Showing results by narrator "Deirdra Whelan" in All Categories

Nicola is returning to her family home for the Christmas holidays to spend the festive season with her loved ones for the first time in several years. But she gets a shock when she discovers that there will be an unexpected guest joining them for dinner. Their elderly neighbour, Barbara, will be present at the table too after receiving an invitation from Nicola's parents. That is a big problem for Nicola, although she struggles to let her family members know why. As far as they are concerned, Barbara is just the sweet old lady from next door. But Nicola knows the truth.

London, 1899: Head of Special Branch Commander Thomas Pitt is summoned to Buckingham Palace. In the twilight of her years, Queen Victoria is all too aware that the Prince of Wales will soon inherit her empire and must be beyond reproach. She tells Pitt she tasked her close friend and confidant, John Halberd, with investigating the Prince's friends, specifically Alan Kendrick, a wealthy playboy and betting man, but before he could report back Halberd was found dead in a rowing boat on the Serpentine.

One night, in a corridor of the Royal Naval Hospital, Greenwich, nurse Hester Monk is approached by a terrified girl. She's from a hidden ward of children, all subject to frequent blood-letting, and her brother is dying. While William Monk's River Police fight to keep London safe from gun-runners, Hester takes on a new role at the hospital, helping to administer a secretive new treatment. But she slowly realises that this experimental cure is putting the lives of the children at risk.

Jennifer’s life isn’t going as she planned. Fired from her job and on the brink of divorce, her only salvation lies at the bottom of a wine bottle. When her mother insists she get away from everything, she reluctantly agrees to explore her Italian roots in Tuscany. Staying in her family’s centuries-old cottage, she becomes embroiled in a mysterious tragedy involving her great-grandmother.

Amy is a loving wife and mother to her husband and two children, Michael and Bella. It's that dedication to her family that causes her to seek help for her teenage son when it becomes apparent he is going to fail his end of school exams. Enlisting the help of a professional tutor, Amy is certain that she is doing the best thing for her child. But when she discovers that there is more to this tutor than meets the eye, it is already too late. With the rest of her family enamoured, Amy is the only one who can see that there is something not quite right about her.

The 29th novel in Anne Perry's highly acclaimed crime series featuring Inspector Thomas PittGreenwich,1897. A macabre scene is discovered outside a house on Shooters Hill. There has been a vicious fight, and amid the bloodstains are locks of long auburn hair. Thomas Pitt, head of Special Branch, is called: this is the home of Dudley Kynaston, a minister with access to some of the government's most dangerous secrets, and any inquiry must be handled with utmost discretion.

Fran Gandolfini can’t help taking in strays; with four dogs, five cats and two bearded dragons, she refuses to give up on a creature in need. The only thing Fran has given up on, in fact, is her love life. Moving from the city to Penhallow Sands to work in the Tea Shop, Ethan Clarke hopes he’s made the right choice for his daughter, Tilly. His past means he struggles to trust people, but Fran might be the one person capable of changing that. Until a life-changing secret that Fran’s keeping for a friend causes a rift between them.

Just four months after Emma Hogan was born, her father was convicted of a heinous crime and sent to prison for life. Forty-six years later, and now a London-based journalist, Emma discovers an old notebook she suspects might be connected to her father. Embossed on the front of that notebook is a single word - Clawthorn. Unbeknownst to Emma, the innocent-looking notebook is anything but, and it takes a stranger with an uncanny knowledge of the past to warn her of that - an intriguing stranger named Clement.

In the peaceful Cotswolds village of Maybridge, you wouldn't expect to find a dead body in the rose garden. And certainly not two. Abby is horrified to discover the bones of a baby buried under a rose bush. It's in the garden of her soon-to-be ex-husband Howard's family home. She immediately calls the police. But she can't get hold of Howard. He's off on a jolly with the woman he's got pregnant. And then, just two days later, Abby finds Howard himself.

Orphaned at the age of 10, Archie Ledbetter is forced to live with his uncle in his very grand house. Uncle Walter seems emotionless, exhibiting little feeling towards the young lad. If it wasn't for some of the staff at Huntington Hall, Archie's life would be a complete misery. There's a dark secret that Cook hints at as to why Archie's mother left her lavish lifestyle behind and ended up settling in the East End of London, scraping a living selling cakes and confectionery from the back of a barrow in the marketplace. Archie's never known his father and wonders who he is.

