A Duke of many rules. A Lady of independence. Since her cheating husband created a scandal by dying beneath his whore, Darcy de Merle is determined to enjoy widowhood, and refuses to mourn a man she grew to loathe. Setting the ton ablaze, Darcy holds a ball to re-launch herself into Society on the anniversary of his death. Cameron, the Duke of Athelby plays by the rules. Always. He’s lived through the terrible consequences of what revelry, carelessness, and lack of respect for one’s social position can have on a family. So, when he sees Darcy de Merle skirting the boundaries of respectability, it is only right that he should remind her of the proper etiquette that she should adhere to. Darcy refuses to allow another man to tell her what to do. When the Duke of Athelby chastises her at every turn, reminding her of her social failures, well, there is only one thing to be done about it…seduce the duke and show him there is more to life than the proper conventions set by the ton. A battle of wills ensues where all bets are off, numerous rules are broken and love becomes the ultimate reward.
It is not only the past that lies in ruins in Patna, it is also the present. But that is not the only truth about the city that Amitava Kumar explores in this vivid, entertaining account of his hometown. We accompany him through many Patnas, the myriad cities locked within the city—the shabby reality of the present-day capital of Bihar; Pataliputra, the storied city of emperors; the dreamlike embodiment of the city in the minds and hearts of those who have escaped contemporary Patna's confines. Full of fascinating observations and impressions, A Matter of Rats reveals a challenging and enduring city that exerts a lasting pull on all those who drift into its orbit. Kumar's ruminations on one of the world's oldest cities, the capital of India's poorest province, are also a meditation on how to write about place. His memory is partial. All he has going for him is his attentiveness. He carefully observes everything that surrounds him in Patna: rats and poets, artists and politicians, a girl's picture in a historian's study, and a sheet of paper on his mother's desk. The result is this unique book, as cutting as it is honest.
Unlucky in love, Maddie St. Clair hides behind an antique store and her mudlarking hobby. That is until she finds a medieval ring that throws her back to 1102 Cumberland and into the life of Lady Madeline Vincent, heiress to Norman lands and about to be married to an autocratic Baron, William Dowell, nine hundred years her senior. Lord William Dowell protects his own. Usually, from his closest neighbor and long standing foe the Baron of Aimecourt. Forced to marry his dead enemy’s daughter, Lady Madeline, by King’s decree, he hides his growing respect for his wife behind a wanton mistress. Yet when Madeline’s life is threatened, William’s loyalty to his kin is tested by the astonishing desire that flares between them. Not to mention the love that Madeline ignites that would last an eternity. If fate will allow . . .
Miss Olivia Quinton is certain a marriage proposal is imminent, but her hopes are dashed when her gentleman admirer moves his attentions to another at a country house party. Disappointed by these turns of events and seeing the man for the fiend he is, Olivia hatches a plan of revenge. With the aid of Duke Hamlyn, she sets out to make her past love interest pay for his betrayal. Jasper Abraham, Duke Hamlyn, did not think his Season would be taken up with helping a bedeviling chit in gaining her revenge. Everything would work out splendidly well if he hadn’t already agreed to help his friend keep Olivia away from him during the house party and remaining Season. Thrown together with opposite goals, Jasper cannot help but wonder why anyone would overthrow the delectable, sweet Olivia Quinton. Playing her fake beau is no chore, and the more time he spends with her, the more he wants to do a lot more than flirt with the chit. Unfortunately, when games are played, there can be only one winner, but perhaps in this folly, everyone will lose.
Without a Season, Lady Isolde Worthingham captured the Duke of Moore's heart at a country dance. But on the eve of her wedding, a scandal that rocked the ton and sent her fleeing to Scotland alone and unwed, leaves her perfectly planned future in a tangle of disgrace and heartbreak. Merrick Mountshaw, the Duke of Moore loathes the pitiful existence he hides from the ton. With a scandalous wife he never wanted, who flaunts her many indiscretions, life is a never-ending parade of hell. When the one woman he loved and lost returns to London, he knows he can no longer live without her. But vows and past hurts are not easily forgotten. Love may not win against the ton when a too proper Lord and Lady play by the rules.
Evie Milton knows she’ll never marry. But that doesn’t mean she can’t celebrate her sister’s betrothal to Finlay Stone, Duke of Carlisle. Until the bride-to-be runs off with the wrong man, that is. Now, if they have any hope of avoiding a devastating scandal, Evie and Finlay will need to bring the runaway bride to heel. And Evie will have to somehow ignore her growing attraction to the handsome duke who can never be hers … In order to avoid disinheritance, Finlay needs a wife, and he requires one now. Finding a match wasn’t terribly difficult. Keeping her, however, was another story. Going after the chit was his last option. What he never expected was how he’d start to feel for Evie. She’s beautiful, kind, mature…and an entirely unsuitable bride. If only he could convince his heart of that … All it takes is one spontaneous kiss to scatter their best intentions to the wind. But as secrets emerge and truths are revealed, can Evie and Finlay find their way to happily ever after—or is their wicked liaison doomed to end in heartbreak?
