Showing results by narrator "Annie" in All Categories

In the New Year of 1936, Gwen Purdy, aged 21, leaves her home to become a schoolteacher in a poor area of Birmingham. Her parents are horrified, but she has the support of her fiance, a recently ordained clergyman. Her early weeks in Birmingham are an eye-opener: at the school she faces a class of 52 children, some of whose homes are among Birmingham's very poorest.

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 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.

Life is cruel. Arbor learns this lesson the hard way, when everything he loves is taken from him in a single night. Left alive by the men who butchered his family, Arbor has two options: give up and perish, or rise up and fight to take back the life he's lost. To do that though, he'll have to leave behind the only home he's ever known and venture out into the world beyond.

The Delvers LLC group is moving into the unknown. Tasked with a dangerous quest by Dolos, the god of Ludus, they have had to leave one of their members behind. Their journey will be full of shocking revelations as they learn more of Earth's ancient history. Forces of evil that have been gathering on Ludus have begun to act. Henry and Jason are rapidly being caught in the middle of a world war. The stakes have never been higher.

Devon Walker has had it rough lately. She kinda saved the game world - or, at least, earned the citizens of Aventalia a small respite from the demon attacks - but the wild magic she used had some devastating consequences, starting with a shattered landscape and the apparent vanishing of her settlement. Now, it's up to her to fix the problems, save her NPC friends, and lay plans to take the attack to the demon forces.

Being the Chosen One is supposed to be awesome, right? Well, that's what most people assume. Most of them haven't tried it yet. Devon Walker really just wanted to power level and collect some loot along the way. But yeah. Things in Relic Online just haven't turned out like she'd hoped. Recently, she completed an epic quest line to reawaken ancient magic, but so far it's been anti-climactic.

Despite living by the side of the Thames, with its noise, disease and dirt, 18-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 goes back on his promise and turns Rosina out onto the streets.

September 1941. Mary arrives in war-torn London nursing a broken heart and a painful secret. When she is offered her dream post as an assistant in the fabric department at Liberty store, she knows this is the fresh start she needs. Amid the store’s vibrant prints and sumptuous interiors, Mary finds a new family who can help her to heal. But not everyone will give Mary such a warm welcome, and the trauma of her past will soon catch up with her. As Mary and the Liberty Girls endure the heartache and uncertainty of war, it will take a steady heart to keep the magic of Christmas alive.

CEO and alpha werewolf Drake Wilder has given up the search for his one true love. When he discovers that she's a secretary in his company, Drake's primal instincts kick into overdrive. What he wouldn't give to have her fingers rake over his body instead of the keyboard...

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.

Family of Women is the story of three generations of women. Bessie: scarred by a childhood of poverty in the slums of Victorian Birmingham and left a young widow with four children, is a hard, bullying woman who will go to disturbing lengths to keep her family under her thumb. Violet: one of Bessie's four children, marries young to escape, into the arms of a man whose life will be broken by war. Linda: grows up on a large housing estate in the 1950s with older sister Joyce and her beloved young sister Carol. Intelligent and energetic, she craves education and something more than the life she sees around her.

Young widow Louise Rutherford longs to find a new husband, and when a handsome American officer arrives to recruit volunteers for a secret project, she senses an opportunity. Her efforts are hampered, though, by her determination to help a 10-year-old war orphan, George Nelson. On both sides of the street there are challenges to face. Jen Carter's relationship with Henry Keller is threatened when an old flame reappears in her life. Her mother Joyce's decision to take romance slowly threatens to become a dangerous mistake when the V1 rockets start hitting London.

The war is almost over - and it's up to the East End Angels to keep the home fires burning! Frankie's fiance, a doctor, is away looking after the troops in Europe - will he return safely home? Winnie has a happy secret - but can she carry on at Station 75 when she's going to have a baby? Bella is intrigued by her new friend, a Polish airman. As the war ends and victory is in sight, what's next for the girls of Station 75?

Tira's dinosaurs now have foes that can match their might. The Amedian's betrayal has rocked the world, and the revelation of their ultimate weapon nearly spelled Tira's doom. As the last surviving dungeon in the kingdom, Tira now finds herself overrun by adventurers and soldiers looking to increase their strength for the coming war. She barely has time to deal with that, however.

The gripping new Second World War novel from Sunday Times top ten best-selling author of While We're Apart. After the death of her parents in a bombing raid, Mary Jones discovers a secret in the pages of her father’s diaries. Her search for the truth brings her to Cliffehaven on the south coast. Here she finds work at the Kodak factory, sifting through the airgraphs, which are being sent from all over the world by the men and women in the armed forces and by their loved ones.

Having picked up a trio of young ladies who are in need of an escort back home, Xeal sets off to return them to their tribes in the beast-man lands. If Xeal can manage to strike a few deals with the various tribes along the way, all the better.

Maddie Layne's life hasn't been the same since her sister was murdered. The police never found Greta's body so all Maddie was left with was unanswered questions - and her orphaned nephew, Zac, to look after. She works hard to make sure Zac has everything he needs; she even tends graves for some extra cash. Maddie isn't looking for any trouble.Lucy Rivers died decades ago under suspicious circumstances and the people responsible believe the entire affair is over.

Sheltered and naïve Carmen Darby has lived under the thumb of her father Rex, a brutal criminal businessman, her whole life. But when Rex announces his retirement and plans to leave his vast wealth to his three daughters, Carmen doesn't thank her father as effusively as he'd like, enraging him. Cast out from her home, Carmen assumes a new identity and starts her life over, but she knows she can't outrun the sins of her family for ever.

London, 1942. Charlotte Fenimore is back home on a week's leave from the Women's Auxiliary Airforce. She had planned for a week of rest and recuperation. She hadn't planned to fall deeply in love with an irascible detective called Dan Chalmers, a wounded hero of Dunkirk who believed no woman would ever look at him again.