Showing results by narrator "Laura Brydon" in All Categories

Ali, who has just returned home to Heft, needs all her diplomatic skills, not to mention a huge sense of humour, to navigate the requirements of her job. Drama lurks around every corner, from rogue parking in the disabled bays to a feud between the long-established Hooley bakery and a fancy new ‘cakery-bakery.’ When Brian Bright reports his wife Melody missing, at first Ali thinks it’s just another routine case. The evidence overwhelmingly suggests that Melody has simply left, tired of playing a supporting role to Brian’s obsession with classic cars and his first (dead) wife.

The four Sutherland sisters have all had very different paths in life, but one secret and a slighty tense production of "Jesus Christ Superstar" are about to bring them all back together again... When the news that pop-superstar Lexia Sutherland is returning to Westenbury, not everyone is thrilled by the news – including Lexia. There are too many memories she doesn't need to face – or need re-surfacing. Meanwhile, Juno Sutherland just wants a little peace and quiet. As the local village doctor, she's got her priorities in order; kids, job, husband, tenacious pony, a role in the village musical.

When Jennifer goes up to Cambridge University with her head full of the Romantic Poets, she never dreams that she will find her very own Byron. But then she meets gorgeous actor Laurie Lewis, and finds herself living a real-life love poem. Fifteen years and two children later, Jennifer and Laurie's relationship is starting to feel more like an epic tragedy. After a series of revelations turn her world upside down, Jennifer will do anything to keep her family together—even if it means moving hundreds of miles away to Laurie's childhood home in Westenbury, Yorkshire.

Scrabble fan Jo always seems to pick the wrong guys. Now she's moved to the Yorkshire village of Hebbleswick, and decided to give dating one last chance. This time, there's a catch: she will only date men whose names would score highly in her beloved word game. After Tarquin (16 points) proves just as disappointing as the rest, she meets low-scoring local doctor Ras (3 points). Her rules mean she can't date him—but when he asks her to organise a Scrabble festival with him, she can't say no.

Five old school friends reunited for a weekend in Sheffield. A drunken game of truth or dare. One won't survive. The young woman is found murdered in a swanky hotel room. Detective Claudia Nunn gets the text just as she leaves her therapist's office. The victim's friends all say the same thing: she had been distracted and kept disappearing all weekend. And on the Saturday, someone had screamed abuse in her face. Did she know her killer?

Winter, 1939. As December draws nearer and with her family facing their first Christmas without Bert, Nancy is desperately trying to keep up her children’s spirits and her own. Young Patty should be excited to be spending her first festive season with sweetheart Archie, but why does she worry he’s keeping something from her? Betty is missing her beloved William as he continues his RAF training, but she’s determined not to sit around wallowing.

After the untimely death of their biological father, triplets Eva, Rosa and Hannah find themselves the unlikely owners of Heatherly Hall, the vast manor house overlooking their home village of Westenbury. But the beautiful house comes with almost as much baggage as it does land, not least high running costs and expectations. It's up to the sisters to find a way to keep Heatherly Hall going and, most importantly, in the family. But with drama in their private lives and secrets about to emerge, can the sisters stick together to focus on the task at hand?

Summer 1940. The war is raging on but the Steel Girls are fighting their own battles closer to home. After patching things up with Archie, Patty is miffed when he appears to have forgotten all about her 18th birthday. New girl Hattie has a lot to deal with as she trades the counter at Woolworths for the Vickers factory floor. But is she keeping a secret and are things tougher at home than she’s been letting on? Meanwhile, Nancy is besides herself when she receives word that Bert is missing in action and is struggling to keep it together.

Meet the cool creatives behind awe-inspiring art, with this non-fiction title for kids. Pour paint onto a canvas with Jackson Pollock, laugh along with the pranks of Hokusai, and find beauty in your self-portrait with Frida Kahlo, as you follow the stories of more than 50 fabulous artists and their groundbreaking work. Through charming storytelling rich in detail, Artists covers celebrated figures as well as lesser-known trailblazers, each with a tale as intriguing as it is unique.

