Showing results by narrator "Elliot Fitzpatrick" in All Categories

When the US president, Harry S Truman, declared the Truman Doctrine in March 1947, he could not have known that the resultant Cold War would persist for over forty years until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991. In addition to nuclear and conventional military friction between the Eastern and Western blocs, the struggle for dominance involved a remarkable range of activities including the space race, psychological efforts, espionage, even rivalry at sporting functions and technological events.

From the moment I saw Ann, I knew she was perfect for me. Her beauty and her social connections would make my miserable life so much better. It didn’t matter that I didn’t love her. I would give her the lifestyle she craved, and she would give me the life I deserved. But soon my marriage vows were a noose around my neck. I longed to escape my beautiful, horrible wife. And then I saw her and I knew there was only one way out.

Author and singer John Potter tells the European story of song. The form has captivated audiences and excited performers for centuries, from the music of the troubadours and the Christian liturgy through classical composers such as Bach and Schumann up to Britten, Berio, and the rise of popular music. Choosing twelve key works, Potter offers a personal tour through this vital tradition, from John Dowland's "Flow My Tears" to George Gershwin's "Summertime." Throughout, he reveals who wrote and sang these joyful masterpieces—and what they mean to singers and audiences today.

Introducing Interviewing by William Seymour - the winning short story of the Bookseller Futurebook audio original competition 2019. When a young job applicant is overwhelmed with anxiety attacks about an impending interview, his world seems about to implode. Worse still, the calm voice of reason in his head is no help at all...Chosen for its unique writing approach and fascinating prose, Interviewing is a piece of writing that is enhanced by a fresh, forward approach to the audio format.

This is the autobiography of Group Captain Sir Hugh Dundas CBE, DSO, DFC, who was one of the most distinguished fighter pilots of World War II. He writes of his wartime experiences, and particularly of his period as Squadron Leader and Wing Commander and his involvement in the Battle of Britain.

When teen social media influencer Anton Frazer stages a live-streamed, citywide game of Tag where the prize is to become one of his live-in personal assistants, his fans go wild. Outfitted with body cams, GPS trackers, and pressure sensors to keep tally of who's disqualified, contestants are split into Chasers and Runners then let lose into the night-covered urban jungle to hunt each other down. While the whole world watches. Four contestants, however, have alternative motives for joining the game, secret reasons to want to win despite the risk: money, obsession, fame . . . and revenge.

Have you heard about the couple on Maple Drive? Isla barely leaves the house after her brutal mugging. Her boyfriend, Zach, moved in with her after the attack. To look after her. But something else has happened now. Right on their doorstep. I don’t want to say that someone’s out to get her. I just hope they find out the truth before it’s too late. Or at least before the secrets they’re hiding from each other surface. Because those could be even deadlier.

In this rural story a man is inspecting schools in the district of an old and now fabulously rich university friend. When they finally meet a dark secret is revealed to both of them.

In this Venetian set story Edwards follows the trail of a man who, after the briefest of meetings, falls in love with a young Jewish girl, who has but one request of him.

The world since earliest times has always had spies. Information is a valuable commodity and even more so in times of war or tension. Many authors and poets have had real life incarnations as spies from Christopher Marlowe and Aphra Behn to Daniel Defoe. But it’s a dangerous game. Working in a murky, secretive world where any trust given could be at the expense of your life.

On the death of a cruel man, the terms of a secret are demanded from him to no avail. When the facts are finally revealed his true evil has changed everything.

Being an English author in a new and different culture seems to work its magic when these two are placed together in the same spot with a rich vocabulary; ideas seem more fully formed and characters have another edge to their existence. For the outsider looking in, more can be revealed and shared with ourselves.

Agents of Influence reveals the secret history of an intelligence agency gone out of control, accountable to no one but itself and intent on subverting Western politics on a near-inconceivable scale. In 1985, 1,300 KGB officers were stationed in the USA. The FBI only had 350 counter-intelligence officers. Since the early days of the Cold War, the KGB seduced parliamentarians and diplomats, infiltrated the highest echelons of the Civil Service, and planted fake news in papers across the world.

LEAD focuses on the top three priorities of a leader. To Map. To Navigate. To Grow. It enables you to: MAP the journeys that you want to make in work and life; NAVIGATE through life's twists and turns to success; and GROW yourself and others as leaders. Its style is like that of the best coach whose sole aim is to help you find your purpose and to thrive.

We Aim to Live is a collection of fourteen powerful, dark and funny short stories, about ordinary people – mostly men – at moments of crisis, crossroads or revelation. The stories look unflinchingly at men’s behaviour and the moments when masculinity is on the edge of turning dangerous. Some stories portray the toxic world of professional football drawing upon the writer’s past in that world; while others are set in high end hotels, removals firms and sheds.

During the spring and summer of 2021, global news reports were filled with the impending US/NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan. At best, it would be viewed as a stalemate, with an orderly transition to a stable, US-backed Afghan government. At worse, it would be looked upon as two decades of futile war, ending with a shameful retreat that left the county at the mercy of a ruthless Taliban regime. What went wrong?

On the final day of the 2019/20 season, only four clubs in the Championship, England’s second tier of soccer, had nothing to play for, everyone else was fighting for promotion or survival. It’s stats like this that give the league its well-deserved reputation as the most exciting league in football. Anything can happen, and often does. In The Hard Yards, Nige Tassell tells the Championship’s stories, uncovers its hidden gems and takes the listener on an entertaining and eye-opening tour of the 2020/21 season.

On her 47th birthday, Sydney Smith stands on a rooftop and prepares to jump.... Sydney is a cartoonist and freerunner. Feet constantly twitching, always teetering on the edge of life, she's never come to terms with the event that ripped her family apart when she was 10 years old. And so, on a birthday that she doesn't want to celebrate, she returns alone to St Ives to face up to her guilt and grief. It's a trip that turns out to be life-changing - and not only for herself.

When Romilly says goodbye to her new baby daughter, abandoning her at the hospital hours after giving birth, no one can understand why she would leave - and where she has gone. In those first few hours, she had been the image of a doting mother and would have done anything to protect her baby. Something has clearly gone wrong. Could it be that Romilly is suffering from postpartum psychosis, just as her mother did? Or is something even worse at hand? A danger so grave that she would leave her longed-for daughter to escape it.

You could say it started with vanity. We believed we were special. But the truth is we were simply vulnerable. One of them is lying. One of them is guilty. No one is safe. Months after landing their dream job, five brilliant young minds are sent on a remote retreat. But when one of them disappears, they're forced to question why they were brought here in the first place - and how far they'd go to get what they want. And for the first time in their lives, they realise too much knowledge can be deadly.