Showing results for "penelope rawlins" in Contemporary Fiction

1962, Cornwall: Tara Jupp - vicar’s daughter, occasional thief, expert horse-rider and second fiddle to her sister ‘the beauty’ Lucy - sings at a wedding and is spotted by a record producer. With the spotlight suddenly, thrillingly shining on her alone, the roots of Tara’s country existence are shaken free and she is propelled to swinging-'60s London. Plunged into a dazzling new world of fashion, music and heartache, in a city where skirts are being hitched up as fast as the past is being pulled down, can Tara hold the limelight and hold on to who she really is?

Autumn 1940, World War Two: Bombs are raining down, destroying the cities of Britain. The evacuations begin, and soon children are being taken to the country for safety. Teacher Eve Parkins is in charge of one such group. The children are scared and Eve does her best to calm them, but the truth is that she too is haunted by a personal tragedy she cannot put behind her. Their destination is Eel Marsh House. Desolate and forlorn, it is situated on a causeway and is sinking into the treacherous tidal marshes that surround it. Far from home and with no alternative, Eve and the children move in.

Sink into the romance and sparkle of snowy London, in this charming début novel. For the past two years, Evie has lived an invisible life in London. Her neighbours think she's just moved in, and even Evie's manager at work can't remember her name. But all that is about to change ...this Christmas has brought a flurry of snow and unimaginable possibilities into town. And when an accidental encounter with the handsome, enigmatic Joel gives her the chance of a whole new identity, she takes it.

Imagine being married for 28 years with three children, a lovely house and a husband who travels a lot - but you still love each other. Or: imagine being happily married for 17 years. You have one daughter and your husband travels a lot. One day you get a call that turns your world upside down: your husband is dead. You go to the funeral…and meet his other widow…

Harriet Lockwood has never really bonded with her daughter the way she has with her three sons. Then one day, she discovers why. The girl she’s raised for the last fifteen years is not her biological child. As a consequence, two families are plunged into a storm of bitter rivalries and unexpected alliances.

Sophie knows she should count herself lucky when she finds herself catapulted into the A-list after the surprise hit of a budget movie, but she just wishes she could be a proper actress, in proper, serious films. As Sophie’s career begins to decline her fate seems to be entwined with that of her favourite actress, Eve Noel: the epitome of 50s Hollywood glamour…

In a small Kent town in the 1950s, a bewildered little girl is growing up. Ostracised because of her colour, she tries her best to fit in, but nobody wants anything to do with her. A nanny climbs the steps of a smart London address. She’s convinced that her connection to the family behind the...

Max Walker is the golden boy. He's attractive, intelligent, athletic. He's even nice to his little brother. Max is going to pass his exams with flying colours; he’s going to make his parents proud.

The most ambitious and daring novel novel yet from Booker Prize-shortlisted Philip Hensher. ‘A novel that's almost fizzy to the touch … A performance of extraordinary flair and majesty from a writer who seems capable of anything’ Guardian An astonishing novel, ‘The Emperor Waltz’ draws...

Isabel Bookbinder dreams of perfect white weddings, happy brides, handsome grooms. But not for herself... for her clients. It's all about bride management as far as Isabel's concerned. Even when she loses her job working for wedding guru Pippa Everitt, Isabel isn't disheartened. She throws herself straight into launching Isabel Bookbinder, Individual Weddings. Unfortunately for Isabel, nothing ever goes quite according to plan...

Isabel Murrow is precariously balancing her career and her family. Hard-working and caring, worried but supportive, all Isobel wants, in a perilous world of bullies and temptations, is to keep her daughter Phoebe safe. Phoebe has just attempted suicide. She says it is Isabel's fault. Saving Phoebe Murrow is a timely tale about an age-old problem - how best to raise our children, and how far to go in keeping them from harm.

How do you know where you belong? In June 1988, Elizabeth Kelly's parents think she belongs at home in Ireland. Her boyfriend is certain of it. Unwilling to settle down just yet, she decides to spend the summer in Boston with her college friends. But the next four months change all of them, especially Elizabeth. Quiet and dutiful at home, she surprises herself and everyone else by falling for Danny Esposito, a restless charmer with a troublesome family.