Flower Historical Fiction

Lady Jo Danvers has declared war on her humdrum life. Armed with a list of ways to be wicked, she will step out of her role as never-been-kissed wallflower and experience passion. With the right gentleman, of course. She just has to find him. Mr. Elijah Decker, the handsome businessman she cannot stop thinking about, is definitely no gentleman. And he is decidedly all wrong. Unfortunately for Jo, she has unwittingly given him her list. When Decker discovers Jo’s list mistakenly tucked between the pages of a pamphlet for the Lady’s Suffrage Society, he is intrigued.

Charlotte tries to make headway in her town's social life but reveals herself to be unaware of all the intricacies of polite society. Though Edward pitches in, tutoring her in society's expectations, she just seems to make things worse. And the more she comes to know of her father's assistant, the more trouble she has imagining life without him. Caught in a trap of her own making and seeing the hopelessness of her prospects, will Charlotte get to keep her work, or will she have to cede her heart?

Kane Calloway swore he'd never let anyone close to him again - that way he'd never feel the pain of loss. Living a life of reckless abandonment has brought him face to face with his demons. No more running. Either he gets married or spends time in jail. Neither sentence is appealing, but if he stays out of jail, he can at least help keep two small children from going hungry. Newly widowed, Faith Masterson is struggling to keep up with chores while tending to her two daughters.

As far as William Easton—the Duke of Blackheath—is concerned, love can go to the devil. Why would a man need passion when he has wealth, a stately home, and work to occupy his mind? But no one warned the duke that a fiery and frustratingly strong-willed activist like Lady Beatrice Haven can also be a stunning dark-haired siren who tempts a man’s mind, body, and soul.

Oliver York returns from war to find his father dead, his finances in arrears, and himself the new Earl of Carlisle. If he doesn't marry an heiress—and fast!—he and his tenants are going to be pitching tents down by the Thames. He definitely shouldn't be trading kisses with a penniless debutante... no matter how captivating she is!

Miss Prudence Merryweather Payton has a secret. Everyone knows that she's the only graduate from her finishing school to remain unwed on her fourth season - but no one knows why. With her romantic illusions shattered after being compromised against her will, Prudence accepts a proposal even though her betrothed is not exactly a knight in shining armor. When he cowardly pushes her out of their stagecoach to divert a highwayman, she vows never to trust another man again.

There's no love lost between this shy wallflower and society's most formidable duke. The Duke of Mandrick has made it clear he's only aiding Felicity's successful entrance into society because he's taken pity on his friend's poor country relation. Luckily for Felicity, her chaperone Lady Greta has agreed to tutor her in the art of flirtation. And since the coldhearted duke is the last man to fall for her charms, he's the perfect man to practice on.

The year is 1794, and Fritz - passionate, idealistic and brilliant - is seeking his father's permission to announce his engagement to his heart's desire: 12-year-old Sophie. His astounded family and friends are amused and disturbed by his betrothal. What can he be thinking? Tracing the dramatic early years of the young German who was to become the great romantic poet and philosopher Novalis, The Blue Flower is a masterpiece of invention, evoking the past with a reality that we can almost feel.

Pretty and popular, Miss Clare Westmore knows exactly what (or rather, who) she wants: the next Duke of Harrington. But when she twists her ankle on the eve of the Season's most touted event, Clare is left standing in the wallflower line watching her best friend dance away with her duke.

Rocking away on her peaceful front porch, Betty Grafton receives sad news which forces her to relive the darkest moments of her life. Surrounded by her family, a captive audience hanging onto her every word, she weaves the tale of how an unlikely and controversial friendship shaped her into the woman she is today. Exposing her own mistakes, fears, and soul deep heartbreak, Betty shares the hard truth about growing up in the South in the 1960s.

Gertrude, the eldest Killoran sister, has spent a lifetime being underestimated - especially by her own family. She may seem as vulnerable as a kitten, but given the chance, she can be as fierce as a tiger. Her adopted brother, Stephen, has just been snatched back by his true father, and she’ll be damned if she relinquishes the boy to the man reviled throughout London as the Mad Marquess.

Finn Ransome is an expert on Lady Luck, which is why he refuses to take a chance on love. Experience has taught him that he’s happier at a gaming table than around people he will, inevitably, disappoint. However, the clock is ticking on his father’s matrimonial demands. But the only woman to catch his eye is a bluestocking who would never consider a rogue like him. After a disastrous first Season, Tabitha Seaton decided to focus on books instead of ballrooms.

As the much doted-on daughter of the local doctor Violet Stroud had a comfortable, happy childhood - despite a distinct lack of love from her cold-hearted mother. But when her father unexpectedly dies, Violet's life is turned upside down. As secrets about the family come to light, Violet finds herself homeless and with no one to turn to apart from Edie, the family's gentle and loving housekeeper.

The only thing Lady Cordelia and Lord Rockport can agree on is their mutual abhorrence. Lady Cordelia was supposed to be the perfect debutante. But three broken engagements later, she's the subject of titters rather than laudations. Now relegated to the wallflower section of every ballroom, she does not want anything to plummet her further into scandal. She absolutely does not want to have anything to do with the too handsome, too roguish, too Scottish Marquess of Rockport.

In society circles she's known as the Watching Wallflower - shy, quiet, and certainly never scandalous. Yet beneath Lady Sarah Frampton's demure facade hides the mind of The Lady of Dubious Quality, author of the most titillating erotic fiction the ton has ever seen. Sarah knows discovery would lead to her ruin, but marriage - to a vicar, no less - could help protect her from slander. An especially tempting option when the clergyman in question is the handsome, intriguing Jeremy Cleland.

Set apart by her ethereal beauty and fearless demeanor, Ophelia Killoran has always been a mystery to those around her - and a woman they underestimated. No one would guess that she spends her nights protecting the street urchins of St. Giles. Ophelia knows what horrors these children face. As a young girl, she faced those horrors herself, and she would have died…if not for the orphan boy who saved her life.

What do you call a woman with a penchant for scandalous novels, a complete lack of small talk skills, and a quirky sense of humor? In Juliette Aston’s case: a wallflower. Juliette would like nothing better than to find a husband and start a family (especially when the alternative is serving as her father’s housekeeper for the rest of her life). As the best friend of society’s reigning debutante, however, Juliette is invisible to the men of London. Compounding her problem is the fact that the only man she wants is courting her best friend! Jacob Wilding considers himself a good son; at...

Being good has worked out very badly for Lady Olivia Archer. All she has to show for four seasons on the marriage mart is the nickname Prissy Missy. Her prospects are so bleak that her parents have betrothed her to a stranger with a dire reputation. If Phinneas Cole - aka The Mad Baron - wants a biddable bride, perhaps Olivia can frighten him off by breaking every ladylike rule.

Charlotte Browne could just kick herself. What on earth possessed her to tell the Duke of Rockford that she is a lady? But something about the duke’s handsomeness and kind intelligence makes Charlotte blurt out the teeniest, tiniest falsehood. Now it’s too late to admit she’s just plain Charlotte of no particular importance—with cinder-stained hands, a wretched stepfather, and no prospects for marriage.

Independent, impulsive Lady Philippa Darlington guarantees her freedom by playing the role of wallflower for two miserable seasons in the ton. With the guidance of the most feared feminist enterprise in London—the Duchess Society—Pippa vows never to marry. But a madcap misadventure throws her plan off course and puts her face-to-face with the only man she's ever wanted. A man who doesn't want her.