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Red Jack's Daughter
HER HEART WAS DIVIDED IN THREEJessica Eastwood's country sweetheart, Tom Preston, wanted her to be the free and independent spirit that her gallant officer father had raised her to be. Jessica's irresistibly attractive distant European cousin, Anton Von Keller, wanted to mold her into a sophisticated woman of the world. Society's most eligible aristocrat, the dazzling Lord Leith, wanted Jessica to be the star of the London Season, a model of feminine beauty and fashion. And before Jessica could find out which of these women she truly was, she had to decide which one of these maddeningly desirable men she really loved....
221 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1984
3 people are currently reading
55 people want to read
About the author
Edith Layton
87 books103 followersEdith Layton wrote her first novel when she was ten. She bought a marbleized notebook and set out to write a story that would fit between its covers. Now, an award-winning author with more than thirty novels and numerous novellas to her credit, her criteria have changed. The story has to fit the reader as well as between the covers.
Graduating from Hunter College in New York City with a degree in creative writing and theater, Edith worked for various media, including a radio station and a major motion picture company. She married and went to suburbia, where she was fruitful and multiplied to the tune of three children. Her eldest, Michael, is a social worker and artist in NYC. Adam is a writer and performer on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Daughter Susie is a professional writer, comedian and performer who works in television.
Publishers Weekly called Edith Layton "one of romance's most gifted writers." Layton has enthralled readers and critics with books that capture the spirit of historically distant places and peoples. "What I've found," she says, "is that life was very different in every era, but that love and love of life is always the same."
Layton won an RT Book Reviews Career Achievement award for the Historical genre in 2003 and a Reviewers' Choice award for her book The Conquest in 2001. Amazon.com's top reviewer called Layton's Alas, My Love (April 2005, Avon Books), "a wonderful historical." And her recent release, Bride Enchanted, is a Romantic Times 2007 Reviewers' Choice Award Nominee.
Edith Layton lived on Long Island where she devoted time as a volunteer for the North Shore Animal League , the world's largest no-kill pet rescue and adoption organization. Her dog Daisy --adopted herself from a shelter-- is just one member of Layton's household menagerie.
Edith Layton passed away on June 1, 2009 from ovarian cancer.
Graduating from Hunter College in New York City with a degree in creative writing and theater, Edith worked for various media, including a radio station and a major motion picture company. She married and went to suburbia, where she was fruitful and multiplied to the tune of three children. Her eldest, Michael, is a social worker and artist in NYC. Adam is a writer and performer on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Daughter Susie is a professional writer, comedian and performer who works in television.
Publishers Weekly called Edith Layton "one of romance's most gifted writers." Layton has enthralled readers and critics with books that capture the spirit of historically distant places and peoples. "What I've found," she says, "is that life was very different in every era, but that love and love of life is always the same."
Layton won an RT Book Reviews Career Achievement award for the Historical genre in 2003 and a Reviewers' Choice award for her book The Conquest in 2001. Amazon.com's top reviewer called Layton's Alas, My Love (April 2005, Avon Books), "a wonderful historical." And her recent release, Bride Enchanted, is a Romantic Times 2007 Reviewers' Choice Award Nominee.
Edith Layton lived on Long Island where she devoted time as a volunteer for the North Shore Animal League , the world's largest no-kill pet rescue and adoption organization. Her dog Daisy --adopted herself from a shelter-- is just one member of Layton's household menagerie.
Edith Layton passed away on June 1, 2009 from ovarian cancer.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 5, 2023
Reread in July, 2023. Bumped the rating from 3.5 to a solid 4. The ending won me over.
~~~~~
Jessica Eastwood, Red Jack's Daughter, grew up in the country. She had adored her father on the few occasions she saw him. Ms. Layton embellished the saying, 'you can't choose your family but you can choose your friends.'.
