Book picks similar to
The Emperor's New Clothes by Victoria Alexander
historical-romance
romance
victoria-alexander
historical
Come Love a Stranger
Kathleen E. Woodiwiss - 1980
Now, three years later, his carriage has collided with a cloaked rider on horseback: a woman who bears an uncanny resemblance to the young bride who was swallowed up by the merciless river.She awakens from unconsciousness in his magnificent home with no memory of who she is. Yet the tenderness of this noble, caring stranger who lovingly calls her "Lierin" soon captures her heart and inflames her with wanting. Then another enters their lives, threatening to destroy the happiness they have rediscovered in each other's arms--the dark and dangerous Malcolm Sinclair, who claims the enigmatic beauty is, in fact, his own wife, Lenore. But Ashton has sworn that he will not lose his adored one a second time, and he will risk any peril to preserve their newfound joy--no matter what the unremembered secrets of his lady's past ultimately reveal.LIERINWith no name and no memory, she awakens from a nightmare of madness into the lives of two stranger. One she desires, one she fears--but both have claimed her heart.To handsome plantation owner Ashton Wingate, she is Lierin--the cherished bride cruelly stolen from him by capricious Fate. The other calls her Lenore--entangling the lost, tormented beauty in his sinister web of perilous deceit. But it is in the adoring arms of noble Ashton that her true destiny awaits--as they join together to unlock the mysteries of a shadowed past. . .and to rekindle the flames of a glorious love once vanished but never forgotten.
Her Bodyguard
Geralyn Dawson - 2005
When a fortune-teller reveals that she and her sisters have the power to end the Curse of Clan McBride forever, pragmatic chocolatier Mari McBride dismisses the claim as nonsense. But when a series of tragedies befall her family and send her on a quest to save those she loves, she turns to mysterious gunslinger, Luke Garrett, for help.Luke’s desire to protect--and seduce--the beautiful Menace leads them both into danger. The violent collision of Luke's past and present reveal sinister secrets that push Mari further away. Is she cursed to be the next victim of McBride bad luck? Or will the true love of a wicked man be her--and her sisters’--salvation?
The Art of Sinning
Sabrina Jeffries - 2015
He’d much rather sample bevvies of beauties abroad, in search of a model for the provocative masterpiece he’s driven to paint. When he meets Lady Yvette Barlow at a London wedding, he realizes she’s perfect for his work—and determines to capture the young heiress’s defiant spirit and breathtaking sensuality on canvas.No stranger to scandal, Yvette agrees to be Keane’s subject—in exchange for his help gaining entry to the city’s brothels he knows intimately, so she can track a missing woman and solve a family mystery. But when their practical partnership leads to lessons in the art of sinning, can they find a bold and lasting love?
To Catch an Heiress
Julia Quinn - 1998
After all, she’s been running from unwanted marriage proposals. Yes, Blake believes she’s a notorious spy named Carlotta De Leon, but for six weeks until her twenty-first birthday, when she’ll gain control of her own fortune, hiding out in the titillating company of a mysterious captor is awfully convenient—and maybe just a little romantic, too.Blake Ravenscroft’s mission is to bring “Carlotta” to justice, not to fall in love. His heart has been hardened by years of intrigue, but this little temptress proves oddly disarming and thoroughly kissable. And suddenly the unthinkable becomes possible—that this mismatched couple might be destined for love.
Dark Secret
Marina Anderson - 1995
At twenty-three, her steady job and safe engagement seem very dull. If she is to inject a little excitement into her life, she realises, now is the time to do it.But the excitement lying in wait for Harriet is beyond even her wildest ambitions. Answering a job advertisement to assist a world-famous actress, Harriet finds herself plunged into an intense and secret world of sexual obsession - playing an unwitting part in a very private drama, but discovering in the process more about her own desires than she had ever dreamed possible...
Fury
Colin Falconer - 1991
All converge on Palestine after the war to continue the struggle for happiness.
Lady Sarah's Sinful Desires
Sophie Barnes - 2015
Then he finds the intriguing Lady Sarah scrambling around in Thorncliff's conservatory and he is instantly charmed by her passionate nature. But why is she so intent on avoiding him? Lady Sarah would make the perfect bride for a peer—if not for a tarnished past that she's hiding from the ton. A stay at Thorncliff Manor was meant to help her plan for her future, not fall in love. Yet Christopher's kisses are irresistible, his gallantry enticing. When her secret stands to be revealed, will the truth ruin their dreams of happiness?
