[Britomart]

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The Perfect Bride US DE by Eileen Putman (orig. Signet 1997). - repeat freebie

Haunted by love...Amanda Fitzhugh was firmly and happily on the shelf, far too levelheaded to again fall for a rake's seductive promises and caresses. She was content to chaperone her young cousin's come-out and betrothal to Simon Hannibal Thornton, one of England's most noble war heroes, now Earl of Sommersby.

But when Amanda arrived at Sommersby Castle, unearthly longings began to possess her. And when the iron-willed earl turned his soldierly skills from winning a bride to conquering her companion, Amanda discovered her own heart in mortal danger as ghosts of passion caught the living in a web of love.

The Renegade US DE by Christine Dorsey (orig. The Renegade and the Rose, Zebra 1996)

Keegan MacLeod reluctantly leaves London and his life of debauchery when his clan summons him back to Scotland. The year is 1745 and Keegan’s father wants Keegan to stand with the MacLeod’s to fight for the Jacabite cause. But the battle of Culloden is a disaster for the Scots from the beginning. Keegan’s brothers are killed and his father wounded. Keegan hands over his swords when a British officer promises his father will be protected. But instead his father is killed and Keegan is jailed and sentenced to hang. He uses his time in goal to nurture his hatred of his English betrayer, made all the worse because Keegan had felt a kinship with Foxworth Morgan.

Keegan escapes the noose, and though the prudent course of action would be to sail for France, he finds the Battle of Culloden has changed him, reminded him that he is a Scot with responsibilities to his clan. But before leaving for the Highlands he will avenge his father.

Lady Zoe Morgan has lived the life of an invalid since a childhood illness. Her parents dead, her brothers usually away, Zoe is looked after by a nurse who has her convinced of her frailness. Zoe is shocked when a wild Scot breaks into her London home and demands the whereabouts of her brother Foxworth. Determined to save her brother with her life, Zoe is shocked when the Scot takes her hostage, leaving word for Foxworth Morgan to come to his sister’s rescue in Scotland.

As they begin their arduous journey, Keegan questions his decision to bring Zoe with him. Though she appears healthy enough to him, she is constantly assuring him that she can eat nothing but the simplest broth and she will die soon. But with each passing day, Zoe finds herself gaining strength. She also realizes she must escape to warn her brother. She does escape when they reach the coast, but falls into the hands of a notorious smuggler.

Keegan’s fist reaction is to let her go, but chivalry gets the best of him. He did bring her to this place. But during his attempted rescue, he too is captured. Both Keegan and Zoe, now being held for ransom are in the hold. They begin to see that they have to depend upon each other for survival. There is also a deepening desire between the two.

When they reach Scotland, the smuggler’s boat crashes against the rocky coast, and Keegan and Zoe escape. As they make their way to Castle MacLeod, Keegan meets members of his clan who have taken to the hills and returned to the glens to forage for food. He decides to gather remaining members of his clan at Castle MacLeod even though his land has been confiscated by the English and is now owned by an absent landlord.

As what’s left of Keegan’s clan gather and begin making a life for themselves, Zoe becomes part of their efforts and feels a deepening love for Keegan. But English soldiers attack and the clan is forced again into the hills. When her brother who has been sent to Scotland to capture the renegade captures Keegan, Zoe is forced to make a difficult decision. She assists Keegan with his escape. But Keegan can see that there will be no holding out against the English. He sends a message to Lord Morgan, offering to give himself up in exchange for his clansmen leaving Scotland. He doesn’t tell Zoe he won’t be going with them until the day the sloop is to take the clan to the New World. But it is Zoe who arranges for all the MacLeods, including herself to leave.

This first in THE RENEGADE, REBEL AND ROGUE trilogy, follows three men, a Scot, Irishman and Englishman who cross paths on the battlefield of Culloden, but who also share a link that transcends time.

Wildest Dreams US DE by Jennifer Blake (orig. 1993).

