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The Choice

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Damon Ryder felt the magic of Miss Gillian Giles from the first time he saw her. He didn't care that because of her humble beginnings she was ineligible to become a nobleman's wife. She was his soulmate, his other half. But he was beginning to despair that he would ever convince HER of that!

Gilly wanted desperately to believe him. But it was obvious that she was a disappointment to his family. Although she had learned to look and act like a lady, she was afraid she would never truly belong in that world. And she worried that she would never love Damon as truly as he deserved to be loved...because her first love would always take first place in her heart, even though he didn't reciprocate.

Or did he? The Earl of Drummond never expected Gilly to turn into such a desirable woman. How could he let her marry Damon Ryder when there was just a chance that she might be the one for HIM?

A poignant tale of a woman learning about love in its many forms, as well as her own value and purpose in life. And a man who learns to fight for the desire of his heart. A real winner!

And, considering the existence of several luscious potential heroes in this book, I am eagerly looking foward to hearing more about these fascinating characters in future sequels.

When I read The Cad, I was bowled over by the depth of the characters created by Edith Layton. The story itself was complex and well constructed. As I closed the book, I wondered at the fate of Gilly and Bridget. Now, in The Choice we know.

The erstwhile street urchin has made good and become a feisty lady. Who better to pursue her than Damon Ryder, the Season's most eligible bachelor? But there are two other suitors hovering in the wings. Who will Gilly choose? Will her past get in the way of true love?

Edith Layton in the tradition of classic regency romance writers such as Georgette Heyer has succeeded where others have failed, in producing a sequel that stands on its own merit. Again the characters are well drawn, and given during the course of the book space to develop and reveal the many facets that make a person whole. These are definitely no cardboard cutouts, but characters that you can identify with. A spellbinding story.

Well done. I can't wait to read her next book!

Enjoyed The Cad by Edith Layton? Wondered what happened to the urchin Gilly who masqueraded as a boy to protect herself? Well, The Choice is her story.

It's set four years after The Cad; Ewen and Bridget have made Gilly and her little sister their wards, and are bringing them up as educated young ladies. (No-one claims that they are in fact 'eligible' by birth, and rumours circulate that they aren't of good family).

At a ball one night, Gilly is attacked by a young aristocrat who, having heard the rumours, assumes that she's fair game. As he's standing nearby, Damon Ryder prepares to come to the rescue; but instead he finds himself having to pull Gilly off the young man! Just who is this young woman who can fight as well as any man?

In revenge, Gilly's attacker tries to ruin her reputation, but Damon again comes to her rescue by claiming that they are long-standing acquaintances and are actually engaged. Thus begins what to Gilly is a pretend betrothal; Damon very quickly realises that he'd like nothing more than for it to be real, and sets about persuading Gilly of his intentions.

But there are several things he doesn't know about Gilly. Readers of The Cad will be aware of her origins in the slums of London; to Gilly's surprise, Damon isn't at all bothered by that discovery. So she reveals her deepest secret to him: as we know from The Cad again, it is that she was raped as a very young child. Again, Damon is only sympathetic, not disgusted as she expected.

So she agrees to marry him. But at the same time there are other complications. Drum, Ewen's cousin (minor character from The Cad), with whom Gilly has been in love ever since she met him, returns and, as the book jacket informs us, seems to see Gilly in a new light. Could he be in love with her after all?

And what about the disreputable Hathaway Wycoff? A married man legendary for his affairs, he treats Gilly as a friend - and she returns the compliment - but he makes no secret of the fact that he would like her to be his lover. And that he is aware that being somebody's mistress might be the only option open to someone of her background.

Three delicious men - all of whom will, I hope, eventually get their own stories: which one will Gilly choose?

The youngest son of a powerful nobleman, his parents and siblings pampered Damon Ryder until one day he decided to prove to himself he can succeed without any help. He journeyed to America where he made a fortune as a businessman. After two years overseas, Damon returns home, seeking a spouse and ultimately a family.

