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The Duke's Runaway Lady: A Historical Regency Romance Novel
“She got into the wrong carriage. He was the first man who ever asked her what she wished.”
Sybil Danforth has learnt to keep the peace. She knows the correct order in which to greet her fiancé’s relations, the pleasant words that settle a room, and the exact smile that ends a quarrel before it begins. Then, on the morning of her wedding, she hears herself apologise to Lucian Fettes for the look on her maid’s face, and she understands at last what she is becoming.
So, she walks out through the tradesmen’s gate in a plain grey dress, under a name that is not hers, and by nightfall there is a reward of fifty pounds for word of her.
Before dawn, in an inn yard where men are being paid to find her, she opens the wrong carriage door.
Tobias Wren, the Duke of Larchmont, has spent eleven years keeping an estate standing and two younger brothers raised, and he has given away so much of himself that he believes there is nothing left. He does not ask the soaked stranger in his carriage for her name. He only asks whether she wishes to get out.
She does not.
When a washed-out bridge carries her to his door and a printed notice gives her away, the Duke makes her a plain offer. He will marry her in name only, to put her beyond Fettes’s reach for good. She will have her own rooms, her own money, and the only key to the door between them. He promises her his name, and tells her honestly that he has nothing else to spare.
Sybil signs, and adds one clause of her own. After a year, she may go.
But the man who swore he had nothing to give keeps giving it where he thinks no one is watching. He drives forty miles out of his way to show her the sea. He quietly eats the burnt half of his brother’s pudding. And the woman who married for shelter begins to want the very thing she promised herself she never would.
Fettes has not finished with her. When he turns to lawyers and whispers, and the scandal begins to threaten the brothers’ futures, Sybil makes the one choice that protects everyone but herself. Now a duke who has never asked anyone for anything must learn to ask her to stay, and a woman who has spent her whole life being spoken for must stand before the entire county and speak for herself.
A tender, completely clean Regency romance of a marriage made for shelter, a family found by accident, and a woman who finally chooses for herself. A standalone with a guaranteed happily-ever-after.
No cheating. No cliffhangers. Just a beautifully earned happily ever after.
Also available with Kindle Unlimited!
Sybil Danforth has learnt to keep the peace. She knows the correct order in which to greet her fiancé’s relations, the pleasant words that settle a room, and the exact smile that ends a quarrel before it begins. Then, on the morning of her wedding, she hears herself apologise to Lucian Fettes for the look on her maid’s face, and she understands at last what she is becoming.
So, she walks out through the tradesmen’s gate in a plain grey dress, under a name that is not hers, and by nightfall there is a reward of fifty pounds for word of her.
Before dawn, in an inn yard where men are being paid to find her, she opens the wrong carriage door.
Tobias Wren, the Duke of Larchmont, has spent eleven years keeping an estate standing and two younger brothers raised, and he has given away so much of himself that he believes there is nothing left. He does not ask the soaked stranger in his carriage for her name. He only asks whether she wishes to get out.
She does not.
When a washed-out bridge carries her to his door and a printed notice gives her away, the Duke makes her a plain offer. He will marry her in name only, to put her beyond Fettes’s reach for good. She will have her own rooms, her own money, and the only key to the door between them. He promises her his name, and tells her honestly that he has nothing else to spare.
Sybil signs, and adds one clause of her own. After a year, she may go.
But the man who swore he had nothing to give keeps giving it where he thinks no one is watching. He drives forty miles out of his way to show her the sea. He quietly eats the burnt half of his brother’s pudding. And the woman who married for shelter begins to want the very thing she promised herself she never would.
Fettes has not finished with her. When he turns to lawyers and whispers, and the scandal begins to threaten the brothers’ futures, Sybil makes the one choice that protects everyone but herself. Now a duke who has never asked anyone for anything must learn to ask her to stay, and a woman who has spent her whole life being spoken for must stand before the entire county and speak for herself.
A tender, completely clean Regency romance of a marriage made for shelter, a family found by accident, and a woman who finally chooses for herself. A standalone with a guaranteed happily-ever-after.
No cheating. No cliffhangers. Just a beautifully earned happily ever after.
Also available with Kindle Unlimited!
152 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 7, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 11, 2026
“The Duke’s Runaway Lady” by Julia Thorne
-This is a sweet, clean Regency romance with humor and sweetness. I received a free copy and am voluntarily sharing my honest thoughts.
A washed-out bridge brings runaway bride Sybil Danforth and Tobias Wren, Duke of Larchmont, together. Their growing love, lively household of boys, and moments of mystery make this an entertaining read.
The charming characters and heartfelt story shine through in this story.
-This is a sweet, clean Regency romance with humor and sweetness. I received a free copy and am voluntarily sharing my honest thoughts.
A washed-out bridge brings runaway bride Sybil Danforth and Tobias Wren, Duke of Larchmont, together. Their growing love, lively household of boys, and moments of mystery make this an entertaining read.
The charming characters and heartfelt story shine through in this story.
October 12, 2026
Setting:
Tender story of a young woman being sold by her father to a cruel and demanding man who would never love her.
Sybil had the courage to run for her life—her own life, not that 2 other men had decided she would live. It all could have turned out so horribly for her, but she had the good fortune to jump into the wrong carriage and find she had jumped into the carriage of a man who would be just what she needed.
Critique
I loved the story line: a strong heroine who has the courage to run from the future that would have certainly destroyed her, to the unknown. The development was not overly melodramatic, but sensitive. Both the heroine, Sybil, and the hero, Tobias, are carefully drawn, and we admire their character and their ability to care about others in their life. The progression of their love is gradual and believable.
Along the way, the father and his preferred husband for her, raised problems that Sybil and Tobias had to overcome in order to reach their HEA. A good plot, interesting characters provide an enjoyable book for all ages.
Tender story of a young woman being sold by her father to a cruel and demanding man who would never love her.
Sybil had the courage to run for her life—her own life, not that 2 other men had decided she would live. It all could have turned out so horribly for her, but she had the good fortune to jump into the wrong carriage and find she had jumped into the carriage of a man who would be just what she needed.
Critique
I loved the story line: a strong heroine who has the courage to run from the future that would have certainly destroyed her, to the unknown. The development was not overly melodramatic, but sensitive. Both the heroine, Sybil, and the hero, Tobias, are carefully drawn, and we admire their character and their ability to care about others in their life. The progression of their love is gradual and believable.
Along the way, the father and his preferred husband for her, raised problems that Sybil and Tobias had to overcome in order to reach their HEA. A good plot, interesting characters provide an enjoyable book for all ages.
October 16, 2026
left wanting
A guarded man lets a woman into his carriage then marries her showing no emotions until he declare his love. The whole story left me wanting for someone to pummel someone including the author.
A guarded man lets a woman into his carriage then marries her showing no emotions until he declare his love. The whole story left me wanting for someone to pummel someone including the author.
October 11, 2026
Captivating story. I read it in one read. Great interaction between Sybill, the runaway bride and the duke's younger brothers.
I received an ARC, but this review is honestly mine.
I received an ARC, but this review is honestly mine.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews