Books like Any Rogue Will Do — picked by fans

This is the book that kick-started my career! Before walking into a small bookstore in Ghana and picking up this particular novel, I had no idea Regency romance was even a genre. Not only did I find this story engaging, but it was also filled with humor and written in a style that made me crave more. Until that point, I had attempted to write a historical fiction novel (which remains unfinished until this day). As soon as I was done with Romancing Mister Bridgerton I thought, this is the kind of story I want to write. Low and behold, I’m now working on my 42nd Regency romance book!

I think this was the first historical romance I read where the hero had a disability, which added great depth of character. It was also the first historical romance I read where the hero had a medical profession. This subject matter – medicine during the early to mid 19th Century – piqued my interest so greatly I’ve since written several novels in which the hero or heroine is medically trained. I’m especially keen on challenging various misconceptions relating to medicinal practices during this period, like the fact that hand washing is still being credited to Ignaz Semmelweis (1818-1865) even though William Buchan (1729-1805) wrote about the importance of it nearly 100 years earlier in his book titled, Domestic Medicine. Just one of those things that gets my goat…

This book immediately stood out to me for a couple of reasons: the setting was vividly described, the characters engaged in simple everyday tasks that not only added depth but helped paint a picture of the era, and the author managed to make this story extremely sexy without explicit lovemaking scenes. I stopped writing explicit scenes years ago and have since aimed for a more sensual tone, which actually poses a much bigger challenge. So I’m always interested to see how other authors (of which I’ve encountered only a few), tackle such scenes in a more suggestive manner while still conveying the passion between the hero and heroine successfully. This book is an excellent example of how less truly can be more.

This was the first historical romance I read where the hero’s an anti-hero bad boy on the wrong side of the law. It’s one of those books where it almost seems impossible for him to end up with the heroine at the end. But Elizabeth Hoyt excels at writing gritty love stories where the reader and heroine alike fall in love with the biggest scoundrel. Having read this story and seeing how Mickey O’Connor’s character was tackled helped me create Carlton Guthrie, a notorious crime lord, years later when I began writing The Forgotten Duke.

This author is great at setting a scene. It was a fast-paced romance that concentrated on the man's determination and satisfied my craving for a strong flavor of the period with plenty of historical backdrop. I was enthralled, captivated, and entertained by the dialog and the maneuvering of the characters' exchanges.

The plot was simple and straightforward but it never lagged or ceased to keep me reading.

This book is the last book in the stellar Pennyroyal Green series which pits two local families (the Everseas and Redmonds) against each other. Lyon, the Redmond heir, has deliberately vanished, leaving the woman he loves, Olivia Eversea, behind to rebuild her life.

Throughout the series, the specter of his disappearance and the tragedy of their love story hangs in the background, building the reader’s sense of intrigue, suspense, and the bittersweetness of unrequited love. Finally, we get our answers in this last book.

I love the sexy, sentimental, yet torrid rollercoaster ride of emotions surrounding love lost and found and the pursuit of trust regained. For me, this story demonstrates all the best of experiencing a heart-piercing love affair without burdening us with manners and drawing rooms.

This book is a kick to the face of the patriarchy and I loved it. Bombshell is not your typical historical romance filled with wallflowers, ballrooms, and handsome rakes. Instead it is centered around a girl gang of four amazing women and their unique talents, taking down the privileged men of the ton. The book opens with a bar fight and the whole story ramps up from there. Bombshell is book one in the Hell’s Belles series, and it focuses on Sesily Talbot, the “bombshell” of the group. Sesily uses what the good lord gave her to help her friends stop the bad guys. The fact that Caleb Calhoun adores her for it is what makes this a great romance. In the end, it’s unclear who saves who, but Sesily definitely does her share of the fighting (much to Caleb’s chagrin). It’s delightful.

I have enjoyed all the books in the Bridgerton Series, even though, or maybe because, they are much different than the Netflix series by the same name. Julia Quinn is the master of writing about women with an attitude, and this book is no exception. Eloise, thought to be a hopeless spinster, finds herself with a pen-pal. She never expected the widower in the letters to propose, but willing to create a new life for herself, she runs off in the middle of the night to accept his offer. The story that follows is charming, realistic, and thoroughly enjoyable. 

I love Eloise in this story. She is smart and funny and brave. She doesn’t care what anyone thinks, or maybe she simply isn’t afraid to step outside her comfort zone and go against the norm. Whatever the case, the romance in this book is smart and funny. I adore a… show more.

I found this book through TikTok after a surge of booktokers started to recommend it.

I was instantly intrigued by the premise: presumed dead at Waterloo, a soldier decides to live as herself—trans woman Viola loses her wealth, her title, and her childhood friend Gracewood. But years later, fate draws them together again, and they must contend with their desires and their past together.

This book! I cried, I laughed, I had so many emotions reading this tale. Against all odds, they find each other, they communicate through the unique challenge of attraction after years and Viola’s new womanhood.

There are some incredibly hot scenes which feel all the more tantalizing for the novel’s historical setting. I’ve lent this book to several friends just hoping they experience the same joy I did. 

In research for my own books, I have learned how present the British were in the Caribbean for centuries.

Yet it is not often that I find Caribbean characters when reading historical romances. That is one of the reasons I was so excited to pick up A Caribbean Heiress in Paris – and I was not disappointed!

In this novel, you get a heroine who is trying to defend her identity on three fronts: as a businesswoman, as a mixed-race woman, and as a woman who does not want marriage to be the solution to her problems.

Much of the hero’s growth is discovering how to witness and learn about Luz Alana’s challenges without barging in and “solving” them.

This is a great read with a delightful plot, new insight into Caribbean-European history, and an endearing romance.