Book picks similar to
Thorns of Eden by Diana Ballew


historical-romance
historical-fiction
dnf
diana-ballew

The Oracle Glass


Judith Merkle Riley - 1994
    Spinning actual police records from the reign of Louis XIV into a darkly captivating story, it follows the fortunes of Genevieve Pasquier, a fifteen-year-old girl who has been transformed into an imperious, seemingly infallible fortune-teller... Genevieve is a skinny, precocious little monkey with a mind full of philosophy and the power to read the swirling waters of an oracle glass - for a demimonde who will believe anything. Left for dead by her family, Genevieve is taken in by La Voisin, an ingenious occultist and omnipotent society fortune-teller. La Voisin also rules a secret society of witches - abortionists and poisoners - who manipulate the lives of the rich and scandalous all the way up to the throne. Tutored by La Voison, Genevieve creates a new identity for herself - as the mysterious Madame de Morville, complete with an antique black dress, a powdered face, a cane, and a wickedly sarcastic streak who is supposedly nearly one hundred fifty years old. Even the reigning mistress of the Sun King himself consults Madame de Morville on what the future holds for her. And as Madame de Morville, Genevieve can revel in what women are usually denied power, an independent income, and the opportunity to speak her mind. Beneath her intelligence and wit, what drives Genevieve is a private revenge - but what she doesn't expect is for love to come in the bargain.

Her Errant Earl


Scarlett Scott - 2013
    After he suddenly returns, determined to prove to her he's a changed man, she's not about to forgive him, trust him, or succumb to his scorching kisses.A future duke trapped by obligationWill has devoted his life to enraging his loathsome father by creating one scandal after the next. Duty forces him back to the wife he resents, but he isn't prepared for the raw desire she makes him feel. Seducing her will hardly be a tedious task. Guarding his heart, however, is another matter entirely.A marriage of convenience no moreWhat begins in deception and necessity turns into an attraction neither can deny. Can their newfound passion keep them together forever, or will the truth tear them apart? Wicked Husbands Book OneIf you enjoy steamy Regency and Victorian romance and second chance love stories,don't miss the Wicked Husbands series. Fiercely independent, dazzlingly beautiful, and married to handsome scoundrels, these American heiresses are ready to turn the tables on the insufferable English lords they've wed. What happens when their wicked husbands start falling for the wives they never thought they wanted?Corsets come off, bed chambers ignite, the passion sizzles,and more than one stubborn English rake gets reformed by love.

Prince of Shadows


Rachel Caine - 2014
    The boys are born to fight and die for honor and—if they survive—marry for influence and money, not love. The girls are assets, to be spent wisely. Their wishes are of no import. Their fates are written on the day they are born.Benvolio Montague, cousin to Romeo, knows all this. He expects to die for his cousin, for his house, but a spark of rebellion still lives inside him. At night, he is the Prince of Shadows, the greatest thief in Verona—and he risks all as he steals from House Capulet. In doing so, he sets eyes on convent-bound Rosaline, and a terrible curse begins that will claim the lives of many in Verona…… And will rewrite all their fates, forever.

Embers of the Heart


Rosanne Bittner - 1990
    When he finally returns, he is a changed man who no longer loves her and has become cruel and unforgiving because of his war experiences. Anna decides that, for her own safety, she needs to get away from Darryl. She flees, and she ends up in the wild cow town of Abilene, Kansas, run by Sheriff Nate Foster. Fate draws Nate and Anna closer, but Anna, who desperately longs for the safety and love she finds in Nate’s arms, has not told him she has a husband who is now a dangerous outlaw. Nate and Anna’s love grows beyond their ability to corral the passion and desire stirred in their souls, but Anna’s secret finally comes back to haunt her and nearly destroys the love she has found in Nate’s arms. Nate’s own anger and loss because of the war interfere with his ability to fully love and trust again, and when he finds out about Anna’s lie, he isn’t sure he can fully commit to her. EMBERS OF THE HEART embraces the heartaches and challenges of a Nation torn by war, and those caught up both sides of that war. A “must read,” this book is a “sister story” to Bittner’s book, MONTANA WOMAN, as Anna (from EMBERS OF THE HEART) and Joline (from Bittner’s MONTANA WOMAN) are sisters who ended up separated by the Civil War. PRAISE: “Power, passion, tragedy, and triumph are Rosanne Bittner’s hallmarks. Again and again, she brings readers to tears.” ~Romantic Times “Extraordinary…Bittner’s characters spring to life.” ~Publishers Weekly ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Named one of the “Pioneer Authors of Romance” by Romantic Times, Rosanne Bittner is the author of sixty-eight historical romance novels, most set in the American West of the 1800s. .

