Showing results by narrator "Simon Darwen" in All Categories

In the West End, a renowned Italian escape artist dies spectacularly on stage during a performance - immolated in a gleaming copper cauldron of his wife’s design. In Cambridge, the runaway daughter of a famous don is found drowned, her long blonde hair tangled in the Jesus Lock on the River Cam. And in Baker Street, a mysterious locksmith exacts an unusual price to open a small silver box sent to Watson.

It’s 1890, and the newly famous Sherlock Holmes faces his worst adversary to date - a diabolical villain bent on destroying some of London’s most admired public figures in particularly gruesome ways. A further puzzle is that suicide closely attends each of the murders. As he tracks the killer through vast and seething London, Holmes finds himself battling both an envious Scotland Yard and a critical press as he follows a complex trail from performers to princes, anarchists to aesthetes.

Lann knows nothing of his mysterious past, but by his 15th birthday he will come face to face with destiny. For Lann must wield the Dreadblade, an ancient sword forged to defeat terrible monsters. Across the mountains a King has been murdered. His daughter, Astrid, is a warrior with no desire to bear the crown. Only she can uncover her father’s killer before her brother is framed for the crime. Evil is stirring. Lann and Astrid are the kingdom’s last defence. Together, they must face the greatest darkness their world has ever known.

xGenius explores the interplay between analysis, tactics, and decision-making. It seeks to put the sport of football under the microscope with the aim of getting closer to the ultimate truth of what makes players, managers and teams successful. What, ultimately, wins football matches. Packed with examples from the Premier League and beyond, xGenius shows how xG and other performance analysis tools are helping answer previously unanswerable questions.

In this love letter to reading, curated by Pandora Sykes in aid of the National Literacy Trust, bestselling and beloved writers share their favourite books: the ones they hold most dearly, that they return to time and again and that helped make them the writers they are.

The Premier League is the most watched sports league in the world, broadcast into 188 countries and watched by 3.2 billion people worldwide. It revolutionised football, transforming the beautiful game into a multi-billion-pound business and making its biggest stars millionaires. Fever Pitch tells the inside story of the formation of the league, from the early discussions with Rupert Murdoch about how Sky could be at the heart of this new league, to the bitter rivalries and radical new managers who changed the face of football forever.

It is 20 years in 2021 since Malorie Blackman's groundbreaking series began with Noughts & Crosses, which charted the deeply forbidden romance between Sephy (a Cross) and Callum (a nought) - a love affair which had repercussions for their families for generations. Endgame, the breathtaking conclusion to the series, influenced by the unprecedented global events of recent years, is full of twists and turns and emotions, with its incredible characters reaching a dramatic conclusions to their stories.

Over five years covering climate change, Jelmer Mommers has learned that the subject is a great way to ruin a conversation. Most people prefer to look away, which is understandable when we discuss climate change as an apocalypse. But the crisis does not offer a definitive end. There are always ways we can mitigate, prevent and reverse the damage.

Knox has been paid to do a job - not an unusual thing in his world. A former SAS soldier, now a man with elite skills for hire. But what he didn't foresee was the deep, tangled web of deceit, lies and danger that lay ahead. It should have been easy - watch over the daughter of a billionaire. Protect her and take out any threat before they killed their target. Simple, but simple in his line of work rarely turned out that way. Knox will need all his skill and wits in this fast-paced adventure.

Adrian Gray was born in May 1862 and met his death through violence, at the hands of one of his own children, at Christmas, 1931. Each December, Adrian Gray invites his extended family to stay at his lonely house, King's Poplars. None of Gray's six surviving children is fond of him; several have cause to wish him dead. The family gathers on Christmas Eve - and by the following morning, their wish has been granted.

In Look Again, Bailey describes growing up in working-class East London, where his dyslexia led to him being written off as stupid at school but his drive and ambition led to his meteoric rise as a photographer. He writes about life in '60s London and New York, his friendship with photographers Donovan and Duffy and annoying his rival Lord Snowdon. His love-life was always headline-worthy. He propelled his girlfriend, model Jean Shrimpton, to stardom - and was threatened with a shotgun by her father. When he married Catherine Deneuve, Mick Jagger was his best man.

