Tag: BorrowBox

In this collection there is mystery and magic, laughter and mischief, the joy of shared times and plenty of delicious food – many of the ingredients that have been delighting Enid Blyton’s fans for more than seventy years.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Jilly Bond
Suitable for ages 3+

When Amelia wants a wish to come true she knows just the man to ask – Father Christmas.

But the magic she wants to believe in is starting to fade, and Father Christmas has more than impossible wishes to worry about. Upset elves, reindeers dropping out of the sky, angry trolls and the chance that Christmas might be cancelled.

But Amelia isn’t just any ordinary girl. And – as Father Christmas is going to find out – if Christmas is going to be saved, he might not be able to do it alone . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Carey Mulligan
Suitable for ages 5+

Winston the mouse is on a Very Important Mission. On Christmas Eve, he finds a letter that has gotten lost on its way to Father Christmas – so, with no time to lose, he sets out to deliver it himself in time for Christmas Day! He has a lot of Very Exciting Adventures on his Very Important Mission and makes some wonderful friends along the way.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Mathew Baynton
Suitable for ages 5+

Back to school, but it’s not all bad. Sports Day, the school fair and Tom’s birthday are all coming up. And even better, his awful big sister Delia won’t be at any of those events! On the downside, Granny Mavis is threatening to make his birthday cake – uh oh! But on the other hand, Mr Keen has asked Dogzombies to perform in front of the whole school! YEAH! Maybe they can even play at the school disco too. How can the term turn out any less than seriously amazing?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rupert Grint
Suitable for ages 7+

CINDER, a gifted mechanic in New Beijing, is also a cyborg. She’s reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s sudden illness. But when her life becomes entwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she finds herself at the centre of a violent struggle between the desires of an evil queen – and a dangerous temptation.

Cinder is caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal. Now she must uncover secrets about her mysterious past in order to protect Earth’s future.

This is not the fairytale you remember. But it’s one you won’t forget.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rebecca Soler
Suitable for ages 13+

Disillusioned journalist Tom Langdon must get from Washington to LA in time for Christmas. Forced to take the train across the country because of a slight ‘misunderstanding’ at airport security, he begins a journey of self-discovery and rude awakenings, mysterious goings-on and thrilling adventures, screwball escapades and holiday magic.
He has no idea that the locomotives pulling him across America will actually take him into the rugged terrain of his own heart, where he will rediscover people’s essential goodness and someone very special he believed he had lost.
In equal parts hilarious, poignant, suspenseful and thrilling, The Christmas Train by David Baldacci is a delightful journey filled with memorable characters who have packed their bags with as much wisdom as mischief . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Tim Matheson
Fiction

Ailsa Rae is learning how to live.

She’s only a few months past the heart transplant that – just in time – saved her life. Life should be a joyful adventure. But . . .

Her relationship with her mother is at breaking point and she wants to find her father. Have her friends left her behind? She’s felt so helpless for so long that she’s let polls on her blog make her decisions for her. She barely knows where to start on her own.

Then there’s Lennox. Her best friend and one time lover. He was sick too. He didn’t make it. And now she’s supposed to face all of this without him.

But her new heart is a bold heart.
She just needs to learn to listen to it . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Cathleen McCarron
Fiction

Last Seen Wearing is the second novel in Colin Dexter’s Oxford-set detective series.
Morse was beset by a nagging feeling. Most of his fanciful notions about the Taylor girl had evaporated and he had begun to suspect that further investigation into Valerie’s disappearance would involve little more than sober and tedious routine . . .
The statements before Inspector Morse appeared to confirm the bald, simple truth.
After leaving home to return to school, teenager Valerie Taylor had completely vanished, and the trail had gone cold.
Until two years, three months and two days after Valerie’s disappearance, somebody decides to supply some surprising new evidence for the case . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Samuel West
Fiction

London, 1937.

With a new king in place, tensions are rising in London and across Europe. Shaken by the Great Depression and with
talk of another war coming, the Buckingham Hotel is trying to regain some stability.

Upstairs, Vivienne Edgerton is desperate to do something worthwhile with her time and her stepfather’s money, rather than spending it on frivolity and debauchery – but will this land her in even more trouble?

And downstairs, chambermaid Nancy Nettleton is finally starting to feel more settled at the Buckingham, and hopes her brother will soon call London home, too. But she misses the man she loves, demonstration dancer Raymond de Guise, who is noticeably absent from the Grand Ballroom dance floor.

The staff and guests of the Buckingham soon discover that in a hotel full of secrets, there’s always someone listening . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Thomas Judd
Fiction

England 1648. A dangerous time for a woman to be different …

Midsummer’s Eve, 1648, and England is in the grip of civil war between renegade King and rebellious Parliament. The struggle reaches every corner of the kingdom, even to the remote Tidelands – the marshy landscape of the south coast.

Alinor, a descendant of wise women, crushed by poverty and superstition, waits in the graveyard under the full moon for a ghost who will declare her free from her abusive husband. Instead she meets James, a young man on the run, and shows him the secret ways across the treacherous marsh, not knowing that she is leading disaster into the heart of her life.

Suspected of possessing dark secrets in superstitious times, Alinor’s ambition and determination mark her out from her neighbours. This is the time of witch-mania, and Alinor, a woman without a husband, skilled with herbs, suddenly enriched, arouses envy in her rivals and fear among the villagers, who are ready to take lethal action into their own hands.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Louise Brealey
Fiction

Everybody believes that Charlotte Lucas has no prospects. She is unmarried, plain, poor and reaching a dangerous age. When she stuns the neighbourhood by accepting the proposal of buffoonish clergyman Mr Collins, her best friend Lizzy Bennet is appalled by her decision. Yet this is the only way Charlotte knows how to provide for her future. Her married life will propel her into a new world: not only of duty and longed-for children, but secrets, grief, unexpected love and friendship, and a kind of freedom.

Jane Austen cared deeply about the constraints on women in Regency England. This powerful reimagining takes up where Austen left off in Pride and Prejudice, showing us a woman determined to carve a place for herself in the world. Charlotte offers a fresh, feminist addition to the post-Austen canon, beautifully imagined, and brimming with passion and intelligence.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Isabella Inchbald
Fiction

When Alice Love surfaces from a beautiful dream to find she’s been injured in a gym, she knows that something is very wrong – she hates exercise. Alice’s first concern is her baby – she’s pregnant with her first child, and she’s desperate to see her husband, Nick, who she knows will be worried about her.

But Alice isn’t pregnant. And Nick isn’t worried. Alice is the mother of three children and her hostile husband is in the process of divorcing her. Alice has lost ten years of her life.

In the days that follow, small bubbles of the past rise to the surface, and Alice is forced to confront uncomfortable truths. It turns out forgetting might be the most memorable thing that’s ever happened to her.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Caroline Lee
Fiction

Her beauty saved her life – and condemned her.

Cilka was only sixteen-years-old when she was taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp, in 1942. The Commandant at Birkenau, Schwarzhuber, noticed her long beautiful hair, and forced her separation from the other women prisoners.

Cilka did what she had to in order to survive Auschwitz. And yet after Russian soldiers liberated Auschwitz in 1945, Cilka was charged as a collaborator and sentenced to serve a fifteen-year sentence for ‘sleeping with the enemy’. Once again, she found herself on a brutal train journey, crammed into a carriage with many desperate women and children. This time, her destination was Siberia. She was by then only eighteen-years-old.

So began a new life of horror and brutality in a prison camp close to the Arctic Circle. But in this unimaginable darkness, this terror beyond terror, Cilka found endless resources within herself, her profound humanity and determination helping her to survive against all odds.

Cilka’s Journey is a remarkable novel of courage and resilience, based upon the heart-breaking true story of Cilka Klein.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Louise Brealey
Fiction

A warm-hearted and nostalgic festive family saga – Will Tilly finally find a family to call her own?

As Christmas grows nearer, Tilly, a young maid, is sent away from her home in London to care for a sick child in an old cottage on the Isle of Sheppey, and she little imagines how her life will change . . .

Having settled in with her new family, Tilly dares to believe that the happiness she’s longed for could be hers at last, and that she might finally be free from the secrets of her past. But tragedy strikes, and Tilly is forced to return to London, leaving the cottage under the sea wall – and her new life – behind.

As war approaches and new challenges arise, will Tilly be able to overcome her struggles and find her way home?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Eve Webster
Fiction

How do you make a commitment and achieve your goals?
How do you end procrastination and hesitation that feeds self-doubt?
How do you learn to be courageous in all aspects of your life?

Ex-Special Forces soldier Ollie Ollerton knows more than his fair share about keeping going. As a recruit he survived the infamously tough SAS selection process on a busted ankle with the Directing Staff pleading with him to give up. But it’s in Ollie’s personal life that he really had to dig deep. At his lowest he was battling a failed relationship, substance abuse, depression and a reckless disregard for his own life. In his new book Ollie tells the story of how he turned his life around and passes on the lessons he has learned.

In Battle Ready Ollie shares the step-by-step plan that changed his life. From finding purpose and visualising an outcome, to breaking bad habits and establishing positive new routines, his advice will help readers to overcome their own obstacles; to become ready for any battle.

Featuring an exclusive debrief with Ollie and Jason Fox (co-host of SAS: Who Dares Wins, and author of Battle Scars and Life Under Fire).

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Ollie Ollerton
Non-Fiction

There are things only a President can know.

There are things only a President can do.

And then there are times when the only option is unthinkable …

The President is Missing.

The thriller only a president could write.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by January LaVoy, Mozhan Marnò, Peter Ganim, Dennis Quaid and Jeremy Davidson
Fiction

In this masterpiece of nature writing, Nan Shepherd describes her journeys into the Cairngorm mountains of Scotland. There she encounters a world that can be breathtakingly beautiful at times and shockingly harsh at others. Her intense, poetic prose explores and records the rocks, rivers, creatures and hidden aspects of this remarkable landscape.

Shepherd spent a lifetime in search of the ‘essential nature’ of the Cairngorms; her quest led her to write this classic meditation on the magnificence of mountains, and on our imaginative relationship with the wild world around us. Composed during the Second World War, the manuscript of The Living Mountain lay untouched for more than thirty years before it was finally published.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Tilda Swinton
Non-Fiction

Fame and popularity breed envy in high places, and the adulation of the mob is fickle. They often take as much pleasure in tearing down the idols that they have grown tired of as they did in elevating them in the first place. It is safer by far to live unseen and unremarked, as I always attempt to do.

An ancient kingdom. An incredible destiny.

Taita is a humble slave, an expert in art, poetry, medicine and engineering as well as keeping important secrets. He is the most treasured possession of Lord Intef. Yet when Intef’s beautiful daughter, Lostris, is married to the Pharaoh, Taita is commanded to follow her and swiftly finds himself deeper than he ever could have imagined in a world of deception and treachery.

But outside the palace, the great kingdom of Egypt is divided and in even greater danger. Enemies threaten on all sides, and only Taita holds the power to save them all….

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Mark Meadows
Fiction

No secret stays buried forever . . .
In London, the snow is falling and Christmas is just around the corner – but Allegra Fisher barely has time to notice. She’s pitching for the biggest deal of her career and can’t afford to fail. And when she meets attractive stranger, Sam Kemp, on the plane to the meeting, she can’t afford to lose her focus either. She learned to shut off her emotions long ago and only her sister and best friend Isobel knows why. But when Allegra finds herself up against Sam for the bid, their passion quickly turns sour.
In Zermatt in the Swiss Alps, a long-lost mountain hut is discovered in the snow after sixty years and the last person expecting to become involved is Allegra – she hasn’t even heard of the woman they found inside. But it soon becomes clear the two women are linked and, as she and Iz travel out to make sense of the mystery, hearts thaw and dark secrets are uncovered, long buried by the snow.
With glamorous locations and heart-breaking twists, Christmas in the Snow by Karen Swan is all you need in your stocking for a truly decadent Christmas holiday. The perfect gift – even if it’s just to yourself.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Katie Scarfe
Fiction

An unlikely friendship. A dangerous voyage. A story about what it means to be human.
Humans went extinct thirty years ago. Now the world is ruled by machines. And twelve-year-old robot XR_935 is just fine with that. Without humans around, there is no war, no pollution, no crime. Every member of society has a purpose. Everything runs smoothly and efficiently.
Until the day XR discovers something impossible.
Until the day XR discovers a twelve-year-old human.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Paul Panting
Suitable for ages 10+

The monster showed up after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming…

This monster is something different though. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.

