Showing results by narrator "Caroline Holmes" in All Categories

Marcel Proust (1871-1922) was born in Paris during a time of great social and political upheaval, a ferment that is dealt with extensively in his monumental work In Search of Lost Time. He was a sickly child and spent the earlier part of his short life pursuing a variety of sometimes frivolous activities, which led to his not being taken seriously as a writer. It was not until 1909, when he was 38 years old, that he began work on the groundbreaking novel for which he is known, a task that consumed the rest of his life.

A lady in disguise.... A rogue out for revenge.... What better way to escape an abusive fiancé and a tyrannical mother than by masquerading as the male secretary to the most infamous scientist in the land? Davina Benwick can’t think of a single one. But pretending to be a man is hard work, especially around her employer. He’s as charming as he is eccentric, and Davina can’t help but fall for him. Not only does he think she’s a man, however - he’s hell-bent on marrying another. What’s a lady to do?

Alice’s stories of Wonderland did more than raise a few eyebrows - it landed her in an asylum. Now at 15 years of age, she’s willing to do anything to leave, which includes agreeing to an experimental procedure. When Alice decides at the last minute not to go through with it, she escapes with the White Rabbit to Wonderland and trades one mad house for another: The court of the Queen of Hearts. Only this time, she is under orders to take out the Queen. When love, scandal, and intrigue begin to muddle her mission, Alice finds herself on the wrong side of the chopping block.

After the Viscount Marlowe's latest misadventure gets Miss Minerva Jones sacked from her teaching post, he hires her as a governess for his twins. Marlowe finds himself falling for the feisty bookworm - an alarming development for a man who was nearly broken by his disastrous marriage. Can he risk his heart without falling apart again? Minerva would rather be employed by anyone other than the walking disaster that is the Viscount Marlowe, but she finds a home in Lord Marlowe's eccentric household, and loses her heart to not only the twins but also their impossible father.

Sailing west across the Atlantic, Melcorka and Bradan encounter a strange woman entombed within an iceberg. On her is a headband decorated with the symbol of a falcon. Soon after, they meet a fleet of Norse ships and set sail with them towards the New World. Fighting their way through skraeling hordes and facing the mysterious Ice Giant, they find the ancient pyramid city of Cahokia. But what is the secret of the strange falcon artifact?

In the 16th century, Morag desperately wanted to leave her home, but Dougal wanted to return to his. In the 21st century, Angus was glad to be home, but Claire was seeking to find a place where she could feel she belonged. Two couples in two different centuries. But what are the links that bind them?

After the campaign against the Norse, Melcorka the Swordswoman is unsettled. She wishes revenge on Egil the Norseman, yet knows that Defender - her magic sword - cannot kill without cause. After a visit to the seer Fitheach, Melcorka receives a dire warning. They head toward the Western Isles in search of knowledge, facing many dangers on their path. With the help of pirate leader Osprey and Hector, leader of the Ulvust, they forge on toward the Standing Stones of Callanish to face the most fearsome foe of all: The Shining One.

As sixth-generation Keepers, sisters Agatha and Sarah Spindlecrook can awaken the dead simply by speaking their names. But the dead who sleep in Broodhaven Cemetery suddenly seem to be rising all on their own. The sisters can also put the dead back asleep by speaking their names again while dropping a stone...though that doesn’t seem to be working for them at the moment, either.

Bath, England. As Detective Andrew Deans struggles to be present for his wife's challenging fertility treatment, the case of a missing college student hits a dead end. Under pressure from his job and his marriage, Deans' inquiry takes a turn when he receives impossible-to-deny evidence from a psychic....Despite his lack of belief in the paranormal, following the ghostly thread escalates his missing person case into a murder investigation. Unable to focus on his responsibilities at home, Deans works with the medium to build evidence from a new source: the voice of the victim herself.

