Daughters of Eden "focuses on the lives & fortunes of four very different young women at the outbreak of the Second World War. Marjorie left at a boarding school by her emigrating mother; plain Poppy pushed into marriage with a mean-spirited aristocrat; Kate despised by her father but determined to prove herself; & man-mad Lily who turns out to be the bravest of them all. That all of them are chosen to work undercover for the espionage unit at beautiful stately home is a surprise not least to them. At Eden Park they not only meet each other but become involved with three unusual young men -- Eugene the seemingly feckless Irishman; Robert Kates brother; & dashing Scott a master of disguise & the undisputed favourite of the unit. While there is hardly time for romance before each is sent out into the field there is just enough for passionate new relationships to form. Only Jack Ward the mysterious spymaster manages to remain aloof as he guides their destinies. The fact that they will look back on this time as having made them feel more exquisitely alive than ever before is not something they will know until much later." ...

The sweeping new novel from the bestselling author of LADY OF HAY switches between Roman Britain & the present day where history dramatically impacts on the lives of three women. Two thousand years ago as the Romans invade Britannia the princess who will become the powerful queen of the great tribe of the Brigantes watches the enemies of her people come ever closer. Cartimanduas world is from the start a maelstrom of love & conflict; revenge & retribution. In the present day Edinburgh-based historian Viv Lloyd Rees has immersed herself in the legends surrounding the Celtic queen. She has written a book & is working on a dramatisation of the young queens life with the help of actress Pat Hebden. Cartimanduas life takes one unexpected turn after another as tragedy changes the course of her future. But the young queen has formidable enemies -- among them Venutios her childhood sparring partner & Medb a woman whose jealousy threatens not only her happiness but her life. Vivs Head of Department Hugh Graham hounds her as she struggles to hide her visions of Cartimandua & her conviction that they are real. Her obsession grows ever more persistent & threatening as she takes possession of an ancient brooch that carries a curse. Both Pat & Hugh are drawn into this dual existence of bitter rivalry & overwhelming love as past envelopes present & the trio find themselves facing the greatest danger of their lives. ...

William Melvilles daughters are heiresses to the worlds most exclusive fashion dynasty. Beautiful & rich they are envied by all. But behind the glittering facade of their lives each girl hides a dark secret that threatens to tear their family apart. Smart ambitious Elizabeth knows how to manipulate every man she meets except the one who counts: her father. Gentle naive Caitlin the illegitimate child struggling to fit into a world of privilege while staying true to herself. stunning spoilt Amber the party girl with a weakness for bad boys but more fragile than anyone realises. As each of them seeks to carve out her own destiny Elizabeth Caitlin & Amber face difficult choices which will take them in wildly different directions. But as old wounds resurface & threaten to destroy the foundations of the Melville empire their paths will cross again. Because the simple truth is that no matter how far you go you cannot escape the claims of family. ...

