Showing results by narrator "Frances Butt" in All Categories

The Ashcombe Ladies’ Society have worked tirelessly to prepare the most anticipated event of the season. Much publicised, the Christmas fair is drawing visitors from neighbouring towns, and for the very first time it will be held in Ashcombe Hall’s grand pavilion. Lady Ellen is determined the day will be nothing short of perfect. But the festivities turn sinister when Mrs Mott, the vicar’s wife, suddenly collapses at the foot of the glittering tree. Only moments earlier she had been making her rounds, sampling delicacies from the stalls.

A girl with a broken heart. A man dealing with loss. When an accident brings these childhood sweethearts together, will they find love? When a fire rips through her world, Holly finds her rescuer to be none other than Mitch, the guy she’s not seen for fifteen years. He makes her a business proposition, but can she learn to trust? Heartbroken Mitch travels across the country to Somerset to oversee the running of his Uncle’s farm, but is he really running away from himself? Neither can deny their attraction for each other. But is such an intense relationship ideal between two broken people?

When the formidable Marchioness of Bandberry arrives at Ashcombe Hall, Lady Ellen feels the weight of her critical gaze upon her. But pomp and pageantry soon give way to scandal when a London journalist is found dead on Ellen’s drive. And his body has been marked with the chilling symbol of the Vigilante Slasher.

Charlotte James prefers having her head in the stars to having her feet on the ground. Moving around for her job as an astronomical archivist gives Charlotte plenty of opportunity to avoid putting down roots. When she accepts a post in the idyllic Somerset village of Lower Brambleton to archive an old observatory before its demolition, all that is on her mind is a chance to preserve the treasures of this remarkable place and another summer without having to settle down.

Following a less-than-picture-book childhood, Bella West has got used to moving around – putting down roots opens you up for disappointment and heartbreak. But since arriving in the idyllic Somerset village of Lower Brambleton, something has changed. When Noah Hathaway's beloved Grandpa Jack passes away it falls to him to deal with his estate including his charming but run-down cottage in Lower Brambleton, not forgetting Jack's cantankerous cat Monty.

Thea Ashcombe, a fiercely independent single mum, is about to face her toughest challenge yet: Christmas on a shoestring. As the festive season looms, Thea’s feeling a little like their old family Christmas tree - tired and lacking in sparkle! Nick Saint, the quiet and devoted farm shop manager in the idyllic village of Lower Brambleton, has secretly liked Thea for years. Trapped in the friend zone since high school, he's given up hope of Thea seeing him as anything more than reliable ‘Saint’ Nick...

All aboard for a 1920s voyage where murder strikes at sea… Lady Ellen is bound for Cairo, determined to enjoy a well-earned rest after a turbulent year. With her ward, Lottie Penny, and her loyal dog, Prince, she boards the SS Molvina, expecting nothing more taxing than deck games, evening gowns, and the promise of sunshine at the end of the journey. Once aboard, she is surprised to find several familiar faces amongst the first-class passengers.

It’s 1924. Lady Ellen of Ashcombe Hall is on a relaxing hotel break to recuperate. Her nemesis is found dead in the restaurant, face down in his pea and ham soup. Can she confront her past to solve the mystery? Lady Ellen seeks respite in the charming seaside town of Branden Bay, whilst her home, which was used as a convalescent home for war veterans, is being refurbished to its former glory.

Although Psychic Surveys remain busy, there’s been no real cases lately to get their teeth into, logical explanations found for most hauntings. That all changes when Ruby gets a call from Conor Byrne, who lives in the Republic of Ireland. The fear in his voice is genuine. Ruby, Theo, Ness and Corinna head over to the Emerald Isle to help Conor, and, of course, the distressed spirit – their aim to bring peace to the living and the dead. They arrive to find a dilapidated cottage in a rural area, and a man that’s barely alive.

When she first married at fourteen, Otrera imagined a relationship full of love. A partnership. Years later, living in destitution with her abusive husband, she knows that no such thing exists with a man. It is simply a woman's lot in life to accept the treatment of her husband. Until it's not. Rallying the women around her, Otrera fights back, taking no prisoners. Because it's clear to her: when men are in power, freedom isn't granted. It's bought with blood. It's a price she is more than willing to pay, if it means building a new life with other women far from the reaches of their abusers.

