A trio of glamorous romances await this month as two heiresses and a movie star find love.

★ Hero Wanted

A broken engagement leads to a unexpected love affair in Hero Wanted by veteran author Betina Krahn. In Victorian England, Lauren Alcott ends her betrothal to Rafe Townsend when he hesitates to rescue two women from drowning. Lauren saves them herself and decides she’s seen her affianced’s true colors. But their fathers, who hoped to merge their companies via this marriage, exhort them to try again, and they agree to more outings. From there, Lauren and Rafe truly get to know each other as they stumble into danger and find themselves teaming up to survive. This heated kisses-only story is fast-paced and delightful fun, grounded in authentic historical detail as Rafe learns to throw off society’s rules and applaud Lauren’s impulsive and daring nature. 

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Betina Krahn reveals the real life (and truly disastrous) date that inspired Hero Wanted.

The Way You Love Me

Readers get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a glamorous life in The Way You Love Me, the third installment of the Pure Talent series by Elle Wright. Paige Mills treasures her good-girl reputation as Black America’s sweetheart, but it’s been tarnished by an ugly divorce. Also tarnished is her relationship with her longtime talent agent, Andrew Weathers, who seems to have backed away when she needs him most. But then he tracks her down at her family’s lake house, hoping to reestablish trust . . . and maybe something more. Between the paparazzi, the tabloid stories and the interference of family and friends, Paige and Andrew wonder if taking their relationship to the next level is worth the stumbles and scrapes. Fans of hot contemporary romance will certainly think so, thanks to the smokin’ love scenes and the pair’s tender care for one another. Wright’s smooth, modern voice is eminently suited to this sophisticated story, making her larger-than-life characters feel like real people. 

The Heiress Hunt

An unusual heroine stars in The Heiress Hunt by Joanna Shupe. Though Gilded Age heiress Maddie Webster wants to marry—and has an English duke on the brink of proposing—she’s just as committed to becoming a top U.S. tennis player. As she comes close to achieving both of her goals, an old friend enters the picture. Harrison Archer claims he needs help finding an heiress to wed, and Maddie volunteers to host festivities at her family’s lavish Newport “cottage” to aid in his pursuit. What Maddie doesn’t know, however, is that Harrison wants her as his bride—and he has another ulterior agenda as well. What follows is a look into the world of wealthy New Yorkers in the late 19th century: tennis, picnics and parties among people who judge a woman by the prestige of the match she makes. Maddie wants something deeper, but can she find it with the handsome and sexy Harrison, who is not the same boy she once knew? This is the first in a series about four rebellious sons of society families, but heroine Maddie still holds her own. Readers won’t forget her, the lushly detailed love scenes or the developing romance between two deserving characters.

What do a mysterious painting, a quirky retirement village and a forensic photographer have in common? They're all in this month's romance column!

★ The Duke Undone

Opposites attract is a beloved romance trope, and it’s hard to imagine two people less likely to fall in love than a handsome aristocrat and an orphaned art student. When Lucy Coover encounters Anthony Philby, Duke of Weston, unconscious and naked in a London alley, she covers him up and gets help but later paints him from memory as a mythic (and nude) figure. Anthony discovers the piece before his disgrace becomes public, but he must find the artist to prevent further renderings. The Duke Undone is no rom-com, however. Author Joanna Lowell’s novel includes glimpses of life at the Royal Academy of Arts, political chicanery, kidnapping and the plight of people in unsavory asylums. It’s a lush, sensual and outstanding romance that makes the heart ache in the very best way. 

★ Second First Impressions

Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne is a tender love story about a woman who learns to put herself first. Ruthie Midona both lives and works at the Providence Retirement Villa, and the 25-year-old wonders if she’ll still be living there in 70 years. She’s a cautious sort, so it will take a big bang to shake up her world. This explosion comes in the guise of ne’er-do-well tattoo artist Teddy Prescott, who’s hired as an assistant to a pair of residents (who make adorable supporting characters). Who wouldn’t fall for confident, beautiful Teddy, even though he’s got bigger plans that will soon take him far away? There’s so much to love in this book. Many readers will see a little of themselves in Ruthie’s relatable perspective, and all of them will lose their hearts to Teddy. His self-deprecating charm is irresistible, but he’s more than a pretty face—just as beneath Thorne’s fresh and breezy writing style is a story with real depth. Second First Impressions is an unforgettable charmer.

