Once there lived a girl, who lived in Thanona, a little provential village. Her mother was dead, her father was a ruined merchant turned inventor, and her sisters were babied. They missed the life they lived before their father's ruin, in the city. But not her. Arabella Durand is happy in the village. She runs her father's house, and takes on all the responsibility therein. But when she catches the eye of the most eligible bachelor in the village, whom she finds arrogant and boarish, Arabella is distraught. After being forced to plan a wedding she doesn't want, due to a misunderstanding, Arabella goes out into the woods to clear her head. She soon gets lost, and comes across a ruined castle. And once she goes inside, she becomes the prisoner of a monster. But sometimes things aren't always what they seem. Love and hatred, jealousy and admiration, monsters and men: they are separated by a fine line. And when that line blurs, Arabella must learn what the difference in truth and reality is. (COMPLETED! Well, the rough draft, at least)

"Deliciously captivating! It's the perfect amount of laughs, love and drama. You won't be able to put this book down!" - Grace K @ HQ. When Agatha becomes the Everard's governess, she's grateful for a way to escape her dark past. That is until her growing feelings for the mysterious Lord of the house begin to present an even greater risk. ***** The Everard's are one of the most esteemed families in Wickhurst. And Benedict, the Lord of Devonshire and the eldest of the clan, is as mysterious and brooding as anyone The Town has ever seen. His face is marked with scars, and no one dares to speak on how he got them. Known to all as 'the beast,' the townsfolk tremble in his wake. But little does he know that he is about to meet his match in Agatha Blair, his sisters' new governess. Agatha is witty, smart and gives him a run for his money when he tries to peel back the layers of who she really is. She truly intrigues him more than any woman he has met but she is a governess and he is a Lord. The Town would shun the union of two people from different stations and any romance between them is surely a recipe for social disaster! But what can they do when the burning hot feelings refuse to relent? And when Benedict uncovers that Agatha is hiding a secret far more dangerous than anything he could have imagined, will love save the day and will Agatha finally tame the beast? *This story is a standalone title in the Everard Family series. [Now a Hachette Audiobook!] [[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]