Showing results by narrator "Deryn Edwards" in All Categories

King Henry V's beautiful widow, Catherine, is determined to marry Owen Tudor, a Welsh gentleman-at-arms. But her life decisions are not her own, overshadowed as she is by more powerful men who are closer to the Throne. The Duke of Bedford would marry her off to a foreign prince, Henry Beaufort would give his allegiance in exchange for a Cardinal's hat, and the handsome Duke of Gloucester, brother of the dead king, openly desires her. Added to that, her son, the King, is a weak child. She must use all her wits and courage if she is to forge a new life for herself.

Spring 1919. WW1 might be over, but the inhabitants of Dorcalon in the Welsh Valleys still feel the pain of the war that took so many of their men. Polly Smith is trying to survive her own battle at home. After her abusive husband, Gus, was finally jailed, Polly has been raising her two-year-old son alone. But being a single mother isn't easy, and Polly finds it harder still as Gus's criminal activities leave her with a bad reputation. Lonely and struggling for money, Polly retreats as she becomes the subject of cruel gossip.

Family matriarch and Holocaust survivor Nora Wojnaswki is about to become the oldest woman in the world, and her family are determined to celebrate in style. Her great granddaughter, Debs, however, is not too happy about being left in charge of the party. It’s been a struggle to get the Rabbi to commit to a date and the large Wojnaswki clan can’t agree on what food should be served. Only, Debs’s problems are just beginning. Because Nora isn’t your average centenarian, and she has other ideas.

Margaret Beaufort was rich, beautiful and just 13 years of age when she discovered that she carried the future king of England within her body. Forced to give him up as a web of intrigue and danger was spun around her son, she entrusted the child to the care of his uncle, Jasper Tudor, who would have laid down his life for the Lancastrian cause. Caught up in the Wars of the Roses, Margaret was banished from court in disgrace, and although she later won the love and loyalty of three powerful men, her heart remained true to Edmund Tudor, the father of her son.

It's August 1917, and WW1 continues to take a toll. The villagers of Dorcalon try to keep hope alive, but every day brings fresh tragedy as more are killed on foreign battlefields. Elizabeth Meredith, daughter of mine manager Herbert, enjoys a privileged position in the village, but she longs to break free of society's expectations. Falling in love with miner Gwilym Owen brings more joy to her life than she's ever known...until she's forced to choose between her love and her disapproving family.

Eleven-year-old Emily doesn't think Badger Cottage - where she's had to move with her vet father after her mum died - will ever be home. But there is something out there that needs her: a bright pair of eyes in the darkness. In the middle of a fierce battle between a conservation project to re-wild the lynx in the woods and the local farmers, Emily tries to shield a baby lynx she calls Lotta, afraid it will be killed by the person who shot its mother. Can Emily work out who the illegal hunter is in time? Who can she trust?

July, 1916. In the Rhymney Valley, young mother Violet Jones is caring for four-year-old Clarice and baby Benjy on her own, while husband Charlie fights on the Front Line. When tragedy strikes, Violet’s life becomes even harder. Violet takes in a relative to help make ends meet. As the Great War takes its toll on the nation, Violet faces her own battle. Can she protect her children? And will she ever find joy out of the depths of despair?

This book is a definitive guide to understanding talking therapies. It will clarify questions, misunderstandings, myths and grey areas in therapy, compassionately guiding the reader through their journey from beginning to consider therapy, to finding the right therapist, preparing for the first session, surviving common challenges, knowing when to end therapy, and when to return.

Following retirement, Marigold Darwin returns to her home village determined to purchase a house. She meets two young boys, Mark and Steve, who hang around the Willows, where old Tom Morton lives. His housekeeper Ivy sometimes babysits Mark, although this may be a mistake. Neither boy is in the least concerned about others, regarding casual deception and theft as just part of everyday life. The same is true of their two friends, who have a seriously disturbed mother. Marigold is gradually drawn into the lives of all.

The haunting new novel from the author of 2014's stunning Richard and Judy Book Club best seller Daughter. Emma and Adam are doctors at the top of their fields, and so when they are offered the chance to take their three children to Africa for a year for a research placement it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. It's going to be an experience they'll never forget. But for all the wrong reasons.