Two extraordinary women - 150 years apart - search Europe for a special perfume, and their own secret hearts for the thing that matters most....

The perfume is legendary, once worn by Cleopatra and Empress Josephine -- and made in New Orleans for more than 150 years. Its history and enthralling scent render it priceless, and while many are determined to exploit it, Joletta Caressa's beloved grandmother, Violet, took its secret formula with her when she died.

Now Joletta must reconstruct it using the journals written by Violet, who brought the perfume home from a Victorian-era grand tour of Europe. The code is in the yellowed pages, tied to the places Violet visited -- London, Paris, the Swiss Alps, Venice, and a secluded garden in the Italian countryside.

As Joletta follows the itinerary described, she runs into Rone Adamson, a charming Southern gentleman with a quirky sense of humor and suspicious understanding of perfume production. After an odd accident, Rone comes to her aid then invites himself on her pilgrimage.

Meanwhile, within the pages of the journal, Violet embarks on a daring love affair, intimately connected to the perfume, with an intriguing artist who woos her with his tender touch. Yet all is not sweet scents and moonlight for Violet in the 1850s; scandal and death darken her path across Europe.

With Joletta's own path mimicking her grandmother's much too precisely, she must decide whether to trust her dubious white knight -- or leave him behind as she follows the perfume's trail to its bitter end.

Stroke of Genius US DE by Mia Marlowe (aka Diana Groe aka Emily Bryan).

CAN AN ARTISTIC GENIUS . . .

Crispin Hawke, a brilliant sculptor, is revered by the ton. His works are celebrated in every fashionable parlor. And tales of his fiery bed skills whispered behind every fashionable fan.

TRANSFORM AN AWKWARD HEIRESS . . .

Grace Makepeace is determined to wed a titled lord, but her Bostonian bluntness leaves much to be desired among the well-heeled London crowd. So to gain their acceptance, she commissions the incomparable Crispin Hawke—and asks for love lessons on the side.

INTO THE MOST SOUGHT-AFTER ORIGINAL . . .

Crispin agrees to school Grace in flirting and the delights of the flesh. But when she catches the eye of a marquess, he realizes maybe he’s done his job a little too well. And suddenly he knows Grace is the one masterpiece he cannot bear to be parted from.

WITHOUT FALLING FOR HER HIMSELF?

Playing Doctor US DE by Julie Rowe (Carina author).

Dr. Abigail Westward has been home after two tours of duty in Afghanistan for about two months and she’s taken up an unusual hobby. A hobby that has the local sheriff scared stiff: tossing lit dynamite sticks into the still waters of Lost Lake in Montana. After locking her up for twenty-four hours, then a couple weeks later for forty-eight, the sheriff is getting desperate to find a way to combat Doc Abby’s explosive habit. He calls in a very special Doc-sitter, Jacob “Smitty” Smith, a fellow soldier of Abby’s and the only man who might be able to find out what was really going on with Bandit Creek’s doctor.

Smitty is in Bandit Creek for one reason and one reason only. He loves Abby, has from damn near the moment he met her in Afghanistan. He’s stayed at arm’s length until now because getting involved with anyone while on a combat mission is just plain stupid. But combat is over for both of them and he’s waited long enough. He wants her and he’ll play dirty to get her because he knows she’s hurting deep down in a place she doesn’t want anyone to see.

Seeing Smitty waiting for her on shore, Abby gives up the dynamite with little or no argument. It’s far too much fun to verbally poke at him and the sheriff, until she finds out he’s been hired by the town of Bandit Creek to ride herd on her. She’s resistant to the idea right up to the moment someone attempts to shoot her in the middle of town. Now she and Smitty have to figure out who wants to kill her and why before he’ll go, because if he stays she’s not sure she’ll be able to resist temptation. Smitty is her only weakness. He’s the one man she trusts absolutely, the one man she loves, the one man who knows her terrible secret.

She’s a doctor who’s guilty of murder.