Showing results by narrator "Nicholas" in All Categories

Set in the court of Urbino in 1507, Castiglione’s The Book of the Courtier presents an invaluable look at court life and culture during the Renaissance. Over four nights of dialogue, the book explores the key question, ‘What should a courtier be like?’ and presents a deep and timeless discussion that is reminiscent of Plato’s Symposium and Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics and invites comparisons with Machiavelli’s The Prince.

It is the long, oppressive summer of 1912. Four months ago the RMS Titanic was lost to the Atlantic. In Europe the drumbeats of war grow louder. These things have yet to touch Mr. Sherlock Holmes who, estranged from Dr. Watson, lives in reclusive retirement on the South Downs. The world’s foremost criminal investigator has turned his back on the past, hiding from the world and thinking himself immune to its excesses.

For Hugo, the world can be too loud and bright. He likes the quiet. He likes the dark. And he loves maps. When Hugo learns that there’s a whole other world under Paris, a network of tunnels, quarries and catacombs mapped beneath his feet, he sets off on an adventure. Navigating secret passages, narrowly escaping robbers and returning to old friends, Hugo discovers more than just buried treasure.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the most astonishing child prodigy in the history of music, is felt by many people to be the greatest composer who ever lived. Dominated and shaped by a highly intelligent but frustrated and ambitious father, his story sees the development of a unique genius, from precocious and often endearing childhood to liberated fulfillment, unexpected poverty, and a tragically early death. Generously illustrated by Mozart’s music, from his fifth to his final year, this portrait-in-sound reveals a fascinating yet elusive character, drawing richly on the words of the composer himself and those who knew him.

How do you go from pulling pints one day, to travelling the world, all-expenses paid the next? For this author it involved a huge dollop of ketchup, a little bit of growing up, and an extraordinary sequence of events that flings the author on a career path he’d never dreamed could happen. Throw in the patter of little feet, sharp teeth, amputations, and a smattering of characters from their Tenerife bar days, and you have another serving of ketchup - only this time, it’s a little more salsa.

Throughout their childhood, Beth and Luke have been terrorized because of their mother's religious mania. One summer, Beth visits her grandmother and meets the irresistible Morgan, and her descent into darkness begins. The beloved child they conceive foretells a future of evil.

Published in 1896, A Child of the Jago is a gritty and realistic portrayal of life in the slums of London’s East End during the late 19th century. The novel is set in an area known as the Old Jago (based on a real-life slum called the Old Nichol) and vividly describes the poverty, crime and squalor that characterised the impoverished neighbourhood.

A trio of apparent suicides of racing people in the beautiful Lambourn valley in south west England baffles Eddie Malloy. Eddie refuses to accept the police assumption that each death, accompanied by a suicide note, suggests no crime has been committed. One of the dead saved Eddie's life, when Eddie was just 19. Fourteen years later, Eddie knows he cannot rest until he discovers the truth behind the death of his friend.

A legendary serial killer stalks the streets of a fantastical city in The Helm of Midnight, the stunning first novel in a new trilogy from acclaimed author Marina Lostetter. In a daring and deadly heist, thieves have made away with an artifact of terrible power—the death mask of Louis Charbon...

When 79-year-old Arthur gathers his family together to share some important news, no one is prepared for the bombshell he drops: he's gay, and after a lifetime in the closet, he's about to come out. Arthur's daughter, Elizabeth, storms out. She swears that she won't have anything to do with her father again—and she forbids her children from seeing him too. Arthur's 21-year-old grandson, Teddy, has a secret of his own: he's also gay, and developing serious feelings for his colleague Ben. But Teddy doesn't feel remotely ready to come out yet.

Spy. Liar. Scoundrel. Redcoat. Provocateur and spy for His Majesty, Captain John Carlisle returns to Fort Niagara with the secrets he learned in the arms of his lover, Dellis McKesson. Determined to complete his mission and clear his name, John will see justice done—and damn the consequences. Now, he finds himself drawn into political intrigue as the British prepare to launch a three-pronged attack that will bring the Rebels and the Mohawk River Valley to its knees. Meanwhile, a dangerous revelation finds Dellis as whispers of intrigue insinuate her beloved is not all that he seems.

Whilst detective John Blizzard looks into a series of drug-related deaths, an old nemesis appears who threatens to cloud his judgment. Frustrated with the slow progress of his colleagues’ investigation into the deaths of several youngsters, DCI John Blizzard takes over, determined to catch the drug pushers. In so doing, he stumbles across information that might help solve a murder that occurred when he first joined CID.

The Complete Father Brown Collection: Books 1-5, read by the outstanding Nicholas Boulton, includes unabridged recordings of the complete works of Father Brown—G. K. Chesterton's beloved amateur sleuth.

Enter the nostalgia-laced world of CAMP 1985, a bogus new summer program where parents send their social-media-addicted teens to unplug and make face-to-face connections without the help of a screen. Ander expects a fun weekend getaway with other influencers but instead finds himself trapped in a radical landscape without wifi. Just when Ander gives in to camp life and starts crushing on a cute gamer boy, a little fun with a spirit board unleashes a vengeful spirit of a bygone era.

Two thousand years ago, the galaxy was devastated by a great catastrophe. No one really knows what happened. Some say it was the work of the Dark One, of the Bringer of Death. And in the ancient remains of a civilisation on the planet Velyshaa, a lonely outcast is uncovering evidence of who that terrible figure really was. Could it be that Kalendorf's determination to rid the galaxy of the Daleks will bring about the destruction of everything? Indeed, can the Daleks ever be truly defeated?

A deliciously black satirical comedy about the dinner party from hell. The fastidious host, Paige, decides to throw a dinner party in honour of her husband, Lars, who is celebrating the success of his pop psychology book, Beyond Belief. She carefully plans a surprise menu that will mark the occasion and anxiously checks with the waiter she has employed to make sure that everything is perfectly prepared. Her lucky guests include a postfeminist vegetarian artist, a distinguished microbiologist, a TV journalist and an uninvited guest who ends up staying for dinner.

The Daleks are back! The ruthless creatures of hate return to menace the galaxy in a further collection of vintage stories from Terry Nation’s Dalek Annuals. Urgent message to all Anti-Dalek Force agents: the battle continues! Vital examples of the continued defence effort are included in this...

"What this charming, moving and fascinating collection proves is that the [letter] form itself - a scribbled note, a declaration of love, an outpouring of passion, a bitter word -has always been with us." - Mark Gatiss A good love letter can speak across centuries, and reassure us that the agony...

'Perhaps, thought Meredith, he would get away with this after all. No one, surely, would be crazy enough to keep going after him in this weather.' When the hunt for a missing man turns up a body in a forest in Northern England, Detective Jack Harris investigates. The man's links to known criminals raise suspicion, especially as one of the names is that of a notorious villain. But Harris' obsession with bringing Danny Radford to justice might distract him from the facts....

The UK branch of UNIT is under threat. The government wants its own military investigative organisation, one under its sole control. The public want answers to the strange things that have been happening recently. When the division's commanding officer goes missing whilst transporting a dangerous cargo, Colonel Emily Chaudhry, UNIT's political officer, is thrown in at the deep end. Things are not helped when a series of accidents show a bizarre pattern.