Laura Strickland

Two souls in exile reach for refuge in one another.At the hall of a Scottish chief deep in the western Highlands, a bard sings and plays on his harp, spinning tales to the gathered company. Amid the leaping torches and flickering candles, he has finished telling one story, but his listeners beg for more. So with beauty in his voice and magic in his fingers, he weaves on.It is an old tale, that of a father sending each of three sons to accomplish a seemingly impossible task. When Adair MacMurtray is sent to the wild kingdom of Dalriada, in Scotland, to claim his father's lands there, he does not see how he can succeed. That is before he lays eyes on Bradana MacCaigh, for love of whom he discovers he might well accomplish anything.Bradana has been searching all her life for a missing piece of herself. Not till she sets eyes on Adair the exile does she begin to suspect where that piece might be found.But she's betrothed to another, and it will take a long trail of doubt, fear, and hardship before she learns whether fate will favor her desire.Ancient SongsBook 1 - For a Warrior's HeartBook 2 - For an Exile's HeartBook 3 - For a Wild Woman's HeartBook 4 - For a Viking's HeartBook 5 - For a Heart Come Home

Adopted as a tiny girl straight off the orphan train, Rosalee Thompson has always been pampered by her wealthy parents. Now a young woman, she chafes at the restrictive bonds of her ribbons and ruffles. When the choices made for her include a prospective husband, she becomes a runaway bride. Matthew Speedwell has a past he'd rather keep hidden and ideas for a future he's not sure he can achieve. The last thing he expects is to be made part of a reluctant bride's snowy escape. He believes he's not good enough for Rosalee, but his heart has ideas of its own. As, so it seems, does Miss Rosalee.

Jenny Withers has never asked for much. Following a tragic childhood in England, she arrived in America only to be sent west on the orphan train and passed from one caregiver to another. Now grown and widowed, she might build a fulfilling future, but only if she finds the courage to stand up for her true desires. Robert MacKenna hopes what Jenny desires is him. A man with a broken past and a restless spirit, he has trouble settling at anything. He's never met a woman like Jenny, and he'll move heaven and earth to be with her. But his toughest task may be convincing her he can provide the love for which she's always yearned.

When Sean Hussey returns to the town where he lived as a boy, it's with revenge on his mind. He's made a success of himself out west and intends to get even with the farmer under whose thumb he once suffered. He'll show mercy only to the others who shared his fate in days gone by, especially sweet Jenny whose memory he still cherishes. Sarah Rupert hasn't had it easy growing up as a girl from the orphan train, and as a survivor of shocking abuse. Since the death of her husband, she's had to support her young son by dubious means. When Sean Hussey comes back into her life it's a miracle, because he's the boy she always wanted for her own. Trouble is, Sean just may be in love with another woman.

Can old hatreds be laid aside for the sake of love?For as long as she can remember, Saerla MacBeith has been touched by magic. As a Seer, she is helpless to resist the Visions that come upon her, forewarning misfortunes that may befall those she loves. She has given herself over to cherishing the light that gathers in Glen Bronach, and to defending her home however she may, even if it means marching to battle with a sword in her hand. Living for the sake of others, she has no expectations of love or a family of her own.Rory MacLeod has sworn to conquer all of Glen Bronach and will let nothing stop him-not dire battle wounds, not betrayal by those closest to him, and certainly not a woman. When he captures Saerla in battle, his one thought is to use her as a means to force her sister, the chief MacBeith, to cede him her lands.He has no inkling then that the magic Saerla harbors may weave a spell over him, or that there could ever be a power strong enough to make him lay aside his greed and anger in favor of love.The Three Sisters MacBeithKeeper of the GateKeeper of the HearthKeeper of the Light

He chooses laughter, and she chooses compassion. Will they both choose love?Ever since her mother's death, Rhian MacBeith has kept the flame burning at the heart of her family. A healer and born nurturer, she stepped in where needed without a thought for herself. Now her clan is at war with the MacLeods across Glen Bronach. Her older sister, who leads clan MacBeith, has taken a MacLeod outcast for her lover. The last thing Rhian expects when she ventures out in the aftermath of a battle is to stumble over a wounded MacLeod warrior, a handsome mountain of a man named Leith. Mercy prompts her to tend his vicious wound. It's something else that keeps her from calling her warriors to end his life.Leith MacLeod is a man who will always choose laughter above strife. But he is cousin to the MacLeod chief as well as his heir, sworn to him in fealty. He half believes the bonny woman who tends him on the battlefield is an angel. Instead, he discovers she's his sworn enemy. That can't change the way he feels about her, because the more he learns about Rhian MacBeith, the more he sees that her beauty extends clear through to her spirit.And that makes him long to lay aside his sword in favor of peace.The Three Sisters MacBeithKeeper of the GateKeeper of the HearthKeeper of the Light

It's the Christmas season at Clarendon, and Genevieve DeClare is determined to provide a joyful holiday for her mother and sister, despite the losses they've endured the past year. The castle is decked with greenery and she's planned a lavish feast. Awaiting her guests, her heart longs for one more thing: the return of her betrothed, Maddox DeVille, who departed on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land a year ago. But when an unexpected guest arrives, he's a stranger. Tomas Monmercy, a knight newly returned from the Crusades, has traveled many weary miles to fulfill a promise and bring Genevieve the talisman she entrusted to Maddox-a mistletoe heart. Tomas considers it a sacred duty. He certainly never intends to fall in love with the beautiful maiden his friend loved so well.

A year ago, Magnus Tolljursson helped repel a treacherous attack from his father's enemies, and discovered he carries the berserker's seed of madness. Now he must sail to the settlement from whence those attackers came, and fulfill a promise to a friend. He doesn't know what he'll find in Husavik and never suspects he may lose his heart. In her father's absence, Embra Fritisson has been engaged in a desperate battle to keep leadership of the settlement. When Magnus arrives saying her father is dead, she fears her unstable family will splinter into factions and destroy one another. She must retain control, but how can she hope to keep her head while falling in love with the enemy?

A menace stalks the streets of Victorian Buffalo. Costumed like a medieval physician, it brings panic, sickness, and death to a city already in turmoil over automaton rights. Fresh off a boat from Poland, Kasper Czak can't let politics or mysterious figures deter him. He's willing to work anywhere for an honest wage, including as caretaker at the Lost Waifs Orphanage. Tori Anderson, a young woman with a withered arm, also works at Lost Waifs, where there's never enough time, hands, or money for their young charges. Locked down at the orphanage with ailing children, cranky steam units, and the handsome Kasper, Tori wonders if she'll survive. But when she comes face to face with the plague doctor, she discovers her true strength.

All her life Polly Bridger has perceived a miraculous light in others. She sees it in her parents who sacrifice everything to keep her safe, and later in the eyes of young Albert Coward who offers her both solace and love. Victorian London is not an easy place for a girl to survive. Polly does not want to end up like so many other girls, earning her bread on the streets. But when Albert is sentenced to jail for thievery and her choices are few, Polly sells the one thing she has left, while fiercely holding onto her belief Albert will return to her. Is it too late for a reunion between Polly and Albert? Or will love, however tarnished, shine on forever?