Welcome to Historically Yours where I share some of my top Historical Romance picks for the second half of May.
Slippery Creatures by KJ Charles (5/13)
[Will Darling Adventures series #1]
Will Darling came back from the Great War with a few scars, a lot of medals, and no idea what to do next. Inheriting his uncle’s chaotic second-hand bookshop is a blessing…until strange visitors start making threats. First a criminal gang, then the War Office, both telling Will to give them the information they want, or else.
Will has no idea what that information is, and nobody to turn to, until Kim Secretan — charming, cultured, oddly attractive — steps in to offer help. As Kim and Will try to find answers and outrun trouble, mutual desire grows along with the danger.
And then Will discovers the truth about Kim. His identity, his past, his real intentions. Enraged and betrayed, Will never wants to see him again.
But Will possesses knowledge that could cost thousands of lives. Enemies are closing in on him from all sides — and Kim is the only man who can help.
Say Yes to the Duke by Eloisa James (5/19)
[The Wildes of Lindow Castle series #5]
Miss Viola Astley is so painfully shy that she’s horrified by the mere idea of dancing with a stranger; her upcoming London debut feels like a nightmare. So she’s overjoyed to meet the handsome, quiet vicar with no interest in polite society — but just when she catches his attention, her reputation is compromised by a duke.
Devin Lucas Augustus Elstan, Duke of Wynter, will stop at nothing to marry Viola, including marrying a woman whom he believes to be in love with another man. A vicar, no less. Devin knows he’s no saint, but he’s used to conquest, and he’s determined to win Viola’s heart.
Marry in Scarlet by Anne Gracie (5/26)
[Marriage of Convenience series #4]
The proud and arrogant Duke of Everingham is determined to secure a marriage of convenience with heiress, Lady Georgiana Rutherford. He’s the biggest prize on the London marriage mart, pursued by young unmarried ladies and their match-making mamas, as well as married women with a wandering eye. He can have any woman he wants. Or so he thinks.
Lady Georgiana Rutherford — irreverent and unconventional — has no plans to marry. Having grown up poor, Lady George has no intention of giving up her fortune to become dependent on the dubious and unreliable goodwill of a man. Especially a man as insufferable as the Duke of Everingham, whose kisses stirs unwelcome and unsettling emotions.
The more she defies him, the more the duke wants her, until an argument at a ball spirals into a passionate embrace. Caught in a compromising position, the duke announces their betrothal. George is furious and when gossip claims she deliberately entrapped the duke — when she was the one who was trapped — she marches down the aisle in a scarlet wedding dress.
When You Wish Upon a Rogue by Anna Bennett (5/26)
[Debutante Diaries series #3]
Miss Sophie Kendall is passionate about plants, their properties, and the Debutante Underground. One thing she doesn’t love is running into a sleep-deprived earl  as she’s sneaking into an abandoned building for her next meeting. With her knowledge of plants, Sophie knows she can help this surly, enigmatic man—but he has a proposition.Â
Henry Reese, the Earl of Warshire, wants to be free from his wartime nightmares. So when Sophie brews him a special tea, he thinks he’s found a cure. But it soon becomes clear it’s not the tea that’s helped him sleep. Reese has an offer: she can use his building for her meetings, and the garden, in exchange for one week at his home to help him sleep. The rules are simple: No touching. No closeness. Only one way to fall in love.
The Outlaw’s Daughter by Margaret Brownley (5/26)
[The Haywire Brides series #3]
Texas Ranger Matt Taggert is on the trail of a wanted man. He has good reason to believe that Ellie-May’s late husband was involved in a stagecoach robbery, and he’s here to see justice done. But when he arrives in town, he discovers the thief has become a local hero…and his beautiful young widow isn’t too happy to see some lawman out to tarnish her family’s newly spotless reputation.
Ellie-May’s shaken by her encounter with the Ranger. Having grown up an outlaw’s daughter, she’ll do anything to keep her children safe — and if that means hardening her heart against the handsome lawman’s smiles, then so be it. Because she knows Matt isn’t about to give up his search. He’s out to redeem himself and find proof that Ellie-May’s husband wasn’t the saint everyone claims…even if it means losing the love neither expected to discover along the way.
The Highlander’s English Bride by Vanessa Kelly (5/26)
[Clan Kendrick series #3]
Lady Sabrina Bell has never been so embarrassed in her life. Not only did her new suitor fail to appear for their morning rendezvous in Hyde Park, but a thief pushed her into the Serpentine. Being rescued by a burly Highlander just adds to her humiliation. Nor is he content with rescuing her just once. Even when Sabrina travels to Edinburgh as part of King George’s entourage, Graeme Kendrick is there, interfering, exasperating and so very tempting.
Once notorious for being the most unruly Kendrick brother, Graeme now runs dangerous missions for the King’s spymaster. Yet nothing has prepared him for Sabrina. The only child of a wealthy earl, and the pampered goddaughter of the king himself, she is stubborn, impetuous and far too good for him. He doesn’t deserve her, but he can protect her and then send her safely back home. But the bonny Sassenach has her own ideas — and a plan for seduction that no red-blooded Highlander could resist.
Never Conspire with a Sinful Baron by Renee Ann Miller (5/26)
[The Infamous Lords series #4]
When a duke more interested in fox hunting and sports than womanizing comes to town, Nina thinks him the perfect catch. Sadly, he doesn’t seem to notice her. But Lord Elliot Havenford, Baron Ralston, a notorious flirt, has a proposition: he’ll not only pretend to vie for her hand, hoping to draw forth the duke’s competitive nature, he’ll also give Nina lessons in seduction.
An aristocrat in possession of two dilapidated properties must be in want of a fortune. Elliot’s proposition is a subterfuge, for he hopes to capture Nina’s hand — and her dowry — by slyly seducing her himself. Though he feels guilty over his deception, their interludes, filled with dancing, flirtation and increasingly heated kisses, are impossible to regret…until he realizes he has unwittingly placed Nina in grave danger.
Nothing Compares to the Duke by Christy Carlyle (5/26)
[The Duke’s Den series #3]
Rhys Forester, the new Duke of Claremont, lives his life by four words: Enjoy All, Regret Nothing. He’s devoted to the pleasure of his wild soirees, reckless behavior and shocking the ton with his interests in trade. The debts that come with his title don’t fit the carefree lifestyle he’s created and when he’s forced to return to his family’s estate, he’s also forced to confront his one and only regret: the beautiful girl he left behind.
Arabella Prescott has been the belle of more balls than she cares to remember. After three seasons and five rejected proposals, she’s done with the marriage mart. Bella’s hopes to live a comfortable life, alone, come crashing down when her parents demand she marry. But her salvation may come in the form of the man she hates the most.
Bella has never forgiven Rhys for what he did to her, but desperate times call for fake engagements. With a few dozen rules, their scheme begins, but it’s not long before the former enemies find themselves breaking every single rule, including the most important of them all: Don’t fall in love.
