The Darnalay Castle Series by Louise Mayberry

“Reading this book was like being transported to Scotland 200 years ago. ” - Reader review. 1820 Scotland. Amidst the smoke-choked alleys of Glasgow and the untamed beauty of the Highlands, a spellbinding tale of love and rebellion unfolds. Jane Stuart has lost everything. Her betrothed, her ancestral castle, and her cherished orchard—her life’s work—have all been ripped away... more“Reading this book was like being transported to Scotland 200 years ago. ” - Reader review. 1820 Scotland. Amidst the smoke-choked alleys of Glasgow and the untamed beauty of the Highlands, a spellbinding tale of love and rebellion unfolds. Jane Stuart has lost everything. Her betrothed, her ancestral castle, and her cherished orchard—her life’s work—have all been ripped away. Now, exiled and adrift in the cold fog of Glasgow, she's numb to the weight of her grief, resigned to a desolate future shrouded in loneliness and grey. But fate has a different plan. Percy Sommerbell is a musician, a free spirit who holds nothing but disdain for his industrialist father. But when familial duty forces Percy to travel to Scotland, he’s confronted with a painful truth—a truth that threatens to unravel the very fabric of his carefree existence. His family’s money, the fortune that funds his hedonistic enjoyment of all life’s pleasures, is generated by the suffering of children in his father's mills. In the midst of Glasgow's smoke and shadows, Percy encounters Jane, a mysterious Highland beauty whose sad eyes and luscious curves promise both distraction from his guilt and inspiration for his music. Against all reason, Jane falls under Percy's spell. But when the mills become the first spark in a violent radical insurgency, their budding connection faces a perilous trial beyond anything they could have imagined. “A beautifully told story that perfectly blends the sweet, tender emotions of love, the tragic pain of loss, and the healing powers of love and acceptance with the realism of the world. ” - Reader review. Roses in Red Wax is the first book in the Darnalay Castle Series, although all of the books in the series can be read as standalones. It contains strong language and several spicy open door scenes. less

Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, 1824. Sometimes storms can unearth the most precious treasure. . . Ever since he unexpectedly inherited his father’s earldom in the Scottish Highlands, Cameron Dunn’s been searching for something, anything, to bring meaning to his new life—a search that reaches an abrupt end when he’s washed up, alone, on a deserted beach in Mexico. Or at least the beach should be deserted. There’s no village for hundreds of miles... moreYucatan Peninsula, Mexico, 1824. Sometimes storms can unearth the most precious treasure. . . Ever since he unexpectedly inherited his father’s earldom in the Scottish Highlands, Cameron Dunn’s been searching for something, anything, to bring meaning to his new life—a search that reaches an abrupt end when he’s washed up, alone, on a deserted beach in Mexico. Or at least the beach should be deserted. There’s no village for hundreds of miles. So who’s that beautiful woman walking toward him over the sand? Letty Monro has a business to run, a plan for her future. Rescuing a shipwrecked earl wasn’t on the agenda. But the man’s desperate, so of course she’ll bring him to the British Settlement—for fifty pounds. And his signet ring for collateral. She’s even prepared to look past the fact he’s a peer, part of the system of oppression she despises. As they begin their journey, sailing south through the Caribbean sea, Cameron finds himself falling for this guarded, stubborn businesswoman, and the heat smoldering between them threatens to burst into flame. Keeping her distance from the Earl of Banton will prove one of the greatest challenges Letty has ever faced. Especially when she notices, in the distracting warmth of his brown eyes, the one thing they have in common . . . How lost they both truly are. less

What harm could one night of pleasure do? Cybil Bythesea is imprisoned in a marriage that ended ten years ago. That’s when she fled the cruelty of her husband, Lord Falstone, and took refuge at her father’s estate in Northumberland. Since then, her family’s money has kept the villain at bay, and she’s been able to pursue her creative passion—writing. But freedom, true freedom, has been beyond her grasp. Except for her clandestine liaisons with Will... moreWhat harm could one night of pleasure do? Cybil Bythesea is imprisoned in a marriage that ended ten years ago. That’s when she fled the cruelty of her husband, Lord Falstone, and took refuge at her father’s estate in Northumberland. Since then, her family’s money has kept the villain at bay, and she’s been able to pursue her creative passion—writing. But freedom, true freedom, has been beyond her grasp. Except for her clandestine liaisons with Will. Will Chisolm is haunted by the past, the tragedy of his family’s eviction from their ancestral Highland farm, then his own foolish descent into political radicalism. Even now that he’s gained wealth and respectability as the manager of a set of spinning mills in Glasgow, he’s burdened with more responsibility and guilt than anyone knows. But there’s something about Cybil—a lightness, a kinship that, at least temporarily, makes all Will’s troubles fade away. It’s a dangerous game. Cybil is his employer’s sister, the wife of his political enemy and for the last four years, his lover. She’s also with child. Will’s child. And their world, their lives, will never be the same. less

A tale of resilience and redemption. Caitlin Blackwell’s life has been shaped by the whims of men—the cruel landlord who evicted her family when she was a child; the dirty grinders who bought her favors in the alleyways of Cork; and the uncaring husband who was forced upon her when she arrived as a convict in Australia twenty years ago. But at last, she’s a widow. She’s inherited a farm of her own, and she’s determined to seize control of her destiny... moreA tale of resilience and redemption. Caitlin Blackwell’s life has been shaped by the whims of men—the cruel landlord who evicted her family when she was a child; the dirty grinders who bought her favors in the alleyways of Cork; and the uncaring husband who was forced upon her when she arrived as a convict in Australia twenty years ago. But at last, she’s a widow. She’s inherited a farm of her own, and she’s determined to seize control of her destiny. There’s only one thing stopping her from becoming the prosperous, independent woman she’s always dreamed she could she’s illiterate. Enter Michael Dunn, a man haunted with guilt. After six months of hell and hard labor at Moreton Bay penal colony—for a crime he should have known better than to commit—he’s more than haunted. He’s broken. Empty. A shell of a man. But somehow, he’s given another chance. A glimmer of hope in an unexpected assignment to teach an Irish widow to read. As Caitlin and Michael’s new life blooms amidst the vast Australian landscape, they uncover a secret that threatens to snatch away everything they hold dear. Can they face the demons of their pasts and embrace an uncertain future? “. .. one of the best redemption stories I've ever read. I loved it. ”. - Reader review. The Song of the Magpie is the fourth and final book in the Darnalay Castle Series, although all of the books in the series can be read as standalones. It contains themes which may be disturbing to some readers (see the author’s note in the sample pages), and several spicy open-door scenes. less