Showing results by narrator "Polly Edsell" in All Categories

'This impeccably researched wartime thriller had me gripped from the opening pages – I loved it.' Eliza Graham 'A nail-biting read from start to finish … a must for WW2 fiction fans' Tessa Harris Holland, 1944: Undercover British agent Nancy Callaghan has been given her toughest case yet. A...

Bronte Ashton thought she knew everything about her mother Loretta—until a stranger appears at her funeral claiming to be Loretta's long-lost sister. But Loretta was an only child. Grief turns to confusion, then a desire to find out the truth. Because while her siblings dismiss the woman as an impostor, Bronte can't ignore the nagging feeling that maybe they didn't know their mother at all.

Between her emotionally absent mother and her physically absent father, there is nobody to answer them. Eva is convinced that all is not as it seems. Why are there no baby pictures of her? Why do her parents avoid all questions about her early years? When her parents’ relationship crumbles, Eva begins a journey to find these answers for herself. Her desire to discover where she belongs leads Eva on a journey spanning decades and continents—and, along the way, she meets women who challenge her idea of what a mother should be and who will change her life forever....

‘I’ll always protect you.’ These are the words my mother whispered to me every time she kissed me goodnight. And whenever we ventured outside our windswept seaside village, she’d clutch my hand tightly and her face would be pinched and pale. I never understood why. But now I do. Growing up, I’d heard the whispers and the rumours. My mother tried to keep the truth from me, but she failed. I understand exactly what happened eighteen years ago. I know I am the murdered doctor’s child.

London 1917. As the Americans enter the war, there is renewed energy in the war effort. With husbands and sons fighting for freedom, the women of Harpers are left to tackle the day-to-day affairs at home and work. With Ben Harper away, Sally fears she is being followed by a mysterious woman. Who is she, and what does she want? Maggie Gibbs collapses seriously ill in the frontline hospitals and is brought back to England close to death. Can she be saved, and what does the future hold for her and her broken heart?

In 1947, returning to the UK with two young children to support, Margaret Durrell starts a boarding house in Bournemouth. But any hopes of respectability are dashed as the tenants reveal themselves to be a host of eccentrics: from a painter of nudes to a pair of glamorous young nurses whose late-night shifts combined with an ever-revolving roster of gentleman callers leading to a neighbourhood rumour that Margo is running a brothel. Margo's own two sons, Gerry and Nicholas, prove to be every bit as mischievous as their famous Uncle Gerald.

In enemy-occupied Paris, as the locals go to bed starving and defeated by the war, music and laughter spills through the door of a little restaurant, crowded with German soldiers. The owner, Marianne, moves on weary feet between its packed tables, carrying plates of steaming, wholesome food for the enemy officers. Her smile is bright and sparkling, her welcome cordial. Nobody would guess the hatred she hides in her heart. That night, the restaurant closes its doors for the final time.

The year 1934. Kitty Underhay steps out of the battered Rolls Royce and onto the graveled driveway of Thurscomb Castle in deepest Yorkshire. She’s honored to be a bridesmaid at her cousin Lucy’s wedding to the reluctant Lord Rupert Woodcomb, but as family and friends gather for welcome drinks, Kitty dodges intrusive questions about her own marital status by taking a stroll about the castle grounds. As she passes through the manicured gardens, a fatal shot rings out....

Sophie wasn’t expecting to find love in Sicily. But then she sees him: Emilio, a professor who works at the university where she is teaching for the summer. He’s kind, intelligent, funny, exciting and deliriously unpredictable… …maybe perfect. But paradise quickly turns to purgatory as she uncovers the haunting disappearance of Emilio’s first wife. And when she senses a shadowy character following her, watching her every move, Sophie starts to question her grip on reality. Is she being paranoid, or is nothing about her new life really what it seems?

