Book picks similar to
The Wedding Gamble by Julia Justiss


historical-romance
romance
historical
regency

A Regrettable Proposal


Jennie Goutet - 2019
    Stratford, having met once with betrayal, desires a woman who will be true. When a complicated inheritance forces them together, they little expect this to be the answer to their innermost desires.Eleanor Daventry has come into money, but the inheritance comes with a condition: she must marry to have it. Steadfast and independent, she would rather become a schoolmistress than take a husband she does not love.Stratford Tunstall has just discovered his predecessor willed the estate’s unentailed land to Miss Daventry. Although cynical regarding love, the man recognizes a practical solution when he sees one. He and Miss Daventry must marry, and Stratford wastes no time in pressing his suit—with disastrous results. In the face of such an insulting proposal, Eleanor flees to London where she lands unwittingly in the home of Stratford’s closest friends. Now thrown together constantly, Eleanor can't help admiring his masterful apologies, never mind how often he must deliver them. Stratford concedes that, against all his predictions, Eleanor enjoys success with the ton. How fortunate. Now, if only her suitors didn’t feel the need to apply to him for advice.When combined forces threaten Eleanor’s reputation, Stratford realizes it's more than her land he cares about. Somehow, he'll have to convince Eleanor that his coming to her rescue is a deed inspired by love.

Some Enchanted Evening


Christina Dodd - 2004
    . . in a kingdom high in the Pyrenees, three young princesses were forced to flee the chaos in their land—vanishing without a trace and lost to their people . . . until the day a courageous prince can bring the princesses home.One of Scotland's most dangerous men, Robert MacKenzie is dazzled by the enchanting beauty who rides into the town he is sworn to defend. Though he is wary of the exquisite stranger, Clarice stirs emotions within him that Robert buried deeply years before. And now he must have her at any cost, vowing to gain her trust through the powers of his sensuous seduction.Torn between her need to protect her secrets and her aching desire for the dark, tormented earl of Hepburn, Clarice is pulled into Robert's glamorous world . . . and into his perilous plan for justice and revenge. And with the winds of treachery swirling around them, a runaway princess must draw Robert's heart from the shadows and make him believe in happily-ever-after.

Moonlight and Mischief


Rhonda Woodward - 2004
    Ensconced at his estate against her wishes, Mariah finds herself drawn to the handsome devil, but wonders if she can truly trust him with her heart.

In Pursuit of a Scandalous Lady


Gayle Callen - 2010
    . . revealed. Every gentleman is wondering: Who is the beauty in the scandalous nude portrait hanging in one of London's most fashionable clubs? Is it true that she's a member of the ton? Who would be so daring? So reckless?Julian Delane, Earl of Parkhurst, has a good idea. So good, in fact, that he's willing to make a wager on it. If only the bet were all that's at stake…Determined to clear the family name from a scandal that claimed his father's life, Julian believes the ravishing model will lead him to answers. Rebecca Leland—spirited, adventurous, with a bit of a wild streak—is just as determined to evade his questions. But when Julian finally corners his quarry, he may find Rebecca well worth the pursuit.

To Catch a Rogue


Amanda McCabe - 2008
    The thief must be a well-connected member of the Ton. And she doesn't need to look much further than Cameron de Vere, Earl of Westwood, for a suspect.What she doesn't realize is that her determined pursuit of a criminal is beginning to look like a budding romance. Until Cameron kisses her, and her ordered life is thrown into appalling confusion!

Ruined by Rumor


Alyssa Everett - 2012
    When he learns she's been abandoned by her cad of a fiancé, he finds himself offering a shoulder for her to cry on. Comfort soon turns into a passionate kiss—-and scandal when they are caught in an embrace.Only one thing will save Roxana from certain ruination: marriage to the earl. The match may save her reputation, but responsible, tongue-tied Ayersley is a far cry from her dashing former fiancé. She's convinced Ayersley is merely doing his duty...while he's sure Roxana is still in love with another man. Are they trading one disaster for another?92,000 words

Sweet Enemy


Heather Snow - 2012
    Nevertheless, his mother is playing matchmaker and has invited potential brides to visit the family estate. Geoffrey resigns himself to playing host to a gaggle of husband-hunters more interested in his title than in him—until he unexpectedly meets one notable and intriguing exception. Miss Liliana Claremont has no interest in being an earl’s wife, least of all Wentworth’s—the son of the man she believes murdered her father. Liliana is determined to find evidence of the crime, but her behavior rouses the earl’s suspicions as well as her own undeniable attraction to a man she thought was her enemy. As Geoffrey and Liliana explore their growing passion for one another, the truth behind their fathers’ enmity threatens to destroy their newfound love…

The Heir and the Spare


Maya Rodale - 2007
    She has beauty, charm, wit, and a hint of the exotic. Unfortunately, grace is decidedly not one of her virtues. Staircases, doors, even floors have proven her enemies, often leaving Emilia prostrate and mortified in a pile of muslin. Nevertheless, at her first ball, her dance card soon fills with the names of highly suitable men. But Emilia's eyes are on just one man—the one her aunt points out as the entirely unsuitable Lord Phillip.In fact, he isn't Lord Phillip. While Phillip, the heir, goes about spending the good family's funds, his identical twin, Devon, the spare, must attend society functions as Lord Phillip—all because of a few blasted minutes' age difference. Soon, both twins are vying for Emilia. And, under the not-so-watchful eye of Lady Palmerston, aunt and chaperone to the young lady, Emilia is unknowingly courted by two different men with the same face! But only one of them is the love of her life.

