Search results for ""Mirror Books""

Shortlisted for the 2019 Romantic Novelists' Association Romantic Comedy Novel of the Year Award.'A wonderful book with a great story and a sparky, unusual voice. I loved it!' Katie FfordeA cheeky romantic comedy for fans of Gilmore Girls, this is the first in the Love in the Dales series, set in a beautiful Yorkshire village.Chock-full of colourful characters, bawdy wit and a bit of love and passion for good measure.In a lost corner of the Yorkshire Dales, Lana Donati runs a medieval-themed restaurant with her brother. As a distraction to help them get over losing the father they loved dearly, and as a tribute to his passion for the beautiful area they live in, Lana hatches a plan to boost business for everyone by having the Grand Départ route pass through their village.But this entails getting the small community to work together to convince the decision-makers that their beloved village is Tour material. Not an easy task when the people involved include Lana's shy, unlucky-in-love brother Tom, the man-eating WI chair Yolanda, bickering spouses Gerry and Sue, arrogant celebrity Harper Brady, and Lana's (attractive) arch-nemesis, former pro cyclist turned bike shop owner, Stewart McLean, whose offbeat ideas might just cost them everything. From the author of The Honey Trap and Meet Me at the Lighthouse, this is a rural romance for lovers of Jenny Colgan, Fiona Gibson and Sue Moorcroft.'A love story in its widest sense, this story takes an affectionate, humorous and often moving look at the ties that bind us as we move through life.' Debbie Johnson, author of the Comfort Food Café series

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Inspirational tale of how Hope Daniels overcame her demons and rebuilt her life, winning justice after years of childhood abuse. Written by Hope Daniels, bestselling author of Hackney Child, and co-written by Sunday Times bestselling author Ann Cusack.

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Bertie the pug had an unlucky start in life.Diagnosed with hemivertebrae and unable to walk, his owner decided to open up a dog-friendly cafe where he could meet friends and have fun.The Pug Cafe quickly became a very special place for all dog owners to meet and have a drink.But when the cafe faced closure, it was brave Bertie the pug and his friends who came to the rescue.Inspired by true events, Happy Days at the Pug Cafe tells the heartwarming story of one little pug and his beloved cafe.Help yourself to a Puguccino, put up your paws and get your nose into the heartwarming tale of Bertie and friends.

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A true story of resilience, survival and achievement, and a heartbreaking tale of a father's complicity in his own family's disintegration.In Yorkshire in the 1950s, Suz Evasdaughter, aged just 5, is moved to a children's home with her brothers. Confused, little Suz begins to blame herself for her mother's death. Her father eventually brings them back, but instead of finding a safe haven to rebuild their family, Suz finds herself plunged into a life of misery at the mercy of an uncaring and brutal stepmother.Unwanted tells the story of Suz's struggle to escape from her broken home and leave her fractured past behind her. But lurking in the shadows is a dark family secret...

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"In the beginning, I lived day to day, sometimes even hour to hour. I was pleased at the end of the day, to have survived, more or less. Now I know, I am strong. Life continues, for which I am glad." For Julia Engelhorn life divides into the Before and After. There was a time Before, when her life was filled with the joys and struggles of parenthood, when she was run off her feet trying to take care of a seven year old and three year old twins Octavia and Maximo. And then there was a time After, when her world was encased in darkness, when there was only one child left and she had become a member of a club that no one wants to join. On 6 April 2016 Julia went to pick up her three children from the rental home of her ex- husband Mario Deus where he had been taking care of them over the Easter holidays. Although it had been a difficult couple of years, Julia hoped that now the divorce was finalised they could get their relationship on a better and more stable footing for the sake of the children. Nothing could have prepared her for what happened that day. On arrival to the house, Mario told her to pick up a knife because he intended to kill her. When she asked what was happening he said that the twins were dead. Julia's world shattered in that moment, she ran to the bedroom where she thought her children were asleep, only to find their lifeless bodies. This is the story of her Before and After - a story of healing after unimaginable loss. Precious Scars is Julia's inspiring story of how she put herself back together again after being broken apart by unthinkable loss. It is about finding a way through impenetrable grief and learning to love, laugh and sing again. "The scars I carry with me, inside me, are a reminder of what I have survived. From the broken pieces of my old self, something new was created, just as beautiful, but different."

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"He had raped me, had me beaten up, drained me of every last shred of self-respect. Surely he would leave me alone now? But that evening, as I was eating with my parents, the phone rang. My blood ran cold…" Christina O’Connor is the main prosecution witness from the Huddersfield Grooming scandal which saw 11 men convicted of a staggering 43 offences against her, including 22 counts of rape. Christina will describe how, from being an innocent child in a normal family, she fell into the clutches of a grooming gang whose abuse of children earned them a total of 257 years in prison. Christina’s helpless parents tried desperately to save their 13 year old daughter as she began playing truant, and was lured into sexual activities with complete strangers, in exchange for pizza, vodka and cannabis. After five years of almost daily rape, Christina committed robberies under duress from the grooming gang and was jailed. She made a complaint to police about the abuse, but no action was taken. She sees the prison term as her salvation; from this moment she turned her life around. Two years after her release, her police statement was found at the back of a filing cabinet, and Operation Tendersea, the investigation into the grooming gang was launched. This is the first time Christina has spoken out. She has waived her right to anonymity and wants the world to hear her voice.

