When a group of young Americans jump ship and start the first surf camp in a downtrodden and practically deserted Waikiki, Head Missionary Hiram Bingham becomes apoplectic with rage. A cast of memorable characters fill this novel with many plot twists and ideas that are as relevant today as they were almost two hundred years ago. In 1824 sixteen year old, orphaned William Goode was put aboard ship in New Orleans as an apprentice seaman against his will. A young man with unique abilites, he began an adventure that took him to Hawaii, forging friendships and making enemies along the way. Spanning more than a decade, this fast paced narrative is written in a blend of James Michener and James Patterson, full of accurate history and a rousing ensemble of characters presented in a page turning style. The Calvinist missionaries want to make sure no one is having any fun while William and his friends just want to work their little farm of taro patches and fish ponds and go surfing free from religious oppression. From the beaches of early Waikiki to the chilly winters of Boston, this novel moves back and forth, around the Horn and across the vast Pacific, with enterprising surfers, a beautiful Hawaiian princess, runaway slaves, and a renegade priest. You will fall in love with Hawaii, fall in love with the characters, and see Hawaiian history in a whole new way.

    She is put to work at the female factory of Parramatta; a place where the women’s only hope of food and lodgings is to offer their bodies to the settlement’s men. Nell is given shelter by Lieutenant Blackwell, a brooding soldier to whom she is inexplicably drawn. Despite warnings from the other women, Blackwell’s motives seem decent, and beneath the roof of a military officer, Nell sees a chance to become more than just a convict woman sent to the factory to be forgotten. But tensions are high in New South Wales, with the young colony teetering on the edge of a convict rebellion. And as Nell treads a dangerous line between obedience and power, she learns the role of a factory lass is to remain silent – or face a walk to the gallows.

    But what if Anne loved someone else? Upon returning to England after a girlhood spent serving at the Court of France, Anne is astonished to catch the eye of King Henry VIII. Despite being in love with a man she can never marry, Anne is ordered by her powerful family to wed the King. Drawn into a court filled with intrigue and deception, can Anne keep the secret that, if discovered, will cost her life, and the life of the one man she truly loves?

    But when he rode to the family home, he made two shocking discoveries: his family was gone, and he had been declared dead by the army four years earlier. He left to cross the plains of Nebraska to find his family, but would find so much more.

    She's lost her home in a bomb attack, and with her husband in the army, her daughters evacuated to Wales, and her mother killed and father injured in the attack, Ruth is left to face the devastation alone. But she finds comfort in the camaraderie of the Civil Defence office where she works and in her friendship with Lucy, a clippie on the buses. Lucy's husband is at sea, and the two women dream of the day when they'll be reunited with their loved ones. But as victory approaches, Ruth finds that the legacy of war is more powerful than even she had imagined...

    

    

     Kate decides to become a governess and she and her sisters are delighted when she is hired by the Duke of Chelmsford, who agrees to let the Sawyer sisters live on the estate. But the Duke has his own motives for his decision. When he tries to force himself upon her younger sister, Kate threatens to kill him. Two days later, the Duke is dead and his grandmother wants a quick trial and hanging, with Catherine on the end of the rope. But the new Duke, Marcus Creighton, the black sheep of the family, is unconvinced that the lovely, gentle governess is a murderess and he’s determined to solve the murder and save Catherine from the gallows. As he delves deeper into past family secrets, his efforts to save the woman he has fallen in love with puts his own life in danger.

    She has never wished to become a lady, but rather enjoys being different... In fact, what keeps her happy is being outdoors and caring for her father, as well as spending most of her time with Patience, her horse. Little did she know her serenity would be disturbed for good when a runaway horse would appear at the bottom of the cliffside along the ocean. Her heart skips a beat though, when she sees its charming owner, Duke Owen Ellis of Blackmoor Manor. In her experience, all dukes are callous and deplorable examples of human beings, but upon first impressions of him, Laura is left feeling rather enchanted and therefore confused. Will Laura overcome her fascination caused by his enigmatic but warm presence, or will she allow her overwhelming feelings to blossom?Lord Owen is the only heir of the Ellis name and Blackmore Manor following his father's death. As for his mother, it was expected that her wish for him to marry Lady Marjorie Fielding, a spoiled London heiress, would be fulfilled. Life has other plans for Owen's heart though, as when Laura is brought on as an equestrian trainer and tamer, he encounters warmth and affection for the first time. However, how could he betray his family's expectation of marrying Lady Marjorie, who despite appearing pretty on the outside, is rather cruel on the inside? A dilemma awaits him, as the journey of becoming the man his father always wanted, would inevitably involve hurting the first woman he ever loved... In the end, which path will he choose?Forced to choose between love and duty, the future is foreshadowed uninviting, unless Laura and Owen can find a way to overpower whoever tries to keep them apart. Will their love and devotion prove that their romance is unassailable? Most importantly, how could they both find the courage to ignore tradition, and not dismiss their hearts' one true calling?

    Lucius Marius Nola, a retired veteran of the Roman Army, inherits a farm in the Alban Hills on the outskirts of Rome. Nola is looking forward to a new life in the countryside, living off the land, and more importantly, escaping his violent and disturbingly troubled past. However, no sooner has Nola begun to enjoy life once again when, against his will, a strange turn of events draws him into a web of murder and intrigue. 'Twelve Miles From Rome' is the first of a thrilling series of ancient world mysteries featuring Lucius Marius Nola.