Book picks similar to
MacLaren's Bride by Debra Dier


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A Lady's Forever Love


Bridget Barton - 2020
    Against society, she takes on the child of her deceased poor friend, and she is determined that she will never marry a man who wouldn't approve of her. When her childhood friend returns home from war, Margaret has no doubt that he is the fairytale prince she has always been waiting for. Little does she know that her father would rather die than see his daughter married to the gamekeeper's son. To make matters worse, she becomes betrothed to a man who craves nothing but her generous dowry. Will Margaret escape the grim future her father has planned for her? Will she find meaning in her life again by Nigel's side?Captain Nigel Bateson comes back to Cornwell to discover that his secret crush is engaged to a hateful man, raising a child of mysterious origins. Unable to bury his growing feelings for her and defying all odds, he wishes to marry her at the earliest opportunity. But this is going to be an uphill struggle, as he first has to help her run away from her detestable fiance and prove to her father that he is a respectable man despite his class. Will Nigel rescue the affectionate woman who stole his heart years ago? Or will he have to witness her marry a man that will make her life a living hell?Even though Margaret and Nigel come from different worlds, their love can overcome the obstacles that tend to keep them apart. But her evil husband-to-be will never accept his defeat, and he is determined to do whatever it takes to make her suffer. Will the two of them find a way to overcome the obstacles that threaten to take away the happiness they deserve? In the end, will their love survive a violent storm and bring sunshine to their hearts?

Never a Mistress, No Longer a Maid


Maureen Driscoll - 2011
    After a night of passion, the two are separated. With nothing but the alias Jane used to protect her family, Lord Edward is unable to find the woman he cannot forget.Seven years later, Jane courts scandal by serving as the unofficial surgeon in the village of Marston Vale. When Edward arrives to formalize his betrothal to a viscount's daughter in accordance with his late father's wishes, Jane has no choice but to watch the match proceed. When a threat from the past emerges, Jane must join forces with Edward to safeguard her loved ones. But at what risk to her heart?

Her Master and Commander


Karen Hawkins - 2006
    Reeves must seek out the first of the earl's arrogant sons, Captain Tristan Llevanth, a one-time pirate, and teach him to be a gentleman.A will of steel...Tristan Llevanth gave up his free-wheeling life as a pirate to fight at Admiral Nelson's side. Wounded, Tristan will never again sail the seas he loves. Life has no more challenges. Or so he thinks, until Reeves brings a certain outspoken lady into the captain's uncultured household...An iron-clad spirit...Reeves believes Tristan needs a spark to relight the fires of his soul. And who better than lovely Prudence Thistlewaite, the bane of the captain's existence? Prudence wants nothing to do with her wickedly handsome, ill-tempered neighbor. Still, she cannot refuse the outlandish sum Reeves offers to smooth Tristan's rough edges.

Jane Fairweather: A Madcap Regency Romance (The Fairweather Sisters Book 4)


Anya Wylde - 2021
    

Highlander's Burned Heart


Alisa Adams - 2020
    But she is the only one who can salvage his soul. Fiona Malloch feels completely lost. Only weeks after her forced marriage, the husband she hated dies of old age, and before she can feel relief, another man tries to prey on her! Fiona decides to risk everything and run away, seeking refuge in the nearby Ormond Castle, home of the infamous Laird Bhaltair Douglas.The young Laird has never been the same after the tragic loss of his brother in a fire. The scars on his body remind him daily of the tragedy and his failure to save his own blood. A failure that has alienated him from his family and spread rumors that the once-powerful clan is now weak.When the young lass arrives and asks for shelter, Bhaltair knows that helping her will mean war with the enemy clan she escaped from. They have been waiting for an opportunity, and Fiona has given them the perfect one.Her untamed character brings them into collision, but in an unexpected turn of events, Bhaltair decides to protect her. While staying in Douglas lands, Fiona seems to be the only one who is not afraid to defy the Laird and finds a way to penetrate his soul’s defenses. Bhaltair’s heart begins to heal, and he rediscovers emotions he thought he would never feel again.But by keeping Fiona, Bhaltair is losing the trust of his clan, and with his enemies at the doorstep, it seems that the girl who can save him is about to destroy his clan…

A Moment in Time


Bertrice Small - 1991
    She devotes herself to managing the great family estate in Wales, vowing to protect it and her younger brother until he comes of age to inherit. Then Madoc of Powys enters her life, and all her beliefs are turned upside down. For Wynne and Madoc have been lovers in another time, another place. And an unfinished destiny lies between them . . .

