Book picks similar to
The Veiled Bride by Elizabeth Bailey
historical-romance
regency-romance
regency
marriage-of-convenience
The Duchess Deal
Tessa Dare - 2017
Now there’s a new item on the list. He needs an heir—which means he needs a wife. When Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she’ll do.His terms are simple:- They will be husband and wife by night only.- No lights, no kissing. - No questions about his battle scars.- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.But Emma is no pushover. She has a few rules of her own:- They will have dinner together every evening.- With conversation.- And unlimited teasing.- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s seen the man beneath the scars, he can’t stop her from falling in love…
Beauty and the Beast
Hannah Howell - 1992
Now, she must marry the new heir, Thayer Saiturn, a battle-hardened knight known as the Red Devil...With a face scarred in battle and a heart broken in love, Thayer has no interest in marriage. But not even the Red Devil can break the promise his foster-father made years ago and soon finds himself married to a woman whose exquisite beauty and sweet innocence intrigue him. But can his new bride look beyond his scars to find a hidden passion and undying love locked deep inside him?
Secrets of Midnight
Miriam Minger - 1995
Instead, he finds himself banished to the English countryside of Cornwall, forced by the decrees of his father's will to run his family's tin mines and find a country bride. The very last thing the handsome lord needs is a local lass sticking her nose into his affairs, but that seems to be exactly what the parson's daughter, Corisande Easton, had in mind.
Seven Nights in a Rogue's Bed
Anna Campbell - 2012
Yet instead of a monster, she encounters a man like no other. And during this week, she comes to care for Jonas Merrick in ways that defy all logic—even as a dark secret she carries threatens them both....Spark a lifetime of passionate surrender?Ruthless loner Jonas knows exactly who he is. Should he forget, even for a moment, the curse he bears, a mere glance in the mirror serves as an agonizing reminder. So when the lovely Sidonie turns up on his doorstep, her seduction is an even more delicious prospect than he originally planned. But the hardened outcast is soon moved by her innocent beauty, sharp wit, and surprising courage. Now as dangerous enemies gather at the gate to destroy them, can their new, fragile love survive?
The Matrimonial Advertisement
Mimi Matthews - 2018
But Greyfriar's Abbey isn't the sort of refuge she imagined. And ex-army captain Justin Thornhill--though he may be tall, dark, and devastatingly handsome--is anything but a romantic hero.
He Needed Redemption...
Justin has spent the last two decades making his fortune, settling scores, and suffering a prolonged period of torture in an Indian prison. Now, he needs someone to smooth the way for him with the villagers. Someone to manage his household--and warm his bed on occasion. What he needs, in short, is a wife and a matrimonial advertisement seems the perfect way to acquire one.Their marriage was meant to be a business arrangement and nothing more. A dispassionate union free from the entanglements of love and affection. But when Helena's past threatens, will Justin's burgeoning feelings for his new bride compel him to come to her rescue? Or will dark secrets of his own force him to let her go?
She Tempts the Duke
Lorraine Heath - 2012
Sebastian Easton always vowed he would avenge his stolen youth and title. Now back in London, the rightful Duke of Keswick—returning from battle a wounded, hardened, changed man—cannot forget the brave girl who once rescued him and his brothers from certain death. Lady Mary Wynne-Jones paid dearly for helping the imprisoned young Lords of Pembrook, and she remembers well the promise she made to Sebastian all those years ago: to meet him once more in the abbey ruins where they shared a bold, forbidden kiss. While Mary is betrothed now to another, a friendship forged with dark secrets cannot be ignored. Unexpected passion soon burns dangerously between them, tempting Sebastian to abandon his quest for retribution to fight for a love that could once again set him free.
The Earl's New Bride
Frances Fowlkes - 2015
Simon Devere isn't interested in some comely, simpering creature. A beautiful woman only brings heartbreak and ruin, and Simon's disfigured visage is proof enough of that. No, he wants a wife who is unattractive and undesirable—and the homelier, the better. But nothing about Lady Henrietta Beauchamp is homely. She is lovely and sweet...and struggles to mix with polite society when she would so much rather have plants for company. And yet Simon is her only hope for keeping Plumburn Castle in her family's possession. Even if it means marrying a man she doesn't love. It's an impossible and unlikely match...unless this awkward beauty can bring hope back into a solitary beast's life.
Beast
Judith Ivory - 1997
Rumor has it her intended is a hideous cad—a grim prospect that propels her into a passionate, reckless affair with a compelling stranger she never sees in the light of day.The BeastThough scarred by a childhood illness, Charles d'Harcourt has successfully wooed Europe's most sophisticated beauties. For a lark, he contrived to travel incognito on his own fiancée's ship—and seduce the young chit in utter darkness. But the rake's prank backfired. It was he who was smitten—while the hot-tempered Lulu, now his wife, loves only her shipboard lover, unaware it was d'Harcourt all the time! And Charles will never have her heart—unless he can open her eyes to the prince who hides within.
Love and Other Scandals
Caroline Linden - 2013
Thanks to some deliciously scandalous—and infamous—stories, she has a pretty good idea of what she's missing as a spinster. Is even a short flirtation too much to ask for?Tristan, Lord Burke, recognizes Joan at once for what she is: trouble. Not only is she his best friend's sister, she always seems to catch him at a disadvantage. The only way he can win an argument is by kissing her senseless. He'd give anything to get her out of her unflattering gowns. But either one of those could cost him his bachelor status, which would be dreadful—wouldn't it?
Because of Miss Bridgerton
Julia Quinn - 2016
The two families have been neighbors for centuries, and as a child the tomboyish Billie ran wild with Edward and Andrew. Either one would make a perfect husband... someday.Sometimes you fall in love with exactly the person you think you should...Or not.There is only one Rokesby Billie absolutely cannot tolerate, and that is George. He may be the eldest and heir to the earldom, but he's arrogant, annoying, and she's absolutely certain he detests her. Which is perfectly convenient, as she can't stand the sight of him, either.But sometimes fate has a wicked sense of humor...Because when Billie and George are quite literally thrown together, a whole new sort of sparks begins to fly. And when these lifelong adversaries finally kiss, they just might discover that the one person they can't abide is the one person they can't live without...
Tapestry
Karen Ranney - 1995
Yet ever since he was wounded in battle, Alex has locked himself away in his great stone castle at Heddon Hall. Believing himself to be less than a man, he conceals his ravaged face behind a leather mask...and hides his scarred soul beneath an icy aloofness.A mere child when he went off to war, Laura has blossomed into a beautiful young woman Alex scarcely recognizes. The compassion and desire he sees shining out of her eyes tempts him to ease his pain in her sweet, sensual embrace. But as need flames into uncontrollable passion, an evil fate conspires against them both, weaving a web of treachery and betrayal that could bring heartbreak or happiness to those who dare to love.
A Suitable Bride
Fenella J. Miller - 2016
Bennett, who resigned his commission on becoming his brother’s heir, decides that it is his role to save the family by finding himself a suitable bride. The duke reluctantly agrees to this plan and his younger sister, Lady Madeline, is thrilled to arrange a grand house party to which a selection of eligible young ladies is invited. Beau, the duke, is adamant that Bennett will only marry a girl with an impeccable pedigree as well as a vast fortune. Miss Grace DuPont has no wish to marry; she prefers to run her stud and take care of her beloved horses. However, her father is determined to gain entrance to the drawing rooms of the ton and believes his wealth and Grace’s beauty will be enough to attract an aristocratic suitor. Mr DuPont blackmails Lord Peabody into including Grace in the invitation to the house party but she will have to masquerade as member of Society and Lady Peabody’s goddaughter. She is forced to obey her father and, with her stallion, her three dogs and her companion, sets out for Silchester Court. Her intention is to remain in the background, for if her true identity is disclosed she will be evicted. Grace and Bennett are drawn to each other but she knows when he discovers who she is he will be disgusted. If he marries her he will lose his position in the family and be banished from Silchester Court. Can this dilemma be resolved or will Grace be left broken hearted?
The Wedding Gamble
Julia Justiss - 1999
Sarah Wellingford would Do Her Duty -- even if that meant putting herself on the Marriage Mart during a London season she could ill afford.Now ironic circumstance had wed her to the compelling Marquess of Englemere, a fabled gamester, who had awakened passions she was honor-bound not to express.A marriage of convenience could be deucedly inconvenient -- even for a marquess -- when one was perilously close to loving his own wife! But that was impossible, Nicholas Stanhope knew, for hadn't his tragic past proven that women -- especially wives -- were not to be trusted?
The Beast of Beswick
Amalie Howard - 2019
With a ruined face like his, it's hard to like much about the world. Especially smart-mouthed harpies—with lips better suited to kissing than speaking—who brave his castle with indecent proposals.But Lady Astrid Everleigh will stop at nothing to see her younger sister safe from a notorious scoundrel, even if it means offering herself up on a silver platter to the forbidding Beast of Beswick himself. And by offer, she means what no highborn lady of sound and sensible mind would ever dream of—a tender of marriage with her as his bride.
My Darling Duke
Stacy Reid - 2019
Her family is on the brink of financial ruin, and it is up her to save her mother and sisters from a life of indignities. So she transforms herself into the incomparable Kitty Danvers, the fiancée of the enigmatic and reclusive Alexander Masters, Duke of Thornton—once dubbed the mad, bad, and dangerous catch of the Season.Ten years ago, society and the woman Alexander Masters loved called him a monster, after a tragic accident left him scarred and confined to a wheelchair. His heart exists in cold, lonely exile, until he learns he has a fiancée—a deceptive, clever, and utterly intriguing woman he's never met. Miss Danvers will now learn the consequences of engaging herself to the beast, for Alexander is determined to make her his. Soon, they are involved in a chase, a clash of wills, and though he once vowed to never love again, he burns for the enchanting Miss Danvers. And denying his heart may cost him an exquisite love that happens only once in a lifetime.