Emily and Clemmie's lives changed forever when they took their great aunt's ashes to rest in a strange and exotic land. Clemmie stayed behind to begin a new life in the Mali desert, but now Emily fears for her cousin's safety. Returning to Africa with her new husband and two friends, she is determined to find out why Clemmie seems so desperately to need her help. Divinity is travelling to Mali to satisfy her curiosity about the land her father came from, and to source new materials for her design company. She doesn't expect the chaos and adventure she finds - nor the danger that seems to grow as her little group begin to make its way....

Italy, 1492. Five-year-old Mura is a strange and bewitching child. Daughter to a Nordic mother and Spanish father, she has been tutored in both Arabic learning and the ancient myth cycles of the north. But her widower father has been arrested by the Inquisition, and Mura is sold to a Genoese slaver. In the port of Savona, Mura's androgynous looks and unusual abilities fetch a high price.

In her eighth case, amateur detective Libby Sarjeant and her psychic investigator friend Fran Castle are invited to look into a house that is reputedly haunted. For once, Libby can be as nosy as she likes without being accused of getting in the way of a police investigation. However, when they unearth 50-year-old graves in the gardens, the police are bound to cramp their style. Someone alive today doesn’t want them interfering either, and their lives are in danger as they try to unravel the mystery of a ghost who plays Debussy.

November, 1915. For young housemaid Anwen Rhys, life is hard in the Welsh mining village of Dorcalon. She cares for her ill mother and younger sister Sara, all while shielding them from her father’s violent temper. Anwen comforts herself with her love for her childhood sweetheart, Idris Hughes, away fighting in the Great War. Yet when Idris returns, he is a changed man, quickly breaking off their engagement. But when there is an explosion at the pit, Anwen and Idris put their feelings aside to unite their community. Can Anwen find hope again?

Indigo is determined to prove her beloved Kane is innocent. Searching for evidence, she is helped by a kind stranger who takes an interest in her situation. Little does she know that her new friend has her own agenda. Alice can’t tell Indigo who she really is. She wants to understand why her son was killed - and she needs to make sure that Indigo’s efforts to free Kane don’t put her remaining family at risk. But how long will it take for Indigo to discover her identity? And what other secrets will come out as she digs deeper?

The Fourth Shore: the sliver of fertile land along the Tripoli coast, the 'lost' territory Mussolini promised to reclaim for Italy. Which is how, in 1929, 17-year-old Liliana Cattaneo arrives there from Rome on a ship filled with eager colonists to join her brother and his new wife. Liliana is sure she was on the brink of a great adventure, but what awaits her is not the Mediterranean idyll of cocktail parties, smart dances, dashing officers and romantic intrigues she had imagined.

After the body of a missing woman is discovered in a shallow grave, Detective Inspector Harry Powell steps in to lead the hunt for the killer. But when his investigation brings him face-to-face with an old case in his career, he begins to fear that a fatal mistake from his past may have left a dangerous criminal roaming free. While the Murder Squad are occupied by their new case, a new arrival sends ripples throughout the ranks. On the outside, Detective Constable Dane Hoopman appears to be like any other officer, but under the surface, does a dark secret lie in wait?

The Weston family have always pinned their hopes for creating a dynasty on their glamorous granddaughters. But Joan and Megan - confident and eligible though they are - regularly set tongues wagging with their outrageous behaviour. Their grandmother Gladys decides she must organise a party to find them suitable husbands - and that's when everything really goes wrong. Meanwhile, fortunes are shifting in Pendragon Island.

'Judith Mackrell has done an incredible job in bringing to life the stories of these two great artists' - Anthony D’Offay 'This is a must read . . . a deeply moving account of a family bursting with talent' - Anne Sebba In Artists, Siblings, Visionaries, acclaimed biographer Judith Mackrell...

Six Steps to Happiness is a hilarious look at just how far one woman will go to recover from a broken heart and find happiness again. When Ronnie's husband, Nick, leaves her for their next-door neighbour, Gaye, Ronnie's life starts to fall apart. Devastated by the break-up of her marriage...