Showing results by narrator "Annie Aldington" in All Categories

Dying is easy. It’s living that’s hard....An eye for an eye. Cabhan Morton wants to leave the Russo crime family for good and live in peace with his daughter, Alice Rose. But the Russos won’t let him walk away without a fight. A tooth for a tooth...Franny Doyle would do anything for Cabhan and Alice, but helping them escape the vindictive Russo brothers won’t be easy. The only place they’ll be safe is back in Essex with Alfie Jennings. A daughter for a daughter...Franny knows she won’t be welcomed by Alfie with open arms....

Queenie Bonner is only two when she is taken from her large family in the slums to a big house in the country. Frightened and confused, she yearns for her nine brothers and sisters, especially her favourite brother, Harry. Albert and Mary Warrender rename her Eleanor, bringing her up as their own, and as time passes, Ellie forgets about her other family.

It is late 1940, and the war feels closer to home than ever for Rose Neville and her staff at the Lyon’s Teashop in Margate. The worry of rationing hangs overhead as the Nippies do their best to provide a happy smile and a hot cup of tea for their customers. When a heavy bombing raid targets the Kent coastline, Lyon’s is badly hit, throwing the future of the cafe into jeopardy. The light in Rose’s life is her dashing fiancé, Capt. Ben Hargreaves, and planning their Christmas Eve wedding.

Jane Hadley has nothing to lose when she runs away to join the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. Whatever faces her in war-torn London can't be any worse than staying at home with her abusive father. The city is nothing like she could have imagined, but she's soon on the move, travelling from base to base for her top-secret training. Making plenty of friends along the way, it doesn't take long for Jane to embrace her growing confidence - especially under the attentive eye of dashing Officer Oscar Stanton.

Even in wartime, East End girl Nancy Evans has reason to hope. She's a rising star in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, and she'll be walking down the aisle any day now...but then a brutal night of bombing changes her life forever. Newly pregnant and single, Nancy swaps her blue uniform for a pinny, taking on housekeeping duties for handsome village doctor David Denny. And though Nancy tries to stay cheerful and contribute to the war effort in any way she can, it isn't long before she finds herself leaning on David for comfort....

It was 1940, and many of the younger members of the Adams family were caught up in the war in France. Boots, now a major and on the staff of General Sir Henry Simms, was one of the thousands of British troops trying to escape in the armada of little boats from Dunkirk. His son, Tim, and nephew, Bobby, were also struggling to reach the coast and safety, while Eloise was with the ATS awaiting the homecoming soldiers at Portsmouth with a comforting cup of tea and a ticket home. Boots and Tim both made it safely back, but of Bobby, there was no sign, and the family all feared the worst.

The house in Caulfield Place, off Browning Street in Walworth, was haunted, or at least that's what the street kids said. So when two men, a woman and a parrot moved in, everyone was very interested, especially 14-year-old Cassie Ford, who was particularly fascinated by the parrot. And it was just about this time that Mr Finch, Chinese Lady's husband and Boots's stepfather began to get mysterious telephone calls. Mr Finch had never told the rest of the Adams family - except for Boots - the secrets of his past, or what kind of work he did for the government.

It was June 1916 when Sergeant Boots Adams of the Royal West Kents, together with his men, was billeted on the Descartes farm in Northern France. It was a short break from the turmoil and horror of the trenches, and Boots and his men, in return for their free billeting, were to help the farmer in his fields. It came as something of a surprise to discover that the land was being managed by a young French war widow, Cecile Lacoste and, to the distant sound of guns, a brief wartime friendship flared between Boots and Cecile.

December 1930. With the Depression biting deeper, it looks like many children in the East End will wake up to nothing on Christmas morning. Widower Robbie Graham earns just enough to put food on the table for his children, Ben and Ruthie. Local cake shop owner Flo Hawkins can't bear the thought of any child having nothing for Christmas. Along with her sister, Honour, she hatches a plan to bring some festive cheer to the community.

Two sisters living in London's tough East End… will Jennifer and Kathy be tough enough to survive?Katherine and Jennifer Finch are like chalk and cheese: Katherine is a midwife, dedicating her life to helping others - and Jennifer is a prostitute. Leaving home age 15, Jennifer must learn to live on her wits in London's notorious East End. Soon, however, she is battling drink and drugs, and is pregnant with a child. Her labour is nearly fatal, but her sister steps in to save the day.