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Sally Thorne on the balance between "give" and "take" in a romantic relationship.

Flight

A former forensic photographer and a detective team up to stop a serial killer in Flight by Laura Griffin. In the small coastal town of Lost Beach, Texas, Miranda Moore tries to de-stress from a particularly gruesome case by photographing birds, but the discovery of a pair of dead bodies soon draws her into a new investigation. Detective Joel Breda recognizes Miranda’s gift with her camera and is also struck by a level of attraction he hasn’t experienced before. Miranda is likewise smitten, but she’s more wary. When it looks like the killer is getting close to her, however, she turns to Joel for more than just protection. Griffin evokes a fabulous sense of place; the reader can feel the humidity and smell the salt air. An appealing cast combined with just the right amount of tingling suspense create a balanced blend of sexy romance and intriguing mystery.

These three love stories combine beloved tropes (marriage of convenience! fake engagement!) with pitch-perfect pacing.

★ The Secret Bridesmaid

The Secret Bridesmaid by Katy Birchall provides charming entertainment, British rom-com style. In a breezy first-person voice, the narrator (Sophie Breeze, ha!) relates her adventures as a professional bridesmaid—or rather, an incognito wedding planner for brides who want to claim they organized their own nuptials. As Sophie embarks on her most high-profile gig yet, emails, voicemails and texts offer hilarious snapshots of the problems she tackles and the solutions she devises. The bride is horrid, her brother is an attractive and good-natured modern Mr. Darcy, and their aristocratic circle is way out of Sophie’s league, but it’s impossible not to root for her to win the day—and the guy. This kisses-only romance is a pure delight that will leave a smile on readers’ faces and in their hearts. 

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Katy Birchall on the joys of weddings and why she's anti-canapé.

A Wicked Bargain for the Duke

An aristocrat seeking a particular kind of duchess discovers the perfect woman for him instead in A Wicked Bargain for the Duke by Megan Frampton. In this third installment of the Hazards of Dukes series, the new Duke of Hasford, Thaddeus, has decided to do his duty by finding a wife and conceiving an heir. Lady Jane Capel appears perfect for him—beautiful and biddable—but he can’t look away from her fiery sister, Lavinia. When circumstances force them to marry (a popular trope), the two strike a bargain that is undermined by their growing feelings for each other and Lavinia’s scandalous secret occupation as a novelist. Readers will fall for the likable, laudable Thaddeus and Lavinia as they fall for each other, discovering the joys of the marriage bed through several scorching love scenes. There are compelling secondary characters and a lot of romantic satisfaction in this sweet happily ever after.

The Lady Has a Past

Travel to 1930s Southern California in Amanda Quick’s The Lady Has a Past. The latest Burning Cove romance begins with newbie investigator Lyra Brazier on the hunt for her boss, Raina, who has mysteriously left town. Lyra teams up with private eye Simon Cage, and by posing as newlyweds, the pair infiltrates the exclusive hotel and spa where Raina was last seen. Simon is a good man for Lyra to have at her side as the mystery and danger grows. Not only is he wildly attractive, but he also possesses a paranormal gift for uncovering secrets. But for all his expertise, Simon is new to the ways of the heart, and his transformation from man above the emotional fray to dedicated lover is delicious. Stylish and sophisticated, The Lady Has a Past is pure fun spiced with spine-tingling suspense. Vile villains, clever characters and a glamorous desert resort setting all come together to provide a great escape. This romantic mystery is a first-rate example of Quick’s expertise at spinning an enthralling tale.

The myth of Hades and Persephone gets a sexy, modern update in this month’s romance column.

★ Neon Gods

The Hades-Persephone myth gets a modern spin in Katee Robert’s imaginative retelling, Neon Gods, the first book in the Dark Olympus duology. In this clever and sexy tale, Persephone is a socialite forced into an unwanted engagement to the murderous Zeus. In her flight from the announcement party, she runs across the River Styx and into the arms of Hades. She thought he was dead, or a myth, but he’s very much alive, attractive and determined to hate Zeus. They make a mutually beneficial bargain to enter into a (sometimes very public) sexual relationship, hoping to humiliate the man they both despise. But the brooding Hades finds the sweet and sunny Persephone appealing in other ways, and they soon find common ground, along with a fiery passion. They don’t believe it can last, and Robert conveys the sense of impending doom looming over their uncommon, forbidden love. Peppered with sizzling erotic scenes, Neon Gods is dangerous, fun and difficult to put down.

