Showing results by author "Amanda Quick" in All Categories

Virginia Dean wakes at midnight beside a dead body, with a bloody knife in her hand and no memory of the evening’s events. Dark energy, emanating from the mirrors lining the room, overpowers her senses. With no apparent way in or out, she’s rescued by a man she’s met only once before, but won’t soon forget.... Owen Sweetwater inherited his family’s talent for hunting the psychical monsters who prey on London’s women and children, and his investigation into the deaths of two glass-readers has led him here.

Calista Langley operates an exclusive "introduction" agency in Victorian London, catering to respectable ladies and gentlemen who find themselves alone in the world. But now a dangerously obsessed individual has begun sending her trinkets and gifts suitable only for those in deepest mourning - a black mirror, a funeral wreath, a ring set with black jet stone. Each is engraved with her initials.

The Arcane Society was born in turmoil when the friendship of its two founders evolved into a fierce rivalry. Nicholas Winters’s efforts led to the creation of a device of unknown powers called the Burning Lamp. Each generation of male descendants who inherits it is destined to develop multiple talents - and the curse of madness. Plagued by hallucinations and nightmares, notorious crime lord Griffin Winters is convinced he has been struck with the Winters Curse.

The sins of Adam Hardesty's past have been discovered. And if he does not hunt down his blackmailer quickly, his secrets will be revealed to all.... But there is an obstacle in his way: sensation novelist Caroline Fordyce. She knows that Adam's quest for justice could shatter her own reputation - and mire her family in lethal scandal. And she fears what he may find. Together they will navigate the shadow side of London, venturing into an underworld of cutthroats, connivers, and illusionists.

There was no doubt about it. What Miss Harriet Pomeroy needed was a man. Someone powerful and clever who could help her rout the unscrupulous thieves who were using her beloved caves to hide their loot. But when Harriet summoned Gideon Westbrook Viscount St. Justin to her aid, she could not know that she was summoning the devil himself.

Miss Amity Doncaster, world traveler, is accustomed to adventure and risk. Benedict Stanbridge, a man of science and a spy for the Crown, has faced danger in the darker corners of foreign lands. But they are about to face a threat that is shockingly close to home . . . One does not expect to be kidnapped on a London street in broad daylight.

While investigating a suspicious death, private inquiry agent Ambrose Wells finds himself on the grounds of Aldwick Castle - and in the midst of utter chaos. The ramshackle castle is in flames - and a beautiful woman and four young girls are taking flight on horseback. It turns out that the strong-minded Miss Concordia Glade and her four bright students are on the run from a notorious London crime lord who'll stop at nothing to destroy them.

Augusta Ballinger was quite sure that it was all a dreadful mistake. The chillingly pompous and dangerously disturbing Earl of Graystone could not possibly wish to marry her. Why, it was rumored that his chosen bride must be a veritable model of virtue. And everyone knew that Augusta, as the last of the wild, reckless Northumberland Ballingers, was a woman who could not be bothered by society's rules.

Townsfolk called him devil. For dark and enigmatic Julian, Earl of Ravenwood, was a man with a legendary temper and a first wife whose mysterious death would not be forgotten. Some said the beautiful Lady Ravenwood had drowned herself in the black, murky waters of Ravenwood Pond. Others whispered of foul play and the devil's wrath. Now country-bred Sophy Dorring is about to become Ravenwood's new bride. Drawn to his masculine strength and the glitter of desire that burned in his emerald eyes, the tawny-haired lass had her own reasons for agreeing to a marriage of convenience.

Once Olympia Wingfield had been free to devote all her time to her true passion: the study of ancient legends and long-lost treasure. But now, with three hellion nephews to raise, the absentminded beauty has very little time for research. Which makes it seem all the more serendipitous when a handsome stranger strides into Olympia’s library unannounced and proceeds to set her world to rights.

Being Madame Ariadne, Psychic Dream Consultant, wasn't Prudence Ryland's ideal gig, but it paid well which was reason enough to do the work—until she realizes that her latest client intends to kill her. But Prudence, a master at reinvention, finds a new job and home as far away as possible and is finally able to relax—which turns out to be a big mistake. Letting her guard down means being kidnapped and drugged and waking up in a bloodstained wedding dress in the honeymoon suite next to a dead man.

Affair introduces Charlotte Arkendale, an industrious young woman who provides a very special service. Wealthy women hire her to check the qualifications of their suitors. When one of Charlotte’s loveliest clients is murdered, she hires the darkly handsome Baxter St. Ives to be her assistant and bodyguard. But as they pool their powers of deduction and begin to investigate the mysterious circumstances surrounding the murder, they also uncover the force of a powerful, and mutual, chemistry.

Attempting to recover a relic stolen from her family years ago, gifted crystal worker Leona Hewitt secretly makes her way into Lord Delbridge's private museum. But who she finds there is more entrancing than the crystal she seeks. Thaddeus Ware is a mesmerist with powerful psychic energy—that doesn't seem to be affecting the woman before him. Instead, Leona seems to exert a rather hypnotic power over the hypnotist himself. After she gives him the slip, absconding with the crystal they recovered, Thaddeus fears for her safety.

With her reputation forever tarnished by a youthful indiscretion, lovely Emily Faringdon is resigned to a life of spinsterhood, until she embarks on an unusual correspondence and finds herself falling head over heels in love. Sensitive, intelligent, and high-minded, her noble pen pal seems to embody everything Emily has ever dreamed of in a man. But Simon Augustus Traherne, the mysterious Earl of Blade, is not at all what he seems.

Novelist and professional companion Evangeline Ames has rented a cottage in the outskirts of Little Dixby, far from the London streets where she was recently attacked. Fascinated by the paranormal energy of nearby Crystal Gardens, she finds some pleasurable diversion in sneaking past the wall to explore the grounds. And when her life is threatened again, she instinctively goes to the gardens for safety. Lucas Sebastian has never been one to ignore a lady in danger, even if she is trespassing on his property.

Under the plain gray skirts of Miss Beatrice Lockwood’s gown, a pistol waits at the ready. For Beatrice is a paid companion on a secret mission - and with a secret past - and she must be prepared to fight for her life at any moment. Yet she is thrown oddly off guard by the fierce-looking man who joins her in foiling a crime outside a fancy ball - and then disappears into the shadows, leaving only his card. His name is Joshua Gage....

The Kern Secretarial Agency provides reliable professional services to its wealthy clientele, and Anne Clifton was one of the finest women in Ursula Kern's employ. But Miss Clifton has met an untimely end - and Ursula is convinced it was not due to natural causes.

With more than 25 million copies of her books in print, Amanda Quick is one of today’s most popular authors of Regency-era romances. Her 23 New York Times best-selling novels are delightful combinations of fascinating characters, clever conversations, and fleet-footed suspense. Emma Greyson is grateful for her position as lady’s companion.

Not many detectives stumble across a crime in the midst of a late-night tryst. But that's exactly what happens to Lavinia Lake and Tobias March, the prickly and passionate pair from Slightly Shady and Don't Look Back, when their weekend getaway at a posh country house turns into a full-fledged manhunt for a killer who targets wealthy older men who are about to wed young beauties.

Victorian botanist Lucinda Bromley has a rare talent: the ability to detect almost any type of poison. She also tends many rare plants, including a species of fern that was stolen from her conservatory just last month—and which turns up in a poison that was used in a nobleman's murder. To keep her name out of the investigation and to find the killer, Lucinda hires a fellow Arcane Society member. The founder of a psychical investigation agency, Caleb Jones is very good at protecting the Society's secrets—and frighteningly good at getting the truth.