If anyone did manage to escape his imagined attack long enough to attempt to swim ashore, Fox would push him under. His attitude was understandable, for he was still angered and aching from a whipping. He was only eleven years old and a powder monkey, one of the lowest forms of life afloat. Such was the beginning of Fox's career in the Royal Navy.In a short time, however, he would rise through the ranks. He would survive the brutality of bigger men and demanding officers. He would acquit himself bravely amidst the crashing chaos of cannonfire and hand-to-hand combat. He would battle the French, the Spanish, the Americans ... any enemy who dared to risk his wake.He would become the toughest bastard who ever walked the rolling deck of a fighting ship!Adam Hardy was a pen name used by Kenneth Bulmer (1921-2005). A prolific writer, Bulmer wrote over 160 novels and innumerable short stories, both under his real name and various pen names. He is best known for science fiction, including his long-running Dray Prescot series of planetary romances, but he wrote in many genres.

    But attend the Christmas festivities of the Ton she must. Even if she has to go through hell just for the sake of her father.Nothing stings more than unrequited love and Ducnan Matthews, the Duke of Reedson, learned this the hard way. And despite living in sin for the past years, his heart still betrays him at the sight of the very woman who broke it.Threatened with financial ruination, Duncan desperately needs a wealthy wife and Kendra needs a savior. With their own futures at stake, it’s finally time to confront the past, to trust in each other, and against the odds, find the love they lost—if she will only say yes.

    Stricken by diphtheria, she is sent to the Hampshire countryside where she discovers a robust fighting spirit and the first stirrings of attraction...But then must she follow her mother into the city’s grim corset-making trade. Lu realizes that things must change. And she can make it happen.  Her journey from shy child to energetic woman encompasses love, deep friendship, and a growing political awareness. Above all, Lu is a survivor – and one to be reckoned with.The Girl Now Leaving is a powerful and unputdownable saga perfect for fans of Diney Costeloe, Nadine Dorries and Mary Gibson.

    

    A loner, Bitter plans a quick ride home over the Oregon Trail. The good Lord, however, has other plans for him. After a month on the Trail, two gun battles, a bruising fistfight to settle a blood feud, a new wife, and two adopted sons, Bitter tells Rockford, his big, mean, black horse, “This sure complicates the business of getting back to Oregon.” Bitter now finds himself the leader of a mixed entourage going west: a black pioneer family earlier wagon trains shunned; an Irish rebel turned galvanized Yankee; a dispossessed Cherokee turned Cheyenne medicine man; the rescued sister of a Bannock chief; a white boy adopted by the Cheyenne; and a scout for the Union Army who is also one of the richest men in Oregon. Bitter’s Run is a spirited and adventurous tale. Told in three parts, it portrays the realities and uncertainties of life on the Oregon Trail, of the war-weary men seeking or returning to a homestead in Oregon, and of the courageous women who rode with them.

    When Nadine learns that the Indian woman she thought her nanny is, in fact, her mother, she rebels against her English father and he arranges for her to be wed to an Australian merchant many years older. She is whisked off to her new husband's plantation in Malaya but as the Second World War rages throughout the East, Nadine is taken captive by the Japanese. She is held at a camp in Sumatra with other women and forced to entertain the soldiers and satisfy their desires. In the most unlikely circumstances, Nadine finds an ally and protector in a Japanese—American major caught up in the war. The two bond over their conflicted identities and gradually fall in love. But can Nadine survive long enough to find happiness? Don't miss this emotional and powerful saga about a woman's determination to beat the odds, perfect for fans of Renita D'Silva, Dinah Jefferies and Julia Gregson.

    

    

    War is on the horizon but on Monk Island, Maine life goes on as usual. As the daughter of a lobsterman, Ellie Ames’ future seems limited until a mysterious German couple comes off the ferry with their nineteen-year-old son. From the moment she meets Karl Brink, the two become inseparable and not everyone approves because locals are suspicious of outsiders. Ellie ignores their scorn, however, and the secret she learns about Karl’s family makes her even more determined to be with him. The magical summer ends when the Brinks suddenly have to go home. And although Karl promises to return in the fall, by then Europe is at war. Two years pass and Ellie has all but given up hope when she gets a letter in the mail that will change her life forever.The Storm Beyond The Tides is the story of the unlikely romance between a small-town girl and a German on the eve of the Second World War and explores a frightening time in America’s past—when U-Boats prowled the East Coast and put small, coastal communities on the frontline of a global conflict.

