Book picks similar to
Stepping Stones by Maureen Lee
maureen-lee
fiction
romance
england
The Fall of Lord Drayson
Rachael Anderson - 2016
They have no money, no relations they can turn to for help, and nowhere to go. How dare the earl break the promise his father had made to the Beresfords without so much as a twinge of conscience? Fate plays her hand when Lucy discovers the earl unconscious and injured in the middle of the road. When he awakens with no recollection of who he is, Lucy seizes the opportunity to teach the earl a much-needed lesson in humility and tells him that he is nothing more than a mere servant. Her servant, in fact. And thus begins the charming tale of a pompous lord and an impetuous young woman, caught together in a web so tangled that it begs the question: Will they ever get out?
The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets
Eva Rice - 2005
Penelope with her mother and brother struggles to maintain their vast and crumbling ancestral home while postwar London spins toward the next decade's cultural revolution. Penelope wants nothing more than to fall in love and when her new best friend Charlotte a free spirit in the young society set drags Penelope into London with all of its grand parties she sets in motion great change for them all. Charlotte's mysterious and attractive brother Harry uses Penelope to make his American ex-girlfriend jealous with unforeseen consequences and a dashing wealthy American movie producer arrives with what might be the key to Penelope's and her family's future happiness. Vibrant witty and filled with vivid historical detail The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets is an utterly unique debut novel about a time and place just slipping into history.
The Glass Ocean
Beatriz Williams - 2018
Desperate, she breaks the one promise she made to her Alzheimer’s-stricken mother and opens an old chest that belonged to her great-grandfather, who died when the RMS Lusitania was sunk by a German U-Boat in 1915. What she discovers there could change history. Sarah embarks on an ambitious journey to England to enlist the help of John Langford, a recently disgraced Member of Parliament whose family archives might contain the only key to the long-ago catastrophe. . . .April 1915Southern belle Caroline Telfair Hochstetter’s marriage is in crisis. Her formerly attentive industrialist husband, Gilbert, has become remote, pre-occupied with business . . . and something else that she can’t quite put a finger on. She’s hoping a trip to London in Lusitania’s lavish first-class accommodations will help them reconnect—but she can’t ignore the spark she feels for her old friend, Robert Langford, who turns out to be on the same voyage. Feeling restless and longing for a different existence, Caroline is determined to stop being a bystander, and take charge of her own life. . . .Tessa Fairweather is traveling second-class on the Lusitania, returning home to Devon. Or at least, that’s her story. Tessa has never left the United States and her English accent is a hasty fake. She’s really Tennessee Schaff, the daughter of a roving con man, and she can steal and forge just about anything. But she’s had enough. Her partner has promised that if they can pull off this one last heist aboard the Lusitania, they’ll finally leave the game behind. Tess desperately wants to believe that, but Tess has the uneasy feeling there’s something about this job that isn’t as it seems. . . .As the Lusitania steams toward its fate, three women work against time to unravel a plot that will change the course of their own lives . . . and history itself.
The Wicked Wolfe: De Wolfe Pack Connected World
Mary Lancaster - 2019
Captain John Wolfe, known as Mad Jack, has left the army under parental pressure. But fighting is in his blood and he does not take well to civilian life. In his own words he is “going to the devil” and is in Blackhaven to sell a minor property in order to continue on that course. Until his house and his hangover are invaded by the genteel but poverty-stricken James family and their terrifying dog. Linnet James’s chief concern is to make her mother well again. Between that, money worries and caring for her young siblings, she has no time and less inclination to consider marriage. Until she encounters Wolfe. Their meeting is the start of an adventures involving highwaymen, poets, pawnbrokers and thin ice—and sudden, unexpected love. Read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited
An Improper Earl
Maggi Andersen - 2010
Harriett doesn’t want proper. She wants passion. And the prospect of a passionate marriage is becoming increasingly unlikely, judging by the men she meets. When she and her family visit a dying relative at his country mansion in Kent, Pendleton Manor, everything appears normal on the surface, until Harriet is suddenly embroiled in murder, intrigue, and lust. A man determined to live life on his own terms Gentleman farmer, Gerard Everard, Earl of Foxworth, has inherited an estate deep in debt. While he toils to save Foxworth from creditors, he becomes embroiled in a dangerous mission. Together, Harriett and Gerard work to uncover a murderer, while Harriett, expecting Gerard to succumb to the charms of her younger, beautiful sister, Leonora, tries unsuccessfully to guard her heart. Originally titled Murder at Pendleton Manor
Deception
Amanda Quick - 1993
Once Olympia Wingfield had been free to devote all her time to her true passion: the study of ancient legends and long-lost treasure. But now, with three hellion nephews to raise, the absentminded beauty has very little time for research. Which makes it seem all the more serendipitous when a handsome stranger strides into Olympia's library unannounced and proceeds to set her world to rights. Tall and dark, with long, windswept black hair, Jared Ryder, Viscount Chillhurst, is the embodiment of Olympia's most exotic dreams ... a daring pirate, masquerading in teacher's garb, whose plundering kisses and traveler's tales quickly win her heart. Yet all too soon innocent Olympia will discover that the enigmatic and wickedly sensual Chillhurst is no lowly tutor, but a future earl with a wealth of secrets-—the kind that will lead them both on a perilous quest for hidden fortune and a love worth more than gold.
The Confectioner's Tale
Laura Madeleine - 2015
Scrawled on the back of the picture are the words 'Forgive me'. Unable to resist the mystery behind it, she begins to unravel the story of two star-crossed lovers and one irrevocable betrayal.Take a moment to savour an evocative, bittersweet love story that echoes through the decades – perfect for fans of Kate Morton, Rachel Hore and Victoria Hislop.
