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Books > Fiction > True stories > General
Have you ever wondered where we go when we cross through the light
at the end of the tunnel? Or what - and who - is waiting for us on
the other side? Angel expert Jacky Newcomb brings light where there
was darkness with more unique and incredible true stories from the
world beyond the veil. Through the miraculous accounts of those
brought back from the brink of death, and the astonishing stories
of those who've experienced visits from loved ones who've passed
on, Jacky shares with us the glimpses of heaven we could only
imagine until now - and the life changing effects they have had on
those lucky enough to experience them. Beautifully told and
compelling in nature, "Touching Heaven" is as beguiling as it is
revealing.
Behind the notorious Hudson men who dominated the Canterbury Estate
for over 30 years were the girls, and my mam Shirley. Whether
marrying into or determined to escape from it, the third instalment
of this gritty series recounts the incredible stories of the
unflinching women behind the legendary Hudson family. The
Canterbury Estate in Bradford during the '50s and '60s was a
tight-knit community reared on poverty, crime and violence, and at
the top of the heap were the infamous Hudson family. But it wasn't
just the boys who had a story to tell: from matriarch Annie, who
gave birth to 13 children, to daughters Margaret and Eunice, who
married up and out, each had a personality as indomitable as the
last. Then came Shirley Read, who was just 17 when she fell in love
with Keith, one of the Hudson lads. To Shirley, the only child of
affluent parents, the poverty of the unruly estate was as exciting
as it was mysterious; newspapers for tablecloths, jam jars for
cups, and, even by that time, no electricity. But it was a
friendship forged with Annie and June, the younger Hudson sisters,
that would teach Shirley not only to how to survive,
Canterbury-style, but would also give her the strength to overcome
an unexpected personal tragedy that would soon become a nightmare
for women across the world... Eye-opening and warm, this is the
vivid account of the 'Tucker' girls; the resourceful women at the
helm of a notorious Bradford family who will never be forgotten.
If you lived on the notorious Canterbury Estate in the '40s and
'50s, then you knew there was one man you did not want to cross:
Charlie Hudson. A solitary man, feared and respected by the
gangsters of the time, Charlie was a boxer who never lost a fight,
in or out of the ring - the most infamous of The Canterbury
Warriors. My Uncle Charlie, the second title in the explosive
series unravels a story of debauchery, crime and self-destruction.
Charlie Hudson was a born leader. The eldest of eight brothers and
four sisters and with a boxer for a father, fighting was in his
blood. And as the young protege of local Italian gangster, Mr
Cappovanni, Charlie not only learned to knock every opponent out,
he also learned the tools of the crime and extortion trade well;
emerging into adulthood in the middle of the war years as a natural
heir: running cons, illegal books and a band of prostitutes. But
when Charlie met Betty, a sweet, caring girl, he was determined to
be a better man for her. He'd still deal with 'business' but no
more would he bed his working girls, and the birth of their baby
girl, Elizabeth, sealed it: he knew life could not get any better.
But for a man who had only ever lived in the belly of the
Canterbury Estate underworld, it could definitely get worse...
Gritty and engrossing, book two of the Hudson family saga delves
deeper into history of the infamous Canterbury Warriors; the true
story of one man's ascendancy to power, and the tragedy that
brought it all crashing down.
