Showing results by narrator "Helen Taylor" in All Categories

After years of hardship, Miss Susannah Croft is given a chance to start anew in a quiet Sussex village. As she builds a life for herself and her daughter, Sukey must overcome gossip, old betrayals, and her own fears. The support of steadfast friends and the unexpected kindness shown her exceed her expectations. She is content, and yet longings that can never be satisfied begin to intrude on her peace. Thomas Townsend has built a life of quiet responsibility as a country gentleman. Beneath his easy charm lies a man marked by loyalty and integrity.

What's in a Name? Hidden at Ashwick Hall, Emma Wynn must stay "dead" until she comes of age, then prove she can protect her brother. A visit to Lady Eagleton draws her to the reclusive Mr Carne, but rumours about him could ruin everything. Disgraced by a false accusation, Oliver Carne retreats to his Cornish estate and shuts out the world. Meeting Emma makes him question his exile and whether he might reclaim his honour after all.

Georgette Fortune has loved the same man for over two years now, but he does not even know she exists. When the handsome Marquis of Onslow appears at a house party in her home, the crumbling Castle Fortune, he does not recognise her at all. With six unmarried daughters to provide for, and in the hope of marriage settlements, Baron Fortune has invited guests to a home ill prepared for it. He hopes that young Lord Paxton, who has shown interest in his daughter Jocasta will finally offer for her. And while he is at it, he will introduce his other daughters to the company as well.

Hugh Brandforth, the seventh earl of Ormsley, returns to his estate after wasting several weeks searching for a bride. He is looking forward to some much-needed rest and recreation. All is not as he left it, however. Within an hour, he finds himself berated by his old nurse and assaulted by Miss Cressida Harrington, an eccentric termagant he has never before encountered. She is not at all the sort of woman he admires. He wants a respectable bride who will not ask for more than he can give—love. She has no need or desire to marry, and love is the only thing that might change her mind.

Captain Charles Bassington of the 13th Light Dragoons is famed for his good luck, high spirits, and devil-may-care attitude. He escapes serious injury at Waterloo only to succumb to an inflammation of the lungs. When he returns home to recuperate, cracks begin to appear in his cheery façade. It is only when two eminently eligible bachelors appear to be vying for the hand of his childhood friend, Lady Selena Sheringham, that Charles realizes his heart’s desire. But how can the younger son of a baron ever hope to be worthy of the wealthy daughter of an earl?

When the eligible Mr. Allison is to come to Fenton Manor to woo Honoria, there is a problem. She doesn't remember what he looked like. Crippled by her timidity, she hardly looked at him when they'd met during her first London season. But he had spoken to her father, determined to ask her for her hand. Her siblings, Serena and Benedict, find this highly amusing, but after Honoria overhears a conversation between her parents about their finances, she realises she must marry Mr. Allison.

To the miserable atmosphere of the country house of Studham, home to the Fighting Fox family, Miss Ianthe Eames, a whirlwind, arrives. Known in London as the Fighting Foxes, Lord Edward Fox is at odds with his stepmother, Lady Fox, and her spoiled son Curtis. Studham is hardly a joyful place to live. As the Fighting Fox family await the arrival of a poor relation from France, Lady Fox is ready to berate her late arrival, Lord Edward Fox is resigned to ignoring her, Curtis is ready to patronise her - while the resident visitors are ready to sympathise.

The USA TODAY bestselling author of Middletide returns with a lush and atmospheric novel of suspense following a young woman whose job as a game warden puts her in the path of a murderer in a small town eager to protect its own. Desperate to escape a relationship gone bad, Annie Heston flees...

After fleeing her home, Lucy has spent the last two years at Ashwick Hall under Lady Westcliffe’s protection. Now that her godmother, Lady Frampton, has returned from abroad to take charge of her, the time has come for her to be reunited with her twin sister. Abby betrayed her, however, and she is unsure if she can forgive her. Lucy knows nothing of the world, and when she steps into it, she discovers far more than she ever imagined, not least that things are rarely quite as they seem.

