The Woolworth Girl's Promise is the heart warming eighth novel in Elaine Everest's bestselling Woolworths series that follows the turbulent life of a much-loved Woolworth girl. After losing her beloved fiance at Ypres in 1917, seventeen-year-old Elizabeth Billington faces a lonely future estranged from her upper-class parents due to her association with Charlie Sayers and his working-class family. No longer able to live under her parent's roof she is taken in by Charlie's father, escaping the suffocating demands of her parents. Betty soon learns all too well about the realities of life after an accident at the Woolwich Arsenal munitions works. Spotting an advertisement for a nearby job at Woolworths, Betty starts on a new and thrilling journey starting at the bottom of the employment ladder in the well-known store. Her work journey leads her to Ramsgate in Kent to work in a newly built store and with it the chance of marriage, but can she ever forget Charlie and the promise she made to him . . . ? Read this exciting early chapter in the life of well-known Betty Billington and follow her journey before she arrives at the Erith store and meets fellow Woolworths Girls in 1938 as war is again on the horizon . . .

Winner of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize and the Hans Fallada Prize, The End of Days, by the acclaimed German writer Jenny Erpenbeck, consists essentially of five "books," each leading to a different death of the same unnamed female protagonist. How could it all have gone differently?-the narrator asks in the intermezzos. The first chapter begins with the death of a baby in the early twentieth-century Hapsburg Empire. In the next chapter, the same girl grows up in Vienna after World War I, but a pact she makes with a young man leads to a second death. In the next scenario, she survives adolescence and moves to Russia with her husband. Both are dedicated Communists, yet our heroine ends up in a labor camp. But her fate does not end there.... A novel of incredible breadth and amazing concision, The End of Days offers a unique overview of the twentieth century.

The first in a stunning new series from Sunday Times bestseller, Dilly Court London, 1854: twenty-year-old Essie Chapman lives with her father in poverty stricken Limehouse, working on the river as a boatman. Her life seems set before her, never to leave this part of London and forever at her father's beck and call. Then, one night, she must transport a mysterious man from a foreign ship to the banks of the Thames, a man who ends up renting a room in Essie's house, identifying himself only as 'Raven'. When curiosity gets the better of her, Essie follows him and unwittingly becomes involved in something far greater than she could ever have guessed. Finding herself on a ship bound for the penal colonies in Australia with Raven and his cousin Alice, this is only the start of a remarkable journey taking her to the other side of the world and back again...

Can heartbreak lead to a second chance at love As the older sibling to identical twins Violet and Lily, Cami Porter was always the odd sister out. She cemented this difference when their parents divorced and moved with her father to LA, leaving her sisters in Cape Sanctuary with their mother. But twenty years later when Cami gets the terrible news that Lily has died, she must return home to Violet and her mother - the family she has not known for decades. While the Porter family start to reconnect both Cami and Violet must learn to deal with their own loss and along the way learn that life can present the most unexpected surprises, including a second chance at love...

Can she unlock the secrets of her past? Deirdre Weston, a London journalist, returns to her family home in Armagh to come to terms with the death of her mother. Faced with painful memories of her own past, Deirdre despairs of the task she has set herself. In her deepest need she encounters Deara, the handmaiden of the Lady Merdaine from the capital of ancient Ulster. During her stay, Deirdre unearths what happened in Deara's fifth-century life, a time as turbulent and troubled in Ireland as the late twentieth century has been. As events unfold, both women discover the strength which flows from the love and support of the other - and the transforming power of courage. Prepare to be spirited away to rural Ireland in this stunning new saga from Anne Doughty. Previously published as Summer of the Hawthorn Readers LOVE Anne Doughty: 'I love all the books from this author' 'beautifully written' 'would recommend to everyone' 'Fabulous story, couldn't put it down!' 'Looking forward to the next one.'

"Instantly absorbing, suspenseful, romantic, and stylish-like binge-watching a great British drama on Masterpiece Theater." -Lee Child, New York Times bestselling author Winner of the Left Coast Crime Award winner for Best Historical Mystery Novel and the Agatha Award for Best Historical Novel. World War II comes to Farleigh Place, the ancestral home of Lord Westerham and his five daughters, when a soldier with a failed parachute falls to his death on the estate. After his uniform and possessions raise suspicions, MI5 operative and family friend Ben Cresswell is covertly tasked with determining if the man is a German spy. The assignment also offers Ben the chance to be near Lord Westerham's middle daughter, Pamela, whom he furtively loves. But Pamela has her own secret: she has taken a job at Bletchley Park, the British code-breaking facility. As Ben follows a trail of spies and traitors, which may include another member of Pamela's family, he discovers that some within the realm have an appalling, history-altering agenda. Can he, with Pamela's help, stop them before England falls? Inspired by the events and people of World War II, writer Rhys Bowen crafts a sweeping and riveting saga of class, family, love, and betrayal.

