The Marriage Wager
By Candace Camp
3.5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
No longer in the first blush of youth and without a marriage portion, Miss Constance Woodley could scarcely imagine why one of the leading lights of London society should take an interest in the likes of her. But under her benefactor's guiding hand she was transformed into a captivating creature who caught the eye of the handsome, charming and ever-so-slightly notorious Lord Dominic Leighton. And before the shocked eyes of the entire Ton, the "nobody" and the rakish viscount showed that even in the heartless world of the marriage mart, when love was at stake, all bets were off .
Candace Camp
Candace Camp is a New York Times bestselling author of over sixty novels of contemporary and historical romance. She grew up in Texas in a newspaper family, which explains her love of writing, but she earned a law degree and practiced law before making the decision to write full-time. She has received several writing awards, including the RT Book Reviews Lifetime Achievement Award for Western Romances. Visit her at www.candace-camp.com.
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Reviews for The Marriage Wager
8 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The first in the Matchmakers series has a definite Cinderella-like flavor. Constance Woodley, on the shelf at twenty-nine, is in London for the first time only to act as a companion to her two spoiled younger cousins. Her aunt displays traditional "evil stepmother" tendencies, pressuring Constance to dress in drab, matronly clothing and ensuring that she is so busy tending to her daughters that she has no time to attempt to carve out a life for hersefl. Enter Lady Francesca Haughston, Constance's fairy godmother. Lady Francsca, a young widow who has had some success in helping society parents find matches for their daughters, makes a comment while at a ball that she could get any girl married. The Duke of Rochford takes her up on her wager, selecting Constance out of the crowd to be the focus of Francesca's efforts. Little does Francesca know, but that same night Constance actually meets her "prince" on her own--Francesca's brother. Dominic is, of course, above Constance socially; to complicate matters, his family is in financial straits and need him to marry well. All seems lost...or is it?
This story doesn't really hsve any surprises, but it is a well-written and fun read. The ending felt a bit rushed and almost a bit too neat, but overall I really enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to reading the others in the series soon. - Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I like a book with an older and a younger couple on different timetables. This one is let down by a thing I very much dislike in romance novels: the intrusion of incest or rape (rather than camp mustache twirling), particularly since it's off screen, existing to make the people who oppose the match more repulsive than they otherwise would be.
I do like the likeable characters enough to keep an eye out for the fourth book in this series, the one that deals with this book's older couple. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I quite enjoyed learning more about Francesca and watching her matchmaking at work. I had been a little sad to see that there is no hint of her romance with Sinclair, past or present, although one does wonder at the very end when Francesca wins the bet (c'mon, not really a spoiler, is it? She is the matchmaker after all). It is also fun to see Francesca wield her power as a high-ranked lady to outwit Constance's stubborn aunt who is husband-hunting for her daughters and Dominic's stubborn admirer who won't take "no" for an answer.There are some surprising topics that pop into The Marriage Wager that I had not expected, and I do not think that I had ever encountered in any romance novel that I have read. Francesca and Dominic's family keep some skeletons in their closet, and these shocking secrets surface at the end of the book!All in all, I think The Marriage Wager is an enjoyable romance as Regency romance goes (though no underlying mystery or mayhem involved). I think I prefer The Courtship Dance for some undetermined reason (I admit that it could be due to the fact that I read it first).
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A fun regency romance with a lot of the usual plot points and with a refreshingly realistic attitude.Constance Woodley stayed at home to nurse her father through his final illness and was older than most when he died to have her season in London, her sister-in-law and brother convinced her to help mind their daughters and now, when they're old enough she's working as their chaperone. No-one reckoned on Lady Haughtson and a bet.It's light fun, fairly realistic and with a lot of interesting characters and situations.