Book picks similar to
An Early Engagement by Barbara Metzger
romance
regency
historical-romance
fiction
The Country Gentleman
Fiona Hill - 1987
Anne pines for the social and political life she has left behind, especially when confronted with the society of her nearest neighbor, country bumpkin Henry Highet. Yet all is not what it seems, as Anne soon discovers in this pleasant Regency tale.
Incognito
Suzanne Allain - 2001
From the back cover: Can a young lady allow her beloved sister to be sacrificed on the marriage altar? Emily Smithfield cannot. So when her mother announces that a marriage has been arranged between Emily’s older sister Lydia and Lord Wesleigh, a man the sisters have never met, Emily offers to marry the gentleman in her sister’s stead. Emily’s act of selflessness leaves Lydia free to marry the man she loves and Emily the bride of a handsome young marquess. Not a bad bargain at all! Lord Wesleigh, who knows nothing of Emily’s matchmaking scheme, arrives in the small village where the Smithfields reside disguised as a curate, in an attempt to observe his betrothed anonymously. When Lord Wesleigh finds himself more attracted to Emily than her sister, the rules of the game change. Can he make Emily fall in love with him when she believes him to be a penniless curate? (Originally published by Warner Books/Hachette in 2001.)
Tempt Me at Midnight
Lauren Royal - 2014
But when the man she's loved since her girlhood returns from a long spell abroad, she quite suddenly finds herself hoping the fine lord her brother has picked for her won't propose. She decides that if he does, she'll quite improperly turn him down—that is, until the man of her hopes and dreams informs her he has no intention of marrying her.The last time Tristan Nesbitt saw Alexandra, he was a common man with no hope of ever wedding the daughter of a marquess. Seven years later, he's now Lord Hawkridge, which should make him eminently suitable for the woman who long ago captured his heart. But a dreadful scandal has tarnished his name in England—a scandal so horrid that marrying Alexandra would ruin not only her flawless reputation but her whole family. For Alexandra's own good, he must fight his relentless desires and stay far away…
The Captain and the Wallflower
Lyn Stone - 2012
Who better than the homeliest young woman left over at the end of the London season? After all, she will require little attention to keep her happy….Lady Grace Renfair leaps at the only chance to escape her emotionally abusive uncle and accepts Caine's proposal. Soon she blooms with confidence and beauty, causing her husband's forbidding exterior to crumble.If she could only reach beyond his scars to the gentleman beneath….
Lavender Lady
Carola Dunn - 1983
The victim of a carriage accident lands in her home to recover, but does not reveal that he is the Earl of Alton. Hester learns his identity only when the whole family descends on London - and involves my lord in a variety of scrapes.
The Guinea Stamp
Alice Chetwynd Ley - 1961
No respectable lady should concern herself with romantic notions of spies and smugglers, but Joanna Fineton does not care. When she discovers double agent Captain Jackson breaking into her family home, she is suddenly swept up into a tangled web of lies and conspiracy. Someone in the Fineton house is not who he appears to be—but can Joanna discover who the French spy is before his dastardly plan comes to fruition? As the plot thickens and Joanna runs out of time to find the traitor, Captain Jackson’s grip on her heart tightens ever more — threatening not only to destroy her future, but England’s too… ‘The Guinea Stamp’ is an intriguing regency romance, perfect for fans of Georgette Heyer and Jane Aiken Hodge. It has also previously been published as ‘The Courting of Joanna’.
The Rules of Gentility
Janet Mullany - 2007
As to the former, so far two lords, a viscount, and a mad poet have fallen far short of her expectations. But she is about to meet Inigo Linsley, an unshaven, wickedly handsome man with a scandalous secret. He's nothing she ever dreamed she'd want—why then can she not stop thinking about how he looks in his breeches?A delightful marriage of Pride and Prejudice with Bridget Jones's Diary, Janet Mullany's The Rules of Gentility transports us to the days before designer shoes, apple martinis, and speed dating—when great bonnets, punch at Almack's, and the marriage mart were in fashion—and captivates us with a winsome heroine who learns that some rules in society are made to be broken.
Aphrodite - a Humorous Regency Novel
D.G. Rampton - 2021
Unfortunately for her, her grandmother has other ideas...marriage.Lively and strong-willed, April does not appreciate being compelled to catch a husband. Yet, before long, she finds herself courting the affections of the Duke of Claredon, while struggling with a wholly inappropriate attraction to the insufferable Mr Royce.In the lead up to Christmas, in the year 1820, a delightfully devious campaign is orchestrated to bring together two people destined for one another, regardless of the obstacles to be overcome and the inconvenient tendency on the part of the protagonists to resist their attraction...until they are finally brought to realise they cannot escape fate, or the meddling of one determined grandmother!
The Hellion
Christi Caldwell - 2018
His fury and passion burn even hotter when he meets Cleopatra Killoran, a tart-mouthed vixen who mocks him at every turn. If she were anyone else but the enemy, she’d ignite a desire in him that would be impossible to control.No one can make Cleopatra do anything. That said, she’ll do whatever it takes to protect her siblings―even if that means being sponsored by their rivals for a season in order to land a noble husband. But she will not allow her head to be turned by the infuriating and darkly handsome Adair Thorne.There’s only one thing that threatens the rules of the game: Cleopatra’s secret. It could unravel the families’ tenuous truce and shatter the unpredictably sinful romance mounting between the hellion…and a scoundrel who could pass for the devil himself.
The Complicated Earl
Audrey Harrison - 2013
His mother prefers entertaining men in her bedroom, while her husband sits downstairs, unable or unwilling to respond to his wife’s inappropriate behaviour. From that day on Tom vows that no woman will hurt him the way his mother hurt his father. For the next seventeen years Tom works hard to become one of the most notorious rakes London society has ever seen, successfully keeping all the women of his acquaintance at a distance. In 1810 twenty-four year old Isabelle Crawford had been brought up hearing stories of how much in love her dead parents were and had expected to find similar happiness when she came out in society. Reality was different to what she had imagined though, instead of love, she found fortune hunters and as a result left London to set up home in Bath. Her two elder brothers had supported her decision, although they would have rather seen their sister married instead of choosing what was seen by the ton as an eccentric decision, a young woman living a single life in Bath with a cousin as chaperone. A potential marriage between Tom's sister and Isabelle’s brother throws the couple together and sets in motion a chain of events that will see Tom fighting for his life and Isabelle being kidnapped by the very man that Tom had found in his mother’s bedchamber all those years ago.
First Impressions
Elizabeth Johns - 2015
The widower Earl of Rutherford, still in need of an heir, reluctantly sets off for London in search of a wife. He infinitely prefers the role of recluse to that of dashing beau. The Season’s Incomparable, Helena Foster, prefers books to balls. She agrees to hide her bookish tendencies in exchange for her mother agreeing to limit her to one Season. Their initial prejudices prevent their feeling they would suit, but an unlikely source may give them another chance…
A Good Debutante's Guide to Ruin
Sophie Jordan - 2014
. .
Declan, the Duke of Banbury, has no interest in ushering Rosalie Hughes, his stepsister, into society. Dumped on him with nowhere else to go, he's determined to rid himself of the headstrong debutante by bestowing on her an obscenely large dowry . . . making her the most sought-after heiress of the Season.
. . . is about to become the only one he wants.
But Rosalie isn't about to go along with Declan's plans. Surrounded by fortune hunters, how is she supposed to find a man who truly wants her? Taking control of her fate, Rosalie dons a disguise and sneaks into Sodom, a private club host to all manner of illicit activity—and frequented by her infuriatingly handsome stepbrother.In a shadowed alcove, Declan can't resist the masked temptress who sets his blood afire . . . any more than Rosalie can deny her longing for a man who will send her into ruin.
Bride for a Night
Rosemary Rogers - 2011
Shy Talia has long held a secret attraction for Gabriel Richardson, the handsome Earl of Ashcombe. But when she's wedded, bedded and dispatched alone to his country estate, the timid beauty discovers one night of passion has ignited a bold inner fire.While his lovely green-eyed bride is out of sight, she is not far from Gabriel's mind and when Talia is abducted by French spies, the earl fears he may lose what he's only just found. Yet the wife he races to rescue is a far cry from the gentle bride he abandoned. She's a woman who dares to demand forever after from her husband.
The Work of Art
Mimi Matthews - 2019
But in London, her oddity has made her a sensation. Far worse, it's caught the eye of the sinister Duke of Moreland — a notorious art collector obsessed with acquiring one-of-a-kind treasures. To escape the duke's clutches, she's going to need a little help.An Unlikely Hero...Captain Arthur Heywood's days of heroism are long past. Grievously injured in the Peninsular War, he can no longer walk unaided, let alone shoot a pistol. What use can he possibly be to a damsel in distress? He has nothing left to offer except his good name.Can a marriage of convenience save Philly from the vengeful duke? Or will life with Arthur put her — and her heart — in more danger than ever?
Saving Grace
Michele Paige Holmes - 2014
Her father’s debts thwart those plans, and to protect her sister, Helen, Grace must marry a man of her father’s choosing. As each suitor proves less than desirable, Grace comes up with clever schemes, causing each to reject her. While staying at the mysterious Sutherland Hall, a middle-of-the-night mishap sends Grace into the arms of a stranger, Nicholas Sutherland—and provides inspiration for her grandest plan yet—one that will leave her reputation in tatters yet free both her and Helen from all possibility of marriage. Too late Grace regrets her rash actions when her father’s last choice, Mr. Samuel Preston, proves to be a gentleman and a friend. But Samuel is the sworn enemy of Nicholas Sutherland, the man responsible for her “ruin.” Now instead of being free, Grace is caught between two men—each with his own agenda.