When Zoe was taken into care at the age of 13, she thought she was
finally going to escape from the cruel abuse she had suffered
throughout her childhood. Then social services placed her in a
residential unit known to be 'a target for prostitution', and
suddenly Zoe's life was worse than it had ever been before. Abused
and ostracized by her mother, humiliated by her father's sexual
innuendos, physically assaulted and bullied by her eldest brother,
even as a young child Zoe thought she deserved the desperately
unhappy life she was living. 'I've sharpened a knife for you,' her
mother told her the first time she noticed angry red wounds on her
daughter's arms. And when Zoe didn't kill herself, her mother gave
her whisky, which she drank in the hope that it would dull the
miserable, aching loneliness of her life. One day at school Zoe
showed her teacher the livid bruises that were the result of her
mother's latest physical assault and within days she was taken into
care. Zoe had been at Denver House for just three weeks when an
older girl asked if she'd like to go to a party, then took her to a
house where there were just three men. Zoe was a virgin until that
night, when two of the men raped her. Having returned to the
residential unit in the early hours of the morning, when she told a
member of staff what had happened to her, her social worker made a
joke about it, then took her to get the morning-after pill. For
Zoe, the indifference of the staff at the residential unit seemed
like further confirmation of what her mother had always told her -
she was worthless. Before long, she realised that the only way to
survive in the unit was to go to the 'parties' the older girls were
paid to take her to, drink the drinks, smoke the cannabis and try
to blank out what was done to her when she was abused, controlled
and trafficked around the country. No action was taken by the
unit's staff or social workers when Zoe asked for their help, and
without anyone to support or protect her, the horrific abuse
continued for the next few years, even after she left the unit. But
in her heart Zoe was always a fighter. This is the harrowing, yet
uplifting story, of how she finally broke free of the abuse and
neglect that destroyed her childhood and obtained justice for her
years of suffering.
'It's not me then?' she says. A little bit of my heart breaks, and
I struggle to swallow down the lump in my throat. 'No Jane, it's
not you. You were right.' Why won't he ever let you use his phone?
Why is he always going on about that girl from work? Is he cheating
on you? There's one way to find out - ask him. Then (when he lies)
call Rebecca Jane, founder and owner of the Lady Detective Agency.
The Agency is one of the UK's most successful female private
detective services. It exists for one purpose: to find the truth.
Whether that means trailing a transsexual prostitute through the
streets of London, following suspected cheats on stag parties,
tracking down someone's beloved pet ferret or uncovering famous
people's affairs, Rebecca and her elite team will help. Whatever it
takes. Their extraordinary dedication stems from first-hand
experience of deception. Here Rebecca not only reveals her clients'
fascinating stories, but her own rollercoaster journey too - from
early success to crushing failure, scandal, abuse and affairs, and
ultimately to finding true love. At times heartbreaking, hilarious
and eye-opening, this vibrantly-written compilation of stories
introduces us to a sparkling and witty new voice in Rebecca and her
crack team of female detectives who are always ready to solve any
case, no matter how big or small. For the first time, the Agency is
opening its doors and revealing its secrets. Guilty consciences
beware.
As American astronauts were launched on death-defying missions,
television cameras focused on the brave smiles of their wives.
Overnight, these women were transformed from shy military spouses
to American royalty: having tea with Jackie Kennedy, attending high
society galas, and being featured on the cover of Life magazine.
They quickly grew into fashion icons, donning sherbet-swirled Pucci
dresses and lacquering their hair into extravagant rocket styles
(to match their husbands' spaceships). Annie Glenn was the envy of
the other wives, with her many magazine features; platinum-blonde
bombshell Rene Carpenter was proclaimed JFK's favourite; homely
Betty Grissom worried her husband was having affairs; Louise
Shepard just wanted to be left alone to her card games; and
licensed pilot Trudy Cooper arrived on base with a dirty secret.
Together they rallied to form the Astronaut Wives Club, which has
now turned into over 40 years of enduring friendship. Sexy and
sophisticated, rich in melodrama, and set against the uniquely
atmospheric backdrop of the Space Age, THE ASTRONAUTS' WIVES CLUB
tells the real story behind some of the biggest heroes in American
history, chronicling their romantic, domestic, and public dramas
during the Mad Men era.
"Riveting . . . Well-written and highly compelling."--Wall Street
Journal "Truly thrilling. Daniel Levin brilliantly conveys both the
menace and the evil of Middle Eastern intrigue, and some victories
of human kindness over cruelty and despair."--Daniel Kahneman, New
York Times bestselling author of Thinking, Fast and Slow Daniel
Levin was in his New York office when he got a call from an
acquaintance with an urgent, cryptic request to meet in Paris. A
young man had gone missing in Syria. No government, embassy, or
intelligence agency would help. Could he? Would he? So begins a
suspenseful, shocking, and at times brutal true story of one man's
search to find a miss ing person in Syria over twenty tense days.
