Series:
Lyon's Den
A gambler’s bet. A widow’s burden. Will one game of
chance change their lives?
Vincent St. John, Marquis of Saxton, knows full well his
duties to the duchy. His responsibilities have been drilled into him since his
birth. He has no chance of finding a bride who will see him for who he truly
is; they only see the title, not the man. A bet with Mrs. Dove-Lyon, the Black
Widow of Whitehall, is just a diversion. Losing may win him everything.
Mrs. Moriah Henshaw has known her fair share of despair.
The death of her parents and later her husband left her destitute with no
option but to become a man’s mistress. Years later, her tarnished reputation
outweighs her excellent birth, and keeps her from being accepted back into
society. When her friend pays an outrageous sum to Mrs. Dove-Lyon to find
Moriah a husband, Moriah cannot believe she will win anything.
When Vincent meets Moriah, he becomes determined to
return her to her rightful place in society.
But one accident after another threatens Moriah’s life,
and neither of them will win in the game of love unless he can find out who is
out to harm her.
Good book. We first met Moriah in
The Talons of a Lyon,
where she befriended the heroine Seraphina, who was trying to regain custody of
her children. At the end of that book, we learn that Moriah wants to reclaim
her reputation and that Mrs. Dove-Lyon has enlisted Vincent St. John, Marquis
of Saxton, to assist her. This is their story.
The story opens as Vincent endures a visit from his
parents, who want him to settle down and find a wife from among the season's
debutantes. But Vincent is tired of women who only see his money, his title,
and what he will one day inherit. He has the example of a loving marriage with
his parents and wants to find someone who sees who he is, not what he is. He
agrees to attend a few balls but makes no promises about results. Then he joins
his friends at the Lyon's Den that evening.
Moriah is a woman with a tarnished reputation. After her
parents' deaths left her penniless and her grandfather disowned her, she was
lucky to find a man who wanted to marry her. But within two years, she
discovered he had a gambling problem, and his debts came home to roost upon his
death. Once again, she was left with nothing and was forced to look for a
benefactor to survive. Over the years, she had some that were good and others
that weren't. Then her last benefactor, who had no relatives, left everything
he had to her. She can now support herself and ignore society.
Then her friend Cassandra informs Moriah that she has
engaged Mrs. Dove-Lyons to find her a husband and return Moriah to the society
where she belongs. Their trip to the Lyon's Den that evening is eye-opening for
Moriah, who sees a man who had caught her attention earlier in the day. That
man is Vincent, who is somewhat the worse for wear from drinking and mistakes
Moriah for one of the working girls. The encounter goes poorly for Vincent, and
I loved seeing Moriah blast him. Over the next few nights, neither has been
able to forget the other. It is no surprise to the reader that the man Mrs.
Dove-Lyon picks for Moriah is Vincent.
The stakes tonight are that the loser of the card game
must take the woman of Mrs. Dove-Lyon's choosing to a ball. He suspects that
the fix is already in and that he will be the loser. To say that Moriah is
unhappy with her chosen escort would be putting it mildly, and their introduction
in the garden gets off to a rough start. Vincent is surprised but pleased to
discover that Moriah has no idea who he is and finds himself looking forward to
the ball the next night.
I enjoyed watching this relationship develop. Moriah's
arrival at her first ball in many years started the tongues wagging
immediately. Vincent wasted no time greeting her as the sparks continued to fly,
thanks to his somewhat misplaced sense of humor. Vincent is a good man determined
to help Moriah regain her place in society. I enjoyed their time at the ball
and seeing the connection between them. Vincent is vocal in his support of her and
is intrigued by her.
I enjoyed seeing them spend time together and grow
closer, though there are some obstacles to overcome. Moriah's reputation,
though, seems to be dealt with easily. Vincent's mother is not initially a fan,
though Vincent quickly brings her around. I loved seeing Moriah relax in
Vincent's company as her worries about her reputation damaging his faded in her
growing acceptance. And most worrying,
someone appears to be trying to kill her. Three unexplained accidents in quick
succession have Vincent looking for whoever has a grudge against Moriah. My
mind immediately went to one person as the most likely culprit. I liked Vincent's
devotion to Moriah's safety as his feelings for her deepened. When the threats
against Moriah come to a head, it reveals a far deeper plot against her. The resolution
of this issue was fantastic, and I loved Moriah's active participation.
I loved how everything came together to help Moriah.
Vincent's friends lend a hand in trying to discover who has it out for Moriah.
They also provide an opportunity for Moriah to acquire another champion in her
quest to restore her reputation. I loved the scene at that ball as its hostess
gives her stamp of approval and shows her understanding of the challenges
Moriah faced. That's not Moriah's only surprise, and I enjoyed seeing her
happiness as her dreams came true. I hope to see more of them in future books.
The epilogue was a terrific setup for the next book in
this subset of the Lyon's Den series. Cassandra visits Mrs. Dove-Lyon to
arrange help for the next one of her friends to receive her assistance. I like
Cassandra's plans to help those friends regain the lives they deserve, and I look
forward to reading their stories. I expect that Cassandra will be the final
recipient of Mrs. Dove-Lyon's assistance and that there is a foreshadowing of
who will be her hero.
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