Melcorka thought she was an ordinary young woman from the Isles. But when her homeland of Alba is attacked by an invading horde, Melcorka abandons her life of luxury and chooses the path of a warrior. With a ragtag band of companions, she heads south to unite the clans and free the land from the Norsemen's scourge and claim her destiny.

Hanna Walker wakes up in a hospital bed but has no memory of what has happened to her. When questioned by the police, she is devastated to learn that her lifelong friend, Stella, has been murdered and she herself left for dead, after Stella’s recent birthday party. During the murder investigation Stella’s ex husband and several of her former lovers fall under suspicion. When Stella’s own activities in the period leading up to the party also come under the spotlight, Hanna is forced to revise her opinion of the woman she thought was her closest friend.

Secretive, mysterious, beautiful - and armed to the teeth. How can she be in danger? In a deserted mansion with a secret passage, Mademoiselle is searching. But for what? Gerald wants to know. She will not tell him. She is determined to play her game alone and refuses to be rescued. Who is she? Why does she disguise herself as a nun? What is her connection to the émigré Valade? Can Gerald find out before Mademoiselle gets herself killed?

The Scissors and the Sword is the first in a new urban fantasy series, in which Jessica Cartwright, a Scene of Crime Officer, confronts creatures of Japanese myth unleashed upon modern-day London. When blood-soaked scissors are the only clues recovered from a double-murder-scene in Hyde Park, Scene of Crime Officer Jessica Cartwright races against time to understand the evidence before the killer strikes again.

He is powerfully male and older. She is a mischievous delight. Clare beards the ogre in his den and is instantly smitten with Rupert's dynamic attraction. Her brother's elopement ends with Clare compromised. She must marry Rupert's cousin Ashendon, whom she detests, or Rupert himself. The promise of a radiant future evaporates as fate and Ashendon conspire against her. Can Clare overcome her husband's inner demons to save this uneven and improbable match?

Adam Sutherland thought he knew his parents. They were like any other couple who were head-over-heels in love with each other. It was sickening to witness, to be honest, but he never dreamed that their devotion to one another began in the 16th century in the Highlands of Scotland. And more importantly, he never thought he'd see for himself just how a trip into the past could profoundly alter his future.

Nero Claudius Caesar holds a reputation as a tyrant, a maniacal leader. Some say he may have suffered from lead poisoning and gone mad, but most historical sources quickly dismiss this excuse for his cruelty. Various historical accounts record that Nero had his own mother killed, persecuted Christians, and ordered the setting of Rome’s Great Fire. The last ruler of the Julio-Claudian dynasty is certainly one of the most infamous leaders of the Roman Empire. This brief history explores what we know about the man behind the myth and the monster within the man.

This work offers a cross section of murder cases ranging from the quest for Scotland’s independence in the 14th century right up to the late 1970’s and a serial killer who perpetrated five murders in less than a year. Each set of circumstances is challenging and evokes the history of the nation with cases which involve royalty, the heart-breaking loss of an entire family and the role of culpable homicide in the Scottish legal system in the early 20th century.

It is AD 689, and Cynethryth is returning from Rome, carrying her dead husband's child. She soon gives birth to a son, Aethelheard, whose parentage alone places him in danger. His mother has a tough choice to make and travels to Dorset, where the king is a cousin of her late husband.

Justine Parker is a hopeless romantic who has long been obsessed with the Tudor period. Working in a magnificent stately home that once belonged to the dashing adventurer Sir William de Beauvais, she often daydreams about the lavish balls and grandeur of Tudor life. But when a freak electrical storm suddenly catapults her back in time, she discovers the harsh reality of Tudor England—a time of perilous accusations, ruthless witch hunts, and deadly punishments.

The county of East Lothian, previously known as Haddingtonshire, is an often-overlooked gem nestled in Scotland's central lowlands. Its boundaries include the Scottish Borders to the south, Edinburgh to the west, and Midlothian to the south-west. The central administrative hub is the Royal Burgh of Haddington, which can trace its heritage back 900 years.