One day, Rowena Caxton was the proud owner and mistress of a large estate. The next, she had lost everything and was forced to take up residence with her only remaining family. Her days became an endless round of fetch and carry, though she would not complain. She was relieved, however, when the arrival of the new Earl of Farleigh interrupted the routine and caused a flurry of excitement in the neighbourhood. She could well understand the excitement generated by the handsome and erudite earl. But she constantly cautioned herself against her runaway heart. After all, what interest could such a man have in a poor relation?

    But saving her from an uncertain fate is not enough, especially when they happen to fall in love.

    This spinster daughter of his reclusive estate tenant had secrets tucked in her satchel and a fierce independence which could ensnare even a dashing rake. Regency Romance by Anne Barbour; originally published by Signet

    Since her brother George had pressing business of his own, Diana was left to try to entertain their guest--who could not sit down. But her suitors irritated him, her curiosity intrigued him, her innocence charmed him--and her fencing outfit undid him.

    Why, just about anyone would make a more suitable match...even her own paid companion, Emily Townsend! But if her dear, practical-minded Robert were to back out of the betrothal, the tongues of the ton would never stop wagging...At the very least, the dowager decides, she will extract a promise from her grandson to find Emily a husband. But when the handsome, rakish earl comes to know the charms of Emily Townsend, he suddenly regrets his hasty engagement-and is sorely tempted to win her hand for himself.

    A failed governess, she knows nothing about children and even less about those that are grieving. Thrust into the wilds of Surrey - and the dubious charms of a rundown cottage - she predicts that life will be singularly dull. But that is before she meets her neighbor, a sinfully wicked viscount whose reputation for seduction is legendary. Her well meaning neighbors warn her to stay away and even the man himself seems inclined to think she is a fool to dally with him, but she is convinced that she and Chetwyn have more than just sexual tension in common. What is it about this wicked man that urges her to break the rules? And how can she convince someone who believes himself to be beyond redemption that the heart is always capable of resurrection?

    Leaving Fanny, a widow younger than his own daughter Serena is one thing, but quite another is leaving his daugther's fortune to the trusteeship of Ivo Barrasford, marquis of Rotherham -- a man whom Serena once jilted and who now has the power to give or withhold his consent to any marriage she might contemplate. Lady Serena Carlow is an acknowledged beauty, many eager suitors have vied for her hand, but she's got a temper as fiery as her head of red hair. When her father dies unexpectedly, Serena discovers to her horror that she has been left a ward of the odious Lord Rotherham. Serena raged as she heard her father's last will and testament! How could he mortgage his only daughter to Lord Rotherham, making the very man she had recently jilted caretaker of her inheritance and her heart?Her father's heir is eager to take over his inheritance--and her lifelong home-- but the the fiery-hearted Serena is not so easily controlled. She with her lovely young stepmother, Fanny as "chaperone", decide to move to Bath. There they'd turn the ton inside out! Volatile Serena and gentle Fanny could not be less alike but they are good friends. Serena makes an odd new friend and discovers a childhood sweetheart, Major Hector Kirkby. All too soon, the scandalous Serena had more beaux than she could dangle on a string, but none of them seemed to matter--now that her former suitor Rotherham pursued another beautiful belle! What she cannot know is that the astute Rotherham has a calculate scheme of his own for capturing her heart. Before long, Serena, Fanny, Kirkby, and Rotherham are entangled in a welter of misunderstood emotions, mistaken engagements, and misdirected love.

    And if she ever did, it certainly would not be to the high-handed, hot-tempered Captain William Summers.The swashbuckling Summers was a naval hero who found himself at sea in the London social swim and demanded that Jeannie help his pretty niece take the plunge into the London Marriage Mart. With her innocent charge in tow, Jeannie sailed into action--trying to steer a safe course in a whirlpool of romantic intrigue... and trying to keep herself from being swept away in a wild storm of love...

    The fantastic notions and romantic heroes contained in those books are the only thing that distracts her from the abuse of her adopted family. But then a mysterious stranger, the Earl of Austell, finds they have a mutual malady of boredom, and he endeavors to rescue them both.

    Now a governess to the delightful Heythrop family, she once again encounters her former fiancé, Lord Steyne, while in the midst of a summer-long family treasure hunt. Misunderstanding and sadness lay in the past; would the future hold more hurt—or happiness?

    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!

     Two young people compete in the game of love… 1814, Bath “I promise you, she’s the most delightful creature, with a quirky sense of humour very like your own. As for the other qualities you mention – birth, breeding, experience of managing a household of consequence – she has them all, with amiability and common sense besides!” So Henrietta Melville is described to the Honourable Julian Aldwyn, who is on the look-out for a wife who will prove restful after an earlier, disastrous love-affair. But there’s much more to Miss Melville than meets the eye. Although she is a spirited and intelligent heiress, at twenty-six and still unmarried, she’s considered to be on the shelf. Julian is certain his offer will not be refused. But then comes a whirlwind month in Bath, a dastardly rake, secrets from the past ... all calculated to turn any woman’s head. Could Henrietta become the conformable wife Julian is looking for? Or will someone else catch her eye…? A CONFORMABLE WIFE is a classic historical novel by Alice Chetwynd Ley: a traditional British, post Regency romance novel set in nineteenth century England. ‘Alice Chetwynd Ley's books were my favourite regency romances. I still have every one of her books on my keeper shelf with The Beau and the Bluestocking and The Jewelled Snuffbox in pride of place’ – Historical and Regency Romance UK ‘These vintage Regency romances hover somewhere between Jane Austen and the genre as we know it today. I really enjoy them.’ - Sonya’s Stuff

    But even Lilyanne wasn't daring enough to get involved with Kennard Cartland, the Duke of Caswell. As dashing as the devil, he'd have been a perfect match if not for the rumors that he was a collector of broken hearts. An isolated portraitist who preferred a woman in oils to one of flesh and blood, he was also said to be completely daft. But the more Lilyanne heard, the more intrigued she became. Perhaps this would finally be her Season to give in to a dangerously irresistible temptation, and discover for herself what she and the duke had to offer each other...

    He offers to pay her to impersonate her long-lost twin sister, who has mysteriously disappeared in Scotland. But she never counted on falling for her sister's rakish fiancee, the handsome Earl of Linley. And what would happen if he found out that the spirited, passionate object of his love was no more than a stand-in bride?

    But he reckons without Alicia's disdain. She's disgusted by Nick's cavalier attitude, unimpressed by his grandeur and wants as little as possible to do with him. Between her newfound role as family charity case and fending off the attentions of both her clueless cousin and the arrogant Nicholas, Alicia Woodley has quite enough to contend with...but when her life is endangered, quite possibly from those closest to her, surprisingly it is Nicholas who seems determined to ensure her safety. As they conspire to uncover secrets that the family wants hidden at all costs, they discover a passion that surpasses all obstacles. 71,200 words