Historical Family Saga

Everyone loves Johanna Bell: 'A heartwarming story of women discovering their inner strength . . . I couldn't put it down' Vicki Beeby 'I absolutely loved this book series, it's one of those where you feel lost when you've finished, like what am I going to do now? A definite must read' Reader...

Secrets shared can bind hearts, but secrets concealed? That's a tale of its own. The year is 1884. Robert Cooke and his pregnant wife Freya tragically lose their two sons to scarlet fever, sending Freya into self-imposed isolation for the safety of their unborn child. Cut off from each other, their shared grief becomes a silent, destructive foe. A decade later and now a successful businessman, Robert conceives a poignant tribute to his lost sons - a pleasure garden. But in withholding his vision from Freya, he widens the gulf between them.

As the much doted-on daughter of the local doctor Violet Stroud had a comfortable, happy childhood - despite a distinct lack of love from her cold-hearted mother. But when her father unexpectedly dies, Violet's life is turned upside down. As secrets about the family come to light, Violet finds herself homeless and with no one to turn to apart from Edie, the family's gentle and loving housekeeper.

Gilly Jenkins is the third generation to bake for her family firm. Also on Bread Street, in the same Welsh seaside town, is the rival bakery: Green's. As Gilly's grandfather falls ill, and facing the outbreak of the Second World War, things look tough for the Jenkins. Amidst the hardship of war they face an unexpected tragedy. Their feud with the Greens intensifies, and a new arrival in the town causes consternation. Yet, despite it all romance blossoms across the divide as Gilly falls for Paul, a dashing pilot and heir to the Green business.

Im Berlin der 30er-Jahre brodelt das Leben, aber am Horizont drohen schon dunkle Wolken. Linda und Gitte, Töchter einer liberalen, gutbürgerlichen Familie, genießen ihre Jugend. Linda heiratet den sensiblen und charismatischen Erich, die Liebe ihres Lebens. Als er aus dem Krieg nicht zurückkehrt, fällt sie in tiefe Melancholie und wird schließlich in eine Heilanstalt eingewiesen - gefährlich in einer Zeit, in der psychische Krankheiten zum Todesurteil werden können.

Ein packender Historienroman über eine außergewöhnliche Frau, die in den Geschichtsbüchern bisher nur eine Fußnote war - die Mutter Karls des Großen. Willensstark, ehrgeizig und manchmal skrupellos: das ist Bertrada von Laon. Als junge Frau im Frühmittelalter muss sie sich in einer von Männern dominierten Welt voller Intrigen, Verrat und Mord behaupten. Die kluge Bertrada schafft es, sich allen Widrigkeiten zum Trotz zur Königin krönen zu lassen. Dann kommt ihr Sohn Karl zur Welt - und Bertrada ist entschlossen, ihm zur absoluten Macht zu verhelfen.

Brought to you by Penguin. They won't let the war stop them from finding happiness... Naomi is upset to find a nasty, anonymous letter land on her doorstep. Who could’ve sent something like this? Naomi, Bert and the Churchwood bookshop organising team are determined to figure out who it is...

'A heart-warming and affecting tale' – Woman's Weekly Homecoming for the Chocolate Girls is the heartfelt and dramatic conclusion to this gritty family saga about love, war and chocolate. 1946: The war might be over, but for the Gilby family there are still battles to be fought at home...

Rügen, 1890: Anne steht ihrem Vater, dem Inselarzt, stets mit Rat und Tat zur Seite. Sie würde selbst gern Ärztin werden, doch kommt aufgrund ihres Geschlechts nicht als Nachfolgerin für die Praxis infrage. Ein Ausweg bietet für Anne jedoch der voraussichtliche Nachfolger ihres Vaters: Dr. Franze. Schnell erkennt die junge Frau jedoch, dass es sich bei ihm nur um einen Stümper und Schwerenöter handelt. Kann Anne ihre Position verteidigen und sich ihren Traum erfüllen? Und wird der charmante und junge Badearzt Bernd Vogel ihr bei ihrem Ziel behilflich sein können?

The second installment in the breathtaking Kershaw Sisters series. There is no love like a mother's for her child . . . Little Billy, Polly's son, is the light of her life. It's for his sake that she puts up with an unkind mother-in-law and life on an isolated farm. When Billy is knocked down by...

Edith and Ada run Jimmy's Hope House, where they care for unmarried mothers and where Edith, a doctor, offers free medical help to the poor of London's East End. Both are struggling to overcome trauma from their past. For Edith there is the constant ache and yearning for her twin girls, Elka and Ania, from whom she was separated in 1918. For Ada there is the threat of her sister returning.... As the Nazis strengthen their grip on Poland, sisters Elka and Ania are forced to make a difficult decision: travel to England to find their birth mother or stay and fight?

