New Year, New Unusual Historicals for January 2026

Welcome January 2026 - I guess. Besides the current news cycle, which is all bad all the time, I'm still sick. Am I getting better? I mean, sort of? I'm back to sleeping in bed (and not sitting up on the couch) and the cough is better (I guess?) although it's still here. At this point there's nothing for it, I have to go back to work this week and figure out how to string words together to tell y'all about this month's crop of Unusual Historicals (be gentle). I don't hold out much hope for my ability to do that right now, but if nothing else new historical romances are something we can hold on to - a small glowing light burning in what is currently the very dark cave we find ourselves in. Be good to each other Romancelandia and romance will be good to you.

Reclaiming His Viking Queen by Lucy Morris

He will have his queen… 

For better or worse! 

Viking Agnar has had many names: Usurper. Warlord. Wolf Slayer. Still, there’s one role he’s hell-bent on claiming—Skadi Friggsdottir’s husband! Rejected by Skadi years ago, he’ll be denied no longer. Storming her hall is easy. Taming his warrior queen will be much harder…

Young Skadi chose survival by marrying another over honoring her promise to Agnar. Now, believing Agnar has killed her husband, she’ll surrender her hand but never submit! Yet behind Agnar’s fury lies a man deeply wronged…one she can’t help but want. Is her enemy husband her doom, or her greatest desire?

 A new stand-alone Viking romance from Morris featuring a hero ready to claim the heroine who threw him over for another years before. I'm hoping for lots of sizzling Enemies to Lovers tension in this one, which is already locked and loaded on my Kindle.

How to Get Away With Scandal by Caroline Linden

Don’t fall in love with me . . .

Evangeline, Lady Courtenay, has flirted with scandal her entire life, and paid a steep price for it, with two unhappy marriages and a tarnished reputation. She’s vowed never to get entangled with another man—until a dashing explorer, just passing through London, smiles at her and sends her heart leaping. Just one night, she tells herself; that’s all she wants from him or any man.

Sir Richard Campion is entranced by Evangeline the moment they meet, even before she takes him home with her for a night of pleasure, only to be gone when he wakes. When he encounters her again years later, he is just as fascinated—and elated to find that she still feels the attraction, too. But this time, he intends to persuade her that he’s worth getting entangled with . . . forever.

 I can't say no to a scandalous heroine and Linden's latest features a twice-married heroine who sounds like she's earned every bit of her reputation. She's vowed to stay away from men, but then meets the "dashing explorer" hero and really, what's one night?  Turns out enough to ensnare them both.

When the Earl Was Wicked by Jess Michaels

Popular courtesan Evelina Comerford thought she had her life in order. She had been with her protector, a powerful duke, for years and believed they would be together forever, even if he was forced to marry and produce legitimate heirs. And then he broke her heart by walking out of her with no feeling to be with someone else’s wife.

Vaughn is the Earl of Blackburn and he is enduring a scandal to end all scandals. His wife of three years has not only begun a public affair with a duke he once called friend, but she’s demanding a divorce. He’s angry and hurt and he wants a little revenge, which is how he finds himself on Evelina’s door, asking her to pretend to enter an affair with him to make both of their former loves jealous.

But a fake affair swiftly turns to something more powerfully passionate. And spying and trying to undermine their former partners begins to lose its shine. But can they both overcome loves that were never meant to be and recognize the true love that is looking right at them? Or will it all be too late when they finally figure it out?

The second book in Michaels' Comerford Courtesans series features a heroine dumped by her protector Duke and a hero whose wife wants a divorce because she's in love with his friend, that same Duke. So naturally hero and heroine decide to enter into a fake affair in the name of revenge - only to get more than they bargained for.

Hollywood Glitz and Glamour by Ariella Talix

It's 1939, the Golden Age of Hollywood, and the major movie studios make all the rules.

Only a very lucky few receive the coveted contracts from Hollywood producers—but they come with heavy strings attached. Actors and actresses are beautiful, talented, and treated like pawns on a chessboard. It's all about image, income, and hedonism.

Troy Kingsley is a handsome, gifted actor who explodes onto the Hollywood scene, gathering fans from all walks of life. Little does anyone know that Troy is a lawbreaker and morally corrupt by society's standards.

