Recommendations based on "Alcott Hall"

Love in the Afternoon continues the Hallaways series by Victorian romance author Lisa Kleypas.As a lover of animals and nature, Beatrix Hathaway has always been more comfortable outdoors than in the ballroom. Even though she participated in the London season in the past, the classic beauty and free-spirited Beatrix has never been swept away or seriously courted…and she has resigned herself to the fate of never finding love. Has the time come for the most unconventional of the Hathaway sisters to settle for an ordinary man―just to avoid spinsterhood?Captain Christopher Phelan is a handsome, daring soldier who plans to marry Beatrix's friend, the vivacious flirt Prudence Mercer, when he returns from fighting abroad. But, as he explains in his letters to Pru, life on the battlefield has darkened his soul―and it's becoming clear that Christopher won't come back as the same man. When Beatrix learns of Pru's disappointment, she decides to help by concocting Pru's letters to Christopher for her. Soon the correspondence between Beatrix and Christopher develops into something fulfilling and deep…and when Christopher comes home, he's determined to claim the woman he loves. What began as Beatrix's innocent deception has resulted in the agony of unfulfilled love―and a passion that can't be denied…

As the heiress to a vast fortune amassed by her millionaire father, Francesca Cahill's life should be mapped out for her: find an eligible suitor, marry, and have children. But Francesca is an unconventional young lady who is not about to give up her knack for sleuthing--even though she was almost killed in her last outing...Murder strikes once again in the seamy underbelly of New York's high society, exposing scandalous secrets and unleashing an intense investigation into one of the most brutal crimes the city has ever known. Francesca must join forces with Rick Bragg, New York City's Police commissioner and the mans he cannot resist loving, as their search takes them through a twisted labyrinth of menacing lies, corruption, and a passion that refused to be denied...

Harry’s StoryEngland 1818Harry Morant’s tough exterior hides a badly scarred heart. Home after eight years at war, Harry is planning a practical, unemotional marriage. But his careful plans are threatened by an unexpected passion for an unknown lady.A lifetime of lies has brought Lady Helen (Nell) Freymore to the brink of ruin. Forced into a marriage she never thought to have, she soon finds herself powerfully drawn to this deceptively gentle soldier… and increasingly worried about his reaction once he discovers her secret.

The unforgettable Margaret of Ashbury returns in the second book of the trilogy that began with A Vision of Light.Margaret, a resourceful midwife, is living with the insufferable relatives of her third husband, Gilbert de Vilers, known as Gregory. She is carving out a life for herself and her daughters despite the hostility and greed of her in-laws. But when Gregory is captured in France and held for ransom, Margaret knows she must take action—her in-laws are too tight with money to be of any use—so she teams up with her old friends Mother Hilde, the herbalist, and Brother Malachi, an alchemist on a quest for the secret of changing base metals into gold. Together, the trio plan to rescue Gregory and bring him back to London, where he and Margaret can start a new life away from his meddling family. And thus begins a wild romp across fourteenth-century Europe. Murderous noblemen, scheming ladies, truculent ghosts, and a steady stream of challenges plague the journey. Margaret will need not only her special gift of healing, her quick mind, and her independent spirit but the loyalty of her friends and the love of her new husband to carry them all safely home.

“The Four Graces” is a sly, enjoyable love letter to life in a small English town. Yes, it pokes fun at as much as it endorses, but this book makes you think that setting up in a vicarage with three sisters and the occasional gentleman caller is just the kind of life to have. There are really four Grace sisters, but we hardly see Addie, the youngest, who is in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force and hardly ever at home. The focus is mainly on the three Liz, the lively beauty of the family, Sal, whose quick wit makes her more than just an ex-invalid, and Tilly, sweet, shy, musical, who wants to know why everything had to go up and change. There’s World War II, of course, but that’s not quite what Tilly means. There’s also the disagreeable Aunt Rona, who drops in for a visit after London is bombed and quite overstays her welcome. And there’s the gentleman callers William Single, the Roman history expert, and Captain Roderick Herd, who has clear intentions that end up more than a bit muddled. In fact, the whole book is a bit muddled – but in a good way. There’s just so much going on that you’re never bored. If you’re not laughing at Aunt Rona, you’re smiling over the simple yet kindhearted townsfolk, unless you’re wondering how Mrs. Chevis-Green and Miss Bodkin will ever patch up their misunderstanding. And if the town isn’t being spotlighted, the Grace family certainly is. Intelligent, observant Sal was my favorite, but I also liked Tilly and her practical outlook. --E.J. Jones, Amazon reviews

Volume Four of the dramatic saga of the Lorimer Family From the general strike to the Second World War the Lorimer spirit struggles to survive...On the peaceful Thameside estate of Blaize, Alexa Glanville shares the long years of her widowhood with Matthew Lorimer, the man she loves but can never marry. Meanwhile Kate Lorimer loses her lover and her ideals in the turmoil of Stalin's Russia and her daughter Ilsa becomes a tragic victim of the Second World War. But a new generation of Lorimers is on the way - and all of them are drawn back to Blaize by their love for Alexa, whose indomitable spirit keeps the family alive. Lorimers in Love is the engrossing story of an English family caught up in the great events of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s.

Brenda Joyce's New York Times best-selling novels have thrilled millions of readers. Now, in her latest Francesca Cahill novel, return to the lush mansions and teeming streets of New York City's Gilded Age, where intrigue and seduction lie on every corner...The year is 1902. The place is New York City. A famous stage actress has been found strangled in an artist's studio, and the artist herself has vanished. Francesca Cahill, the city's most unconventional heiress and famous amateur sleuth, is once again on the case-for the murder victim is none other than her brother's mistress. And when the sole witness to the crime is also found strangled and only one clue is left behind-a silk stocking-it becomes evident that a madman is on the loose.Now more than ever, Francesca is determined to find The City Strangler and bring him to justice. But the trail is a twisted one, and she'll need the help of handsome, dynamic Police Commissioner, Rick Bragg-even though she must attempt to end their star-crossed romantic liaison. But now, she also finds herself fending off the advances of his notorious rival, his powerful half-brother, Calder Hart. Ruthlessly pursued by Hart, hopelessly enamored with Bragg, Francesca races against the clock before The City Strangler strikes again, never realizing the consequences that will come when danger and desire become one...

When Edwin Clark, Olivia King's true love from years ago, suddenly reappears in Avonlea, it is all she can do to keep her head on straight.

Sir Godfrey Tallboys had come home from the Crusades. Home to Knight's Acre. But the years had brought many changes - and not only to his estate. His wife Sybilla, exhausted with struggling to keep poverty at bay, had grown old before her time. And with Sir Godfrey's return, there was further change. With him was the Moorish slave girl who had saved his life in Spain...Tana, beautiful and beguiling, his mistress - and now she was expecting his child. Aflame with all the jealous passions of the East, Tana saw Sybilla as the obstacle to her desire. Her arrival was to alter the fortunes of the quiet Suffolk house. And in a way none of them could have possibly foreseen...

Rachel Forbes had never wed, for no one has ever compared to Liam, the love of her childhood. But Rachel was high-born and Liam an orphan, and their union was not to be. Now grown, a chance meeting unites Rachel with Liam, and it seems their destinies are forever entwined, for he is her rescuer and she must keep him by her side if she is to stay alive. But can their love overcome the gap between them?