And no one must ever know that she was kissed by the most depraved one against a dark garden wall. Or even worse, that she enjoyed it.Aaron Brighton, the Duke of Hexham, has everything planned out. He has arranged his sister’s marriage and he is now on the market for his own Duchess. One that will not meddle in his affairs. And certainly, one that will not bite.Just when his sister’s disappearance has Aaron feeling that nothing could go worse, a gossip column changes his mind. For it appears that he is engaged to the most obnoxious and intoxicating Lady of the Ton. And she will pay for trapping him so. Just as soon as she helps him find his sister.

    The spoiled sovereign expects a night of torment and shame. Instead, her unlikely bedfellow introduces her to a world of carnal delights. Prince Taran, dreaded leader of the savage Picts, approaches. He plans to pluck Guendolen’s prized maidenhead. Once she carries his heir he will claim her father’s throne. King Cedric hatches a frantic scheme. His daughter must lie with one of their own. Better a Briton babe growing in her womb than a Pictish one. With every last man fighting on the battlefield, there is only one lad who is available for such a task; and that is Phalen, her childhood nemesis. Mysterious as he is defiant, the adopted son of the village blacksmith has little interest in Guendolen’s beauty and considers the overindulged “jewel of the kingdom” to be a royal pain in the rear. Sparks fly each time they meet. On the fated night, Guendolen does her best to obstruct Phalen from carrying out his orders, but what starts out as an act of duty soon turns into an evening of passion. Our hero and heroine reunite two years later. She, having given birth to his son; and he, having returned from battle—now a formidable warrior. Under constant pressure from her father to marry, Guendolen agrees to wed the father of her bastard child, whose touch she still wears like a brand. The elusive Phalen continues to rile the Princess with his taunting gaze, denying her the attention she craves in and out of the bedchamber. Will she ever be able to win the favor of this dark and brooding man?

     In Victorian London’s East End, life for Hope Daniels in the public house run by her parents is not as it seems. Pa drinks and gambles, brother John longs for a place of his own, sister Violet dreams of a life on stage and little Alfie is being bullied at school. Silas Quirk, the charismatic owner of a local gentlemen’s club and disreputable gambling den her father frequents, has his own plans for Hope. When disaster strikes the family lose everything and the future they planned is snatched away from them. Secrets are revealed that make Hope question all she’s ever believed in. Can Hope keep them together when fate is pulling them apart? What will she sacrifice to save her family? A captivating story of tragedy and triumph you won’t want to put down.

    See why readers rave about the writing, the plot twists, and the characters. NELL LILLINGTON is a spoiled, headstrong 16-year-old when she finds herself pregnant after letting a flirtation with handsome Cousin Jack get out of hand. More willing to bear the consequences of an illegitimate pregnancy than marry, she refuses to name the father and agrees to give birth in a Poor Farm and give the baby up for adoption. At the Poor Farm she meets Tess O’Dugan, a woman the world calls an imbecile but who soon becomes the sister Nell never had. MARTIN RUTHERFORD, Nell’s childhood friend, only learns of baby Sarah when Nell seeks to escape from the Poor Farm—with the child. His own aversion to marriage stems from his dark, unhappy childhood, and despite his attachment to Nell he makes no objection to her plan to move to Kansas, away from prying eyes, with Tess and Sarah. Martin, now free of family ties, has his own plans—he wishes to build a grand department store in Chicago and become one of that growing city’s merchant princes. But Nell and Martin’s plans are steered off course by the secrets and lies of other people, and their paths to happiness are strewn with murder. Nell’s story will take you from the Illinois prairie, to frontier Kansas, and back to a Chicago teeming with opportunistic new Americans and ruthless hardmen.

     The widowed Lady Elfrida has achieved the impossible. She’s ensured her twelve-year-old son has become king, despite the gruesome murder of his predecessor and half-brother. While many blame the king’s mother, she looks to two rival noblemen as the real perpetrators. Even with the reappearance of an unwelcome enemy on England’s shores, Viking warriors, who attack and threaten the safety and security of England, and specifically, the young king, the two noblemen are far from resigned to Lady Elfrida’s power. As her son takes the final steps to become king in actions as well as name, she’s increasingly isolated by the deaths of allies and the scheming ways of others, including the king. Resentful of her continuing influence, Lady Elfrida faces banishment from Court with both fierce determination and acquiescence. The King's Mother is the first part in a new trilogy. Suggested reading order: The Mercian Brexit (short story and prequel) The First Queen of England The First Queen of England Part 2 The First Queen of England Part 3 The King's Mother

    When the festivities are interrupted by an urgent call from her employer, she heads straight to London with Tippy in tow only to discover that her great-great-aunt Euphegenia has left her a final bequest—and a mysterious mission. Christmas is a time for magic and miracles and Sugar will need both if she’s to succeed in her quest. This charming Christmas cozy mystery is the third book in the Sugar Martin Vintage Cozy Mysteries set in post-WW2 England.

