Showing results by narrator "Ruth Urquhart" in All Categories

Covering the Ice Age to the recent Scottish Referendum, the acclaimed historian and author explores the history of the Scottish nation. Focusing on key moments such as the Battle of Bannockburn and the Jacobite risings, Moffat also features other episodes in history that are perhaps less well documented. From prehistoric timber halls to inventions and literature, Moffat's epic explores the drama of battle, change, loss, and innovation interspersed with the lives of ordinary Scottish folk, the men and women who defined a nation.

Tressa Middleton made UK history when she became Britain's youngest mum in 2006 aged just 12 years and eight months. Her case provoked shock and outrage - but the truth behind the headlines was far sadder than anyone could ever have imagined. Born into a life of poverty and neglect, Tressa was forced to grow up fast when was she taken into care at just four years old. She was returned to her mother's chaotic world, but by the age of seven, she was being abused by her own brother and at 11 years old she fell pregnant with his child. For years she kept his dark secret in an attempt to hold her family together until the truth threatened to destroy her completely.

Eighteenth-century Scotland is famed for generating many of the enlightened ideas which helped to shape the modern world. But there was in the same period another side to the history of the nation. Many of Scotland's people were subjected to coercive and sometimes violent change, as traditional ways of life were overturned by the "rational" exploitation of land use. The Scottish Clearances is a superb and highly original account of this sometimes terrible process, which changed the Lowland countryside forever, as it also did, more infamously, the old society of the Highlands.

This boxed set includes books 1-4 in the the Deverry series: Daggerspell, Darkspell, The Bristling Wood, and The Dragon Revenant.

Book 1 in the thrilling new crime series, by David J. Gatward, author of the DCI Harry Grimm crime series, and set in the hauntingly beautiful Somerset countryside.

Bridget Collins is in dire straits - she needs to get out of New York, fast. With two young siblings under her wing, her options are limited. Her priest sends her as an outplacement agent on the orphan trains that run from New York to out west. With almost 40 orphans under her care, she's relieved that fellow and more experienced outplacement agent Carl Watson is there to guide her. But Carl is dealing with his own trauma and finds it difficult to handle the pain the orphans are dealing with.

The second book in the thrilling new DI Haig crime series, by best-selling author David J. Gatward.

There are three absolutes in Mairi Wallace's world: 1. The Mages rule every city in Scotland with terrible, violent authority. 2. It is not physically possible for any woman to wield magic. 3. Mairi does not have a voice. She is about to learn that none of these things have to be true. From twisted wynds and tartan shops to a dangerous daemon and malevolent ravens, the future of a tattered nation might lie with one solitary woman.

A mansion, a title, and marriage to a wealthy Lord, Lady Eveline Cartwright has it all. Unfortunately, it's not enough to prevent her from being bludgeoned to death one night in the study of Merisham Lodge, the family's country estate in Derbyshire. Suspicion quickly falls on her ne'er-do-well son, Peter, but not everyone in the household is convinced of his guilt. Head kitchen maid Joan Hart and lady's maid Verity Hunter know that when it comes to a crime, all is not always as it seems.

When Glasgow journalist Shona McGilvery moves with her partner Mikey and their baby to an idyllic cottage in rural Scotland, they believe that all that lies ahead of them is happiness. But with Mikey working offshore, the frightening isolation of the Aberdeenshire countryside begins to drive her insane.... That is, until she is rescued by a new friendship with the enchanting Valentina. She has the perfect home, the perfect man, and a charismatic new best friend - or does she? As her fairytale life begins to unravel, the deep dark wood becomes the least of her fears....

I’m one placement away from becoming a fully fledged London detective. It’s bad enough that my last assignment before I qualify is with Supernatural Squad. But that’s nothing compared to what happens next. Brutally murdered by an unknown assailant, I wake up 12 hours later in the morgue - and I’m very much alive. I don’t know how or why it happened. I don’t know who killed me. All I know is that they might try again.

It is 1911, and Jean is about to join the mass strike at the Singer factory. For her, nothing will be the same again. Decades later, Connie sews coded moments of her life into a notebook, as her mother did before her. More than 100 years after his grandmother's sewing machine was made, Fred unpicks the secrets of four generations, one stitch at a time.

Daisy Carter knows she's not anyone special. She might be brave and resourceful. She might possess a touch more magic than your average low elf. But, when it comes down to it, she's just another delivery driver trying to make a living. Admittedly, life would be easier without her addiction to a dangerous drug called spider's silk—but she's got her reasons for that. Nobody's perfect. However, Daisy's world changes when she crosses paths with Hugo Pemberville, the celebrated high elf who's well known for being an accomplished treasure hunter.

Everyone wants handsome adventurer John Huxley to settle down - family, friends, London society. Everyone except John. He's evaded too many scheming title huntresses to trust in happily ever after. Now, a vow made to a dying friend has him locked in a land dispute with a stubborn Scot who offers one way out: Win the Highland Games. John likes a challenge, but this one's impossible. Still, with training from the Scot's stepdaughter, victory might be within reach.

Katharine Kerr opens new territory, exploring the history of the Elcyion Lacar, the elves who inhabit the country west of Deverry. It is years since the half-elven Lord Rhodry took the throne of Aberwyn. When Rhodry's lost lover, Jill—now a powerful wizard—comes and tells him it's time he accepted his elven heritage, Rhodry faces the most difficult choice of his life. With Jill's help and that of a human wizard named Aderyn who has lived for years in the westlands, Rhodry begins to understand how his life is connected not just to his own people, but to the Elcyion Lacar as well.

Saffron Sawyer aspires to rise from the magical world's bottom rung. But when her wish to join the renowned Office of Faery Godmothers is granted, bullies make her first day on the job unbearable. And to add to her misery, she discovers that someone is abducting her coworkers one-by-one. Desperate to prevent another kidnapping, she scrambles to piece together the clues. After teaming up with the handsome and powerful Devil's Advocate, she uncovers a strange connection between the disappearances and her lowly former gig.

Take a journey through the magickal folk traditions of Scotland. Barbara Meiklejohn-Free, a Scottish hereditary witch, shares her own spiritual awakening into the craft and shows you how to integrate these practices into your own life. Discover the secrets of divination, scrying, faery magick, and communication with ancestors. Explore herb and plant lore and specific rituals to address what you most desire. Filled with inspiring anecdotes, craft history, and step-by-step instructions, this book will help you begin a new chapter of spiritual discovery.

Cathal MacNachton and Connall MacAdie are cousins bound by far more than blood ties and the rugged Highland landscape their clan calls home. The ancient curse of their ancestry has fated them to live by night with an unquenchable thirst that neither can tame. The only thing that can save their souls is marriage to Outsiders - mortals whose untainted blood will weaken the curse in their children and break the chains of fear that have made their clan a breed apart.

In a kingdom torn by civil war, young Lillorigga seeks to shield her dawning powers from her cruel mother Merodda's manipulation. Mistress of a magic that, untamed, could kill her, Lilli brings her terrifying visions under the kindlier tutelage of the mysterious dweomermaster, Nevyn. But soon she must choose between her own clan and the true king who fights to claim his rightful throne, between sanctuary and blood feud, loyalty and love.

The lives of the Scottish queens, both those who ruled in their own right and the consorts, have largely been neglected in conventional history books. One of the earliest known Scottish queens was none other than the notorious Lady Macbeth. Was she really the wicked woman depicted in Shakespeare's famous play? Was St. Margaret a demure and obedient wife? Rosalind K. Marshall delves into these questions and more in this entertaining, impeccably researched book.