riley lands a job at
the Little Palace Theatre, where he forms a bond with the actress Nyrene
Forbes-Mason; all manner of complications ensue.
COOKSON, Catherine
A Ruthless Need
The main character is a young girl, Lizzie, whom we meet at the age of
14. She is step-daughter to a woman who is quite disreputable. The step-mother
allows Lizzie to go out on an errand to deliver a pie to a man living
in a secluded cottage in the county of Durham. The man tries to rape her.
She is rescued by a corporal named Geoffrey Furham. He is just about to
be shipped out to the Suez Canal to serve in World War II. He finds the
conditions of Lizzie's home life so deplorable that he appeals to his
invalid mother, to take the girl into the house as a servant. Lizzie goes
to stay with Mr. and Mrs. Furham while Geoffrey goes off to war. In the
ensuing time during his absence, she grows up into a beautiful and fine
young woman. Several men vie for her attention, including Geoffrey, when
he returns. A fast read with many a good plot twist.
COOKSON, Catherine
Tilly Trotter
Beginning in the reign of the young Queen Victoria, the three Tilly Trotter
novels tell the story of a beautiful girl growing to womanhood amid hardship
and despair. Pitting her wits against the local Tyneside villagers, who
hate her and accuse her of witchcraft, Tilly's strong instinct for survival
leads her to become, in turn, the loving mistress of a wealthy man, and
then the wife of his son, travelling to the strange and perilous land
of America. When her husband is killed, Tilly returns to take possession
of his estate. The villagers prove even more hostile and suspicious, but
Tilly is supported by faithful friends and warm memories. Life still has
much in store for Tilly Trotter, old loves and enmities providing fresh
challenges to a woman as spirited as ever.
COOPER, Jilly
Harriet
Shy, dreamy, and incurably romantic, Harriet Poole was shattered when
her brief affair with Simon Villiers, Oxford’s leading playboy undergraduate,
ended abruptly, leaving her penniless, alone and pregnant. She becomes
a nanny to the children of an eccentric scriptwriter and a whole host
of visitors begin to arrive to disrupt her routine including of all people,
Simon.
COOPER, Natasha
Gagged and Bound
Trish Maguire, the London barrister agrees to take on a libel case concerning
a politician newly raised to the House of Lords who's been named as the
instigator of a bombing that killed a busload of children 30 years earlier.
When Trish asks her friend Insp. Caro Lyalt for help, she learns that
Caro is in need of her aid as well. An informant has told Caro that a
candidate for a job for which she's also vying has organized crime connections.
The murder of Caro's informant catapults Trish deeper into Caro's case
and Trish's 11-year-old half-brother, David, into danger. Putting at risk
her seven-year relationship with boyfriend George Henton, a prominent
solicitor, the smart, caring and driven Trish delves for information and
puts together all the pieces for a satisfying conclusion.
CORBETT, Judy
Envy
Envy is a uniquely absorbing novel focusing on two teenage girls. Isabel
the charmed, golden daughter of a wealthy, devoted daddy, and Diane, whose
bitter, downtrodden mother lives on a rented cottage on Isabel's family's
land. They become friends and Diane, our compelling narrator, driven by
her loveless childhood and terrible envy, manoeuvres her way into the
family, and slowly begins to break them apart.
CORBETT, Ronnie
High Hopes
The autobiography of one of Britain's best-loved entertainers.
CORNWELL, Bernard
Copperhead
Nathaniel Starbuck is a Northerner, the son of a Boston minister who becomes
caught up in the South at the start of the Civil War and joins the Rebel
cause, captivated more by the challenge and peril of war than the righteousness
of either side. New-forged loyalties entice him to stay with the rebels
even after his life and his family ties are put at risk when he must act
as a spy to save his best friend from charges of espionage. Nate is a
beguiling hero and Cornwell's balance of battle, romance, and historic
scenes are neatly paced in this novel set against the 1862 battle for
Richmond.
CORNWELL, Patricia
The front
Massachusetts State Investigator Win Garano is given one of his most challenging
cases yet when he is asked to investigate the death of a British woman
murdered over 40 years ago. Assumed to be a victim of the Boston Strangler,
blind Janie Brolin was raped and left for dead in 1962. With no DNA and
sketchy police records, this is a case that will test Garano to his limits.
It will take him on a journey through the archives, into the latest forensic
technology innovations, and into partnership with senior officers at New
Scotland Yard. And as Garano unearths deadly secrets, his hard-nosed boss
Monique Lamont is putting both their lives in jeopardy with her lust for
power and success.
COURT, Dilly
The Best of Sisters
Twelve-year-old Eliza Braggs lives a comfortless life above her uncle's
chandlery on the banks of the Thames, her brother Bart her only protection.
But when Bart accidentally kills a man and is forced to flee to New Zealand,
Eliza's very survival is at stake.
Court, Dilly
The beggar maid
From the age of eight, sixteen-year-old Charity Crosse has been living
rough with her grandfather and begging on the streets. When her grandfather
passes away, Charity is helped by a kindly doctor who introduces her to
bookseller, Jethro Dawkins. He takes Charity in to help in his bookshop
and keep house in their one room behind the shop. Charity sleeps under
the counter and is not well treated, but Jethro instills in her the love
of books that began when her grandmother taught her to read. And she starts
to hope of a better future for herself.
COURT, Dilly
The Constant Heart
Despite living by the side of the Thames, with its noise, disease and
dirt, eighteen-year-old Rosina May has wanted for little in life, until
her father's feud with a fellow bargeman threatens to destroy everything.
To save them all, Rosina agrees to marry Harry, the son of a wealthy merchant,
but a chance encounter with a handsome river pirate has turned her head
and she longs to meet him again. When her father dies a broken man, Harry
turns Rosina out onto the streets, but in spite of her hardships she cannot
forget her pirate. Is she really prepared to risk everything for love?
Court, Dilly
The ragged heiress
On a bitter winter’s day, an unnamed girl lies dangerously ill in
hospital. When two coarse individuals come to claim her, she can remember
nothing, not even her name. According to the men, she is their young sister,
Lucy. As her health improves and her memory gradually returns and she
realises she’s been kidnapped.
Craig, Jennifer
Yes sister, no sister
Based on the author's own experiences, this is the fascinating story of
one young nurse who enters training in 1952 and eventually progresses
to become ward sister.
Crosse, Tania Anne.
A bouquet of thorns
Dartmoor, 1877. Rose Chadwick is desperate to help Seth, the wrongly convicted
man who has touched her heart, but she feels it is beyond her control.
Her husband had promised to help clear the prisoner's name, but he scorns
her sympathy for the vicious way the prisoners are treated.
Crosse, Tania Anne.
Cherrybrook Rose
The year is 1875, when life in Dartmoor is harsh and unforgiving. Rose
could have any husband she chooses, but she is devoted to one man, her
father. When tragedy strikes, it seems that despite Rose's determined
efforts, there is only one way to hold the family together. But it is
a solution that requires the greatest sacrifice.
CROSSLAND, Glenice
The Stanford Lasses
In the small Yorkshire town of Cottenly — dominated by the steel
works and surrounded by beautiful countryside — Isaac Stanford lives
with his wife Emily and their three lovely daughters, known locally as
the Stanford lasses. Alice, the eldest, lives only for her work as a secretary
and chapel on Sunday. Fair and loving Lizzie is content with her job making
umbrellas — until she falls in love. And headstrong Ruth, the merry
one, is intent upon marrying a handsome charmer despite warnings from
friends and family. As the years pass, each sister is forced to confront
her greatest challenge…
CUSSLER, Clive
Corsair
Over five novels, Clive Cussler has brought readers into the world of
the Oregon, a seemingly dilapidated ship packed with sophisticated equipment,
and captained by the rakish, one-legged Juan Cabrillo. Now the Oregon
and its crew face their biggest challenge yet.
Cussler, Clive.
Dark watch
Juan Cabrillo and his motley crew aboard the clandestine spy ship Oregon
have made a very comfortable and very dangerous living from working for
high-powered Western interests. But their newest clients have come from
the east, the Far East, to ask for Cabrillo's special brand of assistance.
Cussler, Clive.
Devil's gate
A Japanese cargo ship cruises the eastern Atlantic near the Azores when
it bursts into flames. A gang of pirates speeds to take advantage of the
disaster when their boat explodes. What is happening in that part of the
world? Kurt Austin, Joe Zavala, and the rest of NUMAs Special Assignments
Team rush to investigate.
CUSSLER, Clive
Lost Empire
While scuba diving in Tanzania, Sam and Remi Fargo come upon a relic belonging
to a long-lost Confederate ship. An anomaly about the relic sets them
off chasing a mystery - but unknown to them, a much more powerful force
is engaged in the same chase.
CUSSLER, Clive
Plague Ship
The Oregon crew, captained by Juan Cabrillo, has just completed a top-secret
mission against Iran in the Persian Gulf, when they come across a cruise
ship adrift in the sea. Hundreds of bodies litter its deck, and as Cabrillo
tries to determine what happened, explosions rack the length of the ship.
Barely able to escape with his own life, Cabrillo is plunged into a mystery
as intricate - and as perilous - as any he has ever known. He finds himself
pitted against a cult with monstrously lethal plans for the human race...plans
he may already be too late to stop.
CUSSLER, Clive
Sacred Stone
In the remote wastes of Greenland, a young scientist has unearthed an
artifact hidden in a cave: a fifty thousand year-old meteorite known as
the Sacred Stone, which he soon discovers possesses potentially catastrophic
radioactive power. The astounding find places him in the crossfire of
two opposing terrorist groups who seek the stone for themselves. One is
a group of Muslim extremists who have stolen a nuclear device - with the
power of the meteorite they could vaporize any city in the West. The other
group is led by a megalomaniacal industrialist who seeks to carry out
the utter annihilation of Islam itself... Caught between two militant
factions bent on wholesale slaughter, Juan Cabrillo and his ship of high-tech
mercenaries, known as the Corporation, must fight to protect the scientist
and the Sacred Stone - and prevent the outbreak of World War III.
CUSSLER, Clive
Spartan Gold
Thousands of years ago, Xerxes the Great was said to have raided the Treasury
at Delphi, carrying away two solid gold pillars. In 1800, Napoleon Bonaparte
and his army stumble across the pillars. Unable to transport them, Napoleon
created a map on the labels of twelve wine bottles. Treasure-hunters Sam
and Remi Fargo are exploring the Great Pocomoke Swamp in Delaware when
they are shocked to discover a German U-boat. Inside, they find a bottle
taken from Napoleon's 'lost cellar'. Fascinated, the Fargos set out to
find the rest of the collection. But another connoisseur of sorts has
been looking for the bottle. Hadeon Bondaruk - a millionaire who claims
descent from King Xerxes himself. And the treasure will be his, no matter
what...
Cussler, Clive
The storm
Like a horde of army ants, a swarm of black particles suddenly attacks
a NUMA research vessel, killing everyone on board, while the ship itself
goes up in flames. A few hours later, Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala are on
their way to the Indian Ocean to investigate.
CUSSLER, Clive
Trojan Odyssey
A daring rescue sends Dirk Pitt on an adventure
that will determine the future of the planet … When a hurricane
unexpectedly blows up off the coast of Nicaragua, a giant floating hotel
lies in its path. With no escape for the helpless passengers and crew,
it’s left to Dirk Pitt and NUMA to launch a rescue and save the
day. But in the storm’s wake, Pitt and his team discover clues that
point to an ancient mystery with shocking implications for today. As Pitt
investigates further, he uncovers a plot by a mysterious billionaire called
Specter to dramatically alter the Earth’s climate, leaving him in
control of the only solution. With foes attempting to stop him on every
side, Pitt is in a race against time to prevent global catastrophe …
Cussler, Clive
Zero hour
A new energy source holds the promise to change the world. It's called
zero point energy, and it really exists - a state of energy contained
in all matter everywhere, and all but unlimited. Nobody has ever found
a way to tap into it, until one scientist discovers a way - or at least
he thinks he has. The problem is his machine causes great earthquakes,
even fissures in tectonic plates. One machine is buried deep underground;
the other in an ocean trench. If Kurt Austin, Joe Zavala and the rest
of the NUMA team aren't able to find and destroy them, the world will
be on the brink of catastrophe.
Daly, Willie.
The last matchmaker
DAVIDSON, Doris
Monday Girl
After her father's death, 10-year-old Renee and her mother are forced
to take in two lodgers. Renee grows up weaving romantic fantasies around
them, firstly the dependable Jack and later the charming Fergus. He cements
her obsession with him by seducing her, then breaking her heart. With
the advent of the Second World War, Renee is thrown into further turmoil
as the two men are sent into action, leaving her to a whirlwind of RAF
sergeants stationed in the area. She meets and falls in love with Glynn,
and the pair decide to marry. However, something remains wrong in Renee's
world...could her secret fear be the reason for her inability to find
lasting happiness?
DEAN, Anna
A Gentleman of Fortune
It's Richmond, 1806. Miss Dido Kent has developed rather a taste for mysteries,
having solved the riddle at Belsfield Hall. When her quiet holiday with
her cousin Flora is disturbed by the suspicious death of a neighbour,
Miss Dido is once more at the centre of an unusual investigation. All
eyes have fallen on the late Mrs. Lansdale's nephew 'for it has not passed
without notice that he has lost a remarkably tyrannical relation and gained
a very fine inheritance'. Miss Dido is intrigued by the rumours and, at
Flora's behest, starts a little investigation of her own. And as she does
so, she brings more to light than even she could have imagined.
DEAN, Anna
A Moment of Silence
Who better than a discerning maiden aunt to comfort a lovelorn niece and
solve a vexing mystery? No sooner has Miss Dido Kent arrived at the Montague
family estate of Bellfield Hall in 1805—at the behest of her beloved
niece, Catherine, whose fiancé, Richard Montague, has just departed
under mysterious circumstances—than a woman is found shot in the
shrubbery. Meanwhile, Lady Montague’s two nieces are being wooed
by gentlemen whose motives turn out to be less than sterling, a situation
about which Miss Kent also offers advice. Her primary quest, however,
remains investigating the murder and young Montague’s leave-taking,
and determining whether the two events are connected, which leads her
to uncover long-buried family secrets.
Dean, Ellie.
Keep smiling through
June 1940. Despite losing her mother at a young age and her father away
on important war work, 17-year-old Rita Smith has plenty of people to
turn to in the close-knit community of Cliffhaven. Until Italy sides with
Germany and Rita's closest friends and neighbours are interned as enemies
of the state.
Dean, Ellie
While we're apart
It is 1942 and England is at war. Mary Jones has just celebrated her eighteenth
birthday and said goodbye to her childhood sweetheart Jack, when she learns
that a bombing raid has killed her parents and destroyed her home. Her
father's trunk is still intact amid the ruins, and Mary discovers a shocking
secret amongst his diaries. Mary travels to Cliffehaven on the south coast
in search of answers.
Dear, Helen-Alice
My family is all I have
Helen-Alice Dear was only 15 when she left London to visit Bulgaria. Soon,
she found herself unable to leave & struggling to survive. Her marriage
to a Bulgarian man bore her four children. Despite the hardships, Helen
refused to give up hope & managed to protect & raise her family.
This is the tale of her courage & resilience.
DEAVER, Jeffrey
The Bone Collector
New York City is thrown into chaos by the assaults of the Bone Collector,
a serial kidnapper and killer who gives the police a chance to save his
victims from death by leaving obscure clues. The cops go to Lincoln Rhyme,
an ex-NYPD forensics expert left paralysed after an accident on the job.
Rhyme reluctantly postpones his ambitions towards suicide and puts together
a forensic investigation team, enlisting as his eyes and ears young police
officer Amelia Sachs.
DEAVER, Jeffrey
The Bodies Left Behind
When two masked men break into the isolated lakeside weekend house of
Steven Feldman, who works for the Milwaukee Department of Social Services,
and his wife, Emma, an attorney who may have stumbled on union corruption
in the course of some corporate research, Steven has just enough time
to phone 911 before the intruders shoot him and Emma dead. That interrupted
plea for help brings Deputy Brynn McKenzie, who possesses a set of predictable
emotional baggage (an abusive ex-wife, a troubled teenage son), to the
scene. A protracted and less than suspenseful game of cat-and-mouse between
McKenzie and the hired guns responsible for the murders ensues.
DEAVER Jeffrey
The Broken Window
When the quadriplegic detective's cousin is arrested for murder, it seems
to be an open-and-shut case, as plenty of forensic evidence links him
to the crime. But Lincoln discovers that the real killer is framing others
for his killings by manipulating intimate computer information. A deadly
game of cat and mouse pits Lincoln; his partner, Amanda Sachs; and the
rest of his NYPD crew against an adversary who is consistently one step
ahead of them.
DEAVER, Jeffrey
The Vanished Man
The novel opens with the murder of a young female student at a music school
on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Caught in the act, the killer vanishes
from a sealed room. Forensic and eyewitness clues point to a culprit with
magic training. Looking for expert help, Sachs encounters an aspiring
illusionist, who goes by the stage name of Kara, who agrees to help her
and Rhyme.
DE BURCA, Niall
Mr. Gutenberg and Other Tales
A collection of favourite tales
DE BURCA, Niall
Shapeshifter
Six great tales
Delinsky, Barbara.
The real thing|
They were complete strangers searching for the same thing - solitude.
But thanks to a matchmaking friend, Deirdre Joyce and Neil Hersey found
themselves stranded on an island of the coast of Maine. Forced to coexist,
they discovered that there was no escaping the inevitable - irresistable
attraction.
DIAMOND, Anne
Girl Next Door
Autobiography of Anne Diamond - a popular journalist and television presenter,
regularly appearing on Richard and Judy, The Wright Stuff and ITV News's
Life with Anne Diamond. She writes for Woman's Own and is the new agony
aunt on the Daily Mail. She is the author of the bestselling A New You:
Start your life today, Lose a Stone in a Month and A Gift from Sebastian:
Story of a cot death. She presents the video The Diamond Plan. She lives
in Oxfordshire with her children.
DIBDIN, Michael
Medusa
After a decomposed body is discovered in an abandoned military tunnel,
Inspector Aurelio Zen travels north to the Italian Alps to investigate.
At first glance, the death appears to have been an accident. But when
Zen takes a closer look, a mysterious tattoo begins to tell a much more
sinister tale, especially after the body is snatched from the morgue.
As Zen races to discover the inner workings of a clandestine military
organization named Medusa, he is reminded of just how lethal Italian history
can be.
Dickinson, Margaret
The clippie girls
Rose and Myrtle Sylvester look up to their older sister, Peggy. She is
the sensible, reliable one in the household of women headed by their grandmother,
Grace Booth, and their mother, Mary Sylvester. When war is declared in
1939 they must face the hardships together and huge changes in their lives
are inevitable.
Dickinson, Margaret
Fairfield Hall
Ruthlessly ambitious Ambrose Constantine is determined that his daughter,
Annabel, shall marry into the nobility. A fish merchant and self-made
man, he has only his wealth to buy his way into society. During the London
season, Annabel is courted by James Lyndon, the Earl of Fairfield, whose
country estate is only a few miles from her grandfather's farm. Believing
herself truly loved at last, Annabel accepts his offer of marriage. It
is only when she arrives at Fairfield Hall that she realizes the true
reason behind his proposal - and the part her scheming father has played.
DICKINSON, Margaret
Jenny’s war
Is it possible for a ten-year-old girl to fall in love? Jenny Mercer thinks
so. Evacuated to Lincolnshire from the East End at the outbreak of war,
she is frightened of the open spaces and the huge skies. But the Thornton
family soon makes her feel welcome. And no one more so than Georgie, the
handsome RAF pilot.
DICKINSON, Margaret
Suffragette Girl
When Florrie Maltby defies her father by refusing to marry Gervase Richards,
she sets off a chain of events that will alter her life. Instead she goes
to London and becomes involved with the suffragette movement. She's imprisoned
for her militant actions, and goes on hunger strike. With her health deteriorating,
there is one person who can save her - Gervase. After a brief stay in
the countryside to recuperate, Florrie returns to London to continue her
fight for women's rights. Only the outbreak of the Great War puts a halt
to her activities. It is when James, her younger brother, is shamed by
their father into volunteering, that Florrie enlists as a nurse and is
sent to the Front. Amidst the fear and horror of the hospital close to
the trenches, she finds love. But when her beloved brother is accused
of desertion, help comes from a very unexpected source.
Dickinson, Margaret
Welcome home
Edie Kelsey and Lil Horton have been friends for over 20 years. So it
was no surprise that their children were close and that Edie's son, Frank,
and Lil's daughter, Irene, would fall in love and marry at a young age.
But the declaration of war in 1939 changed everything. Frank went off
to fight, and Irene and baby, Tommy, along with Edie's youngest son are
sent to the countryside for safety. With Edie's husband, Archie, fishing
the dangerous waters in the North Sea and daughter Beth in London doing
'important war work', Edie's family is torn apart. Friendship sustains
Edie and Lil, but tragedy follows and there's also concern that Beth seems
to have disappeared. But it is Irene's return, during the VE day celebrations,
that sends shock waves through the family and threatens to tear Edie and
Lil's friendship apart forever.
DICKINSON, Margaret
Wish Me Luck
Fleur Bosley didn't believe in love at first sight, at least not until
she bumped into Robbie Rodwell on a railway station in the blackout of
wartime Britain. Posted to a newly-built Lincolnshire airfield, Robbie
as a wireless operator on bombers and Fleur as a R/T operator in the watch
office, their only escape is to the little cottage in the nearby village
where Fleur is billeted with another WAAF, Ruth. The two girls become
good friends, but Ruth, already hurt by the loss of one of the pilots,
does not approve of wartime romances. And Ruth is not the only one to
disapprove…
Dobbs, Michael
First lady
Ginny is wife of MP Dominic Edge, and is content with her life in the
constituency home. When she overhears gossip of her husband's affair,
it's a shattering blow. She decides there's only one way to stop being
a victim of the system, and that's to become its master. She will not
be satisfied until she's the wife of the Prime Minister.
Donachie, David
Honour redeemed
In this, the second of Connery's great 19th century sea adventure novels,
he continues the dramatic story of the Royal Marines - the Lobsters -
during the Napoleonic wars.
DONACHIE, David
The Devil’s Own Luck
During the Napoleonic Wars, Harry and James Ludlow are aboard the Magnanime,
a gunship under the command of Oliver Carter. Oliver and Harry are old
rivals and when James is found near the dead body of the First Lieutenant,
Carter assumes James is the murderer. Harry has to prove otherwise.
Donoghue, Emma
Slammerkin
Set in London and Monmouth in the late 1700s, this novel is the story
of Mary Saunders, the young daughter of a poor seamstress. Mary hungers
for the finer things in life, but her ambitions lead ultimately to tragedy.
Donoghue, John
The Death's Head Chess Club
SS Obersturmführer Paul Meissner arrives in Auschwitz from the Russian
front. After being badly wounded he is fit only for administrative duty
and his first and most pressing task is to improve flagging camp morale.
He sets up a chess club which thrives, as the officers and enlisted men
are allowed to gamble on the results of the games. However when Meissner
learns from a chance encounter that chess is also played by the prisoners
and that one is unbeatable, he sets out to discover the truth. But what
he finds will haunt him to his death.
DOUGHTY, Anne
For Many A Long Day
Doughty's Hamilton saga continues in Armagh, in the north of Ireland,
in 1932. Ellie Scott has lived here all her life and has known neighbor
George for almost as long. The two want to marry, but given the depressed
economy, they can't afford to set up housekeeping. So George decides to
work for his uncle's timber business in Canada. As soon as he has saved
enough money, he says, he'll send for her. But time goes by, with no date
and precious little contact forthcoming. Meanwhile, Ellie is enjoying
her job at the draper and time spent socially with her coworkers, including
Sam Hamilton who had been nursing a broken heart until he meets Ellie...
DOUGHTY, Anne
Stranger in the Place
Elizabeth, Belfast student and daughter of hardline Protestant parents,
goes on a study visit to the remote west coast of Ireland. She is delighted
with what she finds, and discovers she has more to learn. But her relationship
with an older Catholic man forces her to decide what she really wants.
DOUGHTY, Anne
A Few Late Roses
A woman in her mid-twenties is offered a job as Head of English at her
Belfast school. Conflicting desires and loyalties hold her back: can she
accept the post and support her ambitious husband? Over the course of
a weekend, when she revisits her roots in the countryside, the decision
must be made.
DOUGHTY, Anne
The Hamiltons of Ballydown
Rose and John Hamilton have come up in the world. Once very poor, they
now are enjoying middle-class life in late-nineteenth-century Ireland
after Rose saved the lives of a gentry family, who graciously gave John
a job helping run four mills. Their two sons are apprenticed, and their
daughters are soon to be out of school. No one knows just how fickle fate
can be like the Hamiltons, and Rose is especially grateful for all their
good fortune. As in most families, the Hamiltons have a few hardships
in store and heartache to bear, including illness and estrangement.
DOUGLAS, Anne
Starlight
Jess Raeburn is hired to work in the box office at the Princes Street
cinema in Edinburgh and thinks her dreams have come true when she marries
Rusty MacVail. But with the Second World War looming, her happiness is
short-lived.
Douglas, Donna
Nightingales at war
As the war takes its toll, the Nightingale nurses must do their bit for
king and country. Dora is the devoted mother of twin babies but, determined
to help the war effort, she goes back to work at the Nightingale Hospital.
More used to nights out in the West End, Jennifer and Cissy volunteer
in the hope of tending to handsome soldiers. They soon find out that nursing
isn't quite what they were expecting. For shy and troubled Eve, the hospital
provides an escape from the pressures of home, but the life of a nurse
is never easy, especially at wartime. Can the nurses rally together while
war rages all around them?
Douglas, Donna
A nightingale Christmas wish
As Christmas 1938 approaches, the staff at the Nightingale Hospital has
their own wishes for the festive season. Ward sister Frannie Wallace is
hoping she won't have to live through another war like the one that claimed
her beloved fiancé. But with bomb defences going up all around
London, it seems as if her hopes are in vain.
Douglas, Donna.
The Nightingale girls
January 1936 and three very different girls sign up as student nurses.
Dora is a tough East Ender. Helen is the quiet one. And the third is naughty,
rebellious Millie, an aristocrat on the run from her life of convention.
Douglas, Donna
The nightingale nurses
It's the final year of training for three young nurses at the Nightingale
Hospital. Helen is at a crossroads in her life as she battles with her
domineering mother over both her love life and her future career. Dora
can't stop loving Nick, who is married to her best friend, Ruby. But Ruby
is hiding a dark secret with the potential to destroy Ruby's marriage.
Millie is anxious about her fiancé, sent to Spain to cover the
Civil War, and things get worse when a fortune teller gives her a sinister
warning. With war looming in Europe, the three women face their own challenges,
at work and in love.
Douglas, Donna
Nightingales on call
1937 sees new challenges for the trainee nurses. Dora and her old enemy
Lucy are paired up on the children's ward for the final three months of
their training. The two nurses couldn't seem more different, but they
may have more in common than they think, as each hides a secret heartache.
Jess is the feisty eldest daughter of a notorious East End family and
determined to prove herself as a ward maid. And new trainee nurse Effie
can't wait to escape her small Irish village, and make her way as a nurse
in London. But Effie's sister Katie soon begins to worry that Effie's
behaviour is out of control.
Douglas, Donna
The Nightingale sisters
The lives and loves of young nurses at the Nightingale Hospital in the
1930s entwine with the stories of the ward sisters, each with her own
heart-rending secrets.
Douglas, Louise.
In her shadow
One ordinary morning at work Hannah Brown glimpses a young woman with
dark hair, wearing a green coat spattered with rain. The woman is identical
to her childhood best friend, Ellen Brecht. But Hannah believes Ellen
is dead. Could it really be her?
Dowling, Clare
Can't take my eyes off you
Clara's been away for too long. So, after ten great years in London, and
with boyfriend Matthew in tow, she arrives home in small-town Castlemoy.
The family welcomes her with open arms: her diet-shy mother, her closet-living
sister and her actor brother who scratches a living doing voiceover ads
for chicken. But Jason, her long-ago ex, seems to have old scores to settle.
Soon Clara finds herself being watched, followed and manipulated from
afar.
DOWLING, Clare
Just the three of us
Debs is having an affair with a married man. Not that she meant to, but
while she was hanging around waiting for Mr Right, Bob just kind of happened.
Lovely, kind, sexy Bob. OK, he's also a rampant cheat, but when you've
been starved of affection, it's hard to say no. Geri is married to Bob.
She also thinks he's lovely, kind and sexy, even if the last bit has worn
a bit thin after 17 years of marriage. And two kids. When Geri starts
to suspect that things aren't right, she tries to ignore the signs. Surely
Bob would never do anything to hurt her...So for now it's just the three
of them - but how long can that last?
DOYLE, Evelyn
Evelyn
Desmond Doyle, 29, a painter and decorator, is married with six children
and living in the infamous Fatima Mansions in Dublin in 1953. One day
he comes home to find his wife has left him. He decides to go to England
to find work and is advised to put his children into the state Industrial
Schools system for a short time until he returns. When he returns he is
told, to his horror, that the children have been consigned to the state
until they are 16. This is the story of how Desmond Doyle fought the Irish
legal system to change the law and win back his family. Told through the
eyes of Evelyn, Desmond's nine-year-old daughter, this is a heartrending
true story beautifully told.
DUNMORE, Helen
The Siege
The year is 1941, and the good people of Leningrad are squeezed between
fear of Stalin's secret police and rumors that the Germans are rapidly
advancing on their great city. When the inevitable happens, 22-year-old
Anna, an artist and the sole support for her young brother, invalid father,
and the latter's former mistress, learns to survive the devastation and
mass starvation that the siege brings. In the worst days of winter, Anna
falls in love with a doctor, Andrei, who returns her passion, creating
an oasis of emotional privacy within the hell of war.
DUNMORE, Helen
Ice Cream
Collection of short stories which are all quite short and have in common
a remarkable ability to encapsulate character, situation and landscape
in prose that shimmers with sensuous detail. Dunmore's touch is light,
but her stories slice through her readers' defenses like laser beams.
Dunn, D. M
Bread, jam and a borrowed pram
Bread, Jam and a Borrowed Pram' tells the compelling and heart-warming
story of a young nurse's life and work in 1950s England.
DURBRIDGE, Francis
The Geneva Mystery
From 1938 to 1969 the fictional crime novelist and detective Paul Temple,
together with his Fleet Street journalist wife Steve, solved case after
case in one of BBC radio's most popular series. Sir Graham Forbes, of
Scotland Yard, usually needed Paul's help with his latest tricky case.
Paul is contacted by one Maurice Lonsdale, whose brother-in-law was apparently
killed in a car accident whilst abroad. His widowed sister Margaret is
increasingly convinced that her husband is still alive - and she wants
Paul Temple to investigate.
EDEN, Dorothy
Sleep in the Woods
Beautiful Briar Johnson had set her cap at gentle Peter Fanshawe, her
friend Sophie's suitor, hoping to trap him into marriage. But her plot
was unexpectedly thwarted by the most eligible bachelor in town.
EDWARDS, Kim
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter
Families have secrets they hide even from themselves... It should have
been an ordinary birth, the start of an ordinary happy family. But the
night Dr David Henry delivers his wife's twins is a night that will haunt
five lives for ever. For though David's son is a healthy boy, his daughter
has Down's syndrome. And, in a shocking act of betrayal whose consequences
only time will reveal, he tells his wife their daughter died while secretly
entrusting her care to a nurse. As grief quietly tears apart David's family,
so a little girl must make her own way in the world as best she can.
EDWARDS, Martin
The serpent pool
DCI Hannah Scarlett is determined to uncover the truth behind Bethany
Friend's mysterious drowning in the Serpent Pool. Though the evidence
at the time did not rule out suicide, why would Bethany, so afraid of
water, choose drowning to end it all?
EDWARDS, Martin
Waterloo Sunset
When somebody circulates a notice that Liverpool lawyer Harry Devlin has
died, Harry is a little miffed. He also wonders which of his numerous
enemies might be planning to get even. After someone he knows is murdered,
Harry realizes he might not have much time to figure out who is gunning
for him—and whether the anonymous death threat has anything to do
with a serial killer operating in the Liverpool area. The eighth Devlin
novel is exactly like the ones that came before it, but that’s not
a criticism: the series is known for its wit, solid plotting, and likable
lead.
EGLETON, Clive
A Double Deception
In September 1939, aristocratic Andrew Korwin has arranged for his younger
sister and brother to leave their Warsaw home before the Nazis march in.
The brother is killed, sister Christina gets away and we last see Andrew
trying to escape from a burning hospital. In 1967 Christina's American
daughter, Stefanie, appears in London in search of her uncle. She enlists
the aid of Campbell Parker of the Foreign Office, and clues point to Polish
emigre Arthur Kershaw, successful manufacturer of a new laser-equipped
gun. Other players include a seedy PI, a German con man, a newly released
war criminal and even Simon Wiesenthal. People disappear and/or turn up
dead, Stefanie and Campbell are in grave danger and their burgeoning affair
is threatened by mutual distrust.
EGLETON, Clive
A Falcon for the Hawks
In 1917 a convoy of Zeppelins is dispatched from Germany to bomb London.
One of them runs into trouble but against advice its commander decides
to press on. In Hertfordshire the injured plane is spotted by an air defence
squadron led by Matthew Farr who has his own reasons for wanting to shoot
it down.
EGLETON, Clive
Assassination Day
Ross Frazer - Ex-Intelligence - Ex-Assassin - and dead - Or is he? SIS
officer Will Landon assumes he has a simple case ahead of him when asked
to investigate the sensational autobiography by the mysterious Ross Frazer.
It gets complicated when two people associated with the book are murdered.
With only silence from his superiors and two bogus intelligence officers
on his tail, one girl's recollection of the original document is all Landon
has to go on. With time running out he needs to start making some connections!
And fast.
EGLETON, Clive
Skirmish
At No. 57 Langham Place, an outwardly ordinary house in a quiet suburban
street, two men waited. After a year of preparation and negotiation, the
end was in sight. Outside, a boy was playing with a cine camera. Fascinated
with cars, he focused...
EGLRTON, Clive
The Honey Trap
The cold war is over, but men like Peter Ashton of the British SIS still
face extraordinary dangers as they confront multinational terrorism that
can strike anywhere, at any time, with powerful weapons. And in the world
of spies, counterspies, traitors, double agents and backbiting bureaucrats
convincingly described by Egleton, the dangers from one's friends seem
as great as from one's enemies.
ELGIN, Elizabeth
The Linden Walk [2 copies]
After six long years the Second World War is finally finished. Rationing
may remain, but hopes and dreams are in good supply. At Rowangarth, deep
in the Yorkshire countryside, there is more good news for the Sutton family
and wedding preparations are underway. Lyndis Carmichael has finally won
the heart of Drew Sutton, the man she has secretly cherished for years.
Still, Lyndis has doubts. Haunted by the memory of Drew's fiancee Kitty
-- killed during the Blitz -- she wonders if she can ever take her place
in Drew's heart, and if she truly belongs in the close-knit Sutton clan.
And other ghosts still linger…
ELLIS, David
Breach of trust
Attorney Jason Kolarich investigates the murder of a key witness in a
criminal case that he tried. Jason had forced the witness to testify and
believes that this led to his murder. When the evidence leads to an obscure
agency in state government, Jason goes to work for the agency to dig deeper.
Ellis, Kate
The cadaver game
When the decaying body of a murdered woman is discovered in a suburban
house, DI Wesley Peterson has problems establishing her true identity.
But as he tries to find out more about the mysterious woman, he has another
more disturbing case to investigate.
Ellis, Kate
The death season
When DI Wesley Peterson is summoned to investigate a killing, he assumes
that the case is a routine matter. But soon dark secrets and deadly deceptions
start to emerge from the victim's past, and Wesley begins to realise that
a simple incident of cold-blooded murder is altogether more calculated
and complicated that he could ever imagine. Meanwhile, archaeologist Neil
Watson is pulled from the historic Paradise Court to a ruined village
from the First World War. Even with the help of the attractive and enigmatic
Lucy, Neil cannot shake the feeling that something is missing from his
explorations: a cryptic clue that might have been lost when Sandrock tumbled
into the sea many years ago. A clue that could help Wesley solves his
most puzzling case to date.
ELLIS, Kate
The flesh tailor
When Dr James Dalcott is shot dead in his cottage it looks very much like
an execution. However, as DI Wesley Peterson begins piecing together the
victim's life, he finds that the well-liked country doctor has been harbouring
strange and dramatic family secrets.
EVANOVICH, Janet
Sizzling sixteen
Vinnie, of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, has run up a gambling debt of $786,000
with mobster Bobby Sunflower and is being held until the cash can be produced.