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No criminal sparked as much fear and loathing among the public and law enforcement as underworld crime boss, Kenny Noye; a man with a central role in some of the most high-profile crimes of a generation. From the GBP125 million (current value) Brink's Mat gold bullion raid to the death of Covert Police Operative John Fordham, and road rage victim Stephen Cameron, the multimillionaire villain became universally known as 'Public Enemy: No 1'. He had spent more than a third of his life in jail, but for two years, with near unlimited resources, and underworld connections around the globe, Noye played a game of hide and seek with Scotland Yard, MI5, INTERPOL, The FBI, and other national police forces as he fled the UK after the death of twenty-one-year-old Stephen Cameron in a road rage incident in May 1996. From South America to Africa, from Cuba to Holland, France to Aruba, and beyond, Noye evaded capture despite the best efforts of some of the most powerful agencies and global security services. From dining with unwitting FBI officers on cruise ships to sitting on Castro's presidential seat in Havana, Noye's 'Grand Tour on the Run' was as unbelievable as it was unprecedented. It was life on the run but not as we know it. Back in the UK, the family of Stephen Cameron grieved under the weight of the life of impunity and privilege that Noye was covertly leading but the takedown was as dramatic and extraordinary as the secrets of Noye's life under the radar. The police would ultimately get their man. His downfall would be placed at the door of an informant. Was it his lover or a gangland rival? Or was it the secret services? When the Spanish police ultimately swooped down with their English counterparts and arrested the affluent and charming 'Mick the Builder' - they were armed with a secret weapon of their own - Stephen Cameron's fiance. With unique access to Noye, and key witnesses, the secret battle of wits between the underworld's 'Governor' and law enforcement is reported in chilling detail. The reader is given a 360' vista of one of the most expensive manhunts in British policing history. The authors deliver a compelling account of a major criminal, who shunned the effective discomfort of bunkers and safe houses to live a life on the run brimming with luxury, women, sun, sea, and Bacardi - and all while hiding in plain sight.

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‘I’ve a body out the back for you...’ Imagine having that sentence said to you. And then imagine it actually being pertinent. Welcome to Evie King’s world. What happens if you die without family or money? The answer to this very three-in-the-morning question is that Evie, or someone like her, will step in and arrange your funeral. Evie is a local council worker charged with carrying out Section 46 funerals under the Public Health Act. Or to put it in less cold, legislative language; funerals for those with nobody around, willing or able to bury or cremate them. Ashes to Admin lifts the coffin lid on some moving and unexpected personal life stories. Sometimes tragic, as with the case of an unidentified woman found on a beach buried without even a name, but often uplifting and occasionally hilarious. Ultimately, Evie discovers that her job is more about life than it is about death, funerals being for the living and death being merely a trigger to rediscover a life and celebrate it against the odds.

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Tracey Curtis-Taylor is renowned as one of Britain’s foremost female adventurers – but she had to fight against the odds to make her dreams come true. Paying homage to two historic aviators, Curtis-Taylor made headlines all over the world with three epic flights in a 1942 Boeing Stearman biplane, from Cape Town to Goodwood, Farnborough to Australia, and across the USA. But it didn’t come easy. With searing honesty and breathtaking detail, Bird tells the remarkable personal story of how she overcame extreme adversity to complete her three remarkable journeys. From cheating death twice and saving her crew from a firing squad to overcoming a bitter campaign waged by a male-dominated aviation industry; from her relationship with a mysterious French spy to the shocking secret that drove her family apart. This is the action-packed, inspirational story of a woman who fulfilled her high-flying ambitions, was brought crashing down to earth in more ways than one, yet still survived to tell the tale.

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"I am just an ordinary mum, yet I would go to the ends of the earth to get justice for my daughter. If I can change the way people are treated, then Jodey will not have died in vain. I now feel that this was her destiny; to change the lives of millions of others." While Jodey Whiting was stuck in hospital battling pneumonia over Christmas, a letter dropped on her doormat from the Department of Work and Pensions, asking her to attend an assessment. It was a letter she never saw. Despite suffering from major health problems and needing daily care, the powers-that-be callously halted benefit payments for the mum-of-nine. While waiting for her appeal, and with no money coming in, Jodey killed herself, aged just 42. Another DWP letter pronouncing her 'fit to work' was sent to her home three days after her tragic death. A Mother's Job is the story of how Jodey's mum Joy Dove, 67, took on the system - and won justice for her daughter. A former cleaner and shop-worker, she is intimidated by nothing and nobody. Joy reveals how she struggled to raise her family, as a single mother, living on the now notorious: 'Benefits Street' estate in Stockton-on-Tees. Of how Jodey, her middle daughter, developed problems including curvature of the spine, a brain cyst, and bipolar and personality disorders and how, as her health deteriorated, Joy became her unofficial carer, visiting several times a day. Jodey left farewell notes following her suicide, warning that her youngest son, Cory, a twin, was particularly vulnerable. Tragically, her premonition was realised when, unable to cope with his grief, he died from a drug overdose, aged 19, in May 2020. Joy felt that the DWP had stolen two members from her family. An inquiry after Jodey's death found the DWP had failed to follow its own safeguarding practice. It issued an apology and compensation. The case was discussed in Parliament where the Prime Minister labelled it 'appalling.' Joy launched 'Justice For Jodey' which aims to hold the DWP to account and to prevent other tragedies. She met other grieving families and her campaign saw her take centre stage at the Labour Party conference and argue her case in the High Court.

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The Talk of Liverpool is a unique record of life in one of the world's most talked about cities across four headline-making decades. Paddy Shennan covered the biggest subjects and talked to people who dominated Merseyside life between the 1980s and the present day. A master of the big interview, he is a leading authority on high-profile news stories including Hillsborough, the murder of James Bulger and the abduction of Madeleine McCann. But this compelling book also reveals its author to be a true all-rounder, capable of writing about any subject - including comedy (interviews with Ken Dodd, Alexei Sayle and many others), politics (the "Liverpool 47" and many others) and football (read how he upset Joe Royle and Jim Beglin but delighted Wayne Rooney's family and Barry Horne). Paddy had the pleasure of interviewing many of his heroes - including Tony Benn, Alan Bleasdale, Jean Alexander, Mark E. Smith of The Fall and Nigel Blackwell of Half Man Half Biscuit. He also relished variety; whether it be telling the stories of those who knew The Beatles best, going behind the scenes at Ann Summers or hearing the confessions of a funeral director. As Alastair Machray, his former editor, says: "Paddy is a simply brilliant writer who can bring any subject to life with a turn of phrase that is gifted and not learned. He has a rare ability to communicate with his audience despite that audience being an eclectic mix of ages, cultures and demographics. He writes with flair yet with insight, with humour yet with sensitivity; with courage yet with wisdom."