It wants the truth.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Jason Isaacs and Patrick Ness
Suitable for ages 13+

From London – Georgia gets straight As at school, writes essays for fun, has been placed first in twenty-six drone races and has a serious addiction to buying Japanese stationery. She plans to follow her older sister Sophie and become a doctor, but her worldview is shattered when Sophie commits suicide. To Lagos – Julius lives in Ondo, a Nigerian state where half the population lives on less than a dollar a day. But he isn’t one of them. His uncle has been governor of Ondo for more than a decade and his mother is the power behind that throne. He finds refuge in a derelict zoo with best friend Duke, but as the two of them grow close, the world outside becomes more and more hostile.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Esme Sears
Suitable for ages 14+

This is not a detective story, this is a story about a detective

William Warwick has always wanted to be a detective, and decides, much to his father’s dismay, that rather than become a barrister like his father, Sir Julian Warwick QC, and his sister Grace, he will join London’s Metropolitan Police Force.

After graduating from university, William begins a career that will define his life: from his early months on the beat under the watchful eye of his first mentor, Constable Fred Yates, to his first high-stakes case as a fledgling detective in Scotland Yard’s Art and Antiques squad. Investigating the theft of a priceless Rembrandt painting from the Fitzmolean Museum, he meets Beth Rainsford, a research assistant at the gallery who he falls hopelessly in love with, even as Beth guards a secret of her own that she’s terrified will come to light.

While William follows the trail of the missing masterpiece, he comes up against suave art collector Miles Faulkner and his brilliant lawyer, Booth Watson QC, who are willing to bend the law to breaking point to stay one step ahead of William. Meanwhile, Miles Faulkner’s wife, Christina, befriends William, but whose side is she really on?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by George Blagden
Fiction

‘Watch your step. Keep your wits about you; you will need them . . .’

So begins this irresistible voyage into the dark side of Victorian London. Amongst an unforgettable cast of low-lifes, physicians, businessmen and prostitutes, meet our heroine Sugar, a young woman trying to drag herself up from the gutter any way she can. Be prepared for a mesmerising tale of passion, intrigue, ambition and revenge.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Jill Tanner
Fiction

Two women from different worlds. And a secret that will change everything…

London, 1754. Six years after leaving her illegitimate daughter Clara at London’s Foundling Hospital, Bess Bright returns to reclaim the child she has never known. Dreading the worst – that Clara has died in care – the last thing she expects to hear is that her daughter has already been reclaimed – by her. Her life is turned upside down as she tries to find out who has taken her little girl – and why.

Less than a mile from Bess’ lodgings in the city, in a quiet, gloomy townhouse on the edge of London, a young widow has not left the house in a decade. When her close friend – an ambitious young doctor at the Foundling Hospital – persuades her to hire a nursemaid for her daughter, she is hesitant to welcome someone new into her home and her life. But her past is threatening to catch up with her and tear her carefully constructed world apart.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Laura Aikman and Hattie Morahan
Fiction

From the number one bestselling author, Peter James, comes an explosive standalone thriller that will grip you and won’t let go until the very last page.

Investigative reporter Ross Hunter nearly didn’t answer the phone call that would change his life – and possibly the world – for ever.

‘I’d just like to assure you I’m not a nutcase, Mr Hunter. My name is Dr Harry F. Cook. I know this is going to sound strange, but I’ve recently been given absolute proof of God’s existence – and I’ve been advised there is a writer, a respected journalist called Ross Hunter, who could help me to get taken seriously.’

What would it take to prove the existence of God? And what would be the consequences?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Hugh Bonneville
Fiction

After being together for ten years, Sylvie and Dan have a comfortable home, fulfilling jobs, beautiful twin girls, and communicate so seamlessly, they finish each other’s sentences. They have a happy marriage and believe they know everything there is to know about each other. Until it’s casually mentioned to them that they could be together for another 68 years … and panic sets in.

They quickly decide to create little surprises for each other, to keep their relationship fresh and fun. But in their pursuit of Project Surprise Me – anything from unexpected gifts to restaurant dates to photo shoots – mishaps arise with disastrous and comical results.

Gradually, the surprises turn to shocking discoveries. And when a scandal from the past is uncovered, they begin to wonder if they ever really knew each other after all…

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Fiona Hardingham
Fiction

She must fight to prove herself . . . before it’s too late

DCI Jane Tennison came through the ranks the hard way, opposed and resented at every step by her male colleagues.

When a prostitute is found murdered in her bedsit, the Metropolitan police set to work finding the perpetrator of this brutal attack. DNA samples lead them straight to known-criminal George Marlow. The police think they’ve found their man, but things are not quite what they seem. . .

Desperate to remove all doubt around her suspect, Tennison struggles to make the charges stick. And then a second body turns up.

With the team against her, DCI Jane Tennison is in a race against time to catch a dangerous criminal ­- and prove she’s just as tough as any man.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rachel Atkins
Fiction

She says he’s perfect. I know he’s lying . . .

He caught me watching, and our eyes met. That was when it hit me.
There was something not quite right about my daughter’s new boyfriend. . .

The doting father

Ed finally meets his daughter’s boyfriend for the first time. Smart, successful and handsome, Ryan appears to be a real catch. Then Abbie announces their plan to get married.

The perfect fiancé
There’s just one problem. Ed thinks Ryan is lying to them.
Who would you believe?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Philip Stevens
Fiction

The most moving and powerful novel of our times, inspired by true events.
We all have something to tell those we have lost . . .

When Yui loses her mother and daughter in the tsunami, she wonders how she will ever carry on. Yet, in the face of this unthinkable loss, life must somehow continue.

Then one day she hears about a man who has an old disused telephone box in his garden. There, those who have lost loved ones find the strength to speak to them and begin to come to terms with their grief. As news of the phone box spreads, people will travel to it from miles around.

Soon Yui will make her own pilgrimage to the phone box, too. But once there she cannot bring herself to speak into the receiver. Then she finds Takeshi, a bereaved husband whose own daughter has stopped talking in the wake of their loss.

What happens next will warm your heart, even when it feels as though it is breaking.
For when you’ve lost everything – what can you find . . ?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Yuriri Naka
Fiction

Here is an unbelievable journey to the truth of life as a GP, through spilt urine bottles, the patients who should have been in hospital months ago, existential crises, utterly unexplainable health problems and awkward silences.

Being a GP is a job that requires you to be a detective, relationship counsellor, social worker, friend, sex therapist, parent-fi gure and sometimes, just sometimes, a doctor.

Find out why you only get ten minutes with a GP, why you can never see the same doctor and why they are ALWAYS running late. This is what really goes on in your local doctor’s surgery, through the tired yet tireless eyes of a doctor who, despite it all, really loves his job.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Kris Dyer
Non-Fiction

The lives of the Barretts, a suburban New England family, are torn apart when 14-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia. To her parents despair, the doctors are unable to halt Marjorie’s descent into madness. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they reluctantly turn to a local Catholic priest for help, and soon find themselves the unwitting stars of The Possession, a hit reality television show. When events in the Barrett household explode in tragedy, the show and the shocking incidents it captures become the stuff of urban legend.

Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry. As she recalls the terrifying events that took place when she was just eight years old, long-buried secrets and painful memories begin to surface and a mind-bending tale of psychological horror is unleashed.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Joy Osmanski
Fiction

Odo and Eleanor are now officially knights, helped (and sometimes hindered) by their magical but rather difficult to control magical swords. But if they thought life as a knight was going to be easy, they are wrong! Before they know it, their first task is to tackle some ferocious bile wolves! A funny fantasy triumph from Garth Nix and Sean Williams, the perfect sequel to Have Sword, Will Travel.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Oliver Hembrough
Suitable for ages 8+

Twelve-year-old Joe Warden isn’t happy. Sure, he’s rich, but his parents don’t care about him. His grandmother should make everything better, except that Joe’s granny is a nightmare. She’s not just physically repulsive, she’s horribly mean. Everyone thinks she’s just a dotty old woman, but Joe knows the truth. He’s seen behind her mask and glimpsed the wicked glimmer in her eyes – she is pure evil. And now she’s out to get Joe, unless he can stop her and her band of nasty grannies first.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Nickolas Grace
Suitable for ages 10+

It’s late one night at the Spanish port of Algeciras and two fading Irish gangsters are waiting on the boat from Tangier. A lover has been lost, a daughter has gone missing, their world has come asunder – can it be put together again?

Night Boat to Tangier is a novel drenched in sex and death and narcotics, in sudden violence and old magic, but it is obsessed, above all, with the mysteries of love. A tragicomic masterwork from a multi-award-winning writer, Night Boat to Tangier is both mordant and hilarious, lyrical yet laden with menace.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Kevin Barry
Fiction

Cotswolds inhabitants are used to inclement weather, but the night sky is especially foggy as Rory and Molly Devere, the new vicar and his wife, drive slowly home from a dinner party in their village of Sumpton Harcourt. They strain to see the road ahead – and then suddenly brake, screeching to a halt. Right in front of them, aglow in the headlights, a body hangs from a gnarled tree at the edge of town. Margaret Darby, an elderly spinster, has been murdered – and the villagers are bewildered as to who would commit such a crime.

Agatha Raisin rises to the occasion (a little glad for the excitement, to tell the truth, after a long run of lost cats and divorces on the books). But Sumpton Harcourt is a small and private village, she finds – a place that poses more questions than answers. And when two more murders follow the first, Agatha begins to fear for her reputation – and even her life. That the village has its own coven of witches certainly doesn’t make her feel any better …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Penelope Keith
Fiction

n February 2014, Reni Eddo-Lodge posted an impassioned argument on her blog about her deep-seated frustration with the way discussions of race and racism in Britain were constantly being shut down by those who weren’t affected by it. She gave the post the title ‘Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race’. Her sharp, fiercely intelligent words hit a nerve, and the post went viral, spawning a huge number of comments from people desperate to speak up about their own similar experiences.

Galvanised by this response, Eddo-Lodge decided to dive into the source of these feelings, this clear hunger for an open discussion. The result is a searing, illuminating, absolutely necessary exploration of what it is to be a person of colour in Britain today, covering issues from eradicated black history to white privilege, the fallacy of ‘meritocracy’ to whitewashing feminism, and the inextricable link between class and race. Full of passionate, personal and keenly felt argument, Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race is a wake-up call to a nation in denial about the structural and institutional racism occurring in our homes.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Reni Eddo-Lodge
Non-Fiction

He is known to the Germans as ‘Sphinx’, to others as Alex Wolff, a European businessman. He arrives suddenly in Cairo from out of the desert, armed with a radio set, a lethal blade and a copy of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca – a ruthless man with a burning, relentless conviction that he will win at all costs.

The stakes are high, for the survival of the British campaign in North Africa is in the balance. Only Major William Vandam, an intelligence officer, and the beautiful courtesan Elene can put an end to Wolff’s brilliant clandestine reports of British troop movements and strategic plans.

As Rommel’s troops come closer to victory, Vandam edges nearer to Wolff and the crucial key. Follett builds tension and suspense to a nerve-tearing pitch as he follows the adversaries across the infernal desert to a confrontation which will determine who wins – and loses – in this deathly struggle.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Tim Downie
Fiction

When she’s not digging up bones or other ancient objects, Ruth Galloway lectures at the University of North Norfolk. She lives happily alone in a remote place called Saltmarsh overlooking the North Sea and, for company; she has her cats Flint and Sparky, and Radio 4. When a child’s bones are found in the marshes near an ancient site that Ruth worked on ten years earlier, Ruth is asked to date them.

The bones turn out to be 2000 years old, and DCI Harry Nelson, who called on Ruth for help, is disappointed. He’d hoped they would be the bones of a child called Lucy who’s been missing for ten years; he’s been getting letters about her ever since. Then a second girl goes missing and Nelson receives more letters.

