September 1940, Birmingham. While her husband and daughter work at the Cadbury's Bournville factory, Ann Gilby has her hands full at home with her youngest child Martin and her other daughter, Sheila, newly returned home with baby Elaine. With Sheila's husband away doing his bit in the RAF, Ann knows she should be grateful to have all her children safe under one roof. But as bombs fall ever-closer to her Birmingham home, she can't help but fear for their uncertain future. Part of her yearns for the carefree days of her youth when she also worked the line at Cadburys, filling trays of chocolate shells. But mostly Ann tries not to think of the past at all, since that would mean she would have to confront her oldest secret - one she's kept since the last war, and that could easily rip her family apart . . . From the bestselling author of Chocolate Girls and The Bells of Bournville Green comes another gritty family saga about love, war and chocolate . . .

The new heart-stopping instalment in the Four Streets saga, from the Sunday Times bestseller Nadine Dorries. Summer is coming to the four streets - but so is trouble, especially for its redoubtable women, who've struggled through a bitter winter to put food on the table. The Dock Queen Carnival is only weeks away, but there's no money for the usual celebrations. No sign of a tramp ship with illicit cargo to be quietly siphoned off by the dockers. Peggy Nolan, with seven boys and a husband too lazy to work, has hit rock bottom and is hiding a terrible secret. Little Paddy, her mischievous eldest, is all too often in trouble, but he'd do anything for the mother he loves. How can he save her from selling herself on the streets - or worse? Maura and Tommy Doherty always looked out for any neighbour in trouble, especially Peggy, but they're far away, running a pub in Ireland and corrupt copper, Frank the Skank, is moving into their old house on the four streets. Can anything bring them home in time?

A spellbinding eco fable for fans of David Mitchell, Richard Powers, and Margaret Atwood. Structured like the rings of a tree, this remarkable novel moves from a futuristic world in which only one forest remains to the start of the twentieth century, where two young boys survive a train crash, setting them on a path that will forever change their lives and the lives of those around them.

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER 'Bravo; this is a big, complex and utterly involving portrait of 19th-century China' THE TIMES The internationally bestselling author portrays the great clash of East and West in his new epic: China China in the nineteenth century: a proud and ancient empire forbidden to foreigners. The West desires Chinese tea above all other things but lacks the silver to buy it. Instead, western adventurers resort to smuggling opium in exchange. The Qing Emperor will not allow his people to sink into addiction. Viceroy Lin is sent to the epicentre of the opium trade, Canton, to stop it. The Opium Wars begin - heralding a period of bloody military defeats, reparations, and one-sided treaties which will become known as the Century of Humiliation. From Hong Kong to Beijing to the Great Wall, from the exotic wonders of the Summer Palace and the Forbidden City, to squalid village huts, the dramatic struggle rages across the Celestial Kingdom. This is the story of the Chinese people, high and low, and the Westerners who came to exploit the riches of their ancient land and culture. We meet a young village wife struggling with the rigid traditions of her people, Manchu empresses and warriors, powerful eunuchs, fanatical Taiping and Boxer Rebels, savvy Chinese pirates, artists, concubines, scoundrels and heroes, well-intentioned missionaries and the rapacious merchants, diplomats and soldiers of the West. Fortunes will rise and fall, loves will be gained and lost. This is an unforgettable tale told from both sides of the divide. The clash of worldviews, of culture and heritage, is shown in a kaleidoscope of jaw-dropping set pieces. China is a feat of the imagination that will enthral, instruct and excite, and show us how things once were, and how the turmoil of the nineteenth century led to modern China's revolution and rebirth.

Set twenty years after the dramatic events that unfolded in Abbeyford, Abbeyford Inheritance is the second volume in the moving and powerful saga from Margaret Dickinson. Lynwood felt a strange constriction in his chest. No! No - it wasn't possible! Caroline had come back . . . But this is 1815; Caroline had eloped in disgrace twenty years earlier, and the girl now standing before him speaks with a low husky drawl and an accent from America. Adelina Cole. Her daughter. Returned to Abbeyford in search of a grandfather she has never seen, and the estate which she, as closest living relative, has every right to inherit. Except that Lord Royston cannot bring himself to see Adelina - her disturbing beauty reminds too many people of the past. Reluctantly taken in by distant cousins, Adelina believes she has found an ally in Emily Langley and her betrothed, the handsome, ruthless Wallis Trent. A man with old scores to settle, Trent knows Lord Royston altered his will to make Emily the main beneficiary. But Adelina's return changes everything - perhaps now his hand may be more profitably played elsewhere? And there is Francis, Earl of Lynwood - the man who first discovered Adelina. He once adored her mother and now cannot forget the face which threatens his peace of mind again . . . Continue the popular Abbeyford Trilogy with Abbeyford Remembered.

Paradise Lost tells of the expulsion from Eden and the war of Heaven that followed, exploring the fall of humanity and the rebellion of the fallen angels from the perspective of Satan and mortal kind. Milton's epic poem, written in 10,000 lines of blank verse divided into 12 sections, was a reflection of the political upheaval that led to the English Civil war. Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy, Classic Stories and Epic Tales collections bring together the entire range of myth, folklore and modern short fiction. Highlighting the roots of suspense, supernatural, science fiction and mystery stories, the books in Flame Tree Collections series are beautifully presented, perfect as a gift and offer a lifetime of reading pleasure.

