My Once and Future Duke

February 5, 2018
Linden opens a Regency-era series with this poorly characterized but tender romance. Sophie Campbell learned how to be a proper lady at Mrs. Upton’s Academy of Young Ladies, and, in Regency England, ladies do not gamble. However, practical Sophie knows that gambling is her only way to survive financially until she can save enough or find a proper husband. Staying respectable while frequenting gaming clubs is a tricky balance, but Sophie is methodical and avoids risks—until, abruptly, she taunts Jack Lindeville, the Duke of Ware, and greedily accepts a scandalous bet. Love and passion making people act out of character is common in romance novels, but Sophie’s change comes too fast. Jack is the stiff duke responsible for his scolding mother and impetuous brother, but Sophie makes him reckless. Sophie’s choice to continue their affair in London is at odds with her usual demeanor, but their spark helps Jack rediscover things that made him laugh, and his reawakening is a joy to read. Even with the whiplash between propriety and scandal, Sophie and Jack’s romance manages to be simultaneously tempestuous, funny, and sweet. The supporting cast is not well fleshed out, leaving it unclear where this series is going next.

Beverly A. Crick skillfully narrates the first in a new historical romance series. Shunned by her noble grandfather, Sophie survives through her skill with cards. The handsome Duke of Ware, who is not a gambler, can't take his eyes off her. He wagers a hefty sum on a bet with Sophie--so hefty that she can't refuse, even knowing what's at stake if she should lose: her independence. With the addition of conversational vocalizations such as small laughs, Crick creates fully dimensional characters. Her ability to give each person a different voice brings the characters to life. Even pacing and clear enunciation make this is an enjoyable listen. Fans of historical romance with independent female protagonists will find this a safe bet. A.L.S.M. � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

February 1, 2018
A wager leads to complicated consequences when it brings two unusual people together.Orphan Sophie Campbell has been cared for grudgingly by her grandfather, a stodgy old viscount who disowns her as soon as she reaches adulthood. Taught to play cards by her father as a child, Sophie learns how to make her living at the gambling tables of the Vega Club as an adult. She gambles carefully, losing as often as she wins, and endeavors to attract as little attention to herself as possible. Her resolution is blown to smithereens when Jack Lindeville, the Duke of Ware, proposes a wager of 5,000 pounds and demands a week of her company if she loses. When he proposes the wager, Jack tells himself that he only wants to keep his dissolute younger brother, Phillip, away from Vega and Sophie. But his impulsiveness forces the couple to live together for a few days in a home that is tucked away from the bustle of London, and the recalcitrant duke winds up getting much more than he gambled for. Despite its predictable contrivances, the first installment of Linden's Wagers of Sin series is brilliantly rescued by credible lovers and honest emotions. Allowing women to gamble openly with men, the Vega Club is an unusually egalitarian variant of the Regency-era gambling den, vividly reminiscent of the city whose name it resembles. Jack's distaste for gambling contrasts sharply with Sophie's undeniable skill at playing cards and adds an element of tension to their silky smooth sexual chemistry. But the beauty of the romance lies more in the telling of the story than the plot itself, which begins to wear thin in the second half.Regency romance fans will enjoy the unmistakable air of intensity and wistfulness that enlivens a fairly straightforward love story.

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Starred review from February 1, 2018
Early on in life, Sophie Graham learned never to count on luck. After leaving Mrs. Upton's Academy for Young Ladies, she reinvents herself as Mrs. Sophie Campbell, and she begins frequenting the gambling clubs of London, where her mathematical skills ensure that she will eventually amass the funds she needs for financial independence. Sophie is just getting to work one night at the Vega Club when a very cranky Jack Lindeville, Duke of Ware, storms in, intent on dragging his feckless brother, Philip, back home. When Jack discovers Philip gambling with Sophie, he insists on teaching them both a lesson by proposing a wager Sophie simply can't refuse. If Sophie wins, she will earn five thousand pounds, but if she loses, Sophie must spend a week with Jack. So, just how lucky does Sophie feel? Romance readers will not be gambling at all in choosing RITA Award-winning Linden's (Love in the Time of Scandal, 2015) latest as she once again delivers another impeccably executed, witty, and sensual Regency historical. For fans of Eloisa James and Tessa Dare.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)