Book picks similar to
Kingdom's Dream (Firebird) by Iris Gower


paperback
previously-read
romance
romance-historical

A Love Like Ours


Rosie Harris - 2008
    Not only faced with a life of adversity, Ruth and her mother Caitlin also share a secret, one that no one else must ever know. Ruth and Caitlin's wages are barely enough to put food on the table let alone pay the rent. And an increasingly neglected young Glynis runs wild. When Caitlin contracts tuberculosis and dies they have no option but to move into an even more squalid neighbourhood. But Ruth is still determined to keep their secret, at all costs. That is, until their father dies unexpectedly and an ever more desperate Ruth and Glynis find themselves living hand-to-mouth...

A Crooked Mile


Ruth Hamilton - 1995
    But as more children are born, Joe's wife Tess sinks deeper into the obsession that will be her undoing. When Tess screams her belief that the area is cursed, few people heed her ravings. She is ignored, even as the Myrtle Street tragedies become more frequent and begin to feature in local gossip. It is left to Megan, the third Duffy child - the one who felt she was unworthy and unloved because she had been born a girl - to end the curse. When she becomes embroiled in a web of deceit, Megan needs all her strength, talents, and wit in order to survive. But it is her capacity to give love that ensures her family's stability, the future of the Althorpe cotton mills, and the safekeeping of the Hall i' the Vale.

The Trap


Mary Jane Staples - 1993
    The house was owned by Henry Mullins, big, burly, and a hard drinker. Henry made life hell for his four stepchildren who looked half-starved and frequently got bashed. Seventeen-year-old Kitty was the one Jamie felt most sorry for. She took the brunt of Henry Mullins' bad temper whilst trying to protect her sisters and brother. When Mullins suddenly died - in somewhat suspicious circumstances - Kitty realised they could be in trouble. If she wasn't careful the authorities would take the younger children away - split the family up. She wasn't having that, not after all they'd gone through, and nice, kind Jamie Blair was the one to save them. Too late Jamie found himself with a ready-made family and a stubborn and fiery young termagant called Kitty who was determined not to let him go.

The Fisher Lass


Margaret Dickinson - 1999
    The groom marries the girl his parents chose, but Jeannie cannot forget him, even after she marries Gracie's brother.

A Scattering Of Daisies


Susan Sallis - 1984
    Will Rising had dragged himself from humble beginnings to his own small tailoring business in Gloucester - and on the way he'd fallen violently in love with Florence, refined, delicate, and wanting something better for her children. March was the eldest girl, the least loved, the plain, unattractive one who, as the family grew, became more and more the household drudge. But March, a strange, intelligent, unhappy child, had inherited some of her mother's dreams. March Rising was determined to break out of the round of poverty and hard work, to find wealth, and love, and happiness.

A Rose Among Thorns


Rosie Goodwin - 2009
    So Sassy is devastated when her father marries wealthy widow Elizabeth Bonner. Social climber Elizabeth despairs of a step-daughter who is more at ease with servants than those above stairs, and is jealous of Sassy's growing beauty which threatens to outshine her own daughter. Unwelcome and out of place in this unfamiliar world, Sassy often escapes to her old home on Tuttle Hill and the company of her childhood friends, brothers Thomas and Jack Mallabone. But the trio's bond is threatened by the consequences of her blind adoration for wayward Thomas, much to the dismay of Jack, who has long worshipped Sassy in secret...

The House Of Bonneau


Elvi Rhodes - 1990
    They knew they had struggles of a practical nature ahead of them - trying to build the bankrupt mill into a new and thriving business - but Madeleine felt that, providing everything was right between her and Leon, they could face whatever lay ahead. But trouble and disruption were still to be part of her future - for Leon's family in France bitterly resented the Yorkshire girl who had taken their son away from them. And Hortense Murer, who had thought she would be Leon's wife, resented her even more. And over all hung the shadow of a foolish curse made by her old enemy, Sophia Parkinson - that Madeleine would never bear a son - a curse that, against all the tenets of common sense, seemed to be coming true.

Echo of Another Time


Audrey Howard - 1995
    Harper. By the age of 18 she has become a talented cook, but when she falls in love with a Latimer, all their lives change with frightening swiftness.

