Special Collections
Human-Narrated Books for Adults
Description: Please enjoy this collection of Bookshare books, now with human narration! #adults
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The Hypocrite
by Jo HamyaWhat happens when we stop idolising the generations above us? Stop idolising our own parents?What happens when we become frightened of the generations below us? Frightened of our own children?The Aeolian islands, 2010. Sophia, on the cusp of adulthood, spends a long hot summer with her father in Sicily. There she falls in love for the first time. There she works as her father's amanuensis, typing the novel he dictates, a story about sex and gender divides. There, their relationship fractures.London, Summer 2020. Sophia's father, a 61-year-old novelist who does not feel himself to be a bad or outdated person sits in a large theatre, surrounded by strangers, watching his daughter's first play. A play that takes that Sicilian holiday is its subject. A play that will force him to watch his purported crimes play out in front of him.
The Darkest Night
by Victoria HawthorneSome secrets last for generations . . .A bewitching and haunting story of family secrets - and the lengths some will go to protect them.When Ailsa Reid becomes the subject of a trial by media after an incident at the school where she works, she escapes to the comfort of her grandparents' house in Fife. But she arrives to find her grandmother, Moira - recently diagnosed with dementia - has gone missing, and her grandfather, Rupert, gravely injured.Desperate to ensure Moira's safe return, Ailsa must rely on the help of her estranged mother, Rowan, who abandoned her at birth. Tensions simmer between the two women as they attempt to piece together the lead-up to Moira's disappearance.But to move forward and find Moira, both Ailsa and Rowan must look to their ancestors, and to a story about witches burned on the hill above the Reid house centuries ago. Can they break the bonds of history in time to save their family? Or will the Reid curse be their undoing?(P) 2023 Quercus Editions Limited
Blackwater
by James HenryJanuary 1983, Colchester CID
A new year brings new resolutions for Detective Inspector Nicholas Lowry. With one eye on his approaching fortieth birthday, he has given up his two greatest vices: smoking, and the police boxing team. As a result, the largest remaining threat to his health is now his junior colleague's reckless driving.
If Detective Constable Daniel Kenton's orange sports convertible is symbolic of his fast track through the ranks, then his accompanying swagger, foppish hairstyle and university education only augment his uniqueness in the department. Yet regardless of this, it is not DC Kenton who is turning station heads.
WPC Jane Gabriel is the newest police recruit in Britain's oldest recorded town. Despite a familial tie to top brass, Gabriel's striking beauty and profound youth have landed her with two obstacles: a young male colleague who gives her too much attention, and an older one who acts like she's not there.
January 1983, Blackwater Estuary
A new year brings a new danger to the Essex shoreline. An illicit shipment, bound for Colchester - 100 kilograms of powder that will frantically accelerate tensions in the historic town, and leave its own murderous trace. Lowry, Kenton and Gabriel must now develop a tolerance to one another, and show their own substance, to save Britain's oldest settlement from a new, unsettling enemy.
A Day at the Beach Hut
by Veronica HenryEscape to the coast with this delicious collection of short stories and beach-hut inspired recipes from Sunday Times bestselling author Veronica Henry - the perfect summer treat!
On a shimmering summer's day, the waves are calling, the picnic basket is packed, and change is in the air. It's just the start of an eventful day for a cast of holiday-makers: over one day, sparks will fly, the tide will bring in old faces and new temptations, a proposal is planned, and an unexpected romance simmers…
This uplifting collection of eight original short stories and over fifty delicious recipes will transport you to the golden sands of Everdene for a perfect day at the beach hut, wherever you are.
Two for Joy
by Adam HensonEver wondered why the dawn chorus is so loud in spring? What makes a summer sunset so special? Where to spot a murmuration of starlings in autumn? Or how to identify trees from just their bark in winter?
In Two for Joy, Adam Henson—much-loved and long-standing presenter of Countryfile—goes on a journey throughout each season to help you to find new and varied ways to reconnect to the British and Irish countryside. Discover what's happening on farms, growing in hedgerows, the stories behind countryside superstitions, how to revive lost traditions, what you might spot when you look up at the sky and stars—and plenty more in this uplifting guide to the nature that surrounds us.
Whether you read this book in the depths of winter in an armchair by the fire, or on a picnic rug in a field on a sunny day, it promises to open your eyes to the awe-inspiring powers of our uniquely British countryside in ways you've never noticed before.