Nobody else will pay to get Vinnie back, leaving it up to Stephanie, office
manager Connie and file clerk Lula to raise the money if they want to
save their jobs. Being in the business of tracking down people, they have
an advantage in finding Vinnie. Finding a safe place to hide Vinnie turns
out to be harder than raising the money. Between a bonds office yard sale,
Mooner's Hobbit-Con charity event, and Uncle Pip's mysterious bottle,
they just might raise enough money to save the business, and Vinnie, from
ruin.
Evans, Pamela,|
The apple of her eye
It is February 1945 and April Green wonders if the war will ever end.
Then the local pub takes a direct hit and April's father is killed in
the blast. Life without him is hard and April and her brother do all they
can to help, particularly when their mother announces she is pregnant.
Volunteering to tend her father's allotment, April discovers a passion
for growing vegetables. Meanwhile, Winnie Benson is coming to terms with
her husband's spinal injuries. He may never walk again and, until their
son, George, returns from the Merchant Navy, Winnie must run their greengrocer's
on her own. Once the war is over and George is home, things start to improve
but rationing remains in force and fresh vegetables are hard to find.
April's supply of home-grown produce couldn't be more welcome. And, before
long, George can't help wishing he was the apple of her eye.
EVANS, Pamela
Harvest nights
It's 1920, and ex-land girl Clara Tripp is back home in West London with
her family. Despite her engagement to local boy Arnold, Clara is feeling
trapped in her dead end job and longs to return to the countryside. An
unexpected meeting with old flame Charlie Fenner leads to a temporary
job at his family's orchard in Kent.
Evans, Pamela
On her own two feet
Bringing the keep fit movement vividly to life in 1940s' London; Pam Evans'
family saga will inspire and enthral anyone who has ever dared to dream
of a better life. In the middle of a party to celebrate the Silver Jubilee
of King George V in 1935, Mollie Fisher's good-for-nothing husband walks
out on his wife and baby girl. Luckily, Mollie has a loving family to
turn to for help. Mollie's mother, Marge, is delighted to look after baby
Esme while Mollie goes out to work. Meanwhile, her Nan, Nora, encourages
Mollie to join a local keep fit class, which opens her eyes to a whole
new world.
EVANS, Pamela
Whispers in the Town
For West London girls Sal and Ann Storey, their world is turned upside
down in 1957 when two family tragedies strike. They are left to run the
family's sweetshop with their grandmother. Then Sal meets Bob Beck and
falls in love. As Ann uncovers the guilty secret she's been carrying for
so long, Bob's scheming ex-fiancee Kate reappears.
EVANS, Penelope
The Weight of Water
I had the dream again. And there she was. The little girl. She was standing,
as she always stands, on the bank of the river. Grass green beneath her
feet. Little red shoes, little white dress. Sara and Tom Ravenscroft need
to escape London after a traumatic event nearly kills Tom. Their search
for a safer, simpler life in the country takes them to the edge of Cornwall,
to a house deep in its own valley, and the river that runs through it.
But the locals are hardly welcoming, and it is not long before Sara begins
to struggle with the isolation; the haunting dream that has plagued her
since childhood starts to creep into the everyday - does the past hold
the key to her dream or is it the present she needs to be wary of?
EVANS, Pamela
The Pride of Park Street
Before she could walk, Jess Mollitt knew she wanted to dance and when
she gains a place with the famous Burton Girls dance troupe it seems her
dreams have finally come true. But then a family outing ends in tragedy,
killing her mother and leaving her father a broken man, and Jess is forced
to give up the career she loves. Life now is a far cry from the glamorous
existence she has left behind and she seeks solace from neighbour Don
Day. But when the brother Don hates arrives on the scene, it seems Jess’s
problems may be only beginning.
EVANS, Pamela
Second Chance of Sunshine
Angie has everything that Molly lacks. But when Angie’s father dies
and leaves Molly a share in the Beckett pottery, it’s on the condition
that she takes a job there. Forbidden by her husband to work outside the
home, she nevertheless seizes the opportunity to explore her new-found
independence.
EVANS, Pamela
Part of the Family
Lizzie Smith has practically become part of the Carter family, and it
is only fitting that she should eventually marry Stan, one of the Carter
boys. Much as she loves Stan, Lizzie senses a dark side to him that his
mother cannot see, and it is clear that his bitterness will only lead
to tragedy.
Fairbairns, Judy
Island wife
A memoir of a woman's life on a remote Scottish island - from 19-year-old
girl to wife of one to mother of five, hotelier, domestic miracle worker,
to empty nester to writer.
FELDMAN, Ellen
Next to Love
Babe, Grace and Millie have been best friends since their first day at
their small town's only kindergarten. Despite their differences, they've
played together, grown up together, shared each other's secrets. And,
when World War Two becomes a reality for America, the girls begin a new
phase of their lives together.
Felton, Jennie
All the dark secrets
When terrible tragedy strikes at the local colliery, the residents of
Fairly Terrace's ten houses suffer more than one loss and for Maggie Donovan
the world turns upside down. Turning for comfort to the one man she can
trust, she finds a sudden and undeniable passion instead. But any future
with Josh Withers seems a betrayal of her past, and Maggie realises the
only way to survive is to conceal a very dark secret of her own.
Fenwick, Liz
Under a Cornish sky
Demi desperately needs her luck to change. On the sleeper train down to
Cornwall, she can't help wondering why everything always goes wrong for
her. Having missed out on her dream job, and left with nowhere to stay
following her boyfriend's betrayal, pitching up at her grandfather's cottage
is her only option. Victoria thinks she's finally got what she wanted:
Boscawen, the gorgeous Cornish estate her family owned for generations
should now rightfully be hers, following her husband's sudden death. After
years of a loveless marriage and many secret affairs of her own, Victoria
thinks new widowhood will suit her very well indeed. But both women are
in for a surprise. Surrounded by orchards, gardens and the sea, Boscawen
is about to play an unexpected role in both their lives. Can two such
different women find a way forward when luck changes both their lives
so drastically?
FERRIS, Gordon
The Unquiet Heart
Danny McRae, private detective scraping a living in ration-card London;
Eve Copeland, crime reporter, looking for new angles to save her career.
It's an alliance made in heaven... Until Eve disappears, a contact dies
violently and an old adversary presents Danny with some unpalatable truths.
Danny's desperate search for Eve draws him into a web of black marketeers,
double agents and assassins, and hurls him into the shattered remains
of Berlin, where terrorism and espionage foreshadow the bleakness of the
Cold War.
FFORD, Katie
Recipe for Love
When enthusiastic amateur Zoe Harper wins a coveted place in a televised
cookery competition, she's thrilled. The first task has hardly begun when
she finds herself with more than she bargained for. Not only does she
have to contend with the fiercely competitive Cher, but she's fast developing
a crush on one of the judges.
FIELDING, Helen
Cause Celeb
Rosie Richardson, the administrator of Safila, a refugee camp in the fictional
African country of Nambula, needs funds fast. The usual relief agencies
are tied up in diplomatic knots, a long-promised supply ship is always
10 days away and it looks as though thousands of refugees are about to
come streaming over the border. If they arrive before the food does, hundreds
of people will starve to death. Rosie, desperate, does the only thing
she can think of: she quits her job, returns to England and organizes
a celebrity fund drive. This effort is complicated by the fact that her
ex-boyfriend, a manipulative TV presenter named Oliver, is her only access
to celebrities…
FIENNES, William
The Snow Geese
In The Snow Geese, a model of artful, elegant prose, William Fiennes,
a young convalescent, follows migrating snow geese on their annual 3,000
mile journey to the Arctic Circle. Fiennes's own journey, a wide loop
he hopes will return him to his pre-illness life, is no less arduous.
Fiennes travels to south Texas, and leapfrogs the birds--by car, bus,
train, snowmobile, and foot--en route to their nesting grounds on Baffin
Island. His journey's log is freckled with pungent lessons. Most moving
are his meditations on restlessness--the primal, contradictory human impulses
to leave and return and leave and return.
FINE, Anne
Taking the Devil’s Advice
Oliver, a successful British philosopher, spends the summer with his ex-wife
and his children, as well as her new husband, while he writes his autobiography.
This he does sitting in the airing cupboard, where a well-placed flue
carries up the sounds of conversation in the kitchen.
FLEMING, Leah
The War Widows
The death of her brother Freddie in the Second World War hit Lily Winstanley
hard. But little did Lily know that her brother’s death would change
her life – and the life of her family – forever. For when
shocking news comes to light that Freddie had met a woman called Susan
in Burma and fathered a daughter with her called Joy, Lily realizes that
it’s up to her and her mother Esme, to open the doors to their house,
and welcome the woman Freddie had sought solace in during those terrifying
final months of his life.
Fleming, Leah.
Winter's children
Grieving widow Kay Partridge and her daughter Evie, unable to face the
oncoming Christmas festivities, move into a cottage at majestic Wintergill
Farm in the Yorkshire Dales. Kay wants to shut the door and forget about
everything. Evie, struggling to come to terms with the concept of death,
just wants her Daddy to come home for Christmas.
Flynn, Gillian
Gone girl
Nick Dunne's wife Amy suddenly disappears on the morning of their 5th
anniversary. The police immediately suspect Nick. Amy's friends reveal
that she was afraid of him. He swears it isn't true. A police examination
of his computer shows strange searches. He says they aren't his. Then
there are the persistent calls on his mobile phone.
FLYNN, Katie
A Kiss and a Promise
Michael Gallagher, an Irish seaman in the Navy, falls in love with Stella
Bennett when his ship docks in Liverpool for repairs. When Stella gives
birth to a ginger haired baby, he thinks it isn't his and goes back to
sea. As baby Ginny grows up she must find him if she is to escape the
slums.
FLYNN, Katie
Beyond the Blue Hills
Laura Collins, a widow, is struggling to make a good life for her daughters,
Tess and Tina. When Laura is offered a good job, with accommodation, she
is delighted. Life is very different for the Brewsters, living on Manor
Farm in Herefordshire. Danny and his girlfriend, Sophie, intend to marry
one day so that they can run Manor Farm together but his cousin and bet
friend, Phil Ryland, feels differently. He longs to get away from farming
and intends to escape as soon as he can. Then war comes and changes everything.
FLYNN, Katie
The Bad Penny
One wild night midwife Patty Peel is called to attend a birth on the opposite
side of Liverpool. She pedals off into the storm and delivers a baby girl
in a filthy slum dwelling, just as the mother dies. The drunk and violent
father tells Patty to get rid of it, so she takes the child away, meaning
to deliver it to the nearest orphanage. But Patty had spent her entire
childhood in an institution, except for the frequent occasions when she
ran away, and cannot bear to hand the baby over. She has no idea how the
baby will affect the attitude of those around her…nor how her life
will change as a result…
FLYNN, Katie
Christmas wishes
It is the autumn of 1945 and identical twins Joy and Gillian Lawrence
are on their way home to Liverpool. Their mother has been killed in the
blitz, but the girls hope that their beloved father will be able to manage
without assistance. All goes well until there is a terrible accident,
causing Joy to lose her sight.
FLYNN, Katie
The Cuckoo Child
When Dot McCann, playing relievio with her pals, decides to hide in Butcher
Rathbone's almost empty dustbin, she overhears a conversation which could
send one man to prison and the other to the gallows - and suddenly finds
herself in possession of stolen goods. Dot lives with her aunt and uncle,
the cuckoo in the nest, abandoned to these relatives after her parents
died. She feels very alone ...until she meets up with Corky who has run
away from a London orphanage. They join forces with Emma, whose jeweller's
shop has been burgled and with Nick, a handsome young newspaper reporter
who is investigating the crime. The four of them begin to plot to catch
the thieves. But Dot and Emma have been recognised, and soon both are
in very real danger ...
FLYNN, Katie
A mother’s hope
Along a blacked-out wartime street a girl is scurrying, a basket on one
arm. As sirens begin and bombs crash down, she is filled with panic and,
with a heavy heart, abandons her burden in a sheltered doorway, meaning
to return later. Even as she disappears in the resulting chaos, the bundle
in the basket begins to wail. Years later, two young unfortunates meet
on a November day. Martin has been desperately trying to hitch a lift
along the lonely windswept road and when he sees a weeping girl in front
of him, he hurries to catch her up. Rose and Martin become unlikely companions
until they go their separate ways, not expecting to meet again. However,
fate decrees otherwise.
FLYNN, Katie
No Silver Spoon
Finola O'Casey's family live on the West Coast of Ireland, her father
Michael working hard in his boat. When he loses his fishing partner, the
family rows about whether Finola's brother should give up his place to
study law and work in the boat. So Finola offers to help, but is sent
to Liverpool.
FLYNN, Katie
The Runaway
Running away from her comfortable home in Ireland, a young girl struggles
to survive in Liverpool as war approaches.
Flynn, Katie
A Christmas to remember
A few days before Christmas, Tess Williams rushes into Albert Payne's
tobacconist shop, with two boys in hot pursuit, saying she's a thief.
Albert chases the boys away, and though Tess does not realise it, this
incident changes her life.
Flynn, Katie
A family Christmas
Jimmy Trewin and his little sister are devastated by their mother's death
and horrified to find themselves entrusted to the far from tender care
of a hated neighbour, Mrs Huxtable. They hope their father will rescue
them when his ship comes into port but this does not happen and when Cyril
Huxtable is seen by the children hiding 'a wad of notes' away, a wad which
subsequently disappears, they realise they are in deep trouble. Cyril
accuses them of theft and threatens a terrible revenge so they decide
to leave Liverpool and try to find their mother's family in Wales. Soon,
they meet Miss Trent, a school teacher who has been unfairly dismissed,
and agree to join forces since Miss Trent also hopes to find relatives
in Wales. But Cyril has promised to pursue them until they hand over his
property, and soon they realise he has picked up their trail.
Flynn, Katie
The forget-me-not summer
Miranda Lovage and her mother have a blazing row when Arabella tells her
daughter that she can no longer afford their present lifestyle. Miranda
goes to bed angry and upset and is awoken at midnight by a strange sound,
but when it is not repeated she goes back to sleep. When she awakes next
morning, however, it is to find that her mother has disappeared.
Flynn, Katie
A summer promise
Maddy lives with her grandmother in a tumbledown farmhouse in the Yorkshire
Dales. The house has been in the family for generations, but her grandmother
is struggling to cope. Determined that no matter what happens, the two
of them will not be forced into the workhouse. Though life is tough, Maddy
manages to gain a scholarship to the local school. As war is declared,
Maddy and her friends join up, leaving the beautiful Dales for the dangerous
work of manning the ack-ack sites.
Flynn, Katie
Time to say goodbye
It's 1939, and three ten-year-old girls meet on a station platform. Imogen,
Rita and Debby all missed the original evacuation and now the authorities
are finding it difficult to place them. When Auntie and her niece, Jill,
who run the Canary and Linnet Public House, offer to take them in, the
billeting officer is greatly relieved. The countryside is heaven to the
three little townies, especially after they meet Woody and Josh, also
evacuees. They find that by climbing to the top of the biggest tree in
the beech wood they have a perfect bird's-eye view of the nearest RAF
station and are able to watch the comings and goings of the young fighter
pilots as the Battle of Britain rages. Then they find an injured flier
and the war becomes a stark reality.
FOLLETT, Ken
Code to Zero
Set in 1958 shortly after the Soviets beat the Americans into orbit, the
story tracks the frantic movements of Dr. Claude Lucas, who wakes up one
morning in Washington, D.C.'s Union Station, dressed as a bum. A victim
of amnesia, he has no recollection that he is a key player in the upcoming
launch of Explorer 1, the army's latest attempt to get a rocket into space.
While Lucas slowly unravels the clues to his identity, the CIA follows
its own agenda. The agency, led by Lucas's old Harvard buddy Anthony Carroll,
has its own murky reasons for wanting Lucas to remain amnesic, and will
kill him if he tries to interfere with the launch.
FOLLETT, Ken
Hornet Flight
It is June 1941 and Denmark is under German occupation. On the rocky coast
of Denmark, two brothers, Harald and Arne Olufsen are straining against
the rigid confines imposed by their elderly parents. Meanwhile, a network
of MI6 spies is attempting to decipher an encrypted Luftwaffe radio signal
which mentions the new Freya-Ger’t - a rudimentary form of German
radar equipment. Arne's relationship with Hermia Mount, an MI6 analyst
draws him into underground politics, putting him under surveillance by
the Danish security forces - and by one man in particular who has a personal
motive to see Arne fall. It is only a matter of time before the brothers'
paths converge in a united effort to overcome the Nazis.
FOLLETT, Ken
Whiteout
Ex-policewoman Antonia "Toni" Gallo, head of security at a boutique
pharmaceuticals company, has discovered that two doses of an experimental
drug—developed as a potential cure for the deadly Madoba-2 virus—have
vanished from her top-secret laboratory. This mystery is a precursor to
a more serious crime being planned by Kit Oxenford, the gambling-addicted
son of the company's founder, Stanley Oxenford. Kit, deeply in debt to
mobster Harry Mac, sees a raid on his father's lab as a chance to score
enough money to disappear and start anew in another country.
FORBES, Colin
No Mercy
As Tweed and his team risk their lives against a new and potentially deadly
enemy they realize that they are being betrayed at every turn. The appalling
realization that the traitor could be part of the team finally dawns on
them.
FORBES, Colin
Sinister Tide
The wave of the future confronts Tweed - carrying death for at least a
hundred million people. With Paula Grey and Bob Newman, Tweed tracks the
creator of the supreme weapon, Dr Goslar. Identity unknown - man or woman?
The trail leads from the coast north of Dartmoor to London. Two mysterious
women appear - Serena Cavendish, then Trudy Warner, just arrived from
the US. Can Tweed trust either?
FORSYTH, Anne
The Rose
In spite of a humble background, a girl can dream...Maid-of-all-work Alice
Finlay is 17 when her employer dies and, seeking advice about her future,
Alice goes to see Miss Lennox, her teacher at the orphanage, her former
home. Alice has a talent for drawing and Miss Lennox finds her a position
with Simpson's, where she is taught the art of decorating pottery. As
she learns her craft, Alice becomes involved in the lives of her friends
at work, and even has her own romance, but she is determined to be a 'proper
artist' - a dream which is realised in the sale of her first picture,
a Scottish rose.
FORSYTH, Anne
Under the bridges
It was September 1962, and the building of the new Forth Road Bridge was
bringing excitement to the small community of North Queensferry. But Nancy
and Joe's daughter, Lorna, has become very secretive lately, reluctant
to say who she was meeting.
Fossum, Karin
The murder of Harriet Krohn
Charles Olav Torp has problems. He's grieving for his late wife, he's
lost his job, and gambling debts have alienated him from his teenage daughter.
Desperate, his solution is to rob an elderly woman of her money and silverware.
But Harriet Krohn fights back, and Charlo loses control. Wracked with
guilt, Charlo attempts to rebuild his life and regain his dignity. But
the police are catching up with him, and Inspector Konrad Sejer has never
lost a case yet. Told through the eyes of a killer, 'The Murder of Harriet
Krohn' poses the question: how far would you go to turn your life around,
and could you live with yourself afterwards?
FRANCIS, Jane
Tilly’s Story
After an argument with her elder sister, Tilly Moran decides it is time
to fly the nest and moves across the Mersey to Liverpool. As the ferry
slips through the murky water, Tilly prays that her strike for independence
will not land her in trouble. Having found lodgings and a part-time job,
Tilly begins to settle in to her new life. But working undercover for
a detective agency brings Tilly into contact with the seedier side of
the city and she uncovers rather more than she bargained for. And it is
only when her life is put in danger that she discovers where her heart
truly lies.
FRANCOME, John
Back hander
Things are not great for jockey Alan Morrell. He can't get the rides he
needs and when he sets up a bloodstock partnership, a tragic accident
robs him of the business and his best friend Lee. Now Alan owes £100,000
and his only asset is a racehorse who has yet to be put to the test. But
all that fades into insignificance next to the suspicion that Lee's fatal
fall was more than an accident. Fellow-jockey Max Ashwood is struggling
with the backlash from his affair with a trainer's wife and the little
matter of his gambling. There's also the convenient death of another man
to whom Max owed money. Two riders, two unexplained deaths - but overshadowing
both is a conflict that dwarfs the cosy world of racetrack winners and
losers. As the noose closes round the neck of one man's criminal empire,
just how many others will swing?
FRANCOME, John
Dark horse
What kind of person are you? If you caused a death - but no one else saw
- would you confess? Five years have passed since former jockey Mark Presley
chose to stay silent about the hit-and-run accident that left a young
woman dead. But when his wife is killed in an incident with cruel echoes
of that earlier tragedy, it seems justice has come calling. A broken man,
he is driven by grief to clear his conscience at last. Mark has nothing
left to lose - but there are others he'd implicate by confessing. In the
world of flat racing, everything rides on reputation, and some people
will do anything to keep theirs intact. Anything - even murder..
Fraser, Emma
We shall remember
Rena is a young medical student living in Warsaw when the German army
invade Poland. Those closest to her are dying and when Irena realises
that no one is coming to Poland's aid, it's clear that she is alone. Forced
to flee to Britain, Irena meets Richard, a RAF pilot who she's instantly
drawn to and there's a glimmer of happiness on the horizon. And then the
war becomes more brutal and in order to right a never-forgotten wrong
Irena must make an impossible decision. Decades later, Sarah's mother
is left a home in Skye and another in Edinburgh following the death of
Lord Glendale, a man she's never met, and only on the condition that Magdalena
Drobnik, a woman she's never heard of, is no longer alive. Sarah's only
clues to this mystery are two photographs she doesn't understand but she's
determined to discover the truth, not knowing that she's about to begin
a journey that will change her life.
FRASER, Sara
The Resurrection Men
Still finding his way in his new role as constable, the hapless Thomas
Potts gets hit from all sides when a string of grisly murders, gruesome
body snatchings, and ghastly robberies has the villagers of Tardebigge
Parish in an uproar. Although a nefarious criminal gang known as the Rippling
Boys is believed responsible, Potts lacks the means to gather evidence
to make an arrest—until he develops the rudimentary techniques for
collecting fingerprints, then a novel investigative process that astounds
his superiors and alarms the criminals. As the body count rises, Potts
not only finds his reputation, job, and life in jeopardy but also stoically
faces the rejection of his erstwhile girlfriend and heroically endures
the vituperative haranguing of his hot-tempered mother.
FREEMANTLE, Brian
See Charlie Run
Charlie Muffin is the world's most unusual, unlikely, yet somehow believable
secret agent. As in the earlier novels in this engaging series, Charlie
is on the bad side of everyone in his agency except the director. That
may or may not hinder him when he is sent to Japan to help the wife of
a KGB assassin who is about to defect to the CIA, in order to defect to
the British secret service. An elaborate double cross? Perhaps. But Charlie,
irreverent, disreputable, and disrespectful as he is, is most of all,
very good at what he does.
FRENCH, Nicci
Land of the Living
A horrifying premise catalyzes this fast-paced, suspenseful thriller:
A woman wakes up in a darkened room, bound, disoriented, unable to recall
the recent past. She is terrorized and abused by a strange man who taunts
her with the names of other victims. But for Abbie Devereaux, a 25-year-old
Londoner, the nightmare really begins after she escapes. Recovering in
a local hospital, she must confront the fact that no one believes her
story. Her doctors think it's all a fantasy, "a cry for help."
Det. Insp. Jack Cross can't find a crime scene. And when Abbie's well
enough to go home, she discovers that her life-her job designing office
interiors; her boyfriend, Terry; the flat they shared-has been destroyed,
but she hasn't a clue as to how or why. Has she had a breakdown? Is she
still in danger from the kidnapper?
FRENCH, Nicci
Secret Smile
Miranda Cotton has an ideal life in London, doing work she loves (building
and contracting; she always seems to have a spot of paint in her hair),
with no current love interest but lots of dating opportunities. Then a
short, nasty liaison with a man who calls himself Brendan Block rips her
comfortable world apart. A charming and dangerous psychopath, Block worms
his way into the Cotton family claiming that he dumped Miranda (when in
fact it was she who tossed him out when she caught him reading her diaries);
he immediately wins the trust of her flustered parents and does serious
damage to her older sister, Kerry, and her mentally fragile younger brother,
Troy. The trouble is that nobody believes the rather rough-edged Miranda
when she tries desperately to stop Block's rampage.
French, Tana
The secret place
The photo shows a boy who was murdered a year ago. The caption says, 'I
KNOW WHO KILLED HIM'. Detective Stephen Moran hasn't seen Holly Mackey
since she was a 9-year-old witness to the events of Faithful Place. Now
she's 16 and she's shown up outside his squad room, with a photograph
and a story. Even in her exclusive boarding school, in the graceful golden
world that Stephen has always longed for, bad things happen and people
have secrets. The previous year, Christopher Harper, from the neighbouring
boys' school, was found murdered on the grounds. And today, in the Secret
Place - the school notice board where girls can pin up their secrets anonymously
- Holly found the card.
FULLERTON, Alexander
The Waiting Game
It was madness to send a wartime submarine to the Arctic in summer, when
there is no darkness to surface in. On this hazardous expedition, hunter
becomes hunted and tension turns to cold terror.
FURST, Alan
Dark Voyage
E.M. DeHaan, is recruited by Dutch Naval Intelligence to smuggle arms
and spies past the watchful eyes of the German Navy. DeHaan is at first
a reluctant hero, certain that disguising the Noordendam as a Spanish
freighter won't attract the attention of the Nazi authorities will never
work. The plot takes DeHaan, his crew and a handful of passengers that
include a refugee family, a beautiful woman, and a mysterious Russian
through the dangerous waters of the Mediterranean, the North Sea, and
the Baltic.
Galbraith, Robert
The silkworm
When novelist Owen Quine goes missing, his wife calls in private detective
Cormoran Strike. At first, she just thinks he has gone off by himself
for a few days - as he has done before - and she wants Strike to find
him and bring him home. But as Strike investigates, it becomes clear that
there is more to Quine's disappearance than his wife realises. The novelist
has just completed a manuscript featuring poisonous pen-portraits of almost
everyone he knows. If the novel were published it would ruin lives - so
there are a lot of people who might want to silence him. And when Quine
is found brutally murdered in bizarre circumstances, it becomes a race
against time to understand the motivation of a ruthless killer, a killer
unlike any he has encountered before.
Gangel, Alison.
The sun hasn't fallen from the sky
Seven-year-old Ailsa Dunn's Ma is prettier than all the other mothers;
her Da is the most handsome man in the world. They're made for each other.
But the grown-up world is more complicated than that, and when alcohol
intrudes, violence becomes the norm and unpredictability reigns - and
the ground shifts beneath Ailsa's small feet.
GARDNER, Lisa
The killing hour
Summertime and the killing is easy... For three summers, the residents
of Atlanta have been gripped by terror when the temperature creeps up
to a hundred. For with relentless heat comes a vicious killer. Each time,
he takes two girls. Each day, he waits for the first body to be discovered,
a body that contains all the clues investigators need to find the second
victim, who waits, prey to certain death. The police are never in time;
bodies are always found months later in remote and isolated places. As
a heatwave of epic proportions descends, the game begins again. Girls
are going missing and the clock is ticking. Rookie FBI agent Kimberly
Quincy stumbles across the first body in the grounds of the Bureau's training
facility at Quantico. This time he's raising the stakes. He wants the
FBI's finest to come out and play...
GARDNER, Lisa
The Perfect Husband
Jim Beckett was everything she'd ever dreamed of...But two years after
Tess married the decorated cop and bore his child, she helped put him
behind bars for savagely murdering ten women. Even locked up in a maximum
security prison, he vowed he would come after her and make her pay. Now
the cunning killer has escaped—and the most dangerous game of all
begins.... After a lifetime of fear, Tess will do something she's never
done before. She's going to learn to protect her daughter and fight back,
with the help of a burned-out ex-marine. As the largest manhunt four states
have ever seen mobilizes to catch Beckett, the clock winds down to the
terrifying reunion between husband and wife. And Tess knows that this
time, her only choices are to kill—or be killed.
GARWOOD, Julie
Honor’s Splendour
In the feuding English court, gentle Lady Madelyne suffered the cruel
whims of her ruthless brother, Baron Louddon. Then, in vengeance for a
bitter crime, Baron Duncan of Wexton - the Wolf - unleashed his warriors
against Louddon's main.
GEORGE, Elizabeth
Believing the Lie
Detective Inspector Lynley is approached by business magnate Bernard Fairclough
for a confidential review - not a formal investigation - of the circumstances
of his nephew's demise. The coroner's verdict is accidental death. Still
grieving for his murdered wife, Lynley has personal reasons for welcoming
a spell away from London.
GEORGE, Elizabeth
The Evidence Exposed
The Evidence Exposed is a collection of three short stories. In the first,
a motley group of anglophiles are on a two week course at Cambridge studying
the "Great Houses of Britain." Within their microcosm, jealousy,
sexual tension and infidelities abound, so when one in the party suddenly
dies, everyone is suspect. That is, until Inspector Lynley arrives on
the scene.
The second tale, I, Richard, creeps into the mind of Malcolm Cousins,
a bitter, middle-aged teacher with one goal: to obtain a priceless document
that could clear the name of Richard III. If Cousins succeeds, he will
re-write history and live like a king--but with one catch. He must murder
his best friend.
In the third story, Surprise of His Life, Douglas Armstrong thought he
was just killing time before a prostrate examination when he first consulted
psychic Thistle McCloud. However, her divinations strike at the core of
his marital insecurities, fuelling a jealous passion. Six weeks and four
consultations later, his cosmic obsession culminates in a dangerous lesson:
Playing with destiny can have shocking results.
GERRITSEN, Tess
Girl missing
The first body is a mystery. She's young. She's beautiful. And her corpse,
laid out in the office of medical examiner Cat Novak, betrays no secrets
- except for a notebook clutched in one stiff hand, seven numbers scrawled
inside. When a second victim is discovered, Cat begins to fear that a
serial killer is stalking the city streets.
GERRITSEN, Tess
Harvest
Surgical resident Abby DiMatteo is on the fast track at Boston's fictional
Bayside Hospital. But after she disobeys orders so she can give a heart
transplant to a failing 17-year-old instead of to a failing middle-aged,
rich woman, her career options look slim. Fighting back against hospital
administrators, shyster lawyers and violent thugs, Abby, spunky but angst-ridden
and also rather whiny, finds major discrepancies in the records of Bayside's
organ-transplant procedures. Shocked, she finally learns the truth, experiences
a major betrayal and, in the climax, must herself face the final harvest.
GERRITSEN, Tess
Ice cold
Maura Isles is in serious danger, cut off and isolated in a village where
all the inhabitants have disappeared, Jane Rizzoli is out looking for
her - and unknown to both, someone is watching.
Gerritsen, Tess.
In their footsteps
The quiet scandal surrounding her parents' deaths twenty years ago has
always haunted Beryl Tavistock. Now she's asking dangerous questions,
and the answers are proving that old secrets die hard.
GERRITSEN, Tess
Life Support
Dr. Toby Harper works the night shift in an emergency room. More comfortable
with the steady horror and tedium of emergency care than with a normal
lifestyle, Toby alienates herself socially from her peers and from her
sister. She spends her daytime hours alone with her mother who suffers
from Alzheimer's disease. When elderly Alzheimer's patients from the same
retirement home start dying mysteriously, Toby is the only one suspicious
enough to investigate. As a result she finds herself, her mother, and
her own sanity at risk.
GERRITSEN, Tess
The silent girl
In the murky shadows of an alley in Boston's Chinatown a hand has been
discovered. On the rooftop above lies a woman's severed head. Two strands
of silver hair - not human - cling to the body that lies nearby. These
are Detective Jane Rizzoli's only clues, but they are enough for her and
Dr Maura Isles to make a startling discover
GILL, Elizabeth
Home to the High Fells [tapes]
It's 1958 in Durham, a small mining town in northern England, and Rosalind
West can't wait to start her new job in London--until she discovers that
she'll be working for a young man who also lived in Durham. Jack Neville
is an up-and-comer who has made a name for himself as a car designer,
and he's always had a soft spot for Rosalind. But, despite its size, Durham
has social class distinctions, and Rosalind has a hard time not thinking
of Jack as beneath her. Shortly after they begin working together, they
meet a popular driver, Freddie Harlington, heir to a title and an estate
in Northumberland. Rosalind is smitten with Freddie, who sleeps with her
even though he knows that they'll never marry, while Jack steadfastly
remains Rosalind's friend.
GILL, Elizabeth
The Secret
As England hunkers down under the onslaught of World War II, Ailsa Gray's
wedding anniversary comes round again. Her marriage hasn't been great,
but she has 14-year-old twins, and at least her husband isn't off fighting.
But the war does find him when a bomb drops on a house while he's in another
woman's bed. Ailsa leaves London with the children and has nowhere to
go except north to live with her husband's family. She has recently discovered
that prior to marrying her, her husband had gotten a local girl pregnant.
Her children make friends with some teens in the village, and when Ailsa's
daughter grows close to a certain young man, Ailsa is forced to reveal
their connection.
GOODMAN, Susan
Children of War
Were you a child, toddler or teenager during the War? If so, please share
your memories and anecdotes: the blackout, bombing, evacuation, shortages,
absent fathers! and the fun. Need YOUR help. It's important, for those
of us still around -- and for the future.' This was the wording of a boxed
ad Susan Goodman placed in a number of local newspapers -- and the response
was colossal: she had touched a dormant nerve. And this remarkable book
is the result -- a rich tapestry of the dramatic, amusing, poignant and
everyday during the twentieth century's greatest conflict, through a child's
eyes.
Goodwin, Daisy
The fortune hunter
In 1875, Sisi, the Empress of Austria is the woman that every man desires
and every woman envies. Beautiful, athletic and intelligent, Sisi has
everything - except happiness. Bored with the stultifying etiquette of
the Hapsburg Court and her dutiful but unexciting husband, Franz Joseph,
Sisi comes to England to hunt. She comes looking for excitement and she
finds it in the dashing form of Captain Bay Middleton, the only man in
Europe who can outride her. Ten years younger than her and engaged to
the rich and devoted Charlotte, Bay has everything to lose by falling
for a woman who can never be his. But Bay and the Empress are as reckless
as each other, and their mutual attraction is a force that cannot be denied.
GOODWIN, Rosie
Dancing Till Midnight
Grace Collins, orphaned as child, has been brought up by her severely
religious aunt, Emily. Starved of love, she falls for the first man who
shows her affection. When she finds she's pregnant, Emily turns her out.
Grace and Barry's marriage starts well, but life in a small council house
with two children is hard, and Grace feels she's somehow missed out on
her youth. Then she discovers the joy of ballroom dancing. At first Barry
is happy to indulge her passion, until she meets Philip, who sweeps her
off her feet and promises to show her a better way of life...
Goodwin, Rosie
The misfit
Rebecca's adopted, but her new father can't warm to her, and her mother
can't succeed in turning her into the princess she longs for. When her
adoptive mother dies, her aunt takes her in, and soon Rebecca's life is
worse than ever. She longs to escape to the circus that visits her town
- but will she ever find happiness?
GOODWIN, Rosie
Whispers
The old manor house has stood empty for years, left to rot since the last
master of the Fenton family died. Until Jess Beddows steps inside, and
feels she has come home. Against her family's wishes, she buys the house,
promising to bring it back to life.
GOODYEAR, Julie
Just Julie
For twenty-five years, Julie Goodyear became part of everyone's family
when she played Bet Lynch, the brassy barmaid in Coronation Street. Now,
at sixty-four, she says - 'I am ready to stand up and be counted and set
the record straight'. From her impoverished Manchester upbringing she
rose to become one of the most-loved actresses on TV. Her personal life
beyond Coronation Street has included three marriages, a nervous breakdown,
being diagnosed with cervical cancer, and being charged with fraud. She
talks frankly about her same-sex relationships, and the betrayals she
suffered and wonderful friendships she made during her career.
GORDON-SMITH, Dolores
Mad About the Boy?
It’s the height of summer, 1923. At a ball in Sussex, former Royal
Flying Corps pilot Jack Haldean investigates an apparent suicide, but
everything is thrown into chaos when a group of Russian revolutionaries
becomes involved in the affair. In a case involving deception, greed,
jealousy, kidnapping, torture, and more murder, Jack will face an agonizing
choice.
GOULD, Judith
Rhapsody
Misha Levin is a man who seems to have everything. A world-famous pianist
nurtured by loving Russian parents for whom no sacrifice was too great,
he has a devoted wife, an adoring son, and the adulation of millions.
Then, on a street in Vienna, only hours before his most important concert,
he sees the woman he loved and lost eight years before. Desperate to reclaim
the happiness he has denied himself for so long, Misha begins a secret
affair that will jeopardize all that he has accomplished and force him
to choose between two women.
GOWER, Iris
A Royal Ambition
King Henry V's beautiful widow, Catherine, is determined to marry Owen
Tudor, a Welsh gentleman-at-arms. But her life decisions are not her own,
overshadowed as she is by more powerful men who are closer to the Throne.
