Showing results by narrator "Melody Grove" in All Categories

Who can you turn to if not the police? Essex, Christmas Day. As the residents of a small town enjoy their mince pies, shots ring out in the street. Five people are gunned down before the lone shooter turns his weapon on himself. Grace Fisher, now Detective Inspector, is tasked with making some sense of this atrocity - all the more sensitive because the first of the victims was one of their own: a police officer.

Winner of the 2014 Richard & Judy Search for a Bestseller competition. Abandoned on a bank of snow as a baby, Amy is taken in at nearby Hatville Court. But the masters and servants of the grand estate prove cold and unwelcoming. Amy's only friend and ally is the sparkling young heiress Aurelia Vennaway. So when Aurelia tragically dies young, Amy is devastated. But Aurelia leaves Amy one last gift. A bundle of letters with a coded key. A treasure hunt that only Amy can follow. A life-changing discovery awaits ... if only she can unlock the secret.

At 11 Lalla should be enjoying her childhood in London. But this is not London as we know it. In a collapsed society, Lalla struggles to imagine her future. When a government announcement invites her to enjoy a new life in Regent’s Park, Lalla sees a glimmer of hope. But what is she willing to risk? The Time Being is the short-story prequel to The Ship by Antonia Honeywell, if you enjoyed this, you’ll love the full-length novel sequel.

The inhabitants of the Popcorn Islands lead a peaceful and comfortable existence - that is until pirates attack Captain Foster's ship on its way to America and steal half the popcorn harvest. So Lucy, Hermione and Sam offer to accompany the captain and his dog, Biscuit, on the next trip to keep a lookout for danger. But danger is exactly what they run into! Now the pirates aren't just after more popcorn...they want new recruits, too!

My name is Hanna. I am 15. I am Latvian. I live with my mother and grandmother. My father is missing, taken by the Russians. I have a boyfriend, and I'm training to be a dancer. But none of that is important any more. Because the Nazis have arrived, and I am a Jew. And as far as they are concerned, that is all that matters. This is my story.

One summer, something happened that changed everything forever… Born and brought up in an artists’ commune in Derbyshire, Oriana Taylor had freedom at her fingertips in a home full of extraordinary people. The Bedwell brothers, Malachy and Jed, shared their childhood and adolescence with...

Oxford Street burned for three weeks; the Regent's Park camps have been bombed. Lalla, 16, has grown up sheltered from the new reality by her visionary father, Michael Paul. He has promised Lalla and her mother that they will escape. Escape on a ship big enough to save 500 people. Once onboard, as day follows identical day, Lalla's unease grows. Where are they going?

A sweeping radio saga of political intrigue, love affairs, financial wrangles and murder, based on the books by Anthony Trollope, creator of The Barchester Chronicles. This brand new full-cast BBC Radio dramatisation follows several generations of the Palliser dynasty as they navigate the twists and turns of political and high society in Victorian England.

Jenny is very tall for her age, and when she dresses smartly for her first day at a new school, she looks very grown up indeed. So grown up, in fact, that when she arrives at the school, she is mistaken for a new teacher and left in charge of a classroom of kids! Jenny is forced to keep up the act and soon finds herself in all sorts of tricky situations. Whatever happens, it's going to be a real education!

Dramatisations of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s most popular works, plus bonus documentary Often described as ‘the laureate of the Jazz Age’, F. Scott Fitzgerald captured the reckless, hedonistic spirit of 1920s America in his classic novels The Great Gatsby, The Beautiful and Damned and Tender is...

In Yukon, Canada, during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, strong sled dogs were in high demand. Buck is stolen from his comfortable home in California and sold into service as a sled dog in Alaska. He becomes progressively feral in the harsh environment, where he is forced to fight to survive and dominate other dogs. Sold to a group of inexperienced gold hunters, he is eventually saved by John Thornton, with whom he forms a deep bond.

Mark Knightley is used to women falling at his feet, except Emma Woodhouse- she's like part of the family. But Emma's grown into an attractive young woman, full of ideas for modernising her family business, and when Mark gets involved the sparks begin to fly. Although he's seeing her through totally new eyes, Emma remains immune to his charm. She's never forgotten the embarrassing moment when he discovered her teenage crush on him.

Sun, sea and secrets... A week on the sunny Greek island of Kethos is just what Alice Archer needs, even if she has to put up with her difficult sister. Stella's tantrums and divalike demands are a fair price to pay for crystal-clear waters, blue skies and white clifftop villas. When Alice meets Milo, a handsome gardener at the Villa Argenti, for the first time she suddenly feels beautiful, alluring and confident. But is it just holiday magic, or will the irresistible pull between Alice and Milo survive against all odds?

Elle Jamieson is a private person, in relationships as well as at work - and for good reason. But then she's made redundant and with no ties to hold her, she heads off to sunny Malta. Lucas Rose is furious when his summer is interrupted by the arrival of Elle, his ex. Forced to live in close proximity, it's hard to ignore what they had shared before Lucas's wedding proposal scared Elle away…

Anna and Holly have spotted an advert in the paper for a Holy Moly Holiday. They simply can't not go. But how will they get enough money? Simple: they'll become royal babysitters. Unfortunately, the girls are in for a shock. They discover there isn't just one prince but six! And worse, the country's archenemy, King Alaspooryorick, has decided to invade. Will the girls be able to keep their royal charges safe and still go on their dream holiday?

The King and Queen realise they need to call the Little Princess by her real name now that she's actually not so little any more. But there's trouble...the Princess' real name is so awful that nobody can pluck up the courage to tell her what it is! The Princess is determined to find out her true name. But what will happen when she does?

When it was first published in 1909, Ann Veronica caused a sensation, due to Wells' groundbreaking treatment of female sexuality. Twenty-one, passionate, and headstrong, Ann Veronica Stanley is determined to live her own life. When her father forbids her from attending a fashionable ball, she leaves her family home and makes a fresh start in London. There, she finds a world where she can be truly free. But when she meets the brilliant Capes, a married academic, and quickly falls in love, she soon finds that freedom comes at a price.

Cytherea has taken a position as lady's maid to the eccentric Miss Aldclyffe. On discovering that the man she loves is already engaged to his cousin, Cytherea comes under the influence of Miss Aldclyffe's fascinating, manipulative steward Manston. Desperate Remedies contains sensational ingredients of blackmail, murder and romance, but with its insight into psychology and sexuality it already bears the unmistakable imprint of Hardy’s future genius.

In 'This be the Verse', the poet Philip Larkin famously bemoans the impact parents have on their children. In ‘Philip and Sydney’, playwright, translator and screenwriter Alan Pollock uncovers some of the reasons why Larkin may have had such a profound sense of anguish. In 1937, Philip...

This bitterly humorous debut is a novel of love, narcissism, and ailing cattle. Katherine has given up trying to be happy. Her cynical wit repels the people she wants to attract, and attracts the people she knows she should repel. Her ex Daniel, meanwhile, isn’t sure that he loves his new girlfriend. But somehow not telling her he loves her has become synonymous with telling her that he doesn’t love her, meaning that he has to tell her he loves her just to maintain the status quo.