The Prospects
by KT Hoffman'Tenacious, sexy, effervescent, doggedly hopeful, and endlessly charming, with characters to root hard for and an irresistible voice - I completely adored it'Casey McQuiston, author of Red, White & Royal Blue__________Enemies. Rivals. Teammates.It's going to be a hell of a season.Gene Ionescu is content to play in the minor leagues. He's seen teammates get their big breaks, but as the first openly trans man in the world of competitive baseball, he has nearly everything he's ever let himself dream of. When his former teammate and long-time rival, Luis Estrada, is unexpectedly drafted onto the team, the careful equilibrium of Gene's life is destroyed. Luis is standoffish, talented and inconveniently gorgeous, and the two men can barely get through a game together. This is war, and the team pays the price. So when Luis surprises Gene with a softer side to his haughty demeanour, Gene offers an olive branch - for the sake of his teammates. Soon they discover that their chemistry on the pitch might lead them all the way to the playoffs. And their chemistry off the pitch . . . well, that could be enough to change the game for ever.'I can't even express how much I adore this beautiful, joyful book'Alicia Thompson, author of Love in the Time of Serial Killers 'This book is optimism and grit, dedication and unbridled joy . . . An absolute delight' Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of The Ex Talk 'A heart-stealing romance . . . My favourite book - of this and any year' Anita Kelly, author of Something Wild & Wonderful__________Five-star reader reviews of The Prospects:'The romance between Gene and Luis is fire but also achingly tender and sweet. It gave me all the feels' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Funny and sexy and filled with such an incredible amount of hope, optimism, queer and trans joy, and queer found family' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'I absolutely loved so much of this book, and it gave me many moments of reading on the couch, feet kicking, and giggling wildly. It was beautiful' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'The steam and build of the relationship sucked me in . . . All I want to do is hug these two and live in this book' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Stunning, joyful, and romantic as hell' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'It's got boys, it's got baseball, it's got everything you could possibly want. Five stars isn't enough' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Keeper of Lost Things
by Ruth HoganOnce a celebrated author of short stories now in his twilight years, Anthony Peardew has spent half his life collecting lost objects, trying to atone for a promise broken many years before. Realising he is running out of time, he leaves his house and all its lost treasures to his assistant Laura, the one person he can trust to fulfill his legacy and reunite the thousands of objects with their rightful owners.
But the final wishes of the 'Keeper of Lost Things' have unforeseen repercussions which trigger a most serendipitous series of encounters...
Emma, Disappeared
by Andrew Hughes'Compelling, unsettling and very creepy' Catherine Kirwan'Atmospheric and filled with twists and turns ... a fantastic read' Patricia GibneyEveryone is talking about the disappearance of Emma Harte.A high-achieving university graduate and young entrepreneur, she was last seen in the early hours of the morning on grainy CCTV footage in Dublin's city centre before vanishing into thin air. While a national debate about women's safety rages, eyes turn to Emma's boyfriend, Tom - who is nowhere to be found.Meanwhile, archivist James Lyster is following the story with undue interest. When a comment he makes about Emma goes viral on social media, he finds himself drawn into the world of a group of idealistic university students involved in the search - and attracting the attention of the police detective in charge of Emma's case.Then a body is discovered in scrubland near James' flat ... As the police get closer to finding out what happened to Emma Harte, James' life begins to unravel. Is he a victim or murderer? Feminist ally or callous liar?For it turns out that James isn't the only one with secrets ...
Just For The Summer
by Abby JimenezPraise for Abby Jimenez:'Literally the best book I ever read'⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'This author has blown me away before but this book . . . I can't even. I will need some serious time to recover. It was everything and more'⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'OK, this is the best romance I've ever read. I loved everything about it'⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'This book deserves all the stars in the universe'⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'Things I loved about this book . . . I mean it's literally everything. Not a single flaw'⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'Wow. wow. WOW. Every book I've read of Abby's just gets better and better'⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ .........................To find their soulmates, all they need is four dates, a kiss and a breakup . . .Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other's out, and they'll both go on to find the love of their lives. It's a bonkers idea . . . and it just might work. Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected - including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?A sharp and scintillating summer novel that will make readers laugh out loud and cry happy tears from the New York Times bestselling author of Yours Truly.'Abby Jimenez's words . . . sprinkle humour and warmth all over my life' ALI HAZELWOOD.........................FIND OUT WHY READERS ARE FALLING IN LOVE WITH ABBY JIMENEZ . . . 'Sweet and achingly romantic - a truly wonderful love story' BETH O'LEARY'Full of fierce humour and fiercer heart' CASEY MCQUISTON'A deliciously hot, sweet debut. This book is an absolute treat' L. G. SHEN
Tell Me Everything
by Laura KayWould you entrust your life choices to someone hell-bent on avoiding theirs?
