Eye of the Needle, Ken Follett’s breakthrough international bestseller, is a heart-racing, exciting tale about the fate of the Second World War as it rests in the hands of a master spy, his opponent and one brave woman.

Written when he was only twenty-seven, it launched the career of master storyteller Ken Follett, and was later adapted for the screen by Richard Marquand, starring Donald Sutherland.

VICTORY HANGS IN THE BALANCE

1944. In the weeks leading up to D-Day, the Allies are disguising their invasion plans with elaborate decoy ships and planes. If they can land a force on mainland Europe, they will gain the upper hand in a war that has ravaged the world for years, and can then take the fight to the Nazi menace.

A COLD-BLOODED KILLER

His weapon is the stiletto; his code name: The Needle. He is Hitler’s prize undercover agent – a ruthless, professional murderer. In England, he uncovers the Allies’ D-Day plans, but his cover is blown in the process.

A DEADLY CHASE

Leaving a trail of bodies in his wake and with MI5 on his tail, The Needle ruthlessly races to a U-boat that is waiting to convey him and his critical message to Germany. But he hasn’t planned for a storm-battered island and the remarkable young woman who lives there

In her latest novel, Wendy Louise Bardsley has tackled the horrors of the Crimean war with great empathy and, at the same time, has vividly described the pioneer work of Florence Nightingale, as a nurse in that conflict. Florence Nightingale had a calling that took her away from a comfortable life and a marriage proposal to a barracks hospital in Scutari, where she and her group of chosen nurses, would tend sick, wounded and maimed soldiers in the most foul of conditions. Florence had a great supporter for her mission, Sidney Herbert, the Minister for War, and between them, with steadfast perseverance, they secured the supplies of food, medicines and other essentials, that made life bearable for the hospital's patients and staff. In doing so, Florence Nightingale brought a glimmer of hope and light to the lives of those in darkest despair. As the Crimean war ended Florence Nightingale was honoured to receive commendation for her work from Queen Victoria, which signalled the start of a lifelong campaign to enhance the much-treasured nursing profession. FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE: A LIGHT IN DARKEST CRIMEA is a stunning novel that will bring to the reader the stark reality of war.

History is thick with secrets in The Sugar Camp Quilt, seventh in the beloved Elm Creek Quilts series from bestselling author Jennifer Chiaverini. Set in Creek's Crossing, Pennsylvania, in the years leading up to the Civil War, the novel follows Dorothea Granger's passage from innocence to wisdom against the harrowing backdrop of the American struggle over slavery. She discovers that a quilt she has stitched for her uncle Jacob with five unusual patterns of his own design contains hidden clues to guide runaway slaves along the Underground Railroad. The heroic journey she undertakes leads to revelations about her own courage and resourcefulness -- newfound qualities that may win her the heart of the best man she has ever known.

In 1814, the war being raged on the seas of the Indian Ocean by the all-powerful Franco-British naval forces trying to dominate the lucrative trade routes to India, had ended with a truce. At the stroke of a pen, far away in the city of Paris, the exotic, tropical islands of the Seychelles became a British colony. Forged from their French descendants and African slave roots, and moulded by their new British rulers, a small nation had emerged. It is July 1912 on the island of Mahe, and Anna Savy has just turned sixteen. Anna is a passionate, nature-loving and rebellious young woman at a time when women are confined to specific roles and expectations, and custom and tradition prevail with reverence. Strongly-held beliefs in the goodness and righteousness of God, and in the secret and evil forces of witchcraft, hold equal sway in a closely-knit Catholic community. As a young nurse, Anna experiences both the joy and pain of her people, for survival is a daily struggle for the majority. A smallpox epidemic brings tragedy to Mahe's Victoria Hospital, with the hatred and conflict between Anna's British and Irish colleagues laid bare, whilst forbidden love brings the missing dimension to her life. But then, the First World War brings the worst possible disaster...

This is a novel that opens in 1900 and is set in the cotton mills area around Rochdale, Lancashire. Lord James lives in a manor house with his family. He owns a mill and the workers' cottages. He is a good employer, ahead of his time. Life was grim in 1900 and life expectancy short. The author transports us back to glimpse life as it was over 100 years ago, through the sad and happy times. Her style is flowing and the book is entertaining and realistic. Read it and enjoy it. Recommended.

In this dazzling debut novel of love and secret histories, a young woman unearths the story of a lost Shanghai pencil company and a hidden family ability which will alter the path of her life forever.

Monica Tsai spends most days on her computer coding for a program that seeks to connect strangers online. A self-confessed recluse, she finds herself escaping into a digital world, counting the days until she can return home to her beloved grandparents. They are now in their nineties, and she worries about them – especially her grandmother Yun whose memory has begun to fade.

Monica has become intent on tracking down her grandmother Yun’s long-lost cousin, Meng, before it’s too late. In her search, Monica connects with a young woman archivist who presents her with a single pencil that holds a clue to a hidden family history. Through this discovery Monica comes to learn of her grandmother’s years in Shanghai, working at the Phoenix Pencil Company.

As WWII raged outside their door, Yun and Meng came into a power unique to the women in their family: the ability to reclaim stories from the pencils they were written with. But when government officials uncovered their secret ability, they were both forced into a life of espionage, betraying other people’s stories to survive. These shocking revelations set Monica on a path that will change all their lives in ways she can scarcely imagine.

At once a sweeping family epic and a powerful love story with deep emotional resonance, Allison King’s brilliantly inventive debut novel pushes us to question how well we really know our own stories and the many beguiling ways they can connect our lives.

The author's exciting new take on Roman Britain continues with this fast-moving novel when senior investigator Felix finds that overcoming one conspirator simply identifies another, as each seeks to usurp the benign Roman governance of British governor Urbicus. Danger is never far away but ably supported by son-in-law Clemens they employ ingenuity, subterfuge and sheer doggedness to face another storm of political intrigue.

Daniel Godwin is determined to join the British Army to fight against the Nazi scourge. His impetuousness leads him to having a brief affair with the wife of a good friend and mentor who ran the local cadet force. She bears a child. Initially guilt ridden he marries her after hearing of his friend's death in northern France. Another child is born. Having served in Palestine, luckily surviving at Dunkerque and returning safely from North Africa he joins the 1st Airborne battalion whose mission was to take the bridge at Arnhem. Shortly before leaving England he receives a letter which shocks him to the core. He became adamant he would not return home and was taken prisoner in Oosterbeek. In the meantime, back in the city of Bath, Robbie Goode, along with some old acquaintances, unravels the mystery of a series of murders. Stella, Daniel Godwin's wife is implicated, but why?

A tale of wool-trading and church-building in the Cotswolds, against a background of changing loyalties, conflict and danger when there were two Kings of England. In the foreground is Lydia Woolman of Northleach whose friends are Isabel and Anne Neville, the daughters of the Earl and Countess of Warwick. The magnificence and sure foundation of the Church, both building and institution, contrast with the shifting fortunes of the warring factions.

Towards the latter part of the 16th century, the power held by the Catholic Church in Scotland was to be wrested from Rome and replaced by the reformed movement of Protestantism. Various methods of coercion were employed to recruit converts, accusations of witchcraft and direct aggravation against the Catholic establishment were common ploys. When Fyreback's family becomes embroiled in this reformation, it becomes personal. Once again the cleaver sings its anthem of death, this time to protect the rights of the common man.

