Showing results by publisher "Hodder & Stoughton" in Comedy & Humour

Milly isn't okay, but she looks it online. But everyone lies about their lives on Instagram, don't they? One day, sick of all the pretence, Milly creates Mizzenial, a new channel inspired by the straight-talking magazines of her childhood. But even here, she still can't quite admit how lonely she really is. Can she take her own advice, finally open up and start to move on?

When her post office burns down, postmistress Véronique starts lobbying for its replacement. But her fellow residents of the small commune of Fogas in the French Pyrenees are too preoccupied to rally to her cause.Mayor Serge Papon, overwhelmed by grief at the death of his wife, has lost his joie de vivre and all taste for village politics (and croissants) and it seems as though deputy mayor Christian (whose tendresse for Véronique makes him her usual champion) will soon be saying au revoir to the mountain community.

It's about time we stopped respecting myths and started laughing at them - because they're really very weird. Did you know Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, was born of some discarded genitals? Or that Hera threw her own son off a mountain because he was ugly? Or that Apollo once kidnapped a boat full of people while pretending to be a dolphin? And let's not even get started on Zeus - king of the gods, ruler of the skies and a man who's never heard of self-control.

Whilst working on a spreadsheet for a New York-based PR firm, Gerald has his consciousness uploaded into his company's Slack channel. He posts for help, but his colleagues assume it's an elaborate joke to exploit the new working-from-home policy and, now that Gerald's productivity is through the roof, his bosses are only too happy to let him work from...wherever he says he is. Faced with the looming abyss of a disembodied life online, Gerald enlists co-worker Pradeep to care for his body and Slackbot, the service's AI assistant, to help him navigate his new digital reality.

Mr Chipping is a quiet, unassuming teacher at Brookfield Grammar School. Wholly conventional, he never veers from his established routines. Until, that is, he meets Katherine, who charms him and his students and teaches Mr Chipping that education is about more than just the hours spent in the schoolroom. As his love for Katherine blooms, Mr Chipping develops a sense of humour and a broad view of his role as a teacher and a friend to his students, becoming the beloved 'Mr Chips' to generations of schoolboys.

After a disastrous first meeting, Cassie and Marc become arch nemeses. He might have great cheekbones and a sexy French accent but he's a terrible person who did a terrible thing. Too bad that Cassie's best friends Lucy and Russell think he's wonderful. But years later, when an unexpected tragedy strikes their friendship group, Cassie and Marc team up to give Lucy and Russell the best weekend ever so they can make new memories with all of their favourite people. Which means convincing everyone that Cassie and Marc are head over heels in love.

Meet Frankie Marks: the world's least likely fashion PR. She doesn't know the first thing about designers, she's always hungry, and she can't learn to think before she speaks. When Frankie lands a job at the prestigious GGC agency, her friends and family can't believe it - least of all her long-suffering boyfriend James. Frankie quickly realises she must fight with everything she's got to survive life behind the scenes of the glamorous and chaotic industry - with its eccentric characters, towering expectations, and quite frankly ridiculous requests.

The life of 79-year-old pensioner Peggy Smart is as beige as the décor in her retirement village. Her week revolves around aqua aerobics and appointments with her doctor. The highlight of Peggy's day is watching her neighbour Brian head out for his morning swim. Peggy dreams of inviting the handsome widower to an intimate dinner. But why would an educated man like Brian, a chartered accountant no less, look twice at Peggy? As a woman of a certain age, she fears she has become invisible, even to men in their 80s.

The Marjorie Marshall Memorial Cafeteria is at the heart of St Jude's Hospital. Staffed by successive generations of dedicated volunteers, for over 50 years, the beloved cafeteria has been serving up a kind word and sympathetic ear along with tea and scones. Hilary, the stalwart manageress, has worked her way up through the ranks, Jo, the latest recruit, is driving Hilary mad by arriving late every day and 17-year-old Chloe, the daughter of two successful surgeons, is volunteering in the holidays and bemused by the older women.

As the wife of retired ship's doctor Dr Henry Parker, Evelyn is living out her twilight years aboard the Golden Sunset. Every night she dresses for dinner - gown, tiara, runners - and regales her fellow passengers with stories of a glamorous life travelling the world in luxury, as well as showing off her superior knowledge of everything from ships' customs to biographical details of her heroine, Florence Nightingale. The crew treat her with deference. And forbearance.

