Young Florie Gilder has always known that her biological father is a noble--her only evidence an heirloom gold belt. Living as a commoner, she earns her keep as apprentice-jewelry-designer in her foster-father's goldsmithing shop. Secretly hoping to find her real father, she offers to sell the goldsmith's wares in the town of her birth--at the Selkirk Fair. With her heirloom gold belt on display, she hopes it will be recognized by her real father. Leaving her booth at the Fair to take a moment's respite, Florie returns to find that a Lady Mavis Fraser of the Scottish court bought the gold belt (Mavis knows that her husband Lord Fraser would instantly recognize the belt as the link to the whereabouts of his illegitimate daughter whom he seeks to be reunited with, but such a reunion would foil Mavis's claim to her husband's estate). Florie, pursuing Lady Mavis, gives her back her money, wrests back the belt, and flees into the forest. Claiming Florie stole it from her, Mavis makes the authorities promise to find and execute Florie. Meanwhile, Rane MacAllister,a local hunter in the forest, mistakes the hiding Florie for a deer, wounding her with an arrow. He carries her to a local church where she will be guaranteed 40 days of sanctuary. When Lady Mavis hears the church has Florie, she commands Rane to guard her, but in the process he falls in love with her. Lady Mavis sets fire to the church, hoping to kill Florie, but Florie escapes. Rane's penalty for letting her escape will be death. At the eleventh hour, Florie returns, and must decide which she wants more--Rane's life, or her noble lineage...

'If you're a fan of Sally Rooney's work, then you can't go wrong by picking up a copy of Topics Of Conversation ... She's a fresh voice, and one that it's certainly worth listening to.' Vogue 'Miranda Popkey's debut explores the paradox of longing to assert control and longing to lose it ... She depicts what it feels like to exist, actually live, at that intersection, which can so often bring about paralysis.' New Yorker What is the shape of a life? Is it the things that happen to us? Or is it the stories we tell about the things that happen to us? From the coast of the Adriatic to the salt spray of Santa Barbara, the narrator of Topics of Conversation maps out her life through two decades of bad relationships, motherhood, crisis and consolation. The novel unfurls through a series of conversations - in private with friends, late at night at parties with acquaintances, with strangers in hotel rooms, in moments of revelation, shame, cynicism, envy and intimacy. Sizzling with enigmatic desire, Miranda Popkey's debut novel is a seductive exploration of life as a woman in the modern world, of the stories we tell ourselves and of the things we reveal only to strangers.

A rake in tarnished armor… Desdemona Carlisle has spent most of her young life dreaming of a knight in shining armor. When a dashing figure in midnight-black riding a snow-white steed comes to rescue her from the ruffians who have kidnapped her, she believes her destiny has finally arrived. She surrenders herself to the masked stranger’s embrace only to discover her rescuer is none other than Harry Braxton, the scoundrel who stole her heart when she was just a girl, adding it to his collection of exotic treasures as if it were just another trinket. Harry Braxton doesn’t want to be any woman’s knight-errant. He plays the role of notorious rake to hide the dangerous secret that has kept him from offering Desdemona his own heart. But his tarnished armor soon begins to crumple beneath the irresistible assault of Desdemona’s sparkling wit, her dazzling beauty, her teasing and tender touch. As a legendary treasure hunter, he never dreamed he’d be forced to give up the most priceless treasure of all. When Lord Ravenscroft, Harry’s aristocratic cousin, comes courting, Desdemona makes a startling discovery. She might yearn for a hero, but what she really needs is a man—the only man who can fulfill all of her desires… “Connie Brockway’s work brims with warmth, wit, sensuality and intelligence.”—Amanda Quick, New York Times bestselling author “If it’s smart, sexy, and impossible to put down, it’s a book by Connie Brockway!”—Christina Dodd, New York Times bestselling author “If you’re looking for passion, tenderness, wit, and warmth, you need look no further. Connie Brockway is simply the best.”—Teresa Medeiros, New York Times bestselling author “Connie Brockway’s work belongs on every reader’s shelf!”—Romantic Times “Connie Brockway delivers romance with strength, wit, and intelligence.”—Tami Hoag, New York Times bestselling author “Brockway’s lush, lyrical writing style is a perfect match for her vivid characters, beautiful atmospheric setting, and sensuous love scenes.” — Library Journal

In this sexy historical romance, the second of the Dark Heart series, a Highlander with a dark past returns to the place he fled long ago to protect a woman he once loved from danger. He tried to run... In his youth, Hugh MacCarrick foolishly fell in love with a beautiful English lass who delighted in teasing him with her flirtatious ways. Yet he knew he could never marry her because he was shadowed by an accursed family legacy. To avoid temptation, Hugh left home, ultimately becoming an assassin. She tried to forget him... Jane Weyland was devastated when the Highlander she believed would marry her abandoned her instead. Years later, when Hugh MacCarrick is summoned to protect her from her father's enemies, her heartache has turned to fury—but her desire for him has not waned. Will passion overwhelm them? In hiding, Jane torments Hugh with seductive play. He struggles to resist her because of deadly secrets that could endanger her further. But Hugh is no longer a gentle young man—and toying with the fever-pitched desires of a hardened warrior will either get Jane burned...or enflame a love that never died.

Before there was Downton Abbey, there was Rebellious Desire...in this classic Regency romance from bestselling author Julie Garwood, an American heiress must land a titled lord. Of all the dukes in England, Jered Marcus Benton, the Duke of Bradford, was the wealthiest, most handsome—and most arrogant. And of all London’s ladies, he wanted the tender obedience of only one—Caroline Richmond. She was a ravishing beauty from Boston, with a mysterious past and a fiery spirit. Drawn to the powerful duke, undeterred by his presumptuous airs, Caroline was determined to win his lasting love. But Bradford would bend to no woman—until a deadly intrigue drew them enticingly close. Now, united against a common enemy, they would discover the power of the magnificent attraction that brought them together...a desire born in danger, but destined to flame into love!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "This cook knocked me off my feet! It's flipping brilliant!" Goodreads Reviewer. The truth is never what it seems. Neither are the people, regardless of who they are. ✅ Mafia romance ✅ Age Gap ✅ Murder mystery ✅ Steamy sex ✅ Violence I knew the past would come back to haunt me. It was only a matter of time before my world came crashing down. The only thing I didn't expect was Mateo. The head of the Italian mafia. We were never meant to cross paths; our worlds vastly different. His green gaze captured me, his touch burning through my defenses. The words he whispered melted away all the years of loneliness. But the secret I kept could get me killed. If he spared me, his rivals wouldn't. As my secrets unravel, it could cost me everything and everyone I loved.

Publisher information from iPage.IngramContent.com.

When she is kidnapped by her people's sworn enemy, Highland warrior Duncan MacLean, bride-to-be Lady Amelia Sutherland is drawn to this tortured man who is using her as a pawn in a dangerous game of vengeance and war.

On the run from a treacherous enemy, a knight and a noblewoman find a passionate destiny in the Scottish highlands. A villainous rogue abducts Contessa Tess from her uncle’s castle in the Scottish highlands, and when he reveals her uncle’s terrifying plans, she follows him into a whirlwind of adventure and realizes that there is a hero beneath his criminal facade.

From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a love story about a Craigslist “missed connection” post that gives two people a second chance at love fifteen years after they were separated in New York City. To the Green-eyed Lovebird: We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House. You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more. We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldn’t stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other. Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding… I didn’t see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didn’t know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello. After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half? M