Evelyn Waugh was born in Hampstead in 1903 and educated at Hertford College, Oxford. In 1928 he published his first novel, Decline and Fall, which was soon followed by Vile Bodies (1930), Black Mischief (1932), A Handful of Dust (1934) and Scoop (1938). During these years he also travelled extensively and converted to Catholicism. In 1939 Waugh was commissioned in the Royal Marines and later transferred to the Royal Horse Guards, experiences which informed his Sword of Honour trilogy (1952-61). His most famous novel, Brideshead Revisited (1945), was written while on leave from the army. Waugh died in 1966.

Evelyn Waugh

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Meg Henderson

Glasgow in the 1950s was a deprived and often violent place. Meg Henderson was part of a large family, and when the tenement block in which they lived collapsed they had to move to the notorious Blackhill district where religious sectarianism and gang warfare were part of daily life. Yet despite appalling conditions , there was warmth, laughter and a remarkable spirit, andMeg's mother and her Aunt Peggy, both idealistic and emotional women, shielded her from the effects of her father's heavy drinking. 
 
A hopeless romantic, Peggy searched for a husband until late in life and then endured a harsh, unhappy marriage. When she died horrifically in childbirth her death devastated the family and destroyed Meg's childhood. Only later, after the death of her own mother, was Meg able to discover the shocking facts behind the tragedy.

Finding Peggy

Jilly Cooper

CLASS IS DEAD! 
Or so everyone claims. Who better to refute this than Jilly Cooper! 
 
Describing herself as 'upper middle class', Jilly claims that snobbery is very much alive and thriving! Meet her hilarious characters! People like Harry Stow-Crat, Mr and Mrs Nouveau-Richards, Samantha and Gideon Upward, and Jen Teale and her husband Brian. Roar with laughter at her horribly unfair observations on their everyday pretensions - their sexual courtships, choice of furnishings, clothes, education, food, careers and ambitions... 
 
For they will all remind you of people that you know!

Class

Robert Lomas

When George Washington, first President of the United States, laid the foundation stone of the Capitol Building of the city that was to bear his name, he did so wearing full Masonic regalia. Turning The Solomon Key is a riveting quest to discover the Masonic influences George Washington brought to bear on the layout of Washington DC. 
 
History records that the builders of Washington DC knew a great Masonic secret about the human condition, and that their plans for the city were laid out on a Masonic grid rich in symbolism, hidden meaning and designed to express this secret power. Robert Lomas, an expert in the history of Freemasonry, goes in search of the truth behind this claim. Using Masonic rituals and Washington's diaries, Lomas uncovers the symbolic meaning behind the siting of the White House and the Capitol - and their connection to a secret passed down from one of the first Grand Masters of the Freemasons, King Solomon. 
 
Turning the Solomon Key delves into the true history behind many of the symbols and mysteries that feature in Dan Brown's latest international bestseller, The Lost Symbol, and will be essential reading for all who want to discover the real significance to the masonic secrets of Washington DC.

Turning the Solomon Key

Margaret Humphreys

THE BOOK THAT EXPOSED THE HEARTBREAKING SCANDAL OF BRITAIN'S FORGOTTEN AND ABUSED CHILD MIGRANTS - now a film, Oranges and Sunshine, starring Emily Watson. 
In 1986 Margaret Humphreys, a Nottingham social worker, investigated a woman's claim that, aged four, she had been put on a boat to Australia by the British government. At first incredulous, Margaret discovered that this was just the tip of an enormous iceberg. Up to 150,000 children, some as young as three years old, had been deported from children's homes in Britain and shipped off to a 'new life' in distant parts of the Empire, right up until as recently as 1970. 
 
Many were told that their parents were dead, and parents were told that their children had been adopted. In fact, for many children it was to be a life of horrendous physical and sexual abuse far away from everything they knew. Margaret and her team reunited thousands of families before it was too late, brought authorities to account, and worldwide attention to an outrageous miscarriage of justice.

Empty Cradles (Oranges and Sunshine)

Pauline Collins

In 1964, in a bare room in Waterloo, a young actress gave her baby for adoption.They were to be parted for more than twenty years.The actress was Pauline Collins.The baby was her daughter Louise. 
 