That Scandalous Evening


Christina Dodd - 1998
    . . .A Disastrous Season A simple statue began the scandal.A Lady Concealed An innocent English miss conceived of it, her hands gliding across the clay, delineating each smoothly defined muscle and sinew, creating a sculpture of the man she worshipped. When the likeness was exposed, along with Miss Jane Higgenbothem's secret tendre for Lord Blackburn, the ton's gleeful contempt sent the lady back to the country in disgrace.A Gentleman Revealed Now, a decade later, she's back in London, as a chaperone to her beautiful niece. But to Blackburn, Jane's unwitting model, the cool, reticent spinster is still a challenge. She once made the arrogant rake a laughingstock; so why is he tempted to revive an affair that almost began so long ago, on that scandalous evening . . . ?

Rainwater


Sandra Brown - 2009
    She cooks, cleans, launders, and cares for her ten-year-old son, Solly, a sweet but challenging child whose busy behavior and failure to speak elicits undesired advice from others in town. Ella’s plate is full from sunup to sundown. When a room in her boarding house opens up, the respected town doctor brings Ella a new boarder―the handsome and gallant Mr. David Rainwater—but Ella is immediately resistant to opening up her home to this mysterious stranger. Even with assurances that Mr. Rainwater is a man of impeccable character, a former cotton broker and a victim of the Great Depression, Ella stiffens at the thought of taking him in. Dr. Kincaid tells Ella in confidence that Mr. Rainwater won’t require the room for long: he is dying. Begrudgingly, Ella accepts Mr. Rainwater’s application to board, but she knows that something is happening; she is being swept along by an unusual series of events. Soon, this strong-minded, independent woman will realize that the living that she has eked out for herself in the small bubble of her town is about to change, whether she likes it or not... Racial tensions, the financial strain of livelihoods in cotton drying up into dust, and the threat of political instability swirl together into a tornado on the horizon. One thing is certain: the winds of change are blowing all over Texas—and through the cracks in the life that Ella Barron has painstakingly built. This is the story of a woman who takes her life’s circumstances in both hands, but who will be forced to reckon with the chaos of her historical circumstances..

Violet


Lauren Royal - 2002
    For one thing, she's not planning to marry. Plain Violet is smart enough to realize any suitors would be after her large inheritance, or else interested in her beautiful younger sisters—and she'd much rather spend her time improving her mind than risking her tender heart...Having wasted six years wooing a lady who eloped with another man, Ford Chase, Viscount Lakefield, has had it with women. Ford would much rather spend his time pursuing the sciences and constructing the first watch with a minute hand. Having his young niece dropped in his lap proves an unwelcome, annoying distraction…until an uncommonly intelligent neighbor named Violet comes to help…

Betrothal


Arnette Lamb - 1992
    When Blake Chesterfield arrives in Bath, England, to claim the hand of Marjorie Entwhistle, the woman with whom he has been obsessed, Marjorie wants nothing to do with him.

Unlaced


Kristina Cook - 2004
    Instead, she’s caught up in a whirlwind of balls, marriage proposals, and ton intrigues. Worse, she finds herself irresistibly drawn to her sponsors’ maddening neighbor, Henry Ashton, the Marquess of Mandeville. The handsome, arrogant, sometimes infuriating Mandeville stokes a passionate fire within her that won’t be denied, no matter the consequence.Deep, emotional scars secretly plague Henry, Lord Mandeville. As a result, he’s avoided romantic entanglements at all costs. Only, now he needs a wife—someone from a wealthy, powerful family to further his political aspirations. Instead, he finds himself all but obsessed with the beautiful but unconventional Lucy Abbington—a woman whose passions and wit stir desires he’d rather ignore. And yet…she might just be the one woman who can heal his wounded heart.Lucy and Henry’s heads say no, but their hearts say yes. Will they find themselves undone by love?

Lord of the Night


Connie Mason - 1993
    Original.

Fallen Angel


Catherine Hart - 1989
    But no one at the secluded desert convent guessed that behind her angelic smile burned a hot flame of desire.

Too Wicked To Love


Barbara Dawson Smith - 1999
    Jane Mayhew is "a dried-up spinster", the childhood "Miss Maypole" he never noticed. Jane takes charge of the babe abandoned on her doorstep with his signet ring. His mother and her godmother, Lady Rosalind provides a wet nurse, his ex-wife Portia provides danger.

Her Notorious Viscount


Jenna Petersen - 2009
    . .Viscount Nicholas Stoneworth is infamous—even being mentioned in the same breath with him is enough to ruin a lady's reputation. Why, the man's spent years in London's underworld pursuing every sort of vice while parlaying his hard muscled body into fame and fortune as a fighter! With his brother's untimely death, Nicholas must assume the title and relearn the civilized ways of the ton . . . and proper Jane Fenton is more than willing to teach him everything she knows.Circumstances may have forced Jane into the role of ladies' companion, but she knows the danger of associating with a notorious man like Nicholas, a man who could tempt any woman into certain scandal. But her brother disappeared into the same underworld four long years ago, and if she transforms the libertine into a gentleman, he will use his connections to find him. Still, Jane will not—cannot—lose control. She must ignore the promise of sinful pleasure in his eyes . . . and her own wild desires desperate to break free.