Soon it becomes clear that Ruth is in grave danger from a killer who knows that her expert knowledge is being used to help the police with their enquiries.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Jane McDowell
Fiction

After the Sickness has killed off her parents, and the bombs have fallen on the last safe cities, Monster emerges from the Arctic vault which has kept her alive. When she washes up on the coast of Scotland, everyone she knows is dead, and she believes she is alone in an empty world. Monster begins the long walk south, scavenging and learning the contours of this familiar land made new. Slowly, piece by piece, she begins to rebuild a life. Until, one day, she finds a girl: another survivor, feral, and ready to be taught all that Monster knows. But the lessons the girl learns are not always those Monster means to teach . . . I

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Christine Hewitt
Fiction

When a creature dies, its spirit can go looking for somewhere to hide.
Some people have space inside them, perfect for hiding.

Makepeace, a courageous girl with a mysterious past, defends herself nightly from the ghosts which try to possess her. Then a dreadful event causes her to drop her guard for a moment.
And now there’s a ghost inside her.
The spirit is wild, brutish and strong, but it may be her only defence in a time of dark suspicion and fear. As the English Civil War erupts, Makepeace must decide which is worse: possession – or death.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Tuppence Middleton
Fiction

Perdita Lee may appear your average British schoolgirl; Harriet Lee may seem just a working mother trying to penetrate the school social hierarchy; but there are signs that they might not be as normal as they think they are. For one thing, they share a gold-painted, seventh-floor flat with some surprisingly verbal vegetation. And then there’s the gingerbread they make. Londoners may find themselves able to take or leave it, but it’s very popular in Druhástrana, the far-away (and, according to Wikipedia, non-existent) land of Harriet Lee’s early youth. In fact, the world’s truest lover of the Lee family gingerbread is Harriet’s charismatic childhood friend, Gretel Kercheval – a figure who seems to have had a hand in everything (good or bad) that has happened to Harriet since they met.

Years later, when teenaged Perdita sets out to find her mother’s long-lost friend, it prompts a new telling of Harriet’s story, as well as a reunion or two. As the book follows the Lees through encounters with jealousy, ambition, family grudges, work, wealth, and real estate, gingerbread seems to be the one thing that reliably holds a constant value.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Helen Oyeyemi
Fiction

London, 1960

The lives of teenage twins Maisy and Duncan change for ever the night their sick mother is taken to an asylum. Sent to live in the New Forest with their cold-hearted grandmother, Mrs Mitcham, they feel unloved and abandoned.

At least they have each other.

But one day Duncan doesn’t come home from exploring in the forest and no one – least of all his grandmother – appears to care about his disappearance. The police, who’ve found the bodies of other missing boys, offer little hope of finding Duncan alive.

Yet Maisy refuses to give up. Though she doesn’t know the woods well, she knows someone who does. The strange old woman who lives at their heart.

Dare Maisy enlist the help of the woman in the wood?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rosie Jones
Fiction

Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine and Mary-Jane are famous for the same thing, though they never met. They came from Fleet Street, Knightsbridge, Wolverhampton, Sweden and Wales. They wrote ballads, ran coffee houses, lived on country estates, they breathed ink-dust from printing presses and escaped people-traffickers.

What they had in common was the year of their murders: 1888. The person responsible was never identified, but the character created by the press to fill that gap has become far more famous than any of these five women.

For more than a century, newspapers have been keen to tell us that ‘the Ripper’ preyed on prostitutes. Not only is this untrue, as historian Hallie Rubenhold has discovered, it has prevented the real stories of these fascinating women from being told. Now, in this devastating narrative of five lives, Rubenhold finally sets the record straight, revealing a world not just of Dickens and Queen Victoria, but of poverty, homelessness and rampant misogyny. They died because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time – but their greatest misfortune was to be born a woman.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Louise Brealey
Non-Fiction

Julie is devastated to learn that her husband, Paul, is having an affair. It seems her life can’t get any worse – until she comes home to find his dead body in their bed.

When the police establish he was murdered, Julie is the obvious suspect. To protect her son from the terrible situation, Julie sends the teenage boy to his grandparents in Edinburgh while she fights to prove her innocence.

With all the evidence pointing to her, the only way she can escape conviction is by discovering the true identity of her husband’s killer. But who really did murder Paul?

The truth is never straightforward …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Phillipa Leigh
Fiction

Celie has grown up poor in rural Georgia, despised by the society around her and abused by her own family. She strives to protect her sister, Nettie, from a similar fate, and while Nettie escapes to a new life as a missionary in Africa, Celie is left behind without her best friend and confidante, married off to an older suitor, and sentenced to a life alone with a harsh and brutal husband.

In an attempt to transcend a life that often seems too much to bear, Celie begins writing letters directly to God. The letters, spanning 20 years, record a journey of self-discovery and empowerment guided by the light of a few strong women. She meets Shug Avery, her husband’s mistress and a jazz singer with a zest for life, and her stepson’s wife, Sophia, who challenges her to fight for independence. And though the many letters from Celie’s sister are hidden by her husband, Nettie’s unwavering support will prove to be the most breathtaking of all.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Alice Walker
Fiction

Rebecca Neumanner’s marriage is on the brink of collapse, as her desire to be a mother becomes an obsession. Then she receives news from her estranged family in Rhodes.

Called back to the beautiful Greek island of her birth, she realises how little she knows of the grandmother she has eluded for over a decade. Bubba has never spoken of the Nazi occupation during her youth, but there have always been whispers. What desperate measures did she take that terrible day in 1944 when her family was ripped apart? Can the rumour she had blood on her own hands really be true? But Bubba intends to take her secrets to the grave.

However, as Rebecca arrives on Rhodes, bringing the promise of new life, this broken family must come together. The time has come to tell the truth about the darkest of days . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Lucy Paterson 
Fiction

At dinnertime Chef Marge cooks up chocolate soup, and at school Marge the Musician conducts a chaotic concert in the playground!

In these three stories, Jake and Jemima have brilliant fun with their new babysitter, but will they manage to tick off all the jobs on Mummy’s list? The first in a fresh, fun, family – friendly series written by actor and comedian Isla Fisher.

Hold onto your rollerskates because Marge is in charge!

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Isla Fisher
Suitable for ages 5+

Best friends Freddy and Sal have accidentally intercepted a message from Alan – a spectacularly grumpy, brain-munching alien from outer space. Alan has only one message. Earth is going to be invaded in exactly ten hours’ time.

Soon the police, NASA and even Presidents from around the world are getting involved – and Freddy is about to become the most famous kid on planet earth for all the wrong reasons. Wolverhampton, we have a problem.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Helen Monks
Suitable for ages 7+

Two young women from totally different backgrounds are thrown together during World War II: one a working-class girl from Manchester, the other a Scottish aristocrat, one a pilot, the other a wireless operator. Yet whenever their paths cross, they complement each other perfectly and before long become devoted friends. But then a vital mission goes wrong, and one of the friends has to bail out of a faulty plane over France. She is captured by the Gestapo and becomes a prisoner of war.

The story begins in Verity’s own words, as she writes her account for her captors.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Lucy Gaskell and Morven Christie
Suitable for ages 13+

When a family man is killed at point blank range in his home, it shakes a sleepy town to its core. The murder is a strange, horrifying crime but for the authorities it’s an open-and-shut case.

Ten years on, the victim’s daughter, Josie, has started afresh in New York – far from the tragic events that blew her family apart. No-one knows the truth about her previous life, not even her fiancé.

Investigative journalist Poppy is convinced the wrong man is in jail for the murder and she’s determined to prove it. What starts off as a true-crime podcast snowballs into a national phenomenon and everyone has an opinion on the case. Poppy’s relentless pursuit of the truth threatens to expose old secrets. Josie realizes that her father’s murder could have consequences more devastating than she had ever imagined.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Rebekkah Ross
Fiction

A picture hides a thousand words …

On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn’t know she had, she remains a mystery – no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery.

The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. Into this fragile paradise come artist and revolutionary Isaac Robles and his half-sister Teresa, who immediately insinuate themselves into the Schloss family, with explosive and devastating consequences …

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Cathy Tyson
Fiction

There are so many stories hidden behind closed doors . . .

It’s late at night and the rain is pouring down on the Dublin city streets. A mother is grieving for her dead child. She stands silently outside the home of the teenage boy she believes responsible. She watches . . .

In a kitchen on the same square, a girl waits anxiously for her mum to come home. She knows exactly where she is, but she knows she cannot reach her.
A few doors down, and a widow sits alone in her room. She has just delivered a bombshell to her family during dinner and her life is about to change forever.
And an aspiring theatre director has just moved in to a flat across the street. Her landlord is absent, but there are already things about him that don’t quite add up . . .

Welcome to Primrose Square.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Aoife McMahon
Fiction

It is 1866, and Walter Moody has come to make his fortune upon the New Zealand goldfields. On arrival, he stumbles across a tense gathering of twelve local men, who have met in secret to discuss a series of unsolved crimes. A wealthy man has vanished, a whore has tried to end her life, and an enormous fortune has been discovered in the home of a luckless drunk. Moody is soon drawn into the mystery: a network of fates and fortunes that is as complex and exquisitely patterned as the night sky.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Mark Meadows
Fiction

A decade ago, kidnappers grabbed two boys from wealthy families and demanded ransom, then went silent. No trace of the boys ever surfaced. For ten years their families have been left with nothing but painful memories and a quiet desperation for the day that has finally, miraculously arrived: Myron Bolitar and his friend Win believe they have located one of the boys, now a teenager. Where has he been for ten years, and what does he know about the day, more than half a life ago, when he was taken? And most critically: What can he tell Myron and Win about the fate of his missing friend?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Steven Weber
Fiction

This was never the story of one woman, or two. It was the story of all of them. . .

In the middle of the night, Creusa wakes to find her beloved Troy engulfed in flames. Ten seemingly endless years of brutal conflict between the Greeks and the Trojans are over, and the Greeks are victorious. Over the next few hours, the only life she has ever known will turn to ash . . .

The devastating consequences of the fall of Troy stretch from Mount Olympus to Mount Ida, from the citadel of Troy to the distant Greek islands, and across oceans and sky in between. These are the stories of the women embroiled in that legendary war and its terrible aftermath, as well as the feud and the fatal decisions that started it all. . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Natalie Haynes
Fiction

Timely, humorous and deeply moving. This is the absolute standout new novel by acclaimed author (and 2018 Asian Woman of Achievement nominee) Ayisha Malik

For years Bilal Hasham and his wife Mariam have lived contented, quiet lives in the sleepy rural village of Babbel’s End. Now all that is about to change.

On her deathbed, Bilal’s mother reaches for his hand. Instead of whispering her final prayers, she gives him a task: build a mosque in his country village.

Mariam is horrified by Bilal’s plan. His friends and neighbours are unnerved. As outrage sweeps Babbel’s End, battle lines are drawn. His mother’s dying wish reveals deeper divisions in their village than Bilal had ever imagined.

Soon Bilal is forced to choose between community and identity, between faith and friendship, between honouring his beloved mother’s last wish and preserving what is held dear in the place that he calls home.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Rita Sharma
Fiction

London, 1941. Emmeline Lake and her best friend Bunty are trying to stay cheerful despite the Luftwaffe making life thoroughly annoying for everyone. Emmy dreams of becoming a Lady War Correspondent and when she spots a job advertisement in the newspaper she seizes her chance – but after a rather unfortunate misunderstanding, she finds herself typing letters for the formidable Henrietta Bird, the renowned agony aunt of Woman’s Friend magazine.
Mrs Bird is very clear: letters containing any form of Unpleasantness must go straight into the bin. But as Emmy reads the desperate pleas from women who may have Gone Too Far with the wrong man, or can’t bear to let their children be evacuated, she decides the only thing for it is to secretly write back . . .

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Anna Popplewell
Fiction

At the age of seventeen, after a childhood in an fostered family followed by six years in care homes, Norman Greenwood was given his birth certificate. He learned that his real name was not Norman. It was Lemn Sissay. He was British and Ethiopian. And he learned that his mother had been pleading for his safe return to her since his birth.

Here Sissay recounts his life story. It is a story of neglect and determination. Misfortune and hope. Cruelty and triumph.