He's a legend in the raking . . . The Last Crimes of Peregrine Hind - Sierra Simone Peregrine Hind, known to all as the bloodiest highwayman ever to bedevil the road, seeks only one thing-revenge against the Dartham family. And so when a robbery sends the second Dartham son and notorious rakehell Alexander Dartham tumbling to Peregrine's feet, it seems like fate has given Peregrine his vengeance at last. Except then Alexander offers him a desperate bargain: to kidnap him instead, so Peregrine can harvest a generous ransom from Alexander's family first. Peregrine agrees, but he's in no way prepared for a captive like Alexander, who insists only on the softest beds and the finest wines...and who enjoys being tied up a little too much... Two Rakes for Mrs. Sparkwell - Eva Leigh The last thing Mrs. Vivian Sparkwell wants is to tie her life to another stifling husband. But thanks to the surprise terms of her last marriage contract, if she refuses any reasonable offer to wed again, she loses her widow's portion. What she needs is a thorough and public ruining to make her would-be suitors cry off. Who better to provide the necessary scandal than notorious rake Rushton Cantley? Yet when Rush proposes that his friend, gaming hell bruiser Jack Morgan, join in on the ruination, Vivian can't decide if she's shocked-or aroused. How far is too far when infamy is on the line? A Rake, His Patron, & Their Muse - Nicola Davidson London playwright and notorious rake Lennox Townsend is renowned for bold melodrama and bolder pleasures. When he loses interest in both, his shy yet devoted patron Lord Jonathan Grant escorts him to a country boarding house managed by repressed widow, Mrs. Viola Prescott. The trio soon surrender to sizzling-and forbidden-passion, made sweeter as each share their deepest secrets and find acceptance of their true self. Yet cold reality is ever ready to intrude, and they know happiness is fleeting. Or is it? Monsieur X - Adriana Herrera Joseph Cantor Marshall never imagined reaching the pinnacle of artistic success would be so... uninspiring. Desperate for a spark of excitement he attends the notorious masked soirée at the most exclusive sex club in Paris. The moment he walks in he's entranced by the mysterious X, the embodiment of the painter's darkest fantasies. But X is as slippery as he is tempting, and soon Marshall's days and nights are consumed by growing desire for his elusive lover. Will falling for X prove to be Marshall's undoing or his greatest masterpiece? Sold to the Duke - Joanna Shupe Though she once lived a life of privilege, Lady Eliza is now destitute and desperate to care for her ill sister. She decides to sell the one thing of value she has left: her virginity. At the auction, a shocked Duke of Blackwood recognizes Eliza and refuses to allow her to fall into the clutches of a depraved bidder. But his role of noble rescuer is upended when the proud beauty insists on giving him his money's worth...
She saved his life, but can she save him from himself? Hunter, Marquess of Aaron, has the ton fooled. Outwardly he’s a gentleman of position, with good contacts, wealth and charm. Inwardly, he’s a mess. His vice—drinking himself into a stupor most days—almost kills him when he steps in front of a hackney cab. His saviour, a most unlikely person, is an angel to gaze at, but with a tongue sharper than his sword cane. Cecilia Smith dislikes idleness and waste. Had she been born male, she would already be working for her father’s law firm. So, on a day when she was late for an important meeting at one of her many charities, she was not impressed by having to step in and save a foxed gentleman rogue from being run over. When their social spheres collide, Hunter is both surprised and awed by the capable, beautiful Miss Smith. Cecilia, on the other hand, is left confused and not a little worried by her assumptions about the Marquess and his demons. It is anyone’s guess whether these two people from different worlds can form one of their own…
Molly Clare is living her dream. Being a guest in a gorgeous villa while she explores Rome is everything she could’ve hoped for and more. The man who owns the villa is equally charming—and entirely too tempting. At least, that’s what he appears to be. The truth of who and what he really is…well, that’s infinitely more complicated. Lord Hugh Farley is living a nightmare. Ruined by rumors of indiscretions he didn’t commit and betrayed by his own family, his only option was to leave London. But any hope he had for a quiet Roman exile is destroyed when she arrives. Molly is everything he’s ever wanted…and nothing he can have. But keeping his mind—and hands—off her quickly proves impossible. Can Molly and Hugh find a way to clear his name and build a future together? Or is their happily ever after nothing but a fantasy?
She’ll never let anyone break her heart. Not again, anyway…Lady Sarah Farley has learned many of life’s lessons the hard way. She now knows the ton will viciously turn on anyone, anytime. And love? That only brings devastation. But when a particularly handsome ghost from her past re-emerges, she can’t help but wonder if life is about to teach her poor wounded heart yet another painful, unwanted lesson. Lord Giles Longe, Marques Gordan, never wanted to hurt Sarah. But he couldn’t have married her back then. His father wouldn’t have allowed it. Everything is different now, though. He will make amends. And if it’s the last thing he ever does, he will make her remember the friendship—and pleasure—they once shared. Is a Christmas ball at St. Albans Abbey the perfect setting for Sarah to regain her trust in love–and in Giles? Or is their second chance at happily ever after doomed to end as badly as their first?
