Book picks similar to
A Loyal Companion by Barbara Metzger


romance
regency
historical-romance
historical

The Weaver Takes a Wife


Sheri Cobb South - 1999
    When her father gambles away his fortune, the duke's only chance for recouping his losses lies in marrying off Lady Helen to any man wealthy enough to take a bride with nothing to recommend her but a lovely face and an eight-hundred-year-old pedigree. Enter Mr. Ethan Brundy, once an illegitimate workhouse orphan, now owner of a Lancashire textile mill and one of England's richest men. When he glimpses Lady Helen at Covent Garden Theatre, he is instantly smitten and vows to marry her. But this commonest of commoners will have his work cut out for him if he hopes to win the heart of his aristocratic bride.

Sylvester


Georgette Heyer - 1957
    And of course she must be able to present herself well in high society. But when he is encouraged to consider Phoebe Marlow as a bride, Sylvester is taken aback by the coltish woman who seems to resent him...The first time Sylvester met Phoebe, he found her dull and insipid. Phoebe, was a hoydenish country miss with literary aspirations. And when she was snubbed by the Duke, and she thought he was insufferably arrogant. In fact, she deemed him the most arrogant rake she'd ever met. In secret, she'd fashioned the villain and a knave in her romance novel unmistakably after Sylvester!Phoebe meets none of Duke's criteria for a fiancee. But when Phoebe ran away, she got his attention and fancy. Intrigued Sylvester decides that if Petruchio could tame Katherine, he had no doubt he could tame Phoebe. And when a series of unforeseen events leads them to be stranded together in a lonely country inn, they are both forced to reassess their hastily formed opinions, and they begin to discover a new-found liking and respect for each other, and they find striking up an unusual friendship.Phoebe discovers that the duke isn't the villian she first thought. And Sylvester stumbles upon something he never dared hope for... But what Sylvester doesn't know is that Phoebe has just published a novel - a novel in which all London will recognize him. But how could she guess her book would be a scandalous success? Or that the man she had cast as a villain would become the heartbreaking hero of her dreams?

Knave's Wager


Loretta Chase - 1990
    How dare the brazen Lord Julian Brandon kiss her when he knew full well the man she was to marry was in the next room! It mattered not that the cad was handsome, charming and witty...unlike the staid, auburn-haired young widow's fiance. Lilith's repute meant all. Never did she imagine the blackguard's amorous pursuit was the result of a wager to sully her flawless reputation. Nor did she dream that one day she would yearn for Julian's irresistible embrace-and that a reckless gamble would cause the notorious rake to lose his heart...just as Lilith discovered her own!

Lady Fiasco


Kathleen Baldwin - 2004
    Without a mother to restrain her, she spends her days riding her horse neck or nothing across her father’s fields and swimming like a sea nymph. But inside a prim and proper Regency sitting room Fiona is bound to overturn the teapot or accidentally trip the footman. Her illustrious Aunt Honore decides to take the hoyden in hand, but amidst the strictures of the Beau Monde, Fiona is a fish out of water. When she was younger, Lord Wesmont was her hero. Sadly, he came home from fighting Napoleon a hardened man. Nothing can breathe life back into his cold heart, nothing except, perhaps, the love of an unusual young woman who regularly turns his life upside-down. Lady Fiasco is a Sweet Traditional Regency Romance.

The Fall of Lord Drayson


Rachael Anderson - 2016
    They have no money, no relations they can turn to for help, and nowhere to go. How dare the earl break the promise his father had made to the Beresfords without so much as a twinge of conscience? Fate plays her hand when Lucy discovers the earl unconscious and injured in the middle of the road. When he awakens with no recollection of who he is, Lucy seizes the opportunity to teach the earl a much-needed lesson in humility and tells him that he is nothing more than a mere servant. Her servant, in fact. And thus begins the charming tale of a pompous lord and an impetuous young woman, caught together in a web so tangled that it begs the question: Will they ever get out?

Gentleman Jim


Mimi Matthews - 2020
    Raised alongside her on her father’s estate, Nicholas is the rumored son of notorious highwayman Gentleman Jim. When Fred frames him for theft, Nicholas escapes into the night, vowing to find his legendary sire. But Nicholas never returns. A decade later, he’s long been presumed dead.He wouldn’t forgive…After years spent on the continent, John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare has finally come home to England. Tall, blond, and dangerous, he’s on a mission to restore his family’s honor. If he can mete out a bit of revenge along the way, so much the better. But he hasn’t reckoned for Maggie Honeywell. She’s bold and beautiful—and entirely convinced he’s someone else. As danger closes in, St. Clare is torn between love and vengeance. Will he sacrifice one to gain the other? Or with a little luck—and a lot of daring—will he find a way to have them both?

