Responding to an Advertisement, She Crossed an Ocean to Meet a Total Stranger and Became a Mail-Order Bride-Kathleen O'Malley stood on the deck of the Barreth Lily and watched the land she'd called home for more than a dozen years slip from her view. She had thought she would be glad to see the last of it, but she was not. Emotions in turmoil, her whole being yearned to slip from the ship and return to what she knew. Even though Kathleen had not been happy with her situation, it was all she had ever known. As the shoreline faded into the morning mist, her only certainty was that she was bound for America to marry a man whose name she did not even know and whose face she had never seen.On the other side of the Atlantic, Donnigan Harrison anxiously awaits Kathleen's arrival on a prairie farm far from her port of arrival in Boston. He has known the wonder of a dream fulfilled a snug frame cabin, the sturdy log barn and outbuildings, a fine herd of livestock, and crops in the field that made his eyes sparkle. Yet Donnigan felt a loneliness on the western frontier that pierced his very soul. With so limited opportunities for finding a wife, the notion of ordering a wife that once seemed unthinkable had come to make some sense. Now that the time has come, Donnigan feels like a small boy waiting for Christmas.She didn't even know his name...but she was about to become his bride. Standing on the ship's deck, Kathleen O'Malley watches the land she has called home slip from her view. She had thought she would be glad to see it go, but regardless of the unpleasant situation she was leaving, it was at least safe and familiar. America seems so very far away...At his prairie farm, Donnigan Harrison anxiously awaits his bride's arrival. He has known the wonder of a dreams fulfilled--a snug cabin, a sturdy log barn, a fine herd of livestock, and crops in the field. But even with all that, he is lonely. A notion that once seemed unthinkable had come to make sense, and so he wrote a letter. But Donnigan's anticipation is overshadowed by terrifying uncertainties: What have I done? And that question is echoed in Kathleen's heart as she nears the port...

Although Jenny Chawleigh was bright, well-mannered, and an heiress, she was no match for Julia Oversley, the love of handsome Adam Deveril's life. But Adam desperately needed money to keep his fatherless family together, and a marriage to Jenny would solve all his problems. And Jenny's father, a man of great wealth and ambition for his daughter, was only too happy to arrange a suitable match for her.But Adam didn't reckon with the Jenny nobody knew, or the unknown quality that lay hidden behind her demure and plain facade....

Antonia Mannering refused to become an old maid!She was a young woman with plans, and Lord Philip Ruthven played a large part in them. Though the childhood friends had not seen one another in years, she was perfectly aware that Philip had no lack of female companionship. But he had never married, and it was high time he did. If she could prove to him that she was capable of running his home and would not disgrace him in society, Antonia was certain he would propose a comfortable arrangement. But never had she expected that their hearts would somehow find their way into the bargain!

Weekly ballet classes are Harriet Morton's only escape from her intolerably dull life. So when she is chosen to join a corps de ballet which is setting off on a tour of the Amazon, she leaps at the chance to run away for good.Performing in the grand opera houses is everything Harriet dreamed of, and falling in love with an aristocratic exile makes her new life complete. Swept away by it all, she is unaware that her father and intended fiancé have begun to track her down…A Company of Swans is a sweeping tale of romance, freedom and the beauty of dance from award-winning author, Eva Ibbotson.

Spirited Emily Gibson has been looking after her family since her father died, but debts are mounting. She decides she must marry for money and writes asking her estranged grandfather to select a suitable suitor. The man the Earl of Westerham chooses is her cousin, but he is the last person Emily would have picked for herself.

Newly returned to her home in Mayfair, Lady Emily Hargreaves is looking forward to enjoying the delights of the season. The delights, that is, as defined by her own eccentricities—reading The Aeneid, waltzing with her dashing husband, and joining the Women’s Liberal Federation in the early stages of its campaign to win the vote for women. But an audacious vandal disturbs the peace in the capital city, splashing red paint on the neat edifices of the homes of London’s elite. This mark, impossible to hide, presages the revelation of scandalous secrets, driving the hapless victims into disgrace, despair and even death. Soon, all of London high society is living in fear of learning who will be the next target, and Lady Emily and her husband, Colin, favorite agent of the crown, must uncover the identity and reveal the motives of the twisted mind behind it all before another innocent life is lost.

