Showing results by narrator "Jilly Bond" in All Categories

In a provincial university town, Caro Grimstone, a dissatisfied faculty wife, becomes the unwilling accomplice to her husband Alan's ambitions. When she volunteers to read to a blind esteemed anthropologist in a nursing home, Alan seizes the opportunity to steal his papers—research that could both advance his reputation while refuting the findings of a respected colleague.

Emily Soldene's life spanned the entire Victorian era. As both leading lady and a formidable impresario with her own opera company, she was a darling of London’s music halls and theatre land, later reinventing herself as a journalist and writer. From humble working-class beginnings, Emily's fiery ambition would see her counting the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and Charles Dickens as friends and mingling with the Rothschilds, Oscar Wilde and aristocrats. She even alleged that she had a close encounter with Jack the Ripper.

This book is the flip to How to Be Happy; a book which offers a reassuring and empowering guide to finding positivity and inner strength, it helps individuals to understand that it is not what happens to them, it is the way that they react and respond. Happiness guru Liggy Webb is here to help us all find positivity and inner strength to cope with stressful situations.

When a fire destroys the Empress Theatre, a devastating tragedy unfolds. As local reporter Leanne picks over the embers of that night, what seemed like a straightforward case of negligence becomes something else entirely: somebody is lying—each person has lost something, but one of them has sold their soul.

Emma Blair once again richly evokes the setting and characters of Scotland during the 30s. Continuing the story she began in Flower of Scotland, Emma invites the listener back into the lives of the Drummond family, who are still dealing with the aftermath of the First World War but now must also face up to the horrors of the Second. Andrew and Rose are running the distillery and have given a job to Jack's son, Tommy.

With characteristic verve and integrity, Ann Widdecombe recalls her life and highlights the people and events that most influenced her along the way. From her early family life in Singapore and her convent school days to her student ambitions at Birmingham and Oxford, and her long-serving years as an MP, this is the life story of one of our most outspoken and celebrated politicians. Offering unique insight into her time as a Minister in three Departments and the Shadow Cabinet in the 1990s, Ann also explains the roots of her conversion to Catholicism in 1993 and her deeply held views on abortion and gay marriage.

When the writer, Oxford scholar, and photographer John Jameson, visits the home of his vicar friend, Daniel Baxter, he is entranced by his youngest daughter, Daisy. Jameson charms her with his wit and child-like imagination, teasing her with riddles and inventing humourous stories as they enjoy afternoons alone by the river and in his rooms. The shocking impact of this unusual friendship is only brought to light when, years later, Daisy, unsettled in her marriage, rediscovers her childhood diaries in an old toy chest.

Friendship, freedom, booze and student loans: the glory days of University, the halcyon haze. For friends Liz, Cora, Mike and Stevie, students at Cardiff, that haze was shared, their circle tight, a surrogate family, bound together for three idyllic, hedonistic years in total trust. Or so it seemed. Mike and Cora marry after graduation, while Liz and Stevie look on, misty-eyed.

Resurrecting buried scandals, audacious hoaxes and private tragedies, Emma Donoghue has written a sequence of short stories about peculiar moments in the history of the British Isles. Here artists mix with poisoners and countesses rub shoulders with cross-dressers, vicars and revolutionaries; the Second Coming is proclaimed in Scotland; and a miniature girl becomes a tiny skeleton in a London museum.

With King James on the throne of both England and Scotland, a period of stability seems to have arrived. But the exposed gunpowder plot to blow up Parliament serves only to heighten the anxiety and panic of the people. Nowhere is this more keenly felt than in London - a city that is also struggling to deal with its exploding population.

When her husband, Dan Haywood, swaps their family for a younger woman, Sarah tries best to juggle childcare, friendships and a career as a dress designer. It doesn't help that problematic middle-aged men seem to conspire against her. Enter neighbour Robert Maynard, who insists that her new house was promised to him. Shocked, but not immune to his charm, Sarah's second chance may be closer to home than she ever imagined.

William the Conqueror is destined to succeed his father as the Duke of Normandy but questions about his legitimacy mean he consistently faces challenges from potential usurpers in the Duchy to retain the title. He marries Matilda, the equally intelligent and ambitious daughter of the King of Flanders, and together they have many children. In 1066, he crosses the channel from Normandy to England and seizes the crown from King Harold, Edward the Confessor's popular successor.

When Sophie Ellis is asked to house-sit at a Knightsbridge townhouse, it appears to be the offer of a lifetime. Drawn into the glittering circle of the home’s owner, she meets wealthy American businessman Nick Cooper and is swept up into a thrilling and passionate affair. But when Nick is found dead in his hotel suite, Sophie is suddenly the prime suspect for his murder, and soon realises Nick was not the man he seemed.

It is the day of her ex-husband's wedding. The press call Ursula first thing, demanding that she share her innermost feelings with the world at large. Her three children cannot restrain their excitement. After all, it isn't every day that their father marries a government minister.

Victoria James is at home awaiting a call from Downing Street, desperate for the telephone to ring but mindful of the impact a promotion could have on her husband and daughter. When she receives the summons, high office does indeed await her, and life will never be the same again. As a young, attractive female Minister, Victoria will be living in the public eye, challenged in her views at every turn. But nothing prepares her for what ultimately throws her off-balance: a love affair with a married man.

A wonderful warm, seasonal treat, whisking you on a magical adventure to the Swiss Alps. Full of food, laughter and fun. Perfect for the fans of Trisha Ashley. With a recent divorce and empty nest Eloise Brandon is facing Christmas alone until a harried phone call from her godfather changes everything. Accepting his challenge, Eloise finds herself en-route to Verbier and to her godfather's chalet in the beautiful Swiss Alps to help cater for some seriously rich, high rolling guests. What ensues makes it a Christmas to remember.

1918: Freddie was destined for a different life, determined to make his fortune in the plantations of Ceylon. But just as the great war comes to an end, the eldest brother and heir to Coombe Hall, Edward, doesn’t return. Torn between duty and freedom, Freddie must now sacrifice his own dreams to keep the estate – and the future of Coombe – alive. And now he must now marry for an heir, not for love. But the turmoil of war didn’t end on the battlefield; the country faces upheavals like never before.

WW1 is over. As a nurse at the front, Clementine has found and lost love but has settled for middle-class marriage. Vincent had half his face blown off and wants more than life offers now. Drawn together by their shared experiences at the Front, they have a compulsive relationship, magnetic and parasitic, played out with blackmail and ending in disaster for one of them.

Agreeing to a fake betrothal should suit both society dressmaker Belle Marchmain and landowner Adam Davenant fittingly - clearing Belle's debts and keeping Adam's husband-hunters at bay. Even if blue-blooded Belle, with her extravagant clothes and razor-sharp tongue, despises the very air that nouveau riche Adam breathes! If Adam wants an agreeable wife he has his work cut out.

At the age of 32, Richard the Lionheart has finally succeeded Henry II to the English throne. And, against his father’s wishes, he intends to make Berengaria, daughter of the King of Navarre, his Queen. But first he must fulfil his vow to his country to win back Jerusalem for the Christian world. Leaving England to begin his crusade, Richard entrusts his kingdom to his brother, John, who casts covetous eyes on the crown, and his sister, Joanna, who is willing to defy even a king.