Before being wounded in the Napoleonic war and shunning society, the dashing lord had been a notorious rake. Now, Isabel Aubrey, a proper lady, dares to approach the masked, reclusive nobleman for a large donation to a worthy charity—and decides she must save him from his self-loathing. She begins to flirt. He responds. She invites him to a masquerade ball. He accepts and dazzles her with a kiss. The most scandalous passion...But Isabel already has a fiancé, and despite her attraction to the earl, she knows she must reject him. Yet no force on earth is greater than the passion that leads her into his bed; nothing she has ever experienced is more exciting and erotic. Now he asks her to stay with him although it will mean her ruin. Isabel must not say yes—and the smitten earl cannot let her say no. To win her body and her heart, he initiates an outrageous scheme that only a rake would devise—and no woman can resist.

    In the age of chivalry and the season of hope three marriages are forged...In The Wise Virgin by Jo Beverly, a lord from a rival clan steals the wrong holiday bride for his brother, and discovers his own true love in the witty and wise captive maiden!In The Vagabond Knight by Margaret Moore two wounded souls, a roguish mercenary and a stern beauty, teach each other how to live and love again during a yuletide blizzard...In The Unexpected Guest by Deborah Simmons the head of the mighty de Burgh family finds his quiet reserve shattered by the seductive young widow who stays at his keep for the twelve days of Christmas!

    Bride #1 is the outspoken Portia....It's bad enough that seventeen-year-old Portia Worth is taken in by her uncle, the marquis of Granville, after her father dies. As the bastard niece, Portia knows she can expect little beyond a roof over her head and a place at the table.But it truly adds insult to injury when the Granvilles' archenemy, the outlaw Rufus Decatur, hatches a scheme to abduct the marquis's daughter--only to kidnap Portia by accident.Portia, who possesses more than a streak of independence as well as a talent for resistance, does not take kindly to being abducted--mistakenly or otherwise.Decatur will soon find himself facing the challenge of his life, both on the battlefield and in the bedroom, as he contends with this misfit of a girl who has the audacity to believe herself the equal of any man....Warmest wishes,Jane FeatherP.S. Phoebe, the "awkward" one, will be next, in The Accidental Bride. Watch for it in early 1999.

    . .Dispossessed of her lands by the marauding Norsemen, Brienne Beaumanoir is brought from cloister by royal decree and offered as a bride to her enemy.A golden warrior of the North . . .Sent to escort his father’s promised bride to the Barony of Valsemé, Rurik Atlison finds himself entranced by the dark-haired beauty and his passions set aflame.Love unexpected, bringing peril to all . . .Tormented by their desires, Rurik and Brienne resist giving in to their yearnings and endangering their people.But destiny will not be denied . . .Their love will burn brightly through all the ages to come as Norse and Frank meld into a new people — the Normans.

    . .Gaze longingly into her eyes while declaring her beauty . . .Colonel Colin Mandland has wealth, power . . . everything but a bride. But although there is no mistress of his newly purchased manor, Maiden Hill, there is certainly a resident maiden: Lady Rosalyn Wellborne, a stubborn beauty who steadfastly refuses to leave the place she has always called home.Hold her hand just a fraction longer than necessary...Tantalizing Rosalyn proves to be far more difficult than any enemy he's ever met on the battlefield. She attacks by declaring Colin an upstart who is unfit for local society. He shockingly counters by offering for her hand in marriage—and she surprisingly accepts.Or, when all else fails, conquer her.Although this genteel lady has vowed never to succumb to unbridled passion, she quickly learns that theirs will be no marriage in-name-only, but rather a slow, sensuous and alarmingly effective seduction . . . that turns her world upside down.

    How was the spoiled and pampered Catherine Augustine Ashbrooke to know the handsome stranger with the brooding, midnight eyes would see through her plot and make her the pawn in a dangerous game of his own?Alexander Cameron may have won the highborn English beauty in a duel, but not even the lure of long-forgotten desires could keep him from his meeting with destiny. He had no choice but to carry his reluctant bride off to the Highlands, to a world of ancient blood feuds and a brewing rebellion--a world where fiery passion and breathtaking courage would prove that even legendary warriors could lose their hearts.

    But when the blasted man hasn't the grace to die, she suddenly finds herself with a healthy, vibrant husband who wants to renegotiate the terms of their bargain -- and ultimately possess the heart of his bewildered bride...

    His next challenge is to find an English wife with the political connections he needs to keep his country safe. When the object of his pursuit runs off with his cousin, Augustus turns to the woman's younger sister, Charity Beaufort. Yet the strong-willed Charity is resistant to being a state pawn, even as duty demands her betrothal to the mysterious prince. Swept into a dazzling world of palaces and court intrigue, Charity suddenly finds herself awakening to new passions in her husband's arms. But for Charity this royal marriage of convenience will not be enough --- unless she can win her dazzling husband's heart and soul.