Sissay reflects on a childhood in care, self-expression and Britishness, and in doing so explores the institutional care system, race, family and the meaning of home. Written with all the lyricism and power you would expect from one of the nation’s best-loved poets, this moving, frank and timely memoir is the result of a life spent asking questions, and a celebration of the redemptive power of creativity.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Zoe Mills, Lemn Sissay and Richard Burnip
Non-Fiction

Amelia Fang is the biggest hearted vampiress you’ll ever meet. In this adventure, she and her friends Florence the yeti (DON’T CALL HER BEAST), Grimaldi the Death and Prince Tangine (reformed spoiled sprout), along with her pet pumpkin Squashy, must brave the journey to the terrifying Kingdom of the Light to try to find Tangine’s missing mother, Queen Fairyweather.

But with unicorns, fairies and angel-kittens lurking around every corner, who can they trust? And will they finally uncover the real villain keeping the kingdoms of Light and Dark as mortal enemies?

Join Amelia on her latest adventure. She won’t bite!

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Zoe Thorne
Suitable for ages 7+

Mira CAN’T WAIT to start Unicorn School. (Her big sister goes and won’t stop going on about it.). But when Mira arrives on her first day all the unicorns are gone … except Dave!

Dave isn’t quite the sparkly unicorn Mira was expecting to find at the end of the rainbow – he’s more grumpy than glittery, more interested in lunch than magical Quests and he always runs off when Mira tries to ride him – but Mira’s not going to let that get her down. Along with her new friends and their (much more glittery) unicorns, she is determined to be the best at Quests and protect the special unicorn world!

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Carlyss Peer
Suitable for ages 6+

Brer Rabbit will never learn! He loves to play jokes, tricks and set traps for his friends – but once in a while, they beat him at his own game!

Enid Blyton is arguably the most famous children’s author of all-time, thanks to series such as the Wishing-Chair, the Faraway Tree, the Mysteries, the Famous Five and the Secret Seven.

In these two Brer Rabbit stories, listeners can enjoy all the magic, fun and adventure one can be guaranteed of when they open a Blyton classic.

Until a certain young chick catches his eye, that is …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Alan Davies
Suitable for ages 3+

‘Once upon a time, a mysterious time that exists through a window in your mind, a time that seemed, to those present, exactly like now does to us, except their teeth weren’t so clean and more things were wooden, there was a town called Hamelin . . .’

In the first in his series of Trickster Tales, Russell Brand retells the classic children’s story The Pied Piper of Hamelin. You’ll be enchanted and revolted in equal measure by the host of characters you meet along the way: the anarchic rats, the arrogant townspeople, sharp-eyed Sam and of course the Pied Piper himself, all brought to life in Brand’s inimitable style.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Russell Brand
Suitable for ages 8+

The first in a fast-paced, funny series featuring The Stig: Top Gear’s legendary racing driver

Sam Wheeler may be the new boy in Bunsfold, but he’s got a feeling that all is not well either in the town or at Bunsfold High – and he’s not just talking about the maths teacher with the unfortunate flatulence. A local boy, Buster Mustang, has recently gone missing, and no one seems to care – they’re all too busy playing the highly addictive video game Xenon or getting the town ready for its very first TT race. Both are the brainchild of mysterious local billionaire PT Cruiser. Besides global domination, PT Cruiser wants nothing more than to destroy his nemesis The Stig once and for all – and his TT race is just what he needs to tempt him on to the big stage again …

Sam sets out with his new friends Minnie Cooper and Ford Harrison to uncover the truth behind all the strange goings-on in Bunsfold – but danger has a habit of showing up wherever they do, and soon all that stands between our heroes and disaster is … a taciturn man in a white suit.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Cel Spellman
Suitable for ages 8+

The doctor says Ed needs ‘correction shoes’. Disaster! Everybody will laugh at him. Ed uses every trick he can think of not to wear the shoes. He even tries DIY foot-straighteners! But it’s no use. The shoes arrive. Ed opens the box, and the shoes are not as bad as he’d thought. They’re worse!

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Morgan C. Jones
Suitable for ages 6+

Two refugee brothers from Mongolia are determined to fit in with their Liverpool schoolmates, but bring so much of Mongolia to Bootle that their new friend and guide, Julie, is hard-pressed to know truth from fantasy as she recollects a wonderful friendship that was abruptly ended when Chingis and his family were forced to return to Mongolia. Told with the humour, warmth and brilliance of detail which characterises Frank Cottrell Boyce’s writing, The Unforgotten Coat is a magical and compelling story.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Katy Sobey
Suitable for ages 10+

Witches are creating havoc in the Wildwoods and danger lurks behind every tree trunk. Wish is in possession of a powerful, Magic Spelling Book. Xar has a dangerous Witchstain on his hand.

Wish and Xar are separated by the highest wall imaginable. But time is running out …

It was unlikely that these heroes should meet in the first place. Is it possible they are destined to meet TWICE?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by David Tennant
Suitable for ages 8+

Eva is the girl with everything. Her parents throw her lavish parties in their luxury home, and her friends admire her designer clothes and manicured nails. But Eva’s world is turned upside down when her father loses his job.

Rich, spoilt, high-maintenance Eva Gordon likes fancy, sophisticated things, so when her parents sell their holiday home and their expensive car, Eva can’t understand why.

But when Eva’s dad loses his job and she has to move house and change schools, she realises life has changed for good. She’s determined to hate her new life, until a chance visit to a fortune teller gives her the idea that doing good may help her to get her old life back. Eva (with the help of her friend Victoria) starts to help all around her, whether they want it or not!

The story of Eva’s Journey from spoilt princess to pretty cool girl!

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Caroline Lennon
Suitable for ages 10+

Dak’s dad has been dead for seven days when suddenly he reappears. He’s the same in almost every way, with one startling exception: Dad has turned into a clownfish, and now lives in a tank at their local aquarium. Dak is delighted by the news – he has Dad back, even if he isn’t quite as he was before. Deciding to keep Dad’s transformation a secret, Dak visits him at the aquarium as often as he can, and ends up spending so much time there that they offer him a job.

This is how he comes to meet Violet, the owner’s prickly but kindhearted niece; when the aquarium is threatened with closure, the pair must work together to save it. For Dak, the stakes couldn’t be higher … after all, if the aquarium shuts down, what will happen to the fish?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Piers Hampton
Suitable for ages 9+

Marge is back and exploring the neighbourhood with the kids! With some help from Jemima and Jake, can she stay in charge and keep ‘pirate’ baby Zara under control? And can the children make sure Marge behaves at Uncle Desmond and Annie’s wedding?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Isla Fisher
Suitable for ages 5+

Twelve-year-old orphan Max Einstein (like Albert Einstein himself) is not your typical genius. Max hacks the computer system at NYU in order to attend college courses (even though she hates tests), builds homemade inventions to help the homeless, and plays speed chess in the park. Her not-so-normal life is crazy but predictable until …

Max is recruited by a mysterious organisation! Their mission: solve some of the world’s toughest problems using science. She’s helped by a diverse group of young geniuses from around the globe as they invent new ways to power the farthest reaches of the planet. But that’s only if the sinister outfit known only as The Corporation doesn’t get to her first …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Andrea Emmes
Suitable for ages 8+

Evie is a girl with a special Talent. She can talk to animals. But when she rescues the school rabbit, Kahlo, and sets her free, Evie lands in big trouble. She promises her dad that she’ll never talk to animals again. And for a whole year, Evie ignores them all. She doesn’t chat to Scruff the dog or Marmalade the cat. She even ignores Beak the bird.

But when ‘Missing’ posters for cats, dogs, hamsters and tortoises appear outside school, Evie secretly starts using her magical gift again. With the help of Granny Flora, Evie must find out who is behind the disappearances.

This story about growing up, fitting in and listening closely to our furry friends will capture the hearts of all animal-lovers out there

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Natasha McElhone
Suitable for ages 8+

Do you believe in magic?

Carter doesn’t. He knows magic tricks are just that – tricks. And as a street magician he’s also pretty good at them. But then Carter runs away from his conman uncle and he finds himself alone and in danger from dastardly carnival ringleader, B.B. Bosso. He could really use some magic now …

A chance encounter with the mysterious Mr Dante Vernon leads Carter to a magic shop, where he teams up with five other like-minded kids and the MAGIC MISFITS are born! Can the gang use their magical talents to save the day and stop B.B. stealing a priceless diamond?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Neil Patrick Harris
Suitable for ages 6+

He’s the first teacher to cook us breakfast.
Is his spark-maker beetle really that dangerous?
I heard he drank yak’s milk in Mongolia.
He’s the only person who isn’t afraid of Canteen Carol.
My mum says he used to be in the circus.

The class in room 12B has a new teacher, and nothing is ever going to be the same …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Kris Dyer
Suitable for ages 6+

Meet Barry, the fish with fingers, No-Bot, the robot with no bottom, and many more weird and wonderful characters in The Sue Hendra Collection! You will get lost in the colour and crazy worlds that the bestselling picture book author has created.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Sue Hendra
Suitable for ages 3+

Fergus is a boy with a big imagination and a very special bike. He is also the first member of the Hercules Hopefuls cycling team, set up by Grandpa Herc to fight off their arch rivals, Wallace’s Wheels. Fergus’s friend Daisy would love to join the team too, but she doesn’t have a bike – her mum thinks everything fun is dangerous. Maybe Grandpa Herc and Fergus can do up a bike from scratch for Daisy, with parts from Grandpa’s junk shop? Now it is just Daisy’s mum they need to persuade… Meanwhile Fergus takes a magical trip to Nevermore, where he and Princess Lily discover a magical compass bell once owned by Fergus’s dad. Can the bell provide a clue to the whereabouts of Fergus’s long-lost Dad?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Sir Chris Hoy
Suitable for ages 5+

Cookie’s life is basically over.

Her best friend in the whole world is moving to Solihull because one of her dads has a new job there. Solihull?! Where even is that?! Cookie begs her parents for a pet to fill the void but they have given her an absolute NO. It would be way too expensive and way way too messy.

But Cookie has never been a fan of the word ‘no’ so she visits the pet shop anyway and sets her heart on the sweetest cutest kitteniest kitten ever: Bluey. But then . . . DISASTER! The most ANNOYING boy she’s ever met in her entire nine years goes into the pet shop, buys Bluey and renames her Nigel! And then he joins her year at school! And if that wasn’t bad enough, he moves in next door to her. AAAAGGGGHHHHH!

But it’s not all bad . . . Cookie gets the chance to go on her favourite TV show, Brainbusters. It’s only a chance though – she’ll have to win the school science competition first. It shouldn’t be too hard . . . all she has to do is keep her head down, and not get too over-excited. Unfortunately that’s not Cookie’s strong point…

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Konnie Huq
Suitable for ages 7+

Hanging from trees by her knees, doing handstands … for Beatrice Zinker, upside down works every time. She was definitely upside down when she and her best friend, Lenny, agreed to wear matching ninja suits on the first day of third grade. But when Beatrice shows up at school dressed in black, Lenny arrives with a cool new outfit and a cool new friend. Even worse, she seems to have forgotten all about the top-secret operation they planned!

Can Beatrice use her topsy-turvy way of thinking to save the mission, mend their friendship and flip things sunny-side up?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Roslyn Oades
Suitable for ages 7+

Frank is a funny chick. Unlike all his brothers and sisters, he wants to dabble about in the lovely duck pond, splashing himself with water. Most of all, he wants to learn to swim. Can Jemima, the farmer’s daughter, find a way to help Frank?

All he thinks about are webbed feet, waterproof feathers, and the cool water of the pond. So when Frank takes a dip and nearly drowns, his mood turns foul. Luckily, he gets a little human help – in the form of a man-made wet suit and a pair of flippers – and soon he’s the speediest bird in the water. And while Frank knows he’s ruffled a few feathers, he doesn’t care – there’s just too much for him to crow about.

Until a certain young chick catches his eye, that is …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Andrew Sachs
Suitable for ages 6+

Incredibly, unbelievably, Roman’s cousin is marrying the cousin of Rosie Taylor (AKA The Worst Person Who Ever Lived). Roman can’t believe this (as Rosie says: ‘How can we be in the same family, we’re barely in the same species’).

