A Puritan who believes to show one's bare arm is a sin, now finds herself in Williamsburg where the residents strive to follow the latest fashions in London. REVIEWS A poignant, heartwarming story of a love that transcends religious, political, and cultural differences. This is an author to watch... Romantic Times Magazine Rainy weaves an endearing tale of romance that will bring tears to your eyes and laughter that will capture your heart, Make room on your shelf - this one is a keeper Judy Spagnola Book Trends Bewitchingly funny, tender and emotional... another winner from Kirkland's lyrical pen. Elaine Barbieri Author AUTHOR INFORMATION A national award winning author - Rainy Kirkland has written several historical romances. A graduate from Maryland University, she spent time in the Peace Corp, then taught elementary school in New Jersey. Now living in Florida Ms. Kirkland has returned to her writing career. Look for the continuation of Bewitching Kisses in the second book of the series - Silver Flame coming soon.

     An Unconventional Officer’ is the story of Paul van Daan, younger son of the wealthy owner of a shipping line, who joins the 110th Infantry as an ambitious junior officer and travels to India in 1802 to serve under a young and relatively inexperienced general with a reputation to make. The book charts Paul’s early career from a junior lieutenant in India through the wars in Europe to Portugal and Spain. A talented and charismatic leader of men, he needs to learn to curb his temper and adjust to the rigid army hierarchy in order to rise in his chosen profession. On the way he makes enduring friendships forged on the battlefields of India and Europe and builds an unexpected bond with the difficult, unemotional commander of the Peninsular army, Sir Arthur Wellesley. There are many women in Paul’s life but only two who touch his heart. Rowena Summers, a shy young governess straight from a charity school. Serene and gentle, her love and companionship give Paul a stability he had not known he lacked. Anne Howard the extraordinary daughter of a wealthy manufacturer who marries a fellow officer and changes everything Paul thought he knew about women. Amidst the violence and tragedy of the war against Napoleon an unforgettable love story unfolds which affects the lives of everybody it touches and changes the 110th forever. This is the first book in the Peninsular War series which tells the story of the men and women of the 110th infantry, a regiment like no other in Wellington’s army.

    Or so she thinks. An unimaginable betrayal by those she loves causes her to flee her home and family one snowy night. Crushed and heartbroken, Ruby vows that despite the odds stacked against her she will not only survive, but one day will show the ones she left behind that she’s succeeded in making something of herself. Brave words, but the reality is far from easy. Dangers Ruby could never have foreseen and more tragedy threaten her new life, and love always seems just out of reach. Can a happy ending ever be hers?

    High-spirited Lydia expects a very dull visit, but her sojourn to the village of Diddlington is not as idyllic as she anticipates . . .A charred and bludgeoned corpse is found in the woods, and suspicion falls on Lydia’s aunt’s suitor, an intriguing Frenchman. Convinced of his innocence, Lydia enlists the help of her new friend, John Savidge, to catch the real killer. But before their dangerous adventure ends there will be more than one unexpected discovery.

    Upon running into the son of Roland de Bowes, the Duke of Easterly, something secret and mysterious stirs within her. She can’t help but sign for the job of governess at Bonhomie,where the Duke’s estate is located. What she didn’t expect though were the intense and inspiring emotions sparked by Lord Garret, the Duke’s handsome brother. Will this sizzling passion cost her position? Or will she find a way to tame her feelings? Family is the most precious thing for Lord Garret, who is a remarkably serious and proud man. After the death of his sister in law, he came to a conclusion that his brother is unable to take care of the estate. Even though Lord Garret regards Katherine with suspicion when she is hired, as time goes by, he can’t hide his tremendous admiration and desire for her. Will this rigid man lay aside his doubts for a chance to love passionately? Although Katherine and Lord Garret find themselves madly in love, it only takes one miscommunication for it to be torn apart. Is Lord Garret strong enough to admit to his weaknesses, and keep Katherine at Bonhomie, not as a governess, but as his bride? For Lord Garret de Bowes, it will take admitting to himself that his heart is captured. For Katherine, it means succumbing to the greatest love she has ever known. Will their love overcome society’s expectations? Or will they accept fate and distance themselves forever?

    

    They all knew she was not the poacher’s real child, though few knew the mystery of how she came to be living with him. Kate herself was not sure; Josiah had told her he had found her abandoned as a baby, but was Josiah telling the truth?He loved her and she was devoted to him and she did not question what he said until two mysterious men came to the village on the same day, both handsome, strong, self-possessed men, but so very different in every other way. Something was happening in the village, something important, something that would affect all their lives…

    Three women become friends when working in their local picture house. When life is so tough for everyone, a trip to the pictures is the perfect way to escape, to dream of romance and hope for the good things peace will bring.It is 1943 on England's war-weary south coast where the conflict seems never-ending. After the heartache of the previous year, Connie Baxter now appears to have everything a girl could want. There is Ace, a man who loves her. She enjoys an enviable lifestyle despite the deprivations of war. She has friends and a job she adores as an usherette at the Criterion cinema. But appearances can be deceptive and Connie is struggling in more ways than one.Then, to compound Connie's problem, her nemesis, Cousin Marlene, returns home. Secrets come to light, revealing jealousies that could shatter Connie's world once more, and Connie realizes that Ace isn't the man she thought he was.In the darkest days of war, the glamour of movies and their stars can lift the bleakest of moods, while friends make the good times better and the bad times bearable.

