Showing results by narrator "Rebecca Norfolk" in All Categories

Margo is a solitary live-in nanny for an upper-class Kensingon family. Cora is a promiscuous dancer on the cusp of a big break, living hand-to-mouth in a run-down London flat. Different though they are, an unspeakable incident from childhood haunts them both. When the terrible secret comes to light, their fragile existences shatter, pitting them against each other in a race for survival.

Silver has been trained since birth for her mission: collect data on the humans to test if Earth is viable for her home ship, Charybdis, to colonise. The only rules are that she must feed back the data she collects to the ship, and at all times follow the Mantra: To touch is agony. To feel is pain. So when Silver inhabits the body of a young woman and infiltrates the house she is staying in, she must learn to pass as a human without revealing her true identity. But she isn't prepared for how the humans will get under her skin. And she definitely isn't prepared for Finch, the boy she falls for.

1938. In the turmoil of pre-war Italy, a painting is stowed in the false bottom of a suitcase, ready to be carried across the border. But as the train draws to a violent halt and armed officers lead the passengers onto the platform, the suitcase is taken and the painting never seen again. 1963. London is on the cusp of change in the swinging 60s. Nightclubs and exclusive parties are in their heyday. But when a lowly boarding-house mistress attempts to take on the establishment, and is accused of spying for the Russians, she can save only one thing - her reputation, or the love of her life.

After a whirlwind romance, usherette Connie is swept off her feet when projectionist Charlie proposes in a film reel added to the final frames of Casablanca. Her job at the Tivoli cinema in Tiverton has been a refuge from her violent and alcoholic father, Frank. But that night, Connie disappears, not only from Charlie's life, but from her own as well.

The Grand Mechanism is a machine the size of Saturn's rings that has lain dormant for all recorded history, watched over by the alien Jzat. Now, rogue elements in Jzat and human society conspire to activate it, hoping it will bring them power and opportunity. But the only person who knows the Mechanism's secrets is the Rav'nah Abelisk, a Jzat holy man on sabbatical aboard a vast alien megaship. Believing the Mechanism's activation will bring galactic devastation, Nic Mafalda has to seek out the Abelisk before his sacred knowledge falls into the wrong hands.

Lydia feels like she’s always been chasing something. But now she’s found her purpose, and having moved to Driftwood Bay to spend more time with her daughter Meredith, she’s happier than ever. But there’s still life in these old bones yet! With her newfound sense of identity, she’s keen to re-explore the things that made her happy as a younger person. Lydia’s passion was dancing – she used to compete in her younger years, and there’s no place she’s more at home than on the dancefloor. So when widower and antiques restorer Martin tells her about a big dance competition, she’s ready.

Ivy has spent years looking for her birth mother, but when she finally finds her on Bardsey Island, she is shocked by what greets her. According to folklore, the cormorants that fly over the remote Welsh isle are the terrifying witches of Arthurian legend—and they are searching for Ivy. Her mum warned her not to come and to stay away from the lighthouse, but now it's too late. As the shadows draw closer, Ivy must look deep within herself if she wants to survive.

After a work party gone disastrously wrong, Samantha suddenly finds herself jobless and jilted. So when her sister invites Sam to stay at her little whitewashed farmhouse on a Greek island, Sam leaps at the chance to escape. Before long, she’s trundling up the cobbled driveway, almost colliding with sexy neighbour Spyros. It isn’t all sunshine and smiles though. For every afternoon spent lounging by the pool, cocktail in hand, there is a morning spent adjusting to life with boisterous six-year-old nieces.

Emily is living happily in the quaint village of Ashton Mead, where every household is friendly – with one exception. Unlike the other villagers, Silas Strang and his mother are rude and aggressive. The other residents of Ashton Mead live in fear of upsetting the Strangs. When Silas attacks Emily's beloved dog, she decides it is time to confront the bully. Shortly after she threatens Silas, he is murdered. To Emily's dismay, the police regard her as a suspect. The only way she can prove her innocence is by discovering the real killer and proving their guilt.

Fifteen-year-old Mo Merrydrew isn't exactly expecting to be asked to be Vampire Queen of Great Britain when she's cycling home from school one wet Tuesday evening. Apparently, she is 'the Chosen One'. Aside from being uncomfortable with the idea of unelected power (not very democratic), there's the blood drinking to consider (Mo is a vegetarian), and frankly it's just not really the sort of role Mo's looking for (she wants to aim for a real job in politics).