Minerva


Marion Chesney - 1982
    Prudish, self-righteous, and incredibly beautiful, she is to be sent to London to capture a wealthy husband. But Minerva doesn't know the first thing about flirting. The London dandies find her moralizing appalling and concoct a plan to assault her virtue—an assault that will scandalize all London society. Meanwhile. Lord Sylvester Comfrey, whom she met earlier through her father, has been keeping a careful eye on the girl. A fact which she resents. She dislikes Lord Sylvester. There is something about him that disturbs her. Now the plan to destroy Minerva's reputation begins to unfold. And Minerva stumbles headlong into the trap. But the plotters have reckoned without Lord Sylvester....

Penelope


Anya Wylde - 2013
    The dowager, no less, has invited her for a season in London, where she will attempt to catch a husband.Thus begins our heroine’s tale as she attempts to tackle the London season with all her rustic finesse. Unfortunately, her rustic finesse turns out to be as delicate as a fat bear trying to rip apart a honeycomb infested with buzzing bees.What follows is a series of misadventures, love affairs, moonlit balls, fancy clothes, fake moustaches, highwaymen, sneering beauties, pickpockets, and the wrath of a devilishly handsome duke.

Reforming Lord Ragsdale


Carla Kelly - 1995
    The infamous Lord Ragsdale was as rich as sin, as sinful as he was rich, and as heartless as he was handsome. But he had saved Emma from a fate worse than death when he stopped a lecherous brute from buying her as an indentured servant. It was Emma's turn now to save Lord Ragsdale from his wicked ways. She had to find a way to stop his drinking, his gaming, his wild revelry. She had to make him break with his mistress, the superbly sensual Fae Moulle. She had to make him a suitable suitor for the ideal wife that the prim and proper Lady Clarissa Partridge would be. And above all, she had to keep his lustful eye from lingering too long on herself--even as she struggled to keep her own growing desire from undoing all her hard work in the unmaking of this irresistible rake...

The Viscount's Tempting Minx


Erica Ridley - 2014
    Why, the latest on-dit is that rakish Viscount Sheffield is canceling the fête of the year because he hasn't time for silly soirees. He doesn't need time—he needs her! When a flash of lightning destroys the venue for his family's annual Christmas ball, Lord Benedict Sheffield intends to enjoy a relaxing holiday for once. But after twelve days of beguiling Lady Amelia's guerrilla tactics, he's up to his cravat with tinsel . . . and tumbling head over heels in love.

Somewhere I'll Find You


Lisa Kleypas - 1996
    But the glamorous leading lady guards a shocking secret: a mystery husband whom she does not know, dares not mention ... and cannot love.For years Damon Savage has been searching for the stranger his parents wed him to without his consent, hoping to legally free himself from matrimony's invisible chains. And he is astonished to discover his "bride" is none other than the exquisite lady he'd hoped to make his mistress! But though his wife by law, Julia will never truly be Damon's—until he conquers her fears, his formidable rivals ... and her proud, passionate, and independent heart.

Noble Intentions


Katie MacAlister - 2002
    This time he intended to marry a quiet, biddable woman who would not draw attention to herself or cause scandal. Gillian Leigh's honest manner and spontaneous laughter attracted him immediately. It mattered little that she was accident-prone; he could provide the structure necessary to guide her.But unconventional to the tips of her half-American toes―toes that one of them was constantly tripping over―his new bride turned the tables on him, wreaking havoc on his orderly life. And worse, demanding he surrender his heart. Perpetually one step behind his beguiling spouse, Noble suffered a banged-up head, a black eye, and a broken nose before he realized Gillian had healed his soul and proved that their union was no heedless tumble, but the swoon of true love.

The Wicked Wyckerly


Patricia Rice - 2010
    Determined to do right, he reclaims his illegitimate daughter Penelope and heads to London in search of a very rich wife. Abigail Merriweather's farm has been quiet since she lost custody of her four young half-siblings-until a roguish gentleman named Fitz stops for a rest, his rebellious daughter in tow. His etiquette is questionable, his parenting deplorable-so why does Abby delight in his flirtations? And when she seeks a suitor to help her regain the children, why does Fitz keep popping up?

Proof by Seduction


Courtney Milan - 2009
    Until she meets her match in Gareth Carhart, the Marquess of Blakely, a sworn bachelor and scientist.He just didn't know it yetBroodingly handsome, Gareth is scandalized to discover his cousin has fallen under the spell of "Madame Esmerelda," and vows to prove Jenny a fraud. But his unexpected attraction to the fiery enchantress defies logic. Jenny disrupts every facet of Gareth's calculated plan--until he can't decide whether to seduce her or ruin her. Now, as they engage in a passionate battle of wills, two lonely souls must choose between everything they know...and the boundless possibilities of love.

Just Like Heaven


Julia Quinn - 2011
    . .D) all of the above