Cricket is trapped.When she was wed, her dreaded mother-in-law laid a blood curse on her, and now that her husband is dead, fully intends to commit her to an asylum … or worse.To save her life, Cricket flees to a small New England town and throws herself upon the mercy of a man she has never met.Gabriel Throckmorton is not happy when Cricket turns up on his doorstep, but he does grudgingly agree to help her ...

When professional respect leads to something more ...Benjamin Lewis has created a life for himself as one of the most respected silversmiths and engravers in New York City. For Benjamin, his work is his passion and he has never sought out companionship beyond the close ties of family. Stumbling across dresses sew by his late mother, however, reawakens painful memories from his past. Now he is determined to forge something beautiful from the remains of the life and identity...

A New York Times Recommended Summer Read 2021"This book is sexy: everything is vintage garters being unsnapped and forearms being revealed and silk blouses falling to the floor." -New York Times Book Review.New York, 1948After years of trying to break into New York City's literary scene, Madeline Slaughter is emotionally and physically exhausted. When a friend offers her a safe haven as the live-i...

Two sworn rivals, a clash of ideas, and an attraction neither can deny.A noted scholar of ancient literature and spellcraft, Lord Ashcroft "Andrea" de Bourbon, finds his world shaken when the new science of mechanical animation becomes the talk of high society. In response, Andrea takes to the presses gaining notoriety for his scathing critiques of mechanical animation and its founder the Marquis de la Marche.Then one night Andrea comes face to face with the Marquis de la M...

If you look for yourself in the past and see nothing, how do you know who you are? How do you know that you are supposed to be here?When Wyatt brings an unidentified photograph to the local historical society, he hopes staff historian Grayson will tell him more about the people in the picture. The subjects in the mysterious photograph sit side by side, their hands close but not touching. One is dark, the other fair. Both wear men's suits.Were they friends? Lovers? Business ...

Upon waking up one morning, Wen Yu is surprised to find a note asking him to return the song thrush given into his care while the owner was sick. The only problem is that Wen Yu was never given a song thrush.Though he has no time for distractions from his studies for the palace examination, Wen Yu goes in search of the unknown Liu Yi who left him the note. What he finds is a beautiful imperial eunuch, a talking tortoise, and a collection of mysterious moon poems that force Wen Yu t...

New York City, 1831.Passion, medicine and a plan to break the law ...When Doctor William Blackwood, a proper gentleman who prefers books to actual patients, meets retired Navy surgeon Doctor Augustus Hill, they find in each other not just companionship but the chance of pleasure—and perhaps even more. The desire between them is undeniable but their budding relationship is disrupted by the arrival of a mysterious patient at New York Hospital.Mr. Moss has bee...

New York, 1948After years of trying to break into New York City's literary scene, Madeline Slaughter is emotionally and physically exhausted. When a friend offers her a safe haven as the live-in companion to reclusive, bestselling novelist Victor Hallowell she jumps at the chance to escape the city. Madeline expects to find rest and quiet in the forests of Upstate New York. Instead, she finds Victor, handsome and intensely passionate, and Audrey Coffin, Victor's mysterious and beaut...

New York City, 1831.Passion, medicine and a plan to break the law ...When Doctor William Blackwood, a proper gentleman who prefers books to actual patients, meets retired Navy surgeon Doctor Augustus Hill, they find in each other not just companionship but the chance of pleasure—and perhaps even more. The desire between them is undeniable but their budding relationship is disrupted by the arrival of a mysterious patient at New York Hospital.Mr. Moss has been accused...

Girin is a troll, content with his simple, quiet life in the forest—a life thrown into chaos when he stumbles across an unconscious human on one of the mountain paths. The human is not an ordinary one either, but a witch—tortured, branded, and mere steps from death when Girin finds him. Unable to leave him there to die alone, Girin takes the human home to nurse him back to health. But he quickly learns that keeping one stubborn human alive is a far more difficult task than he first surmise...

For six years Richard and Tobias have written to each other sharing every detail of their lives and the occasional flirtation but they have never met in person. That changes when Richard is unexpectedly left without a job or home and Tobias offered him sanctuary for Yuletide. Although their attraction to one another burns bright over shared glasses of wine and books Richard fears taking a lover after too many years alone. As the snow falls deeper Richard and Tobias must find a way to navig...

Miss Elizabeth Berkley's dreams are simple, to one day have her own business embroidering dresses for the most fashionable ladies in New York. She certainly shouldn't waste her time pining for the beautiful and confident Miss Prudence Weld who owns her own bakehouse around the corner. That is until Miss Weld learns Elizabeth has nowhere to spend Christmas and makes her an offer involving sweet, sticky pastries and even sweeter companionship.