Showing results by narrator "Lucy Rayner" in All Categories

It's Christmas 1940, and Nimway Hall opens its ancient and enchanting heart to the wedding of Josie and Gideon! Wartime intelligence agents Josie and Gideon are in for a wild adventure as they negotiate the hidden dangers of planning a wedding in the midst of a war.

A courageous young woman is just managing to keep up with her family’s vast, wartime farm when a handsome Lt. Colonel and his staff of officers take command of her home. A private war ensues between them, and the couple soon learns that resistance is futile when it comes to love in the heat of battle.

Miss Charlotte Harrington knows what’s expected of her. Properly raised and newly reminded of her duties after the unexpected death of her far-more-perfect twin sister, Charlotte is resigned to wedding the son of a near neighboring land owner and live a sedate and proper, respectable life. But Charlotte’s high spirits will not be contained, and she yearns deeply for a life of adventure, excitement, and love.

Epic poetry and tragic drama provide us with some of the richest ancient Greek depictions of women who are married to soldiers. In tales of the Trojan War, as told by Homer, Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, we encounter these mythical warriors' wives: Penelope, isolated but resourceful as she awaits the return of Odysseus after his lengthy absence; the war widow Andromache, enslaved and displaced from her homeland after the fall of Troy; the unfaithful and murderous Clytemnestra; and Tecmessa, a war captive who witnesses her partner's breakdown and suicide in the aftermath of battle. 

England 1803: Lady Christina Beaumont, daughter to the Earl of Whickerton, is on a mission. A mission to protect her best friend from being forced into a marriage that would see her delicate heart broken and her sensibilities shocked. Deep in debt, Lord Hartmore agreed to marry his daughter to a scoundrel. A man who grew up far from London's high society.

When FBI-agent-turned-time-traveler Kendra Donovan is asked to investigate the suspicious death of Lady Westford, she finds herself on a harrowing journey through Regency England's most taboo traditions. Every layer she peels back uncovers more puzzles, including Lady Westford's interest in a dead woman who'd been mysteriously drained of all her blood. This isn't the first time Kendra has battled a ruthless madman . . . but one mistake, one misstep, and it may be her last.

Orla has always been the sidekick, never the hero. Until, that is, she secures a funded place at an elite drama course and puts her own dreams first for once in her life. Suddenly, Orla is center-stage and loving it! But the drama crowd are experienced performers and their parents have shelled out a fortune for them to be on the course. Orla can't help but feel left out—she has to earn her pocket money and her responsibilities at home can't just be ignored.

When Hanna’s blissful life in Sicily is threatened, and she discovers that her husband, Luciano, is not all he seems, she wastes no time in taking her daughter and seeking refuge abroad. She’ll do anything to keep Eva safe. But just as they begin to settle into their new life in North Wales, Eva disappears.

When Luciano is released early from a Sicilian prison, Hanna worries he will come after her and their young daughter, Eva. She’s been invited to her best friend’s wedding in southern Italy—but can she really take the risk? Living in fear, Hanna knows she and Eva may not be safe, no matter where they are. But something strange is going on at her cottage in the Welsh hills, and as the distance between Sicily and North Wales seems to be shrinking, Hanna has even more to be afraid of . . .

The past proves deadly when a witness to a case gone cold is murdered—a chilling message meant to silence those involved . . . Summoned to Gravesend, Scotland Yard Inspector Henry Field is shocked to discover the body of a man he interviewed only days earlier. The brutal timing suggests his...

In the eerie stillness of a moonlit night, a ravenkeeper is brutally murdered outside the Tower of London. The only potential witness, his daughter, missing . . . Scotland Yard Inspector Henry Field has few clues to follow but is determined to prove his quick rise through the ranks of the...

A young girl—a mudlark—is found dead on the muddy bank of the Thames in her best dress, a crystal perfume bottle clutched in her lifeless hand . . . Fearing foul play, widow Amelia Greystone sends for Scotland Yard Inspector Henry Field—the man still haunted by his failure to solve her...

A dark, breathless, beautifully-written gothic thriller of murder, madness and a mysterious island… London, 1894. Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever...

Hwyfar, eldest daughter of King Leodegraunce and famed libertine of Carelon, has returned to Avillion to find her father ruined by madness and a usurper poised to take the throne. Reluctantly she takes the mantle of Queen Regent to protect her kingdom, but she'll need an army—which King Arthur pledges to send her, providing she marries one of his knights and surrenders the crown.

When Mab and Nessa's mother died and their father disappeared to New Zealand, their lives changed forever. But the loss of their parents wasn’t the only thing that cast a shadow over their childhood… Twenty years later, when Mab and Nessa receive the news of their estranged father’s death, it stirs up a storm of long-buried memories and emotions.

Zen, haiku, martial arts, sushi, anime, manga, film, video games . . . Japanese culture has long enriched our Western way of life. Yet from a Western perspective, Japan remains a remote island country that has long had a complicated relationship with the outside world. Japan—an archipelago strung like a necklace around the Asian mainland—is considerably farther from Asia than Britain is from Europe. The sea has provided an effective barrier against invasion and enabled the culture to develop in unique ways. 

Darcy Drummond was four when she was kidnapped on a crowded beach. A massive police search and media frenzy followed but the girl was never found. Most people gave Darcy up for dead. Or worse.

By all accounts, Lucy’s handled her divorce well. She’s finally in the cozy, plant-filled house of her dreams. And although she doesn’t fit in with the other divorcées—all busy looking for their next ex—she’s excited to get down to earth and savor the small joys of life. When Lucy meets Elle, a hip younger woman who shares her same passions, their connection is instant. Taking a chance on kismet, Lucy forges a friendship that fills her days with meaning. She and Elle are inseparable, from sunup to sundown, enjoying the immediate ease and familiarity of each other’s company.

Belief in ghosts is surprisingly common worldwide. Mysterious glowing orbs, unexplained chills, things that literally go bump in the night: signs of paranormal activity have reportedly surged during the pandemic. As have specialist investigators, organized ghost hunts, eerie podcasts, TV shows and reports of everyday hauntings. Sharing the details of some well-known and particularly mysterious hauntings together with some less-well-known tales and personal stories, Theresa explores these ghostly encounters through four categories of hauntings: residual, poltergeist, inhuman and intelligent.

I’m so looking forward to meeting Aunt Maura, my mother’s twin sister who lives on the rugged west coast of Ireland. With my own mother dying so suddenly, and my sweet baby daughter arriving, I need family around me. But instead of arriving at Maura’s house safe and sound, I wake up in hospital, badly injured. Then I remember the crash. Where is my baby?