Book picks similar to
The Gladiator by Carla Capshaw


romance
historical-fiction
historical
christian-fiction

Marrying Miss Marshal


Lacy Williams - 2011
     Danna Carpenter is town marshal. And a darn good one. Even if she has to handle saloon brawls and rustlers alone. Who needs deputies anyway? All right, she’d welcome the help if any of the men in town would offer it. When a bank robbery goes bad, she has no choice but to accept the help of a city slicker... He’s on a quest for revenge. Chas O'Grady came West in search of cattle rustlers and found himself on the trail of a killer--one who took everything from him. Crossing paths with the pretty marshal was happenstance, but he can't leave her deputy-less when she’s facing such grave danger. Everything changes when Chas and Danna are stranded together in a snowstorm. The town council forces a marriage. And attraction turns to something more... Will Chas give up his quest for revenge? Or will he lose the woman he loves forever? MARRYING MISS MARSHAL is a Wild West marriage of convenience story. This book was originally published in 2011 by Harlequin's Love Inspired Historical series line. It has been re-edited and now includes an extended epilogue.

Belonging


Robin Lee Hatcher - 2011
    Alone in the world with only her faith to sustain her, she must prove herself as this tiny community's new school teacher. She cannot, must not, fail. But, there are those who never wanted her there to begin with. Five years after the death of his wife, local merchant Colin Murphy cares about just one thing: raising his daughter, Charity. Colin wants to give her the educational advantages he never had. The new schoolmarm's inexperience doesn't sit well with him, and if this teacher up and marries like the last one did, Charity's heart will be broken once again. A woman who hasn't known love. A man who lost the love he had. In the midst of the wide, sage-covered plains, each is about to discover that life's bitterest circumstances truly can work together for good.

The Preacher's Bride Claim


Laurie Kingery - 2014
    A new start, a new community-what more could preacher Elijah Thornton need? Not a wife-not after the pain of losing his fiancée. But something draws him to the pretty nurse whose eyes are clouded by trouble.Only by claiming her own homestead can Alice Hawthorne avoid an unwanted marriage. Even Oklahoma may not be far enough away from New York to escape her past. Yet with courage-and the handsome reverend's support-can she forge a loving future?Bridegroom Brothers: True love awaits three siblings in the Oklahoma Land Rush

Counted with the Stars


Connilyn Cossette - 2016
    When terrifying plagues strike Egypt, Kiya is in the middle of it all.Choosing to flee with the Hebrews, Kiya finds herself reliant on a strange God and drawn to a man who despises her people. With everything she's ever known swept away and now facing the trials of the desert, will she turn back toward Egypt or surrender her life and her future to Yahweh?

Beyond All Measure


Dorothy Love - 2011
    But protecting her heart could mean missing the love of a lifetime.Ada Wentworth may be young, but she's seen enough of life to know she can only rely on herself. Everyone, including God, it seems, has let her down. Having lost her family, her fiance, and her fortune, Ada journeys from Boston to Hickory Ridge, Tennessee, to take a position as a lady's companion. Though initially charmed by the pretty little Southern town tucked into the foothills of the great Smokies, Ada plans to stay only until she can earn enough to establish a millinery shop.Her employer, Wyatt Caldwell, the local lumber mill owner, is easily the kindest, most attractive man Ada has met in Hickory Ridge. He believes providence has brought her to town and into his life. But how, after so many betrayals, can she ever trust again? Besides, Wyatt has a dream of his own. A dream that will one day take him far from Hickory Ridge.As the South struggles to heal in the aftermath of the Civil War, one woman must let go of her painful past in order to embrace God's plans for her. Can she trust Him, and Wyatt, with her future and her heart?

Hadassah: One Night with the King


Tommy Tenney - 2003
    Both a thriller and a Jewish woman's memoir, Hadassah takes readers to ancient Persia (now known as Iran), into the inner sanctum of the palace and back out into the war zones of battle and political intrigue. This gripping drama of a simple peasant girl chosen over many more qualified candidates to become Esther, Queen of Persia, captures the imagination and fires the emotions of men and women alike.

A Royal Marriage


Rachelle McCalla - 2012
    Yet en route to her wedding, her ship is attacked and she's gravely injured. Rescued by a renowned healer, King John of Lydia, Gisela recuperates at his Mediterranean castle. The handsome, widowed ruler soon has her reevaluating her beliefs on love and marriage…but only if King John could be her groom. Their love is forbidden, and duty requires him to deliver her to her betrothed. Unless they can find a way to join their hearts—and kingdoms—with love, faith and honor.

