It's only February and I feel like we're all already exhausted by 2026. On the bright side, we've had the Olympics to watch, I'm fully past whatever hellish plague I had last month, and as of February 15 we're in HALF PRICED CANDY MONTH! Seriously, February 15, November 1 and whatever Monday falls after Easter are my favorite times of year. Also, while it's the shortest month of the year, it's a bonanza for romance (despite the terrible "think pieces" we all must suffer through) and we have 15 (!) unusual historicals (OK, two reprints) to tempt us. And yes, I am front-loading this post with the Harlequin Historicals for reasons. Wendy's still Salty AF.
Alone with the laird…and their forbidden passion!For landscape gardener Jessica, accepting a post on a remote Scottish island means escape—from her broken dreams and tattered reputation. But meeting the brooding laird who hired her, disturbingly attractive Murdo, Jessica wonders if she’s made a dangerous miscalculation…Murdo has only had the furious ghosts of his past for company, until Jessica’s sweetness and inner steel offers a way out of the darkness. As her employer, and with his heart destroyed, she is utterly forbidden. But with nowhere to hide from their simmering connection, will Murdo play by Society’s rules, or burn everything down?
A hasty proposal…leads to a fiery union!Prince Adnan’s convenient new bride is everything he never wanted—reckless, vexing and distractingly beautiful! So he offers Lady Olive a deal: play the part of loving wife in front of his ailing mother, and he’ll help her find what she’s looking for in Egypt. Then they’ll part ways…Olive, desperate to stay in Egypt and unearth her family secret, agrees. Except she uncovers another side to her supposedly stoic and unreachable husband. As she learns the burdens he carries, she’s tempted to share hers, but more shocking is her temptation to share his bed!
Their forbidden tryst…Is treason!Helena’s spent her life preparing to be the Byzantine Prince’s bride. But when his cruel disinterest turns her position perilous, she finds salvation in fierce warrior Viggo. As the Prince’s personal guard, he knows her betrothed like no other. Could Viggo help her win his affections?Only, Helena swiftly discovers the man she craves is not her husband-to-be…but thrillingly rugged Viggo! To act on their desires would be committing treason. Getting caught could be fatal. And yet, resisting their illicit connection feels like a fate worse than death…
This is why I love Viking and medieval romances y'all - loyalty was everything and picking the wrong side could get you killed. Anyway, heroine who has spent her whole life "training" to marry a prince is in a bind when her groom-to-be ain't all that into her. She's desperate for help, and there's the hero - her betrothed's loyal guard like right there! Surely he can help her catch her soon-to-be husband's eye! I mean, what could possibly go wrong?
Queens, New York, 1952–Detective Bruce Smith’s life is far darker than his loved ones can comprehend. Passing for a straight white man leaves him feeling empty. His sexuality, colored mother, and self-imposed loneliness lead him to make a mistake he can’t afford.Scott Wilkins is an unmoored soul, who drifts across a segregated America, working as a porter. In a time when it’s illegal and dangerous to be his authentic self, Scott’s existence as a colored, homosexual man is nothing short of unapologetic.When their paths cross, both men learn the meaning of unconditional love. Sweetest Taboo is an African American, M/M romance that celebrates black love without regret.
In the event you're new to this blog, let it be known that Wendy is an Angst Junkie, and this stand alone by Vassar sounds like Angst-A-Rama-Jama. You've got an in-the-closet, passing as white, cop in 1952 Queens who falls for a man drifting across the country working as a porter (!). I'll be honest, the porter thing is what hooked me hardcore here. Like boardinghouses, I can't quite get enough of trains in my historical romances (and yes, I'm aware - 1952, but I wasn't alive then so historical it is!)
Major Cornelius Montgomery is suffering from ennui since his days in the military are over. Just turned forty, he is searching for something meaningful to fill his life, for empty romantic liaisons and scandalous pursuits have lost their charm. One February evening, he peers into a bookshop for a glimpse of the only woman who’d managed to capture his heart, but she is off limits because she’s his best friend’s sister. Does it matter?Lady Penelope Needham—the Marchioness of Weymouth—is searching for purpose. Her husband proved sterile, which thwarted her dream of being a mother, then he died in a hunting accident, leaving her widowed at the age of thirty. To keep busy, she happily works at a book shop because books are old friends and they never disappoint, yet when she happens to glance outside one cold night and spies an old crush—her brother’s best friend—life has the potential to change. Doesn’t it?The moment Cornelius steps into the bookshop, he’s beset with familiar attraction. As for Penny, since she’s afforded more freedom in society as a widow, she’s keen on pursuing something with the rogue, even if it’s only a bit of wickedness amidst the stacks she never had in the past. When emotions between them are far too strong, and whispers of scandal bring her brother’s ire, they are both brought to a crossroads. If they wish to have a second chance at a romance, they’ll stop hiding behind excuses. Won’t they?
