Books in series
#1
Henrietta
2014
A spirited spinster takes aim at a prized bachelor in this Edwardian romance by the New York Times –bestselling author of the Agatha Raisin mysteries. Even the inhabitants of secluded Nethercote look pityingly upon young Henrietta, the Vicar’s sister; her plain features seem to almost guarantee her a solitary future. And yet, she has a determined spirit and magnificent hazel eyes. So when her Great-Aunt Hester leaves her unexpected wealth, Henrietta sets out to conquer London’s glittering high society and confound them all. But the fashionable elite are less than warm in their reception, especially when the newcomer, this bold minx, makes clear her intention of winning the heart of one of society’s most treasured the irresistible, extravagant, heart-stopping Lord Beau Reckford, a prize wildly beyond her humble origins… ABOUT THE COLLECTION
The seven heroines of the Daring Debutantes Collection set out to conquer London’s glittering high society and the marriage mart. These headstrong women cannot help but keep London society dangling on a string, but will they find a husband or lose themselves in the game?
#2
Molly
1980
She had dared to turn a cold shoulder on London's prize catch. She was a precocious American upstart who thought beauty, brains, and bravery were enough to conquer London society. Well, he'd show her! Nobody publicly (or privately!) spurned Lord David Manley, the most eligible bachelor in town. He was determined that soon she'd be trembling in his arms, desperately in love with the man she had dared to mock. David Manley always got his way, and Miss Molly Maguire presented a challenge he couldn't resist! But Lord David had never met anyone quite like this headstrong heiress who fought like the devil, looked like an angel, and had all of London society dangling on a string.
ABOUT THE SERIES
In this whirlwind series, Marion Chesney brings us spirited, independent women who are at once bewitching, beguiling and determined to have their say and make their mark on both their world and the world at large, be it within their social circle or extending beyond. With their arms wide open, these women are absolutely original and unforgettable as are the tales in which they are featured. Here is life in all of its folly and foibles in a dizzying place where dreams are both shattered and made.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
From 1977 to the early 1990s, Marion Chesney wrote over one hundred romance novels. Now writing as M. C. Beaton, she is the bestselling award-winning author of two internationally successful mystery series - HAMISH MACBETH and AGATHA RAISIN. She lives in the United Kingdom.
#3
Penelope
1982
Penelope, golden-haired, azure-eyed, fresh from the county has stolen the heart of the the most desirable Earl of Hestleton. Rich, startlingly handsome, he is the most eligible lord in the realm. He had planned to toy with her affections then toss her to the bon ton But when the Earl discovers that he is a pawn in Penelope's Aunt Augusta's social-climbing scheme, he begins to doubt Penelope's true love. Can the belle keep her beau or will her aunt's ambitious plans force Penelope to flee?
ABOUT THE SERIES
In this whirlwind series, Marion Chesney brings us spirited, independent women who are at once bewitching, beguiling and determined to have their say and make their mark on both their world and the world at large, be it within their social circle or extending beyond with their arms wide open these women are absolutely original and unforgettable as are the tales in which they are featured. Here is life in all of it's folly and foibles set out for us as we watch on this dizzying place where dreams are both shattered and made.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
From 1977 to the early 1990's Marion Chesney wrote over one hundred romance novels. Now writing as M. C. Beaton, she is the bestselling award-winning author of two internationally successful mystery series - HAMISH MACBETH and AGATHA RAISIN. She lives in the United Kingdom.
#4
Lucy
2014
She was a lady's maid who longed to be a lady. How else could Lucy Balfour hope to win the favor of Andrew, Viscount Harvey, the toast of the town, who seemed ready to take a bride at last? There was only one way to do and that was to command his attention. It seemed an impossible dream; first she had to become the peer of her own mistress, the coldly beautiful Lady Angela, who was determined to claim Andrew as her own.
But there was Hamish MacGregor, the wily old butler, who promised to make Lucy's dream come true. With Lucy's unaccountable good luck at baccarat, they could win a fortune. With his cunning, they would conquer London society as "father" and "daughter" and meet the king himself! Having served the rich, he knew how they operated and Hamish MacGregor was determined to beat them at their own game. And having met Andrew Harvey, Lucy Balfour determined she would never be a servant again.
ABOUT THE SERIES
In this whirlwind series, Marion Chesney brings us spirited, independent women who are at once bewitching, beguiling and determined to have their say and make their mark on both their world and the world at large, be it within their social circle or extending beyond with their arms wide open these women are absolutely original and unforgettable as are the tales in which they are featured. Here is life in all of it's folly and foibles set out for us as we watch on this dizzying place where dreams are both shattered and made.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
From 1977 to the early 1990's Marion Chesney wrote over one hundred romance novels. Now writing as M. C. Beaton, she is the bestselling award-winning author of two internationally successful mystery series - HAMISH MACBETH and AGATHA RAISIN. She lives in the United Kingdom.
