Showing results by narrator "Victoria Brazier" in All Categories

Hester Carlye has no wish to look after the pampered offspring of the rich anymore, in spite of being a highly sought-after governess. But with her elderly father frail, and the roof of their rundown cottage falling in, she has no choice but to accept a dazzling new placement. Movie star Aidan Neil is box office gold, but after the tragic death of his wife Dinah Doyle, he needs Hester’s help to raise their young daughter Erin. Aidan and Dinah were once the perfect Hollywood couple, but stars don’t shine forever…

When a cryptic invitation brings Giulia Pepper to her uncle's remote estate in Devon, she arrives in dire need of a benefactor, only to discover that her uncle never sent her any invitation—nor does he want her there. Forced into a corner, Giulia must contrive a way to convince him to allow her to remain, just long enough to figure out where to go next.

Amelia Fawn is cursed—or so she believes. How else can she explain each of her husbands' deaths within the first year of marriage? So after the ton names her the Black Widow and warns eligible men to stay clear, Amelia vows never to marry again. Not even if she falls in love. Charles Fremont has loved Amelia Fawn his entire life. But after enduring countless rejections and watching her get married three other times, he's finally had enough. He swears a vow to never ask anything from her again. Even if it kills him.

Mabel Sheffield is too tall, or so she believes. It's one of the reasons she has given up on finding a husband and instead, embraces her role as a spinster, dedicating her days to managing her grandmother's estate and her seven-year-old sister. But when Liam MacKenzie shows up at her house to stay for the summer, she's unsure if she can keep her resolve. The problem: He's the other reason she's a spinster.

Hattie Green is five and twenty, unmarried, and growing tired of waiting for fate to hand her a soul mate. But when her sister-in-law arrives for a visit with the intent of helping her find a husband by any means necessary, Hattie digs in her heels—for, everyone knows that fate cannot be forced.

Pippa Sheffield has a penchant for trouble. She doesn't ask to be thrown into slippery situations, but they tend to find her. She has worked at maintaining good behavior--she owes that much to her sister--until her new neighbor, William Blakemore, moves in. Come to find out, he is nothing but trouble.

Aurelia Beswick’s life hangs by a thread. Penniless and alone, she grasps at her last hope: a position as a governess far from London. Little does she know that fate has a cruel twist in store. Her new employer is none other than Lord Ryland—a man from her past she never expected to see again. Luckily, he doesn’t seem to remember her. Determined to keep her position, Aurelia finds herself walking a precarious line, keeping her identity a secret while every interaction with Lord Ryland seems to draw them closer together.

Jessica Standish is considered an upstart in the eyes of society because she is merely the daughter of a wealthy merchant. After a failed season, the devastating loss of her father and his fortune, her chances of a good match seem impossible. When her mother arranges for them to attend one of the biggest house parties of the summer, Jes dreads the idea of being seen as a fortune hunter. But then Lord Ian arrives. Even though she has only danced with him once, he has become the man of her dreams. As the connection between them grows, he seems so different from the man she thought she was.

Lord Ian Pinkerton enjoyed a carefree life, until his brother cut him off without a penny. But when he wins an estate in a card game, he thinks his luck may be changing. Until he sees it. With no funds to fix his rundown house, Ian considers leaving Scotland. That is until he meets his beautiful neighbor. But to his surprise, she seems to detest him.

Lady Isabel Palmer was crushed when her best friend and fellow adventurer, Marcus, left without even a good-bye. As years passed, tales of his rakish lifestyle reach her, and she buried any feelings she ever had for him. But when Marcus shows up years later in the middle of her father’s hunting party, old feelings and bitterness surface, placing the once close friends constantly at odds.

He never expected to get caught in the parson's mousetrap. Least of all by a friend. Lord Nathaniel Westlake has a reputation with the ladies and their fathers. But he always manages to stay two steps ahead them catching him in the parson’s noose. His last narrow escape lands him on a ship and it seems like the perfect solution. That is, until he learns the ship is bound for India. To make matters worse, the only available woman on board is a lady already wise to his antics. If he makes a muddle of things this time, there will be no means of escape.

Isabella Ashton has always been her father’s favourite, but when she gets involved with the new Birth Control Movement, he is scandalised. A decade has elapsed since the end of the Great War and running a family planning clinic in Salford is challenging but rewarding work. Bella is grateful for the help of Violet Howarth, a generous-hearted woman who takes her in off the street. Before long, a friendship with Violet’s son, Dan, blossoms into the beginnings of love.

Once again, vampire hunter Etty Steele is under threat. Plagued vampires have come to Brightwood. Etty’s loved ones are in danger - a danger that seems to grow every day. The plague is coming, the witches are stirring and Etty must make a choice - keep her friends close or face this evil alone.

What if the person lying to you is your husband, the man who claims to love you more than anything in the world? Isolated in his remote Scottish ancestral home on the pretext that you are psychologically fragile and recovering from a breakdown, this home has become a prison. As the days slip by in a haze of confusion and a cocktail of drugs administered by a loyal housekeeper, you begin to piece together the fragments of your life and stumble on a terrifying secret.

Gytha is 13 years old when her father, King Harold of England, dies at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 AD. She and her brothers go on the run from William the Conqueror. In this untold tale of true love and real evil, Gytha flees west to Exeter, where she is betrothed to a painted Celtic prince. She escapes from him to Denmark. But with no dowry, no parents, and no country to call home, she is bartered to a wicked bride-trader and taken to the farthest edge of Christendom to wed Vladimir, a prince of Rus, only to find he is promised to another girl.

Ruby McBride has always been on the wrong side of authority. The grand opening of the Manchester Ship Canal is set to be a day of unfettered festivity for Ruby and her younger sister and brother. Even Queen Victoria will be in attendance. But the glories of the ceremony fade into insignificance when their dying mother delivers them to the imposing oak doors of Ignatius House. Abandoned in the not-so-tender care of the nuns, the siblings are soon separated.

Welcome to the Lakeside Cottage...a place for families, friends and loved one to share the perfect seasonal escape.

Manchester, 1960. When you're young, unmarried and pregnant, in a shaming society that will never understand, there's only one place left to go. St Ann's mother and baby home. That's how restless Joan, who dreams of a glamorous new life in the Big Smoke, finds herself shut away with two unlikely new roommates: spirited Megan and timid country-girl Caroline, who fell pregnant on her first time. Abandoned by their families, they have no one to rely on but each other, as they wait out the days before they birth their babies - only to be parted from them forever.

Dolly Tomkins has always known what it is to live hand to mouth. In the mean streets of a Salford struggling under the mantle of the Great Depression, the only one making a decent living is the talleyman. Though Nifty Jack has a money bag where his heart should be, Dolly’s mam is in hock up to her ears and in dire need of assistance. But when Jack offers to wipe the slate clean, Dolly just can’t bring herself to trust him. Instead, she takes him on at his own game and in the process endangers everything she holds most dear as a revelation about the past rocks the very foundations of her world.

After a kid's party faux-pas, mother Janine anonymously vents about her father-in-law's behaviour on internet forum Am I The Villain Here? When the community is invited to take sides the post goes viral, with mild-mannered Roy ending up in the national newspapers and sparking protests at his local library. REASONABLE PEOPLE explores how judging others reveals our deepest, most unreasonable selves - with Hulse's trademark heart, humour and humanity.