Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. How many days since my last confession? Forty-two… I dreamt about man number two … again. His hands. The sound of his voice. The opposite of penance. The epitome of sin. I’d become guilty of cheating — only in my imagination — on a man I hadn't even slept with … yet. And then, there was another man... The good man. Man number one. I couldn't get caught up in his smell, or his beard, his paints, his skin. I’d met him at the shelter. I didn't need to pay attention or speak to him…But I did. Man one had become my salvation. Man two was only temptation. A fig. A poisoned apple. I wouldn't lose God for a snake — a suit who represented the one thing in my life I loved to hate. I wouldn't give up my creed or sobriety for an orgasm. But maybe I could have a swallow … a taste. One drink. I made myself promises I could no longer keep. ** Views: 31
When Amber Hewerdine consults a hypnotherapist as a desperate last resort, she doesn't expect that anything much will change. She doesn't expect it to help with her chronic insomnia ...She doesn't expect to hear herself, under hypnosis, saying words that mean nothing to her: 'Kind, cruel, kind of cruel' - words she has seen somewhere before, if only she could remember where ...She doesn't expect to be arrested two hours later, as a result of having spoken those words out loud, in connection with the brutal murder of Katharine Allen, a woman she's never heard of ...Review'A writer of prodigious talent ... This is a jaw-droppingly assured book which sometimes feels as if there's a plot twist on every page ... This reader was left speechless with admiration ... a truly sensational book.' -- Daily Express on LASTING DAMAGE 'A remarkable novel, and an adventure to read ... A first-class whodunit that will keep you reading long into the night.' -- Scotsman on A ROOM SWEPT WHITE 'For those who demand emotional intelligence and literary verve from their thrillers, Sophie Hannah is the writer of choice.' -- Guardian 'One of the great unmissables of this genre - intelligent, classy and with a wonderfully Gothic imagination.' -- The Times 'Like Hannah's previous multilayered thrillers, her seventh offers the unravelling of several mysteries at once, a rich mix of the dark and diverting, and astute portraits of women falling apart' -- The Sunday Times Review About the AuthorSophie Hannah is a bestselling crime fiction writer and poet. Her psychological thrillers LITTLE FACE, HURTING DISTANCE, THE POINT OF RESCUE, THE OTHER HALF LIVES, A ROOM SWEPT WHITE and LASTING DAMAGE have received critical acclaim and have been translated into more than twenty languages. She lives in Cambridge with her husband and two children. Visit Sophie's website, www.sophiehannah.com, and follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/sophiehannahCB1. Views: 31
Claudius has survived the murderous intrigues of his predecessors to become, reluctantly, Emperor of Rome. Here he recounts his surprisingly successful reign: how he cultivates the loyalty of the army and the common people to repair the damage caused by Caligula; his relations with the Jewish King Herod Agrippa; and his invasion of Britain. But the growing paranoia of absolute power and the infidelity of his promiscuous young wife Messalina mean that his good fortune will not last forever. In this second part of Robert Graves's fictionalized autobiography, Claudius - wry, rueful, always inquisitive - brings to life some of the most scandalous and violent times in history. Views: 30
A deeply personal and tender story of war, peace and those who are left behind. One hundred years after the war to end all wars, Jacko's descendants discover his notebook and the untold stories tucked in its pages."This war is a nightmare that one day I shall wake from and then forget. And if I don't wake, then you shall never know. I don't want you ever to know."No one seems to know where the scruffy tin hat came from – just that it is very old, from some war or other long ago. To young Michael and his family it has its uses today: as a child's toy, a feeding bowl for the hens, a hanging basket... Then Michael discovers that it belonged to his great-great-grandfather, "Our Jacko", who lost his life at Ypres in 1915. As the boy digs deeper, he finds the young soldier's diary and learns more about his forgotten ancestor – husband, father, poet, actor – who died so tragically young. And it becomes clear exactly how Our Jacko should be... Views: 30
It is hardly to be expected, that an Author whom the Public have honoured with some degree of applause, should not be again a trespasser on their kindness. Yet the Author of MARMION must be supposed to feel some anxiety concerning its success, since he is sensible that he hazards, by this second intrusion, any reputation which his first Poem may have procured him. The present story turns upon the private adventures of a fictitious character; but is called a Tale of Flodden Field, because the hero’s fate is connected with that memorable defeat, and the causes which led to it. The design of the Author was, if possible, to apprize his readers, at the outset, of the date of his Story, and to prepare them for the manners of the Age in which it is laid. Any Historical Narrative, far more an attempt at Epic composition, exceeded his plan of a Romantic Tale; yet he may be permitted to hope, from the popularity of THE LAY OF THE LAST MINSTREL, that an attempt to paint the manners of the feudal times, upon a broader scale, and in the course of a more interesting story, will not be unacceptable to the Public.
The Poem opens about the commencement of August, and concludes with the defeat of Flodden, 9th September, 1513.
Ashestiel, 1808, Views: 30