A cherished heirloom reveals the destinies of three generations of women in a powerful saga of lost love by the bestselling Greek author of The House by the River. After years spent in Germany struggling to come to terms with a dispirited and abusive past, Fenia Karapanos has returned to her roots in Greece. Her estranged grandfather has bequeathed her his villa in Athens, a gesture she assumes is reparation for having disowned her late mother. After taking in a grateful Syrian refugee to help her restore the property-and her life-Fenia discovers a collection of love letters hidden under the floorboards, reaching back nearly a century. In each one, Fenia unfolds another piece of her broken family history. But it's Fenia's solicitous cousin, Melpo, who offers more to the story than Fenia can imagine. Melpo shares everything she knows-about Fenia's grandmother and mother, their elusive and heartbreaking searches for happiness, and two families linked across decades by betrayal, secrets, abandonment, and forbidden love. It upends everything Fenia believed was true about her family. But it could also draw her closer to finding self-fulfillment-and a place to call home.

Set in the tumultous times of World War II, The Colours of Love by Rita Bradshaw is a story of a capable and resourceful woman who proves that nothing is stronger than a mother's love. Can love survive when all is lost? England is at war, but nothing can dim land girl Esther Wynford's happiness at marrying the love of her life - fighter pilot Monty Grant. Their short honeymoon results in a baby, but on the birth of her daughter, Joy, Esther's world falls apart. Esther's dying mother confesses to a dark secret that she has kept to herself for twenty years: Esther is not her natural daughter but the result of an exchange of babies after her own child was stillborn. Esther's real mother was forced to give up her baby to an orphanage by her furious family who were incensed about the unsuitability of their daughter's lover, and Joy's birth makes the reason clear. Harshly rejected by Monty, and with the man Esther believed was her father breathing fire and damnation, she takes her precious baby and leaves everything and everyone she's ever known, determined to fend for herself and her child. But her fight is just beginning . . .

The hardest times can build the strongest friendships County Donegal, Ireland, April 1845. Since following her heart and moving from her comfortable home in Scotland to the harsh mountainside of Ardtur, County Donegal, Hannah McGinley hasn't had the easiest life. But surrounded by her two children and her loving husband Patrick she has found happiness. When her daughter returns home with news that her school may close as one of the teachers is moving away, Hannah feels compelled to take the vacant post. With the schoolmaster Daniel having lost his sight, Hannah knows that he won't be able to manage the children alone. But the money from teaching is poor and as the potato crops begin to fail all around them, times are getting tougher still. Will Hannah be able to help her family and save the school? This lyrical saga full of depth and emotion will sweep you away to a simpler time. Readers LOVE Anne Doughty: 'I love all the books from this author' 'beautifully written' 'would recommend to everyone' 'Fabulous story, couldn't put it down!' 'Looking forward to the next one.'

2017 Beverly Hills Book Award Winner in New Fiction 2017 Beverly Hills Book Award Winner in Women's Fiction 2018 IBPA Ben Franklin Finalist in Best New Voices: Fiction Becca Meister Fitzpatrick-wife, mother, grandmother, and pillar of the community-is the dutiful steward of her family's iconic summer tradition . . . until she discovers her recently deceased husband squandered their nest egg. As she struggles to accept that this is likely her last season in Long Harbor, Becca is inspired by her granddaughter's boldness in the face of impending single-motherhood, and summons the courage to reveal a secret she was forced to bury long ago: the existence of a daughter she gave up fifty years ago. The question now is how her other daughter, Rachel-with whom Becca has always had a strained relationship-will react. Eden is the account of the days leading up to the Fourth of July weekend, as Becca prepares to disclose her secret and her son and brothers conspire to put the estate on the market, interwoven with the century-old history of Becca's family-her parents' beginnings and ascent into affluence, and her mother's own secret struggles in the grand home her father named "Eden."

'A wonderfully nostalgic tale' Choice Magazine It's 1942 and Annie Walker is the landlady of the Rovers Return on Coronation Street. With her husband, Jack, away fighting for King and Country, Annie must juggle lone motherhood with keeping the regulars happy. Gracie Ashton works behind the bar at the Rovers and thinks all the girls swooning at the American soldiers flooding into Weatherfield are plain daft. But when she meets the handsome GI, Chuck Dawson, Gracie wonders if she has her own head screwed on right. With rationing, air raids and blackouts, the wives and mothers of Coronation Street are determined to count their blessings, but when an unwelcome face from the past turns up at the Rovers it looks like Annie will have more to worry about than Hitler's bombs... Full of Coronation Street's trademark humour and warmth, it's the perfect gift for Mother's Day.

