Book picks similar to
The Girl by the River by Joyce DiPastena


young-adult
romance
medieval
historic-britain

Through the Fire


Elizabeth Johns - 2016
    Despite her beauty, her sharp tongue soon earns her a reputation as a dragon. Convincing her parents to let her retreat to their Scottish estate, a home for abandoned young women, Margaux feels she can do something meaningful with her life. At their wits' end, her parents believe a few months in seclusion will teach her to appreciate her privileged existence, and accept the next gentleman of worth who offers for her. Margaux has no plans to yield. But neither she nor her parents bargain for the proximity of the gorgeous, blue-eyed Scotsman on the neighbouring estate. Gavin Craig, content with his life as a country doctor, is unexpectedly thrust into the world of aristocratic society after the accidental deaths of his brother and nephews. With all the duties his new title entails, and his adoption of three orphans, Gavin desperately needs a wife. She should preferably be a lady, trained since birth to manage a noble house, servants and family. His former disdain for a marriage of convenience has been rapidly overcome by the colossal task of learning to run a large Scottish barony. One lovely candidate is right next door … except that she's inexplicably determined to be a spinster…

An Earl for Edith (A Wary Widower Romance #1)


Tammi Lee Bird - 2020
    Limited finances mean Edith is left ignored while her beautiful younger sisters receive every opportunity. Longing for her mother’s approval, Edith agrees to trap an earl against her better judgment, hoping for a chance at the loving marriage she’s always desired. Yet once she meets the handsome earl, she doesn’t have the heart to ruin his happily ever after. Miles is extremely wealthy, titled, and single with no intention of ever falling in love again. His first wife taught him how horrible a one-sided marriage could be. When a young woman appears at his hunting lodge set on ensnaring him, he will do anything to keep her away, including lying and betting with a disreputable rogue. But when she walks away from a chance to force him to propose, he regrets his actions. Will he be able to right his wrongs before Edith falls prey to the rake he set on her path?

Eugenie's Story, Swallowcliffe Hall


Jennie Walters - 2012
    Lord Vye's daughter might be thought to want for nothing, but life isn't easy on fifty guineas a year, with a jealous stepmother watching one's every move. Eugenie's passionate nature and unerring ability to get hold of the wrong end of the stick land her in trouble as she follows her heart: from elegant Swallowcliffe to the streets of fashionable London, by way of rural Ireland, glamorous belle époque Paris and an idyllic artists' retreat at Giverny. She hurtles from one near-disaster to another, rescued only by a sense of humour, unquenchable optimism and her dear American friend Julia - until finally discovering love was right under her nose all along.

The Wild Adventure of Jasper Renn


Kady Cross - 2013
    So when the group's mechanical genius Emily is abducted, he'll plunge into England's darkest places to rescue her….But his old flame Wildcat is turning London town upside down to find her missing sister, and Jasper finds the attraction between himself and the fierce beauty as tempting and dangerous as ever. Their trail leads deep into the city's most unusual circus. Soon, Jasper will find his loyalties—and future—tested more than he could ever imagine….And don't miss Jasper's continuing exploits in The Girl with the Iron Touch by Kady Cross, available now from Harlequin TEEN.

Overweight Mail Order Bride For A Half-Blind Cowboy


Terri Grace - 2015
    Spurned for her size, and broken hearted as she stands by and watches all of her peers married off, Mindy is led by God to respond to an advert to become a Mail Order Bride to a mystery man on the wilds of the Western Frontier. It’s 1871 and the Frontier is as wild, and as lonely, as ever. Mindy Silvers is a gutsy and beautiful young lady, who dares to believe God and respond to a call into the unknown as a Mail Order Bride. But her journey to Horatio Attwood’s homestead will not be an easy one. She failed to mention her size to her husband-to-be, and Mindy must overcome insurmountable odds, both inwardly and outwardly, to win her prize. And Mindy is not the only with a secret. Horatio too must overcome his own doubt and shame before he can embrace his destiny, and is bride. ‘Overweight Mail Order Bride For A Half-Blind Cowboy’ is a sweet, clean, historical Mail Order Bride tale of one gutsy woman’s journey to love and happiness. In this heart warming 'Destined For Love' series, strong and courageous Mail Order Brides overcome deep personal challenges to find lasting love with faithful men on the Western Frontier. Visit all the books in the series! Overweight Mail Order Bride For A Half-Blind Cowboy Crippled Mail Order Bride For A Faithful Frontier Cowboy (COMING SOON – JULY 2015) Burned But Beautiful Mail Order Bride For A Pioneer Doctor (COMING SOON – JULY 2015)

A Powers Play (The Powers That Be, Book 1.5)


Harper Bentley - 2017
    Even his proposal had taken me by surprise when he got down on one knee in the shower. But now it was my turn to shock him at midnight on New Year’s Eve in Vegas, and it was going to be awesome!