#5
Annabelle
2010
It's a maiden's miracle! Annabelle Quennell, daughter of a poor country parson, gets a chance at a London Season to snare a wealthy husband. But before she sets off, Mad Meg the Gypsy predicts trouble ahead! And it is nothing but woe that Annabelle finds. Godmother Lady Emmeline sponsors Annabelle's spree-and demands she wed the oafish Capt. MacDonald. But things get worse when Annabelle fears she is losing her heart to Lord Varleigh - elegant,well-pursed, but who is taken by another mistress! What a pickle Annabelle had gotten into, and it only gets more sour by the moment!
Blessed with beauty, Mrs. Manners had never bothered with the more practical (and to her, lesser) skills of grammar and spelling. So it is, in order to snag a second husband, namely the handsome Duke of Denbigh, she needed the help of Miss Verity Bascombe. Surely the modest chit would be honored to help write her love letters. Poor Verity! Her old school-girl friend remained as selfish as ever. But the lovely girl's gilded pen soon had the duke most intrigued by the poetic Mrs. Manners! But alas, what began as a seemingly minor deception became a larger problem and Verity soon found herself enamored of the handsome duke, wanting him all for herself!
ABOUT THE SERIES
In this whirlwind series, Marion Chesney brings us spirited, independent women who are at once bewitching, beguiling and determined to have their say and make their mark on both their world and the world at large, be it within their social circle or extending beyond with their arms wide open these women are absolutely original and unforgettable as are the tales in which they are featured. Here is life in all of it's folly and foibles set out for us as we watch on this dizzying place where dreams are both shattered and made.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
From 1977 to the early 1990's Marion Chesney wrote over one hundred romance novels. Now writing as M. C. Beaton, she is the bestselling award-winning author of two internationally successful mystery series - HAMISH MACBETH and AGATHA RAISIN. She lives in the United Kingdom.
#6
Kitty
2014
In this Edwardian romance by the New York Times –bestselling author of the Hamish MacBeth mysteries, a lovelorn debutante finds herself in a deadly plot. In any given glittering social season, Edwardian London’s dizzying whirl has its share of surprises. The latest is Kitty Harrison, once achingly poor, suddenly an heiress and now, thanks to her determined mother, she is about to become a Baroness. From the moment Kitty sets eyes on Lord Chesworth, she finds him to be the most exciting man she has ever laid eyes on. But Kitty is young, innocent, and easily dazzled. She does not even question the motives of the dashing bachelor who swears he loves her even as he courts the scandalously beautiful Mrs. Jackson. All too soon Kitty’s dream of marriage becomes a nightmare—someone is trying to kill her. Adrift in a sea of deception, Kitty soon realizes that to save her life and win the only man she has ever loved, she must learn to play the game, only this time, her smarter, better, and for keeps.
ABOUT THE COLLECTION
The seven heroines of the Daring Debutantes Collection set out to conquer London’s glittering high society and the marriage mart. These headstrong women cannot help but keep London society dangling on a string, but will they find a husband or lose themselves in the game?
#7
Sally
2011
She was an honored guest in a palatial country home. Aunt Mabel, the lovelorn columnist of Home Chats magazine, had been summoned to prevent the Duchess of Dartware's son, Paul, from a marriage that others believed a fate worse than death. Who would have guessed that behind Aunt Mabel's acid pen and ageless wisdom lurked the real eighteen-year-old Sally Blane, determined to make the handsome marquess her own! But how could she compete, wearing false wrinkles and a white wig? It was a challenge worthy of Sally herself: to conquer the upper-class of Dartware and bewitch her newfound Prince Charming without giving away the real secret of who Aunt Mabel really was.
Authors
M.C. Beaton
Author · 105 books
Like her on Facebook! Learn more on her website! Marion Chesney Gibbons aka: Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Marion Chesney, Charlotte Ward, Sarah Chester. Marion Chesney was born on 1936 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK, and started her first job as a bookseller in charge of the fiction department in John Smith & Sons Ltd. While bookselling, by chance, she got an offer from the Scottish Daily Mail to review variety shows and quickly rose to be their theatre critic. She left Smith’s to join Scottish Field magazine as a secretary in the advertising department, without any shorthand or typing, but quickly got the job of fashion editor instead. She then moved to the Scottish Daily Express where she reported mostly on crime. This was followed by a move to Fleet Street to the Daily Express where she became chief woman reporter. After marrying Harry Scott Gibbons and having a son, Charles, Marion went to the United States where Harry had been offered the job of editor of the Oyster Bay Guardian. When that didn’t work out, they went to Virginia and Marion worked as a waitress in a greasy spoon on the Jefferson Davies in Alexandria while Harry washed the dishes. Both then got jobs on Rupert Murdoch’s new tabloid, The Star, and moved to New York. Anxious to spend more time at home with her small son, Marion, urged by her husband, started to write historical romances in 1977. After she had written over 100 of them under her maiden name, Marion Chesney, and under the pseudonyms: Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester, she getting fed up with 1714 to 1910, she began to write detectives stories in 1985 under the pseudonym of M. C. Beaton. On a trip from the States to Sutherland on holiday, a course at a fishing school inspired the first Constable Hamish Macbeth story. They returned to Britain and bought a croft house and croft in Sutherland where Harry reared a flock of black sheep. But Charles was at school, in London so when he finished and both tired of the long commute to the north of Scotland, they moved to the Cotswolds where Agatha Raisin was created.
