Botany Bay

Series · 4 books · 2004-2006

By Edith Layton

Books in series

The Return of the Earl

2004

The Earl of Egremont has returned...or has he? It's been 15 years since Christian Sauvage has left England, but now he's returned to claim his title and his inheritance. Julianne knew Christian when they were children, and though there is a slight resemblance to the boy she once adored, can this ruggedly handsome man be the real earl? Or has she fallen in love with an impostor?

Alas, My Love

2005

Can a self-made man overcome humble beginnings to romance the lady of his dreams? Surviving against all odds, Amyas St. Ives grew up in a foundling home, then escaped to the streets of London and managed, through sheer will and courage, to make his fortune. However, money and devastatingly good looks alone are not enough to gain entry into London high society; not when Amyas is unaware of his true origins and is considered base-born among the posh Regency set. When he meets the alluring Amber, a fellow foundling and ward of a respectable family, he thinks he's met a kindred spirit—but when Amber finally discovers her true identity, the hurdles to their love become insurmountable. How can Amyas convince her family that what a man is matters more than what he was born to be?

Gypsy Lover

2005

A reputation in ruins . . . Lovely Meg Shaw is a respectable governess in a wealthy household—and it is her duty to bring her charge safely home when the headstrong heiress runs away. But the perils for a young woman alone on dark English country roads pale before the dangers posed by Daffyd Reynard—a dashing, reckless gentleman with gypsy blood, who shadows Meg's every step. A heart at risk . . . An infuriating scoundrel, Daffyd has his own reasons for wanting to join Meg on her journey—though scandal will certainly ensue if she's discovered in the company of the ton's most notorious black sheep. Yet something powerful and inexplicable—something more than a need for safety in the night—is drawing Meg into his bold and brash arms. And her good name may well be the price she must pay for surrendering to the sweet temptation of her untamed gypsy lover . . .

How to Seduce a Bride

2006

How does one seduce a bride? Step One: Lay bare her mysteries... Daisy Tanner has taken the ton by storm and Leland Grant, Viscount Haye, wants to know everything about this ravishing, secretive woman who is tempting his friend into marriage. Though his rakish reputation is the stuff of legend, Leland is curiously undone by this exquisite creature who threatens to turn his footloose single life topsy-turvy. Never has he wanted a woman more... Step Two: Strip her of her inhibitions... Having survived a difficult past, Daisy now desires the security of an uncomplicated marriage with some safe, undemanding gentleman. How dare this dashing rogue Lord Haye distract her with his suspicions...and unbalance her with his sensuous promises? If Daisy isn't careful, her scandalous history could become common knowledge. Worse still, she might actually fall in love with this notorious seducer whose touch excites her like nothing has before...

Author

Edith Layton

Author · 43 books

Edith Layton wrote her first novel when she was ten. She bought a marbleized notebook and set out to write a story that would fit between its covers. Now, an award-winning author with more than thirty novels and numerous novellas to her credit, her criteria have changed. The story has to fit the reader as well as between the covers. Graduating from Hunter College in New York City with a degree in creative writing and theater, Edith worked for various media, including a radio station and a major motion picture company. She married and went to suburbia, where she was fruitful and multiplied to the tune of three children. Her eldest, Michael, is a social worker and artist in NYC. Adam is a writer and performer on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Daughter Susie is a professional writer, comedian and performer who works in television. Publishers Weekly called Edith Layton "one of romance's most gifted writers." Layton has enthralled readers and critics with books that capture the spirit of historically distant places and peoples. "What I've found," she says, "is that life was very different in every era, but that love and love of life is always the same." Layton won an RT Book Reviews Career Achievement award for the Historical genre in 2003 and a Reviewers' Choice award for her book The Conquest in 2001. Amazon.com's top reviewer called Layton's Alas, My Love (April 2005, Avon Books), "a wonderful historical." And her recent release, Bride Enchanted, is a Romantic Times 2007 Reviewers' Choice Award Nominee. Edith Layton lived on Long Island where she devoted time as a volunteer for the North Shore Animal League, the world's largest no-kill pet rescue and adoption organization. Her dog Daisy—adopted herself from a shelter—is just one member of Layton's household menagerie. Edith Layton passed away on June 1, 2009 from ovarian cancer.