Rules of the Heart: The Unforgettable Regency Romance From the Author of the Major BBC Series, The Other Bennet Sister - Softcover

Hadlow, Janice

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1509841997 ISBN 13: 9781509841998

Publisher: Pan, 2026

Synopsis

'Entertaining historical fiction with Jane Austen vibes' – Good Housekeeping

Inspired by the true story of Countess Bessborough, Rules of the Heart is the sweeping novel from the bestselling author of The Other Bennet Sister, Janice Hadlow.

When I love at all, it is with my whole soul – my heart must be torn to pieces before it can forget . . .

England, 1794. Lady Harriet Bessborough seemingly has it all: wife to a lord and sister to a duchess, she is welcomed in the most fashionable circles. Yet she yearns for something her marriage has failed to offer: true love.

When she meets the captivating Lord Granville, twelve years her junior and a famous heartbreaker, she at first dismisses his advances as opportunistic flattery. But then she sees another side to him – a side she realizes she cannot resist.

As she plunges into an all-consuming affair, Harriet finds herself torn between her duty and her deepest desires. For, in a world where appearances are everything, each anxious but besotted step she takes leads her ever closer to scandal and ruin . . .

Praise for The Other Bennet Sister:

'Immersive and engaging' – The Guardian

'It's difficult not to race through those final pages' – Jo Baker, bestselling author of Longbourn

'A novel that will delight Pride and Prejudice fans' – Independent

About this title

About the Author

Janice Hadlow was born in London and studied history at university. After a few years working for the House of Commons, she joined the BBC and became a television producer. There, and later at Channel Four, she played an important role in popularizing history on TV, making a number of highly regarded series, including Simon Schama’s History of Britain.

She went on to run two of the BBC’s major television channels, first as Controller of BBC 4 and then BBC 2, and she commissioned hits across a wide range of genres, from Great British Bake Off to the dramas Wolf Hall and Line of Duty. She was the recipient of a number of awards, and is a Fellow of the Royal Television Society, as well as of King’s College, University of London.

The Other Bennet Sister is her first novel although she has previously written one non fiction book, The Strangest Family, which told the story of the troubled relationship between George III and his wife and children. Her newest novel, Rules of the Heart, is a sweeping Regency romance, featuring a real-life scandalous affair.

She currently lives in Edinburgh with her husband and has two sons.

Edition details

• Publisher: Pan
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1509841997
• ISBN 13: 9781509841998
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 480