The Darkest Day


K.E. Saxon - 2012
    They must be read in sequence in order to understand the story.PART ONE: A life-changing event leads Daniel on a quest.Set in the turn of the thirteenth century Scottish Highlands, this is the story of Daniel MacLaurin, a handsome, rugged warrior-laird haunted by his past, and Maryn Donald, the beautiful, high-spirited lass destined to help him find his heart's ease.After his mother and grandfather, the only family he has ever known, are viciously murdered in a surprise invasion when he is a lad of 13, Daniel spends years focusing on training as a warrior and rebuilding his fortress, determined to control the world around him so that nothing like it will ever happen again.Maryn Donald is a wild child; a lass who, as the only offspring of her widowed father, has been indulged in her high-spiritedness. So much so, that she takes matters into her own hands when she sees that the neighboring clan is mistreating their horses. She impetuously steals them and then, as recompense for her crime, must wed the powerful, wealthy young laird about whom she's heard such disturbing rumors: Daniel MacLaurin.HIGHLAND VENGEANCE is a steamy adventure romance, but it is also a family saga. It's the story of how a man overcomes the horror of his past to find love, connection, and contentment once more.

Lavender Vows


Colleen Gleason - 2011
    A compelling, sweet romance... A story of passion and love in Medieval England. Gruff, brooding Lord Bernard of Derkland needs to find a wife, if for no other reason than to satisfy his father and his incessant badgering. He has no interest in marrying, but when he meets the beautiful and gentle Joanna of Swerthmore, he immediately knows she is the one. The only problem is: she's already wed...to a monster. Readers who like Roberta Gellis, Catherine Coulter, Tina St. John, and Paula Quinn will enjoy this book of romance about ladies, lords, knights and castles.

Anna, Rachel & Charlet


Marti Talbott - 2010
    ANNA -- In love with a woman he had only seen once and could not find, the Highlander, Kevin MacGreagor was growing older and needed a wife to give him sons. No other woman pleased him, not even the daughters of other lairds, so he finally settled for Anna sight unseen. But when his men went to meet her guard, she was all alone and badly beaten. Who could have done such a thing and why? RACHEL -- had a dark secret and even she didn't know what it was. She was seventeen, determined to become as good a warrior as any Highlander, and was firmly against taking a husband. Connor had other ideas. He loved Rachel and when a rival clan took her, he thought he would lose his mind. How would he ever get her back and if he did, would her dark secret separate them forever?CHARLET -- The King of England asked the Highlander, Kevin MacGreagor, to hide a baby girl and save her life. But sixteen years later, someone discovered where she was. To Blair Cameron fell the duty of hiding and protecting Charlet. It was not an easy task. She was furious, head-strong and determined to run from him. Could Blair keep her alive? And if he did, could he keep himself from falling in love with her?

Finding Allie


Delaney Cameron - 2015
    A gently-bred female doesn’t offer herself to a stranger. If she does, she must be willing to accept the consequences. But what if among those consequences is one she hadn’t expected? Nicholas Ashton knows all too well what awaits him at Waverton: marriage and the inevitable heir. He is only too happy to delay his arrival by accepting an invitation from an old friend to spend a few weeks at Groome Hall. When he is thrown (literally) into Allie’s path, he begins to suspect his hitherto calm, orderly life may never be the same. Allie and Nicholas might be determined to forget their very unorthodox first meeting, but fate has other ideas. And when has fighting fate ever been easy?

A Devil's Touch


Victoria Vane - 2013
    When Diana inadvertently discovers a message he received from a known courtesan with whom he was formerly linked, she fears her marriage is over before it has begun.***They were barely three months into a marriage that had begun on rather shaky ground. Was it possible that for him, the novelty of it had already worn off? This had always been Diana’s greatest fear, for Ludovic was a man with a voracious sensual appetite, one he had honed with years of endless variety and constant, unrestrained indulgence. Diana, on the contrary, had known only one true lover—this same perplexing man who was now her husband—the one who had made her heavy with his child…and now left her alone in a cold bed.THE DEVIL DEVERE SERIES:A Wild Night's Bride #1The Virgin Huntress#2The Devil You Know #3The Devil's Match #4A Devil's Touch #4.5Jewel Of the East #5PREQUEL VIGNETTES:Devil in the Making #1The Trouble With Sin #2Ned's Folly#3

