Showing results by author "Beverley Watts" in All Categories

In the seaside town of Paignton, England, 1891, 22-year-old Alexandra Shackleford faces an uncertain future when her father, Chief Inspector Henry Shackleford, is forced into early retirement from the police force. Living with her five sisters and their outspoken Aunt Charlotte at Cliff House, Alex has resigned herself to spinsterhood—until fate brings the enigmatic Baron Tavistock back into her life.

Anthony Shackleford had long been acquainted with the word duty. Indeed, since the moment he could walk, it had been drummed into him every Friday between the hours of two and four in the afternoon, accompanied by tea and apple cake. His mother had always been especially partial to apple cake. The essence of his obligation was this. The Duke of Blackmore could not be expected to keep his in-laws into their twilight years. Despite the fact that his sisters had all made extremely advantageous marriages, as the only son, it was his job to ensure his parents a comfortable dotage.

The third title in Beverley Watt's Shackleford Legacies series.

There was no doubt that things had definitely looked better for Gabriel Atwood, one time Viscount Northwood. Mainly because everyone who knew him or of him almost certainly believed him dead—the bastard who'd betrayed him had made sure of that. His only hope was to seek aid from Nicholas Sinclair, his former mentor, now the current Duke of Blackmore, before his enemies realised that news of his demise had been greatly exaggerated. 

Lady Jennifer Sinclair is halfway through her second season and thoroughly disillusioned with the marriage mart. After one discretion too many, the headstrong only daughter of the powerful Duke of Blackmore finds herself on the way to Scotland in the company of her older brother Peter who’s been tasked by his father to inspect the family estate north of the border. Once at Caerlaverock, the Duke’s estate on the shores of Loch Lomond, Jennifer is surprised to discover an unexpected sense of peace. But that peace is not to last…

Reverend Shackleford was at a loss. He'd truly believed that in marrying his eldest daughter Grace to an extremely wealthy peer of the realm, his problems would be over. But as the Reverend was now beginning to realize, it wasn't sufficient to have a wealthy Duke in the family if the daughter he was trying to marry off had the manners of a stable hand. And to Reverend Shackleford's knowledge, his second eldest daughter Temperance is the exact opposite of her name and a harpy to boot.

With her four older sisters now married, it's Patience Shackleford's turn to take charge of her younger siblings' education. But given that Patience's most prodigious skill is lock picking, any abilities she passes on to her younger sisters are unlikely to provide any assistance in the drawing rooms of the genteel, especially as she has no interest in either high society, or horror of horrors… marriage. Indeed, her father the Reverend Augustus Shackleford is firmly of the opinion that the less society knows about his fifth daughter the better…

In dieser humorvollen Regency-Liebesromanreihe stürzen sich die Shackleford-Schwestern in die höfische Gesellschaft, die nicht weiß, wie ihr geschieht … Als Faith Shackleford sich in der wenig beneidenswerten Lage wiederfand, ihren mürrischen Vater zur Erholung in die vornehme Küstenstadt...

Es bestand kein Zweifel daran, dass es für Gabriel Atwood, einst Viscount Northwood, schon deutlich bessere Zeiten gegeben hatte. Vor allem deshalb, weil nahezu jeder, der ihn kannte oder von ihm gehört hatte, ihn mit großer Sicherheit für tot hielt – der Bastard, der ihn verraten hatte...

The third book in Beverley Watts's dazzling Shackleford and Daughters series of Victorian romantic comedies...

When Faith Shackleford found herself in the unenviable position of having to accompany her irascible father to convalesce in the genteel seaside town of Torquay, she envisioned three months of wearying monotony. She certainly wasn't expecting to be intrigued by the forlorn empty house situated next to their own elegant villa, especially when she discovered it belonged to a handsome captain in the Royal Navy who was currently away at sea. Unfortunately, she never imagined that fascination might cost her her life.

In the eyes of her family, Chastity Shackleford was impulsive, flighty, overly emotional and inclined to sentimental overtures. All in all, a disaster waiting to happen should she accept the Duke of Blackmore's offer of a Season in London. But what else was she to do since her twin sister and best friend had abandoned her for the wilds of Cornwall? Naturally she might have hoped that disaster had waited a little longer before striking, but at least she faced the possibility of marriage with someone who had all his own teeth. 

Reverend Augustus Shackleford's mission in life (aside from ensuring the collection box was suitably full every Sunday) was to secure advantageous marriages for each of his eight daughters. A tall order, given the fact that in the Reverend's opinion they didn't possess a single ladylike bone in the eight bodies they had between them. Quite where he would find a wealthy titled gentleman bottle headed enough to take any of them on remained a mystery and indeed was likely to test even his legendary resourcefulness.

As the eldest daughter of the Earl of Cottesmore, Lady Mercedes Stanhope didn't expect to be still without a husband at the start of her third season. And neither did she expect to be the target of a kidnapping attempt on her journey home from Scotland. But most of all, she didn't expect to experience such an emotional connection to the man who came to her rescue…

While Charity Shackleford might be considered far more outspoken than her twin sister Chastity, she was much less inclined to make a complete cake of herself. Something her twin appeared to be doing with increasing regularity. Indeed, when details of Chastity's latest faux pas threatened to travel beyond the confines of Blackmore, it appeared that removing her from the vicinity was the only answer. Naturally, as always, Grace, the eldest daughter and current Duchess of Blackmore was tasked with picking up the pieces.

Since coming to Dartmouth, Teddy Shackleford has been happier than she’s ever been. Not only is she surrounded by family and friends, but she’s also been dating Sebastian Sinclair, the fourteenth Duke of Blackmore for over a year. Of course, she doesn’t imagine for a second that her relationship with an actual peer of the realm will be forever, but she’s determined to enjoy it while it lasts.

At thirty two, Victory Shackleford is arguably overweight, undeniably frumpish and the love of her life is a dog. She still lives at home with her father—an eccentric retired Admiral who she considers reckless, irresponsible, and totally incapable of looking after himself. Her father on the other hand thinks Victory is a boring nagging harpy with no imagination or sense of adventure and what's more, he's determined to get her married off. Unfortunately there's no one in the picturesque yachting town of Dartmouth that Tory is remotely interested in, despite her father's best efforts.

Reverend Shackleford war ratlos. Er hatte wirklich geglaubt, dass seine Probleme vorbei wären, wenn er seine älteste Tochter Grace mit einem äußerst wohlhabenden Adligen verheiratet hätte. Aber wie der Pfarrer nun allmählich erkannte, reichte es nicht aus, einen reichen Duke in der Familie...

Prudence Shackleford had not expected to be a spinster at three and twenty, but unfortunately, as she'd quickly discovered, very few men were prepared to tolerate either her ghoulish sense of humour, or her macabre taste in literature. And those were the ones she'd got as far as holding a conversation with. When invited to London by the Duke and Duchess of Blackmore to witness the Coronation of King George IV, she was equal parts horrified and intrigued. Especially after a chance meeting with a Bow Street Runner on the trail of conspirators it was feared were planning to murder the King.

She might be in her mid forties, but it doesn't mean she's given up on romance... Beverley Wilkins promised herself when she started working at Britannia Royal Naval College, the Royal Navy's premier officer training establishment, that she would eventually become that most envied of creatures -...