Showing results by narrator "Nicola Barber" in All Categories

It’s five years since psychiatrist Olivia Hofmann’s husband and daughter vanished without trace, and five years since the body of troubled teenager Lisa Manz was found murdered in a quarry outside Vienna. While the trail of Lisa’s killer has gone cold, Olivia receives an anonymous postcard each year on the anniversary of her family’s disappearance. Who is sending the messages, and why are they sorry? When one of her patients claims he has seen Lisa alive, Olivia joins forces with detective Levi Kant, who was taken off the murder case when he was close to finding answers.

Romy Moore has always cherished the warm embrace of her family home in the foothills of the Dublin Mountains - a welcome escape from life on the lower rungs of the London career ladder. It is her mother Cathy’s encouragement that has kept Romy chasing her dreams, so when she loses her, Romy feels more adrift than ever.

At thirty-three, nurse Heather is desperately waiting for her romantic life to begin. Then she meets handsome, strong Anthony and is sure she’s found the one. Brushing any doubts aside, she projects all her hopes for true love onto him. Meanwhile, at a yoga retreat in Spain, happy-go-lucky Joe can’t believe his luck when he meets vivacious, witty Amy. She’s the sharpest, most beautiful woman he has ever dated, and the fact that she’s interested in him feels like a dream come true.

Jessie Archer faced down death to prove her dedication to Athena, the elite organization of female spies she works for. Now she’s back on the team, in time to head to Pakistan to take down the man whose actions spurred Athena’s founders to create the secretive squad. But his connections spread farther than anyone knew, and when a girls’ school in Mumbai is bombed, a shadowy far-right organization reveals itself—and its evil plans to continue attacks. When someone close to the investigation turns on Athena, Jessie knows that their time to save everyone is nearly up.

Jessie Archer is a member of the Athena Protocol, an elite organization of female spies who enact vigilante justice around the world. Athena operatives are never supposed to shoot to kill - so when Jessie can’t stop herself from pulling the trigger, she gets kicked out of the organization, right before a huge mission to take down a human trafficker in Belgrade. Jessie needs to right her wrong and prove herself, so she starts her own investigation into the trafficking.

It's the dawn of the 22nd century, and the world has fallen apart. Decades of war and resource depletion have toppled governments. The ecosystem has collapsed. A new dust bowl sweeps the American West. The United States has become a nation of migrants - starving masses of nomads who seek out a living in desert wastelands and encampments outside government seed-distribution warehouses. In this new world, there is a new power.

Wren is in the last place she ever wanted to be: backinside the dome. Held as a prisoner of her father, the Master General Enforcer,she is completely cut off from the outside. After a harrowing escape attempt,and finding Levi trapped in a cell, Wren's world is further turned upside downby what could be Pace's ultimate betrayal. Only Pace's whispered words keepher from losing all hope. "Things are not always what they seem." Those words,along with the sight of yellow-feathered Pip keep Wren fighting for what sheknows in her heart is right for everyone. She must break the glass.

When Wren's father realizes that his rebellious daughterand her friends are not falling into his plan of complacency, he turns themover to an even darker enemy. While Levi is certain his uncle will save them,the Quest and all their friends outside the dome seem to have disappeared.

The outside world is a brutal place, but Wren will not bebeaten. She holds strong to her belief that outside the glass there is thepromise of freedom and the hope for love. Wren must battle the forces that wantto enslave her, and the foolish whims of her own heart to free her world andfinally find where she belongs.

Wren MacAvoy works as a coal miner for a domed city that was constructed in the mid-19th century to protect the royal blood line of England when astronomers spotted a comet on a collision course with Earth. Humanity would be saved by the most groundbreaking technology of the time. But after nearly 200 years of life beneath the dome, society has become complacent and the coal is running out. Plus, there are those who wonder: Is there life outside the dome? Or is the world still consumed by fire?

Short novels may well be the perfect length for science-fiction stories. They are movie-length tales that resonate with moxie while fully exploring characters, new worlds, and ideas. The stories in this unabridged audio collection are the best-of-the-best short science-fiction novels published in 2010 by current and emerging masters of this form.