Book two in Sookoo's Dashing Rogues and Ruined Librarians (!) series gives us an older hero (40!) who is pining for his best friend's sister. Our heroine, said sister, is a 30-year-old widow who, turns out, has been pining for our hero. There's nothing for it - they'll have to carry on a torrid affair.
Amelia Thornton never expected her wedding day to involve quite so many tears—her own. Married to the notorious Marquess of Hereford in a business arrangement that benefits everyone except her heart, she's determined to keep her distance from the insufferable rake. But Charles has an annoying habit of appearing when she least wants him. When her investigation into dangerous factory conditions leads her straight into the arms of a monster from her past, Amelia discovers that her scandalous husband might be the only man brave enough to help her seek justice—if she can resist falling for his unexpected kindness first.Charles Bartholomew Hereford has perfected the art of living down to society's expectations, but his sharp-tongued wife sees right through his carefully constructed façade. The brilliant writer who compared his moral compass to a weathervane is driving him to distraction with her stubborn refusal to accept his protection. Between her mysterious late-night disappearances, her talent for attracting dangerous enemies, and the way she makes his pulse race during their fencing lessons, Charles finds himself fighting battles on multiple fronts. When Amelia's crusade for workers' rights puts her in mortal danger, he'll have to choose between maintaining his reputation as London's most notorious rake and becoming the hero she never knew she needed.
She gave him a meal; he offered her poetry—and both hungered for more.Lady Felicity has mastered the fine art of disappearing. The sixth of eight siblings, she’s long been labeled the “cull of the litter” by Society’s sharpest tongues. Shy, curvaceous, and far more comfortable in a kitchen than a ballroom, she slips away from every soiree her matchmaking brother forces her to attend—preferably toward the comforting scent of butter and warm bread just pulled from the oven. Food, after all, is her love language.But the night she finds a ravenous stranger prowling a host’s kitchen, her quiet world tilts. The handsome, silver-tongued intruder devours the food she prepares with poetic praise that leaves her cheeks—and her heart—unexpectedly warm.Drake Pemberton, newly minted seventh Earl of Wakefield, didn’t plan on falling for the charming “kitchen angel” who saved him from starvation. Nor did he expect her to be a duke’s sister—with a dowry that could rescue him from the debt and danger left by his not-so-dead uncle, the sixth Earl of Wakefield. But Felicity is determined to marry for love, not money, and Drake knows the truth about his circumstances could send her running.As a delicious attraction simmers into something deeper, lies of omission, malicious gossip, and dangerous creditors threaten to scorch their budding romance. Only trust—and a love worth every risk—can save them before it all boils over.
Female pugilist Josephine Martin dreams of opening a gymnasium to teach woman how to defend themselves. But first, she needs the blunt. The best way to get it would be to become the next champion of the prestigious Duke’s and Dame’s Mill, but first she needs to convince the duke to sponsor her. If only the fretful heir of a destitute earl didn't stick his nose in her business. Now, thanks to him and the mysterious Mrs. Dove-Lyon, she must win an absurd, and implausible bet before she can garner the duke’s attention and make her dreams come true. Except the duke is not the peer she wishes she could win.Nicolas Wentworth, the heir to the cursed Shiredale Earldom, is given one last chance to settle his father’s gambling debts and save his family from ruin. All he has to do is fulfill the terms of Mrs. Dove-Lyon's deal: turn the beautiful pugilist from a side-show guttersnipe into a lady acceptable to ton standards and present her to his rakish ducal friend at the event of the season. If only the lady he's helped to create for the duke wasn't the lady of his heart.