Lavender Road boasts a pawnbroker, a pub, two rows of terraced working class homes and, at one end, the big house owned by the local brewer. When war breaks out, the lives and fortunes of the families who live in Lavender Road are changed out of all recognition. For Joyce, it means a struggle to keep food on the family table; for Jen it may mean the end of her dream to become an actress; and for Pam, there is the sickening seesaw of emotions as she fights attraction to her handsome lodger and a growing distance from a husband who is judged not fit to enlist.

It’s February 1942, and as the Americans finally join Britain and her allies, 23-year-old Francesca Fabrino is doing her bit for the war effort in a factory in East London. But her thoughts are constantly occupied by recently married Charlie Brogan, who is fighting in North Africa with the Eighth Army. When Francesca starts a new job for the BBC Overseas department, she meets handsome Count Leo D’Angelo and begins to put her hopeless love for Charlie aside.

Lottie Lane is all alone in the world. As a chambermaid at one of London's busiest inns, condemned to a life of drudgery and at the mercy of a vicious landlady, Lottie is too worn out to even dream of a better life. Until one night an injured soldier is brought to The Swan. Lottie nurses him back from the dead, and suddenly everything changes.

The new generation of the family are growing up quickly - Philip and Phoebe are spending time together and Maureen has ambitions to become a model. A local company wants to take over Adams Fashions and Boots and Sammy have difficult decisions to make. Rosie and Matt are thinking about selling the farm but worry their workers. While Felicity has resigned herself to never regaining her sight, Polly sees a familiar face that she can't place - a mysterious stranger who is being sheltered in Walworth. Anneliese encounters someone she never wished to see again and turns to Boots for help.

The 1950s are in full swing, and the Adams family is blessed with many new additions. Chinese Lady now has so many grandchildren that even she can sometimes scarcely remember them all. Boots and Sammy are kept up-to-date by the Adams youngsters, some of whom are now working in the family business. But they also welcome newcomers, including the lovely Anneliese, whose German ancestry makes her less than popular with some of her South London neighbours, and Joe and Hortense, newly arrived from the West Indies and working hard for Matt and Rosie on their farm in Kent.

Young Maisie Gibbs is a conscientious young woman, though life is harder since both her parents passed away. She is relieved when she finds a position as a housemaid in Kensington, under the watchful eyes of the formidable housekeeper, Mrs Carpenter, and she quickly settles in. When she meets a handsome young soldier, she is tempted to give him his marching orders. But gradually Corporal Daniel Adams starts to win her over.

Amy Carter is just 14 when she leaves school to look after her sick mother. But she is left all alone when her father is hanged for murder and her mother dies shortly after. Shunned even by her former friends, she is rescued by artist Benjamin Scott, who met Amy just once, read about the family's difficulties, and tracked her down. He takes the girl to his lodgings, where Amy, with Ben, his fellow housemates, and his kindly landlady, finds a real home for the first time.

Eden Chase is head over heels in love with her husband, Tom. He's the sort of man who doesn't give much away, but Eden doesn't mind that - Tom is worth the effort. So when he's accused of a years-old robbery and murder, Eden won't believe it. No, not her Tom - he's not capable of the things they're saying he did. With Tom in prison, it's up to Eden to clear his name. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more she uncovers about her husband's past. Does she really know him after all?

Aiden O'Hara has been head of the family since he was kid, and he's going to keep it that way. Jade Dixon is the one who watches his back. Mother of his son. The one who makes him invincible. But Jade's been in the game a lot longer than Aiden. She knows no one's indestructible. And when you're at the top, that's when you've got to watch the hardest. Especially the ones closest to you....

When Eloise Cribb receives the news that her husband's ship has been lost at sea, she wonders how she is ever going to manage. With two young children, the rent overdue, and almost nothing to live on, she has no alternative but to turn to his estranged family for help. She sets off on the long and arduous journey to Yorkshire, but is met with hostility and soon realises she has little choice but to return to London. Virtually destitute and desperate, Eloise is faced with her worst nightmare....