Levin, a lawyer turned armed-conflict negotia tor, chases leads
throughout the Middle East, meeting with powerful sheikhs, drug
lords, and sex traffickers in his pursuit of the truth. In Proof of
Life, Levin dives deep into the shadows--an underground industry of
war where everything is for sale, including arms, drugs, and even
people. He offers a fasci nating study of how people use leverage
to get what they want from one another and of a place where no one
does a favor without wanting something in return, whether it's
immediately or years down the road. A fast-paced thriller wrapped
in a memoir, Proof of Life is a cinematic must-read by an author
with access to a world that usually remains hidden.
The story of two men who almost single-handedly saved their
football club from extinction. In the early 80s David Kilpatrick
and Graham Morris spied architects' plans to turn Spotland, the
home of their beloved, beleaguered Rochdale AFC, into a housing
estate. They set about saving the club but first had to take on the
alleged 'enemy within'. They worked tirelessly, persuading
companies to write off debts while securing loans and donations, a
tricky proposition when your club is bottom of the Football League.
Meanwhile, the town of Rochdale was on its knees, the last of the
cotton mills closing down. The limit of most fans' investment in
their club is routinely the price of a season ticket. Directors
often risk their houses and businesses, sometimes forfeiting
marriages, families and their health in the name of their club.
People such as Kilpatrick and Morris - moderately wealthy local
businessmen - who serve on football club boards are the unseen,
unsung heroes of football, even in the modern age.
A true account of Felicity's search for justice following the
murder of her husband, Victor Prazak, in Libya. Victor died on the
22nd of December 1992 when the passenger plane he was travelling on
was brought down by a Libyan military MiG. Victor, the only
Westerner on board the plane, was buried in a mass grave in the
Libyan Desert without Felicity's consent. She was not even allowed
to attend the burial. After nineteen years of fighting to uncover
the truth, the recent uprising in Libya has brought to light the
facts of the case. She is still petitioning the British government
for an inquest, and is involved in legal action against the Libyan
state.
Brian Cunningham's popular first book, Under the Bonnet, was a
colourful and humorous collection of memories of his time as a car
mechanic in the 1970s and '80s. When he wrote it, he was sure he
had put everything of interest down, but it turns out there were
quite a few escapades he'd forgotten to mention. Time, then, for
part two . . . When the Wheels Come Off is a joyous return,
covering what he missed first time round: cars fixed and some
broken, fads and crazes, crashes and scrapes and near misses,
evolutionary dead-ends in technology, underhanded practices and
downright skulduggery, run-ins with management, the tools used, the
cars 'stolen' and scrapyards visited. A lively and engaging trip
back to the workshop.
On a Saturday morning in May 1980, Melanie Bowen, a pretty fifteen
year old, ran down the stairs of her parents' home in Port Talbot,
grabbed her leather jacket and crash helmet, yelled a goodbye, and
then walked out of the front door into the sunshine for what was to
be the last time in her life. Never Say Die is the true story of
what followed... Since the motorcycle crash that left her paralysed
from the chest down, Melanie's life has been one of extremes. On
the down side, she has endured 5 horrific months of despair and
indignity in rehabilitation, undergone a colostomy at 23, been in
another serious car crash, suffered syringomyelia and the
terrifying prospect of full quadriplegia, been diagnosed with
breast cancer and broken several bones. On the plus side, however,
she's won medals in athletics for Wales, been humbled and inspired
by Falklands veterans at RAF Chessington, raised thousands for
charity, become a major disability poster girl in America, dabbled
with the film world and been screen tested for a movie, met the
Queen, and set up her own rehabilitation charity, whose patrons
include the acclaimed actor Michael Sheen, Dame Tanni Grey Thompson
and former Welsh Rugby captain, Gwyn Jones. She has also, against
all the odds, found lasting happiness, having fallen in love with
and married the surgeon who 25 years earlier told her she would
never walk again.