Letter to Louise is a poignant, yet often funny, memoir of the months leading up to that day in Waterloo.In it, Pauline Collins recalls the idyllic time spent in rep in Killarney, playing in a different play every night, seven days a week, living in digs - and falling in love.After the season had finished, she found she was pregnant.Frightened and alone now, she decided to have the baby, hiding the fact from family, agents and friends. 
 
Going to ground, she waited for the baby to be born in a home for unmarried mothers, buoyed up by the kindness and humour of the other residents, and the nuns who cared for them.Yet she soon came to realise that she had no choice but to give her daughter away. 
 
Reluctantly she got on with life, finally achieving success and personal happiness.But she never forgot Louise and their story has the ultimate happy ending - the day they were reunited twenty-two years later.

Letter To Louise

Leslie Morgan Steiner

When Leslie met her husband Conor she felt she'd found the man of her dreams. Smart, attentive and devoted to her, he was all she'd ever hoped for and it wasn't long before they were married. 
 
But worrying cracks began to appear in this seemingly perfect relationship. For whilst Conor could sometimes make Leslie feel loved and cherished, at other times his abrupt, violent mood swings left her deeply troubled. And as the violence escalated, Leslie felt trapped in a world of terror - a world from which she knew she had to escape. 
 
Harrowing and yet compulsively readable, Crazy Love throws a spotlight on a brutal, hidden world of abuse. As it takes you on a rollercoaster ride through hell, it tells the story of how one woman was forced to confront a painful truth: the man she loved seemed determined to kill her.

Crazy Love

Robert Goddard

Harry Barnett is a middle-aged failure. Leading a shabby existence in the shadow of a past disgrace, he is reduced to caretaking a friend's villa on the island of Rhodes and working in a bar to earn his keep. Then a guest at the villa - a young woman he had instantly and innocently warmed to - disappears on a mountain peak. 
Under suspicion of her murder, Harry stumbles on a set of photographs taken in the weeks before her disappearance. Obsessed by the mystery that has changed his life and determined to clear his name, he begins to trace back the movements and encounters that led to the moment when she vanished into the blue. The trail leads him back to England, to a world he thought he had left for ever - and a past he has tried desperately to forget.

Into the Blue

Pip Granger

The only daughter of alcoholic parents, novelist Pip Granger spent much of her childhood outside looking in. 
 
No strangers to the demon booze, her parents were deeply involved in a passionate relationship that rose to exciting highs and plunged to terrible and often frightening lows. Drink explained the series of crises, the furious rows and life-threatening accidents Pip had to contend with, and it also explained why her home life was so very different from that of most other people she knew. Just after her first birthday her family was evicted from their cottage in Sussex for non-payment of rent - a pattern that was to recur throughout her childhood. Home became a place best avoided, and soon Pip was spending time with her ne'er-do-well father in cafes, snooker-halls and other low dives in London's Soho where she made a series of lasting friendships with the unlikeliest of people. 
 
Brave, funny, original and totally authentic, Alone is a heartbreaking book about alcohol abuse, parental neglect, and the courage of a little girl to find her own way through a trouble-filled world.

Alone

Linda Caine

Dr Robin Royston

As a contented wife and mother, Linda Caine has everything she ever wanted. Yet a darkness haunts her. Images flash through her mind leaving her stunned and terrified. She has no idea why. 
 
Linda believes there is something bad inside her. But she listens to the voice that tells her everything will be OK, that when it finally gets too much, she can end it all. She will drive off a cliff on her way home from the supermarket. After all, who commits suicide with groceries in the car? 
 
The raw and powerful journey that Linda takes with her psychiatrist Robin Royston will leave you breathless. The secrets of her childhood are buried so deep that to reveal them could destroy her completely. Together Linda and Robin must race to unravel the clues before it’s too late . . . 
 
OUT OF THE DARK is Linda Caine's remarkable and uplifting story from the agonies of mental breakdown to the painful piecing together of the past that was vital for her survival. Both her courage and Robin's persistence during the process show the power of the human spirit at its most indomitable and inspiring.

