Feb. 11, 2026 – Dearest Gentle Reader, it is almost Valentine's Day, so what better time for a romantic read? And with the current season of "Bridgerton" underway on Netflix, what better time for period romance? If you're waiting for part two of the season and need a historical romance fix, or if you're just looking for a winter reading escape, these novels will sweep you back in time faster than the protagonists are swept off their feet.
"A Caribbean Heiress in Paris" by Adriana Herrera (2022)
Luz Alana set sail from Santo Domingo armed with three hundred casks of rum, her two best friends and one simple rule: under no circumstances is she to fall in love. In the City of Lights, she intends to expand the rum business her family built over three generations, but buyers and shippers alike can’t imagine doing business with a woman … never mind a woman of color. This, paired with being denied access to her inheritance unless she marries, leaves the heiress in a very precarious position.
Enter James Evanston Sinclair, Earl of Darnick, who has spent a decade looking for purpose outside of his father’s dirty money and dirtier dealings. Ignoring his title, he’s built a whisky brand that’s his biggest – and only – passion. That is, until he’s confronted with a Spanish-speaking force of nature who turns his life upside down.
"Bringing Down the Duke" by Evie Dunmore (2019)
England, 1879. Annabelle Archer, the brilliant but destitute daughter of a country vicar, has earned herself a place among the first cohort of female students at the renowned University of Oxford. In return for her scholarship, she must support the rising women's suffrage movement.
Her charge: recruit men of influence to champion their cause. Her target: Sebastian Devereux, the cold and calculating Duke of Montgomery who steers Britain's politics at the Queen's command. Her challenge: not to give in to the powerful attraction she can't deny for the man who opposes everything she stands for.
"To Have and to Hoax" by Martha Waters (2020)
Five years ago, Lady Violet Grey and Lord James Audley met, fell in love, and got married. Four years ago, they had a fight to end all fights, and have barely spoken since. Their once-passionate love match has been reduced to one of cold, detached politeness. But when Violet receives a letter that James has been thrown from his horse and rendered unconscious at their country estate, she races to be by his side – only to discover him alive and well at a tavern, and completely unaware of her concern. She's outraged. He's confused. And the distance between them has never been more apparent.
Wanting to teach her estranged husband a lesson, Violet decides to feign an illness of her own. James quickly sees through it, but he decides to play along in an ever-escalating game of manipulation, featuring actors masquerading as doctors, threats of Swiss sanitariums, faux mistresses-and a lot of flirtation between a husband and wife who might not hate each other as much as they thought. Will the two be able to overcome four years of hurt or will they continue to deny the spark between them?
"Ladies in Hating" by Alexandra Vasti (2025)
Celebrated authoress Lady Georgiana Cleeve has achieved fame and fortune. Unfortunately, she's also acquired an enemy: the enigmatic Lady Darling, whose spine-tingling plots appear to be pulled straight from Georgiana's own manuscripts. What's a stubborn, steely writer to do? Unmask her rival, of course. But unmasking doesn't go according to plan – because Lady Darling is actually Cat Lacey, the butler's daughter and object of Georgiana's very secret, very embarrassing teenage infatuation.
Cat Lacey has spent a decade clawing her family out of poverty. The last thing she needs is to be distracted by the stunning(ly pretentious) Lady Georgiana Cleeve. But Cat can't seem to escape her infuriatingly beautiful rival – including at the eerie manor where they both plan to set their next books. The plot unexpectedly thickens, however, when the novelists find themselves trapped in the manor together. Between ghostly moans and spectral staff, Cat and Georgiana come face-to-face with real danger: the scorching passion that's been haunting their rivalry all along.
"Earls Trip" by Jenny Holiday (2024)
Even an earl needs his ride-or-dies, and Archibald Fielding-Burton, the Earl of Harcourt, counts himself lucky to have two. The annual trip that Archie takes with his BFFs Simon and Effie holds a sacred spot in their calendars. This year Archie is especially eager to get away until an urgent letter arrives from an old family friend, begging him to help prevent a ruinous scandal.
Suddenly the trip has become earls-plus-girls, as Archie's childhood pals Clementine and Olive Morgan, are rescued en route to Gretna Green. The fully grown Clementine, while as frank and refreshing as he remembers, is also different to the wild, windswept girl he knew. This Clem is complex and surprising – and adamantly opposed to marriage. Which, for reasons Archie dare not examine too closely, he finds increasingly vexing.
"The Siren of Sussex" by Mimi Matthews (2022)
Evelyn Maltravers knows exactly how little she's worth on the marriage mart. As an incurable bluestocking from a family tumbling swiftly toward ruin, she knows she'll never make a match in a ballroom. Her only hope is to distinguish herself by making the biggest splash in the one sphere she excels: on horseback. In haute couture. But to truly capture London's attention she'll need a tailor who's not afraid to take risks with his designs – and with his heart.
Half-Indian dressmaker Ahmad Malik has always had a talent for making women beautiful, inching his way toward recognition by designing riding habits for Rotten Row's infamous Pretty Horsebreakers – but no one compares to Evelyn. Her unbridled spirit enchants him, awakening a depth of feeling he never thought possible. But pushing boundaries comes at a cost, and not everyone is pleased to welcome Evelyn and Ahmad into fashionable society. With obstacles spanning between them, the indomitable pair must decide which hurdles they can jump and what matters most: making their mark or following their hearts?
"Reputation" by Lex Croucher (2022)
Abandoned by her parents, bookish and sheltered Georgiana Ellers is spending the summer with her stodgy aunt and uncle at their home in the English countryside. At a particularly dull party, she meets the enigmatic Frances Campbell, a wealthy member of the in-crowd who delights Georgiana with her disregard for so-called "polite society." Lonely and vulnerable, Georgiana quickly falls in with Frances and her wealthy, wild, and deeply improper friends, who introduce her to the upper echelons of Regency aristocracy, and a world of drunken debauchery, frivolous spending, and mysterious young men.
One, in particular, stands out from the rest: Thomas Hawksley, who has a tendency to cross paths with Georgiana in her most embarrassing moments. Sparks fly, but Thomas seems unimpressed with the company she is keeping. And soon, Georgiana begins to wonder whether she'll ever feel like she fits in – or if the price of entry into Frances's gilded world will ultimately be higher than she is willing to pay.
"You're the Problem, It's You" by Emma R. Alban (2024)
Bobby Mason is sick of being second best: born the spare, never trusted with family responsibility, never expected to amount to much. He’s hungry to contribute something that matters, while all around him his peers are squandering their political and financial power, coasting through life. Which is exactly why he can’t stand the new Viscount Demeroven. James Demeroven, just come of age and into the Viscountcy, knows that he’s a disappointment. Keeping his head down and never raising anyone’s expectations is how he’s survived life with his stepfather. To quiet, careful James, Bobby Mason is a blazing comet in his endless night, even more alive than he was at Oxford when James crushed on him from afar. But Mason is also brash and recklessly unapologetic, destined to shatter the fragile safety of James’s world. Worst of all, he keeps rubbing James’s failures in his face.
They can barely get through a single conversation without tensions boiling over. Neither Bobby nor James has ever met a more intriguing, infuriating, infatuating man. If only they could avoid each other entirely. Bad enough their (wonderful but determined) cousins Beth and Gwen keep conveniently setting up group outings. But when an extortionist starts targeting their families, threatening their reputations, Bobby and James must find a way to work together, without pushing each other’s buttons (or tearing them off) in the process.
"Ana María and the Fox" by Liana De La Rosa (2023)
Ana María Luna Valdés has strived to be the perfect daughter, the perfect niece, and the perfect representative of the powerful Luna familia. So, when Ana María is secretly sent to London with her sisters to seek refuge during the French occupation of Mexico, she experiences her first taste of freedom far from the judgmental eyes of her domineering father. If only she could ignore the piercing looks she receives across ballroom floors from the austere Mr. Fox.
Gideon Fox elevated himself from the London gutters with a burning desire for more: more opportunities, more choices. Now as a member of Parliament, Gideon's on the cusp of securing the votes he needs to put forth a vote on the abolishment of the Atlantic slave trade – a cause that is close to his heart as the grandson of a formerly enslaved woman. A proper English bride would certainly aide his task, but it's the sweetly vexing Ana María who inflames him. But when Ana María finds herself in the crosshairs of a nefarious nobleman with his own political agenda, Gideon sacrifices his goal to offer his hand as protection ... but will this Mexican heiress take his heart as well?
"A Waltz on the Wild Side" by Erica Ridley (2025)
Advice columnist Miss Vivian Henry despises the Wild Wynchesters her young cousin idolizes. A privileged, wealthy family might get away with murder, while ordinary people are stuck firmly in their place. But when her beloved cousin goes missing and the authorities shrug, Viv has no choice but to beg for help from the vigilantes she hates.
Animal trainer and secretive poet Jacob Wynchester prefers to stay behind the safety of a quill. The last thing he wants is to be lead investigator for his brilliant but prickly new client. As they team up to rescue her kidnapped cousin, they fall in love despite themselves. But when Jacob's grand gesture backfires, everything they care about is thrown into jeopardy. Together, they must not only save the day, but also decide how far they're willing to go to be who they really are. And determine whether their partnership is a mistake ... or the missing piece that completes them.