Showing results by narrator "Catherine Bailey" in All Categories

Siberia’s story is traditionally one of exiles, penal colonies and unmarked graves. Yet there is another tale to tell. Dotted throughout this remote land are pianos - grand instruments created during the boom years of the 19th century and humble, Soviet-made uprights that found their way into equally modest homes. They tell the story of how, ever since entering Russian culture under the influence of Catherine the Great, piano music has run through the country like blood.

Bonnie arrives on a remote sea fort off the coast of England to take part in a mysterious reality TV show. Competing against seven strangers, she must solve a series of puzzles to win the prize money, but this is no game - and the consequences of failure are deadly. Under scrutiny from the watching public, the contestants quickly turn on one another. Who will sacrifice the most for wealth and fame? And why can't Bonnie shake the creeping sense that they are not alone? When the first contestant is found dead, Bonnie begins to understand the dark truth at the heart of this twisted competition.

James Tiptree Jr., the pen name of Alice Bradley Sheldon, is widely considered to be one of the most influential American genre writers ever, and a pioneer of feminist science fiction. 10,000 Light Years from Home, her brilliant debut collection, displays all her trademark humour, intensity and originality, with dark dystopian thrills, fast-paced intergalactic satire and hardboiled tales of alien invasion.

Intimidated by her father, the rector of Knype Hill, Dorothy performs her submissive roles of dutiful daughter and bullied housekeeper. Her thoughts are taken up with the costumes she is making for the church school play, by the hopelessness of preaching to the poor and by debts she cannot pay in 1930s Depression England. Suddenly her routine shatters and Dorothy finds herself down and out in London. She is wearing silk stockings, has money in her pocket and cannot remember her name.

Reading maps or reading emotions? Barbie or Lego? We live in a gendered world where we are bombarded with messages about sex and gender. But what does this constant gendering mean for our thoughts, decisions and behaviour? And what does it mean for our brains? Drawing on her life’s work as a Professor of Cognitive Neuroimaging, Gina Rippon unpacks the stereotypes that bombard us from our earliest moments and shows how these messages mould our ideas of ourselves and even shape our brains.

When Grace’s fiancé vanishes without a trace the night after proposing, her life is turned upside down. But has Nick walked out on her, or is he in danger? As Grace desperately searches for answers, it soon becomes clear that Nick wasn’t the uncomplicated man she thought she knew. And when she uncovers a hidden tragedy from his childhood, she realises an awful truth: that you can run from your past - but your secrets will always catch up with you....

Only 30 years ago, rape within marriage was not a crime, Judges saw rape victims as complicit for wearing short skirts; teenage runaways were groomed, pimped and then arrested as ‘common prostitutes’, and harassment, stalking, forced marriage and honour-based violence were not defined or recognised as separate offences in law. Since then there have been important legislative reforms but the law is only as good as those who enforce it. Telling the stories of a series of ground-breaking cases, Harriet Wistrich illustrates how far misogyny is baked into our justice system.

Natalie and Neil everything they could want: a stylish London house, two high-flying careers, a close-knit group of friends and family. And best of all: an ideal marriage. Having children, they’ve agreed, would only disrupt their carefree lives. But then Neil turns thirty-five, and suddenly he’s longing for a baby. However, Nat has not had a similar change of heart. As they no longer agree on this fundamental issue, their once perfect relationship starts to crumble. Nat starts to think about her exes and wonders if one of the men she has loved in the past can offer her a future.

Eve should never have married Don Hathaway. Yes, he gave her two beautiful children - Olly and Tabitha - but he is a bully. Worse than that, he hurts her. But, after one drunken rage too many, she has the courage to leave him. Eve is warned that it's a difficult path, yet she needs to give her children hope for the future. Don, however, is bitter. And getting away entirely from him proves impossible. Until the day, Eve tries to teach him a lesson - and it all goes horribly wrong.

