School of Magic Series by Patricia Rice

Can a straitlaced engineer, three psychic children, and a lonely witch find love?The daughter of an earl, Lady Phoebe Malcolm Duncan has the ability to talk to animals. She longs to be a veterinarian, but education requires more coin than she possesses. When the walls of her home come tumbling down, she has to take two steps back—to servitude.Inventor Andrew Blair keeps his nose to the grindstone, knowing his friends and family depend on his talent for turning machines into money... moreCan a straitlaced engineer, three psychic children, and a lonely witch find love?The daughter of an earl, Lady Phoebe Malcolm Duncan has the ability to talk to animals. She longs to be a veterinarian, but education requires more coin than she possesses. When the walls of her home come tumbling down, she has to take two steps back—to servitude.Inventor Andrew Blair keeps his nose to the grindstone, knowing his friends and family depend on his talent for turning machines into money. He is about to embark on his biggest investment yet—rebuilding crumbling tenements in Old Town Edinburgh— until his beleaguered cousin begs him to hide his precocious children from a killer.When the School of Malcolms sends Lady Phoebe as governess for his wards, Drew's well-ordered beliefs are upended. Ladies don't live in slum housing like the one he's about to tear down, nor do they command ravens or encourage children to talk to dead mothers. It might take a vengeful ghost to show the disparate pair how to join forces, fight their fears and their enemies, and reveal a path to love. less

She’s the mistress of illusion; How can he trust her lessons on love? Lady Olivia Malcolm Hargreaves is a viscountess, a widow, a governess, the adopted mother of a disabled toddler—but above all else, she is a survivor. When the father of the young children she’s been caring for arrives on Christmas Eve, drunk and ranting, his aura and her own sad experience tell her he’s dangerous... moreShe’s the mistress of illusion; How can he trust her lessons on love? Lady Olivia Malcolm Hargreaves is a viscountess, a widow, a governess, the adopted mother of a disabled toddler—but above all else, she is a survivor. When the father of the young children she’s been caring for arrives on Christmas Eve, drunk and ranting, his aura and her own sad experience tell her he’s dangerous.Heart hardened after the murder of his beloved wife, Simon Blair is an industrialist who has no use for another psychic Malcolm. His late wife’s weird family is more than enough interference. But his twin daughters are talking to their mother’s ghost, his son and heir is floating objects that shouldn’t float, and he’s beleaguered by aristocrats who refuse to acknowledge his plebeian existence.When Simon learns that Lady Olivia is in a position to help him obtain the land he needs for his business, and she recognizes that by helping him, she might regain the home she’s lost, they must fight their respective prejudices and forge an uneasy alliance. It might take a ghost, an army of children, and a criminal gang to force them to recognize that they want far more than real estate. less

NYT bestselling author Patricia Rice presents the third book in her beloved School of Magic series: Victorian Edinburgh belongs to staid professors, not the flamboyant daughter of a Hindu princess.Lacking any of her Malcolm family's psychic abilities, Azmin Dougall flees her ancestral home of India for Edinburgh, fearing she'll be a pigeon in a family of peacocks... moreNYT bestselling author Patricia Rice presents the third book in her beloved School of Magic series: Victorian Edinburgh belongs to staid professors, not the flamboyant daughter of a Hindu princess.Lacking any of her Malcolm family's psychic abilities, Azmin Dougall flees her ancestral home of India for Edinburgh, fearing she'll be a pigeon in a family of peacocks. But she's willing to risk everything to aid a friend's escape from an abusive husband—and to test her newly discovered, weirdly-perceptive photography skills.Dr. Zane Dare is done with risk. Because his work introduced disease into his family home, his sister is dead, and his niece, Louisa, is an invalid left in his care. As a bachelor, and one who spends all his waking hours researching a cure, he has no means of entertaining an adolescent girl. In desperation, he asks the School of Malcolms to provide a governess.Zane is appalled when they send Azmin. A decade ago they shared an enchanted summer that ended in crushed dreams. Worse yet, introducing a defiant Hindu princess into his household will jeopardize Zane's precarious research position. And Azmin isn't about to trust a man who scoffs at her incipient psychic abilities—until his frail niece wins her love.But after Azmin's photograph reveals the man courting Louisa may be dangerous, Zane and Azmin must set aside their differences to protect the girl who could teach their hearts to love again... less