It's 1943, and the Second World War is raging. Ruby Mottram works for her local newspaper, the Bartonford Herald, typing up adverts and obituaries, whilst dreaming of a more exciting life. Between her shifts as an ARP warden and caring for her ailing father, the chance for escape doesn't come often to Devon. Meanwhile, in America's Deep South, Sam Archer is hatching a plan to raise enough money to get his mother and sister away from his abusive stepfather.

During a sleepover, a letter comes to five children begging for the urgent assistance of Esther Mettlestone-Staranise; she must arrive before 10am on Monday to save an entire town of elves trapped under layers of silver. And a regular-size boy who, soon after seeing the children, dies. Oscar is that boy who skipped school in our world on Monday to skate, and found himself in the city of the elves at just the wrong moment: He fled as fast as he could, but not fast enough because the silver wave struck him and he fell down dead. And that's just the beginning!

Emily has settled in the picturesque village of Ashton Mead where she lives with her puppy, Poppy. Life is finally going well for Emily. She has a cottage of her own, a job she likes and friends. Then she stumbles on the body of a woman who apparently drowned in the river. The other villagers suspect foul play and are quick to blame Richard, Emily's next-door neighbour and a newcomer to the village. Emily finds it hard to believe her friendly neighbour could be a cold-hearted murderer. When she meets his attractive son, Adam, her feelings become more complicated.

Daisy is preparing to spend her first Christmas in the only place she’s ever really felt at home: beautiful Fox Farm. But when tragedy strikes, she will need all her festive cheer, and all the mulled wine, to keep Christmas from being cancelled... Living at Fox Farm, with its cosy café and charming pottery workshop, is a dream come true for thirty-one-year-old Daisy. The kindly owner, Jean, and the close-knit village feel like the family Daisy has never had.

Doctor of Archaeology, Diana Garry, director of the dig at the beautiful Renaissance Chateau of Chenonceau, was daydreaming as she sat behind her desk in one of the incident rooms. She remembered back to her childhood when along with her two older sisters, their father would let them play unhindered in the grounds of their local castle at Corfe. They would take turns being the beautiful damsel in distress who was awaiting a dashing Knight in shining armour to whisk them away to his castle where he would turn out to be a dashing Prince and heir to the Kingdom.

The Rusel family is famous throughout Enderlain as breeders of enchanted horses, but their prestige is no match for their rising debts. To save her family’s ranch, Mikira Rusel is left with only one option: enter the Illinir, a cutthroat, cross-country horserace known for its high death rate as much as its flashy prize money. To have any chance of success, she’ll have to recruit Ari, an unlicensed enchanter who creates golems in place of enchanted animals, and Damien Adair, a lord in the midst of a succession battle.

A darker force is festering in Enderlain’s underbelly, and Mikira, Ari, Damien, and Reid will need to find a way back to each other — and themselves — before the kingdom is torn apart. Hearts will be broken and new bonds will be forged in this explosive finale to This Dark Descent, where spellbinding fantasy meets Jewish mythology in a cutthroat race for the throne — and Enderlain’s survival.

All aspiring novelist Honor has ever wanted is to be successful. It's the only way she can impress the father who abandoned her, the boyfriend who gave up on her, and the nagging voice in her head that tells her she's not good enough. Still, wanting to tell a story is not the same as having a story to tell, and Honor knows she needs to find a new source of inspiration. When she's invited to spend a summer abroad in The Hamptons, Honor realises it could be the dream setting for a book, especially when a chance encounter provides her with the perfect leading man.

Polly Pecorino rescues animals, and she can talk to them, too. She spends all of her time caring for those at Happy Days Zoo, where the devious owners, Mr and Mrs Snell, will do anything to make money. One day, they steal a bear cub, certain that he will do wonders for ticket sales, but the ferocious bears living in Wild Bear Woods want their cub back. Will Polly be brave enough to stand up to the Snells and take Booboo, the bear cub, back where he belongs?

They’ve swapped the dark and lonely baby days for school gate chaos, but Aisha, Sophy and Mel are discovering that there are new parenting pitfalls just waiting for them. Can the three mums navigate this new stage of motherhood together and keep their friendship and their sanity? Or could life be about to change for them all over again?