    A Dark Elf. An Avenging Wizard The name’s Corvin Chance, and though I was born with magical abilities, I’d rather be playing my guitar in one of my local pubs than running around flashing my magic. Until someone murdered my mother that is. Now I’m slinging magic around the streets of Dublin as I try to find out who killed her. Iolas Tasar—a gangster elf who crowned himself King of the South—is my main suspect. But besides being powerful and sociopathic, he is also part of a murderous cabal that includes a bloodthirsty vampire prince. If I’m going to take him down, I’m going to need help. Luckily, I have my two best friends: Dalia, a sardonic Demi-Fae who could scare the bejeezus out of Lucifer himself, and Monty, a wise-cracking street magician and YouTube star with a gift for technomancy and conjuring. Together we will enter a dangerous Dublin underbelly populated by dark elves, vampires, goblins and orcs to discover just who killed my mother and why…if we don’t die ourselves first, that is. And did I mention the Fae Queen who has also blackmailed Dalia and I into helping her…on pain of death? Join me and my oddball motley crew as we attempt to solve a murder, exact justice and just maybe…get a pint of the black stuff afterward. Being Human meets Iron Druid in this gripping urban fantasy action adventure series. Grab your copy of the first book in the GODS AND MONSTERS TRILOGY today!

    Young Kathleen Keller is being forced into marriage with a man she despises by her cruel father. In an act of desperation, she runs away in a bid for a safer life, although one she might not have otherwise have chosen. But when tragedy strikes, Kathleen is left vulnerable and one man threatens the fragile peace she has made for herself. Meanwhile, Nathan Perry works for his father's accountancy firm but yearns for something more satisfying. He is brought in to help with the purchase of Honeyfield House, intended as a safe house for women in trouble by a charitable benefactor, and there encounters Kathleen. Their lives are set to intertwine and neither will be the same again.

    But everything changes when Abbie is twelve and their emotional, spirited mother casts them into a crisis for which no one is prepared. Six years later the Morris family have rebuilt their lives, and when Abbie and Beatie, Abbie's adored elder sister, set off for the county fair, the world seems a good place. But their new-found happiness is not to last. A chance encounter with Louis, a personable, handsome stranger, leads to tragedy and has repercussions that threaten to destroy Abbie's peace of mind for ever. Abbie struggles to forget what happened that night, to get on with her life, but when she meets charming, honourable Arthur - and re-encounters Louis - it becomes clear that she might never recover from the night they stayed so long at the fair...

    Having lost their mother in a tragic sailing accident when they were young, the two women are accustomed to grief. But they have no idea that their father's death will expose a terrible deception...For back in London is his wife Sophie and their two sons. Neither family knows of the other's existence, and when news reaches Sophie of Hugh's death her whole world is turned upside down.Meanwhile, Rowan's marriage is crumbling, and Thea reluctantly finds herself acting as a go-between for her sister and her lover. But, with the onslaught of World War II, the lives of all three women will change for ever. And they must confront the secrets between them before they can seize their chance of happiness...

    It's OK." Over one hundred contributors share their failures, setbacks and most embarrassing moments for this compilation of hilarity with the hopes that their stories would give the embarrassed and struggling souls some comic and inspirational relief. Life is riddled with pain, disappointments, and failures, but given enough time, they're folly. "We're All A Mess. It's OK" captures life's most absurd moments honestly and without a filter. It's filled with funny essays and one-liners that highlight the grainier sides of being human and imperfect. The book covers everything from horrible internet dating experiences, the strangest of co-workers, vacations that went array, to the worst holiday gifts of all time. It's an anthology of real-life disasters. You'll enjoy comedian/actor Kim Banta's tale, "My First Date and a Sluggish Toilet," detailing a first date in the nicest home in town, ending with an overflowing toilet and panicked placement of poo into her purse. And... "You Must Have Me Confused With Someone Else" depicts Dane Levent's severe behavior problems with her golden retriever, Buddy, after picking him up from boarding, only to find out a week later that she had the wrong dog. And... "He's Worth the Wait" by Bes. D describes her mother-in-law's long-term relationship with a convicted felon she had met on Meet-An-Inmate.com. And... "Saying ‘I'm Sorry' Will Not Fix This Situation" by Ashley P. is a hilarious tale of turning her best date into her worst date by leaping onto her partner's lap, causing what is called in medical terminology, a penile fracture. And... Follow along with Traci Jo's daily embarrassment by her mother, picking her up from school wearing different wigs, such as Dorothy Hamill and Marilyn Monroe. And... Read an entire chapter dedicated to strange conditions, such as Shelley Miner Gardler's need to gather her pets before she goes to work to tell them goodbye and to assign one to be in charge while she's away. And... Discover why Christine T sorts M&Ms in ROYGBIV order and eats them first by frequency until they're even, and then one of each color in order, until they're gone. These humorous essays and quips are about the blunders and snafus, and of everyday life that most of us can relate to. It's like "Chicken Soup for the Soul" if you threw in snark and expletives. If you like Jenn Mann, Samantha Irby and Jenny Lawson, you will love "We're All A Mess. It's OK." Get a copy for your funniest friends, or for grouchy people, maybe it will cheer them up. The book is an easy read and offers a real message that we all can survive, even the worst of failures and ultimately, even though we're all a mess, it's OK. Snarky women, quip, short stories, essays, funny, humorous essays, humor essays, gifts for women, funny stories, dating, relationships, failures, work, family, cats, dogs, alpacas.

    Perfect for fans of Dilly Court and Nadine Dorries.In 1940s Hampshire the war is settling into its stride bringing dark days for many.Connie Baxter has just moved in with her Aunt Gertie after the death of her mother. Gertie works as a cleaner at the Criterion Picture House in Gosport and she helps Connie to get a job there as an usherette. For Connie, it's the perfect place to work because she adores the movies with their glamorous, romantic stars.The only fly in the ointment is the Criterion's creepy manager with his wandering hands. But soon Connie is firm friends with Queenie, who sells ice creams and soon tells her how to warn him off.Charming Tommo Smith is a 'taxi-dancer'. For a fee he steers ladies of a certain age around the dance floor - and sometimes more besides which pays for his smart clothes. Connie's friend Queenie says he's a chancer, but his gorgeous blue eyes tell Connie something different. When suddenly he disappears, Connie accepts that Queenie may be right - he was too good to be true.As the war rages on and Connie struggles with the harsh realities of life and the turbulence of romance, she comes to realize that life isn't always like it is in the pictures.

    . . Grace and Ted Chapman married at the beginning of the war, but then Ted was called up to fight . . . Grace was left alone, fearful that her beloved Ted would never return. With the passage of time, Grace began to create a new life and found comfort in the arms of another man. Then along came the birth of a little girl, baby Barbara.One morning, Grace receives a telegram out of the blue, she learns that Ted is alive and on his way home. News of his return sends Grace into a sick panic and she begs her sister Joan to look after her daughter. When Ted returns back to Birmingham, he is shell-shocked and fragile - all the while Grace is tormented. Just how far is Grace willing to go, in order to protect her secret?

    She certainly doesn’t need a man to complete her. Her life couldn’t be better. Or could it?Charlie’s life is about to change. From an episode of doggy incontinence to a vomit incident in the M&S food hall, life has some little mishaps planned for Charlie that lead to some BIG surprises.With a fancy dress party looming, what begins as a drunken nightmare could turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to her.

    In many ways, his rise, fall, and rise again is an iconic story: a young American politician of vaunting ambition, aiming for nothing less than the presidency. Building on his father's political success, a first run for governor in 2002 led to a stinging defeat, and a painful, public divorce from Kerry Kennedy, scion of another political dynasty, Cuomo had to come back from seeming political death and reinvent himself. He did so, brilliantly, by becoming New York's attorney general, and compiling a record that focused on public corruption. In winning the governorship in 2010, he promised to clean up America's most corrupt legislature. He is blunt and combative, the antithesis of the glad-handing, blow-dried senator or governor who tries to please one and all. He's also proven he can make his legislature work, alternately charming and arm-twisting his colleagues with a talent for political strategy reminiscent of President Lyndon Johnson. Political pundits tend to agree that for Cuomo, a run for the White House is not a question of whether, but when.