Showing results by narrator "Deirdra Whelan" in All Categories

Amanda is a hardworking single mum, completely focused on her job and her daughter, Louise. She’s been saving for years, and now, finally, she can afford to give up work and chase her dream. But then, on her commute home from London to Brighton, she meets a charming stranger - who seems to know everything about her. He delivers an ultimatum. She needs to give him the code for the safe where she keeps her savings before the train reaches Brighton - or she’ll never see Louise again.

Max and Nadine Murphy have a tradition. Friday night is date night and it's always at their favourite restaurant. But that regular routine means somebody at the restaurant has become fond of them... Hannah is the waitress who has found herself drawn to the couple at Table Six and the more she observes them, the more she wants to know everything about them. What is their home life like? What do they do for work? Why does Mrs Murphy look agitated? And could Mr Murphy ever be interested in becoming romantically involved with his waitress?

After the year Aidan and I have had, we needed some respite. My husband is overworked, whilst I'm anxious about the past, so renting a night at this converted barn house in the countryside seems like the perfect place for the pair of us to relax and unwind. It might be situated at the bottom of a large garden, but it's private enough that we don't have to mingle with the homeowners who live nearby. Or at least that's what I thought...

In the peaceful Cotswolds village of Maybridge, you wouldn't expect to find a dead body in the rose garden. And certainly not two. Abby is horrified to discover the bones of a baby buried under a rose bush. It's in the garden of her soon-to-be ex-husband Howard's family home. She immediately calls the police. But she can't get hold of Howard. He's off on a jolly with the woman he's got pregnant. And then, just two days later, Abby finds Howard himself.

Maximise your happiness in the workplace. Stop negative thinking and tackle your problems at work using cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). Learn to control anger and frustration, reduce workplace anxiety and take control of your work-life balance by introducing CBT’s insights into your working day. Full of real-life examples and useful exercises, this practical guide will help you to replace feelings of inadequacy and a lack of motivation with new ways of thinking, to help you work better with others and make you happier and more effective in the workplace.

Abby Finch arrives at the old church hall armed with festive mistletoe and holly, ready to decorate. But within moments of her walking through the door, tragedy strikes . . . Edward Marsh reaches to test the antique star at the top of the tree. There's a fizz and the lights go out. Abby hears the sickening thud of a body hitting the floor. When the lights turn back on, Edward is dead. It soon becomes clear it was no accident.

For centuries mankind has waged war against the infections that, left untreated, would have the power to wipe out communities, or even entire populations. Yet for all our advanced scientific knowledge, only one human disease - smallpox - has ever been eradicated globally. In recent years, outbreaks of Ebola and Zika have provided vivid examples of how difficult it is to contain an infection once it strikes and the panic that a rapidly spreading epidemic can ignite. 

When three women head to Portugal for a long weekend in the sun, the goal is to celebrate an upcoming wedding. Jane is getting married, and Angela and Maya want to give her a good time before she does. But the carefree getaway soon goes awry, and by the time the friends board their flight home, they are all carrying a terrible secret. It's one that could ruin each of their lives, which is why they make their pact: They agree to tell no one else what happened while they were away. As long as they can do that, they should be fine. That is until somebody else threatens to share their secret.

When the Burgess family move into their 'forever' home, it seems like they are set for many happy years together at their new address. Steph and Grant, along with their children, Charlie and Amelia, settle into their new surroundings quickly. But then they receive an unexpected visit from a couple who claim to have lived in the house before. They wish to come in and have a look around for old time's sake. Seeming pleasant and plausible, Steph invites them in. And that's when things begin to change.

Happily married couple Katie and Sean have plenty to look forward to as they move into their new home and plan for the future. But then they meet two of their new neighbours and everything on their quiet street suddenly doesn't seem as desirable as it did before. Having been warned about the other neighbours, and their adulterous and criminal ways, Katie and Sean realise that they are going to have to be on their guard if they want to make their time here a happy one. But the other neighbours seem so nice and that's why they choose to ignore the warning.

