Showing results by narrator "Lucy Rayner" in All Categories

In the first book of a lush fantasy trilogy about warring countries, family secrets, and star-crossed lovers, 18-year-old Branwen finds an enemy washed up on the shore of her kingdom. Rather than let him die at the hands of her people, she nurses him back to health as they begin to fall in love. Branwen helps him escape with his life - only for him to return during a diplomatic visit under his true identity: Prince Tristan of Kernyv.

Servilia is often cited as one of the most influential women of the late Roman Republic. During her second marriage, she began an affair with Julius Caesar, which probably lasted for the rest of his life and is further indicative of the force of her charm and her exceptional intelligence.

When grieving a mother, Dina Young, learns that the man who killed her daughter is being released from prison, her grip on sobriety falters. But when she calls her new AA sponsor for support, the sparky Rosie Rey suggests revenge instead and offers Dina an airtight alibi. But Rosie’s alibi comes at a terrible cost, and Dina is dragged into a dangerous game of obsession and manipulation, where the lines between justice and vengeance blur, drawing Detective Remy Wallace closer to the truth, and driving Dina closer to the edge.

The remarkable autobiography of a pioneering female aviator who left a privileged life to serve in World War II.

Harmony is tired. Tired of working so hard, tired of the way she looks, tired of being average. But all that changes when she decides to splash out and upgrade her nanos. And why not? Everyone's doing it now. With a simple in-app purchase, you can update the tech in your bloodstream to transform yourself - get enhanced brain power, the perfect body, or a dazzling smile. Suddenly, everything starts going right for her. She's finally becoming the person she always wanted to be. But as Harmony will find out, there's a limit to how many upgrades a body can take....

Theia Alderson has always led a sheltered life in the small California town of Serendipity Falls. But when a devastatingly handsome boy appears in the halls of her school, Theia knows she's seen Haden before - not around town, but in her dreams.

Julius Strathclyde has been dragged through to an alternative earth. Now, training as a quantum curator, every ancient book, every stolen gem, and every lost masterpiece lies at his fingertips. It's incredible. But he has some problems: he can't get home, priceless artifacts are being stolen, and someone is trying to kill him. Oh, and he can't get a decent cup of tea anywhere. Following the disastrous Faberge assignment, Neith Salah is blinded by grief and rage. She's hardly a stable companion, but she's the only one he trusts.

Joanna MacConnaway's future looks dark when her great-uncle passes, leaving Lochlann Castle in the hands of a new leader. This handsome stranger, who has haunted Joanna's dreams, soon finds himself in mortal danger. Joanna chooses to help him, against her misgivings and sense of impending doom. Can she trust him? And is he worthy of the feelings she soon develops for him?

When Branwen used magic to save her country’s future, she never expected to destroy her dreams for her own. Now the love she and Tristan built is destroyed, and her relationship with her cousin Essy is shattered. But Branwen does not have time to dwell on her heartbreak. Essy’s betrothed, the king of a rival nation, must never discover Tristan and Essy’s affair, or it could mean war. Branwen goes to desperate lengths to stop the king from discovering the truth, but the price may be even more terrible than she could have imagined.

Angus Stuart is more used to managing boardrooms than castles, but when his father dies he finds himself thrust into an unfamiliar world. Returning home, he intends to sell the estate as quickly as possible. However, with Christmas around the corner, fate has other plans…Showing up on his doorstep, Australian chef Holly McIntosh is bursting with festive cheer. But she's desperate for a job, and she's not taking no for an answer! Not usually one for taking a risk, Angus offers her a temporary position. But if anyone can melt this brooding Earl's heart this winter, it's Holly!

With the old circus manager safely in jail, things should be going well at the circus where Anwyn Owens is assistant pilot. But when the aging starship that serves as their home breaks down, all the ingenuity of Anwyn and head pilot Jemal can't get things working again. The solution: head for the pirate planet of Open Port where Jemal knows of a salvage yard that just might have the necessary used part for sale.

Leona MacConnoway is the daughter of the local gentry. When her mother's father passes away in faraway France, a messenger brings word that she must travel to his estate at the order of the new Lord du Mas. However, there is no word on when - or if - she will ever be allowed to return to the wilds of Scotland. Handsome Conn MacNeil has always known that his betrothal to Leona would lead to happily ever after, and he's never doubted that theirs will be a blissful union. Before they can wed, though, she's torn away and sent to France.

In 1914, despite the clouds of war threatening Europe, Pearl Gibson's future is bright. She has secured a position as a lady's maid to a wealthy Northumberland aristocrat, a job that will win her not only respect but an opportunity to travel and live in luxury. Her new life at Lady Ottoline Campbell's Scottish summer estate is a whirlwind of intrigue and glamour, scandals and confidences - and surprisingly, a strange but intimate friendship with her employer. But when violence erupts in Europe, Pearl and Ottoline's world is irrevocably changed.

Considered to be one of Virginia Woolf's most popular novels, Mrs. Dalloway follows one high-society woman as she goes about her day planning a splendid party for her acquaintances. As she goes about her day, she ponders on the life she could be living had she not married the reliable Richard Dalloway and instead sought the enigmatic Peter Walsh. At one point, she muses on the fact that she had not the option to be with a close female friend of hers. The novel then takes a turn to follow Septimus Smith, First World War veteran plagued with deferred traumatic stress.

Our enduring love of vampires - the bad boys (and girls) of paranormal fantasy - has persisted for centuries. Despite being bloodthirsty, heartless killers, vampire stories commonly carry erotic overtones that are missing from other paranormal or horror stories. Even when monstrous teeth are sinking into pale, helpless throats - especially then - vampires are sexy. But why? Author Violet Fenn takes the listener through the history of vampires in "fact" and fiction, their origins in mythology and literature, and their enduring appeal on TV and film.

Belief in ghosts is surprisingly common worldwide. Mysterious glowing orbs, unexplained chills, things that literally go bump in the night: signs of paranormal activity have reportedly surged during the pandemic. As have specialist investigators, organized ghost hunts, eerie podcasts, TV shows and reports of everyday hauntings. Sharing the details of some well-known and particularly mysterious hauntings together with some less-well-known tales and personal stories, Theresa explores these ghostly encounters through four categories of hauntings: residual, poltergeist, inhuman and intelligent.

After ten long years, the Earl of Devenham has returned to wed Mary Anstey, only to find that their feelings for each other have cooled off considerably. Nevertheless, they both put on bright faces for the benefit of family and friends. But Mary's younger sister Emily sees through their masquerade and would sacrifice anything rather than see her retiring sister married to the now-haughty earl.

A house fire at Crows-an-Wra Manor in a remote part of West Cornwall supposedly takes the life of its mistress, Rosen Trevelyan. Sometime later, she awakes to find herself locked in an unfamiliar room, questioning why her husband, Richard, has done this to her. And what of their daughter? Did Sophia really die in the fire, as Rosen has been led to believe?

Saxon beauty Caryn of Ivesham longed to escape the chill gray cloisters of the convent to which she'd fled - but not in marriage to the towering, feared Raolfe de Gere, the Norman knight they called Ral the Relentless. Even though he had once saved her from a fate worse than death, she could not forget he'd raised the grim battlements of Braxton Keep on her dead father's lands or that his men had dishonored her sister. If she wed him to bring peace to her people, he would have to lay siege to her bed

Sasha just got her dream job at a dig in the highlands of Scotland. Where her friends ply her with celebratory champagne, throw a plaid cloak over her business suit, and take her to the 13th century to do original research on the dig site. She meets gorgeous Highlander Seumas there, and - wait, is this a good idea?