When the studio determines it's time for Troy to marry, he’s not at all happy about it and gives the studio his own ultimatum.

Rosalie Channing came to Hollywood to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming an actress. She doesn’t know anything about Troy other than he’s a terrific movie star who’s captured her attention in the past couple of years, and now she’s ordered to marry this stranger if they both want to keep their jobs.

She doesn’t know that Troy is a package deal.

If you're going to write a MMF historical, there may not be a better setting than 1930s Hollywood. Studios ran everything, spun stories out of whole cloth, and for the price of fame and fortune many an actor found themselves in one closet or another. Which is what we have in Talix's latest. I'm intrigued by this one for sure.

Waves of Desire by Lauren Everly

Two enemies bound by danger—and undone by desire.

Savannah socialite Samantha Warstein has finally been given the chance to earn her place within her family’s secret pirating legacy. Her first obstacle as a captain? An ambitious—and annoyingly handsome—navy lieutenant tasked with destroying the pirate trade. And she’s not sure which challenge appeals more: proving her worth or putting him in his place.

Having lost his parents to pirates, Lieutenant Christian Thompson takes his assignment seriously, determined to spend his life married only to the sea. But when a mysterious, red-headed beauty bests him in battle, the mission becomes personal. He’ll see her brought to justice, no matter how her laughter haunts him... or how her courage stirs something he thought long buried.

When a notorious pirate kidnaps Samantha, her uncle hires Christian to track her down. Little does he know, the woman he’s chasing and the woman he’s rescuing are one and the same. Bound together by danger and deception, they must work together to take down the most ruthless man on the seas. But as treacherous waters and buried secrets close in, their greatest peril may be the desire neither can resist.

This is Everly's debut and according to the bio listed on her web site she "first discovered her love for historical romance at the age of twelve, when she stumbled upon a hidden box of Johanna Lindsey novels in her mom’s closet..." I mean, I've never been less surprised by anything in my life after reading this blurb which is pure, unadulterated throwback featuring a pirate heroine and the hero determined to run her to ground, only to fall in love with her not realizing her true identity. The only thing missing is the heroine rocking blue eyeshadow on the cover 😂

Wife Wanted by Wren St. Claire

He advertised for a wife and found his soulmate.

Renowned antiquities scholar, Deodonatus (Deo) Kinninmounth Earl of Pendrell, needs a secretary to help him with a new project, but the lonely, socially awkward, bespectacled giant, also wants a wife. He decides to advertise for a lady to fill both roles.

Miss Emily Grenfell is a closet antiquities enthusiast, heiress, and social disaster. Escaping from her draconian mother and a suitor she doesn’t want, Emily arrives a day late for the job interview and is shocked to discover she has applied for a post working for a man.

However, when the enormous, hawkish-featured man with red hair and freckles, proposes a marriage of convenience, Emily is happy to accept, rather than return to a home where she is mistreated and misunderstood.

Embarking on a project to dig up a Celtic burial site on the Duke of Troubridge’s estate, Deo and Emily discover they have more in common than a shared passion for antiquities. As desire sparks between them, Deo struggles to come to terms with physical and emotional intimacy, and Emily falls for her adorably nerdish and irresistibly attractive husband. And when Emily’s rejected suitor tries to cause trouble for the pair, Emily must learn to understand the harsh childhood that has robbed Deo of normal emotional responses and help him discover what his heart is for.

A red-headed hero (with freckles! I love this guy already!) proposes a marriage of convenience to a heroine who will fill his need for a secretary and a wife. Our heroine, a social disaster, accepts in order to escape a family and suitor determined to keep her under their collective thumbs.  This is the final book in the author's All for Love trilogy.

The Explorer Returns by Ramona Elmes

Love hadn’t been enough years ago; would it be now?

Lisbeth, the widowed Duchess of Lusby, travels to Syria to deliver an ancient map that will allow her antiquities club in London to find important artifacts. She expects to deliver them to her colleague, but instead comes face to face with the man whose heart she broke years ago. Gone is the quiet man she once loved, and in his place is a brash, famous explorer. She is unimpressed.

Thomas Easton is astounded when Lisbeth appears in the Syrian café where he is spending time with friends. He never planned to see her again after she ended their betrothal with a letter. Gone is the daring young woman he once knew, and in her place is a regal duchess. This different Lisbeth annoys him. Shocking them both, Thomas goads her into staying for one more adventure. He insists to himself it isn’t because of any lingering feelings.

