'Touching and distinctive . . . getting beneath the fairytale pomp and glamour' - Rachel Hore 'Fabulous behind-the-scenes royal drama . . . Riveting, revealing, an absolute must-read' - Imogen Edwards-Jones 'This delicate, sometimes wistful story will delight fans of historical fiction and British royalty' - Booklist 'A fresh perspective on a woman whom many people feel they already know' - Library Journal ___________ A deeply moving new novel about the young Princess Diana. Diana believes in love. Growing up amid the fallout of her parents' bitter divorce, she takes refuge in romantic novels. She dreams of being rescued by a handsome prince. Prince Charles loves his freedom. He's in no rush to wed, but his family have other ideas. Charles must marry for the future of the Crown. The right girl needs to be found, and fast. She must be young, aristocratic and free of past liaisons. The teenage Diana Spencer is just about the only candidate. Her desperation to be loved dovetails with royal desperation for a bride. But the route to the altar is full of hidden obstacles and people with their own agendas. When she steps from the golden carriage on her wedding day, has Diana's romantic dream come true? Or is it already over?

'The Muslim Mother Teresa' Huffington Post Imprisonment. Mutilation. Persecution. Edna Adan Ismail endured it all - for the women of Africa. A Woman of Firsts tells the inspirational story of a remarkable daughter, nurse and First Lady. The indomitable Edna Adan Ismail survived imprisonment, persecution, and civil war to become a pioneering politician, a leading light in the World Health Organisation, and a global campaigner for women's rights. The eldest child of an overworked doctor in the British Protectorate of Somaliland, Edna was the first midwife in Somaliland, she campaigned tirelessly for better healthcare for women and fought for women on a global stage as the first female Foreign Minister of her country. But mixing with presidents and princes, she still never forgot her roots and continued to deliver children and train midwives - a role she has to this day. At 81 years old, she still runs what is hailed as the Horn of Africa's finest university hospital where she trains future generations and still delivers babies. After all - as she puts it - she is simply a midwife.

The drama of the Abdication, the glamour of the Coronation, the trauma of World War II - Marion Crawford, affectionately known as Crawfie, stood by the side of the royal family through it all.

In 1933, a progressive young teacher became governess to the little Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. Determined to give her pupils a fun and normal childhood, she took them on buses, swimming at public baths and Christmas shopping at Woolworths.

For seventeen years she served at the heart of the royal family. But her devotion and loyalty counted for nothing when a perceived betrayal brought everything crashing down.

This sweeping, sumptuous novel brings her long-buried story to life and shines a completely new and captivating light into the world's most famous family.

The Sunday Times bestseller now updated with a new foreword Among millions of Holocaust victims sent to Auschwitz II-Birkenau in 1944, Priska, Rachel, and Anka each passed through its infamous gates with a secret. Strangers to each other, they were newly pregnant, and facing an uncertain fate without their husbands. Alone, scared, and with so many loved ones already lost to the Nazis, these young women were privately determined to hold on to all they had left: their lives, and those of their unborn babies. That the gas chambers ran out of Zyklon-B just after the babies were born, before they and their mothers could be exterminated, is just one of several miracles that allowed them all to survive and rebuild their lives after World War II. Born Survivors follows the mothers' incredible journey - first to Auschwitz, where they each came under the murderous scrutiny of Dr. Josef Mengele; then to a German slave labour camp where, half-starved and almost worked to death, they struggled to conceal their condition; and finally, as the Allies closed in, their hellish 17-day train journey with thousands of other prisoners to the Mauthausen death camp in Austria. Hundreds died along the way but the courage and kindness of strangers, including guards and civilians, helped save these women and their children. Sixty-five years later, the three 'miracle babies' met for the first time at Mauthausen for the anniversary of the liberation that ultimately saved them. United by their remarkable experiences of survival against all odds, they now consider each other "siblings of the heart." In Born Survivors, Wendy Holden brings all three stories together for the first time to mark their seventieth birthdays and the seventieth anniversary of the ending of the war. A heart-stopping account of how three mothers and their newborns fought to survive the Holocaust, Born Survivors is also a life-affirming celebration of our capacity to care and to love amid inconceivable cruelty.

