Dukes & Ballrooms: Regency Romance Obsession

A Visit from Sir Nicholas — Victoria Alexander

A Christmas rake reformation that hits every seasonal romance beat without feeling paint-by-numbers. Lady Elizabeth Effington swore off rakes after her last disaster, but Sir Nicholas Collingsworth shows up at her family's Christmas house party with all the swagger of a man who knows exactly what he's doing. Alexander writes holiday romance with enough heat to fog the windows and enough wit to keep it from sliding into treacle. The banter crackles; the emotional stakes feel earned. This is comfort reading that doesn't insult your intelligence—foxed pages and all. Explore our current copy of A Visit from Sir Nicholas | Browse more Romance books at Patina

Desires of a Perfect Lady — Victoria Alexander

The "perfect reputation meets buried scandal" trope, executed with Alexander's trademark emotional precision. Lady Olivia Rathbourne has built a fortress around her past—years of flawless behaviour designed to hide a secret that could destroy her. Then a man from that past walks back into her orbit, and the walls start cracking. Alexander knows how to let a heroine unravel slowly, letting the reader in on the secret while the hero plays catch-up. The result is a romance that feels intimate rather than overblown, with just enough Regency ballroom polish to make the private moments land harder. Explore our current copy of Desires of a Perfect Lady | Browse more Romance books at Patina

What a Lady Wants — Victoria Alexander

Victorian-era inheritance hijinks meet actual character development. Set in 1888 London, this is Alexander writing outside the pure Regency window but keeping the formula intact: Felicity Melville inherits a fortune with strings—marry one of three "suitable" men her guardian picked, or lose it all. The twist is that Alexander doesn't let Felicity be a passive prize. She's stubborn, calculating, and fully aware of the absurdity of her situation. The romance unfolds against the backdrop of late Victorian society, where the rules are shifting but still suffocating. It's Alexander at her most playful. Explore our current copy of What a Lady Wants | Browse more Romance books at Patina

The Daring Exploits of a Runaway Heiress — Victoria Alexander

Faking your own death to escape propriety is a mood, and Alexander makes it work. Lucy Merryweather is done being London's most obedient heiress, so she fakes her death and runs to New York to live the scandalous life she's been denied. This is Alexander letting loose—there's cross-Atlantic travel, mistaken identities, and a hero who has to reconcile the "perfect" woman he thought he knew with the chaotic, liberated version standing in front of him. The Regency-adjacent setting (this one skews slightly later) gives Alexander room to play with early feminist themes without losing the genre's core appeal. It's escapism with a spine. Explore our current copy of The Daring Exploits of a Runaway Heiress | Browse more Romance books at Patina

A Lady's Wish — Katharine Ashe

Three wishes, one prince, and the kind of emotional slow-burn Ashe is known for. Lady Emma Cavanaugh has a list: three wishes she's determined to fulfill before she resigns herself to a loveless match. Prince Lucien Westfall, carrying secrets darker than his title suggests, becomes her reluctant accomplice. Ashe writes longing better than most—her romances build tension not through manufactured conflict but through characters who genuinely can't figure out how to want what they want. The Regency backdrop is meticulously researched (Ashe is a former professor), and it shows in the details: fabric, social etiquette, the weight of a reputation. Explore our current copy of A Lady's Wish | Browse more Romance books at Patina

Too Dangerous to Desire — Cara Elliott

A bluestocking inventor meets a rake who does maths—what's not to love? Sophie Lawrance's steam engine explodes, and she needs a reclusive genius to fix it. Enter a Regency rake who happens to be brilliant with numbers and terrible with people. Elliott's Circle of Sin series leans into espionage and intellectual chemistry, giving the romance a sharper edge than the standard ballroom fare. This is the third book, but it stands alone—Sophie is stubborn, the hero is emotionally unavailable in interesting ways, and the plot involves actual stakes beyond "will they waltz together?" The foxing on these mass-market copies is half the charm. Explore our current copy of Too Dangerous to Desire | Browse more Romance books at Patina

London's Last True Scoundrel — Christina Brooke

A rake with a ruined reputation and a heroine who refuses to save him—until she does. The Marquis of Steyne has burned every bridge in London society, and Christina Brooke doesn't let him off easy. This isn't a redemption arc handed to him on a silver platter; he has to earn it, page by grinding page. Brooke writes rakes who feel like actual disasters rather than misunderstood softies, and the romance works because the heroine isn't there to fix him—she's there despite him. The Westruthers series launched with this in 2012, and it holds up as a sharp example of how to write a scoundrel without making him insufferable. Explore our current copy of London's Last True Scoundrel | Browse more Romance books at Patina

