A detailed study of marriage among the Maduzai, a tribal society in Afghan Turkistan.

Can true love result from a business deal? Jonathan Kennebrae is furious when his grandfather informs him that his future has been decided. He will marry Melissa Brooke or lose his inheritance. Melissa, too, is devastated when her parents make their announcement. As little more than a bargaining chip in her father’s business maneuvers, she feels her secure world slipping away. Can Jonathan and Melissa find a way out of this loveless marriage, or must they find a way forward together?

The thirteenth novel in the magical alternate history Elemental Masters series continues the reimagined adventures of Sherlock Holmes in a richly-detailed alternate Victorian England. The threat of Moriarty is gone—but so is Sherlock Holmes. Even as they mourn the loss of their colleague, psychic Nan Killian, medium Sarah Lyon-White, and Elemental Masters John and Mary Watson must be vigilant, for members of Moriarty’s network are still at large. And their troubles are far from over: in a matter of weeks, two headless bodies of young brides wash up in major waterways. A couple who fears for their own recently-wedded daughter hires the group to investigate, but with each new body, the mystery only deepens. The more bodies emerge, the more the gang suspects that there is dangerous magic at work, and that Moriarty’s associates are somehow involved. But as they race against the clock to uncover the killer, it will take all their talents, Magic, and Psychic Powers—and perhaps some help from a dearly departed friend—to bring the murderer to justice.

When a French mogul marries a demure princess, he’s determined to discover his bride’s wild side in the USA Today–bestselling author’s sexy romance. Luc Garnier always gets what he wants. And now he wants a perfect bride. She must be a woman of nobility and elegance, one with an impeccable reputation—and no dirty secrets in her past. Princess Gabrielle is invaluable—a pearl beyond price. Yet Luc has defied the odds, and a contract for marriage is drawn up. This will be a union on paper first, and in the bedroom later. Yet Gabrielle is just as well behaved in private as she is in public. The more Luc admires this proper princess, the more he is determined to find the wanton woman within . . .

Treasure this beautiful collection packed with all the angst of romance founded upon practical arrangements. Four sisters travel in answer to an ad before even corresponding with potential husbands. Two women bend to the will of their parents in taking husbands. A widow commits to a stranger in name only. And two women on the Oregon Trail hitch their lives to men they’ve just met. Will love blossom for convenience sake?

Features nine stories about arranged marriages on the American frontier, including "The Wedding Wagon," "From Halter to Altar," and "From Carriage to Marriage."

Award-winning author Mary Jo Putney captivated the hearts of readers everywhere with her breathtaking hardcover debut, The Wild Child. Now, in her spectacular new novel The China Bride, she has created another brilliantly moving love story, and a very special heroine--a rare beauty torn between two cultures who valiantly struggles to discover the woman she is destined to be. Born to a Scottish father and now living in China, Troth Montgomery grew up speaking several languages and thinking of faraway England as home. Enduring life as a concubine, she never imagined that one day she would leave the Orient, arriving in bitter winter at the estate of a stranger--the brother of the man who had briefly been her husband. Kyle Renbourne, Viscount of Maxwell, had taken Troth as his bride shortly before his apparent execution in a Chinese prison. Now, as his widow, she is entitled to the home she always dreamed of but remains haunted by the memory of a dashing husband and the brief, forbidden love they shared. Then Kyle seemingly returns from the dead. Though he has survived, his mind and body are badly wounded. He needs time to heal and retreats from the exotic wife he barely knows. Bitterly aware that she will never be a fitting English wife, Troth defiantly embraces her foreign traditions, hoping that the ancient arts of her ancestors will restore Kyle's spirit and her own battered heart. Together they embark on a miraculous journey of hope and faith as Kyle becomes enchanted with the intimate tranquillity he shares with his bewitching Troth. But before he can win back his China bride, Kyle must first face a deadly menace that has followed them halfway across the world. . . . Written with exquisite elegance and gentle passion, The China Bride is a stirring tale of everlasting love and the power of forgiveness, by a master storyteller. From the Hardcover edition.