Nicola is returning to her family home for the Christmas holidays to spend the festive season with her loved ones for the first time in several years. But she gets a shock when she discovers that there will be an unexpected guest joining them for dinner. Their elderly neighbour, Barbara, will be present at the table too after receiving an invitation from Nicola's parents. That is a big problem for Nicola, although she struggles to let her family members know why. As far as they are concerned, Barbara is just the sweet old lady from next door. But Nicola knows the truth. 

Lucy is a successful businesswoman who loves nothing more than to spend her time competing in fun challenges with friends, colleagues and even strangers. But she might just have met her match when she encounters Jess, a woman who is not used to losing at anything. Jess is very much like Lucy when it comes to a fondness for competition, only a more extreme version, and as the pair become friends, it's clear that a rivalry is developing between them in the fields of business, love and beyond. But as the lives of both women become more intertwined, that rivalry becomes more intense.

Amy is a loving wife and mother to her husband and two children, Michael and Bella. It's that dedication to her family that causes her to seek help for her teenage son when it becomes apparent he is going to fail his end of school exams. Enlisting the help of a professional tutor, Amy is certain that she is doing the best thing for her child. But when she discovers that there is more to this tutor than meets the eye, it is already too late. With the rest of her family enamoured, Amy is the only one who can see that there is something not quite right about her.  

Simone used to be the woman that other women would use if they suspected that their partner was cheating. She would investigate, find out the truth and if the men were guilty exact revenge. But after things went wrong with one couple, Simone was forced to go into hiding to evade the law. Having assumed a new identity, Simone is now Mary, a mild-mannered woman who doesn't raise her voice or get angry. But when she finds out that her new boyfriend is having an affair, it awakens in her the person she used to be.

Heather is a single mum who has always done what's best for her daughter, Chloe. From birth up to the age of 17, Chloe has never been any trouble, until one night when she calls her mother with some shocking news. There's been an accident. And now there's a dead body.... As always, Heather puts her daughter's safety before all else, but this is one time when she goes too far. Instead of calling the emergency services, Heather hides the body, saving her child from police interviews and public outcry.

Emma Bowen has never had a close relationship with her mother, barely speaking with her in the last years of her life. But after her mother’s death, Emma finds something that might just explain the distance between them. Discovering letters between her mother and grandmother, it seems to Emma that her mother has always been difficult. As she searches for answers about her own childhood, Emma is drawn into the mystery of her mother’s enigmatic life.

A sister searches for her missing brother as a new power rises amid the splendour and the squalor of a once great city. Lower Rhumbsford is a city far removed from its glory days. On the banks of the great river Rhumb, its founding fathers channelled the river's mighty flow into a subterranean labyrinth of pipes, valves and sluices, a feat of hydraulic prowess that would come to power an empire. But a thousand years have passed since then, and something is wrong.  

Since Ginevra Innocenti’s death, the cottage has lain empty and abandoned in the woods. Until the day Ginevra’s granddaughter, Sara, sees a dragonfly in the depths of winter. Intrigued, she follows it and discovers the forgotten cottage. When Sara learns that her grandmother was once a healer, a series of events is set in motion which could lead to the end of the family legacy. As long-hidden secrets are revealed, Sara starts to doubt everything she once believed in. Her mind in turmoil, she no longer knows whether she can follow in the footsteps of her ancestors.

They would rather die than become mothers. A serial killer is on the loose in Tel Aviv. Each victim is found tied to a chair with a baby doll glued to their hands, the word 'mother' carved into their forehead like a mark of Cain. Stowed away between the wax figurines of the Bible museum where she works, Sheila Heller knows both victims. She suspects the killings have something to do with a pact their group all made at university - to never have children. What Sheila doesn't know is who is committing these gruesome acts of ritualistic violence, and whether she herself might be next. 

One summer can change everything. Catherine Bromley has spent her life in Penhallow Sands, dedicating herself to work and supporting her emotionally fragile mother. Since her father left, it's always been the two of them, and Catherine has no interest in romance. What's the point when men just leave? And besides, her mother needs her. But when handsome novelist Mark Coleman arrives to stay at the cottage overlooking nearby Plum Tree Bay, Catherine's world is changed.