Inspiring and powerful true stories of communication with beings
from the Afterlife from one of the country's most successful and
sought after psychics. Includes amazing accounts of guardian angel
interventions, mysterious rescues, miraculous recoveries,
unexplained powers of psychic children and animals. In her new
book, outstanding psychic Dorothy Chitty presents an incredible
collection of real-life stories taken from both her own life and
from others who have experienced the power of the Afterlife. Find
out the truth behind what happens when our guardian angels appear
to us in various guises when we need them most - and often when we
least expect it. Stories include: Guardian angels we know - like
the woman's family who cheated death on the Zeebrugge ferry when
she heard her mother's warning from beyond the grave Not our time
to go - when unknown forces save us, like the rock climber who was
saved when he was lifted up by invisible hands when he fell thirty
feet Healing miracles - when asking the angels for help can save
us, like the young woman with a brain tumour who asked the spirits
for and her next scan showed it had gone, leaving just a cross
where it had been Guidance from the other side - signs that point
you on your life path, like the man who's life changed when he was
told to go to Canada and he discovered his ideal career Psychic
children - how children are more open to seeing spirits and
guardian angels, like the little girl who saw how she had died in a
previous life, and now passed on messages from her dead brother
Psychic animals - the bond between animals and their owners that
continues after death, like the man whose dead dog carried on
leaving his newspaper on the front porch
Following on from the hugely popular 'Angel Saved My Life' series
comes a moving new collection of real-life stories from the
Afterlife. Following the bestsellers An Angel by My Side and An
Angel Held My Hand comes a brand new collection of heartwarming and
inspiring real-life dramas about people who have had 'a little
help' from the other side when they most needed it. Stories
include: The shouting angel whose playful antics saved a young girl
from falling down the stairs. The angel who prevented a woman's bad
judgement becoming a tragedy. The whispering angel who helped a
serial dieter lose weight for good. The angel voice that quietly
guided a woman to her soul mate. The group of friends whose
guardian angels revealed their purpose in life. The laughing angel
who helped a lost boy find his way home. These are just some of the
miraculous accounts in this inspiring new collection of true
stories.
For the first time, the UK's number one TV psychic shares some of
his most personal stories and terrifying encounters with the spirit
world, and what it's really like to be 'possessed'. The star of
LIVINGtv's 'Most Haunted' and 'Ghost Towns' goes on a new journey
that will chill you to the bone. Derek takes us with him into the
darkest places of the spirit world where he confronts people taken
over by demonic entities, the spirits of ancient Egyptians whose
malevolent presence reaches beyond the tomb, those evil ghosts with
unfinished business who are terrorising the living, and the dead
who are determined to come back from the other side, and take Derek
with them if they can... If you thought you'd already seen Derek's
most terrifying battles with the dark side - think again.
THE FIGHT FOR FORDHALL FARM is the astonishing story of a young
brother and sister faced with an unimaginable task - escaping
eviction from their home that had been in their family since the
1700s, and saving their livelihood. Ben & Charlotte's father,
Arthur Hollins, ran Fordhall Farm in Shropshire from the age of 14
until his death aged 90 in 2005, and inspired his children with his
zeal for organic farming. So when their landlord informed them in
2005 that they would have to achieve the seemingly impossible and
raise GBP800,000 to buy the farm or face eviction, 20- and
22-year-old Ben and Charlotte refused to give in without a fight.
Aided by the Community Development Manager Sophie Hopkins and
volunteers from across the country, the Hollinses set up the
Fordhall Community Land Initiative, which allows members of the
public to buy a GBP50 non-profit share in the farm. With an appeal
in national newspapers and on television, the cheques were soon
flooding in as the community rallied to save this special piece of
farming history. Today more than 8,000 people across the world own
a stake in Fordhall, and with supporters including a number of
celebrities - HRH Prince Charles, Sting, Prunella Scales and Monty
Don to name a few - the farm's future has been secured for the next
100 years.