Mr. and Mrs. Darcy Wish You a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!Share in the magic of the season in these three warm and wonderful holiday novellas from bestselling authors.

My Dear Readers,Five years have now passed since the Winter War between the Outlands and Hetar. But Gaius Prospero has not given up his scheme to become emperor, and unexpected tragedy causes Lara to once again heed the pull of her destiny. Finding herself across the sea in a secret new world known as Terah, she discovers that her magical abilities grow greater with each passing day.Using her newfound powers, Lara lifts an ancient curse from the men of Terah, earning its ruler's gratitude – and his deep and passionate love. Magnus Hauk has never known a woman like Lara, and his fascination leads him to venture back across the sea with her to prevent another war. There, however, the ruler of Terah learns that betrayal is an everyday commodity; nothing is exactly what is seems in beautiful, sinister Hetar. And the lovers attract the animosity of Prospero, a dangerous enemy to have. For power, dear reader, does corrupt absolutely.This take continues to unfold within the corridors of my imagination. I hope you will enjoy Lara's further adventures as she continues to seek out her true destiny. I know I am enjoying writing it for you.Beatrice Small

Lady Emily Ashton is back in her third episode of romantic suspense set in the Victorian world of mannerly gentlemen, conniving mothers, and scandals behind closed doors. Forced to join a group of socialites at the home of formidable and odious Lord Fortescue, whom she loathes (and whose daughter covets Emily’s fiancé, Colin Hargreaves), Emily and others in the party feel little regret when Fortescue is murdered. Unfortunately, her best friend’s husband, Robert, is arrested and imprisoned in the Tower, after witnesses confirm his fight with the victim. Resolved to exonerate Robert, Emily heads for Vienna on the killer’s trail. Austria proves rich with intrigue, and this portion of the story really shines as readers take a tour of nineteenth-century Vienna—its parties and its cafés—in the wintertime, shadowed by decidedly evil characters. Emily’s sparkling wit makes up for the somewhat convoluted plot and large cast of characters who move from England to the Continent and back at the slightest provocation. This is a captivating addition to the adventures of an irresistible Victorian iconoclast.

THE IMPOSSIBLE MR. GOWER     Lady Rachel Palmer was quite used to men falling helplessly in love with her. Every gentleman in aristocratic society, including her devoted fiancé, Lord Algernon Rivers, fell a willing victim to Rachel's dazzling beauty and bewitching charm.    Every gentleman, that is, except Lord Rivers' closest friend, the studiously unfashionable and splendidly handsome Mr. David Gower.    Mr. Gower made it clear that the ravishing Rache represented everything he scorned, and that he was the very last man in the world she could ever ensnare. It was a challenge Rachel could not ignore-from a man she could not resist…****************************** FIRE AND ICE    Rachel had never been held thus, against the full, warm length of a man's body. And she had never been kissed thus, with lips that moved over hers, parting and persuading hers to do the same. But she knew this was right. This was the way it must be.    Then she felt David's hold loosen.    "I have given into a temptation I thought I had under control," he said. "I had determined never to touch another woman this way until she had consented to be my wife."    "I can marry you," Rachel said eagerly.    He shook his head. "No, Lady Rachel, we can never marry."    Rachel's face was becoming stormy. "Give me one reason why I may not marry you."    "Because I am not asking you," he coldly replied.    Signet, North American Library, Signet    Copright 1989    And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:    And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.    Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?    -Matthew 6: 28-30