When Stefan Jochum returns from England to Berlin in August 1945, it is to find a city counting the cost of the Second World War. The Hotel Quadriga is in ruins, his father is dead and his sister, Monika, is living in the Soviet-occupied zone. Determined to survive despite unconquerable odds, his mother Viktoria ekes out an existence from the cellar of the Cafe Jochum.

Robert Sullivan has been left to raise three-year-old Nancy and her seven-year-old brother Jack by himself.Unable to cope, Robert is driven to abandon his children to those he believes can provide them with a better life. However, he quickly has a change of heart and decides to go back for them. But on the way there, he is involved in a horrific accident.

Alicia Woodman was born into a home that should have been filled with comfort and joy. Her mother Elizabeth was bright and vivacious, Humphrey Woodman was a prosperous businessman. But Alicia was not Humphrey’s child and he would have nothing to do with her, and before long Elizabeth, too, turned her back on her daughter. It was left to Polly Ford, widow of a dock labourer, to bring Alicia up, to teach her to say ‘Yes, Mama’ and to give the child the love she so desperately needed.

When Eliza Chapman, a London ladies maid, learns that her real father is one of the richest men in New York City, her whole world changes. He has sent a one-way ticket for her to join him, his mother and his two daughters at his palatial Manhattan mansion. Eliza suddenly has her own ladies maid and learns that she is expected to find a husband. As the social season gets underway, she is swept into a whirl of teas, luncheons, balls and other events. But her sisters see her as unwelcome competition, which makes her feel even more like a fish out of water.

Ein Jahrhundertwinter sorgt für Trubel. Hamburg, Dezember 1978: Eigentlich träumen die Matriarchinnen Anna und Sofie davon, die gesamte Großfamilie zu Weihnachten in der Villa am Elbstrand zu versammeln. Doch Sofies Enkelin, Journalistin Isabel, hängt hochschwanger in Argentinien fest. Unterdessen bereitet Annas Enkelin Stella das Firmenjubiläum der nach wie vor familiengeführten Reederei Nieland vor. Dabei stößt sie im Archiv auf ein Geheimnis, das viele Jahre in die Vergangenheit zurückreicht.

Filha mais velha do enigmático Pa Salt, Maia D’Aplièse sempre levou uma vida calma e confortável na isolada casa da família às margens do lago Léman, na Suíça. Ao receber a notícia de que seu pai morreu, ela vê seu universo de segurança desaparecer. Antes de partir, no entanto, Pa Salt deixou para as seis filhas dicas sobre o passado de cada uma. Abalada pela morte do pai e pelo reaparecimento súbito de um antigo namorado, Maia decide seguir as pistas de sua verdadeira origem que a fazem viajar para o Rio de Janeiro.

1922. After the horrors of the Great War, the close-knit Truscott family return to everyday life on their busy Hampshire farm. But the two Truscott sisters are on very different paths. Kate is happily married to Albert, content to be a mother and farmer’s wife. Her younger sister Dot sets her heart on becoming a teacher. But an unforeseen tragedy means Dot must give up her place at college. Instead she resigns herself to becoming a lady’s companion to wealthy Mrs Humboldt, who is a difficult woman to please.

Somerset, 1911. Miner's wife Lorna Harrison sometimes wonders what became of her marriage. The affection has gone, and now her husband Harry is surly and cold. But Lorna will always be grateful for the joy that their two daughters bring. When a devastating accident occurs at the pit and Harry is unable to work, Lorna worries about how she will make ends meet. Worse, the pit owner wants them out of their house. While Lorna's friend Flossie is a tower of strength, other neighbours turn their backs, as rumours spread that Harry helped cause the mine collapse.

Der dritte Band der beliebten SAGA um die Hamburger Arztfamilie zur Haiden. Hamburg 1961. Mit Lucie zur Haiden ist die nächste Generation in das Haus an der großen Elbstraße eingezogen. Nach dem Wunsch ihrer Mutter soll Lucie ebenfalls Ärztin werden, doch ihr kommen immer größere Zweifel. Helfen möchte sie den Menschen schon, aber das Studium fällt ihr schwer. Dann lernt sie Richard kennen, der sich als Modeschöpfer ausgibt und den ihre Mutter gleich für einen Blender hält, doch Lucie verliebt sich in ihn. Sie gibt ihr Studium auf. Der Haussegen hängt mächtig schief.