Showing results by narrator "Robin Laing" in All Categories

In 1720, the young William Neilson leaves Edinburgh to make his fortune in Europe, first sailing to Rotterdam and then on foot to Paris, where he meets and is immediately employed by the banker John Law. A day later he is in the Bastille, but not before he has encountered a young woman of surpassing beauty to whom Neilson will be devoted for the rest of his life.

Sound interesting? The author thinks so too! Listen to Our Lady of the Snows and learn about William Neilson.

It is the near-future, and drug resistance has taken hold. Antibiotics are no longer available, and in the war between humanity and bacteria, one little girl is in the front line.... 10-year-old Sarah is not allowed to play outside. But one day, she and her brother break the rules and go into the nearby woods, where she scratches her knee. The wound gets infected, and soon becomes life-threatening. Now Sarah’s in a coma, in an isolated room in hospital. Her family and medical team are hoping this will stop the infection - but they’re running out of time.

When pickpocket Danny accidentally bids for Maharajah the elephant at an Edinburgh auction, he's swept up on an unforgettable journey. His new employer, a zookeeper, transforms Danny into a bejewelled Indian prince. As he rides Maharajah from Scotland to his new home in England, even Queen Victoria follows their journey with delight. But as a rival zookeeper wagers on their failure, Danny's shady connections threaten to overturn the mission....

The Ultimate Essays Collection is a wide-ranging collection of 24 classic essays analysing everything from war to love, journalism to race, travel to nature, and much more, read by an award-winning cast of narrators. Included here are essays by some of the greatest writers of all time, including Thomas Paine; Fyodor Dostoyevsky; Henry David Thoreau; Virigina Woolf; Sigmund Freud; Zora Neale Hurston; Langston Hughes; Jack London, and more.

Dave Kellock is a pillar of the community in Portobello, Edinburgh. A tireless volunteer who never misses a chance to help others, he's just been recognised on the King's Honours List. Dave Kellock is also a fraud. A moment of panic, violence and blood twenty years ago plagues his dreams. He's been hiding himself in Portobello, terrified that his past will catch up with him. Now that his photo has been in the paper, collecting his award, the truth won't stay buried for long.

New Year's Eve, 1746. A castle in the depths of France. A thunderstorm. A pair of lovers in a hay-loft. A wounded soldier toppling from his horse. So begins the second instalment of the life of William Neilson, Scottish soldier in French service and Jacobite agent against his will. Around his neck, William carries the most precious jewel on the surface of the earth, but it is not his, and he must carry it to the exiled King of England, Scotland and Ireland in Italy. Before that, he wishes to see for a last time the woman he has loved for more than half his life.

Danny works at Belle Vue Zoo, where - alongside training the famous elephant Maharajah - he helps out with the day-to-day tasks of caring for the animals. But when animals start escaping, Danny is the prime suspect: after all, he was a former street urchin and pickpocket. When a man turns up claiming to be his father, the plot thickens. Can Danny untangle the mystery of the animal escapade - and find out where he really belongs - in order to clear his name?