'Enthralling' - Daily Mail 'Fizzing with gossip, intrigue and wit' - Mail on Sunday If you love The Crown, you will love this fictional look inside the life of Wallis Simpson... ___________Love can change the course of history... Arriving in 1928, Wallis was a divorced, penniless, middle-aged foreigner with average looks and no connections. Yet, just eight years later, a king renounced his throne for her. How did a woman from nowhere capture the heart of the world's most glamorous bachelor? Wendy Holden tells the amazing story... ___________ What readers are saying about The Duchess: 'A great read, fabulous story line and such a different perspective. Massive fun' 'A powerful read. Perhaps we all got Wallis Simpson wrong' 'Superb and powerful writing! I loved it' 'A great read and I'd highly recommend to anyone who wants a less stilted piece of history' 'A fascinating tale, well told' 'An amazing, fictionalised retelling of the story of Edward and Mrs Simpson'

Before there was Elizabeth, there was Lilibet... 'A hugely entertaining, emotionally satisfying story of love and loyalty' DAILY MAIL 'A poignant, fictional reimagining of a woman condemned by history, with plenty of modern-day echoes' MAIL ON SUNDAY ___________ She Came From Nothing . . . and Raised a Queen The drama of the Abdication, the glamour of the Coronation, the trauma of World War II - Marion Crawford, affectionately known as Crawfie, stood by the side of the royal family through it all. In 1933, a progressive young teacher became governess to the little Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. Determined to give her pupils a fun and normal childhood, she took them on buses, swimming at public baths and Christmas shopping at Woolworths. For seventeen years she served at the heart of the royal family. But her devotion and loyalty counted for nothing when a perceived betrayal brought everything crashing down. This sweeping, sumptuous novel brings her long-buried story to life and shines a completely new and captivating light into the world's most famous family. ___________ 'Brilliantly researched . . . I was completely absorbed and transported' ADELE PARKS, author of Just My Luck 'Compelling characters and a wonderful blend of historical accuracy and real narrative drive . . . a heart-breaking study of loyalty and love' SALLY MORRIS, Daily Mail '[A] beautifully researched and captivating novel . . . Wendy Holden's tender and intimate portrait of Lilibet, the future Queen Elizabeth II, is masterly' RACHEL HORE 'I adored this wonderful book. What a great story Wendy Holden has told' JILLY COOPER 'A great book for escaping into . . . I loved this!' KATIE FFORDE 'Sensitive, funny and fascinating - this masterful novel gives the reader fly-on-the-wall privileges into the early life of the Queen' FREYA NORTH 'A brilliantly imagined and poignant novel . . . of sacrifice, deep affection, strained loyalties and divided English society in the post-Downton Abbey era' ELIZABETH BUCHAN 'An intimate view of the royal family at a time of great uncertainty and change . . . Marion Crawford's dedication to her charges, as well as her passion for education and reform, shines through the pages' CHANEL CLEETON 'Wendy Holden absolutely delivers in this perfect blend of story and history . . . Lovers of The Crown series on Netflix will adore this!' SUSAN MEISSNER 'I loved, loved, LOVED this book and if it isn't adapted for the screen, I'll eat my crown!' ERICA JAMES 'A beautifully woven and exquisitely detailed story' HEATHER MORRIS, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz

The remarkable memoir of Zuzana Ruzickova, Holocaust survivor and world-famous harpsichordist. 'Extraordinary' Sunday Times 'Compelling' Daily Telegraph Zuzana Ruzickova grew up in 1930s Czechoslovakia dreaming of two things: Johann Sebastian Bach and the piano. But her peaceful, melodic childhood was torn apart when, in 1939, the Nazis invaded. Uprooted from her home, transported from Auschwitz to Hamburg to Bergen-Belsen, bereaved, starved, and afflicted with crippling injuries to her musician's hands, the teenage Zuzana faced a series of devastating losses. Yet with every truck and train ride, a small slip of paper printed with her favourite piece of Bach's music became her talisman. Armed with this 'proof that beauty still existed', Zuzana's fierce bravery and passion ensured her survival of the greatest human atrocities of all time, and would continue to sustain her through the brutalities of post-war Communist rule. Harnessing her talent and dedication, and fortified by the love of her husband, the Czech composer Viktor Kalabis, Zuzana went on to become one of the twentieth century's most renowned musicians and the first harpsichordist to record the entirety of Bach's keyboard works. Zuzana's story, told here in her own words before her death in 2017, is a profound and powerful testimony of the horrors of the Holocaust, and a testament in itself to the importance of amplifying the voices of its survivors today. It is also a joyful celebration of art and resistance that defined the life of the 'first lady of the harpsichord'- a woman who spent her life being ceaselessly reborn through her music.

Forget about Cool Britannia and Gallic Chic. Scotland is having a fashion moment...

'Effing marvellous' JILLY COOPER.
'Funny and smart' INDIA KNIGHT.
'Total bliss' DAILY MAIL.

London's most glamorous glossy magazine is in trouble. Advertising revenues are non existent, and if editor Laura Lake can't pick them up, she's out of a job.

According to those in the know, Scotland is having a fashion moment. Haggis tempura is on Michelin-starred menus, smart spas are offering porridge facials, and a chain of eco-hotels is offering celebrity bagpipe lessons. So Laura's off to a baronial estate in the Scottish Highlands to get a slice of this ultra-high-end market.

It's supposed to be gorgeous, glitzy and glamorous. But intrigue follows Laura like night follows day. And at Glenravish Castle a shooting lodge fit for a billionaire Laura finds herself hunting for a scoop that won't just save her job, it could save her life...

'Touching and distinctive . . . getting beneath the fairytale pomp and glamour' - Rachel Hore 'Fabulous behind-the-scenes royal drama . . . Riveting, revealing, an absolute must-read' - Imogen Edwards-Jones 'This delicate, sometimes wistful story will delight fans of historical fiction and British royalty' - Booklist 'A fresh perspective on a woman whom many people feel they already know' - Library Journal ___________ A deeply moving new novel about the young Princess Diana. Diana believes in love. Growing up amid the fallout of her parents' bitter divorce, she takes refuge in romantic novels. She dreams of being rescued by a handsome prince. Prince Charles loves his freedom. He's in no rush to wed, but his family have other ideas. Charles must marry for the future of the Crown. The right girl needs to be found, and fast. She must be young, aristocratic and free of past liaisons. The teenage Diana Spencer is just about the only candidate. Her desperation to be loved dovetails with royal desperation for a bride. But the route to the altar is full of hidden obstacles and people with their own agendas. When she steps from the golden carriage on her wedding day, has Diana's romantic dream come true? Or is it already over?

'Enthralling' - Daily Mail 'Fizzing with gossip, intrigue and wit' - Mail on Sunday If you love The Crown, you will love this fictional look inside the life of Wallis Simpson... ___________Love can change the course of history... Arriving in 1928, Wallis was a divorced, penniless, middle-aged foreigner with average looks and no connections. Yet, just eight years later, a king renounced his throne for her. How did a woman from nowhere capture the heart of the world's most glamorous bachelor? Wendy Holden tells the amazing story... ___________ What readers are saying about The Duchess: 'A great read, fabulous story line and such a different perspective. Massive fun' 'A powerful read. Perhaps we all got Wallis Simpson wrong' 'Superb and powerful writing! I loved it' 'A great read and I'd highly recommend to anyone who wants a less stilted piece of history' 'A fascinating tale, well told' 'An amazing, fictionalised retelling of the story of Edward and Mrs Simpson'

Cash-strapped Rosie and her boyfriend Mark are city folk longing for a country cottage. Rampantly nouveaux-riches Samantha and Guy are also searching for rustic bliss - a mansion complete with mile-long drive and hot and cold running gardeners. The village of Eight Mile Bottom seems quiet enough, despite a nosy postman, a reclusive rock star, a glamorous Bond Girl and a ghost with a knife in its back. But there are unexpected thrills in the hills. The local siren seduces Guy while mysterious millionaire makes Rosie an offer she can't refuse. But should she?

