Victorian Authors

Young. Ravishing. Exquisitely marriageable. From the moment he spies Lady Morgan Bedwyn across the glittering ballroom, Gervase Ashford, Earl of Rosthorn, knows he has found the perfect instrument of his revenge. But wedlock is not on the mind of the continent's most notorious rake. Nor is it of interest to the fiercely independent Lady Morgan herself...until one night of shocking intimacy erupts in a scandal that could make Gervase's vengeance all the sweeter.

All of London is abuzz over the imminent arrival of Wulfric Bedwyn, the reclusive, cold-as-ice Duke of Bewcastle, at the most glittering social event of the season. Some whisper of a tragic love affair. Others say he is so aloof and passionless that not even the greatest beauty could capture his attention. But on this dazzling afternoon, one woman did catch the duke's eye - and she was the only female in the room who wasn't even trying.

With his laughing eyes and wild, rakish good looks, Lord Rannulf Bedwyn is a hard man to resist. To Judith Law, a woman in need of rescue when her stagecoach overturns, Rannulf is simply her savior, a heroic stranger she will reward with one night of reckless passion before she must become a companion to her wealthy aunt. Imagine Judith's shock when the same stranger turns out to be among England's most eligible bachelors, and when he arrives at Harewood Grange to woo her cousin.

As the fires of war raged around him, Lord Alleyne Bedwyn was thrown from his horse and left for dead - only to awaken in the bedchamber of a ladies' brothel. Suddenly the dark, handsome diplomat has no memory of who he is or how he got there - yet of one thing he is certain: The angel who nurses him back to health is the woman he vows to make his own. But like him, Rachel York is not who she seems.

As the fourth daughter of a baron, Miss Hannah Fairchild has no dreams of grandeur when it comes to marriage. Forget a duke or an earl. The shy, spinsterly wallflower would be happy with a doctor or (even better) the bookseller's son. Unfortunately, if she wants to save her family from financial ruin - and her father from debtor's prison - a duke is precisely what she needs.

A shy wallflower, Caroline hasn't the faintest idea why the Duke of Readington chose her to be his bride. She could ask, but that would mean speaking to him...and she'd rather have a conversation with the devil Eric married Caroline for one simple reason: he wasn't in love with her. Having seen firsthand how love can bring a man to his knees, he's determined not to make the same mistakes his father did. After a winter storm leaves him stranded with Caroline, Eric turns around and finds himself stumbling over the wife he never wanted...but is slowly beginning to desire....or was it?

Elijah Seton steps into the world in pursuit of a ghost ship and those who murdered his father. He thought he knew his enemy, and he would do anything to see them fall. But he was wrong. Elijah's world is turned upside down when he finds a rare woman that his heart demands should fly free. Beatrice Hamilton lives with wealth and ease in her gilded cage. Until a new mill worker rattles her bars and gives her a glimpse of the freedom beyond. As the two work together, centuries of hate and anger are revealed that keep them apart.

As an innocent girl, Madeline Sedgewick learned that nothing comes without a price - even desire. Five years later, now widowed and deeply in debt, she's certain that the stranger who bought her last husband's notes of credit will demand swift, steep repayment. But she never imagines her creditor will be Brock Taylor, her baseborn former stable-hand turned newly wealthy entrepreneur - the man who stole her virginity and her heart. She's even more stunned when he says that he'll forgive her debts only if she becomes his wife.

After years abroad, Royal has returned to Bransford Castle to find his father dying and the family treasury nearly empty. Then the old duke wrests a final promise from his guilt-ridden son: that Royal will marry heiress Jocelyn Caulfield and restore the estate to its former glory. However, it is not his fiancée who quickens Royal's pulse, but rather her beautiful cousin Lily Moran. Penniless Lily knows that nothing can come of their undeniable attraction - but there is a way she can help Royal.

Growing up with four unruly brothers has made Freyja Bedwyn far bolder than most society ladies. From feisty manner to long, tumbling hair, Lady Freyja is pure fire - a woman who seeks both adventure and freedom. Adventure soon finds her on a visit to Bath, when a handsome stranger bursts into Freyja's room and entreats her to hide him. His name is Joshua Moore, Marquess of Hallmere, a man with a hell-raising reputation of his own who is quickly intrigued by the independent beauty.

