Daughters of Mannerling

Could she ever love a gentleman as much as she loved her magnificent home? Isabella Beverley is blessed with unparalleled beauty but, unfortunately, has been raised in the most snobbish and haughtiest of families. When her father gambles away their fortune-including Mannerling, the exquisite family mansion-Isabella discovers there is very little sympathy for her plight. As the eldest, Isabella is chosen to court Mr. Judd, the roguish bachelor who won Mannerling. Surely no sacrifice is too great to regain Mannerling? But tempting her away from Mr. Judd is Lord Fitzpatrick, an Irish rake who fears Isabella can never love a man as she does her home. He is nonetheless determined to convince her to choose man over manse.

Mannerling, the splendid family estate gambled away by Sir Beverley, remains the passionate desire of his daughters. Beverley himself has died; the eldest daughter, Isabella-having failed in her bid to reclaim their home-is blissfully wed. The mantle of savior then falls to the next eldest daughter, Jessica. How fortunate that the new owner of Mannerling has a marriageable son. In truth, Harry is a brutal lecher, a drunkard, and a wastrel, but Jessica, blinded by determination, vows to secure a betrothal. She is barely aware of the attentions of handsome, charming Professor Robert Sommerville, whose affection for Jessica is equaled only by the fear that her obsession to secure Mannerling will lead to disaster for all concerned. As scandal and intrigue swirl around her, Jessica must discover where the heart finds true happiness.

It was an unfair decision-to be forced to choose between her home and her heart ... When one of her sisters is attacked by Harry Devers, the lecherous son of Mannerling's present owner, Abigail Beverley puts her obsession with reclaiming the mansion on hold. It is then that Abigail meets the dashing and extremely eligible Lord Burfield, fresh back from the army and in full-time pursuit of a bride. She must be quick to grab his attention lest he be snapped up by Prudence Makepeace. Meanwhile, unexpected circumstances force the insufferable Harry to recuperate from a riding accident in the Beverley home, where Abigail's twin sister, Rachel, nurses him back to health-and into betrothal. Stirred from its brief slumber, Abigail's fury returns, alive and kicking. So when Rachel begins to have doubts about marrying Harry, Abigail devises a daring plan to win back Mannerling once and for all.

In the fourth installment of the Daughters of Mannerling series, beautiful Rachel must choose which she wants more-true love or Mannerling mansion. The haughty Beverley family is obsessed with regaining Mannerling, the exquisite seventeenth-century mansion gambled away by their now-deceased father, Sir Beverley. Three of the six Beverley daughters, including Rachel's twin, have failed to win back their ancestral estate-settling for love matches over Mannerling's heirs. Now it is Rachel's turn to woo the latest eligible bachelor-in-residence, handsome widower Charles Blackwood. But her plan to win the autocratic Charles almost comes to naught: At their first meeting, Rachel forgets herself and admonishes Charles for neglecting his two small children. The antics of young Beth and Mark Blackwood successfully throw Charles and Rachel together, but does Rachel love Charles for himself or for Mannerling? "Yet another frothy good time." "Chesney's formula produces lively characters and an entertaining story."

Torn between her ancestral home and her heart, Belinda Beverley must make a difficult choice.As one of the two remaining unmarried Beverley sisters, Belinda considers herself the last hope for Mannerling, the beloved estate gambled away by their father. Each of her four elder sisters had hoped-even schemed-to marry one of Mannerling's successive owners. But all had chosen true love over their ancestral home. Practical and duty-bound, Belinda would woo and wed Lord St. Clair, current holder of the estate. True, he is a silly fop, hardly what she desires in a husband, but she vows to make the man love her-even at the expense of her own happiness. Dashing Lord Gyre, however, can hardly ignore the ridiculous drama; Belinda is far too good for that dandy St. Clair. His lordship therefore decides it is his duty to win the lovely Belinda's heart.

Lizzie is the sixth and youngest daughter of the late Sir Beverley, the patriarch who gambled away their beloved estate, Mannerling. It's Lizzie's turn to save Mannerling, but the new owner, the Duke of Severnshire, is far too arrogant for Lizzie. And while the duke has no intentions toward Lizzie, her curt dismissal of him is perplexing; no woman has ever refused him. Lovely Lizzie is turning the duke's thoughts away from a suitable marriage to the wonders of falling in love.