Neil and Sarah are the ultimate happy couple. Until, that is, Neil's new job leaves Sarah alone to juggle the baby, domestic drudgery, and her own career. When Neil fails to come home one night, Sarah rushes home to her mother, who has always wished that Sarah had married her childhood sweetheart, the fabulously rich lawyer Colin, who has coincidentally reappeared in her life.

The stage is set for divorce, but Neil has other ideas. Distraught at the prospect of losing Sarah and recognizing what an idiot he has been, he enrolls in an experimental "School for Husbands," a clinic aimed at helping hopeless spouses mend their ways. But will its intensive tuition in everything from emotional self-expression to putting the toilet seat down be enough to get Neil back together with his wife? Not if Colin and Sarah's mother have anything to do with it.

TREAT YOURSELF to a sparkling romantic comedy... Last of the Summer Moët is a bottle of champagne in book form!

Wendy Holden's warm and funny comic heroine Laura Lake is back. And this time, she's gone rural...

Laura Lake, editor of glossy magazine Society, is always on the hunt for scandalous scoops to fill her pages. Now she's discovered a top-secret village in the English countryside where the rich and famous own weekend retreats. Where film stars, Turner-prize winners and billionaires park their helicopters outside the gastropub and buy £100 sourdough loaves from the deli.

Outsiders are strictly forbidden. But luckily Laura's best friend Lulu, a logo-obsessed socialite with a heart as huge as her sunglasses, suddenly fancies a quiet life in the country...

But life in this enchanted rural idyll is harder than it looks. A brawl at the world's poshest pub quiz nearly brings down the government. And gossip from rehearsals of the midsummer pantomime threatens to tear the village apart...

Can Laura write her exposé before the snobbish villagers blow her cover and suss her true identity?

This story poses a profound question - do we accept the hand that fate deals us, or do we battle to make the most of the life we have and help others in the process? Chris Graham, just 38 years old but already facing the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease, has emphatically chosen the latter. Having lived through a troubled childhood, Chris joined the British Army at a young age and found that the life of a soldier provided him with a much-needed sense of stability. However, his world was turned upside down when, at just 34 years of age, he was diagnosed with a form of early onset dementia. This brutal disease had already claimed the life of his father at 42, along with several other members of his family, and tragically had already confined his brother to a nursing home at the age of 43. In his brother's life, Chris could see a terrifying window into his own near future. Chris, though, is an extraordinary human being. Having been handed nothing less than a death sentence, he decided overnight to stand up to this horrendous disease and do something to leave his mark before it was too late. And so it was that last year, Chris embarked on an awareness-raising 16,000-mile solo cycle around North America, armed only with his bike, a sense of humour, and some good old-fashioned British grit. Leaving his ever-supportive wife Vicky and baby son Dexter at home, he took on huge challenges - for instance, the fear that the ability to discern left from right might leave him at any point while navigating an entire continent - and made it home in time for Christmas, determined to spending however long he has left pouring his love and attention into his family life. Five Minutes of Amazing is both the story of Chris' epic journey and of his fight against the disease increasingly being recognised as the defining disease of our generation. Inspiring and heart-rending in equal measure, it's as important as it is moving, and it will touch everyone who reads it.

Bestselling author Goldie Hawn offers parents a practical guide for helping their children to learn better and live more happily. Based on the MindUP programme, supported by the Hawn Foundation, 10 Mindful Minutes outlines short, practical exercises for parents and children - taking less than 10 minutes - to help young children and teenagers reduce stress and anxiety, improve concentration and academic performance, effectively manage emotions and behaviour, develop greater empathy for others and the world, and be more optimistic and happy. Representing the culmination of years of research and programmes developed by the Hawn Foundation currently being used by schools internationally, this book will help children and parents develop mindfulness which has been proven to promote more effective learning and happier lives.

