The girls barely know their father, a plant hunter usually off adventuring through China. Then disaster strikes: Mr. Buchanan reneges on his contract to collect an extremely rare and valuable orchid. He will be thrown into debtors’ prison while his daughters are sent to the orphanage and the workhouse.Elodie can’t stand by and see her family destroyed, so she persuades her father to return to China once more to try to hunt down the flower—only this time, despite everything she knows about her place in society, Elodie goes with him. She has never before left her village, but what starts as fear turns to wonder as she adapts to seafaring life aboard the tea clipper The Osprey, and later to the new sights, dangers, and romance of China. But now, even if she can find the orchid, how can she ever go back to being the staid, responsible Elodie that everybody needs?

    The grand opening of the Manchester Ship Canal is set to be a day of unfettered festivity for Ruby and her younger sister and brother. Even Queen Victoria will be in attendance.But the glories of the ceremony fade into insignificance when their dying mother delivers them to the imposing oak doors of Ignatius House. Abandoned in the not-so-tender care of the nuns, the siblings are soon separated.So when the Board of Guardians force Ruby into a marriage that sends her to a new home upon the Salford waterways, she makes only one vow: to reunite her family whatever the cost. This is an enthralling story of romance and rebellion perfect for fans of Rosie Goodwin and Dilly Court. Praise for Ruby McBride ‘An inspiring novel about accepting change and bravely facing the future’ Bangor Chronicle‘Compelling and heart-wrenching’ Hull Daily Mail‘The kind of character-driven saga that delights the Catherine Cookson and Josephine Cox audience’ Peterborough Evening Telegraph‘This book deals with gritty, real-life situations and shows how the heroine’s strength of character triumphs through adversity’ 5* Reader review

    The bleak wilderness of America’s 49th state challenges three women in different eras: Julie, a nurse, who must serve victims of a 1925 diphtheria epidemic; Beth, whose Canadian-born husband is killed in World War II; and Rita, who takes on the ultimate test of endurance, the Iditarod dog sled race. Each must surmount the obstacles in her life, and perhaps, with God’s help, find true love as well.

    Leonard Cohen is at the start of his career and in love with Marianne, who is also muse to her ex-husband, Axel. Australian authors George Johnston and Charmian Clift write, drink and fight. It is a hedonistic time of love, sex and new ideas. As the island hums with excitement, Jack and Frieda Silver join the community, hoping to mend their broken marriage. However, Greece is overtaken by a military junta and the artistic idyll is threatened.

    And avoid Seth Blake. Becca dreads seeing her girlhood crush to whom she confessed her love before she went off to college. Embarrassed by her childish behavior, she can only hope Seth has forgotten and will see her as a woman. She plans to return to school as soon as possible and make a life for herself. Rumors of ghosts, accidents at the camp, and overheard conversations convince Becca that her brother’s death was no accident. Despite evidence that she’s the next target, she puts her own feelings and college aside to stay and uncover the truth. Seth is happy to see Becca, but as a grown woman she’s a stranger to him, stirring up feelings he can’t identify. When he finds a piece of evidence implicating him in Thomas’s death, he struggles with helping Becca find answers while keeping her from learning he could have prevented it. As the stakes get higher, Seth must keep both of them alive long enough to offer a future to this grown woman he’s fallen in love with.

    We are born and raised to serve our lord and shogun. Our code dictates selflessness and death to be more honorable than failure, whether on the battlefield or even over the most insignificant dispute.In eighteenth-century Japan, the lord of a samurai clan is sentenced to death for an assault on castle grounds. As dictated by law, the clan must exact revenge on the one responsible for their lord’s death. However due to circumstances, the shogun forbids any such act, placing a band of masterless samurai at odds with themselves and the martial code by which they live and die. After much trial and hardship, the clan does the unthinkable and defies the shogun’s mandate in order to fulfill their duty to their late lord. In doing so, these legendary warriors will be forever remembered for inspiring the Way of the Warrior back into the hearts of their countrymen.If you like historical novels set in old Japan, martial arts action adventure stories or samurai films, discover 47 Ronin.

    He'd ridden that trail until his fiancée left him with a shattered heart. What he needs now is a wife to help him care for his orphan nieces. Desperate, he sends an advertisement to a Baltimore newspaper and hopes for the best. Fleeing her former employer who would use her to further his unlawful acts, a newspaper advertisement reads like the perfect refuge to Carly Blair. The idea of escaping the city, the intrigue, and the danger to hide herself on a cattle ranch in Kansas is her best shot for freedom. But its sanctuary comes with a price—a husband. While marrying a man she doesn't know or love means sacrificing her dreams, it's better than being caught by the law. Or is it?

    Former seamstress Clara Blackwood seems to have found happiness at last. Now a blissfully married baroness, she is mistress of a grand estate. But soon a mysterious summons shatters her contented life. Clara grew up believing that her mother’s family had disowned them. But now the grandmother she never knew is on her deathbed and anxious to disclose vital family secrets before it’s too late—for Clara’s unborn child may be cursed with a horrible fate. When Clara and her husband, Atticus, arrive at dismal Thurnley Hall, they find intrigue brewing. Her boorish uncle, Horace Burleigh, is greedy for her wealth and desperate to protect the family’s mysteries. Superstitious fear of Atticus torments the hulking Romanian servant, Grigore, and even the soft-spoken young ward, Victor Lynch, may have secret motives for getting close to Clara and her husband. When her grandmother dies under suspicious circumstances, Clara feels compelled to investigate. And when Atticus vanishes mysteriously, she must draw on all her strength and determination to find him before his time runs out… before her life can be cursed once more. Fans of the Gothic romances of Victoria Holt, Mary Stewart, and Barbara Michaels won't want to miss this thrilling, romantic sequel to With This Curse, in which Clara faces new challenges and dangers. Just Book Talk gives Cursed Once More five stars and calls it “another exciting adventure . . . [with] a rich cast of spooky and strange characters.” And be sure not to miss Nocturne for a Widow , in which Clara's former employer, vivacious actress Sybil Ingram, is plunged into adventure in a haunted house in the Hudson River Valley.

    First, she intends to inveigle a goodly amount of money for her orphans from a man of means and, second, to have one night of passion to help her endure the dreary years ahead. When Derrick, Lord Eaglestone, a wealthy viscount with a scandalous reputation, agrees to donate to Miss Lacey’s charity, he has only seduction in mind. Little does he suspect that Miss Lacey has already chosen him to debauch her before she weds another. The lady has virtually fallen into his lap, but much to his annoyance, he finds himself reluctant to oblige her. First appeared in the Seven Nights of Sin Anthology Sex scene

    One broken hero. With danger looming, will they uncover more than they bargained for?A determined Duchess...Lady Anna Trevallyn, Duchess Wrexford, does not possess the typical qualities of the Boston elite. Confident and strong, she refuses to accept her place as a second-class citizen in a man's world--especially when her best friend, Libby, unexpectedly disappears without a trace. Unwilling to leave it to the men to uncover, she's determined to get answers.A damaged Prince...His Royal Highness, Prince Penforth Armstrong-Leeds, will do anything to locate his sister, Libby. Sharing resources, knowledge, and time with the beautiful and intelligent Lady Anna is an added advantage. Pen has secretly admired Anna from afar for years, but his war wound forces him to remain at bay.An unlikely pair...As Pen and Anna delve for answers beneath high society's gilded exterior, their feelings for one another intensify. Now, they must navigate their strong feelings while locating Libby before her reputation is permanently destroyed. With time running out, will they uncover the truth before lives are lost and hearts broken?This is the first in a Victorian Romance series featuring strong and feisty heroines at the forefront of the new age in 1890s America.Read each story as a stand-alone, or read the series in order.If you enjoy Gothic Victorian historical romantic suspense stories, such as those made popular by Victoria Holt, Deanna Raybourn, Anna Lee Huber, Christi Caldwell or Dorothy Eden, you'll love this series by historical romance author, Ava Rose.The Boston Heiresses series:1 - Not Quite a Duchess2 - Not Quite a Baroness3 - Not Quite a Lady4 - Not Quite a Princess

    But when Sarah fled just weeks after their wedding, his world came crashing down. Five years later, he has given up hope of ever finding her, until a freak accident strands him in a remote Yorkshire village where she is hiding.Sarah dared to hope she was finally safe. But when her husband is thrust back into her life, she fears her dark secrets—and the fact that she has a son—will come to light. Though her heart longs to reclaim the love they once shared, Sarah rejects Alexander’s offers of reconciliation. But fate is not so easily thwarted...Forced from their home by a flood, Sarah and her child have no choice but to accept Alexander’s hospitality in her former home. Yet with each passing day, the risk of discovery grows, threatening to drive Sarah from Alexander’s life forever. Is their love strong enough to triumph over the secrets of the past? Or will life’s cruel forces finally tear them apart?

    She's a Perfect Lady. Neither are what they seem.Lady Emily can't afford a scandal. Her sister's debut is just weeks away and she has her pteridology group to safeguard. It's bad enough to be stuck in a hole overnight with Lord Markshall, and worse to have kissed him. Marriage is unthinkable. But newspaper hearsay on their "frolics and fernication" after a fern hunting accident puts everything she's worked for in jeopardy.Lord Markshall's whole political career is based on manipulation and disguise. Lady Emily's polite insults are just the thing to prove to himself, and everyone else, that he's still an unworthy rake. He wants her desperately, but even a fake engagement is too good for him. With Emily's sister's debut and a major political vote coming up, their reputations–good and bad–have never been more critical. The newspaper gossip is edging toward the truth, threatening to incinerate everything they hold dear. Can they understand, accept, and love each other, before it's too late?

    Now his sudden death allows her to return to New York to make a fresh start, restoring Liefdehuis, a dilapidated Hyde Park mansion, and hopefully her reputation at the same time. However, fresh starts aren't as easy as they seem, as Alva discovers when stories of a haunting at Liefdehuis begin to reach her. But Alva doesn't believe in ghosts. So when the eccentric and brilliant professor, Samuel Moore, appears and informs her that he can get to the bottom of the mystery that surrounds Liefdehuis, she turns him down flat. She doesn't need any more complications in her life―especially not a handsome, convention-flouting, scandal-raising one like Sam. Unfortunately, though Alva is loath to admit it, Sam, a pioneer in electric lighting and a member of the nationally-adored Moore family of scientists, is the only one who can help. Together, the two delve into the tragic secrets wreathing Alva's new home while Sam attempts to unlock Alva's history―and her heart. Set during the Gilded Age in New York City, The Widow of Rose House is a gorgeous debut by Diana Biller, with a darkly Victorian Gothic flair and an intrepid and resilient American heroine guaranteed to delight readers.

    Because of her age, refined nature, and strict moral code she is considered to be "Miss Prim."Louisa's guarded existence is disrupted when she accepts an invitation from her sister. She believes that she is simply helping her sister and brother-in-law by watching the children during their travels. However, upon her arrival she meets William, Viscount Woodstone, and an adventure beyond her wildest imagination begins. Starting with the questionable heritage of a baby in her care, she decides to join Woodstone's secret quest to outwit French spies and thwart their evil plan.Despite all Louisa's beliefs, this refined gentlewoman careens around the back roads of England in an ancient cart, poses as a countrywoman, and even saves Woodstone's life.Once the adventure ends, Louisa is concerned that her "Miss Prim" image is shattered, and hopes that Woodstone feels the same emotions for her that she has developed for him.

    Welcome to Last Chance, Nebraska! When the freak blizzard of 1878 kills most of the men in a small Nebraska town, what does it mean for the surviving women and children?Realizing they need to find men of honor to help rebuild, the women place an advertisement in the Matrimonial Times.Choosing a husband is more difficult than they thought, when there is an overwhelming response to the ad.Will these Blizzard Brides find the second chance at love in a town called Last Chance?This story is loosely based on the Blizzard of 1873 and the Schoolhouse Blizzard of 1888, where many men, women and children died in the unexpected storm.