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'If ever a dog's story is guaranteed to touch hearts, then Maggie's is.' Your Dog Magazine'This story will leave you smiling.' Best MagazineBeaten, tortured and shot 17 times, Maggie the little street dog should have given up on the world.But the world didn't give up on her.With the help of her human friends, Maggie begins her long road to recovery and starts to spread joy everywhere she goes.This is the inspirational true story of a little dog who learned to be loved just as she is.

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERWhen a fancy car pulls up outside six-year-old Marie's home in Oldham, in 1959, she is told she is going on holiday...In fact, she is taken to live in a convent, overseen by a cruel and sadistic nun.There, a horrific ritual of physical, sexual and mental abuse begins.Marie feels unable to share details of her suffering with anyone. Until years later, when a police investigation is launched, and she realises that the time has finally come to tell the truth...

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Think you know everything about the Krays?Think again.Britain's most infamous criminals: the Kray twins. The extent of their activities has always been uncertain. But now, it is time for the conclusive account of their story, from their East End beginnings, to becoming the kingpins of London's underworld.This objective account, compiled by best-selling crime author and criminal lawyer James Morton, cuts through the conflicting versions of their stories and answers burning questions still being asked, 50 years after their infamous conviction. How was the clergy involved in evading police action? What was Charlie Kray's true position with his brothers? Just how many did they kill?Featuring an in-depth discussion at the supposed claims they killed up to 30, and a deep dive into the death of champion boxer Freddie Mills, Krays: The Final Word compiles all previous accounts and then some to find the truth behind their legendary status.This is the Krays - all fact, no fiction.

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Abdul is just 7 years old when his parents are killed before his eyes.As a brutal war sweeps Sudan, Abdul and his 3-year-old brother are forced to flee.Their gruelling journey across the Sahara to a refugee camp in Chad is fraught with danger, and every day is a struggle against hunger and disease.Until one day Abdul is offered a chance to escape. A chance that could save him, but will force him to make the most heartbreaking decision of his life.Abdul's death-defying flight leaves deep scars. But his affinity with animals provides a lifeline, when he is offered the chance to work with elite racehorses. Including one owned by the Queen.____________________________________________________'What Abdul has gone through is simply unimaginable. But his story shows the incredible power of sport to bring people together and help them to heal, even after the most appalling suffering.' CLARE BALDING'A lesson to us all in courage and hope' LORD DUBS, who escaped Nazi Germany on the Kindertransport in 1939

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THE SEQUEL TO THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER, 1963: A SLICE OF BREAD AND JAMPlacing a child in care doesn't mean caring for a child.When little Tommy Rhattigan was taken into care in 1963 aged just 7, he entered a closed off world of institutionalised sexual abuse.Moved between a care home in Manchester and a reform school in Liverpool, the state was supposed to pick up the duty of care that his parents had failed to give him. But instead, separated from his siblings, young Tommy was thrown to the wolves.Tommy Rhattigan takes us, in his own inimitable way, back to his own childhood of pranks, cruelty and laughter, grown from a need to survive his daily torment and to stick two fingers up to the system that was failing him so spectacularly. Reader can't get enough of Boy Number 26:'A heart-wrenching story''This is a good book that definitely needs to be read by anyone who cares about children or mental health''Rhattigan is honest and brutal in his writing'(Real reader reviews taken from NetGalley.co.uk)

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How do you teach a mother to love her child, when she's still a child herself?Jeanie Doyle nurtures, teaches and cares for young and dysfunctional mums, showing them how to care for their newborn babies, sometimes even taking the mother into foster care before the baby is born.The first in a brand-new series of books by the 'foster super-gran', Wicked Girl is the shocking true story of the very first case Jeanie dealt with: a baby girl who was found abandoned on the steps of a church just before Christmas. While the 14-year-old mother was tracked down, Jeanie took her little daughter into her own care. But while she tried to help the two of them heal and bond, the terrible truth about the baby's father was revealed...A twist on the standard Cathy Glass books, Wicked Girl offers Jeanie's rare perspective of fostering young women alongside their babies. Will mother and daughter be reunited for good, or will the vulnerable young mother make the heartbreaking decision that they are both better off apart?

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'Stella is just like a tiny bird. This is my first impression of her. A quiet little sparrow of a girl.'In her brand-new series 'Thrown Away Children', Louise Allen shares the harrowing stories she is exposed to as a foster mother.The first in the series, Stella's Story, tells the astonishing true story of a young girl scarred by an abusive past.Named after the lager that christened her at birth, Stella's life is characterised instability and neglect. Her teenage mother abandons her in the first few weeks of her life, and left in the 'care' of her father, she ends up lying deserted in a house with no food, no water, no clothes, and no warmth.She eventually lands in the care of foster carer Louise, who is determined to change her life for the better. Things seem to be going well - but when Stella has a startling response to having her photo taken, it becomes clear the scars of her abuse run deeper than anyone could have ever guessed.