As they hunt for artifacts, feelings and temptations start to grow between them. Could they have another chance at love? Perhaps, but secrets and dangers both in Syria and England have a way of derailing even the most certain happily-ever-afters.

Want more antiquities? January seems to be the month for it, with this third book in Elmes' Brazen Curators trilogy.  She's a widowed Duchess come to Syria to deliver an ancient map and he's the explorer whose heart she broke years before. They agree to one last adventure and complications, naturally, ensue. 

Envy Unchecked by Alyson Chase

London’s first gentlewoman’s club — Tea, On Dit, and …. Murder.

London, 1820. Lady Mary Cavindish has scandalized society by opening her Minerva Club, a place where women can escape the constraints of propriety. But when a prominent member is found strangled inside its elegant walls, the club’s future teeters on the brink of ruin.

Already under siege by a moral crusade decrying her establishment as a den of vice, Lady Mary knows this murder could spell its doom. Refusing to let her creation perish, Lady Mary launches her own inquiry, probing the dark secrets of her members and the ton’s elite.

Frustrating her efforts is the arrival of a Bow Street Runner, a by-the-book investigator whose moral code doesn’t want the involvement of an eccentric widow in his case. Complicating the matter, as the investigation deepens, so do his feelings for the daughter of one of the prime suspects, a liaison that blurs the lines between duty and desire.

As they search for answers, Lady Mary and her fellow sleuths uncover a tapestry of betrayal, envy, and revenge. When scandal surrounds her, Lady Mary is forced to decide just where her allegiances lie.

The first in the Lady Mary Mysteries series, the publisher is marketing this as a mystery - but this blurb teases readers with plenty of romance-related shenanigans. She needs to find a killer in order to keep her club open and he's a "by the book" Bow Street Runner. One suspects that this romance may end up playing out over future entries. 

Once Upon a Wicked Wager by Cassandra Samuels

If love is a gamble, this is one wager they cannot afford to lose.

Notorious widow and social pariah, Lisbeth Carslake, Countess of Blackhurst, was acquitted of her husband's murder, but no one believes in her innocence. Known as the Black Raven, bringer of bad luck and death, she is the topic of gossip and wagers. She knows the only way to prove her innocence beyond doubt is to return to society and find her husband's killer.

Oliver Whitely, Earl of Bellamy, is well and truly in dun territory and drunkenly takes on The Black Raven Wager and ends up agreeing to a business proposal at the end of a fire poker, to escort Lisbeth back into the viper's pit known as the ton. Together, they must find her husband's killer before the killer finds them. That is, if her schedule allows and they don't kill each other first.

If antiquities aren't your thing, this month's Unusual Historicals also give you murder as an second option 😂.  She's a social pariah thanks to everyone thinking she murdered her husband and the only way to get her life back is to find the real killer. For that she's going to need help, which shows up in the form of our hero, who foolishly accepted a wager only to end up on the wrong side of a fire poker. A heroine with spirit - I like that. 

The Earl's Indifferent Daughter by Elizabeth Heights

Lady Esme de Neville has found true love… or has she?

Among the flatterers and fortune-hunters lining up for her hand, one man alone has captured her heart - and she will do whatever it takes to convince him of her affections. But after surrendering her virtue, Esme finds herself unceremoniously abandoned and forced to await her lover’s return at the country home of her sister, Frida, and brother-in-law, Callum.

Adam is a seasoned warrior, tasked with bringing Callum home to the highlands to his father’s deathbed. Upon arriving at Ember Hall, he unwillingly accepts a new assignment; to guard Lady Esme – whose youth and beauty threaten to topple the high barricades that have protected his heart for many years.

For Esme, the long days of waiting pass slowly, with her brooding bodyguard providing her only source of distraction. Despite his best efforts, Adam is unable to resist her overtures of friendship. Opposites attract and soon the sparks of romance begin to fly.

But fate has an extra surprise in store. Just as Esme recognises the depths of her feelings for Adam, a figure from the past threatens the future she longs to embrace. Her happiness – and Adam’s too – depends on two things: de Neville family loyalty and the power of true love.

