The music industry is mourning Kurt Cobain, Right Said Fred have re-emerged as an ‘ironic’ pop act and John Major is the country’s prime minister. Nothing is as it should be. Emma, a working-class rock music fan from Hull, with a penchant for a flaming Drambuie and a line of coke with her best mate Dave down The Angel, is troubled. Trev, her beloved whippet, has doggy IBS, and her job ordering bathroom supplies at the local caravan company is far from challenging. So when her dad, Tel, informs her that Kurt Cobain has killed himself aged 27, Emma is consumed with anxiety. Janis Joplin, Brian Jones, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix…why have so many rock musicians died aged 27? And will Emma be next to join The Twenty Seven Club?The Twenty Seven Club is a nostalgic, often humorous, drug and booze-infused tale of friendship, discovery and anxiety as Emma tries, for once, to focus on life, rather than death.

    I've acted for Belasco and I've laid 'em out in the rows at the Palace. I've doubled as an alligator; I've worked for the Shuberts; and I've been joined to Billy Rose in the holy bonds. I've painted the house boards and I've sold tickets and I've been fired by George M. Cohan. I've played in London before the king and in Oil City before miners with lanterns in their caps. Fanny Brice was indeed show business personified, and in this luminous volume, Herbert G. Goldman, acclaimed biographer of Al Jolson, illuminates the life of the woman who inspired the spectacularly successful Broadway show and movie Funny Girl, the vehicle that catapulted Barbra Streisand to super stardom. In a work that is both glorious biography and captivating theatre history, Goldman illuminates both Fanny's remarkable career on stage and radio--ranging from her first triumph as Sadie Salome to her long run as radio's Baby Snooks--and her less-than-triumphant personal life. He reveals a woman who was a curious mix of elegance and earthiness, of high and low class, a lady who lived like a duchess but cursed like a sailor. She was probably the greatest comedienne the American stage has ever known as well as our first truly great torch singer, the star of some of the most memorable Ziegfeld Follies in the 1910s and 1920s, and Goldman covers her theatrical career and theatre world in vivid detail. But her personal life, as Goldman shows, was less successful. The great love of her life, the gangster Nick Arnstein, was dashing, handsome, sophisticated, but at bottom, a loser who failed at everything from running a shirt hospital to manufacturing fire extinguishers, and who spent a good part of their marriage either hiding out, awaiting trial, or in prison. Her first marriage was over almost as soon as it was consummated, and her third and last marriage, to Billy Rose, the Bantam Barnum, ended acrimoniously when Rose left her for swimmer Eleanor Holm. As she herself remarked, I never liked the men I loved, and I never loved the men I liked. Through it all, she remained unaffected, intelligent, independent, and, above all, honest. Goldman's biography of Al Jolson has been hailed by critics, fellow biographers, and entertainers alike. Steve Allen called it an amazing job of research and added Goldman's book brings Jolson back to life indeed. The Philadelphia Inquirer said it was the most comprehensive biography to date, and Ronald J. Fields wrote that Goldman has captured not only the wonderful feel of Al Jolson but the heartbeat of his time. Now, with Fanny Brice, Goldman provides an equally accomplished portrait of the greatest woman entertainer of that illustrious era, a volume that will delight every lover of the stage.