A Wild Night's Bride


Victoria Vane - 2012
    There Could Be Hell To Pay..She needs a protector… Once seduced by whispered promises of a faithless lover, Phoebe Scott is determined to make a name on the Covent Garden stage, but after three years of bit parts, she realizes she'll never achieve her goals on her own merits. Finally acknowledging her success is dependent on a powerful patron, Phoebe determines to seek out a protector at London's most notorious brothel.He's avowed to celibacy… Sir Edward "Ned" Chambers has been lost and lonely since his wife’s death in childbirth. Burdened with blame, he has sworn to a life of celibacy, but after three years, he is inwardly edgy, irritable, and increasingly discontent. Desperate times call for devilish measures... Viscount Ludovic “The Devil” DeVere, a rake of the first order, is hell-bent to return his best friend Ned to the land of the living. Perceiving the cause behind his best friend’s unhappiness—as well as the obvious cure—DeVere takes matters in hand. DeVere’s meddling machinations result in an outrageous wager that could lead Ned to a new love… or land them all in the Tower.Hijinks and passion abound in this sexy, rollicking Georgian romp. (romantic comedy with mature content) The Devil DeVere Series:A Wild Night's Bride #1The Virgin Huntress #2The Devil You Know #3The Devil's Match #4A Devil's Touch #4.5Jewel Of the East #5 Prequel Vignettes:Devil in the Making #1The Trouble with Sin #2Ned's Folly - coming late 2014

Surrender Your Love


J.C. Reed - 2013
    Dangerous. Better left untouched. And better forgotten. But lightning always strikes twice.Brooke Stewart, a realtor in New York, doesn’t do relationships. When she’s sent to a remote estate to finalize a real estate deal, she discovers her new boss is no other than the guy she left naked in bed.Sexy, dangerously handsome, and arrogant Jett Mayfield attracts trouble, and women, like a lightning rod. But the night he meets Brooke he gets more than he bargained for. The green-eyed millionaire playboy isn’t used to taking no for an answer, and he isn’t about to start now.When he proposes two months of no strings sex, Brooke is intrigued and accepts his proposal. Little does she know Jett’s determined to claim the one woman he can’t have, pulling her deeper into his dangerous world.A man who doesn't take 'no' for an answer.A woman afraid to surrender to love.Two lives that are about to cross...and secrets laid bare.

Dark Shadows


Jana Petken - 2014
    It is only when she faces imminent death in the snow and ice-encrusted Virginia wilderness that she finally understands the power of destiny. Mercy is passionate. She loves and hates in equal measure. Can love and hatred give her the strength she needs now to reach a Northern state, and free a runaway slave wanted for murders, she committed? America and her people are strangled in an uncompromising political stalemate. Southern states have seceded from the Union, and a civil war is imminent. Mercy Carver: her journey is just beginning.

Trance


Kelly Meding - 2011
    Fifteen years ago, Teresa “Trance” West was a skilled telepath and a proud member of the Ranger Corps. But ever since the Rangers were inexplicably rendered powerless at the climax of the devastating Meta War, she’s bounced from one dead-end job to another. Now her powers have reappeared just as mysteriously as they vanished— only they’re completely transformed and more potent than ever. And they’re threatening to destroy her. Trance heads to Los Angeles to track down the surviving Rangers and discover who restored her powers—and why—but a phantom enemy is determined to kill them before they can reassemble. As they dodge his deadly attacks and come to terms with their new role as heroes, Trance and the rest of the team set out to annihilate the sinister madman... only to discover their own powers are his greatest weapons.

A Dawn Most Wicked


Susan Dennard - 2013
    His best friend–the apprentice pilot, Cassidy Cochran–also happens to be the girl he’s pining for … and the captain’s daughter. But when it looks like the Sadie Queen might get taken off the river, Daniel and Cassidy have to do whatever they can to stop the ghosts that plague the ship.Fortunately, there happens to be a Creole gentleman on board by the name of Joseph Boyer–and he just might be able to help them …

The Loyal Heart


Merry Farmer - 2011
    Several problems. Her childhood love, Ethan, has returned home from the Crusades, but he’s more interested in winning his land back than wooing her. She has to rescue a pair of nuns who are being held prisoner in Derby Castle’s tower by the sadistic Sheriff Buxton. And to top it all off, she’s developing scandalous feelings for Buxton’s lackey, the dark and devilish Crispin. Faced with all that what’s a girl to do but don her disguise as the Derbywood Bandit and take matters into her own hands?Sir Crispin is at his wit’s end. Not only does he have his hands full keeping Buxton from killing half the shire, now his arch nemesis, the Derbywood Bandit, has joined forces with his old rival Ethan. And that’s nothing compared to the burning torch he carries for his ex-fiancé, Lady Aubrey. He would do anything to win Aubrey’s love …… until he suspects that there could be a closer connection between Aubrey and the Derbywood Bandit than anyone knows.