    The Normandy coastal village of Caillons is under German occupation, its villagers struggling to survive. With her husband forced into compulsory service for the German Reich, Jeanne Dupré, mother of two adolescent daughters, risks everything to lead the local Resistance cell.Life becomes even more dangerous with the arrival of British agent Daniel Benedict. He needs Jeanne's help to complete his mission, vital to Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings. But Jeanne is suspicious that they are not fighting for the same outcome. Their joint foe is Jürgen Graf, a Nazi oberleutnant set on wiping out the local Resistance. Aware that a spy is at large, Graf is on a ruthless mission to hunt Benedict down. With the help of a network of Catholic priests, Benedict penetrates the heart of the Nazis’ defences against Allied invasion, the Atlantic Wall. As the lives of Jeanne and Benedict become increasingly intertwined can they stay true to themselves? Will they have to sacrifice all in their fight for freedom..? ‘Villa Normandie’ is a moving historical novel, presenting an accurate picture of life under Nazi occupation. It is thoroughly detailed, meticulously researched and vividly authentic - depicting the turbulent world of the French resistance and the struggle of the French people for freedom.

    She lives on a manor in the countryside and the distance from the city suits her well. She loves her charges and her employer is understanding and kind. What more could a poor vicar's daughter ever dream of? The Duke of Rossdale is lonely. He's not really aware of that. At least not yet. When he is dragged to a house party at a manor in the country side, he has no idea he will come face to face with his loneliness. He is happiest at his spread of land in the Scottish Highlands, but he needs an heir. For that, he needs a wife. When the duke and Dorothea first meet, there are sparks that neither can acknowledge. Eventually, they must. He has to tell her how he feels. Will she find the bravery to let him overlook her humble family heritage?

    Perfect for fans of Philippa Gregory. Katherine Digby, daughter to a country gentleman, is now maid of honour at the court of Anne Boleyn. Shy and intimidated by the glamour of the court, she soon inspires the enmity of the queen's sister in law, Lady Rochford. As Anne Boleyn and Katherine Digby grow to understand each other, friendship blossoms, but dark clouds are beginning to gather and Katherine soon realises that the queen is surrounded by sworn enemies - even among the ladies in waiting. When she is entrusted with the safe keeping of a paper, she cannot resist reading it. What she finds is an explosive secret which could threaten everything - even the queen's life. It is vital to protect her, but Katherine faces a formidable adversary in the form of someone who wishes Anne Boleyn dead. The Boleyn secret cannot remain hidden for long. Curl up and enjoy this Tudor escapade by the author of The Lady's Favour, The Shakespeare Trail, and William Shakespeare in 100 Facts.

     Arthur, Duke of Wellington, and Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte were adversaries on an epic scale. Across Europe and beyond, the armies of Great Britain and France clashed, from the Iberian Peninsula to India, from Austerlitz to the final confrontation at Waterloo. What drove the two clever, ambitious, determined men who masterminded these military campaigns? How did the underdog from Corsica develop the strategic military skills and the political cunning that gave him power over swathes of Europe? And how did Wellington, born to be a leader, hone his talents and drive an army to victory after victory?From an outstanding historian and novelist come four epic novels, now available in one volume for the first time, which tell the full story of both these men, from their very early days till the momentous battle at Waterloo which decided the future of Europe.INCLUDES MAPS

    A murder trial would normally be of little interest to Thad Locke, who escaped the "family disease" of law wrangling, but two women--one the accused murderess, the other a member of her defense team--have intertwined themselves with both Thad and his lawyering family.Will Kirsten Cavelle be the first woman sent to the gallows in the state of Kansas? As some members of the community seek to take the law into their own hands, will she even live to see the end of the trial? As the trial unfolds, secrets from the past are revealed, lives are changed forever, and a little known piece of land grows to have resonance far beyond its size.Set amongst the Kansas Flint Hills and the growing city of Manhattan in the 1880s, Medicine Wheel further explores the stories of the Locke family, first introduced in the author's novel, Last Will.

    Afraid her mother will die in childbirth, Cordelia runs away, heading for Westport, Missouri, and her aunt, the only person who might be able to save her mother. Disguising herself as a boy, she sets out on foot to make the 150-mile trip down the Kansas River. She hitches rides with a variety of travelers going east, facing setbacks along the way while learning lessons about the world and her place in it.Cordelia's Journey is the first book in the Pierce Family Saga, a series of historical novels that follow Cordelia and her family through the latter half of the nineteenth century.