--- description: Find out why 'Devil in Winter' made the list. title: 'Devil in Winter' Is on TIME’s List of the 50 Best Romance Novels image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt75a1c5ee4fa74fc7/698a594086f68ea0026f5645/Devil-in-Winter-Lisa-Kleypas.png?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Aug 01, 2024 # Devil in Winter by [Shannon Carlin](/author/shannon-carlin/) ## Shannon Carlin Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Carlin is a contributor for TIME.  Best-selling author and winner of a Romance Writers of America RITA Award, Lisa Kleypas has been writing romance novels since the 1980s. Her 2006 historical romance, _Devil in Winter,_ the third book in [her hit _Wallflowers_ series](https://lisakleypas.com/historicals/ "undefined"),begins with an unlikely marriage of convenience in 1840s England. To escape her conniving family, Evangeline “Evie” Jenner, a shy heiress with a stutter, proposes to Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent, a rakish royal with serious money woes. After consummating their marriage, Sebastian finds himself falling for the redheaded homebody, but Evie isn’t quite convinced this sex-obsessed cad is an ideal husband. In this titillating take on the enemies-to-lovers trope, Evie challenges Sebastian to a three-month vow of celibacy in order to make him prove he is in love—and not just in lust—with her. **Buy Now:** _Devil in Winter_ on [Bookshop](https://bookshop.org/a/4973/9780060562519 "undefined") | [Amazon](https://amzn.to/3LEHEC9 "undefined") These are independent reviews of the products mentioned, but TIME receives a commission when purchases are made through affiliate links at no additional cost to the purchaser. Devil in Winter: Best Romance Books ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996605/devil-in-winter/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996605/devil-in-winter/"},"headline":"Devil in Winter","datePublished":"2024-08-01T12:18:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:34:19.446Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996605/devil-in-winter/","keywords":["Books","E-Commerce","list","Special Project"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt75a1c5ee4fa74fc7/698a594086f68ea0026f5645/Devil-in-Winter-Lisa-Kleypas.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Shannon Carlin","jobTitle":"Carlin is a contributor for TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/shannon-carlin/"}],"creator":"Shannon Carlin","articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt75a1c5ee4fa74fc7/698a594086f68ea0026f5645/Devil-in-Winter-Lisa-Kleypas.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996605/devil-in-winter/","name":"Devil in Winter"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Romance Authors Share the Steamiest Book They've Ever Read","description":"Romance authors like Emily Henry and Beverly Jenkins talk about the steamiest book they've ever read.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/jXMACfdW/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2024-07-30T10:00:00.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/jXMACfdW.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996605/devil-in-winter/","duration":"PT1M21S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996605/devil-in-winter/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```