Book picks similar to
Highland Pursuits by Emmanuelle de Maupassant


romance
historical-fiction
historical-romance
historical

My Fierce Highlander


Vonda Sinclair - 2011
    She risks everything to rescue the fierce MacGrath warrior from the battlefield where he’s left for dead by her clan. She only knows she is inexplicably drawn to him and he wants peace as she does. When her clan learns of her betrayal, they seek vengeance. Dare she trust the enemy more than her own family?Laird Alasdair MacGrath is driven to end two-hundred years of feuding with the MacIrwins. But by taking in and protecting Lady Gwyneth and her son, he provokes more attacks from his mortal enemy. As the danger and conflict surrounding them escalate, Alasdair and Gwyneth discover an explosive passion neither of them expected. With the arrival of a powerful man from her past, a horrible decision confronts her--give up her son or the man she loves.

To Seduce a Highlander


Kerrigan Byrne - 2012
    She’s a refugee with a dangerous secret that could cost her life. Outnumbered by thousands, he’s fated to die in battle like so many Berserkers before him. Could the strength of their love defy destiny?Connor – (Highland Shadow)He’s a mercenary Laird who fears nothing but the darkness inside him. She’s a noble beauty from two of the most prominent families in Scotland, sold to the highest bidder. He mistakenly rescues her from a fate worse than death, but now she’s his captive. They must battle their pride and their explosive attraction to each other in order to defeat a common enemy who threatens the clan’s survival.Finn – (Highland Stranger)He’s a nameless bastard, stalking the Highlands bent on revenge and murder when he stumbles on an infant deserted in the snow. She’s a desperate woman who’s lost everything, including her dignity.They are three of the world’s Unwanted. On a snowy Solstice night, their tale becomes one of blood and vengeance, of love, redemption, and forging the bonds that make a family.Note: This book was previously published as Unleashed.

How to Catch a Wild Viscount


Tessa Dare - 2009
    Battle stripped away his civility and brought out his inner beast. There is no charm or tenderness in him now; only dark passions and a hardened soul. He has nothing to offer the starry-eyed, innocent girl who pledged her heart to him four years ago.But Cecily Hale isn't a girl any longer. She's grown into a woman--one who won't be pushed away. She and Luke are guests at a house party when a local legend captures their friends' imaginations. While the others plunge into the forest on a wild goose...er, stag chase, Cecily's on the hunt for a man. She has only a few moonlit nights to reach the real Luke...the wounded heart she knows still beats inside the war-ravaged body...or she could lose him to the darkness forever.This is a novella of approximately 20,000 words, or 80 pages. It was originally published under the title The Legend of the Werestag.

Rakes Always Kiss First


Catherine Mayfair - 2020
    The man is boastful, rude and devilishly handsome. Worst of all, he has stolen a kiss that causes Mary to desire more.Lord Anthony Greyson knows the rumors concerning him and his rakish ways and cares not. He has spirited many women to his bed, and his eye is now on Mary. Wooing the innocent woman with a kiss, he has no doubt he will soon add her to his list of conquests, and he is certain she will not have the strength to resist.Upon learning of several unsavory rumors, Mary is tasked to spy on Anthony, and she readily agrees. Doing so will prove she is more than a pretty thing for others to admire. More importantly, she will be able to prove to herself she can resist the rake’s charms.Anthony soon becomes enchanted with the secretive woman and desires to know more about her and what she is hiding…And for Mary, she begins to wonder if Anthony is the cruel man about whom the ton whispers. Or is he the gentleman she secretly wishes him to be?

Forbidden


Tracy Cooper-Posey - 2012
    Elisa wants her son back. Neither expected to want each other.… Elisa’s determined to have her son back at any cost, even if it means marry a vicious stoat of a man like Rufus Wardell, but her plans and her life are turned upside down by the sudden reappearance of Rufus’ grown and estranged son, Vaughn.Lured by the contrast of Elisa’s sweet beauty with the wicked rumors of her wanton past, Vaughn embarks on a seduction as scorching as it is daring. What he finds is not at all what he sought: Elisa is an innocent, but with a sensuality so raw he cannot resist her......even though their passion is forbidden. WARNING: This book contains frequent sex scenes and sexual language.

The Rancher


Kelli Ann Morgan - 2012
    He'd sworn to protect her. He couldn't do that if she married someone else...COLE REDBOURNE, immersed in guilt over the accident that claimed his best friend, discovers there was nothing accidental about it. When he sets out for Silver Falls, Colorado, to fulfill his friend’s dying wish and to flush out his killer, the last thing he expected was to find hope again disguised as his impromptu bride.