Big Sky


Kimberly Krey - 2019
    What more could a woman want?THE COWBOY’S CATCH by Kimberly Krey: When Jason Keller bids on a date with Marlee at the town’s annual fundraising event, she’s quick to turn him down. First of all, an evening with Marlee was never on the table; just dates with each of her younger sisters. Beyond that, Jason Keller—a man with Hollywood ties—is the last cowboy in town she’d go on a date with. Being abandoned because of her own mother’s Hollywood pursuits taught her well. But when the Keller Cowboy offers a hefty sum for the charities in question, in front of half the town no less, Marlee’s compelled to accept. It’s just one date after all, and it’s not like she’d ever fall for a man like him. Or so she thinks.SELLING HER RANCH, STEALING HIS HEART by Annette Lyon: Teresa adores her job as manager of the J-Bar-D Ranch, which boards horses and offers riding lessons. The owner, Dorothy, has become like a grandmother to Teresa. But when Dorothy passes away unexpectedly, the ranch is put up for sale by none other than Dorothy’s only grandson, Derek. Even with the obvious chemistry between them, Teresa refuses to consider dating the guy who’s going to turn her beloved ranch into a strip mall. Derek wishes more than anything that he didn’t have to sell, but Grandma Dorothy ran the ranch into deep debt, and Derek’s own mother has ongoing medical bills. Without selling the ranch, he can’t pay off the debts or take care of his mother. If only he’d met Teresa had met at in a different time and place, they might have a future.THE COWBOY’S SECOND GO by Cindy Roland Anderson: When recently divorced Callie Stewart, an aspiring country music artist, confronts the dishonest talent agent who stole her new song, he turns the tables on her, and her world spins out of control. Without proof she composed the hit song, Callie is forced to take her twin boys with her, move out of Nashville and live with her aunt in Montana. Having her dreams shattered leaves her trying to figure out how she will support her little family. Reconnecting with Ty Carter, her long-ago crush from high school and the guy who broke her heart, has her questioning her resolve to leave romance out of her new life. Ty isn’t just a good-looking cowboy, he’s sweet to her boys and makes Callie feel beautiful and alive. As her feelings for Ty grow stronger, the music reawakens inside her, inspiring her creativity and the desire to sing. Giving love a second chance might be the key to a forever love, and the start of a new music career…but can it be both?

Eleanor and the Iron King


Julie Daines - 2015
    All Eleanor knows of Brac is that he is a ruthless, war hungry man.Eleanor arrives at the Welsh castle of Bryn Du already expecting the worst. When the ghost of Brac Goch’s first wife appears and warns her that the Welsh king is not to be trusted, all of Eleanor’s fears are confirmed.As the countdown to her wedding day approaches, Eleanor must figure out who is lying, who is telling the truth, who is loyal, and who is the traitor--and most of all, if she can love an enemy king.

Spider's Voice


Gloria Skurzynski - 1999
    A man, standing behind me, who turned toward me and smiled. That smile! It was the first time anyone had ever looked at me as though I were someone who mattered. As if he were saying to me, without words, Because you and I are men, we apreciate feminine beauty when we see it. From the moment Aran sees Peter Abelard and his lover, Eloise, he wants nothing more than to surround himself with the coulple's renowned beauty, intelligence, and eloquence, which seem to offer a path of hope away from his cruel and impoverished childhood. Aran is still mourning the recent death of his devoted mother, who had taught her mute son how to spin wool, as well as the art of listening. Now Aran, born tongue-tied, has been peddled to a merchant of human grotesqueries by his brutal older brother and is about to have his body forced into the shape of a human spider. When Abelard, in need of a servant who will not talk of his affair with Eloise, rescues Aran from Master Galien, it seems that the boy's dream has come true. He is quickly given the name of Spider and accompanies the famous couple around France as they confront the various plights brought about by their overwhelming passion. During this time, he learns how to read, silently. Little by little, Spider becomes enmeshed in the lives of Abelard and Eloise, and his gifts of reading, spinning, and listening enable him to become the thread connecting the two people he worships most. In this fictional account of the true story of Abelard and Heloise, the famous twelfth-centuryFrench lovers, Gloria Skurzynski has created a tale of patience and devotion, and of the beauty created from the space between silence and words.

A Kiss is Just a Kiss


Melinda Curtis - 2017
    Maggie is the perfect bride. She's steady when he's volatile, kind when he forgets to be, and forgiving of his long hours. She's everything Beck wants in a bride.Until Kitty steps in…Kitty Summer is certain that her sister Maggie is making the biggest mistake of her life. Beck O'Brien doesn't love Maggie, but Maggie refuses to listen to reason. If Kitty can't tell Maggie she's making a mistake, then maybe she can show her. There's only one way to prove that Beck is the right man for Maggie.Can he pass The Kissing Test?More about the series:Five New York HeiressesThe Summer sisters have it all – brains, beauty, and Fortune Hunters aplenty. Is it any wonder they developed The Kissing Test – their way of knowing if a man’s interests are true?Five Handsome BillionairesFive rich, powerful men who don’t know what’s coming their way or that to achieve true love they’ll have to pass The Kissing Test.