Showing results by narrator "Penelope McDonald" in All Categories

Six-year-old Ralph has only been in the care system for three days and has already been rejected by three different foster carers. After hitting a teacher at his school and causing mayhem since he arrived four months ago, staff are unable to get a hold of his mum and her partner. Social Services are called and when Ralph turns up at Maggie's house, she knows immediately it's going to be a challenge. From Britain's most-loved foster carer, a new powerful true story of abuse, family and hope.

'He said he loved me.' Fourteen-year-old Hannah comes to live with foster carer Maggie Hartley after her mum pleads with Social Services to take her into care, unable to cope with her daughter anymore. Previously a good student, a loving daughter and sister, Hannah is now playing truant...

IS IT MY FAULT MUMMY? Seven-year-old Paris is trapped in a prison of guilt. Devastated after the death of her baby brother, Joel, Maggie faces one of her most heartbreaking cases yet as she tries to break down the wall of guilt surrounding this damaged little girl. A DESPERATE CRY FOR HELP...

Enjoy 15 scintillating tales in this eclectic collection where characters seek honor, truth, retribution, and in one case, a place to sell 300-year-old Lavian brandy.

When fellow student John Foremile turns up at his flat on a rain-sodden winter’s night, former Merchant Navy Captain Rex Slingsby thinks he’s in for just another boozy night down the pub. John, however, has come laden with a package of ancient-looking manuscripts, and Rex is soon engrossed in reading an outlandish tale of a powerful, benevolent race of Dragons and of the human wizards hell-bent on destroying them. Incredulous at first, the two friends quickly find themselves embroiled in an epic quest to rescue a fertile dragon’s egg.

When one of the ladies in residence at Hampton Court Palace fails to answer her maid's call in the morning, Mrs Lydia Bramble, palace housekeeper, is called in to investigate. What Mrs Bramble finds sends shockwaves through the whole palace: Miss Philomena Franklin, slumped over her desk, a knife in her back. 

An extraordinary cast of characters play out their dramas amongst the chaos of the emerging modern world... Jamaica 1909. Millionaire Silas Whittam is struggling to bring his dream of a luxury hotel to life. He's relieved when his sister, Eve, arrives - basking in the success of her Yorkshire pies and puddings business. But as Eve befriends the staff, secrets hidden by Silas begin to emerge.

In Love and War, we meet more of the protagonists embroiled in the complex plots and counter-plots that form the fabric of the tale. Colonicus, the mad medieval wizard, is released from his five-hundred year confinement and goes on the rampage. Korti Jizel, the super-intelligent alien assassin takes Robert, one of Colonicus's manufactured super-humans, on a madcap journey through time to witness the greatest battle that humanity never heard about; the Dragon War.

For thirteen years, Leonor lived a peaceful life—until the Dust Mages returned. When tragedy strikes, she’s forced to abandon her sheep farm and confront the ruthless enemy she thought she’d escaped. Joined by an inexperienced farm boy and a priest with secrets of his own, Leonor must hunt the mages across a fractured world. Justice drives her. Revenge fuels her. But the darkness rising is older than memory—and far more dangerous than she ever imagined.

The protagonist Hailey is captivated by divisions that balance, particularly in snow. Her brother has a very, interesting to say the least, correspondence to her dilemma. A long-time friend Zíâd also helps her, he does not realize it but his distraction does help Hailey—reminding her that life is not only about knowing; and then her sex life and science unite which ultimately sums up her answer to Who Shovels the Sidewalks?

10-E. 19-E. How long would humanity have to wait? A long time. Not until 93-E was the world declared ready. But in the background a journalist lurks, biding his time over the decades, waiting for the perfect moment. And now it's here. Melodie Trudeaux's Sci-Fi audio short, "The 93-E Contradiction", opens on Prime Tech Alfredo's 93rd birthday, the day that his greatest invention will finally come of age.

This short, poignant, and intelligent novelette extrapolates society's current need for global consumerism and seemingly relentless expansion. The author, Sue Knight, has delved deep into the underlying wants and needs of a society determined to have the best of the best at a fraction of the cost, regardless of the long term impact. This tale is set in the midst of that impact, and it is a chilling indictment of the dangers of runaway capitalism.