When a Laird Loves a Lady


Julie Johnstone - 2016
    A longing to forget compels him. Fate may send them into each other’s arms, but only love can mend their hearts. An Outlander Raised by a tyrannical father, Marion de Lacy yearns for the comfort of belonging to a loving family. So when her father announces her betrothal to an evil knight in exchange for his help to overthrow the king, she concocts a desperate scheme to avoid the marriage: feigning her own death and then fleeing England. But when her plan goes terribly awry and she’s captured by the knight, not even her careful preparations could ready her for the Scottish barbarian who rescues her and then informs her that he’s to marry her by edict of her king. Certain her father will defy the king’s orders and wed her to the knight if she refuses the Highlander’s hand, Marion agrees to marry the strangely compelling but obstinate laird of the MacLeod clan. A Highlander After the death of his beloved wife, Iain MacLeod has no desire to marry ever again. Yet when he finds himself obliged to do so to secure the freedom of his childhood friend and king, he reluctantly travels across England to collect his unwanted bride, expecting to find a cold Englishwoman. Instead, he discovers a fiery, bold beauty who is fiercely loyal, protective of those she loves, and defies him at every turn, challenging his certainty that his heart is dead. Ensnared Following a hasty marriage and perilous journey to Scotland, Marion harbors no illusions that her new husband loves her. Still, her heart cannot resist the noble, brave warrior, and she cannot suppress the hope that she has finally found where she belongs. However, the harder she tries to fit in with the clan and gain Iain’s love, the farther away her dreams drift. Iain is more than willing to give his respect to his courageous wife—her kisses and caresses even ignite his blood and demand his passion—but he refuses to give up his heart. That is, until enemies near and far threaten to take Marion from him. Now the demons that haunt him can only be conquered by surrendering body and soul to Marion, if only it’s not too late…

The Highlander's Hope


Cali MacKay - 2012
    Catriona Ross discovers clues to a long lost highland treasure, her only hope of finding the jewels is to obtain the help of Scotland's most eligible bachelor and playboy, Iain MacCraigh.​Iain can't believe his luck when he finds out the jewels are hidden away somewhere on his land-- and it doesn't hurt that the historian looking for them has curves to go with her smarts. With his brother betting the family fortune, this is the life line he desperately needs.​The odds are against them, and with word getting out about the jewels, they're not the only ones on the hunt. Time's running out, but can they learn to trust each other, or will they lose the jewels and true love in the process?

Ruby


Elizabeth Rose - 2013
    They were all named after the stones in daggers, bought by their late mother regarding a superstition. Ruby acts more like the son her father always wanted, and nothing like a lady. And she is not pleased to find out her father has promised Lord Sheffield his choice of one of his daughter's hands in marriage.Lord Nyle of Sheffield needs a wife so he can carry on his secret mission for the king. However, after losing three wives in a matter of months, he is sure their deaths were not accidents as it seemed, but rather they were murdered. Now to catch the murderer that he believes to be inside his castle walls, he chooses a wife as bait who he knows can wield a sword and hold her own against any attacker.Will murder and mayhem place a wedge between an unconventional wife and the Lord of Death, or bring them closer together as emotions are brought to the surface in Ruby - Book 1 of Daughters of the Dagger?

Loving the Hawke


Lana Williams - 2016
    Mostly. Determined to claim more meaning for her life than seeing her younger sisters married, she seeks a purpose. She finds what she's looking for when she happens upon a book describing seven curses that plague London. Nathaniel Hawke is attempting to adjust to civilian life after retiring from the military, but his injured leg and memories of his time in the service prevent an easy transition. On his long walks during London's darkest hours, Nathaniel is appalled by what he sees taking place on the dirty streets and alleyways. He is determined to take action. Coming upon a proper, if rebellious, lady in the desolate area both intrigues and frustrates him.Nathaniel's disregard for his personal safety infuriates Lettie even as her heart is touched by his determination to aid the city's neglected children.As the two wounded souls stumble upon each other time and again in slums and ballrooms, they realize they fight a common cause--and share an unbridled passion.Will the curse they fight be their downfall? Or will love win the day?

The Dolan Girls


S.R. Mallery - 2015
    R. Mallery has it all. Set in Nebraska during the 1800s, whorehouse madams, ladies of the night, a schoolmarm, a Pinkerton detective, a Shakespeare-quoting old coot, brutal outlaws, and a horse-wrangler fill out the cast of characters. Added to the mix are colorful descriptions of an 1856 land rush, Buffalo Bill and his Wild West Show, Annie Oakley, bank/train robberies, small town local politics, and of course, romance. Two, in fact!