The Chocolate Run: AND The Cupid Effect
Dorothy Koomson - 2010
Going back to college might not be everyone's dream but all Ceri has ever wanted to do is teach. Though her professional life is sorted, Ceri's personal life is still a no-go area. In fact her pent-up energies and frustrations seem to have been diverted into solving other people's romantic problems. Is Ceri destined to always play Cupid? Or can she use some of her powers where they're needed most - to help herself? THE CHOCOLATE RUN: Amber Salpone doesn't mean to keep ending up in bed with her friend Greg Walterson, but she can't help herself. And every time it 'just happens' their secret affair moves closer to being a real relationship, which is a big problem when he's a womaniser and she's a commitment-phobe. Slowly but surely, Amber has to confront the fact that chocolate can't cure everything and sometimes running away isn't an option ...
Fitzwilliam Darcy in His Own Words
Shannon Winslow - 2021
Darcy’s life like before he met Elizabeth Bennet? – before he stepped onto the Pride and Prejudice stage at the Meryton assembly? More importantly, where is he and what is he doing all the time he’s absent from the page thereafter? And what is his relationship to a woman named Amelia?With "Fitzwilliam Darcy, in His Own Words," the iconic literary hero finally tells his own story, from the traumas of his early life to the consummation of his love for Elizabeth and everything in between.This is not a variation but a supplement to the original story, chronicled in Darcy’s point of view – a behind-the-scenes look at the things Jane Austen didn’t tell us. As it happens, Darcy’s journey was more tortuous than she let on, his happy ending with Elizabeth in jeopardy at every turn in his struggle between duty and his heart’s desire, between the suitable lady he has promised to marry and the woman he can't stop thinking about.
Escapade
Jane Aiken Hodge - 1993
There, Charlotte meets Beth Prior, friend of her mother, actress, and member of the demi-monde. Beth sees Charlotte as the perfect cover for her role as a spy, and the two set off for Palermo, Sicily. In Sicily, the two become embroiled in political intrigue, and Beth begins to question her involvement in British politics. Charlotte and Beth find adventure and romance in Palermo amid the glittering stage lights and hidden agendas of the aristocracy.
The Ashford Affair
Lauren Willig - 2013
Her long hours have led to a broken engagement and, suddenly single at thirty-four, she feels her messy life crumbling around her. But when the family gathers for her grandmother Addie’s ninety-ninth birthday, a relative lets slip hints about a long-buried family secret, leading Clemmie on a journey into the past that could change everything. . . .What follows is a potent story that spans generations and continents, bringing an Out of Africa feel to a Downton Abbey cast of unforgettable characters. From the inner circles of WWI-era British society to the skyscrapers of Manhattan and the red-dirt hills of Kenya, the never-told secrets of a woman and a family unfurl.
Through Castle Windows (Horstberg Saga #5)
Elizabeth D. Michaels - 2015
Following her mother’s death she is guided to Horstberg in search of answers and contentment. When her path repeatedly crosses with the brooding Stefan Heinrich, she is drawn to him by feelings too profound to ignore. The love they share is intense and undeniable, but Ericha’s ignorance of Stefan’s circumstances puts her on a scale in his life opposite to the country he rules, and the wife he loathes.While Stefan questions daily what kind of madness drove him to marry the deceptive and tawdry Johanna Von Bindorf, a princess from the neighboring country of Kohenswald, he is torn between his commitment to do what is right, and his love for a woman that he cannot have; a woman who fills his aching soul. Years of spiraling downward in hopelessness finally drive him to make Ericha a part of his life as far as it is possible, while deep inside he knows that eventually a price for his happiness will have to be paid.As Ericha develops a deep bond with the legendary Abbi du Woernig, she unknowingly breathes life back into the heart and soul of Horstberg. But happiness and peace for the entire family are fleeting and fragile. Both Stefan and Ericha quickly realize the price for their choices is higher than either of them ever could have imagined. When Horstberg’s freedom is bargained for with the life of its ruler, Stefan knows that he must sacrifice everything to once again prove himself worthy to serve the people of his country with dignity and to live his life with the woman he loves.
Wildflower Hill
Kimberley Freeman - 2010
Forced to take her life in a new direction when an injury ends her ballet career, Emma returns to her home in Australia and learns that she has inherited an isolated sheep station from a late grandmother who would impart key lessons about love and motherhood.
The Highlander's Virtuous Lady
Fiona Faris - 2018
The wild forests and glens of the Scottish Highlands are no place for a lady. Her betrothed and valiant Highlander Sir Gilbert Fleming, is trying to reach for her but Margaret's whereabouts are a mystery to everyone. Everyone but the newly appointed Sheriff of Tweeddale, Walter Moult, who has captured her because of her beauty, and is not happy with her disobedience to his sadistic sexual requests. He is now determined to make her life a living hell. With her virtue in peril and salvation nowhere to be found, Margaret must find a way to escape and get back to her loved ones before it’s too late…
*The Highlander's Virtuous Lady is a Scottish historical romance novel of more than 80,000 words (around 440 pages). No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.
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Away From It All
Judy Astley - 2003
But when her mother Jocelyn, residing in shabby splendour in a crumbling house on a clifftop in Cornwall, becomes ill, Alice and the family goes to look after her.What she finds there appals her: her glorious childhood home falling into decay. Noel, helpfully, thinks Jocelyn should offload the house ('She's sitting on a goldmine, you know') and move into sensible sheltered accommodation. But their children love the freedom and beauty that they discover in Cornwall, and Alice begins to wonder whether her chosen way of life is necessarily the right one . . .Readers love Judy Astley:"Warm, funny and unerringly true to life" Katie Fforde"A laugh out loud read" Woman's Own"Wickedly funny" Daily Mail"A lively laughter-packed riot of a story" Heat