Showing results by narrator "Déirdra Whelan" in All Categories

When Holly Dryden fled Penhallow Sands nearly a year ago she was determined to put the past - and Rich Turner - behind her. But now an unexpected loss and financial trouble has led her back to the family vineyard, and it’s time to tell Rich the truth - he’s a father. Surrounded by the memories of what they once shared, Holly’s anger fades in the glow of Rich’s undeniable love for their son and the way he selflessly steps in to help the vineyard out of trouble.

Following the death of her husband, Ffion moves back to her family hotel in Wales seeking home comfort. In the village of Cariad Cove, she reconnects with her family, and starts to find hope as she takes up running and meets Joe. For Joe, the second his dog crashes into the beautiful woman on the beach, it's love at first sight. But recognising a hurting soul, he offers Ffion his friendship and soon the two are organising a charity run for the local animal sanctuary.

When the anonymous invite arrived, we knew exactly who it was from. Elle Romero, the beautiful, charismatic Texan who burst into our lives when we were teenagers. We'd gone our separate ways and lost touch. Until now. Elle, the legendary prankster, is back. She's invited us all—me, Claire, Lizzie and Megan—to a swanky country house for a reunion. We arrive excited for a weekend of reminiscing and reconnecting. A chance to step out of our uneventful lives for a while. But when Elle fails to show up at her own party, we begin to wonder if she's up to her old tricks.

A broken family. Skeletons in the closet. Lives in danger. When Eva’s brother Ben announces he has found their mother, Eva is determined to have nothing to do with the woman who abandoned them 18 years ago to a traumatic childhood in foster care. Eva is happy now, in a loving relationship with rich and dependable Jim, and she is pregnant. Nothing can change Eva’s mind. Her eyes are firmly on the future. But when her baby is born with a serious hereditary illness, she is forced to confront both her mother and her past.

Georgina Garrett was born to be ruthless and she's about to earn her reputation. As World War One is announced a baby girl is born. Little do people know that she's going to grow up to rule the streets of Battersea. From a family steeped in poverty the only way to survive is with street smarts. With a father who steals for a living, a grandmother who's a woman of the night and a mother long dead, Georgina was never in for an easy life.

Schoolteacher Rachel will do anything to protect her younger sister, Laura. So when their long-lost father shows up out of the blue and makes a shocking accusation against Laura's husband, Rachel is thrown into turmoil. As undeniable evidence surfaces, Rachel discovers everything she thought she knew was wrong. Has her sister's entire life been a lie? And how did her young niece get the bruises she is hiding? And who keeps calling her in the middle of the night?

In the peaceful Cotswolds village of Maybridge, you wouldn't expect to find a dead body in the rose garden. And certainly not two. Abby is horrified to discover the bones of a baby buried under a rose bush. It's in the garden of her soon-to-be ex-husband Howard's family home. She immediately calls the police. But she can't get hold of Howard. He's off on a jolly with the woman he's got pregnant. And then, just two days later, Abby finds Howard himself.

When three women head to Portugal for a long weekend in the sun, the goal is to celebrate an upcoming wedding. Jane is getting married, and Angela and Maya want to give her a good time before she does. But the carefree getaway soon goes awry, and by the time the friends board their flight home, they are all carrying a terrible secret. It's one that could ruin each of their lives, which is why they make their pact: They agree to tell no one else what happened while they were away. As long as they can do that, they should be fine. That is until somebody else threatens to share their secret.

Glamorous Cara De Rosa has it all: a successful and rapidly expanding chain of family-run Italian restaurants, friends aplenty and an imminent marriage to a much younger man. When she collapses during a family party, all signs point to a heart attack. But Cara knows better. Someone wants her dead. Granddaughter Sienna already knows what it's like to want answers. This time she's determined to get them. Because at De Rosa's, someone needs to pay.

Jennifer’s life isn’t going as she planned. Fired from her job and on the brink of divorce, her only salvation lies at the bottom of a wine bottle. When her mother insists she get away from everything, she reluctantly agrees to explore her Italian roots in Tuscany. Staying in her family’s centuries-old cottage, she becomes embroiled in a mysterious tragedy involving her great-grandmother.