Out of the Dark

EMPTY CRADLES is a powerful testament to an ordinary woman's astonishing dedication, compassion and stubborn courage. 
 
In 1986 Margaret Humphreys, a Nottingham social worker and mother of two, investigated the case of a woman who claimed that, at the age of four, she had been put on a boat to Australia by the British government. At first incredulous, Margaret Humphreys soon discovered that this woman's story was just the tip of an enormous iceberg. As many as an estimated 150,000 children had in fact been deported from children's homes in Britian and shipped off to a 'new life' in distant parts of the Empire - the last as recently as 1967. 
 
Many of the children were told that their parents were dead. Their parents, too, were often deceived; many believed that their children had been adopted in Britain. The reality was very different: for numerous children it was to be a life of horrendous physical and sexual abuse in institutions in Western Australia and elsewhere. 
 
Margaret Humphreys reveals how she gradually unravelled this shocking secret; how she became drawn into the lives of some of these innocent and unwilling exiles, how it became her mission to reunite them with their families in Britain, and how her lonely crusade led to the founding of the Child Migrants Trust. 
 
EMPTY CRADLES is a strong indictment of government, as well as charitable and religious organisations. It is a sad, harrowing story that will move the reader to anger and tears. Yet it offers a message of hope to all the victims of a shameful scandal that has been ignored for too long.

Empty Cradles

Mary Jane Staples

A wonderfully humourous Cockney saga from multi-million copy seller Mary Jane Staples. Perfect for fans of Maggie Ford, Kitty Neale and Katie Flynn. Perfect to settle down with! 
 
READERS ARE LOVING THE TRAP! 
"Loved this book, a very easy read with a lovely story" - 5 STAR REVIEW 
"Loved the humour in this book; also a great story" - 5 STAR REVIEW 
"Brilliant book. Love all Mary Jane Staples books." - 5 STAR REVIEW 
"Captivating" - 5 STAR REVIEW 
 
********************************************************* 
THE MOMENT HE MET HER HE KNEW LIFE WAS NEVER GOING TO BE THE SAME AGAIN... 
 
When Jamie Blair, twenty-four, unemployed, and back from the trenches, takes lodgings at Larcom Street in Walworth, he has no idea he is walking into a trap. The house is owned by Henry Mullins - a big, burly, hard drinker who makes life hell for his four stepchildren, all half-starved and frequently hit. 
 
It's Kitty, seventeen, who Jamie feels most sorry for. She takes the brunt of Mullins' bad temper, whilst trying to protect her sisters and brother. 
 
When Mullins suddenly dies - in somewhat suspicious circumstances - Kitty realises they could be in trouble. If she isn't careful the authorities could take the younger children away - split the family up... 
 
Too late Jamie finds himself with a ready-made family and a stubborn and fiery young lady called Kitty determined not to let him go.

The Trap

a brilliantly uplifting Cockney saga you won’t be able to put down

Wendy Holden

Haatchi and Little B tells the inspiring and moving true story of Owen Howkins (also known as Little B, short for 'Buddy') and Haatchi, an Anatolian shepherd dog who was abandoned on a railway line as a puppy and left for dead. 
 
Thankfully, Haatchi was rescued, despite sustaining severe injuries. And so Haatchi, in turn, was able to rescue Owen, at the time an anxious and withdrawn little boy born with a rare genetic disorder, who found it hard to make friends. But Owen fell in love with his new three-legged canine housemate at first sight, and life would never be the same. 
 
The touching story of this dynamic and loveable duo is a life-affirming tale of happiness and friendship.

Haatchi and Little B

Michael Cordy

Fans of Dan Brown and Michael Crichton will love this tense and heart-stopping thriller from bestselling author Michael Cordy. 
 
"An all singing, all dancing, cover-to-cover thrills and spills action adventure" - DAILY MIRROR 
 
"Delivers right down the line from initial conceit, through fast action to explosive finale...sheer entertainment" -- OBSERVER 
 
"Loved it. I was hooked from page one and could not put this book down." -- ***** Reader review 
 
"DaVinci meets Indiana Jones.....brilliant...just brilliant." -- ***** Reader review 
 
"A great read and such a page-turner that I read it in two installments with bedtime as the cause for the only break." -- ***** Reader review 
 
***************************************************************** 
 
IT'S NOT A MYTH. IT EXISTS. FIND IT. 
 
