Showing results by narrator "Chris Macdonnell" in All Categories

It can be said that the subject of Rating Pilots and the Fleet Air Arm may only be of interest to avid aviation and naval historians. In this short but concise treatise, Alan Clifford provides an in-depth and detailed history, from the inter-service social and governmental politics to the practical reasons for the Rating Pilot schemes coming into being.

Ten thousand Allied troops landed in the Netherlands in September 1944. This was the largest airborne invasion ever undertaken and it ended in utter disaster. Eight thousand men were killed, wounded, or captured during the Battle of Arnhem. Yet, what of those who escaped? And how did they manage it when surrounded by German troops? Leo Heaps' remarkable book, The Grey Goose of Arnhem, charts the activities of 250 men who, with the aid of Dutch Resistance, made it back across the Rhine to Allied lines.

A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is set in Paris and London, firmly placed in the period leading up to and including the French Revolution to the subsequent Reign of Terror. It's primarily the tale of Doctor Alexandre Manette, who is unjustly imprisoned in the Bastille for 18 years; his daughter, Lucie Manette, who believes him to be dead; two men who both fall in love with her; and the supporters or foes of the family who, for their own reasons, love or despise them.

Given the time and location in which it was written, the original Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi contains many events and episodes which, today, many consider unsuitable for a modern children's audience. The Disney animated version was changed in many ways to reflect this - and so is this adaptation. Chris MacDonnell and Spoken Realms have re-imagined and re-written the more unsuitable sections to reflect contemporary expectations of children's literature. However, it is still truly a children's classic and the story is largely unchanged.

The novel is the story of a scientist who, through the study of optics finds a way to make things invisible. In a desire for recognition, fame, and the advantages of being invisible, he subjects himself to the process. But being unseen isn't as positive as he had hoped, and he soon finds himself regretting his condition, and his mind also becomes warped. He becomes mentally unhinged. Later, he embraces his invisibility and begins to spiral into a lust for power and control, and he reveals a plan he has hatched to unleash his personal "terror" on the world.

Enter the humidity, feel the cold steel...Frank Bowen is pulled into a conspiracy that will change his life forever and throw him neck-deep into the dark world of espionage, murder, and terrorism...The first three thrillers in the Frank Bowen Conspiracy Thriller series collected in one gripping volume: False Flag, Pandora Red, and Ghost Order. If you enjoy conspiracy, ruthless assassins, and nonstop action, then you’ll love the Frank Bowen.

The dragonkin have returned, devouring the essences of those able to tame the Elements. Now Elwin must learn to survive in exile. As he searches for ways to use his innate powers without being destroyed by the dragons, Zarah and Feffer seek out secrets long hidden by the ancient magi. But the magi guard their secrets dearly, and have stepped from the shadows, using their Words of Power to wage war against the elementalists. With enemies everywhere, Elwin still must learn to master the Elements and save the people most dear to him.

Frank Bowen attempts to piece together a fractured life at home but finds himself pulled back into the dark state once again. Only, this time, he’s playing both sides. Hired by John Rhodes, founding father of the Liberatus movement, his mission is to escort a valuable asset to South America. Then the spectre of Carl Paterson emerges and Frank finds he has to work once again with his old agency, Ghost 13.

Mindful Business Leadership presents a new model of leadership. It introduces 10 very different leadership roles that are required to meet the challenges of modern business. Memorable metaphors and images are created for each, and they are placed in a matrix. Listeners are shown how to develop these roles within themselves. Potentially negative aspects of each are discussed, along with material on how to put these to creative use.

London, 1888. A madman has begun the most notorious series of murders in history. With each new discovery of a woman's mutilated body, the citywide panic grows. The police seem unable to stop the killer, even when he taunts them with letters. Letters signed...Jack the Ripper. In another part of London, the reign of terror has touched a young writer and theater manager named Bram Stoker. The police have closed his theater's production of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and suspect its star of being Jack the Ripper. His livelihood endangered, Stoker sets out to find the real killer.

The ancient conflict that has waged on Earth for eons between two rival groups of alien gods, one from the bright center of the galaxy and one from the dark abyss beyond, is finally nearing its end. A prophecy foretelling the birth of children of the bright gods, the Lightbringers, is fulfilled, and dark forces immediately set out to destroy them. Raised in secrecy on a mysterious isle by a group of magical women called the Circle of Swans, one of the children, Deykin, is believed to be safe until one fateful day when his world unravels.

After a long journey, Jax finds himself abandoned far from home in the desert nation of Kalicodon. When any infraction to tribal honor will land him in chains as a slave, he must learn quickly to adapt in a foreign land in hopes of maintaining his freedom. In his struggles to liberate Daren from slavery, he meets Jesnia, a woman from his homeland, who has hunted fugitives from justice to the eastern edge of the desert. Without his own cunning and her talents, Jax may very well meet his end, fighting for his life in the arena.

Scrooge! His name has become synonymous with being miserly and miserable, especially at Christmas! A Christmas Carol is the much-loved novella by Charles Dickens which tells Scrooge's story. This mean, misanthropic man is visited by the ghost of his former partner, Jacob Marley, and then three spirits: the ghosts of Christmas Past, of Christmas Present, and of Christmas Yet to Come.

For countless years, Moth has been frozen still, one half drenched in eternal daylight, the other cloaked in endless night. For countless years, the soldiers of sunlight and the dwellers of darkness have lived in isolation. We are the children of Moth. We were born in sunlight or in shadow. We can stop the fire, or we can watch our world burn. This is our story.

Our world burns with war. In the west, the people of eternal sunlight invade the darkness, armed with swords, arrows, and torches. In the east, the children of endless night fight from the shadows. Soldiers of sunlight and dwellers of darkness. Their war flares across the world of Moth.

Rathen, a former Captain in King Delvant's army, is approached by the emissaries of a powerful lord to lead a team of fighters, healers, and mages to dispel brigands from his lands. Rathen quickly recruits his best friend Bulo, an ex-gladiator and landlord of the local tavern, to assist him. The two join other members of the group and begin to hear stories of magical creatures and numerous dead in the land they are supposed to cleanse. Despite this, they head for Ghrakus Castle.

Frank Bowen's mission is to find a GCHQ whistleblower, but in doing so unwittingly risks everything, including his own family's safety. As part of a covert team, assigned to dangerous missions, Bowen believes he knows what he's up against, until a team of Russian mercenaries are thrown into the mix, leaving everyone and everything hanging in the balance. It's a race against the clock to save all that he holds dear and uncover the dark truths behind his mission.

Our world has fallen still. One half lies drenched in eternal daylight, the other cloaked in endless night. Our people are divided, some living under the sun, the others hidden in shadow. All is light or darkness. All is the sun or the moon. All but me. My father was born in the never-ending sunlight of the West. My mother is a daughter of darkness. I am split in two. Like the moth of our forests, one wing white and the other black, I am torn.

A young man, Elwin, seeks to become an elementalist. But with war looming and an accident that could cost him his freedom, Elwin finds himself fleeing for his life and evading the Guardians of Life. The Guardians think Elwin guilty of the most grievous of crimes, and as he trains the gifts of his bloodline, he will discover a secret from long in his past.

1991: A plan to destabilise Hong Kong is emerging; the key players are being put into place, the wheels are in motion and innocent people will die. Frank Bowen is a Londoner on holiday in tropical Thailand. Half drunk and strapped for cash, he’s the perfect bait for a political plot that will leave him running for his life, with nowhere to turn.