COLORADO 1880 Jem Wheeler has always been a survivor. He just wants to make a fresh start in Colorado Springs after the loss of his wife. But then he happens upon a young mute woman being sold off to the highest bidder. He wasn't looking for a mail-order bride. He wasn't looking to rescue anyone either. But desperate circumstances can drive a good man to do things he hadn't planned on doing... When Jem steps into Annie's life, she's not expecting anyone to save her. Mute from birth, she's just using all her wits to survive. All she's ever really wanted is a family of her own. For someone to see her. To look at her long enough to hear the things she can't say. Can Annie finally break through the silence to win Jem's heart? Sweet Historical Western Romance A Mail-Order Bride Novel Each book in The Brides Series can be read as a stand-alone novel, but reading in order will provide a more complete reading experience. THE BRIDES SERIES The Unexpected Bride Sleigh Bells & Mistletoe The Bartered Bride Only the Heart Knows Excerpt Jem took the apple core from his daughter and passed her one of the remaining crackers with a piece of cheese on it. Mae munched that down and looked to him immediately for another, the last one. He gave it to her, then showed her his empty hands. She frowned. "More?" "No more," Jem said, and showed her his empty hands again, making a bigger gesture out of it, as if the little girl was accusing him of hiding some. If Annie weren't so intent on eating her share of cheese and crackers she might have smiled at the sight of them, one of the most dangerous men she'd ever seen sitting side by side with that tiny little girl. They made quite a mismatched pair. Mae looked over at Annie, at the last cracker in her hand and the last bit of cheese. Annie gulped down the mouthful she was chewing. She looked down at the last of her meal and back at the little girl. To her shame, she didn't want to give up her last cracker. She could barely remember the last meal she'd eaten. "That's Annie's food," Jem admonished the little girl. "You've had yours." Mae bit her lip. She glanced down at her lap, then back at Annie again. I can share, Annie attempted to tell Mae with her eyes alone. She snapped her cracker in half--simply unable to bear parting with the whole thing--and passed it across to the little girl. Mae took it and popped the whole thing in her mouth, making Annie smile. "Mae!" her father said. She looked at him wide-eyed, her mouth full of cracker. "Whaf dafdda?" she said, muffled, spraying a few cracker crumbs onto his trousers. He closed his eyes briefly and brushed them off. "You didn't have to give her any," he said to Annie, "but thanks." Annie grunted, her way of saying she didn't mind that much. She looked down quickly and finished her last bit of food. The crackers had been crispy and the cheese silky and smooth. They'd tasted like heaven. "You must be thirsty," he said. "Do you mind sharing?" She shook her head and automatically lifted two fingers. "Two's no?" he asked. She nodded, pleased, and lifted one finger. She'd grown up sending signals through the floor of the Ruskins' house, one stomp for yes, two for no. It came natural as rain now. "And one's yes," he said, catching on quick. Annie drank deep when he passed her the flask of water, amazed he'd let her drink from it. She tried her best to pour it down her throat without touching her lips to the flask, so he wouldn't regret giving it to someone so dirty. She wished she could tell him thanks, but after Mae had her fill and he took his own swallow, he was back under his hat, likely going over the events of the day. How he'd stuck himself with her. How he probably regretted even stepping off the train at the last stop. She couldn't say she blamed him. She hadn't much wanted to marry a stranger herself. ***

Miscommunication starts a chain of four delightful weddings.

Be confident and assured as the woman of God you are meant to be. During his brother's wedding Matt Miller neatly revives a fainting Letty Mast by catching her and feeding her a morsel of blueberry pie. Like most women her age Letty hopes to have a wedding of her own one day, but becoming a bride is no easy task for her. A plump, plain girl with a good heart, Letty has been living in the shadow of her older stepsister, Rose, whose thorny character is concealed beneath a beautiful face and form. When Matt begins to visit the Mast home after a blueberry berrying frolic, everyone firmly believes that it is Rose whom Matt desires--including Letty. Will Letty become the confident woman of God she is meant to be and find the love she desires?