England rules the waves and Wellington is taking on the French in the Spanish Peninsula, but the French Navy yet remains a potent threat, especially their fast, well-armed frigates. Also, another threat is creeping Northward; slaver/pirates in fast galleys from the North African coast, are raiding North, taking advantage of the warring Navies preoccupation with each other, to capture for slavery the highly valuable women and children of Northern Europe. Into this, Captain Reuben Argent sails his first command, HMS Ariadne, a fast, 32 gun, Spanish built frigate. He has moulded both his ship and crew into a tight fighting unit, which he immediately uses to capture La Mouette, a French 42 gun frigate. A brilliant start, but all is not well at home. The Enclosures movement could force his family from their farm, and his Admiral is their immediate neighbour, who hates the Argent family and will use any means available to force them from their home and gain their land. On top is Argent’s rivalry with “Flogger Cheveley” the Captain of the Herodotus, who has a very different concept of how to run a ship of the Royal Navy. Also, as Captain, Argent has to contend with the machinations within the community that is his own crew. The day comes when Argent has to make a career threatening choice, either, as ordered, to take a vital despatch to Wellington at the fastest possible speed or to search for the slaver that has just captured Cornish women and children, including members of his own family. In the background is the smuggling of linen from Ireland to France and his relations with the feisty Sinead Malley and the society beauty Charlotte Willoughby

    As the storm clouds of war gather over Europe, a chain of events is set in motion which will reach across the decades to haunt the neglected place once known as Oyster Shore.A lifetime of regrets…In the winter of 1964 one of the richest men in England lies dying. Alone and consumed by guilt, Gerald Snowe leaves behind the dark secrets which have driven him to despair and his last wish is that restitution might be made. But who will remain on Oyster Shore long enough to hear the past whispering?A lost story…Over fifty years later, broken-hearted writer Lowenna Scott seeks solace in a remote riverside hideaway. Swirling mists and ghostly tales soon draw her into a decades’ old mystery and the company of the enigmatic Noah Wilson. When a long-concealed betrayal unexpectedly comes to light, Lowenna and Noah must look to the past to uncover the truth behind a love affair that changed history, haunts Oyster Shore and possesses the power to alter their own future forever…Taking the reader on a captivating journey through time, place and war, Oyster Shore is an unforgettable story of love, loss, and most of all hope.

    Monsarrat follows the great captains and naval adventurers from the Artic to the South Pacific. Lawe represents the spirit of maritime exploration and fortitude; his life is the thread stringing together a long history of nautical adventure.He finds himself mixed up with Drake and the Armada; sailing with Hudson in search of the North-West passage; a buccaneer under Sir Henry Morgan in the Caribbean; assisting Samuel Pepys with his responsibilities as Secretary to the Navy; at the side of Captain Cook as he transports General Wolf to the storming of Quebec, and then on to his death in the Pacific; serving in Nelson’s household and then to the Nile, Naples and Trafalgar; working on a slaver from Liverpool to the Caribbean; press-ganged aboard the Shannon just before her duel with the American Chesapeake, exploring the Artic with Sir John Franklin; fighting in both world wars, including the action at Zebrugge and ‘D’ Day; before a final test with a tanker catching fire after the opening of the St.Lawrence Seaway – and much more besides!Under sail and steam, as Mathew’s eternal existence progresses, the action-packed novel is both highly entertaining and instructive and has been widely acclaimed as a masterpiece. Some fourteen true maps, along with other diagrams, are included, and what was originally two volumes is supplied as one. ‘… this huge, action packed volume can be recommended to anyone’ – Sunday Times‘He has never written anything to compare with this work – it is a masterstroke’ – Manchester Evening News‘No one can bring alive the cruel sea and the valiant men who have sailed on it through all the generations like Monsarrat’ – Daily Mail‘This is Monsarrat, master storyteller, running proud’ – The ScotsmanNote: Nicholas Monsarrat died before Book II was finished. Anne Monsarrat completed the remainder of the story in Nicholas's own words, partly from some working notes he left and partly from his original synopsis of The Master Mariner Book II. Both are included here.

    She is surrounded by all the grandeur and respectability money can buy – but without the furnishings of affection.Robert Fitzbolton, a young aristocrat, is the companion of her lonely childhood, her comfort through family tragedy and the heartache of young love. But is the support of Robert’s friendship enough?Together they flee to Florence searching for freedom and fulfilment. Robert finds what he is seeking, but Jessica is a true Hawthorne and is drawn – inevitably – back to Melbury, to her destiny…. The Hawthorne’s Heritage is a compelling historical romance of betrayal, love, and friendship perfect for fans of Lily Graham and Natalie Meg Evans.

