A penniless runaway, a disfigured veteran and a cynical rake — can such unsuitable matches ever succeed?
A Penniless Prospect
Plain and penniless Miss Jessamyne Calderwood—Jamie to those who love her—is to be forcibly married to a vile old man in order to pay off her father's gambling debts. Desperate to escape, she dresses as a boy and runs away. But, on the road, she is taken up by Richard, the masterful Earl Hardinge, who has his own reasons for wanting revenge on the Calderwood family.
Jamie manages to maintain her disguise on Richard's estate. Soon she will be 21 and her own mistress. But can her disguise keep her safe until then? And will the earl betray her to her despicable family if he discovers she is not what she seems?
Marrying the Major
Heiress Emma Fitzwilliam has a fond memory of Hugo Stratton as a handsome young officer with a wicked sense of humour. But the Major Stratton who returns from the wars, years later, is a disfigured and prickly recluse who rebuffs all Emma's attempts to get near him.
When Emma faces ruin, marriage is the only way to save her reputation. She longs to have Hugo as her bridegroom, but how can she persuade him to unbend enough to propose? And, even if he does, could a marriage between Hugo and Emma ever be made to work?
Rake’s Reward
When Marina Beaumont arrives in London, she expects to become the demure companion to the Dowager Lady Luce. But after five years in exile in Vienna, Kit Stratton is back in England, bent on taking his revenge on Marina’s employer, the old harridan who caused his disgrace and banishment.
On her very first evening, Marina is taken to a gambling hell where Lady Luce loses a fortune to Kit Stratton. Unless he can be persuaded to forgive the debt, Marina will be packed off home without a penny of the wages her impoverished family so desperately needs. Scandalous though it is, Marina must meet Kit alone to beg him not to claim the debt.
But handsome Kit Stratton is a notorious rake. And what reward will a rake demand in return for Lady Luce's debt of honour?
Genre: Historical Romance
A Penniless Prospect
Plain and penniless Miss Jessamyne Calderwood—Jamie to those who love her—is to be forcibly married to a vile old man in order to pay off her father's gambling debts. Desperate to escape, she dresses as a boy and runs away. But, on the road, she is taken up by Richard, the masterful Earl Hardinge, who has his own reasons for wanting revenge on the Calderwood family.
Jamie manages to maintain her disguise on Richard's estate. Soon she will be 21 and her own mistress. But can her disguise keep her safe until then? And will the earl betray her to her despicable family if he discovers she is not what she seems?
Marrying the Major
Heiress Emma Fitzwilliam has a fond memory of Hugo Stratton as a handsome young officer with a wicked sense of humour. But the Major Stratton who returns from the wars, years later, is a disfigured and prickly recluse who rebuffs all Emma's attempts to get near him.
When Emma faces ruin, marriage is the only way to save her reputation. She longs to have Hugo as her bridegroom, but how can she persuade him to unbend enough to propose? And, even if he does, could a marriage between Hugo and Emma ever be made to work?
Rake’s Reward
When Marina Beaumont arrives in London, she expects to become the demure companion to the Dowager Lady Luce. But after five years in exile in Vienna, Kit Stratton is back in England, bent on taking his revenge on Marina’s employer, the old harridan who caused his disgrace and banishment.
On her very first evening, Marina is taken to a gambling hell where Lady Luce loses a fortune to Kit Stratton. Unless he can be persuaded to forgive the debt, Marina will be packed off home without a penny of the wages her impoverished family so desperately needs. Scandalous though it is, Marina must meet Kit alone to beg him not to claim the debt.
But handsome Kit Stratton is a notorious rake. And what reward will a rake demand in return for Lady Luce's debt of honour?
Genre: Historical Romance
Used availability for Joanna Maitland's Unsuitable Matches