Auraria


Tim Westover - 2012
    None of these distract James Holtzclaw from his employer's mission: to turn the fading gold-rush town of Auraria, GA, into a first-class resort and drown its fortunes below a man-made lake. But when Auraria's peculiar people and problematic ghosts collide with his own rival ambitions, Holtzclaw must decide what he will save and what will be washed away. Taking its inspiration from a real Georgia ghost town, Auraria is steeped in the folklore of the Southern Appalachians, where the tensions of natural, supernatural and artificial are still alive.

The Perfect Score


Beth Williamson - 2006
    The biggest bowling tournament in the state is going to change the lives of three friends.The Perfect Score: Three novellas of women on a bowling team who all sign up for the tournament… what they find is more than a 300 game.One Night StandBabs Loomis is a bitter woman. Her husband left her after five years because they couldn’t have children and he didn’t want a woman that was barren. She is a chain smoker, and a drinker, intent on getting as much pleasure as she can out of life. She bowls for company – Veronica and Marlene are her closest friends. When she runs into Jimmy Tanaka at the tournament, a former friend of her ex-husband’s, her bitterness turns into something completely different and totally unexpected.Can Babs overcome her own ghosts and find more than a one night stand?Widow’s WeedsVeronica Avery needs to get laid. It’s been five years since her husband died in a car accident and she’s lonely and tired of trying to meet men that end up with a big “L” on their forehead. When she joins The Perfect Score bowling tournament, her modest hopes are pinned on meeting a man she might feel comfortable going to bed with.She’s not expecting to meet Patrice Goldman, a woman that inspires feelings of passion and longing in her cobwebby heart. Afraid and confused, Veronica tries to deny her growing feelings for the auburn haired woman, but fate has other things in mind for the woman in black. It’s time to shed her widow’s weeds and live again.Marlene’s ManMarlene is a big girl and has always been a big girl, but she’s a kick-ass bowler, determined to finally hit that 300 game. The Perfect Score tournament at the Starlite Bowling Alley is her chance to show the world that she’s worth something more than just a quick lay.When she meets Buck Miller at the tournament, she falls instantly in lust. When their fabulous sex turns into a relationship, Marlene runs like a scared rabbit. Will Buck give up his goal of a perfect game to convince the woman of his dreams that he loves her? Or will Marlene’s stubbornness ruin her chances at a 300 game and a man of her own?

Into the Darkness


K.F. Breene - 2014
    18+ only***I'd always been different. I saw objects in the night where others saw emptiness. Large, human shaped shadows, fierce yet beautiful, melting into the darkness. I collected secrets like other women collected bells; afraid to fully trust lest my oddities be exposed.Until I saw him. He'd been gliding down the street, unshakable confidence in every step. It wasn't just that he was breathtakingly handsome with perfect features. Something about him drew me. Sucked my focus to him and then tugged at my body. As his eyes met mine, I was entrapped.No one had noticed him. He'd been right there, just beyond the light, but only I had perceived.I had to know if he was real. Or maybe I really was crazy. And even when my secret box was blasted wide open, dangers hurled at me like throwing knives, I couldn't stop until I unraveled his true identity.I just had to know.

Wildwing


Emily Whitman - 2010
    Now she's mistaken for Lady Matilda, the pampered ward of the king. If Addy can play her part, she'll have glorious gowns, jewels, and something she's always longed for the respect and admiration of others. But then she meets Will, the falconer's son with sky blue eyes, who unsettles all her plans. From shipwrecks to castle dungeons, from betrothals to hidden conspiracies, Addy finds herself in a world where she's not the only one with a dangerous secret. When she discovers the truth, Addy must take matters into her own hands. The stakes? Her chance at true love . . . and the life she's meant to live.

A Rose in Winter


Kathleen E. Woodiwiss - 1982
    She was now Lady Saxton, mistress of a great manor all but ruined by fire, wife to a man whose mysteriously shrouded form aroused fear and pity. Yet even as she fell in love with her adoring husband, Erienne despaired of freeing her heart from the dashingly handsome Yankee who couldn't forget her. The beautiful Erienne, once filled with young dreams of romance, was now a wife and woman ... torn between the two men she loved.