Regency Charades — Louise Allen

House party chaos, misunderstandings, and a reputation in freefall. Cassandra Ward shows up to a quiet country gathering and immediately finds herself caught in a web of miscommunication, mistaken intentions, and one very inconvenient attraction. Louise Allen writes Regency romance with a light touch—her plots are driven by character mistakes rather than external melodrama, which makes the resolutions feel earned. This is the kind of book where you can practically smell the wood smoke and feel the weight of a heavy winter cloak. As of July 2026, Patina's romance shelves lean heavily into this exact flavour of cosy historical chaos. Explore our current copy of Regency Charades | Browse more Romance books at Patina

A Duke In Need Of A Wife — Annie Burrows

Marriage-of-convenience meets mutual combustion. The Duke of Theakstone needs an heir; a practical woman needs security. Neither expected chemistry. Burrows writes for Harlequin's historical line, which means the beats are familiar but the execution is what matters. She gives both characters agency—the heroine isn't a passive prize, and the duke isn't a brooding cipher. The marriage-of-convenience setup is a Regency romance staple, and Burrows leans into it without trying to reinvent the formula. It's comfort reading that knows exactly what it is, yellowed pages and all. Explore our current copy of A Duke In Need Of A Wife | Browse more Romance books at Patina

The Earl — Katharine Ashe

A pirate-turned-earl, a vicar's daughter, and a murder mystery that complicates everything. Lady Amarantha Vale thinks she's seen a ghost when the Earl of Bedwyr shows up at a country house—masked, mysterious, and carrying a past that involves the high seas. Ashe's Devil's Duke series blends Gothic atmosphere with Regency propriety, and The Earl is the darkest of the bunch. There's a murder, a conspiracy, and a romance that unfolds in the shadows rather than the ballroom. Ashe doesn't rush the emotional payoff, which means when it lands, it lands hard. This is Regency romance for readers who want their dukes complicated. Explore our current copy of The Earl | Browse more Romance books at Patina

Where can I buy preloved Regency romance novels in Sydney?

Patina Paperbacks stocks rotating preloved copies of Regency romance from Victoria Alexander, Katharine Ashe, Christina Brooke, and others—all shipped Australia-wide from Sydney. Our online collection includes mass-market paperbacks with foxing, creased spines, and the lived-in charm of a genre that's meant to be re-read until the covers fall off.

What's the difference between Regency romance and historical romance?

Regency romance is a subgenre of historical romance set specifically during the British Regency period (1811–1820), though many books stretch into the late Georgian and early Victorian eras. The tropes—dukes, ballrooms, marriage-of-convenience plots—became codified by Georgette Heyer in the 1930s and exploded in mass-market paperback form in the 1990s and 2000s. If it involves a title, a scandal, and a happily-ever-after, it's probably Regency.

Are Victoria Alexander's books connected, or can I read them out of order?

Most of Alexander's books are standalone or part of loosely connected series where recurring side characters show up but the plots don't depend on reading order. The Daring Exploits of a Runaway Heiress is part of the Millworth Manor series, and What a Lady Wants is book two in the Last Man Standing series, but both work perfectly well on their own. Jump in anywhere.

Why do preloved Regency romance paperbacks always have foxing?

Honestly, it's the paper. Mass-market paperbacks from the 1990s and 2000s were printed on cheap, acid-heavy stock that yellows and spots over time—especially if they've lived in humid climates or sat on a sunny shelf. Foxing (those little brown spots) is a sign of age, not damage. For Regency romance, it's half the charm: these books were meant to be read poolside, on trains, in bed at 2am. The foxing proves someone loved them first.

What should I read if I love duke-centric Regency romance?

Start with Katharine Ashe's Devil's Duke series for Gothic-inflected emotional slow-burns, or Christina Brooke's Westruthers books if you want rakes who actually feel dangerous. Victoria Alexander's Millworth Manor and Effington Family series deliver classic ballroom banter with modern sensibility. If you want something slightly darker, Cara Elliott's Circle of Sin trilogy adds espionage and intellectual chemistry to the mix. All are available preloved at Patina.

If ballroom scandals, emotionally unavailable earls, and the smell of old paperbacks are your love language, shop all Romance books at Patina Paperbacks →