Audiobooks Narrated by Thomas Balou Martin

LoveReading Top 10

1. Troy: Our Greatest Story Retold

   Brought to you by Penguin. Following the bestselling retellings of the Greek myths in Mythos and Heroes, Stephen Fry's bewitching third volume Troy - concerning love and war, passion and power - is now ready for ordering. The story of Troy speaks to all of us - the kidnapping of Helen, a queen celebrated for her beauty, sees the Greeks launch a thousand ships against the city of Troy, to which they will lay siege for ten whole and very bloody years. It is Zeus, the king of the gods, who triggers the war when he asks the Trojan prince Paris to judge the fairest goddess of them all. Aphrodite bribes Paris with the heart of Helen, wife of King Menelaus of the Greeks, and, naturally, nature takes its course. It is a terrible, brutal war with casualties on all sides as well as strained relations between allies. The Greek's most fearsome warrior, Achilles, argues with King Agamemnon, his commander, over another woman, the Trojan slave Briseis. The consequences lead to terrible tragedies. In Troy you will find heroism and hatred, love and loss, revenge and regret, desire and despair. It is these human passions, written bloodily in the sands of a distant shore, that still speak to us today. It is a myth in which we seek the truth about ourselves and which Stephen Fry brings breathtakingly to life. Praise for Heroes and Mythos: 'Ebullient and funny' The Times 'Entertaining and edifying' Daily Telegraph 'The Greek gods of the past become relatable as pop culture, modern literature and music are woven throughout. Joyfully informal yet full of literary legacy' Guardian 'An odyssey through Greek mythology. Brilliant . . . all hail Stephen Fry' Daily Mail 'A romp through the lives of ancient Greek gods. Fry is his story-telling best . . . the gods will be pleased' The Times © Stephen Fry 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

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2. A Christmas to Remember: The enchanting new novel from Sunday Times bestselling author Anton Du Beke

   London, 1938. This Christmas, you are cordially invited to the wedding of the year! When fiercely independent chambermaid Nancy Nettleton first moved to London and the Buckingham hotel, the last thing on her mind was finding love, let alone falling for the debonair demonstration dancer Raymond De Guise. As the festive season approaches, life at the exclusive hotel is busier than ever, with guests arriving from around the world, seeking comfort, relaxation and refuge as tensions build across Europe and it looks like another war is imminent. Behind the scenes, the staff work tirelessly, ensuring the smooth operation of the hotel, guarding the secrets of their guests - but they have many of their own that they fear will be revealed. As the band strikes up in the Grand Ballroom to celebrate the nuptials of Raymond and Nancy, one thing is certain - this will be a Christmas to remember.

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3. A Del of a Life: The hilarious new memoir from the national treasure

   Brought to you by Penguin. PRE-ORDER NOW: the hilarious and heartfelt new autobiography from the national treasure Sir David Jason ''So lithe,' they say. 'So spry and sparkling. So uncannily youthful. How on earth do you do it?' Well, what can I tell you? An hour of tai chi first thing in the morning, an HIIT work-out with my personal trainer, a bowl of steamed kale and a handful of almonds for lunch, and then two hours of yoga in the afternoon followed by an ice bath - this is a routine which I'm sure would work miracles for anyone of any age, although I can't be entirely sure because I haven't myself adopted any aspect of it at any point. Fortunately, during my life and career I have been given all sorts of advice and learned huge amounts from some great and enormously talented people. I've been blessed to play characters such as Derek Trotter, Granville, Pop Larkin and Frost, who have changed my life in all sorts of ways, and taught me lessons that go far beyond the television set. And I've worked a few things out for myself as well, about friendship, ambition, rejection, success, failure, adversity and fortune. With any luck, some of these thoughts and observations will chime with episodes and challenges you have faced, or are facing, in your own life. And if they don't... well, hopefully, at the very least you'll get to have a good old laugh at my expense. So lean back, pour yourself a glass, and try not to fall through the bar flap . . . © David Jason 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

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4. Hungry: The Highly Anticipated Memoir from One of the Greatest Food Writers of All Time

   ‘Extraordinary. Vivid, irreverent, heartbreaking.’ NIGEL SLATER ‘So funny and so delicious. I could eat it.’ DAWN O’PORTER From Frazzles to Foie Gras: a memoir of wanting more. From an early age, Grace Dent was hungry. As a little girl growing up in Currock, Carlisle, she yearned to be something bigger, to go somewhere better. Hungry traces Grace’s story from growing up eating beige food to becoming one of the much-loved voices on the British food scene. It’s also everyone’s story – from treats with your nan, to cheese and pineapple hedgehogs, to the exquisite joy of cheaply-made apple crumble with custard. It’s the high-point of a chip butty covered in vinegar and too much salt in the school canteen, on an otherwise grey day of double-Maths and cross country running. It’s the real story of how we have all lived, laughed, and eaten over the past 40 years.   Warm, funny and joyous, Hungry is also about love and loss, the central role that food plays in all our lives, and how a Cadbury’s Fruit ‘n’ Nut in a hospital vending machine can brighten the toughest situation.

