Showing results by author "Stephanie Laurens" in All Categories

The instant Captain Declan Frobisher lays eyes on Lady Edwina Delbraith, he knows she's the woman he wants as his wife. The scion of a seafaring dynasty accustomed to success, he discovers that wooing Edwina is surprisingly straightforward - not least because she makes it plain that she wants him as much as he wants her.

When the genial and highly regarded Sir Montague Underhill is found murdered in his own orchard, Inspector Stokes is dispatched, together with Barnaby and Penelope Adair, to Patchcote Grange to uncover the culprit. But a fashionable house party provides a large cast of potential suspects, and when the investigators learn what business Sir Montague had been dabbling in, the challenge before them grows even larger.

It's December 1837, and the young adults of the Cynster clan have succeeded in having the family Christmas celebration held at snowbound Casphairn Manor, Richard and Catriona Cynster's home. Led by Sebastian, Marquess of Earith, and by Lucilla, future Lady of the Vale, and her twin brother, Marcus, the upcoming generation has its own plans for the holiday season.

The eldest of the Frobisher brothers, known as the lord of the privateers, Royd expects to execute the final leg of the rescue mission his brothers have been pursuing. What he does not expect is to be pressured into taking with him his emotional nemesis, childhood sweetheart, ex-handfasted bride, and business partner, Isobel Carmichael. But is it Isobel doing the pressuring, or his own restless, unfulfilled psyche? Isobel, unstoppably resolute and determined, has a mission of her own: find her cousin Katherine and bring her safely home.

Set in Regency England, Stephanie Laurens' New York Times best-selling Bastion Club series evokes a bygone era where romantic entanglements rule the day - and inflamed desires rule the night. In A Fine Passion, Jack, Baron Warnefleet, narrowly avoids marriage when he flees London for the refuge of his estate. But there waits Lady Clarice Altwood, whose beauty is impossible to ignore.

He vowed he'd never marry. To Vane Cynster, Bellamy Hall seems like the perfect place to temporarily hide from London's husband hunters. But when he encounters irresistible Patience Debbington, Vane realises he's met his match. Patience vowed no man would catch her, and she isn't about to succumb to Vane's propositions. Yes, his caresses made her melt; but Patience has promised herself she'll never become vulnerable to a broken heart. Is this one vow that was meant to be broken?

Wealthy and roguish, Demon Cynster is perfectly content without love. Having witnessed his Cynster brethren driven to their knees by women, he knows all too well what the power of love can do to a man. But he never banked on meeting Felicity Parteger, a luscious, curvy beauty in desperate need of help. Could this tempting woman be the one?

As the mysterious leader of the Bastion Club, known as “Dalziel,” Royce Varisey, tenth Duke of Wolverstone, served his country for decades, facing dangers untold. But as the holder of one of England’s most august noble titles, he must now take on the gravest duty of all: marriage. Yet the young ladies the grande dames would have him consider are predictably boring. Far more tempting is his castle’s willful and determinedly aloof chatelaine, Minerva Chesterton. Beneath her serene façade lies a woman of smoldering sensuality, one who will fill his days with comfort....

When Devil, the most infamous member of the Cynster family, is caught in a compromising position with plucky governess Honoria, he astonishes the entire ton by offering his hand in marriage. But Honoria isn't about to bend to society's demands. She craves adventure and is set on seeing the world. Could her passion for Devil cause her to embrace the enchanting peril of a lifelong adventure of the heart?

Stephanie Laurens authors USA Today best-selling historical romances such as A Rake's Vow and Devil's Bride. Lauren's Scandal's Bride is the hot and exciting third novel in her riveting Bar Cynster series.

Michael Anstruther-Wetherby is a rising member of parliament - a man destined for power. Except Michael lacks the single most important element of success: a wife. Political pressure sends him searching for his ideal bride, a gently bred, malleable young lady, preferably one with a political background. Michael discovers such a paragon but finds a formidable obstacle in his path - the young lady's beautiful, strong-minded aunt - Caroline Sutcliffe.

Sebastian Cynster knows time is running out. If he doesn't choose a wife soon, his female relatives will line up to assist him. Yet the current debutantes do not appeal. Where is he to find the right lady to be his marchioness? Then Drake Varisey, eldest son of the Duke of Wolverstone, asks for Sebastian's aid.

Governess Honoria Wetherby values her independence. She would rather travel the world than marry and give some man control of her life. Then, one stormy evening, fate changes all her plans. She stumbles upon a mortally wounded young man in the woods. When the stranger dies, she is trapped in a cabin with his body and with his newly arrived cousin, Devil, whom she soon learns is aptly named.

Determined to escape the matchmaking skills of London society, Alasdair Cynster-better known as Lucifer-heads for the English countryside. But his flight from London leads him straight to Phyllida Tallent, a beautiful, strong-willed young woman who is as equally determined as he is to remain unmarried.

Angelica Cynster is certain she'll recognize the love of her life at first sight. When her eyes meet those of a mysterious nobleman across a candlelit ballroom, and her pulse begins to quicken, she knows beyond doubt that he's the one. But her heart is soon pounding for an entirely different reason when this same man abducts her, whisking her out of London, into the wild and untamed Scottish highlands. Angelica had always considered herself an expert in the art of assessing gentlemen—could she have really been so wrong?

Thomas Carrick is a gentleman driven to control all aspects of his life. As the wealthy owner of Carrick Enterprises, located in bustling Glasgow, he is one of that city's most eligible bachelors and fully intends to select an appropriate wife from the many young ladies paraded before him. He wants to take that necessary next step along his self-determined path, yet no young lady captures his eye, much less his attention - not in the way Lucilla Cynster does, even though she lives miles away.

Gyles Rawlings, the Earl of Chillingsworth, is a man determined to stay in control of his destiny. Even as he vows to wed a dutiful, blue-blooded lady for the purpose of fostering progeny, he deviously plans to fulfill his most sinful pleasures with a brazen strumpet. But standing at the altar on that fateful day, he unexpectedly finds himself falling in love with his beautiful bride-to-be.

Gregory Cynster arrives at the property willed to him by his great-aunt with the intention of converting Bellamy Hall into a quiet, comfortable gentleman’s country residence, only to discover the Hall overrun by an eclectic collection of residents engaged in a host of business endeavors under the stewardship of a lady far too young to be managing such reins. With the other residents of the estate, Caitlin Fergusson has been planning just how to deal with the new owner, but coming face to face with Gregory Cynster throws her and everyone else off their stride.

Toby Cynster is not amused when informed that his new mission is to be his last in the shadowy service of Drake, Marquess of Winchelsea. Courtesy of Toby being the last unmarried Cynster of his generation and the consequent martial obsession of his female relatives, he will be given no more excuses to avoid society and, instead, expected to devote himself to finding a suitable bride. But Toby sees no point in marrying—thanks to his siblings, he has plenty of nephews and nieces with whom to play favorite uncle, and he has no thoughts of establishing a family of his own.

In a moment of recklessness, Gervase Tregarth, sixth Earl of Crowhurst, swears he’ll marry the next eligible lady to cross his path. Cloistered at his ancestral castle in Cornwall, with nary a suitable woman for miles, he never expects he’ll have to fulfill his pledge, at least not until the London season begins. But then he meets his neighbor, the very appealing Madeline Gascoigne.

Years of secret service to the Crown have taught Gervase the value of always having a loophole - there will be no wedding if he and Madeline are not compatible in every way.