Book picks similar to
Emma's Wish by Margery Scott


historical-romance
historical
marriage-of-convenience
western

The Peacemaker


Chelley Kitzmiller - 1993
    After being unjustly court-martialed for the murder of four Yankee soldiers and narrowly escaping the hangman's noose, he sheds his identity and heads west to live among the Apache. As Shatto, he finds solace among his adopted brethren. But the new influx of settlers and soldiers into the Arizona Territory spells danger for the Apache people.Independence Taylor blames herself for bringing the small pox into her home that led to her mother and brother's deaths. Abandoned by her grief-stricken father, she undertakes a dangerous journey to join him at his military outpost to beg forgiveness. En route, her military escort is attacked by Apaches. She has been advised to take her own life rather than be captured, but Shatto intervenes before she can pull the trigger.Indy's initial fear of the mysterious Shatto is tempered by the bargain he strikes with her father to subdue the warriors by training a select group of troopers in Apache warfare. Imbued with the power of the wind spirit, Shatto attempts to bring peace to the troubled land.As tensions mount between the settlers and Apache, so does the undeniable attraction between Shatto and Indy. Can the would-be lovers broker peace...or will chaos rule and destroy their burgeoning passion?

The Outsider


Penelope Williamson - 1996
    One day, a handsome stranger dying from a gunshot wound walks into her ranch. With simple kindness, she treats his injury and nurses him back to health. Soon Rachel finds herself drawn to this mysterious outsider with a violent past--and must put her future on the line for a last chance at happiness.

Daliah


Danni Roan - 2019
    Dismissed from her job and disgraced by a crime she didn't commit, Daliah seeks a second chance with an elderly couple heading to Texas on a wagon train. Facing the hardships of the trail with bravery, compassion, and faith Daliah quickly endears herself to not only her employer but many of the other members of the band as well. Invaluable in her knowledge of herbs for healing and nutrition she is soon recognized as an indispensable helper to all. Spencer Gaines, still bitter after the loss of his wife is a hard man to talk to, but his five-year-old son Chad, and greatest treasure is more trouble than he can handle. Determined to finally settle down near his brother in Texas Spencer signs on as a chief scout for the wagon train but his duties often lead him far afield leaving Chad to get into so many scrapes they could both well be dismissed. Will a devastating accident leave Spencer empty and alone forever or will he not only learn to trust God but also give Daliah his heart?

The Pinkerton Matchmaker


Christine Sterling - 2018
     The problem? They need to be trained by existing agents while solving cases. Alone and unchaperoned. In 1871. The solution? Have each pair marry temporarily, for the duration of the case. If Archie can convince his reluctant agents and the even more reluctant women to agree, that is. One thing is certain, it won't be dull. And the couples might even find love on the road to adventure. If they don't kill each other first. This is a sweet romance that ends on a cliffhanger. Each book in the Pinkerton Matchmaker series is a stand-alone book, but you can read them in order to fully enjoy the series: The Pinkerton Matchmaker – Christine Sterling & Marianne Spitzer An Agent for Lucy – Amelia Adams An Agent for Regina – Marianne Spitzer An Agent for Wilhelmina - Sophie Dawson An Agent for Claudette – Christine Sterling An Agent for Audrey - Laura Beers An Agent for Victoria - Kate Marie Clark An Agent for Elizabeth - Julia Ridgmont An Agent for Cecily - Marie Higgins An Agent for Charity - Patricia PACJAC Carroll An Agent for Diana - Rebecca Connelly An Agent for Belle - Nerys Leigh An Agent for Ada - H.L. Roberts An Agent for Arielle - Parker J. Cole

Dear Penelope


Sharon Ihle - 2005
     Penelope is disappointed her fiancé isn't at the train depot, and sets out to find him only to discover he is about to marry another. Unable to afford a ticket home, Penelope convinces Sabastian that the Pearly Gates needs a hostess, then snags a part-time job setting type for the town's down-on-its-luck newspaper. Sabastian wishes he'd said "no" to the effervescent Penelope as there isn't a pair of boots she can't trip over, including her own, and she' just as good at setting type. When Penelope decides to help one of the paper's love-addled readers, the 'Dear Penelope' column becomes a booming success. Finally, life is good until Penelope's father arrives to drag his unwed daughter home. Leaving Penelope no choice, she asks Sabastian to marry her. But a marriage of convenience can be anything but...convenient. REVIEWS: "Brilliant, funny and mesmerizing." Affaire de Coeur Also by Sharon Ihle: THE PROUD ONES, in series order The Bride Wore Feathers The Half-breed Bride THE INCONVENIENT BRIDES, in series order: The Bride Wore Spurs Marrying Miss Shylo The Marring Kind The WILD WOMEN Series, in order" Untamed Wildcat Wild Rose Wild Hearts THE LAW AND DISORDER SERIES, in order: To Love a Scoundrel The Outlaw was No Lady A Lawman for Maggie The Law and Miss Penny ABOUT SHARON IHLE: Sharon Ihle is the bestselling author of more than a dozen historical romances set in the American West. A lifelong Californian, Sharon recently moved from the sunny beaches of San Diego to the frozen plains of North Dakota. Hard to believe, but it's true.

