Chance [Mass Market Paperback]

Ms Layton's greatest accomplishment in this novel however is the wonderous manner in which she has fleshed out Annabelle's character. Is she the villainess of the piece or just another misguided spoilt beauty who will no doubt find redemption in a later book? Annabelle swings between vulnerability and manipulativeness that keeps you debating this point right up till the very end of the book. Once before she felt exposed to the ton because she showed her singleminded fixation for Damon Ryder. The degree of humiliation and chagrin she felt was deep when Damon married someone else. Now she not about to become the object of pity again just because she has 'lost' Rafe to Brenna. Never mind that she was the root of all the rumours that brought their marriage about! And even though much of the humiliating scrutiny she undergoes comes about chiefly because of her manipulative and very spoilt and unpleasant behaviour, I still came away feeling a little sorry for her and hoping that there may be a book somewhere down the road where she undergoes some kind of epihany and becomes a much nicer person.

A satisfying read.

However, Rafe's efforts to win Annabelle's heart abruptly end when he finds himself forced to marry his friend's sister Brenna Ford to save her reputation. Brenna loves Rafe and he enjoys being with her as she brings him happiness and a reason to live. Brenna hopes that one day she can eventually win his heart from Annabelle although she believes that feat is an impossible task especially since Annabelle has plans for Rafe.

Romance readers know that Edith Layton's "C" novels (see THE CHALLENGE, THE CAD, and THE CHOICE) are A rated tales. Her latest "C" book, THE CHANCE is an entertaining Regency romance that brings alive the lifestyle of the rich and famous in post-Napoleonic England. The story line is fun and well written, but it is the cleverly designed triangle that will leave the audience wanting more of Ms. Layton's emotionally packed novels.

Harriet Klausner

So Rafe decides that he will try to court Annabelle, though he doesn't have much hope that she will return his interest - after all, he tells himself, he's a very plain-looking man, with ugly red hair and a complete inability to make pretty speeches. However, Annabelle seems to show some interest, although largely playing Rafe off against several other suitors.

Then Rafe's old friend Eric returns wounded from India, needing somewhere to stay for a few days; his beautiful sister Brenna is with him. And circumstances contrive to compromise Rafe and Brenna, so that Rafe is obliged to offer Brenna marriage in order to retrieve her reputation. He likes Brenna, and is attracted to her, so it isn't such a hardship; his only problem (and hers) is that he is in love with Annabelle.

This is where the book becomes really interesting. Rafe is a very insecure, under-confident man when it comes to personal relationships; he can never quite understand why his close friends, such as Drum and Ewen Sinclair, seem to like him. And we discover that his insecurity comes from always having been second-best in his family relationships, being made to feel the outsider - which is, of course, what makes him sympathise with Annabelle.

In this respect, Rafe has more in common with Brenna than he realises, since she has also suffered more than her fair share of disappointments: one fiance was killed in the war, and another rejected her for another woman. So the really beautiful part of this book is how these two damaged individuals manage to heal each other and repair each other's self-esteem.

The reason I give this book four stars instead of the five I've given every other book in Layton's series is that I found Annabelle's behaviour profoundly annoying, and I couldn't understand why Rafe took so long to see through it. He kept finding excuses for her, long after all his friends were seeing her as the selfish dog-in-the-manger she was.

Now, I want Drum's story!