Showing results by narrator "Tuppence Middleton" in All Categories

For the first time ever, Willow Moss is going to school. Magical children have long been barred from attending school. And the sudden reversal of the rule by the mysterious (and nefarious) Brothers of Wol seems too good to be true. Why would they decide to change it now? Willow, though hesitant, embarks on this new path with her usual courage and determination. On her first day, she meets new friends Twist and Peg, who will soon become her next partners-in-adventure.

1866. In a coastal village in southern England, Nell picks violets for a living. Set apart by her community because of the birthmarks that speckle her skin, Nell’s world is her beloved brother and devotion to the sea. But when Jasper Jupiter’s Circus of Wonders arrives in the village, Nell is kidnapped. Her father has sold her, promising Jasper Jupiter his very own leopard girl.

Often used as a shorthand for tidiness or as the punchline of a joke, OCD is one of society’s most misunderstood disorders and it’s rarely spoken about with such honesty and openness. Beautifully written, moving and often darkly funny, Tuppence recounts what it feels like to share your mind with a nest of scorpions.

Claire Flannery has just quit her office job, hoping to take some time to discover her real passion. The problem is, she's not exactly sure how to go about finding it. Without the distractions of a regular routine, Claire confronts the best and worst parts of herself: the generous, attentive part that visits her grandmother for tea and cooks special meals for her boyfriend, Luke, and the part that she feels will never measure up and makes regrettable comments after too many glasses of wine.

London. 1850. The Great Exhibition is being erected in Hyde Park, and among the crowd watching the spectacle, two people meet. For Iris, an aspiring artist, it is the encounter of a moment - forgotten seconds later, but for Silas, a collector entranced by the strange and beautiful, that meeting marks a new beginning. When Iris is asked to model for pre-Raphaelite artist Louis Frost, she agrees on the condition that he will also teach her to paint. Suddenly her world begins to expand, to become a place of art and love. But Silas has thought of only one thing since their meeting....

On the anniversary of her husband's accidental death, Marianne seeks comfort in everything Greg left behind. She wears his shirt and cologne, reads their love letters and emails. Soon she's following his footsteps across the web, but her desperation to cling to any trace of him leads her to the dark web. And a hit list with her name on it. To try to save herself from Sam, the assassin hired to kill her, Marianne must first unpick the wicked web in which Greg became tangled. Was Greg trying to protect her or did he want her dead?

In a quiet house in the countryside outside London, the finishing touches are being made to welcome a group of young women. The house and its location are top secret, its residents unknown to one another, but the girls have one thing in common: they are fallen. Offering refuge for prostitutes, petty thieves and the destitute, Urania Cottage is a second chance at life - but how badly do they want it?

Starfell is on the edge of disaster. The fight against Silas, the wizard determined to steal all magic for himself, is far from over—but how can Willow make a difference when her powers have been taken? With the help of her friends, the young witch sets off to the treacherous Mountains of Nach. There, she hopes to find the Craegun, a powerful beast believed to restore anything that has been lost—for a heavy price. The mission is fraught with danger, but there’s no turning back...or the magic of Willow’s world will be lost forever.

Winter, 1916: in St Petersburg, Russia, on the brink of revolution. Outside the Smolny Institute for Noble Young Ladies, an English governess is waiting for her young charge to be released from school. But so are the Tsar's secret police.... Beautiful and headstrong, Sashenka Zeitlin is just 16. As her mother parties with Rasputin and her dissolute friends, Sashenka slips into the frozen night to play her part in a dangerous game of conspiracy and seduction.

History cannot be relived, but thanks to a tradition that spans millennia, we can revisit it in the letters of the people who influenced or witnessed the moments it changed forever. In Written In History, acclaimed historian Simon Sebag Montefiore selects some of the greatest letters ever written from ancient times to the 20th century: declarations of war, petitions for peace, diplomatic entanglements, steamy love letters and beyond.

There's no doubt that Tori is winning the game of life. She's inspired millions of women to stick two fingers up at convention with her best-selling memoir, and she has the perfect relationship to boot. But Tori Bailey has been living a lie. Everyone around her is getting married and having babies, but her long-term boyfriend won't even talk about getting engaged. And when her best friend Dee - her plus one, the only person who understands the madness - falls in love, suddenly Tori's in terrifying danger of being left behind.

You don't find him...he finds you. The Tall Man is an addictive and unforgettable blend of psychological suspense and spine-tingling chills that will be perfect for fans of Stephen King, Ruth Ware and Sarah Pinborough's Behind Her Eyes. If you love Stranger Things, prepare to be haunted by The Tall Man.

Lizzie has just arrived in London, determined to make the best of her new life. Her mother may be keen that she should have a nice wedding in the country to a suitable man chosen by her, and Lizzie may be going to cookery school to help her become a good wife...but she definitely wants to have some fun first. It's 1963, and London is beginning to swing as Lizzie cuts her hair, buys a new dress with a fashionably short hemline and moves in with two of her best friends, one of whom lives in a grand but run-down house in Belgravia that has plenty of room for a lodger.

Twelve-year-old Makepeace has learned to defend herself from the ghosts which try to possess her in the night, desperate for refuge, but one day a dreadful event causes her to drop her guard. And now there's a spirit inside her. The spirit is wild, brutish and strong, and it may be her only defence when she is sent to live with her father's rich and powerful ancestors. There is talk of civil war, and they need people like her to protect their dark and terrible family secret.

October 1840. A young woman staggers alone through a forest in Shropshire as a huge pair of impossible wings rip themselves from her shoulders. Meanwhile, when rumours of a 'fallen angel' cause a frenzy across London, a surgeon desperate for fame and fortune finds himself in the grips of a dangerous obsession, one that will place the women he seeks in the most terrible danger.

Willow Moss, the youngest and least powerful sister in a family of witches, recently saved the world. The problem is, nobody can remember it – and, to make matters worse, her magical ability seems broken. Instead of finding lost things, objects keep disappearing against her will...which is especially troubling now that her friend Sometimes needs her help!

Twelve-year-old Sophie and her mother, Amelia-Rose, move to London from Massachusetts where they meet the charismatic Matty Melgren, who quickly becomes an intrinsic part of their lives. But as the relationship between the two adults fractures, a serial killer begins targeting young women with a striking resemblance to Amelia-Rose. When Matty is eventually sent down for multiple murders, questions remain as to his guilt—questions that ultimately destroy both women.

Willow Moss, the youngest and least powerful sister in a family of witches, has a magical ability for finding lost things - like keys, or socks, or wooden teeth. Useful, but not exactly exciting. Then the most powerful witch in the world of Starfell turns up at Willow’s door and asks for her help. A whole day - last Tuesday to be precise - has gone missing. Completely. And, without it, the whole universe could unravel. Now Willow holds the fate of Starfell in her rather unremarkable hands. Can she save the day - by finding the lost one?

For the very first time, magical children like Willow are allowed to go to school alongside their non-magical neighbours. But Willow is suspicious. She knows the Brothers of Wol are up to no good, so why are they changing the rules all of a sudden? On her first day, Willow meets an elf girl named Twist, and soon they are embarking on Willow’s most urgent mission yet: to protect the children of Starfell, uncover the mystery of a long-lost kingdom - and prevent the very source of magic from getting into the wrong hands....

Until Darren Booth moves in at number 1, Lowland Way, the neighbourhood is a suburban paradise. But soon after his arrival, disputes over issues like loud music and parking rights escalate all too quickly to public rows and threats of violence. Then, early one Saturday, a horrific crime shocks the street. As the police go house to house, the residents close ranks and everyone’s story is the same: Booth did it. But there’s a problem. The police don't agree with them.