The Duke of Bedford would marry her off to a foreign prince; her son,
the King, is a weak child who turns like a straw in the wind. Henry Beaufort
would give his allegiance in exchange for a cardinal's hat; and the handsome
and ambitious Duke of Gloucester, brother of the dead king, openly desires
her.
GOWER, Iris
The Sea Witch
Catherine Llewellyn has always lived quietly and safely with her beloved
grandmother. But everything changes when old Mrs Llewellyn dies and Catherine
finds herself alone in the world. Her inheritance means she will not be
destitute, but her grandmother's will states she must go to the family
home, Langland Hall, to live with her two unknown cousins, Garth and Jonathon.
Only Jonathon seems happy to welcome her to her new home. But no sooner
has she arrived than she begins to realise that danger is waiting for
her. Faced on all with secrets and falsehoods, Catherine must decide not
only who is trustworthy, but who is worthy of her heart...
GRAFTON, Sue
M is for Malice
M is for malice - and malice kills. M is for Malek Construction and the
embattled family who still control it: four sons now nearing middle age
who stand to inherit a fortune - four men with very different temperaments
and needs, linked only by blood and money. M is for Millhone, now hired
to trace the missing black sheep brother. But will the prodigal son be
welcomed at his family's table? And, in brutal consequence, M is for Murder.
GRAFTON, Sue
R is for Ricochet
When wealthy octogenarian Nord Lafferty hires Kinsey Millhone to help
his newly paroled daughter find her way back to the straight and narrow
after doing time for embezzlement, the Santa Teresa P.I. has no idea what
she's getting into.
GRAFTON, Sue
U is for undertow
In 1960s Santa Teresa, California, a child is kidnapped and never returned.
Twenty years later, Michael Sutton contacts private detective Kinsey Millhone
for help. He claims to have recalled a disturbing memory which might just
provide the key to the mystery. He now believes he stumbled across the
kidnappers burying Mary Claire Fitzhugh's body... Michael's account is
indistinct and even members of his family try to discredit his evidence.
But Kinsey is certain there is something vital within Michael's recollections.
As the protagonists of the tragedy are gradually brought to light, the
truth finally begins to emerge. And while stepping back into the past,
Kinsey uncovers more about her own history too...
GRAFTON, Sue
V is for Vengeance
Las Vegas, 1986. A young college graduate is murdered when he is unable
to pay back a loan from notorious criminal Lorenzo Dante. Two years later
private investigator Kinsey Millhone finds herself assisting to apprehend
a shoplifter, Audrey Vance. Events take a much darker turn when Audrey's
body is found in a local suicide spot.
Grafton, Sue
W is for wasted
Two dead bodies changed the course of my life that fall. One of them I
knew and the other I'd never laid eyes on until I saw him in the morgue.
The first was a local PI of suspect reputation. He'd been gunned down
near the beach at Santa Teresa. It looked like a robbery gone bad. The
other was on the beach six weeks later. He'd been sleeping rough. Probably
homeless. No identification. A slip of paper with Millhone's name and
number was in his pants pocket. The coroner asked her to come to the morgue
to see if she could ID him. Two seemingly unrelated deaths, one a murder,
the other apparently of natural causes. But as Kinsey digs deeper into
the mystery of the John Doe, some very strange links begin to emerge.
And before long at least one aspect is solved as Kinsey finds the key
to his identity.
GRAHAM, Eliza
Playing with the Moon
Shattered by a recent bereavement, Minna and husband Tom retreat to an
isolated village on the Dorset coast, hoping to find the solitude that
will allow them to cope with their loss and rebuild their foundering marriage.
Walking on the beach one day, they unearth a human skeleton. It is a discovery
which will plunge Minna into a mystery which will consume her for months
to come. The remains are soon identified as those of Private Lew Campbell,
a black American GI who, it seems, drowned during a wartime exercise in
the area half a century before. Growing increasingly preoccupied with
the dead soldier’s fate, Minna befriends a melancholy elderly woman,
Felix, who lived in the village during the war. As Minna coaxes Felix’s
story from her, it becomes clear that the old woman knows more about the
dead GI than she initially let on.
GRAZEBROOK, Sarah
Crooked Pieces
Maggie seems to be going up in the world. Compared to living with her
large and impoverished East London family and watching her mother being
worn down by life and childbearing, working as a maid is a big improvement.
Meeting very different people like the Pankhursts, Maggie is introduced
to a completely different world, one in which people talk about women
getting the vote and organize impressive rallies and demonstrate at Parliament.
Then when she meets and beings 'walking out' with a handsome police officer,
it seems like a whole new horizon has opened up for her. Drawn into the
workings of the suffragette movement, Maggie is soon caught up in a darker
side of the increasingly militant cause. The brutal treatment she and
her fellows suffer might make them all the more determined to achieve
their goal, but how much is Maggie prepared to sacrifice?
Green, Hilary
Harvest of war
1916. Working as a volunteer with the Red Cross, feisty young Englishwoman
Leonora Malham Brown has secretly become the lover of the dashing Colonel
Sasha Malkovic. Meanwhile Leo's fiancé Tom is engulfed in the horrors
of the Somme, where he discovers a shocking secret about Leo's brother
Ralph.
Green, John
The fault in our stars
Despite the tumour-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few
years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed
upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly
appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely
rewritten.
GREENE, Giselle
Pandora’s Box
According to legend, when Pandora's box is opened it unleashes dark secrets
and terrible consequences! Rachel Wetherby's life has been on hold since
the diagnosis of her teenage daughter Shelley with a debilitating - and
fatal - illness. So when Rachel's mother offloads a box of her old possessions,
including a diary, Rachel feels compelled to escape into a past which
- on the surface - was care-free. However, opening up the box unearths
secrets and memories best left uncovered. Shelley, meanwhile, is juggling
a secret romance with planning her own death. Not for her an undignified
and painful end - she'd rather hold her fate in her own hands. Convincing
Rachel that she'd like to spend her 15th birthday in Cornwall where she
spent so many idyllic childhood summers, she devises her plan. But nothing
is as it seems and heartache and surprises lie in store for both mother
and daughter!
GREGORY, Philippa
The Constant Princess
Katherine of Aragon is born to parents who are both rulers and warriors.
Aged four, she is betrothed to Arthur, Prince of Wales and is raised to
be Queen of England. She never doubts that it is her fate to rule that
far-off, wet, cold land. Her faith is tested when her prospective father-in-law
is rude to her: Arthur seems litle better than a boy; the food is strange
and the customs coarse...Slowly she adapts and life as Arthur's wife grows
ever more bearable. But when Arthur dies, she is determined to fulfil
her destiny by marrying his spoilt younger brother, Henry. His father
and grandmother are against it; her powerful parents prove little use.
Yet Katherine has a fighting spirit: she will do anything to achieve her
aim - even if it means telling the greatest lie and holding to it.
GREGORY, Philippa
The Little House
Ruth Cleary is carried along on a tide of family actions that leave her
living in the little house she never wanted with a baby she hadn't planned
to have. As Ruth struggles with postpartum depression and unresolved feelings
about the premature deaths of her own parents, her mother-in-law, Elizabeth,
manipulates information and situations to take control over Ruth and her
family. The character of Elizabeth and her relationship with Ruth are
developed carefully, drawing the reader through a range of emotional responses
to reach the inevitable conclusion that Elizabeth is waging psychological
warfare on Ruth.
GREGORY, Philippa
The other queen
A dramatic novel of passion, politics and betrayal from the author of
The Other Boleyn Girl Mary is Queen of Scotland but has been forced to
flee her land and take refuge in an England that is ruled by her cousin
Elizabeth. But England, precarious in its Protestant state, doesn't need
a charismatic Catholic figurehead at large. So Elizabeth's chief advisor,
Cecil, devises a plan in which Mary will live under guard with his trusted
accomplice: Bess of Hardwick. Bess is a self-made woman, a shrewd survivor.
She is newly married to her fourth and most distinguished husband, the
Earl of Shrewsbury. But what marriage can withstand the charms of Mary?
Or the threat of rebellion that she always carries?
Gregory, Philippa
The red queen
The Red Queen' tells the story of the child-bride of Edmund Tudor who,
although widowed in her early teens, uses her determination of character
and wily plotting to infiltrate the house of York to ultimately ensure
that her only son, Henry Tudor, triumphs as King of England.
Gregory, Philippa
The white princess
The beautiful eldest daughter of Edward IV, the young princess Elizabeth
faces a conflict of loyalties between the red rose and the white. Forced
into marriage with Henry VII, she must reconcile her slowly growing love
for him with her loyalty to the House of York, and choose between her
mother's rebellion and her husband's tyranny.
GREGORY, Philippa
Zelda’s Cut
Unable to admit to her sick husband that she has spent everything they
have in her attempt to find a cure for his mystery illness, Isobel is
tempted by her agent, Troy, into writing a trashy popular novel under
the assumed name of Zelda Vere. Zelda's first novel is a smashing success,
but by the time the royalties come through, her husband has spent them.
In the meantime, Isobel has been spending more and more time in the company
of Troy, who helps her become Zelda for her fans. When Isobel confesses
her love for Troy (who prefers men), everything falls apart, and she soon
finds herself entangled in a complex web of lies and half-truths.
GREGSON, J.M.
Close Call
The residents of Gurney Close have nothing in common except that they
have all recently moved into the new development. When resident Rosemary
Lennox proposes that they get to know each other better at a street party,
everyone agrees it's a good idea. The party is a success, but the next
morning, Robin Durkin, who hosted the event, is found strangled to death.
Detectives Hook and Lambert, out of the good cop-bad cop school, are called
in to investigate.
GREY, Patricia
Balaclava Row
Balaclava Row seems just like any other north London street in 1940, its
inhabitants making the best of things as they struggle to earn a living
and cope with the effects of war. But when local jeweller James Donald
is found dead in his flat, DCI Jack Stamford and his able sergeant, Sarah
McNeill, soon realise that no one in the Row is quite what they seem.
As in most close-knit communities, neighbours' lives are inter-linked
in countless ways - some known to all, some desperately secret. It is
down to Jack and Sarah to unearth the secret that will reveal the killer
- but time is running out...
Hainsworth, Tessa.
Up with the larks
Having given up a high-powered job & the lifestyle to match, Tessa
Hainsworth had no idea how hard she would struggle when, full of optimism;
she fulfilled her dream of moving to rural Cornwall with her young family.
Within months, she is almost ready to return to London, tail between her
legs. This is her story.
HALL, Patricia
Sins of the Fathers
A young boy running for his life through the snow, his sister hovering
between life and death in intensive care: it seems that another father
has been driven to the edge and turned on his family when DCI Michael
Thackeray reluctantly enters a family home turned blood-stained charnel
house. But as he and his lover Laura Ackroyd dig deeper the tragedy becomes
darker and much more dangerous.
HAMILTON, Denise
Last Lullaby
Los Angeles Times reporter Eve Diamond has spent the day at LAX, shadowing
a U.S. Customs Supervisor who's got his eye on an incoming flight from
Beijing via Seoul and Tokyo. The flight's packed with the usual mass of
humanity, ranging from the elegant Asian woman in the raspberry silk suit
who emerges from first class carrying a tired toddler, to the scruffy
students who have spent the long flight in economy. Suddenly, shots ring
out. Three people are dead, including the silk-clad woman. The man who
was booked on the flight as the dead woman's husband is missing. And the
sad little toddler is left behind. Who is this child?
HAMILTON, Ruth
That Liverpool girl
In the backstreets of Liverpool, Eileen Watson lives with her mother Nellie,
daughter Mel and her three tearaway sons. Life isn't great, but they love
each other. Then, on the third day in September 1939, Britain declares
war on Germany and lives change forever.
Hamilton, Ruth
A Liverpool song
Letting go of the past to grasp the future. Andrew Sanderson, brilliant
surgeon and renowned musician, is still grieving the death of his beloved
wife Mary when his younger daughter turns up on the doorstep having left
her wealthy and philandering husband. It's not long before the house is
overrun with daughters, grandchildren, sons-in-law and a boisterous stray
dog called Storm. At Andrew's time of life, is this really what he needs?
One thing is sure; home is a lot more interesting than it once was. As
he reminisces about his past and the love he once shared with his wife,
Andrew starts to realize that there is indeed a new road to be travelled;
he just has to let go of his grief and embrace tomorrow.
Hamilton, Ruth
A Mersey mile
In 1955 Scotland Road residents fear for their futures when government
plans threaten to demolish their road and tear apart their community.
Polly's Parlour cafe is the centre for action, where strategies are formed
to fight back. But when local priest Father Brennan attacks little Billy
Blunt, minds are instead turned to vengeance. Frank Charleson, business
entrepreneur turned local hero after saving Billy's life, finds himself
increasingly fond of Polly Kennedy. But his past won't leave him. After
his mother's harsh behaviour towards his previous wife, can he put Polly
through the same?
Hamilton, Ruth
Meet me at the Pier Head
Comfortably settled into his expatriate life in post-war Britain, Headmaster
Theodore's secrets are set to remain deeply buried. Until she breezes
in. Tia Bellamy: vivacious, intriguing, a nuisance. Tia cuts through his
reserve and, for the first time in years, Theodore finds himself able
to confront his past and reveal the events carved into his heart and seared
into his soul. Together, they form a strong bond with the residents of
the Lady Streets, closely befriending Maggie Stone and her granddaughter,
little Rosie. Unable to protect the child from her abusive mother, they
decide to take drastic action.
HAMMOND, Gerald
Cold Relations
Edinburgh s gorgeous Detective Sergeant Honey Laird had finally cleared
her overflowing desk and was looking forward to spending some time with
her husband when an email from her old school friend provoked yet another
difficult case. Honey soon finds herself trying to babysit her friend’s
ex-husband Andrew: a trigger-happy, former SAS officer with a temper,
a head injury and a penchant for attractive women. Cold Relations wriggles
through twist after turn and guarantees a slew of unforgettable characters
led by the delightful Honeypot and her trusty crime-solving labrador,
Pippa.
HAMPSON, June
Broken Bodies
Tough little cookie Daisy Lane returns to seek her revenge on London gangster
Roy Kemp. Set in Gosport, Hampshire in the 1960's, after a period away
abroad Daisy returns, sets herself up running a bookshop opposite the
cafe where she found and lost the love of her life. With newfound knowledge,
Daisy begins the long process of revenge against Roy, with twists, turns,
happiness and sadness all down the line.
HANNAH, Sophie
The other half lives
Ruth Bussey knows what it means to be in the wrong and to be wronged.
She once did something she regrets, and her punishment nearly destroyed
her. Now Ruth is rebuilding her life, and has found a love she doesn't
believe she deserves: Aidan Seed. Aidan is also troubled by a past he
can't bear to talk about, until one day he decides he must confide in
Ruth. He tells her that years ago he killed someone: a woman called Mary
Trelease. Ruth is confused. She's certain she'd heard the name Mary Trelease
before, and when she realises why it sounds familiar, her fear and confusion
deepen - because the Mary Trelease that Ruth knows is very much alive...
HANNAH, Sophie
A room swept white
TV producer Fliss Benson receives an anonymous card at work: 16 numbers
arranged in four rows of four - numbers that means nothing to her. On
the same day, Fliss finds out she will be working on a documentary about
miscarriages of justice involving cot death mothers. The documentary will
focus on three women: Helen Yardley, Sarah Jaggard and Rachel Hines. All
three are now free, and the doctor involved, is under investigation for
misconduct. For reasons she has shared with nobody, this is the last project
Fliss wants to be working on. And then Helen Yardley is found dead at
her home, and in her pocket is a card with 16 numbers on it, arranged
in four rows of four...
Hannah, Sophie
The telling error
Stuck in a traffic jam, Nicki Clements sees a face she hoped never to
see again. It's definitely him, the same police officer, stopping each
car on Elmhirst Road. Keen to avoid him, Nicki does a u-turn and makes
a panicky escape - or so she thinks. The next day, Nicki is pulled in
for questioning in connection with the murder of Damon Blundy, controversial
newspaper columnist and resident of Elmhirst Road. Nicki can't answer
any of the questions detectives fire at her. She has no idea why the killer
used two blunt knives in a way that involved no spilling of blood, or
why 'he is no less dead' was painted across Blundy's study. And she can't
explain why she avoided Elmhirst Road that day without revealing the secret
that could ruin her life.
HARDY, Thomas
Tess of the D’Ubervilles
After her impoverished family learns of its noble lineage, naive Tess
Durbeyfield is sent to make an appeal to a nearby wealthy family who bear
the ancestral name d'Urberville. Tess is seduced by dissolute Alec d'Urberville
and secretly bears a child, Sorrow, who dies in infancy. Later working
as a dairymaid she meets and marries Angel Clare, an idealistic gentleman
who rejects Tess after learning of her past on their wedding night. Emotionally
bereft and financially impoverished, Tess is trapped by necessity into
giving in once again to d'Urberville, but she murders him when Angel returns.
After a few days with Angel, Tess is arrested and executed.
HARRIS, Joanne
Coastliners
Set on a small, blustery fishing island off the coast of France, it tells
the story of Mado, a young woman who returns to her childhood home to
find the local community torn apart by family feuds, bad tides and murky
political machinations.
Passionate, stubborn Mado, whose "head is full of rocks" tries
to save the livelihoods of the villagers of Les Salants by urging them
to work together to save the beach from erosion, both natural and man-made.
The villagers are an eccentric, curmudgeonly bunch, who eventually cooperate
with the help of Flynn, a charismatic stranger with a shady past…
HARRIS, Joanne
Five Quarters of the Orange
Beyond the main street of Les Laveuses runs the Loire, smooth and brown
as a sunning snake - but hiding a deadly undertow beneath its moving surface.
This is where Framboise, a secretive widow named after a raspberry liqueur,
plies her culinary trade at the creperie - and lets memory play strange
games. Into this world comes the threat of revelation as Framboise's nephew
- a profiteering Parisian - attempts to exploit the growing success of
the country recipes she has inherited from her mother, a woman remembered
with contempt by the villagers of Les Laveuses. As the spilt blood of
a tragic wartime childhood flows again, exposure beckons for Framboise,
the widow with an invented past.
HARRIS, Joanne
Holy Fools
Holy Fools is set in 17th century France, and the central character is
Juliette, a former actress and rope dancer who has given up her travelling
life to become a teaching nun at a remote abbey. Juliette has settled
with her young daughter into an existence very different from that she
knew, and she finds comfort from the advice of the wise and friendly abbess.
Things change radically when the abbess dies and her place is taken by
an 11-year-old girl whose appetite for reform quickly destroys much that
Juliet has come to love in her new life.
HARRIS, Rolf
Can You Tell What it is Yet?
Tracing his life path from humble beginnings in a Perth suburb, Rolf Harris
takes his reader along a journey of wonder towards his 71st achievement-packed
year. Songwriter, comic, superb artist (and no we don't mean just cartoons),
Harris has nestled in the a heart of his adopted nation by turning his
creative brush to any subject... Contained within Can You Tell What It
Is Yet? is the same easy style and disarming honestly which is the cornerstone
of Rolf's screen secret success.
HARRISON, Sarah
A Spell of Swallows
Vivien Mariner loves her husband, and is adored by him in return. So why
does she find herself so strongly drawn to John Ashe, the enigmatic stranger
who appears in Eadenford, as if from nowhere, the summer after the Great
War ends? Helping around the house and garden, Ashe quickly makes himself
indispensable at the vicarage, insinuating himself ever deeper into village
life. As the vicar's wife, Vivien must be above suspicion, but will the
dark, dangerous pull of passion prove too strong for her to resist?
Harrod-Eagles, Cynthia
Blood never dies
Bill Slider and his team face yet another mystery when an unidentifiable
man is found dead. It 'appears' that he has committed suicide but all
the signs point to murder.
HARROD-EAGLES, Cynthia
Country Plot
One Monday, Jenna loses her job, boyfriend, and home. Her family recommends
a holiday, but she can't afford it. The next best thing is a job cataloguing
books for an elderly cousin, Kitty Everest, at her country mansion. She
is soon horrified to discover that Kitty may be forced to sell Holtby
House and throws herself into saving it.
HARROD-EAGLES, Cynthia
The Flood Tide
In the Morland Dynasty series, the majestic sweep of English history is
richly and movingly portrayed through the fictional lives of the Morland
family. It is 1772, and England is peaceful under George III, and Morland
Place flourishes under the careful tending of Jemima and her loyal husband
Allen. Their seven children often bring them heartache, but they are sustained
by their love for each other and their absorbing interest in improving
the estate lands. But beyond England’s shores things are not so
calm. Morland cousins find themselves embroiled in the American war for
independence, and the family’s bastard offshoot, Henri, disports
himself in the salons of Paris while outside revolution creeps closer.
Harrod-Eagles, Cynthia
Hard going
The murder comes much to Slider's family's disgust during his week off,
saving him from the horrors of a trip to the shopping centre with his
two older children. The late Mr Lionel Bygood, who looks, to all intents
and purposes, like an old-fashioned sort of gentleman, has been bashed
in the head with a bronze statue, in what Doc Cameron describes as 'our
old friend the Frenzied Attack'. It soon emerges that Mr Bygood was a
philanthropist, well-known locally for giving help and advice to all who
needed it, from all walks of life. But with all signs pointing to the
victim knowing his killer, Slider and his team find themselves embroiled
in an investigation that provides scant evidence or possible motive, but
all too many suspects.
Harrod-Eagles, Cynthia
Keep the home fires burning
The year is 1915, and the war is raging on. The war was not 'over by Christmas'
after all and as 1915 begins, the Hunters begin to settle into wartime
life. Diana, the eldest Hunter daughter, sees her fiancé off to
the Front but doesn't expect such coldness from her future mother-in-law.
David's battalion is almost ready to be sent to the Front, but how will
Beattie's fragile peace of mind endure? Below stairs, Ethel, the under
housemaid, is tired of having her beaux go off to war so she deliberately
sets her sights on a man who works on the railway, believing he won't
be allowed to volunteer. Eric turns out to be decent, honest and he genuinely
cares about Ethel - is this the man who could give her a new life?
HARROD-EAGLES, Cynthia
Kill my darling
When Melanie Hunter goes missing, the men in her life come under suspicion.
And there's plenty to suspect: lies, half-truths, deceptions. When you
pull one thread, the whole fabric of family life can come apart. There
are secrets in Melanie's past, and pain she tried to hide from the world.
Harry, Lilian
Celebrations in Burracombe
It's the late 1950s and change is in the air. For the Napier family, up
at the big house, the old ways are shifting. Hilary must discover if reaching
out for a chance of happiness must mean breaking away from the life expected
of her, while Patsy, their young housekeeper's help, is facing motherhood
without her own family around her. Down the hill from the Napiers, villagers
young and old are setting out on adventures - Stella and Felix begin married
life, change comes to the village school and the Tozer family continue
to find surprises in their midst.
Harry, Lilian
Weddings in Burracombe
Devon, 1954. The villagers of Burracombe pull together to help each other
though the tough times but, this summer, it's time to celebrate love and
new life. There are a few surprises to come, however, before anyone can
walk up the aisle. It's been a long, hard winter in Burracombe. At Burracombe
Barton, Hilary Napier is doing her best to care for her father and keep
the estate ticking along, all the while longing for a man she cannot have.
She welcomes the young Patsy Shillabeer onto her staff with open arms,
but little does she realise that Patsy, flourishing away from her parents'
watchful eye, is more headstrong than she first appears, and there's trouble
brewing.
HAYDER, Mo
Birdman
Greenwich, south-east London Detective Inspector Jack Caffery - young,
driven, unshockable - is called to one of the most gruesome crime scenes
he has ever seen. Five young women have been ritualistically murdered
and dumped on wasteland near the Dome. Subsequent post-mortems reveal
a singular, horrific signature linking the victims. Soon Caffery realizes
that he is on the trail of that most dangerous offender: a serial killer.
Beset by animosity within the police force, haunted by the memory of a
very personal death long ago, Caffery employs every weapon forensic science
can offer to hunt him down. Because he knows that it is only a matter
of time before this sadistic killer strikes again...
HAYDER, Mo
Ritual
In the pitch dark, nine feet under water, police diver Flea Marley closes
her gloved fingers around a human hand. The fact that there's no body
attached is disturbing enough. Yet more disturbing is the discovery, a
day later, of the matching hand - indications suggest that the victim
was still alive when they were removed. Flea and DI Jack Caffery soon
establish that the hands belong to a boy who has recently disappeared.
Their search for him - and for his abductor - lead them into the darkest
recesses of Bristol's underworld, where drug addiction is rife, where
street-kids sell themselves for a hit, and where an ancient evil lurks.
HAYDON, Elizabeth
Rhapsody
In RHAPSODY Elizabeth Haydon tells a story that encompasses a world and
centuries of time and which introduces three characters who have already
captured a new generation of fantasy fans in the US. They embark on a
journey through the centre of their world only to reach its end and find
that centuries have passed and the land faces the awaking of a demon.
Haydon's world building is unusually well thought out and vivid, her magic
system is rigorous, her battle scenes realistic and massively exciting.
But it is her characters, the intelligent and resourceful Rhapsody, the
enigmatic assassin Achmed and the gruff but dependable Grunthor that have
captured the imagination and affection of thousands of readers. This is
a trio of characters who will carry the first great fantasy series of
the 21st century on their shoulders.
HELLER, Mandasue
The Charmer
Maria Price has inherited a big house in the best part of Manchester,
and more money that she could have ever dreamed. An orphan since 11, she
thought she would never again have a family or security. Then she meets
handsome, charming Joel Parry, and he just happens to need a place to
stay. Before long, Joel has moved into Maria’s new house and has
begun spending her money. But Joel is deep in Manchester’s drug
scene, and his terrifying past is about to catch up with him—and
the naïve girl who trusts him.
HERBERT, James
The Fog
A peaceful village in Wiltshire is shattered by a disaster which strikes
without reason or explanation, leaving behind a trail of misery and horror.
A yawning, bottomless crack spreads through the earth, out of which creeps
a fog that resembles no other. Whatever it is, it must be controlled.
Hermiston, Roger
The greatest traitor
Drawing on hitherto unpublished records from Blake's trial, as well as
original interviews with former spies and the man himself, 'The Greatest
Traitor' sheds light on this most complex of characters, and presents
a fascinating shadow history of the 20th century.
HIGGINS, Jack
Bad Company
Former IRA assassin Sean Dillon--and his various allies in British Intelligence
and the London underworld--find themselves having to cope again with the
consequences of earlier actions. German millionaire Berger and his illegitimate
Mafioso son Rossi are determined to avenge Kate Rashid, who was herself
killed trying to take revenge for her brothers, whom Dillon killed for
entirely good reasons of national security. Berger is, however, a more
problematic enemy, since he was the last man out of the Berlin fuhrerbunker
and is the repository for Hitler's genuine, and extremely compromising,
diaries. Specifically, he is the man who can prove that there were peace
negotiations between the Nazis and the father of the current US president.
HIGGINS, Jack
The killing ground
For intelligence operative Sean Dillon, it is a routine passport check.
But the events it leads to are as bloody as any he has ever known. The
man he stops at Heathrow airport is Caspar Rashid, born and bred in England,
but with family ties to a Bedouin tribe fiercely wedded to the old ways
- as Rashid has just found out to his distress. His 13-year-old daughter,
Sara, has been kidnapped by Rashid's own father and taken to Iraq to be
married to one of the Middle East's most feared terrorists. Dillon has
had his own run-ins with the tribe, and when the distraught man begs him
for help, he sees a chance to settle some old scores.
HIGGINS CLARK, Mary
Just Take My Heart
When Natalie Raines, famous Broadway star, is found in her home in Closter,
New Jersey, dying from a gunshot wound, her former husband, Gregg Aldrich,
whom she was in the process of divorcing, is the chief suspect. What no
one knows is that, only days before she was murdered, Natalie accidentally
came face to face with the man who killed her former roommate, Jamie Evans.
Two years later, career criminal Jimmy Easton, comes forward to claim
that Aldrich hired him to kill his wife, but he turned the job down…
HIGHMORE, Julie
Kiss Me Quick
Tim’s own life is in chaos, but he’s paid for his qualification
as a life coach, and he’s going to use it. When his new, and only,
client tells him she’s had a windfall, he believes he really could
turn his—and, of course, her—life around. But he doesn’t
know that there’s more to Debbie than the scruffy, overweight drudge
she appears to be. Journalists have to find a story somewhere, and Debbie’s
found hers among the eccentric residents of the little seaside town of
Shelcombe…
Hill, Melissa
The charm bracelet
Every charm bracelet tells a story and Holly O'Neill knows this
better than most. So when one day, she stumbles across a bracelet that
somebody else has lost, she recognises a lifetime spelt out through the
very different charms, and knows she must try to reunite it with its owner.
She uses each charm to help discover more about them.
HILL, Melissa
Something from Tiffany’s
Two very different men are shopping for gifts for the women they love.
Gary is buying his girlfriend Rachel a charm bracelet whereas Ethan's
looking for something a little more special - an engagement ring. But
when the two men's shopping bags get confused, the couples' lives become
intertwined.
Hislop, Victoria
The sunrise
In 1972, Famagusta in Cyprus is the most desirable resort in the Mediterranean.
Tourism and commerce boom in the city, with Greek and Turkish Cypriots
living and working harmoniously side by side. Elsewhere on the island,
there has been a decade of unrest and violence between the communities
and in 1974, following a Greek military coup, Turkey invades the island
to protect the Turkish Cypriot minority. As Famagusta is shelled, its
population flees. In the now deserted city, just two families are left
behind. 'The Sunrise' tells the story of this small group living in hiding.
HISLOP, Victoria
The Thread
Thessaloniki, 1917. As Dimitri Komninos is born, a devastating fire sweeps
through the Greek city where Christians, Jews and Muslims live side by
side. 5 years later, Katerina Sarafoglou's home in Asia Minoris destroyed
by the Turkish army. Losing her mother in the chaos, she flees across
the sea to an unknown destination in Greece.
HOAG, Tami
The Alibi Man
Elena Estes, former policewoman, former member of the elite of Palm Beach,
Florida, is thrust back into both aspects of her former life when she
discovers a woman's body in a canal. Physically healed from the wounds
she sustained while working on a meth-lab bust, she has yet to recover
emotionally from causing another officer's death and has been living and
working at her best friend's horse farm. When she realizes that the victim
is the farm's beautiful, vibrant young groom Irina, Elena is determined
to bring her justice no matter what.
Hoag, Tami
Cold cold heart
Dana Nolan was a promising young TV reporter until she was kidnapped by
a notorious serial killer. A year has passed since she defeated her attacker,
but Dana is still physically, emotionally, and psychologically scarred
by her ordeal. In an attempt to put herself back together after surviving
the unthinkable, Dana returns to her hometown. But it doesn't provide
the comfort she expects. Dana decides to use her investigative skills
to piece together her past and learns of the event that made her become
a reporter in the first place: the disappearance of her best friend, Casey
Grant, the summer after high school graduation. Looking at her past and
the unsolved mystery through the dark filter of PTSD, old friends seem
to be suspects, authority figures part of a cover-up. Dana begins to question
everything she knows.
Hoag, Tami.
Cry wolf
All attorney Laurel Chandler wanted was a place to hide, but returning
to her home town doesn't give her the serenity she craves - she is pursued
by a murderer who enjoys the hunt as much as the kill. Hoag also wrote
Still Waters and Lucky's Lady.
HOAG, Tami
Deeper than the dead
California, 1985. Four children stumble upon a woman's body, eyes and
mouth glued shut. Close behind them is their teacher, Anne Navarre. Vince
Leone, a pioneering FBI investigator, is called in to try to unlock the
mind of the killer using the fledgling technique of profiling - a strategy
that pulls him ever deeper into the lives of the children and their young
teacher. Vince and Anne know the lives of more women are at stake - but
they soon realise they are also fighting to save the futures of these
children. After all, growing up in the shadow of a killer leaves its marks.
Perhaps evil binds as tightly as love...
HOAG, Tami
Still Waters
When Elizabeth and her son start looking for a new home, Still Creek seems
the answer to their dreams. But on their arrival the locals are distinctly
cool, and when Elizabeth gets involved in a murder case she finds there
is more to it than meets the eye.
Hobbs, Pam
Don't forget to write
In 'Don't Forget to Write', Pam Hobbs describes a time during the Second
World War that was full of overwhelming hardship and devastation - yet
also of kindness and humour, resilience and courage.
Holden, Wendy,
Born survivors
Among millions of Holocaust victims sent to Auschwitz II-Birkenau in 1944,
Priska, Rachel, and Anka each passed through its infamous gates with a
secret. Strangers to each other, they were newly pregnant, and facing
an uncertain fate without their husbands. Alone, scared, and with so many
loved ones already lost to the Nazis, these young women were privately
determined to hold on to all they had left: their lives, and those of
their unborn babies. That the gas chambers ran out of Zyklon-B just after
the babies were born, before they and their mothers could be exterminated,
is just one of several miracles that allowed them all to survive and rebuild
their lives after World War II. 'Born Survivors' follows the mothers'
incredible journey.
Holt, Anne
The lion's mouth
Less than six months after taking office, the Norwegian prime minister
is found dead. She has been shot in the head. But was it a politically
motivated assassination or personal revenge?
Holt, Hazel
Death is a word
Eva Jackson is Rosemary's cousin and she has moved back to her childhood
home in Taviscombe after the untimely death of her beloved husband Alan.
As is the way of the village, Eva has been pounced upon by the local charities,
and it is during a coffee morning that she mentions to Sheila Malory that
she fears Alan might have died an unnatural death. Sheila is intrigued
and sets out to find out more. But when Eva's body is discovered after
a supposed insulin overdose, Sheila wonders if the killer might still
be at large in the charming Devon countryside.
HOLT, Hazel
A Time to Die
When Sheila Malory's young granddaughter starts riding lessons at the
local riding school, Sheila is happy to have the excuse to spend time
there with her friends who run the place. The affable Charlie Hamilton,
former Olympic showjumper and owner of the school, and his wife Josephine
seem to have bounced back from previous incurred debts and to be living
a charmed existence teaching the local children to ride. But is everything
quite as it seems? When Charlie's body is found in the stables the inhabitants
of Taviscombe are left appalled and disturbed. His death is the first
of a succession of unexplained sinister happenings, and with the local
police at a loss, it is left to Sheila, at her most persistent, to get
to the bottom of the mystery.
HOLT, Tom
The Portable Door
Starting a new job is always stressful, but when Paul Carpenter arrives
at the office of H.W. Wells he has no idea what trouble lies in store.
Because he is about to discover that the apparently respectable establishment
now paying his salary is in fact a front for a deeply sinister organization
that has a mighty peculiar agenda. It seems that half the time his bosses
are away with the fairies. But they're not, of course. They're away with
the goblins.
HOOD, Evelyn.
A Certain Freedom
After the death of his wife, Hamilton Forsyth scandalises the small Ayrshire
town of Saltcoats by departing for pastures unknown. His three adult children
are left reeling with shock – and with the family ironmongery shop
to run. Walter, son and heir, looks set to manage the business and marry
the suitable Clarissa Pinkerton but drops a bombshell on his sisters by
saying he’s going to marry the housemaid Sarah who is pregnant.
Unable to tolerate the housemaid becoming a mistress of their house, the
girls find there are few choices within their social structure and they
must struggle to make it on their own two feet.
HOOD, Evelyn
Birds in the Spring
Paisley, 1920. In the post-war decade of peace, uncomfortable new conflicts
are looming. Women no longer take a back-seat in the business community
and one, Fiona MacDowall, has made it clear she intends to inherit her
father's furniture emporium. Her half-brother Alex, although born out
of wedlock, has other ideas. But it's Alex's wife Rose who objects most.
A businesswoman in her own right, she owns Harlequin, the town's grandest
and most successful dressmaker's. She is sure Fiona will stop at nothing
to get what she wants. And on Fiona's list is a husband and, she suspects,
Rose's own business.
Hopkins, Billy
Kate's story
Its 1897 when 11 year old Kate Lally's world falls apart. Her family is
evicted from their home in Manchester, and Kate has to grow up fast. A
journey of hope and heartache follows, and Kate fights on resolutely.
HORTON, Lesley
The Hollow Core
Behind closed doors, every family has its secrets. The Ingleby family
must look to theirs, when Diane Ingleby is shot after a family outing.
DI John Handsford and DS Kahlid Ali are called in to investigate and it
soon emerges that Diane's husband, Maurice, is widely suspected to be
the money behind the local branch of the BNP. He's been on the receiving
end of threats before, and it seems his wife might have been caught in
the middle. It's a sensitive case, and Handsford and Ali are joined by
trainee DC Parvez Miah - son of an influential local Muslim community
leader. But when Aisha, Miah's wife, is found badly beaten, it seems that
the Inglebys may not be the only family with skeletons in the cupboard.