Rosie’s parents decide they should go along together and ‘make a weekend of it’. Roman’s plus one is his best friend Gamble (probably the naughtiest kid in Europe) – and it’s the beginning of another big, messy, catastrophic and uproarious adventure for Roman – with Winnebagos, illegal thrash metal festivals and campsite beauty contests all thrown into the mix …

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rupert Degas
Suitable for ages 8+

We didn’t know what we were doing. We had no idea what we were up against. And we made a really big mess…. And it was the saddest, scariest, weirdest, time in my life, but it was also the best fun I ever had.

And it started here….

Jeremy, Johnny J, Walker, Sumo and Charlie are about to have the summer of their lives. They’ve all just finished primary school and are looking forward to weeks of holiday freedom before they head off to their new schools. But they soon realise it’s not all going to be riding their bikes, making rope swings in the woods and climbing trees. Johnny’s mum is ill, really ill – and Jeremy decides there is only one way to save her. A way that might just involve a robbery….

And by the end of it all – or perhaps somewhere in the middle – they will be The Fearless Five. And this will be a summer they will never, ever forget….

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Tom Farrelly
Suitable for ages 9+

When her baby brother is kidnapped by crows, Prue McKeel begins an adventure that will take her and her friend Curtis way beyond her hometown and deep into the Impassable Wilderness. There they uncover a secret world in the midst of violent upheaval, a world full of warring creatures, peace-loving mystics and powerful figures with the darkest intentions. What begins as a rescue mission becomes something much bigger as the two friends find themselves entwined in a struggle for the very freedom of this wilderness. A wilderness the locals call Wildwood.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Amanda Plummer
Suitable for ages 8+

When young Anna inherits a dilapidated once-grand hotel from her Great Aunt Mathilde, she’s determined to restore it to its former glory. But this is no ordinary hotel – all of her staff and guests are animals! Anna soon rises to the challenge. Whether it’s a flamingo, a penguin or a hippo knocking at the door, Anna is ready to welcome them all – with the help of her trusty sidekicks T Bear the doorman, Squeak the friendly elevator mouse, and Lemmy the lemur receptionist … As she soon finds out, though, running an animal hotel is no easy task. Can Anna make Hotel Flamingo a success once more?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Sarah Ovens
Suitable for ages 5+

Nilly is new to the neighbourhood, but is quick to make friends: Doctor Proctor, an eccentric professor; and Lisa, who is teased by the twin terrors Truls and Trym. Nilly and Lisa help Doctor Proctor develop his latest invention, a powder that makes you fart. The powder makes Nilly and Lisa very popular at school when they sell it for fifty cents a bag. And they get revenge on Truls and Trym by giving them an extra-strength dose of fart powder that shoots them up into a tree!

It’s all good farty fun. That is, until someone steals the industrial-strength fart powder. Now Doctor Proctor’s ticket to fame is in the hands of an enemy with evil intentions…

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Miriam Margolyes
Suitable for ages 6+

It’s Martha’s birthday and the village has planned a surprise party for her – but grumpy witch Griselda Gritch ruins the surprise!

Not to worry – Martha’s biggest birthday wish comes true when her mum and dad return from their tropical trip especially for her party. Everyone is delighted (apart from grumpy Griselda) and excited to have fun with Martha’s present: the Mysterious Mask of Truth, brought back from her parents’ far-flung travels. Fun, that is, until the truth starts causing everyone quite a lot of embarrassment …

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Amy Enticknap
Suitable for ages 5+

It’s 2099. Lyla lives in a world of robocats, flying sweets and instant snow, but some things never change. Little brothers are still annoying, school teachers make you cringe, and, when your best friend deserts you for the new girl, it still HURTS. Especially when that new girl is from the Moon. But Lyla’s problems lead her into unexpected adventures …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Eloise Mignon
Suitable for ages 7+

No school for two whole weeks leaves Tom with heaps of time for the important things in life. Yeah! He can forget all about lessons and the irritating Marcus Meldrew, and save his energy for good stuff! Stuff like: inventing new ways to annoy his sister Delia. (So many). Band practice for the Dogzombies – rock stars in the making! Watching TV and eating caramel wafers; eating caramel wafers and watching TV. Excellent!

Unfortunately a couple of small problems called the dentist and his big weirdo sister, Delia, seem to be getting in the way of Tom’s BRILLIANT plans …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rupert Grint
Suitable for ages 7+

Meet Billie B Brown! Do you know what the B stands for? It’s for Brave, Brilliant and Bold!

The Billie B misadventures have quickly become favourites for girls all over the world. This audio collection brings together five favourite Billie B Brown books in one volume.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Eloise Mignon
Suitable for ages 5+

A hilarious and irresistible collection of stories from two of the best-known figures in the children’s book world, Michael Rosen and Tony Ross.

Burping Bertha: On an ordinary morning, in an ordinary flat, an up-till-now perfectly ordinary Bertha does an extraordinary burp. A burp so humongously big that very soon it’s causing havoc in the school canteen, the playground, not to mention her grandad’s apple trees…

Bob the Bursting Bear: Leaving Toy School for his new home, Bob the Bear thinks he knows all there is to being loved and cuddled. But in the end it is a surprising and unusual talent that helps him most of all …

Fluff the Farting Fish: Elvie is desperate for a puppy that she can train up to do amazing tricks. But it’s not a puppy Mum returns from the pet shop with, it’s a fish…

Bilal’s Brilliant Bee: Bilal is terrible at tests, but luckily he has a new friend: a talking bumble bee who can help him answer all the questions. Even ones on a popular TV quiz show…

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Michael Rosen
Suitable for ages 5+

After crashing hundreds of miles from civilisation in the Amazon rainforest, Fred, Con, Lila and Max are utterly alone and in grave danger. They have no food, no water and no chance of being rescued. But they are alive, and they have hope.

As they negotiate the wild jungle, they begin to find signs that something – someone – has been there before them. Could there possibly be a way out after all?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Peter Noble
Suitable for ages 8+

When Stella is dumped at summer camp while her mum goes off on a posh honeymoon, things start badly. In the first few minutes she’s mistaken for a boy and put in a room with snobby Louise and nasty Karen. Then she finds out she’ll have to take dreaded swimming lessons, the one thing mum promised she wouldn’t have to do. Can things get any worse?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Kelly Hunter
Suitable for ages 8+

A collection of gorgeous stories from Quentin Blake and John Yeoman.

Including:
The Bear’s Winter House
Beatrice and Vanessa
The Heron and the Crane
Mouse Trouble
Mr Nodd’s Ark
Rumbelow’s Dance
Sixes and Sevens
Up With Birds
The Wild
Washerwomen
The Young
Performing Horse

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Stephen Thorne
Suitable for ages 4+

Blending humour and behavioural economics, the author of ‘Predictably Irrational’ delves into the truly illogical world of personal finance to help people better understand why they make bad financial decisions, and gives knowledge they need to make better ones. Why does paying for things often feel like it causes physical pain? Why does it cost you money to act as your own real estate agent? Why are we comfortable overpaying for something now just because we’ve overpaid for it before? World renowned economist Dan Ariely answers these intriguing questions and many more as he explains how our irrational behaviour often interferes with our best intentions when it comes to managing our finances. Partnering with financial comedian and writer Jeff Kreisler, Ariely takes us deep inside our minds to expose hidden motivations that are secretly driving our choices about money.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Simon Jones
Non-Fiction

A 13-year-old boy commits suicide. A 65-year old man dies of a heart attack. Dan Forrester, ex-MI5 agent, is connected to them both. And when he discovers that his godson and his father have been murdered, he teams up with his old friend, DC Lucy Davies, to find answers. But as the pair investigate, they unravel a dark and violent mystery stretching decades into the past and uncover a terrible secret. A secret someone will do anything to keep buried.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Peter Silverleaf
Fiction

‘Do you think I’m wasting your time, Lewis?’
Lewis was nobody’s fool and was a man of some honesty and integrity.
‘Yes, sir.’
An engaging smile crept across Morse’s mouth. He thought they could get on well together . . .’
The death of Sylvia Kaye figured dramatically in Thursday afternoon’s edition of the Oxford Mail. By Friday evening Inspector Morse had informed the nation that the police were looking for a dangerous man – facing charges of wilful murder, sexual assault and rape.
But as the obvious leads fade into twilight and darkness, Morse becomes more and more convinced that passion holds the key . . .

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Samuel West
Fiction

After being cheated on by her ex, Leanne Riley is trying her hardest to get her life back on track, which isn’t easy without a job and living in a bedsit surrounded by a junkie and a mad woman.

On a night out with her best friend she meets Jake, a face from her past who has changed beyond all recognition. Jake is charming, handsome and loaded, a far cry from the gawky teenager he used to be. Weary of men, Leanne isn’t easy to please, but Jake tries his best to break through the wall she’s built around herself.

But good looks and money can hide a multitude of sins. Is that good-looking face just a mask? And what’s more, what will it take to make it slip, and who will die in the process …?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Colleen Prendergast
Fiction

We all do stupid things when we’re kids.
Ryan Cusack’s grown up faster than most – being the oldest of six with a dead mum and an alcoholic dad will do that for you.
And nobody says Ryan’s stupid. Not even behind his back.
It’s the people around him who are the problem. The gangland boss using his dad as a ‘cleaner’. The neighbour who says she’s trying to help but maybe wants something more than that. The prostitute searching for the man she never knew she’d miss until he disappeared without trace one night . . .

The only one on Ryan’s side is his girlfriend Karine. If he blows that, he’s all alone.
But the truth is, you don’t know your own strength till you need it.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Shelley Atkinson
Fiction

Dominika Egorov, former prima ballerina, is sucked into the heart of Putin’s Russia, the country she loved, and spat out as the twists and turns of betrayal and counter-betrayal unravel.

American Nate Nash, idealistic and ambitious, handles the double agent, codenamed MARBLE, considered one of the CIA’s biggest assets. He needs to keep his identity secret for as long as the mole can keep supplying golden information.

Will Dominika be able to unmask MARBLE, or will the mission see her faith destroyed in the country she has always passionately defended?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Jeremy Bobb
Fiction

A missing baby. A mother’s nightmare.         

When Izzy Grant’s newborn daughter, Alys, disappears, her world shatters around her. Despite an extensive search the police find no trace of the missing girl, but Izzy refuses to give up hope that her daughter will be found.

Then a note is pushed through her letterbox, warning her off.

For Izzy it’s a ray of hope, another lead for the police to follow. For DC Gaby Darin it’s another piece of the puzzle that just won’t fit. But as a long-lost friend returns to Izzy’s life with a shocking secret, Gaby realises the truth of who took Izzy’s daughter from her might lie in the past – and far closer to home than anyone could have imagined….

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Janine Cooper-Marshall 
Fiction

Edinburgh, 1850. Despite being at the forefront of modern medicine, hordes of patients are dying all across the city, with doctors finding their remedies powerless. But it is not just the deaths that dismay the esteemed Dr James Simpson – a whispering campaign seeks to blame him for the death of a patient in suspicious circumstances.

Simpson’s protege Will Raven and former housemaid Sarah Fisher are determined to clear their patron’s name. But with Raven battling against the dark side of his own nature, and Sarah endeavouring to expand her own medical knowledge beyond what society deems acceptable for a woman, the pair struggle to understand the cause of the deaths.

Will and Sarah must unite and plunge into Edinburgh’s deadliest streets to clear Simpson’s name. But soon they discover that the true cause of these deaths has evaded suspicion purely because it is so unthinkable.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Jayne McKenna, Bryan Dick and Louise Brealey
Fiction

Kate Battista feels stuck. How did she end up running house and home for her eccentric scientist father and uppity, pretty younger sister Bunny? Plus, she s always in trouble at work her pre-school charges adore her, but their parents don t always appreciate her unusual opinions and forthright manner.

Dr. Battista has other problems. After years out in the academic wilderness, he is on the verge of a breakthrough. His research could help millions. There s only one problem: his brilliant young lab assistant, Pyotr, is about to be deported. And without Pyotr, all would be lost.

When Dr. Battista cooks up an outrageous plan that will enable Pyotr to stay in the country, he s relying as usual on Kate to help him. Kate is furious: this time he s really asking too much. But will she be able to resist the two men s touchingly ludicrous campaign to bring her around?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Kirsten Potter
Fiction

Amelia Fang is the biggest hearted vampiress you’ll ever meet. In this adventure, she and her friends Florence the yeti (DON’T CALL HER BEAST), Grimaldi the Death and Prince Tangine (reformed spoiled sprout), along with her pet pumpkin Squashy, must brave the journey to the terrifying Kingdom of the Light to try to find Tangine’s missing mother, Queen Fairyweather.

