Showing results by narrator "Jane McDowell" in All Categories

My name is not actually Penny Dreadful. It is Penelope Jones. The ‘Dreadful’ bit is my dad’s JOKE. But it is not even true that I am dreadful.

Penny Dreadful manages to cause a kerfuffle with three uproarious stories in which she ends up blue, along with her sister’s swan outfit, and turns Joshua Bottomley pale and green by doing a science experiment on him. Penny then cooks up a calamity as she tries to turn over a new leaf in the school show, on a class trip and by making the cake of dreams for her mum's birthday... but somehow her efforts still turn into a huge disaster.

The murder of women priests in the shrine town of Walsingham sucks Dr. Ruth Galloway into an unholy investigation. Ruth's friend, Cathbad, is housesitting in Walsingham, a Norfolk village famous as a centre for pilgrimages to the Virgin Mary. One night, Cathbad sees a strange vision in the graveyard beside the cottage: a young woman dressed in blue.

Sian Bishop has only ever experienced one moment of recklessness – a moment that resulted in her beloved son Rory. It’s not that she doesn’t love the outcome of that wild night, but since then she has always taken the safer route. So when dependable, devoted Richard suggests a move to the beautiful English countryside, she leaves the hustle and bustle of the city behind, and she throws herself into the picture-postcard cottage garden, her furniture restoration business, and a new life in the country.

Dr Ruth Galloway is flattered when she receives a letter from Italian archaeologist Dr Angelo Morelli, asking for her help. He's discovered a group of bones in a tiny hilltop village near Rome but doesn't know what to make of them. It's years since Ruth has had a holiday, and even a working holiday to Italy is very welcome!

Nine hilarious short stories including 'Penny Dreadful versus the Vampire', in which Penny decides to embark on a career as a vampire hunter; 'Penny Dreadful Looks on the Bright Side', in which miserable Grandma Grimshaw comes to stay; and 'Penny Dreadful and the World Record', in which Penny attempts to get her name in the record books. There's chicken pox in 'Penny Dreadful Is Incredibly Contagious' and much more fun in her other adventures....

Cambridge is home to 18,000 students, 1,500 academics and one serial killer.... For the students of Ariel College, a siege mentality has developed following weeks of media interest in 'the Cambridge Butcher'. University life has become not about surviving their exams, but simply about surviving. And forensic psychiatrist Matthew Denison is sure that his traumatised patient has the killer's identity locked in her memory.

Patricia Wilson's carefully composed ads for the writers' retreat she runs at her 13th-century Italian castle promise so much. But while the splendour of their surroundings and chef Aldo's melanzane never fail to wow the guests, huge maintenance bills and bad news from the bank threaten to close Patricia down. It's make or break time for the Castello.

Flora Maguire is now happily married to Bunny Harrington and living in Richmond when she receives an alarming telegram informing her of her father's tragic death in a riding accident at Cleeve Abbey. Heartbroken, Flora and Bunny return to her former home, where she was governess to Eddy, Viscount Trent, and her father was butler to Earl Trent. Flora's intention was to bury him next to Lily, her mother, who sadly passed away when Flora was a small child. Mystery surrounds the final resting place of Lily.

1903 London is bustling and glamorous. With troubling secrets simmering and worrying signs of war Flora Maguire must solve a deadly mystery which leads right to the heart of the corridors of power. Flora Maguire has escaped the country to enjoy some time in fashionable Knightsbridge, London. Extravagant shops, exuberant theatres and decadent restaurants mean 1903's London is a thrilling adventure, but there are dark secrets threatening from the continent.

Flora has trodden the path of amateur sleuth before, but with so much at stake, this time it's personal. 1905 London is a heady mix of unimaginable wealth and simmering political tensions, and with war looming Flora Maguire wants to keep her family safe. So when her beloved charge Viscount Edward Trent is accused of murder, she's determined not to leave the investigation to the police. Slowly the body of the victim found stabbed on a train bound for Paddington starts giving up its secrets, and Flora and her husband Bunny become mired in a murky world of spies, communists and fraudsters.

The forgotten children of London are going missing, apparently being sold by their own families. Can she save them before it's too late... Flora Maguire's life is perfect - a beautiful home in Belgravia teeming with servants, a loving husband, and new baby Arthur to enjoy. But when she is invited to tour St Philomena's Children's Hospital in deprived Southwark, she gets a harsh insight into the darker side of Edwardian London. Shocked by the conditions people are living in, she soon uncovers a scandal with a dark heart.