From their earliest days, children of aristocrats learn how to address an earl and curtsey before a prince—while other dictates of the ton are unspoken yet universally understood. A proper duke should be imperious and aloof. A young, marriageable lady should be amiable… but not too amiable.Daphne Bridgerton has always failed at the latter. The fourth of eight siblings in her close-knit family, she has formed friendships with the most eligible young men in London. Everyone likes Daphne for her kindness and wit. But no one truly desires her. She is simply too deuced honest for that, too unwilling to play the romantic games that captivate gentlemen.Amiability is not a characteristic shared by Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings. Recently returned to England from abroad, he intends to shun both marriage and society—just as his callous father shunned Simon throughout his painful childhood. Yet an encounter with his best friend’s sister offers another option. If Daphne agrees to a fake courtship, Simon can deter the mamas who parade their daughters before him. Daphne, meanwhile, will see her prospects and her reputation soar.The plan works like a charm—at first. But amid the glittering, gossipy, cut-throat world of London’s elite, there is only one certainty: love ignores every rule...

    He is just a boy when his father is slain by the Doones, a lawless clan inhabiting wild Exmoor on the border of Somerset and Devon. Seized by curiosity and a sense of adventure, he makes his way to the valley of the Doones, where he is discovered by the beautiful Lorna. In time their childish fantasies blossom into mature love—a bond that will inspire John to rescue his beloved from the ravages of a stormy winter, rekindling a conflict with his archrival, Carver Doone, that climaxes in heartrending violence. Beloved for its portrait of star-crossed lovers and its surpassing descriptions of the English countryside, Lorna Doone is R. D. Blackmore’s enduring masterpiece.

    Nicholas Brogan is an ex-pirate with years of sin branded on his soul. Captured by His Majesty's marshals, the two are on their way to the gallows until they stage a daring escape and run for their lives—shackled together by an iron chain that quickly proves unbreakable. Lost in a remote forest in Staffordshire, the pair of outlaws are forced to work together to survive and quickly find themselves locked in a battle of fierce wills…and fiery passions.“4 stars (highest rating). This could be the romance that takes Shelly Thacker to the big time: the hardcover contract, the fan club… Thacker always spins a good story, but this is her best ever. There’s a new depth of soul to go with all that heart.” –The Detroit Free Press“Thacker skillfully entangles a notorious ex-pirate with a high-born lady turned thief… Offers an exciting and innovative plot…and many steamy love scenes.” –Publishers Weekly"A thrilling romantic adventure, exciting and sensual. Shelly Thacker has a unique and dazzling talent!" -Lisa Kleypas, New York Times bestselling authorAn earlier edition of this novel was published by Avon Books under the title Run Wild. This new Author’s Preferred Edition has been revised by the author.The Escape with a Scoundrel SeriesThese sexy bad boys are on the wrong side of the law—and willing to break all the rules to protect the women they love. Each book is a stand-alone steamy historical romance:Book 1: ESCAPE WITH A SCOUNDREL (Nicholas and Samantha)Book 2: HER SCOUNDREL EARL (Marcus and Elizabeth)Book 3: ONE NIGHT WITH A SCOUNDREL (Saxon and Ashiana)Book 4: A SCOUNDREL’S KISS (Max and Marie)

    A handsome and reclusive horse breeder, Spencer Dumarque, the fourth Duke of Morland, is a member of the exclusive Stud Club, an organization so select it has only ten members--yet membership is attainable to anyone with luck. And Spencer has plenty of it, along with an obsession with a prize horse, a dark secret, and, now, a reputation as the dashing "Duke of Midnight." Each evening he selects one lady for a breathtaking midnight waltz. But none of the women catch his interest, and nobody ever bests the duke--until Lady Amelia d'Orsay tries her luck. In a moment of desperation, the unconventional beauty claims the duke's dance and unwittingly steals his heart. When Amelia demands that Spencer forgive her scapegrace brother's debts, she never imagines that her game of wits and words will lead to breathless passion and a steamy proposal. Still, Spencer is a man of mystery, perhaps connected to the shocking murder of the Stud Club's founder. Will Amelia lose her heart in this reckless wager or win everlasting love?

    Her options for a bridegroom are limited...until she remembers the shy servant boy next door. Then she discovers that her childhood friend is actually Viscount Thurlow—ruthless businessman, future earl, and a man whose family is shrouded in scandal! After two rejected marriage proposals, David Thurlow needs a wife who will give him an heir, someone who will not only overlook his past but also be above reproach. Victoria is the ideal candidate—quiet, unassuming, and in desperate need of funds. But even as she strives to be the perfect wife, her calm demeanor masks a shocking secret...one that is overshadowed by David's slow, heated lessons in the art of seduction that threaten to transform a "convenient" marriage into a torrid and passionate affair.

    . .If one is to believe Bram Stoker’s legendary vampire tale, Lucy Weston is Dracula’s most wanton creation, a sexual creature of the night who preys on innocent boys. But the real-life Lucy is nothing like her fictional counterpart -- and she demands to know why the Victorian author deliberately lied. With Stoker’s reluctant help, she’s determined to track down the very fiend who transformed her -- from the sensual underworld where humans vie to become vampires, to a hidden cell beneath a temple to madness, and finally into the glittering Crystal Palace where death reigns supreme.Haunted by fragmentary memories of her lost life and love, Lucy must battle her thirst for blood as she struggles to stop a catastrophic war that will doom vampires and humans alike. Ultimately, she must make a choice that illuminates for her -- and for us -- what it means to be human.

