When the Marquess Was Mine: The Wagers of Sin

Such a delightful story that was perfect! I look forward to every book Caroline Linden writes because I know it will hold all the elements to enchant my imagination and make me fall in love with the characters! A celebratory night that ending in gambling, by some of the most dashing, daring rogues and scoundrels of London, celebrating the birthday of Rob, the Marquess of Westmoreland. What a rowdy bunch I have to say, but life changed in that last bet when Sir Charles Winston joined them and lost his home to Rob. Of course I don't think Rob really knew what he had won at the moment! He was a little impaired to say the least! Georgiana Lucas is visiting with her friend Kitty, wife of Sir Charles when she gets the news that he husband was cheated out of their home by the scoundrel Westmoreland! Oh what a tangled web! Then the journey begins! Rob goes to make things right with Mrs Winston, gets accosted, then rescued by Georgiana, but he has lost his memory I adored these two! A rogue who needed a bump on the head to start changing his life and a woman who begins to find that maybe one of her choices may not be as she thought. Love can be found in the most unexpected ways and with humor, well drawn characters, including secondary that I hope to see in the future, a villain and a budding romance, what more could you ask for? Not one thing. Fabulous.

When the Marquess Was Mine is the third book in author Caroline Linden’s newest series, The Wagers of Sin. This series focuses on three young girls from different backgrounds, who become friends while being students at Mrs. Upton’s Academy for Young Ladies. Each story focuses on one of the three girls and the journey to find their HEA. This story features Georgiana Lucas. Lady Georgiana Lucas is beautiful, vivacious and been engaged since she turned eighteen to Viscount Sterling. Their fathers were friends and they grew up together on neighboring estates. Her hateful half brother has been her guardian since her parent’s death and has delayed the settlements for over two years. Robert Churchill-Gray, Marquess of Westmorland is tall, handsome, charming, and a rake who is heir to the Duke of Rowland. He’s considered one of the most eligible men in England, and along with his friends leads a life full of debauchery. To Lady Georgiana, he’s nicknamed the Malicious Marquess. Oh my! I’ve been waiting for this book ever since I heard about it and Ms. Linden did not disappoint! For those of us who have read the previous books in this series, we’ve already met Georgiana and heard of her fiancé Sterling, and how she’s been in love with him since she was a little girl. So I was quite surprised to find out that Georgiana’s HEA didn’t include Sterling. But I trust Ms. Linden and her writing and was willing to give her a chance to take me and Georgiana down a different path. ;-) So our couple first meets while Georgiana is visiting her friend Kitty in the country, she stumbles across a badly beaten man who is near death and rescues him. When she realizes it is Rob, the Marquess of Westmoreland, she panics as Kitty hates the Marquess. Kitty has been told by her husband that Rob stole the deed to their home. So in a moment of duress, she claims Rob is her fiancé, Lord Sterling. I absolutely loved Rob and Georgiana’s time together while he recovered from amnesia. Rob is not at all who Georgiana thought he was and she starts to question her feelings for him and for Sterling. Ms. Linden did a wonderful job of dealing with Rob’s amnesia and Georgiana’s conflicting feelings. I absolutely loved Rob & Georgiana’s story! Although this book is third in the series, it could easily be a stand-alone. But I do highly recommend the previous books in the series. It was fabulous to see past characters from the previous stories and we have a bunch of new characters that helped make this story perfect. I would love to see Sterling get his HEA in the future and would love to find out more about Rob’s brothers and family. Such a wonderful story and couple, that I struggled to put this book down. Will look forward to seeing what Ms. Linden has in store for us next, I know I can’t wait! Highly recommend!

During a drunken card game Robert Churchill-Grey wins the deed to Sir Charles Winston’s house. Winston is an idiot who shouldn’t be gambling to begin with, but he insists on his participation and the bet. Rob doesn’t even remember winning the deed and doesn’t want the house. On his way to set things straight and return the deed to Winston’s wife, he is beaten and left for dead. Lady Georgiana Lucas, a friend of Winston’s wife, Kitty, rescues him and recognizes him as the “Malicious Marquess.” Since Winston has spun a tale painting Rob as the villain in this tale, Georgiana is afraid Kitty won’t let him in the house and lies about his identity, even to him when he awakens with amnesia. The story? He is her fiancé. All goes well, and they are getting to know each other (sort of) until Rob’s brother shows up. Now what happens? To Rob and Georgiana? To the house? The third installment in the Wagers of Sin series is an interesting story with a lot of humor, a bit of intrigue, and a love story that needs a little untangling. At the beginning, Rob, who is the Marquess of Westmoreland, is the typical society rake, wealthy and self-centered, arrogant and rude. He is much nicer when he can’t remember who he is. When he regains his memory, he likes the new him. Lady Georgiana Lucas is an orphan who was sent away to school by her hateful half-brother when she was very young. She is a beautiful, intelligent, and caring person. At first glance, it’s hard to see how these two could ever fit together, but things, and people, change. I like the way Sophie, the Duchess of Ware, advises and encourages Georgiana. Rob’s brother Tom is awesome. A soldier, a fighter, a great brother, and a huge annoyance, he definitely has Rob’s back. There’s a little excitement at the Vega Club near the end of the story, and Nick Dashwood, the club’s owner, steps in to keep things from getting out of hand (hehe). I am really enjoying this series. I look forward to what comes next. Maybe Tom or Dashwood? I received an ARC of this book from the author and publisher via Edelweiss. My review is voluntary.