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As one of the most recognisable faces in showbiz today, Kerry Katona has seen more than her fair share of ups and downs played out in public. Once labelled 'the nation's sweetheart,' the Atomic Kitten singer rose from foster care to international stardom, but soon found herself judged and ridiculed as mental health problems and bad decisions derailed her life. From a picture perfect yet fractured marriage to one of the biggest pop stars in the world, to her fall from grace in a haze of drink and drugs while wed to her taxi driving second husband, Kerry has been loved and derided in equal measure. But since her bestselling autobiography was released in 2012, which documented her troubled childhood and subsequent life in the limelight, Kerry has faced her most devastating challenges yet. In this riveting read, Kerry documents how, in the decade since, she's welcomed her fifth child, suffered a debilitating injury, a cancer scare, several tragic losses and a career slump she thought she'd never recover from. Yet the most significant event in that time was her marriage to third husband, George Kay. Stuck in an abusive relationship she felt powerless to leave, Kerry opens up about her struggles living with a violent man, whose mental health problems and drug use would see her and her family trapped in a cycle of helplessness and despair that only ended when George died in 2019, having eaten a sock filled with cocaine while staying in a local Travel Inn. Kerry bravely reveals her hell at the hands of a man who would unleash physical and emotional torture on her, in an all too familiar situation so many women face every day. But this is also a story of hope, strength and survival. Of how Kerry, with the support of her now -fiance Ryan and her children, built herself up from the lowest point imaginable, with sheer grit and determination, to get her life and career back on track in the wake of such devastation. It's a story of survival and peace and how, after years of desperately trying to find her way, she has finally started to feel - in the words of her most famous song -Whole Again.

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In national treasure Dame Kelly Holmes' most personal book yet, she tells the true story behind her extraordinary life from army recruit to Olympic hero and much- loved TV personality. Last year, Dame Kelly came out publicly as being gay and revealed that for the first 52 years of her life she'd been living a LIFE OF FEAR. Now in a heart-rending and inspirational new memoir she tells of her journey from hiding her sexuality as a young soldier at a time when being gay in the military was illegal, to her fears of being outed as she stood on the podium at the Athens Olympics, the games which catapulted her to fame as a double-gold medallist. Dame Kelly tells how she has managed to find happiness and inner peace as she has opened herself to a world where she's finally free to be herself, and proud. In the last year she has become an unofficial ambassador for the LGBT community and has become one of the best- loved faces of daytime TV, joining the regular panel of ITV's Loose Women. This honest memoir is a tale of self-discovery, overcoming struggles and learning to be true to yourself. This honest memoir is a tale of self-discovery, overcoming struggles and learning to be true to yourself. Dame Kelly says: "80,000 people were chanting my name as I stood on top of a double-decker bus and did a victory lap of my hometown. I'd won two Olympic gold medals, the first woman the UK to ever do that, and I should have been on top of the world at my homecoming parade but even in that magical moment I had this deep fear that someone was going to go to the media and out me for being gay. "All my life I lived with that fear and anxiety of not being accepted if I lived publicly as my true self. But 18 years later I was standing on stage in Trafalgar Square at London Pride, and people were chanting for me again, this time for the person I have become and I was finally free to be me. Nothing is perfect, the journey continues and I'm learning every day about the community I'm now proud to be part of. But I'm being true to myself and that means everything."

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Capital DJ Roman Kemp has achieved much success but he hasn't had an easy ride. He's battled depression since the age of 15, once contemplated suicide, and has bravely fought to smash the stigma still surrounding medication and mental health. The lifelong Arsenal supporter grafted his way to Capital's highly coveted Breakfast slot - and pulled in record-beating listeners with his cheeky sense of humour. Who else could convince Ed Sheeran to tattoo Roman's leg on air, drive around London playing cab-roulette with James Corden, get Craig David to freestyle rap, or rope Lewis Capaldi into a life-drawing class? Then, in 2019, Roman won over yet more fans coming third in I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, with his uncanny impressions of everyone from Ant and Dec to his mate Harry Styles. Here, for the first time, Roman's ready to reveal the things that weren't captured on camera, and how his time in the jungle changed his whole outlook on life. During the pandemic Roman's life changed when his best friend - the producer who'd nurtured his career every step of the way - tragically took his own life. Amidst the shock, loss and confusion, Roman bravely made a moving BBC3 documentary about the alarming rates of suicide amongst young males. He's well aware he too, could have been a statistic. In this page-turning book - peppered with hilarious and surprising anecdotes from his youth - Roman also unflinchingly tackles the taboo of suicide, in the hope that by talking about his own struggles and sharing advice, he can help others. Roman shares all the experiences that have shaped him, and why love, marriage and having his own family one day are so important to his future dreams.

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"It was like going through a door which had been locked all my life. I had walked past it every single day, afraid to even rattle the handle. Now I was smashing the locks, I was wrenching it from the hinges, and I was marching through. Here I am!" A woman whose mother twice tried to kill her as a child has won a ground-breaking battle in the supreme courts for the right to claim compensation. Monica Allan’s legal victory set a precedent and has opened the floodgates for others to claim in her wake. Thanks to her 12-year legal fight, other victims now have hope. Other victims now have a voice. In her memoir, Monica, 54, tells the story of her childhood, when her mother, Betty Mount, forced her head under running bathroom taps and tried to strangle her. She had previously tried to kill Monica as a baby. Monica was taken into foster care, where her new parents ran a brutal regime. To the outside world, the family was devoutly religious and respectable, but behind closed doors, Monica was physically and sexually abused. Failed by a second mother figure, she moved into her own home aged 18 and went on to have four children. Monica loved her children but battled constantly with the demons from her past. She carried her dark secrets around with her for 40 years until in 2010, haunted by her trauma, she finally decided to seek justice. She was told she could not seek compensation because of the ‘same roof’ rule, meaning victims who lived with their attackers up to 1979 were ineligible for pay-outs. For the past 12 years Monica has been fighting her case through the Supreme Courts and was recently awarded compensation from CICA in respect of the sexual abuse she suffered in foster care. She is awaiting a second settlement for the attacks by her mother.