At a ball, he observes Gillian Giles beat up notorious rake Lord Dearborne in the nearby gardens. Dearborne claims to his peers that he interceded when Damon made illicit advances on Gilly, a ward of the dangerous Viscount Sinclair. Damon protects Gilly's protection by claiming to be her fiancé. As he escorts Gilly about the town, he falls in love. However, Gilly believes that her common blood is not good enough for an aristocrat. Another problem is that she still loves somebody else.

Regency fans that choose an Edith Layton novel know they are in for an entertaining tale. Ms. Layton's latest novel THE CHOICE is a wonderful sequel to the poignant THE CAD. The story line is intriguing as Gilly represents a different type of lady then normally graces a historical romance. Damon is a warm hunk, who will garner much accolades and wishful desires by readers. Ms. Layton scores big time with a winning novel.

Harriet Klausner

Read The Cad and want to know more about the characters, especially the young street-urchin, Gilly? Well, don't miss this wonderful book. The story commences four years after the end of The Cad; Ewen and Bridget are still very happily married, with two children. In the interim, Ewen made Gilly and her young sister Betsy his wards, and Gilly cast off her boy's clothes and learned to live as an educated and ladylike young woman, taught by - among others - Ewen's friends Rafe and Drum (the Earl of Drummond).

As the story starts, Damon Ryder - newly returned from America - is strolling in the garden at a ball, and sees a beautiful young woman apparently in danger of being embraced against her will by her companion. He rushes to her rescue, only to find that she doesn't need help; he ends up having to pull her off her attacker. Thus he discovers that there is a lot more to Gilly Giles than meets the eye. However, since her attacker then tries to destroy her reputation, Damon claims that they are secretly engaged.

Gilly, although grateful, is anxious to free Damon from this obligation, but he is only too happy to make the engagement real; he fell in love with her the moment he saw her, and the more he learns about her only makes him love her more. Even when Gilly tells him the truth about her background - that she comes from the slums of London and that her father was a docker, *and* that she was raped as a small child - his feelings don't change.

But Gilly still feels that she isn't good enough for him, or for his family. And what she hasn't told anyone is that she's been secretly in love with Drum, her old friend, for years. But he never saw her as more than a child... until he returns, and it seems as if he's beginning to see her in a completely different light.

And as if having to choose between Damon and Drum isn't enough of a problem for Gilly, Lord Wycoff - married, but who lives apart from his wife - also makes it clear that he would take her any way he could have her.

Can Gilly choose between three men, all of whom want her? Or will she leave it too late to work out who she really loves, and risk losing them all?

Having read this, I now can't wait to read The Challenge, to find out how Hathaway gets on in America; and I sincerely hope that The Conquest is going to be about the last member of this little group of men!

***SPOILER ALERT***

A few days ago, I read and reviewed another book by Edith Layton called Lady of Spirit. I complained that it was too long and never really went anywhere. The Choice on the other hand grabs the reader within the first few pages and sucks her in throughout the entire book.

I read and fell in love with The Duke's Wager, a novel also by Layton. I bought Lady of Spirit based on the positive Amazon reviews and found it flat, boring, even annoying. But not so with The Choice, another book I bought based on the positive reviews. The Choice is witty, romantic, and very touching.

I have not read any of the other books in the series. It's obvious that many of the other characters lead novels of their own. In The Choice, you have Gilly Giles, a street rat evolved into a lady. Gilly is a breath of fresh air as far as heroines go.

Damon is one of the men who fall in love with her. We all read these types of novels because we want to be swept away by a wonderful, wholly unrealistic man. Damon is such a man. In most novels I have read, the male lead always has some type of flaw. Maybe a dark secret, a past hurt, something that makes him vulnerable and as such, even more tempting to us female readers. Not so with Damon. He's an ideal. Nothing dark or sinister. In fact, I might find his utter perfection quite annoying if he weren't so darn likable and funny.

It's Gilly, the female lead character, who has the "flaws." And Damon loves her BECAUSE of them. What woman doesn't want a man like that? One who not only accepts her for what and who she is but delights in it? And really, he is quite funny, and I'm a sucker for men with a sense of humor.

