Showing results by narrator "Laura Kirman" in All Categories

A collection of short stories celebrating Charlotte Brontë, published in the year of her bicentenary and stemming from the now immortal words from her great work Jane Eyre. The 21 stories in Reader, I Married Him - one of the most celebrated lines in fiction - are inspired by Jane Eyre and shaped by its perennially fascinating themes of love, compromise and self-determination.

Driving to the cottage she's newly inherited, Ellie is so excited that she barely notices when the car bumps against something. That evening Ellie hears a news flash; a man was seriously injured in a hit and run. Could she have been responsible for putting a man in hospital? Unable to hold the doubts at bay, she decides to visit the victim, little knowing that the consequences of this decision will change her life forever.

When Alec asks Jess out, she knows it won't work. He may be charming and handsome, but Jess has rules. And the first? Don't fall in love. Jess has inherited Huntington's disease from the mother that she cares for. Falling in love would just mean condemning someone to the heartbreak that she feels every day, as she watches the woman she knew and loved slip further and further away. Jess has learnt to keep everyone and everything at arm's length, but Alec is determined to break down her barriers.

The annual dog show is looming, a crucial event when it comes to fundraising and ensuring the volunteers can continue the brilliant work they do. But their trusted newspaper reporter, who always includes them in his weekly column, is retiring, only to be replaced with a city-slicker named Darryl. And Darryl, as Ginny soon learns, has no interest in articles he deems 'below him'. Not one to take no as an answer, Ginny becomes determined to get him to meet the dogs themselves. One look at their cute faces and they'll worm their way into his heart.

An archly funny, classic mystery adventure with a magic twist! Lucy Goodly is the new boot girl at Grave Hall, working for the cold, aloof Lord Grave. The other staff - Vonk the Butler, Mrs Crawley the cook and Violet the scullery maid - all seem friendly, but Lucy soon notices that strange things are afoot in her new home - and not just Mrs Crawley's experimental anchovy omelettes. There are moving statues and magical books, and Lord Grave has a secret. Meanwhile, all over the country, children are vanishing.

'I was a penniless, landless petitioner, my Neville blood a curse, my future dependent on the charity of those who despised me....' Anne Neville is the heiress and daughter of the greatest powerbroker in the land, Warwick the Kingmaker. Trapped in a deadly tangle of political intrigue, she is a pawn in an uncertain game, used by the houses of Neville, York and Lancaster alike. In England's glittering, treacherous court, not all wish to see the Nevilles raised high.

It should have been a time of romance and excitement for Anne - but it's 1941 and the war is raging. So instead, she spends her days repairing spitfire wings and reminding herself that the real sacrifice is going on far away from her Cornish village. When the news breaks that America has entered the war, jeeps filled with GIs eventually roll in, and it seems their little community is to play a pivotal role in the next stage of the fight. But the Americans don't just bring Hollywood glamour and optimism, they also bring something more tantalising.

Former Olympic skating champion Katie Saunders is well known for her ‘ice queen’ persona in the press. Perhaps Katie should have forgiven her former skating partner and ex-boyfriend, Alex Michaelson, for the accident that shattered both her ankle and their Olympic dreams - but she just can’t seem to let it go. Desperate for cash, Katie, reluctantly agrees to take part in a new TV skating show, but not only is she partnered up with an infamous love-rat rugby player, but one of the judges is none other than Alex Michaelson himself.

Elle and Laurie are the last ones standing: they're single, they're not having babies any time soon and their weekends aren't filled with joyful meetings about mortgages. For Elle, this is fine. She likes her independent life, but Laurie wants love and she wants it now. So when Laurie begs Elle to come with her on a singles holiday to a beautiful vineyard in Tuscany, Elle is reluctant. She has no intention of swapping her perfectly lovely life for someone else's idea of her Mr Perfect, but 10 days under the Italian sun with her best friend and lashings of wine?

Lucy Gibson needs to get away. When her good-looking, popular boyfriend Nick Laurentis, winner of reality TV show Hot Shots, proposes to her on air she's stunned - into silence. Every girl loves a romantic gesture, but she's just not ready for that kind of commitment. With the press hounding her as the one who callously broke Nick's heart, Lucy escapes her London flat to seek refuge in an isolated Cornwall cottage. But little does she realise that life down there will be far from uncomplicated. . .

