Other Novels June Francis Collection

Mersey Girl

Happiness always comes at a cost...

Having grown up in a convent after the death of her mother, Lizzie Knight has never known what it’s like to have a real family. So when a strange woman turns up with promises of a new life in Liverpool, she is thrilled.

Warm-hearted and kind, Phyl is everything she wants in a stepmother. But then Lizzie falls in love with the one man who should have been out of bounds. Should she follow her heart and risk losing it all?

 

My Lady Deceiver

Fourteenth century England.

For Philippa Cobtree there was no future in dreaming of Guy Milbum.

Betrothed to his brother Hugo, there could never be anything between them.

But it was Guy who had found her in Canterbury – filthy, hungry and weary to the bone, her home burnt down and her serfs in revolt.

Guy had rescued her and Guy had won her love — but Hugo stood between them.

Philippa concocts a most daring rouse to free her from her impending marriage and allow her to marry Guy.

But this plan will require them both to embark on a most daring deception …

Do they both have what it takes to follow through with Philippa’s bold idea?

Will they find their happy ending, or will their deception, or Hugo’s hold on Philippa, prove to be their downfall?

 

Pirate's Daughter, Rebel Wife

Bridget McDonald fears for her life--and her virtue--on board a slave ship. Forced to jump over the side, she's rescued by rugged Captain Henry Mariner.

Realizing she's alone and vulnerable, Harry has good reason to feel guilty about her precarious predicament. But despite her reserve toward him, he knows there is no other option.

 

Rowan's Revenge

He could have been just another supplicant, making his pilgrimage to the shrine of St. James at Compostela, yet there was nothing humble about him. Pride was evident in his every step. This was the man Kate had feared would catch up with her ever since she'd fled England.Rowan had sworn to track Lady Catherine down. And in Spain he believed he had finally found her. Her guilt was obvious-- no innocent lady would disguise herself as a boy! But could he be sure that the beautiful, resourceful, "alluring" Kate was, in truth, the lady he sought? With so many secrets between them, he must not yield to her seductive spell....

 

Tamed by the Barbarian

A stolen kiss...

Cicely Milburn has no intention of marrying anyone, let alone a Scottish barbarian! But when Lord Rory Mackillin rescues her from a treacherous attack, she reluctantly accepts his help—even though his kisses trouble her dreams.

An honorable barbarian...

The Border Reiver is determined to guard his charge on their journey through war-torn England. Yet he cannot shield his own heart from Cicely's beauty and bravery—especially when the only honorable way to protect her is to marry her.

 

The Adventurer's Bride

In want of a respectable wife...

Widow Jane Caldwell is practically destitute when famed explorer Nicholas Hurst seeks shelter - with his baby daughter hidden beneath his coat! Wounded and on the run from his enemies, Nicholas is as darkly attractive as she remembers and she can't deny him aid.
Adventurer Nicholas seeks to settle down, and Jane would make a highly respectable wife! But, cowed by duty for too long, Jane yearns for a love and passion Nicholas cannot give her... until he learns to open his heart.

 

The Bride Price

She is Welsh. He is English.

From a young age they have been taught by their elders to be enemies.

But Cadfael needs a guide for his journey through the Welsh wilderness and his hike up the great mountain of Snowdonia.

His aim is to find his half-brother Rhys.

Who would be able to help him?

Upon meeting Lady Sioned ap Rowan, Cadfael decides only she can help him bring Rhys home.

Sioned strongly resembles the woman in his mother’s vision and is also confident in the landscape of her Welsh homeland.

Fortunately, she was also not of the mind to decline Cadfael’s offer, seizing her chance to escape from an arranged marriage to her horrific betrothed, Govan.

However, Sioned has her own motives to venture up the mountains...

With the chance to embark on her quest, Sioned certainly did not intend to fall in love with her companion.

Even if she found him handsome and charming...

But things do not always go to plan.

Out in the wilderness and with the threat of imminent danger, a spark between them could not help but ignite.

But what of Cadfael’s search for Rhys?

And Sioned’s arranged marriage to Govan?

Can their new found romance overcome their countries’ differences?

 

The Pawnbroker's Niece

Fourteen-year-old Rita Taylor is no stranger to the harsh realities of a poor life in Liverpool.

She’s been hungry and cold more times than she can count, and she’s long since come to terms with the fact that her mother keeps them fed and clothed by taking men into her bed.

Eve Taylor has never been a candidate for mother of the year, but Rita is stunned when she leaves Liverpool for a new life in Cardiff without even telling her daughter she’s leaving.

Rita finds herself dumped unceremoniously on the doorstep of Margaret Sinclair, the local pawnbroker and the aunt she never knew she had. Used to the selfish ways of her sister, Margaret grudgingly agrees to take in her wayward niece, something Rita is all too keen to avoid.

Despite a rocky start, the two gradually become friends, with Rita learning from her aunt’s age and wisdom and Margaret profiting by her niece’s youth and passion.

But as time creeps incessantly on, moving inescapably towards the Great Depression, Rita finds herself becoming invested in the financial woes of the Brodie family — an interest that threatens the equanimity she and Margaret have developed, and which is made worse by both women’s relationships with the men of the family.

Margaret’s world is turned upside down when she comes face-to-face once more with her long lost childhood sweetheart William Brodie, a man who broke her heart and married another woman. By taking on his business’s debt, she seeks to keep things strictly professional between them, but the more time she spends with him, the more old feelings are stirred up again.

Meanwhile, as Rita develops an abiding friendship with Brodie’s son Billy, she finds herself becoming infatuated with Billy’s stepbrother Jimmy, a young man with darkness lurking beneath his angelic exterior.

Emotions surge and secrets are revealed as the two women are drawn inexorably into the lives of the Brodie family.

If Margaret and Rita are to avoid making the same mistakes all over again, they must learn to trust their hearts…

 

The Unconventional Maiden

SHE'D RATHER GO INTO BUSINESS THAN MARRY ANY MAN! After her father's murder, headstrong Beth Llewellyn finds herself under the reluctant guardianship of Sir Gawain Raventon. Already chafing against the constraints put upon her sex under Henry VIII's rule, Beth knows Gawain will have his own opinion about her unconventional attitude to marriage! Working with Gawain to solve the mystery surrounding her father's death, Beth starts to realise that perhaps marriage to the right man - a man in whose arms she feels so safe - will bring a happiness she's never dared imagine...

 

Walking Back to Happiness

Should she listen to her friends, or dare to hope for happiness?
Lucia Brookes had once dreamed of meeting a man who would love, cherish and provide for her. Now, left to care for her five younger siblings alone, she has lost hope – because what man would want to take her on with all her responsibilities?

Everything changes when Tim Murphy enters the Liverpool coffee bar where Lucia works looking for a room to rent, and Lucia can’t help being charmed by the lovable rogue. Ignoring the warnings from her family and friends, she accepts Tim’s offer of a date. But has Tim really changed his ways… and will his shady past catch up with him?

 

War Widow

Will she get another chance at happiness?

Flora Cooke is struggling to raise her children alone amidst the ruins of war-torn Liverpool. With her husband, Tom, away fighting in the Second World War, she has only her unreliable sister to help her and she has almost given up hope. She is completely devastated when Tom is reported missing, presumed dead.

As the months pass and she struggles to come to terms with her loss, Flora is swept off her feet by a handsome American soldier. But he cannot offer the stability that Flora and her family desperately need. And when another terrible tragedy strikes the family, Flora must decide what is really important…