NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW AND THE BOSTON GLOBE This richly entertaining biography chronicles the eventful life of Queen Victoria’s firstborn son, the quintessential black sheep of Buckingham Palace, who matured into as wise and effective a monarch as Britain has ever seen. Granted unprecedented access to the royal archives, noted scholar Jane Ridley draws on numerous primary sources to paint a vivid portrait of the man and the age to which he gave his name. Born Prince Albert Edward, and known to familiars as “Bertie,” the future King Edward VII had a well-earned reputation for debauchery. A notorious gambler, glutton, and womanizer, he preferred the company of wastrels and courtesans to the dreary life of the Victorian court. His own mother considered him a lazy halfwit, temperamentally unfit to succeed her. When he ascended to the throne in 1901, at age fifty-nine, expectations were low. Yet by the time he died nine years later, he had proven himself a deft diplomat, hardworking head of state, and the architect of Britain’s modern constitutional monarchy. Jane Ridley’s colorful biography rescues the man once derided as “Edward the Caresser” from the clutches of his historical detractors. Excerpts from letters and diaries shed new light on Bertie’s long power struggle with Queen Victoria, illuminating one of the most emotionally fraught mother-son relationships in history. Considerable attention is paid to King Edward’s campaign of personal diplomacy abroad and his valiant efforts to reform the political system at home. Separating truth from legend, Ridley also explores Bertie’s relationships with the women in his life. Their ranks comprised his wife, the stunning Danish princess Alexandra, along with some of the great beauties of the era: the actress Lillie Langtry, longtime “royal mistress” Alice Keppel (the great-grandmother of Camilla Parker Bowles), and Lady Randolph Churchill, mother of Winston. Edward VII waited nearly six decades for his chance to rule, then did so with considerable panache and aplomb. A magnificent life of an unexpectedly impressive king, The Heir Apparent documents the remarkable transformation of a man—and a monarchy—at the dawn of a new century. Praise for The Heir Apparent “If [The Heir Apparent] isn’t the definitive life story of this fascinating figure of British history, then nothing ever will be.”—The Christian Science Monitor “The Heir Apparent is smart, it’s fascinating, it’s sometimes funny, it’s well-documented and it reads like a novel, with Bertie so vivid he nearly leaps from the page, cigars and all.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune “I closed The Heir Apparent with admiration and a kind of wry exhilaration.”—The Wall Street Journal “Ridley is a serious scholar and historian, who keeps Bertie’s flaws and virtues in a fine balance.”—The Boston Globe “Brilliantly entertaining . . . a landmark royal biography.”—The Sunday Telegraph “Superb.”—The New York Times Book Review

The Royal Package is a legend in its own time, a pleasure-giving national treasure I'm far too generous to keep to myself. But I have one rule: No good girls. And they don't get much nicer than sugar-and-spice Princess Elizabeth. You'd think a woman who designs lingerie would be sexy and fun. You would be wrong. My fiancée is a dreary little mouse, and I have no doubt we'll make each other miserable if we go through with our arranged marriage. But I can't dishonor my grandfather's dying wish. Which leaves me one choice-make my sweet fiancée so miserable during our engagement festivities that she calls it quits. Operation Prince Charmless will get her out of my hair. And then I'm back to Sexy Single Ruler business as usual. Or that's the plan... But my fiancée is feistier than I remembered. Sexier, too. And she loves spur-of-the-moment adventures as much as I do. But did I mention that she hates my guts? Looks like the Royal Package and I are in for more than we bargained for...

“Known for her ability to deliver a rich and satisfying story” (Publishers Weekly), #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts brings to life the story of Cordina’s Prince Bennett… A dashing playboy, Prince Bennett can’t resist the challenge of an unattainable woman. Quiet, mysterious Lady Hannah Rothchild has a careful resolve, one that Bennett is determined to break through. Love had always been a game to Bennett, but with elusive Lady Hannah he suddenly finds his heart on the line, and discovers that he’s ready to play for keeps.

I may be a prince, but my life’s no fairy tale—I’ve been banned from over a dozen countries thanks to my wild lifestyle. Jet-setting the globe in search of trouble has done nothing to fill the hole in my heart… until I end up in Chicago, stumble into a dive bar, and meet a woman like no other. Erika is the beautiful bartender I never knew I was looking for. She takes me on an impromptu tour of her city, intent on making me fall in love with the place… but I can’t take my eyes off of the enchanting tour guide herself. At the very moment I realize that I don’t want our weekend fling to end, my past catches up with me in the worst possible way, and I’m arrested and deported back to my home country, thousands of miles away! They tell me I’m barred from entering the United States again, but when all that’s waiting for me at home is the looming threat of a marriage to a woman I’ve never met, a little thing like the law isn’t going to stop me from seeing my Erika. So I make the journey to see her in secret, risking it all. And what I find awaiting me blows me away. She’s pregnant. With our royal baby…