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Someone is Getting her Just Desserts

By

On December 24, 2025

In Teatime Tattler

Dear Readers,

This shocking report has just been received in our newsroom:

Dear Mr. Clemens,

It has long been the opinion of the Ton that the Sangford family’s claim to a royal connection is a sham meant only to promote their daughters’ status on the marriage mart. Not that it has worked, mind you. After all, five failed seasons should be sufficient to indicate that Miss Irene Sanford is not a suitable match for any peer she hopes to snag. And Mr. Sangford has made it clear it must be a man of title who marries either of his daughters.

Miss Sangford has gained no traction in her attempts to wed, and will now have to sit this season out, her broken leg binding her to home. No balls or dinners for this (surely by now rather desperate) young lady. It seems spinsterhood will be her fate.

For those of us who have suffered under her sharp tongue and not-so-subtle machinations to win a nobleman, her current circumstance seems well deserved.

It must be a terrible blow to her father that the one man to pay Miss Sangford recent attention is Mr. Nathaniel Macrae. Not only was his grandfather a Jacobite, but Mr. Macrae has been known to mingle in the lowest of circles, despite his breeding as a gentleman.

One almost feels sorry for Mr. Macrae. Even a man who keeps poor company should not associate with a woman of such unpleasant character. One wonders what draws him to her? This correspondent will keep her eyes and ears open. One suspects there is a possible scandal on the horizon. We shall wait and see.

Your faithful correspondent,

A mother relieved to see Miss Sangford unavailable this season

 

Irene’s Fall

Pride comes before her fall. Love helps her stand again.

Irene Sangford has willingly cast herself as the villain of her own story. After all, her family has taught her that arrogance and manipulation are suitable qualities in a lady if she’s seeking a husband with a title. Especially when there are so few such men to be had, and she is competing with her own sister to snap one of them up.

Nathaniel Macrae not only has no title, he has immersed himself in low society in his role as a secret investigator. Miss Sangford would never have given him a second glance, but when an attempted murder leads his inquiries right to her door, and a shocking secret from her past threatens to unravel her entire life, Irene discovers that Mr. Macrae is more compelling than any man she has ever met.

As Irene’s world falls apart, and she questions everything she has ever known, Nathaniel becomes her anchor in life’s greatest storm. Except this storm threatens to destroy them both. They will have to challenge everything they know and trust each other if they are to survive and find the love that has eluded them.

To be released on 27 December (available now to pre-order)

Buy Link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G1VMJKS9

Irene’s Fall is the 5th and final book in the “Ladies of Munro” series.

 

Note: This series is part of Dragonblade’s Sweet Dreams line, so this is a sweet, wholesome Historical Romance where passion beyond the bedroom door is left to the reader’s imagination.

Read in Kindle Unlimited!

Tropes You’ll Love:

  • Fake Rake
  • Mystery
  • Secret Life
  • Secrets Galore
  • Forbidden Love
  • Hero Investigates Crime
  • Female Redemption Arc
  • Meet “by Accident”

About the Author

Elizabeth Donne writes award-winning sweet Regency romance, a natural outpouring of a lifelong love affair with English literature.

Although Elizabeth has lived in Cape Town, South Africa for most of her life, she has traveled to 5 continents and loves to learn about local culture. In 2015, Elizabeth moved to Iowa with her husband, their two children, two cats, and their African bush dog.

When she’s not writing, or discovering the secret wonders of the Midwest, she is enthusiastically introducing her visitors to the joys of drinking rooibos tea. With a biscuit, of course.

 Social Media Links:

Free newsletter signup: https://www.elizabethdonnebooks.com/#subscribe

Website: https://www.elizabethdonnebooks.com

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/elizabethdonne

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093280712789

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethdonnebooks?igsh=dW4wdmt6Y2g1d2xx

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/35270040.Elizabeth_Donne

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/elizabeth-donne

 

A Meddlesome New Resident Stirs Mischief

By

On December 17, 2025

In Teatime Tattler

Dear Reader,

We continue our reporting of last week about goings-on in the country.

Dear Mr. Clemens,

A newcomer to our dear town of Horsham may prove to be the death of one of our residents. A Miss M, come to live with her widowed aunt, has seen fit to harass a certain gentleman living deservedly retired after earning a grievous wound during his honorable and brave service to His Majesty the King on the Peninsula.
Not only has this impertinent miss allowed her dog to attack poor Mr. F, but she has assailed him in his own library to reprimand him for his housekeeping (or lack thereof). He sent her to the rightabout, to be sure, but with such ill-breeding, one suspects that is not the end of it with Miss M.
While every self-respecting house-mistress in Horsham might agree that Mr. F’s expectations of his housekeeper leave much to be desired, none could blame him for losing all hope after a certain Miss W jilted him so cruelly. But if our meddlesome new resident means to continue her interference, poor Mr. F’s peace is likely to be broken up forever!
 

Hearts in Bloom: A Regency Anthology

by Judith Hale Everett, Rosanne E. Lortz, GL Robinson, K. Lyn Smith, Caroline Warfield
A spring anthology brimming with all the hope, heartache, and thrill of first love. Mysterious admirers, magical talismans, spirited matchmakers, and a bit of creative persistence overcome the obstacles to true love, no matter how daunting!
 

Story Featured: Susannah Tells the Truth, by GL Robinson

A grumpy invalid meets his match in an outspoken red-head, whose opinions about self-pity prompt him to set about improving his situation, and might just convince him to try his chances at winning her heart.
Pre-order link: https://www.amazon.com/Hearts-Bloom-Regency-Anthology-Anthologies-ebook/dp/B0FWN8RXGP

About the Author

Glynis Louise Robinson is from Portsmouth in southern England but has lived in the USA for over forty years with her American husband. Her romances are written in memory of her dear sister Francine, who died unexpectedly in 2018. Visit her website,  https://romancenovelsbyglrobinson.com
 

Soldier’s wife a credit to English womanhood

By

On December 12, 2025

In Jude Knight, Teatime Tattler

If it sometimes seems that The Teatime Tattler has nothing but scandal and bad news, then do not blame us, dear reader. Such stories are sadly plentiful. But every now and then a story comes across our desk that touches even our calloused hearts, and that reassures us that courage, perseverance and loyalty still exist in this war-weary world.

Such is the story of Maggie Parker and her children. Picture, if you will, the daughter of one of our brave soldiers, a sergeant, who died in the service of God and his country. Maggie, a good and modest girl for all that she had been raised by her father in the army’s train, was told to choose a husband. And quite right, too, dear reader. The army is no place for a virtuous single girl with neither father nor husband.

Dear reader, Maggie was fortunate. There was a corporal she liked, a William Parker, and he like her, and so they were married, and for a time they were blissfully happy, even in the midst of war. Their son was born, and named for his father, and little Billy grew and prospered. Never was a little family so content.

But war is a dreadful thing, and when the French were driven from Spain and Will’s regiment were given their orders to march after them and end the long war, Billy had one of those childhood illnesses that are short duration but terrifying to parents. Maggie, who was also ill as her second confinement approached, remained behind.

And that, dear reader, was the last this gallant lady heard of her dear husband.

By the time she, her son, and her new daughter were well enough to follow him to France, the peace had been signed, his regiment had been sent elsewhere, and nobody could – or, perhaps, would – tell her whether Corporal William Parker was still in the land of the living.

Maggie returned to Spain, and worked to save money to travel to England, where she hoped to find Will’s mother. A determined woman can conquer mountains, and Maggie made it to England, but on the way she found a difficulty. Parker is a common name, and the only thing she knew about Mrs. Parker’s address was the name of the village. Ashton. How many villages are there in England with the name Ashton? Twenty or more, spread across the land.

But that did not deter Maggie Parker. She arrived in Portsmouth, purchased a wheelbarrow, set her baggage and her son in it, strapped her daughter to her back, and set off to find her mother-in-law.

Spare a thought for this gallant woman, the flower of English womanhood, marching the roads of England with all the determination of a conquering army.

Dear reader, I am certain you join with all of us at The Teatime Tattler in wishing her God Speed, and a Happy Ending.

***

Maggie’s Wheelbarrow in Merry Belles

 

A year ago, Maggie’s husband marched out of Spain with his regiment to invade France. She hasn’t heard from him since, and when she followed him, the battles were over and his regiment was gone. Letters to the army, him, and his family have brought no answers, so she and her children are off to find him, even if they have to walk the length and breadth of England.

(Merry Belles is a Bluestocking Belles collection.)

Cupid Comes to the Country

By

On December 10, 2025

In Teatime Tattler

Dear Readers,
Though perhaps you are preparing for the Yuletide, signs of spring are already in the air, or at least, in the mailbox of the Teatime Tattler! Read on and enjoy!
Dear Mr. Clemens,
The ladies of Newford have long enjoyed the secret admiration of the Newford Cupid, whose lively but modest verses never fail to surprise and delight their recipients each Valentine’s Day–until now, it seems! A newcomer to our pleasant village, a Miss E, whose otherwise genteel appearance would never lead one to suspect superciliousness beneath, was heard to pronounce her verse merely “nice.” This, from an upstart governess, who ought to recognize the signal honor in the notice of our cherished Newford Cupid!
And yet, one wonders if there might be more behind the lady’s cool appraisal, for Miss E was seen next day to converse privily with Mr. Kimbrell at the village shop and post office, and to slip a note into his hands. Could it be that Miss E’s true response to the verses she received, well-hidden in public, has produced the hitherto unheard-of temerity of a reply?
One can only hope our Cupid is not so taken aback as to cease his delightful practices, and deprive Newford of one of its most beloved customs. Miss E is advised to retreat from her purpose at once, and to be content with her verses, be they ever so “nice,” and leave our dear Newford Cupid to his deserved anonymity.