    Five years on, she is just another penny-pinching, back-street housewife. When she discovers Stan is leading a double-life, she runs away to make a fresh start elsewhere.Nell forges a new life for herself and her children in Manchester, working in a garment factory as a talented machinist. Her neighbours and colleagues believe she is a respectable widow – even her children think their father is dead – but when the past comes back to haunt her, Nell is faced with a court trial and will have to answer for her actions.‘A real page-turner that will tug at your heartstrings’ Anna Jacobs

    The Sopwith Camels are holding their own against the German war machine and then they meet the Fokker Triplane and the pilots of the RFC began to fall. As the war drifts into 1918 the Germans have one last throw of the dice and come within a whisker of the sea. It is up to Bill, Gordy and Ted to lead their young pilots in a last desperate attempt to halt the grey wall of steel. With a dramatic climax during bloody September in 1918 the final book set in the Great War shows how the squadron emerges from four bloody years of war.

    

    He is without a male heir, and the future of the English throne hangs in the balance. Powerful men, such as Cromwell, Lord Percy and the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk vie for power. Into this world rides Captain Will Draper, a soldier fresh from the wars, and with an important message. Cardinal Wolsey is dead. Intrigue follows intrigue, and Will finds himself in a race to uncover a murderer. The politics and chicanery of court life threaten to ruin his investigation, and leave the way clear for the most heinous crime of all. This is the debut novel of Anne Stevens, and captures Tudor England in all its moods: Palaces, fine houses, Bawds, rich nobles and the poorest, all mingle to create an atmospheric book that entwines historical fact with fast paced fiction. Winter King is a whodunnit not to be missed.

    She was the wealthiest woman in Europe. But only few knew the secret she was hiding. She was a normal little girl, daughter of the King of Portugal’s personal physician, and for many years she was convinced that she, just like all the people in her immediate surroundings, was a Catholic.Until one day, on her twelfth birthday, Doña Gracia was led down to the basement of their home by her mother where the family’s deepest secret was revealed to her—"We are Jews.”Doña Gracia did not remain indifferent to this shocking news and little by little, she began to investigate and become familiar with her Jewish roots.The Little Girl from Lisbon Is the wonderful story of Doña Gracia, one of the greatest women Europe has known, about her personal struggle in a world controlled by men, her escape from the persecution of the Inquisition, and all the nobility who coveted her wealth, while turning into a leader who was truly admired and followed by her people.

    All she knows is that they marked the end of life as she knew it - and a new beginning in the Russian Caucasus.Meanwhile on Deeside, young David Thomas's carefree existence is torn apart by a shipping tragedy which will colour his whole life.A decade later David, now an engineer and working in Russia, meets the young Pavel, just as she is emerging into womanhood. But Russia in the 1930s is no place for young lovers and the story of their struggle to be together is a powerful tale of emotion, adventure, unbelievable hardship and ultimate triumph.

    The bloody conflict could be the making or the breaking of him, as could his alliance with Elizabeth, an attractive and feisty American businesswoman.

    She seems to be more interested in estate management and improvement than in the more usual pursuits of young ladies. A French frigate of possibly new design has been using the period of peace to take British frigates and merchant ships illegally and spirit the captures to some unknown base. Giles is called from his bucolic pursuits to take command of a newly built frigate whose task is to find and destroy the enemy vessel and recapture her prizesWhile Captain Giles is doing this, life continues apace at Dipton so that when Giles can snatch some leave, he finds that things have not remained static. The novel tells of how events develop at sea and also on land in the early days following the abrogation of the treaty of Amiens.

    

    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 when she is forced to marry Thomas Boleyn, a wealthy commoner, Elizabeth is left to stagnate in the countryside while her detested husband pursues his ambitions. There, she raises golden girl Mary, moody George, and ugly duckling Anne - while staving off boredom with a string of admirers. Until Henry VIII takes the throne . . . When Thomas finally brings his highborn wife to London, Elizabeth indulges in lavish diversions and dalliances - and catches the lusty king's eye. But those who enjoy Henry's fickle favor must also guard against his wrath. For while her husband's machinations bring Elizabeth and her children to the pinnacle of power, the distance to the scaffold is but a short one - and the Boleyn family's fortune may be turning...Praise for Emily Purdy:'[Purdy] succeeds in rendering Elizabeth both unforgettable and undeniably real.' Historical Novel Society 'It has been some time since I've been so captivated by a Tudor based historical novel. I have to admit to being somewhat burned out by the over saturation of the Tudors . . . however, The Boleyn Bride has renewed my interest. I highly recommend it.' The True Book Addict'Classic story of a woman scorned, who is after revenge of the most bloody kind.' Closer Magazine'A rollercoaster tale which gives a new and fascinating perspective on three young women who became hostages to fortune in a perilous and turbulent age.' Lancashire Evening Post'Nicely written, and full of lust, greed and intrigue, this is a book sure to earn Emily Purdy many new fans.'Bookwormink.co.uk