Natasha has everything under control, at least that's what her clients think. As a therapist, she has all the answers but when it comes to her personal life, she seriously needs to start taking her own advice. Still living with her ex-girlfriend, Natasha's messy love life is made up of dates and one-night stands. After all, why would you commit to one person, when there is an endless stream of people waiting for you to swipe right? Besides, people always leave.
But when Margot arrives on the scene, everything changes. Flailing between mending long broken relationships and starting new ones, Natasha's walking the line between self-actualisation and self-destruction…
With denial no longer an option, it is time for Natasha to take control of her own happiness.
Plot Twist
by Breea Keenan'A heart-warming bookish romcom . . . perfect for fans of Emily Henry and Catherine Walsh' Sunday Mail What's a love story without a good plot twist . . . ? 'This book honestly had me giddy' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'I didn't want to put it down' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'Becca and Riley both captured my heart' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐*Becca Taylor is having a bad summer. Her best friend is dead. Her good-for-nothing ex is back in her life. And her career is in freefall.So, when fellow writer Riley O'Connell invites Becca to the charming Irish countryside, she can't pack her bags fast enough, even though they have never met.But happily-ever-after isn't quite so simple.And Riley is not a sensitive female romance novelist like Becca assumed. No, he is definitely a man. A hot, six-foot tall, Irish man.But with their complicated pasts getting in the way, Becca and Riley just can't get on the same page. So can fate give their love story a rewrite?*READERS ARE OBSESSED WITH PLOT TWIST:'I devoured this book, literally could not put it down' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'Had me smiling, crying, giggling' ⭐⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'I didn't want it to end' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'Delightful, I laughed and I cried while reading it, it's everything I could ask for' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Bad Day at the Vulture Club
by Vaseem KhanIn the gripping new Baby Ganesh Agency novel, Inspector Chopra and his elephant sidekick investigate the death of one of Mumbai's wealthiest citizens, a murder with ramifications for its poorest.
The Parsees are among the oldest, most secretive and most influential communities in the city: respected, envied and sometimes feared.
When prominent industrialist Cyrus Zorabian is murdered on holy ground, his body dumped inside a Tower of Silence—where the Parsee dead are consumed by vultures—the police dismiss it as a random killing. But his daughter is unconvinced.Chopra, uneasy at entering this world of power and privilege, is soon plagued by doubts about the case.
But murder is murder. And in Mumbai, wealth and corruption go in hand in hand, inextricably linking the lives of both high and low…
(P) 2019 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
The Ballast Seed
by Rosie KinchenThe surprise of a second pregnancy, so soon after the birth of her first son, plunged Rosie into a despair that spiralled into deep depression. Terrified at the prospect of adding another child into her already precariously balanced life, Rosie was compelled to find a new way of living. She found herself instinctively drawn to the local parks and scraps of communal green spaces in her local south east London neighbourhood, and to therapy via tending a hidden garden deep within the city. Interlaced with her responses to the travel journals of an eccentric 19th century female botanist and adventurer, Rosie elegantly describes how these pockets of nature amidst the urban sprawl provided just enough to mend her broken spirit.
One Summer in Cornwall
by Karen KingEscape to Cornwall this summer... A heart-warming, feel-good romance, returning to the beautiful Cornish town of Karen's Kindle bestseller THE CORNISH HOTEL BY THE SEA.
When Hattie is made redundant and evicted from her flat in one horrible week, she needs time to rethink. Her Uncle Albert left her and her father each half of Fisherman's Rest, his home in the Cornish town of Port Medden, so this seems the perfect place to escape to until she can figure things out.
As Hattie stays in the cottage, clearing it out, tidying it up and getting it ready to sell, she starts to find her feet in Port Medden and making a new home here begins to feel right. If only her dad didn't need a quick sale and things weren't complicated by her unwelcoming neighbour Marcus . . .(P) 2022 Headline Publishing Group Ltd
Definitely Fine
by Amy LavelleHannah is twenty-eight when the worst happens. Her first instinct? To call her mum. The problem is, her mum having an accident, being rushed to hospital and never waking up was the worst thing.
Realising that she is now the Woman of the Family, Hannah has to be the rock for her emotionally-repressed father and chaotic younger sister, all while trying to muddle her way through the crucial life lessons her mother never taught her, like: how to ride a tandem, how to react when your dad starts making lasagne for an unknown woman, how to broker peace between feuding aunts, how to know if you really want a baby or if this is just the grief talking
But what Hannah really wishes her mother had taught her is: when you've just lost the person who made sense of everything, how are you meant to find yourself?