    He vows revenge against the rival MacDonald clan, though duty demands a handfast marriage to Isabel MacDonald–a bride he does not want and has no intention of keeping. But Rory couldn’t have anticipated the captivating woman who challenges his steely control, and unleashes the untamed passion simmering beneath his fierce exterior.Blessed with incomparable beauty, Isabel MacDonald is prepared to use every means possible–including seduction–to uncover her husband’s most guarded secrets. Instead Rory awakens Isabel’s deepest desires and her sweetest fantasies. Now Isabel has found the happiness she’s always dreamed of with the very man she must betray, and discovers that passion can be far more dangerous than revenge.

    Love is not necessary--nor desired. But how to choose among a dizzying array of wealthy-yet-witless candidates? Hire London's infamously prim and proper matchmaker. Then pretend she's not the most captivating woman he's ever met...Helping a devilish Duke create a contest to pick his perfect mate is the kind of challenge Tessa Mansfield relishes. Her methods may be scandalous, but she's determined to find the notorious bachelor more than a wife--she'll bring him true love. Yet when Tessa watches the women vie for the Duke's affections, she longs to win his heart herself. And after a stolen kiss confirms Tristan's desire, Tessa knows she has broken a matchmaker's number one rule: never fall in love with the groom.

    James thought as little of love as she did of the Arthurian legend—it was just a myth. But when an enchanted tome fell into the lovely teacher's hands, Tessa found that she had to rethink her curriculum. Suddenly in Merlin's Camelot, Tessa learned that the legend was nothing like she remembered. Galahad the Chaste was everything but—the powerful knight was an expert lover—and not only wizards could weave powerful spells. Still, even in Galahad's hard-muscled embrace, she felt unsure of this man who had seemed a myth. But soon the beautiful skeptic was on a quest as real as her heart, and the grail—and Galahad's love—were within reach. All she had to do was...Believe.

    An occasional thank you would suffice; instead, his resentful sibling forges his name to a marriage license and presents him with an unwanted wife. She's a vicar's widow with a mind of her own who may be the first person in Marcus's well-ordered life to make him feel...completely out of control.Hannah can't help but curse her own idiocy. Dire straits have led her to the altar with a gentleman she hardly knows. Played for a fool, she's embarrassed, furious, and worse, married to an equally outraged stranger—an exasperating man who unleashes all manner of emotions in Hannah, not to mention unwanted desire. Reluctantly, she agrees to play the wife until he can sort out the mess. But the nearness of the undeniably attractive Duke and the passion in his black eyes unsettles her well-guarded heart—making her want to do so much more than "act" the role of blissful bride.

    Renowned within Europe's emerging psychiatric field, Helene has a gift for healing children. When fate sends her back to England, the country she left in disgrace, Helene is confident she has learned to govern her own reckless emotions.Ruthlessly, Treyhern has dragged his notorious family from the brink of ruin. But a disastrous marriage has left him with a traumatized child, and his rebellious brother is just one step ahead of the bailiffs. When his dissolute father drops dead while debauching the governess, Treyhern's infamous temper is truly tested.But the forceful earl means to straighten everyone out - as soon as he has hired a reputable governess. Yet the moment she steps from his carriage, Treyhern's cold reserve is melted by a rush of desire he had long thought dead. With her elegant clothing and mountain of luggage, the woman is not who he expected. Or is she? Sometimes the workings of the mind are as dangerous as those of the heart. And soon, danger is truly everywhere...

    Strict rules in her husband's will ensure that if she remarries or even forms friendships her mother-in-law does not approve of, then she will never see her young son again. But one night, in a dark garden at a masquerade ball, Isobel gives in to temptation, and lets an innocent flirtation turn into seduction.Phineas Archer, the notorious Marquess of Blackwood, may hold the reputation as the worst rake in London, but as a spy for the crown, he merely plays the role of a fool to learn the most closely guarded secrets of the ton.As a new threat to England's success in the war against Napoleon emerges, Phineas must foil a plot to kidnap the exiled Bourbon heir to the French crown. Every clue seems to lead to his mysterious lover, but while Phineas can spot trouble a mile off, and see through the cleverest of disguises, he cannot find any trace of his elusive femme fatale. No man alive would imagine the prim widow Maitland could be his dream lover. But behind the mask and the secrets, Isobel is everything Phineas has ever desired....

    He had no match among enemies, or women ... until he met Lyonene, the green-eyed beauty whose fiery spirit matched his own. Through a whirlwind romance and stormy marriage, she endured every peril to be by his side... until jealousy and vicious lies drove her across the Irish Sea and into grave danger. One man could save her -- only the fierce Black Lyon had the courage to destroy the ruthless plot that had driven them apart and threatened the bond of love they had vowed could never be broken.