The Abduction of Julia


Karen Hawkins - 2000
    So when he accidentally snatches her instead of her lovely, scheming cousin for an elopement to Gretna Green, Julia leaps at the chance to make her passionate dreams come true.Alec's in no position to quibble: if he doesn't marry by midnight and live scandal-free for a year, he loses his inheritance. At least marriage with do-gooder Julia will guarantee his fortune. But as his plain brown wren transforms herself into an elegant swan, Alec suddenly can't stay away from his last-minute wife--and when he kisses her, the inheritance is the last thing on his mind. Unfortunately, scandal can occur from the best of intentions...and Julia is never short of good intentions!

The Harlow Hoyden


Lynn Messina - 2014
    It is Emma who is amazed. She has naturally concluded that the man reading in the conservatory must be the country cousin (who else in London would actually read?) and is quite vexed to discover that he is the Duke of Trent himself—imagine, stealing the duke’s prize Rhyncholaelia digbyana under his very nose! But her vexation doesn’t last long. For Emma is a practical young lady with a mission: to end her dear sister Lavinia’s engagement to the villainous (and dreadfully dull!) Sir Waldo Windbourne, and she thinks that the famous libertine is just the man for the job. If he would only seduce her sister away from Sir Waldo…. Well, not seduce exactly, but flirt mercilessly and engage her interest. Perhaps then Lavinia would jilt the baron. The Duke of Trent is resistant, of course. Despite his reputation, he does not toy with the affections of innocents. And besides, it’s not her sister he longs to seduce.

The Duke's Cinderella Bride


Carole Mortimer - 2009
    Claire, Duke of Stourbridge, believes Jane Smith to be a mere servant girl--albeit a remarkably attractive one! So when genteel Miss Jane is wrongly turned out of her home for inappropriate behavior following their encounter, the duke takes her in as his ward.Although Hawk is the first man to make Jane's pulse race, she knows she cannot risk falling for his devastating charm. A marriage between them would be forbidden--especially if he were to discover the shameful truth about her....

A Man Of Affairs (Signet Regency Romance)


Anne Barbour - 1999
    Into her world comes Seth, adopted son of the Duke of Derwent, looking for a bride for the duke’s son. Though passions ignite between Seth and Eden, each must obey a primary duty. And Eden will protect her sister from the rakehell marquess if she can. Regency Romance by Anne Barbour; originally published by Signet

Miss Frazer's Adventure


Debbie Raleigh - 2005
    Now I’m thrilled to have them made available once more, as fresh and adventurous as ever…   To avoid the taint of her mother’s scandalous reputation, Miss Kate Frazer stifles her naturally high spirits to become a model of propriety. But when she is rewarded with a suitor who cares only for her dowry—and leaves her waiting at the altar on her wedding day—Kate determines that she will live as she chooses. Her first adventure will be a trip to London under an assumed name to enjoy the city’s delights. And woe to anyone who stands in her way—particularly her fiancé…   Lucius Calfield wasn’t looking forward to wedlock with the tediously suitable Kate Frazer. Still, he is chagrined when a violent storm makes him late for the ceremony. But embarrassment turns to astonishment when he finds that his fiancée has vanished entirely! And that is the least of the surprises his unaccountably changed—and unexpectedly irresistible bride—has in store…     I’ve fallen in love with these timeless books all over again, and believe that you will too.   Alexandra Ivy

Silk Is for Seduction


Loretta Chase - 2011
    . .and gentlemen would kill to remove it!Brilliant and ambitious dressmaker Marcelline Noirot is London's rising star. And who better to benefit from her talent than the worst-dressed lady in the ton, the Duke of Clevedon's intended bride? Winning the future duchess's patronage means prestige and fortune for Marcelline and her sisters. To get to the lady, though, Marcelline must win over Clevedon, whose standards are as high as his morals are . . . not.The prize seems well worth the risk—but this time Marcelline's met her match. Clevedon can design a seduction as irresistible as her dresses;and what begins as a flicker of desire between two of the most passionately stubborn charmers in London soon ignites into a delicious inferno . . . and a blazing scandal.And now both their futures hang by an exquisite thread of silk . . .

Miss Winters Proposes


Frances Fowlkes - 2015
    First, she'll propose marriage to her handsome, reclusive neighbor, Lord Colwyn. Then, once she has both name and financial support, she'll be able to pursue her true (if rather unladylike) passion -- breeding dogs. But when Lord Colwyn rejects her proposal... Juliet must take matters into her own hands. The last thing Benjamin Colwyn expected was for the spirited Juliet to blackmail him into marriage -- especially not by kidnapping his beloved canine companion. Yet despite his yearning for peace and isolation, he finds himself wanting to help her, if only to protect her from a marriage to a disreputable scoundrel. He certainly doesn't expect the woman who pilfered his dog to steal his heart, as well...