Marianne has disconcertingly open manners and a liveliness that Miss Wolfraston deplores. When she visits her aunt in Cheltenham, these traits inevitably lead her into a series of scrapes. Lord Cranbourne has already been disappointed in love once and is in no hurry to find a bride. Annoyed at his sister’s matchmaking attempts, he accompanies his friend Sir Horace Bamber to Cheltenham. He expects to be heartily bored. Then, he meets Marianne. Both have lessons to learn; not least that no one is quite what they seem.

Captain Charles Bassington of the 13th Light Dragoons is famed for his good luck, high spirits, and devil-may-care attitude. He escapes serious injury at Waterloo only to succumb to an inflammation of the lungs. When he returns home to recuperate, cracks begin to appear in his cheery façade. Lady Selena has adored Charles all her life, but when she receives a letter from him suggesting his friend Lord Carteret would make a good husband, she is forced to put aside childish dreams that he might one day love her.

When Anne is offered the position of governess to Captain Turner’s two wards, she steps back into a world she had thought herself forever severed from. As she works to establish a better relationship between her charges and their guardian, she finds herself increasingly drawn to him. She hides a secret that could jeopardize her position, however, and when a series of accidents occur, she fears her past is about to rear its ugly head.

“Such Quiet Girls sucked me in from the first page. I came to care about all the characters and by the end I couldn’t stop turning the pages. Yet another winner from Noelle Ihli that is not to be missed!” —Freida McFadden, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Housemaid Ten...

In her previous London Season, Jocasta had tripped through ballrooms delighting an army of admirers, one of whom (Lord Robert Paxton, heir to an earldom) had been invited by her papa to a house party at her home at Castle Fortune, to continue the acquaintance. Many things had happened at the house party, including the shattering of Jocasta’s naive confidence, when Paxton had preferred her younger sister, Portia.

Hugh Brandforth, the seventh Earl of Ormsley, returns to his estate after wasting several weeks searching for a bride. He is looking forward to some much-needed rest and recreation. All is not as he left it, however, and within the space of an hour, he finds himself berated by his old nurse, assaulted by an eccentric termagant, and subjected to the disrespect of her coachman.

Stephanie Marchmont, 17 years, has been sent from London to cool her heels in a country house in Surrey, to be separated from her loving family as punishment for her putting herself in danger there once too often. But she encounters a band of footpads attacking a gentleman, and enters the fray with her customary bravery.

Viscount Derriford likes to keep a low profile. He avoids ton parties and the ladies who frequent them whenever possible, preferring to spend time with his fellow bachelors. A predictable, undemanding existence suits him perfectly. Marriage has never been part of his plans; he is convinced he could never make any woman happy. However, when his aunt dies, leaving him a property in Somerset, this safe, untrammelled existence is threatened by a condition attached to his inheritance. He must accept all invitations proffered by the local gentry.

In an inn, on the way to her first London Season, Katerina Fortune hears something that gives her a chance to escape her fate. Acting on impulse, she hires a gig and presents herself to a reclusive gentleman to offer herself as a bride. For Katerina, the eighth daughter of Castle Fortune (her Yorkshire home) has no intention of letting her father sell her to the highest bidder in town.

London 1818: Destitute, disillusioned, and desperate, Lady Rosalind Marlowe sets the tongues of Regency London wagging when she becomes the "Mayfair Thief". Targeting only those who had won large sums of money from her father, bleeding him dry and causing him to take his own life, she decides to teach them a lesson. She takes something valuable from each, leaving her calling card with a bible quote behind. On her last outing, she is caught red-handed.

Miss Emma Wynn has spent the last year at Ashwick Hall under the protection of Lady Westcliffe. Her uncle and brother think her dead and must continue to do so until she attains her majority. She must prove she is a fit guardian to re-establish herself and protect her brother. When permitted to visit her friend, Lady Eagleton, she is drawn to the reclusive Mr Carne. She suspects, however, that some scandal is attached to him, and she cannot afford to be tainted by association.