Andy West teaches philosophy in prisons. He has conversations with people inside about their lives, discusses their ideas and feelings and listens as the men and women he works with explore new ways to think about their situation. Could we ever be good if we never felt shame? What makes a person worthy of forgiveness? Could someone in prison ever be more free than someone outside? These questions about how to live are ones we all need to ask, but in this setting they are even more urgent.

You don’t have to be brilliant to produce brilliant work. Many of the characters you will meet in this book failed at school, lacked natural talent, were not especially gifted or were repeatedly sacked. But their methods produced brilliant work - and they will work for you, too. Make Brilliant Work is the essential book from Rod Judkins, author of the international best seller The Art of Creative Thinking.

After the death of his wife, a father raises his two sons alone. His bond with Fus, the eldest, and Gillou, the youngest, is a close one. But their town is not one of opportunity, and it soon becomes clear that the boys are heading down different paths. Gillou sets his sights on university in Paris. Fus, despite his socialist upbringing, falls in with the local far-right group. Though he joins mostly for the camaraderie, their activities, which might on the surface appear harmless, lead to a violent confrontation.

In this gripping and remarkable memoir, Peter tells his extraordinary life story in fascinating detail. From removing protestors, including the infamous 'Swampy', from inside dangerous tunnels to the scenes of some of the UK’s most notorious crimes, he describes how he has developed into a highly regarded and highly skilled search specialist, whose job is to assist investigators and police as they search crime scenes and bring serial killers to justice.

When destinies collide, who will emerge victorious? Lann is hunting monsters. It’s his destiny as bearer of the Dreadblade. But Lann would rather hunt down Kelewulf, the young necromancer who released them into the world. Consumed by his aunt’s death, he can think of nothing but revenge. Across a dark sea, Kelewulf is mastering magic. He has persuaded the High Priestess of Hasz to tutor him. But he’s hiding a more dangerous goal: finding the heart of a god. With this terrible object in hand, he’ll return darkness to the world forever....

The presidency of Donald J. Trump is rather ordinary. Trump himself may be the most unusual, unorthodox and unconventional president the US has ever had. Yet, even with his extraordinary personality and approach to the job, his presidency is proving quite ordinary in its accomplishments and outcomes, both at home and abroad. Like most modern US presidents, the number and scope of Trump’s achievements are rather meager.

Winter, an ex-MI5 operative, battles to clear his name after being wrongly accused of colluding with diamond smugglers. When suspended, he vows to discover how the smugglers repeatedly avoided the traps set by his team. But as his wife undergoes cancer treatment, he finds it hard to balance time at her bedside with action to vindicate himself. An email from their high tech equipment supplier soon sets Winter on the trail of a Mossad spy whom he discovered is somehow involved. The chase takes him from the windswept Romney Marsh of Southern England to Helsinki and Finland’s snowy interior and rapidly places him in the path of a Syrian assassination squad.

In the winter of 1942, England lies cold and dark in the wartime blackout. One bleak evening, Councillor Grayling steps off the 6.12 from Euston, carrying £120 in cash and oblivious to the fate that awaits him in the snow-covered suburbs. Inspector Holly draws up a list of Grayling's fellow passengers: his distrusted employee Charles Evetts, the charming Hugh Rolandson, and an unknown refugee from Nazi Germany, among others. Inspector Holly will soon discover that each passenger harbours their own dark secrets and that the councillor had more than one enemy among them.

A Family Obsession is the fascinating result of Harry and Jamie sitting round the kitchen table, where they discuss, debate, select and celebrate all aspects of the game that have inspired them. Who are the men who impacted their careers and fired that all-consuming passion for football? This is a deep dive into the matches, the players, the managers and the changes that have spanned their two generations.