     When her husband falls victim to poison right in front of her eyes, she becomes not only a widow but also the prime suspect. Desperate to escape prosecution for a crime she never committed, she is left with no other choice: she flees. Sebastian Hughes, Duke of Parkforton, is on the hunt for a governess for his two unruly brothers. He never expected to find one in a horse shed behind his manor. Especially not one as beautiful and well-mannered as Lillian. Constables start knocking on the door, looking for a lady, whose description strangely resembles Sebastian's newly-hired governess. When Lillian falls gravely ill with symptoms suspiciously similar to her husband's right before his death, it becomes apparent that not even a Duke's estate is safe from an enemy that comes from the inside. To unravel Ariadne's Thread, deep they must go, into the wine cellars where the sun doesn't glow...

    Her rescuer, the dashing Captain Slader, is a wrecker who specializes in salvaging cargo from sunken vessels. As a native New Englander, Virginia grew up in wealth but felt most comfortable on the docks, among the ships. This special connection to the sea is one of the few things the privileged heiress and the rugged captain share. But mixed with the captain’s handsome looks, could this passion be enough to drive Virginia’s marriage plans off course?Captain John Slader is no stranger to the winds of change himself. He’d once lost the thing he held most dear: his family. But now that those same winds have sent him the lovely Virginia, will he risk his heart yet again? Virginia’s fiancé, an up-and-coming politician, may be able to offer her a world of wealth and comfort—but could he cherish her as John would, with a love as boundless as the ocean itself?

     Cassandra, or Cassie to her friends, sticks out like a redheaded weed amidst her family of tidy blooms. At Bramfield Park, Cassie’s prim parents and attractive older sister, Sophia, wish for nothing but an advantageous marriage for their eldest and prettiest—and for Cassie to stay out of the way. But when the surprisingly charming Lord Peter Courtney pays Bramfield a visit to take in Cassie’s father’s renowned collection of art—and, if the Earl of Wychhaven has anything to say about it, to add his daughter Sophia to Courtney’s own collection—fate throws Cassie and the Lord together under most extraordinary circumstances. What began with a simple ruse to aid a friend grows more complex as Cassie’s feelings for Lord Peter grow stronger, and soon she finds herself in over her head. From the beloved author of the Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth series, M.C. Beaton’s Regency Romance novella, The Summer of Discontent, delivers an enchanting summertime tale of mistaken identities, unlikely friendships, and unexpected love. About the Author M. C. Beaton is the pen name of bestselling novelist Marion Chesney. She is a prolific writer of historical romances and small village mysteries. Born in Scotland, the author began her writing career as a fiction buyer for a Glasgow bookstore and has worked as a theater critic, newspaper reporter, and editor. The author has written under various names, most notably as M. C. Beaton for her Hamish Macbeth and Agatha Raisin series. She also has written under the names Sarah Chester, Helen Crampton, Ann Fairfax, Marion Gibbons, Jennie Tremaine, and Charlotte Ward. The author lived in the United States, but now splits her time between the Cotswolds, England and Paris, France.

    When her family is threatened, she does the one thing she can to protect them: publishes a book exposing them all.After his disaster of a marriage, Liam Westwood, the Earl of Keswick, made a sacred pact: never fall in love again. Having spent his years abroad, he never expected to meet a vixen that would test his sanity and haunt his nights upon his return.With the Ton’s most scandalous secrets hiding between the pages of her book, Nora has no shortage of people who wish to see her suffer. And some are determined to see her ruined. When the manuscript falls in Liam’s hands, his feelings of betrayal are overshadowed by a single thing: a name that jumps out more than all the others put together. His.

    Yet these events will affect her as profoundly as she is to affect those close to her: Toby, the urchin she rescues from starvation; Philippa Van Damme, who shows her a world she had never dreamed of; and the Patten family, stimulating and eccentric, whose orphanage becomes her first real home, and whose social revolution she will find herself reluctantly involved in...From the squalor of the East End slums to the devastation of the Flanders Fields, Tomorrow, Jerusalem is a stirring evocation of a lost generation, and the passionate tale of one woman’s fight against all odds. Perfect for fans of Santa Montefiore, Lucinda Riley and Kate Morton.

     When Moray Allen is left in charge of Muir Castle the fortnight before Yule, he doesn't anticipate any excitement. The excitement is all down south, where the Grant and Ramsay cousins are embroiled in their final battle with the Channel of Dubh, smugglers who trade in human cargo. But the chieftain hasn’t been gone for more than a day when Moray spots a golden-haired lass in the wilds surrounding Castle Muir. He suspects she’s lost and in need of food, but she runs from him. Meanwhile, the chieftain’s son, Steenie, is preparing for Yule with his beloved pet, Paddy, who seems to have his own plans for the holiday--plans that involve the mysterious stranger. Although Shona escaped the Channel of Dubh with her brother and three other bairns, she knows they’re not safe. Their food supply has run out and winter weather is settling in across the Highlands, seeping into the cave they're using for shelter. To protect herself and the others, Shona must place her faith in someone, although she’s hesitant to trust any man, even the handsome Highlander she keeps seeing. Moray and Shona are both in need of a little Yuletide magic. Who better to help them than Paddy the Pony?

    unusually. Welcome to the world of THE LYON'S DEN: The Black Widow of Whitehall Connected World, where the underground of Regency London thrives... and loves.Proud Scottish brothers, Cheyne, Matthew, and Lucas are known as the Lyons of Mar. Cheyne and Matthew have fallen in love and married their brides, will Lucas be next?Lucas Lyon thought he could escape the matchmaking schemes of his distant relation, Bessie Dove-Lyon, by waiting for the morning of his departure from London to visit her. But she is ready for him, and he leaves her Lyon’s Den to return to Edinburgh not only with the beautiful Beatrix MacGlory in tow, but her overly perfumed aunt and her aunt’s little yipping dog.Will he survive the ten day journey in a cramped carriage with those three? More important, will he keep his hands off Beatrix? He is falling in love with her, but she is returning to Edinburgh for an arranged betrothal to another man. Since when has that stopped Lucas from claiming what he wants?