Back Cover Marketing Copy Two generations of a Southern family leave their mark on Florida, their adopted home. Ellen Adair is a vivacious beauty who weds Joseph White. Marrying about the time Florida is ceded to the United States, Ellen leaves Kentucky to trek with Joseph into half-civilized land of north Florida in the 1820

Inherited through the line of the berserker Angantyr and his war-loving daughter Hervor, the ever-lethal, shining sword Tyrfing and its changes of hands frame the uncanny story of The Saga of Hervor and Heidrek . A second heroic saga, Hrolf Kraki and His Champions , recounts the daring deeds of the members and entourage of the ancient Danish house of Skjoldung. Passed down orally in pre-Christian Norse times, transmitted in writing in medieval Iceland, and here wielded by the hand of Jackson Crawford, the tales told in this volume retain their sharp edges and flashes of glory that never fail to slay.

Woven in the grit of the Great Depression and the determination of the Second World War, "Some Trust in Chariots" is an endearing love story that will thrill fans of the "Intents of the Heart" Series while welcoming new readers to the joys and sorrows of the Preston family saga.

It is the story of Malcolm and Carolyn Thomas Preston, the Christian couple who would later open their home and hearts to Lauren Mitchell, the troubled youth who is the central character of the novel series. Discover childhood influences, such as the unflappable Granny Preston, and search the deep spiritual roots that grounded them not only in their faith in God but in their commitment to each other. Laugh as courtship mishaps abound as these two independent forces collide and weep with them as a global war turns their world upside down and separation must be endured.

Reunions are sometimes bittersweet, and difficulties are sure to follow. Faith and prayer are their only weapons.come along for the journey to the beginning of their remarkable legacy that will be revealed in "Intents of the Heart."

In this intriguing sequel to The Security of Silence, meet again the fascinating members of the Malin family and their dramatic lives as they struggle for survival in a new country. A Conspiracy of Silence follows the Malin family as they emigrate from Germany to the United States. The family's head thinks that moving to America presents far greater opportunities for economic success. However, they struggle to survive the hardships of learning a new language, extreme working conditions, and troubled personal relationships. This novel is a richly dramatic tale that vividly portrays one family's experiences, hardships, and personal tragedies. But there is a conspiracy of silence among its members -- though the shocking truth, sooner or later, will come out.

He set the broth on the ledge and took a step out into the storm. He blinked hard once then twice to clear his failing eyes. The light was out and yet.he could still see the flickering, yellow flow of its existence in the narrow arrow loop on the tower's next higher level. Then the torch was back.full and strong.if beleaguered by the gusts. Then again it was out. He stepped further into the maelstrom.and stared.and wished for better eyes. He could make no sense of it. It was queer. He resigned himself to cross the wall's expanse and properly investigate.then a shiver ran through him thoroughly like a bolt of lightning.ice cold lightning. He wiped furiously at the freezing rain that blurred his eyes. It was not the torch. It was something else.between the torch and him.blocking the light. It was something.else. Something big.and looming bigger. Something moving.and moving toward him He turned to go back for his spear.but he never made it. There was little difference between death and the night. Except.that death felt a little warmer.

In 1900, Franca Raimondi lived a privileged life in Sicily. Franca puts aside her intellectual ambition and marries Edoardo Privitera, an American exporter. They marry and are blessed with a daughter, Giulia. In 1908, an earthquake buries their beloved child beneath the rubble. Miraculously, Franca and Edoardo rescue her, but the pain and suffocation foreshadow things to come. Giulia, too, nurtures her intellect, but her ambitions are thwarted by Mussolini's March on Rome and the impassioned love of Alissandru Leone. Although they marry and add two children to the family, Alissandru's philandering ways drive a wedge between them.

Seeking a better life, Franca, Giulia and their husbands move to the United States in the late 1920s, as the Great Depression rages. Again, their path to prosperity is impeded. As Alissandru's affairs and temper splint the family, Franca rescues her grandchildren. She's determined to oppose the forces of nature, love, and politics that have thus far divided their lives. Splintered Lives will invade your dreams and infuse your mind with romance gone adrift. Only the deep love of a grandmother can restore the family to splendor as she tells the children, "You come from intelligence and class; surely it must come through."

Secrets of the Singer Girls is Kate Thompson's heartwarming and moving novel about the brave, hardworking women who kept the homefires burning in the East End of London during World War Two. 1942. Sixteen-year-old Poppy Percival turns up at the gates of Trout's clothing factory in Bethnal Green with no idea what her new life might have in store. There to start work as a seamstress and struggling to get to grips with the noise, dirt and devastation of East London, Poppy can't help but miss the quiet countryside of home. But Poppy harbours a dark secret - one that wrenched her away from all she knew and from which she is still suffering . . . And Poppy's not the only one with a secret. Each of her new friends at the factory is hiding something painful. Vera Shadwell, the forelady, has had a hard life with scars both visible and concealed; her sister Daisy has romantic notions that could get her in trouble; and Sal Fowler, a hardworking mother who worries about her two evacuated boys for good reason. Bound by ties of friendship, loyalty and family, the devastating events of the war will throw each of their lives into turmoil but also bring these women closer to each other than they could ever have imagined.