The Duke's Wager [Paperback]

Edith Layton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1983

Pursued by infamous bachelors Jason Thomas and St. John Basil St. Charles, both notorious rakes, Regina Berryman realizes that the only way to preserve her honor is to turn the tables on both suitors. Reissue.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Signet (February 1, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451145666
• ISBN-13: 978-0451145666
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #715,703 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jaded, March 17, 2003

By 

Audrey - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Duke's Wager (Paperback)

You can get the plot pretty much anywhere, and at first glance, the Duke's Wager, seemingly, is very formulaic. Young innocent bookish virgin heroine + titled promiscuous handsome rake. In this case, two of them: the younger and less dissipated Marquis of Bessacarr, and the truly legendary Duke of Torquay. However, while the secondary characters are not very well developed, it is understandable when you see how powerful the characters of Regina and the hero (yes, he is still a hero) are. It leaves little room to flesh out extraneous characters, and maybe that's why the book is so compelling: it propels along by the force of one man alone; I knew who I wanted Regina to be with even before she appeared on the scene.

Written in the 80s, it dates itself a little in that the characters have semi-soliliquies a la Woodiwiss, but with infinite times the intelligence and a fraction of the mind-numbing dullness. All the characters say "for" when they mean "because" and there are several typos, but this remains, undisputedly, Layton's best work, if not the top 10 romances I've ever read.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A winner, one of the best regencies ever written!, January 4, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Hollywood,Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Duke's Wager (Paperback)

If you read one book by Edith Layton, read this one. Regina, the heroine, is a woman on the cusp of a delimima, starve and be virtuous, or accept the protection of Jason, Duke of Torquay. The conversations/decisiions between Regina and Jason are some of the best ever written in a romance novel. This ranks close to Georgette Heyer's best such as "The Devil's Cub" or "These Old Shades". Jason shows multiple sides to his personality as he finds himself both wanting Regina and hoping she will continue to decline his offer. If you have read her other books and wondered about who the Duke of Torquay was....then this is one you should read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unique regency, July 20, 2010

By 

E. Kelch (Alexandria, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Duke's Wager (Paperback)

"A rake reformed" is a classic theme in romance novels, but Edith Layton did it one better in this novel. She has two reformable rakes here, and Layton leaves it ambiguous for much of the book which rake will turn into the hero. One of the rakes is more wicked than usual for a potential hero. He causes the heroine to be cast out from her home and onto his mercy (he hopes; she escapes). The ending is particularly well-drawn. More than any other recent books I've read, this one reminded me of a Georgette Heyer.