    He lives a loveless existence at Darkcliffe Manor, in the Scottish Marches. When his father offers sanctuary to a desperate orphan, his world is turned upside down. Brenna Curwen is everything he should not want, soft, gentle, unsuited to life at the edge of lawlessness. He doesn’t need another mouth to feed or soul to protect for he has a future of duty and misery to face. Seaton shuns her until he notices that Brenna has hair like spun gold and amber eyes that see into his soul. But he is not alone in noticing her, and a rival, every bit as ruthless as he is, aims to seduce Brenna. Meanwhile, King James begins to stamp his authority on the Marches, once and for all. Amidst the turmoil of a way of life under siege, Seaton must confront a terrible choice between his heart and his head. If he gets it wrong, he will lose everything.Orphaned Brenna Curwen, with nowhere else to turn, is given shelter by an old admirer of her mother’s - Machar Bannerman, Laird of Darkcliffe Manor. But her protector is not what he seems, and if she is to survive in his crumbling tower house on the edge of the moors, she must find a way to deal not just with him, but also his three bastard sons. The worst of them is Seaton, more a savage than a gentleman, who makes it clear from the start that he resents her presence. As danger comes calling, so does a ruthless suitor, and Brenna has no one to turn to for protection save mistrustful, surly, beast of a man - Seaton Bannerman. Immerse yourself in the desolate beauty of the Scottish moors, as Seaton’s Choice takes you on a journey of savage passions, of old rivalries curdling into fresh violence, of evil plotting and power-hungry clans. Can love blossom in a mire of murder, mayhem and destruction?Extract from Seaton’s ChoiceThe young man reached a door and thrust it open without knocking. He held it for her to enter. Brenna walked into a surprisingly bright room with large windows, a study from the looks of all the books lined along the walls. There were curios of all kinds, crowded in - stuffed animals in bell jars, metal implements, swords and guns mounted on the walls. It had the feel of an educated mind behind it, one quite different from the brute of a man standing beside her. The dark lout persisted in staring at her without saying anything, and it was unnerving. The room was stuffy from a blazing fire in the hearth, and her face grew hot under his gaze. ‘What do you stare at, Sir,’ she said, tremulously, not quite catching his eye.‘You,’ he spat.‘Please do not, for I do not like it.’‘But I do, so I will keep doing it,’ he said, bringing his face closer to hers.Footsteps sounded, coming closer. The man took hold of her arm in a tight grip. ‘Whoever you are and whatever you are after, take this advice. Watch yourself around Laird Bannerman. He has the cunning of a thousand foxes, and a black heart to boot, and I fear you do not have the guile to manage him.’His eyes held hers, and for an instant, there was almost a hint of concern in his gaze. Brenna could feel his breath on her face, the tang of whisky carried with it. She glanced at his mouth, closer now, and held her breath.‘Seaton, unhand her, now.’ Brenna turned to see an older man staring at them with a livid look on his face. The man let go of her arm, and it felt as though the flesh still burned where he had touched her.

    Deputy Marshal Harold Stampede. But the outlaw has managed to break out and take a dozen hardened convicts with him as they sweep a path of violence across Southern Arizona. The leader of the gang has sworn an oath to kill the deputy marshal for shooting dead his partner, Jimmy So-Fast. And Marshal One-Eyed Jack Black intends to do whatever he can to stop him and protect the citizens of Cochise County – all this, while an unsuspecting killer is on the loose in Peirce City during the lawmen’s absence.

    These are the true and incredible stories of some of Hollywood’s biggest and best known stars, but never before told . Every story has been researched and verified, no matter how surprising or out of character it may seem to the public, for some of the world’s best known people. * "This book is a pure delight." - Daily Oklahoman * " The research is incredible and told in a most      entertaining fashion." - Houston Courier * " Chaz does it again!  This time a Best Seller!      - Blake's Review * " I read until my eyes hurt and still couldn't      put it down." -  Dexter. MacBride      - Columbia Review. *  "A Winner!" - Ray Hibbard, Edmond Life & Leisure. * “A surprise on every page. Fantastic true stories. We loved having Little Known Facts on our radio station for more than 10 years.” - Craig Stallcup – NetRadio Boston * “I could forget the news and nobody would notice. But forget to air Little Known Facts and I would get 30 phone calls.”– Matt Batton – WPRG Radio * “What a fantastic way to spend a few hours. I love these stories of my friends and fellow actors.” - Dale Robertson, Actor, Host. * “Chaz is a dear friend. I can attest to many of these stories personally. What a pleasure to see them put together in one place.” - Tony Randall, Actor -What famous woman movie star invented the snooze alarm? - What famous woman television personality was a spy in WWII? - Did you know it was a glamorous woman movie star who invented the secret codes to direct navy topedos... - Which famous star was the real impetus for the movie Pretty Woman - The Beverly Hillbillies really existed - Which famous movie star was actually AWOL from the Army - Which famous Hollywood hunk was actually a Mailman - Which television star was responsible for one of the biggest toy crazes in history - Which famous comedy star was once completely blind And many many more.