HORNE, Una
Early One Morning
Lottie is just three years old when her mammy dies and she is sent to
the workhouse; only thirteen when a 'place' is found for her with a miner's
family, looking after three young boys and their invalid mother; and still
a mere lass when she runs away from the Green household to escape her
abusive employer. A childhood spent in poverty has left no opportunity
for education. Yet Lottie is bright, and has ambitions to write. When
Josiah Bateman, a kindly Methodist preacher, introduces adult literacy
classes at the Chapel. Lottie seizes her chance - and a new door opens...
HOSSEINI, Khaled
A Thousand Splendid Suns
This is a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s
last thirty years—from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban
to the post-Taliban rebuilding—that puts the violence, fear, hope,
and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two
generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep
of war, where personal lives—the struggle to survive, raise a family,
find happiness—are inextricable from the history playing out around
them.
HOUSTON, Eve
Scandal in Prior’s Ford
Prior's Ford's Women's Rural Institute finds itself on the verge of a
civil war when Moira Melrose is defeated in her bid to become president
for the third time by newcomer Alma Parr. Moira seeks revenge by trying
to outdo the Parrs' extravagant Christmas outdoor decorations, and the
feud escalates from there.
HUGHES, Declan
All the dead voices
Ed Loy has made some changes. He has moved into a flat in Dublin's city
centre, leaving the family home behind. Maybe now he can break free from
the ghosts of his past - the drinking, the dirty deals, the sleazy underworld.
But when a 15-year-old murder case is reopened, Loy is hired by the victim's
daughter to investigate the suspects ignored by the first investigation:
a rich property developer, an ex-IRA man and Loy's least favourite sociopath,
George Halligan. Loy has to watch his back: in the murky world into which
he has fallen, he can't tell which threats come from the IRA and which
from the police protecting their old case
HUNTER, Seth
The Time of Terror
The first of a trilogy features Royal Navy officer Nathan Peake, a 23-year-old
mariner whose misadventures had convinced him early on that he was born
to hang. In 1793, Nathan is plucked from the deck of his warship and sent
to Paris on a secret mission, disguised as an American sea captain smuggling
tobacco into France. He is unwittingly involved in a British plot to ruin
the French economy by flooding France with counterfeit banknotes and to
provide gold to bribe French revolutionaries. Our hero survives sea battles,
assassin attacks, and torture, but his schemes often tragically fail.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
The Deverell Woman
Maura Deverell is a young Irish peasant girl whose mother is dying of
consumption. Their cruel landlord threatens to throw them out of their
cottage unless Maura agrees to marry his young son, Liam Riordan. But
before Maura can decide, she is brutally raped by Liam's brother Padraig,
who gloats that once she is under their roof, Maura will be at his mercy
- his sexual slave. Weak though she is, Maura's mother does not let this
vicious act go unavenged. She curses the Riordans and then, on her deathbed,
makes Maura promise to leave Ireland for good. Maura ends up in Birmingham,
after many narrow escapes from rape and death. Even when she makes staunch
friends, and discovers a protector in the shape of Aiden Shanley, she
longs to go home, stopped only by her promise to her mother. Eventually
the wicked Riordans meet a well deserved sticky end and Maura is persuaded
to return and marry Liam after all.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
For the Sake of her Child
Raped and left pregnant by her drunken father, Anna Bradly abandons her
baby. Over the years, Anna manages to build up a successful business,
but when she is robbed of both her husband and her livelihood, fate leads
her back to her roots - and a confrontation that could break her heart.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
Heritage of Shame
Anne Corby flees from Russia when her mother dies in the wild savagery
of the steppes. Pregnant with an illegitimate child - the result a brutal
rape, Anna returns to Darlaston with nothing but a mysterious talisman,
wrapped in a black velvet cloth, in which the peace of nations resides.
But a return to Darlaston holds no sanctuary. For it is home to Anne's
aunt Clara, who sees the girl's bastard as a threat to her ownership of
Glebe Metalworks. As war clouds gather, Clara resolves to remove the usurper
by fair means or foul, and enlists her depraved son Quenton in her evil
plan.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
Pauper’s Child
Increasingly desperate poverty after her beloved father's suicide forces
a crisis for Callista Stanford. For vicious rent collector Oswin Slade,
will accept only the girl's body in payment for the rent due. Repulsed
by his advances, Callista postpones the evil day until it is too late.
Homeless and destitute, Callista finds refuge with Abigail and Daniel
Roberts, a kindly couple, potters by trade. Taught by her father to appreciate
beauty, Callista proves to have a feeling for the clay and with Daniel's
help comes to be mistress of the Leabrook Pottery. But there is no happy
ending yet; an unseen enemy, a depraved woman, lurks in the shadows, intent
on harm to the pauper's child.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
A Penny Dip
One of five sisters, Margaret Rose Astbury grew up in Wednesbury during
the first half of the twentieth century. Despite the constant struggle
to make ends meet, and the hardship and worry of wartime, life in the
Black Country was not all doom and gloom. In the crowded terraced houses
and teeming communal yards, there was love and laughter aplenty. With
no money to spare for toys, the Astbury girls had to make their own amusement,
whether it be street games or a backyard panto. Meg was no angel, and
was often 'up to her armpits in mischief'. But she knew she could rely
on her sisters to stick up for her - and her mom and dad were too soft-hearted
to punish any of their beloved daughters.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
Peppercorn Woman
Tyler Cadell's cruel order to throw their baby to the dogs breaks his
wife's heart - she flees to save herself, but is haunted by the fact that
she could not save her baby. Now, Cadell is back - he has linked his fortune
with an aristocrat and must prevent the return of his legal wife.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
Ties of Love
If only she had heeded her ten-year-old sister's words! But Amber Neale
returns from India to the devastating news of Bethany's death and her
brother's disappearance. The man she holds responsible is mine-owner Uriah
Buckley, a powerful man in Darlaston, and Amber knows he will make her
life a living hell if crossed. But loyalty to her siblings prevails, and
she determines to seek out the truth. Amber's only ally is Rani, the gentle
Indian girl who owes Amber her life. Together they create a line of floral
face creams and cosmetics, and go on to found a successful beauty salon.
But wealth and success do not fill the heart.
Hutchinson, Meg.
The seal
Kate Mallory comes across a foreign banknote and a drawing of an ancient
talisman in a local churchyard. Richard Torrey is haunted by a young woman.
Together, Kate and Richard decide to investigate a possible link between
these random clues.
HUTCHINSON, Meg
The Wanton Redhead
This is the story of a young woman who must suffer many violent wrongs
before being saved by her own virtue, and by the love of a good man. When
her selfish, flighty sister leaves home to become the wife of a wealthy
sugar plantation owner, Alyssa becomes solely responsible for her poor,
deranged mother as well as for Thea's bastard son. Viciously raped, then
thrown out of the family home, the girl goes on the run, fleeing her cruel
rapist. Alyssa's journey is a perilous one. It will take her far from
the Black Country to the wild shores of the Caribbean and put her in the
path of evil men determined to despoil the young girl. For the palm-fringed
island of Jamaica is home to a pernicious trade: white slavery...
Iggulden, Conn
Stormbird
King Henry V - the great Lion of England - is long dead. In 1437, after
years of regency, the pious and gentle Henry VI, the Lamb, comes of age
and accedes to the English throne. His poor health and frailty of mind
render him a weakling king. Yet there are those who believe England must
be led by a strong king if she is to survive. With England's territories
in France under threat, and rumours of revolt at home, fears grow that
Henry and his advisers will see the country slide into ruin.
INDRIDASON, Arnaldur
Silence of the Grave
A human bone is discovered at a construction site near Reykjavik. Inspector
Erlendur Sveinnson is on the case, but the trail, which leads back to
World War II, has gone very cold indeed. Erlendur (Icelanders use first
names) has a very personal reason for his abiding interest in missing
persons, and that--combined with the fact that his drug-abusing daughter
is in the hospital in a coma--opens the door for plenty of backstory regarding
the detective's troubled history. With a narrative that jumps between
the 1940s and the present--without giving away whodunit--the novel generates
a sort of emotional claustrophobia, its characters trapped in a world
where the pain of the past, though often submerged, is always with us.
Jackson, Lisa
Close to home
Sarah McAdams has come home to the shores of Oregon's wild Columbia river
to renovate the old Victorian mansion where she grew up. Her daughters,
Jade and Gracie, aren't impressed by the rundown property, and Sarah too
is beset by uneasy memories - of her cold, distant mother, of the half-sister
who vanished without a trace, and of a long-ago night when Sarah was found
outside, feverish and delirious. Ever since the original mistress of the
house plunged to her death almost a century ago, there have been rumours
that the place is haunted. As a girl, Sarah sensed a presence there, and
soon Gracie claims to see a lady in white running up the stairs. But there's
a new, more urgent menace in the small town. One by one, teenage girls
are disappearing.
Jackson, Lisa.
Sail away
JACOBS, Anna
Bright Day Dawning
Gwynna had fallen from grace once, bearing a stillborn child out of wedlock.
Determined to have a respectable future, she finds a position for herself
as a nursemaid at Hungerton House. But just as she begins to find her
feet, the secrets of her past are revealed. She is swiftly dismissed but
not before she becomes the target of a lascivious groom. And even afterwards
she is pursued by Hungerton, an evil old man who wishes to send her back
to the gutters. She returns home to Hedderby, only to find the small Lancashire
town reeling after the arson attack on the local pub and music hall, The
Pride. Her only ally is a talented carpenter, also once employed by Hungerton.
His former employer will stop at nothing, however, to bring him back to
the estate. Will money buy revenge and destroy two lives, or will the
young lovers find a way to achieve their dreams?
JACOBS, Anna
Calico Road
Calico Road runs through a tiny Lancashire hamlet up on the edge of the
moors, miles from anywhere. Its folk are an independent breed –
and in 1827 they are a thorn in the side of the vicious mill owner in
the valley below.
Toby Fletcher’s father ignored his bastard son while alive. Now
Toby is the new owner of the rambling old inn, an unwitting keeper of
its secrets. Then Meg Staley comes to Colico, a woman who was strong enough
to survive one tragedy but found it harder to withstand a second blow.
Toby finds her wandering the moors, cold and starving, and brings her
back to the inn. Working there, Meg starts to rebuild her life and finds
a fragile happiness. But then the secrets of Colico Road come crashing
down on her and those she has grown to love…
JACOBS, Anna
Chestnut Lane
When novelist Sophie Carr rescues a man hiding in her garden from a group
of paparazzi, she finds that her new neighbour is ageing pop star Jez
Winter, whos had a tough time lately. Lifes not been easy for Sophie either,
losing her husband and having difficulties with her children. And Sophie
also has a secret to hide. One that makes her very wary of getting involved
with Jez . . .
JACOBS, Anna
Elm Tree Road
In the sequel to 'Cherry Tree Lane', Nell the second Willitt sister, leaves
her brutal father and moves with new husband Cliff to Lancashire. But
Nell's happiness is short-lived and when tragedy strikes, Nell, mad with
grief, runs away.
JACOBS, Anna
Family Connections
When Gina Porter discovers she may have family on the other side of the
world, she determines to travel to England and meet these unknown relatives.
At her home near Blackpool, Peggy Wilkes wakes every day to her bullying
husband. She too has decided to make a new start. As these two women embark
on their voyages of self-discovery, they forge bonds that reinforce the
value of family connections.
Jacobs, Anna
Heir to Greyladies
1900. The death of her father forces Harriet out of her home to escape
the advances of her stepbrother, the rule of her stepmother, and into
service at Dalton House. Over time Harriet develops a friendship with
the Dalton's crippled son Joseph but her life is changed completely when
she inherits Greyladies, a haunted house.
JACOBS, Anna
In focus
When a new feature on Pete Newbury's popular TV programme shows his adult
image digitally transformed to that of a young child, Beth is shocked
to realize he's her 'baby' brother, who vanished without a trace 38 years
ago. Things begin to get complicated as Beth falls for Pete's cousin and
manager, Edward.
Jacobs, Anna
In search of hope
An unexpected inheritance offers Libby Pulford the chance to escape her
abusive marriage with her young son Ned. Just as she's beginning to settle
into her new life, her troubled past catches up with her. The one person
she can turn to for help is her new neighbour, former police detective
Joss Atherton. But Joss has troubles of his own.
JACOBS, Anna
Kirsty’s Vineyard
Four years ago Kirstys husband was killed in a car accident. Kirsty has
put her life on hold since. Then she meets Ed James, a cancer-ridden old
man, who leaves her his estate, an Australian vineyard, when he dies.
But there is a condition attached to his legacy: she must live at the
vineyard in a remote corner of New South Wales for at least one year .
. .
Jacobs, Anna
Legacy of Greyladies
Olivia Hanbury's work brings her to Greyladies, where she meets Phoebe,
who seems to be the owner. She loves the old house on sight and becomes
friendly with Phoebe. But not everyone approves of what Olivia is doing
and she makes enemies as well as friends. Will she manage to make a life
for herself in her new home in Wiltshire or will her family and those
who don't approve of her work stop her?
Jacobs, Anna
Mistress of Greyladies
During WWI Greyladies is requisitioned by the government as a POW internment
centre. Harriet is now a widow, as she has always known she would be with
such a frail husband, but now has a son and daughter to care for. The
three of them go to live with Joseph's family when Greyladies is requisitioned.
Harriet is worried that all her careful renovations will be destroyed
and her search for other Latimer women has to be abandoned temporarily
because of the war.
JACOBS, Anna
Moving on
Molly Peel has been downtrodden for years; bullied by her husband and
now a slave to her two grown-up children. When she is late for her daughter's
wedding after a taxi is involved in an accident, her daughter refuses
to listen to her explanations. Molly then decides to take control of her
own life.
JACOBS, Anna
A Pennyworth of Sunshine
Keara Michaels doesn't want to leave her family in Ireland, but fate sends
her first to Lancashire, then across the sea to Australia, pregnant and
penniless. And Theo Mullane, the man who loves her, is married, with an
ailing baby son, so cannot follow her as he longs to. Mark Gibson leaves
Lancashire to avoid marriage. But gold prospecting is a dangerous pursuit,
and when his gentle young wife dies in childbirth, his father-in-law kidnaps
the baby. So Mark runs away again, this time to Western Australia, where
he employs Keara in his country inn. But danger threatens them all.
Jacobs, Anna
Peppercorn Street
Three women find new hope in Peppercorn Street, a small village in a beautiful
corner of Wiltshire with a mixture of homes and people.
Jacobs, Anna
A place of hope
When Emily Mattison falls victim to a near-fatal accident shortly after
receiving an unexpected inheritance from a distant cousin, her ruthless
nephew seizes the opportunity to take control of his aunt's assets. Awaking
from a coma, Emily finds herself locked up in a geriatric care unit. She
must rely on her wits to escape.
JACOBS, Anna
Saving Willowbrook
When Ella discovers that her husband Miles is secretly planning to sell
their farm, it's the final straw: her marriage, already on the rocks,
is over. Determined to save Willowbrook, and to protect her daughter Amy,
Ella embarks on a mission to transform the farm into a successful bed-and-breakfast
business. But Miles is an ambitious and ruthless man, and he has other
plans for the property .
JACOBS, Anna
Seasons of Love
Helen Merling yearns to be loved. When she meets an actor - a common and
dishonest profession, in the eyes of her father - Helen succumbs to the
young man's charms. Pregnancy and marriage follow, but Robert Perriman
is a cheating philanderer. Will Helen suffer a lifetime of drudgery?
JACOBS, Anna
Spinners Lak
When mill-owner Frederick Hallam dies in 1860, his widow Annie plans to
build Spinners Lake, a project that will keep her from destitution. But
then artist Tian Gilchrist walks into her life, awakening disturbing memories.
Can Annie love another man the way she loved Frederick?
JACOBS, Anna
Three Penny Dreams
Recently widowed, Hannah Firth is still young - young enough to dream
of a new life. When her spiteful daughter-in-law uses her as an unpaid
servant, Hannah tries to leave, but she is unaware of the depths that
Patty's spite will lead her to.
Jacobs, Anna
A time to remember
1945 - The war in Europe is over. Most women can't wait for their men
to return, but in the small town of Rivenshaw in Lancashire, Judith Crossley
fears having her husband back in the house. He'd grown into a bully and
a drunkard, and on the occasions he'd come home from leave, he'd hit her.
He wasn't a good father either - when their eldest daughter Kitty won
a prestigious scholarship to the private girls' grammar school, Doug had
tried to stop her going, saying it would turn her into a snob. Luckily
Judith had help from an unlikely ally - Maynard Esher, from an old aristocratic
family on the other side of town - but Judith knows that when her husband
returns, she'll be blamed for letting Kitty take up her school place.
She decides that for the children's sake, she must leave her husband.
But with the house rented in his name, and other accommodation scarce,
where on earth can they go?
Jacobs, Anna
The trader's dream|
Bram Deagan dreams of bringing his family from Ireland to join him in
Australia, where he now runs a trading business. But when a typhus epidemic
strikes Ireland, it leaves the Deagan family decimated. And, with other
family members scattered round the world, it's left to Maura Deagan to
look after her orphaned nieces and nephew.
Jacobs, Anna
The trader's gift
Bram Deagan has a thriving trading business, a beautiful wife and a growing
family. Since he has a gift for matchmaking and wishes to see his friends
Dougal and Mitchell happily married too, he doesn't hesitate to suggest
they find wives. In England, Eleanor Prescott has not forgotten the ship's
captain who was a true friend to her. Dougal McBride told her to come
to him if she was free. When her ailing husband dies, she wonders if she
dare return to Western Australia. Will Dougal still want her after nearly
a year?
Jacobs, Anna
The trader's reward
When Fergus Deagan's wife dies, leaving him to care for their small children,
he doesn't know how to manage. He's always been envious of his older brother
Bram's good fortune but now he reluctantly knows he needs his help, and
sets off with his family for Western Australia. When he gets there, he
finds that the problems with Bram's ice-making venture are threatening
to ruin his brother. Can Fergus help find a solution and make amends with
Bram at last?
JACOBS, Anna
The trader’s wife
Singapore in the 1860s is exotic and yet terrifying for a penniless Englishwoman,
alone and vulnerable after her mother's death. Too pretty to obtain a
governess's job, Isabella Saunders accepts an offer from a Singapore merchant
to teach him English and live with his family.
JACOBS, Anna
Winds of Change
Miranda Fox has devoted much of her life to caring for her elderly father.
But when he dies after a descent into Alzheimer's she knows she must leave
the dilapidated family home and make a clean break. Can Miranda find the
happiness she deserves?
Jacobs, Anna.
Yew Tree Gardens
1910. Sisters Mattie, Nell and Renie all managed to escape their oppressive
and bullying father, but now separated, the girls must draw upon their
strength and courage to build new lives for themselves.
JARDINE, Quintin
Deadly Business
It's the Fiesta de San Juan in Spain, a celebration of the Summer Solstice,
and there's much excitement about a huge firework display. But Primavera
Blackstone is more inflamed by the appearance of a mysterious writer,
Duncan Culshaw, who is determined to rake through the ashes of her past.
Jardine, Quintin
Mathew's tale
In this, his landmark fortieth novel, Quintin Jardine tells the remarkable
story of a man's quest for justice - at any cost. 1818, Carluke, Lanarkshire.
Mathew Fleming returns home to Scotland following heroic service at the
Battle of Waterloo. After seven years away, he is a ghostly presence to
those he left behind. But Mathew is ambitious and soon becomes a man of
influence in his county and beyond. Yet through all his success, he still
hides the loss of his one true love. When a terrible act of murder occurs,
Mathew must choose between the rule of blood and the rule of law. And
as a man of honour with a warrior's instincts, he embarks on a journey
of vengeance that will test every sinew of his faith in mankind.
JARDINE, Quintin
Unnatural Justice
Oz Blackstone is enjoying the success of his latest smash hit movie. But
when blackmailers threaten Oz's father with a sleazy scam, the dream begins
to turn to nightmare. And as Oz prepares to fight back, he knows he's
being sucked into a vortex of evil.
JECKS, Michael
A Moorland Hanging
Cold-blooded murder has transformed Simon Puttock's official obligation
into something horrid -- and he will need the able assistance of his friend,
Sir Baldwin Furnshill, to draw a criminal out. A former Knight Templar,
Sir Baldwin knows much of duty and servitude - and of evil freely indulged
in the name of godliness or greed. Now justice must be served, even if
their search exposes extortion, foul corruption, rule by fear…and
killers willing, even eager, to shed more blood.
JECKS, Michael
The Prophecy of Death
It is 1325 and there is turmoil in England, but the Prophecy of St. Thomas's
Holy Oil just might save King Edward II. It is believed that the king
who is anointed with the oil will be a lion among men: he will conquer
France, unite Christendom, and throw the heathens from the Holy Land.
Edward’s reputation has been sullied following his rejection of
his wife—Queen Isabella—after which he confiscated her income,
exiled her servants, and took away her children. Having escaped her husband
and traveled to France, Isabella attempts to negotiate peace with her
brother, King Charles IV…
JECKS, Michael
The oath
1326. In an England riven with conflict, knight & peasant alike find
their lives turned upside down by the warring factions of Edward II. Yet
even in such times the brutal slaughter of an entire family, right down
to a babe in arms, still has the power to shock. Three further murders
follow, & bailiff Simon Puttock is drawn into a web of intrigue.
JEFFREY, Elizabeth
Traveller’s Inn
Bethany and her mother are left destitute following the scandalous death
of her father. Forced to leave their beloved home with little more than
the clothes they are stood up in, their last hope is to prevail upon their
only living relative, Bethany's Great Aunt Sarah, who runs a coaching
inn. But when they arrive at the inn, they realise it has seen much better
days and they are hardly welcomed with open arms by Sarah, who is initially
unsympathetic to their plight. Bethany is quick to adapt and impresses
Sarah with her attitude to hard work. She soon manages to convince Sarah
to build up the business again, and trade at the inn increases. Their
future begins to look secure, but trouble lies ahead…
JEFFREY, Elizabeth
The Weaver’s Daughter
When Anna discovers her father's plans to marry her off to an old widower
for financial gain, she determines to escape. Her mother is sympathetic
and secretly helps her to flee Holland and she elopes with her childhood
sweetheart Jan, to England. They go to Colchester, the hub of the thriving
cloth trade, where there is a substantial Dutch immigrant community. However,
settling in is not as easy as the young lovers had imagined....
JEFFRIES, Roderic
An Artistic Way to Go
It's not very surprising that art dealer Oliver Cooper disappears from
his home on Mallorca shortly after mob-connected enforcer Ernest White
turns up to demand $1,350,000 for two paintings that White's employer,
who purchased them from Cooper, says are forgeries. What's surprising
is that (a) Cooper soon turns up dead, and (b) so many of his associates
actually wanted him dead. It's up to imperturbable Inspector Enrique Alvarez
to smash the killer's broken-watch alibi before his short-fused superior
blows a gasket.
JEFFRIES, Roderic
A question of motive
The Mallorcan police receive an anonymous call to say a body has been
found at the foot of a steep wall of rock. Hoping it is an accident rather
than a crime, Alvarez makes cursory enquiries only to find that the medical
evidence reveals this could be a murder case.
JEFFRIES, Roderic
Murder Needs Imagination
Inspector Enrique Alvarez of the Mallorca police scorns the island's wealthy
expatriates, mainly because their wrongdoing takes him away from his three
great loves: food, siestas, and cognac. This time one of those expats,
notorious womanizer Jasper Vickers, has been found dead, apparently the
victim of a fall after a drinking binge. But Alvarez suspects murder,
thanks to some mysterious scratches on Vickers' throat.
JEWELL, Lisa
31 Dream Street
Leah and Toby have lived across the street from one another for years
without meeting ... and Leah has been itching to peek behind the front
door of Toby's eccentric house, always packed to the rafters with weird
and wonderful tenants. When fate finally lets her in, Leah finds that
Toby needs her as much as she is surprised to realize she might need him.
Sometimes life needs a helping hand and with a sprinkle of romance and
their own special magic, Toby and Leah's dreams show the glimmer of a
chance of coming true.\n\n31 Dream Street is a wonderfully warm and insightful
novel that will capture the imagination and soothe the soul.
Johnson, George
The last British Dambuster
Johnny Johnson is 92 years old and one of very few men who can recall
first-hand the most daring and ingenious air raid of all time. On 16th
May 1943, Johnny, alongside 132 specially selected comrades, took off
from Scampton airbase in Lincolnshire. For six weeks they had been trained
to fulfil one mission that was near impossible: to destroy three dams
deep within Germany's Ruhr Valley. It was a daring task but, against the
odds, Johnny and his crew survived. For the first time, Johnny relives
every moment of that fatal night - and the devastating aftermath.
JOHNSON, Jeannie
Bitter Harvest
Two brothers—Walter the older, is ruthless and driven; William,
the younger, is more honorable but ineffectual—spend their lives
building the Shellard family wine business without counting the cost in
human terms to those they mistreat along the way. Among the most affected
is young Catherine, Walter’s illegitimate daughter with his longtime
Portuguese mistress, who suddenly loses all that she holds dear when her
father marries again, and her distraught mother commits suicide. Seven
years later, Catherine reenters the Shellard sphere of influence when
Walter arranges her marriage to Robert Freeman for business reasons.
JOHNSTON, Jennifer
This is not a Novel
Johnny, an outstanding young swimmer, went missing nearly thirty years
ago: drowned, or so everyone except his sister Imogen believes. How could
this have happened? Encouraged, pushed even, from a child by his father,
Johnny could have made the Olympic team, couldn't he? As Imogen gradually
pieces together bits of her family history, we hear the tragic echoes
that connect her with the Great War and Ireland in the nineteen-twenties.
JONES, Catherine
The Eye of the Storm
It's June 1944, shortly after Normandy, and the English are anxious to
secure a small airstrip close to the front line in France. In the course
of a few days, we are privy to the lives of several people. There's Colonel
David Clarke, who is preparing his troops for the invasion; his young
wife, Gwen; and her lover, George, a member of the Royal Air Force. In
France, there's Martine, struggling to keep her small farm going, and
her lover, Otto, a German soldier who has to decide if he is going to
desert. Also in France is the sadistic SS officer, Jochen Peiper, who,
despite the fact that victory is in sight for the Allies, is determined
to do anything necessary to reach his goal.
JONES, Dylan
Unto the Wicked
Criminally insane Colin Heggarty, is behind bars, thanks to Natalie Vine.
He takes his revenge by arranging the abduction of one of his recovering
victims. Natalie is given seven days to save her life and each day brings
a grisly reminder that time is running out.
JONES, Kathleen
Seeking Catherine Cookson’s “Da”
This is a real life detective story, tracking down the missing father
of one of Britain's most famous authors - the father she didn't want anyone
to know about! Best selling author Catherine Cookson created a profoundly
affecting literature out of the personal tragedies of her working class
upbringing and early life in the industrial North East. Her biographer
gives this account of her search to discover the truth of Cookson's childhood
and the mystery of her father's identity. As the story unfolds, the reader
is led to a deeper understanding of the demons that drove Cookson to become
one of the most popular novelists of her day. It is a story of terrible
poverty, of harsh lessons learnt generation after generation, but also
of hope and eventual reconciliation.
JONKER, Joan
I’ll Be Your Sweetheart
Not a day goes by without Molly Bennett and Nellie McDonough counting
their blessings. But when an elderly neighbour, Flora Parker, is robbed
of her most treasured possession, and left without a penny to her name,
the two mates jump at the chance of setting their detecting skills in
motion. Meanwhile, Molly's youngest daughter, Ruthie, and her best friend,
Bella, are making plans for their joint sixteenth birthday party. Ruthie
is determined to look glamorous, a real knock out, to catch the eye of
a certain boy for whom she's got more than a soft spot.
JONKER, Joan
Man of the House
On VE Day the whole population of Liverpool turned out to celebrate, and
Eileen Gillmoss was the life and soul of the party. After five long years,
her husband would be coming home. But the man who returns feels like a
stranger to her, and Eileen fears their relationship can never be the
same.
JONKER, Joan
One Rainy Day
Nineteen-year-old Poppy Meadows enjoys life! The only blot on her happiness
is her dreadful boss, with his roving eye and roving hands. Vowing to
find another job, she enrols in a shorthand class at night school. One
rainy day, she is knocked to the ground by two people bounding down the
steps of an office block, but her pride will not let her accept the young
man's offer to replace her ruined raincoat. When Andrew Wilkie-Brook tells
his sister Charlotte 'I wish she'd let me help', someone is listening
and decides to take a hand. Her name is Fate.
JONKER, Joan
When Wishes Come True
Evelyn married Charles just hours before he left for war, unaware that
she would never see him again and that she was already carrying his child.
When Amelia is born, Charles's parents won't accept that she is their
grandchild, but poor as they are, Evelyn and her daughter find happiness.
JONKER, Joan
You Stole My Heart Away
Molly Bennett and Nellie McDonough are very happy with their lot in life.
Their expanding families and abundance of friends always keep them busy.
And as they walk arm in arm to the shops every day, they are greeted with
warmth by their neighbours, for wherever they go they bring fun and laughter
with them. Their rock-solid friendship has lasted over 20 years, through
good times and bad, and never once have Molly and Nellie fallen out. And
they are always up for a bit of excitement and any excuse for a laugh.
So when they learn there is a wedding in the offing, which will bring
the Bennett, McDonough and Corkhill families even closer, it gives the
intrepid pair a good reason to save up for a visit into
Liverpool and to the shop selling wedding hats. They just hope that the
wedding itself lives up to the grandeur of the hotel.
Jordan, Penny.
Desire for revenge
Sarah believed in love at first sight. But after meeting the man of her
dreams, and spending a night of passion in his arms, she was scared the
magic couldn't possibly last. So she left before he awoke. Joshua Howard
had met his perfect woman, and lost her again in one night. Now, he vowed
to get his own back on her, and his revenge was going to be slow and sweet.
It would begin as soon as he introduced himself as Sarah's new boss!
JORDAN, Penny
Fantasy for Two
Just what had impulsive Mollie Barnes and powerful landowner Alex Villiers,
Earl of St Otel, got in common? Mollie always championed the underdog,
while Alex represented the privileged classes. He'd declared she was stubborn
and wilfully determined to believe the worst of him, while she thought
he was simply amusing himself with her.So, why had she confessed her secret
fantasy to him? It soon became clear that they shared the same dream -
and Alex was perfectly happy to make it come true.
JORDAN, Penny
Perfect marriage material
Saul Crighton was every woman's dream - head of a thriving law firm, devoted
single father to three young children, and the sexiest man alive. Even
Tullah couldn't deny that Saul made her heart beat faster. But, even though
she was tormented by erotic fantasies about him, Tullah was determined
to resist his family's matchmaking plans.
JORDAN, Penny
Silk
Silk opens in Cheshire the 1920s, a time of great glamour and decadence,
high living and loose morality. We follow an immensely powerful family
who have made their considerable fortune from silk, clothing Queen Victoria
in her lengthy widowhood and supplying top fashion houses the world over
- a dynasty that hides a scandalous past behind its glamorous facade...
KAINE, Margaret
Friends and Families
As a child, Josie Ford, fiery and ambitious, sees from a distance the
affluent lifestyle of young Georgina Hawkins, and is filled with envy.
But Georgina is lonely, and longs to experience the warmth of working-class
family life. Beneath the shadow of Georgina's father, the domineering
William Hawkins, the two girls meet in secret. From this forbidden friendship
grows a bond so strong nothing can break it. And then the men enter their
lives…
KAINE, Margaret
Ring of Clay
Despite an early life marked by tragedy and hardship, Beth Sherwin dreams
of staying on at school and even going to university - a heady ambition
for a Potteries girl in 1956. Then, a brutal encounter leaves her pregnant
at seventeen. Unwilling to break her widowed mother's heart, Beth bears
her secret alone and gives up her baby daughter for adoption. It seems
her desperate gamble has succeeded. She finishes school, takes on a challenging
job and meets Michael, charming eldest son of the wealthy Rushton family.
She has to fight both class prejudice and the jealousy of her old enemy
Ursula to win him - but when he asks her to marry him, Beth faces a dilemma.
Does she dare tell Michael her guilty secret and risk losing him? And
even if he stands by her, can she bear the certainty that the brutal stranger
who fathered her child will be at her wedding?
KELLERMAN, Faye
Street Dreams
When Cindy Decker, Peter's LAPD officer daughter (who had a big role in
2000's Stalker), finds an abandoned baby in a dumpster, she sets out to
track down the developmentally disabled mother, suspecting that the child
may have been the product of a rape. Her fellow officers discourage her
efforts, while an attempt on her life sparks conflict with an alarmed
Peter.
KELLERMAN, Faye
The Burnt House
At 8:15 in the morning, a small commuter plane carrying forty-seven passengers
crash into an apartment building in Granada Hills, California. Shock waves
ripple through Los Angeles as L.A.P.D. Lieutenant Peter Decker works overtime
to calm rampant fears of a 9/11-type terror attack. But a grisly mystery
lives inside the plane's charred and twisted wreckage. The fate of an
unaccounted-for flight attendant—twenty-eight-year-old Roseanne
Dresden—remains a question mark more than a month after the horrific
event, when the young woman's irate stepfather calls, insisting that she
was never onboard the doomed plane. Instead, he claims, she was most likely
murdered by her abusive, unfaithful husband. But why, then, was Roseanne's
name included on the passenger list?
KELLERMAN, Jonathan
Billy Straight
Twelve-year-old Billy Straight, a precocious homeless kid with a taste
for reading, flees Los Angeles in terror after witnessing a murder in
Griffith Park. The homicide inquiry is headed by Petra Connor, a determined,
intuitive detective, and her partner, Stu Bishop, who is distracted by
a family tragedy. The murder victim turns out to be Lisa Ramsey, ex-wife
of the famous, and abusive, Cart Ramsey, who plays a private eye on a
late-night television series.
KELLERMAN, Jonathan
Dr. Death
A series of well-publicized gentle deaths are the work of self-appointed
angel of mercy Dr. Eldon Mate, who attends to the terminally ill in cheap
hotel rooms or in the back of his van. Now Mate himself is dead, carved
up and found by two joggers and their dog on a high road above Los Angeles.
Psychologist Alex Delaware, whose self-righteous pomposity blends neatly
into a narrative liberally dosed with psycho-angles and agreeably warped
murder motives. This time out, Delaware works with cop Milo Sturgis and
counsels Stacy and Eric Doss, two teenage children getting over their
mother Joanne's death, which Dr. Mate seemingly helped to hasten. In his
dual role, Delaware encounters a rogue FBI agent tracking a killer obsessed
with Mate; Mate's disturbed son; and Richard Doss, the kids' father, who
by slipping cash to a shady character in a dark bar is marked as a prime
murder suspect.
KELLERMAN, Jonathan
The Conspiracy Club
A psychologist at City Central Hospital, Jeremy Carrier, is attempting
to put his life back together after the brutal murder of his girlfriend,
Jocelyn, when he is approached by elderly Dr. Arthur Chess with an offer
of friendship. Jeremy, still too traumatized by Jocelyn's death to attempt
even the most casual of relationships, initially rejects Chess's solicitation.
After further conversation, he accepts an invitation to an elegant dinner
at a very private club with Chess and five other older men and women of
high intellectual and social rank, all of whom have an extreme interest
in crime and the nature of evil. Just as a halting, tentative rapport
with fellow doctor Angela Rios begins to develop, Jeremy receives the
first in a series of mysterious, anonymous messages. By piecing these
messages together with other clues from Dr. Chess, he comes to understand
that someone is trying to point him toward the killer of his beloved Jocelyn
and a number of other local women.
KELLY, Sheelagh
Secrets of our Hearts
Niall may be poor but he is a good man. He does his best for his wife
and their five children, in difficult circumstances in their small, cramped
house in the back streets of York. But this loving home is torn apart
when his wife dies in a tragic accident and Niall finds himself alone
with only his mother-in-law and his sisters-in-law for company. His five
children run him ragged and, seeking solace, he finds refuge at the Angel
pub. Here he catches sight of Boudicea, the Angel's beautiful and bubbly
barmaid. With his wife only gone a few months, he must supress his feelings
of passion but, he finds himself unable to tear himself away from her
warm charm and alluring looks. But Niall's mother-in-law, the aptly named
Mrs Beasty, is determined to do all she can to keep Niall from finding
happiness again. And when she discovers that Boudicea's past is far from
perfect, she conspires to bring about her downfall…
KENEALLY, John
The Honour and the Shame
Many years after becoming the youngest person ever to be awarded the Victoria
Cross—for attacking a company of Panzer Grenadiers on his own, an
action that proved a turning point in one of the major battles of War
II—John Kenneally made an extraordinary confession. The courageous
hero of the Irish Guards, who had taken on a whole company single-handed
was not, in fact, John Kenneally at all, but Leslie Jackson, the illegitimate
son of Neville Blond and Gertrude Robinson, who had deserted his former
regiment, the Honourable Artillery Company. He tells his story with great
verve and frankness—a story of riotous living, great courage on
the front line, and intense loyalties.
