Showing results by narrator "Deborah Balm" in All Categories

Sol Yarrow didn't ask for much. A nice day for hunting. A peaceful shift at her gods-awful job. A steaming bowl of her Aunt's famous stew. But after twenty-five years of simplicity, everything she thought to be true was rewritten when four strangers came to her town of Yavenharrow to take her back to a shielded land known to be inhabited by ruthless Elemental Magic Wielders, a land only known by rumors and bedtime stories.

It's the wedding of the year in Pigsend, at least if you talk to Vicky Hamblin. The bride-to-be is dead set on making her wedding to baker Allen Mackey the most perfect spectacle in the history of weddings, if only to impress her two snooty aunts. Bev's in charge of hosting them at the Weary Dragon Inn, along with a carefully-curated list of other family members, all designed to impress. But when things start going awry, and Vicky suspects someone might be out to sabotage her wedding, Bev's on the case once more. Can she find out who's out to get the bride before the big day?

It is 741. Only one thing stands between Charles the Hammer and the throne—he's dying. Despite his best efforts, the only thing to reign after Charles's death is chaos. Son battles son, Christianity battles paganism, and Charles's daughter flees his court for an enemy's love.

Lady Seliah Phel can’t escape feeling like she’s one of those fairytale princesses awakened from a long slumber—except that her life is no romantic story and there’s no happy ending in sight. Though she has her magic and she’s been rescued from the depths of madness that consumed her since adolescence, Selly finds that the years she lost aren’t so easily recovered. Everyone treats her like the child they remember.

For most of human history, we were rural folk. Our daily lives were bound up with working the land, living within the rhythm of the seasons. And yet rural life is oddly invisible our historical records. The daily routine of the peasant, the farmer or the craftsperson could never compete with the glamour of city life, war and royal drama. Lives went unrecorded, stories untold. There is, though, one way in which we can learn about our rural past. The things we have left behind provide a connection that no document can match; physical artefacts are touchstones that breathe life into its history.

Haunted by sorrow and regret, Margaret Hale stands at the precipice of an uncertain destiny. Fiercely determined but not knowing how to find her way, she risks the little she has left on the heart she once shattered - hoping somehow to win back his respect, if not his love...Since he was a boy, John Thornton has fought the consequences of his father’s mistakes. Crushed on all sides, all he has left to offer the one who needs him most is a home, and a heart that aches for her.

The official celebration of All Creatures Great & Small and its incredible setting: the Yorkshire Dales. Featuring an in-depth look at the characters and real-life inspiration for the show, this book tells the fascinating story of the program’s main character: the Yorkshire Dales.

This comprehensive volume on dowsing and divining - from the twig and the pendulum to motorscopes and bare hands - traces the story of these fascinating and enigmatic phenomena from its origins in the world of fairy tales and mythology to recent theories that the enigma can be explained in terms of present-day psychology. The audiobook introduces us, in lucid style, to the fascinating world of dowsing and divining, and gives the listener full instructions on how to attempt to become one of this international community.

Recently widowed Agnes Lockwood is spending a few days on Tyneside in Northeast England, catching up with her past. When expensive jewelry is stolen at the hotel, Chief Inspector Alan Johnson gets on the case. After Alan recognizes Agnes as a friend from schooldays, they rekindle their friendship and Agnes bombards him with questions about the case. But after dinner one evening, they find a body lying on the roadside. Fearing for her safety, Alan warns Agnes to stay away from the case. But being an inquisitive woman, Agnes cannot resist getting involved...too involved.

When Lady Seliah Phel wakes from a drugged sleep to find herself abandoned by her newly bonded wizard, she vows revenge—and to hunt him down. Tracking him through the familiar wilds of the marshlands of her home is the easy part–learning to use her nascent magical skills is something else entirely. So is facing the vast, uncaring society of the Convocation in a time of brewing war.