SHORTLISTED, WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK of the YEAR, 2020. When Ian
Ridley's wife, the trailblazing sports reporter Vikki Orvice, died
of cancer at the age of 56, he found himself plunged deep into a
sadness that he expected and a world of madness that he did not. In
an attempt to make sense of it all and seek some solace from the
brutality of his grief and anxiety, he embarks on a summer of
watching county cricket. Reliving bitter-sweet memories in places
he and Vikki had visited together, he is alternately unnerved and
consoled by the ebbs and flows of his mourning. But gradually,
against a backdrop of the County Championship's peace and solitude
- with the sun on his back and tea, cake and crossword at his side
- he finds a way to survive the rhythms and cadences of his grief.
The Breath of Sadness is an unflinching account of how we carry on
when we are left behind, and a poignant, tender and candid
exploration of love and loss.
From the author of the bestselling Philistines at the Hedgerow, a
mesmerizing inside account of the high-stakes world of Manhattan
residential real estate Steven Gaines takes us from New York's most
expensive condominiums and co-ops to the offices of its most
powerful real estate brokers to reveal the outlandish displays of
ego, bad behavior, and status hunger that come into play when the
best addresses in the city are on the line. With his signature
elan, Gaines weaves a gossipy tapestry of brokers, buyers, co-op
boards, and eccentric landlords and tells of the apartment hunting
and renovating adventures of many celebrities-from Tommy Hilfiger
to Donna Karan, from Jerry Seinfeld to Steven Spielberg, from
Barbra Streisand to Madonna. Gaines uncovers the secretive,
unwritten rules of co-op boards: why diplomats and pretty divorcees
are frowned upon, what not to wear to a board interview, and which
of the biggest celebrities and CEOs have been turned away from the
elite buildings of Fifth and Park Avenues. He introduces the
carriage-trade brokers who never have to advertise for clients and
gives us finely etched portraits of a few of the discreet, elderly
society ladies who decide who gets into the so-called Good
Buildings. Here, too, is a fascinating chronicle of the changes in
Manhattan's residential skyline, from the slums of the nineteenth
century to the advent of the luxury building. Gaines describes how
living in boxes stacked on boxes came to be seen as the ultimate in
status, and how the co-operative apartment, originally conceived as
a form of housing for the poor, came to be used as a legal means of
black-balling undesirable neighbors. A social history told through
brick and mortar, The Sky's the Limit is the ultimate look inside
one of the most exclusive and expensive enclaves in the world, and
at the lengths to which people will go to get in.
An explosive expose of how British military intelligence really
works-from the inside. This book presents the stories of two
undercover agents: Brian Nelson, who worked for the Force Research
Unit (FRU), aiding loyalist terrorists and murderers in their
bloody work; and the man known as Stakeknife, deputy head of the
IRA's infamous "Nutting Squad," the internal security force that
tortured and killed suspected informers.
This book is copublished with O'Brien Press, Dublin and is for sale
only in the United States, it's territories and dependencies,
Canada, and the Philippines.
In January 2003 Asne Seierstad entered Baghdad on a ten-day visa.
She was to stay for over three months, reporting on the war and its
aftermath. A Hundred and One Days is her compelling account of a
city under siege, and a fascinating insight into the life of a
foreign correspondent. An award-winning writer, Seierstad
brilliantly details the frustrations and dangers journalists faced
trying to uncover the truth behind the all-pervasive propaganda.
She also offers a unique portrait of Baghdad and its people, trying
to go about their daily business under the constant threat of
attack. Seierstad's passionate and erudite book conveys both the
drama and the tragedy of her one hundred and one days in a city at
war.