Lady Ellen settles back into life at Ashcombe Hall and eagerly awaits the return of Captain Ernest Hamilton from Cairo. But her peace is shattered when a notorious thief is found dead on the neighbouring Worthington estate. Heading over to console Lady Jane Worthington, Ellen’s day takes an unexpected turn—a plane crashes on her land, piloted by flame-haired Alex, the Duke of Loxborough, who is once again masquerading under a pseudonym. As charming as he is, Ellen is unnerved by his presence—she does not trust him.

Inspired by true events, blending white–knuckle suspense with wartime romance, a woman who would become known as the female Schindler risks everything to smuggle children out of the ghetto and away from the grasp of the Gestapo . . . Warsaw, 1939. The Nazi invasion shatters the city, as Nazi...

Can Lady Ellen of Ashcombe Hall finally savour a relaxing break at Millars Hotel? Not quite. Her plans take an unexpected turn when a sightseeing tour of Branden Bay Castle turns deadly. The picturesque castle in Branden Bay stands proudly above the town and beach. Lady Ellen finds herself thrust into the heart of a chilling mystery when a tragic incident unfolds, and a soul plummets from one of the castle’s turrets. On a blustery day, it seems like a dreadful accident, but the police suspect foul play.

Marooned after a garden party turns sinister, Lady Ellen finds herself in the midst of an unsettling mystery. An unexpected summer storm leaves occupants and visitors, including Ellen, Lottie and Captain Hamilton, contained within Moor House and grounds after it is cut off from the outside world. When a priceless Egyptian artefact is stolen, the thief leaves the man guarding it brutally maimed.

It is the sixth century. The Romans have been gone for over 100 years, and Britannia is sinking into darkness. Kingdoms clash, and invaders flood the shores – the Jutes, the Angles, and now the bloodthirsty Saxons. Only Uther Pendragon has kept the West safe, defying, too, the rising tide of Christianity. But now, Uther is dead. And if the West falls, all of Britannia will follow. Deep in a secluded valley, hidden from the world, Arthur and Morgan have grown to adulthood under the care of their foster parents.

The Devil's Liar is the ninth in the best-selling Psychic Surveys series, that feature plot twists, compelling characters, and a mystery at its dark heart. As a young woman, Theo was confronted by the spirit of a child who had killed other children, but decided she could be of no help, shutting down all possibility of further communication. Now older and wiser, Theo comes to regret that decision and wants to make amends, involving the Psychic Surveys team in her quest.

After suffering the tragic loss of her best friend, Lottie Beck is struggling. Aged eighteen, she's flunked school and spends her days lying in a darkened room, doing nothing. Finally, she is forced to get a job in Silver Birches Care Home. Once there, and after meeting the residents, particularly the feisty, no-nonsense Bobby, she settles in, appreciating how much history lies behind each person. A history she can read, in her own special way, via the simple touch of a hand.

A Room of One's Own is an extended essay, originally delivered in 1928 as two lectures at two of Cambridge University's women's colleges—Newnham College and Girton College. Through the use of several metaphors, lauded author Virginia Woolf explores the social injustices and structures that prevent women from engaging in free expression and contributing to literature.

Dominic Stevens, Baron Warwicke, comes home bearing the physical and emotional scars of battle. Haunted by fragmented memories and burdened by duty, he’s stunned to learn he has a wife—a woman he does not remember marrying. Dorothea rejoices when Dominic comes to remove her from her brother’s abusive household. But the man who stands before her now is colder, harder...a shadow of the husband she once knew. Still, she is determined to reach the heart he has forgotten, believing the man she married is still there, merely buried beneath the pain.

Yoga and the Body: The Future of Modern Yoga in the Studio and Beyond imagines the prospects for physical yoga practice. The authors, writing as advanced practitioners and teachers, share their enthusiasm for yoga and lay out the ways its physical practices can evolve and make an impact upon our understanding of consciousness. The chapters examine techniques, trends, and beliefs about contemporary practices and then speculate about where these could lead.