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Audiobooks Narrated by Greg Wagland
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A fascinating tour through the curious history of Western civilization told through its most emblematic invention – the book.
As well as leafing through the well-known titles that have helped shape the world in which we live, Oliver Tearle also dusts off some of the more neglected items to be found hidden among the bookshelves of the past.
You'll learn about the forgotten Victorian novelist who outsold Dickens, the woman who became the first published poet in America and the eccentric traveller who introduced the table-fork to England. Through exploring a variety of books – novels, plays, travel books, science books, cookbooks, joke books and sports almanacs – The Secret Library highlights some of the most fascinating aspects of our history. It also reveals the surprising connections between various works and historical figures. What links Homer's Iliad to Aesop's Fables? Or Wisden Cricketers' Almanack to the creator of Sherlock Holmes?
The Secret Library brings these little-known stories to light, exploring the intersections between books of all kinds and the history of the Western world over 3,000 years.
The story of one of the most remarkable – and feared – British aircraft of the Second World War: the de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito fighter-bomber.
Nicknamed the 'wooden wonder' for its balsawood frame, the two-man Mosquito excelled in several different roles, from reconnaissance to the bombing of sensitive priority targets. Following a Mosquito raid on the main Berlin broadcasting station on 30 January 1943, which succeeded in removing Hermann Goering from the airwaves, the Luftwaffe chief observed ruefully: 'It makes me furious when I see the Mosquito. I turn green and yellow with envy.' From the summer of that year, as RAF Bomber Command intensified its saturation-bombing campaign against German cities and industrial centres, Mosquitos were used by the RAF Pathfinder Force, which marked targets for night-time bombing, to potent and devastating effect.
David Price's involving and fast-paced narrative traces the contrasting wartime fortunes of a number of Mosquito crews, alongside which the development and operational history of the aeroplane (especially with the Pathfinder Force) forms a descant to the principal human narrative. Like the author's earlier book The Crew, Mosquito Men is rich in evocative and technically authoritative accounts of individual missions flown by an aircraft that ranks alongside the Spitfire, the Hurricane and the Avro Lancaster as one of the RAF's greatest ever.
On 14 September 2015, after 50 years of searching, gravitational waves were detected for the first time and astronomy changed for ever. Until then, investigation of the universe had depended on electromagnetic radiation: visible light, radio, X-rays and the rest. But gravitational waves ripples in the fabric of space and time are unrelenting, passing through barriers that stop light dead. At the two 4-kilometre long LIGO observatories in the US, scientists developed incredibly sensitive detectors, capable of spotting a movement 100 times smaller than the nucleus of an atom. In 2015 they spotted the ripples produced by two black holes spiralling into each other, setting spacetime quivering. This was the first time black holes had ever been directly detected and it promises far more for the future of astronomy. Brian Clegg presents a compelling story of human technical endeavour and a new, powerful path to understand the workings of the universe.
The ultimate non-technical guide to the fast-developing world of quantum computing. Computer technology has improved exponentially over the last 50 years. But the headroom for bigger and better electronic solutions is running out. Our best hope is to engage the power of quantum physics. 'Quantum algorithms' had already been written long before hardware was built. These would enable, for example, a quantum computer to exponentially speed up an information search, or to crack the mathematical trick behind internet security. However, making a quantum computer is incredibly difficult. Despite hundreds of laboratories around the world working on them, we are only just seeing them come close to 'supremacy' where they can outperform a traditional computer. In this approachable introduction, Brian Clegg explains algorithms and their quantum counterparts, explores the physical building blocks and quantum weirdness necessary to make a quantum computer, and uncovers the capabilities of the current generation of machines.
Atticus Perennis, prefect of the Roman fleet, waits restlessly in Carthage.
His crew is agitated, as they wait on edge for news from Rome, hoping the powers-that-be send more ships to help his Carthaginian forces put down a rebel mercenary army. When word reaches them that a fleet is on their way, it seems there might be an end in sight to the ceaseless violence.
However, the optimism does not last long. When an act of treachery by the Carthaginian side is committed against their Roman brothers in arms, the wheels of counter-revenge, bloodshed and savagery are set in motion.
As treachery and deception threaten the lives of Atticus and his men, all sides must come to a final stand.
John Stack was born and lives in County Cork. He is married with three children, and is the author of the Sunday Times bestselling Masters of the Sea series.
David Hunter and his wife are found dead in a small Yorkshire village. The apparent victims of a hit and run. They led successful and quiet lives, so police are stumped when looking for a motive.
DI Stewart Gardener and DS Sean Reilly have their work cut out and soon some suspects emerge: a group of four closely connected individuals who are proving hard to trace.
Convinced this was not a random killing, the Leeds detectives venture into unknown terrain, the web of lies, fake identities and cyber crime called the internet.
But when one of the suspects in the investigation is identified and found, the police are dismayed someone else got to them first. Dying from a nerve agent, he won't be much help to the investigation.
The race is on to catch up with all the persons of interest. But dealing with skilled hackers who know how to move without leaving a trace, will stack the odds against the detectives.
IMPOSTURE is the sixth book by Ray Clark in a bestselling series. It can be enjoyed on its own or alongside the others. The full list is as follows:
1.IMPURITY
2.IMPERFECTION
3.IMPLANT
4.IMPRESSION
5.IMPOSITION
6.IMPOSTURE
Book number eight in the D I Bliss series.
When dark desires have no limitations, anything is fair game.
After a young woman is found strangled to death, Bliss is called to the scene. When he learns that one of his business cards was found among the victim's clothing, and he is told what was written on the back of it, Bliss is immediately troubled. The card was one of five he handed out to trafficked young women he and his team had previously rescued from a shipping container.
When he sees the victim, Bliss realises she was not one of those saved that day. So whose card does she have? Any why? And is it connected to her murder?
The murder investigation proves to be more complex and challenging than the team could possibly have imagined. But just as they think they have it figured out, they learn that depravity has no boundaries...
The bestselling author of the stunning DI Bliss crime series is back - this time with a thrilling prequel novella.
A double life - a single truth.
Fresh out of uniform, DC Jimmy Bliss finds himself at the centre of an undercover sting. Enlisted by a crew of villains to crack a safe, he fears his cover is blown when he's seen in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But on the night of the job, things run smoothly enough until the gang leader changes the location of the heist. As the job spirals out of control, Bliss has to trust his instincts and buy some time. There's just one problem: he has no idea if his team know what has become of him.
As the situation escalates, Bliss finds himself at the mercy of a violent criminal who will do anything not to be caught.
H.G. Wells was known as the father of science fiction-but his creative geniusencompassed far more than a single literary genre. He was also a visionary, asatirist, a sociologist, and an historian.
This audio anthology contains some of Wells' lesser-known stories and is thethird in a series produced by Raconteurs Audio in collaboration with SpokenRealms.
This collection includes:
The Argonauts of the Air read by Tim BruceThe Treasure in the Forest read by Nigel PattersonA Slip Under the Microscope read by Liam GerrardThe Temptation of Harringay read by Malk WilliamsThe Reconciliation read by Greg WaglandThe Catastrophe read by Tim BruceThe Truth About Pyecraft read by James GilliesMr Skelmersdale in Fairyland read by Liam GerrardMr Brisher's Treasure read by Malk WilliamsThe New Accelerator read by Nigel PattersonIn the Modern Vein-An Unsympathetic Love Story' read by Greg WaglandUnder the Knife read by James Gillies
Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol-A Ghost Story of Christmas in Five Staves when he was 31; the first edition was published on 19th December 1843 and had sold out just four days later and by the end of 1844, there were already 13 reprints. Now with numerous adaptations for film, television, radio, stage, and indeed, audiobooks, A Christmas Carol has, for many, become an essential part of Christmas!
Raconteurs Audio has created this audio anthology to include Dickens' two Christmas novellas, The Chimes and The Cricket on the Hearth, as well as a collection of his lesser known short stories with a Christmas theme.
A Christmas Carol
Stave 1 - Marley's Ghost read by Liam GerrardStave 2 - The First of Three Spirits read by Tim BruceStave 3 - The Second of Three Spirits read by James GilliesStave 4 - The Last of the Spirits read by Greg WaglandStave 5 - The End of It read by Malk Williams
Music
Stave 1 - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - English TraditionalStave 2 - The Three Kings - Peter CorneliusStave 3 - Gabriel's Message - Basque NoelStave 4 - A Coventry Carol - English TraditionalStave 5 - This Is the Truth - English TraditionalFinale - In Dulci Jubilo - German Traditional
Original music arranged and produced by Kelvin Towse for this audiobook production.
Festive Tales
The Haunted House read by Greg WaglandA Christmas Tree read by Nigel PattersonThe Chimes read by James GilliesThe Christmas Goblin read by Liam GerrardThe Cricket on the Hearth read by Helen LloydNobody's Story read by Malk WilliamsA Child's Dream of a Star read by Tim BruceWhat Christmas Is as We Grow Older read by James Gillies
These stories originally published between 1843 and 1871 are in the public domain. The traditional music is also in the public domain.
A burglary, a murder, and a killer who wears a mask
A woman is found dead in her bed, badly beaten.
Precious items are missing from the house, including a Fender Stratocaster guitar belonging to her husband.
Was it just a burglary gone wrong?
Perhaps it is not a motive DI Stewart Gardener should be looking for, but a pattern. And he needs to get to the bottom of the mystery fast, before someone else is hurt.
The culprit is an impostor, wearing masks that DI Gardener and his team must peel off layer by layer.
But Gardener is not alone searching for the killer. Someone else is seeking retribution.
When their paths cross, will justice or revenge triumph?
IMPOSITION is the fifth standalone title in Ray Clark's murder mystery series set in Leeds.
Instantly acquire all the knowledge you need to pass as an expert in the world of etiquette and high society. Know what to say, what not to say, where to be seen, and what and what not to wear. Never again be found wanting when asked if someone is a PLU or a NQOCD, why port should be passed to the left, or how many air kisses you should aim at the proffered cheek of someone you barely know. Arm yourself with the essential words or phrases which have entered the etiquette lexicon from prerevolutionary France, and know not to mix up your droit du seigneur with your noblesse oblige. Bask in the admiration of your aristocratic hosts as you enquire politely about the place a table, pronounce confidently on whether the going is heavy or soft, and hold your own against the most sneering of posturing parvenus.
Written by experts and offering readers the opportunity to pass off appropriated knowledge as their own, the Bluffer's Guides provide hard fact masquerading as frivolous observation in one witty, easy listen.