Can a timid librarian and a bold engineer save a castle's toppling tower of books?The stereotypical timid librarian, Lydia Wystan has only one true love, the books that whisper to her. But unless she can understand the whispers, she cannot become what she wants to be more than anything—the Malcolm Librarian.Maxwell Ives has a disastrous gift for attracting women, a trait that has resulted in three sons and a desire for solitude... moreCan a timid librarian and a bold engineer save a castle's toppling tower of books?The stereotypical timid librarian, Lydia Wystan has only one true love, the books that whisper to her. But unless she can understand the whispers, she cannot become what she wants to be more than anything—the Malcolm Librarian.Maxwell Ives has a disastrous gift for attracting women, a trait that has resulted in three sons and a desire for solitude. Returning to England to find a school for one of his boys, Max seeks privacy in the isolated Malcolm library. But to Max’s dismay, the old librarian dies, leaving Miss Wystan, a female, in charge. Before he can run far, far away, he learns the library tower is in danger of toppling, and his cousin is stealing from his mother’s School of Malcolms.To save the library and Max’s family funds, Lydia must claim to be what she is not—a real librarian. Fascinated that his magnetism doesn’t affect the one woman who can help him, Max must choose between his freedom and his family. In the process of helping others, Max and Lydia just might learn that sometimes, love is the secret that makes magic happen. less

Can an impoverished earl find treasure with the aid of a runaway bride and a ghost?Refusing to fill her drunken stepfather’s coffers by marrying a wealthy American, Lady Iona Malcolm Ross flees her Highland estate for Wystan castle, a home for stray Malcolm females. She’s quite content to tend her precious queen bee and hives there—until the day the castle’s owner returns... moreCan an impoverished earl find treasure with the aid of a runaway bride and a ghost?Refusing to fill her drunken stepfather’s coffers by marrying a wealthy American, Lady Iona Malcolm Ross flees her Highland estate for Wystan castle, a home for stray Malcolm females. She’s quite content to tend her precious queen bee and hives there—until the day the castle’s owner returns.Unless Gerard, Earl of Ives and Wystan, can squeeze more income out of his estate, he’ll have to close the family’s deteriorating castle and evict the tenants. The sharp-tongued beekeeper who nearly kills him with her bees is simply another good reason. But lately, an artifact in his pocket weirdly whispers of treasure at Wystan, in the knowledgeable voice of a Roman soldier.A busy man with interests in law and archeology, Gerard isn’t much inclined to believe that he’s one of his family’s psychic eccentrics. Until news of a ten-thousand pound reward for the return of Lady Iona, a runaway bride, introduces a whole new perspective to the word treasure.Even if he weren’t allergic to Iona’s bees, he needs to marry money, and she is penniless. But surely, between them, they can claim the reward and still turn her wicked stepfather’s plot on its head—without endangering their lives or hearts. less

Can a ghost help a marquess to save his father and captivate a countess?A spinster countess with a penniless estate, Lady Isobel Malcolm Ross faints when startled, allowing spirits to enter her head. Undeterred by her impairment, Bell learns of a position in a quiet ducal household where she might earn her way.Jasper Winchester, Marquess of Rainford, comes from a long line of healers, but he’s unable to cure his own father... moreCan a ghost help a marquess to save his father and captivate a countess?A spinster countess with a penniless estate, Lady Isobel Malcolm Ross faints when startled, allowing spirits to enter her head. Undeterred by her impairment, Bell learns of a position in a quiet ducal household where she might earn her way.Jasper Winchester, Marquess of Rainford, comes from a long line of healers, but he’s unable to cure his own father. The duke's dying request is that Rainford marry to protect the family fortune. The marquess has dutifully acquired a suitable candidate, but Bell's arrival unleashes the ghost of Rain's grandmother, who frightens his fiancée into fleeing.Much as Rain would like to toss the haunted countess into the snow, only Bell can calm the furious ghost, hush his heir’s opera singers, and manage his unruly sisters. Soon, his family insists that Rain marry Bell before all their fortunes are lost. Except Bell wants no part of this tumultuous household, where slamming doors startle her into falling down staircases. But how can she abandon the eccentric family—and distraught marquess—who accepts her foibles?The ghost’s demands for Bell to help Rain save the duke result in mayhem and catastrophe. Now the two must find a way to heal each other—before the duke is gone, the family's future is lost, and any hope of love vanishes. less