The story covers Maggie Clarke's upbringing in the tenements close to the docks, the River Mersey and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal: an area notorious for having the worst slums in Britain, yet the closest community as well.At the tender age of 11, Maggie Clarke finds herself the matriarch of the family when her Irish mother runs off with another man. Leaving school at 14 to work at a local factory putting sticks into lollies, she is determined to make a better life for herself and her family - before starting her own family with her childhood sweetheart, who she marries at 19 after 'falling in the family way'. She has one night of married life with her husband before he is sent to India with the Navy and is devastated when she never hears from him again, presuming him a casualty of the war that is raging at home and abroad. Another tragedy strikes when Maggie's brother Tommy is also claimed by the war, leaving her father inconsolable, but Maggie knows life has to go on and falls in love with Joseph, an Irish settler who she has 8 children with. But her happiness is short-lived as her first husband suddenly appears out of the blue demanding a divorce, and her new husband drinks away what little money they have, returning in fits of rage that leave Maggie and her children hungry and afraid. Many times she is only able to feed her brood by the kindness of neighbours putting a 'pan of scouse' on the range for her, or feeding her kids jam butties to help out. Maggie's story sweeps across the changing face of Liverpool, from its squalid dock streets, the tenement blocks and cobbled roads to the decline of the docklands, new council housing, the rise of the Mersey beat, the Beatles and the energy and passion of a city that is home to a cast of colourful characters with the resilience to withstand the heartbreak and hardships that only the poorest can know.

    Unable to fit in at school, she forges alliances where she can: with her housekeeper, with a pimply fellow misfit named Cynthia, and with the gorgeous Taylor, who gets her kicks out of shoplifting. Most frustrating of all is Katie's imperfect friendship with the proprietor of a local gas station, a handsome 23-year-old who shares her love of checkers but doesn't return her crush. With humour and an eye for telling detail, Berg conveys the way each uncompromising element of Katie's life ultimately offers her more than she had anticipated.Until The Real Thing Comes AlongPatty Murphy is facing that pivotal point in a woman's life when her biological clock ticks as insistently as a beating heart. Will she find Mr Right and start a family? But Patty is in love - with a man who is not only attractive and financially sound, but sensitive and warmhearted. There's just one small problem: He is also gay. Against her better judgment, and pleas from family and friends, Patty refuses to give up on Ethan. Every man she dates ultimately leaves her aching for the gentle comfort and intimacy she shares with him. But even as she throws eligible bachelors to the wayside to spend yet another platonic night with Ethan, Patty longs more and more for the consolation of loving and being loved. In the meantime she must content herself with waiting - until the real thing comes along . . .

    Running the café she’d practically been raised in: Check. Her artwork in a gallery: Check. Volunteering on the library board: Check. The one thing she doesn’t need right now is a guy in her life—especially her brother’s irritating best friend from high school, so when the two men announce that they are moving home to start a ski and mountain bike shop in town, she isn’t pleased. If only she could completely forget that one kiss she and Austin shared in high school. Why does he have to upset her just-fine world? Not this time. Not if she can help it. But can she?

    She's a mystery to everyone around her - and that's how she wants to keep it. Abused as a child and forced to sell her body to survive, Claire has built a barrier around herself that she is sure no one will ever penetrate.But folks are curious about why such an attractive young woman would move to Blackpool to run a hotel. Where are her friends? Her family? Claire is determined to keep the truth from them all until she attracts the attention of wealthy businessman, Gregory Nightingale, and she finds her past coming back to haunt her...

    Clara is worked like a dog, but the warmth of her Blackpool friendships will go far to save her. Julia just wants to find her beloved daughter - but the trials of war will keep them far apart. They will meet again - but the war will change everything for mother and daughter...

    Together, they built the only ship capable of bringing Eli home. But on the eve of their departure, it disappears. Their quest to find it exposes a conspiracy to destroy all life in the universe — a plan they can't stop without their one-of-a-kind ship.For years, Geddy didn't need anything or anyone but a custom-made blaster and a couple fingers of Old Earth whisky. But since triggering the industrial accident that forced the evacuation of Earth 2, he's only had Eli for company. A daring escape off-planet lands him aboard a creaky salvage trawler with a plucky crew and the galaxy's worst business model.But stalwart friends are better than any weapon. With the help of Eli, his oddball crew, and their trusty trawler, Geddy must traverse the cosmos in order to track down his ship and save the universe. Each thrilling, hilarious new adventure brings them closer to the truth but ever farther from a decent steak.If you like solid sci-fi with a generous dose of wit, the scale of Guardians of the Galaxy, and the offbeat alien characters of Men In Black and The Orville, you'll devour Rocket Repo: Book 1 of Reassembly.

