Customer Reviews

Devil's Wager

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have been following the Wager trilogy since its inception, and have always loved Ms. Spencer's stories. Lad and Diana's story is by far the best written and most enjoyable of the series (and that's saying a lot! ). Lad kept popping up in the previous stories, and we would get glimpses of what his story might be. Thankfully, Devil's Wager delivers the story.

Lad is a strong and interesting character. We find out why he leaves the United States, and even after a traumatic time in his life during The War of 1812 (losing his brother and shortly thereafter his mother), he still takes up his birth right in England. Not an easy move, and not one most people would have made. He loved his home and the memories it held of his family, but he was able to move beyond that. Once in England, watching Lad struggle with both the aristocracy and common folk is fascinating. He tries to befriend his tenants and ultimately sets them against him because of his egalitarian beliefs. They just don't understand him, and being an American, he just can't think of them as inferior or himself as superior. How he overcomes this and develops his character, makes for great reading.

I found Diana a bit of a weak character, not believing in Lad's love (he figured out his letters were not reaching her, why could she not figure the same, especially for an intelligent person) and sticking so strongly to her home. The idea that love is not enough does not sit well with me (as a fan of romance books). How she could love Lad for what he is, but wants to change the very things that make him who he is, is unrealistic. The writing itself is wonderfully done, and I truly enjoyed reading Devil's Wager.

As a proud American, Lad Walker had nothing but contempt for his father's homeland and the English earl who had disinherited him long ago. But when he first set eyes on Diana Whitleby, his grandfather's goddaughter, he knew he would do anything to win her love, even assume the earldom of Kerlaine and strive to rescue the estate from the poverty into which it had fallen.

As much as she loved him in return, Diana had made a prior commitment to protect the castle, the land, and the tenants at all costs. She knew her beloved American husband could not understand her feelings, anymore than he could fit into his role as the earl, but when he lost the entire estate on the turn of a card, Diana was forced to send him away until he could earn the money to redeem it.

For the first several months of his exile, Lad's efforts met with nothing but failure. Then he had the good fortune to run into a real-life guardian angel who taught him how to behave like an English gentleman and helped him find an honorable way to win back his inheritance and his wife. Under his tutelage, Lad began to understand the English social system and, indeed, his own responsibilities as the earl of Kerlaine.

What a shock, then, to return to Kerlaine with the means to redeem it, only to find his wife preparing to honor a dastardly wager of her own!

The last of Mary Spencer's "Wager" trilogy, this book may be the best of them all. Not only does it portray the triumph of true love over evil, but it makes even this patriotic American reader begin to understand and appreciate the purposes and benefits of the English class system.

While this wasn't my favorite of the series, I was very pleased with this book. It wraps up all the loose ends of the previous two books while managing to maintain the focus of the story on Lad and Diana. Theirs is a bitter sweet romance which is portreyed partly through letters. While they fall in love almost right away, most of their time is spent apart.

I enjoyed this book very much and would recommend it to anyone who has read the other two books. If you haven't, I am not sure that you will appreciate some of the minor characters in this book.

Devil's Wager is yet again another example of Mary Spencer's intelligent, well above-average writing. There are only a few romance authors who seem to write for people who like a more indepth book, and she's one of them. This particular story is definitely a romance, but also much more. The reader is taken on both the hero's and heroine's vastly different journeys of discovery, though the focus is far more on the hero, Lad, than the heroine, Diana. Watching him evolve from a red-blooded American male into a proper English nobleman, and going through each difficulty he endures during his transformation, will hold readers transfixed. Spencer handles the change beautifully, so that rather than being an "Oh, brother!", readers are able to identify and understand how the "old" Lad becomes the "new" Lad -- the same man underneath, but stronger in almost every way. In other words, it's a realistic change. I do wish that Spencer had taken as much care with Diana, but the book overall was so strong that I'm able to overlook it. Devil's Wager, the third in a trilogy, does stand alone, but I would recommend reading the other books (Dark Wager, Lady's Wager) first in order to better appreciate some of the secondary characters. Apart from that, Lady's Wager is a real hoot to read. Very funny book.

I enjoyed reading this historical novel although I wish I had known that it was the last of a trilogy (I would have read the others first).

There was a true glimpse of how hard it was for a person to move from one country to another, with a view of how important the class structure in England was. Better yet is the fact that the scenario is somewhat believable. Many marriages at the time were arranged to bring monies into an estate. The story explains a little about why this was so important for the survival of not just the castle Lord but also for those dependent on that relationship for survival.

Diana wanted Lad to give up everything for her. He tried so hard to make things better in Kerlain, but it wasn't enough. She said she loved him, but she didn't respect him and wanted to change him. She trusted Eoghan more, even though he was absolutely cruel to her and drew her and Lad apart. And then she threw Lad out - with no regard for him or for his feelings, for the reasons he did what he did... She wasn't satisfied until he severed all ties to America and became a completely different person. And he did everything for her, without once reprimanding her... She was such a selfish brat, I couldn't stand her!

In England, October 1814, the Earl of Kerlain died. He had banished his son long ago to America. Since there was no other to inherit the title, and so many depended on it, he sent the title to his grandson, Lad, in America. He had Diana write out his wishes of Lad coming to claim the title, care for the castle and people, and marry Diana.

P. Lad Walker had lost his parents and brothers. Some to the war, some due to other causes. He was urged to go see the land his father had spoken so much about, even though Lad had his own estate to run in America. Once there he fell in love with Diana. She returned the feeling. However, she would never leave Kerlain and he could not imagine staying. None of the people liked him since he was American. None would listen to his American methods of putting the castle and its land back on its feet. To make matters worse, he lost the estate to a man to Eoghan in a card game during a time of grieving. He did not know how much the man coveted his wife. Lad had thought the man in only friend in the country.

Diana was being blackmailed by Eoghan. Eoghan gave her three years to pay back the sum he named for regaining Kerlain. The hardest thing Diana ever had to do was send Lad away to find the funds. If she left England with her husband, Eoghan would see it that the estate went to ruin and that the tenants, down to the last child, would die of starvation. Diana had to agree that if Lad, the new Earl, could not pay the sum, then she would willingly divorce Lad, marry him, and be his wife in all ways. This bargain she could not reveal to her husband though. If Lad were to know, he would kill Eoghan. Lad, being American, would not even get a trial.

*** Incredible story! Diana is such a brave and strong woman. Lad was her match in every way. Author, Mary Spencer, concluded this marvelous trilogy with a big climax. A keeper for your book shelves! ***

This is the best of the Wager series of books. Unfortunately, you have to read the other two to truly understand the development of the hero's character. Interesting and well written.

If you love a good read, you'll love this book! I've read hundreds of romances, and couldn't put this one down. The love story was heartbreaking and wonderful and very satisfying. You'll love Lad and Diana and even the secondary characters.

I would not recommend this book, compared to the other books that she has written this one fell really short. If you really want to read this book, buy it used and save your money.