In Judea, under the brutal rule of King Herod, a woman yearns for a child but is outcast when she does not fall pregnant. Against all convention, she masters the art of glassblowing. In Renaissance Florence, a young wife is left penniless by her hopelessly unfaithful husband and struggles to find a way to support herself and her young son. In contemporary Australia, a talented textile conservator, devastated by loss, is desperate to regain control of her life. Each woman wants something that seems unattainable, and it will take all their courage, creativity and determination to achieve it.

As winter turns to spring, Hollie—owner of The Starfish Café—is feeling content as she settles into her new life with her loving boyfriend, Jake, and their adorable dog Pickle. But when an unwelcome visitor threatens the future of her café, Hollie must stay strong to protect her family's legacy.

The stabbing of irascible General Sir Arthur Billington-Smith fails to stir up grief in anyone - least of all his family, which is no wonder considering the way he had treated them all during the fateful weekend. He had disinherited his son, humiliated his wife, refused to help his financially stricken nephew and made no secret of his loathing for his son's fiancée, a cabaret dancer. Inspector Harding picks his way through a mass of familial discontent to find the culprit - and find much more besides.

Don't miss the sixth instalment in the Maisie Cooper Mystery Series, Murder at the Wedding, available to pre-order now! Maisie Cooper is ready to tie the knot... but first she needs to untangle one last mystery... Amateur sleuth Maisie Cooper is busy planning her wedding to police officer Jack...

With Mulberry Lane's favourite pub, The Pig & Whistle undergoing renovation, proprietors Peggy and Able Ronoscki leave the chaos behind and head off on a trip of a lifetime to America. But disaster hits and Peggy finds herself in a critical condition in hospital. Meanwhile, business is booming for young entrepreneurs Fay Ronoscki and Maggie Rowan with their new restaurant and catering empire. Neither has time for love. But when fate throws a famous global singing sensation and glamourous racing car driver into their paths, falling in love with Jace and Greg seems beyond their control.

London 1958. Life has moved on since the war, and the youngsters of Mulberry Lane are growing up fast. Peggy’s Ronaski’s family is struggling with growing pains, but she is always there, strong, reliable and ready to help whenever a crisis hits. Meanwhile, Maureen Hart has family problems of her own to contend with. Together they will work hard to conquer all of what life has to throw at them.

Phillipa, Duchess of Dorsett is not your average demure lady in society. For behind her charming smile, she hides a secret and a wicked reputation. Tasked by Queen Victoria to protect the innocent, she's recruited the most formidable women of the ton - The Queen's Deadly Damsels. Lady Olivia Smithwick sold her soul to save her daughter, and in return has made an enemy of the Duchess. As they attempt their mission, together and alone, their simple deal becomes dangerously complicated.

Brought to you by Penguin. The fifth brilliantly heart-warming novel in the Wartime Bookshop series, perfect for fans of Maisie Thomas and Elaine Everest. Victoria is astonished when she discovers an abandoned newborn baby on her doorstep, along with a note begging her to 'take care of little...

Maisie Cooper is done catching murderers, thank you very much. Having recently brought her brother's killers to justice, she's ready to go back to her glamorous life in Paris. But little does she know that the idyllic Sussex countryside is home to more than one criminal... When Maisie receives a letter asking for her help in the little village of Bunting from the lady of the manor, she is curious enough to accept. She is then shocked to discover that the very woman requesting her assistance is her estranged Aunt Phyllis, who believes that someone is out to kill her.

Brought to you by Penguin. The first in a brand-new nostalgic and heart-warming WWII series, perfect for fans of Donna Douglas and Elaine Everest. Alice is nursing an injured hand and a broken heart when she moves to the village of Churchwood at the start of WWII. She is desperate to be...

Underneath the patina of civilized society lies the Sadean demimonde: a bundle of lustful appetites fueled by momentary impulse and a desire for unfettered indulgence. And the target of this savagery: Justine de Bertole, a pious and virginal heroine. Grotesque, inhumane, and compelling, Sade’s novel overturns Rousseau’s views of the social contract, and the common trope that punishment only visits sinners, to deliver a passionate treatise on good and evil, virtue and sin.