The Inconvenient Duchess
Christine Merrill - 2006
And I'm more tired and hungry than I have ever been in my life. Please let me come home.Compromised and wedded on the same day, Lady Miranda was fast finding married life not to her taste. A decaying manor and a secretive husband were hardly the stuff of girlish dreams. Yet every time she looked at dark, brooding Marcus Radwell, Duke of Haughleigh, she felt inexplicably compelled—and determined—to make their marriage real!
With You Always
Jody Hedlund - 2017
She's had experience as a seamstress, and the New York Children's Aid Society has established a special service: placing out seamstresses and trade girls. Even though Elise doesn't want to leave her sisters for a job in Illinois, she realizes this may be their last chance. The son of one of New York City's wealthiest entrepreneurs, Thornton Quincy faces a dilemma. His father is dying, and in order to decide which of his sons will inherit everything, he is requiring them to do two things in six months: build a sustainable town along the Illinois Central Railroad, and get married. Thornton is tired of standing in his twin brother's shadow and is determined to win his father's challenge. He doesn't plan on meeting a feisty young woman on his way west, though.
Love, Come to Me
Lisa Kleypas - 1988
His mouth was blazing and hungry. She was shaking, this time not from cold but from a heat that burgeoned deep inside her…When strong and handsome Heath Rayne pulled lovely young Lucinda Caldwell from a winter river, he rescued her from an icy death. But soon he was plunging her into a torrid torrent of passion that this New England beauty had never suspected could claim her. Heath was unlike any other man Lucy had ever known—a dashing, mocking, sensuous man who came as a stranger to Lucy's Massachusetts town…and stayed as he stripped away Lucy's last shreds of resistance to the demands of desire and the flaming fulfillment of love…
The Reluctant Viking
Sandra Hill - 1994
Instead, she was lulled from a life full of a demanding business, a neglected home, and a failing marriage—to an era of hard-bodied warriors and fair maidens, fierce fighting and fiercer wooing. But the world ten centuries in the past didn’t prove to be all mead and mirth. Even as Ruby tried to update medieval times, she had to deal with a Norseman whose view of women was stuck in the Dark Ages. And what was worse, brawny Thork had her husband’s face, habits, and desire to avoid Ruby. Determined not to lose the same man twice, Ruby planned a bold seduction that would conquer the reluctant Viking—and make him an eager captive of her love.
Brighter than Gold
Cynthia Wright - 1990
Spirited Katie MacKenzie helps her father run a saloon and writes articles for the local newspaper about the Griffin, a Robin Hood-style highwayman who robs the unscrupulous mine owners and gives back to the townspeople. Irresistibly roguish Jack Adams, an adventurer with a dark secret, rides into the sleepy Sierra town one summer day and changes everything.A powerful attraction smolders and burns between Jack and Katie despite their efforts to resist, but when a tragic death occurs during one of the Griffin's stagecoach robberies, Katie is haunted by thoughts of revenge. Can Jack reconcile his life in Columbia with his surprising true identity in San Francisco... and will this couple find their way to happiness in spite of the dangerous secrets that separate them? Journey back to Civil War-era California with Jack, Katie, and historical characters like Samuel Clemens for a passionate & adventurous romance that will keep you turning the pages to the very end!
The Forest Lord
Susan Krinard - 2002
He was a monster, a woodlands guardian spirit named Lord Hern who needed an heir to end the exile that had been imposed upon him. Devastated by his deception, Eden fled Hartsmere and wed another.In a deep sleep for the last five years, Hern, the Forest Lord, has been informed that Eden—the woman he'd courted all those years ago and who had shunned his true form—has returned to Hartsmere, along with the boy he'd been told was dead. Vowing to steal back his son—and wreak vengeance upon the woman who betrayed him—Hern assumes the identity of a servant named Hartley Shaw. But with each moment he spends with the elegant woman and his beautiful son, his heart begins to cast off the bands of iron that has bound it—and he becomes devoted to finding something that will redeem the woman he has come to love.
Texas Lily
Patricia Rice - 1994
Part Apache brave and part Mexican grandee, Cade has a past and a secret. But he possesses the power and passion to command all in his path.Lily welcomes Cade into her struggle against treachery and terror—and discovers a love worth risking everything to keep.
Sphinx
T.S. Learner - 2009
During a clandestine dive to an old shipwreck, archaeologist Isabella Warnock unearths an artefact unlike anything she has ever seen: an astrarium, a powerful ancient device rumoured to have shaped the destinies of pharaohs and kings since the beginning of time. But her discovery comes at a terrible price.