Hearts in Bloom: A Regency Anthology

A spring anthology brimming with all the hope, heartache, and thrill of first love. Mysterious admirers, magical talismans, spirited matchmakers, and a bit of creative persistence overcome the obstacles to true love, no matter how daunting!
Authors: Judith Hale Everett, Rosanne E. Lortz, GL Robinson, K. Lyn Smith, Caroline Warfield

Story featured: Engaging Miss Enderby, by K. Lyn Smith

When a governess receives an anonymous valentine from the Newford Cupid, she is surprised to find it is far more earnest than his usual fare. It seems she has an admirer, but is he truly sincere, and dare she try to discover his identity?
About the Author:  K. Lyn Smith writes sweet historical romances set in Regency and Victorian England—tales full of kisses, courtship and cobbled lanes. Engaging Miss Enderby is set in the world of the Hearts of Cornwall series. Visit her website, https://www.klynsmithauthor.com

Confusion at Woodglen Hall

By

On December 6, 2025

In Teatime Tattler

Dispatch from Nether Abbas, Dorset, November 1818

Confusion reigns over at Woodglen, the duke’s estate. After sitting empty for months, the place is hopping with traffic.

To begin with, our beloved duke, His Grace of Glenmoor, has disappeared. He went off with his father’s (young and very pretty) widow to Wales and hasn’t been seen since. Maud Pritchard put it about that he ran off with the woman, but my nephew in London saw an announcement that the dowager duchess had married some Welshman, a commoner if you can believe it.

With the duke missing and the house empty, we were shocked by the arrival of some dandy claiming to be the heir. Felton Tavernash claims he is a distant cousin, and his pushy mother assures everyone it is true. The man is nothing like our own beloved duke, so I have my doubts. The mother insists the “poor, dear duke” must be dead on the wayside somewhere. Vultures they are, circling for the spoils. My nephew says betting in the clubs is that the duke did himself in, but the good folk of Nether Abbas want proof.

Before we could properly adjust to those two interlopers, another one turned up and moved in. Calls himself Gideon Kendrick. This one claims to be the duke’s older brother, but the old duke said that one had run off and got himself killed as a boy. That was years ago. Besides, the older brother was a bastard and Maud recalls he was some sort of cripple. Well the one at the Hall is a man full grown and very much alive.

What would happen next but Viscount Clavering’s forward daughter Miss Serena Selwyn went and presented herself on the doorstep. One of the maids reported she is after the so-called heir. As we should have expected, that cousin of hers, Miss Euphemia Selwyn took off after her, and they are claiming the first one took sick and the second is caring for her. Does anyone believe that Faradiddle? Not anyone in Nether Abbas I can tell you.

What we do know is there are two young unmarried women up at the Hall with single gentlemen in residence, and that is a fact. Readers can draw their own conclusions.

Milly Sheldon, Correspondent.

_____

Duke in All But Name

Secrets and lies threaten to pull them under, but a forced marriage may be their salvation.

Gideon Kendrick grew up as the despised bastard son of the Duke of Glenmoor. Exiled to the mines by his father, he has not only survived but thrived and prospered. He lives apart, wanting nothing to do with the duke, the estate—or anything in his past, except his younger brother Phillip, the new duke.

When Phillip disappears, leaving behind a letter asking his brother to care for his affairs, Gideon can’t refuse. Armed with authority making him the duke in all but name, he returns to the scene of his worst memories, facing vicious rumors and his family’s past. He also finds a grasping would-be heir, a steward with secrets, and a woman who stirs in him a desire he thought buried with his beloved wife.

Mia Selwyn lives in the shadows, an unwanted poor relation in the house of her viscount uncle. When her cousin’s hoydenish attempt to meet the supposed heir sees her drenched, ill, and in need of nursing, Mia is sent to care for her. Though warned to stay clear of the despised Kendrick, she is drawn into the dark undercurrents among the mismatched collection of residents and enthralled by the enigmatic Mr. Kendrick.

She quickly realizes he is not the monster he is rumored to be, twisted in body and mind. Instead, he is a resilient resourceful man with a deep love of family. As family, household servants, and villagers take sides on whether Gideon is the source of all the estate’s problems or its salvation, Mia and Gideon forge a partnership. Together they struggle to unravel secrets and the tangle Phillip left behind, and in the process, find a future for themselves.

Free with Kindle Unlimited or purchase the book at https://www.amazon.com/Duke-Name-Entitled-Gentlemen-Book-ebook/dp/B0BJS3GDN7/

And where is the duke? Find out in Duke in Name Only  https://www.amazon.com/Duke-Name-Only-Entitled-Gentlemen-ebook/dp/B0C1L3L968

The Author

Caroline Warfield, Bluestocking Belle and author of books featuring cheeky lads, resourceful ladies, and heroes of the loyal and protective variety who need the occasional push in the right direction.

https://www.carolinewarfield.com/

 

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