Available as e-book, paperback, audiobook (read by me) and Large Print
Ten stories that sparkle with the Sicilian sea, ring with the singsongs of fishmongers, and warm the heart like the summer’s sun.
Ten humorous and heart-warming short stories about love—found, kept, reconquered—at all ages. The perfect winter warmer for your coffee break or as a bedtime read.
Follow their antics as they compete to give their grandchild the best birthday present, struggle to lose some extra weight, and try to make it to their godchild’s christening on time in this collection of twelve short stories dedicated entirely to the much-loved Sicilian couple from the pages of The People’s Friend magazine.
But as Tanya and Hattie knock on neighbours’ doors in search of a tin opener, it’s clear that the residents of Number One Quayside like to keep to themselves. Everyone, that is, except their next-door neighbours, Italian chef Giacomo Dalamo, and his thirteen-year-old daughter, Frankie.
Between a delicious dish of lasagne (Giacomo’s) and a burnt salad (Tanya’s), they hatch a plan to set a library of things in their building, so that residents can borrow rarely-used items, from DIY tools to sports equipment and party supplies.
First, though, Tanya and Giacomo must win over their neighbours, persuade the building’s management company, source library stock by kayaking down the Thames, and deal with plumbing disasters, all the while trying to protect their bruised hearts from falling for each other.
As all the residents at Quayside pull together to make the library happen, dreams are fulfilled, a community is born and love blossoms again.
Divided into thirty-one short self-contained chapters, this popular series from The People’s Friend includes one brand-new story never published before.
Father Okoli dreams of owning a flock of hens and studying for a PhD, when his bishop saddles him with yet another parish to look after.
But as Father moves to Moreton-on-the-Edge, a farming village in the English Cotswolds, he’s plugged into a community of warm-hearted characters, from the motherly parish secretary to her septuagenarian neighbour who’s become a cycling champion, and from teenagers requiring driving lessons to atheist publicans who believe in miracles.
Between a wacky race and a scarecrow competition, a village fête and a mop fair, Father foils cattle rustlers, fends off foxes and goes viral on the internet. As the community pulls together to reopen the village’s Electric Picture House, dreams are fulfilled, teen love blossoms and Father Okoli feels that Moreton-on-the-Edge is now home.
The popular series from The People’s Friend, including one brand-new story never published before.
Ten humorous and heart-warming short stories, glowing with Sicilian sunshine, fragrant with home-made tomato sauce, and thrumming with mandolins’ serenades. Ideal for your coffee break or as a bedtime read.
Ten humorous and heart-warming short stories shining with the Sicilian sunshine, fragrant with red wine and ringing with Christmas bells, perfect for the festive season.