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The Lady By His Side - Stephanie Laurens

By Stephanie Laurens

Release Date: 2017-03-09

Genre: Historical Romance

4.5 (138 ratings)
Read Download
A marquess in need of the right bride. An earlā€™s daughter in search of a purpose. A betrayal that ends in murder and balloons into a threat to the realm. 

Sebastian Cynster knows time is running out. If he doesnā€™t choose a wife soon, his female relatives will line up to assist him. Yet the current debutantes do not appeal. Where is he to find the right lady to be his marchioness? Then Drake Varisey, eldest son of the Duke of Wolverstone, asks for Sebastianā€™s aid.

Having assumed his fatherā€™s mantle in protecting queen and country, Drake must go to Ireland in pursuit of a dangerous plot. But heā€™s received an urgent missive from Lord Ennis, an Irish peerā€”Ennis has heard something Drake needs to know. Ennis insists Drake attends an upcoming house party at Ennisā€™s Kent estate so Ennis can reveal his information face-to-face. 

Sebastian has assisted Drake before and, long ago, had a liaison with Lady Ennis. Drake insists Sebastian is just the man to be Drakeā€™s surrogate at the house partyā€”the guests will imagine all manner of possibilities and be blind to Sebastianā€™s true purpose. Unsurprisingly, Sebastian is reluctant, but Drakeā€™s need is real. With only more debutantes on his horizon, Sebastian allows himself to be persuaded.

His first task is to inveigle Antonia Rawlings, a lady he has known all her life, to include him as her escort to the house party. Although heā€™s seen little of Antonia in recent years, Sebastian is confident of gaining her support. Eldest daughter of the Earl of Chillingworth, Antonia has abandoned the search for a husband and plans to use the week of the house party to decide what to do with her life. There has to be some purpose, some role, she can claim for her own.

Consequently, on hearing Sebastianā€™s request and an explanation of what lies behind it, she seizes on the call to action. Suppressing her sensesā€™ idiotic reaction to Sebastianā€™s nearness, she agrees to be his partner-in-intrigue. But while joining the house party proves easy, the gathering is thrown into chaos when Lord Ennis is murderedā€”just before he was to speak with Sebastian. Worse, Ennisā€™s last words, gasped to Sebastian, are: Gunpowder. Here.

Gunpowder? And here, where?

With a killer continuing to stalk the halls, side by side, Sebastian and Antonia search for answers and, all the while, the childhood connection that had always existed between them strengthens and bloomsā€¦into something so much more.

First volume in a trilogy. A historical romance with gothic overtones layered over a continuing intrigue. A full length novel of 99,000 words.


Praise for the works of Stephanie Laurens

ā€œStephanie Laurensā€™ heroines are marvelous tributes to Georgette Heyer: feisty and strong.ā€ Cathy Kelly

ā€œStephanie Laurens never fails to entertain and charm her readers with vibrant plots, snappy dialogue, and unforgettable characters.ā€ Historical Romance Reviews

ā€œStephanie Laurens plays into readersā€™ fantasies like a master and claims their hearts time and again.ā€ Romantic Times Magazine

The Lady By His Side - Stephanie Laurens

By Stephanie Laurens

Release Date: 2017-03-09

Genre: Historical Romance

4.5 (138 ratings)
Read Download
A marquess in need of the right bride. An earlā€™s daughter in search of a purpose. A betrayal that ends in murder and balloons into a threat to the realm. 

Sebastian Cynster knows time is running out. If he doesnā€™t choose a wife soon, his female relatives will line up to assist him. Yet the current debutantes do not appeal. Where is he to find the right lady to be his marchioness? Then Drake Varisey, eldest son of the Duke of Wolverstone, asks for Sebastianā€™s aid.

Having assumed his fatherā€™s mantle in protecting queen and country, Drake must go to Ireland in pursuit of a dangerous plot. But heā€™s received an urgent missive from Lord Ennis, an Irish peerā€”Ennis has heard something Drake needs to know. Ennis insists Drake attends an upcoming house party at Ennisā€™s Kent estate so Ennis can reveal his information face-to-face. 

Sebastian has assisted Drake before and, long ago, had a liaison with Lady Ennis. Drake insists Sebastian is just the man to be Drakeā€™s surrogate at the house partyā€”the guests will imagine all manner of possibilities and be blind to Sebastianā€™s true purpose. Unsurprisingly, Sebastian is reluctant, but Drakeā€™s need is real. With only more debutantes on his horizon, Sebastian allows himself to be persuaded.

His first task is to inveigle Antonia Rawlings, a lady he has known all her life, to include him as her escort to the house party. Although heā€™s seen little of Antonia in recent years, Sebastian is confident of gaining her support. Eldest daughter of the Earl of Chillingworth, Antonia has abandoned the search for a husband and plans to use the week of the house party to decide what to do with her life. There has to be some purpose, some role, she can claim for her own.

Consequently, on hearing Sebastianā€™s request and an explanation of what lies behind it, she seizes on the call to action. Suppressing her sensesā€™ idiotic reaction to Sebastianā€™s nearness, she agrees to be his partner-in-intrigue. But while joining the house party proves easy, the gathering is thrown into chaos when Lord Ennis is murderedā€”just before he was to speak with Sebastian. Worse, Ennisā€™s last words, gasped to Sebastian, are: Gunpowder. Here.

Gunpowder? And here, where?

With a killer continuing to stalk the halls, side by side, Sebastian and Antonia search for answers and, all the while, the childhood connection that had always existed between them strengthens and bloomsā€¦into something so much more.

First volume in a trilogy. A historical romance with gothic overtones layered over a continuing intrigue. A full length novel of 99,000 words.


Praise for the works of Stephanie Laurens

ā€œStephanie Laurensā€™ heroines are marvelous tributes to Georgette Heyer: feisty and strong.ā€ Cathy Kelly

ā€œStephanie Laurens never fails to entertain and charm her readers with vibrant plots, snappy dialogue, and unforgettable characters.ā€ Historical Romance Reviews

ā€œStephanie Laurens plays into readersā€™ fantasies like a master and claims their hearts time and again.ā€ Romantic Times Magazine

More by Stephanie Laurens

The Capture of the Earl of Glencrae

Great Escapes

Devil's Bride

And Then She Fell

Viscount Breckenridge to the Rescue

The Taming of Ryder Cavanaugh

The Fall of Rogue Gerrard

In Pursuit of Eliza Cynster

The Untamed Bride

Rake's Vow, A

Scandalous Lord Dere

Scandal's Bride

The Lady Risks All

Secret Love, A

Rogue's Proposal, A

Who Killed The Earl Of Moran?

All About Passion

All About Love

The Reckless Bride

The Perfect Lover

A Match For Marcus Cynster

On a Wicked Dawn

On a Wild Night

The Masterful Mr. Montague

The Promise in a Kiss

Mastered By Love

Royal Weddings

The Lady By His Side

The Tempting Of Thomas Carrick

Scottish Brides

The Brazen Bride

By Winter's Light

The Lady Chosen

The greatest challenge of them all

Captain Jack's Woman

Where the Heart Leads

It Happened One Season

The Seduction of Sebastian Trantor

Devil's Bride with Bonus Material

Loving Rose

An Irresistible Alliance

Lost and Found

The Ideal Bride

The Elusive Bride

A Gentleman's Honor

To Distraction

Temptation and Surrender

The Edge of Desire

Lady of His Own, A

The Peculiar Case of Lord Finsbury's Diamonds

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