From the private papers of Jane Austen & Mozart to those of Anne Boleyn & Nelson Love Letters of Great Men & Women collects together some of the most romantic letters in history. For some of these great men love is a 'delicious poison' (William Congreve); for others 'a nice soft wife on a sofa with good fire & books & music' (Charles Darwin). Love can scorch like the heat of the sun (Henry VIII) or penetrate the depths of one's heart like a cooling rain (Flaubert). But what about the other side of the story? What of the secret hopes & lives of some of the greatest women in history? Taken together these love letters show that perhaps little has changed over the last 2 000 years. Passion jealousy hope & longing are all represented here -- as is the simple pleasure of sending a letter to & receiving one from the person you love most.

Includes:: letters by: Anne Boleyn * Beethoven * Edith Wharton * Mark Twain * Mary Wordsworth * Nell Gwyn (mistress of Charles II) * Elizabeth Barrett Browning * GK Chesterton * Queen Victoria * Napoleon Bonaparte * The Empress Josephine * Mary Wollstonecraft * Amadeus Mozart * Katherine Mansfield Praise for Love Letters of Great Men: ' The most romantic book ever' Daily Mail ' Inspired by the Sex & the City movie... Famous men caught with pen in hand & heart in mouth' The Times

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A compulsive tale of a modern-day Cinderella's quest for her own happily ever after filled with Sunday Times bestseller Adele Parks' warmth wit & insight into real life relationships. Fern is staring thirty in the face & she believes a romantic wedding should be the next step for her & long-term love Adam but he just won't go down on one knee. Then a chance meeting catapults her out of the everyday existence & into a girl's ultimate fantasy
- being swept away by Prince Charming to a life of luxury wealth & celebrity. But is her whirlwind romance with pop star Scottie Taylor everything it seems? Fern is forced to ask herself if a fairy tale ending is possible in such a modern rock & roll world...*
Includes: bonus material*

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They shared a secret no one must ever know... When seventeen-year-old Ruth Davies' father is invalided out of the Great War the whole family has little choice but to move to the infamous Tiger Bay area of Cardiff. Not only faced with a life of adversity Ruth & her mother Caitlin also share a secret one that no one else must ever know. Ruth & Caitlin's wages are barely enough to put food on the table let alone pay the rent. & an increasingly neglected young Glynis runs wild. When Caitlin contracts tuberculosis & dies they have no option but to move into an even more squalid neighbourhood. But Ruth is still determined to keep their secret at all costs. That is until their father dies unexpectedly & an ever more desperate Ruth & Glynis find themselves living h&-to-mouth... ...

Becca thinks shes through with boys. That is until Squidge proposes his dare -- to kiss the next boy who comes onto the beach. The boy she picks has just arrived on holiday from London & is taken by surprise but very happy with such a welcome. When Becca stands back & sees him properly she realises that she quite fancies him too. However life is never that simple. Her parents marriage is on the rocks & Becca becomes increasingly stressed about what is going to happen to her. She questions everything to do with relationships & looks closely at what she wants from a boyfriend: is it escape companionship trust or someone to turn to? With the support of her friends she takes steps to discover what she truly values in her life. ...

A NOVEL OF LOVE & DEATH IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER The words were gentle strokes drawing her awake. Hello. Hello there." She felt the light on her eyelids & knew that if she opened her eyes they would sting & she would have to shade them with her palm & let the light bleed through a crack. " Feel like talking?" A mans soft voice. & then her mind cleared enough to wonder: who was this man at her bedside? She tried to sigh but no breath came. Her eyes flew open in alarm. The Minus Eighty.. . Where millionaires browse the catalogue of icy women judging on beauty ratings & revival costs. Where a freezers gentle hum plays the background symphony for the worlds most expensive first dates. Where death is only the beginning. Love Minus Eighty is a disquieting vision of our romantic future as hopeful as it is horrifying by a Hugo Award-winning author." ...

Edward Monkton's surprisingly philosophical take on all aspects of love life & happiness have made Monkton's drawings stylish collectors' items & a mark of good taste year in year out. This is the latest offering from the bestselling author. He dreamt of a monkey whose SMILE lit up his soul like sunshine. He held out his heart to her so RADIANT so splendid & so new. She took him in her arms & felt truly perfectly at PEACE. A lyrical & beautiful story about finding true & enduring love. Deeply affecting in its honesty humour & simplicity. It might just be genius. ...

Featuring the only Monster in Cutesville LOVE MONSTER is a wonderfully warm & witty look at how sometimes when you least expect it love finds you! From a phenomenal picture book talent. It can be tough being the only funny-looking Monster in Cutesville but this Monster is not one to hang around & feel sorry for himself so hes off -- out into the big wide world to look for someone to love him. He looks high he looks low & he looks everywhere in-between but its only when hes just about to give up that he finally finds what he is looking for! Featuring an instantly charming main character who will appeal to children & adults alike LOVE MONSTER is a warm & witty tale about the power of taking action from a terrific talent new to the Harper Collins list. ...

Like every woman Kate thought shed never meet the love of her life... Until she did. But are they destined to be together? Kate Miller has lived in New York for three long years. Now with her father ill its time to come home & face everything she left behind... Her friends: Zoe & Francesca bound to her forever as a result of one day when life changed for them all. Her family: her adored father & his much younger wife. The job: she abandoned on a glossy womens magazine. & the man she thought was the love of her life whose heart she has broken. What really happened before Kate left London? & can she pick up the pieces & allow herself to love life again? A modern day love story jam-packed with humour hurt hope & happiness
- so unputdownable youll cancel your Friday night out to keep reading.
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'I miss him with every breath & heartbeat. He should have been my happy ending. Instead he is the sad beginning to my story.' Olivia & Luca Felicone had known each other nearly all their lives but when they fell in love as teenagers & eloped to London they broke the hearts of those closest to them. Luca's parents run Marinella's restaurant the colourful hub of life in the otherwise bleak north-eastern seaside town of Watersford & his mother Angela has never forgiven Olivia for causing such a rift in her beloved family. On a freezing January night Olivia's life is shattered when she learns that Luca has been killed in a car accident on the M1. She is left with nothing & after suffering from weeks of overwhelming grief she abandons her job & returns North to where Luca has been buried in Watersford just to be close to him -- even though she knows she will not be welcome at Marinella's. Olivia's chance meeting with Luca's married twin brother Marc leads to the realization that he is experiencing a loss almost as painful as her own. Their desolation draws them into an affair which both know has no future but fills the space where Luca should be. It is a course of action that can only spiral out of control & when it does the consequences are both explosive & cruel. THE LOVE OF MY LIFE is a beautiful novel that portrays both the innocence of childhood & the dynamics of love & loss with deftness & sensitivity. It is above all a stunning debut from an author with a unique & natural narrative voice. ' Sad & lovely. I'm now having trouble finding a book good enough to fill the very deep hole she's left' Milly Johnson author of The Yorkshire Pudding Club ...