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The Doomsday Mother is the astonishing and twisted tale of Lori Vallow, accused of having her two children murdered to start a new life with her new husband, doomsday prepper Chad Daybell. At first, the residents of Kauai Beach Resort took little notice of their new neighbours. The glamorous blonde and her tall husband fit the image of the ritzy gated community. The couple seemed to keep to themselves until the police knocked on their door with a search warrant. Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell had fled to Hawaii in the midst of being investigated for the disappearance of Lori’s children back in Idaho, Tylee and JJ, who hadn’t been seen alive in five months. For years, Lori Vallow had lived a life of devotion to her children and her Mormon faith. But when her path crossed with Chad Daybell, a religious zealot who taught his followers how to prepare for the end-times, the tumultuous relationship transformed her into someone unrecognizable. As authorities searched for Lori’s children, they uncovered more suspicious deaths with links to both Lori and Chad, including the death of Lori’s third and fourth husbands, her brother, and Chad’s wife. In June 2020, the gruesome remains of JJ and Tylee were discovered on Chad’s property. In a shocking development, horrifying statements revealed that the couple’s fanatical beliefs had convinced them the children had become zombies. John Glatt takes readers deeper into the devastating crimes of Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell in an attempt to unravel the lethal relationship of this doomsday couple.

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Amsterdam, 2001. A shoot-out in the city's docklands leaves one man grievously injured and a rival drug dealer killed outright. The injured man is Tony Spencer from Coventry. Aka The Old Man. Once a prolific businessman, he is now considered Public Enemy No. 1 by the National Crime Squad and the head of several smuggling rings operating between the UK, Holland, Morocco, and Spain. At the age of 50, with bank robberies, counterfeiting, and several fortunes gained and lost behind him, he is on the run and living abroad. As Spencer's life hangs in the balance, his son Jason arrives in Amsterdam. While he prays for a miraculous recovery, he ponders who his father really is. He has raced anxiously to be by his bedside and yet he is somebody he doesn't know well at all. Jason begins digging in earnest. He begins to piece together the story of The Old Man's life. It's a story that is riddled with contradictions: a man who makes millions but saves nothing, prizes freedom but spends years inside, works in a violent world but who - seemingly - avoids violence. Spencer was absent, often in prison, for much of his upbringing but now, as his father recovers from the shooting, Jason begins to wonder. Maybe, if he can come to understand his father's life, he can begin to understand his own...

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CLASH OF THE CLANS is a story that traces the emergence of the Irish mafia from the streets of Dublin to the highest echelons of global organised crime and right into the heart of professional boxing. When a weigh-in turns into a gangland bloodbath, the tables begin to turn on the powerful Kinahan Organised Crime Group. But is it too late to tame the beast or can the law finally catch up with the mob? Bestselling author and award-winning crime journalist Nicola Tallant brings the reader on her own journey of discovery as she delves into the dangerous underworld where a golden era of cocaine turned a brat pack of street dealers into an international mafia. With a unique insight into the rise of mob and its reach into boxing through a tapestry of confidential informants and some too-close-for-comfort experiences, Tallant brings to life one of the most extraordinary stories in modern organised crime. Following the trail from the local authority estates of the Irish capital to the gilded mansions of Dubai, Clash of the Clans: The Rise of the Irish Narcos and Boxing's Dirty Secret powers through the intriguing tale of the cocaine cowboys and the rivalries that threaten to bring down an empire.

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Murder at Roaringwater is the inside story of the final days of young Frenchwoman, Sophie Toscan du Plantier. This is a violent, unresolved murder, where the victim seemed to have a premonition of her own terrible end. For six years, Nick Foster has been piecing together the life and death of Sophie, who was brutally killed outside her cottage in rural West Cork in 1996. He also developed an ongoing 'friendship' with the Englishman long-suspected of her murder, Ian Bailey, and his partner, Jules, the couple at the centre of the case. This story is as fascinating as it is tragic. It follows Nick in Paris and Ireland during his dedicated investigation into the circumstances surrounding Sophie's murder, his quest to reveal her killer and efforts to understand what the motive could have been for such a terrible crime. Ian Bailey was recently found guilty of Sophie's murder 'in absentia' in a French courtroom.

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25 years after her passing, Audrey Hepburn remains the most beloved of all Hollywood stars. Several biographies have chronicled her stardom, but none has covered her intense experiences through five years of Nazi occupation in the Netherlands. According to her son, 'The war made my mother who she was.' Audrey Hepburn's war included participation in the Dutch Resistance, working as a doctor's assistant during the 'Bridge Too Far' battle of Arnhem, the brutal execution of her uncle, and the ordeal of the Hunger Winter of 1944. She also had to contend with the fact that her father was a Nazi agent and her mother was pro-Nazi for the first two years of the occupation. Audrey's own reminiscences, new interviews with people who knew her in the war, wartime diaries, and research in classified Dutch archives shed light on the riveting, untold story of Audrey Hepburn under fire in World War II.

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In the 60 years that Yorkshire farmer Roger Nicholson has lived at Cannon Hall Farm near Barnsley, he has turned what was once a humble small family farm into an inspiring success story. This book covers the history of the Nicholsons and their farming dynasty, which dates back to the 1600s. From tales of Roger's father, Charlie, and his prize-winning beer-drinking bull, to how Roger had to take over the farm at just 16 years old. Decades of financial struggle followed for Roger, his wife and their three children, but through love and sheer determination, the family turned their lives around. This is a story of dedication, optimism and heart

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On Valentine’s Day in 1981, a fire in the Stardust nightclub in Dublin killed 48 young people, and left behind one orphan, Lisa Lawlor. Now, on the 40th anniversary, Lisa tells her story of the tragic events of that evening and how they have shaped her life.She was just seventeen months old when the Stardust nightclub went up in flames. Her parents, Francis and Maureen Lawlor, were a young couple very much in love. Since Lisa’s birth, they rarely went out at night, but this time they allowed a friend to persuade them to go for a few drinks at the Stardust. They never came home. In the wake of the disaster, Lisa’s paternal grandparents stepped in and took care of her. Throughout her childhood, they tried to fill the gaping hole in her life with gifts, but nothing really helped — and inevitably resentment started to simmer in the extended family. As several members of her family succumbed to addiction and crime, she suffered abuse and struggled to find her own path. Stardust Baby is the heart-breaking story of a woman whose every waking moment has taken place in the shadow of those awful flames and of an extended family that toppled into dysfunction in the overwhelming face of tragedy. It is also an uplifting story of resilience, hope, love and determination — as, despite it all, Lisa found the strength to carry on, for herself and her children. A percentage of the royalties from sales of the book will be donated to the Stardust campaign.

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'[It] manages to be funny, moving, activist, and challenging.' Harriet Minter, TalkRadio'I loved this book - I thought it was really interesting' Jane Garvey, BBC Radio 4 Woman's HourHealth Visiting is one of those professions that most people think is a bit of a non-job. 'You just sit on sofas and drink tea, don't you? It's not like you're a real nurse, in hospital.'Well, Health Visitors are real nurses, with at least three years' training, and they are out there, on their own. No back-up team or support structures to call for help if they're in a dicey situation. No warm lights, tea breaks spent chatting in the canteen, nobody else to ask, 'is this okay, what do you think?'Over 40 years working in the NHS, Rachael Hearson has been chased down an isolated stairwell by crack-fuelled drug-addicted pimps, threatened by a knife-wielding wife-beater in a hostel, unwittingly visited a brothel...And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

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'This is the most complete self-portrait ever painted by a serial killer... as unique a document as Bundy was a killer. There are lessons in this book for everyone' ROY HAZELWOOD, FORMER FBI PROFILERCharismatic. Articulate. Evil. Killer.Two journalists with unprecedented direct access speak to Ted Bundy and those closest to him - friends and family.What follows is a candid and chilling full account of the life and crimes of the most notorious serial killer in history.What Bundy had to say in over 150 hours of face-to-face interviews is as relevant today as it was at the time.

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A deadly secret. A horrifying discovery.A daughter tells the devastating true story her mother tried to hide…Growing up in a chaotic home on Merseyside, young Joanne raised herself and her brother and sister, while her mother lapsed into a downward spiral of drinking and casual sex.But the consequences of her mother's messy lifestyle turned out to be far worse than Joanne could ever have imagined.In Silent Sisters, the daughter who was falsely accused of murdering her own baby sister tells the full story for the first time since exposing her mother's crimes.

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'Truly remarkable' DAMIEN LEWISTrapped in a living nightmare, former-para Nick Dunn, one of the 'Chennai Six', was wrongly imprisoned in an Indian jail.While battling to be heard both at home and abroad, Nick summoned the resilience and endurance of his elite training to survive inhumane conditions, keep himself alive and fight for his right to return home.Now, he tells his full story of struggle and survival for the very first time.

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Encouraged by the sizeable pay increase and high divorce rate, Chris decided that answering a recruitment ad for the Thames Valley Police was just the thing for a much-needed overhaul of her life.It was 1984, a time before political correctness, at the height of the miners' strike, in the middle of five years of race riots.Perfect timing.Expanding her police knowledge, and her love life, undeterred by sexist remarks and chauvinists, she decided to make her mark - kissing goodbye to her previous dull and conventional existence.Chris captures the colourful characters and humour of the situations she found herself in, but the job had its serious side, too. She was at the centre of a riot in Oxford, during which her life was saved by a young black man she had previously stopped and questioned.Consistently coming up against the effects of Margaret Thatcher's politics - controlling miners' picket-lines, covering (poorly) for striking paramedics during the ambulance dispute, responding to drunken disturbances caused by the haves (Yuppies and Oxford students) and the have-nots (alcoholic homeless and unemployed youth) - Chris also tackled sex crimes and abuse.A humorous, candid and no-holds-barred reflection of the life of a policewoman in the 80s, this book offers a personal account of a life in uniform, while touching on the Newbury Bypass demos, the effects of Scarman, the Hungerford Massacre, the bombing of Libya, the AIDS epidemic, and working under the notorious Ali Dizaei.

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'G.D. Abson is an author at the absolute top of his game' - David Young, bestselling author of Stasi Child and Stasi Wolf'A twisty, fast-paced thriller' - The Times and Sunday Times Crime Club'Gripping... Readers will want to see more of the feisty, uncompromising Natalya' Publishers WeeklyFrom the author of the Sunday Times Crime Club Star Pick MOTHERLAND.Deep in the heart of Putin’s Russia, a dead body lies half-buried in snow. There are no signs of injury, and plummeting temperatures have destroyed all trace of an attacker.But when the victim is discovered to be an anti-government activist, investigating officer Natalya Ivanova suspects the authorities have something to hide.Determined to expose the truth, Natalya is forced to put her family and career on the line as she goes undercover to hunt down the murderer.

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My mother was a prostitute. My grandmother and great-grandmother were prostitutes.Maybe I should have given the family business a chance...BBC RADIO 4 PICK OF THE WEEK, Katie Puckrik'Eliska's story is an extraordinary and powerful read. It's the ultimate book about survival and an against-all-odds fight to make it in life. Highly recommend.' Clover Stroud'A scintillating, devastating memoir, and a fiercely witty and unabashed tribute to the toughness of the human spirit.' Damian Le Bas__________________________________________________To westerners, being Gypsy means being wild, romantic and free.To Eliska Tanzer, it means being rented out to dance for older men. It means living without running water. It means not being allowed a job or an education. It means being stuffed into a bare room with all your aunts and cousins, fighting over the thin, stained blanket the way you fight over the last piece of half-mouldy bread.It means joining the family prostitution ring when you're still a child.But Eliska was given a way out. Slung out of Hoe School and shipped to England in a washing machine box, she thought she had made it. But her dream soon turned into a nightmare.A moving and timely memoir from a powerful new voice in literature.

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'A beautifully written book with a charming, young narrator, combined with a surprisingly dark and unusual whodunnit. It's a touching, powerful and twisty read, packed with intrigue. Will appeal to fans of Joanna Cannon's The Trouble With Goats and Sheep.' S.J. Harris, author of The Colour of Bee Larkham's Murder'Powerful writing...' Woman's Way Magazine'With devastating purity and clarity, nine year old Frankie Appleton is likely to enter your hearts in this poignant and emotional read.' Love Reading Nine-year-old Frankie Appleton likes to count gates.One day she hopes to design the perfect gate - a gate to keep the bad things out.Little does she know that the bad things have already got in.Now her mother is dead, and the only other person with a house key has disappeared.Frankie thinks she knows who it is. But first she has to prove it.A delicately brutal exploration of what lies behind closed doors, and of the secrets and lies that form the fabric of every family, The Weight of Small Things is as charming as it is chilling.