There is a fine line between love and sacrifice. Antonio would do anything for his beloved fighting partner Jenn. He protects her, even suppresses his vampire cravings to be with her. Together, they defend humanity against the Cursed Ones. But tensions threaten to fracture their hunting team and his loyalty - and his love - is called into question.

Amid the sumptuous backdrop of the London season in 1905, headstrong Katherine Sinclair must join the ranks of debutantes vying for suitors. Unfortunately for Katherine, she cannot imagine anything more loathsome - or dangerous. To help ease her entrance into society, Katherine’s family has elicited the assistance of the Earl of Thornewood, a friend and London’s most eligible bachelor, to be her constant companion at the endless fetes and balls.

As a journalist for the Independent, Emma Bamford is swept along with the London rat race, lost amongst the egos of Fleet Street. Surrounded by budget cuts and bullies, the thrill of a breaking news story is no longer enough. And at 31, still struggling to get to a fourth date and surrounded by friends settling down to married life and babies, Emma decides to grasp her life by the roots and reclaim her freedom...by running away to sea and joining a complete stranger (and his cat) on a yacht in Borneo.

Nothing has been normal since Vanessa Sands learned that her sister was murdered by siren femme fatales of the watery depths and that everything she believed about her family was a lie. Her boyfriend, Simon, has been the only person Vanessa feels she can really trust. But now there are some secrets she can't tell even him. And when Vanessa finds herself in the sights of Parker, Hawthorne Prep's resident charmer, she needs someone to confide in more than ever.

Former witch hunter Elizabeth Grey is hiding within the magically protected village of Harrow, evading the price put on her head by Lord Blackwell, the usurper king of Anglia. Their last encounter left Blackwell ruined, but his thirst for power grows stronger every day. He's readying for a war against those who would resist his rule - namely Elizabeth and the witches, wizards, pirates, and healers she now calls her friends.

Harper only wanted a safe, normal life. But when her younger sister Gemma runs off with a dangerous clique of beautiful girls, Penn, Thea, and Lexi, everything changes. Vowing to get her sister back no matter what the cost, Harper must face dangers unlike any she's ever experienced. Fortunately, she has Daniel by her side, a gorgeous guy who's devoted to helping her find her sister—and who's immune to the girls' dark powers. While Harper searches for her sister, Gemma struggles to adjust to her new life.

Against the backdrop of The Troubles in Northern Ireland, recent Oxford graduate Claire is a mess. She's trapped in a disastrous relationship with a young academic, working a dead-end job, stunned by the emergence of secrets from her mother's past, and seemingly addicted to self-destructive behavior. But like the ceasefire that has brought renewed hope to Belfast, Claire too is afforded an opportunity to reflect, gradually learning to accept herself and to discover her sense of self-esteem and self-worth.

Wren’s world has changed. The thing that she fought for - escaping the dome - has come to fruition, but it’s not the paradise she thought it would be. Most of the shiners have died, and according to James she is to blame for many of the deaths, a burden which sits heavy on her shoulders. Still some have survived and Wren is determined to keep them safe as they fight to establish a home outside while hiding from the rovers who have weapons that can kill from far away. But as long as she has Pace she knows everything will be fine.

The Resistance still fights the invaders, but they are nothing more than an annoyance to the Illyri, an alien race of superior technology and military strength. When caught, the young rebels are conscripted. Part soldiers, part hostages, they join the Brigades, sent to fight at the edges of the growing Illyri Empire.

A scientifically minded noblemanLord Alan Gresham is the sixth son of the Duke of Langford and, as such, has been allowed to remain at Oxford to pursue his scientific studies. When the prince regent asks him to debunk the "ghost" of a dead actress haunting Carlton House, he cannot refuse, and is forced back to the Society he deplores. But upon meeting the daughter of the alleged ghost, his calm, logical investigation is disrupted. Learns the breathless chemistry of desire.

All Grace Gauthier ever wanted was the security of a good marriage, family, and home. Instead, despised by her aristocratic father's family because of her mother's foreign birth, she's taken a safe position as a governess. Now, unprotected and alone in London, accused of the shocking murder of her employer, she has no one to turn to except the mysterious - and possibly dangerous - Lord Ruthveyn.