Books like 'Wives and Daughters'
Readers who enjoyed Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical funny fantasy victorian sweet heroine nerdy-hero shy heroine sweet-hero small town caretaking
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Paladin's Strength by T. Kingfisher
He’s a paladin of a dead god, tracking a supernatural killer across a continent. She’s a nun from a secretive order, on the trail of the raiders who burned her convent and kidnapped her sisters. When their paths cross at the point of a sword, Istvhan and Clara will be pitched headlong into each other’s quests, facing off against enemies both living and dead... -
A Dangerous Collaboration by Deanna Raybourn
Veronica Speedwell returns in another adventure filled with secrets and betrayal from Deanna Raybourn, the New York Times bestselling author of the Lady Julia Grey Mysteries. Victorian adventuress Veronica Speedwell is whisked off to a remote island off the tip of Cornwall when her natural historian colleague Stoker's brother calls in a favor...Categorized as:
victorian m-f friends to lovers slow burn heroine sleuth suspense mystery historical -
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Yield Under Great Persuasion by Alexandra Rowland
Tam Becket has hated Lord Lyford since they were boys. The fact that he’s also been sleeping with the man for the last ten years is irrelevant. When they were both nine years old, Lyford smashed Tam’s entry into the village’s vegetable competition. Nearly twenty years later, Tam hasn’t forgiven the bastard...Categorized as:
hurt-comfort small town sweet-hero caretaking second chances friends to lovers fantasy m-m -
The Other World's Books Depend on the Bean Counter Vol. 1 by Kazuki Irodori, Yatsuki Wakatsu
Once upon a time, in the not too distant past, a holy maiden was summoned. Not just any holy maiden—one hailing from modern Japan. But this story is not her story. This is the tale of the humble accountant, Kondou, who accompanied her and his trials and woes as he accounts in a new world. .. But no tale is complete without a love interest... -
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Storms of Paine by Opal Reyne
After the storm that separates them, Captains Rosetta Silver and Alister Paine find themselves sailing side by side together once more. Their passion refuses to fizzle out and burns brighter, hotter, and, frighteningly, deeper every time. Rosetta manages to convince the land hating Alister to port. They need supplies and the Laughing Siren still needs repairs... -
He Shall Thunder in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 32 ratings1914 finds archaelogists Amelia Peabody, narrator, and husband Radcliffe Emerson back in Egypt for another dig, despite civil unrest. Defiantly pacifist son Ramses hides his spy activity with cousin David. He rescues Molly 12ish, and his dazzling smile conquers yet another female. An artifact from Giza confirms the return of archnemesis Sethos. -
The Rebel's Queen by Tanya Bird
A rising king. A falling queen. An unimaginable love. Queen Cora is married to a monster. Three years she has played wife, and all she has to show for it is a marked face, an empty womb, and a bitter taste in her mouth best washed away with wine. It is a good thing she is made of something solid, because marriage is a life sentence. Or is it? The rebel prince is coming for the crown...Categorized as:
caretaking m-f hurt-comfort independent heroine sweet-hero slow burn competent heroine fantasy -
A Grave Robbery by Deanna Raybourn
Veronica and Stoker discover that not all fairy tales have happy endings, and some end in murder, in this latest historical mystery from New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn... -
Lion in the Valley by Elizabeth Peters
The 1895-96 season promises to be an exceptional one for Amelia Peabody, her dashing Egyptologist husband, Emerson, and their wild and precocious eight-year-old son, Ramses. The much-coveted burial chamber of the Black Pyramid in Dahshur is theirs for the digging. But there is a great evil in the wind that roils the hot sands sweeping through the bustling streets and marketplaces of Cairo... -
A Murderous Relation by Deanna Raybourn
Veronica Speedwell and her natural historian colleague Stoker are asked by Lady Wellingtonia Beauclerk to help with a potential scandal so explosive it threatens to rock the monarchy...Categorized as:
victorian m-f friends to lovers slow burn competent heroine heroine sleuth historical mystery -
A Perilous Undertaking by Deanna Raybourn
London, 1887. At the Curiosity Club, a ladies-only establishment for daring and intrepid women, Victorian adventuress Veronica Speedwell meets the mysterious Lady Sundridge, who begs her to take on an impossible task--saving society art patron Miles Ramsforth from execution... -
Sent To A Fantasy World and Now All the Men Want Me: Volume 3 by Jaclyn Osborn
Dream check. Being loved by three amazing check. Life in Bremloc has been incredible for Evan. I mean, if you forget about the whole being "Evan-napped by a mysterious but gorgeous thief with dark magic" thing. Oh, and how that annoying magician Lupin popped up to reveal a massive secret and then vanished again like the jerk he is. But still. Life is great...Categorized as:
sweet-hero slow burn hurt-comfort nerdy-hero forced proximity friends to lovers caretaking fantasy -
The Geographer's Map to Romance by India Holton
Geography professors in a failed marriage of convenience inconveniently reconnect for an emergency mission in this swoony historical-fantasy rom-com. Professor Elodie Tarrant is an expert in magic disasters. Nothing fazes her--except her own personal disaster, that is: Professor Gabriel Tarrant, the grumpy, unfriendly man she married for convenience a year ago, whom she secretly loves... -
Primrose and the Dreadful Duke by Emily Larkin
He's inherited more than just a dukedom. .. Oliver Dasenby is the most infuriating man Primrose Garland has ever known. He may be her brother’s best friend, but he has an atrocious sense of humor. Eight years in the cavalry hasn’t taught him solemnity, nor has the unexpected inheritance of a dukedom. But when Oliver inherited his dukedom, it appears that he also inherited a murderer... -
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Ridiculous! by D.L. Carter