Kent, Alison
The second chance café
Kaylie Flynn was luckier than most children left to the Texas foster care
system, blessed with a foster mother who taught her the comfort of home
and the healing power of the perfect brownie. Now, Kaylie has journeyed
back to Hope Springs to open a café in the charming Victorian she
once shared with her foster family - and to finally find answers about
her past and where she came from. Yet Kaylie's carefully laid plans quickly
become complicated. The house needs far more work than she realized, and
Tennessee Keller, the carpenter Kaylie hires, stirs up feelings she hasn't
felt in a long while. When an unexpected crisis threatens to unravel her
dreams, Kaylie seems to have all the ingredients for a perfect disaster
- or quite possibly the perfect love.
KERR, Peter
The Cruise Connection
A strong cast of sharply-drawn and colorful characters gives Bob Burns
and his two unlikely sidekicks plenty to cope with in an intriguing story
of greed, guile, deceit and double-dealing that's sparked off by the discovery
of a severed finger in a cruise ship passenger's quiche lorraine
KEYES, Marian
The Brightest Star in the Sky
A mysterious spirit is hovering over the building at 66 Star Street in
Dublin, and this spirit is on a mission to change someone’s life.
The spirit, however, is unclear on whom this someone will be. It could
be Matt and Maeve, the newlyweds suffering with a terrible secret. Or
Lydia the cabbie, who rooms with two sullen Polish nationals and spends
most of her time worrying about her mother. Or maybe Katie, the newly
40 PR person with a flash job and a flashier boyfriend but who is still
unfulfilled. Or Jemima, the elderly psychic, currently hosting her adopted
son, Fionn, while he auditions for a TV show. The spirit slides back and
forth between floors, hiding in shoes and peeking at photographs, learning
all it can about the Star Street residents, and in doing so unknowingly
interlocks each person’s life with his or her neighbors’,
whether they like it or not.
KEYES, Marian
Rachel’s Holiday
Rachel Walsh is definitely not a drug addict. Everyone does cocaine every
now and then, right? But her roommate, Brigit, and semi-boyfriend, Luke,
see a problem. Simply to pacify her friends and family, Rachel checks
into an Irish rehab center called the Cloisters, expecting daily massages
and seaweed wraps. Rachel is devastated to learn that she is enrolled
in a real drug treatment center! We follow Rachel as she confronts her
addiction and learns a lot about herself. The story is funny, fast paced,
and sometimes intense.
King, Catherine
Her mother's secret
Lettie Hargreaves wants more than her simple, uncomplicated life with
her grandmother. She longs for excitement and love and she's determined
to make something of herself. There's something about Lettie's mother
that Ivy has kept hidden from her granddaughter, something that would
shatter her world. Ivy has shielded her from the truth over the years
so when Lettie suggests going into service for the ailing Lady Laughton,
Ivy knows she must do something to stop it.
KINGSOLVER, Barbara
The poisonwood bible
A fiery evangelist takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in
1959, carrying all they need from home, but find it is calamitously transformed
on African soil. The tale recounts the family's tragic undoing and reconstruction.
KINGSTON, Beryl
Gates of Paradise
An illuminating and touching novel about the life of William Blake, the
famous poet, engraver and illustrator. The story focuses on Blake's life
when he moved to the small rural village of Felpham in Sussex, where he
spent three hard-working years until the dramatic events which led him
to court: in 1803 he was charged with sedition, at Chichester, for being
too vocal in his response to a soldier he found trespassing in his garden.
Half a century later, Alexander Gilchrist arrives, intent on discovering
all that he can about the 'mad poet's' time there in order to compile
a biography. Beginning his he starts questioning people about their memories
of their now departed neighbor. But he soon encounters hostility when
the court trial is mentioned just what do the locals have to hide?
KIRKWOOD, Gwen
A home of our own
Meg and Steven toast the new year of 1951 and look back at the good fortune
they have enjoyed since their marriage. Then Steven's mother takes in
a lodger, Ruth, a vulnerable young woman with a small daughter. Steven
and Meg are shocked to learn that Avril is Steven's half brother's illegitimate
child, born as a result of rape.
Kirkwood, Gwen.
Mistress of Fairlyden
As Mistress of Fairlyden, and happily married to William Fairly, Sarah
feels her life complete. But, longing to share the news of her pregnancy
with her friend, Beatrice Slater, Sarah goes alone to Muircumwell Mill,
where she is attacked by the vengeful Edward Slater. The consequences
of the day haunt Sarah, and force her to become the keeper of a disturbing
secret.
KIRKWOOD, Gwen
Secrets in the Heather
Victoria is the darling of her great-grandmother and the last of her line
in a family that has served the lairds of Darlonachie faithfully for centuries.
But much has changed in the years following the Great War, and when Victoria
is suddenly left alone in the world, Mr. Luke's wife makes her life as
cook's assistant miserable. Andrew Pringle, her best friend, is several
years older and hopes to make her his wife when she is grown, but he fears
competition in the form of young Mark, closer to Victoria's age and sharing
her interests.
KIRKWOOD, Gwen
When the Heather Blooms
When Victoria Pringle receives a request to visit Catriona in the hospital,
she discovers that her long-dead twin, Mark, left a teenage son. Peter
is invited to Langmune and soon becomes popular with the entire extended
family but most especially young Mimi, seven years his junior. While Libby
and Billy are adjusting to marriage, fortysomething Victoria and Andrew
suddenly find themselves proud parents for the fourth time. As the youngest
generation of Pringles grows into adulthood in the 1960s, change comes
slowly but inevitably to Darlonachie.
KOONTZ, Dean R
77 Shadow Street
Old Silas Kinsley is the self-appointed resident historian of The Pendleton,
a 19th-century building which has now been converted into a number of
highly desirable condominiums. He has discovered that there is a cycle
of strangeness and tragedy in The Pendleton's past - and it is about to
head into another of its disturbing cycles.
Larkin, Mary A
Shades of deceit
When her mother leaves the family home in Belfast for her lover, Louise
McGuigan is left feeling betrayed. It is up to Louise to look after her
brother and sister while her father loses himself to alcohol. Returning
to work at the local linen factory, she has to endure the cruel gossip
about her so-called righteous mother and when Conor O'Rourke, the man
of her dreams, continues to drag his heels about their future together,
Louise doesn't know how much more she can take. Louise's luck appears
to change when she finds alternative employment in a local bookshop, but
her family troubles still weigh heavy on her mind. And when she seeks
solace in the arms of a man who isn't Conor, things become even more complicated.
LARKIN, Mary A.
Sworn to Secrecy
1971, and troubles in Belfast are at their height. Tess Maguire yearns
for a happy domestic life, but political and social unrest sends ripples
of uncertainty through every aspect of her existence – and the lives
of her family, friends and colleagues.
Even Tess’s business seems under threat. While her partnership with
Theresa Cunningham in a dressmaking firm is successful, it’s beginning
to affect her romantic interests. Theresa’s boyfriend, Bob, always
seems to be a little too near and before long Tess is questioning her
mixed-up emotions and Bob, her ever-faithful boyfriend Tony and a proposal
of marriage.
Trouble is stirring for Tess’s widowed mother, Alice, and her soon-to-be-husband
Dan. Free at last of his troublesome wife Anne, Dan is looking forward
to life with Alice and his beloved grandson Jackie. But when Jackie’s
estranged mother, unexpectedly returns to claim her son, cracks in every
relationship start to widen.
LARSSON, Stieg
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Cases rarely come much colder than the decades-old disappearance of teen
heiress Harriet Vanger from her family's remote island retreat north of
Stockholm. This first of a trilogy introduces a provocatively odd couple:
disgraced financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist, freshly sentenced to
jail for libeling a shady businessman, and the multipierced and tattooed
Lisbeth Salander, a feral but vulnerable superhacker. Hired by octogenarian
industrialist Henrik Vanger, who wants to find out what happened to his
beloved great-niece before he dies, the duo gradually uncover a festering
morass of familial corruption…
LARSSON, Stieg
The Girl who Played with Fire
The highly intelligent computer hacker Lisbeth Salander, is a confrontational
young woman. In the second book in the Millennium sequence, Lisbeth's
closest ally is the older journalist Mikael Blomqvist, even though she
has abruptly ended her emotional relationship with him. Lisbeth has left
all she knows behinds her and has begun a relationship with a gauche young
lover. But after a grim revenge run-in with a man who has abused her,
she becomes a suspect in three murders, and is the subject of a nationwide
search. Blomqvist, however, is convinced of her innocence (he has just
been responsible for a blistering report on the sex trafficking industry
in Sweden), and is determined to help her – whether she wants his
help or not.
LARSSON, Stieg
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest
Lisbeth Salander lies in Intensive Care with a bullet lodged in her head.
She will face trial for three murders and one attempted murder on her
release. With the help of journalist Mikael Blomkvist, Salander must not
only prove her innocence, but identify and denounce the corrupt politicians
that have allowed the vulnerable to become victims of abuse and violence.
Salander is now ready to fight back.
LAURIMORE, Jill
The Bloody English Women of the Maison Puce
When Alice's gynaecologist husband leaves her for his nursing assistant,
she's left homeless, heartbroken, the wrong side of forty and with no
life skills to speak of. So she has nothing to lose, she figures, when
she buys a tiny studio flat in a strange building called the Maison Puce,
on the Cote d'Azur, and starts a new life in the South of France. But
getting a new life and getting over it aren't as easy as she thinks. Especially
when you're dealing with more than a broken heart - broken roof tiles,
and a very broken French accent don't simplify matters, either...
LEATHER, Stephen
Fair game
Dan 'Spider' Shepherd is working for MI5, investigating Somali pirates
with links to terrorism in Britain. Meanwhile, the crew of a yacht has
been kidnapped by the pirates and are being held hostage in Somalia. A
covert operation run by MI5 hopes to kill two birds with one stone.
LEATHER, Stephen
Hard Landing
Dan ‘Spider’ Shepherd is used to putting his life on the line.
Working for an elite undercover squad he has lied, cheated and conned
in order to bring Britain’s most wanted criminals to justice. But
when a powerful drugs baron starts to kill off witnesses to his crimes,
Shepherd is given his most dangerous assignment yet. He has to go undercover
in a top security prison, a world where one wrong move will mean certain
death. As Shepherd gambles everything to move in on his quarry, he soon
realises that the man he is hunting is even more dangerous than the police
realise. And that he is capable of striking outside the prison walls and
hitting Shepherd where it hurts most.
LENNOX, Judith
Catching the tide
1933. Tessa and Frederica Nicolson enjoy one last idyllic summer at the
beautiful Villa Millefiore, overlooking Florence. Four years later, Italy
is a distant memory and Tessa is revelling in the glamour and excitement
of modeling in London, until a passionate affair with married author Milo
Rycroft leads to tragic consequences.
Lennox, Judith
One last dance
Judith Lennox's novels are full of excitement and drama, with great appeal
for readers of Kate Morton.
LESSING, Doris
Ben, in the World
Ben is the central character of this sequel to 'The Fifth Child', which
picks up the fable at the end of his childhood and takes our primal, misunderstood,
maladjusted teenager out into the world, where again he meets mostly with
mockery, fear and incomprehension but with just enough kindness and openness
to keep him afloat as his adventures take him from London to the south
of France and on to South America in his restless quest for community,
companionship and peace.
LEWIS, Susan
Losing You
Lauren Scott is bright, talented and beautiful, and she is the most precious
gift in the world to her mother. Oliver Lomax is a young man full of promise,
despite the shadow his troubled mother casts over him. Then, one fateful
night, Oliver makes a decision that tears both families apart.
LIGHTFOOT, Freda
The Woman from Heartbreak House
The Great War is over and Kate is ready to welcome back Eliot with open
arms. But Kate has become used to her independence and to running the
shoe factory; and Eliot's return creates tensions, particularly with Kate's
son, Callum. It tears Kate apart to see such strife between the two men
she loves most. And her sister-in-law seems determined to stir up animosity
in order to benefit her own son. But when tragedy strikes, Kate cannot
imagine just how much trouble Lucy's ambition can cause.
LIGHTFOOT, Freda
Daisy’s Secret
Daisy is devastated when her lover, Percy, abandons her and her mother
throws her out, having first forced the girl to give up her baby son for
adoption. She is evacuated to the Lake District, where she sets up a guest
house with her black-sheep aunt. Daisy meets and falls in love with a
young airman, Harry, but is afraid to tell him of her past, and the longer
she keeps quiet, the harder it is to tell the truth. When Percy turns
up holding a baby, Daisy is torn between her yearning to reclaim her son
and her love for Harry
LIGHTFOOT, Freda
Putting on the Style
In 1950s Manchester, folk are just emerging from the shadow of the war.
Money is still tight, and the bustling market is a source of tempting
bargains—as well as the local gossip. Dena loves her Saturday job
at the market cafe, and her smile makes her a universal favorite. The
cafe owner has fancier ambitions for her son than a mere waitress, but
then Dena falls pregnant and everyone's plans change.
LINDSEY, Johanna
Let Love Find You
Beautiful, titled and charming, Lady Amanda Locke doesn't understand why
love eludes her. So Amanda's family hire Devin Baldwin to help find her
a match. Soon she is being courted by the dashing Viscount Altone, but
in his efforts to help find her a husband, Devin himself becomes the object
of Amanda's affections.
LINDSEY, Johanna
When passion rules
Forced to flee Napoleon's rampaging army on the continent, orphaned Alana
Farmer and her eccentric guardian make a new home for themselves in London.
There, Alana enjoys every privilege a daughter of the nobility could hope
for, plus an education fit for a queen.
LIVELY, Penelope
Passing On
Greystones is a moldy, drafty house of no great distinction located in
the equally nondescript English town of Spaxton. The domineering and cantankerous
Dorothy Glover has finally passed away, leaving her middle-aged progeny,
Helen – a spinster librarian - and Edward - a nature-loving schoolmaster
- to examine their lives, both past and future.
LIVELY, Penelope
Consequences
Destinies can change in an instant. In 1935, privileged misfit Lorna meets
the love of her life. Falling for a penniless and bohemian artist, Matt,
she abandons her stuffy Kensington existence in London and moves to a
rustic cottage in Somerset. A baby, Molly, is born, but the coming war
takes Matt and Lorna’s dreams away. Lorna’s decisions and
their unforeseeable consequences come to shape the stories first of her
daughter, Molly, and then her granddaughter, Ruth. Consequences tells
of three generations of women in their own twentieth-century times united
by their shared experiences of love, pain, fate and happiness.
LOFTS, Nora
Eleanor the Queen
Eleanor is young, high-spirited, supremely intelligent, heiress to the
vast Duchy of Aquitaine - at a time when a woman's value was measured
in terms of wealth. This is the story of a medieval figure - of a princess
who led her own knights to the Crusades, who was bride to two kings and
mother of Richard the Lionheart.
LOFTS, Nora
Hester Roon
The Fleece Inn stood where the three roads joined. The roads to London,
to Norwich, and to the sea. Its trade was prosperous, its hospitality
famous, and the host - fat Job - was jolly and generous - to his guests.
To his servants and grooms he was cruel, avaricious, and menacing, and
to Ellie Roon, the humblest and most menial servant at The Fleece, he
was a figure of terror. Ellie was used to being shouted at, to being bullied
and maltreated, but when her bastard daughter was born - in a rat-ridden
attic of The Fleece - she decided that Hester must have a different kind
of life. And so, equipped with little but courage and a strong will, Hester
Roon began her eventful progress in the harsh world of 18th Century England.
LOFTS, Nora
Out of this Nettle
In 1745 Scotland and England are at war. In Scotland a 16 year old boy
helps a Scots leader and ends up with a price on his head. This young
man gets on a ship to escape and he is sold into slavery by an unscrupulous
ship captain. The boy is only one of 3 white slaves on a tobacco plantation
in the West Indies. The story is by turns harrowing and sad.
LOFTS, Norah.
Bless this House
The house was built in the Old Queen’s time – built for an
Elizabethan pirate who was knighted for the plunder he brought home. It
survived many eras, many reigns – it saw the passing of Cromwell
and the Civil War. It became rich with an Indian Nabob and poor with a
twentieth century inkeeper. It saw ward and lovers and death. Children
were born there, both heirs and bastards. It had ghosts and legends and
a history that grew stronger with every generation.
The house was Merravay – and its story stretched over four hundred
years…
LONGDEN, Deric
Paws in the Proceedings
Deric's gentle tales of life in Huddersfield with his wife Aileen and
their menagerie of playful cats have won him thousands of loyal fans..
Paws in the Proceedings has all of Deric's trademark charm, homespun wisdom
and gentle wit. His remarkable eye for the humorous detail and the keen
observation are very much in evidence.
LORD, Elizabeth
Autumn Skies
After the death of their baby daughter, the social gap between Mary and
Geoffrey Lett widens to an emotional one. When it becomes apparent that
the marriage is crumbling, Geoffrey's brother, Henry, and Mary's former
sweetheart, Will, are both likely candidates to pick up the pieces. But
Will has sworn to forget all thoughts of romance, and Henry is already
married to someone else.
LORRIMER, Claire
Over my Dead Body
Ian and Megan have moved to the lush countryside with their young son
to escape the noise, pollution, and high crime of London. Their "rose-covered
cottage" is on Miller's Lane, a dead-end road that is prone to flooding
and full of potholes but blissfully quiet. Megan and Ian figure they've
found their own little piece of heaven--until wealthy Keith Aymes proposes
widening and improving the road. Then one of the neighbors, Caroline Coleman,
is found dead, the apparent victim of eating poisonous mushrooms. The
little community is shocked by her death, but when two more deaths follow
in rapid succession, it's clear there's a killer on the loose--but are
the murders connected to the proposed road improvements.
LORRIMER, Claire
Infatuation
The death of Lucy Godstows best friend, Vanessa, on the eve of Lucy’s
marriage to Guy Weaver was a big enough blow; but then Vanessa’s
aunt Joan is found murdered. Lucy and Vanessa’s brother, Tom, suspect
foul play. As Guy’s jealousy develops into brutality, the police
become suspicious and follow Guy and Lucy to Spain. But are they too late,
and can Tom come riding to the rescue?
Lovesey, Peter
Cop to corpse
In the small hours of a Sunday morning in Bath, a policeman on beat duty
is shot dead - the 3rd killing of an officer in a matter of weeks. Ambitious
to arrest the Somerset Sniper, the duty inspector, Ken Lockton, seals
the crime scene. He discovers the murder weapon in a garden - and is himself
attacked and left for dead.
Lovesey, Peter
Down among the dead men
A nightmare discovery in the boot of a stolen BMW plunges car thief Danny
Stapleton into the worst trouble of his life. What links his misfortune
to the mysterious disappearance of an art teacher at a private school
for girls in Chichester? Orders from above push Peter Diamond of Bath
CID into investigating a police corruption case in the Chichester force,
and he soon finds himself reluctantly dealing with spirited schoolgirls,
eccentric artists and his formidable old colleague, Hen Mallin.
Lovesey, Peter
The tooth tattoo
Peter Diamond, head of Bath CID, takes a city break in Vienna, where his
favourite film, 'The Third Man', was set, but everything goes wrong and
his companion, Paloma, calls a halt to their relationship. Meanwhile,
strange things are happening to jobbing musician Mel Farran, who finds
himself scouted by methods closer to the spy world than the concert platform.
LUDLUM, Robert
The Ambler Warning
The locale is a barrier island six miles off the coast of Virginia and
officially part of the National Wildlife Refuge System. It's really the
site of a psychiatric facility for patients who possess highly classified
information. At Parrish Island, "potential security risks could be
carefully managed and the patients are identified by number, never by
name." One of them is Hal Ambler, who had been a clandestine operative
for nearly two decades. He doesn't know why he's being held by his own
government. He also doesn't know how long he has been confined, but realizes
he must escape…
LUDLUM, Robert
The Bancroft Strategy
Maverick U.S. intelligence agent Todd Belknap, known as the Hound for
his superior ability to track his quarry, heads to Lebanon to try to find
a fellow agent who has been kidnapped. Meanwhile, Andrea Bancroft, a brainy
and beautiful hedge-fund analyst who has agreed to serve on the board
of her family's mysterious foundation, begins to suspect that behind the
Bancroft Foundation's benevolent facade lie sinister conspiracies. Unsurprisingly,
those conspiracies intersect with Belknap's search…
McAULEY, Roisín
Singing Bird
Twenty-seven years after she adopted her baby in Ireland, Lena Molloy
receives a call from the nun who set up the adoption. Sister Monica claims
that she wants merely to tie up loose ends in her old age, but Lena becomes
frightened that something more threatening lies behind the call, and she
sets off on a journey to Ireland, with her best friend, to find her daughter's
birth parents - little knowing the extraordinary truths which she will
uncover.
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
The importance of being seven
The story of Bertie & his dysfunctional family continues in this sixth
instalment alongside the familiar cast of favourites - Big Lou, Domenica,
Angus Lordie, Cyril & others - in their daily pursuit of a little
happiness.
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
The forgotton affairs of youth
The continuing adventures of Isabel Dalhousie, Edinburgh philosopher and
curious observer of the behaviour of her fellow man.
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
The Sunday Philosophy Club
Amateur sleuth Isabel Dalhousie is a philosopher who also uses her training
to solve unusual mysteries. Isabel is Editor of the Review of Applied
Ethics and she also hosts The Sunday Philosophy Club at her house in Edinburgh.
Behind the city's Georgian facades its moral compasses are spinning with
greed, dishonesty and murderous intent. Instinct tells Isabel that the
young man who tumbled to his death in front of her eyes at a concert in
the Usher Hall didn't fall…
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
In the Company of Cheerful Ladies
Precious Ramotswe, that cheerful Botswanan private investigator of 'traditional
build', is now married to Mr J.L.B. Matekoni of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors.
The Agency is busy, but Mma Ramotswe cannot ignore the plea which is made
by a woman who comes to her with a tale of particular misfortune. Unfortunately,
her attempts to help are interrupted by a close encounter between her
tiny white van and a bicycle, and by a spectacular disagreement between
her assistant, Mma Makutsi, and one of the apprentices at the garage.
This apprentice has found a fancy girlfriend who drives a Mercedes-Benz.
How can he be rescued from his folly? And as for Mma Makutsi, she has
found a dancing class, and a man who may not be able to dance very well,
but who admires her greatly. And all of this happens against a background
of quiet sessions of bush tea, and of a land that stretches out forever
under mile upon mile of empty sky...
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
Lost Art of Gratitude
Isabel Dalhousie, philosopher & amateur problem solver, meets an old
foe, Minty Auchterlonie, at a birthday party attended by their young children.
Ambitious Minty, now the head of a small investment bank, is in trouble
with her shareholders. Isabel becomes involved, & is drawn into a
murky world of financial concealment.
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
Tears of the Giraffe
Precious Ramotswe - the engaging and sassy owner of Botswana's only detective
agency....Among her cases this time are wayward wives, unscrupulous maids,
and the challenge to resolve a mother's pain for her son who is long lost
on the African plains. Indeed, Mma Ramotswe's own impending marriage to
the most gentlemanly of men, Mr J.L.B. Matekoni, the promotion of Mma's
secretary to the dizzy heights of Assistant Detective, and the arrival
of new members to the Matekoni family, all brew up the most humorous and
charmingly entertaining of tales.
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
The Kalahari Typing School for Men
'Ex-CID. Ex-New York. Ex-cellent' reads the sign outside the Satisfaction
Guarantee Detective Agency. Cephas Buthelezi certainly talks the talk,
Precious discovers, but would he have the wherewithal to deal with her
current case - a man who has been attacked by ostrich rustlers, and is
eager to reassess his life? Meanwhile, there are difficulties at the Tlokweng
Road Speedy Motors, where one of the apprentices has discovered the Lord,
problems at home with the mysterious death of a hoopoe, and romantic complications
when Mma Makutsi sets up a typing school for men ...
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency
Wayward daughters. Missing Husbands. Philandering partners. Curious conmen.
If you've got a problem, and no one else can help you, then pay a visit
to Precious Ramotswe, Botswana's only - and finest - female private detective.
Her methods may not be conventional, and her manner not exactly Miss Marple,
but she's got warmth, wit and canny intuition on her side, not to mention
Mr J. L. B. Matekoni, the charming proprietor of Tlokweng Road Speedy
Motors. And Precious is going to need them all as she sets out on the
trail of a missing child, a case that tumbles our heroine into a hotbed
of strange situations and more than a little danger ...
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
Love over Scotland
Alexander McCall Smith gives us more of the gloriously entertaining comings
and goings at 44 Scotland Street, the Edinburgh townhouse. Six-year-old
prodigy Bertie perseveres in his heroic struggle for truth and balanced
good sense against his insufferable mother and her crony, the psychotherapist
Dr Fairbairn, going as far as to make a short-lived bid for freedom on
a trip to Paris with the Edinburgh youth orchestra. Domenica sets off
on an anthropological odyssey with pirates in the Malacca Straits, while
Pat attracts several handsome admirers, including a toothsome suitor named
Wolf. And Big Lou, eternal source of coffee and good advice to her friends,
has love, heartbreak and erstwhile boyfriend Eddie's misdemeanours on
her own mind.
McCALL SMITH, Alexander
The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds
An unexpected appeal for help from a collector who has been the victim
of an art theft threatens to take Isabel Dalhousie far outside her comfort
zone.
MACINTYRE, Ben
Agent Zigzag
One December night in 1942, a Nazi parachutist landed in a Cambridgeshire
field. His mission: to sabotage the British war effort. His name was Eddie
Chapman, but he would shortly become MI5's Agent Zigzag. Dashing and louche,
courageous and unpredictable, the traitor was a patriot inside, and the
villain a hero. The problem for Chapman, his many lovers and his spymasters,
was knowing who he was. Ben Macintyre weaves together diaries, letters,
photographs, memories and top-secret MI5 files to create the exhilarating
account of Britain's most sensational double agent.
MACINTYRE, Ben
Double Cross
D-Day, 6 June 1944, the turning point of the Second World War, was a victory
of arms. But it was also a triumph for a different kind of operation:
one of deceit, aimed at convincing the Nazis that Calais and Norway, not
Normandy, were the targets of the 150,000-strong invasion force.
MACINTYRE, Ben
Operation Mincemeat
Recalling the real-life story of a wartime double agent, 'Operation Mincemeat'
is a thrilling story from the author of 'Agent Zigzag'.
Macintyre, Ben
A spy among friends
Kim Philby was the most notorious British defector and Soviet mole in
history. Agent, double agent, traitor and enigma, he betrayed every secret
of Allied operations to the Russians in the early years of the Cold War.
His two closest friends in the intelligence world, Nicholas Elliott of
MI6 and James Jesus Angleton, the CIA intelligence chief, thought they
knew Philby better than anyone - and then discovered they had not known
him at all. With access to newly released MI5 files and previously unseen
family papers, and with the cooperation of former officers of MI6 and
the CIA, this definitive biography unlocks what is perhaps the last great
secret of the Cold War.
Mackenzie, Tom H
The last foundling
A deeply moving memoir from one of the last children to be taken in by
the Foundling Hospital, London. It stands as a testament to the love that
ultimately led a family back together.
MacMahon, Kathleen
The long, hot summer
When Iseult O'Neill returns to Dublin for the funeral of her beloved Pa,
a highly respected judge, she realises she has been away too long. For
20 years she moved from continent to continent with her successful television-journalist
husband, Nick, and their son, Finn. But reunited with her glamorous American
mother, Lolly, and her two brothers, she begins to suspect there's something
her family are keeping from her; a conspiracy of silence surrounding something
that happened in the past. As Iseult clears out Pa's belongings she begins
to piece together the truth. What Iseult learns will threaten the very
heart of her marriage. And she must ask herself if you ever really know
the people you love the most? But every family has its secrets!
MACOMBER, Debbie
1105 Yakima Street
Dear Reader, You've probably heard that my wife has left me. Rachel's
pregnant, and she says she can't handle the stress in our house anymore.
My 13 year-old daughter, Jolene, is jealous of her. Maybe it's my fault.
As a widower I spoiled Jolene. She claims Rachel ruined everything. The
real question is: How can I get my wife back?
MACOMBER, Debbie
1225 Christmas Tree Lane
The people of Cedar Cove know how to celebrate Christmas. Like Grace and
Olivia and everyone else, Beth Morehouse expects this Christmas to be
one of her best. But complications arise when someone leaves a basket
filled with puppies on her doorstep and her daughters invite their dad,
Beth's ex-husband, to Cedar Cove for Christmas.
MACOMBER, Debbie
Jury of His Peers
Caroline Lomax is on jury duty and, by sheer coincidence, so is Ted Thomasson.
They'd known each other when they were young. Back then, she thought he
was obnoxious. But some things have changed. Ted's become very attractive,
for one. Now Ted wants Caroline to see him as the man she'll marry.
MACOMBER, Debbie
A turn in the road
Bethanne Hamlin takes a road trip with her daughter, Annie, and her former
mother-in-law, Ruth. They're driving to Florida for Ruth's 50th high school
reunion. A long-time widow, Ruth would like very much to reconnect with
Royce, the love of her youth. Bethanne's ex-husband, Grant, would like
to reconcile, so she also has a major life decision to consider. And Annie
is out to prove to her onetime boyfriend that she can live a brilliant
life without him. But even the best-laid plans can take an unexpected
turn-- or even be completely derailed.
Macpherson, Camilla.
Pictures at an exhibition
London, 1942. With bombs raining down on London, the National Gallery's
most treasured paintings have been hidden away. The authorities have decided
that only one masterpiece will be displayed each month. And each month,
Daisy Milton writes to her cousin Elizabeth to tell her about the paintings,
her life and the man she loves.
McCOY, Ken
The Fabulous Fox Twins
Roll up to see The Fabulous Fox Twins and join them on their comic escapades
through the northern working-men's club circuit of the 1950s. Follow their
meteoric rise and dramatic fall as they are chased by dangerous thugs,
the police and a series of dancing girls...Experience the wit and charm
that always seem to get them into scrapes, and - just about - out of them.
Appearing now for a limited run. Book to avoid disappointment.
McCRERY, Nigel
Strange Screams of Death
The body of a young woman is discovered in a disused shed at an American
airbase near Cambridge. She has been raped before being viciously murdered.
Home Office pathologist Sam Ryan arrives on the scene and soon finds herself
dealing with a serial killer who has the hunger to slaughter again
McGEE, James
Rapscallion
Matthew Hawkwood, ex-soldier turned Bow Street Runner, goes undercover
to hunt down smugglers and traitors at the height of the Napoleonic Wars
in this thrilling follow-up to Ratcatcher. For a French prisoner of war,
there is only one fate worse than the gallows: the hulks. Former man-o'-wars,
now converted to prison ships, their fearsome reputation guarantees a
sentence served in the most dreadful conditions. Few survive. Escape,
it's said, is impossible. Yet reports persist of a sinister smuggling
operation within this brutal world -- and the Royal Navy is worried enough
to send two of its officers to investigate. But when they disappear without
trace, the Navy turns in desperation to Bow Street for help. It's time
to send in a man as dangerous as the prey. It's time to send in Hawkwood!
McINNES, Betty
The longest journey
he Scottish Highlands, 1848. Mary-Ann Macgregor considers herself fortunate.
A married woman with five children and a comfortable home, her life is
full of quiet contentment. But when her son, Davey, befriends a new arrival
to the village, he sets in motion a chain of events that leads to disaster.
McKINLEY, Tamara
Lands Beyond the Sea
By the 1700s, the Aborigine people have lived in harmony with the land
in Australia for sixty thousand years. But now, ghost-ships are arriving,
their very existence is threatened by a terrifying white invasion.When
Jonathan Cadwallader leaves Cornwall to sail on the Endeavour, he leaves
behind his sweetheart, Susan Penhalligan . . . That is, until an act of
brutality reunites them in the raw and unforgiving penal colony of New
South Wales.Billy Penhalligan has survived transportation and clings to
the promise of a new beginning. But there will be more suffering before
he or his fellow convicts can regard Australia as home . . . .
McLAIN, Paula
The Paris Wife
Chicago, 1920: Hadley Richardson is a quiet 28-year-old who has all but
given up on love and happiness, until she meets Ernest Hemingway. After
a whirlwind courtship and wedding, the pair set sail for Paris, where
they soon fall in with a circle of lively and volatile expatriates, including
F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald and Ezra Pound.
McNEILL, Elisabeth
The heartbreaker
Charles Edward Stewart, better known as 'Bonnie Prince Charlie', is famous
for his doomed attack on England and his subsequent flight from Scotland
disguised as an Irish serving maid, aided by Flora Macdonald. This fictionalized
account tells what happened next.
McNEIL, Frances
Sisters of Fortune
Sophie and Rosa Moran are born into a working-class family struggling
to rise above poverty. Their father is a lowly employee at Thackreys Bank,
a powerful family-run concern. Sophie and her sister first come into contact
with the Thackrey family - especially young Lydia - as children, through
their father's job. They form an improbable yet ultimately enduring friendship.
Years later, their paths cross again when Barney Moran is sacked from
the bank, and the girls beg Mr. Thackrey for help. Swept up in a dramatic
chain of events, the lives of the two families are changed forever...
McNEIL, Gil
The Only Boy for Me
Most people would think Annie Baker had it all: an idyllic life in the
country and a fabulous job as a film producer. And so would she, if it
weren't for the men in her life. Her six-year-old son Charlie gets traumatised
if she buys the wrong kind of sausages. Her tempestuous boss Barney is
a Great Director, but keeps getting stuck with dog food commercials, and
as for Lawrence, well, he just wants to get her fired. And then she meets
Mack Hilarious…
MADELEY, Richard
Richard and Judy, An Autobiography
Richard and Judy are the nation's best-loved couple. On television together
for 18 years, they fronted the most popular daytime programme ever - This
Morning - for 13 of those years and their departure from it gave rise
to huge newspaper coverage when they left it in 2001. Now back with their
top-rated Channel 4 show, they write the full story of their lives - their
chilhoods, unsuccessful first marriages, and of course their own professional
and personal lives together. In these brilliantly juxtaposed accounts,
we hear about Judy's many health problems and how Richard coped with the
lowest points. We hear how both of them survived his court ordeal on a
shoplifting charge, how Judy felt on baring more than her soul at a TV
awards ceremony, why they left This Morning, and how they handle home
and work and parenthood - as well as the ever-curious press.
MALCOLM, John
The Chippendale Factor
Justin Harrington, controversial television presenter of the antique show
How Old Is It? is found dead in his car in Yorkshire, in suspicious circumstances.
Old school friend and antiques dealer Bill Franklin is bemused by Harrington’s
death, wondering if his shady past is to blame. When another mutual school
friend, also in the antiques business, is shot dead, Bill finds himself
caught up in a mystery in which he is prime suspect. Dragged into a dangerous
world of murder, intrigue and forgery, Bill takes it upon himself to turn
sleuth and get to the bottom of Justin’s death, before he becomes
the next victim.
MANKELL, Henning
Italian shoes
Once a successful surgeon, Frederick Welin now lives in self-imposed exile.
Nearly twelve years have passed since he was disgraced for attempting
to cover up a tragic mishap on the operating table. One morning, he sees
a hunched figure struggling towards him across the ice. The figure approaching
is Harriet, the woman he abandoned 40 years earlier. In the late stages
of a terminal illness, she wants to visit a small lake in northern Sweden.
He upholds his pledge and drives her to this beautiful pool hidden deep
in the forest. On the journey through the desolate snow-covered landscape,
Welin reflects on his childhood and the woman he left behind. However,
Harriet has left the biggest surprise until last.
MANKELL, Henning
The Shadow Girls
Tea-Bag, a young African girl, has fled a refugee camp in Spain for the
promise of a new life in Sweden. Tania has made a long and dangerous journey
to escape the horrors of human trafficking. Leila has come with her family
from Iran. All of them are facing different challenges in their new home.
MANTEL, Hilary
Wolf Hall
Tudor England, Henry VIII is on the throne, but has no heir. Cardinal
Wolsey is charged with securing his divorce. Into this atmosphere of distrust
comes Thomas Cromwell – a man as ruthlessly ambitious in his wider
politics as he is for himself. His reforming agenda is carried out in
the grip of a self-interested parliament and a king who fluctuates between
roman tic passions and murderous rages,
Margolin, Phillip
The burning man
An arrogant, self-centred associate in a large Portland law firm commits
a terrible blunder in a multi-million dollar lawsuit. Fired from his job,
he becomes a public defender but finds his greed and ego may kill a client
accused of a brutal murder.