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Why Katee Robert's written not one, but two romances inspired by Hades.

Heart and Seoul

In Heart and Seoul by Jen Frederick, 25-year-old Hara Wilson heads for South Korea to seek out her birth parents after a lifetime of feeling ambivalent about her cultural identity. Apprehensive but ready for adventure, she steps off the plane and right into a meet cute with a young businessman, Choi Yujun. Discovering her roots takes precedence over a fling, of course, but then Yujun makes himself available as tour guide and explainer of Korean culture. Hara finds herself fascinated and enchanted with it all—including Yujun. Frederick shows Hara’s burgeoning appreciation for her birth country through lush descriptions of the food and sights of Seoul. But as Hara’s search for her roots begins to pay off, she’s left feeling more muddled about her place in the world. And the vacation romance is splendid until the ties that bind Hara and Yujun are revealed to be more tangled than they could imagine. Heart and Seoul is bittersweet (don’t worry—there’s a sequel set for later this year), but Hara and Yujun are a swoon-worthy couple, and there’s longing, loss and love on every page of their story.

How to Survive a Scandal

A lady marries a commoner to avert destructive gossip in How to Survive a Scandal, the first book in Samara Parish’s Rebels With a Cause series. Lady Amelia leads Regency society as an accomplished beauty and has recently become engaged to a duke. But when she’s discovered in a compromising position with Benedict Asterly, a brash but successful manufacturer of steam locomotives, that engagement is off. Amelia finds herself married instead to the unpolished Benedict and living in a large but neglected house far, far from her previous life in London. The pair is like the proverbial oil and water and must grapple with matters of class, wealth and power on their path to love. Amelia and Benedict are an appealing pair, and watching them become their better selves—the heartbeat of all satisfying romances—is delicious and thoroughly gratifying.

There’s a special allure to a soldier in historical high society, almost as if he’s a magic trick. This singular creature has the strength and ferocity of a warrior simmering beneath the veneer of a gentleman. He knows how to behave, but he might choose, at any moment, to rebel. It’s no wonder that he makes for an exciting, unconventional hero in the restrictive worlds of Georgian and Regency Britain—and no surprise that he finds love with the most interesting and unconventional of heroines.

In A Scot to the Heart by Caroline Linden, our soldier hero is Andrew St. James, a Scotsman who joined His Majesty’s army to support his mother and sisters after his father made a mess of the family finances. To everyone’s surprise, Andrew learns that he is next in line to become the Duke of Carlyle. Which means, as the dowager duchess informs him, he needs to straighten up, learn estate management, do absolutely nothing to bring shame to the family—and find a suitable wife immediately. 

But suitability is the last thing on Drew’s mind when he returns home to Edinburgh and meets Ilsa Ramsay, the notorious “wild widow” who plays golf, keeps a pet pony that she treats like a child and paints her drawing room to look like an open field. After a loving but stiflingly overprotected childhood and a frustrating marriage to a neglectful husband, Ilsa relishes her freedom and couldn’t bear to tuck her selfhood away into the role of a duchess. And yet, the thought of letting Drew becomes unbearable.

Ilsa is a vivacious, engaging heroine. Those familiar with the Georgian period know how easily a woman like Ilsa could end up committed to an asylum against her will, or shunned and disgraced, simply because she wants to color outside of society’s restrictive lines. Her driving desire to throw open life’s windows and let the world in shows the kind of spirit that should be admired instead of stifled, but it’s exactly this spirit that makes her think she could never be the wife that Drew needs. 

Drew, to his credit, doesn’t take too long to let her know he disagrees. Even when scandal makes her a more inappropriate choice by the minute, he stays by her side to prove that he loves her for who she is, not for who others wish her to be. The way the scandal itself plays out is a bit of a sore spot—the true villain is never really held accountable—but one can forgive A Scot to the Heart for failing to satisfy readers’ vengeful sides when the romance wraps up so very sweetly.

Sweetly satisfying could also apply to the romance in Mary Balogh’s Someone to Cherish, the eighth installment of her Westcott series. It’s been a year of lonely widowhood for Lydia Tavernor after the tragic death of her handsome, charming and wildly charismatic vicar husband. Lydia harbors harmless fantasies, idly imagining what it would be like to take a lover. But things don’t stay idle when she accidentally lets slip a reference to those fantasies to the man who is their perennial star: Major Harry Westcott. No fantasy can compare to the flesh-and-blood passion of the man himself when he enters her life—and her bed—just as no fury can compare to the community’s outrage that Lydia would betray her “saintly” husband’s memory.

