It's 1921 and eighteen-year-old Daisy May and her little sister Mary-Jane, who is six, are orphaned. Times are tough and, to support her sister, Daisy has to work hard as a dancer in a nightclub, getting home late and hardly seeing Mary-Jane. One night a fire starts and Mary-Jane is alone in the house. The night's events lead to the sisters being split up and Daisy May begins to fear that she will never see Mary-Jane again...

Winner of the 2006 Orange Prize for fiction and from the celebrated author of "White Teeth" comes another bestselling masterwork
Having hit bestseller lists from the "New York Times" to the "San Francisco Chronicle," this wise, hilarious novel reminds us why Zadie Smith has rocketed to literary stardom. "On Beauty" is the story of an interracial family living in the university town of Wellington, Massachusetts, whose misadventures in the culture warsaon both sides of the Atlanticaserve to skewer everything from family life to political correctness to the combustive collision between the personal and the political. Full of dead-on wit and relentlessly funny, this tour de force confirms Zadie Smithas reputation as a major literary talent.
Named one of the Ten Best Books of the Year by the "New York Times Book Review, Entertainment Weekly, Time," and "Publishers Weekly" A "New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Denver Post," and "Publishers Weekly" bestseller A "Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Atlantic Monthly, Newsday, Christian Science Monitor," and "Minneapolis Star Tribune" Best Book of the Year Short-listed for the Man Booker Prize BACKCOVER: Praise for "On Beauty":
aA thoroughly original tale . . . wonderfully engaging, wonderfully observed . . . That rare thing: a novel that is as affecting as it is entertaining, as provocative as it is humane.a
aMichiko Kakutani, "The New York Times"
aA thing of beauty. Oh happy day when a writer as gifted as Zadie Smith fulfills her early promise with a novel as accomplished, substantive and penetrating as "On Beauty."a
a"Los Angeles Times"
aSmithas specialty is her ability to render the new world, in its vibrant multiculturalism, with a kind of dancing, daring joy. . . . Her plots and people sing with life. . . . One of the best of the year, a splendid treat. a
a"Chicago Tribune"
aShort-listed for [the 2005] Man Booker Prize, On Beauty is a rollicking satire . . . a tremendously good read.a
a"San Francisco Chronicle"

It's 1945 and the war is finally over. For the Devlin family in Liverpool, the wartime years have been almost too much to bear. But at long last sisters Grace and Chrissie can return to their normal lives. Level-headed and hard-working, Grace wants nothing more than to meet a nice man and settle down. Vivacious Chrissie, though, craves fun and excitement - and there's not much of that to be had in the austere post-war years. So when Chrissie meets Pat Kilroy, a handsome Irishman, she's swept off her feet and eagerly follows Pat to Ireland. Chrissie soon realises she has made a terrible mistake, and Grace rushes to her side to help. But the consequences of Chrissie's actions are to be as far-reaching as they are devastating.

Ava's twenty-five-year marriage has fallen apart, and her two grown children are pursuing their own lives outside of the country. Ava joins a book group, not only for her love of reading but also out of sheer desperation for companionship. The group's goal throughout the year is for each member to present the book that matters most to them. Ava rediscovers a mysterious book from her childhood-one that helped her through the traumas of the untimely deaths of her sister and mother. Alternating with Ava's story is that of her troubled daughter Maggie, who, living in Paris, descends into a destructive relationship with an older man. Ava's mission to find that book and its enigmatic author takes her on a quest that unravels the secrets of her past and offers her and Maggie the chance to remake their lives.

A sweeping epic of love, desire and betrayal. The perfect read for fans of THE CROWN. June 1909, in a large Berlin mansion, cousins Zelda and Vicky are about to meet brothers Berthold and Josef for the first time - an evening that will alter the course of their lives forever... Vicky Hudson is only seventeen when she marries Berthold and moves from her idyllic Yorkshire home to Berlin. She finds it hard to adjust to her new life, not least when she discovers that the family business she has just married into - Remer Steel - is producing weaponry for the German army. With the First World War looming, Vicky flees to Yorkshire with her children, leaving Berlin, and her husband, behind. Striking dark-haired beauty Zelda Wallace is no stranger to marriage. Widowed at just twenty-one with a young son, she is eager to meld into Berlin's high society and sever all ties with her American identity in order to become a true Berliner. But beneath her exotic looks, Zelda holds a deeply hidden secret that if revealed, could threaten everything she holds dear...

The plucky heroines at the Quality Street factory must be ready for anything as war looms. Rumours about a war with Germany have been whispered around the Quality Street factory for months. It's hard for everyone to get their heads around air raids, rationing and the threat of bombings, so to distract themselves, they girls are betting on who is most likely to announce wedding bells. Reenie and Peter adore each other, but as a married woman, Reenie would never be allowed to keep the job that means so much to her. Mary has fallen for her manager at the factory despite this being strictly against the company rules. Even spiteful Dolly has got a new fella in her sights. The threat of war has given everyone a sense of urgency and this time there is so much more at stake than a box of chocolates - can the Quality Street girls keep calm and be ready for anything - even a wedding?

THE THIRD NOVEL IN THE BRAND NEW SAGA SERIES BY MAGGIE MASON - MEET THE HALFPENNY GIRLS. . . 'In the grand tradition of sagas set down by the late and great Catherine Cookson ' Jean Fullerton on Blackpool Lass Will friendship see them through the struggles of war? As war approaches, Alice, Edith and Marg fear for the safety of their families, while trying to decide the best way they can do their bit for their country. Alice decides to volunteer with the Red Cross, helping those most in need, Marg is preparing to marry her true love at the most dangerous of times, and Edith hopes to finally realise her dream of becoming a teacher, and starting a family of her own. Things have never been easy for The Halfpenny Girls, but family, friendship and community spirit will always see them through the darkest of days. . . The third in a brand new series from reader favourite Maggie Mason, The Halfpenny Girls at War is the perfect heart-warming family saga about overcoming hardship and the value of friendship. Perfect for fans of Val Wood, Kitty Neale and Rosie Goodwin 'In the grand tradition of sagas set down by the late and great Catherine Cookson' Jean Fullerton on Blackpool Lass Readers LOVE Maggie Mason's Blackpool sagas: '5 stars - I wish I could give it more. Wonderful read.' 'Another must read book' 'What a brilliant book. I couldn't put it down!' 'I was hooked from the first page . . . this author is a must read' 'A totally absorbing read'

Lark Rise to Candleford captures a piece of social history in this ever popular fictional account of an English rural upbringing between the wars. Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition contains all three books - Lark Rise, Over to Candleford and Candleford Green with an introduction by Bill Gallagher, screenwriter of the hugely popular BBC television adaptation. Laura Timms spends her childhood in a country hamlet called Lark Rise. An intelligent and enquiring child, she is always attentive to the way of life around her - the lives of a farming community and nature as it transforms through the seasons, their working lives together and their celebrations. Whilst much is to be admired and cherished about her community, when she looks back on it as an adult she doesn't shy away from describing hardship too. Laura attends the village school and leaves at the age of fourteen to work for the postmistress of the village of Candleford. There her eyes are opened to wider horizons.

1901, Wiltshire. Young Kathleen Keller is being forced into marriage with a man she despises by her cruel father. In an act of desperation, she runs away in a bid for a safer life, although one she might not have otherwise have chosen. But when tragedy strikes, Kathleen is left vulnerable and one man threatens the fragile peace she has made for herself. Meanwhile, Nathan Perry works for his father's accountancy firm but yearns for something more satisfying. He is brought in to help with the purchase of Honeyfield House, intended as a safe house for women in trouble by a charitable benefactor, and there encounters Kathleen. Their lives are set to intertwine and neither will be the same again.

The discovery of Christopher's diary in the ruins of Foxworth Hall brings new secrets of the Dollanganger family to light in this riveting novel from V.C. Andrews, the author of Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind, both major Lifetime TV events. Christopher Dollanganger was fourteen when he and his younger siblings--Cathy and the twins, Cory and Carrie--were locked away in the attic of Foxworth Hall, prisoners of their mother's greedy inheritance scheme. For three long years he kept hope alive for the sake of the others. But the shocking truth about how their ordeal affected him was always kept hidden--until now. Seventeen-year-old Kristin Masterwood is thrilled when her father's construction company is hired to inspect the Foxworth property for a prospective buyer. The once grand Southern mansion still sparks legends and half-truths about the four innocent Dollanganger children, even all these decades later. Foxworth holds a special fascination for Kristin, who was too young when her mother died to learn much about her distant blood tie to the notorious family. Accompanying her dad to the "forbidden territory," they find a leather-bound book, its yellowed pages filled with the neat script of Christopher Dollanganger himself. Her father grows increasingly uneasy about her reading it, but as she devours the teen's story page by page, his shattering account of temptation, heartache, courage, and betrayal overtakes Kristin's every thought. And soon her obsession with the doomed boy crosses a dangerous line...

Tempestuous and beautiful Wanda Miles, daughter of Ruth and Stephen Miles (or so she thinks), aspires to more than the life of a debutante, but the trouble is she doesn't know precisely what she wants. Then her aunt Marie, the family's renowned glassblower, arrives from Lauscha, Germany, and Wanda decides that learning about her ancestry may hold the key to her future. When Marie accidentally reveals a long-held secret about Wanda's parents, Wanda goes to Lauscha to unravel the truth. While Marie finds herself increasingly swept up in New York City's bohemian social scene-catching the eye of a handsome young Italian in the process-Wanda explores a past she never knew in the village of her mother's youth-and begins to build a life that she never expected. A sweeping tale that takes readers from the small town of Lauscha to the skyscrapers of New York and the sun-kissed coast of Italy, The American Lady is a tribute to the enduring power of family and what we'll do in the name of love.

The Omnibus Edition of Tucker's Way and For Tucker After enduring a childhood of horrific abuse and crushing poverty, Tucker seeks refuge in her rural Tennessee home. The three grandchildren she is raising are her only connection to the outside, and her demeanor is purposefully rough. But her world is turned upside down when a new neighbor, Ella, moves into the old McDaniel place next door. Ella seeks solace on the same country road after overcoming cancer. Although she is Tucker's peer agewise, she was raised in a world of privilege and opportunity. Still, Ella shares a tragic part of Tucker's experience-she also suffered abuse. Hers was at the hands of her husband, a prominent judge in the community and Tucker's sworn enemy. When Tucker finds herself at risk of losing custody of her beloved youngest grandchild and worse, the child's mother is murdered, she draws support and strength from her new friendship with Ella. These two women from disparate backgrounds form a fierce bond, and they weather life's storms together with faith, love, and determination.

'FAST-PACED, DETAILED AND BRILLIANTLY WRITTEN [FOR] FANS OF BERNARD CORNWELL, GEORGE R.R. MARTIN AND THEODORE BRUN' HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY. Not everyone will survive, but who will conquer all in Odin's game? AD 916. In the Orkney Isles, a young woman flees her home to save the life of her unborn child. Eighteen years later, a witch foretells that evil from her past is reaching out again to threaten her son. Outlawed from his home in Iceland, Einar Unnsson is thrown on the mercy of his Uncle, the infamous Jarl Thorfinn 'Skull Cleaver' of Orkney. He joins forces with a Norse-Irish princess and a company of wolfskin-clad warriors to become a player in a deadly game for control of the Irish sea, where warriors are the pawns of kings and Jarls and the powerful are themselves mere game pieces on the tafl board of the Gods. Together they embark on a quest where Einar must fight unimaginable foes, forge new friendships, and discover what it truly means to be a warrior. As the clouds of war gather, betrayal follows betrayal and Einar realises the only person he can really trust is himself. Praise for Tim Hodkinson: 'An excellently written page-turner, with a feel for the period which invites you into the era and keeps you there' Historical Writers Association. 'A gripping action adventure like the sagas of old; and once finished, you just want to go back and read it all over again' Melisende's Library.

She's out of retirement - and out for revenge When Georgina Garrett wakes in the night to find intruders in her house, she knows she must do everything she can to keep her children safe. But just when she thinks the ordeal is over, she realises something is terribly wrong. She arrives at her crime-lord husband David Maynard's London house to find a bloodbath. Six of David's best men lie dead and he is nowhere to be found. Georgina may have walked away from the game but she's still the best player on the street. Now, she will stop at nothing to get her husband back and to make whoever took him pay for ever daring to set foot in her town. 'Terrific - read it and be hooked!' - bestselling author Jessie Keane on Trickster Readers are loving RAVEN! 'Fast moving, gritty and not for the faint hearted' 'Another fantastic episode in the series' 'Yet another amazing book by Sam Michaels' 'Gritty, violent, edge-of-your-seat tension. The end - phew!' 'This is a BRILLIANT book and Sam's fans will love it. Worthy of more than 5 stars!'