But with unicorns, fairies and angel-kittens lurking around every corner, who can they trust? And will they finally uncover the real villain keeping the kingdoms of Light and Dark as mortal enemies?

Join Amelia on her latest adventure. She won’t bite!

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Zoe Thorne
Suitable for ages 7+

Mira CAN’T WAIT to start Unicorn School. (Her big sister goes and won’t stop going on about it.). But when Mira arrives on her first day all the unicorns are gone … except Dave!

Dave isn’t quite the sparkly unicorn Mira was expecting to find at the end of the rainbow – he’s more grumpy than glittery, more interested in lunch than magical Quests and he always runs off when Mira tries to ride him – but Mira’s not going to let that get her down. Along with her new friends and their (much more glittery) unicorns, she is determined to be the best at Quests and protect the special unicorn world!

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Carlyss Peer
Suitable for ages 6+

Brer Rabbit will never learn! He loves to play jokes, tricks and set traps for his friends – but once in a while, they beat him at his own game!

Enid Blyton is arguably the most famous children’s author of all-time, thanks to series such as the Wishing-Chair, the Faraway Tree, the Mysteries, the Famous Five and the Secret Seven.

In these two Brer Rabbit stories, listeners can enjoy all the magic, fun and adventure one can be guaranteed of when they open a Blyton classic.

Until a certain young chick catches his eye, that is …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Alan Davies
Suitable for ages 3+

‘Once upon a time, a mysterious time that exists through a window in your mind, a time that seemed, to those present, exactly like now does to us, except their teeth weren’t so clean and more things were wooden, there was a town called Hamelin . . .’

In the first in his series of Trickster Tales, Russell Brand retells the classic children’s story The Pied Piper of Hamelin. You’ll be enchanted and revolted in equal measure by the host of characters you meet along the way: the anarchic rats, the arrogant townspeople, sharp-eyed Sam and of course the Pied Piper himself, all brought to life in Brand’s inimitable style.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Russell Brand
Suitable for ages 8+

The first in a fast-paced, funny series featuring The Stig: Top Gear’s legendary racing driver

Sam Wheeler may be the new boy in Bunsfold, but he’s got a feeling that all is not well either in the town or at Bunsfold High – and he’s not just talking about the maths teacher with the unfortunate flatulence. A local boy, Buster Mustang, has recently gone missing, and no one seems to care – they’re all too busy playing the highly addictive video game Xenon or getting the town ready for its very first TT race. Both are the brainchild of mysterious local billionaire PT Cruiser. Besides global domination, PT Cruiser wants nothing more than to destroy his nemesis The Stig once and for all – and his TT race is just what he needs to tempt him on to the big stage again …

Sam sets out with his new friends Minnie Cooper and Ford Harrison to uncover the truth behind all the strange goings-on in Bunsfold – but danger has a habit of showing up wherever they do, and soon all that stands between our heroes and disaster is … a taciturn man in a white suit.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Cel Spellman
Suitable for ages 8+

The doctor says Ed needs ‘correction shoes’. Disaster! Everybody will laugh at him. Ed uses every trick he can think of not to wear the shoes. He even tries DIY foot-straighteners! But it’s no use. The shoes arrive. Ed opens the box, and the shoes are not as bad as he’d thought. They’re worse!

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Morgan C. Jones
Suitable for ages 6+

Two refugee brothers from Mongolia are determined to fit in with their Liverpool schoolmates, but bring so much of Mongolia to Bootle that their new friend and guide, Julie, is hard-pressed to know truth from fantasy as she recollects a wonderful friendship that was abruptly ended when Chingis and his family were forced to return to Mongolia. Told with the humour, warmth and brilliance of detail which characterises Frank Cottrell Boyce’s writing, The Unforgotten Coat is a magical and compelling story.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Katy Sobey
Suitable for ages 10+

Witches are creating havoc in the Wildwoods and danger lurks behind every tree trunk. Wish is in possession of a powerful, Magic Spelling Book. Xar has a dangerous Witchstain on his hand.

Wish and Xar are separated by the highest wall imaginable. But time is running out …

It was unlikely that these heroes should meet in the first place. Is it possible they are destined to meet TWICE?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by David Tennant
Suitable for ages 8+

Eva is the girl with everything. Her parents throw her lavish parties in their luxury home, and her friends admire her designer clothes and manicured nails. But Eva’s world is turned upside down when her father loses his job.

Rich, spoilt, high-maintenance Eva Gordon likes fancy, sophisticated things, so when her parents sell their holiday home and their expensive car, Eva can’t understand why.

But when Eva’s dad loses his job and she has to move house and change schools, she realises life has changed for good. She’s determined to hate her new life, until a chance visit to a fortune teller gives her the idea that doing good may help her to get her old life back. Eva (with the help of her friend Victoria) starts to help all around her, whether they want it or not!

The story of Eva’s Journey from spoilt princess to pretty cool girl!

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Caroline Lennon
Suitable for ages 10+

Marge is back and exploring the neighbourhood with the kids! With some help from Jemima and Jake, can she stay in charge and keep ‘pirate’ baby Zara under control? And can the children make sure Marge behaves at Uncle Desmond and Annie’s wedding?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Isla Fisher
Suitable for ages 5+

Twelve-year-old orphan Max Einstein (like Albert Einstein himself) is not your typical genius. Max hacks the computer system at NYU in order to attend college courses (even though she hates tests), builds homemade inventions to help the homeless, and plays speed chess in the park. Her not-so-normal life is crazy but predictable until …

Max is recruited by a mysterious organisation! Their mission: solve some of the world’s toughest problems using science. She’s helped by a diverse group of young geniuses from around the globe as they invent new ways to power the farthest reaches of the planet. But that’s only if the sinister outfit known only as The Corporation doesn’t get to her first …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Andrea Emmes
Suitable for ages 8+

Do you believe in magic?

Carter doesn’t. He knows magic tricks are just that – tricks. And as a street magician he’s also pretty good at them. But then Carter runs away from his conman uncle and he finds himself alone and in danger from dastardly carnival ringleader, B.B. Bosso. He could really use some magic now …

A chance encounter with the mysterious Mr Dante Vernon leads Carter to a magic shop, where he teams up with five other like-minded kids and the MAGIC MISFITS are born! Can the gang use their magical talents to save the day and stop B.B. stealing a priceless diamond?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Neil Patrick Harris
Suitable for ages 6+

He’s the first teacher to cook us breakfast.
Is his spark-maker beetle really that dangerous?
I heard he drank yak’s milk in Mongolia.
He’s the only person who isn’t afraid of Canteen Carol.
My mum says he used to be in the circus.

The class in room 12B has a new teacher, and nothing is ever going to be the same …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Kris Dyer
Suitable for ages 6+

Meet Barry, the fish with fingers, No-Bot, the robot with no bottom, and many more weird and wonderful characters in The Sue Hendra Collection! You will get lost in the colour and crazy worlds that the bestselling picture book author has created.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Sue Hendra
Suitable for ages 3+

Fergus is a boy with a big imagination and a very special bike. He is also the first member of the Hercules Hopefuls cycling team, set up by Grandpa Herc to fight off their arch rivals, Wallace’s Wheels. Fergus’s friend Daisy would love to join the team too, but she doesn’t have a bike – her mum thinks everything fun is dangerous. Maybe Grandpa Herc and Fergus can do up a bike from scratch for Daisy, with parts from Grandpa’s junk shop? Now it is just Daisy’s mum they need to persuade… Meanwhile Fergus takes a magical trip to Nevermore, where he and Princess Lily discover a magical compass bell once owned by Fergus’s dad. Can the bell provide a clue to the whereabouts of Fergus’s long-lost Dad?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Sir Chris Hoy
Suitable for ages 5+

Cookie’s life is basically over.

Her best friend in the whole world is moving to Solihull because one of her dads has a new job there. Solihull?! Where even is that?! Cookie begs her parents for a pet to fill the void but they have given her an absolute NO. It would be way too expensive and way way too messy.

But Cookie has never been a fan of the word ‘no’ so she visits the pet shop anyway and sets her heart on the sweetest cutest kitteniest kitten ever: Bluey. But then . . . DISASTER! The most ANNOYING boy she’s ever met in her entire nine years goes into the pet shop, buys Bluey and renames her Nigel! And then he joins her year at school! And if that wasn’t bad enough, he moves in next door to her. AAAAGGGGHHHHH!

But it’s not all bad . . . Cookie gets the chance to go on her favourite TV show, Brainbusters. It’s only a chance though – she’ll have to win the school science competition first. It shouldn’t be too hard . . . all she has to do is keep her head down, and not get too over-excited. Unfortunately that’s not Cookie’s strong point…

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Konnie Huq
Suitable for ages 7+

Hanging from trees by her knees, doing handstands … for Beatrice Zinker, upside down works every time. She was definitely upside down when she and her best friend, Lenny, agreed to wear matching ninja suits on the first day of third grade. But when Beatrice shows up at school dressed in black, Lenny arrives with a cool new outfit and a cool new friend. Even worse, she seems to have forgotten all about the top-secret operation they planned!

Can Beatrice use her topsy-turvy way of thinking to save the mission, mend their friendship and flip things sunny-side up?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Roslyn Oades
Suitable for ages 7+

Frank is a funny chick. Unlike all his brothers and sisters, he wants to dabble about in the lovely duck pond, splashing himself with water. Most of all, he wants to learn to swim. Can Jemima, the farmer’s daughter, find a way to help Frank?

All he thinks about are webbed feet, waterproof feathers, and the cool water of the pond. So when Frank takes a dip and nearly drowns, his mood turns foul. Luckily, he gets a little human help – in the form of a man-made wet suit and a pair of flippers – and soon he’s the speediest bird in the water. And while Frank knows he’s ruffled a few feathers, he doesn’t care – there’s just too much for him to crow about.

Until a certain young chick catches his eye, that is …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Andrew Sachs
Suitable for ages 6+

Incredibly, unbelievably, Roman’s cousin is marrying the cousin of Rosie Taylor (AKA The Worst Person Who Ever Lived). Roman can’t believe this (as Rosie says: ‘How can we be in the same family, we’re barely in the same species’).

Rosie’s parents decide they should go along together and ‘make a weekend of it’. Roman’s plus one is his best friend Gamble (probably the naughtiest kid in Europe) – and it’s the beginning of another big, messy, catastrophic and uproarious adventure for Roman – with Winnebagos, illegal thrash metal festivals and campsite beauty contests all thrown into the mix …

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Rupert Degas
Suitable for ages 8+

When her baby brother is kidnapped by crows, Prue McKeel begins an adventure that will take her and her friend Curtis way beyond her hometown and deep into the Impassable Wilderness. There they uncover a secret world in the midst of violent upheaval, a world full of warring creatures, peace-loving mystics and powerful figures with the darkest intentions. What begins as a rescue mission becomes something much bigger as the two friends find themselves entwined in a struggle for the very freedom of this wilderness. A wilderness the locals call Wildwood.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Amanda Plummer
Suitable for ages 8+

When young Anna inherits a dilapidated once-grand hotel from her Great Aunt Mathilde, she’s determined to restore it to its former glory. But this is no ordinary hotel – all of her staff and guests are animals! Anna soon rises to the challenge. Whether it’s a flamingo, a penguin or a hippo knocking at the door, Anna is ready to welcome them all – with the help of her trusty sidekicks T Bear the doorman, Squeak the friendly elevator mouse, and Lemmy the lemur receptionist … As she soon finds out, though, running an animal hotel is no easy task. Can Anna make Hotel Flamingo a success once more?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Sarah Ovens
Suitable for ages 5+

Nilly is new to the neighbourhood, but is quick to make friends: Doctor Proctor, an eccentric professor; and Lisa, who is teased by the twin terrors Truls and Trym. Nilly and Lisa help Doctor Proctor develop his latest invention, a powder that makes you fart. The powder makes Nilly and Lisa very popular at school when they sell it for fifty cents a bag. And they get revenge on Truls and Trym by giving them an extra-strength dose of fart powder that shoots them up into a tree!

It’s all good farty fun. That is, until someone steals the industrial-strength fart powder. Now Doctor Proctor’s ticket to fame is in the hands of an enemy with evil intentions…

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Miriam Margolyes
Suitable for ages 6+

It’s Martha’s birthday and the village has planned a surprise party for her – but grumpy witch Griselda Gritch ruins the surprise!

Not to worry – Martha’s biggest birthday wish comes true when her mum and dad return from their tropical trip especially for her party. Everyone is delighted (apart from grumpy Griselda) and excited to have fun with Martha’s present: the Mysterious Mask of Truth, brought back from her parents’ far-flung travels. Fun, that is, until the truth starts causing everyone quite a lot of embarrassment …

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Amy Enticknap
Suitable for ages 5+

It’s 2099. Lyla lives in a world of robocats, flying sweets and instant snow, but some things never change. Little brothers are still annoying, school teachers make you cringe, and, when your best friend deserts you for the new girl, it still HURTS. Especially when that new girl is from the Moon. But Lyla’s problems lead her into unexpected adventures …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Eloise Mignon
Suitable for ages 7+

Meet Billie B Brown! Do you know what the B stands for? It’s for Brave, Brilliant and Bold!

The Billie B misadventures have quickly become favourites for girls all over the world. This audio collection brings together five favourite Billie B Brown books in one volume.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Eloise Mignon
Suitable for ages 5+

A hilarious and irresistible collection of stories from two of the best-known figures in the children’s book world, Michael Rosen and Tony Ross.

Burping Bertha: On an ordinary morning, in an ordinary flat, an up-till-now perfectly ordinary Bertha does an extraordinary burp. A burp so humongously big that very soon it’s causing havoc in the school canteen, the playground, not to mention her grandad’s apple trees …

Bob the Bursting Bear: Leaving Toy School for his new home, Bob the Bear thinks he knows all there is to being loved and cuddled. But in the end it is a surprising and unusual talent that helps him most of all …

Fluff the Farting Fish: Elvie is desperate for a puppy that she can train up to do amazing tricks. But it’s not a puppy Mum returns from the pet shop with, it’s a fish …

Bilal’s Brilliant Bee: Bilal is terrible at tests, but luckily he has a new friend: a talking bumble bee who can help him answer all the questions. Even ones on a popular TV quiz show …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Michael Rosen
Suitable for ages 5+

After crashing hundreds of miles from civilisation in the Amazon rainforest, Fred, Con, Lila and Max are utterly alone and in grave danger. They have no food, no water and no chance of being rescued. But they are alive, and they have hope.

As they negotiate the wild jungle, they begin to find signs that something – someone – has been there before them. Could there possibly be a way out after all?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Peter Noble
Suitable for ages 8+

When Stella is dumped at summer camp while her mum goes off on a posh honeymoon, things start badly. In the first few minutes she’s mistaken for a boy and put in a room with snobby Louise and nasty Karen. Then she finds out she’ll have to take dreaded swimming lessons, the one thing mum promised she wouldn’t have to do. Can things get any worse?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Kelly Hunter
Suitable for ages 8+

A collection of gorgeous stories from Quentin Blake and John Yeoman.

Including:
The Bear’s Winter House
Beatrice and Vanessa
The Heron and the Crane
Mouse Trouble
Mr Nodd’s Ark
Rumbelow’s Dance
Sixes and Sevens
Up With Birds
The Wild
Washerwomen
The Young
Performing Horse

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Stephen Thorne
Suitable for ages 4+

Today, the options and freedoms on offer to LGBTQ+ people living in the West are greater than ever before. But is same-sex marriage, improved media visibility and corporate endorsement all it’s cracked up to be? At what cost does this acceptance come? And who is getting left behind, particularly in parts of the world where LGBTQ+ rights aren’t so advanced?

Combining intrepid journalism with her own personal experience, Amelia Abraham searches for the answers to these urgent challenges, as well as the broader question of what it means to be queer in 2019. With curiosity, good humour and disarming openness, Amelia takes the reader on a thought-provoking and entertaining journey. Join her as she cries at the first same-sex marriage in Britain, loses herself in the world’s biggest drag convention in L.A., marches at Pride parades across Europe, visits both a transgender model agency and the Anti-Violence Project in New York to understand the extremes of trans life today, parties in the clubs of Turkey’s underground LGBTQ+ scene, and meets a genderless family in progressive Stockholm.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Amelia Abraham
Non-Fiction

Our relentless drive to create makes us unique among living creatures. What is special about the human brain that enables us to innovate? Why don’t cows choreograph dances? Why don’t squirrels build elevators to their treetops? Why don’t alligators invent speedboats?

Weaving together the arts and sciences, neuroscientist David Eagleman and composer Anthony Brandt explore the need for novelty, the simulation of possible futures, and the social components that drive the inventiveness of our species. Taking us on a tour of human creativity from Picasso to concept cars to umbrellas to lunar travel, Brandt and Eagleman explore the cognitive software that generates new ideas, and illuminate the key facets of a creative mentality. Through understanding our ability to innovate – our most profound, mysterious, and deeply human capacity – we can meet the challenge of remaking our constantly shifting world.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Mauro Hantman
Non-Fiction

April 1941, Romsey, England. 

Josephine ‘Josy’ Fox hasn’t set foot in Romsey in over 20 years. As an illegitimate child, her family – headed by her controlling grandfather – found her an embarrassment. Now, she wants to return to what was once her home and uncover the secret of her parentage. Who was her father, and why would her mother never talk about him? 

Josy arrives the day after the Luftwaffe have bombed the town. The local pub, The Cricketers’ Arms, has been completely destroyed, and rescue teams are searching for the remains of the seven people known to be in the pub at the time the bomb hit. They are shocked, however, to uncover eight bodies, not seven. The unidentified eighth body is that of a teenage girl, whom no one in the town claims to know. Who is she, how did she get there, but most importantly – who killed her? 

Teaming up with local coroner and old friend Bram Nash, Josy sets out to establish the identity of the girl and solve the riddle of her death. In doing so, she also uncovers her own personal mystery.

Be careful what you wish for….

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Narrated by Lucy Price-Lewis
Fiction

Nuri is a beekeeper; his wife, Afra, an artist. They live a simple life, rich in family and friends, in the beautiful Syrian city of Aleppo – until the unthinkable happens. When all they care for is destroyed by war, they are forced to escape.

Afra has lost her sight, and so they embark on a periluosjourney towards an uncertain future in Britain. As they travel, Nuri is sustained by the knowledge that waiting for them is his beekeeper cousin Mustafa, who is teaching fellow refugees in Yorkshire to keep bees.

Nuri and Afra set off through a broken world, on a dangerous journey in which they will confront the pain of their unfathomable loss, and in doing so find a way back to each other again.

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Narrated by Art Malik
Fiction

When retired actor Buffy decides to up sticks from London and move to rural Wales, he has no idea what he is letting himself in for.

In possession of a run-down B&B that leans more towards the shabby than the chic and is miles from nowhere, he realises he needs to fill the beds – and fast.

Enter a motley collection of guests: Harold, whose wife has run off with a younger woman; Amy, who’s been unexpectedly dumped by her (not-so) weedy boyfriend and Andy, the hypochondriac postman whose girlfriend is much too much for him to handle.

But under Buffy’s watchful eye, this disparate group of strangers find they have more in common than perhaps they first thought.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Nicky Henson
Fiction

The next hand he deals you … may be your last.

A serial killer is loose on the streets of Manhattan. His victims appear to be total strangers. The only clue that links the crimes is the playing card left behind at each scene that hints at the next target.

The killer, known in the tabloids as The Dealer, is baiting the police into a deadly guessing game that has the city increasingly on edge. Following her instincts, the tenacious cop in charge of the case turns to an unlikely ally – Dylan Reinhart, a brilliant professor with a keen insight into the criminal mind whose book turned up in connection with the murders.

As the tabloid frenzy over The Dealer reaches fever pitch, Dylan and Elizabeth must connect the clues to discover what the victims have in common before The Dealer runs through his entire deck.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Edoardo Ballerini
Fiction

So says Miss Jean Brodie, a teacher unlike any other. She is proud and cultured. A romantic, with progressive, sometimes shocking ideas and aspirations for the girls in her charge. When she decides to transform a select group of pupils into the ‘crème de la crème’ at the Marcia Blaine School they become the Brodie set. In exchange for their undivided loyalty, the girls earn a special place of honour and privilege within the school. Yet they are also introduced to a startling new world of adult games and intrigues, and as boundaries are crossed so the difficulties start to unfold.

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Narrated by Miriam Margolyes
Fiction

Rose Woodrowe has just got engaged to Tyler Masson – a wonderful, sensitive man who is head-over-heels in love with her. The only problem? This isn’t the first time for either of them, and their five grown-up children have strong opinions on the matter . . .
Like Rose’s daughter, Laura, who remembers her parents’ painful divorce and doesn’t want to see her mother hurt again. Or the twins, Emmy and Nat, who simply don’t trust the man their mother has fallen for. Then there’s Tyler’s children: Seth, too busy with his San Francisco sourdough bakery to get to know his father’s new partner; and Mallory, the aspiring actress, who is still wrestling with the issues of her own childhood.
Who to listen to? Who to please? Rose and Tyler are determined to get it right this time, but in trying to make everyone happy, can they ever be happy themselves?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Samantha Bond
Fiction

When Joe Lynch stumbles across his wife driving into a hotel car park while she’s supposed to be at work, he’s intrigued enough to follow her in.

And when he witnesses her in an angry altercation with family friend Ben, he knows he ought to intervene.

But just as the confrontation between the two men turns violent, and Ben is knocked unconscious, Joe’s young son has an asthma attack – and Joe must flee in order to help him.

When he returns, desperate to make sure Ben is OK, Joe is horrified to find that Ben has disappeared.

And that’s when Joe receives the first message …

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Leighton Pugh
Fiction

A modern classic, Elmer the colourful patchwork elephant has been a nursery favourite since his creation in 1989 and has sold over 4 million copies around the world. Elmer is not your normal grey elephant – his colourful exuberance cannot be contained for long! With his trademark cheeky humour, Elmer shows us that it’s OK to be different.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Stephen Thorne
Suitable for ages 3+

Martin Moone is fed up with being the only boy in a family of girls. With three elder sisters, he’s desperate for a sidekick to help him fight his corner. When best mate Padraic suggests getting an imaginary friend, he decides to give it a go. His first attempt is Loopy Lou, who loves practical jokes and is a dab hand at balloon-modelling. But Martin soon gets fed up with Lou’s clowning around, so selects Sean ‘Caution’ Murphy instead. Sean is much more up Martin’s street – and full of advice about how Martin should negotiate day-to-day life. But getting rid of Lou is not easy, and TWO imaginary friends is a recipe for trouble!

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Chris O’Dowd and Nick V. Murphy
Suitable for ages 8+

Today, the options and freedoms on offer to LGBTQ+ people living in the West are greater than ever before. But is same-sex marriage, improved media visibility and corporate endorsement all it’s cracked up to be? At what cost does this acceptance come? And who is getting left behind, particularly in parts of the world where LGBTQ+ rights aren’t so advanced?

Combining intrepid journalism with her own personal experience, Amelia Abraham searches for the answers to these urgent challenges, as well as the broader question of what it means to be queer in 2019. With curiosity, good humour and disarming openness, Amelia takes the reader on a thought-provoking and entertaining journey. Join her as she cries at the first same-sex marriage in Britain, loses herself in the world’s biggest drag convention in L.A., marches at Pride parades across Europe, visits both a transgender model agency and the Anti-Violence Project in New York to understand the extremes of trans life today, parties in the clubs of Turkey’s underground LGBTQ+ scene, and meets a genderless family in progressive Stockholm.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by  Amelia Abraham
Non-Fiction

During a snowstorm in England in 1910, a baby is born and dies before she can take her first breath.

During a snowstorm in England in 1910, the same baby is born and lives to tell the tale.