Miss Agatha Cartwright isn't certain she believes in love. Her father blamed her for her mother's death, and treated her terribly. Her life changed upon his death, and the Duke of Wharton became her guardian. Suddenly, she has a family, and with that, a plethora of opportunities. It also makes her question everything...including the possibility of love.

Agnes Lockwood returns to Tyneside, only to stumble across another dead body. On her first visit, she helped the police solve a murder and gained quite the reputation as an amateur sleuth. Now, she is simply looking forward to meeting again with Alan Johnson, a DCI with the Newcastle police force. She is hoping their relationship will continue to blossom, but on her first day back in the city, she gets caught up in another murder. And this time, her intrusion into the police investigation pushes Alan Johnson’s patience to the very limit.

Jadren El-Adrel knows he’s a mess. He’s a cobbled-together monster pretending to be a wizard, still unable to master the magic that makes him pretty much immortal and is useless for anything else. Though he’s tried to learn to work with his familiar, Seliah, he’s still terrified to discover what might happen if he gives himself full access to the depths of her powerful magic. Some questions should never be answered.

Based on a true story, this is the tale of three strong women: Barbara, who was given a blue plastic cow that would later change her life forever; Florrie, who adopted a baby to replace the child she had lost; Carole, forced to give up her daughter by an unforgiving society. Growing up in a loving northern working-class family based on the banks of the River Mersey, Barbara felt that she was different. After accidently discovering that she had been adopted, she was only given a part of the story.

After receiving a most unexpected personal invitation for a weekend of leisure and celebration, Miss Victoria Parker leaves London for the country seat of the Duke of Everton. Although unsure as to why a lowly spinster such as she would be invited anywhere by a duke, Victoria's trusted assistant, James Kensington, assures her it must concern her late father’s accounting firm, which she secretly runs.

Darcy and his good friend Simon Lockhart are guests of Charles Bingley at Netherfield Park in Hertfordshire. When the otherwise sensible Lockhart becomes infatuated with Miss Elizabeth Bennet, who has neither wealth nor a renowned family name, Darcy attempts to make his friend see reason. But there is a complication—Darcy’s growing attraction for Miss Elizabeth.

It is 742. The throne is empty; the pagan states are in rebellion, Charles Martel's widow and youngest son have been imprisoned, and trust between Carloman and Pippin—the two brothers who remain in power—has been shattered. Making matters worse, the Church is secretly conspiring to place a Merovingian on the throne and Charles' daughter Hiltrude has wed the leader of the rebellion—giving him the legitimacy of Charles' legacy. Based on a true story, Wheel of the Fates picks up where the award-winning Anvil of God leaves off.

Sowena’s life changes forever when she is forced from her home chased by soldiers and dogs. Her birth mother’s coven, that she never knew existed will reveal her mother’s sordid past and her own magik gifts. She will join a lifelong sisterhood and learn the truth of her lineage as well as how to hone her magik. Amid the chaos of war, fear of capture, and struggle to learn her magik spells, Sowena will experience something she didn't expect, the confusion of first love. The witches need to join forces with other magik allies, some of whom are not thrilled to be working with them.

Something dark is prowling the gaslit streets of London - a monster with a taste for the blood of young women. When her beloved sister is attacked by an unearthly creature, Emma Rose finds herself in a contract of exchange for her life that defies all laws of heaven. A contract with a vampire. Spanning centuries, lifetimes, and the rise and fall of ancient civilizations, Winterly takes her on a journey of self-discovery where Emma awakens to the truth of her identity at last.

After escaping to the garden for a reprieve from the stuffy ballroom, Miss Evelyn Trainor bumps into a handsome stranger through a hedge. When he boldly requests an introduction, she lies and tells him a fake name, Lady Eve, positive she’ll never see him again. But when she returns to the country for Christmas and finds her handsome stranger — the Duke of Alverton — has moved in next door for the holidays, she does what she must to guard her secret.