Hilarious, heartbreaking and completely original, Definitely Fine is a book for anyone who's ever felt lost in their own life. Perfect for fans of Dolly Alderton, Holly Bourne and Emma Straub.
The Runner
by Stephen LeatherThe explosive new stand-alone thriller from the author of the Spider Shepherd series
Sally Page is an MI5 'footie', a junior Secret Service Agent who maintains 'legends': fake identities or footprints used by real spies. Her day consists of maintaining flats and houses where the legends allegedly live, doing online shopping, using payment, loyalty and travel cards and going on social media in their names - anything to give the impression to hostile surveillance that the legends are living, breathing individuals.
One day she goes out for a coffee run from the safe house from which she and her fellow footies operate. When she comes back they have all been murdered and she barely escapes with her own life. She is on the run, but from whom she has no idea. Worse, her bosses at MI5 seem powerless to help her. To live, she will have to use all the lies and false identities she has so carefully created while discovering the truth . . .(p) 2020 Isis Publishing Ltd
Lake of Souls: The Collected Short Fiction
by Ann LeckieHugo, Nebula, and Arthur C. Clarke award-winner Ann Leckie is a modern master of the SFF genre, forever changing its landscape with her groundbreaking ideas and powerful voice. Now, available for the first time comes the complete collection of Leckie's short fiction, including a brand new novelette, Lake of Souls.Journey across the stars of the Imperial Radch universe.Listen to the words of the Old Gods that ruled The Raven Tower.Learn the secrets of the mysterious Lake of Souls.And so much more, in this masterfully wide-ranging and immersive short fiction collection from award-winning author Ann Leckie.Contents:The Lake of SoulsStories from the world of the Imperial RadchNight's Slow PoisonShe Commands Me and I ObeyThe Creation and Destruction of the WorldStories from the world of The Raven TowerThe God of AuThe NalendarThe Snake's WifeMarsh GodsThe Unknown GodBeloved of the SunSaving BaconSci-FiFootprintsHesperia and GloryThe Endangered CampAnother Word for WorldThe JustifiedFantasyBury the DeadThe Sad History of the Tearless Onion
The Fifth Ward
by Dale LucasIn the cramped quarters of the city of Yenara, humans, orcs, mages, elves and dwarves all jostle for success and survival, while understaffed watch wardens struggle to keep the citizens in line. Enter Rem. New to the city, he wakes bruised and hungover in the dungeons of the fifth ward. With no money for bail - and seeing no other way out of his cell - Rem jumps at the chance to join the Watch.
Torval, his new partner -- a dwarf who's handy with a maul and known for hitting first and asking questions later -- is highly unimpressed with the untrained and weaponless Rem. But when Torval's former partner goes missing, the two must learn to work together to uncover the truth and catch a murderer loose in their fair city.
Echolands
by Duncan MackayAn original, revelatory, enthralling narrative history of how Queen Boudica led the greatest rebellion Britain has ever seen.
Almost 2000 years ago, Boudica led the greatest rebellion Britain has ever seen. Within the space of a single blood-soaked year, she united the tribes to deliver blow after devastating blow to the Roman regime, culminating in a brutal, decisive battle.
Archaeologist Duncan Mackay has spent a lifetime on the trail of Boudica. Beginning near his home in Norfolk, in the heart of Boudica's tribal territory, he embarks on a journey in the footsteps of Romans and Britons, exploring their villages, towns, forts and roads. The passage of two millennia has buried the world that Boudica knew, but Duncan finds that its echoes and physical traces still surround us—as long as you know where to look. The armies marched along the roads we still use, and died in their thousands in towns, cities and countryside where we still live today. The site of Boudica's last battle was long believed be lost to time, but the threads of the story all pull towards one remarkable, forgotten little corner of the English landscape.
From the Breckland of Norfolk to the back streets of Colchester, from the remotest corner of Anglesey to the depths of the London Underground, Duncan takes us back two thousand years to retell the story of Britain's bloodiest year. Fusing ancient history, modern excavation, landscape exploration, and vivid reconstruction, Echolands weaves the long-lost tapestry of Boudica's war.
(P) 2023 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
Me And Mine
by Anna May ManganME AND MINE tells the story of an Irish immigrant family who left rural Ireland in the 1950s in the hope of finding work and a better way of life in England.
But home is never far away as aunts ferry over suitcases dripping with blood from the Irish boat train because English meat is 'dirt' or smuggle poteen disguised as holy water in Virgin Mary shaped bottles, and gossip is delivered weekly in the form of the local county paper.