Identity theft regency style. After the death of her miserly cousin Antony North, Millicent Boarder is determined her family should never be poor or vulnerable again. To protect them she conceals her cousin's death and assumes his identity. Now she must face the Ton and the world as Mr. North and accept the price she must pay for her family's safety -- she will never be loved...Categorized as:
victorian m-f secret-relationship competent heroine humor historical regency fantasy -
Theory of Magic by Patricia Rice
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 5 ratings“Patricia Rice weaves magical love stories” - Mary Jo Putney, NY Times Bestselling Author. Discover the third book in NY Times bestseller Patricia Rice's Unexpected Magic historical romance series! Scorned by suitors for her statuesque size, Harriet Stansbury bolts when her abusive stepfather begins negotiating with impecunious aristocrats to sell her for her dowry... -
Yours Until Dawn by Teresa Medeiros
Gabriel Fairchild's valor during battle earns him the reputation of hero, but costs him both his sight and his hope for the future. Abandoned by the fiancée he adored, the man who once walked like a prince among London's elite secludes himself in his family's mansion, cursing his way through dark days and darker nights... -
A Novel Arrangement by Arden Powell
A dressmaker who secretly publishes thrilling romances. Her handsome war-veteran fiancé. And his best friend, a charming artist of ill-repute determined to ruin their relationship. There are two things standing between Elizabeth Turtledove and her happily-ever-after: her fiancé’s best friend, who despises her, and the blackmailer scheming to steal her savings... -
A Daughter of Fair Verona by Christina Dodd
I’m the eldest daughter of Romeo and Juliet. Yes, that Romeo and Juliet. No, they didn’t die in the tomb. They’re alive and well and living in fair Verona with their six wildly impetuous children and me, their nineteen-year-old daughter Rosaline…...Categorized as:
independent heroine competent heroine m-f slow burn fantasy medieval mystery suspense -
Tempest in a Teapot by Kate Valent
Charlotte loves tea as much as the next person, but she never expected a magical teapot to choose her husband. When eccentric businessman and magician Martin Steepe hosts a tea party to find a wife, Charlotte doesn’t expect to be chosen. After all she’s only a baker’s daughter aspiring to be a penny blood author and the Steepes want to marry into nobility. Except he does choose her...Categorized as:
victorian competent heroine shy heroine sweet heroine nerdy-hero sweet-hero fantasy humor -
Never Conspire with a Sinful Baron by Renee Ann Miller
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsLast season, Lady Nina Trent fell for a scoundrel. This year, she intends to choose more wisely. .. When a duke more interested in fox hunting and sports than womanizing comes to town, Nina thinks him the perfect catch. Sadly, he doesn't seem to notice her... -
The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsThe Enchanted April is a 1922 novel by British writer Elizabeth von Arnim. Inspired by a month-long holiday to the Italian Riviera, the work was a US and UK bestseller soon after its initial release, and is perhaps the most widely read and most ebullient of her novels. Von Arnim wrote, and set, the book in the Castello Brown, a medieval castle in Portofino... -
Romancing Mister Bridgerton: The 2nd Epilogue by Julia Quinn
We can't really say more without giving away a big, fat spoiler, but it turns out that Colin is a bit of a meddler, Hyacinth is more of a meddler, and the only time all of the Bridgertons stop talking at once is when Penelope has something really embarrassing to say. Hey, we never said it was easy to marry a Bridgerton, just that it was fun. -
Scales and Sensibility (Regency Dragons) by Stephanie Burgis
Sensible, practical Elinor Tregarth really did plan to be the model poor relation when she moved into Hathergill Hall. She certainly never meant to kidnap her awful cousin Penelope's pet dragon. She never expected to fall in love with the shameless - but surprisingly sweet - fortune hunter who came to court Penelope... -
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Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
Penelope Featherington has secretly adored her best friend's brother for. .. well, it feels like forever. After half a lifetime of watching Colin Bridgerton from afar, she thinks she knows everything about him, until she stumbles across his deepest secret. .. and fears she doesn't know him at all... -
Sea of Roses by Opal Reyne
Captain Alister Paine has always had his good eye set on treasure, murder, and sinking ships. His fame as a ruthless, blood-thirsty pirate has spread across the Seven Seas. The Howling Death, his precious warship, is the deadliest ship on the ocean waters, striking fear into the hearts of all those who see it... -
Romancing Mister Bridgerton: The 2nd Epilogue by Julia Quinn
We can't really say more without giving away a big, fat spoiler, but it turns out that Colin is a bit of a meddler, Hyacinth is more of a meddler, and the only time all of the Bridgertons stop talking at once is when Penelope has something really embarrassing to say. Hey, we never said it was easy to marry a Bridgerton, just that it was fun. -
Compromised by Kate Noble
Rated: 3.69 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn national bestselling author Kate Noble's “delectable and delightful”* historical romance debut, a pair of mismatched lovers unwillingly find themselves engaged in a most scandalous position… Miss Gail Alton was not having a good day. Or a good year. First, she’s strong-armed into attending the Season as a foil to her beautiful sister Evangeline...Categorized as:
friends to lovers m-f historical regency humor from hate to love forbidden love virgin heroine -
The Professor by Charlotte Brontë
The Professor is Charlotte Brontës first novel, in which she audaciously inhabits the voice and consciousness of a man, William Crimsworth. Like Jane Eyre he is parentless; like Lucy Snowe in Villette he leaves the certainties of England to forge a life in Brussels... -
Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu Vol. 1 by 墨香铜臭, Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù
Born the crown prince of a prosperous kingdom, Xie Lian was renowned for his beauty, strength, and purity. His years of dedicated study and noble deeds allowed him to ascend to godhood. But those who rise may also fall, and fall he does--cast from the heavens and banished to the world below...
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