From this Day Forth


Lyn Andrews - 1997
    Lizzie and Celia are the best of friends. But their families, the Miltons and the Slatterys, are the worst of enemies, divided by religion and by status. So their friendship is a carefully guarded secret, for if Celia's father Charlie ever heard of it he would beat her to within an inch of her life.Then one day the unthinkable happens. Joe Slattery, Lizzie's brother, does a good turn for the Milton family and rescues their youngest from a grievous accident. From that day forth, Celia Milton just can't get Joe out of her mind. And, despite himself, Joe Slattery is increasingly drawn to Celia and to a love that seems doomed to heartbreak - unless they can find a way around the prejudice of generations and the terrifying bigotry of Charlie Milton...

Maggie’s Heart : Western Romance Novel


Kelsey Graves - 2019
    She was married to her job, but that changed when her friend invited her for a vacation on a Wyoming Dude Ranch. Little did Maggie know that she would fall in love, but with the wrong man. Could she move past her mistake and find the love she didn’t know she was looking for? The Carter family owned the ranch that Maggie and Candie had chosen. Steve, the oldest son, was responsible for the daily running of the ranch when the California girls came to find adventure. He rescued Maggie from the man who meant her harm but happened to develop feelings for the woman, something he had not bargained for. Twists of fate prevented him from pursuing those feelings. Was he destined to continue his life without love? Note: This is a standalone romance novel sweet and clean with a HEA!

Don't Cry Alone


Josephine Cox - 1992
    But Beth's mother, Esther, is jealous of the girl and seizes an opportunity to be rid of her daughter. Banished in disgrace from the family home, Beth takes the northbound train and alights at Blackburn, friendless and alone. On this day, Fortune smiles, for Beth is taken in by warm-hearted Maisie Armstrong, a widow with two children. Money is scarce, but love abounds in the cosy house on Larkhill, and Beth is content there to await the birth of her child. But she cannot forget Tyler, and is tormented by the belief that he has betrayed her . . .

Lamplight on the Thames


Pamela Evans - 1990
    Since the end of the war, when Bob Brown had taken over the car workshop in London, Frank Bennett had been trying to get his hands on it. An East Ender made good, Frank was determined to get the prime site - whatever the cost.As children, Bob's daughter Bella and Frank's son Dezi became unlikely friends, though both families disapproved. Years later, their love blossomed, and it seemed that nothing, not even the feud between their fathers, could prevent their marriage. Until Bob's tragic death and his dying request to Bella . . .

Every Kind of Way


A. Jones - 2018
     Marley and Drexel had been dating for two years, and best friends for even longer. On paper they made sense, on paper they were the ideal goals, but in her heart, she knew they were never supposed to be. Drexel didn’t give her butterflies. He didn’t make her heart race. Her body flush with heat or her sex thump. No, he didn’t ignite her desire. He didn’t make her choose recklessness over common sense. Risk over safety. No one man could do that and do it so well. Well… Demetri Savant. The walking embodiment of pure unadulterated sex. The only man to make her abandon every bit of her morals. The only person to singlehandedly challenge the life she settled for. He was a risk she craved, but she was used to safety. Torn between her heart and hurting another, what will Marley choose? Better yet, who will she choose?

Poor Little Rich Girl


Katie Flynn - 2002
    Hester Lowe agrees to act as governess to spoilt, self-willed, little Lonnie Hetherington-Smith when they leave India to live with Lonnie's elderly aunt in Shaw Street, Liverpool. Hester speedily realises that her new employer dislikes her niece and means to make life uncomfortable for both of them. Things improve a little when they meet the poor, but happy, Bailey family who live in a court off Heyworth Street. Hester likes Dick Bailey very much, but her employer does not permit 'followers', whilst Lonnie and young Ben Bailey are deadly enemies. Then, the regime in Shaw Street changes and Hester is forced to leave the comforts of a middle-class household to make her own way in what is, to her, a strange country... Poor Little Rich Girl is sure to please the huge and growing fanbase of one of the most popular saga authors in the country, with more than two million books sold nationwide.

Walking My Baby Back Home


Joan Jonker - 1998
    But when John Kershaw turns up on her doorstep, she can't blame her kids, Katy and Colin, for wanting another man about the house. John's the boss of a local factory, and a kind and caring man who can't seem to do enough for the Bakers and their friends and neighbours. He defends Mary Campbell when she is attacked by her violent husband; he encourages Colin and Katy in all that they do; and he puts a smile on Dot's face that's been missing since her husband's death. Everyone in the street can see they're meant to be together, but the one person who's blind to John's charm is Dot herself. What's it going to take to make her realise where her happiness lies...?