Strong as a Viking. Handsome as Adonis. Rich as Midas. Collin "Cole" Talmage, Duke of Trewyth, is the stuff that legends are made of. He's the English Empire's golden son - until fate has its way with him. Cole's family is killed and his closest comrade betrays him on the battlefield, leaving him gravely injured. But Cole is not one to dwell on misfortune. He is a man of duty, honor, and desire. And now he's ready for the fight of his lifetime....

Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) is considered the first modern writer for children and the inventor of the children’s adventure story. In The Life and Loves of E. Nesbit, award-winning biographer Eleanor Fitzsimons uncovers the little-known details of her life, introducing listeners to the Fabian Society cofounder and fabulous socialite who hosted legendary parties and had admirers by the dozen, including George Bernard Shaw. Through Nesbit’s letters and archival research, Fitzsimons reveals "E." to have been a prolific lecturer and writer on socialism.

Caroline Maxwell would like nothing more than to join her brother, Eddie, and his friend Jack Culhane on their adventures. While Jack and Eddie are off seeing the world, buying up businesses and building wildly successful careers, Caroline's stuck at home frightening off the men her mother hopes will ask for her hand in marriage. When her mother sets her sights on the questionable Lord Bremerton as a possible suitor, Caroline struggles with her instincts and the true nature of her heart. She longs for adventure, passion, love, and most of all...Jack Culhane, an unconventional Irish-American bachelor with new money and no title.

The daughter of a respectable self-made businessman, the middle-aged Eliot was cast into social exile when she began a scandalous liaison with married writer and scientist George Henry Lewes. Only her burgeoning literary success allowed her to overcome society's disapproval and eventually take her proper place at the heart of London's literary elite. The territory of her novels encompassed the entire span of Victorian society.

Everfair is a wonderful neo-Victorian alternate history novel that explores the question of what might have come of Belgium's disastrous colonization of the Congo if the native populations had learned about steam technology a bit earlier. Fabian Socialists from Great Britian join forces with African American missionaries to purchase land from the Belgian Congo's "owner", King Leopold II. This land, named Everfair, is set aside as a safe haven, an imaginary utopia for native populations of the Congo, as well as escaped slaves returning from America.

In monetary matters, Jeremy Lockhart, Viscount Dearing, is used to being in control, but from his first sight of Lady Charlotte, his carefully cultivated world is rocked to its foundations. Determined to best her other, more eligible suitors, he goes to great lengths to ensure his betrothal to Charlotte. A locked black leather box holds the dark secret that has assured his success.

From the New York Times best-selling writing duo Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly, comes the story of a young woman’s search for true love. Caroline Maxwell would like nothing more than to join her brother, Eddie, and his friend, Jack Culhane, on their adventures. While Jack and Eddie are off seeing the world, buying up businesses, and building wildly successful careers, Caroline's stuck at home frightening off the men her mother hopes will ask for her hand in marriage. When her mother sets her sights on the questionable Lord Bremerton as a possible suitor, Caroline struggles with her instincts and the true nature of her heart.

Bram Stoker, despite having a name nearly as famous as his legendary undead count, has remained a puzzling enigma. Now, in this psychological and cultural portrait, David J. Skal exhumes the inner world and strange genius of the writer who conjured an undying cultural icon.

In his New York Times best-selling novel Dances with Wolves, Michael Blake created an unforgettable saga of white and Native American cultures. Now in Marching to Valhalla, Blake unfolds the story of the final months of General George Armstrong Custer, a story that illuminates the epic sweep of his entire life - his career, his passions, his legacy to the American West.

Furious at being tricked into marrying a woman who keeps a hedgehog in her pocket, Derek couldn't get away from Eleanor fast enough after their vows were read. It's been a year since he's seen her, and he has no plans to change that anytime soon - until his scheming cousin shows up and declares the union a sham. Now Derek has exactly one month to woo a wife he never desired and consummate a marriage he never wanted.