Jessica's logic took her to London to locate the elusive treasure her father left her after his death. Naturally, she arrives safely, and was placed into the guardianship of Lady Grantham, a friend of Captain Ollie -now Sir Selby- a one-time soldier and friend of Red Jack.
Three men, for various reasons, took it upon themselves to pursue Jessica. The young lady was naive yet not afraid to speak her mind. On more than one occasion, her naïveté got her in trouble. Her innocence was the hook and driving force with the gentlemen but only one would finally earn her love.
~~~~~
Jessica Eastwood, Red Jack's Daughter, grew up in the country. She had adored her father on the few occasions she saw him. Ms. Layton embellished the saying, 'you can't choose your family but you can choose your friends.'.
Jessica's logic took her to London to locate the elusive treasure her father left her after his death. Naturally, she arrives safely, and was placed into the guardianship of Lady Grantham, a friend of Captain Ollie -now Sir Selby- a one-time soldier and friend of Red Jack.
Three men, for various reasons, took it upon themselves to pursue Jessica. The young lady was naive yet not afraid to speak her mind. On more than one occasion, her naïveté got her in trouble. Her innocence was the hook and driving force with the gentlemen but only one would finally earn her love.
July 10, 2023
This regency romance gives us a tomboy turned swan courted by not one, not two, but three suitors, some of them with motives that are less than honorable. It is a wonder she did not fall for their tricks as she displayed amazing amounts of stupidity and wilful blindness throughout the story. In particular, her hero worship of a father who abandoned and neglected, the Red Jack of the title, was so delulu.
Layton's hero, on the other hand, was a lot more acceptable, with a good backstory, swoon worthy heroism, integrity, and a plausible transformation from a commitment-phobe to a true romantic hero.
Layton's hero, on the other hand, was a lot more acceptable, with a good backstory, swoon worthy heroism, integrity, and a plausible transformation from a commitment-phobe to a true romantic hero.
July 14, 2016
4.5 stars
I think it's been quite some time that I rated a romance book above solid 4 stars. But with this book, I was reminded again why I loved historical romances and Edith Layton's books in particular.
Have to admit, her books not always a hit, there were some that were quite bad, but The Choice would always be one of my most treasured story. I loved it so much. And this story reminded me a bit of The Choice, but only from the synopsis and a bit at the beginning. And then, it became a beautiful tale of it's own.
A naive girl and her three suitors. Each has their own reasons for courting her and each has their own vision as how to mould her. From the start, the writer didn't make a secret as to who is the chosen hero (I was looking for a spoiler and there were none, so I have to take the 'ultimate' action...haha). The flow run smoothly and even though the hero was quite distinguishable, the event during the last third half did make me wonder about the outcome.
Love the ending. Everything did wrap up neatly, but it has some beautiful moments that makes me, as a reader, also feel cherished.
I think it's been quite some time that I rated a romance book above solid 4 stars. But with this book, I was reminded again why I loved historical romances and Edith Layton's books in particular.
Have to admit, her books not always a hit, there were some that were quite bad, but The Choice would always be one of my most treasured story. I loved it so much. And this story reminded me a bit of The Choice, but only from the synopsis and a bit at the beginning. And then, it became a beautiful tale of it's own.
A naive girl and her three suitors. Each has their own reasons for courting her and each has their own vision as how to mould her. From the start, the writer didn't make a secret as to who is the chosen hero (I was looking for a spoiler and there were none, so I have to take the 'ultimate' action...haha). The flow run smoothly and even though the hero was quite distinguishable, the event during the last third half did make me wonder about the outcome.
Love the ending. Everything did wrap up neatly, but it has some beautiful moments that makes me, as a reader, also feel cherished.
August 27, 2021
This took me forever to read. It became a chore to read after a while. The tomboy heroine completely lost my respect after all her tough boyish ways and her big talk about being treated as an equal with a man - she couldn’t even hold her own to keep herself out of harms way. The first time the ninny tries to be independent and goes out alone, she got lost and ended up in the slums and a hairs breath away from being kidnapped and forced into prostitution by an old evil madam. I wanted the book to be over by that point. I had to force myself to finish. Not fun.