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“When they heard the allies were coming, we were given extra rice to have the strength and energy to dig our own graves.“ In February 1942, ten-year old Olga Morris and her family were living in Singapore when the city fell to the Japanese Imperial Army in the biggest defeat in history of the British Forces. Turned back at an evacuation ship’s gangway as the bombs fell, Olga and her parents and siblings were forced to take their chances and hide out until, captured by Japanese soldiers, they were sent on a forced march to the notorious Changi Prison. There’s a certain stereotype of the British in Singapore in the ‘30s and early ‘40s, which Olga Morris – Henderson as she is now – definitely did not fit. Her family was not part of the privileged Raffles Hotel set, with their big houses and servants. Her father worked in construction, building roads, the city’s hospital and a mosque. Olga and her siblings grew up in Johor Bahru, a diverse part of Malaya just across the causeway from Singapore, amongst children of all faiths and cultures, who played together without a thought to race or class. It was a very happy upbringing. All that changed in 1942. Olga was playing with her guinea pigs when a British Army officer arrived to tell her mother that the family had just 20 minutes to pack what they could and get out. The Japanese were ten miles away. Olga’s mother grabbed the family photograph album and they ran... Three years of captivity followed. Three years of disease, malnutrition, deprivation and oppression. Olga and her friends bravely raided the vegetable plot; “dodging the searchlights” and sometimes enduring severe punishments. She stood alongside the other women and children through the ordeal of Tenko in the blazing sun. They were used as slave labour. Halfway through their captivity, Olga’s ten-year-old brother William was put into the men’s camp, where he suffered terribly cruelty that scarred him for life. February 2022 marked 80 years since the Fall of Singapore and at last Olga is ready to tell the story of her years as a child prisoner of war. It’s a story of great fear and deprivation; of a childhood utterly lost to conflict. It’s also a story of class prejudice and unkindness that didn’t end when Olga was freed from the camp and returned to England as an unwanted refugee. Yet moments of humour and camaraderie also live on in Olga’s memory. The camp’s girl guide group held clandestine meetings, where they worked on sewing a quilt. The ‘Changi Quilt’ is now held at the Imperial War Museum in London, as an emblem of the guides’ courage and faith. As Olga says, “We always felt the end of the war would come, we lived for it, from month to month and tried never to lose hope.”

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Maike Mullenders was just twenty-one when police broke the devastating news her father had taken his own life. Not only that, but he also left behind a handwritten confession suggesting that he had been ‘physically inappropriate with my daughter’. Maike was painfully aware of her father’s troubled life, but this came as a complete shock – she loved him and had no conscious memory of any sexual abuse. Thrown into personal turmoil, and questioning her identity and place in the world, she spent the next twenty years trying to uncover the truth. Had he broken her trust in the worst way imaginable? Was it a symptom of his mental anguish? Or had he constructed a story to make her hate him so her loss might be more manageable? Through deeply personal counselling sessions, extensive research, yoga and meditation she explored the darkest reaches of her subconscious and unearthed ‘memories’ long buried, yet emerged with an ‘answer’ that enabled her to live again, free from the agonising burden of The Confession. This is Maike’s remarkable journey to hope and peace after her father’s chilling final message pushed her to the brink of insanity.

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Kelsey Parker's world was turned upside down in the summer of 2020 when her husband Tom, singer in boyband The Wanted, was cruelly diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour. Heavily pregnant with their second child and coping with her own heartache at losing her partner of 13 years, Kelsey remained a tower of strength and positivity for Tom during his darkest days. When traditional treatments stopped working, she spent hours researching alternative therapies to give her husband extra time with his young children Aurelia and Bodhi. Hope came late in 2021 when Tom's tumour became stable, but sadly his condition quickly deteriorated and on March 30, 2022, aged just 33, he died surrounded by his loyal wife, family and friends. With And Without You is her moving, deeply personal story of the first 12 months since Tom's tragic passing. An intimate diary of how she coped with a year of unwanted firsts - first birthdays, first Christmas, first Valentine's Day - all without the love of her life. It is the story of how she rebuilt her life, and bravely found a way to face the future. Since Tom's death, Kelsey has been an inspiration to many and a rock to the couple's children. She has sought to raise awareness of glioblastoma and has bravely campaigned for vital funds for more research into the disease. She has also found spirituality - following Tom's long held belief there is something greater than just one life. With And Without You is not only a story of coping with unimaginable heartbreak and grief, but how your love for someone you've lost can be turned into something positive and bring hope and light into your life as you carry on your journey without them.

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Joanne Phillips’ ordeal began aged 13 when she was gang-raped in her bedroom by local boys. Following the trauma, she dropped out of school, was befriended by an older man and was forced into prostitution aged 16. Over the next six years, she was raped by over 500 men, starved, beaten, and transported around the country to brothels. Forced to have sex with men from all walks of life including lawyers, stockbrokers, doctors, a parish councillor, Joanne was even made to have sex with her former school headteacher – who didn’t recognise her. Every attempt to flee failed. Police warned her mother and stepdad she had chosen the lifestyle and even threatened to charge her parents with living off immoral earnings if they allowed her to move back. Escape seemed impossible, until one day she couldn’t take any more. Just before her 21st birthday, Joanne eventually escaped her enslavement. After being left alone briefly in a London flat, where she was expected to work, she took a chance after finding a bag of money and a handgun. Fearing for her life, she fled into the night with nothing but a plastic bag of cash. After catching a train to Northern Ireland, she found her real dad and hid at his home from her pimp. Desperate to readjust to normal life, she found a job and went on to study at university. But when she tried to explain to a new boyfriend about her past, he didn’t believe any of it was true, so she vowed to keep the abuse a secret – until years later, a conversation with one of her own teenage daughters changed her life...