When Jane Bennet meets Mr Bingley at the ball in Meryton she quickly loses her heart to him. Everyone thinks their union will be announced imminently, ut arrogant Mr Darcy has other plans. Determined to make a better match for his friend, Darcy contrives to separate the young couple, leaving Jane heartbroken. With Jane and Bingley both in London, the Bennet sisters hope their paths will cross, and Jane and Bingley will resume the relationship between them. But will fate – or others – intervene to keep these two young lovers apart forever?

Radio DJ Lula Lazenby isn’t often lost for words, but this time she’s speechless! The man she just shared an exquisite one night with turns out to be her new boss…and his first job is to fire her! Executive Tristan Bamfield wasn’t planning to stay in London long. Turn up, handle his father’s business and leave. But his inconvenient and instantaneous attraction to Lula has really gone and complicated things! Tristan is a professional and everyone deserves a second chance – especially when you can’t escape the red-hot memories so he quickly reinstates Lula.

Miss Kitty Bennet is travelling to Pemberley in order to become a companion and friend to Miss Georgiana Darcy when the coach she is travelling in crashes. Bingley is hurt in the accident and help arrives in the form of Adam Denney, the Rector of Bakewell who comes to their aid. Jane and Bingley are obliged to remain at The Rectory, whilst Kitty continues her journey alone. But the coach accident is just the first of many terrifying incidents that occur once Kitty is established at Pemberley. But when Kitty's sister, Elizabeth is placed in danger, Darcy is determined to keep her safe.

Clare's life is perfect...steady job, loving husband, two kids and lovely townhouse. Except her husband Toby's barely listened to a thing she's said since he landed his new TV gig, her daughter can't stand the sight of her and her boss barely even knows her name. It seems that with middle age she's become more invisible than a grey power suit and no matter what she does no one seems to notice her. Not the mad haircut, crazy outfits or brilliant job performance.

On holiday with her family and adoring fiancé, Jed, Emily couldn't be happier. But overnight, the idyllic trip turns into a waking nightmare when one of the group is found dead in what appears to be a terrible accident. The devastated party returns to London to cope with their loss while trying to resume their normal lives. But new revelations set Emily on a perilous journey to discover the truth about what happened....

When Willow Lake asks her daughters for help renovating the family home, each has a reason to hesitate about returning to Maplewood. For quiet and bookish Emmy, going back to the town that ridiculed her fills her with dread. The youngest, Noelle, is perfectly comfortable in herself now but once wanted to fit in so badly that she walked away from her first love. A first love who still lives in Maplewood. And outspoken Rae is painfully aware of how much the townspeople hurt her little sisters growing up.

If Isla Pembroke could turn back time, she knows exactly which days of her life she would change. The day she started working in the local aquarium, not knowing that she'd still be stuck there seven years later. The day her sister, Morgan, ran away from home. And, most of all, the day that changed everything, when her mother's death cracked her family in two. So when she's given an impossible gift - a chance to go back and relive those life-changing moments - Isla realises that she might be able to save the people she loves.

Ex-fireman and edible flower farmer Shay McGillen has plenty of reasons not to give Sarah Pickering even one chance when she turns up in his small Yorkshire village. After all, she is only there to try and convince him and his fellow villagers to sell up so her company can build a bypass. If Sarah thinks she can make Shay give up his farmhouse and his business, she has another thing coming!

When Nina discovers her boyfriend in bed with another woman, she decides it's finally time to channel the spirit of her idol, Nora Ephron. Her sequel to the most beloved romcom of all time – If Harry Met Sally – has been gathering dust for years, but her best friend Astrid convinces her that this is the perfect moment to finish her script and make it as the Hollywood screenwriter she always wanted to be.

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Stranger by Kate Riordan. When you're the outsider, who do you trust? Cornwall, 1940. For decades, Penhallow Hall has stood frozen in time, protecting the secrets of its isolated inhabitants. But the far corners of England are no shelter from the war, and Penhallow must finally open its doors to strangers. Three newcomers arrive, each looking to escape their past. They adjust easily to the routine - nightly blackouts, the threat of invasion - but tensions mount, and secrets are forced into the open.