Governess-turned-sleuth Miss Silver must follow a trail of poison-pen letters to save an heiress from murder. Rachel Treherne has always had a steady head on her shoulders; it's why her late father named her the sole trustee of his considerable fortune. But the decision galled a number of Rachel's relatives, including her married older sister, her socialist nephew, and her father's ambitious young cousin. Rachel fears she may be overreacting to the anonymous letters she's received threatening her life, but then someone tampers with the chocolates she bought herself. If her cousin hadn't partaken first and noticed an unwholesome taste, who knows what may have happened? Miss Silver suspects someone in Rachel's inner circle has grown tired of being a poor relation, and she travels incognito to the Treherne country home to unmask the culprit--before it's too late--in this intriguing entry in the beloved series featuring a contemporary of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple. Lonesome Road is the 3rd book in the Miss Silver Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.

Winning the Battle of the Atlantic was crucial to Britain's survival in the Second World War. Submarine Commander Scott Hardy's life was in turmoil. His search for a solution to the spy ring in Portland Dockyard and his wife's infidelity left him in a state of confusion. Long and arduous patrols fighting the U-Boat Wolf Packs were a priority over his personal life. Co-opted to unearth the traitors at the Portland Underwater Research Centre, his discoveries lead him into a world of subterfuge nearer to home than he expected. Countess Annalisa de Lorraine, a mysterious refugee from Nazi persecution is not what she seems. As the war ends Scott joins her in her search for her roots in war torn Germany with an explosive ending that shatters her dream of finally finding peace.

Suggested by actual events this historical crime novel presents Roman Britain in a new and exciting light. Taking place in the 140s A.D (Roman years 892-897) it features the problems and dangers encountered by senior investigator Albinus Felix in a land of 105 towns and a population of 2.5 million, often with governor Lollius Urbicus away in the north which had never been pacified as had the south east. A new wall beyond Hadrian's was demanded by the emperor, causing more problems than it solved by taking troops from the midlands and south. The governor, admiral and many other characters actually lived at this time.

What if the greatest writer of all time isn’t who we think he is?
What if he isn’t even a he?
Step back four hundred years and discover the female author who hid behind the mask of the man we know as William Shakespeare . . .

In 1581, Emilia Bassano is allowed no voice of her own. But as the Lord Chamberlain’s mistress she has access to the theatre, and finds a way to bring her work to the stage secretly. And yet, creating some of the world’s greatest dramatic masterpieces comes at a great cost: by paying a man for the use of his name, she will write her own out of history. His name? William Shakespeare . . .

In modern day New York, playwright Melina Green is determined to see one of her shows make the stage. After years of struggle to be recognised she has finally written again, inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor — Emilia Bassano, England’s first published female poet. Although the challenges are different for her, four hundred years later, a woman’s voice is still not heard like a man’s. But what lengths will she be willing to go to in order to achieve her dreams?

Moving between Elizabethan England and modern day Manhattan, By Any Other Name is a beautifully written, compelling novel that explores the theme of identity and the ways in which two women, centuries apart—one of whom might just be the real author of Shakespeare’s plays—are both forced to hide behind another name to make their voices heard.

It is the year of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. Rabbi Howell of Sheffield United, the first Romany to play for England, knows his career is peaking and the only way is down. His fate seems to be a return to obscurity, literally and metaphorically, back down the pit, his life ruled by the winding wheel and the domestic pattern set by his wife, Selina, her parents and family. He then meets Ada and risks throwing away career, home, everything. Follow Rab, Selina, Ada and the United through this turbulent, historic year.

ABDUCTION Isandro is thirteen years old when his parents are denounced and Franco's Nationalists take them by force from their village home. The boy's unusually keen sense of hearing warns him of the soldiers' approach and his father just has time to hide him. One of the attackers returns stealthily and through a crack in the floorboards, Isandro watches him. It is a face he will never forget. ESCAPE Now alone and distrustful of the villagers, the boy escapes to a cave in the high Sierra of the wild Alpujarran mountains of Andalucia. His companions are wild boar, mountain goats, lynx, gigantic eagleowls, rabbits, hawks, deer and vipers and ultimately an abandoned hunting dog terrified of guns. SURVIVAL His lone survival, his journey into manhood and his unrelenting quest for justice, lead him to an awareness of passionate love and to the discovery of the secret of his birth.