THE WOLF'S BARGAIN…"You said I am too proud and I-I am," Jennifer said, laying her hand on Royce's chest in desperate supplication. "If you will let my sister go, I'll do any humble task you give me. I'll scrub the floors. I'll wait upon you at table. I swear I'll repay you in a hundred ways."Royce glanced down at the small, delicate hand laid upon his chest; heat was seeping through his tunic, desire already tightening his loins."Please," Jenny whispered, "I'll do anything . You have only to tell me what you want.""I want you in my bed."Jennifer's hand fell away from his tunic. Behind them her sister's coughing rose to a terrible crescendo and Jenny shuddered with alarm."Do we have a bargain?" he asked, and when she hesitated, he stated calmly, "In truth, I have no need to bargain with you at all, Jennifer, and you know it. I want you, and if that makes me a barbarian in your eyes, then so be it, but it doesn't have to be that way. There'll be no shame nor pain for you in my bed. There will be only pleasure."Jenny remembered the previous occasions when he had embraced her, had kissed her-and her own surprising response. Blood rushed to her face."Do we have a bargain?" Royce asked, his long fingers sliding up and down her arms in an unconscious caress…

THE WOLF'S BARGAIN…"You said I am too proud and I-I am," Jennifer said, laying her hand on Royce's chest in desperate supplication. "If you will let my sister go, I'll do any humble task you give me. I'll scrub the floors. I'll wait upon you at table. I swear I'll repay you in a hundred ways."Royce glanced down at the small, delicate hand laid upon his chest; heat was seeping through his tunic, desire already tightening his loins."Please," Jenny whispered, "I'll do anything . You have only to tell me what you want.""I want you in my bed."Jennifer's hand fell away from his tunic. Behind them her sister's coughing rose to a terrible crescendo and Jenny shuddered with alarm."Do we have a bargain?" he asked, and when she hesitated, he stated calmly, "In truth, I have no need to bargain with you at all, Jennifer, and you know it. I want you, and if that makes me a barbarian in your eyes, then so be it, but it doesn't have to be that way. There'll be no shame nor pain for you in my bed. There will be only pleasure."Jenny remembered the previous occasions when he had embraced her, had kissed her-and her own surprising response. Blood rushed to her face."Do we have a bargain?" Royce asked, his long fingers sliding up and down her arms in an unconscious caress…

Jack Lester has to find a bride…But where can he find the perfect woman? She has to be attractive, kind, a good conversationalist… and more important, she has to accept him as he is: devilishly handsome, charming and, as far as anyone knows, poor as a church mouse! If London society discovers his hidden wealth, he'll never find the right wife.Jack's heart races when he first lays eyes on Sophie Winterton. She is everything he desires – and more – but he is caught in his own trap. Believing that Jack needs to marry into wealth, Sophie rejects all his advances, certain he would never marry a poor girl like her. As they play out a game of cat and mouse, can Jack convince her that she is the woman he wants – and that he is the husband she deserves?

Publisher's WeeklyRegency romance juggernaut Laurens shows signs of fatigue in the third book of her Bastion Club septet (after The Lady Chosen and A Gentleman's Honor). Lord Charles St. Austell, earl of Lostwithiel, is one of the seven noble members of the Bastion Club ("a last bastion against the matchmakers of the ton") who served as spies during the Napoleonic wars and who still do a bit of investigating for the Crown when they're not braving eager ladies on the marriage mart. At his country estate, Charles encounters old friend (and old flame) Lady Penelope Selborne, who's up to her neck in intrigue. Penny's late brother may have been involved in schemes to smuggle secrets to France during the war-schemes that seem to be continuing with new sources even after his death. The novel features all the steamy sensuality for which Laurens is known, but the sex scenes lack the spark typical of her best work; Penny and Charles spend far too much time staring longingly at each other, dutifully denying their own urges. The unwieldy spy plot, meanwhile, progresses with agonizing slowness as the two interrogate every suspicious newcomer in town. Dedicated fans will probably stick with Laurens through the remaining four Bastion Club titles, but she's going to have to pick up the pace if she's to keep others intrigued. Agent, Nancy Yost. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Author’s Note: Upon return to Hertfordshire in October of 1812 ‘in pursuit of game’, Darcy’s real purpose is forestalled by interfering interlopers, his good intention hindered by old habits that die hard, and his true aim thrown off by Bingley.Warning: The writer’s extensive use of adjectives, adverbs, and motley-minded Elizabethan-era insults may be offensive to some.