Books like A Harmless Ruse by Alexandra Lord

Brought up in the household of a powerful Baron, Candide is an open-minded young man, whose tutor, Pangloss, has instilled in him the belief that 'all is for the best'. But when his love for the Baron's rosy-cheeked daughter is discovered, Candide is cast out to make his own way in the world. And so he and his various companions begin a breathless tour of Europe, South America and Asia, as an outrageous series of disasters befall them - earthquakes, syphilis, a brush with the Inquisition, murder - sorely testing the young hero's optimism.

The second story in the ever-popular Anne of Green Gables series.Now Anne is half past sixteen and she's ready to begin a new life teaching in her old school. She's as feisty as ever and is fiercely determined to inspire young hearts with her own ambitions. But some of her pupils are as boisterous and high-spirited as Anne, and so life in her Avonlea classroom becomes a lesson in discovery and adventure . . .

Vigorous, self-reliant, amazingly resourceful, and moral, Natty Bumppo is the prototype of the Western hero. A faultless arbiter of wilderness justice, he hates middle-class hypocrisy. But he finds his love divided between the woman he has pledged to protect on a treacherous journey and the untouched forest that sustains him in his beliefs. A fast-paced narrative full of adventure and majestic descriptions of early frontier life, Indian raiders, and defenseless outposts, The Pathfinder set the standard for epic action literature.

In this story of a woman's search for a meaningful life, Alcott moves outside the family setting of her best knows works. Originally published in 1872, Work is both an exploration of Alcott's personal conflicts and a social critique, examining women's independence, the moral significance of labor, and the goals to which a woman can aspire. Influenced by Transcendentalism and by the women's rights movement, it affirms the possibility of a feminized utopian society.

Polly visits her wealthy friend Fanny Shaw in the city and is overwhelmed by the fashionable and urban life they live--but also left out because of her "countrified" manners and outdated clothes.

"He calls me his ruination but he forgot to tell he was mine first." BIANCA A fairytale wedding is every girl’s dream. Isn’t it. Well not mine. Seven years ago, I locked my dead heart in a cage after it was shattered into pieces. It wasn’t a problem until now. Being the eldest daughter, tradition dictates I must marry first but at twenty five, a happily ever after is the last thing I’m chasing. So when my little sister drops the bomb she wants to marry, suddenly I have to choose between her future and my freedom. Until fate collides me with Dash Stern. The man I lost my virginity to when I was eighteen and heartbroken. My ex’s older stepbrother. Oh and my soon to be fake husband. DASH A marriage is a nightmare for a man like me. Make it a fake one…. That’s just inviting disaster with open arms. Even if it’s to an irresistible woman I secretly desired. Bianca Chopra. Gorgeous. Forbidden. My past obsession. When she propositions me for a sham marriage, I say no with a warning to stay away. Like a dirty vixen, she raises the stake, reawakening the forbidden feelings and I find myself throwing caution to the wind. She thinks she’ll walk away unscathed but doesn’t realize she made a deal with a monster, with a secret that will wreck her entire world. Note: Scandalous games is a steamy fake relationship contemporary romance. It features a morally gray antihero and a sweet yet feisty heroine who happens to be his past obsession. This is book one in the arranged games series. Recommeded for 18+

Could she be the brazen lady who posed for the scandalous portrait? Lady Elizabeth Cabot is no longer the reckless girl she once was. Now the darling of the ton, she is determined to put her past behind her. But who would have imagined that one immodest act could throw her entire world into chaos...and force her toward a loveless marriage? In desperation, she approaches her childhood friend, Peter Derby, with a daring plan. Peter still remembers the wild and spirited girl who had stolen his heart. But could the rumors be true: is she the model for the scandalous painting hanging in London's most exclusive gentlemen's club? If Peter agrees to pose as her fiance, Elizabeth has promised to reveal the whole truth. But Peter has his own ideas about this sham "engagement" to the exquisite beauty who's always been just out of his reach--and he's willing to incite yet another scandal to make her heart truly his.

For as long as she can remember, Lydia Westland has dreamed of glittering London society. Finding herself at last in England, she is determined to make the most of this opportunity. Clutching her copy of 'Blunders in Behaviour Corrected' she sets forth to find a suitably titled husband. But what she finds instead is Rhys Rhodes, a second son with a past that is anything but glittering. To Rhys, Lydia is everything he has lost - innocence, laughter, joy - and everything he cannot have.

"Born into riches and groomed in English luxury, Margot Armstrong didn't belong in a Scottish chieftain's devil-may-care world. Three years ago she fled their marriage of convenience and hasn't looked back--except to relive the moments spent in wild, rugged Arran McKenzie's passionate embrace. But as their respective countries' fragile unity threatens to unravel, Margot must return to her husband to uncover his role in the treachery before her family can be accused of it. Red-haired, green-eyed Margot was Arran's beautiful bride. Her loss has haunted him, but her return threatens everything he has gained. As the Highland mists carry whispers of an English plot to seize McKenzie territory, he must outmaneuver her in games of espionage...and seduction. But even as their secrets tangle together, there's nothing to prevent love from capturing them both and leading them straight into danger"--Book jacket.

SECRET PLACES... A shocking liaison accidentally observed opens floodgates of deception... and desire. HIDDEN COSTS... A rogue's game of passionate betrayal takes an audacious, unexpected turn when emotional debts come due. SWEET REWARDS... In a Tudor England teeming with intrigues and absurdities--in a hotbed of scheming scoundrels and bumbling knaves--a 26 year old daring thief of hearts and an innocent, yet ingenious, 17 year old beauty will be undone by the most delectable treachery of all: rapturous, irresistible love.