Part of the never-ending (100+ books!) Lyon's Den world, Pascarella introduces her "Scandalous Ladies of the Silk Knuckles Saloon," a series featuring a group of women pugilists (there's covers for an upcoming trilogy listed on her website!). Our heroine wants to open her own gym to teach self-defense to women, but for that she needs money. However, she needs a sponsor, which lands her in a Pygmalion trope. As it would - I mean, naturally!
In the wild Highlands of Lochaber, Constantine Cameron reigns as Lochiel, warrior, leader, and legend. Merciless in battle and moody in spirit, he is a force few dare challenge. When a mysterious young woman, disguised as a lad, stumbles onto his land, he saves her. But he doesn’t know that she carries secrets darker than the Highland nights. Secrets that can start another war.Ismay MacPherson has spent her life running from cruelty, from chains, and from the truth that could destroy her. Yet under Constantine’s watchful eyes, she finds a sanctuary that feels impossibly safe, even as she weeps into her supper, her pain unspoken but not unnoticed. Can she dare to trust the Cameron Lochiel with the secret she has carried all her life? And will her past finally catch her in its merciless grip?In a land where loyalty and vengeance collide, Constantine and Ismay must navigate the treacherous path between love and survival, where the greatest danger may be opening one’s heart.
A 17th century Scottish historical and the first book in Quinn's new Where Heaven and Earth Collide series. He's a legend, she's a Chick In Pants with a dark secret. Reviews on this one indicate it's a closed door, fade to black romance featuring a couple working through trauma.
He's determined to restore his family's honor. She's desperate to secure her sister's future. Neither expected to find a love that would change everything.James Ashford has survived disgrace, war, and years on the edges of society. Now he is determined to reclaim his family’s honor by restoring Ashford Manor, the crumbling estate that once defined his family’s legacy. To see it rise again, he turns to Georgiana Hartwell—a widowed lady bold enough to continue her late husband’s architectural practice.For Georgiana, the commission is more than a livelihood. It is her chance to prove her worth in a world that would rather dismiss her, while earning the dowry her younger sister needs to secure a good match. Yet even as her passion for the project grows, so too does the pull she feels toward the roguish man who defies every rule of society.But their budding partnership faces powerful enemies: Georgiana’s manipulative mother, determined to control her future, and a predatory figure from her past who refuses to let her go. With scandal circling and danger drawing near, James and Georgiana must decide if they will risk reputations, safety, and the carefully built walls around their hearts—for a love strong enough to redeem them both.
Book 2 in The Duke's Legacy series features a wounded hero looking to save his crumbling estate and a widowed heroine bold enough to have carried on with her dead husband's architectural business. She needs the money and wants to prove herself and he's a rogue who thumbs his nose at society. Looks like we can also expect a heaping dose of external conflict here.
At the age of eight and twenty, Sterling Wynd, Earl of Wyndham, left England.Duty weighed heavily on him, and solemnity filled his soul. However, before he turned thirty, chose a suitable wife and went about begetting heirs, he wanted to do something for himself—see the world. Or at least the part that had made his family wealthy.Caroline Sutcliffe had once loved deeply. She’d married quickly and her husband soon went off to war. But after receiving word of his death, and finding herself alone, she returned to her father and the Cape Good Hope to carve out a new life for herself and her daughter.She had not expected to meet a handsome English Lord filled with duty and in possession of so little humor. Further, she could not understand why she was drawn to him. Yet, Caroline knew that she could love Sterling deeply and passionately, but she feared he was not capable of either.Will Sterling find a way to open his heart and let go of his control or will he lose the one woman who could fill the emptiness within?
First book in a new series, a fairly typical sounding romance between a wounded hero and a widowed, single mother heroine who falls in love with him (against her better judgement). Nothing terribly unusual here other than it's set in Cape Good Hope, South Africa!
A marriage of necessity…with a man who shuns her.Despite being a duke’s sister, Olivia Whitcombe is shunned by Society due to one insurmountable flaw: her illegitimacy. Taunted by debutantes and rejected by suitors, her debut Season couldn’t get any worse—until she’s caught in a compromising position with a taciturn stranger.To save the Whitcombe name, Olivia yields to her brother’s demands and finds herself transported to a neglected manor and forced to marry a silent, brooding earl with pain and anger in his eyes, who shuns her at every turn.Charles Devereaux hasn’t spoken a word since witnessing his mother’s violent death as a child. On inheriting the earldom and a mountain of debts, he returns to Penham Park, his hated childhood home, and reluctantly enters the Marriage Mart. When a debutante of doubtful birth falls—literally—into his arms, Charles curses himself for being snared so easily.But dark secrets and the specter of Death linger within the walls of Penham Park, and when Charles’s heart begins to soften toward his bride, it may be too late.
