Showing results by narrator "Rachel Atkins" in All Categories

After the unexpected death of his wife, Guy and his young son, Felix, deal with their grief in different ways. Touching, funny, and bittersweet, this is a story about love, loss, and loyalty. Sometimes a bit of earth can mend a broken heart.

There were six of them - three Katherines, two Annes, and a Jane. One of them was the king’s wife for 24 years, another for only a year and a half. One died, two were divorced, and two were beheaded. It was a dangerous, uncertain life.

After the King’s death in 1547, his sixth wife finds a box of old letters - one from each of the first five wives. They are sad, angry, frightened letters. They tell the story of what it was like to be the wife of Henry VIII of England.

The only woman to serve as a soldier in the First World War, the Englishwoman Flora Sandes became a hero and media sensation when she fought for the Serbian Army and pursued a distinguished career in its ranks as officer. This account charts her incredible story.

A thrilling radio re-imagining telling the story of Charles Dickens' last days and providing a brand-new conclusion to his famous unfinished novel. April, 1870. Bone-weary, sick and struggling with a hidden guilt, Charles Dickens is grappling with what will be his final book - The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Two months later, he is dead and the novel remains unfinished: only six of the 12 planned instalments had been completed.

The question of how and why organisms age has teased scientists for centuries. There are myriad competing theories, from the idea that ageing is a simple wear and tear process, like the rusting of a car, to the belief that ageing and death are genetically programmed and controlled. In fact, there is no clearly defined limit to life and no single, predictable program playing itself out: different things are happening within and between tissues, and each system or organ accumulates damage at its own pace, according to the kind of insults imposed on it by daily living.

On the day the comet came, a girl named Heloise was born. She would live a fine life and inherit a fortune but would meet a cruel, untimely death. Years later, strange dreams plague Katya Nemcová, a teenager burdened with a rare and curious gift. Memories come to Katya in her dreams - images and stories from a past that isn't her own. Are these ghosts real? And what of the memory she seems to have of Heloise's treasures, two centuries old?

Yesterday ended in disaster. Very late at night, I decided to write down everything that had happened; the only way I could think of coping. So here goes. So begins Michele Roberts’ intimate and honest account of the year after her latest novel has been rejected by her then publisher. Written with warmth and sensitivity, she navigates the difficult road from depression and anxiety to acceptance and understanding of the value of the friendships which nurture her and make life worth living - whatever happens.

You were the golden girl. The apple of your parents’ eyes. My beautiful, clever wife. I would do anything for you. But some things about me must stay hidden. One summer afternoon, it all begins to unravel. Because I’m not the only one with terrible secrets to hide.... And when the truth comes out, it seems we both have blood on our hands....

Dive into the timeless wisdom of Aesop, where animals speak, and humans listen. This collection of fables—packed with clever plots and memorable characters—offers sharp life lessons wrapped in simple, unforgettable stories. From the tortoise and the hare's race to the self-serving fox and the grapes, Aesop's fables touch on themes of greed, kindness, wisdom, and the consequences of our actions. With enduring relevance and lessons that still ring true today, these stories are a powerful reminder of the virtues that shape a meaningful life.

A man lies half-drowned on a Cornish beach at dawn in the furthest days of this century. The old woman who discovers him, once a famous concert violinist, is close to death herself--or perhaps a new kind of life she can barely contemplate. Does death still exist at all, or has it finally been obliterated? And who is this strange man she's found? Is he a figure returned from her past, a new Messiah, or an empty vessel? God or the Devil?

In the World of Ore, a 12-year-old kafarba girl holds the key to her people's future. When she fails to find her animal form, Geriana becomes a target for those intent on her banishment--or worse, her elimination. Legend of Geriana: Part One is a coming-of-age story written at a Middle-Grade level. This first installment explores themes of rejection and self-acceptance while introducing a unique and wonderful world of new and familiar races.

London, 1922. Orphan girl Alice dreams there's more to life than toiling long hours in Pink's jam factory. Inspired by stories about the legendary Queen of Thieves, Mary Carr, who terrorised the streets of Victorian London, Alice decides to set up her own gang: The Forty Thieves. Sly seamstress Kate Felix from Whitechapel has the same plan and will stop at nothing to keep Alice and her pals off her turf in the West End shops. But Alice is determined to win at all costs, hitting the headlines as the Bob-Haired Bandit.

Mary lives a contented life as wife to a wealthy merchant in Elizabethan London. But there's a part of her past she can't forget.... As a small girl she was cursed for causing the death of a vagrant child, a curse that predicts that she will hang. Sometimes the happiest households are not what they seem, and Mary's carefully curated world begins to falter. Mary's whole life is based on a lie. Is she the woman her husband believes her to be?

Silas Marner is the third novel by George Eliot, published in 1861. An outwardly simple tale of a linen weaver, Eliot's celebrated novel is notable for its strong realism and its sophisticated treatment of a variety of issues ranging from religion to industrialisation to community.

Cartoonist Steven Appleby asks where reality ends and fantasy begins, as he gives us his distinctly abnormal insights into everyday life. In these two series, he takes a look at a few of life’s fundamental topics, including Love, Death, Science, Truth and Oceanography.

Virginia Woolf: The Essays contains the most important and impactful of Woolf's non-fiction writing, including five essay collections and her most renowned essay: A Room of One's Own. Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) was an English novelist and essayist regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century. During the interwar period, Woolf was a significant figure in London literary society and a member of the famous Bloomsbury Group.

This collection contains Virginia Woolf's two most important and impactful non-fiction essays: A Room of One's Own and Three Guineas which have inspired and enraptured readers for decades. Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) was an English novelist and essayist regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century. During the interwar period, Woolf was a significant figure in London literary society and a member of the famous Bloomsbury Group.

Wuthering Heights: Lockwood is an unwanted guest, forced by a snowstorm to pass the night at the lonely and inhospitable house of Wuthering Heights. A child’s ghost pleads at the window to be let in; a waif who has wandered the moor for 20 years. Jane Eyre: Orphaned Jane emerges from a cold, hostile upbringing at Lowood Institution to take her place as governess at Thornfield, home of Mr Rochester. Her petulant but loving charge, Adele, and the housekeeper, Mrs Fairfax, are her sole company, while Rochester remains a distant, mysterious and yet imposing presence.

Following the death of Mr Dashwood, his wife and three daughters are forced to leave their estate and live in a small cottage in Devon. Austen's novel follows the sisters through love, loss, and heartbreak, until they find their way towards a happy ending.

The Complete Charlotte Brontë Collection includes Brontë's 4 finished novels and a selection of her poetry. Read by an incredible cast comprising of Rachel Atkins; Ben Allen; Kristin Atherton; and Emma Gregory, this collection is the perfect opportunity to delve beyond Jane Eyre and discover Charlotte Brontë's complete writings.