What is it like learning from a mother who is privy to a whole
different type of privilege than you? When was the first time you
realised your boyfriend was dating you to satisfy some weird
fetish? How demoralising was it to find out that Princess Jasmine,
your sole claim to Disney royalty, was based on a white model? What
impact did it have to play the entire Puerto Rican community in
West Side Story in your local theatre group? And was Parvati Patil
really such an appalling date for Harry? Part autobiography and
part critical commentary, join Laila Woozeer as she blends together
stories from her own life, looking specifically at the impact pop
culture and media representation has on non-white people and the
way they understand themselves, charting a narrative about being
mixed race that stems from the 90s until the present day. Her book
examines the multi-racial experience: the personal, emotional and
psychological impact of being mixed, without being reduced to two
separate representations of a person. In the UK alone, "mixed" is
the fastest growing census category, and the number of mixed race
people has risen by a quarter of a million in just 10 years. But
even so, mixed people are placed outside of the conversation - they
can speak directly to one of their communities but can't be all of
them at the same time. Except, that is exactly how mixed people
have to function all day, every day. Most of us agree that
Representation Matters - but why? What does that actually mean?
It's important to make these issues real - to attach them to a
human emotion or personal journey lest they become an abstract
phrase that just gets bandied around every time Hollywood release
another Very White cast list. That's where Laila comes in: the face
of the lived experience, sharing with you the cruelest and funniest
moments of her life for your delectation. The book is routed in her
own specific journey and introduces concepts as she chronologically
learned of them. She incorporates child psychology, academic texts,
and race theory without losing the personal connection, using
anecdotes and experience to truly get to the core of the issues
explored.
La frontera entre los Estados Unidos y Mexico es una tierra de
nadie. Las drogas, las armas, y los humanos son los cargamentos
preferido en un imperio de multi-mil millones de dolares, dominado
por carteles, bandas homicidas, y oficiales de gobierno corruptos.
Contra ellos son los Agentes Especiales del Servicio Aduanero de
los Estados Unidos--hombres y mujeres que pelean para mantener las
leyes y proteger los EE UU en ambos lados de la frontera. Terry
Kirkpatrick trabajo uno de los profesiones mas dificiles en los
Estados Unidos: un agente de la aduana de los Estados Unidos en la
frontera entre Arizona y Mexico. Ha visto todo y ha hecho mas por
mas de veinte anos en un trabajo que muchos oficiales dejan andes
de que han trabajado por seis meses. Estos son las historias
descarnadas, graficas, y verdaderas de Terry y sus companeros
mientras patrullan las tierras malas de America moderno, donde las
balas son la moneda y la sangre ha tomado por el pago. Desde las
condiciones inhumanos que sufra la gente para llegar a los Estados
Unidos, a trabajando con lideres militares corruptos, a unos de los
situaciones mas increibles que cualquiera ha sobrevivido, los
lectores sentiran el caos que ha envuelto la frontera del EE UU en
las palabras de alguien que ha estado alla. Sesenta millas de
frontera arroja luz en la vida de agentes de la aduana, sus
transacciones en la frontera, el efecto en sus vidas diarias--y una
vista despiadado a uno de los temas mas debatido y controversial en
los Estados Unidos hoy.
- Previously published in mass market as "Erotica from Penthouse III (Warner, 1994) and "More Erotica from Penthouse (Warner, 1992), "PENTHOUSE UNCENSORED IV continues the successful trade paperback reissue of this series. "Penthouse Uncensored (Warner, 2000) went back to press three times and has net sales of over 63,000 copies. "Penthouse Uncensored 11 (Warner, 2001) has net sales of almost 35,000 copies.- In addition to the "Penthouse Uncensored series, Warner has published 17 volumes in the Letters to "Penthouse series. With a sell through greater than 80% and over 1.25 million combined copies sold, this enduring series shows no signs of slowing down.- Featuring letters from people who have had memorable sexual experiences, the "Penthouse "Forum" section is a favorite with readers of the magazine. It is these letters that are compiled here in "PENTHOUSE UNCENSORED IV.
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