Heights wraps up her Sisters of Ember Hall medieval trilogy with a heroine who fancies herself in love and only managed to ruin herself in the process. Now she's moldering away at her sister's country home being guarded by the hero, not the man she fancies herself in love with but the the one who ultimately ends up capturing her heart. 

Hopefully by the time I start thinking about February's Unusual Historicals post I'll be past whatever plague I managed to catch and we'll all have had some measure of good news to hold on to. In the meantime, share what Unusual Historicals you're looking forward to in the comments section. 

Boom! Unusual Historicals for July 2024

July is always a lost month for me because while it does feature my happy birthday, it's also the one time of year where I have hard, stressful deadlines at work thanks to a July 1 - June 30 fiscal cycle. I'm closing out the books on the previous year and then figuring out how to bleed a stone allocating the incoming year's budget. Seriously, the next person I see online whining about how wait lists are too long and their library's eBook collection sucks better run and hide because I am full up y'all. 

But you know what calms stress? Books. Then throw some more books on top of those books. And this month's Unusual Historicals crop is a good place to start. I'm highlighting ten books this month!

A Deal with the Rebellious Marquess by Bronwyn Scott

A search for the truth

Leads to a discovery of passion!

After tragically losing her husband, Fleur is determined to expose the man responsible in a tell-all news article. Yet she’s thwarted by Jasper, the infuriating, rebellious—and undeniably handsome!—Marquess of Meltham, when she implicates his brother. His deal? They work to uncover the truth together! As sparks of hostility turn into sparks of desire, Fleur must decide whether her vendetta is worth the cost of losing her heart…

The final book in the author's Enterprising Widows trilogy that follows three heroines trying to rebuild their lives after losing their husbands in the 1852 Holmfirth Flood. This is a apropos book to wrap the series up with, the heroine determined to expose the man she feels is responsible but having to navigate around, and ultimately partner with, that man's brother.

A Cinderella to Redeem the Earl by Ann Lethbridge

There are two sides to every story

And to every earl…

Damian, the new Earl of Dart, has returned to England for one purpose: to exact revenge on those who betrayed his family. Having discovered his enemy’s daughter Pamela is now a cook, he hires her. But his plans for vengeance go awry when the beguiling Cinderella sparks an attraction that complicates everything. For if Damian continues with his plan, he will betray the only woman who could redeem him…

He's a hero hungry for a revenge. She's now a cook whose father is the target of the hero's vengeance. The sample I read provides a bit more detail, the hero actually answers his own door in ramshackle rundown manor (shocking the heroine) and our heroine is really his enemy's stepdaughter, her own (now dead) father was a vicar who indulged his daughter by letting her spend time in the kitchen growing up.  

Stranded with her Forbidden Knight by Melissa Oliver

Caught between duty…

And forbidden desire!

Lady Elowen is traveling to her loveless arranged betrothal when she’s rescued from a storm by Lord Simon Trebarr—the enigmatic knight whose family has long been enemies of her own. She should hate him, yet an unwanted attraction has always simmered whenever he’s near… Within the walls of Simon’s Cornish castle, can Elowen resist experiencing passion before condemning herself to a life without it…even if it’s with the man who should be her enemy?

Star-crossed lovers alert! Set in 14th century Cornwall, a heroine trudging her way into a loveless marriage is rescued from a storm by our knight hero, whose family happens to be her family's sworn enemy. 

A Vengeful King Rises by Sophie Barnes

The only thing more lethal than his need for revenge, is the woman who's tasked with bringing him down.

Adrian Croft dreams of quitting the shady business he stands to inherit, of settling down, and of raising a family free from a life of crime. But when tragedy strikes, this fanciful dream is destroyed. All he wants now is revenge. His anger, however, threatens to cloud his judgment, making it harder for him to recognize danger when it approaches in the form of a beautiful woman.

Trained for covert operations as part of a secret government program, Samantha Carmichael's mission is to give British law enforcement a reason to prosecute the most powerful man in the country. But when common sense and duty begin to blur, can she remain steadfast in her goal, or will her loyalties shift as she gradually loses her heart to the one man she cannot afford to love?

First in a new series that follows one couple and "the brutal challenges they must face" intrigues me for a hero who has inherited a criminal enterprise (and isn't overjoyed by that fact) and a heroine charged with bringing him down. 