This is your invitation to the Bastards’ Ball.All of London knows the sixth Duke of Somerset for his sprawling wealth, stern demeanor, and the antics of his five (mostly) illegitimate children, known in ballrooms and gossip rags as the Somerset Sins.But each of the Sins is soon in for a surprise. The duke is dying, and he has one demand for his children: marriage. If they can’t secure a spouse that meets his approval, he’ll find one for them with a glittering ball on Valentine’s Day.Christened the Bastards’ Ball, the beaumonde will turn out in droves to watch one of the most powerful men in England play matchmaker for his unruly brood.Except, much like their father, the Sins have their own schemes.William - the duty-bound heir finds himself locked in a room with a beautiful, free-spirited woman he shouldn’t want but desperately does.Alex - the charming rake hatches the perfect plan to wed the lovely flowerseller, and annul the marriage later.Addy - the hellion likes all the things a duke’s daughter shouldn’t: gambling, wearing waistcoats, and a certain lovely proprietress of a gaming hell.Sebastien - the independent industrialist will do anything to further his financial interests, even marry an intriguing older woman in exchange for a share in her family’s business.Sophie - the darling of the family decides to break free and find her own adventure, alongside a gruff, working man with the eyes of a poet traveling the same direction.Discover each Sin’s story in this steamy anthology of interconnected novellas. One family, five stories, a thousand ways to start a scandal.
Hey, so remember anthologies?! We have a new one, featuring six illegitimate children of a dying Duke determined to see his by-blows make good matches. The fly in the ointment? I mean, other than being the product of various affairs? They're all unspeakably unconventional in their own ways.
From the day of their debut, when Matilda smoked a cheroot and Margo tied a cherry stem in a knot with her tongue, the Halifax twins have flouted convention at every turn. But when Matilda runs off with the dangerous Marquess of Ashford—who has every reason to hate her—she may have gone a bit too far.
Determined to stop Matilda’s inexplicable elopement, her sister Margo turns to her oldest friend for help: because if anyone can get her to Scotland in time, it’s starchy solicitor Henry Mortimer. But the road to Scotland is paved with secrets. Beneath his buttoned-up exterior, Henry is ardently, wildly, miserably in love with Margo. And Matilda and Ashford’s relationship too may not be quite what it seems.
Between salacious engravings, secret identities, and demanding feral cats, nothing about the journey goes as planned. With the Halifax Hellions at the reins, a week in a carriage is exactly enough time to turn the world upside down . . . and, perhaps, find the love stories they never expected.
Originally published in digital and audio as separate novellas, Vasti's Halifax Hellions are now together in a print edition with an newly added epilogue. One twin running off to marry a man who should hate her and another twin who gives chase with a "starchy solicitor." Vasti leans into romantic comedy and this sounds fun.
She holds him prisoner. But he’s about to claim her heart…Caragh O’Brannon never expected to survive a Viking raid—let alone capture a warrior. Fierce, bound, and utterly dangerous, Styr Hardrata should be her enemy. Instead, he awakens forbidden desires she cannot deny.Styr came to Ireland seeking trade, not a battle. But the fiery Irish maiden who holds him captive stirs a hunger more powerful than freedom itself. Though honor binds him to another, Styr harbors a secret that could change everything.Caught between loyalty and longing, Caragh and Styr must choose—betray their hearts or surrender to a passion strong enough to defy fate.
Originally published by Harlequin Historical in 2013, this self-published reprint, first in a duet, features an already-married (!) hero whose arranged marriage is in the final death throes when he's taken captive by the literally-starving heroine. Oh, and Viking hero, story set in Ireland. God bless having 20+ years worth of blog archives, I read and reviewed this back in the day. The subject matter is very tricky, but Willingham does a great job with it, and the hero's wife gets her own romance in the second book, which is being reprinted in March.
Whew! And here we are, at the end. Seriously, I won't tell you how long it took me to draft this post. The least you could do to show your appreciation? Go forth, read a historical romance. Then tell all your friends about it.
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