Very Definition of Love (2026)

This fresh Regency romance follows Harriet Bancroft, a wallflower who is perfectly content to reach her fifth season without marriage prospects, since it gives her more time to write a dictionary of modern slang, especially the exciting and filthy words men have kept hidden from women. In 1816, Harriet accidentally finds herself in a compromising situation with the notorious rake Lord Alexander Stirling and has no choice but to sort of kidnap him and force him into an elopement. Their arranged marriage comes with one particular condition: it will exist in name only, allowing Harriet to pursue her work and Alexander to pursue women. But Alexander soon finds his rakish lifestyle less enjoyable than spending time with Harriet, while Harriet begins to worry that she might actually like her husband. Behind the closed doors of their respectable home, things become complicated, especially when the renowned lover becomes the perfect teacher for the indecent words in her dictionary. With enemies-to-lovers tension, a marriage of convenience, yearning, one bed and a rake-and-wallflower pairing, this witty, heartfelt and sensual Regency romance explores whether marriage can teach them both the meaning of love.