Wilde Wagers

by Elizabeth Caulfield Felt

Wagering is all the rage in late Victorian England. Oscar Wilde bets that actress Olivia Snow can fool a group of country bumpkins into believing she is Genevieve Lamb, the wealthy beauty of the recent Season. The weekend will prove a challenge for the old-fashioned actress and Genevieve's handsome and old-fashioned brother, Philip, because the manor is filled with all sorts of ridiculous and eccentric characters, as well as one murderous criminal. While Olivia pretends to be Genevieve, Genevieve wagers on her own performance--as Olivia Snow. She and Oscar Wilde go out on the town, a decision that will have both wishing they'd stayed at home and played cribbage. These two charades take unexpected turns during a wild weekend of kidnapping, cucumber sandwiches, bee stings, and love. This Oscar Wilde-esque romance-mystery-comedy will keep you guessing--and craving teacake.

284 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 1, 2021

About the author

Elizabeth Caulfield Felt is as an adjunct lecturer in English at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point where she teaches composition and children's literature. She is the author of the fictionalized autobiography, "Syncopation: A Memoir of Adèle Hugo," the wacky late-Victorian, murder-mystery, romantic-comedy "Wilde Wagers," the middle-grade "Snow White with a Twist," and a co-author of the children’s mystery "The Stolen Goldin Violin." She is currently working on a series of steampunk fairy tales.

Reviews

[Clare Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book through a Member Giveaway, but the opinions contained herein are entirely my own.

I entered to win this book because it gave me a bit of a Jane Austen vibe. And it was an enjoyable read. The characters were fun, and the plot was entertaining. This was a quick read. That being said, this book was full of shenanigans, and that is the only word I can think of that describes what happened. Chaos and craziness throughout, but the whole thing works itself out by the end. Felt kept the plot line consistent throughout, and that was very much appreciated.

However, I did feel like certain plot points were rushed at the end. If you read this book, you will get what I mean. There was some foreshadowing at the beginning, but the plot line was completely dropped until about the end. And, while the epilogue was enjoyable, it skipped forward a bit and it felt like so much happened so quickly, but I did enjoy that Oscar Wilde commented on that, as well as the ending of the story as a whole.

If you like the shenanigans genre, then this book truly is for you. However, this type of book is not my favorite, but I would still recommend it, as long as that person like this genre. So, if that person is you, and you want a bit after a Jane Austen normal setting, and modern English, please, pick this up!

[Tinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A total delight! This Victorian romp will appeal to fans of Oscar Wilde's wit and wordplay - and, in fact, to anyone who appreciates an ingenious concoction of romance, mystery, and comedy of manners. I loved the playful tone, the wit, the manic absurdity.

In this tale, nothing is as it seems, and there's nothing too far-fetched to wager on. Oscar Wilde himself is present throughout, carrying on an entertaining commentary. The tone is light, but a lot of cleverness and insight into human nature underlies it all. As literary escapism goes, it doesn't get any better than this!

[Mindy Borchardt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read many books written in this era, and most modern attempts at recreating the dialogue and the characters fall short, tripped up by inserting modern slang and mores. Wilde Wagers feels true to its historic roots, just enough descriptive historic detail with fun, fallible characters

[Karl Weyers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly enjoyed this story of wagers, wonky mishaps and an unexpected outcome. It is fun, light reading!