Showing results by publisher "Orion" in 20th Century

In a sleepy English village in 1944, Annabel and her son, Daniel, live in the shadow of war. With her husband away, Annabel withdraws ever deeper into long-ago memories of happier times. When mother and son befriend Hans, a German PoW consigned to a nearby farm, their lives are suddenly filled with thrilling secrets. But Hans has plans of his own and will soon set them into motion, with chilling consequences.

Newly married to dashing RAF officer Tom, Irene Farley leaves behind her safe countryside life to move in with his family by the docks in South Shields. Little prepares her for the devastation the Jerry bombers have wreaked on the Sixteen Streets or that they would be living under her mother-in-law's roof, alongside Tom's three brothers and two wives!

The island has a way of calling you home.... Ten years ago, Emily Watson was on top of the world: a best-selling novel, a husband plucked from the pages of a magazine, and a one-way ticket to happily ever after. Now her perfect life has crumbled, and Emily is left to pick up the pieces. So when her great-Aunt Bee invites her to spend the month of March on her beloved Bainbridge Island, Emily accepts, longing to be healed by the sea.

1944, Covent Garden. The mini Blitz has begun, with so much fear in the air best friends Sukie and Pattie are desperate to help in any way they can. Joining the mobile canteen workforce a few days a week, Sukie tries to bring a little bit of cheer to those devastated by the bombings, while Pattie finds herself drawn towards the returning evacuees searching for their families. What they both want more than anything is for the war to be over, but one wish will help them see that sometimes love, hope and happiness is always there, you just need to look hard enough.

It's 1943. Evie Yeo's best friend Sukie and sister Pattie are leaving Devon behind and heading to London to work in a hotel. Sukie's fiancé, Wesley, is in a swing band that's booked to play the bar and with Sukie 'upstairs' on reception and Pattie a chambermaid 'downstairs', they see and share all aspects of the hotel and meet all of its residents. From the military officials in town for meetings at the war office, to people from the theatre helping to bring joy to the capital in wartime, an eclectic mix of people come together at this small hotel in Covent Garden.

Jinx Sullivan should be enjoying a peaceful retirement in the Cotswolds—but peace has never really been her style. As a child prisoner of war in Japanese-occupied Singapore, Jinx witnessed unspeakable horrors, then faced prejudice and poverty as a refugee in post-war Britain, before life took an unexpected turn under the questionable mentorship of Penny Williamson—a social worker and WW2 spy. Jinx and Penny teamed up for a series of dangerous adventures, which saw them dodging the CIA in 50s Florence and plotting heists in swinging London. Now 89, Jinx craves one last escapade.