    

    

    

    Rosie Sinclair is full of pride to be doing her bit for the war effort as a driver at Cottisbourne Park - the secret heart of Britain's fight against Germany, where a team of brilliant and eccentric codebreakers are battling to save the country.But when she's given a new mission to drive Major-General 'Bluff' Kingsley-Flynn down to Cottisbourne, Rosie finds herself on the frontline of a new battle - to uncover a possible spy at the Park who is jeopardising their vital work, and to resist her own growing attraction to the dashing Bluff himself...As the threat to her fellow codebreaker girls grows ever stronger, Rosie realises her country needs her more than ever. Can she save the day without losing her heart?

    A devastating discovery. From the bestselling author of Miss Appleby's Academy comes a gritty and emotional family saga. London, 1944. A young man is killed in an air-raid, leaving a wife and two children - and a secret. After the tragedy, Ailsa, Margaret and Luke are persuaded by to return to the north east. Despite their grief and bitterness, they find a new life there. But it isn't long before the past catches up with them, and they must confront the secret the family left behind.

    

    Outnumbered eight to one, the Dutchman sits perched on a bench near Savage Peak, watching the fugitives as they ride out onto the open prairie. He adjusts the sights of his Remington No. 1 Rifle and waits as the first rider comes into range. When he stops shooting, three of her captors lay sprawled on the prairie...dead. After striking the first deadly blows, the Dutchman trails the group across South Pass through the unpredictable Wyoming springtime weather, like the fourth horseman of the apocalypse…and surely Hell goes with him.

    Following the life of an abandoned 13 year old who by chance is instrumental in saving a family from robbery and worse. Taken in by the naval Captain Bowers he is placed as a midshipman in his benefactor’s ship. From that time onward with the increasing demands of the conflict with France, Martin Forrest grows up fast. The relationship with his benefactors family is formalized when he is adopted by them and has a home once more. Romance with Jennifer the Captain’s ward links him ever closer to the family. Meanwhile he serves in the West Indies where good fortune results in his gaining considerable wealth personally. With promotion and command he is able to marry and reclaim his birth-right, stolen from him by his step-mother and her lover. The mysterious (call me merely Mr. Smith) involves Martin in more activity in the shadowy world of spies and secret agents. Mainly a question of infiltrating and extricating agents, his involvement becomes more complex as time goes on. A cruise to India consolidates his position and rank with the successful capture of prizes when returning convoying East-Indiamen. His rise to Post rank is followed by a series of events, that sadly culminate in family tragedy. Though still young Martin Forrest-Bowers faces and empty future, yet the mysterious merely Mr. Smith has requested his service. Why does the spymaster require of him, and what lies ahead?

    May 1813. Under covering fire from their navy on Lake Ontario, U.S. troops storm ashore at Niagara. Captain John MacLea and his reformed company of militia fight desperately but they and the other defenders are overwhelmed and forced to retreat.The American force is mightier than it has ever been, spearheaded by Colonel Peter Beauregard, a ruthless spy-master, and James Boydell, a Canadian captain, former friend of MacLea's, and traitor to his country.As the invading army closes in, and with no time left, the hope of an entire army, and all of its men, rests on the shoulders of the most unexpected of people. Failure is not an option. They must succeed, or face total defeat. A brutal, moving action-adventure thriller, steeped in intricate historical research, perfect for fans of Adrian Goldsworthy, Bernard Cornwell and Simon Scarrow.

    However, doubts soon begin to surface and he is forced to return to the place of his childhood, Hambley Wood, in his quest for the truth.To find the register that proves his birth, he has to enlist the help of the astonishingly beautiful vicar’s daughter, Arrabella. Unfortunately, they are soon drawn into series of frightening adventures which brings them together and ignites a passion that neither of them can ignore. However, while the mishaps draw them closer, the truth about Harper’s ancestry tears them apart. Can a future ever be theirs, or will a cruel twist of fate, and affairs of the past, prevent them ever having a future together?