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5. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day

   ***The new festive treat from the Sunday Times bestseller*** It's nearly Christmas and it's snowing, hard. Deep in the Yorkshire Moors nestles a tiny hamlet, with a pub at its heart. As the snow falls, the inn will become an unexpected haven for six people forced to seek shelter there…   Mary has been trying to get her boss Jack to notice her for four years, but he can only see the efficient PA she is at work. Will being holed up with him finally give her the chance she has been waiting for?   Bridge and Luke were meeting for five minutes to set their divorce in motion. But will getting trapped with each other reignite too many fond memories - and love?   Charlie and Robin were on their way to a luxury hotel in Scotland for a very special Christmas. But will the inn give them everything they were hoping to find - and much more besides?   A story of knowing when to hold on and when to let go, of pushing limits and acceptance, of friendship, love, laughter, mince pies and the magic of Christmas.  Gorgeous, warm and full of heartfelt emotion, I Wish it Could be Christmas Every Day is the perfect listen this winter!

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6. Ghosts

   Mysterious murders, shadowy figures, and high school. Life can be hard, death can be harder. Cole Harper is dead. Reynold McCabe is alive and free. Mihko Laboratories has reopened the research facility and works to manufacture and weaponize the illness that previously plagued Wounded Sky. People are missing. The community has been quarantined. What deal did Eva strike with Choch? Who will defeat Reynold and Mihko? Time is running out. This is the final novel in David A. Robertson's The Reckoner trilogy.

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7. Rag-and-Bone Christmas

   Don’t miss the brand-new winter saga from bestselling author Dilly Court. Paradise Row, London. December 1865. Snow is falling fast and Sally Suggs is working tirelessly to bring in enough money to keep bread on the table. Her father, a skilled rag-and-bone man, has fallen ill and now Sally has taken up his trade. But this is a man’s world and competition is fierce, and Sally’s rival Finn Kelly always seems to be one step ahead. Her family’s one valuable possession is their horse, Flower, yet with no one to protect them, London’s underbelly of black-market traders circle closer. Sally needs to find help in the most unexpected places if they are to survive… Don’t miss this festive treat from Dilly Court – available to buy now!

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8. 19th Christmas: (Women's Murder Club 19)

   The highly-anticipated follow-up to Sunday Times no. 1 bestseller 18th Abduction Christmas is coming, but crime never stops for the Women's Murder Club. Sergeant Lindsay Boxer is looking forward to spending time with her family over the holidays. But when she receives a tip-off that the biggest heist ever to hit San Francisco is being planned for Christmas Day, everything changes. The architect of the ambitious attack unleashes chaos across the city, laying traps and false alarms to distract Lindsay and the SFPD from his ultimate goal. As time runs out, will Lindsay be able to save the people of San Francisco from a Christmas they'd never forget?

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9. Why Mummy’s Sloshed: The Bigger the Kids, the Bigger the Drink

   Number One bestselling author Gill Sims is back with her eagerly awaited fourth and final Why Mummy novel. I just wanted them to stop wittering at me, eat vegetables without complaining, let me go to the loo in peace and learn to make a decent gin and tonic.   It genuinely never occurred to me when they were little that this would ever end – an eternity of Teletubbies and Duplo and In The Night Bastarding Garden and screaming, never an end in sight.  But now there is.  And despite the busybody old women who used to pop up whenever I was having a bad day and tell me I would miss these days when they were over, I don’t miss those days at all.   I have literally never stood wistfully in the supermarket and thought ‘Oh, how I wish someone was trailing behind me constantly whining ‘Mummy, can I have, Mummy can I have?’ while another precious moppet tries to climb out the trolley so they land on their head and we end up in A&E.   Again. Mummy has been a wife and mother for so long that she’s a little bit lost. And despite her best efforts, her precious moppets still don’t know the location of the laundry basket, the difference between being bored and being hungry, or that saying ‘I can’t find it Mummy’ is not the same as actually looking for it. Amidst the chaos of A-Levels and driving tests, she’s doing her best to keep her family afloat, even if everybody is set on drifting off in different directions, and that one of those directions is to make yet another bloody snack. She’s feeling overwhelmed and under appreciated, and the only thing that Mummy knows for sure is that the bigger the kids, the bigger the drink.

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10. Tomorrow Will Be A Good Day: My Autobiography

    Brought to you by Penguin. The extraordinary, heartwarming autobiography of Captain Tom Moore, the man who captured the nation's heart in lockdown. Captain Tom Moore is an inspiration. At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in early April this ninety-nine-year-old Second World War veteran came up with a big idea: he'd walk laps of his garden to raise money for the NHS. Despite using a walking frame as well as recent treatment for cancer and a broken hip, he was determined to hit £1000 by his 100th birthday on 30th April. By the time the telegram from the Queen arrived, he'd raised over thirty million pounds. In this, his official autobiography, published in support of the creation of the Captain Tom Foundation, he tells us of his long and dramatic life. How his spirit was forged on the battlefields of Burma where victory was snatched from the jaws of defeat. How he fearlessly raced motorbikes competitively. How, in his nineties, he took off for the Himalayas and Everest, simply because he'd never been. And, finally, how this old soldier came to do his bit for the NHS, becoming the nation's hero in our darkest hour. A modest, decent, charming man with a can-do attitude and a twinkle in his eye, Captain Tom's story is that of a man whose insatiable curiosity and appetite for life have led him around so many unexpected corners - finding both adventure and joy. He only wanted to help other people - and yet he has inspired a nation to believe anything is possible by reminding us all it is never, ever too late. © Tom Moore 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

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