ME AND MINE is an entertaining and vivid portrait of immigrant life in 1950s England, told through the stories of a truly colourful cast of characters.
Among You Taking Notes…
by Naomi Mitchison26th September 1939. I am beginning to wonder whether the point of a place like this may be that it will keep alive certain ideas of freedom which might easily be destroyed in the course of this totalitarian war….
Born in Edinburgh, Naomi Mitchison spent most of the Second World War in the fishing village of Carradale on Kintyre, her home until her death aged 101. Her life was crowded with incident, and her attitudes to events predictably forceful, original and honest.
Throughout the war she kept a diary at the request of the research organisation Mass Observation, in which she recorded both the momentous events of the time, and also how one (albeit extraordinary) family and their friends lived, what they hoped for and what actually happened. Her diaries developed far beyond the confines of a social document.
Written with the passion of a poet combined with the intellectual curiosity of a radial thinker, they provide a unique and valuable document of the period.
Witness X
by Se MoorheadFrom one of the most original new voices in fiction comes a startling vision of a world where hero Kyra must fight the past to save our future. She's the only one who can access the truth...
Fourteen years ago, the police caged a notorious serial killer who abducted and butchered two victims every February. He was safe behind bars. Wasn't he? But then another body is discovered, and soon enough, the race is on to catch the real killer.
Neuropsychologist Kyra Sullivan fights to use a new technology that accesses the minds of the witnesses, working with the police to uncover the truth. Will Kyra discover the person behind the murders, and if so, at what cost? And how far will she go to ensure justice is served?
All in My Head
by Jessica MorrisAll In My Head is a memoir by a woman who in her early fifties received a life-shattering diagnosis. It is about her determined search for effective treatment, the birth of a campaign to get proper data and funding for research into glioblastoma (GBM), and finally her coming to terms with the knowledge that she has reached the end of the road.
Jessica Morris takes the reader on a whirlwind journey. How does an ordinary person who last studied biology aged sixteen negotiate with world-renowned doctors and surgeons about cutting-edge treatments she must decide between? How do you remain positive when the median statistics suggest you have only fourteen months to live? How instead do you cast those fears aside and bounce back?
All In My Head is much more than a book about GBM. It takes the reader into the life of a woman who when confronted by devastating news chooses to be strong. It is about fighting adversity with hope and finding reasons to be positive in the darkest moments.
One Girl Began
by Kate Murray-Browne'A beautiful novel . . . reminds us that our streets are thick with history'ROWAN HISAYO BUCHANAN'Both moving and addictive'JOANNA BRISCOE'Terrific'FRANCES QUINNTHREE WOMEN. ONE BUILDING. 111 YEARS . . .East London, 1909. When her family fall on hard times, Ellen finds work in a box factory and is drawn into a tight-knit circle of friendship, one that will transform her life and test her in unexpected ways.In 1984, the factory is now derelict. Eighteen-year- old Frances moves in with a group of squatters and activists who have taken over the abandoned building. As she tries to build a new life, an unsettling relationship develops, forcing her to question who she is and where her loyalties lie.In 2020, the squat is now a gentrified conversion in a fashionable corner of the city. Amanda feels trapped in her tiny flat, overwhelmed by the demands of new motherhood and unsure of what the future holds - until the possibility of an alternative life presents itself . . .From acclaimed author Kate Murray-Browne, One Girl Began is a vibrant, enthralling and moving novel about three women across three very different moments in time, connected by the same building and the forces that shape our lives.
A History of Heavy Metal
by Andrew O'NeillThe history of heavy metal brings brings us extraordinary stories of larger-than-life characters living to excess, from the household names of Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Bruce Dickinson and Metallica (SIT DOWN, LARS!), to the brutal notoriety of the underground Norwegian black metal scene and the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. It is the story of a worldwide network of rabid fans escaping everyday mundanity through music, of cut-throat corporate arseholes ripping off those fans and the bands they worship to line their pockets.
The expansive pantheon of heavy metal musicians includes junkies, Satanists and murderers, born-again Christians and teetotallers, stadium-touring billionaires and toilet-circuit journeymen. Award-winning comedian and life-long heavy metal obsessive Andrew O'Neill has performed his History of Heavy Metal comedy show to a huge range of audiences, from the teenage metalheads of Download festival to the broadsheet-reading theatre-goers of the Edinburgh Fringe.
Now, in his first book, he takes us on his own very personal and hilarious journey through the history of the music, the subculture, and the characters who shaped this most misunderstood genre of music.