April 16, 2016
This is one of the first books from Edith Layton, published one year after The Duke's Wager. I liked it much more than her later works (the c series, a couple of which I started and never finished. I have no idea why it is so underrated. In my opinion it is one of the best regencies I read this year (except Heyer's).
July 25, 2023
A wonderful wonderful book. Clean as can be.
Jess, the eponymous heroine of the tale, is a beautiful girl who's grown up wanting to be a boy , one who'd be a perfect heir for her soldier father. The father, Red Jack, we get to know through narration and shared storytelling, is a reckless feckless man who when he's not in battle, is gaming and whoring, while his hero worshipping motherless daughter thirsts for his company beyond the week or two he spares her when on leave.
His death leaves her practically destitute, while a hateful cousin who inherits what's left of the estate, wishes her away. To the rescue comes Ollie, Sir Shelby, an old officer and close mate of Jack's with a just received letter from his deceased friend saying he's left a treasure for Jess and it's details will be discovered by his lawyer in London. Ollie is a soft hearted man, and gets his dear friend Lady to host Jess in London and do what she can to bring the girl upto style and manners. She in turn enlists the help of her nephew Alexander, Lord Leith in the mission.
Alex is a complex character, aristocrat and languid to appearance with a sharp mind and wits besides being a style icon. As a second son who's seen the family fortunes and even his own small inheritance whittled away to pay off his elder brother's debts, he's had a fairly tough life. Exiled to India for seven difficult years he's worked very hard to build a fortune ( don't ask how...East India Company anyone?) and returned a nabob. He's intrigued by Jessica as he slowly gets to know and understand her.
There's Tom a childhood sweetheart of a one-sided romance, Anton a long lost Austrian cousin from her missing mother's side of the family and sundry other side characters. Used to the independence provided by living on her own deep in the country, Jess feels tied down and unhappy with the life of the Ton, and in her unhappiness and impetuosity, puts herself in harm's way. She manages to rescue herself and escape from scandal however this forces her guardians to remove to the country. There they all await the lawyer's discovery while savouring the convivial atmosphere of a small select house party. And Jess blooms. Her discovery of her heart is what forms the completion of the story just as the treasure left to her comes to light.
Jess, the eponymous heroine of the tale, is a beautiful girl who's grown up wanting to be a boy , one who'd be a perfect heir for her soldier father. The father, Red Jack, we get to know through narration and shared storytelling, is a reckless feckless man who when he's not in battle, is gaming and whoring, while his hero worshipping motherless daughter thirsts for his company beyond the week or two he spares her when on leave.
His death leaves her practically destitute, while a hateful cousin who inherits what's left of the estate, wishes her away. To the rescue comes Ollie, Sir Shelby, an old officer and close mate of Jack's with a just received letter from his deceased friend saying he's left a treasure for Jess and it's details will be discovered by his lawyer in London. Ollie is a soft hearted man, and gets his dear friend Lady to host Jess in London and do what she can to bring the girl upto style and manners. She in turn enlists the help of her nephew Alexander, Lord Leith in the mission.
Alex is a complex character, aristocrat and languid to appearance with a sharp mind and wits besides being a style icon. As a second son who's seen the family fortunes and even his own small inheritance whittled away to pay off his elder brother's debts, he's had a fairly tough life. Exiled to India for seven difficult years he's worked very hard to build a fortune ( don't ask how...East India Company anyone?) and returned a nabob. He's intrigued by Jessica as he slowly gets to know and understand her.
There's Tom a childhood sweetheart of a one-sided romance, Anton a long lost Austrian cousin from her missing mother's side of the family and sundry other side characters. Used to the independence provided by living on her own deep in the country, Jess feels tied down and unhappy with the life of the Ton, and in her unhappiness and impetuosity, puts herself in harm's way. She manages to rescue herself and escape from scandal however this forces her guardians to remove to the country. There they all await the lawyer's discovery while savouring the convivial atmosphere of a small select house party. And Jess blooms. Her discovery of her heart is what forms the completion of the story just as the treasure left to her comes to light.
