Böcker av Katherine a Cerulean

Ann Marshal has spent the first nineteen years of her life happily living in the small village of Dorbeset, where her beloved father and country gentleman Julian raised her to have a curious mind and to look beyond the strict class boundaries in which Regency England puts so much stock. Her provincial yet idyllic existence is upended, however, when she learns she must spend six months with family friends in London, learning the one lesson her father has never been able to teach her: how to be a society lady. Her father's old pals from university take her under their collective wing, but it isn't long before one of them reveals a shocking secret: Julian is not her father, only her guardian. Instead, she is the daughter of Julien's good friend Mr. Ranquest, a successful businessman. Now heir to an enormous fortune and the 'belle of London', Ann struggles with her feelings about her parentage and, although she arrived in London with no intention of seeking out a husband, she is alternately drawn to and pursued by a number of gentlemen. These include a young lawyer seeking a woman with the money to complement his family's good name; Tom Barnes, the kind of foppish dandy Ann has always abhorred, yet whose high spirits and charm Ann is undeniably drawn to; and Tom's father Charles Barnes, a naturalist who shares Ann's love of the outdoors but would rather deny himself happiness than potentially interfere with his son's. Will Ann settle for compatibility and companionship, or risk marrying an inconstant man of little substance? Or will she hold out for a greater love that could actually last a lifetime? Set in the Regency era, "Society & Civility" will appeal to fans of Jane Austen, but its timeless questions about love and identity make it all too relevant to our modern world.

Shepley Grant has money, property, and youth. There are only two things he does not have - his freedom, and her heart. Shepley spends his days trapped in a cage, hidden deep in the woods of his remote, regency era England, estate. Tragedy led his servant Bryce to imprison him there four years ago, take on his identity, and give him in return an unusual and complicated sort of friendship. Shepley's actions may have brought him to this place, but his thoughts turn to revenge. Everything may change when their childhood friend Lena begs to visit again after losing her home. She is a free spirit with a loving heart and the one person Shepley is still allowed to write to in his lonely life. He has fallen in love with her through her letters. Shepley jumps at the chance to bring her closer and, in a code within their correspondence that only she will understand, he encourages her to come at once. But is bringing Lena near and giving her sanctuary all he desires, or is her visit a last, desperate bid to be found - and released? It is a freedom he both desires and fears for, if Shepley were to take his revenge upon Bryce, he knows he would lose Lena's heart (and damn his soul) forever. Upon her arrival Lena is led to believe that Bryce is the man she has written to, and begins to fall in love with him, but it is a love based on Shepley's words. As Lena and Bryce grow close, Shepley feels his heart split in two. Will the man he once called a friend really rob him of the last, and best, of his dreams? Shepley wonders if he is truly the monster Bryce sees - a dangerous man, destined to die alone. Will Lena's discovery of the cage in the woods lead to Shepley's salvation . . . or unleash tragedy for them all?