Showing results by publisher "Penguin Audio" in Urban

Jade isn't even my real name. Jade began as my Starbucks name, because all children of immigrants have a Starbucks name. Jade has done all the right things. She's curated herself to fit right in at her law firm, but tells herself she has no choice. She's with a man who loves her, but isn't always herself around him. She's made her Omma and Baba proud, but resents that they can't properly understand her. Jade is perfectly in control of her life. Until one terrible night unravels Jade's carefully constructed world, leaving her wondering who she truly is.

A masterful, moving novel about age, memory, and family from one of the literary icons of our time. Ptolemy Grey is 91 years old and has been all but forgotten - by his family, his friends, even himself - as he sinks into a lonely dementia. His grand-nephew, Ptolemy's only connection to the outside world, was recently killed in a drive-by shooting, and Ptolemy is too suspicious of anyone else to allow them into his life. Until he meets Robyn, his niece's 17-year-old lodger and the only one willing to take care of an old man at his grandnephew's funeral.

A good job, a beautiful wife, a big house in a nice neighbourhood; there's really only one thing missing from the picture: a baby. But motherhood is a serious undertaking, especially for a wife who has always valued her selfhood above all else. And there's also a bigger problem: Temi, the wife's best friend who swears she knows her better than her husband. Set over the course of one day, husband, wife and friend toe the lines of compromise and betrayal.

Years on from Trainspotting Sick Boy is back in Edinburgh after a long spell in London. Having failed spectacularly as a hustler, pimp, husband, father and businessman, Sick Boy taps into an opportunity which to him represents one last throw of the dice. However, to realise his ambitions within the Adult industries, Sick Boy must team up with old pal and fellow exile Mark Renton.

Famous film star Lila Crayne is America's sweetheart: she's generous and kind, gorgeous and magnetic. A golden girl. She and her fiancé, visionary filmmaker Kurt Royall, have settled into a stunning New York apartment, and are embarking on a new movie: a modern feminist adaptation of a classic twentieth-century novel. To prepare for the leading role, Lila begins work with charming and accomplished therapist Jonah Gabriel to dig into the trauma of her past. Soon, Lila's impeccably manicured life begins to unravel on the therapy couch - and Jonah is just the man to pick up the pieces.

Malcolm Gephardt, handsome and gregarious long-time bartender at The Half Moon, has always dreamed of owning a bar. When his boss is finally ready to retire, Malcolm stretches to buy the place. He sees its unquantifiable magic and potential and hopes to make it a bigger success, but quickly realizes that his customers don't like change. His wife Jess is smart and confident, and has devoted herself to her law career. But after years of trying to have a baby, she's struggling to accept the idea that motherhood may not be in the cards for her.

Ronke, Simi and Boo are three mixed-race friends living in London. Everyday racism has never held them back, but now in their 30s, they question their future. When Isobel, a lethally glamorous friend from their past, arrives in town, she is determined to fix their futures for them. Cracks in their friendship begin to appear, and it is soon obvious Isobel is not sorting but wrecking. When she is driven to a terrible act, the women are forced to reckon with a crime in their past that may just have repeated itself.

One hot, humid night in London, Cara is caught up in a wave of terror and chaos. Until a hand reaches out - and a stranger pulls her to safety. Taking refuge with her unlikely rescuer, Cara shares more of herself with Amy than she ever has with anyone, including her husband. But after the hours of darkness are over, she can't remember exactly what secrets she revealed.

Rebecca Navarro, best-selling authoress of Regency romances, suffers a paralysing stroke. Assisted by her nurse, Rebecca plans her revenge on her unfaithful husband. Dave Thornton, soccer thug, has lost his heart to flawed beauty Samantha Worthington. Together they go in search of the man who marketed the drug that crippled her - in order to cripple him. Lloyd from Leith has a transfiguring passion for the unhappily married Heather. Together they explore the true nature of house music and chemical romance.

Grace has what one might call a 'full and interesting life', which is code for not married and has no kids. Her life is the envy of her straight friends, but all this time she has been waiting in secret for love to hit her so hard that she would run out of breath, like the way a wave in a rough sea bowls you over, slams you into the sand and nearly drowns you.

