Showing results by narrator "Simon Vance" in All Categories

Jennings starts the second half of the Christmas term by accidentally setting his “india rubber” (erasure) on fire, it seems the residents of Linbury Court are going to have an exciting few weeks. Along with “High Fidelity Telephonic Communication” (or two tins and a piece of string), the 'Affair of the Assistant Masterpiece' and Jennings suddenly becoming a musical prodigy, Old Wilkie is definitely not going to get any peace and quiet.

In 1271 a young Italian merchant named Marco Polo embarked on a groundbreaking expedition from Venice, through the Middle East and Central Asia to China. His extraordinary reports of his experiences introduced medieval Europe to an exotic new world of emperors and concubines, amazing cities, huge armies, unusual spices and cuisine, and imperial riches. Marco Polo also revealed the wonders of Xanadu, the summer capital of Mongol emperor Kublai Khan.

Under Heaven takes listeners to Tang dynasty China, where the son of an honored general has received an unheard of gift: 250 Sardian horses. But this is a prize men would, and will, kill for.

Once an aristocrat in the heady days of pre-revolutionary France, now Lestat is a rockstar in the demonic, shimmering 1980s. He rushes through the centuries in search of others like him, seeking answers to the mystery of his terrifying exsitence. His story, the second volume in Anne Rice's best-selling Vampire Chronicles, is mesmerizing, passionate, and thrilling.

The king and his sons have twisted the people of Vaeldon into shadows of what they were. They’ve used nobles and common alike to feed their ravenous hunger for power. The rot in the kingdom begins at the throne, but it does not end there. Will Rew and his companions have the nerve to cut deep enough to remove the horror that has infected all of Vaeldon, or will their quest be for naught?

The inspiration for the epic new Shannara Chronicles TV series, the world of Shannara is brimming with untold stories and unexplored territory. Now best-selling author Terry Brooks breaks new ground with a stand-alone adventure sure to thrill devoted listeners and new fans alike. Blood and magic will collide.... Leofur is the daughter of Arcannen, a power-hungry sorcerer prepared to use the blackest of magic to get what he wants.

For Gabriel and his beautiful wife, Chiara, it was supposed to be the start of a pleasant weekend in London - a visit to an art gallery in St. James’s to authenticate a newly discovered painting by Titian, followed by a quiet lunch at an Italian restaurant along the Strand. But a pair of deadly bombings in Paris and Hamburg has already marred this sparkling autumn day. And while walking along Wellington Street, the ever-vigilant Gabriel notices a man whom he believes is about to carry out a third attack.

John Milton's Paradise Lost is one of the greatest epic poems in the English language. It tells the story of the Fall of Man, a tale of immense drama and excitement, of rebellion and treachery, of innocence pitted against corruption, in which God and Satan fight a bitter battle for control of mankind's destiny.

Young Tess Durbeyfield attempts to restore her family's fortunes by claiming their connection with the aristocratic d'Urbervilles. But Alec d'Urberville is a rich wastrel who seduces her and makes her life miserable. When Tess meets Angel Clare, she is offered true love and happiness, but her past catches up with her and she faces an agonizing moral choice.

Sometimes hiding isn't your only option... When Rob Hale wakes up in hospital after a motorcycle crash he is told that Lena, the woman he claims was travelling with him, doesn't exist. The woman he describes bears a striking resemblance to his recently deceased sister, Laura, but has he really only imagined her? Rob sets out to find the answers to who Lena is and where she has gone.

The Darkest Road - the gripping conclusion to Kay's critically acclaimed Fionavar Tapestry fantasy trilogy - finds five university students from our world preparing to sacrifice themselves as they enter into final battle against a power of unimaginable proportions.

As Pip unravels the truth behind his own "great expectations" in his quest to become a gentleman, the mysteries of the past and the convolutions of fate through a series of thrilling adventures serve to steer him toward maturity and his most important discovery of all - the truth about himself.

At the novel's centre: the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt, hero, leader, irresistible force, irrepressible spirit, battling (and ultimately reconciling with) a strange otherworldly form that has taken possession of his undead body and soul. This ancient and mysterious power and unearthly spirit of vampire lore has all the force, history and insidious reach of the unknowable universe.

More than 20 years have elapsed since the United States last brokered a peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians. In that time, three presidents have tried and failed. Martin Indyk - a former United States ambassador to Israel and special envoy for the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations in 2013 - has experienced these political frustrations and disappointments firsthand.

First published in monthly parts from March 1852 to September 1853, this novel follows the fortunes of three pedestrian characters - Esther Summerson, Ada Clare and Richard Carstone. The story they tell embondies Dickens' merciless indictment of the Court of Chancery and its bungling, morally corrupt handling of the endless case of Jarndyce v. Jarndyce, giving the novel its scope and meaning.

Saint Augustine's contributions to Christian theology are second to no other post-apostolic author in the whole sweep of church history. Yet along side his doctrinal treatises, Augustine tells a story of his life devoted to Christ as his only satisfaction. The Confessions is at once the autobiographical account of Augustine's life of Christian faith and at the same time a compelling theology of Christian spirituality for everyone.

Rew, the king’s ranger, leads his young companions on a deadly journey to find their father. On a path that twists across the Eastern Territory, they fight toward the prison where Baron Fedgley is held. The party will face bandits, assassins, treacherous noblemen, spellcasters, and Rew’s fellow rangers to get there.

This is collection of 18 crime stories with a diverse range of characters and scenarios, from guilt-ridden fraudsters to lovesick murderers.

Greed, revenge and world domination are just some of the ingredients in this James Bond adventure. After oil tycoon Sir Robert King is killed in a bombing at MI6 headquarters, his daughter, Elektra, inherits his fortune and the attentions of her father's killer. His name is Renard. A bullet lodged in his brain has rendered him unable to feel physical pain, and he has but one reason left to live - revenge.

A sinister masterpiece, Our Mutual Friend was Dickens' last completed novel. It is perhaps his ultimate vision of a dark, macabre London and the corrupting power of money.