Take Control of Your IBS is the road-tested, practical guide that will change your life. Offering simple, fad-free professional advice, it will help you diagnose issues, bring comfort and reduce symptoms and flare-ups. With so much misinformation out there for those of us with irritable bowel syndrome, it can be hard to know where to start. Drawing on scientific research and personal experience, consultant dietitian Kirsten Jackson guides you through each step.

Helen Duncan - known since childhood as 'Hellish Nell', for her uncontainable nature - was one of the most popular mediums of the twentieth century, holding seances around the country where she was believed to manifest the spirits of the dead. What happens when we die? It was the question of the age for a generation which had endured one world war and now was living through another. Mrs Duncan's seances offered an answer. But when she started foretelling naval disasters, she also attracted the unwelcome attention of the secret service.

You might not have heard of misophonia, but if you are often infuriated by the sound of chewing, breathing, snoring, a clock ticking, or any other specific trigger, you may have experienced it. In fact, it’s thought that one in five of us have it. Sounds Like Misophonia addresses what the condition is, how it manifests, and provides a guide to managing it. By clinical psychologist Dr Jane Gregory, this is the first practical self-help book to make sense of the condition, and help you design your own treatment plan tailored to your unique experience.

Sarah Langford is a barrister. Her job is to stand in court representing the mad and the bad, the vulnerable, the heartbroken and the hopeful. She must become their voice: weave their story around the black and white of the law and tell it to the courtroom. These stories may not make headlines, but they will change the lives of ordinary people in extraordinary ways. They are stories which, but for a twist of luck, might have been yours.

This selection of Poe's critical writings, short fiction and poetry demonstrates his intense interest in aesthetic issues and the astonishing power and imagination with which he probed the darkest corners of the human mind. The Fall of the House of Usher is a slow-burning Gothic horror, describing the final hours of a family tormented by tragedy and the legacy of the past.

Bel Carnegie's life is not perfect. Still recovering from her ex-husband's betrayal she lives with her narcissistic father in the family flat in Earl's Court. Then one summer she decides to swap the sweltering city for beautiful Cornwall. While renting a little cottage she finds that the sea, sunshine and new friends help heal her damaged heart. But Bel soon learns that you can't run from the past and it isn't long before it comes knocking once more...

Project management is an essential skill for anyone who needs to get things done in any organisation, and is absolutely critical for anyone leading strategic change. In Lead Successful Projects, the Penguin Business Expert guide, Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez, introduces a simplified but strategic approach to project management developed over the last 20 years coaching executives, managers and MBAs. Learn how to break down your project into manageable elements, define smart goals and meet them in this concise and practical guide to project success.

Asking for a promotion ranks high on the list of life's most anxiety-inducing activities. Putting yourself out there to higher-ups can be intimidating, and competition can be fierce, especially in the current economic climate. And, of course, what if they say no? But it's also one of the most important things you can do for your career. If you want to move forward in your company or field, promotions are part of the game, and they won't just be handed to you - you have to work - and ask - for them.

Based on the ingenious Sir Michael Twitter account, How to (Almost) Make Friends on the Internet is the funniest audiobook you'll listen to this year. Whether it's offering his services as a karate lawyer or funeral DJ, devising the world's worst plan to get a free haircut, or trying to buy a blue bucket that may or may not be for sale, Michael just wants to connect with people. The only problem is that people are slightly less enthusiastic about connecting with him, and the results are utterly hilarious.

Financial malpractice, we're told, is an aberration: the actions of a few bad apples deviating from the norms of a market-governed process and gaming the system. In Sabotage, political scientists Anastasia Nesvetailova and Ronen Palan blow this fiction apart, showing that sabotage is not an anomaly, but part of the business model of finance - and always has been.

Letters from Everest is an eye-opening set of personal letters from Mallory to his family, recently discovered hidden in a drawer. In the letters, Mallory is completely open about his life, his climbing and especially the three Everest Expeditions he was a part of – 1921, 1922 and the last in 1924. His writing is full of extraordinary insights – most of which have never been published in any form.