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Lady Alex's Gamble
All London was abuzz about a gambler who seemed to have the devil's own luck in besting the best gamesters in town. None suspected that it was skill, not luck, that took trick after trick, just as no one dreamed that this cool-headed gentleman was a lady in disguise, burning to make a fortune fast.
Alexandra de Montmorency was masquerading as a man as she staked all to save everything her family had... and when handsome, steely-eyed Christopher, Lord Wrotham, came too close to the truth for comfort, she had to decide if it was worth winning her game of pretense at the price of her rising passion... or whether she should risk laying her cards on the table and putting her honour, her fortune, and her heart in the hands of a man who played for stakes she couldn't afford...
Alexandra de Montmorency was masquerading as a man as she staked all to save everything her family had... and when handsome, steely-eyed Christopher, Lord Wrotham, came too close to the truth for comfort, she had to decide if it was worth winning her game of pretense at the price of her rising passion... or whether she should risk laying her cards on the table and putting her honour, her fortune, and her heart in the hands of a man who played for stakes she couldn't afford...
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1995
About the author
Evelyn Richardson
35 books11 followersEven before studying eighteenth-century literature in graduate school, Evelyn Richardson decided she would prefer to have lived between 1775 and 1830. Now living in Boston, she enjoys access to the primary sources that allow her to explore the specific details of the period and immerse herself in the same journals that her heroines enjoyed.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 27, 2011
This was a great story, completely non realistic but very good anyway. Essentially Lady Alex has a twin bro who is a gambler and louse. He get the family into debt with a real scumbag neighbor and Lady Alex has to either come up with 100000 pnds or marry him. Since her father taught her all he knew of gambling and she has inherited his talent, she decides to dress up as her bro and go to White's in London to play for high stakes as her twin is mortally ill. While there, she meets Christopher the H, a man who is very disillusioned with the peerage and with women due to the uselessness he see's all around him.
He is very impressed with Alex and agrees to aid her in her quest and then finds out she is a lady. They gradually fall in love but don't confess their feelings as Alex has responsibilities to her family at home and Chris is on his way to serve with Wellington at Waterloo. Alex decides to follow Chris as her younger brother is there as well and so she disguises herself one last time and tracks down her brother and her love.
What was nice about this story is the emotional maturity of both the H and the h. They were slightly cynical but there was no whining, angsting or belaboring about their feelings or circumstances. They were both just got on with getting on and took some time to enjoy each other along the way. There are only a few kisses in this one, but the tension was good and the HEA was truly great. I admit I wanted an epilogue just to see more of the HEA but all in all a good book.
He is very impressed with Alex and agrees to aid her in her quest and then finds out she is a lady. They gradually fall in love but don't confess their feelings as Alex has responsibilities to her family at home and Chris is on his way to serve with Wellington at Waterloo. Alex decides to follow Chris as her younger brother is there as well and so she disguises herself one last time and tracks down her brother and her love.
What was nice about this story is the emotional maturity of both the H and the h. They were slightly cynical but there was no whining, angsting or belaboring about their feelings or circumstances. They were both just got on with getting on and took some time to enjoy each other along the way. There are only a few kisses in this one, but the tension was good and the HEA was truly great. I admit I wanted an epilogue just to see more of the HEA but all in all a good book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 26, 2016
This nearly put me to sleep!
June 11, 2013
It promised a great storyline but Lady Alex's Gamble is completely devoid of any narrative tension. The characters were just too perfect, too capable, too skilled in everything that mattered (and Alex's flaws were conveniently things she completely didn't need in the story). It made for an exceptionally dull read. The whole pretense of the book was this cross-dressing heroine bravely entering a man's world to gamble back the money and family estate her brother lost, but was there any doubt that Alex would not succeed? Nope. Because. She. Won. Every. Single. Game. No losses, no near losses...she pretty much steamrolled everyone who ever ventured into White's playing for obscene amounts of money. Half the time the wins happened 'off screen' could you believe!
