Showing results by narrator "Des Powell" in All Categories

A&E Nurse Amy Spencer lives a very ordinary life in Port Kara. She loves her job at the hospital and has a great group of friends, but there is something or someone, missing from her life. Amy’s tried dating but no one ever compares with the one boy that got away – Lijah Byrne. Lijah’s life since he left Port Kara has been what dreams are made of. But lately Lijah has started to feel hollow – the fame and celebrity he once craved now makes him feel trapped. The only place he’s ever felt safe is Port Kara…so maybe it’s time to go back home?

When Beth is offered an exciting new job in London, Jack is the last person she expected to meet. Years ago, he swept her off her feet in Corsica and then dumped her - all within the space of three weeks. When he left, Beth lost her ability to trust and in the years since then, she has remained wary of romance. Now, forced to spend time together, Beth begins to unravel the mystery of Jack's disappearance. Is it too late for them to try again, or could they finally be in the right place at the right time?

Hereford's Diocesan Exorcist must encounter a legacy of evil within the crumbling walls of an old hotel along with memories of murder. A crumbling hotel on the border of England and Wales has long been linked with the possible origins of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles and his obsession with contacting the dead. Fascinating for young Jane Watkins, flushed with the freedom of her first weekend job. But the sinister side soon becomes apparent to her mother, Merrily, Diocesan Exorcist for Hereford.

At the end of the 18th century, the poet William Wordsworth rambled, in a strange visionary haze, from Salisbury Plain up into the Wye Valley. The epic walk changed his life. More than 200 years later, Oxford student David Vaynor followed the same secluded route and still can't explain what happened to him there. Now he's back, as a police detective investigating a suspicious death, and finds that, in this place of cliffs and chasms, it's far from easy to escape the past.

While her older sister is being presented to London Society for the season, Lydia Bramwell is sent to her Aunt Camilla in the Sussex countryside. High-spirited Lydia expects a very dull visit, but her sojourn to the village of Diddlington is not as idyllic as she anticipates . . . A charred and bludgeoned corpse is found in the woods, and suspicion falls on Lydia's aunt's suitor, an intriguing Frenchman. Convinced of his innocence, Lydia enlists the help of her new friend, John Savidge, to catch the real killer. 

'MASSIVELY ENTERTAINING' BERNARDINE EVARISTO 'WARM, FUNNY, FULL OF HEART' DIANA EVANS, AUTHOR OF ORDINARY PEOPLE 'PROFOUNDLY MOVING' ANTONIA HODGSON, AUTHOR OF THE RAVEN SCHOLAR 'ABUNDANT IN LOVE, HEART AND SOUL' LISA OWENS, AUTHOR OF NOT WORKING 'HUGELY SATISFYING' BIDISHA 'A TRIUMPH' LISA...

It is in 1950s Brighton that Marion first catches sight of Tom. He teaches her to swim in the shadow of the pier, and Marion is smitten - determined her love will be enough for them both. A few years later, in Brighton Museum, Patrick meets Tom. Patrick is besotted with Tom and opens his eyes to a glamorous, sophisticated new world. Tom is their policeman, and in this age, it is safer for him to marry Marion. The two lovers must share him until one of them breaks and three lives are destroyed.

It’s the moment single-mum Kate has been dreading. With her only daughter, Chloe, about to leave home, she’s terrified by the prospect of an empty nest. That is until she meets charming lawyer Adam. He could be the perfect catch - if it wasn’t for his clingy son. Because Ben has a crush on Chloe. A crush that is fast becoming an obsession. Flattered by the attention, Chloe is happy to string him along - for now at least. But Kate can see the danger signs, even if her daughter can't.

Summer, 1945. The nation rejoices as the Second World War comes to an end, but Banbury Street matriarch Eva Parke foresees trouble ahead. Her daughter, Mildred, awaits the return of her fiancé from overseas duty, and doubts begin to seep into her mind about how little she knows of the man she has promised to marry. Meanwhile new neighbour, dancer Cissie Cresswell, hides a terrible secret. Can the two young women unite to face the doubt and uncertainty of the future?

Merrily Watkins, parish priest, single mum and deliverance consultant to the Diocese of Hereford, heads for the Malvern Hills to investigate an alleged paranormal dimension to a spate of road accidents in the sleepy village of Wychehill. Merrily is called in when two people are killed in a head-on crash that is also linked to the revamped local pub which, it seems, has injected the valley with a shattering, strobing surge of inner-city nightlife...and drugs.

Product management has become a critical function for modern organizations, from small startups to corporate enterprises. And yet, the day-to-day work of product management remains largely misunderstood. In theory, product managers are high-flying visionaries who build products that people love. In practice, they're hard-working facilitators who bring clarity and focus to their teams. In this thoroughly revised and expanded edition, Matt LeMay provides real-world guidance for current and aspiring product managers. 

A bad best man’s speech can ruin a wedding. Why do we plan every detail of a perfect day and then give the groom’s idiot best friend five minutes of total power? Enter Nate (Glen Powell), a speechwriter-for-hire who helps people write incredible best man speeches. To keep the best man from embarrassing himself (and the newlyweds), Nate uses his list of don’ts: Don’t mention the exes, don’t be rated R, and don’t bum everyone out. Nate’s system never fails. That is, until he meets Dan (Nicholas Braun).

The Parish Priest must solve the mystery of a young boy's deathly fall from the Ludlow Castle ruins, and discovers a hidden obsession with the afterlife amongst the ancient streets. In the affluent, historic town of Ludlow, a teenage boy dies in a fall from the castle ruins. Accident or suicide? No great mystery - so why does the boy's uncle, retired detective Andy Mumford, turn to Diocesan Exorcist Merrily Watkins? More people will die before Merrily uncovers a dangerous obsession with suicide, death and the afterlife hidden within these shadowed medieval streets.

From the bestselling and award winning 'master of the spy thriller' comes a collection of riveting short stories. When a man's wife leaves him under suspicious circumstances, he sets off in search for her, unprepared for the guilty secrets he's about to drag back into the light. A man is tempted...

Finalist for the 2023 AUDIE AWARDS for Non-Fiction A DOROTHY KOOMSON BOOK OF THE YEAR AN ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Such a beautiful read, like chatting to a friend over a cuppa. This is the intimate, insightful read that I didn't know I needed. Just brilliant.' Dorothy Koomson Nana Darkoa...

A NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR From one of our greatest living writers, comes a remarkable memoir of a forgotten England. 'The war went. We sang in the playground, "Bikini lagoon, an atom bomb’s boom, and two big explosions." David’s father came back from Burma and didn’t eat rice...

When young Dylan Harris's former babysitter (and soon to be step-sister), Harriet, needs a last-minute venue for her acting troupe's outdoor production of Shakespeare's A Winter's Tale, the staff at Mill Grange throw open its doors, keen to fill their halls with guests over the holiday season but they may get more drama than they'd bargained for! With pageants and plays to arrange, a much-anticipated book launch, an unexpected arrival, a heart-warming offer, and a little bit of the manor's magic, this Christmas is one that Thea, Tina, Sam, Shaun, Helen and Tom won't soon forget.

Life at Hopgood Hall is never boring, but Alexi Ellis hopes that there will be no more murders for the time being – she’s solved four already and is getting a reputation in the local area for being bad luck. So when local gossip Polly Pearson arrives at Hopgood hall, Alexi knows this can only mean bad news. Polly has made it clear that she dislikes Alexi, and has campaigned for her to leave Hopgood Hall forever – so what could Polly want? Then Polly reveals that her partner, Gerry has been found murdered in her B&B and that she is the main suspect!

Since the death of her beloved father, Isla Marlowe has felt the need to do something to honour his memory; something meaningful that will bring joy to others and repay the kindness of a stranger who changed their lives. She’s got the perfect solution, but she’s worried not everyone will understand. Aidan Kennedy and his husband, Jase, are desperate to start a family of their own, but finding the right woman to help them is difficult and some people don’t think they should even try. So when Isla offers them the chance to fulfil their dream, they can’t believe their wish is about to come true.

The elite warriors of the Hereford-based SAS know all about pain and the enduring of it. Syd Spicer, ex-SAS trooper, has found himself back in the regiment - this time as its chaplain, responsible for the spiritual welfare of the hardest men in or out of uniform. Faced with a case which would normally be passed discreetly to Hereford diocesan exorcist Merrily Watkins, Spicer is forced, for security reasons, to try and handle it himself - and is coming close to a breakdown.