**DRAFT MOSTLY** FOR FANS OF BRIDGERTON Rose Axel is deformed from the burns she endured from her father. Her face is forever hidden under a veil. Her waist is much too wide, hips too ample. Too many prefer calling her fat. Or to her family, a cow. When hastily married after her father's death, to honor the agreement made in his will, she expects nothing of it. And she is right to think so. Matthew Whitfield is not happy upon receiving Rose as a bride. He cannot even look upon her, as she refuses to take off her veil, and has no features he considers attractive. The handsome charming Mr. Whitfield cannot be bothered by the likes of his wife. She is the fulfillment of a contract and nothing more. So he takes a mistress, and falls in love. Victoria Sill is everything Rose is not. Beautiful, gliding, and glowing. She's interested in one thing only, and that is to hold the title of Matthew's wife, Mrs. Whitfield. She doesn't care who she has to crush to get her way, be it Rose herself. Victoria always get what she wants. Be it one way or other. Soon Rose falls upon a secret that turns the tables. In addition, Victoria finds a way to become closer to the Whitfield name. A child. As the circumstances shift, and the Whitfield mansion is thrown into uproar, will this situation bring Matthew and Rose together? Or will Victoria succeed in keeping them apart? ---- #35 in victorian 5/13/22 #1 in oldtimes 5/23/22 #2 in regency 5/28/22 #1 in bridgerton 6/15/22 [[word count: 80,000-100,000 words]]

Beth Burnham is in a lot of financial trouble. She can't pay her bills and her house is falling down in ruins around her. Sure, she's a lawyer, but she's stuck with this dump of a house and a tiny solo practice that consists mostly of helping people out. When she goes to beg work from the fancy law firm in town, she is horrified to find herself begging work from the man she'd stood up years ago. She'd almost run away with him to the big city, trying to escape her nagging mother and a dead-end life, but she'd chickened out, believing that someone like her didn't deserve a better life. But what now?

{2022 WATTY SHORTLISTER} {18+ COMPLETED} England, 1842 Lady Hutton, otherwise known as Penelope Chapman, cares not that her husband has a wandering eye. That is, until he wanders away completely--all the way to the continent with his mistress, where he's been for the last five years. Abandoned, Penelope decides she shall not spend her life living without the occasional night of casual companionship. But then Penelope meets British naval officer Beckett Ash, and she realizes that there isn't anything casual about him. The man who has been assigned to protect her whilst uncovering a smuggling operation at her summer house party is strikingly handsome, and their connection is increasingly difficult to ignore. There are only two problems. Firstly, Beckett hasn't a clue that Penelope already has a husband. And secondly, his best friend and fellow naval officer is Penelope's protective half-brother. What happens when Beckett decides to marry an already married woman?

Louise is a captivating novel that follows the story of Louise, a young girl who finds herself caught between her love for an aristocrat and the expectations of society. "You swore we would always be together, that you would protect me," Louise wept, her slender frame trembling. "How could you do this to me?" Lucy tossed her lustrous brown hair over one shoulder and scoffed. "I am your superior now in every way. We may share blood, but that slave woman who birthed us was never a mother to me." But when fate flings Louise into unexpected romance with Sebastian, can their star-crossed love shatter rules denying whites and blacks alike? He cupped her face in his hands, his thumbs gently wiping away her tears. "I understand, my love," he said, his voice tender. "I will give you time, as much as you need, to come to terms with our feelings. But know this: my love for you is not something I can simply turn off or ignore. It has become the very beat of my heart, the air that I breathe."

Lady Eliza Turner has no interest in finding herself a wealthy husband, she has her books, her best friend Charlotte, and plenty of opinions on what society expects from her. When her curiosity gets the better of her, and she ends up in a compromising position with the desirable Duke Harrington she must use all her wits and charm to survive the scandal she has created. Jasper Harrington doesn't enjoy attending social occasions especially when opinionated women think that it is acceptable to criticise him, but there is something about Eliza that he can't quite bear to part with. Are this odd couple going to find a happy ever after together or apart?

Despite living thirty miles from London, Anabelle Latimer knows her chances of finding a husband in their sleepy village are as thin as cook's white soup. Then she discovers a kindred spirit in Mr. Fielding, the intelligent and handsome new steward from Blackwood Hall. It was a great shame that his position in life was so below her own, for he was exactly the sort of man she would have wished to marry. Anthony Fielding, tired of being the target of the ton's marriage-minded mothers, hopes to spend a relaxing week shooting and fishing in the country. Yet upon his arrival at Blackwood Hall he discovers an estate in chaos, and a friend in desperate need of help. He is quick to offer his knowledge and expertise, unaware that his generosity will have unexpected repercussions. The Steward of Blackwell Hall is a traditional Regency romance of approximately 66,000 words.

Laini Lewis is starting to lose it. Her mum has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, her dad is shutting her out of everything, people are constantly judging her for her older sister going off the rails, and the pressure of trying to live up to everyone's expectations is making her crack. The last thing she needs is to get involved with local pariah and bad boy, Kell Rhodes. Laini knows all the rumours - Kell is trouble with a capital T. But when a chance encounter throws Laini and Kell together, she discovers that Kell might be the one person who actually understands what she's going through. Kell is trying to leave his troubled past behind and become a better person, and when she's with him, Laini feels like she can be anyone, do anything. But Kell's past is never far behind, and Laini's quest to become a different person begins to take her down the dark path of drink and drugs that Kell is trying to escape. Both Kell and Laini are trying to discover who they really are, but the further Laini continues down this dark road, the more she begins to turn into someone that she doesn't like. Kell may be the only person in the world who truly understands her, but as Laini spirals downwards, she may be going into a place where even Kell can't reach her.

This is the companion book for Fin's Claim, The Private Chapters where it's a mature read.

Audrey Danler had one rule: never mix alcohol with weddings. But one night, too many drinks, and one too-handsome groomsman later, she wakes up in Vren Parkinson's hotel room-naked, mortified, and full of regret. It was supposed to be a one-time mistake. A bad decision no one would ever talk about again. Then she finds out she's pregnant. And suddenly, that one mistake isn't so easy to forget-especially when the man she barely knows is about to become the father of her child.