Showing results by narrator "Sarah A" in All Categories

"If you're not strong enough to swim fast, you're probably not strong enough to swim 'pretty," said a young Esther Williams to theater impresario Billy Rose. Since the nineteenth century, tensions between beauty and strength, aesthetics and athleticism have both impeded and propelled the careers of female swimmers—none more so than synchronized swimmers, for whom Williams is often considered godmother. In this riveting history—the first of its kind—Vicki Valosik traces a century of aquatic performance, from vaudeville and dime museums to the Olympic arena.

The Obsidian Order is tough, they have to be if they want to turn prospects into elite agents. I want to be one of those agents, and right now I'm closer than ever to achieving that goal. Hunting Valoel down is my primary goal. The word on the street is he's recruiting mages to fight for his cause. I'm not sure what his cause is, but I know it's not good. Draven would have us just kill him outright and be done with it, but Valoel said he was my brother. Maybe he can tell me about my past? My parents?

A history of peasants in the Middle Ages, the story takes the listener into the life of Marion, the carpenter's wife, and her extended family as they struggle to survive through hardship, featuring a year in their lives at the mercy of the weather and the Lord of the Manor. Existing without soap, paper or glass and only with the most basic of tools, we learn how they survive starvation, sickness, fire and natural disaster in their home on the edge of the Weald.

From the acclaimed author of Her Every Fear and The Kind Worth Killing comes a diabolically clever tale of obsession, revenge, and cold-blooded murder - a sly and brilliant guessing game of a novel. Harry Ackerson has always considered his stepmother, Alice, to be sexy and beautiful in an "otherworldly" way. She has always been kind and attentive, if a little aloof in the last few years. Days before his college graduation, Alice calls with shocking news. His father is dead, and the police think it's suicide.

Egypt, 1926. Fiercely independent American Jane Wunderly has made up her mind: she won't be swept off her feet on a trip abroad. Despite her Aunt Millie's best efforts at meddling with her love life, the young widow would rather gaze at the Great Pyramids of Giza than into the eyes of a dashing stranger. Yet Jane's plans to remain cool and indifferent become ancient history in the company of Mr. Redvers, a roguish banker she can't quite figure out.

The Midnight Forest. The Fanged Creature. Two fortune-telling cards that spell an untimely death for 17-year-old Clara. Despite the ever-present warning from her fortune-teller grandmother, Clara embarks on a dangerous journey into the deadly Forest Grimm to procure a magical book—Sortes Fortunae, the Book of Fortunes—with the power to reverse the curse on her village and save her mother.

Handsome firefighter swoops in and saves the day for a struggling single mom…It sounds like something straight out of a romance novel, but that’s exactly what happens the first time I meet Pierce in our small-town grocery store. His kind gesture helps thaw my icy exterior, but I can’t afford to get involved with someone who risks his life on a daily basis. After a tragic fire left me to raise my daughter alone, my heart is frozen solid and closed for business.

In 1933, in the shadow of the Great Depression, Dorothy Day started the most prominent Catholic radical movement in United States history, the Catholic Worker Movement, a storied organization with a lasting legacy of truth and justice. Day's newspaper, houses of hospitality, and ministry of paying attention to the inequality of her world would eventually become world famous, just as she would become a figure of promise for the poor.

I gave everything to my job. Untiring hard work. Dedication unmatched by anything else. My entire life revolved around my career. Despite all that, I didn’t get the promotion I was hoping for. I got the boot. They say the best revenge is a life well-lived, and I’m determined to show them by landing on my feet.

Abandoned by her father and neglected by her self-centered, unstable mother, Sheila McGee cannot wait to escape the drudgery of her mill village life in Northern Ireland. Her classic Irish beauty helps her win the 1941 Linen Queen competition, and the prize money that goes with it finally gives her the opportunity she's been dreaming of. But Sheila does not count on the impact of the Belfast blitz which brings World War II to her doorstep. Now even her good looks are useless in the face of travel restrictions, and her earlier resolve is eroded by her ma's fear of being left alone.