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On March 2nd, 2019, Yousef Makki, a scholarship pupil at Manchester Grammar school, was stabbed in the heart by one of his friends on a quiet, leafy street in the wealthy Manchester suburb of Hale Barns. The two boys who were with him as the 17-year-old lay dying from a 12cm deep knife wound were brought up in the affluent surrounding areas and like Yousef had attended expensive public schools. But unlike them, Yousef was not from a wealthy family. He grew up seven miles and a world away on a council estate in Burnage and won a life changing bursary to a prestigious grammar school. Just four months after Yousef was killed, a jury found his friend not guilty of murder or manslaughter. The outcome has been widely questioned, raising issues of class, wealth, and privilege in the justice system. Yousef died from a single stab wound to the chest. When his sister, Jade, collected his blood-stained clothes and personal possessions, he had a single pound coin in his pocket. This is Jade's personal story of her brother and how the fight for justice has transformed her life.

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In Cops and Horrors: Uncut Tales from the Frontline, Matt Calveley offers an up close and personal view into the life of a dedicated officer serving in one of the biggest police forces in the world. Highly decorated, Matt lived a varied career, meaning he is able to give readers an eye-opening insight into the job from all angles. On the Met's frontline, he fought violent criminals, arrested hundreds, dealt with horrific death scenes every day- and got bitten by a squirrel monkey called Clive. Matt served as custody Sergeant, provided jury protection during a huge corruption trial, and qualified as a mass fatality specialist. In Cops and Horrors, he reveals how he: * Discovered sickening photographs at a crash scene that led to a child rapist being jailed * Worked undercover in the Met's massive surveillance operation to catch Mardi Gras bomber Edgar Pearce * Expertly broke into Paul Daniel's car after the late magician locked his keys inside it * Nicked a bent 'Santa' driving a stolen limo after a high-speed Christmas morning road chase * Fought a machete-wielding maniac * Was mistaken as a stripper after hitching a lift to an emergency in a limo packed with tipsy hen party revellers Matt also gives an unprecedented, detailed account of law enforcement on London's roads. From dealing with arrogant motorists, catching drink drivers and facing catastrophic road deaths, to white-knuckle car chases and painstakingly reconstructing crash scenes, Matt has seen - and survived - it all.

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We all know the fairy-tale. An everyday girl meets her Prince Charming, they get married, have children and ride off into the sunset. Sadly, this isn't always the case and Christine McGuinness is keen to change the stereotype that marriage, fame and fortune brings an easy and blissful life... This is Christine's first book, where she tells the world her life story for the very first time. As well as outlining the difficulties and joys of being a mother to three autistic children, the autobiography delves into her anorexia battle, fertility troubles, her marriage, modelling career and tough childhood, subjects which are sensitive and many of which she hasn't spoken about before. She is a mum of three to eight-year-old twins Leo and Penelope and four-year-old Felicity, all of whom have been diagnosed with autism. In this frank and candid read, Christine reveals the struggles she's overcome in her life and still battles with today, but at the heart of it, she's on a mission to learn more about autism and to educate others and change the stigma around the condition. Christine wants to campaign to improve rights for those with invisible disabilities. She wants her children to be able to get a job, have relationships and live independent lives. Alongside writing her book, Christine and her husband Paddy are filming a BBC documentary about autism. It will air this Autumn. In the book, Christine will give readers a detailed insight into what being a full-time mum with three autistic children is like.

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'A superb book... Joey's story is extraordinary and its authenticity and relevance to the times we're living in is stunning' Eamon Dunphy'Gritty, terrifying and the most incredible true gangland story you will ever read. The Witness is hard to put down but will be harder to forget.' Donal MacIntyreJoey O'Callaghan was just 18 years old when he became a ghost - the youngest ever person to be signed up to the Witness Protection Programme.Groomed into a drug gang from the age of 10, a cold-blooded assassination sickened him to his core, and he broke the golden bond of gangland silence. His evidence won murder convictions against two of the most violent drug bosses in Ireland.Relocated to England with a new identity, Joey had to face the world alone, and soon realised it was he who had received the life sentence.15 years on, the ripple effects of the gunshots that rang out that night continue to leave a devastating legacy for everyone. None more so than Joey 'The Lips'.This is his story.

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER Two sisters, one war and an extraordinary family secret1939. In the nation's hour of need, brave sisters Patricia and Jean Owtram answered the call of duty.With their fierce intelligence and steely determination, these remarkable young women would stop at nothing to help crack the Enigma code, support Allied troops, and defeat the Nazis.Their top-secret mission would finally see the tide of war turn in Britain's favour...This is their incredible true story.

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Think you know everything about the Krays?Think again.Britain's most infamous criminals: the Kray twins. The extent of their activities has always been uncertain. But now, it is time for the conclusive account of their story, from their East End beginnings, to becoming the kingpins of London's underworld.This objective account, compiled by best-selling crime author and criminal lawyer James Morton, cuts through the conflicting versions of their stories and answers burning questions still being asked, 50 years after their infamous conviction. How was the clergy involved in evading police action? What was Charlie Kray's true position with his brothers? Just how many did they kill?Featuring an in-depth discussion at the supposed claims they killed up to 30, and a deep dive into the death of champion boxer Freddie Mills, Krays: The Final Word compiles all previous accounts and then some to find the truth behind their legendary status.This is the Krays - all fact, no fiction.

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'In my darkest hour, I reached for a hand and found your paw'When Nicola found Buddy, abandoned and broken, she vowed to do all she could to help save him. What she didn't know at the time was that this little dog would in turn save her.This is the story of Buddy and me: a remarkable true story of survival, hope, and never giving up, no matter how hard life gets.

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