Marston, Edward,
Deeds of darkness
In June 1916, a young woman is found murdered in a cinema. Harvery Marmion
and Joe Keedy set out to find the killer who so elusively fled in the
dark. Before long, two more victims, of striking similarity but differing
backgrounds, are found dead around the city. Meanwhile, miles from home,
Marmion's son Paul prepares for life on the front line as he marches towards
the Battle of the Somme. Suffering a vicious blow in No Man's Land, Paul
is left blinded for the rest of his life. Marmion must come to terms with
the permanent darkness of his son's life, while continuing to search for
the brutal killer who only strikes in the dark.
Marston, Edward
Shadow of the hangman
A riot breaks out in Dartmoor prison, enabling some American inmates to
escape. The twin detectives Peter and Paul Skillen catch wind of a projected
assassination but the target is unknown. Trouble ensues when a woman from
the Home Office vanishes; a mysterious lady turns up at the archery shooting
gallery; and Paul's gambling addiction worsens.
Masters, Priscilla,
The Devil's Chair
In the peaceful setting of the National Trust near Church Stretton, south
of Shrewsbury, Tracey Walsh drives herself and her four-year-old daughter,
Daisy, up the remote Burway in the early hours of the morning, tragically
loses control of her car and crashes into the valley below. Tracey is
rushed to hospital, but where is Daisy? She has vanished, provoking an
intense police search of the area around the Devil's Chair, land that
is rife with legends and strange stories of witchcraft, sorcery, and unexplained
disappearances.
MASTERS, Priscilla
A Wreath for my Sister
A third crime novel featuring Detective Inspector Joanna Piercy who discovers
the lifeless body of a woman on a Staffordshire hillside, and on closer
inspection the bruises on her body reveal that she has been murdered.
MATTHEWS, Beryl
A Flight of Golden Wings
It is September 1939. Britain is at war. Ruth Aspinall, a gifted pilot,
is determined to join the Air Transport Auxiliary, an organization of
civilian pilots who ferry aircraft to wherever they're needed. Meanwhile,
over in America Jack and Lucy Nelson, both experienced pilots themselves,
are keen to join too. After a perilous journey by sea, Jack soon has his
first experience of the London Blitz before being posted to White Waltham,
where he quite literally bumps into Ruth. Despite a few false starts,
Ruth soon realizes she has fallen in love with Jack. But with death and
heartbreak all around them, the cautious Jack can't put his heart on the
line when it could all end in tragedy and loss. But by 1944, the tide
of war is changing. Jack is sent to France to deliver a Spitfire, but
his plane never arrives. Heartbroken, Ruth must accept that the love of
her life may never return.
MATTHEWS, Beryl.
Hold on to Your Dreams
London, 1899. As she prepares for a glittering ball, 20-year-old Gertrude
Melrose considers her good fortune. Attractive, intelligent, with a loving
family, her only concern is her brother Edward, who seems intent on squandering
his inheritance. Gertie hopes that with the support of his friend David,
he can be made to see the error of his ways.
A few days later the Melrose family’s happiness is shattered when
Edward’s mounting debts threaten to destroy their prosperity, with
the loss of both house and business. Edward is disowned by his father,
and Gertie and her parents must face up to their changed circumstances.
But with the support of David, and Alexander Glendale, one of Gertie’s
spurned suitors, Gertie finds the strength of character to fight for her
family and ultimately, to hold on to her dreams.
MATTHEWS, Carole
Wrapped up in you
Thirty-something hairdresser Janie Johnson's single status is a constant
source of gossip for her friends and clients. So after too many nights
in with her cat, a blind date disaster and news that her ex is getting
married, Janie realises it's time to do something dramatic with her life.
MEADE, Glenn
Web of Deceit
New York attorney Jennifer March is haunted by the mysterious and savage
slaughter of her family on the same night that her father disappeared,
never to be seen alive again. Two years on, his corpse is discovered frozen
into a remote glacier in the Swiss Alps, the victim of a bizarre murder,
and Jennifer sets out for Europe to find answers. It's a journey that's
meant to unravel the frightening mystery of why her family was butchered,
and to help uncover a dark secret at the heart of her father's past. But
instead, Jennifer March finds herself running for her own life, as her
investigation draws her into a terrifying web of deceit, murder and betrayal,
and a deadly conspiracy to hide an explosive secret.
MILLER,Hugh
Ballykissangel
Based on the television series of the popular BBC drama, this novel features
the characters of the Irish town of Ballykissangel. Life here continues
at a cracking pace - and Father Mac, the parish priest, disapproves as
much as ever.
MILLER, John
Friends and Romans
With a single daring leap from an Italian train carrying prisoners of
war, John Miller jumped out of the war of soldiers and into the war as
lived by Italian civilians - many of whom risked their lives to help him.
For months he posed as a deaf-mute and member of the Fascist Youth in
order to dodge German patrols and the Italian secret police - until the
Allied liberation of Rome brought GIs flooding onto the streets.
MONK, Connie
To Light a Candle [Tapes]
Cynny Barlow is eighteen when she falls in love with Ralph Clinton, an
actor visiting her town for the summer. However, Ralph leaves for the
big time, not knowing that Cynny is pregnant. Raising little Suzie, Cynny
is forced to work night and day to make ends meet. Her friend in the village,
the vicar's wife Kate Bainbridge, is sympathetic but has her own problems.
Kate yearns for the passion that her husband Richard cannot give her.
She becomes charmed by Richard's friend, Perry Sylvester, a famous jazz
pianist. But everything is set to change, for when Perry makes Cynny's
acquaintance, he recognizes in her a rare singing talent; one that would
perfectly match the jazz he plays in the nightclubs of London...
MOORE, Jane
The Second Wives Club
It's Alison's wedding day, her gorgeous husband Luca is by her side, and
everything is just perfect. Perfect that is, until Luca's first wife gatecrashes
the reception and makes it clear that she's going to remain very much
part of his life ...A stunned Alison soon finds an ally in Fiona, a founding
member of The Second Wives Club and similarly plagued by her husband's
ex. There she's introduced to Julia, whose husband has stayed best friends
with his first wife - to Julia's intense irritation - and to long suffering
Susan whose entire life is surrounded by reminders of her partner's saintly
former wife. For the women, "The Second Wives Club" is a refuge
and a lifesaver: somewhere to bitch and to gossip and to share horror
stories about the exes' latest excess. But maybe if they all have the
same problem they can work together on a solution? For enough is enough:
it's way past time for the Second Wives to stop settling for second best
...
MOORE, Rachel
Days to Remember
March, 1943. On the brink of marrying her childhood sweetheart, Breda's
happiness is shattered by the arrival of a telegram, confirming her worst
fears: Warren's ship has sunk and her beloved fiancé has been killed
in action. Heartbroken, she vows never to fall in love again. The unexpected
arrival of Warren's cousin Max helps to bring Breda out of herself, but
is she ready to let go of her grief? She has a second chance for happiness,
if she is willing to take it.
MOORE, Rachel
Prodigal Daughter
At the end of the war, Sara Boskelly joined thousands of other young women
on the long journey to America, hoping to be reunited with the handsome
GI who had captured her heart. Sadly for Sara, the voyage was to end in
bitter disappointment. Now she must return to her Cornish hometown to
face the gossip and scandal she left in her wake. A sadder and wiser woman,
she must make her peace with her parents and win the forgiveness of the
childhood sweetheart she cruelly betrayed. For Sara now knows that the
gentle painter, Robbie Killaine, is the man she loved all along. But Sara
hasn't reckoned on Miriam Roche, Robbie's new love…
MORRELL, David
Desperate measures
Fallen star journalist Matt Pittman holds a gun in his hand, ready to
commit suicidem - until he's interrupted by a phone call and a bizarre
assignment: to write the obituary of a man who is not yet dead. Suddenly,
clining desperately to a life he'd so recently been eager to discard,
Matt is thrust into the heart of a global conspiracy.
Mottershead, June
Our zoo
When George Mottershead moved to the village of Upton-by-Chester in 1930
to realise his dream of opening a zoo without bars, his four-year-old
daughter June had no idea how extraordinary her life would become. Soon
her best friend was a chimpanzee called Mary, lion cubs and parrots were
vying for her attention in the kitchen, and finding a bear tucked up in
bed was no more unusual than talking to a tapir about granny's lemon curd.
Pelican, penguin or polar bear - for June, they were simply family. Now
over 80 years since June first set foot in the echoing house, Chester
Zoo has achieved worldwide renown. Here, in her enthralling memoir, June
Mottershead chronicles the heartbreak, the humour, the trials and triumphs,
above all the characters, both human and animal, which shaped her childhood.
MURPHY, Maura
Don’t Wake me at Doyle’s
When seventy-year-old Maura Murphy discovered she had cancer, she left
her husband of fifty years and started writing her memoirs. Born 'chronically
ugly and as cross as a briar' into a poor rural homestead in 1920s Ireland,
Maura lived much of her adult life in England, where she raised nine children
and fought to keep together a family ravaged by poverty and alcohol. The
voice of a silent generation of an immigrant-Irish underclass, Maura Murphy's
tough and remarkable life is a compellingly written account of struggle
and survival like no other.
MURRAY, Annie
The Bells of Bournville Green
Pretty seventeen-year-old Greta has never known a stable family life.
With no father, and loathing her mother Ruby's latest boyfriend, Greta
finds life hard at home and is happiest at work with her friends at the
Cadbury factory in Birmingham where she is popular with the boys. Life
takes a turn for the worse when her missing vixen of a sister Marleen
turns up during the freezing winter of 1962. Greta soon decides that her
only way out is marriage, but all too soon she discovers that life with
her old class mate Trevor is not a ticket to freedom and happiness.She
finds herself on the streets, pregnant and homeless...She is taken in
by her mother's old friends, Edie and Anatoli Gruschov. In Anatoli, Greta
finds the father she has never had. Kindly Edie loves to mother people
and is desperately missing her son David and his family who have settled
in Israel. But the love and security of this haven is soon shattered by
appalling tragedy, which affects all the chocolate girls and their children
and changes life forever...
MURRAY, Annie
Birmingham Rose
Rosa Lucas, born in the slums of Birmingham, is a spirited girl who determines
that her own life will be different. Following a childhood marked by tragedy,
she joins the ATS during World War II and travels to Southern Italy where
she falls in love with Italian doctor Paolo Falcone.
MURRAY, Annie
Family of Women
1950 - Seven year old Carol Martin lies encased in an iron lung, struck
down by the killer disease, polio. Distraught at her side, her mother,
Violet, wonders if this is her punishment - for Carol is the love child
who should not have been born.... Family of Women is the story of three
generations of women.
Murray, Annie
Meet me under the clock
Growing up in Birmingham, Sylvia and Audrey Whitehouse have always been
like chalk and cheese. When the Second World War breaks out, Sylvia is
still dreaming of her forthcoming marriage to fiancé Ian while
Audrey jumps at the career opportunities the WAAF throws her way. Audrey
joins the ranks at RAF Cardington but soon finds that her new freedom
also brings temptation. When she goes too far, the consequences ripple
through the Whitehouse family.
MURRAY, Annie
Miss Purdy’s Class
In the New Year of 1936, Gwen Purdy, aged twenty-one, leaves her home
to become a schoolteacher in a poor area of Birmingham. Her early weeks
are an eye-opener; at the school she faces a class of fifty-two children,
some of whose homes are among Birmingham;s very poorest. One of the teachers,
the elderly Lily Drysdale, proves an inspiration, and Gwen begins to understand
the appalling hardships endured by the children as she is drawn into their
lives.
Joey Phillips, eight years old and man of the house, looks after his dying
mother and lives in fear of being sent to the orphanage. When he disappears
one day to a life on the streets, Gwen is haunted by his absence.
And there’s Lucy Fernandez, an epileptic. Through her, Gwen meets
Daniel Fernander, the eldest brother in another fatherless household.
Gwen falls in love and is quickly engaged in his battle to win rights
for the working classes. As the International Brigade is mobilized to
fight in the Spanish Civil War, Gwen has to accept that Daniel has secrets
in his past which she would rather not face up to.
MURRAY, Annie
My daughter, my mother
This is the story of two young women discovering the heartbreak of their
mothers' lives, and of how mothers create daughters - and learn from them.
Murray, Annie
War babies
From the best-selling author of 'Chocolate Girls' comes a novel set on
the struggling suburban streets of Birmingham during World War II.
MURRAY, Annie
Where Earth Meets Sky
Beautiful, dark-haired Lily has been abandoned in a Birmingham slum as
a tiny child. With few clues as to her identity she endures a childhood
of loneliness and loss. At eighteen she applies for a post as nanny with
the family of a Captain Fairford, a soldier in Ambala, north India and
his highly strung wife Susan. Lily is drawn into the emotional life of
the Fairford family and adores her charge, two year old Cosmo. When, in
1907, Captain Fairford orders a new Daimler car, it is brought out by
a young motor mechanic, Sam Ironside. Sam and Lily fall deeply in love,
and it is only later that Lily learns that Sam is married and feels utterly
betrayed. When Cosmo is later sent home to school, Lily finds another
post with a Dr. McBride and his invalid wife, in a beautiful Himalayan
hill station. The place is idyllic, and Lily settles for a quiet life.
However, she is unprepared for the pain and misunderstandings that follow
and force her to run from everything she has known.
Murray, Joseph
Gallipoli as I saw it
The Gallipoli Campaign stands out as a landmark in the history of the
First World War, and it was perhaps the most controversial action of that
war; it certainly ended in tragedy. This text is based on a diary kept
by one of the soldiers involved in the campaign in 1915.
Murray, Joseph
Gallipoli as I saw it
The Gallipoli Campaign stands out as a landmark in the history of the
First World War, and it was perhaps the most controversial action of that
war; it certainly ended in tragedy. This text is based on a diary kept
by one of the soldiers involved in the campaign in 1915.
MYERS, Amy
Murder in the Mist
A Peter and Georgia Marsh Mystery. With Fernbourne Manor to be opened
as an arts centre, ex-cop Peter Marsh and his daughter Georgia are making
enquiries about the Fernbourne Five, who came to fame in the late 1930s,
famous for their artistic work and for the doomed love affair between
Elfie Lane and Alwyn Field and the tragic death of the brilliant poet
Roy Sandford. But when Peter and Georgia begin to make enquiries about
Alwyn Field, they are met with inexplicable hostility . . .
MYERSON, Juli
The lost child
As a child in Regency England, Mary Yelloly painted an exquisite album
of watercolours. But Mary died at the age of 21, and when Julie Myerson
comes across this album, she is haunted by the barely-lived life. And
most of all, she is reminded of her own child. Because only days earlier,
Julie and her husband locked their son out of the family home. Honest
and often upsetting, this is the parallel story of a girl and a boy separated
by centuries. The circumstances are very different, but the questions
remain terrifyingly the same. What happens when a child disappears from
a family? And how is a mother to cope when love is not enough to save
her child?
Neale, Kitty
A broken family
Celia Frost has always thought herself a cut above the other residents
of Lark Rise. When her son, Thomas, starts seeing Amy, a girl from the
bottom of the Rise, Celia disapproves, thinking her common. When Celia's
husband leaves her and Thomas announces he is to marry Amy, she is more
than ever determined to split them up.
NEALE, Kitty
A father’s revenge
13 years ago Kevin Dolby was sent to prison for a violent robbery. Upon
his release, he sets in motion a chilling plan to get what he believes
is owed to him. Meanwhile, his ex-wife, Pearl, has divorced him and remarried,
determined to protect her son from knowing the truth about his real father.
NEALE, Kitty
Nobody’s Girl
Abandoned on the cold stone steps of an orphanage, only a few hours old
and clutching the object which was to give her name, Pearl Button had
a hard start to life. Now 16 years old, she's finally managed to escape
the cruel confines of the orphanage, and enter
the real world. Finding work at a nearby café, Pearl is thrilled
to start earning her own money, even if she must contend with sharp-tongued
Dolly Dolby. But soon she becomes tangled up in the murky South London
underworld in which Dolly's son - the cruel but handsome Kevin - operates…
NEELS, Betty
A winter love story
Claudia Ramsay first met Thomas Tait-Bullen when he was asked to discuss
the health of Colonel Ramsay, her great-uncle. After the Colonel's death,
Thomas proposed - he needed a wife and she wanted freedom. It took a delightful
Christmas with his family for Claudia to realise she loved him - now she
had to persuade Thomas to love her.
Nesbø, Jo,
Cockroaches
Detective Harry Hole arrives in a steaming hot Bangkok. But it's work,
not pleasure. The Norwegian ambassador has been found dead in a seedy
motel room, and no witnesses have come forward. The ambassador had close
ties to the Norwegian prime minister, and to avoid a scandal Harry is
sent there to hush up the case. But he quickly discovers that there is
much more going on behind the scenes and very few people willing to talk.
NESBO, Jo
The devil’s star
It's a hot summer in Oslo when a young woman is found murdered in her
flat. One finger has been cut off, & beneath her eyelid is a tiny
red diamond in the shape of a five pointed star. Detective Harry Hole
is assigned to the case with Tom Waaler.
NESBO, Jo
Phantom
The murder has been solved, but has justice been done? Harry Hole is back
in Oslo. He's been away for some time, but his ghosts have a way of catching
up with him. The case that brings him back is already closed. There is
no room for doubt: the young junkie was shot dead by a fellow addict.
The police don't want him back.
Nesbo, Jo
The redeemer
One freezing night in Oslo Christmas shoppers gather to listen to a Salvation
Army street concert. An explosion cuts through the music, and a man in
uniform falls to the ground, shot in the head at point-blank range. Harry
Hole and his team have no immediate suspect, no weapon and no motive.
But then the assassin discovers he has shot the wrong man. After some
exceptionally shrewd detective work, the team begins to close in on a
suspected hit man, monitoring his credit card, false passport and the
line to his employer. With no money, only six bullets and no place to
stay in the bitter cold, the hit man becomes increasingly desperate. He
will stop at nothing to eliminate his target.
NESBO, Jo
The snowman
The night the first snow falls a young boy wakes to find his mother gone.
He walks through the silent house, but finds only wet footprints on the
stairs. In the garden looms a snowman bathed in cold moonlight. Round
its neck is his mother's pink scarf. Inspector Harry Hole is convinced
there is a link between the disappearance and a menacing letter he received
months earlier. As Harry and his team delve into unsolved cases, they
discover that an alarming number of wives and mothers have gone missing
over the years. When a second woman disappears, Harry finds himself confronted
with a serial killer operating on his turf, a killer who will drive him
to the brink of insanity.
Nesbø, Jo,
The son
Sonny is a model prisoner. He listens to the confessions of other inmates
at Oslo jail, and absolves them of their sins. Some people even whisper
that Sonny is serving time for someone else: that he doesn't just listen,
he confesses to their crimes. Inspector Simon Kefas has worked for the
Oslo police force for years. He's been assigned a new murder investigation
and a new partner on the same day. Both of them knew Sonny's father. To
Sonny he was the man he idolised; to Simon he was his best friend. Both
were left devastated when his corruption was revealed. But neither of
them knew the truth ..
NIVEN, David
The Moon’s a Balloon
This book takes readers back to David Niven's childhood days, his humiliating
expulsion from school and to his army years and wartime service. After
the war, he returned to America and there came his Hollywood success in
films such as "Wuthering Heights" and "Around the World
in 80 Days".
OLDFIELD, Pamela
Full Circle
Louise is headstrong, impetuous, and very young for her 18 years. Although
her mother and stepfather are hopeful she will eventually settle down
into married life, they seek to give her thoughts a new direction by allowing
her to take drawing lessons from Daniel, a local artist, unaware that
Louise will now set her romantic sights on this intriguing man old enough
to be her father. Temperamental, self-centered, and prone to hysterics
to get her own way, she pursues Daniel with single-minded intensity, running
off to be with him while her stepfather is in the hospital due to a heart
attack and her mother is in Paris, nursing Louise's stroke-afflicted grandmother.
OLDFIELD, Pamela
The great betrayal
1904, London. Lydia Daye adores her husband John, but his government job
means he is away for much of the time and she feels as if she is bringing
up their son alone. Dolly Ellerway is six months pregnant and about to
marry her boyfriend. One day Lydia sends a letter to her husband that
will change both women's lives forever.
OLDFIELD, Pamela
Intricate Liaisons
The year is 1873, and Harriet and Godfrey Lester of Dangerous Secrets
have now been married four years, and live with Harriet's invalid mother
in Great-Uncle Robert's moldering old family residence near the English
seaside town of Maybourne. Still childless, Harriet has taken over her
mother's duties on the Board of Guardians for the local workhouse in addition
to keeping house, while Godfrey does the odd spot of translation to pay
the bills. All is peaceful until luscious and determined Amelia Bianchi,
a lover from Godfrey's past, intervenes, and Daisy Pritt, recently released
from prison, abandons her daughter Molly on the doorstep of an elderly
and kind spinster, Eveline Boothby, and runs off to London to track down
the man she loves.
OLDFIELD, Pamela
Isabel’s Wedding
Canterbury, 1900. Olivia Fratton thinks that if she hears the words 'Isabel's
Wedding' one more time she will scream, and no one would blame her. The
oldest of the four Fratton siblings, it falls to her to arrange her little
sister's wedding, and she struggles to cope with Isabel's demands on their
limited budget.
OLDFIELD, Pamela
The Longest Road
Clare wishes her cousin Donald wasn’t such a lazy good-for-nothing
but is unable to recognize her own role as his enabler or to move beyond
her own grief at the death of her fiancé, preferring instead to
drift along from day to day in rural Kent. Lacking the funds to make the
extensive repairs required on her home, she reluctantly arranges to sell
Merle Place but finds her decision unpopular in several quarters. When
her London editor divulges that she has received an inquiry as to whether
Clare, already the author of romantic serials for the Ladies’ Own
Journal, would be willing to consider writing a novel for a rival publishing
house, it seems the answer to Clare’s prayers, especially when she
meets Steven Flint and is immediately charmed by him—and he with
her.
OLDFIELD, Pamela
Loving & Losing
September 1918: the First World War is nearly over, but a virulent form
of influenza is sweeping through the world. No one is safe. Eve waits
for her husband Harvey, a scientist, to return to England from Camp Devens
in the USA, where hes struggling to save lives. But will Harvey make it
home safely or will Eves life, like thousands of others, be changed for
ever by the disaster?
OLDFIELD, Pamela
Pieces of Silver
When Clive Brayne is found murdered in a church in Canterbury, Dulcie
Moore, a young reporter, sets out to discover who the killer is and to
clear her brother's name as a suspect.
O’FARRELL, Maggie
After You’d Gone
Alice Raikes, a grieving young widow, takes a train from London to visit
her family in Scotland. But after witnessing something shocking in the
restroom at the station, she abruptly heads back to London without a word,
leaving her sisters perplexed. A few hours later, Alice steps out into
traffic, is hit by a car, and lies in a coma. Was it an accident or a
suicide attempt? Family gathers at her bedside as Alice drifts in and
out of consciousness, remembering her childhood, her first romance, and
the love of her life -- her now-deceased husband, John, a journalist felled
by a bomb.
O’FLANAGAN, Sheila
Anyone but Him
Andie and her sister Jin have never seen eye to eye. Andie doesn't envy
Jin her marriage to a wealthy businessman, while Jin can't believe Andie's
happy with her man-free existence (if only she knew!). But when their
widowed mother Cora comes back from a Caribbean cruise with more than
just a suntan, Andie and Jin are united in horror. Who is this gorgeous
young man who's swept their mother off her feet? What the women really
need is a friend to set the world to rights with - but can they be friends
with each other?
O'Flanagan, Sheila
If you were me
Carlotta O'Keefe is happily engaged, and the wedding plans are coming
together. She's clear about her future path, both personally and in her
busy career. Maybe Chris doesn't make her heart race every time she sees
him, but you can't have that feeling for ever. Can you? Then, on a trip
to Seville, Carlotta runs into Luke Evans. Luke broke her heart so long
ago she'd almost convinced herself she'd forgotten him. Now, he's not
that boy any more, but an attractive and intriguing man. And he can explain
everything that happened way back when. Suddenly Carlotta's not so sure
of anything any more.
O’NEILL, Gilda
The Sins of their Fathers
The East End belongs to the O'Donnells. Tough, violent and proud, Gabriel
O'Donnell has fought his way up from poor Irish roots to run the gambling,
prostitution and protection empire that makes him rich, and that one day
his boys, Brendan and Luke, will take over. It's not easy to love a man
when violent crime is his career, as Eileen O'Donnell knows, so she's
invested everything in her children: icy cool Brendan; Luke, who hates
the horror of gang warfare; irrepressible Catherine with her verve for
life; and, Patricia, married to a man whose brainless viciousness is close
to madness. Then Kessler turns up…
OWENS, Sharon
The Tavern on Maple Street
Jack Beaumont and his beautiful wife, Lily, are the owners of the tavern
on Maple Street, a tiny Victorian pub they inherited from Jack's great-uncle
Ernest. It's a quiet place, untouched by the modern world, and that's
why the customers like it so much.
But a property developer wants to demolish the tavern and build a shopping
mall on Maple Street. Jack and Lily and their little home-away-from-home
are suddenly plunged into the limelight, caught in a desperate struggle
to save their business from the bulldozers-or, with the help of some new
employees, to at least make as much money as possible during their last
few months as landlord and landlady.
PAGE, Lynda
A bitter legacy
Camilla Rogers is no stranger to hardship. Over the years she's struggled
to keep her family clothed and fed and out of trouble. But nothing can
prepare her for what lies ahead. Cam's 16-year-old granddaughter Belinda
has fallen in with the wrong crowd and the reign of terror that Belinda
inflicts on her grandmother is beyond belief.
PAGE, Lynda
Whatever it Takes
Kay Clifton has waited five, long, lonely years for her husband Bob to
come home from the war. Despite her excitement at his return, their whirlwind
romance prior to his departure makes her feel as though she hardly knows
him, so it's not surprising that Kay is apprehensive when she meets him
at the station. Kay's hopes of starting their blissfully happy marriage
are dashed by the presence of Bob's fellow soldier Tony. Bob is indebted
to Tony for saving his life and seems hell bent on repaying that debt
to the couple's detriment. But as Tony starts acting more and more strangely,
Kay worries that something else happened during the war that Bob is keeping
secret...
PALMER, Diana
Before Sunrise
Reunited by a mysterious phone call about a murder investigation and a
robbery of priceless artefacts, anthropologist Phoebe Keller and FBI agent
Jeremiah Cortez rekindle their passion in the most unlikely of circumstances.
PALMER, Diana
Merciless
While Joceline can't deny that her boss is attractive, as a single mother
with responsibilities she's determined to be professional. But when aloof
FBI agent Jon Blackhawk is accosted by a criminal seeking revenge, she
comes to his aid - fueling the spark that is growing between them.
PALMER, Diana
Nora
Nora Marlowe had come to Texas with visions of dashing cowboys and great
adventure. But one infuriating man has put an end to her illusions. Cal
decides it would be fun to bring the superior Miss Marlow down to earth.
It starts with a kiss, then a seduction.
Palmer, Diana.
Trilby
Arizona, 1910. Dear Diary, it will take more than threats - and one overbearing
rancher - to drive me away from my rightful property. When I inherited
this isolated land near the Mexico border, I knew running it would be
difficult and dangerous - very different from my privileged life in Louisiana,
where I was the genteel Miss Trilby Lang. But I certainly didn't expect
that my neighbour would be challenging me at every turn.
PARKER, Una Mary
Forbidden Feelings
When strange events in her father's Scottish estate require investigation,
Camilla Eaton is grateful for Philip's company. But her teenage daughter,
Poppy, is horrified and becomes involved with a group of militant political
activists, forcing Camilla to re-evaluate her priorities.
PARKER, Una Mary
Only the Best
Beverley feels like the luckiest girl in the world - champagne, glamour,
and Viscount Amesbury, the handsome Englishman. But an unexpected tragedy
calls her to England and someone on Anthony's magnificent estate seems
to have deadly intentions.
PARKER, Una Mary
Sweet Vengeance
On the day before the opening of her London show, fashion designer Arabella
Webster vanishes. As her daughter begins to investigate the disappearance,
she finds out that her mother had many secrets, with terrifying implications
Patterson, James
Alex Cross, run
Detective Alex Cross arrests renowned plastic surgeon Elijah Creem for
sleeping with teenage girls. Now, his life ruined, Creem is out of jail,
and he's made sure that no one will recognise him - by giving himself
a new face. A young woman is found hanging from a sixth-floor window,
and Alex is called to the scene. The victim recently gave birth, but the
baby is nowhere to be found. Before Alex can begin searching for the missing
newborn and killer, he's called to investigate a second crime.
PATTERSON, James
Alex Cross’s trial
Ben Corbett is a brilliant young lawyer in early-20th century Washington
DC. One day, out of the blue, he receives a private invitation to the
White House. President Theodore Roosevelt has personally selected Ben
to help him investigate rumours of lynchings & a re-emergence of the
outlawed Ku Klux Klan in Ben's hometown of Eudora.
PATTERSON, James
I, Alex Cross
Detective Alex Cross is celebrating his birthday when he receives an urgent
call from work. There's been a homicide, nothing new there. But then comes
news Alex wasn't expecting, this time the victim is his niece. Devastated
and grief-stricken, Cross vows to track down the killer.
PATTERSON, James
3rd Degree
Detective Lindsay Boxer is jogging along a beautiful San Francisco street
as a ferocious blast rips through the neighbourhood. A townhouse owned
by an internet magnate explodes into flames, three people die and a sinister
note signed ‘August Spies’ is found at the scene.Soon a wave
of violence sweeps through the city – and it seems that whoever
is behind it is intent on killing someone every three days.Even more terrifying,
the four friends who call themselves the Women’s Murder Club discover
that the killer has targeted one of them. And Lindsay learns that one
member of the club is hiding a secret so dangerous and unbelievable that
it could destroy them all.
PATTERSON, James
8th confession
Behind the closed doors of San Francisco's mansions, beautiful people
party the nights away. But someone else is intent on crashing the party.
A rock star, a fashion designer, a software tycoon and a millionaire heiress
are all dead. Detective Lindsay Boxer is quickly assigned to the case.
In stark contrast, few people seem as interested when a local hero, Bagman
Jesus, is brutally murdered. Reporter Cindy Thomas soon becomes interested
in his story: his work with the homeless of San Francisco was admirable.
Could he have been hiding a dark secret? The Women's Murder Club need
each other more than ever but with tensions running high will the friends
be strong enough to stick together?
PATTERSON, James
Cross country
Alex Cross tracks the scariest killer of them all - to Africa and back
When Alex Cross is called to investigate the scene of a massacre, he is
shocked to find that one of the victims is an old friend. He is drawn
into a dangerous underworld right in the heart of Washington DC that leads
him on a life-threatening journey to the Niger Delta. At the centre of
this terrifying world, Cross finds the Tiger, psychopathic leader of a
fearsome gang of killers. When the Tiger is on the prowl, he shows no
mercy to others. But Alex Cross is hot on his heels in a heart-stopping
chase that finds him not only hunting for a horrific killer but also fighting
for his own survival.
PATTERSON, James
Double cross
Just when Alex Cross's life is calming down, he is drawn back into the
game to confront a criminal mastermind like no other. The elaborate murders
that have stunned Washington, DC, are the wildest that Alex Cross and
his new girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, have ever seen. This maniac
adores an audience and stages his killings as spectacles in public settings
- he even sets up his own website and live video feed to trumpet his madness.
In Colorado, another criminal mastermind is planning a triumphant return.
From his maximum-security prison cell, Kyle Craig plots an impossible
escape, joining forces with DC's Audience Killer to get back at Alex Cross.
PATTERSON, James & GROSS, Andrew
Judge and Jury
When mob godfather Dominic Cavello is finally brought to trial by FBI
agent Nick Pellisante, his longtime nemesis, the accused is strangely
unconcerned even as a parade of his former criminal associates finger
him as having ordered a hit on a corrupt businessman. The gangster's plan
to intimidate the decision-makers at his trial reaches its climax when
he arranges for a bomb to blow up the bus transporting the jury. The sole
survivor teams up with Pellisante to make Cavello pay.
Patterson, James
Now you see her
A successful lawyer and loving mother, Nina Bloom would do anything to
protect the life she's built in New York including lying to everyone,
even her daughter, about her past. But when an innocent man is framed
for murder, she knows that she can't let him pay for the real killer's
crimes.
PATTERSON, James
Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas
Katie Wilkinson's boyfriend Matt dumps her; not a total cad, he leaves
her a gift, a diary kept by Suzanne, his first wife, for their son Nicholas.
Though it's not exactly the diamond ring Katie was hoping for, she's unable
to make herself destroy the diary--against her better judgment, Katie
begins to read.
PATTERSON, James
Step on a Crack
Michael Bennett, a senior NYPD homicide detective, has a wife dying of
cancer and 10 adopted children of various ethnic origins. When St. Patrick's
Cathedral, site of the celebrity-packed funeral of a former first lady,
is seized by a dozen ruthless men, Bennett ends up as point man for the
hastily assembled negotiating team.
PATTERSON, James
Thriller
Featuring North America's foremost thriller authors, this book is a collection
of pure thriller stories. From the signature characters that made such
authors as David Morrell and John Lescroart famous to four of the hottest
new voices in the genre, this title will tantalize and terrify.
PATTINSON, James
Across the Narrow Seas
When Sergeant Fred Mason of the Maritime Royal Artillery eventually locates
his new ship SS Radgate, he finds the little coaster quite a contrast
to his previous posting. Despite the difficulties of working during the
London bombing raids, the crew must get themselves ready for the invasion
of France. Through the confusion, agony and bloodshed of D-Day, against
the ever-present threat of mines, bombs and shells, the story switches
from London to the Normandy beaches and Mulberry harbour as the little
crew weathers storms and tragedies.
PATTINSON, James
The Spanish Hawk
There were five dead men in the cabin of the boat, lying under ten fathoms
of Caribbean water. They had been shot through the head at close range...John
Fletcher had gone down to photograph a sunken ship, but he took photographs
of the boat and its cargo of dead men instead. Soon he is having trouble
with the island police, some men from President Clayton Rodgers' private
army of thugs and two CIA agents. Now Fletcher wishes he had followed
his first impulse and said nothing to anyone...
PATTINSON, James
The Time of Your Life
In her determination to solve the mystery surrounding her husband’s
death, Margaret Calder turned to an old friend foe help. Keith Brooke
said he would do what he could, and his investigation takes him to far
flung destinations.
PATTINSON, James
Wild Justice
When Peter Hadley, second mate of the British tramp steamer Ocean Waif,
goes ashore in Philadephia looking for the sister from whom he has heard
nothing for two years, he quickly finds himself caught up in a web of
mystery and deceit. It does not take him long to realise that his own
life is in danger. But Hadley is a tough customer and knows how to look
after himself. His inquiries bring him into contact with a number of colourful,
bizarre and dangerous characters who both help and hinder him in his search:
a striptease artist, a burlesque comedian, the proprietor of a night club,
an attractive red-head dancer, professional killers, strong-arm men and
dope pedlars.
PEARS, Tim
Blenheim Orchard
Ezra and Sheena Pepin live in Blenheim Orchard in North Oxford with their
three children: fourteen-year-old Blaise, entering the storm-world of
adolescence, Hector, eleven and precociously clever, and sweet Louie,
three years old and the family tyrant. Ezra, a benignly disaffected employee
at Isis Water, has abandoned his calling as an anthropologist; Sheena
has inadvertently found hers running a travel company. They are like everyone
else: over-worked, worried about the children, trying to steer their marriage
on an even keel. But change comes knocking at the Pepins' door. Ezra is
asked to head a bold new campaign at his workplace that could jump-start
his stagnant career; Sheena in the meantime has an idea that she believes
will refresh and renew her family; and Blaise - restless and curious -
takes her first, heady steps into the adult world of sex and desire. The
Pepin family will never be quite the same again.
PEARSE, Lesley
A Lesser Evil
When Fifi moves to London with her bricklayer boyfriend Dan, her mother
is outraged. Despite initial feelings of horror at her new surroundings,
Fifi finds the freedom from her middle-class family background exhilarating.
Insatiably inquisitive, Fifi is fascinated by her new neighbours and wants
to know what goes on behind all those shabby front doors. Why is Yvette,
the French dressmaker, such a hermit? Why doesn’t widower Frank
join his daughter and grandchildren in Australia? And why doesn’t
the formidable and well-bred Miss Diamond move somewhere smarter? But
most of all she is ghoulishly fascinated by the Muckles who live opposite
in terrible squalor. She listens to their violent quarrels, watches their
ill-treated and wretchedly unhappy children, and is appalled by all she
sees. When Fifi tries to help the Muckles’ youngest child, who has
been physically abused by her father, Fifi unwittingly unleashes a chain
of events which will not only bring heart ache to her and Dan, but terrible
danger to all the inhabitants of Dale Street…
PEARSE, Lesley
Remember Me
. In 1786 a fisherman's daughter from Cornwall called Mary Broad was sentenced
to be hung for theft. But her sentence was commuted, and she was transported
to Australia, one of the first convicts to arrive there. How Mary escaped
the harsh existence of the colony and found true love, and how she was
captured and taken back to London in chains, only to be released after
a trial where she was defended by no less than James Boswell, is one of
the most gripping and moving stories of human endeavour (based on an amazing
true story) you will ever read.