The Wild One


Danelle Harmon - 1997
    When he takes a bullet for boldly thwarting a stagecoach robbery, he is stunned to discover that the beautiful young woman he has heroically rescued, Juliet Paige, is his deceased brother’s American fiancée, accompanied by her infant daughter. Despite his brother the duke's refusal to acknowledge Juliet, Gareth is determined to do right by the courageous woman who crossed an ocean to give her baby her rightful name. But Juliet is wary of marrying this black sheep aristocrat, even while she is hopelessly charmed by the dashing devil. Never has she met anyone who embraces life so thoroughly, who makes her laugh, who loves her so well. And, even when it seems the odds are against them, Juliet has absolute faith that Gareth will go beyond the call of duty, risking his life itself to give her and her daughter a home — and a love that will last a lifetime.

The Third Son


Elise Marion - 2011
    Rogue. Scoundrel. Each of these words has been used to describe Damien Largess, youngest prince of Cardenas. But when he steps into a glittering ballroom on the night of his twenty-fifth birthday, the roguish young prince’s life will be forever changed. Beautiful. Graceful. Sensual. When Esmeralda steps into king’s ballroom to perform for the prince’s twenty-fifth birthday, every eye in the room is upon her. One pair of eyes intrigues her most of all … those of Prince Damien, seeming to stare straight through to her soul. The two know nothing can ever come of their love; he is a prince, and she a Gypsy dancer. Yet, neither can seem to resist the passion that sparks when they are together, or the unmistakable call of destiny forcing their lives onto the same path. However, love is not the only thing destiny has in store … With a deadly plot against the royal family surrounding him in danger and intrigue, Damien will face a decision he never thought he would have to make. Will he step up to claim a responsibility that should never have fallen to the third son? Or will he abandon it to risk all for love? Kings of Cardenas Series Reading Order The Third Son The Second Son The Lady Knights of Barony Gypsy Rose The Gypsy The Mistress (Bonus Novella) Interview with the Author Q: So, what makes the Kings of Cardenas series special? A: I’ve always been a romance reader, but the historical sub-genre has always been my first love. There’s something about the decadence and beauty of it that just enraptures me. So when I got the idea for The Third Son, I kept that opulence foremost in my mind. I knew that this kind of story couldn’t take place in an actual country and end the way I wanted it to, so I created my own fantasy kingdom. I love that element of it because it gave me freedom to make my own rules about the society that these characters live in. The cool part, I think, is that even though it has that fantasy aspect of being set in a made-up kingdom, it still has the familiarity of historical romance and the elements we all love: balls and masquerades, secret intrigues, and of course the fashion! I also think it’s special because of how unpredictable it is. The twists and turns incorporate elements of suspense and mystery along with the romance, and I loved crafting a multi-dimensional story using those elements. Q: Why should readers give these books a try? A: I think anyone who appreciates a good, meaty plot along with their romance will truly enjoy the series. While these stories are about love and romance, there are also elements of loss, intrigue, betrayal, and the dynamic of family weaving them all together. If you love mystery, suspense, and action woven through your romance, you’ll love the Kings of Cardenas series. Q: How many books will be in the complete series? A: The complete series is comprised of 6 books: 5 novels and 1 novella. While the series has been concluded, I do have plans for a spin-off series entitled Sons of Cardenas. The first book of that series might release in 2016.

The Waylaid Heart


Holly Newman - 1990
    Suspecting the culprit traveled in society circles, she diverts attention from eavesdropping and prying with constant and tiresome complaints of illness.But nothing is as it seems...Sir James Branstoke sees straight through Cecilia's feigned fragility. Intrigued by her odd behavior, he believes she has secrets—secrets that could lead to her demise. So, the hunter follows the huntress through society, never imagining that what has started as a chance inquiry could lead to a surprising love greater than either had ever known.But will the cost of uncovering a murderer be too high? Can Cecilia and James reveal the culprit so love can blossom in the end?

Her Wicked Ways


Darcy Burke - 2012
    By offering him a kiss in lieu of the jewels she had to leave behind, she commits the very type of act that caused her exile. When her dour guardians extend her punishment to performing charitable work at the local orphanage, she's further tempted by the home's owner, a provincial gentleman who stirs her passion in a most wicked way.HE WAS HER DOWNFALLDesperate to save his orphanage from financial catastrophe, Montgomery "Fox" Foxcroft leads a double life as a highwayman. The arrival of wealthy, well-connected Miranda, whose kiss he can't forget, presents a lawful opportunity to increase his coffers. His problems seem solved-until she rejects his suit. Out of options and falling for the heiress, Fox must risk what principles he has left and take advantage of her wicked ways-even if it ruins them both.