Five ladies, one unforgettable trip... Escape to gorgeous Switzerland this winter with the brand new, uplifting read from Karen Aldous. When Ginny Watts' husband passes away, she is left grief-stricken, not only over her husband's death but the secrets he has left behind... Luckily for Ginny, she has four wonderful friends - Lou, Cathy, Angie and Kim - poised to whisk her away on a ladies' skiing holiday to beautiful La Tzoumaz, Switzerland. While all of them appear to have their lives together from the outside, little do the ladies know that every single one of them is fighting a secret battle. As the trip unfolds, they realise that fears of tumbling down the slopes after too much apres-ski fun is the least of their worries and all is not what it seems... A novel of love, loss and friendship, perfect for fans of Jules Wake, Erica James and Cathy Kelly. Readers love Karen Aldous: 'A sumptuous story...what I love about fiction, being able to travel from my armchair!' Rachel's Random Reads (top 500 Amazon reviewer) 'An uplifting story of hope, self-discovery and love.' Got Books, Babe? 'Stunning... perfect for reading while on your own Mediterranean break!' Pretty Purple Polkadots 'Gloriously escapist, wonderfully entertaining and absolutely impossible to put down! Sure to appeal to fans of Cathy Kelly and Erica James.' Bookish Jottings 'Fascinating, heartwarming, engaging, romantic and utterly compelling.' Sparkly Words

From the Sunday Times and ebook bestselling author of A Wartime Christmas comes a gritty and nostlagic family saga about love, loss and keeping family together. 'Surely one of the best saga writers of her time' - Rosie Clarke 1940. Molly Swift, at 27, has already suffered the tragic loss of her two-year-old daughter Emily to the flu outbreak of 1935. Now she waits for news of her shopkeeper husband Ted, who volunteered for the British Expeditionary Forces at the outbreak of war. Molly is intent on running the general store with the help of her retired father, Bill Keen, the ex-proprietor of the business. But after the building is hit during a bombing raid and Bill is severly injured, Molly faces difficult times. Alone in the hospital corridor as Bill is treated, Molly tries to keep positive. But the Blitz is well underway and she is forced to take shelter in the hospital's basement. It's here, as the bombs fall around docklands, that Molly meets Andy Miller and his two young children, Evie and Mark. An unlikely friendship begins as Molly offers the homeless group safe lodgings for the following night, and soon their lives are entwined, bringing unexpected joy and heartache for them all. Praise for CAROL RIVERS: 'A gripping page turner' - LEAH FLEMING 'Brings the East End to life - family loyalties, warring characters and broken dreams. Superb' - ELIZABETH GILL

Love and danger intermingle in the dark days of the Second World War - a wartime romance of immense appeal. Liverpool 1942. Seventeen-year-old Frankie Franconi falls in love with charismatic British officer Nick Harper as quickly and certainly as the bomb that falls on their shelter. He is impressed by her good looks and intelligence, and the fact that, like him, she speaks fluent Italian. When she insists on staying to help rescue others who have been trapped he realises that she has courage, too. He gives her a business card with a Baker Street address, and suggests she put her skills to good use. Within a month Frankie has joined the FANYs and started her training. Stationed first in England, then Africa and finally Italy, Frankie and her fellow recruits work tirelessly decoding messages from agents in the field by day, and enjoying the wartime parties at night. But when she signs the Official Secrets Act she has no idea of the danger, adventure and terrible choices that are in store.

1877, Durham. After a traumatic and harrowing incident at the hands of a stranger, a woman gives birth to a child. However, she is persuaded by her husband to give him up to a local couple. On the same dark and stormy night, a local pit owner turns his wife out onto the bleak moors, telling her son she is evil. The woman is never seen again. 1895, Durham. Twenty years later, these seemingly unrelated events have shaped the characters of two unloved boys, who have now grown to be men. They, in turn, are about to change the lives of two innocent young women as the past reaches out and casts a shadow over the present. Praise for Elizabeth Gill 'Original and evocative - a born storyteller' Trisha Ashley 'A wonderful book, full of passion, pain, sweetness, twists and turns. I couldn't put it down' Sheila Newberry 'Elizabeth Gill writes with a masterful grasp of conflicts and passions' Leah Fleming 'An enthralling and satisfying novel that will leave you wanting more' Catherine King 'If you love Catherine Cookson then you will love Elizabeth Gill' Northern Echo

Two sisters face love, rivalry, and a shocking disappearance amidst the luxury of Palm Springs from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic series and Landry series-now popular Lifetime movies. Like everyone else in Palm Springs, Gish idolizes her smart, beautiful, kind older sister. Even their parents compare Gish unfavorably to Gloria-threatening to send her to boarding school once the more perfect sister leaves for college. But Gloria has an unwavering love for Gish, even if that connection belies a weariness with her own accomplishments. Wanting a better life for her overlooked sibling, Gloria teaches Gish how to talk to boys, embrace her femininity, and finally develop a life of her own. And just as life is looking up for Gish, Gloria meets a handsome, mysterious boy. Obsessed with the stranger, Gloria closes off her life to her sister-then disappears without a trace. A police search yields nothing. Their father's manic investigation proves fruitless. And their already starstruck mother becomes increasingly lost in daydreams of the celebrities who partied in their house decades ago when the town was a Hollywood getaway. Untethered from the weight of her sister's presence-but also missing her sister's love-what will Gish do with this new terrible freedom, with this sense she could become anything?

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...