Zadie Smith's deeply funny, subversive and splendidly entertaining The Autograph Man is a whirlwind tour of celebrity and our fame-obsessed times. Following one Alex-Li Tandem - a 20-something, Chinese Jewish autograph dealer turned on by sex, drugs and organised religion - it takes in London and New York, love and death, fathers and sons, as Alex tries to discover how a piece of paper can bring him closer to his heart's desire. Exposing our misconceptions about our idols - about ourselves - Zadie Smith delivers a brilliant, unforgettable tale about who we are and what we really want to be.

6.45 a.m. A sweltering London rush hour. And in the last 27 minutes, seven people have been murdered. In a series of coordinated attacks, seven men and women across London have been targeted. For journalist Famie Madden, the horror unfolds as she arrives for the morning shift.

In the shared and private spaces of Iowa City, a social circle of lovers and friends navigate tangled webs of connection as they try to figure out what they want, and who they are. At the centre of the group are three dancers: Ivan, tall and stoic, who is leaving ballet for a career in finance; Fatima, whose work ethic earns her both admiration and enmity; and Noah, who 'didn't seek sex out so much as it came up to him like an anxious dog in need of affection.'

I’m Johanna Morrigan, and I live in London in 1995, at the epicentre of Britpop. I might only be 19, but I’m wise enough to know that everyone around me is handling fame very, very badly. My unrequited love, John Kite, has scored an unexpected Number One album, then exploded into a Booze And Drugs HellTM - as rockstars do. And my new best friend - the maverick feminist Suzanne Banks, of The Branks - has amazing hair, but writer’s block and a rampant pill problem. So I’ve decided I should become a 'Fame Doctor'.

You are young, ambitious, college-educated and a feminist. Your new job is in television. To climb the ranks, you do whatever it takes. You know the rules of this world. When someone senior tells you how pretty you look, you smile and thank him—and make a mental note never to wear that dress alone with him again. When whispers start to circle that your office might have 'a bit of a rape problem', and your close friend confesses her own unsettling encounter, you know there is plenty to gain from staying silent, and all too much to lose through speaking out.

Nina does not have a drinking problem. She likes a drink, sure. But what 17-year-old doesn't? Nina's mum isn't so sure. But she's busy with her new husband and five-year-old Katie. Nina's almost an adult, after all. And if Nina sometimes wakes up with little memory of what happened the night before, then her friends are all too happy to fill in the blanks. Nina's drunken exploits are the stuff of college legend. But then one dark Sunday morning, even her friends can't help piece together Saturday night.

Mona is the eccentric Lady of Easley House, running a bed and breakfast to keep her inherited English manor afloat. Wilfred is Mona's 26-year-old adopted son who spends his weekends in London, looking for love in the gay bars of Soho while pining after his pen pal, Michael 'Mouse' Tolliver. The current guest of the manor is Rhonda, a straight-laced southern belle who has left her abusive husband and has no idea what to do next, especially in the company of the free-spirited Mona and Wilfred.

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Beautiful Mutants by Deborah Levy, read by Kristen Atherton. Levy's surreal and artful first novel introduces Lapinski - the manipulative and magical Russian exile who summons forth a number of urban pilgrims in a shimmering contemporary allegory about broken dreams and desires.

Vera Abramowitz is determined to leave her gritty childhood behind and live a more exciting life, one that her mother never dreamed of. Bobbing her hair and showing her knees, the lipsticked beauty dazzles. As the ultimate flapper, Vera captures the attention of two high rollers, a handsome nightclub owner and a sexy gambler. On their arms, she gains entrée into a world filled with bootleg bourbon, wailing jazz, and money to burn. She thinks her biggest problem is choosing between them until the truth comes out. Her two lovers are really mobsters from rival gangs....

Portia Daniels' life is sorted. She has a perfect man (Jason, a hot TV producer from Ireland), a perfect apartment (in lower Manhattan), a perfect job (writing for TV). Best of all for her, unlike the rest of her family, she lives in perfect obscurity. On the other hand, it's all drama with her mother, Dessie, Kerry-born queen bee of hit reality show, Ladies of Los Angeles, and sisters, Vinnie, a supermodel-turned-Insta-guru and Ariel, a Tik-Tok teen sensation. When Jason drops a bombshell that leaves her life in tatters, Portia flees to be with her family.