Fame, love and happiness. Can anyone have it all? Darcy's a struggling English-rose actress when The Call comes from LA. An Oscar-tastic director. A movie to make her famous. The hunkiest co-star in Hollywood. So why doesn't she want to go? Belle's a size-zero film star but she's in big, fat trouble. Hotter than the earth's core a year ago, she's now Tinseltown toast after her last film bombed. Can she get back to the big time? When the two women lock horns over men, movies and megadiets, there's more drama than even Hollywood can handle. And after a celebrity nanny, reluctant supermodel and passionate star chef enter the mix, things get seriously hot and spicy.

As the royal governess, Marion Crawford played a major role in shaping the childhood and subsequent world-view of Queen Elizabeth II, but her story is largely unknown and has never been explored in much depth. The Governess brings 'Crawfie' to life.

The Governess tells the story of Marion 'Crawfie' Crawford, the progressive young working-class woman who, as royal governess for seventeen years, lived on the most intimate terms with Princess Margaret and the future Queen Elizabeth II. A long time member of the Windsors' inner circle, Marion had a ringside seat to some of the most seismic events of the 20th century.

The castles and palaces may have housed a family frozen in time, but outside poverty and unemployment were breeding unrest in 1930s Britain, with Hitler's ascent looming. If royalty was to survive, it must draw closer to the people. And so Marion took the princesses on tubes and buses, swimming at public baths, Christmas shopping at Woolworth's.

Marion's devotion meant personal sacrifices, and years of dedication counted for nothing once she published The Little Princesses, a loving, harmless account of life as a royal governess. It earned Marion the Windsors' lasting fury.

This is a look into the childhood of the world's longest reigning monarch: a story of conflict and contradiction, of state dinners and hunger marches, of a left-winger amongst the ultimate conservatives, of a modern woman in an ancient institution.

Teaching Our Children to Help Themselves Be Happy
Practical, timely, relevant, and inspiring, 10 Mindful Minutes is Goldie Hawn's gift to parents who want to help their children learn better and live happier lives.
Inspired by the revolutionary MindUP program (developed under the auspices of the Hawn Foundation), the book offers easy-to-grasp insights from current behavioral, psychological, and neurological studies to show how our thoughts, emotions, and actions--including our ability to focus, manage stress, and learn--are all exquisitely interconnected.
Hawn presents simple and practial ways to develop mindfulness in children and parents alike, and shares her own heartfelt experiences with the challenges and joys of parenting.

Susan Travers dreamed of an adventurous life, but had little chance of it until the Second World War destroyed her cafe society world and freed her from the bonds of her privileged but stifling upbringing. Leaving her peripatetic, party-girl lifestyle behind her, she drank a last cocktail at her friend Gladys's chateau, locked the door behind her and walked into history. Here for the first time, the life story of the only woman to fight for the French Legion is one that few dare to even imagine. Born to a life of privilege, Susan spends her childhood longing for excitement. After being expelled from finishing school for being too interested in men, she signed up with the Free French in 1940 and sailed to Africa where she traveled the country fighting the war and taking on lovers, eventually becoming a driver to General Koenig of the Foreign Legion. He was to become her lover and the man for whom she would risk everything. A military leader of Olympian detach, he was in private a sensitive soul, sharing poetry with Susan, including the piece from which the title of the book is taken, Tomorrow To Be Brave. He was also the man who helped change the face of Rommel's North African campaign. At the great siege of Bir Hakeim, the general's troops were surrounded for fifteen days by Rommel's Panzer division. Susan refused to leave the General's side and evetually, at the wheel of his car, led the convoy of vehicles and men across the minefields as part of a daring mass breakout. Hailed as the heroine of the night, Susan was rewarded with the love and loyalty of the legion with whom she served as its only official female member ever. In 1997 in a simple ceremony attended by the few remaining survivors of the corps with which she fought, the Legion presented Susan Travers, now a frail 88 year old, with the Legion d'Honneur--their highest award for bravery. She lives quietly to this day in a modest nursing home outside Paris where only a very few know what circuitous and fantastic a path led her there--until now.