A desperate childhood. An uncertain past. One chance at happiness.. . Born into poverty & living under the roof of her violent & abusive brother-in-law young Kitty Cox dreams of working in a women's dress shop in the West End
- a million miles away from the reality of her life as a mud-lark scavenging on the banks of the Thames. Fate soon intervenes & Kitty finds herself working as a skivvy for Sir Desmond & Lady Arabella Mableton in Mayfair. Bullied by the kitchen maids Kitty is soon taken under Lady Arabella's wing & for the first time in her life Kitty dares to hope. But Lady ' Bella' has a secret & unable to live with her domineering husband she decides to leave fighting for custody of their daughter Leonie. Kitty will do anything for her mistress but her loyalty is severely tested as all their lives are thrown into turmoil & Kitty faces a life of poverty & hardship in the slums of the East End once more.. .
...

Louis is a vampire tortured by guilt. His status as a killer has left him conflicted for much of his immortal life but after the murder of Claudia his beloved child vampire he spirals into a state of depression. & in a moment of desperation he decides to bring her back with the help of the beautiful witch Merrick. To save Louis' sanity Merrick must use black magic to call up the ghost of Claudia
- however dangerous this may be. But in the dark unknown of the underworld there are other spirits who will not lie still & her search takes her close to the edge of peril.
...

It's a snowy Christmas Eve & Detective Alex Cross is at home celebrating with his family. Nana Mama's famous pecan pie is in the oven & the kids are hanging their favourite ornaments on the tree. Just as Alex's wife Bree emerges from the kitchen with a bowl of homemade eggnog his phone rings with news that shatters the night: at a nearby home a family has been taken hostage
- & the situation is spiralling out of control fast. Alex rushes to the scene & confronts the unthinkable: a father is threatening to murder his own children & his ex-wife. Then just as the insanity peaks a second horrific situation explodes
- one that no one could have foreseen & that puts millions of people at risk. This is a red alert of the darkest kind & Alex is forced to make a decision that could end as many lives as it saves
- including his own. Merry Christmas Alex Cross" is James Patterson's most shocking " Alex Cross" novel yet: a breakneck-paced & heart-pounding adrenaline rush of a thriller."


...

Its a snowy Christmas Eve & Detective Alex Cross is at home celebrating with his family. Nana Mamas famous pecan pie is in the oven & the kids are hanging their favourite ornaments on the tree. Just as Alexs wife Bree emerges from the kitchen with a bowl of homemade eggnog his phone rings with news that shatters the night: at a nearby home a family has been taken hostage
- & the situation is spiralling out of control fast. Alex rushes to the scene & confronts the unthinkable: a father is threatening to murder his own children & his ex-wife. Then just as the insanity peaks a second horrific situation explodes
- one that no one could have foreseen & that puts millions of people at risk. This is a red alert of the darkest kind & Alex is forced to make a decision that could end as many lives as it saves
- including his own. Merry Christmas Alex Cross" is James Pattersons most shocking " Alex Cross" novel yet: a breakneck-paced & heart-pounding adrenaline rush of a thriller."


...

READ BY JOANNA LUMLEY. A Christmas themed best seller about Lily & her beloved Blue Kangaroo! READ BY JOANNA LUMLEY. Its Christmas Eve & Lily is excitedly wondering if Father Christmas will come. She has made cards for everyone helped to decorate the house & put presents under the tree. This one is just for you Blue Kangaroo!" she says. " Just for me!" thinks Blue Kangaroo. But Blue Kangaroo doesnt have a present for Lily & he lies awake worrying. Is there anyone who might be able to help?" ...

An absorbing novel about family love & friendship from the bestselling author of Last Christmas. With four children a Christmas cookbook to write & her mum suffering from dementia Cat Tinsall has plenty to juggle. When her eldest daughter Mel starts going off the rails Cat has even more on her plate. Pippa Holliday adores her family although often finds her hands full. When Dan is involved in a terrible accident Pippas world is suddenly turned upside down. Balancing her job as a school teacher with twins & her step-son Steven isnt easy for Marianne North. With her husbands ex causing trouble life is getting even trickier. As Cat Pippa & Marianne help each other through a difficult year theyre all hoping for a much brighter Christmas. ...

The fourth meerkat story in the hilarious Awesome Animals series
- awesome adventures with the wildest wildlife. Told in Ian Whybrows
...

Somebody in Laos is wooing & wedding country girls
- & then killing them on honeymoon & binding their bodies to trees. The horror
...

In need of money the fat & foolish Falstaff devises a scheme to seduce two married women & steal their husbands wealth. By talking to each other however the wives soon discover his plan & begin to plot their own revenge. Relentlessly inventive this comic humiliation of a foolish would-be seducer is a lively compelling & ultimately joyous celebration of the all-conquering power of laughter. This book

Includes:: a general introduction to Shakespeares life & the Elizabethan theatre a separate introduction to Merry Wives of Windsor a chronology suggestions for further reading an essay discussing performance options on both stage & screen & a commentary.

...

A Mersey ferry was recorded in the Domesday Book & for around a thousand years they have plied between Birkenhead & Wallasey on the Wirral & Liverpool. The sail & man-powered craft gave way to steam ferries in 1815. In this book Ian Collard tells the story of the Mersey ferries concentrating on the steam & diesel powered eras from 1815 to the present day & including such famous ferries as Iris & Daffodil which were involved in the Zeebrugge Raid of 1918. The Mersey ferries have been immortalized in song & even today with the various tunnels under the Mersey the three survivors of today Snowdrop Royal Iris of the Mersey & Royal Daffodil are still being used by locals & tourists alike. Using around 160 old & new images he tells the story of the Ferries across the Mersey showing a river that was once teeming with ships but is now much quieter. ...