Showing results by narrator "Julia Franklin" in All Categories

Thea’s parents decide to host a big family Christmas in a house by the sea… even though they are, in fact, about to split up. Thea herself is newly single - her sister and brother are both settled, with children, homes and a future. But Thea’s boyfriend has ditched her in favour of his pedigree dogs, and Thea can’t decide whether or not she minds. There will be copious food and drink, holly and mistletoe, lots of bracing walks and a wintry barbecue on the beach.

A poignant imagining of Thomas Hardy’s relationship with his last muse. A celebrated author, in the winter of his life, awaits a visit from a beautiful young actress – the leading lady in a staging of his most famous tragedy. But his wife is troubled. An anxious and sickly woman, she watches the growing intimacy between her husband and the young woman, and becomes tormented by the idea that they will betray her.

Lady Deborah, the dowager countess of Kinsail, has enough secrets to scandalise you for life! But no one has yet guessed that the famously icy-hearted widow is also the author of the shamelessly voluptuous romances currently shocking the ton! Only now she has another secret identity, one that she will risk her life to keep - accomplice to Elliot Marchmont, gentleman, ex-soldier and notorious London thief.

It’s 20 years since Miranda, then 16, holidayed in Cornwall and her life changed forever. Now she’s back again – with her mother Clare and the ashes of her stepfather Jack, whose wish was to be scattered on the sea overlooked by their one-time holiday home. The picturesque cove seems just the same as ever, but the people are different – more smart incomers, fewer locals, more luxury yachts in the harbour.

Imagine being married for 28 years with three children, a lovely house and a husband who travels a lot - but you still love each other. Or: imagine being happily married for 17 years. You have one daughter and your husband travels a lot. One day you get a call that turns your world upside down: your husband is dead. You go to the funeral…and meet his other widow…

Dark-hearted Sheikh Prince Jamil al-Nazarri commands his kingdom effortlessly…less so his difficult little daughter! Exasperated, he hires an English governess, hoping she’ll instil some much-needed discipline.... Lady Cassandra Armstrong is the most unconventional governess Jamil has ever seen! With her siren’s body and impulsive passion, Cassie is as innocently alluring as she is forbidden.

The year is 1947. Kindly, unassuming widow Dorrie Resterick continually finds herself confidante to others' troubles. She would prefer to keep in the background, but life throws her many a mystery, and once she even found a scrap of evidence in a dreadful local crime - the double murder of two villagers. While the police decided the scrap of paper Dorrie brought to them solved the case, Dorrie was never sure - and when new tenants arrive at the creepy cottage of Merrivale their actions plunge the whole village into danger.

Elaine Cane is scared of her suspicious, overbearing husband. But one day he goes too far - he drunkenly tries to use force on her - so she flees the house. A sense of responsibility makes her return, to check he has not injured himself in his alcohol-fuelled rage, and she finds herself in the middle of a nightmare....

Lynn Knight tells the remarkable story of the three adoptions, spanning three generations, within her remarkable family: of her great-grandfather, a fairground boy, given away when his parents left for America in 1865; of her great-aunt, rescued from an industrial school in 1909; and of her mother, adopted as a baby in 1930, and brought to Chesterfield from London.

Arabia 1818. Lady Celia Cleveden considers herself practical, resourceful and independent; the perfect wife for a junior diplomat. But George, her husband, seems more interested in her playing the nurse than a wife, and Celia is beginning to wonder if the match has been a huge mistake. En route to the exotic kingdom of Q'adiz, they are set upon by bandits and George is killed, leaving Celia at the mercy of the kingdom’s fiercely attractive prince, Sheikh Ramiz al-Muhanna.

November day is closing in as Marianne makes her way to Hope Grange and a job as a maid in the household of Hugo Lacey. But instead of the grand house she is expecting, Hope Grange is a crumbling wreck and a house of ghosts, whispers and secrets. Living there are seven-year-old Gerald and his grandmother. Forced to sell his home, Hugo’s behaviour becomes more irrational and descends into madness. Marianne finds herself in a perilous situation and fearing for her safety decides to leave.

At the beginning of a long journey in time and fortune we meet Juliette who as a young woman was a beautiful and wayward prostitute. She became an artist’s model for Edgar Degas and became his famous Femme Assise, a much admired sculpture that was later cast in bronze by master bronze caster, Didier. Now she is an old, raddled and homeless woman. She can’t believe her eyes when she comes face to face with her young and beautiful self – bronze, shining and standing in the front window of Didier’s house.

Alexander del Castillo, CEO and eldest son, was betrothed from childhood - his future held a wife not of his own choosing. Thankfully bride-to-be Loren Dubois was more than suited for her place at his side - and in his bed. But the businessman never expected his beautiful bride to get under his skin... or into his heart.

In late 19th-century England, Eleanor causes a stir when she refuses to consider marriage to the man her parents have chosen for her. Instead, she sets sail for Australia with her own choice of husband. She soon finds that life there is very different to the one she enjoyed as the only daughter of a wealthy Englishman. Certainly, Eleanor has a lot to learn…

Fearing a forced betrothal to a man known for his cruelty, Heloise Bergeron throws herself on the mercy of Charles Fawley, Earl of Walton. He believes himself attracted to her younger, beautiful sister, so what is he doing entertaining thoughts of marriage to the plain, quiet Heloise? But marry her he does. Returning to England with a convenient wife, who inspires a very inconvenient desire, Charles is about to discover just how untouched his French bride really is...

Achieving the impossible is one of Luc Garnier's defining characteristics. Yet Luc has defied the odds and a contract for marriage with Princess Gabrielle is drawn up. This will be a union on paper first, and of flesh later... Except Gabrielle is just the same in private as in public - well bred, well-behaved, and a credit to her country. Luc is determined to find the wanton within...

Cathy Gordon has made a discovery. Adopted at birth, she finds out at the age of twenty-eight that she has a grandfather. But when she arrives at a cricket match to meet Frank, there is no trace of him - only an alarmingly sexy man called Nick. Heading off to Frank's home in leafy Oxford, she encounters a grumpy old man who only takes pleasure in two things: cricket and arguing - especially with his lifelong friend, Barbara.

Ella Norton has opted for the simple life. Gone are the power suits, the high earnings and the high stress of city life - and instead she's got her own cottage, a course in horticulture and a crush on her dynamic tutor, Matt. But life isn't all rustic paradise. Ella has two lodgers - gorgeous, worldly Miranda and unglamorous, naïve Faith - who can't stand each other. And then there's the matter of Matt's wife and the fact that something dodgy and possibly illegal seems to be going on next door.

While the celebrated opera singer Terri Ivory is in hospital, facing what could be the end of her career, her daughter Julie stumbles upon a long-buried secret that forces her to question her past and her place in her mother’s affection. In their empty house that no longer seems like a home, mother and daughter try to keep their closeness to each other and to the men they love.

Love and Louis XIV centres around the Sun King and his relationships with numerous fascinating women: his mother, Anne of Austria, to whom he was devoted; his first important mistress, Louise de la Valliere, who bore him several illegitimate children; Athenais Marquise de Montespan, who acted as unofficial Queen of Versailles; Madame de Maintenon, governess to the illegitimate royal children; and of course, Marie Therese, his wife.