Ambitious geologist Ross Kelly has it all: a lucrative career searching for oil across the world and a beautiful, brilliant wife, Lauren, pregnant with their first child. But when Lauren, a Yale academic, deciphers the university's mysterious Voynich manuscript, which has confounded experts for centuries, everything changes. 
 
An attempt to steal her translation of the Voynich leaves Lauren hovering on the brink of death, and Ross in the depths of despair. He seeks salvation in the ancient manuscript, which chronicles the discovery of a mythic, fabulous garden: an Eden so terrible and miraculous it rewrites the book of Genesis. 
 
The possibility of the garden's existence offers Ross the only hope of saving Lauren and their unborn child and so he decides to seek the garden out before it is too late. 
 
But he is not alone. 
 
Racing against time, a lethal assassin and a fanatical priest desperate to claim the miraculous garden for his church, Ross's quest will lead him to a place that will challenge everything he ever thought about the source of life on earth.

The Source

A breathtaking and gripping thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat

John Twelve Hawks

In a world that exists in the shadow of our own, the conflict between the Brethren and the Travellers reaches its devastating climax... 
 
Struggling to protect the legacy of his Traveller father, Gabriel faces troubling questions and relentless threats from enemies old and new. 
 
His brother Michael, now firmly allied with the sinister Brethren, pursues his ambition to wrest power from their leader, whatever it takes. 
 
And Maya, the Harlequin warrior pledged to protect Gabriel at all costs, is forced to make a choice that will change her life forever...

The Golden City

the cult sci-fi trilogy that has come true

Romesh Ranganathan

Confronted by the realities of adulthood, Romesh Ranganathan must face an uncomfortable truth: this is not quite how he imagined it. 
 
Watching his friends descend into middle age, his waist thicken with every meal and his finances dwindle to fund his family’s middle class aspirations, Romesh reflects on the demands of daily life and the challenges of adulting in the modern world. 
 
As he reluctantly concludes that he is indeed a grown man, Rom wrestles with the greater questions that threaten his being: Could I save my family in a crisis? Do I possess the skills to assemble flatpack furniture? Am I too old for streetwear? Is it alright to parent my kids through the medium of Fortnite? Is celibacy the secret to a passionate marriage? 
 
From one of the countries most beloved comedians and author of the Sunday Times bestseller STRAIGHT OUTTA CRAWLEY comes the hilarious and painfully accurate dissection of what it really means to grow up.

As Good As It Gets

Life Lessons from a Reluctant Adult

Mike Silverman

Tony Thompson

As one of the UK’s leading forensic scientists, Mike Silverman has helped to identify and convict dozens of murderers, rapists, armed robbers, burglars and muggers, thanks to the evidence they – or their victims – unwittingly left behind at the scenes of their crimes. 
 
Mike Silverman started his career in the days when fingerprints were still kept on card files and DNA profiling was just a pipe dream, so Written in Blood is more than just a casebook – it is also a definitive history of the development of forensic science over the course of the past thirty-five years. 
 
From collecting blood samples at gangland executions to investigating forensic science failings, including in the murders of Rachel Nickell and Damilola Taylor, Mike Silverman’s unique career provides a fascinating insight into the ways forensic science is used to help solve real-life crimes. 
 
Packed with genuine crime scene photographs and original sketches, Written in Blood is the ultimate insider’s account of the fascinating world of forensic science.

Written in Blood

J.M. Maloney

'A tale of survival.' Daily Mail 
 
'Survival against the odds ... [an] amazing story.' The Sun 
 
In 1939 Annie Jarman and her six young daughters were evacuated from their south London home and sent to the Sussex countryside to wait out the war. Refusing to be parted, they faced the unknown together, never imagining just how much their lives would change. 
 
 From the trials and tribulations of leaving London, the destructive horror of the Blitz and terrible family tragedy to dances, romances and the triumph of making a new life in the country, The Sisters of Battle Road is the compelling true story of six ordinary girls in extraordinary wartime circumstances. 
 
