Book picks similar to
To Love a Stranger by Barbara Paul


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gothic
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gothic-mystery-romance

To Sleep No More


Dinah Lampitt - 1987
    This panoramic novel skilfully interweaves past and present, fact and fiction, exploring the enigma of reincarnation through the ages.Set in the village of Mayfield in Sussex, To Sleep No More opens in the tumultuous reign of Edward III when monarch and Church struggled for supremacy and ambitious noblemen aimed to better themselves by marrying their daughters well. Oriel accepts the Archbishop's half-witted brother Colin de Stratford to please her father but soon falls in love with the dashing Gascon squire, Marcus de Flaviel. A strange and touching friendship develops between the three but, when Oriel becomes pregnant, suspicions are aroused and Marcus disappears without trace.But their souls cannot rest and the story follows them through the times of witchcraft persecution under James I to the troubled Georgian period when highwaymen and smugglers held sway.

The Tainted Crown (Horstberg Saga #4)


Elizabeth D. Michaels - 2015
    He also grew up observing the powerful and tender love shared by his parents. Determined to find that same kind of love in his own life, he is holding out for a woman who can see more in him than a marriage that will give his future wife prestige and great wealth. After more than a decade of searching for the right woman, Erich may have finally found a love beyond anything he’d imagined. But his happiness and the stability of the country is at risk when a long-dormant evil comes to the surface in Horstberg, threatening his life and that of his young nephew, who is Erich’s heir. While Erich tries to remain confident that he will live long enough to claim his right to serve his country, he is haunted by premonitory dreams that imply his life will come to a tragic end. As a force of extremist revolutionaries force Horstberg to the brink of war, the entire du Woernig family must flee into hiding for the sake of their own survival. Only when everything is on the line does Erich come to fully understand what truly matters. Please note that Book Five, the final book in the Horstberg Saga will be available for preorder on April 6th and will be released May 4th.

House of Men


Catherine Cookson - 1977
    Even so, Kate found it difficult to understand his peculiar hatred of his elder brother Logan, on whose charity Maurice was obliged to depend. But when she accidentally stumbled upon Maurice with Logan's fiancée , she became aware of some of the secrets of Tor-Fret, and realised she was getting too deeply involved with Logan Rossiter and the other inhabitants of the mysterious household.

The Secret of Greystone Hall


Elizabeth Wilde - 2014
    Then suddenly the man vanished. All too soon she finds that the corridors of the gloomy mansion are filled with sinister secrets. To her sheer horror she begins to question whether the old man could be behind terrifying events that shrouded the ancient walls and stalked her into the very shadows of death and madness.

The Wedding Cake Wish : (Little Duck Pond Cafe, Book 17)


Rosie Green - 2021
    

Annie's Autumn Escape


Debbie Viggiano - 2021
    Sixty! She feels half that age, even if the mirror tells her otherwise. Hubby Keith promises her a birthday to remember, and doesn’t let her down, but packing his suitcase to shack up with a forty-something isn’t quite the memory Annie wants to make. Suddenly she’s single and – as an empty nester – very, very alone. The Bucket List she and Keith had promised to work their way through is but a dream, until besties Bella and Caz rally around Annie and whisk her away for a trip that will be remembered for ever. Dubai. But it’s not all skyscrapers, bling, sand dunes and sheikhs. As the sun sinks over the horizon of Jumeirah Beach… might there also be love?

On the Edge of the Woods


Diane Tyrrel - 2004
     It's a turn-of-the-century rambling manor in the shadows of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. And even though it will need months of renovations, nothing will stop architect Stacy Addison from buying it--not even the threatening notes...the hang-ups...the harassment. Someone doesn't want Stacy in the house. But it's not just the house, Stacy slowly realizes. Someone wants her gone-permanently.

A Woman Named Smith


Marie Conway Oemler - 1919
    Amusing mystery story, its melodramatic plot unwinding against the charming background of a South Carolina townlet stirred to its depths by the passing of an historic mansion, through a spite will, to the possession of "a Yankee woman named Smith".

The Eye Stones


Harriet Esmond - 1975
     She soon discovers that both her sister and her new husband have tragically perished in a fire which destroyed their home. Alone in the bleak Norfolk brecklands, Deborah is at first forced to accept hospitality from the handsome yet forbidding widower, Sir Randall Gaunt. Yet even when Deborah later stumbles upon the warm companionship of Lord Stannard, the charming young aristocrat wooing her with such passionate urgency, the strange events that follow cause her feelings of uneasiness to grow. And then, before long Deborah becomes inextricably involved in a nightmare of unimaginable evil…

Summons to the Chateau D'Arc


Kay Cornelius - 2005
    She finds herself falling for the attractive estate manager, who carries secrets of his own. As the tension grows more unbearable, Ellen will have to risk everything she holds dear to discover the secrets that lurk in the shadows of the Chateau D'Arc.