The Top 10 Sunday Times bestseller 'An immersive, romantic historical saga' Hello Magazine 'Congratulations, you are now officially out in society.' The words made her spirits plummet. Out in society. On the market. And firmly set on a well-worn path that had only one destination. Marriage. London 1865 When one act of rebellion costs Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott her place in society, her life is swept onto a new course. One that will test her courage and resilience. From the drawing rooms of Victoria's court to the grand country houses of Ireland, and the bustling streets of New York City; Margaret embarks on a journey of self-discovery where she will meet like-minded, and equally spirited, companions who shape her world. But as she navigates the challenges of forging her own path in life, will she find the greatest courage of all, to follow her heart against all odds...? 'A tale of daring and determination.' Sir Julian Fellowes creator of Downton Abbey 'Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York has looked deep into her own generous impulsive heart to write a compelling story of a young woman who rebels against the restrictive Victorian conventions of her time to find self-fulfilment and love' Internationally bestselling author Jeffrey Archer

A daring memoir of love, magic, adventure, and miracles, Victor Villaseñor's Thirteen Senses continues the exhilarating family saga that began in the widely acclaimed bestseller Rain of Gold, delivering a stunning story of passion, family, and the forgotten mystical senses that stir within us all.

Thirteen Senses begins with the fiftieth wedding anniversary of the aging former bootlegger Salvador and his elegant wife, Lupe. When asked by a young priest to repeat the sacred ceremonial phrase "to honor and obey," Lupe surprises herself and says. "No, I will not say 'obey'. How dare you! You don't talk to me like this after fifty years of marriage and I now knowing what I know!" After the hilarious shock of Lupe's rejection of the ceremony, the Villaseñor family is forced to examine the love that Lupe and Salvador have shared for so many years -- a universal, gut-honest love that will eventually energize and inspire the couple into old age.

A moving and emotional family drama set between France and Britain from bestselling author, Mary Wood. They would fight for their country, at all costs . . . When Sibbie and Marjie arrive at RAF Digby, they are about to take on roles of national importance. It's a cause of great excitement for everyone around them. Perhaps they will become code-breakers, spies even? Soon the pair embark on a rigorous training regime, but nothing can prepare them for what they're about to face . . . Amid the vineyards of rural France, Flora and Ella can't bear the thought of another war. But as the thunderclouds grow darker, hanging over Europe, a sense of deep foreboding sets in, not just for their safety but for the fate of their families . . . With danger looming, as the threat of war becomes real, Flora and Ella are forced to leave their idyllic home and flee. Can they make it to safety, or will the war have further horrors in store for them? The Brave Daughters is the fourth book in the Girls Who Went to War series by Mary Wood.

Heartache and hardship in London's East End, from the bestselling author of The Orphans of Halfpenny Street Amy Robinson and her fiance Matthew are struggling to resist the temptations faced by a soon-to-be-wed couple. To avoid these, Matthew throws himself into a new job and she goes to work in an exclusive new dress shop, where she meets Mary Maitland. As her relationship with Matthew deteriorates, Amy becomes increasingly attracted to Mary's cousin, Paul, and a bitter rivalry ensues...

A scandal will change the lives of two women forever...Veronica Hay is an acclaimed beauty but her downward spiral begins the moment she enters into a loveless marriage that removes her from her home in Edinburgh to Berwickshire. From there, she begins a luckless affair with Sire Alexander Renton which helps her to forget her longing for the fashions and energy of Edinburgh. Her husband seeks revenge, driving Veronica's story to a tragic end. Veronica's adultery causes a scandal, but it might be the making of her devoted friend and maidservant, Helen Cameron, who rises to become part of Edinburgh's New Town story all on her own. A gripping Scottish saga based on true events, perfect for fans of Tessa Barclay and Dilly Court.

From the no.1 Sunday Times bestselling author comes the story of Marion Crawford, governess to the Queen - an ordinary woman living in an extraordinary time. 1932. Dunfermline, Scotland. Marion Crawford, a bright, ambitious young teacher, is ready to make her mark on the world. Until a twist of fate changes the course of her life forever... 1936. Windsor Castle. At first this ordinary woman is in a new world, working as the governess to two young princesses, in a household she calls home but where everyone is at a distance. As the course of history changes, she finds herself companion to the future Queen, and indispensable to the Crown. And slowly their needs become her needs. Their lives become hers. It's then she meets George, and falls in love for the first time. Now Marion faces an impossible choice: her sense of duty or the love of her life. Reader reviews for The Good Servant 'Such a tremendous read' 'This latest novel absolutely blew me away' 'This was my first read by Fern Britton but won't be my last!' 'Well-written and researched' 'Being an avid fan of Fern Britton and her Cornish novels I was not sure what to expect from this one BUT it is brilliant' 'Well written, with a riveting storyline and well developed characters that I loved' 'Absolutely loved this' 'I really loved Marian's story and knowing it was based on a true story made it extra special' 'A little different from her other reads, but no less brilliant' 'I was hooked from the beginning'