Showing results by narrator "Elizabeth Brennan" in All Categories

Gemma Hayden has returned to her hometown of Alice Springs for a new job as a primary school teacher. It's been six years since her family broke apart following the disappearance of her twin brother. And the scars still run deep. Hard on the heels of her homecoming, Saul Pearce, the man she once loved, is reposted from Parks and Wildlife in Darwin back to Alice. When an old car wreck is uncovered, washed down the river to Ruby Gap, Saul investigates only to find that the wreck belonged to Ethan, Gemma's twin - and there's a coded note for her in the glovebox.

June 1940. It was a perfect June evening that began with hope and ended in despair.' So begins the journal of Hugh Jackson, a Jersey doctor, whose idyllic world is shattered when Britain abandons the Channel Islands which are invaded by the Germans. Forced to choose between conflicting loyalties, he sends his pregnant wife to England, believing their separation will be brief. It's a fateful decision that will affect every aspect of his life.

Twelve-year-old Rose can't remember anything before last week, when she woke up not knowing her own name, her own house or or even her own mother. The only thing Rose recognised was her puppy, North. But Mother patiently explained everything – well, not everything. Not the real-feeling dreams Rose has about a mysterious forest she half-recognises. Or why she is not allowed to stray beyond the garden, out into Luminelle, the vast city surrounding them. Mother is kind and helpful, but Rose can't shake the feeling that something's not right. Or maybe it's everything that's not right?

Families come in all shapes and sizes. They are the people who help us feel that we belong. Families give us help, support and love, even when we are apart from them. When we are with our family, we feel like we are home.

In Northern New South Wales, heavily pregnant and a week away from maternity leave, Detective Sergeant Kate Miles is exhausted and counting down the days. But a violent hold-up at a local fast-food restaurant with unsettling connections to her own past, means that her final days will be anything but straightforward.

After five exhilarating years in New York, Stevie has a successful career and glamorous social life. But what she most wants is a baby – an aspiration that feels impossible given that she is single, 38 and living in a tiny apartment in Manhattan, far away from most of her family in England. Determined to become a mother, Stevie returns to London and has a baby on her own. When she gives birth to Ash, she finds motherhood painfully at odds with her former life and her expectations. She begins to wonder if having a child was a mistake, and what she might be willing to do to escape.

At just three years of age, Estella is taken from her mother, adopted by the wealthy but eccentric Miss Havisham and taught how to break men's hearts. Satis House is dark and oppressive and life with the vengeful Miss Havisham a confusion of contradictory lessons, but the kindness of the household cook and Estella's love of the nearby marshes bring her some joy. Forced to play with Pip, a local boy from a lowly background, Estella captivates his soul and breaks his heart, exactly as Miss Havisham has planned.

Desley Barron is ready to prove her doubters, and herself, wrong about her flagging writing career. She's won a spot at an exclusive writing retreat in the Blue Mountains. Only instead of feeling creative, Desley finds her insecurity increases while the ghost stories about the house have her jumping at shadows. This reclusive house is the last place anyone will think to look for high-profile author Colette Halifax, which is perfect as she hides from a looming scandal. Unfortunately, someone here is threatening to ruin the one part of her life that isn't already a shambles.

Anger is a strong and powerful thing. It brings us lots of energy, and it can tell us when something is not right or when we have a problem. Anger is something that can protect and take care of us. Anger is a bit like armour.

Detective Sergeant Kate Miles is back from maternity leave and struggling on multiple fronts - the pressures of a second child, financial strain from her husband losing his job, and a corruption scandal that may involve her father. When an infant goes missing, Kate finds herself fronting a high-profile and emotionally fraught case. Was baby Sienna removed from her bassinet by an unknown abductor or is the answer much closer to home?

Weeks from Christmas in the sweltering heat of summer, Detective Kate Miles' estranged brother, Luke Grayling, returns home to Esserton to farewell a childhood friend—Ant Reed, dead by suicide. Within days of the funeral, another young man, Marcus Rowntree, is found shot dead in the back paddock of his property. Almost twenty years ago, Luke, Ant and Marcus were best mates in high school and now two of the three friends are dead. A tragic coincidence? Or is there something more sinister connecting the three men?

Artisan blacksmith Ned Harrow lost his wife and gained a son, all in the space of a day. Since then, he’s been caring for his son, Ollie, and working to rebuild his business. When his neighbour’s visiting goddaughter offers to help, she’s a lifeline and so much more. Ned knows the beautiful and fun-loving Lola isn’t staying long, but she’s impossible to resist and his heart is cracking wide open.

When Harry Houdini comes to visit the seaside town of Sidford-on-Sea, Glory and her friend Dennis are first in line to see him. He is there to perform a daring trick – he will jump off the town pier in chains, pitching himself into the water below. But when Glory outsmarts the infamous Houdini, she is suddenly sucked into his world, and finds herself tasked with looking after his precious trunk – the one that contains all his secrets.

For work wives Debra and Quinn, it's a case of opposites attract. They are each other's lifelines as they navigate office politics and jobs that pay the bills but don't inspire them. Outside work, they are also friends, but where Quinn is addicted to dating apps and desperate to find love, Deb has sworn off men. Although Deb is not close to her own mother, her teenage daughter is her life and there's nothing she wouldn't do to protect her. But Ramona has other ideas and is beginning to push boundaries.

Amelia Harris has played it safe all her life - but when a minor accident lands her in hospital, she dramatically quits the tedious office job she's been working at for a decade. When her mother, Toni, asks her what she wants to do, Amelia is at a loss. Out of sheer desperation, she tries her hand at the dream jobs she's always fantasised about. Soon Amelia's shadowing a thrilling cast of characters and professions - as a journalist, a florist, a wedding planner, a zookeeper, and more. Life couldn't be more exciting, especially when she meets the man of her dreams.

Amelia Harris has played it safe all her life - but when a minor accident lands her in hospital, she dramatically quits the tedious office job she's been working at for a decade. When her mother, Toni, asks her what she wants to do, Amelia is at a loss. Out of sheer desperation, she tries her hand at the dream jobs she's always fantasised about. Soon Amelia's shadowing a thrilling cast of characters and professions - as a journalist, a florist, a wedding planner, a zookeeper, and more. Life couldn't be more exciting, especially when she meets the man of her dreams.

1961: When teens Daisy and Harry meet, it feels so right they promise to love each other forever, but in 1960s England everything is stacked against them: class, education, expectations. When Daisy is sent by her parents to live with her glamorous, bohemian Aunt Jane, a novelist working on her second book, she is confronted by adult truths and suffers a loss of innocence that flings her far from the one good thing in her life, Harry.

From the bestselling author of The Collaborator comes a compelling story of betrayal, collusion, revenge, and redemption set in German-occupied Jersey during World War II.

Number 3-1-5-5 is a good girl. She gets told that everyday when she is fed, moved to other rooms, given pills and examined. She doesn't remember much, but she can see every face she's come across as clearly as if they were in front of her. Her world is small, contained. But in a life where you know nothing but a sea of Janes and Johns, how will you know who is good and bad?

Megan kept drawing. The drawing seemed to have a mind of its own. She felt herself begin to panic. She wanted to stop. But her hand didn’t stop. Please, could she stop. Stop! Megan is obsessed with drawing fantastical creatures, and she shares her drawings with her best friend Li who writes stories to go with the pictures. They are kindred spirits with big creative dreams. One day everyone in town – except Megan and Li – is immobilised by a strange glow coming from their devices.