Showing results by narrator "Nneka Okoye" in All Categories

The Spider King's Daughter is a modern-day Romeo and Juliet set against the backdrop of a changing Lagos, a city torn between tradition and modernity, corruption and truth, love and family loyalty. Seventeen-year-old Abike Johnson is the favourite child of her wealthy father. She lives in a sprawling mansion in Lagos, protected by armed guards and ferried everywhere in a huge black jeep. But being her father's favourite comes with uncomfortable duties, and she is often lonely behind the high walls.

Striving not to be average is exhausting and breaking us. Our pursuit of success and perfection is blinding us to the everyday pleasures of the ordinary. Trying to be across our friends, our family, social media, our careers and our hobbies all the time can be damaging. We have been sold the story that we can do it all, that we are superhuman and that being above average is the path to success and happiness. But it's time we pressed pause. It's time to rediscover our appreciation of the ordinary and the average - that space where most of the best things happen.

Born in a remote village in Kenya, Nice Leng'ete saw the young girls she grew up with receive the cut, the rite of passage into female adulthood in Masai culture. Every girl got the cut, and once you did, you'd be married off to a man triple your age. You might be his second or third wife. You'd have children in your teens. This is exactly what happened to Nice's sister. To resist the cut meant becoming an outcast in Masai culture.

It's a beautiful day in Como, and the Caswell-Jones family are surrounded their nearest and dearest in their Villa Janus. But when Jonty Caswell-Jones is found dead in his study, it is clear the only suspects are the guests and the family. It seems all this time, tensions have been brewing, guests seething, and rivalries have reared their ugly head....  

Culture will keep you fit and healthy. Culture will bring communities together. Culture will improve your education. This is the message from governments and arts organisations across the country; however, this book explains why we need to be cautious about culture. Offering a powerful call to transform the cultural and creative industries, Culture Is Bad for You examines the intersections between race, class, and gender in the mechanisms of exclusion in cultural occupations.

Debut author Vashti Harrison tells the stories of both iconic and lesser-known female figures of black history - from nurse Mary Seacole to politician Diane Abbott, mathematician Katherine Johnson and singer Shirley Bassey. Among these biographies listeners will find heroes, role models and everyday women who did extraordinary things.

Ellen. Abandoned by her father for the second time, left scarred from the orphanage, Ellen finally finds happiness and hope—reunited with her long-lost gran. But it cannot compensate for being torn apart from her beloved friends Ruth and Amy. When a devastating encounter leaves Ellen broken and desperate, she is forced to fight her past demons. Ruth. Ruth has found peace, building a new life as an actress surrounded by new friends. But still, she longs to be with Ellen and Amy after everything they endured together in the orphanage.

Sante was a baby when she was washed ashore in a sea-chest laden with treasure. It seems she is the sole survivor of the tragic sinking of a ship carrying migrants and refugees. Her people. Fourteen years on she's a member of Mama Rose's unique and dazzling circus. But, from their watery grave, the unquiet dead are calling Sante to avenge them: A bamboo flute. A golden bangle. A ripening mango which must not fall.

Rebecca Bray has moved on from a childhood she wants to forget. She has the dream fiancé, a loving stepdaughter and a career she's proud of. But with a move back to her hometown of Cornwall, everything she wanted to bury starts to surface. And when her stepdaughter goes missing at a New Year's Eve party, Rebecca must finally face the ghosts of her past - or Ava might never come home safely.

When Amy's chosen as part of a programme to resettle displaced children in Canada, her life changes tack. Her great sadness is having to say goodbye to Ruth and Ellen, the friends who became family to her during the dark days at the orphanage. As she steps on board the ship to Montreal, the promise of a new life lies ahead. But during the long crossing, Amy discovers a terrifying secret.

Jasmine’s dad is a farmer and her mum is a large-animal vet, so Jasmine spends a lot of time caring for animals and keeping them out of trouble. Unfortunately, this often means she gets into hot water herself. When Jasmine sees a tiny, unloved piglet left to fend for itself, she knows it will die without her help. So she smuggles it home to her farm to nurse it back to health. But she can’t keep Truffle forever, and then, one stormy night, disaster strikes.

It’s been 15 years since five-year-old Maya Duncan disappeared. But when a young woman turns up at Kay Duncan’s door, clutching a yellow rainhat with Maya’s name stitched in the back, it seems she might have come home at last. Phoebe is convinced that she is Maya and that the woman behind the door is her real mother. When she sees Kay, the memories come flooding back, and it seems they are to be reunited at last. But when a shocking discovery leads to tragedy, Phoebe is left grief-stricken and riddled with guilt. 

Trey Anderson is popular and handsome, and he works at his family’s beloved local bookshop, Wonderland. Ariel Spencer is quirky, creative and in need of a holiday temp job to cover her tuition for The Artists’ Studio. An opening at Wonderland is the answer...and the start of a hate-to-love journey for Trey and Ariel. When Trey and Ariel learn that Wonderland is on the brink of shutting down, can they get over their differences and team up to stop the doors from closing before the Christmas Eve deadline?

Irene Dalila Mwathi comes from Kenya with a brutally violent personal history. Once she wanted to be a journalist; now all she wants is to be safe. When she finally arrives, bewildered, in London, she is attacked by the very people paid to protect her, and she has no choice but to step out on her own into this strange new world. Through a dizzying array of interviews, lawyer's meetings, regulations and detention centres, she realises that what she faces may be no less dangerous than the violence she has fled.

Sisters Cheta and Zam couldn’t be more different. Cheta, sharp-tongued and stubborn, never shies away from conflict—either at school or at home, where her mother fires abuse at her. Timid Zam escapes most of her mother’s anger, skating under the radar and avoiding her sister whenever possible. In a turn of good fortune, Zam is invited to live with her aunt’s family in the lap of luxury. Jealous, Cheta also leaves home, but to a harder existence that will drive her to terrible decisions. When the sisters are reunited, Zam alone will recognize how far Cheta has fallen.

When Danny's best friend Jamila goes missing, and no one remembers she exists, Danny knows the alien Swarm are back on Earth. They've tracked the digital energy signals Jamila has been unintentionally transmitting. Her alien-enhanced DNA can be used to clone super-strong beings with super-powers, and now it's not just the Swarm who are after her. Danny needs to find Jamila—and a new version of Adi, the friendly Swarm scout—and together they must stop both humans and aliens from destroying the human race.

Zainab Sekyi is on a quest to find herself. She's moving to New York City to pursue her lifelong dream to become an illustrator, but she doesn't just want to get a job. She's also on a mission to make enough money to go on a night out, buy a whole bottle of wine (not just a glass) and, most importantly of all, to fall in love. But as she grows accustomed to the hustle and bustle of city life - with the help of her new roommate, Mary Grace, and lifelong friend Densua - she begins to hear the voices of her ancestors in her mind.

Anuri's stepmother, Ophelia, is the ultimate 'mumfluencer'. Throughout Anuri's childhood, she catalogued every minute, milestone and carefully curated family outing on social media, cultivating a devoted - and sizable - following. Now twenty-five years old, life looks pretty perfect on the outside. Ophelia's fans could be forgiven for wondering why Anuri spends much of her time insulting men online for money, battling the call of alcohol, running from a PhD application, and reminding herself that she is now allowed to choose her own outfits.

A fast-paced thriller set on the streets of a London rife with undercover magic. Abras, as they are known, can harness these illegal powers, but for con artist Amanda Coleman - whose father was a powerful and abusive practitioner - magic is anathema. When her criminal crew decide to hire an Abra to help with their heists, they don’t expect to raise a demon, or to quickly lose control of it. Now Coleman and her crew must travel across Siberia to a remote stone circle in order to kill this murderous creature, who has destroyed everything they hold dear.

It’s the morning of Nana’s wedding, and Deji and Daddy need haircuts – right away! Join them on a race against the clock to make sure they look slick just in time to walk Nana down the aisle. This story features a fun and heart-warming portrayal of the quality time spent between parent and child.