Heather is a single mum who has always done what's best for her daughter, Chloe. From birth up to the age of 17, Chloe has never been any trouble, until one night when she calls her mother with some shocking news. There's been an accident. And now there's a dead body.... As always, Heather puts her daughter's safety before all else, but this is one time when she goes too far. Instead of calling the emergency services, Heather hides the body, saving her child from police interviews and public outcry.

Simone used to be the woman that other women would use if they suspected that their partner was cheating. She would investigate, find out the truth and if the men were guilty exact revenge. But after things went wrong with one couple, Simone was forced to go into hiding to evade the law. Having assumed a new identity, Simone is now Mary, a mild-mannered woman who doesn't raise her voice or get angry. But when she finds out that her new boyfriend is having an affair, it awakens in her the person she used to be.

Happily married couple Katie and Sean have plenty to look forward to as they move into their new home and plan for the future. But then they meet two of their new neighbours and everything on their quiet street suddenly doesn't seem as desirable as it did before. Having been warned about the other neighbours, and their adulterous and criminal ways, Katie and Sean realise that they are going to have to be on their guard if they want to make their time here a happy one. But the other neighbours seem so nice and that's why they choose to ignore the warning.

Obsession, jealousy, lust, revenge.... There is nothing more dangerous than a passion that curdles and spills into murder. Love, when it goes wrong and spirals into violence, leads to the most chilling and tragic consequences. Death at the hands of a partner or ex-partner is the most common form of murder for women, far outnumbering the risk of death from a stranger. Obsessional sexual desire is the common thread through the stories in this book, tragic examples of how death can come at the hands of a once trusted and loved partner.

Nazi Germany has been crushed, but is the war really over? Klara, Hitler's personal cook, swears she glimpsed him fleeing the Berlin bunker via a secret tunnel. The world needs undeniable proof of the Fuhrer's death, but it's not that simple. While Allied intelligence agents scour Europe to find such proof, and a Hitler double—"the Wolf"—lays a false trail across two continents, the real Hitler hides out in a Polish monastery, desperate to find his gold train so he can fund the Fourth Reich.

Elle Littlewood can barely believe her luck when her producer tells her about the chance to get her hands on a dilapidated chateau in Aix-En-Provence, France for a rock bottom price. It seems too good to be true, but as a home interiors influencer, she knows this would make incredible content. Lately, Elle has noticed the cracks start to show. Her life is the envy of thousands, and her social media posts show a beautiful, accomplished woman. Yet this wasn't always the case. If they knew the truth about her past, they would never look at Elle the same way again.

One summer can change everything. Catherine Bromley has spent her life in Penhallow Sands, dedicating herself to work and supporting her emotionally fragile mother. Since her father left, it's always been the two of them, and Catherine has no interest in romance. What's the point when men just leave? And besides, her mother needs her. But when handsome novelist Mark Coleman arrives to stay at the cottage overlooking nearby Plum Tree Bay, Catherine's world is changed.

There might be a war on, but that doesn't stop Georgina Garrett running her business with an iron fist. No one said running the Battersea gang was going to be easy, but her unflinchable nature makes Georgina unstoppable. With a role that requires a ruthless ability to seek revenge and pay out crippling punishments, Georgina's enemies are growing in number. With a target on her back, Georgina knows she must do everything to protect her family. But, with the loss of someone closest to her, can Georgina rise up from the ashes or allow a usurper take her crown?

Ed Truman's family is falling apart. His daughter Ally is being targeted by an alt-right incel organisation, Men Together. His house is being picketed, former clients are accusing him of sexual assault, his son won't speak to him. And then Ally disappears. Frantic, Ed suspects that Men Together have abducted her. But before he can go to the police, his DNA is found on the body of a young woman. Suddenly he's the subject of a nationwide manhunt, led by the tenacious DCI Jackie Rose.

Abby Finch arrives at the old church hall armed with festive mistletoe and holly, ready to decorate. But within moments of her walking through the door, tragedy strikes . . . Edward Marsh reaches to test the antique star at the top of the tree. There's a fizz and the lights go out. Abby hears the sickening thud of a body hitting the floor. When the lights turn back on, Edward is dead. It soon becomes clear it was no accident.