A Chance at Love


Beverly Jenkins - 2002
    He can't stop wondering what it would be like to hold the fiery enchantress close and kiss her deeply. Surely he could never compete with the sophisticated gents she has known, yet he intends to try. But will his honest passion be enough to take a chance on a long-shot called love?

Eden Creek


Lisa Bingham - 1991
    Readers looking for a poignant, charming tale will find their wish fulfilled in EDEN CREEK.”—Romantic Times After a devastating betrayal leaves Ginny Parker broken and alone, she hastily agrees to marry a man she’s never met and start a new life in Eden Creek, Utah. Orrin Ghant only wants a woman to help raise his three daughters, and a companion with whom to share life in the Utah wilderness. But upon the arrival of Ginny, he soon finds his new wife has brought with her more than he could have hoped. As they slowly settle into their new lives together, Orrin never expects to fall so deeply for Ginny’s sweet smile and gentle charm, nor does Ginny expect to find such comfort in Orin’s strong embrace and the tranquility of Eden Creek. But while their marriage of convenience blossoms into true love, secrets from the past loom over them, testing the bounds of their fragile new beginning.

Gunsmoke and Gingham


Kirsten Osbourne - 2017
    She has no desire to be in the town where they grew up together and memories of him will flood through her at every turn. After five years as a cook, her employer suggests she become a mail order bride to a man who has no desire to find love…only a life partner. Unsure if she’s making a mistake, she sends a letter in reply to the ad, unsure if she’ll be able to handle marriage to a stranger after expecting a life of love. William Jones has always known he’d marry his love, but when her father insists he goes West to make his fortune before they can marry, he reluctantly agrees. After all, he wants his love to get everything she ever wants in life. When he finds out Mary has died after a tragic illness, he gets his farm ready, but he can’t go through his entire life without love. He sends for a mail order bride, getting the biggest shock of his life. Will he ever be able to trust his bride? Or will he spend the rest of his life regretting his decision to marry? THE ECHO OF MUSIC by AMELIA C. ADAMS: When acclaimed opera singer Orinda Lou Britt loses her voice, she leaves the stage and her home in Chicago to live in Topeka, where no one knows her and she can start over again. Along with her, she brings her cherished heirloom piano, a gift from her grandmother. Nathan Perry travels the country tuning pianos in every town, and there is no one Orinda Lou trusts more. But when it comes time for her piano to be repaired, Nathan seems nowhere to be found, and when he does finally arrive, the reason for his absence may drive them apart forever. TETON SEASON OF PROMISE by PEGGY L. HENDERSON: Olivia Barkley knows how to take care of herself. Growing up in an orphanage, she’s learned that good things don’t come easily and certainly don’t last forever. While escaping the unwanted advances of her employer, her path crosses with a man who made a promise he didn't keep. Caleb Walker has lived a life of freedom among the spectacular Tetons, surrounded by the love of his family and friends. Unexplained restlessness prompts him to leave his beloved mountains in search of answers. When he joins an expedition into the wilderness, he is shocked to come face to face with a woman from his long-forgotten past. Caleb and Livy must find a way to come to terms with their unexpected meeting. If they can move beyond the guilt and misunderstandings of the past, they might discover that they were meant to be together all along. THE GUNSMITH’S BRIDE by KRISTIN HOLT: Morgan Hudson can’t begrudge his widowed father a second chance at happiness. So when Dad’s mail-order bride arrives in Mountain Home with a beautiful daughter, Morgan’s life flips upside down. The lovesick fifty-year-olds need a chaperone, and Morgan can’t remember to treat Lizzy like a sister. Will their emergent love survive their parents’ romance, threats from the past, and a law forbidding kissing on the streets of Mountain Home? HANNAH’S HERO by MARGERY SCOTT: US Marshal Kirby Matheson is on his way to testify at the trial of an outlaw when he comes across Hannah on the trail, unconscious and hurt. He feels a connection to her unlike any he’s never felt with another woman. He’s sure she feels the same, so why is she so frosty toward him? And why is he suddenly thinking about giving up the one thing he’s always valued – his freedom? When Hannah Wilde is rescued by a handsome stranger after being thrown from her horse during a storm, she finds her