Here again is a story that easily could have been tragic, with another heroine who was lovingly smothered by her family and then overshadowed and ignored as a wife before embracing her widowed independence. But where Ilsa settles for private eccentricities, Lydia shows her strength and truly remarkable courage by stepping forward into society, directly challenging everyone’s view of her. When Lydia attends a public gathering dressed in pink, not black or gray or lavender as everyone would expect, it feels as shockingly brave as Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman striding undaunted across No Man’s Land. 

One of the loveliest things about this romance is how, as Lydia comes into her own, the reader gets to watch Harry’s view of her shift accordingly. In the beginning, he really does dismiss her, as everyone has before. She’s not an instantly captivating beauty who dazzles every room she enters. Instead, she has a quieter loveliness that grows as Harry gains a better understanding of her and as she comes to a better understanding of herself. It’s that loveliness, inside and out, that surprises Harry, moves him, wins his heart in spite of himself and rallies his entire, hilarious family to support and encourage their match. (The Westcott family, by the way, is out in full force in this book. At this point in the series, it would require several pages to explain how everyone is linked, a fact that Balogh playfully lampshades when Harry teasingly threatens Lydia with a written test.) Harry works to win Lydia’s heart, but most of all, he fights to earn her trust—to prove that he loves her as she is and does not seek to change or control her. That’s what makes him worthy of her love in return.

In the end, these soldiers aren’t heroes because of their prowess on the battlefield, but because of how they fight for freedom for themselves and the women they love.

Your early 20s can be strange and exciting, filled with uncertainty, new beginnings and the first opportunities to truly be an adult. These feelings are especially heightened when you throw not only career and life goals but also love into the mix. These two romances are very different in tone and setting, but they both feature young characters who are simultaneously falling in love and figuring out who they really are.

In Jennet Alexander’s I Kissed a Girl, Noa Birnbaum drops out of college a few credits shy of a degree to seize a chance at her big break, much to her mother’s dismay. Noa’s dream is to become a special effects makeup artist, and the opportunity to work on the set of the horror movie Scareodactyl is the first step toward union membership and a career in her chosen industry. Noa’s talents with latex and paint are evident, so almost from the beginning of the shoot, she is assigned to work with the film’s two stars, including the intimidatingly beautiful Lilah Silver. 

Lilah hasn’t come out as bisexual in her professional life, but the chemistry between her and Noa is palpable and only grows during those many hours in the makeup chair. As their love story develops, Lilah is also trying to figure out the next step in her career. Does she want to remain a scream queen or try for something different? And where might Noa fit into Lilah’s dreams? Alexander includes thoughtful, introspective moments about the couple’s shared Jewish background but also keeps the tone light, even during a twist worthy of a horror movie. (Be forewarned: There’s a stalker and a lot of snakes.) 

Sara Jafari’s The Mismatch feels a world away from the Hollywood horror of Alexander’s novel as it follows 21-year-old Soraya Nazari, a recent graduate of prestigious Goldsmiths University in London. Soraya’s arts degree hasn’t really given her a good idea of what she wants to do professionally—or given her a leg up on finding a decent job after graduation. She finds herself spending more time with fellow alum Magnus Evans, whose easy charm, good looks and flirtatious manner bely surprising depths, including family troubles. 

Soraya’s family has secrets of its own, which readers discover as the coming-of-age story of Soraya’s mother, Neda, unfolds in parallel with her youngest daughter’s first foray into love. Neda grew up in Tehran and married Soraya’s father, Hossein, after knowing him for only a short time. The two of them emigrated to the U.K. for Neda’s education and, following the Iranian Revolution, it became their permanent home. 

The Mismatch deals with some pretty dark subjects, including infidelity, drug use and physical abuse, but it’s also wryly and surprisingly funny, especially in Soraya’s and Neda’s matter-of-fact narration. While fans of more straightforward romances may want to look elsewhere (the emotional heart of the story really lies in Soraya’s family’s story, rather than the story of her relationship with Magnus), it’s still a thoughtful exploration of how we’re all shaped by our history—and how that history can in turn shape how, and with whom, we fall in love.