Rita Gerlach

Vanessa Riley

Susanne Dietze

Lorna Seilstad

Erica Vetsch

C. J. Chase

Kathleen L. Maher

Gabrielle Meyer

Carrie Fancett Pagels

Experience a Dickens of a Christmas as you celebrate with nine fictional couples who meet and fall in love during the Victorian Era.

9 Women Dream of Perfect Christmases During the Victorian Era

The Victorian Christmas Brides Collection

4 Teachers Find More Than They Bargained for in Their Contracts Something Old, Something New by Kathleen L. Maher New York, 1840s Her father’s sudden death makes Gilda Jacobs the new schoolmaster, but to teach Christian curriculum she partners with fire-and-brimstone revivalist Joshua Blake, who learns a lesson in love. Love in Any Language by Susanne Dietze Kansas, 1870 Mary Clarence teaches English to the children of Swedish immigrants, but when her favorite students’ widowed father, Kristofer Nilsson, is accused of robbery, she’s determined to clear his name. In Desperate Straits by Carrie Fancett Pagels Mackinac Island, Michigan, 1894 Desperate for work, Margaret Hadley dresses as a young man to secure a dray driver’s position. When soldiers at the fort threaten her, Mackinac Island’s newest teacher, Jesse Huntington, intervenes. A Song in the Night by Rita Gerlach Virginia, 1904 Karin Wiles longs to share the uplifting power of music with children. But when she seeks to improve a poorly run school and include orphans, Nathaniel Archer delivers harsh words of opposition from the school board.

4 Schoolteachers Find More Than They Bargained for in Their Contracts

Lessons on Love

C.J. Chase

Experience a Dickens of a Christmas Faced with the daily extremes of gluttony and want in the Victorian Era, nine women seek to create the perfect Christmas celebrations. But will expectations and pride cause them to overlook imperfect men who offer true love? One Golden Ring by C.J. Chase 1855 Devonshire, England Wounded soldier Tristram Nowell returns home to indulge his mother’s wish for a family Christmas—and encounters Marianna Granville. Can he forgive the former heiress who jilted him years before? Star of Wonder by Susanne Dietze 1875 County Durham, England This Yuletide, Bennet Hett, Lord Harwood, offers Lady Celeste Sidwell matrimony and the Star of Wonder diamond necklace, as their fathers arranged. When the diamond disappears, will they find a greater treasure? The Holly and the Ivy by Rita Gerlach 1900 near Washington, DC A glass ornament. Love letters tied in red Christmas ribbon. Lily Morningstar and British antiquities expert Andrew Stapleton are drawn into a family secret that binds their hearts together. Love Brick by Brick by Kathleen L. Maher 1857 Elmira, New York SarahAnn Winnifred overcomes orphanhood apprenticing with pioneering doctors. Rufus Sedgwick, relocating his English estate, seeks help for his ailing Mum. Christmas reveals the secret wish of both hearts—for love. A Christmas Vow by Gabrielle Meyer 1899 Cambrigeshire, England Lady Ashleigh Arrington is hosting a houseful of guests for Christmas when railroad executive Christopher Campbell unexpectedly arrives from America with a mysterious agreement signed by their fathers before their birth. The Sugarplum Ladies by Carrie Fancett Pagels 1867 Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and Detroit, Michigan When Canadian barrister Percy Gladstone finds his aristocratic British family unexpectedly descending upon him for Christmas, he turns to American social reformer Eugenie Mott and her fledgling catering crew for help. Paper Snowflake Christmas by Vanessa Riley 1837 Framlingham, England How can widow Ophelia Hanover give her son a perfect Christmas when his guardian, the Earl of Litton, arrives early to take permanent custody of the boy? Father Christmas by Lorna Seilstad 1880 Blackpool, England Widowed harpist Beatrix Kent believes love can only come once in a lifetime, but this Christmas, carpenter Hugh Sherman hopes to pull on the musician’s heartstrings and prove her wrong. The Perfect Christmas by Erica Vetsch 1887 London, England Melisande Verity might be in over her head trying to create the perfect Christmas window display, but if she succeeds, will she finally attract the attention of her boss, Gray Garamond?

9 Women Dream of Perfect Christmases during the Victorian Era

Kathleen L. Maher

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