Obsession, jealousy, lust, revenge.... There is nothing more dangerous than a passion that curdles and spills into murder. Love, when it goes wrong and spirals into violence, leads to the most chilling and tragic consequences. Death at the hands of a partner or ex-partner is the most common form of murder for women, far outnumbering the risk of death from a stranger. Obsessional sexual desire is the common thread through the stories in this book, tragic examples of how death can come at the hands of a once trusted and loved partner.

After her mother's death, 20-year-old Sophie Ross is left orphaned, with only her erstwhile nursemaid and faithful friend, Hannah, for company. Penniless and with little chance of an income, she looks for work as a governess in London to avoid destitution. But unbeknownst to Sophie, her mother instructed Hannah to post a letter to Trescadinnick House in Cornwall upon her death. The letter will be the catalyst that changes Sophie's life forever as she learns of her mother's doomed romance and family she left behind in Cornwall.

Orphaned at the age of 10, Archie Ledbetter is forced to live with his uncle in his very grand house. Uncle Walter seems emotionless, exhibiting little feeling towards the young lad. If it wasn't for some of the staff at Huntington Hall, Archie's life would be a complete misery. There's a dark secret that Cook hints at as to why Archie's mother left her lavish lifestyle behind and ended up settling in the East End of London, scraping a living selling cakes and confectionery from the back of a barrow in the marketplace. Archie's never known his father and wonders who he is.

Reverend Shackleford was at a loss. He'd truly believed that in marrying his eldest daughter Grace to an extremely wealthy peer of the realm, his problems would be over. But as the Reverend was now beginning to realize, it wasn't sufficient to have a wealthy Duke in the family if the daughter he was trying to marry off had the manners of a stable hand. And to Reverend Shackleford's knowledge, his second eldest daughter Temperance is the exact opposite of her name and a harpy to boot.

Happily married couple Katie and Sean have plenty to look forward to as they move into their new home and plan for the future. But then they meet two of their new neighbours and everything on their quiet street suddenly doesn't seem as desirable as it did before. Having been warned about the other neighbours, and their adulterous and criminal ways, Katie and Sean realise that they are going to have to be on their guard if they want to make their time here a happy one. But the other neighbours seem so nice and that's why they choose to ignore the warning.

A freelance travel writer, Hannah rarely stays in one place long enough to call it home. After a childhood of moving between foster homes, her nomadic lifestyle means no lasting connections, keeping her fears of losing loved ones at bay. So when Hannah’s work takes her to Cariad Cove, it’s just another job. Will loves being a dad. It’s just him and his wilful six-year-old, Beti, but their family of two has love enough to keep them happy. When Will meets Hannah, attraction ignites, but one woman has already left Beti behind—he can’t have it happen again.

Simone used to be the woman that other women would use if they suspected that their partner was cheating. She would investigate, find out the truth and if the men were guilty exact revenge. But after things went wrong with one couple, Simone was forced to go into hiding to evade the law. Having assumed a new identity, Simone is now Mary, a mild-mannered woman who doesn't raise her voice or get angry. But when she finds out that her new boyfriend is having an affair, it awakens in her the person she used to be.

It is 1896, and Thomas Pitt is in charge of Special Branch. He is beginning to understand the power he now commands, but is still ill at ease at the glittering events he and his wife, Charlotte, must attend. During a lavish party at the Spanish Embassy, a policeman breaks into Pitt's conversation with investor Rawdon Quixwood to break the terrible news that Quixwood's wife, Catherine, has been viciously assaulted at their home, and left for dead. Worse still, it appears that the assailant was someone she had trusted, as she opened the door to the attacker herself.

One summer can change everything. Catherine Bromley has spent her life in Penhallow Sands, dedicating herself to work and supporting her emotionally fragile mother. Since her father left, it's always been the two of them, and Catherine has no interest in romance. What's the point when men just leave? And besides, her mother needs her. But when handsome novelist Mark Coleman arrives to stay at the cottage overlooking nearby Plum Tree Bay, Catherine's world is changed.

Fran Gandolfini can’t help taking in strays; with four dogs, five cats and two bearded dragons, she refuses to give up on a creature in need. The only thing Fran has given up on, in fact, is her love life. Moving from the city to Penhallow Sands to work in the Tea Shop, Ethan Clarke hopes he’s made the right choice for his daughter, Tilly. His past means he struggles to trust people, but Fran might be the one person capable of changing that. Until a life-changing secret that Fran’s keeping for a friend causes a rift between them.