Welcome to my new monthly feature! For December, my focus is on holiday romances—since I write mostly medieval romances, these are Christmas romances.
First up is The Mercenary’s Bride, a Christmas novella, which is now available in audio. This is book #1 of my Brides of Inverfyre series, and is the story of Mhairi, the first of the children of the Hawk of Inverfyre to have her tale told. This is a forbidden romance—Quentin was the Captain of the Guard at Inverfyre, until the Hawk caught him teaching Mhairi to throw a knife. (She asked.) The Hawk banished Quentin, who resolved to earn enough money as a mercenary to return to Inverfyre and ask for Mhairi’s hand. Things didn’t go according to plan, though, and this story opens with Quentin’s return to Inverfyre. Having lost everything, he thinks he can only keep his promise to Mhairi to bring her a good knife—but it’s Christmas at Inverfyre and there’s more love in Mhairi’s heart than Quentin dares to expect. I particularly love happy endings that aren’t expected by the characters, so this is a special story for me.
The Snow White Bride is the third book of my Jewels of Kinfairlie series of medieval romances. It’s the story of Madeline and Vivienne’s revenge on Alexander for arranging their marriages, even though both matches worked out well. The sisters also perceive that their older brother is too busy managing Kinfairlie to even think about marriage—when a beautiful woman seeks sanctuary in Kinfairlie’s chapel on Christmas Eve, her appearance seems fortuitous. Eleanor is only too happy to have a new husband and defender, but she expects a lot less from marriage than Alexander. Can this charming laird win her reluctant heart? (Of course, he can!) I really enjoy the holiday festivities at Kinfairlie in this book, including the Feast of Fools. Eleanor and Alexander’s story is also available in audio.
The Rogue is the first book of my Rogues of Ravensmuir series of medieval romances. This story introduces the family at Ravensmuir (and ultimately Kinfairlie) and includes some suspenseful elements. I think of it as a gothic romance. Ysabella and Merlyn are estranged and haven’t seen each other for years—until Merlyn returns at Christmas to ask Ysabella for help. Someone, he says, is trying to kill him. Ysabella is skeptical, though. She knows her husband is a charming rogue and believes he will say anything to get what he wants. She refuses, and is shocked by the subsequent news that Merlyn has been killed and has made her heir to Ravensmuir. She decides to solve the murder and finds a great deal more than expected during this particular Christmas. Can love triumph over the injuries and secrets of the past? You know it will. 🙂 I love this book and I adore Merlyn. The Rogue is also available in audio.
A Duke by Any Other Name is a Regency romance, which was originally written for an anthology—all of the stories took place when families gathered for a Christmas wedding. Alexander is a duke and a spy, who pretends to be a fashionable fop so that he’s underestimated. He’s on the hunt for a jewel thief, but instead he finds love unexpected—he falls hard for Daphne Goodenham, which puts him in a pickle. How can he court her when he’s in disguise? But how can he be certain of her motives? He could reveal himself and put his entire mission in peril. I had fun with this story of love triumphing over obstacles at Christmas.
Part of this feature is that at least one of the highlighted books will be offered to newsletter subscribers at a discount. If you haven’t signed up for my Knights & Rogues newsletter yet, this might be a good time to do so!
Claire Delacroix 