Mistress of Rome


Kate Quinn - 2010
    First-century Rome: A ruthless emperor watches over all--and fixes his gaze on one young woman... Thea is a slave girl from Judaea, purchased as a toy for the spiteful heiress Lepida Pollia. Now she has infuriated her mistress by capturing the attention of Rome's newest and most savage gladiator--and though his love brings Thea the first happiness of her life, their affair ends quickly when a jealous Lepida tears them apart.Remaking herself as a singer for Rome's aristocrats, Thea unwittingly attracts another admirer: the charismatic Emperor of Rome. But the passions of an all-powerful man come with a heavy price, and Thea finds herself fighting for both her soul and her sanity. Many have tried to destroy the Emperor: a vengeful gladiator, an upright senator, a tormented soldier, a Vestal Virgin. But in the end, the life of Domitian lies in the hands of one woman: the Emperor's mistress.

The Outlaw's Bride


Catherine Palmer - 2010
    But, while traveling in New Mexico territory, she witnesses a murder that changes everything. Suddenly, her own life is threatened--until she's rescued by fast-talking cowboy Noah Buchanan. Isobel's only chance for survival is to marry the rugged trail boss--who needs her to fulfill his own destiny. As the mismatched newlyweds unite against Lincoln County's tumultuous violence, Noah's deep faith challenges Isobel's quest for vengeance. And will lead them on a journey neither ever imagined.

A Lady Like Sarah


Margaret Brownley - 2009
    Just a hardscrabble childhood and brothers who taught her to shoot first and ask questions later.Justin Wells left Boston in disgrace, heading out alone on the dusty trail to Texas. But when the once-respected clergyman encounters a feisty redhead in handcuffs with a dying U.S. Marshal at her side, their journey takes a dramatic turn.His high-society expectations and Sarah’s outlaw habits clash from the start. With a price on her head and towing an orphaned baby rescued from the brink of starvation, Justin and Sarah make the difficult journey toward Rocky Creek. There, justice will be meted out. Perhaps—they hope—with a healthy portion of grace.Filled with mishaps, laughs, and adventure, Margaret Brownley’s inspiring romance will keep readers cheering for Sarah as she struggles to become a true lady.

Waiting for Summer's Return


Kim Vogel Sawyer - 2006
    With her husband and children lost to illness, she has no desire to continue on farther west to where she and her husband planned to build their future. Instead, she seeks employment in a small Mennonite community in order to be near the graves of her family. Widower Peter Ollenburger, the local gristmill owner, needs someone to teach his young son. When he hears of a "learned woman" in town, he believes she is the answer to his prayers. He soon discovers, however, that helping this outsider may have troublesome consequences. There is little this father will not do for his son, but as the boy begins to look at Summer as more than a teacher, Peter must make a choice. Does he marry this woman to give his son a new mother, or does he marry only for love? Will Summer's broken heart ever be able to love again?

The Cowboy Tutor


Linda Ford - 2012
    Especially not from Judd Kirk, her sister Louisa's meek tutor and—according to their mother's plans—suitor. Madge's focus is on her housekeeping job…little knowing Judd's connection to her employer, or his real reason for coming to Golden Prairie.At last, Judd has found the man who swindled his mother. Yet if he seeks revenge, he risks losing the one thing he wants even more: a woman with faith enough to rekindle his own. A woman with strong values and a gentle heart. A woman like Madge.

Seaside Cinderella


Anna Schmidt - 2008
    Her quiet existence as companion to an elderly couple was a blessing for the tragedy-haunted Irish immigrant. But all that changed when her employers' handsome, elegantly attired son stepped ashore. For she recognized him instantly as the owner of the Boston factory where a terrible fire had scarred her forever. She knew she should hate Gabriel Hunter, yet she could not. She found herself drawn to the caring soul she sensed behind the ruthless facade he showed the world. And she could not help dreaming that such different people--a poor servant girl and a wealthy merchant prince--might somehow make a life together.

The Reluctant Outlaw


Karen Kirst - 2011
    But on a perilous journey through the Smoky Mountains, he becomes her unlikely protector. And when he pledges to return her home safely, she somehow finds herself believing him.Evan Harrison has risked everything to find the men who killed his brother. Saving spirited, strong-willed Juliana could blow his cover with a deadly gang. Yet her courage and unwavering faith make him dream of the home and family he thought he could never have. And suddenly, that future is incomplete—without Juliana in it.

The Pelican Bride


Beth White - 2014
    Both have promised to marry one of the rough men toiling in this strange new world in order to escape suffering in the old. Geneviève knows life won’t be easy, but at least here she can establish a home and family without fear of persecution for her outlawed religious beliefs. When she falls in love with Tristan Lanier, an expatriate cartographer-turned-farmer whose checkered past is shrouded in mystery, Geneviève realizes that even in this land of liberty one is not guaranteed peace. Trouble is brewing outside the fort between the French colonists and the native people surrounding them. And an even more sinister enemy may lurk within. Could the secret Geneviève harbors mean the undoing of the colony itself?