An evocative & heartrending saga set in Liverpool during World War Two from the bestselling author of As Time Goes By Katie's full of trepidation as she arrives in Liverpool. It's her first posting & her work will be so secret that she can't even speak about it to the family she's billeted with. She makes it clear that she's here to do her bit for the war effort not to flirt with the many servicemen based at the nearby barracks. Which is just fine with Luke son of the household & battle-scarred veteran of Dunkirk. He's had his heart broken already by a flighty nurse. His mother can't help worry about him
- but she's got more than enough on her plate with her youngest children the teenage twins who don't see why a war should stop them having fun & achieving their ambition to go on the stage. Then the bombs begin to rain in Liverpool in earnest & everyone from oldest to youngest must realise what matters most in life.
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In 1915 two spirited Australian sisters join the war effort as nurses escaping the confines of their fathers dairy farm & carrying a guilty secret with them. Used to tending the sick as they are nothing could have prepared them for what they confront first in the Dardanelles then on the Western Front. Yet amid the carnage Naomi & Sally Durance become the friends they never were at home & find themselves courageous in the face of extreme danger as well as the hostility they encounter from some on their own side. There is great bravery humour & compassion too & the inspiring example of some remarkable women. & in France where Naomi nurses in a hospital set up by the eccentric Lady Tarlton while Sally works in a casualty clearing station each meets an exceptional man: the kind of men for whom they might give up some of their precious independence
- if only they all survive. At once vast in scope & extraordinarily intimate The Daughters of Mars brings the First World War to vivid concrete life from an unusual perspective. A searing & profoundly moving tale it pays tribute to the men & women who voluntarily risked their lives for peace.
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This sweeping powerful epic tells the story of one of the bloodiest years in Rome's history through the eyes of two remarkable women fighting for survival A.D. 69. The Roman Empire is up for the taking. The Year of the Four Emperors will change everything
- especially the lives of two sisters with a very personal stake in the outcome. Elegant & ambitious Cornelia embodies the essence of the perfect Roman wife. She lives to one day see her loyal husband as Emperor. Her sister Marcella is more aloof content to witness history rather than make it. But when a bloody coup turns their world upside down both women must manoeuvre carefully just to stay alive. As Cornelia tries to pick up the pieces of her shattered dreams Marcella discovers a hidden talent for influencing the most powerful men in Rome. In the end though there can only be one Emperor...and one Empress.
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'I listen to those stories -- told by women who have been drugged beaten imprisoned raped & terrorised within the walls of the homes they grew up in. I listen & I am humbled by their resilience.' Jasvinder Sanghera knows what it means to flee from your family under threat of forced marriage -- & to face the terrible consequences that follow. As a young girl that was just what she had to do. Jasvinder is now at the frontline of the battle to save women from the honour-based violence & threat of forced marriage that destroyed her own youth. Daughters of Shame reveals the stories of young women such as Shazia kidnapped & taken to Pakistan to marry a man she had never met; & Banaz murdered by her own family after escaping an abusive marriage. By turns frightening enthralling & uplifting Daughters of Shame reveals Jasvinder as a woman heedless of her own personal safety as she fights to help these women in a world where the suffering & abuse of many is challenged by the courage of the few. ...

Thirteenth century France. Bridget has grown up mastering the mystical gifts of her ancestor Mary Magdalene whose unbroken female lineage has kept a legacy of wisdom alive for a thousand years. But the all-powerful Catholic Church has sworn to destroy Bridget for using her healing talents & supernatural abilities. Bridget's duty to continue the bloodline leads her into the arms of Raoul de Montvallant
- a Catholic. But when the Church's savage religious intolerance causes Raoul to turn rebel a terrible vengeance is exacted by Simon de Montfort the unstoppable Catholic leader of a crusade against peaceful 'heretics'. As war rages on it is the children of these passionate souls Magda & Dominic who must strive to preserve the ancient knowledge for future generations
- & find the love & courage to endure...

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With the scars of World War I still fresh the Dransfield family face further challenges... When Steven Dransfield loses his fortune in the Depression his wife Leonie is forced to save the family from ruin. But Steve resents the success of her dressmaking business & trapped in a loveless marriage Leonie is drawn into the arms of another man. Just as their children Milo & June begin to spread their wings Leonie finds herself pregnant but her duty lies with her family & when Amy is born she unites them all. Then with the outbreak of World War II & danger looming in Liverpool Amy is evacuated to Wales & as the bombs start to drop lives are lost & hearts are broken & the Dransfields must learn to support one another through the heartache that lies ahead... ...

When you've dedicated your life to your children what happens when they grow up? Rachel loves being at the centre of her large family. She has devoted herself fiercely to bringing up her three sons but at their childhood home on the wide bird-haunted coast of Suffolk Rachel finds that her control begins to slip away. Other women
- her daughters-in-law
- are usurping her position. They have become more important to her boys than she is. A crisis brings these subtle rifts to the surface. Can there be a way forward if they are to survive as a family?

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