Showing results by narrator "Lucy Rayner" in All Categories

Sasha just got her dream job at a dig in the highlands of Scotland. Where her friends ply her with celebratory champagne, throw a plaid cloak over her business suit, and take her to the 13th century to do original research on the dig site. She meets gorgeous Highlander Seumas there, and - wait, is this a good idea?

Tavish was the best boyfriend Kelsey ever had, but seven years ago he disappeared. She coped with her heartbreak by finishing her doctorate in Celtic Artwork, and now her career is taking off. Except Tavish keeps showing up at her job sites and butting into her business - all the while wearing that stupid sexy kilt. But she's here to see the ruins, not Tavish. So she'll just have to show him who's boss at this site. Because under these cliffs at Dunskey Castle, it is rumored, lies the ancient palace of the kings of Alba.

How well do you really know your Facebook friends? My husband loves me. I love him. But, a secret is eating us alive. It's not the one I keep from him. It's not the one he couldn't keep from me. And, someone knows everything. A stranger. A stalker. An online nightmare. I've got mail.

Kids change your life, they said. Things will never be the same again, they said. Isn't it wonderful, they said. But no one knows what to say now. My husband wants to take the kids. My husband thinks the accident was my fault. My husband thinks I need help. But I think he wants rid of me.

The London summer of 1854 is drawing to a close when a deadly outbreak of cholera grips the city. Florence Nightingale is back on the scene marshaling her nurses to help treat countless suffering patients at Middlesex Hospital as the disease tears through the Soho slums. But beyond the dangers of the disease, something even more evil is seeping through the ailing streets of London. It begins with an attack on the carriage of Florence's friend, Elizabeth Herbert, wife of Secretary at War Sidney Herbert. Elizabeth survives, but her coachman does not.

It's been a decade since Kate and Cecelia foiled Napoleon's plot to reclaim the French crown. The cousins now have estates, children, and a place at the height of wizarding society. It is 1828, and though magic remains at the heart of the British Empire, a new power has begun to make itself felt across England: the steam engine. As iron tracks crisscross the countryside, the shaking of the locomotives begins to disrupt the workings of English magic, threatening the very foundations of the Empire. 

Since they were children, cousins Kate and Cecelia have been inseparable. But in 1817, as they approach adulthood, their families force them to spend a summer apart. As Cecelia fights boredom in her small country town, Kate visits London to mingle with the brightest lights of English society. At the initiation of a powerful magician into the Royal College of Wizards, Kate finds herself alone with a mysterious witch who offers her a sip from a chocolate pot.  

Carolyn’s parents did not, after all, make genomics history by synthesizing her genome in a lab. She has known she is the “Human Hoax” ever since a high school genetics exercise revealed she has trisomy X - a chromosomal abnormality - yet no synthetically constructed genome would have such clear traces of natural conception. Many years later, as a molecular biologist, Carolyn hopes her colleagues never learn of her embarrassing origins. But when someone ransacks her office and lab, she finds professional embarrassment is the least of her worries.

Eager for distraction in the aftermath of her messy divorce, Ellie Mileham dives into moderating the petty squabbles on her local Facebook group. When a prankster starts trolling uptight members, it’s a welcome diversion at first. But then the war of words moves onto the streets of Forest Grove, with threatening letters escalating into violent destruction. It’s suddenly clear there’s something much more dangerous at play.

When Kendra Donovan is approached by Mrs. Gavenston with an unusual request - to find her business manager, Jeremy Pascoe, who recently vanished - the FBI agent is eager to accept the challenge. To Kendra's way of thinking, spending her time locating a missing person suits her more than perfecting her embroidery, painting watercolors, practicing on the pianoforte, or any of the other activities that are socially acceptable for young ladies in the early 19th century. Unfortunately, the missing person's case turns into a murder investigation after Kendra finds the man stabbed to death.

Our enduring love of vampires - the bad boys (and girls) of paranormal fantasy - has persisted for centuries. Despite being bloodthirsty, heartless killers, vampire stories commonly carry erotic overtones that are missing from other paranormal or horror stories. Even when monstrous teeth are sinking into pale, helpless throats - especially then - vampires are sexy. But why? Author Violet Fenn takes the listener through the history of vampires in "fact" and fiction, their origins in mythology and literature, and their enduring appeal on TV and film. 

England 1801: Lady Louisa, daughter to the Earl of Whickerton, never thought she would ever have reason enough to hate anyone; especially not Phineas Hawke, Viscount Barrington, the man with the most wickedly dark eyes she has ever seen. Louisa is suddenly forced to realize that the man she could easily have lost her heart to has discovered her most shameful secret. Anger settles in her heart, burying all tender emotions, as she tries her utmost to ignore him. That is easier said than done.

Branwen has given herself over to the darkest parts of her magic in order to protect her kingdom, but in doing so, she may have lost herself - and the two people she loves most. Tristan and Eseult are missing. As Branwen searches for them, she must also hide the truth of her terrible actions from the night they disappeared. But there are those who don’t want the queen and her champion to be found; enemies who plot to bring a new reign into power and destroy the fragile peace Branwen has sacrificed everything to secure.

When Branwen used magic to save her country’s future, she never expected to destroy her dreams for her own. Now the love she and Tristan built is destroyed, and her relationship with her cousin Essy is shattered. But Branwen does not have time to dwell on her heartbreak. Essy’s betrothed, the king of a rival nation, must never discover Tristan and Essy’s affair, or it could mean war. Branwen goes to desperate lengths to stop the king from discovering the truth, but the price may be even more terrible than she could have imagined.

In the first book of a lush fantasy trilogy about warring countries, family secrets, and star-crossed lovers, 18-year-old Branwen finds an enemy washed up on the shore of her kingdom. Rather than let him die at the hands of her people, she nurses him back to health as they begin to fall in love. Branwen helps him escape with his life - only for him to return during a diplomatic visit under his true identity: Prince Tristan of Kernyv.  

Anne, Duchess of Brittany, is the love of King Louis XII of France's life. Too bad he's already married. While his annulment proceedings create Europe's most sensational scandal of 1498, Anne returns to Brittany to take back control of her duchy that her late husband, Charles VIII, King of France, had wrested from her. At age 21, Anne is sovereign ruler of Brittany as well as Europe's most wealthy widow. But can she maintain Brittany's independence from France if she accepts Louis's offer to make her Queen of France once more?

Connie doesn’t stand a chance with Josh - not when he worships the wonderful Megan. Fed up, she writes a letter to the universe asking for Josh to fall in love with her, and for Megan’s hair to fall out. The next day, Megan’s hair is almost shaved off, and Josh is all over Connie like a rash. It’s like a miracle - except it’s totally unfair! Consumed with guilt, Connie has to put things right....

Holly's family move to the old house so her dad can do his job: bulldozing the ancient trees to make way for a housing estate. But there's something haunting the old house. Something old, and angry, that doesn't want the trees cut down. Something alive....

Ellie and Amina are best friends. But when Amina decides to start wearing the hijab, it attracts the attention of the bullies. Now Ellie’s loyalties are being tested. Has Amina changed? Does it matter if best friends have different beliefs? Is she ready to stand up for Amina? A thought-provoking story about friendship, religion and modern life.

Mo hates her new school and her new town. She has no friends and home life is awful. So when a nice-looking guy friends her on Facebook, she’s happy to accept. Darko’s messages keep her going while life just gets worse. Then he invites her to meet him. And Mo decides to take a risk....