The Play's the Thing by Margaux Thorne

Everyone’s a player in this love match.

Miss Anna Smythe is planning a romantic wedding to remember—only it’s not her own. After a youthful indiscretion left her with a broken heart and a tarnished reputation, Anna is more than content to sit on the sidelines and watch those around her find their perfect match. When her father, Sir John, informs the family that he’s ready for a second chance at romance with his childhood sweetheart, Anna is overjoyed to spend the summer with her future in-laws dreaming up a swoony future for the fortunate couple. Unfortunately, her happiness is not shared by everyone.

Lord Jacob Wright’s family may have come from nothing, but now that he’s stumbled upon a title, he’s not willing to mix with just anyone. The former journalist and new viscount can spot a fortune hunter from a mile away and Sir John is definitely one who has the audacity to set his sights on Jacob’s mother! A marriage between Sir John and Rose Wright will never happen—not on Jacob’s watch. Even when the Smythe family moves into Jacob’s home for a month, he is determined to kill the fledgling romance on the vine.

However, Jacob never anticipated Smythe’s daughter being a more than worthy adversary for his romance-poisoning plans. Anna believes in the older couple’s love even more than Jacob distrusts it and routinely thwarts all of his attempts to douse its growing flames.

To make matters worse, the more Jacob spends time with the starry-eyed Anna, the more he realizes she isn’t just another fanciful chit hell-bent on match-making. The delightfully enticing woman has a history, and Jacob soon discovers that Sir John isn’t the one person grappling with second chances. When an old flame reemerges in Anna’s life, resolute in starting where they left off, Jacob is determined to keep Anna by his side. Changing tact, Jacob becomes the romantic, fixed on showing Anna that even with his surly behavior and obstinate ways he’s the only man for her.

Can a few charming picnics, a hermit’s cottage, and chance encounters with circus strongwomen keep Anna from wondering about what might have been with her old flame?

Lord deliver me from back cover blurbs that want to tell the reader the entire story. Anyway, this second book in the author's Cricket Club series piques my interest for a "romantic" heroine who's fine with being on the shelf (for reasons) and the adversarial relationship that enters her life in the form of the hero, when their widowed parents, childhood sweethearts, reunite. I love a good adversarial romance, but they're really tricky to pull off.  Here's hoping!

Cast Vows by Ariella Talix

Danger strikes from all directions. Nothing is as it seems.

Nicolo Stark-James loves with his whole heart, but he finds there are despicable people who are willing to ruin everything.

Matty Remington needs to be safe, but he’s trapped. He has strong faith and a heart made for loving, but he needs to reconcile his love for God with his personal desires.

Eden Godwin might be the one to hold them all together, but her future isn’t her own to decide. She is pitted between love and saving her family from ruin.

Obligations are questioned, and promises are made that may not be kept. 

This is the third book in the author's Hearts of Gold series, all of which feature ménages and take place in 19th century California, this one being set in 1884 Los Angeles. I'm intrigued by that and also by the fact that one of the male characters is struggling with his personal desires and his faith in God. It's a theme we don't see a ton of in erotic romance. 

An Impossible Match by Sandra Sookoo

What the heart wants is sometimes at cross purposes from what is practical.

Miss Genevieve Hasting refuses to become a companion like her two older sisters. She aspires to loftier heights, and though she despises weak-willed men, society’s rules, proper deportment, and stays, she’s willing to suffer them all if it means winning a life of luxury without toil as well as a titled gentleman, except she’s been banished to her father’s country estate as punishment for too many scandals. It’s dull and there aren’t that many men to match with there.

Mr. Thomas Alderman is a country vicar who has enjoyed his living over the years. Though his good looks make him extremely popular with the ladies of his congregation, he hasn’t given marriage much thought, for in his youth, he had been quite the rogue, but he left that behind him when he received his calling to minister. When Miss Hasting slips into his church one glorious sunny morning, he’s thrown into confusion. He’s not that man any longer.

An unexpected courtship springs between the unlikely couple before either of them realizes it’s happening. Though Genna amuses herself while in the country by seducing the handsome vicar, he’s not what she wants for her future. And as much as Thomas adores revisiting the man he used to be, the man who bedded beautiful women like Miss Hasting, she isn’t the type of woman he needs by his side now.

