Her Endearing Young Charms

Miss Merribelle Hales spent years imbuing a silver locket with man-attracting charms. On her way to her first London Season, her locket is stolen--along with a kiss--by a highwayman. Her only clue to his identity: a pair of intense eyes. This vexes her. Without her best charm, how will she ever be able to compete on the Marriage Mart? It would be so much easier if she didn't have to compete at all. Lord Alexander Rochester, has worries aplenty. His ailing father's estates are woefully in debt, so he must seek a wealthy wife. His courtship of Miss Hales goes terribly awry with a simple kiss that leads to his slapped face and an accusation of theft. It's a case of mistaken identity. Alexander knows and fears the real culprit. He faces the loss of his father, his estate and Miss Hales--whom he's loved since childhood--at the hands of the Handkiss Highwayman.

New York Times–Bestselling Author: Seven lighthearted love stories in one volume from “the best of the Regency writers” (Kirkus Reviews). Taking us from the English countryside to the social circles of London, the novels in this sparkling collection feature a botched marriage, a drugged bride, a witty governess, an unexpected inheritance, and many other delightful surprises from “a romance writer who deftly blends humor and adventure” (Booklist). The Endearing Young Charms Series includes: Duke's Diamonds, The French Affair, Those Endearing Young Charms, To Dream of Love, A Marriage of Inconvenience, A Governess of Distinction and The Glitter and the Gold.

A long-engaged couple is about to wed out of a sense of duty—but someone has other plans in a rollicking Regency by the New York Times–bestselling author. Mary and the earl have been promised to each other for a decade—and after a long separation the time has finally come for them to go through with it, in spite of the fact that their ardor has cooled. Anything else would be dishonorable . . . But Mary’s sister, Emily, believes the marriage would be a mistake—and concocts an outrageous wedding-day scheme that will cause trouble for everyone involved—in this entertaining Regency romance originally published under the name Marion Chesney. “Light as a powderpuff.” —Pubishers Weekly “The best of the Regency writers.” —Kirkus Reviews

Miss Merribelle Hales spent years imbuing a silver locket with man-attracting charms. On her way to her first London Season, her locket is stolen--along with a kiss--by a highwayman. Her only clue to his identity: a pair of intense eyes. This vexes her. Without her best charm, how will she ever be able to compete on the Marriage Mart? It would be so much easier if she didn't have to compete at all. Lord Alexander Rochester has worries aplenty. His ailing father's estates are woefully in debt, so he must seek a wealthy wife. His courtship of Miss Hales goes terribly awry with a simple kiss that leads to his slapped face and an accusation of theft. It's a case of mistaken identity. Alexander knows and fears the real culprit. He faces the loss of his father, his estate and Miss Hales--whom he's loved since childhood--by the hands of the Handkiss Highwayman. For fans of Mary Robinette Kowal and Georgette Heyer."

A long-engaged couple is about to wed out of a sense of duty—but someone has other plans in a rollicking Regency by the New York Times–bestselling author. Mary and the earl have been promised to each other for a decade—and after a long separation the time has finally come for them to go through with it, in spite of the fact that their ardor has cooled. Anything else would be dishonorable . . . But Mary’s sister, Emily, believes the marriage would be a mistake—and concocts an outrageous wedding-day scheme that will cause trouble for everyone involved—in this entertaining Regency romance originally published under the name Marion Chesney. “Light as a powderpuff.” —Pubishers Weekly “The best of the Regency writers.” —Kirkus Reviews

An examination of the influential role music played in the lives of elite southern women during the antebellum period In Charleston Belles Abroad, Candace Bailey examines the vital role music collections played in the lives of elite women of Charleston, South Carolina, in the years leading up to the Civil War. Bailey has studied a substantial archive of music held at several southern libraries, including the library in the historic Aiken-Rhett House, once owned by William Aiken Jr., a successful businessman, rice planter, and governor of South Carolina. Her skill as a musicologist enables her to examine the collections as primary sources for gaining a better understanding of musical culture, instruction, private performance, cultural tourism, and the history of the music industry during this period. The bound and unbound collections and their associated publications show that international travel and music education in Europe were common among Charleston's elite families. While abroad, the budding musicians purchased the latest music publications and brought them back to Charleston, where they often performed them in private and at semipublic events. Through a narrow exploration of the collections of these elite women, Bailey exposes the cultural priorities within one of the South's most influential cities and illuminates both the commonalities and discrepancies in the training of young women to enter society. A noteworthy contribution to southern and urban history, Charleston Belles Abroad provides a deep study of music in the context of transatlantic values, interpersonal relationships, and stability and tumult in the South during the nineteenth century.

A young governess in search of a dream life discovers that grim reality can bring true love in the New York Times–bestselling author’s Regency romance. Lord Percy Hunterdon has inherited a Gothic horror of a country estate along with a pair of teenage brats to marry off. To survive this disastrous fortune, he requires the expertise of a superior governess. When Jean Morrison discovers Lord Hunterdon's advertisement, dreams of an unmarried viscount and a magnificent castle dance in her head. She imagines him as Byronic and brooding, pacing the battlements in a black cloak and falling madly in love with her. It’s a rude awakening when Jean first sees the dank Trelawney Castle and encounters her vile new charges. Still, the golden hair and dancing eyes of her employer conjure up fantasies that are most unseemly for a governess of distinction.