What if there were second chances? And third chances? In fact an infinite number of chances to live your life? Would you eventually be able to save the world from its own inevitable destiny? And would you even want to?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Fenella Woolgar
Fiction

Forty years in the future. The once-great city of Bohane on the west coast of Ireland is on its knees, infested by vice and split along tribal lines. There are the posh parts of town, but it is in the slums and backstreets of Smoketown, the tower blocks of the Northside Rises and on the eerie bogs of Big Nothin’ that Bohane really lives.

For years, the city has been in the cool grip of Logan Hartnett, the dapper godfather of the Hartnett Fancy gang. But there’s trouble in the air. They say his old nemesis is back in town; his trusted henchman is getting ambitious; and his missus wants him to give it all up and go straight… and then there’s his mother.

City of Bohane is a unique and visionary novel that blends influence from film and the graphic novel, from Trojan beats and calypso rhythms, from Celtic myth and legend, from fado and the sagas, and from all the great inheritance of Irish literature. A work of mesmerising imagination and vaulting linguistic invention, it is a taste of the startlingly new.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Kevin Barry
Fiction

Today is the first day of the rest of your life’ is the motto on a plate in the kitchen at home, and Tess can’t get it out of her head, even though she’s in Florence for a final, idyllic holiday before university. Her life is about to change forever – but not in the way she expects. Gus and his parents are also on holiday in Florence.
Their lives have already changed suddenly and dramatically. Gus tries to be a dutiful son, but longs to escape and discover what sort of person he is going to be. For one day, the paths of these two 18-year-olds will criss-cross before they each return to England. Over the course of the next 16 years, life and love will offer them very different challenges. Separated by distance and chance, there’s no way the two of them are ever going to meet each other properly – or is there?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Anna Acton and Finlay Robertson
Fiction

It’s the summer of 1965, and the streets of Queens, New York shimmer in a heatwave. One July morning, Ruth Malone wakes to find a bedroom window wide open and her two young children missing. After a desperate search, the police make a horrifying discovery.

Noting Ruth’s perfectly made-up face and provocative clothing, the empty liquor bottles and love letters that litter her apartment, the detectives leap to convenient conclusions, fuelled by neighbourhood gossip and speculation. Sent to cover the case on his first major assignment, tabloid reporter Pete Wonicke at first can’t help but do the same. But the longer he spends watching Ruth, the more he learns about the darker workings of the police and the press. Soon, Pete begins to doubt everything he thought he knew.
Ruth Malone is enthralling, challenging and secretive – is she really capable of murder?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Graham Halstead and Lauren Fortgang
Fiction

The great Norse myths, which have inspired so much of modern fiction, are dazzlingly retold by Neil Gaiman. Tales of dwarfs and frost giants, of treasure and magic, and of Asgard, home to the gods: Odin the all-father, highest and oldest of the Aesir; his mighty son Thor, whose hammer Mjollnir makes the mountain giants tremble; Loki, wily and handsome, reliably unreliable in his lusts; and Freya, more beautiful than the sun or the moon, who spurns those who seek to control her.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Neil Gaiman
Fiction

Lack of sleep is not just a matter of feeling tired. Recent research has shown that it is associated with serious illnesses such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease and even cancer. The big question is, what can we do to get more sleep? Who can we turn to for a sympathetic and knowledgeable one-to-one consultation? The answer is, to one of the world’s leading sleep experts: Professor Chris Idzikowski, who here reveals his wisdom in a down-to-earth and reassuring way.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by John Voce
Non-Fiction

Against all the odds, Dolly Rawlins and her gangland widows managed the impossible: a heist their husbands had failed to pull off – at the cost of their lives.

But though they may be in the money, they’re far from easy street.

Shocked by her husband’s betrayal, Dolly discovers Harry Rawlins isn’t dead. He knows where the four women are and he wants them to pay. And he doesn’t just mean getting his hands on the money.

The women can’t keep running. They have to get Harry out of their lives for good. But can they outwit a criminal mastermind who won’t hesitate to kill?

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Amanda Donohoe
Fiction

THEN
1976. Loo and her sister Bee live in a run-down cottage in the middle of nowhere, with their artistic parents and wild siblings. Their mother, Cathy, had hoped to escape to a simpler life; instead the family find themselves isolated and shunned by their neighbours. At the height of the stifling summer, unexplained noises and occurences in the house begin to disturb the family, until they intrude on every waking moment . . .

NOW
Loo, now Lucy, is called back to her childhood home. A group of strangers are looking to discover the truth about the house and the people who lived there. But is Lucy ready to confront what really happened all those years ago?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Kristin Atherton
Fiction

Bec Shepherd is a malaria researcher struggling to lead a good life. Ritchie, her reprobate brother, is a rock star turned TV producer. When Bec refuses an offer of marriage from a powerful newspaper editor and Ritchie’s indiscretions catch up with him, brother and sister are forced to choose between loyalty and betrayal.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by John Rafter Lee
Fiction

You’re called Fidge and you’re nearly 11. You’ve been hurled into a strange world. You have three companions: two are unbelievably weird and the third is your awful cousin Graham. You have to solve a series of nearly impossible clues. You need to deal with a cruel dictator and 3000 Wimbley Woos (yes, you read that sentence correctly). And the whole situation – the whole, entire thing – is your fault.

Wed Wabbit is an adventure story about friendship, danger and the terror of never being able to get back home again. And it’s funny. It’s seriously funny.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Lissa Evans
Suitable for ages 10+

When Effie and Maximilian both mysteriously vanish, friends Raven, Lexy and Wolf don’t know where to turn for help. Effie is in deep danger and she’s running out of time. To make things worse, Raven’s mother is caught up in a plot with the ruthless billionaire Albion Freake, who will stop at nothing to become invincible. Can the school-friends save Effie and Maximilian and stop Albion Freake’s deadly plan, before it’s too late?

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Roger Allam
Suitable for ages 10+

Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life … until now.

Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Robin Miles
Suitable for ages 13+

Convicted murderer Melvin Mars is counting down the last hours before his execution, for the violent killing of his parents twenty years earlier, when he’s granted an unexpected reprieve. Another man has confessed to the crime.

Amos Decker, newly hired on an FBI special task force, takes an interest in Mars’s case after discovering the striking similarities to his own life: Both men were talented football players with promising careers cut short by tragedy. Both men’s families were brutally murdered. And in both cases, another suspect came forward, years after the killing, to confess to the crime. A suspect who may or may not have been telling the truth.

The confession has the potential to make Melvin Mars, guilty or not, a free man. Who wants Mars out of prison? And why now?
But when a member of Decker’s team disappears, it becomes clear that something much larger, and more sinister, than just one convicted criminal’s life hangs in the balance. Decker will need all of his extraordinary brainpower to stop an innocent man from being executed.

Available as an eBook and eAudiobook
Narrated by Kyf Brewer and Orlagh Cassidy
Fiction

A family in England is massacred, the father left holding the shotgun.
PC Lucy Davies is convinced he’s innocent

A sleeper agent in Moscow requests an urgent meeting with Dan Forrester, referencing their shared past.

His amnesia means he has no idea who he can trust.

An aging oligarch in Siberia gathers his henchmen to discuss an English accountant.
It’s Dan’s wife

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Peter Silverleaf
Fiction

Samson O’Brien has been dismissed from the police force, and returns to his hometown of Bruncliffe in the Yorkshire Dales to set up the Dales Detective Agency while he fights to clear his name. However, the people of Bruncliffe aren’t that welcoming to a man they see as trouble.

Delilah Metcalfe, meanwhile, is struggling to keep her business, the Dales Dating Agency, afloat – as well as trying to control her wayward Weimaraner dog, Tolpuddle. Then when Samson gets his first case, investigating the supposed suicide of a local man, things take an unexpected turn, and soon he discovers a trail of deaths that lead back to the door of Delilah’s agency.

With suspicion hanging over someone they both care for, the two feuding neighbours soon realize that they need to work together to solve the mystery of the dating deaths. But working together is easier said than done . . .

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Elizabeth Bower
Fiction

It is 1947, and the long-retired Sherlock Holmes, now 93, lives in a remote Sussex farmhouse with his housekeeper and her young son. He tends to his bees, writes in his journal, and grapples with the diminishing powers of his mind.

But in the twilight of his life, as people continue to look to him for answers, Holmes revisits a case that may provide him with answers of his own to questions he didn’t even know he was asking-about life, about love, and about the limits of the mind’s ability to know.

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Narrated by Simon Jones
Fiction

Considered one of the all-time great American works of fiction, Fitzgerald’s glorious yet ultimately tragic social satire on the Jazz Age encapsulates the exuberance, energy and decadence of an era.

After the Great War, the mysterious Jay Gatsby, a self-made millionaire, pursues wealth, riches and the lady he lost to another man with stoic determination. He buys a mansion across from her house and throws lavish parties to entice her. When Gatsby finally does reunite with Daisy Buchanan, tragic events are set in motion.

Told through the eyes of his detached and omnipresent neighbour and friend, Nick Carraway, Fitzgerald’s succinct and powerful prose hints at the destruction and tragedy that awaits.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Humphrey Bower
Fiction

Over 10 years ago, The Big Issue began to ask some of the best-known, most interesting and most successful figures in entertainment, politics, food, sport and business to give advice, offer hope and share a few jokes with their younger selves. They opened up, in ways they never had, to interviewer Jane Graham, reflecting on their lives and themselves with affection, sympathy and sometimes disbelief.

This collection of 100 of the most incredible letters includes Paul McCartney on how he found inspiration, Olivia Colman on overcoming confidence problems, Mo Farah on the importance of losing, Arianna Huffington on knowing your motivations, Jamie Oliver on trusting your instinct and many, many more, including Rod Stewart, Margaret Atwood, Buzz Aldrin, David Cameron, Eddie Izzard, Desmond Tutu, Neil Gaiman, Ruby Wax, Ranulph Fiennes,Tracey Emin, Ian McEwan, Michael Palin, Melanie C, Tim Peake, Dionne Warwick and Ewan McGregor.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Jow Dow and Clare Kissane
Fiction

When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.
It’s about a jealous wife, obsessed with her replacement.
It’s about a younger woman set to marry the man she loves.
The first wife seems like a disaster; her replacement is the perfect woman.
You will assume you know the motives, the history, the anatomy of the relationships.
You will be wrong.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Julia Whelan
Fiction

The Tattooist of Auschwitz is based on the true story of Lale and Gita Sokolov, two Slovakian Jews, who survived Auschwitz and eventually made their home in Australia. In that terrible place, Lale was given the job of tattooing the prisoners marked for survival – literally scratching numbers into his fellow victims’ arms in indelible ink to create what would become one of the most potent symbols of the Holocaust. Lale used the infinitesimal freedom of movement that this position awarded him to exchange jewels and money taken from murdered Jews for food to keep others alive. If he had been caught he would have been killed; many owed him their survival.

Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook
Narrated by Richard Armitage
Fiction

He’s the best cop they’ve got.

When a drug bust turns into a bloodbath it’s up to Inspector Macbeth and his team to clean up the mess.

He’s also an ex-drug addict with a troubled past.

He’s rewarded for his success. Power. Money. Respect. They’re all within reach.

But a man like him won’t get to the top.

Plagued by hallucinations and paranoia, Macbeth starts to unravel. He’s convinced he won’t get what is rightfully his.

Unless he kills for it.

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Derek Riddell
Fiction

It is summer in Edinburgh and Isabel Dalhousie is once again caught between ‘gossip’ and significant rumour. It is none of her business that Patricia, the mother of her son Charlie’s little friend Basil, is estranged from Basil’s father, or that the woman has a somewhat brazen attitude to childcare. And yet, it is curious.

Isabel, however, has much else on her mind as editor of the Review of Applied Ethics. Along with the work involved for its impending next issue, she really needs to get her house in order and tend to the demands of her niece, Cat. Thankfully, the arrival of Antonia, the exuberant Italian au pair, will take care of urgent chores. And hiring Claire, a diligent if unsettlingly beautiful new assistant at the Review, surely means that Isabel can breathe, at least a little.

But her sharp observation and assured role as confidante soon have Isabel doubting all her recent decisions. What’s more, her instinct to help others may have put her in real danger. In her desire to run both a smooth household and working life, has she simply created more chaos? Perhaps the quiet side of passion is, after all, the best side on which to be?

Available as an eAudiobook
Narrated by Karlyn Stephen
Fiction