Unless they stop hiding from their true desires, their summertime fling won’t develop into a lasting bond.

We get a lot of rakes in romance who meet the heroine, see the error of their wicked ways, then reform. It's the spin on that well-worn trope that piqued my interest in Sookoo's third book in her Hasting Sisters series. He's already reformed, and now a vicar, who finds himself tempted by an ambitious heroine determined to marry well and bag herself a comfortable life, which is proving difficult thanks her habit of courting scandal. 

London's Leading Lady by Jennifer Seasons

A passionate playwright, a headstrong lady . . . a love story for the ages.

Pragmatic Lady Carlotta Castlebury secretly adores the theatre. Enamored with the written and performed word, she writes play scripts in her journal, her most precious possession. One fateful afternoon in Hyde Park she loses it, only to discover soon after that the latest theatrical performance on Drury Lane sounds remarkably like her play. Yet the audacious liar taking credit for it is decidedly not her. Rather, the insufferable man is London’s most popular playwright, Thatcher Goodrich. Lottie is going to march down to Rhodes Theatre and give the infuriatingly sexy writer a piece of her mind . . . and most assuredly none of her heart.

The third son of an impoverished baron, Thatcher has made his way in the world with his wit and a deft pen. When his muse abandons him and leaves him wordless exactly when King William personally requests a new play, Thatcher does what any desperate playwright would do: he finds one and claims it as his own! He doesn’t expect the true author to barge into the theatre like a beautiful warrior queen and demand her work back.

Yet when His Majesty wishes another play, Thatcher must pen another with her, and the more time he spends with the insightful, clever lady, the harder in love he falls. Until something in Lottie’s original play rankles a dangerous foe, endangering them.

Now they must outwit a madman . . . or risk the final curtain falling on their lives and newfound love forever.

A lady who loses the journal where she scripts all her unpublished plays attends the theater to discover London's most popular playwright has found her journal and is now passing off her writing as his own. A hero with a case of writer's block does the unthinkable when the King requests a new play, and when he wants another? He has no choice but team up with the woman he's wronged. This is the fourth book in the author's Castleburys series. 

The Poet's Stern Critic by Mary Lancaster

An elusive poet clashes with an opinionated young lady…

Cornelius Vale, hard-working steward of his brother’s land, has another secret identity as acclaimed poet Simon Sacheverill. No one has ever met the mysterious poet – except the woman who once accosted him in a London bookshop and tore his works to shreds.

When he encounters That Girl again at a Blackhaven ball, he is appalled.

If only he knew, the girl in question, Lady Alice Conway, adores his poetry and is completely bowled over by the man. She too has secrets. She longs to play her own musical compositions in the great concert halls of Europe. And, disgusted by male physical contact, she refuses to marry. Unfortunately, she rejects a dangerous nobleman who hates to lose.

Despite frequent quarrels, Cornelius and Alice keep each other’s secrets and grow ever closer, incurring the ire of his old love and of the suitors determined to marry Alice.

As threats fall from all sides, will they risk everything to save each other? And if they do, is there even a way for them to be together?

A steward with a secret life as a popular poet and an ambitious composer heroine who has her own secrets. This is the fifth (and final?) book in the author's One Night in Blackhaven series. 

Tempted by the Highland Warrior by Michelle Willingham (reprint)

After suffering years as a prisoner of war, Callum MacKinloch finally breaks free . . . but his voice is still held captive.

Lady Marguerite de Montpierre tries to heal his brutal wounds and is captivated by the handsome Highlander. She faces her own impending prison of a loveless betrothal, though she is drawn to the fierce warrior who does not speak. Although a future together seems impossible, she is losing her heart to a man she cannot have.

But Callum refuses to give up on the angel who fought back against the demons of his past and gave him another reason to live...for her.

Originally published by Harlequin Historical in 2012, this third book in Wilingham's MacKinloch Clan series features a former POW hero now mute from the trauma he endured and the heroine nursing him back to health staring down the barrel of a loveless betrothal. Willingham has written some dynamite damaged characters in her day, I really need to dig this series out of my TBR.

Whew! Another month, another marathon list of Unusual Historicals. What are you looking forward to reading?