Spring Blooms at the Hummingbird Hotel


Daisy James - 2022
    

No Safe Place


H.L. Wegley - 2018
    But Matt returns with an assassin on his trail. When he encounters a young woman with secrets, a woman he is drawn to and who needs him, he must choose between helping her or endangering her.Miranda (Randi) Richards, a young meteorologist, takes a job in a remote area near the Olympic National Park to nurse her wounds after her parents brutally disowned her when she converted to Christianity at college. When Randi, a world-class, middle-distance runner literally runs into Matt on a park trail, she believes she's found someone who can help heal her heart. But she learns Matt has secrets that threaten both her heart and her life. No Safe Place is an action-filled, romantic-suspense story that races from the scenic beaches of the Olympic National Park to the beauty of Lake Chelan in Central Washington State, a story of courage, honor, faith and love.

The Tigresse and the Raven


Julia Donner - 2012
    By then, it's too late--her family hovers on the brink of financial ruin with another social catastrophe about to explode. But neither can resist an attraction that burns stronger than society's dictates and their lack of trust--his of women--hers from fear of discovery.

The Wedding Bargain


Agnes Sligh Turnbull - 1966
    To Daniel Morgan, self-made millionaire and reluctant playboy, young Liza Hanford was that rarest of all creatures - an efficient, compassionate and discreet private secretary. So discreet in fact that he never knew that for eight heart-wringing years Liza had been in love with him.It was hardly the kind of proposal to set a girl cloud-walking, but to Liza it opened the door to a new life . . . and perhaps he just might learn to love her.To all appearances it was a true Cinderella story. But underneath the pleasant surface dark shadows of Daniel's past began to emerge. Suddenly this unspoken menace exploded and threatened not only Liza's marriage but her husband's life.

Beyond the Shadows


Christy Barritt - 2016
    A decade later, when Charity receives a mysterious letter that promises answers, she returns to North Carolina in search of closure. With the help of her new neighbor, Police Officer Joshua Haven, Charity begins to track down mysterious clues concerning her friend’s abduction. They soon discover that they must work together or both of them will be swallowed by the looming darkness. The Unrelenting Tide by Lynnette Bonner: Widowed former-Hollywood-actress Devynne Lang has been living a quiet life in the San Juan Islands of the Pacific Northwest. For years, she's hoped her fabricated death would keep her identity safe from the public, and more to the point, from the stalker who forced her into hiding. But strange things have been happening around her place and this time, with a daughter to protect, she can’t afford one mistake – even if it means letting Carcen Lang get close enough to help. The End Came with a Kiss by John Michael Hileman: When the world died, my wife died with it. She became like the rest—a beautiful zombie, acting out a scene from our past, over and over again. But I know she is alive inside that dead body. She's been trying to tell me, trying to show me—and I won't stop until I save her. I won't stop until I save them all. Saving Grace by Lesley Ann McDaniel: When an obsessive fan forces opera singer Tracy Fontaine to change her name to Grace Addison and go into hiding in a small Montana town, the last thing she wants is to get to know the locals. Now, not one but two men have worked their way into her daily routine, much to the chagrin of a jealous local girl, who insists on prying into Grace’s past and stirring up deadly trouble. Will Grace find love in Madison Falls…or will her stalker find her? When Night Comes by Dan Walsh: Jack Turner comes back to his alma mater to give a series of lectures for his old history professor. Within days, he starts having bizarre experiences at night. Like he’s traveling back in time, experiencing the epic events in his lectures firsthand. Several college students suddenly start dying in their sleep. The Professor who’d invited Jack begins acting edgy and strange. And there’s this beautiful brunette in the back row. Every time he looks at her, she’s smiling at him. She looks vaguely familiar. Battered Justice by Linda Bradley White: FBI Special Agent Jake Tucker works hard to be an excellent investigator and a great dad. Having Cass McKenna as his partner helps. An investigation into a shooting leads them to a shadowy trail of crime connected with a casino--and the battered body of Jake's ex-wife. Jake is sure Tam's new husband, a powerful state senator, killed her. But Lady Justice can be battered, too. Soon Jake and Cass find themselves in the fight of their lives.