 Today, the six young girls – Mary, Joan, Sheila, Kathleen, Patricia and Ann – are six remarkable women who have lived to tell their tale of sisterhood and its unbreakable bonds in the shadow of World War Two.

The Sisters of Battle Road

The Extraordinary True Story of Six Sisters Evacuated from Wartime London

Jo Bailey-Merritt

When Sam Bailey-Merritt was just two years old, almost overnight he lost the ability to communicate or function. His mother, Jo, was at a loss as to what to do as she saw her son grow increasingly isolated and begin to suffer from uncontrollable meltdowns. Eventually, Sam was diagnosed with autism. 
 
Sam's condition continued to worsen and, just when Jo had all but given up hope of being able to help him, the family went on a day trip to a nearby miniature pig farm. Sam immediately bonded with a tiny ginger piglet called Chester, who stood sad and alone, apart from the rest of the litter. The connection between the boy and the animal was immediate and their unusual friendship blossomed from the moment the family brought Chester home. The tiny pig refused to leave Sam's side - it was as if he knew that Sam needed a friend. And, for the first time in five years, Jo saw her son really laugh. 
 
While Sam's confidence grew, Chester grew in a different way: the micro pig that was supposed to become the size of a Cocker Spaniel in fact ballooned to three times that size - with hilarious consequences for the family! Chester has turned Sam's life around. He now has the ability to communicate his feelings, make friends and is caring and kind towards others. 
 
Sam and Chester is the heart-warming story of how a teacup-sized ginger pig helped to transform the life of a boy with autism. It is the emotional story of a mother's fight to win back her son.

Sam and Chester

How a Mischievous Pig Transformed the Life of My Autistic Son

David Gemmell

The first in a four book series introducing the Rigante tribe, filled to the brim with epic and heroic battles, and mixing the intriguing worlds of Celtic Myth and ancient Earth Magic from the Sunday Times bestselling author David Gemmell. 
 
You will be gripped from page one...! Perfect for fans of Joe Abercrombie, Duncan M. Hamilton and Conn Iggulden. 
 
"Gemmell is several rungs above the good - right into the fabulous" -- Anne McCaffrey 
"When it comes to heroic fantasy, few do it better than David Gemmell." - Time Out 
"I was hooked from the first line..." - ***** Reader review 
"Compelling from start to finish..." - ***** Reader review 
 
**************************************************************************** 
 
Born in the storm that kills his father, Connavar grows up among the mountains of Caer Druagh, where the Rigante tribe dwell in harmony with the land and its gods. 
 
But beyond the border, across the water, an evil force is gathering strength - an unstoppable force that will change the world beyond all recognition. 
 
Haunted by malevolent spirits and hunted by evil men, Connavar sets out on a spectacular mission to defeat this new enemy... But he is a troubled soul, dogged by fate - will he be able to defend his tribe and save his people? 
 
The story of the Rigante continues in Midnight Falcon.

Sword In The Storm

The Rigante Book 1: A breath-taking, adrenalin–fuelled read from the master of heroic fantasy

Danielle Steel

THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER 
 
In her powerful memoir His Bright Light, Danielle Steel opened her heart to share the devastating story of the loss of her beloved son. In A Gift of Hope, she shows us how she transformed that pain into a campaign of service that enriched her life beyond what she could imagine. 
 
For eleven years, Danielle Steel took to the streets with a small team to help the homeless of San Francisco. She worked under cover of darkness distributing food, clothing, bedding, tools, and toiletries to the city’s most vulnerable citizens. She sought no publicity for her efforts and remained anonymous throughout. Now she has chosen to tell her story to bring attention to their plight. 
 
In this unflinchingly honest and deeply moving memoir, the famously private author speaks out publicly for the first time about her work among the most desperate members of society. She offers achingly acute portraits of the people she met along the way—and issues a heartfelt call for more effective action to aid this vast, deprived population. Determined to supply the homeless with the basic necessities to keep them alive, she ends up giving them something far more powerful: a voice. 
 
By turns candid and inspirational, Danielle Steel’s A Gift of Hope is a true act of advocacy and love.

A Gift of Hope

A moving and inspirational true story

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