To that same effect the romance with the Major fell flat as well because either his internal monologue or in his speech to her he's always supporting her, admiring her capability, confidence and skill etc etc. Yawn. There was no character growth in these two main characters because how could you improve on perfection? they just slowly discovered how perfect the other was and how completely complimentary their characters were to themselves of course.
There's also something in the author's style of writing that feels like you're reading pages and pages worth of filler material. It's 224pages or just over 3000 pages on the kindle but with better editing there's barely enough story for 150pages. Even with the story based in a time with the Continent on the brink of war again feels incredibly dry and textbookey. You never feel the threat of war, the parting of families, potential injury and death - neither from the people going or those left behind.
This is a book that never feels 'alive', it never makes you want to turn the page faster frantically trying to find out what comes next or never even makes you care about the characters...they'll do quite fine without your concern thank you very much. I was never bored reading it, just agitated as to what could have been.
Rating: 2 steamrollers.
Re-readability: None.
To that same effect the romance with the Major fell flat as well because either his internal monologue or in his speech to her he's always supporting her, admiring her capability, confidence and skill etc etc. Yawn. There was no character growth in these two main characters because how could you improve on perfection? they just slowly discovered how perfect the other was and how completely complimentary their characters were to themselves of course.
There's also something in the author's style of writing that feels like you're reading pages and pages worth of filler material. It's 224pages or just over 3000 pages on the kindle but with better editing there's barely enough story for 150pages. Even with the story based in a time with the Continent on the brink of war again feels incredibly dry and textbookey. You never feel the threat of war, the parting of families, potential injury and death - neither from the people going or those left behind.
This is a book that never feels 'alive', it never makes you want to turn the page faster frantically trying to find out what comes next or never even makes you care about the characters...they'll do quite fine without your concern thank you very much. I was never bored reading it, just agitated as to what could have been.
Rating: 2 steamrollers.
Re-readability: None.
November 4, 2012
For readers of traditional regency romances, Evelyn Richardson never disappoints. This one is a particular favorite of mine, because I especially like the cross-dressing heroine theme. Lady Alexandra saves the day and meets a man who can match her for intelligence, strength of character, and physical prowess. Lady Alex, her brothers and sisters, and the heroine, are all charming, interesting characters with just a few flaws to make them interesting.
February 8, 2026
An entertaining tale with some very likeable characters, particularly Alexandra, Christopher & Anthony. All highly improbable but I enjoyed it.
To save the family fortunes, & herself from a distasteful marriage, Alexandra dresses up as her twin brother with the aim of gambling to win back what he had lost. She has a few adventures in London & ends up winning the delightful Major, Lord Wrotham. Sweet, fun & silly.
To save the family fortunes, & herself from a distasteful marriage, Alexandra dresses up as her twin brother with the aim of gambling to win back what he had lost. She has a few adventures in London & ends up winning the delightful Major, Lord Wrotham. Sweet, fun & silly.
November 28, 2009
4.5
The thing that first drew me to this book was how much it reminded me of the Masqueraders by Georgette Heyer. A brilliant independent woman, who steps into her twin's shoes after he has run through the family fortune, travels to London to gamble at White's to try and raise money to pay off the debts. During this, she meets Lord Wrotham who detects that there is something suspicious about her.
I simply adore plots with woman disguising themselves as men for a reasonable purpose. The ending was magnificent. I loved it.
The thing that first drew me to this book was how much it reminded me of the Masqueraders by Georgette Heyer. A brilliant independent woman, who steps into her twin's shoes after he has run through the family fortune, travels to London to gamble at White's to try and raise money to pay off the debts. During this, she meets Lord Wrotham who detects that there is something suspicious about her.
I simply adore plots with woman disguising themselves as men for a reasonable purpose. The ending was magnificent. I loved it.
February 10, 2023
A decent plot and good historical references. But, too many editorial errors, repetitions, and fillers to get four stars.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews