Family Disaster

COVID-19 has arrived in London, and the entire world quickly succumbs to the surreal, chaotic mundanity of screens, isolation, and the disasters small and large that have plagued recent history. As our unnamed narrator—a classics academic immersed in her studies of ancient prophecies—navigates the tightening grip of lockdown, a marriage in crisis, and a 10-year-old son who seems increasingly unreachable, she becomes obsessed with predicting the future.

Meet Abbie Wu. Abbie is in crisis - and not just because she's starting middle school or because she's stuck in a family that doesn't quite get her or because everyone seems to have a Thing except her. Abbie Wu is always in crisis.

What happens when your perfect life implodes? For Beth, it started with a missing husband and ended with a stolen baby. Driven by a desperate need to mother, she finds herself on the run, haunted by the man she thought she knew. Her secluded houseboat becomes a sanctuary, but also a prison, as she uncovers truths that threaten to destroy her. Is she losing her grip on reality, or is the danger all too real? Prepare for a psychological rollercoaster where motherhood and survival collide.

If you're like most people, your home is your sanctuary. It's where you feel safe and secure, where you retreat from the world and relax with your loved ones. But the sad truth is that our homes are all too often vulnerable to break-ins, burglaries, and other security threats. That's where Secure Home comes in. This comprehensive guide to home security will give you the tools you need to protect your home and your family from harm. From basic security measures to advanced home automation and smart devices, we cover everything you need to know to keep your home safe and secure. Chapter 1 ...

Tom knows exactly what he wants in life and is patient enough and more than willing to wait for Katherine to catch up. Then there’s Jed…who is excruciatingly slow to see what’s right in front of him but once the light shines bright enough he knows exactly what to do and isn’t going to waste any time.Katherine Sutton is making a lot of changes in her life and her plans for opening a flower shop is only one of them. But when she bought the historic building, she didn’t expect to find a bounty of long forgotten treasures from the past...and an intriguing mystery that goes with them. ...

Unearth an enlightening harmony between mankind and canine companionship amidst chaos in the riveting eBook, "Paws and Survival." Far beyond a mere survival guide, this book delves into the complexities of preserving the integral bond between humans and their pets in a post-disaster world. Chapter One houses a deep dive into understanding the challenges that a post-World War III America could present, thoroughly outlining what to anticipate as a pet owner in this conceivable future. The importance of emergency preparedness, dissected in Chapter Two, underscores the essential role pet owners...

Seventeen-year-old Constance has had a privileged upbringing in Clapham, with staff to attend to her every need. But her parents have always been cold and distant, never showing her love.Craving affection, Constance falls into the arms of Albie Jones, the cook’s grandson. But one fateful encounter leaves her ashamed and pregnant, and she is soon shunned from the family home. Heartbroken and threatened by scandal, Constance is forced to wed Albie and moves to Battersea, where she suffers unforgiving stares and cruel whispers from the neighbours.

Smash all the Windows won the inaugural Selfies Book Award in 2019. It has taken conviction to right the wrongs. It will take courage to learn how to live again. London, 22 August 2003. A day that began like any other would end in tragedy. Fifty-eight people set off for work, only to never return. For more than thirteen years, the search for truth has eaten up everything: marriages, families, health, careers and finances. A flawed justice system failed the victims' kin, but hope arises when a rookie law student scrutinizes the disaster and uncovers potential answers.

In the midst of a mysterious environmental crisis, as London is submerged below flood waters, a woman gives birth to her first child, Z. Days later the family are forced to leave their home in search of safety. As they move from place to place, shelter to shelter, their journey traces both fear and wonder as Z's small fists grasp at the things he sees, as he grows and stretches, thriving and content against all the odds.

Saturday morning seemed like any other Saturday. I had many projects going but wanted to finish the flower and vegetables beds. I was happily digging away when I suddenly found myself falling through some kind of hole. It ended up being some kind of cave. I looked up and saw a shimmering film over the hole I fell through. What the heck! The light was enough to look around and see if I could find something to use to climb out. I spied an oval object and went over to investigate. It turned out that it was a huge egg. I’d say 12 to 18 inches tall and about the same around. It was almost ...

A girl's life hangs in the balance. A marriage is driven to breaking point. When the unimaginable happens, who can you turn to? "Very occasionally a story jumps out at you with a raw burst of originality. This is that moment." ~ Lorraine Devon Wilke, Author As a London suburb reels from riots in neighbouring Brixton, Graham Jones finds fatherhood an increasingly frightening place. How can he hope to protect teenage daughter Judy when the world is already so different from the one he grew up in? But the future holds more fear than he can possibly imagine. One afternoon, a wall collapses, ...

Grandma has come to stay for the royal visit by Princess Lucy to launch her new badger charity, 'Badges for Badgers'. Which would be fine, if she hadn't knitted Roman the crummiest jumper (AKA 'crumper') on earth that he's forced to wear to school. His whole class is in a fundraising frenzy, led by fame-crazy Rosie Taylor who is convinced that organising a charity fashion show is bound to win her favour with the princess.

A dark and unpredictable tale of family secrets... and the lengths we go to, to save the ones we love. For lovers of non-formulaic domestic noir suspense. "Shut the Lights is a compact book that does not allow any diffusion of the narrative thread or the reader’s interest. If one is into thrillers, it is an enjoyable read." - Muse India, the Literary e-journal. "A lockdown thriller that will keep you on the edge as you read." - Aashisha Chakraborty, Author, Mis(s)adventures of a Salesgirl. For this family, the lockdown came as a blessing. On 24 March 2020, with merely a four-hour notice, ...

The laugh-out-loud funny girl series returns - and Nat is more embarrassed than ever! From TV and radio comedy writing talent Nigel Smith. For some girls the chance to be a bridesmaid is a dream come true. But for Nathalia it's a total nightmare. From the hideous fairy princess bridesmaid dresses to the disastrous bridal shower, everything about the wedding of her cousin, Tiffannee, leaves Nat feeling completely ridiculous!

Living in San Francisco has been wonderful for the Welles and Dyer families, next-door neighbors and best friends who are so close they are really like one big family. Jim Welles is a successful lawyer, and Bob Dyer is a geologist – a profession which is about to become useful in a way nobody ever wanted it to be. Their sons are two teenage boys who are scheduled to play in a state championship baseball game Saturday, on the Oakland side of the Bay Bridge. Mother Nature has other plans, however. The families are not the only things that get separated when an earth-shaking event shocks the...

Last Winter is the story of a child who might not survive the heartbreak of her father’s death and a mother who struggles to both parent and manage her grief in the grips of a bipolar crisis. Atmospheric and deftly told with an economy of words and a finely tuned gaze on the small moments that build up to an inexorable and shocking end, this is a contemporary drama that will grip listeners both for the story and for the vibrant portrayal of the complexities of family life.

She held the baby close, feeling the warmth of his little body, kissing his soft cheek. He looked right into her eyes. Outside the window, the wing broke away from the plane. Then they were falling...falling diagonally out of the sky. When three planes crashed in Elizabeth, New Jersey, within the space of three months in the early 1950s, Newark airport was closed for a year. Each of these disasters was devastating not only for those onboard, but also for the close-knit community of people on the ground.

Daphne Larsen-Hall has every reason to believe that her life as an artist in a luxury Miami house with her surgeon husband, Brantley, and their family, will carry on forever. But Luna—the world's first Category 6 hurricane—changes everything. With Brantley missing in the aftermath of the massive storm, Daphne and their children find themselves in a vast shelter for the displaced a thousand miles from home, their finances abruptly cut off. As days turn into weeks, the family confronts losses and circumstances they never imagined, and a world that has changed beneath their feet.

Walking into her newly inherited freezer and finding a dead man, isn’t how she envisioned her new start. Pastry Chef Maggie Wilkerson hates everything about New York. The opportunity to start over comes with a surprise letter from a lawyer. She is given the Cuppa Cafe. Back in her hometown, she’s excited to get the cafe up and running again… …only to find she’s being framed for murder. And Sheriff Wakefield wasted no time making her the prime suspect. Maggie and Mindy, her high school rival, are desperate to prove her innocence before she gets run out of town by the very people ...

Thirteen-year-old Satoshi Matsumoto spent the last three years living in Atlanta where he was the star of his middle-school baseball team - a slugger with pro potential, according to his coach. Now that his father's work in the US has come to an end, he's moved back to his hometown in rural Japan. Living abroad has changed him, and now his old friends in Japan are suspicious of his new foreign ways. Even worse, his childhood foe Shintaro, whose dad has ties to gangsters, is in his homeroom.