PEMBERTON, Victor
We’ll Sing at Dawn
In the cold nights of the Blitz, her music warmed their hearts...September
1940, Islington. The Blitz is taking its toll on Beth Shanks and her family.
An aerial torpedo has recently devastated a complete block of flats and
shops in Seven Sisters Road, and traumatised the whole neighbourhood.
Beth works as a munitions worker at a factory in North Finchley and dodges
falling shrapnel on her way to work. Her younger brother Phil is a teenage
cyclist messenger in the Auxiliary Fire Service and he's been twice dug
out of rubble as he carried important messages. Beth's father is away
fighting and her mother Connie teaches piano lessons to children who've
escaped evacuation. Connie despairs that Beth won't learn how to play
the piano properly and will only play popular songs by ear, but when she
hears Beth playing the piano to lift the spirits of local people trapped
in an air raid, she realises there is much more to music than she ever
realised.
PEMBERTON, Victor
The Other Side of the Track
This nostalgic London saga brings together a wounded soldier and a young
nurse. It's the second year of the Great War and eighteen-year-old Rosie
Little is working at Charing Cross Station, helping the injured troops
returning from the Front. The tired soldiers arriving on the platform
adore Rosie's kind, welcoming face as she serves them cups of tea, and
they inevitably nickname her 'Rosie Lee'. Private Joe Upton is one such
weary soldier and is instantly captivated by the lovely Rosie.
PENNY, Stef
The Tenderness of Wolves
It is 1867, Canada: as winter tightens its grip on the isolated settlement
of Dove River, a man is brutally murdered and a 17-year old boy disappears.
Tracks leaving the dead man's cabin head north towards the forest and
the tundra beyond. In the wake of such violence, people are drawn to the
township - journalists, Hudson's Bay Company men, trappers, traders -
but do they want to solve the crime or exploit it? One-by-one the assembled
searchers set out from Dove River, pursuing the tracks across a desolate
landscape home only to wild animals, madmen and fugitives, variously seeking
a murderer, a son, two sisters missing for 17 years, a Native American
culture, and a fortune in stolen furs before the snows settle and cover
the tracks of the past for good.
PERRY, Anne
A Christmas Grace
A few weeks before Christmas, 1895, Emily Radley answers a summons from
Father Tyndale, spiritual leader of a small Western Ireland community.
The Catholic priest is concerned about Emily's dying aunt, Susannah Ross,
who's been estranged from her family since marrying outside their Protestant
faith. Once in Ireland, Emily finds her aunt's entire village in the grip
of fear, haunted by a secret. A shipwreck during a ferocious storm, the
rescue of a young man from the sea's clutches and another young man's
mysterious murder complicate Emily's mission.
Perry, Anne
Treachery at Lancaster Gate
Thomas Pitt arrives at a devastating bombing in Lancaster Gate to find
two policemen dead and three more gravely wounded. London's anarchists
are blamed, but as Pitt and Inspector Tellman investigate they find it
looks increasingly like a personal vendetta against those particular men.
Did they lie about a drugs raid that went fatally wrong, and let an innocent
man hang? The idea of police dishonesty cuts Tellman to the quick - he
joined the force to protect society, not exploit it. But he must uncover
the truth, however much he wants to resist the signs of blackmail and
corruption.
PETERS, Ellis
Monk’s Hood
Gervase Bonel, with his wife and servants, is a guest of Shrewsbury Abbey
of Saint Peter and Saint Paul when he is suddenly taken ill. Luckily,
the Abbey boasts the service of Brother Cadfael, a skilled herbalist.
Cadfael hurries to the man's bedside, only to be confronted by two very
different surprises.
PETERS, Ellis
A morbid taste for bones
In 1137 the ambitious head of Shrewsbury Abbey has decided to acquire
the remains of Saint Winifred for his Benedictine order. Brother Cadfael
is part of the expedition sent to her final resting place in Wales, where
they find the villagers passionately divided by the Benedictins' offer.
PICOULT, Jodi
Nineteen Minutes
Sterling is a small, ordinary New Hampshire town where nothing ever happens
– until a student enters the local high school with an arsenal of
guns and starts shooting, changing the lives of everyone inside and out.
The daughter of the judge sitting on the case is the state’s best
witness – but she can’t remember what happened in front of
her own eyes. Or can she?
PLAIDY, Jean
The follies of the king
Edward II's first act on coming to the throne is to recall Piers Gaveston
from exile, and the new king's devotion to the shrewd and avaricious young
man soon becomes a scandal. It is assumed that when Edward marries one
of the most beautiful princesses in Europe his inclinations will change,
but nothing can make him swerve from his attachment to Gaveston, who is
clearly making the most of royal favour. The new Queen Isabella, accustomed
to adulation, is bitterly humiliated; and she is not a woman to forget
or forgive. With the country in turmoil, the king is making enemies throughout
the land, and he fails to see that the most deadly of these is his queen.
Plaidy, Jean
The road to Compiègne
No longer is the well-beloved, Louis XV becoming ever more unpopular -
the huge expense of his court and decades of costly warfare having taken
their toll. As the discontent grows, Louis seeks refuge in his extravagances
and his mistress, the powerful Marquis de Pompadour.
PLAIDY, Jean
The sun in splendour
Reckoned by those about him to be the most handsome man in the country,
Edward the Fourth has risen to the throne with the help of Warwick, the
kingmaker. But even Warwick's advice can't convince the King to ignore
his passion for the beautiful widow Elizabeth Woodville and when she refuses
to become his mistress the two are married.
PORTER, Henry
The dying light
At the funeral of David Eyam, one of the brightest government servants
of his generation, corporate leaders, ministers and intelligence chiefs
gather to pay their respects. But Eyam has left a devastating legacy,
and certain members of the congregation are desperate to suppress it.
POTTERTON, Homan
Rathcormick: A Childhood Recalled
Set in 1950’s rural Ireland, ‘Rathcormick’ is the story
of one Protestant family and of a boyhood coming to an end. It explores
the values and mores of an almost lost part of Irish society.
PRATCHETT, Terry
The Colour of Magic
Together in one volume, here are the first two Discworld novels, featuring
Rincewind the wizard and his Luggage, Twoflower and innocent tourist and
Cohen the Barbarian, the world's oldest and greatest hero. And not to
mention Death, who's not so bad once you get to know him.
Pratchett, Terry.
Dodger
Dodger is a tosher - a sewer scavenger living in the squalor of Dickensian
London. Everyone who is nobody knows Dodger. Anyone who is anybody doesn't.
But when he rescues a young girl from a beating, suddenly everybody wants
to know him. And Dodgers tale of skulduggery, dark plans and even darker
deeds begins.
PRATCHETT, Terry
The Last Hero
The Last Hero stars the legendary Cohen the Barbarian, a legend in his
own lifetime. Cohen can remember when a hero didn't have to worry about
fences and lawyers and civilisation, and when people didn't tell you off
for killing dragons. But he can't always remember, these days, where he
put his teeth . . . So now, with his ancient sword and his new walking
stick and his old friends -- and they're very old friends -- Cohen the
Barbarian is going on one final quest. He's going to climb the highest
mountain in the Discworld and meet his gods. The last hero in the world
is going to return what the first hero stole. With a vengeance. That'll
mean the end of the world, if no one stops him in time.
PRATCHETT, Terry
Monstrous Regiment
It was a sudden strange fancy, and now Polly Perks, in her brother's clothes
and her hair cut off, has joined up to fight for her country. But who
is the enemy? What is she really fighting for? War teaches you a lot,
she finds, when it turns out that you joined the Monstrous Regiment.
PRATCHETT, Terry
Reaper Man
Death is missing - presumed ... er ... gone. Which leads to the kind of
chaos you always get when an important public service is withdrawn. Ghosts
and poltergeists fill up the Discworld. Dead Rights activist Reg Shoe
- 'You Don't Have to Take This Lying Down' - suddenly has more work than
he had ever dreamed of. And newly deceased wizard Windle Poons wakes up
in his coffin to find that he has come back as a corpse. But it's up to
Windle and the members of Ankh-Morpork's rather unfrightening group of
undead to save the world for the living
Pratchett, Terry.
Snuff
Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is on holiday in the pleasant
and innocent countryside, but not for him a mere body in the wardrobe.
There are many bodies and an ancient crime more terrible than murder.
He is out of his jurisdiction, out of his depth, and occasionally snookered
and out of his mind, but never out of guile.
PRATCHETT, Terry
Truckers
To the thousands of tiny nomes who live under the floorboards of a large
department store, there is no Outside. Then they hear that the Store -
their whole world - is to be demolished. And it's up to one nome, Masklin,
to mastermind an unbelievable escape plan that will take all the nomes
into the dangers of the great Outside. The first title in a magnificent
trilogy about the nomes, a race of little people struggling to survive
in a world of humans.
PURCELL, Deirdre
Last summer in Arcadia
Tess, Maddy & Rita have been friends since they met in the civil service
in Dublin. Now in their fifties, all three are married & living a
very comfortable lifestyle. Each year they holiday together & this
year's destination is Southern France. But as the holiday progresses,
cracks in their marriages begin to show.
PURVES, Libby
Acting Up
The Andersons are a military family with honors and traditions stretching
back two hundred years. When the second Iraq war breaks out, it is only
natural that their newest generations should be represented in the ranks
of British officers. At 24, Lieutenant Susie Anderson delays her wedding
to handsome fellow-officer Callum and joins her regiment on the hot sands
of Kuwait. Real difficulties come, though, when Callum comes home injured,
altered and bitter, and Susie and her family feel as though their lives
are shattered. The solution to this tangle comes from the most unlikely
source of all.
PURVES, Libby
Mother Country
Everyone agreed that Shark Grayson wasn’t fit to keep her baby.
A heroin addict living in a sordid London squat, she was already close
to death when her American lover took charge, carrying off the baby Alexander
to give him an affluent future and a loving home in the Midwest. But now
Alex is 27 and afflicted by his lost roots and a romantic vision of England.
When a business trip provides the chance to go and trace his unknown relatives,
he discovers that while some British people are, indeed, very hard to
get along with, others turn out to be more closely akin to him than he
ever could have imagined.
RANKIN, Ian
The Complaints
Nobody likes The Complaints--they're the cops who investigate other cops.
It's a department known within the force as "The Dark Side,"
and it's where Malcolm Fox works. He's a serious man with a father in
a nursing home and a sister who persists in an abusive relationship, frustrating
problems about which he cannot seem to do anything. Then the reluctant
Fox is given a new case. There's a cop named Jamie Breck, and he's dirty.
The problem is, no one can prove it. As Fox takes on the job, he learns
that there's more to Breck than anyone thinks--dangerous knowledge, especially
when a vicious murder takes place far too close to home.
RANKIN, Ian
Death is not the End
Agreeing to track down the missing son of his high school sweetheart and
her husband, a friend of his youth, Inspector Rebus takes the reader into
the gritty back streets and criminal byways of Edinburgh, following Damon
Mee from the nightclub where he was last seen through gambling casinos,
football matches, and face-to-face encounters with the mobsters who may
have been involved in his disappearance. Along the way Rebus confronts
his own mortality, the choices he's made, and the obligations he owes
his past.
RANKIN, Ian
The Hanging Garden
New hoodlum Tommy Telford is taking over Edinburgh, running whores imported
from Eastern Europe, conspiring with Japanese businessmen to buy golf
courses and selling drugs from the back of an ice cream van. All this
upsets Ger Rafferty, the reigning hoodlum, who's stuck in prison and friendly
with Rebus. Rebus makes a deal with Ger to take Telford down. Rebus also
gives shelter to a suicidal prostitute and investigates the life and times
of Joseph Lintz, a retired academic and alleged Nazi war criminal.
RAYNER, Claire
Gower Street
Historically set against the sprawling London of the early years of the
last century, Gower Street magnificently re-creates the turbulent life
of the theater and the medical world of the time as it follows the careers
of two ambitious "guttersnipes" who seek to make their fortune:
Abel Lackland whose foray into body snatching awakens him to an interest
in the sinister new art of surgery, and Lilith Lucas, born Lil Burnell,
who will let nothing stand in the way of her rising to be queen of the
English stage. ...
REILLY, Martina
The wish list
Like any married couple, Allie & Tony have had their fair share of
heartache. But when Tony's actions force Allie & her young sons out
of their home, things take a turn for the worse. Without her husband around,
Allie must cope with two children as well as the reappearance of her estranged
father.
RHEA, Nicholas
Constable in the Country
As he awaits his anticipated promotion, Police Constable Rhea continues
his work on the Yorkshire moorland beat of Aidensfield, reminiscing about
his childhood in a similar idyllic village and making the inevitable comparisons.
There is little doubt his rural upbringing helps him deal with the variety
of incidents and people he encounters, such as a press photographer who
gets lost while trying to locate a centenarian, a party of day-trippers
who get imprisoned in a field and a farmer whose vehicles smother the
lanes with mud. Constable Nick encounters psychic cows, ghostly racehorses
and clever sheepdogs as he deals with a hoard of silver in the thatched
roof of a cottage and the disappearance of a lad who has gone to climb
in the Himalayas. Should Nick spoil his family's Christmas Day by going
to inspect an empty car in a field? And how does he cope with a family
who have acquired a little boy when no one knows who he is or where he's
come from? It's all in the line of duty for Constable Nick.
Rhea, Nicholas
Murder at Maddleskirk Abbey
The body of an unknown man is discovered in a huge stone coffin in the
crypt, and Constable Nick and DCS Napier welcome the assistance of the
'monkstables', as their knowledge of the abbey, its history and personnel
proves invaluable to the detectives. As the investigation hots up, a pupil
of the college goes missing, pitching the monkstables into an intense
investigation as they search for the missing boy.
RICKMAN, Phil
Midwinter of the Spirit
An early winter slices though the old city of Hereford, a body is found
in the River Wye, an ancient church is desecrated, and there are signs
of a dark ritual on the hill overlooking the city. Meanwhile, reports
of psychic unrest in the city’s cathedral speak of an undying evil
lying close to the heart of the Church of England. In this second electrifying
tale, exorcist Rev. Merrily Watkins must tread in places where an intangible
malevolence thrives uncurbed by the forces of law and order.
RHODES, Elvi
Portrait of Chloe
She was born plain Dora, in a bleak northern town where her future seemed
all too predictable. But from the moment she first walked, pursuing a
coloured ball across the floor, she went after what she wanted, and got
it. At the age of eighteen she wanted freedom and a new life - and a new
name, Chloe. She went to Brighton, to work as a mother's help to a Member
of Parliament and his wife, and she glimpsed for the first time a life
of luxury and wealth - a life which, she believed, could be hers. But
her new circumstances brought with them difficulties which she could not
have foretold…
RHODES, Elvi
The Apple Tree
When Frances changed her unsettled life in Brighton and bought an old
farmhouse in the Yorkshire Dales to run as a guesthouse, she was going
into uncharted territory. The villagers were very friendly and talked
about the previous owners of Beck Farm but there seemed to be some mystery
about them. What had happened to the wife of the previous owner - and
why was she still resented? Frances was to find out while at the same
time rebuilding her own life
RHODES, Elvi
Midsummer Meeting
Petra came into the close village community of Mindon when she was unexpectedly
left a cottage there by an old friend of her mother's. She was lonely
and unsettled - her parents had been killed in a car accident, her boyfriend
had decided to go back to his wife, and as a painter she led a solitary
life in her North Yorkshire home town. But she felt immediately at home
in the gracious stone house that had been bequeathed to her, and was made
welcome by the local residents - in particular, by the members of the
Mindon Amateur Dramatic Society (somewhat appropriately known as MADS)
presided over by the formidable Ursula. Ursula liked to run things her
way, and brooked no opposition when the ambitious decision was made (largely
by herself) to put on "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as their next
production. Petra , to her surprise and pleasure, was put in charge of
the wardrobe. Rivalries, squabbles, love affairs and seething resentments
threatened to scupper the production, and all Ursula's managerial skills
were needed to prevent disaster. But Petra had more pressing things on
her mind than the costumes for the cast. A mystery from her past began
to haunt her - and the answer to that mystery might solve the puzzle of
why she had been left such a beautiful house by a total stranger.
Richard, Cliff.
My life, my way
Sir Cliff Richard is the biggest-selling artist of all time, selling over
250 million records around the world since he burst onto the music scene
in 1958. Now, working with the highly acclaimed biographer & journalist,
Penny Junor, Cliff is going to talk freely & frankly about what it
is like to be Cliff.
RIPLEY, Mike
Angel’s share
Roy Angel is slowly adjusting to the pressures of working at Rudgard &
Blugden Confidential Investigations, although his Raymond Chandler training
manuals still haven't reconciled him to going to work every day. It would
seem that Angel could take it easy with his latest case however; finding
the retired Mr. Ellrington's long lost loves shouldn’t be too demanding,
should it? Handling his partner Amy May, fashionista turned fearsome,
nesting mother-to-be, as well as his ailing father and his Page 3 girlfriend,
might be another matter though.
ROBB, J.D.
Eternity in Death
When bad girl Tiara Kent is found dead in her Manhattan apartment, the
killing has all the earmarks of a vampire attack. Lieutenant Eve Dallas
has to deal with superstitious cops carrying garlic & stakes, as well
as the ever-hysterical press. None of the victim's friends know much about
the Dark Prince she has been secretly seeing.
ROBB, J.D.
Possession in death
'The devil killed my body. I cannot fight, I cannot find. I cannot free
her. You must. You are the one. We speak to the dead.' Immediately after
hearing these words, uttered to her by an old Romanian woman dying in
the street, detective Eve Dallas begins to notice that her latest case
has come with a number of interesting side-effects.
Robb, J. D
Strangers in death
Technology may be different in 2060 New York, yet the city is still a
place of many cultures and great divides. But, as ever, some murders receive
more attention than others - especially those in which the victim is a
prominent businessman. Lieutenant Eve Dallas investigates.
Robb, J. D
Taken in death
Two young children disappear from their East Side home in New York City,
their nanny killed in cold blood. As Lieutenant Eve Dallas begins to unravel
the crime scene and search for Henry and Gala MacDermit, she's drawn into
the twisted mind of a kidnapper who will stop at nothing to take revenge.
Horrific threats concerning the brother and sister hit far too close to
home for Eve, drawing her back into memories of her own tortured childhood.
ROBERTS, Nora
Angel Falls
The sole survivor of a brutal crime, Reece Gilmore has been on the run,
desperately fighting the nightmares and panic attacks that haunt her.
She doesn't intend to stay in the sleepy town of Angel's Fist one second
longer than she needs to, despite its friendly - if curious - inhabitants,
and the irresistible attraction of local writer Brody. However, on a hike
into the mountains she witnesses a couple having a vicious argument that
culminates in murder. By the time Reece finds Brody and brings him to
the scene, both killer and victim are gone. Faced with a lack of evidence,
the authorities in Angel's Fist find it hard to believe Reece's story.
After all, she's a newcomer in town and yet has already gained a reputation
for being jumpy - maybe even a little fragile. But when a series of menacing
occurrences makes it clear that someone wants her out of the way, Reece
must put her trust in Brody - the one person who does believe her - to
find the murderer before it's too late.
Roberts, Nora,
Black rose
Since the death of her husband, Roz Harper has thrown herself into raising
her family and turning her passion for gardening into a business. But
when she meets Mitchell Carnegie, she feels confident enough to make the
leap into love once again - although someone or something seems to be
trying to keep them apart.
ROBERTS, Nora
Blue Smoke
Reena Hale grew up with an intimate knowledge of the destructive power
of fire. When she was a child, her family's restaurant was burned to the
ground, and the man responsible was sent to jail. The Hale family banded
together to rebuild, and Reena found her life's calling. She trained as
a firefighter and then as a cop, always with the end goal in sight: to
become an arson investigator. Now, as part of the arson unit, she is called
in on a series of suspicious fires that seem to be connected-not just
to each other, but to her. And as danger ignites all around her, Reena
must rely on experience and instinct to catch a dangerous madman who will
not stop until everything she loves has gone up in smoke.
ROBERTS, Nora
Chasing fire
Rowan Tripp has been fighting the annual forest fires in the Montana mountains
since she was 18. She can read a wildfire like no one else - and is prepared
to put her life on the line to save others. But now she's mourning the
death of her friend and jump partner, Jim - and haunted by the fact that
she might have been able to save him.
ROBERTS, Nora
High noon
When Police Lieutenant Phoebe MacNamara is brutally assaulted by an unseen
assailant in her own police station, she can't help but be deeply shaken.
Then threatening messages show up on her doorstep, and she must discover
who the stalker is before he starts targeting her family to get to her.
ROBERTS, Nora
In Dreams
Drawn to a castle in the forests of Ireland, a beautiful young woman becomes
the link to a stranger's past - and the curse that has trapped him forever
in the eternity of his own dreams.
ROBERTS, Nora
The next always
The historic hotel in Boonsboro has endured war and peace, changing hands,
even rumored hauntings. Now it's getting a major facelift from the Montgomery
brothers and their eccentric mother.
ROBERTS, Nora
The Search
Other than her work, Fiona doesn't ask for much: the peace of the landscape,
the companionship of her dogs, the safe haven of friends and family. Romantic
entanglements are very far down on her list - and certainly not with artist
Simon Doyle. But he doesn't know that Fiona harbours a terrible secret.
ROBERTS, Nora
The witching hour
A kingdom is plagued by tragedy until a wizard-god's spell brings forth
a courageous and beautiful young woman who must follow her heart in love
and follow her destiny in battle.
ROBERTS, Nora
Winter rose
Read by Coleen Marlo.
ROBERTS, Nora
A world apart
Read by Angela Dawe.
ROBERTSON, Wendy
The Self-Made Woman
Writer Olivia Ozanne is on holiday in Moscow, visiting her journalist
daughter, Caitlin, when she meets a Russian man named Volodya. He falls
in love only with foreign women, and he quickly wins Olivia's affections
with his mysterious, elegant sensuality. But it is his two elderly roommates,
the Brown and the Grey Aunties, that prove the most interesting to Olivia.
The Aunties' tale, which stretches back to the Russian Revolution, truly
shows the strength of the human bond we call love. The two women gave
up the peacefulness of their everyday lives in order to stay together
in Moscow, in spite of the risks. Olivia is determined to write their
story, to let the world know of their devotion to one another, and to
help them in any way she can, but she ends up competing with Caitlin and
her boyfriend, Charles.
Robins, Denise
The bitter core
When beautiful Venetia Sellingham got married for the second time to Mike
Petheric, 12 years her junior, everyone said it wouldn't work. Neither
of them cared. However, some unattractive sides of Mike's character soon
began to appear.
ROBINSON, DEREK
Damned Good Show
Derek Robinson, author of the highly praised wartime novel A Piece of
Cake and many others, now does for the RAF's Bomber Command what Cake
did for Fighter Command: he goes beyond the clichéd stereotypes
of the wartime RAF and paints an indelible picture of real people at war.
The young pilots of 409 Squadron are flung into battle over Nazi Germany,
where their training, tactics, and aircraft are all found wanting. Their
lively spirit of gentleman amateur fliers simply flickers and dies in
the harsh glare of searchlights over the Ruhr. As they struggle, the reality
of war comes vividly and painfully into view: chaos, confusion, and comradeship
in equal measure.
ROBINSON, Peter
A Dedicated Man
After an old Yorkshire farmer discovers a half-buried body in his pasture,
excitement interrupts routine in the small community of Swainsdale. Series
detective Alan Banks begins investigating the habits and background of
the victim, a dedicated professor who left his job upon receiving a sizeable
inheritance. Suspicion falls on his charmless wife, his long-time publisher,
his local drinking buddies, a younger woman, and others. Before Banks
can narrow the list, the murderer strikes again.
ROBINSON, Peter
The Hanging Valley
A faceless corpse is discovered in a tranquil, hidden valley below the
village of Swainshead. And when Chief Inspector Alan Banks arrives, he
finds that no-one is willing to talk. Banks's frustration only grows when
the identity of the body is revealed. For it seems that his latest case
may be connected with an unsolved murder in the same area five years ago.
Among the silent suspects are the Collier brothers, the wealthiest and
most powerful family in Swainsdale. When they start use their influence
to slow down the investigation, Inspector Alan Banks finds himself in
a race against time . . .
Rose, Karen
Closer than you think
Faith Corcoran returns to Cincinnati, ostensibly to accept an inheritance
of her family home from her recently deceased grandmother, and is immediately
embroiled in a terrible accident as her car hits a young girl who claims
to have been kidnapped. Compelled to find out what happened to the girl,
she starts investigating and before long comes into contact with FBI agent
Deacon Novak. Watch the sparks fly as murder, passion and love all collide!
ROSE, Karen
I can see you
A killer is targeting the participants of an online role playing game
called Shadowland. Each of the victims is be-friended by the killer online.
He then stalks them in real life, murdering them in the way that they
worst fear.
ROSE, Karen
Kill for me
In Karen Rose's chilling thriller, a paedophile ring is kidnapping young
girls and selling them to the highest bidder. Will one of its victims
be able to break the ring before it's too late?
Rose, Karen
Watch your back
When Stevie Mazzetti was six months pregnant, her husband and five-year-old
son were shot dead in a store robbery. A killer was found and imprisoned
and Stevie returned to work as a homicide cop, but things could never
the same again. Years later, she receives a letter bearing the name of
the man imprisoned for the crime, and her world is turned upside-down
once again. Who has the letter come from? And could it be that the real
killer is still at large? Her hunt for the answers will force her to confront
her past once again, and send her straight into the arms of Clay Maynard
- the brooding ex-cop she'd sworn to leave behind.
ROWLANDS, Betty
Over the Edge
The heroine of "A Little Gentle Sleuthing" and "Finishing
Touch", Melissa Craig, accompanies her friend to the Cevennes. Within
a week of her arrival two people are found dead below a viewpoint cliff.
Melissa's talents are called upon to solve the mystery.
RUIZ ZAFON, Carlos
The angel’s game
In an old mansion in the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martin,
an aspiring writer, receives a mysterious letter from a French editor,
promising literary stardom if he will fulfil just one task. But the character
is not all that he seems, and soon David has entered into a pact that
will lead him to question everything he values.
SALE, Peter
Tom Kipper’s Schooldays
Meet Tom Kipper, Espionage Agent extraordinaire. Born into a poor Irish
family in Liverpool in 1928, Tom—like every self-respecting ten-year-old—is
full of mischief. A pupil at Saint Joseph's Academy of Hard Knocks—as
the students have dubbed it—he spends his days dodging foes in class,
finding adventure, and engaging in a good scrap when school is out. But
with the arrival of war, Tom’s happy world is suddenly infused with
loss and confusion. With the pain of war, however, Tom also finds a new
understanding of himself and the world around him.
SALLIS, Susan
After Midnight
Nell knows she shares a special past with her cousins, Edmund and Perry,
from their young days in Gloucestershire. When a strange young man arrives,
Nell discovers with a shock that he too shares some of their mysterious
past. Their uncertainties can only be satisfied when the mystery is revealed.
Sallis, Susan
Learning to dance
Judith is suddenly all alone in the world. Her husband, Jack, has left
her: why, she doesn't know. Her two sons are in Australia, and both her
mother and her best friend Naomi have recently died. Embarking on a journey
to Exmoor to meet artist Robert Haussman Judith finds herself a prey to
all sorts of irrational fears.
SALLIS, Susan
The Path to the Lake
After David died, Viv tries to escape her sense of guilt by running, mainly
around the nearby lake — a desolate and deserted place. But through
her misery she makes some unexpected friends and, as a new life opens
up, she can confront the secrets that haunt her.
SALLIS, Susan
The Pumpkin Coach
For Alice Pettiford, living near Gloucester in the late 1940s, leaving
school as soon as she could and taking a job as a railway secretary in
the city made perfect sense. Her family had long been 'railway servants',
and her best friend Hester's father would be working closely with her.
What Alice had not expected was that she would fall in love with Joe Adair,
a colleague, almost as soon as she met him. But Joe had to go overseas
on National Service, and in the meanwhile Hester's brother, the enigmatic
Valentine, found that his fondness for Alice was deepening into something
much stronger. When he and Alice discover an old railway coach, long abandoned,
hidden in a clearing in the Forest of Dean, Alice realises that it has
been a very special, magical place. What she doesn't know is that the
coach has played a secret part in the history of Joe's family, and that
Joe's mother named it 'the pumpkin coach'. Now her own destiny will also
be shaped by this enchanted refuge.
SANDFORD, John
Broken Prey
The first corpse is found on the riverbank. The second in an isolated
farmhouse. Both have been savagely beaten, the skin flayed from their
bodies, their throats cut. For both victims, there’s a DNA match.
Charlie Pope, a convicted sex offender recently released from mental hospital,
has cut off his court-imposed leg bracelet and disappeared. Now all Lucas
Davenport has to do is find him. But something about this case doesn’t
smell right..
SCANLAN, Patricia
Coming home
In New York, Alison is trying to come to terms with her new life. She
is looking forward to seeing her family in Ireland for Christmas, but
mixed with the excitement is a feeling of dread. How can she tell them
that her lifestyle, her banking job, her smart apartment, have all gone
in the wake of the financial crisis?
SCANLAN, Patricia
Happy ever after?
When the honeymoon is over real life begins. Newly married Debbie, worried
about mounting debts and with wedding bills still to pay, is at her wits
end with coke-sniffing, champagne-swilling hubby, Bryan. But he has no
desire to give up the high life and become a-stay-at-home husband.
Scanlan, Patricia
With all my love
On a crystal clear Mediterranean day, Briony sits with her four-year-old
daughter, Katie, while she waits for her mother, Valerie, to join them.
Briony has no idea that in a few moments time her relationship with her
mother will change irrevocably.
SCARROW, Simon
The gladiator
This is an action-packed novel featuring Roman army officers Macro and
Cato. While Macro and Cato are returning to Rome from a harrowing campaign
against the Parthians, their transport ship is almost capsized by a tidal
wave. When they make it to Matala in Crete they encounter a devastated
town.
Schloss, Eva
After Auschwitz
The story of Anne Frank's step-sister, and her struggle for survival in
Auschwitz and beyond.
SEBOLD, Alice
The Lovely Bones
On her way home from school on a snowy December day in 1973, 14-year-old
Susie Salmon is lured into a makeshift underground den in a cornfield
and brutally raped and murdered, the latest victim of a serial killer--the
man she knew as her neighbor, Mr. Harvey. Alice Sebold's haunting and
heartbreaking debut novel, The Lovely Bones, unfolds from heaven, where
"life is a perpetual yesterday" and where Susie narrates and
keeps watch over her grieving family and friends, as well as her brazen
killer and the sad detective working on her case
SEIERSTAD, Asne
The Bookseller of Kabul
Two weeks after September 11th, award-winning journalist Asne Seierstad
went to Afghanistan to report on the conflict. In the following spring
she returned to live with a bookseller and his family for several months.
The Bookseller of Kabul is the fascinating account of her time spent living
with the family of thirteen in their four-roomed home. Bookseller Sultan
Khan defied the authorities for twenty years to supply books to the people
of Kabul. He was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned by the communists
and watched illiterate Taliban soldiers burn piles of his books in the
street. He even resorted to hiding most of his stock in attics all over
Kabul. But while Khan is passionate in his love of books and hatred of
censorship, he is also a committed Muslim with strict views on family
life. As an outsider, Seierstad is able to move between the private world
of the women - including Khan's two wives - and the more public lives
of the men. The result is an intimate and fascinating portrait of a family
which also offers a unique perspective on a troubled country.
SEYMOUR, Gerald
Kingfisher
A group of four students, Ukranian Jews, are fighting for recognition
within the Soviet Union. They are tired of being treated as second-class
citizens and are prepared to use violence if necessary. When one of their
number is captured after shooting a policeman, they know time is running
out. Their only hope is to hijack a plane, fly to the West and then on
to Israel. One country after another refuses to let them land, until the
plane finally sets down in Britain, low on fuel. Charlie Webster, an Intelligence
officer on the Soviet desk, is brought in to negotiate with the hijackers.
But it is unclear whether they are political refugees or dangerous criminals.
As the government wavers, the students become increasingly desperate and
start to lose patience, and control.
SHELDON, Sidney
The Other side of me
Bestselling novelist Sheldon's memoir is reminiscent of his colorful novels,
a rags-to-riches yarn replete with struggle, an indomitable hero and eventual
glamour. It opens with a 17-year-old Sheldon preparing to commit suicide
in Chicago in 1934. "Lonely and trapped," he wanted to attend
college but couldn't afford it. Thankfully, his father intervened, and
the young man got a new lease on life. He went from being a theater usher
to a struggling songwriter, then a top-flight Hollywood screenwriter in
a few short years. For the next 30-odd years, Sheldon wrote and directed
films, meeting studio honchos and stars like Kirk Douglas, Judy Garland
and Marilyn Monroe. The author's impressive achievements include a WWII
flying stint, a screenwriting Oscar, a Tony, the creation of four classic
TV series and several bestsellers. Yet these accomplishments came with
bouts of depression and the death of a child.
SHREVE Anita
All He Ever Wanted
A man receives a bill for a white chandelier that he never ordered and
has never seen. This mysterious document turns out to be the hinge of
his world and his attempts to make sense of it lead him to facts about
himself, his marriage and his orderly life that had previously been hidden
from him. Set in new England and Florida during the 1920s, All he ever
wanted gives us a marriage, betrayal and the search for redemption from
the vantage points of both a husband and a wife.
SHREVE, Anita
The Last Time they met
When Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes meet at a writers' festival in Toronto,
it is the first time they have seen each other for twenty-six years. Theirs
is a story bound by the irresistible pull of true passion - a love which
begins in Massachusetts in the early 1960s, is rekindled in Kenya in the
mid 1970s and which is about to play out its astonishing final episode...Written
with reverse chronology, Anita Shreve's novel is a haunting story of mesmerising
beauty, with a strong narrative pull that inescapably draws the reader
in, and leaves its most stunning revelation until the very last pages.
SHUTE, Nevil
Slide Rule
Nevil Shute's autobiographical work charts his selected remembrances from
childhood to 1938. The parallels between Shute's life and his fiction
can be seen: airship engineering, the new industry of commercial aircraft
and his experience of civil servants and bureaucratic military agencies.
SIEGEL, James
Deceit
Tom Valle is a Californian journalist with a very unspectacular career,
covering what appears to be an everyday car crash. Then strange facts
present themselves to Valle -- including the fact that the autopsy indicates
that the car crash victim has been castrated. And although the driving
licence says otherwise, the corpse is that of a black man rather than
a white. Valle sees this as a chance to re-energise his career, and uncover
some nasty secrets. But he has made a rod for his own back by some ill-advised
journalistic double-dealing in the past, such as some fictitious stories
he has filed at a New York newspaper – and the chickens come home
to roost.
Slaughter, Karin
Cop town
Atlanta, 1974. As a brutal killing and a furious manhunt rock the city's
police department, Kate Murphy wonders if her first day on the job will
also be her last. She's determined to defy her privileged background by
making her own way - wearing a badge and carrying a gun. But for a beautiful
young woman, life will be anything but easy in the macho world of Atlanta
PD.
SLAUGHTER, Karin
Fractured
Wealthy housewife Abigail Campano returns home one day to Atlanta's posh
Ansley Park neighborhood to find a dead girl in the mansion's upstairs
hallway, the apparent killer nearby. Thinking that the girl is her teenage
daughter, Emma, the distraught Abby kills the alleged attacker only to
realize that the murdered girl is not Emma, but Emma's friend, Kayla Alexander.
Agent Will Trent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation soon determines
that he has a murder and kidnapping on his hands. Paired with Detective
Faith Mitchell, Trent scrambles to put the pieces together and find Emma
before it's too late
SLAUGHTER, Karin
Genesis
Three years ago former medical examiner Sara Linton moved to Atlanta hoping
to leave her tragic past behind her. Now working as a doctor in Atlanta
she is starting to piece her life together. But when a severely wounded
young woman is brought in to the emergency room, she finds herself drawn
back into a world of violence and terror.