The Lawman


Lily Graison - 2011
    That is until a single slap to a man’s face starts a barroom brawl that lands her in the last place she expected to be.Town Marshal Morgan Avery wants nothing more than to wash away the trail-dust and sleep for a week, preferably with a soft, willing woman by his side. Instead, he gets Abigail Thornton – all one hundred pounds of her thrust at him seconds before a fist connects with his face. Breaking up the fight takes more effort than he wants to admit and when the last man falls he finds Abigail still standing and not looking the least bit contrite.Throwing her into the town jail for the night would salve his wounded pride and then he will let her go. Or that was the plan. When morning comes he finds himself oddly reluctant to do so. Miss Thornton is hiding something and he aims to find out what, even if he has to bed her to do so. But will one night in her bed be enough?

Blinded By Love


Leah Wyett - 2014
    She lives in a small town on a farm in Ohio, where nothing new or exciting ever happens. She has survived this long by reading books about exotic places and using her imagination, or what her Ma has termed, her “Magical Thinking.”Will a simple mail order bride ad placed by a cattle rancher in Texas named Heath Key change Hazel’s life for the better? Or will the secret that Heath is hiding threaten to ruin both of their lives? Will the man who has been by Heath’s side as his best friend since childhood bring them closer or come between them in the end?Follow Hazel on her journey to adulthood as she discovers that sometimes you have to close your eyes to really be able to see.

The Doctor's Lady


Jody Hedlund - 2011
    Dr. Eli Ernest is back from Oregon Country only long enough to raise awareness of missions to the natives before heading out West once more. But then Priscilla and Eli both receive news from the mission board: No longer will they send unmarried men and women into the field. Left scrambling for options, the two realize the other might be the answer to their needs. Priscilla and Eli agree to a partnership, a marriage in name only that will allow them to follow God's leading into the mission field. But as they journey west, this decision will be tested by the hardships of the trip and by the unexpected turnings of their hearts.

A Sensible Arrangement


Tracie Peterson - 2014
    Widower Jake Wythe has secured a job as a bank manager in Denver, only to discover that the bank board wants him to be a married man. With Texas in his roots, he advertises for a Lone Star bride, and Marty answers the call. They both agree they are done with romance and love and will make this nothing more than a marriage of convenience.Marty works to carve out a new life in high-society Denver as Jake works to guide the bank through a collapsing economy. But when money goes missing at the bank and accounting discrepancies point to Jake, he must find a way to prove his innocence. Yet all he wants to do is go back to Texas and own his own ranch. Marty, on the other hand, owns a ranch–one she’s never told her husband about. She hates Texas because it represents the losses in her life. But as the couple grows closer and love begins to bloom, Marty realizes she needs to tell Jake the truth. Can she come to terms with the past and her anger toward God in order to make room for love?

Ella: Escape West by Wagon Train


Sadie Conall - 2018
    Marry a wealthy man and provide a home for those she loves? Or have the courage to go west by wagon train to California and chase a dream of her own?

Hidden Fires


Laura Jordan - 1982
    Instead, the matriarch makes Lauren a scandalous offer to marry her son in name only. Lauren has strong feelings for him but are they strong enough?

Widow Woman


Patricia McLinn - 1998
    Hiring Nick Dusaq has nothing to do with the fierce pull between them and everything to do with saving her land.The solitary cowboy recognizes a kindred heart scarred by cruelty. He would ride away – he should ride away – if only her ranch didn’t need him so damned badly. Her ranch—not the widow woman like none he’s encountered before—is the only need he’ll let himself consider.Passion as powerful as the harsh beauty of the land around them bonds Rachel, the widow woman devoting every bit of her strength and courage to holding onto her Wyoming Territory ranch, and Nick, the loner cowhand with dreams of his own.Yes, they have passion. But does it hold the promise of healing and love or the destruction of dreams?- - - - -“A richly textured Western about a strong woman, a dark tormented man, and a love as fierce and irresistible as the Wyoming wind.” -- Mary Jo Putney, New York Times bestselling author“One of the most entertaining and interesting western historicals I’ve read in a long time.” -- The Romance Reader "A moving confirmation of the healing power of love" -- Romantic Times "Incredibly powerful" -- 5 Star review "Wow!... a romance that sizzles!...Powerful love story... Excellent!" -- Rendezvous"Splendid!" -- Bell, Book and Candle"An unforgettable read" -- 5 Star review