    But after three years of self-imposed exile, he has returned to take over DMI at the gentle urging of beautiful Abigail, who was once his father’s assistant. His brother, Joel, plagued by a slew of illicit affairs and poor judgment, is plunging the business into ruin, and Don’s plans to secretly assume control of the ministry come into question when his estranged sister refuses to help him. Don must decide whether to face down his power-hungry brother to save the ministry his father worked so hard to build—and take a chance on an unrequited love he never dreamed Abigail would reciprocate—or return to South Africa to find refuge in his own thriving company and the budding romance he left behind. After much soul searching, Don comes to realize that his destiny is inescapable. Patricia Haley’s evocative modern-day interpretation of these popular biblical tales will keep readers riveted until the stunning conclusion.

    There he is stunned to discover that his father’s will disinherits his family and leaves everything – including the family home – to a secret son, Andrew Shaw.The news fills the Shaw family with hope. Twenty-year-old Andrew is in desperate need of a kidney transplant, and for him the inheritance may mean the difference between life and death. However, the lives of Andrew, his devoted older sister Tors and young brother Jack are disrupted when their mother insists they move from their home in Kerry to Wicklow to stake their claim under the will. There they live in a tiny bungalow on the sea front, while the Murtaghs take steps to contest the will.Gradually, both Seán Murtagh and Tors Shaw recognise the need to seek some middle ground but that seems impossible, such is the hostility between the families and the burning resentment that exists between the mothers.Andrew Shaw’s focus, however, is not on the question of the inheritance. There is something else he needs from the Murtaghs . . . something only they can give him . . .The Secret Son is a poignant and thought-provoking story that will stay with you long after you turn the last page.

    Saturday nights at the dance hall and dressmaking with her two best friends keep Lily upbeat, and now there’s a blossoming romance with childhood friend Harry Bainbridge to put an extra spring in her step, too.But then a run of misfortune threatens Lily’s work, home and personal life, and she has to rely on the community at the mill to rally together for support. With so many others to worry about, will Lily always put them first or can she find her own happy ending?A heart-warming, nostalgic tale of triumph over adversity that readers of Katie Flynn, Donna Douglas and Call the Midwife will adore.

    How the boy, his father, and a biomedically abused chimp named Albert come together in life-changing ways is the story of Like No Other Boy.

    Robert is the nephew of a Lord, and Lydia a mere doctor’s daughter – and a German doctor at that. While her parentage is no hindrance to their relationship in peacetime, when war is declared Robert’s family makes it clear they no longer approve of the match. With no means of contacting Robert on the Western Front, Lydia volunteers herself, joining the Red Cross. But her love affair with Robert has had more than one consequence…

    Which one is drinkable? Ayani has definitely been through the worse. One tragic incident turned her life upside down forever, leaving her sister, Kamille, to hate her. Kamille is now out to wreak havoc on her already messed up life. Ayani is trying her best to hold on to her fragile relationship with her longtime boyfriend, Kash, in the heat of it all. She’ll end up paying the ultimate toll for her scandalous and childish behavior. Will she take heed when her reality sets in or will she just be a product of her circumstances?

    But as a penniless and partnerless house-painter with an expired lease on her flat and a twelve-year-old daughter, she could hardly turn down her parents' offer to take them on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Caribbean. She'd just have to put up with her sister Theresa (making no secret of preferring Tuscany as a holiday destination) and brother Simon (worrying that there might be some sinister agenda behind their parents' wish to take them all away) with their various spouses, teenagers, young children and au pair. In a luxury hotel, with bright sunshine, swimming, diving, glorious food and friendly locals, any family tensions should have melted away in the fabulous heat. The children should have been angelic, the teenagers cheerful, the adults relaxed and happy. But...some problems just refuse to be left at home.

    How can Emma escape the ties that bind her, to build a life for herself and her child?From the author of The Downstairs Maid(Note: previously published as The Ties That Bind by Linda Sole)

    In a perfect life, these promises are easy to keep. When faced with spousal betrayal, idealistic oaths take a back seat. Justine Charles made the ultimate sacrifice for her dying husband. Will she rally after his death or be forced to give up a final chance at happiness?