    Entrusted with delivering a small black box to its rightful owner, she calls upon Graham Wessit, the notorious Earl of Netham, whose life has been forever marred by rumor and scandal.But Graham wants nothing to do with a bequest from the man he holds responsible for his ruin—or with the bewitching emissary who brings it. In the face of breathtaking erotic mystery—in the throes of an inflamed passion unbeckoned but impossible to deny—a rogue's hardened heart may be undone by love...and a staid beauty in straits may learn the exquisite, sensuous freedom of surrender.

    It was a time of hand-to-hand combat, the invention of the longbow, and real knights in armor. Simon was born in 1386, the illegitimate son of Geoffrey of Malvallet. After his mother's death in 1400, he and his half-brother, the legitimate son and heir of his father, became great friends of the Prince, fighting against France. Simon of Beauvallet is what he called himself. But as the tales of his chivalrous exploits spread throughout the realm -- even to the king's chambers -- the people who loved him would call him Simon the Lynx-Eyed... the Soft-Footed... even Simon the Lion. Indeed, Simon was all of these things. Valiant and strong, with a keen mind and fair visage, he had defied his ignoble birth to become a page, then a squire, and at last a lord of the land.Friend of kings and princes, gentle and just with his people, and known for his silence Simon seemed to lack only one emotion -- the ability to love. In truth, not even the most lovely and charming ladies of his time could stir the sleeping passion within him. For this they called him Simon the Coldheart. Until he came upon Margaret, a French Lady. The Amazon. The Tigress. After the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, he was sent to besiege Belremy, where he met the heartless beauty whose courage and strength of will were more than a match for this knight in gilded armor. Margaret, who eventually surrendered to the English and became his bride. Although he had captured her kingdom, Simon would never capture her heart....

    All's well, until someone threatens to reveal her married status and expose her to scandal—unless she can obtain an original, signed copy of a Shakespearian play, owned by none other than the reclusive and mysterious William Raleigh, Duke of Trent.Vivian is unexpectedly drawn to Raleigh, and, for the price of passion, he ends up joining her quest to catch the blackmailer, a discovery which only leads them to more danger. And although their bond only grows stronger, they soon realise the fruitlessness of their relationship—a married woman of noble background cannot enter into an illicit affair with the Duke of Sin...or can she?

    That is until a devastatingly handsome Duke walks into her shop with the most outrageous demand.The new Duke of Ryland cursed his fate and his philandering great uncle. To collect his inheritance, he must turn the old Duke's three by-blow offspring into proper ladies and marry them off. Two are mere children, but Caroline Dutton is all woman--a headstrong beauty he can't help wanting to seduce.Now ensconced in Ryland's country estate, Caroline is being called a Lady and readied for the marriage mart during the next London season. Her dowry is large, her past overlooked, and her prospects bright... except she is breathlessly, madly drawn to the one man who is sweeping her toward scandal--and the sweet satisfaction her heart demands.

    Assuming the guise of a dandy, William is as far away from London scandal as he can get-or so he thinks. Then he crosses paths with a pretty outcast who might just be the solution to his problems.

     Includes four Balogh holiday classics, The Star of Bethlehem, The Best Gift, Playing House, and No Room At the Inn, as well as A Family Christmas, which is only available in this anthology.

    Charlotte Harris, headmistressLady Amelia Plume has many admirers -- it's too bad they're all fortune hunters and fops who can't provide the exotic adventures she seeks.But the ballrooms of Mayfair have become much more appealing since the arrival of Major Lucas Winter, an American with a dark past and a dangerous air. Lucas is brash, arrogant -- and scandalously tempting.Every thrilling kiss sparks hotter desire, yet Amelia suspects that Lucas has a hidden motive in wooing her. And she intends to discover it, by any means necessary

    Her imagination is fired up, so when she spies Matthew Devenport, Marquess Langston, mysteriously sneaking home in the wee hours clutching a shovel, she simply must investigate. Impelled by curiosity, the adventurous lass steals into his bedchamber—only to be caught red-handed by the impossibly handsome and totally naked nobleman.The Marquess Langston has more important things to worry about than a group of literature-loving ladies. But Matthew's grand plan to rescue the family from ruin could be lost when he discovers Sarah hiding behind his bedroom curtain. What is this meddlesome woman up to? And why are his desires inflamed by a chit who is too inquisitive for her own good? Well, two can play at this game . . . and when Matthew captures the beguiling Sarah in all her naked glory, the night of mischief has only just begun.

    When she comes face to face with the one who stole her future, she seizes the opportunity to exact revenge. Soon he is her prisoner, at her mercy. But something is different about him, something that makes her question her purpose. Is it possible a man can be so changed? More, can she right the wrong that could lay ruin to her family? SHE WAS A QUESTION NEVER BEFORE ASKED OF HIM Ranulf Wardieu does not seek a bride, nor a settling of scores when his mission for the king places him in the path of a beguiling, raven-haired maiden. But fascination turns to fury when she imprisons him. Accused of wrongdoing, the nature of which she refuses to reveal, he discovers the lady is as skilled at wielding a sword as she is at verbal sparring. When he bests her at her game and his jailer becomes his captive, he is determined to learn what wrong he has done her. However, as they engage in a battle of wits and wills and he glimpses her woman’s heart, he discovers Lizanne is a question never before asked of him—one his own jaded heart refuses to answer.