Lottie and Nick once had a dream marriage, but a series of failed IVF attempts has left Lottie feeling insecure, and her paranoia is further stoked by the arrival of a new starter at Nick’s firm. Nuala is the spitting image of a younger, more attractive Lottie, and Nick is paying her a lot of attention. But then Lottie discovers she’s pregnant. A surprise getaway to their country cottage to celebrate Nick’s birthday will provide the perfect backdrop to give him the news and start to heal the rifts in their relationship.

Spring 1940. As the war rages on, Vickers steelworks is busier than ever, which is proving tough for Nancy as she juggles working long hours and looking after two young children, all while waiting for her husband to return home safely. Betty is determined to roll up her sleeves and joins the Women’s Voluntary Service to keep busy and from fretting about her fiancé. But Patty is left worrying about someone closer to home. Sweetheart Archie has been keeping a secret from her, and one that puts him in great danger. Will it threaten to pull them apart for good?

In December 1940, the Blitz has reached Sheffield, but Steel Girl Hattie is more concerned about the war brewing at home between her parents. Desperate to help her mother in any way she can, will Hattie get through with the help of her factory sisters? Betty is overjoyed to learn that her fiancé will be coming home to complete his RAF training. But when the Blitz begins, he may be in greater danger than ever.

From the bestselling author of "A Village Affair" comes a warm, witty, wonderful new Westenbury tale... As the Yorkshire village of Westenbury mourns the loss of one of their own, the women can't help but contemplate who will fill the vacancy in handsome widower David's life. Meanwhile, Grace Stevens has decided to move on without her good-for-nothing husband. Right now, she needs to focus less on men and more on wrangling with her unruly class of pre-teens. And thankfully, there's plenty to keep her occupied.

Widowed early in World War Two, heartbroken Helen Harrison decides to leave her domineering mother determined to rebuild her shattered life. Her godmother, Pearl, offers her work in a fashion wholesaler. When the showroom is robbed, she meets DC Kershaw and he inspires her to join the Women's Auxiliary Police Corps. Helen throws herself into the work, dealing with evacuees, the destitute and vulnerable. A series of tragic events makes Helen realise there's still something missing in her life, and soon she will have to choose between two very different men vying for her heart.

After years of dating losers, cheats and one guy who did something unrepeatable to her kettle, Ruby has all but given up on romance. But then a stranger sits next to her on a train to London and explains his plan to propose to the woman of his dreams. Maybe true love does exist after all? When the man accidentally leaves the engagement ring behind, Ruby is determined to save the day. But she hasn't counted on fellow passenger Curtis stepping in and insisting he should be the one to track the stranger down.

Sisters Hannah, Rosa, and Eva are on a mission to sustain picturesque Heatherly Hall, in Yorkshire's Westenbury village. So when they hear the legend of the Jet Set - a necklace with a rare diamond, commissioned by royalty and hidden in their hall - they plan a fundraiser: an Agatha-Christie style am-dram production and treasure hunt.

Astrid Webb is missing. The police have found her car crashed near the woods, the driver's door open, the seat spotted with blood. But there's no sign of Astrid herself, a sick woman who rarely left her house, who surely couldn't have left the scene of the accident without help. Her husband Bryan is sure that she's alive - after all, this isn't the first time she's vanished, only to reappear without explanation. But as the days pass, Bryan starts to look like a suspect in his wife's disappearance, perhaps in her murder.

Set against the backdrop of a large London teaching hospital, Brain Fog delves into the life of Andrew Payne, a highly successful neurosurgeon who has everything on the outside, yet on the inside is not ok.

1827. At first sight, young heiress of Shrigley Hall, Ellen Turner, does not seem the type to elope with a stranger. Yet when Ellen vanishes from her boarding school in the arms of the rugged scoundrel Edward Wakefield, and the pair are sighted in a carriage racing from Gretna Green to the Port of Dover, everyone is forced to question her virtue. What possessed her to make such a wild transgression?

Kate has always dreamed of a life in music. And now she's finally done something about it–giving up her steady job, moving to the city to enrol in a degree program at a prestigious college. Needing a place to live, she answers an ad and moves in with Amy who seems a nice lady–mothering and protective. At first Kate is glad to have some support in this strange city, but gradually Amy's presence becomes more and more stifling–it just seems so hard to get away from her.