Drum is another man who eventually wants to win Gilly. It's apparent that Drum played a major role in the previous novels of this series. As such, his character is underdeveloped in this one. He did not come across as very likable to me, but I'm sure if I had gotten to know him through the previous novels, this would not be so.

By the time you get halfway through the book, it becomes apparent which suitor Gilly will choose because of the number of pages devoted to their relationship. But that doesn't detract from the story at all. This is purely a romance. Many other romance novels use a plot device in which the romance buds as an aside. There is a minor plot device here at the very beginning but the entire novel is mostly devoted specifically to the blossoming of a relationship.

My 1 minor complaint is that the climax of the novel (at least what I felt to be the climax--the scene in which Drum finally declares himself to Gilly) is very anti-climatic. It could be because Drum was so underdeveloped in this novel. I couldn't understand how Gilly could prefer him over Damon. It was her love for Drum that stood prevented her relationship with Damon to progress during most of the story. So when in this scene when Drum declares himself, she realizes, Oh, I didn't really love you in "that way," Drum, I loved you more like a brother--well, it seems a little trite and too neat and easy. And to me, Drum came across as a somewhat of an arrogant jerk so I never cared for him and didn't care that Gilly tossed him over. I think the author could have handled that better, in a way that made the audience sympathize with him more because I'm sure he'll be back as the male lead in his own novel next.

But aside from that, the author did a wonderful job of portraying genuine emotions. I was in tears several times throughout. A lovely read.

I enjoyed this book very much - Ms. Layton is an excellent writer and has a knack for creating very human, poignant characters. Damon was wonderful - my only question is where I can find a man just like him!

The second in a series by Edith Layton, THE CHOICE follows THE CAD. Damon had made his monies overseas in America and has finally returned home. Considered one of the catches of the season he is now looking for a wife. Caught defending Miss Gillian 'Gilly' Giles he tries to save her reputation and tells the ton that they are engaged. Though they barely know each other and initially believe the farce will end, Damon realizes he couldn't do any better. Gilly, on the other hand, has no appetite for marriage and only continues the charade because she believes it will end without the engagement being followed up.

Little do either realize how their feelings will change. This is a sweet romance with a hero that most women would cherish. Gilly has loved the Earl of Drummond since she was twelve. He returns after being gone for some time to find that Gilly is now grown up and realizes he cares for her deeply. Another character, Lord Wycoff, has also developed a fondness for her and wants her at his side. Finding things have always come easily to him, Damon knows that he has to earn Gilly's love and so he perseveres. The question is, who will win her love?

My copy of this book came from the library. I had it on reserve before I had a chance to read it. That was my first hint that it must be pretty good. My next observation was the condition of the material when I took it out. Both the front and back copy was damaged and torn with a note stamped on the book that said "Damage Noted". Normally a book in this condition is removed from the shelves. Well worn, this popular story has been much-read in the city that I live. I now know why.

This is one of those rare times when the hero loves completely before the heroine knows what she wants. Ms. Layton does a great job of making the reader care about the characters of the story, both good and bad. You will want to know what happens to the others when you finish the narrative. Both fascinating and enjoyable, be prepared to make time to read this wonderful regency. You will be glad you did.

In "The Choice" by Edith Layton, the hero and heroine of the book are two very interesting characters to read about. Gilly is not your usual "lady" and Damon is not your usual "lord." The novel had a great dialogue and I especially enjoyed the conversation between them. It was an amazing thing that Gilly could get over past and not be weighed down by it and not make her into a man hater or bitter person. Damon is a truly chivalrous fellow and I love his character all the more for it. What guy would give up the love of their life just so that she can be happy? And what guy would still do it even thoguh it would break his heart? Well, not many! The one thing that really juts out of my mind when I read the story was at that inn and Gilly was waiting for Damon with Drum (Lord Drummold, the guy who she thought she was in love with) and when Damon burst in throught the door, she ran to him and Gilly and Damon were staring at each other. He had a grave look on him and his eyes were serious but when he looked into Gilly's love filled eyes, his expression started to change into one of hapiness. Then they kissed infront of all those people and felt that they were the only two people in the room. This part was the most memorable to me. Read it! This is one great book.