Showing results by narrator "Janine" in All Categories

Winters End should have been the perfect place for me and my husband Neil to start again. To leave the terrible secrets and guilt of our past far behind us. But from the moment we arrived in the small, isolated community, it becomes clear to me that we are not welcome here. That someone wants us to leave…

Winter, 1942. Brenda and Joyce are just two of the girls who have joined the Women’s Land Army and are doing their bit for the war effort. But after months working on farms in the Yorkshire Dales, they’re looking for a fresh challenge. Despite the bitter cold of their new billets high in the remote fells, their fear for those away fighting, and concern for family and friends, there is warmth to be found in faces old and new, and plans for a jolly Christmas are afoot.

Sally Urwin and her husband, Steve, own High House Farm in Northumberland, which they share with Mavis the sheepdog, one very fat pony and many, many sheep. Set in beautiful, wild landscape, and in use for generations, it's the perfect setting for Sally's (sometimes brutally) honest and charming account of farming life. From stock sales to lambing sheds, and out in the fields in snow and on hot summer days, A Farmer's Diary reveals the highs, lows and hard work involved in making a living from the land.

Ryan Matthews has everything he ever wanted. Close to graduation from Harvard Medical School and on the verge of marrying his gorgeous and accomplished girlfriend, Julia Abbott, his dreams are about to come true and all of their sacrifice is finally at its end. When tragedy strikes, their relationship is hurled into turmoil that leaves Ryan devastated. His sorrow drives him to keep his distance yet leaves him aching; consumed with desire and love he refuses to let manifest.

1715: With the country on the brink of rebellion, Dorothy Forster’s life at Bamburgh Hall is ruled by the men in her life – her feckless brothers stirring up trouble at court, her elderly father with his dangerous secrets and the man she loves who the world seems determined to keep her apart from. As tensions grow, Dorothy finds herself caught between the warring factions, danger everywhere. Then Dorothy discovers her family are the keepers of the legendary Rose, the talisman both sides believe will guarantee them victory in this deadly conflict.

We all think we know who we are. What we’re capable of. Roz is a single mother, a physiotherapist, a sister, a friend. She’s also desperate. Her business has gone under, she’s crippled by debt and she’s just had to explain to her son why someone’s taken all their furniture away. But now a stranger has made her an offer. For one night with her, he’ll pay enough to bring her back from the edge. Roz has a choice to make.

Julia Abbot and Ryan Matthews have been inseparable best friends since the moment they met. Each of them fight an internal battle, unwilling to risk their incredible friendship, but unable to quell their deep longing for the other. On the verge of Ryan's departure to Harvard Medical School and Julia's for her new job on the opposite coast, they are forced to face the undeniable truth of their deeper feelings and find themselves enthralled in a passion like neither has ever known.

Following a scandalous affair, wayward Emma Devaney is sent in disgrace from her home in Ireland to Ryhope, where she will live with her widowed aunt, Bessie Brogan, and help run her pub. Bessie is kind but firm, and at first, Emma rebels against her lack of freedom. Struggling to fit in, she turns to the wrong person for comfort, and becomes pregnant. Accepting she must embrace her new life for the sake of her baby, Emma pours her energy into making the pub thrive and he catches the attention of Robert, a gruff but sincere farmer, who means to win her heart.

When Izzy Grant’s newborn daughter 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.

'She's not worth more than tuppence, that child!' Those are the words that haunt Sadie Linthorpe. She is the talk of Ryhope when she arrives there, aged 17, alone, seeking work and a home in the pit village. But Sadie is keeping a secret - that she is searching for her baby girl who was taken from her at birth to be sold by the child's wicked, battleaxe grandmother when Sadie was just 15 years old.

Isaveth Breck is brave, loyal and zealous in the pursuit of justice, especially after her father is wrongfully arrested. Quiz, the eccentric eye patch-wearing street boy who befriends her, swears he can't resist a good mystery. Together they set out to solve the magical murder of one of Tarreton's most influential citizens and save Isaveth's beloved papa from execution. But with the real murderer protected by the powerful Lord Mayor of Tarreton himself, can she ever prove her papa's innocence in time?

It’s been over a month since the assault on Rajak’s stronghold, and the crew has been hunting for a way to resurrect Esme. However, shortly after tracking down the last known location of a promising corporate scientist, Esme’s mother learns of her death and decides it’s time to step in.

Nothing exciting happens at Peterson Cremation Services–exactly how Gideon prefers it. All his life, he has seen things–scary and bizarre visions that weren’t really there. Working the night shift at the crematorium and days at Sheryl's Shell Shack lets him keep his head down and ignore the strange world around him. The last time Gideon reacted to one of his hallucinations, he ended up in a psychiatric hold. He can’t let anything like that happen again–it would break his mother’s heart.

Transport yourself to 1920s Liverpool, to be moved and delighted by this wonderful novel from one of the UK's best-loved saga authors. In 1920s Liverpool, Jane, her little brother Alfie and their mother Ellen have faced the horrors of the workhouse together. But when Ellen dies, two very different paths open up for the siblings. Jane is sent to work in the Empire Laundry and builds a new life for herself with the neighbours who take her in.

The third novel in the best-selling eight-volume Angel Mountain Saga, about the life and times of the incorrigible, passionate and very imperfect heroine Martha Morgan. Martha Morgan, the Mistress of Plas Ingli, has a premonition of grave danger to come. As the effects of poverty and starvation afflict the neighbourhood, Martha tries to influence the corrupt Turnpike Trusts, who are compounding the miseries of the poor by building new and illegal toll gates and rigorously collecting tolls.

Those who are familiar with the Angel Mountain Saga series will find some characters and settings that they know and love; but this story ranges far more widely, leaving West Wales behind and taking in episodes set in the industrial districts of Merthyr Tydfil, and in Paris. It is a strange story of an elderly lady who calls herself Susanna Ravenhill and who lives far more dangerously than is recommended for someone of her age. She has a dark secret to hide and she is pursued relentlessly by a group of armed men. One day they will catch up with her....

The year is 1807, and Martha is in the process of recovering from the murder of her husband, David. The murderers have been brought to justice, and now she looks forward to a happier future in the company of Owain Laugharne, the new love of her life. Plans for the marriage are far advanced when Owain disappears without a trace.

Random House presents the audiobook edition of The Shop Girls of Chapel Street by Jenny Holmes, read by Janine Birkett. Orphaned young, Violet Wheeler has been brought up by her aunt - but after Winnie's death, she feels like she's lost everything. With no-one to turn to, she has to rely on the goodwill of the community to help her out. At the Jubilee drapers, amongst the spools of ribbon, skeins of silk and latest 30s fashions, Violet finds a refuge.

When Britain declares war on Germany in 1939, Carolyn Maddison is still a schoolgirl. Her elder brother, Alastair, wastes no time in joining the RAF as a flying officer, and Carolyn decides that when she is 18 she will follow him into the service by joining the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. While reporting to the Air Ministry in London, she meets a good-looking, charismatic pilot, Charlie Wade, currently employed in propaganda work.

Negativity can weigh you down so that you feel like Atlas trying to carry the world around on your shoulders. Are you feeling weighed down by worry, anger, resentment, and stress? The good news is that you can shift all that weight off your shoulders, and experience the freedom of happiness. You can find inner peace, bringing balance back into your life.