Rosalind Thorne has slowly but assuredly gained a reputation as "a useful woman" - by helping respectable women out of some less-than-respectable predicaments. Her latest endeavor is a tragedy waiting to happen. Desperate Margaretta Seymore is with child - and her husband is receiving poisoned pen letters that imply that her condition is the result of an affair with the notorious actor Fletcher Cavendish.

Hailee Raine only has to survive one more year. One year of life in her football obsessed town. One year of nauseating school spirit. Just one more year of her cruel step-brother Jason; and his cocky, arrogant, football-playing friends. She hates them. Especially, Cameron Chase, the guy she thought was different. Cameron Chase has the world at his feet. He has it all; good looks, talent, and the charm to go with it. He has colleges lined up at the door, all wanting a piece of Rixon Raiders star wide receiver.

Superstar FBI Agent Morgan Cross was at the height of her career when she was framed, wrongly imprisoned, and sent to do 10 hard years in prison. Finally exonerated and set free, Morgan emerges from jail as a changed person—hardened, ruthless, closed off to the world, and unsure how to start again. When the FBI comes knocking, desperately needing Morgan to return and hunt down a killer leaving bodies in hedge mazes, Morgan is torn.

December has arrived, bringing with it the first touch of Winter and the promise of Christmas. As Wilfordshire comes to life with holiday parties, Lacey is surprised when she receives an unexpected phone call - a mysterious object has been found hidden in the wall of a church. The monks who found it believe it is a rare medieval artifact - one which, if auctioned, can be the Godsend the church needs to save it from looming bankruptcy.

Airk Azdajah, the rightful King of the White Clan of dragon shifters, spent half a millennium being tortured by the false High King Pytheios. The only reason he's alive is a curse. Airk escaped, but he'll never be truly free. Angelika Amon is the last unmated phoenix. The problem? She has no powers. Desperate to find some way to help, she offers herself to Airk as a mate—just for political leverage. But a dormant phoenix is no use to him, just like a dragon who can't shift is no use to her. Until Pytheios sets his sights on Angelika for himself....

On paper, Sarah Levy’s life was on track. She was 28, living in New York City, working a great job, and socializing every weekend. But Sarah had a secret: her relationship with alcohol was becoming toxic. And only she could save herself. Drinking Games explores the role alcohol has in our formative years, and what it means to opt out of a culture completely enmeshed in drinking. It’s an examination of what our short-term choices about alcohol do to our long-term selves and how they challenge our ability to be vulnerable enough to discover what we really want in life.

Charlotte Griffolino knows a rake when she sees one - and the man her niece longs to marry most definitely qualifies. Stuart Drake is handsome, charming - and penniless. That he is interested in more than Susan's considerable inheritance is highly unlikely. That he will be immune to Charlotte's allure is even more unlikely. With a Viscount title in his future, Stuart expects it shouldn't be difficult to marry an heiress. Still, once he meets Charlotte, how hard will it be to charm her? Quite, actually. Now Stuart has only one option: to take revenge on her through seduction.

Researchers have found that the accelerated pace of modern office life is taking its toll on productivity, employee engagement, creativity and wellbeing. Faced with a relentless flood of information and distractions, our brains try to process everything at once, increasing our stress, decreasing our effectiveness and negatively impacting our performance.

It's been 10 years since Sasha Keeton left her West Virginia hometown, since she escaped the twisted serial killer known as the Groom. Returning to help run her family inn means being whole again, except for one missing piece. The piece that falls into place when Sasha's threatened - and FBI agent Cole Landis vows to protect her the way he couldn't a decade ago.

While returning from New Mexico to the airport in their rented bus, the Hollister children stop to buy cowboy suits. Mr. Hollister, with an eye for items to sell in his store, The Trading Post, discovers the suits are designed by Marie Vega, the wife of an old college friend. Mr. Hollister contacts the Vegas and the whole Hollister family is invited to spend a few weeks on the Vega ranch.