September 5, 2017
Edith Layton doveva avere 12 anni quando ha scritto questo libro. Una storia sbrindellata, confusa, melensa, senza un briciolo di pathos... lontana le mille miglia dai suoi romanzi più maturi.
December 25, 2022
Red Jack, a born military man, has fallen in battle. Although Jack's inheritance is entailed, he sends a letter (reaching her two years after the fact) telling Jessica Eastwood, his only child, of a legacy he has for her. Jessica idolized her father even though he would have preferred Jessica to have been a son.
Her guardian, Sir Selby, encourages her to come to London to await inquiries of Mr. Jeffers. But unfortunately, the inheritance resides with one of Red Jack's friends on the Continent. So while waiting for news of the estate, Jessica stays with one of Sir Selby's best friends, Lady Grantham.
Jessica, freshly arrived from Yorkshire, needs city polish. Lady Grantham encourages her nephew, Lord Leith, to help introduce Jessica around and soften her rough edges. However, Sir Selby, Lady Grantham, and Leith have determined that the best recourse for Jessica is to find a husband. Tom Preston, a friend from home, and Anton Von Keller, a cousin from Austria, express interest in marrying Jessica.
Leith is impressed with Jessica's lack of womanly whiles; she's honest and forthright. However, there was hardly enough conversation between them to accept that they were likely to be good life partners. Instead, we have a trio of men vying for Jessica's attention. It seemed a bit crowded for such a short novel.
This novel could have been so much more than it is. I didn't understand the need for Anton. I thought the interplay between Jessica and Leith was underdone. This story didn't grab me; My overall score = 3.5 stars.
Her guardian, Sir Selby, encourages her to come to London to await inquiries of Mr. Jeffers. But unfortunately, the inheritance resides with one of Red Jack's friends on the Continent. So while waiting for news of the estate, Jessica stays with one of Sir Selby's best friends, Lady Grantham.
Jessica, freshly arrived from Yorkshire, needs city polish. Lady Grantham encourages her nephew, Lord Leith, to help introduce Jessica around and soften her rough edges. However, Sir Selby, Lady Grantham, and Leith have determined that the best recourse for Jessica is to find a husband. Tom Preston, a friend from home, and Anton Von Keller, a cousin from Austria, express interest in marrying Jessica.
Leith is impressed with Jessica's lack of womanly whiles; she's honest and forthright. However, there was hardly enough conversation between them to accept that they were likely to be good life partners. Instead, we have a trio of men vying for Jessica's attention. It seemed a bit crowded for such a short novel.
This novel could have been so much more than it is. I didn't understand the need for Anton. I thought the interplay between Jessica and Leith was underdone. This story didn't grab me; My overall score = 3.5 stars.
August 17, 2009
Three men and one woman - now wouldn't those be nice odds. :) Although there's really no mystery as to who she'll end up with, it is a good story. It's interesting to watch Jessica grow from being a boyish girl into a mature but fun woman. The characters actually develop and feelings grow as opposed to immediate love at first sight silliness. The only negative I could see is the author's preoccupation with the female anatomy which I felt was unnecessary. It didn't play a huge part but just enough to be annoying. Otherwise I enjoyed it immensely and will definitely look for other books by Edith Layton.
August 4, 2014
Really enjoyed this one. The beginning is one of the best. And though there isn't any doubt who she will end up with, the journey of how she gets there is a really fun read. Loved how in the end how very insightful she becomes, of her beaus feelings and of her father, of herself. Lots of good lines in here. Also the hero and heroines dearest wish is so very bittersweet.
September 22, 2016
See my thoughts at ROMANCE NOVELS FOR FEMINISTS: http://romancenovelsforfeminists.blog...
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews