Historical Letters

An intimate three-volume collection of moving letters from the private writings of three of the most popular writers of the 19th century, presented in a dramatised setting.

Immerse yourself in the captivating world of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter." Set in Puritan New England, this timeless classic delves into themes of sin, guilt, and redemption. The story follows Hester Prynne, a woman branded with a scarlet letter "A" for adultery, as she navigates the complexities of societal judgment and personal redemption. Hawthorne's exquisite prose and rich symbolism bring the characters to life, while exploring the human condition with profound insight.

Millie Ashton thinks London society is full of empty headed, arrogant fools, but when she meets Alex Radley she falls desperately in love with him. Fearing humiliation and rejection, she decides the only sensible thing to do is take her pride and go home to India. Men like Alex do not fall for girls like her, whereas every girl loses her heart to Alexander the Great. Alex Radley, Marquess of Brooke rules the ton like a god, but even gods are known to fall for mere mortals.

Sophronia Lattimore had her romantic dreams destroyed years ago and is resigned to her role as chaperone for her cousin. Still, she cannot sit idly by when she becomes aware that a gentleman is about to propose to the wrong woman. She sends him an anonymous letter that is soon the talk of the town, particularly when her advice proves to be correct. Her identity is discovered and Sophie, formerly a wallflower, becomes sought after for her “expert” matchmaking skills.

When Louisa Deasey receives a message from a Frenchwoman called Coralie, who has found a cache of letters in an attic, written about Louisa’s father, neither woman can imagine the events it will set in motion. The letters, dated 1949, detail a passionate affair between Louisa’s father, Denison, and Coralie’s grandmother, Michelle, in post-war London. They spark Louisa to find out more about her father, who died when she was six.

Michael Coniglio is at his wit's end. His girlfriend, Angela, announces in front of the local coffee shop crowd that she has a new lover. The emotional fallout leads him to lose his office job, giving his boss the long-awaited excuse to fire him. Michael goes home to his parents looking for support and professes his childhood dream only for his father to remind Michael that he will never amount to anything. Just as Michael is about to give up on life, he meets a woman who changes everything.

'As a diarist I have chronicled the time through which I have lived in meticulous detail: but all that is history. What matters now is the future for those who will live through it. The past is the past but there may be lessons to be learned which could help the next generation to avoid mistakes their parents and grandparents made. Certainly at my age I have learned an enormous amount from the study of history.' (Tony Benn)

By day, Reginald Sinclair works in the post office, but by night, he is the increasingly infamous Paladin, the gallant highwayman making young women swoon all over Somerset. With a vendetta against the wealthy that spans both past and present, Reggie's escapades allow him to take justice into his own hands while helping his uncle avoid insolvency.

Sound interesting? Listen to De Smet's Letters and Sketches, 1841-1842 and learn about the Catholic priest and missionary.

A TIMELESS ROMANCE ANTHOLOGY: LOVE LETTER COLLECTION: Listeners will love this collection of six novellas - three contemporary and three historical - all with one thing in common: Romance.

Phoebe Kimball grew up believing in love, but after failing to find a gentleman capable of capturing her heart, she has turned more practical than romantic. She is determined to find a husband in London this season. If only the annoying Mr. Fenwick would stop appearing every time she sets her cap at someone! When an anonymous letter arrives warning her that her current target is unsuitable marital material, Phoebe begins a relationship with the letter writer that promises something more than a practical alliance.

Orphaned and alone in antebellum New Orleans, Fiona Riley promises a dying friend she will raise the woman's child as her own. But without a job and a roof over their heads, Fiona fears for their lives. When a letter arrives announcing that relatives in a bayou town are searching for their long-lost cousin, Fiona finds the answer to her prayers, even if it means deceiving others to survive. Emile Dugas knew she was lying the moment he set eyes on Fiona Riley, an Irish immigrant trying to pose as his distant Cajun cousin. But how could he resist?

Late on a frozen February evening, a young woman is running through the streets of London. Having fled from her abusive boyfriend and with nowhere to go, Jess stumbles onto a forgotten lane where a small, clearly unlived in old house offers her best chance of shelter for the night. The next morning, a mysterious letter arrives and when she can't help but open it, she finds herself drawn inexorably into the story of two lovers from another time.

After surviving the accident that took her mother's life, Claire Broussard worked hard to escape her small Louisiana hometown. But these days, she feels something lacking. Abruptly leaving her lucrative job in Chicago, Claire returns home to care for her ailing grandmother. There, she unearths a beautiful sculpture that her great-grandfather sent home from Paris after World War II. At her grandmother's urging, Claire travels to Paris to track down the centuries old mask-making atelier where the sculpture was created.

As she emerges from the prison of a Puritan New England town, Hester Prynne defies the dark gloom much as the rose blooms against the prison door. With her illegitimate baby, Pearl, clutched in her arms and the letter A - the mark of an adulteress - embroidered in scarlet thread on her breast, Hester holds her head high as she faces the malice and scorn of the townsfolk. Her powerful, bittersweet story is an American classic that continues to touch the hearts of modern readers with its timeless themes of guilt, passion and repentance.

After the death of Charles Senior, his son, also named Charles, compiled his father’s personal letters into a lesser-known book, which you are about to have the pleasure of listening to. This volume gives a unique perspective into the personal life of the Prince of Preachers. It shows that while he walked in revival his entire life, he was a man like any other. He was a man that had a family he dearly loved, got angry when people twisted his words, was often wracked with sickness and pain, and above all, loved Jesus.

"الانتظار حوافر الزمن ، يا ميّ ، وأنا دائماً في انتظار ..أنا دائماً أنتظر ما لا أعرفه ، ويخيل لي في بعض الأحايين أنني أصرف حياتي مترقباً حدوث ما لم يحدث بعد ،وأشبهني بأولئك المقعدين الذين كانوا يجلسون بجانب البحيرة مترقبين هبوط ملاكٍ يحرك الماء ! أما الآن وقد حرك الملاك البركة ، فمن يلقيني في الماء ؟ إني أسير في ذلك المكان المهيب المسحور وفي عيني قدم وعزم ..."

Thirty-five Letters is a compilation of found letters written by a mother to her absent son. Spanning from 1972 to the spring of 1980, these letters offer insight into the world of a wife and mother who is trying desperately to keep her life on track and family intact.

Centered on recently discovered, authenticated correspondence between two famous 19th-century Masonic leaders, Confederate General Albert Pike and British Colonel James Wilson Bury MacLeod Moore, this modern-day thriller follows Thomas, a direct descendant of Col. Moore, and Janet Rose, a direct descendant of the Merovingian Kings and House of David, as they risk their lives to protect the letters and the Templar and Rosicrucian secrets encoded within them.

In the summer of 1905, Katherine Arthur's mother arrives on her doorstep, dying, forcing her to relive a past she wanted to forget. When Katherine was young, the Arthur family had been affluent city dwellers until shame sent them running for the prairie, into the unknown. Taking her family, including young Katherine, to live off the land was the last thing Jeanie Arthur had wanted, but she would do her best to make a go of it. For Jeanie's husband, Frank, it had been a world of opportunity. Dreaming, lazy Frank.