SMALLEY, Peter
The Hawk
1790 and England is on the cusp of war with Revolutionary France. The
night-time Channel is the scene of intense smuggling activity and the
passage of spies from one coast to another. Lieutenant James Hayter has
achieved his heart's desire - his first independent command, His Majesty's
'Hawk' cutter, 10 guns. She is swift enough to out sail even the fastest
of the French contraband runners and she is Hayter's pride and joy. But
his happiness is tempered by the knowledge that his former captain and
friend, William Rennie, has been left on the beach after the failure of
the Rabhet expedition the previous year.But it is not long before spymaster
Sir Robert Greer disturbs Rennie's imposed retirement with a sinister
and irrefutable offer that will see Rennie hastening to join his former
subordinate in Portsmouth. Together they will have to tackle one of the
most sensitive and dangerous missions of the phoney war..
Staincliffe, Cath
Half the world away
Newly graduated photography student Lori Maddox chooses to spend the year
after university travelling and visits China where she finds casual work
as a private English tutor. When she disappears, her parents Jo and Tom,
who separated when Lori was a toddler, travel to China to find their daughter.
Landing in a totally unfamiliar country, with no knowledge of the customs
or language, and receiving scant help bordering on indifference from the
local authorities, Jo and Tom are forced to turn detective, following
in Lori's footsteps, tracing the people she mentioned in her blogs, interviewing
her friends, colleagues and students. It's an unbearably difficult challenge,
made harder as all the reasons for the breakdown of their relationship
twenty years earlier resurface with a vengeance.
STAPLES, Mary Jane
Changing Times
It is 1953 and the Adams family are looking forward to the Coronation
celebrations. Chinese Lady, now Lady Finch, worries that her friends will
think she is too grand to mingle with them. But her husband has a more
pressing worry - the sudden appearance of the lovely but mysterious Katje
Galicia.
STAPLES, Mary Jane
A Girl Next Door
It is 1956, and Boots Adams is celebrating his 60th birthday with a good
old-fashioned cockney knees-up. But a new generation is growing up, and
changes are on the way. A big clothing firm wants to take over Adams Fashions,
and Boots and Sammy have difficult decisions to make.
Staples, Mary Jane
Love for a soldier
France, 1918. Sophia, the daughter of a German general, is on her way
to elope with a young army officer. On her way she witnesses a battle
in the skies that leaves an English pilot without a plane. She has no
choice but to agree to assist him in his attempt to avoid capture.
STAPLES, Mary Jane
Nurse Anna’s war
Brussels, 1915. A beautiful young Belgian woman, Louise, is being pursued
by the Germans when she meets Ned Scott, a British army major also trying
to flee. He is badly injured, and the unlikely pair find themselves at
a hospital run by the famous Edith Cavell, who agrees to treat the major
while offering them both refuge.
STAPLES, Mary Jane
Out of the Shadows
Times move on for the Adams family in east London, and as business prospers,
there are new worries to deal with. A young woman arrives who is intent
on ruining Sammy Adam's winter fashion show, and Sammy must deal with
her unwelcome attention. Boots has to find a solution when one of his
female employees tells him about a sinister visitor, and he also does
some match-making. But he doesn't realize that his family are being observed,
as out of the shadows come dark and mysterious figures from the past who
intrude on Boots, Polly and the twins, and his adopted daughter Rosie.
Staples, Mary Jane
A sister's secret
An impetuous decision to marry has left the young Lady Caroline widowed
and with two estates in her name. She is now in a position to live her
life to the full, socialising with London's finest aristocracy, but her
unhappy experience has put her off marrying again. Her younger sister,
Annabelle, on the other hand, is falling in love with a man who is notoriously
unfaithful.
STAPLES, Mary Jane
Year of Victory
The seemingly endless war was at last coming to a conclusion. But for
the country and for the Adams family, there were still many tribulations
to be overcome. Flying bombs - the deadly V1 buzzbombs - appeared over
London, causing dreadful destruction. The struggle continued to overcome
the most powerful war machine the world had ever known. But amongst the
Cockney community there were lighter moments, too. For Felicity, Eloise
and Lizzy there was the happiness of knowing that their menfolk were safe
and well. Daniel Adams and his American girlfriend even had a brief meeting
with Winston Churchill himself. And as the Third Reich began to show signs
of collapse, the scent of victory was in the air.
STEEL, Danielle
44 Charles Street
Owner of a struggling art gallery and newly separated from her boyfriend,
Francesca Thayer does the math and then the unimaginable. She puts out
an advertisement for boarders, and soon her Greenwich Village house becomes
a whole new world.
STEEL, Danielle
Answered Prayers
After a childhood marred by unspeakable abuse, New Yorker Faith Madison
has everything a woman could want: marriage to an investment banker, two
nice daughters, a lovely home. Now that her daughters are grown, however,
Faith is faced with empty-nest syndrome. Her answer? Go back to law school.
Her boorish husband, Alex, tells her she can't; when she runs into childhood
friend Brad Patterson at a funeral, he reassures her that she can. Brad
is in a similarly stifling marriage on the West Coast, and the two begin
firing off e-mails of friendly support. Neither is aware of the growing
depth of romantic feeling between them.
STEEL, Danielle
Dating Game
1203
With two grown children and a lovely home in Connecticut, Paris was happy
with her life. So when her husband of 24 years said they needed to talk,
Paris couldn't imagine what he was about to say. Divorce hits her hard
and the dating game doesn't seem to work, but slowly she finds her feet.
STEEL, Danielle
Friends Forever
Five young children meet at the elite Atwood school. They become an inseparable
group, known to outsiders as the 'Big Five'. They lean on one another
through all the bumps and bends of their childhood years. But when the
tight-knit group parts ways after graduation, their lives veer off in
different directions.
STEEL, Danielle
Happy birthday
For April Wyatt, turning 30 is not what she expected. She isn't married
with a family, but she does at least have a successful career - running
one of the best restaurants in New York. Her mother, Valerie, is about
to turn 60 and it is the 50th birthday of sports personality, Jack Adams.
STEEL, Danielle
Hotel Vendome
Hugues Martin has worked for the world's most prestigious hotels, so when
he takes over a small, tired, run-down hotel in New York, everyone thinks
he must be mad. But he transforms it into a beautiful boutique hotel of
impeccable elegance the - Hotel Vendome - run with the efficiency he learnt
through his hotelier schooling in Europe.
STEEL, Danielle
Kaleidoscope
The World War II love affair between lovely Frenchwoman Solange Bertrand
and American GI-turned-actor Sam Walker burned too brightly and ended
in tragedy, leaving their three young daughters orphaned. Megan, the youngest,
adopted by a loving family, grows up to be a doctor in Appalachia. Alexandra,
adopted by a wealthy family, marries a powerful man with an impeccable
pedigree. Hilary, the oldest (and the only one who remembers her sisters),
enters the sordid world of foster care before going out on her own to
work her way up to being a New York news producer. In the pursuit of success
and stability, Hilary foregoes building a personal life, especially when
her efforts to locate her sisters hit a dead end. But when high-priced
private investigator John Chapman is hired to reunite the three sisters,
the secrets and lies that kept the women apart--and bound them together--are
revealed and the love only sisters can share blossoms again.
STEEL, Danielle
Leap of Faith
Marie-Ange's idyllic childhood in a beautiful old French chateau is cut
short after a tragic accident. Orphaned and alone she is sent to America
to live with her great-aunt on an Iowa farm. She returns to France to
meet the Chateau's dashing new owner with whom she falls in love - until
she hears a shocking story.
STEEL, Danielle
Sunset in Tropez
A summer of change, revelation, secrets, surprises and new beginnings...As
Diana Morrison laid the table for six at her elegant Central Park apartment,
she had no warning of what was to come. Spending New Year's Eve together
was a tradition for Diana, her husband Eric, and their best friends Pascale
and John Donnally and Anne and Robert Smith, and as the friends sipped
champagne, they talked of renting a villa together in the South of France
the following summer. But life had other plans...
STEEL, Danielle
The Cottage
A gleaming Rolls-Royce pulls through the gates of the magnificent Bel
Air estate known as The Cottage. The man behind the wheel is Hollywood’s
ageless wonder, Cooper Winslow. A star of the silver screen for decades,
a man whose allure to women is legendary, Coop exudes old-fashioned glamour.
But Coop is broke. And with no major roles coming his way, he is faced
with the prospect of selling his beloved home, or at least renting out
parts of it. His new tenants, Mark Friedman and Jimmy O’Connor,
are coping with their own problems. Mark’s wife just walked out,
and Jimmy recently lost his own wife to illness. And when Mark’s
teenage children move in, The Cottage is transformed, with music blasting
and teenagers on skateboards crashing into vintage cars. But amid the
chaos, three men are becoming unlikely friends…and each finds himself
changing, Coop most of all.
STEEL, Danielle
The House on Hope Street
Married legal team Liz and Jack Sutherland have a successful family law
practice and a house on Hope Street near San Francisco, where they live
with their five happy children (one with special needs). Liz and her children's
lives are changed forever when Jack is murdered on Christmas Day. In the
year following the murder, Liz struggles to come to terms with the loss
of her husband, both personally and professionally, and is dealt another
devastating blow when her eldest son has a near-fatal accident. Divorced
doctor Bill Webster saves her son and becomes close to Liz, much to the
chagrin of her daughters, who accuse her of betraying their dead father.
Can Liz move on with her life and be happy again without betraying Jack?
STEPHENS, Kay
Sea Changes
When her Yorkshire family is shaken by news of the German occupation of
Norway in 1940, Rachel Skelton takes leave from her military hospital
to cross the North Sea and rescue her grandmother, Hedda, from Bergen.
During her short stay there Rachel is reacquainted with Olav Larsen, a
distant relative. But Olav has changed since her pre-war visits, and Rachel
immediately feels that he fills a long-felt gap in her life.
STEVENSON, D. E.
Charlotte Fairlie
Charlotte Fairlie is a successful, elegant career woman. Still in her
20s, she has landed a job as headmistress of her old school. She is admired
and liked by both staff and pupils - but she begins to feel there is something
missing in her well-organised life. Then one summer she goes to stay with
a young pupil on the remote Scottish Isle of Targ. In the romantic atmosphere
of the Highlands, anything can happen - and even the cool, efficient Charlotte
surprises herself...
STEVENSON, D. E.
Peter West
Beth Kerr is the daughter of the boatman in the small village of Kintoul.
Her mother died at an early age after an unhappy marriage that caused
her family to cast her aside. As the years pass, Beth grows into a beautiful
young woman, watched over by the quiet Peter West.
Stirling, Jessica
The constant star
Susan Cahill enjoys her job at the BBC until a bomb destroys the building
and brings unwelcome responsibilities and an autocratic new boss. Breda
Hooper, Susan's widowed sister-in-law, and her small son are rescued from
the East End's shattered docklands by Danny, Susan's estranged husband.
Settled in a shabby caravan in the Vale of Evesham, Breda soon finds herself
entangled in village affairs in more ways than one. For Susan and Breda
jeopardy comes not from the skies but in the terrible price each must
pay for falling in love with men who are not all that they seem to be.
Stirling, Jessica
A corner of the heart
Jessica Stirling's 'A Corner of the Heart' is set in 1930s England, where
an East End girl with ideas of her own makes a surprising journey from
the back streets of Shadwell to the salons of Mayfair.
Stirling, Jessica
The last voyage
At first handsome, freewheeling Clive Cavendish does not appear to be
an ideal catch for Julie. But when a whirlwind seduction leads to love
and marriage and Clive's ambitious schemes begin to pay off Julie is more
than happy to be the wife of an up-and-coming painter and the mother of
his children.
Stirling, Jessica
The wayward wife
The war everyone dreaded has begun at last but for Susan Cahill it is
more an adventure than a tragedy. Helped by a white lie about her marriage
to Danny she has a new job as a producer's assistant at the BBC. And glamorous
new friends, including one American war reporter who has made London his
base and Susan his target. Danny is also working for the BBC, sharing
a room in a freezing farmhouse in Evesham, and working long hours monitoring
German radio broadcasts - and worrying about Susan. Stuck in London when
the blitz begins, Susan's sister-in-law, Breda Hooper, faces up to the
worst with a small son at home and a husband in the fire service. Then
her Italian father, hiding out from both the authorities and his former
partners in crime, prepares to leave Breda a legacy as explosive as any
German bomb.
SUTHERLAND, Titia
An Accidental Life
On a stark and cold January day, Philip Stavely, successful actor, screenwriter
and family man, was killed during a shooting party, leaving behind his
wife, Ellie, and three children aged between nine and twenty-one. Although
the inquest brought in a verdict of accidental death, Ellie was convinced
it was suicide and felt driven to discover the cause. Their once happy
marriage had deteriorated in recent years for reasons she was unable to
fathom and, although she had begun to suspect an affair, only their eldest
daughter, Cassandra, had stumbled on the truth.
SWINDELL, Madge
String of Pearls
This is a story of passion and courage against a backdrop of World War
II. Helen Conroy is happily married with two teenage children and a husband
she adores, when war is declared. Despite the bombing of two homes, she
holds her family together and takes them back to her father's house, in
a Dorset village. She is shattered when her husband asks her for a divorce.
Then, in September, 1942, US troops pour into Mowbray. For the Brits,
life will never be the same again. The GIs bring hope and fun along with
their cigarettes, chewing gum and nylons. But everyone knows that these
young men will soon be part of the greatest military invasion the world
had ever seen, and that many of them will die so, Brits and GIs alike,
live and love for the moment. Captain Simon Johnson, a US military intelligence
agent, is billeted with the Conroy family. Despite their reluctance, Helen
and Simon fall deeply in love. Months later, when US forces leave swiftly
and silently in the night, Helen and her daughter, now a war bride, cling
together as they listen to daily bulletins of the invasion of Normandy....
TANNER, Janet
The Penrose Treasure
When she gets word that her mother might be dying, Tasmin Hardy rushes
home to find her mother unconscious, the victim of a brutal beating. A
silver button is the only clue to the assailant's identity. As her mother
makes the long, amnesiac road to recovery, Tasmin's childhood friend,
Isobel Penrose, offers her a position as her companion. Tasmin accepts,
since it will allow her to be with her mother at least part of each day.
But there's something foul afoot at Penrose Manor. Adam, the oldest brother,
wounded and presumed dead in the war in America, has shown up, very much
alive. Nicholas, Isobel's husband, has claimed Adam's inheritance, and
the animosity between the two brothers is palpable. Tasmin ignores Adam's
cryptic warnings and stays on, oblivious to impending danger.
TANNER, Janet
Seagull bay
When Dawn Stephens' parents are killed in an accident, she is transplanted
from her home in Canada to the small seaside town of Sturvendor in Somerset,
to live with her aunt and uncle. She makes friends with her cousin Serena,
and soon settles in well at the local school, but Dawn still feels very
alone in this strange new world.
TATE, June
Nothing is Forever
Following the loss of her fiancé in WW1, a devastated Flora Ferguson
arrives in Southampton, alone and desolate. With the love of her life
gone for ever, she determines to devote herself to the street-children
who live around the docks and to free them from their poverty and squalor.
But through this sacrifice comes unexpected fulfillment, for not only
does Flora find her work wonderfully rewarding, but she finds a new degree
of happiness through her friendship with the handsome and dedicated Dr
Richard Goodwin -- a man who shares her compassion and desire to help.
Comforted by their closeness, Flora pushes away the thought that if only
Richard weren't married to the spoilt and selfish Lydia, he may have been
the one to mend her broken heart...
TAYLOR, Alice
The parish
In a series of vignettes of life in her own village, Alice Taylor reasserts
the priorities of public space and social community.
TEMPLETON, Aline
The Darkness and the Deep
The wreck of the Knockhaven lifeboat with the loss of all three of its
crew is a hard blow for the small Scottish town. But it's harder still
when DS Tam MacNee discovers that it isn't simply a tragic accident. Was
it just the act of vandals, bored in a fishing port stricken with unemployment?
Could it be linked to the drugs trade which has taken root in the locality?
Or is there someone who, in their determination to kill one person, is
callous enough to take two innocent lives? And if so, who is the intended
victim? As DI Marjory Fleming and her team investigate multiple murders,
with a whole community hungry for justice, the pressure – professional
and personal – is on.
THOMAS, Leslie
Soldiers & Lovers
In a sunlit, secret valley in the green mountains of central Italy, two
people meet away from the horrors and clamour of battle. David Hopkins,
a young fisherman from West Wales and Kate Medhurst from a genteel town
in the Thames Valley embark upon an idyllic love affair away from the
conflict that surrounds them. However, they cannot escape the war forever,
and when they are targeted by a single enemy airplane their dreams are
destroyed. Weeks later, Hopkins wakes up in a Russian hospital in Vienna
where he’s slowly recovering from serious wounds – with no
recollection of the past. Eventually, transferred to an American hospital
and then repatriated to Britain, Hopkins reluctantly returns to Wales.
And there, alone and haunted by the months he cannot remember, Hopkins
embarks upon a journey of rediscovery…
THOMSPON, E.V.
The Lost Years
Perys Tremayne is not readily accepted by his family in Heligan, Cornwall,
because his late parents had caused a scandal. A neighboring farmer's
daughter, Annie, and her brother, Martin, the Tremayne's chauffeur, were
the only two who would befriend him. But when war breaks out in 1914,
Perys' life picks up—his determination and talent for flying enables
him to join the RFC and become a distinguished flying ace. Although his
war years and flying career go well, his love life was less successful.
He is deeply attracted to Annie, but she has an understanding with Jimmy
who returns from the Front blind and gas poisoned, so she feels she must
go through with her marriage. Perys' next girlfriend is Grace, a nurse,
but she's on the SS Sultan, torpedoed and sunk by the Germans. When war
ends, Perys meets up again with Annie just after Jimmy commits suicide,
unable to live a disabled life.
THOMSPON, E.V.
The Music Makers
Set in Ireland during the famine years, Liam MacCabe turns his hand to
politics to offer his countrymen the hope they need to survive the failure
of the potato crop. Despite the support of the women in his life, he is
faced with dangerous enemies.
THOMPSON, E.V.
Winds of Fortune
Set in Cornwall in the early part of the 19th Century. Thomasina is determined
to make more of her life than just to be a maid - even more so when she
is raped by Sir Henry's nephew in the house she works in. She runs off
with sweetheart Jeffrey and they live for a while as highwaymen, firstly
in Mevagissey and surrounding areas, then Bristol. They make a lot of
money and are thinking of retiring when Jeffrey is caught - and hung.
Thomasina then goes to sea and has further adventures, dressed as a boy.
She meets and falls in love with Abel and, in due course, spends her highwayman
money on a boat which she ensures, anonymously, Abel is made captain of.
Thomasina knows that Abel is the man for her - she just has to get Abel
to know that he is in love with her...
THOMPSON, Flora
The Vagrant King
Cornish farmer Joseph Moyle’s loyalty to the crown goes well rewarded—his
stepson Ralf is appointed page to the future King Charles II. When Ralf
takes up his post, Britain is in the midst of its most tumultuous period
ever—the war between the Royalists and the Parliamentarians and
the dawning of a new era. Ralf’s duties oblige him to follow the
heir to the throne through the western countries, where he encounters
not only court intrigue and the constant threat of Cromwell’s armies,
but also romance. As Charles begins the first of many affairs, Ralf also
falls in love. But this first love is a dangerous one. Brighid is an Irish
Catholic—and complicit in an attempt to kidnap Charles…
THOMPSON, Grace
A New Beginning
In 1945, Sophie Daniel's family home takes a direct hit from a bomb. Three
generations die, leaving her with on one and nowhere to go. She becomes
friendly with Ryan Treweather, who in turn, helps search Sophie's remaining
relatives. But, as Sophie and Ryan become closer, will Bertie find his
rightful place in the family?
THOMPSON, Grace
False Friends
Badger’s Brook becomes the refuge of Lowri Vaughan, escaping the
rumours that abound when her father is sent to prison for fraud and suspected
murder crimes Lowri and her mother know he didn’t commit. Lowri
is determined to prove her fathers innocence, but surrounded by false
friends, will she ever be able to rely on anyone again, and can she really
prove her fathers innocence?
THOMPSON, Kate
The Kinsella sisters
Sisters Río and Dervla are reunited at their father Frank's funeral,
having been estranged since the death of their mother 20 years ago. While
clearing out Frank's home, the sisters come across passionate love letters
to their mother from a man named Patrick. It is plain from the letters
that Patrick - not Frank - was Río's natural father.
THORNTON, Margaret
Above the Bright Blue Sky
Life for Maisie Jackson has been far from happy for a number of years
ever since her mother re-married after her beloved father's death. Suffering
abuse at her cruel stepbrother's hand, and mercilessly tormented by her
stepfather, Maisie dreams of escaping to a new life far away. And it seems
her dreams are about to come true...
TIMSON, David
1000 Years of Laughter
This anthology presents some of the funniest extracts in English literature.
It begins with Anglo-Saxon riddles and then looks at medieval memories,
the Tudor comic turn, Restoration buffoonery, and the rise of the novel
in the 18th century.
Tomalin, Claire.
Charles Dickens
Claire Tomalin paints an unforgettable portrait of Dickens, capturing
brilliantly the complex character of this great genius.
TREMAYNE, Peter.
Behold a pale horse
AD 664. Sister Fidelma finds herself in the seaport of Genua, en route
from Rome back to her native Cashel. Her old teacher, Brother Ruadan,
lies dying in the abbey of Bobium. Fidelma is determined to see Brother
Ruadan before he dies. But from the moment she enters the beautiful valley
of the Trebbia, there is danger on every side.
TROLLOPE, Joanna
Parson Hardings Daughter
Caroline Harvey is a pseudonym of Joanna Trollope. When John Gates sends
a marriage proposal from India to Caroline Harding, eight years after
their meeting, she initially declines, disbelieving his sincerity. But
when tragedy overtakes her life, she accepts his offer and sets sail for
India.
TROLLOPE, Joanna
Second honeymoon
Meet the Boyd family and the empty nest - whilst Matthew and Rosa struggle
to adapt to life on their own, Ben is preparing to leave the nest for
the first time. Mother Edie is distraught, but father Russell is looking
forward to getting his wife back after decades of family life.
Trotter, Janet MacLeod
A handful of stars
'A Handful of Stars' is a powerful and moving Tyneside saga of poverty,
passion and survival.
Trow, M. J
Lestrade and the brother of death
Recovering from a broken leg after his ignominious fall from the Titanic,
Lestrade should have had a peaceful time convalescing. But an attempt
on the life of his future father-in-law makes him realise that a policeman
is never really off duty. What is particularly puzzling is the arrival
of a letter which simply reads 'Four for the Gospel Makers', and it isn't
the first Lestrade has been sent. So begins one of Sholto Lestrade's most
mystifying cases, encompassing both the present and the past. He walks
down memory lane, looking back on episodes in his career which never came
to satisfactory conclusions and hold other clues as to who the sender
of the letters is. Because whoever it is, is a cold-blooded killer.
TURNBULL, Peter
Treasure Trove
A retired academic makes the grim discovery of four murdered corpses,
all of the same family. Suspicion falls on the one surviving member but
the case soon unravels the story of a family that has fallen from grace
with the peerage, and a village which is keeping its own secrets.
VINE, Andrew
Last of the Summer Wine
The world's longest-running comedy series, 'Last of the Summer Wine' is
still going strong after 37 years. Now, Andrew Vine, the deputy editor
of Yorkshire's daily newspaper, has written the definitive history of
this television phenomenon.
WAITE, Elizabeth
Wheeling and Dealing
Ella has lived in the East End of London all her life and when her husband
determines to move to Epsom to be near the racecourse he frequents and
loves, Ella's refusal to join him breaks up their tempestuous marriage.
Ella soon loses the will to keep smart, trim and fit - until her mother
steps in to pick up the pieces. It works - Ella gets a job as barmaid
in the British Legion club and begins to take pride in her appearance
again. When Dennis turns up for a drink one night, he is taken by surprise
- and remembers what attracted him to her in the first place. Can Dennis
change his wheeler-dealer ways and win back his wife?
WAITES, Martyn
The Mercy Seat
Once a renowned investigative journalist, since the unsolved disappearance
of his 6-year-old son, Joe Donovan has lived a broken, reclusive life.
He's abruptly thrust back into the real world when a teenage boy makes
contact, in desperate need of his help. Jamal has in his possession something
that holds a key to Donovan's past, a past that can only be unlocked by
forcing him to make a terrifying journey into the present. As long buried
secrets begin to emerge and bodies pile up, Donovan finds himself caught
up in a harrowing web of fear. In order to survive and uncover the disturbing
truth at the heart of the dangerous world he's found himself in, he puts
together a team to help him, a team of outsiders that doesn't care which
side of the law it operates on. And, Donovan will need their help. He
and Jamal are being hunted by a death metal addicted serial killer. A
killer with a 100 per cent success rate. A killer who doesn't know the
meaning of the word mercy.
WALLER, Robert James
The Bridges of Madison County
Quietly powerful and thoroughly credible, Waller's first novel describes
the profound love between a photographer and an Iowa farmer's wife who,
together for only four days, never lose their feelings for each other.
In August 1965, 52-year-old divorcee Robert Kincaid packs his pickup truck
and travels to Iowa's Madison County, the location of seven covered bridges
he is to photograph for National Geographic. There, he asks directions
of Francesca Johnson, alone at home while her husband and two children
visit the Illinois State Fair. Initially, neither Robert nor Francesca
expects their random encounter to lead to seduction, yet their mutual
desire is undeniable.
WEARING, Deborah
Forever Today
Clive Wearing has one of the most extreme cases of amnesia ever known.
In 1985, a virus completely destroyed a part of his brain essential for
memory, leaving him trapped in a limbo of the constant present. Every
conscious moment is for him as if he has just come round from a long coma,
an endlessly repeating loop of awakening. A brilliant conductor and BBC
music producer, Clive was at the height of his success when the illness
struck. As damaged as Clive was, the musical part of his brain seemed
unaffected, as was his passionate love for Deborah, his wife. This is
the story of a life lived outside time, a story that questions and redefines
the essence of what it means to be human. It is also the story of a marriage,
of a bond that runs deeper than conscious thought.
WENTWORTH, Patricia
The Brading collection
Another classic mystery featuring the indefatigable ex-governess turned
private investigator, Miss Silver.
WHITE, Gillian
Night Visitor
Rose's early life had been full of tragedy. Her father disappeared one
night, presumed drowned, and her twin brother died when he was only ten.
No wonder that she depends on her husband, Michael, who has always provided
the love and stability that her own family lacks. All Rose asks of Michael
is complete fidelity, and when she has cause to doubt him she devises
a terrible revenge. Michael has planned an anniversary trip to Venice
for the two of them. But as they experience the sights of this most romantic
of cities, Rose is racked with a secret jealousy. By the time they return,
Michael will have become seriously ill - although not so ill that he cannot
recognise the fact that something truly dreadful has happened to him.
WHITELAW, Stella
Ring & Die
Feisty PI Jordan Lacey is back in another entertaining adventure that
offers a charming glimpse of British village life plus action, humor,
mystery, and romance. Jordan has two hot cases vying for her attention.
The first involves three disappearing Chihuahuas, and while finding the
lost doggies might seem small-time, it could mean cash in Jordan's pocket,
as the dogs are valuable purebreds. Her second case concerns missing fishing
rods. The town fishermen are concerned that their rods are being snatched
off the pier, virtually in front of their eyes. Of course, there's more:
a deadly fire on the pier, the theft of a valuable antique gown, a "fake"
car crash scam, and a vicious dog-napper…
WHITMEE, Jeanne
Wishes & Dreams
Laura Nightingale has a happy home but her parents are unsympathetic with
her ambition to become an actress. She works hard in a hairdresser's to
pay for acting lessons and when the war comes she seizes her chance and
joins up with ENSA. Her childhood sweetheart, Peter joins the RAF and
is soon reported 'missing believed killed'. Laura is devastated and on
the rebound begins a disastrous affair with Max Higham, the director of
the troupe she is touring with. When she becomes pregnant and Max rejects
her, she is forced to leave ENSA, but feels she cannot return home in
disgrace. How Laura ultimately finds happiness makes a moving story.
WILKINSON, Annie
A Sovereign for a Song
As a poverty-stricken miner's daughter growing up in the small village
of Annsdale, near Durham, fifteen-year-old Ginny Wilde yearns for adventure.
But she gets more than she bargained for when her dark good looks, fiery
spirit and beautiful singing voice catch the eye of the unscrupulous Charlie
Parkinson, her employer's brother. Fleeing the wrath of her irate father
when he discovers his daughter's flirtation with the notorious womaniser,
Ginny heads for London, where Charlie seduces her and puts her to work
on the stage as a music hall artiste. As she embarks on a hugely successful
singing career, Ginny remains unhappy at Charlie's continual refusal to
marry her and descends into an increasingly louche lifestyle..
WILKINSON, Annie
No Price Too High
Shattered by the bitter end of a passionate love affair, Lizzie Wilde
leaves her native north east to seek fame and fortune on the London stage.
Determined to make her own way in the world, she vows to have nothing
more to do with men. She'll not let her heart be broken again. So when
she meets the handsome Captain Ashton, Lizzie resists his persistent advances.
There can be no future in any romance. An officer and a gentleman would
never marry a lowly actress. Besides, there are other matters to worry
about. With German bombs raining down on London and the menfolk fighting
in France, Lizzie must face the fact that the country is in the midst
of a terrifying war - and every meeting with Captain Ashton might be her
last. But just as she dares to hope they might have a future, their love
is put to the sternest of tests.
WILLIAMS, Andrew
The Interrogator
Spring, 1941. The armies of the Reich are masters of Europe. Britain stands
alone, dependent on her battered navy for survival, while Hitler’s
submarines – his ‘grey wolves’ - prey on the Atlantic
convoys that are the country’s only lifeline.Lieutenant Douglas
Lindsay is amongst just a handful of men picked up when his ship is torpedoed.
Unable to free himself from the memories of that night at sea, he becomes
an interrogator with naval intelligence, questioning captured U-Boat crews.
He is convinced the Germans have broken British naval codes, but he’s
a lone voice, a damaged outsider, and his superiors begin to wonder -
can he really be trusted when so much is at stake?
Wogan, Terry.
Where was I?
'Where Was I?!' builds up a picture not only of Terry Wogan's world, but
of Terry himself - a man who somehow manages to be off the wall and on
the money all at the same time. Never less than funny, and never less
than frank, Wogan demonstrates exactly how he has come to be regarded
as a national treasure.
WOOD, Valerie
Far From Home
Georgiana, accompanied by her maid Kitty, sets sail for America to start
a new life. When they arrive in New York, Georgiana meets by chance a
man called Allen, who has taken on the identity of her brother-in-law
Edward Newmarch. Allen had been his valet and had abandoned Edward when
he ran into trouble with a woman and had to lay low for a while. Edward
is now escaping from a bigamous marriage and fleeing to the gold mines
of California. Meanwhile Georgiana and Kitty seek their fortune with a
man called Dreunel, owner of a newspaper business, who is involved in
mining, and becomes her partner.
WOOD, Valerie
The harbour girl
Scarborough, 1880. Young Jeannie finds herself pregnant and alone. She
moves to the port town of Hull where her new, difficult life with a child
is often made bearable by the kindness of others. But she finds herself
wishing for the simpler times of her past.
Wood, Valerie
His brother's wife
1860. Harriet Miles is trying to take care of her seriously ill mother,
and just when she thinks things couldn't get any worse she is fired from
her job at the hostelry. The last thing she expects after her mother dies
is a marriage proposal from a man she barely knows, but her only alternative
is the workhouse. And so begins her new life with Noah Tuke. But instead
of marital bliss, Harriet finds herself in the cramped farmhouse which
Noah calls home, and in this overcrowded and angry household she meets
with hostility and bitterness. The only person who offers her friendship
is Noah's brother, Fletcher. Gradually she learns the true reasons behind
Noah's desire to marry her - and realises that the only person she finds
real companionship with is the person she can't possibly be with.
Woodman, Cathy
Country loving
Successful city accountant Stevie receives two surprises in one week:
a proposal of marriage and a phone call begging her to return to Devon
to help out after her father has a stroke. But what she thought would
be a long weekend in the country becomes a struggle to bring order to
her father's rundown farm.
WOODMAN, Cathy
Family Matters
A heartwarming and often hilarious novel about a mum trying to keep her
husband away from temptation, her little horrors out of mischief and,
somehow, her head above water. When Lisa Baker’s wedding anniversary
entirely slips her husband’s mind, she decides it’s time to
put the va va voom back into her marriage. But everything in Lisa’s
life seems to conspire against romance. Her headstrong teenage daughter,
Jade, is increasingly difficult to handle, while her beautiful newborn
baby, Chloe, brings the inevitable sleepless nights. The one thing that
is going well is Lisa’s cleaning business, Maids 4 U, which she
runs with her best friend, Clare. And their curious mixture of clients
is a constant source of entertainment. But when an attractive, slender
blonde called Jacqui comes literally crashing into Lisa’s life,
a dented car is the least of her worries...
Woodman, Cathy
It's a vet's life
Christmas is coming, and life is busy for vet Maz Harwood. She has a beautiful
baby boy, George, and she will soon be marrying fellow vet Alex Fox-Gifford.
But between arranging the wedding, performing life-saving animal surgery,
and taking care of George, Maz doesn't have much time left for Alex, and
even if she did, he's working even harder than her. And as Alex won't
do anything to make life easier, Maz has decided that she will have to
take matters into her own hands. But Maz's solution has terrible consequences
for them all, and as the wedding approaches, Maz realises that it will
take a Christmas miracle to get her and Alex to the alter.
WOODS, Janet
Nobody’s Child
In this passionate story of poverty, heartbreak and enduring love, Laura
Page returns to the remote Holderness village of Welwick to try and discover
the mystery of her mother Susannah's early life, when she was brought
up with the terrible stigma of bastardy — of being nobody's child.
WORBOYES, Sally
Keep on Dancing
Rosie Curtis is devastated when her brother Tommy is viciously murdered
after dabbling in the criminal underworld. Not only is her carefree existence
suddenly over but, without Tommy’s support, her dreams of becoming
a dancer are shattered. Powerless to avenge her brother’s death,
Rosie throws herself into saving a local music hall from closure and planning
a musical spectacular, despite the misgivings of her family. But when
Rosie comes face to face with her brother’s slayer, she realises
she must stop at nothing to see the criminals punished. While she fights
to stage her show and put Tommy’s killers away for good, her brother’s
smiling face appears in her thoughts, telling her to keep on dancing...
can she find the strength without him?
WORBOYES, Sally
Valentine Moon
Patsy Lamb is turning seventeen at the start of the 60’s. The slums
of the East End are making way for the new modern lifestyle that is being
promised to Patsy's generation. But as Patsy looks to the future, her
world is rocked by a secret from her past. It changes everything she thought
she knew about her family. As Patsy struggles for answers, she turns to
her grandmother. Molly, after all, has always been there for her. But
Molly has problems of her own. Desperate to escape her abusive husband,
Molly wonders if she's got the energy to fight any longer. These two women,
generations apart, must both search their hearts for the strength to overcome
their problems. And as Molly discovers that you're never too old to follow
your dreams, Patsy must learn whether in the end, love is all you need.
WORTH, Jennifer
Girl from Brick Lane
Not all is what it appears at number 10 Beaumont Square. The seemingly
perfect marriage of Tobias and Isobelle Wellington is fractured when a
dark secret surfaces. But to the public eye, nothing changes. However
twenty years later Tobias’ past catches up with him. Flora Brown
and her daughter Beanie are employed below stairs as cook and scullery
maid. Beanie is the illegitimate daughter Flora conceived with Tobias
all those years ago. Tobias fears that she will talk if he sacks her,
so he has no choice but to let them stay. Him above the stairs and them
below.
Worth, Jennifer
Shadows of the workhouse
In this follow up to 'Call the Midwife', Jennifer Worth, a midwife working
in the docklands area of East London in the 1950s tells more stories about
the fascinating people she encountered.
WYSS, J.
Shadows of the Workhouse
In this follow up to Call the Midwife, Jennifer Worth, a midwife working
in the docklands area of East London in the 1950s tells more stories about
the fascinating people she encountered. These stories give a fascinating
insight into the lives of the poor in 1950s London, of the shadow of the
workhouse that always hung over their lives but also of the resilience
and spirit that enabled ordinary people to overcome their difficulties.
YORKE, Margaret
Evidence to Destroy
Flighty Thelma Hallows returns home to rural Milton St. Gabriel after
her latest failed affair, bringing young Edward Fletcher, whom she picks
up on the way. Thelma's widowed mother reluctantly accepts the two, despite
her disapproval. With the passing days, Thelma attracts elderly Arthur
Morrison who hires her as his housekeeper. When Arthur is killed, the
police search for Edward, the obvious suspect as an ex-convict and presumably
Thelma's rejected lover. But the situation, deftly built by the author
to a tragic climax, reveals a stronger motive for murder. Although Arthur
is a good man, he represents disaster to a villager with a shameful secret.
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