Heather Winterbottom has worked side by side with her husband as GPs in their idyllic rural practice for over forty years. But as the time comes to hang up their stethoscopes, the Winterbottoms discover that they have rather different visions of retirement. Heather dreams of exploring the Greek Islands, of escaping the shackles of her routine life and embracing an exciting new adventure. Alan dreams of growing his own vegetables. When things come to a head at a family lunch, Heather announces that she has decided to take a year off.

Two couples. One reckless night. In the time they've known each other, Sally, Al and Mike have shared - well, almost everything. Sally and Al have been married for seven years, though now their relationship is hanging by a thread. Sally and Mike have been best friends since university. And on many occasions something more. Mike and Al have been friends and colleagues for many years. Yet with Al poised to become Mike's boss, their friendship comes under threat. And now there's Mike and Faye. They haven't been together long, but Mike's pretty sure that this time it's the real deal.

Julie Tudor is 49 and has it all: a fantastic job (well-maintained spreadsheets are the lynchpin of an efficient office), a beautiful house (some may wonder how she got the money for it, but nothing has been proved) and the man of her dreams. Sean is 25 and the love of Julie's life. The only problem is, he thinks he's in love with someone else.- But Julie has found herself in a similar situation before. And if there's one thing Julie knows, it's how to get rid of the competition...

When Alex pulls up to meet 'Max', he expects everything but a 90-year-old lady who has her heart set on getting to Brussels by carpool. As for 'Max', who is actually called Maxine, she could not be more ill at ease when settling into the seat next to this young man with bloodshot eyes. When it becomes clear that Maxine is suffering from Alzheimer's and wants to take matters into her own hands while she still can, and that Alex battles severe depression, a wonderful friendship starts to form between the unlikely pair. Before long, their travel plans take an unexpected turn.

Maybe my main character will slowly lose their mind too. Novels usually need an abandoned woman going crazy in them. It's gonna be, like, a sad girl novel. An Australian expat in Berlin, Kim is jobless, rootless, and - as she's slowly discovering - somewhat useless. That is until a chance encounter with Matthew, a hotshot New York literary agent, gives Kim the direction she's been craving.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune will probably be verified on social media. The characters of Pride and Prejudice are navigating the same struggles on unfamiliar channels—social media channels, to be precise. When authors Claire McGowan and Sarah Day imagined how Pride and Prejudice on social media might look, retelling the story through mocked-up social media posts, their post instantly went viral.

For fans of The Help and The Invention of Wings, a searing and sweeping debut novel that gives a new and unforgettable perspective on modern-day domestic workers. Set in the blistering heat of Singapore, The Maid's Room follows the lives of two Filipina maids - sisters Dolly and Tala - who are working hard to send money back home and British expat Jules, who has left her job as a midwife to move to Singapore with husband David.

With courage, determination and logged into her social media accounts - plain Jane Eyre is ready to take on the world. But then she meets and begins to fall for Edward Rochester, AKA the definition of a red flag, with screenshots to prove it. When authors Claire McGowan and Sarah Day imagined how 'Pride and Prejudice on Social Media' might look, retelling the story through mocked-up social media posts, their post instantly went viral. Now, they return with a Bronte classic told through highs and lows of social media.

Star-crossed lovers. Naughty Greeks getting up to mischief in the woods. Scottish kings losing their minds. Young men with daddy issues. Dads who just need some positive affirmation from their daughters*. (*Okay, that's maybe putting it a bit mildly) But when Imogen brings 14 amateur actors together to perform one of the Bard's great works in a bid to save their local community centre, it becomes apparent that she - or anyone who reads this book for that matter - will never see Shakespeare's greatest works in the same light again...

Everyone who meets her thinks they know Liddy James. A single mother of two, she is one of New York City's top lawyers (with the ruthless reputation and capsule wardrobe to match) and seems to juggle her complicated life with ease. Her work is all-consuming, her divorce was devastating, her sons are playing up and she's forgotten what more than five hours' sleep a night feels like, but still here she is, on top of the high wire. Until she isn't.