The Countess of Marsden invites you to her house party! Seven nights and days of frolic, dancing and match-making for her three nieces. Sad, isn’t it, that none of the Craymore sisters wishes to wed?Exciting, isn’t it, that three war heroes arrive who know precisely what they want for Christmas? Wonderful, isn’t it, that each might gain the most precious Christmas gift of all?A lady bets her … future.Miss Marjorie Craymore wants to surprise her two sisters with a wonderful gift this Christmas. A house. A home! One they can call their own. After their father gambled away their dowries and drank away the family reputation, the three young women have lived with their Aunt Gertrude. While that lady’s generosity is most kind, her charity chafes their pride. This Christmas at their aunt’s house party, Marjorie plans to employ the one talent she learned well from her notorious papa. She’ll gamble at cards and dice against every wealthy guest-and win. But she encounters one big problem. The man she’s craved all her life appears on Aunt’s threshold and challenges her. Tested by combat, he’s bolder. Dashing. A distraction. And suddenly too charming to resist. A gentleman weighs the odds.Griffith Harlinger, the war-weary fourth earl of Marsden, returns home from his duties in Paris with the Duke of Wellington to celebrate the joys of the Season. At urgent request of his step-mama, he must stop her niece Marjorie from creating a scandal by fleecing her house guests! Griff’s thrilled to engage the one woman who’s tormented him and beguiled him all his life. So he makes Marjorie a bet she can’t refuse: he’ll play her for enough money to buy the house she wants.But can he let her win if he loves her too much to let her go?And who really wins when both want what’s best for those they love?If you love swoon-worthy historical romance, starring endearing heroes, sassy heroines and a house full of rogues and cardsharps, this book is for you! Buy THE EARL’s WAGERED BRIDE to attend this Christmas house party!
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Just in time for the holidays, The Earl’s Wagered Bride will delight you just as it did me! Cerise has outdone herself with this fun romp of a series taking place at a Regency house party. Don’t miss it!
I very much enjoyed The Earl’s Wagered Bride. It is a perfect start to the Christmas Belles novellas by Cerise DeLand. The Belles are three sisters whose Aunt provided them a home after the death of their father who gambled away the family fortune and their dowries. Their Aunt Gertrude plans an extended holiday party gathering and invites several eligible bachelors with the hope some matchmaking will take place. Three surprise guests arrive as the party begins. All have returned from the war with Napoleon and all have known the sisters for some time. One is the step-son of Gertrude and the other two have motives for accompanying Griffin (Griff) when he returns home.
The Craymore sisters do not want to rely on charity from their aunt anymore. Each one has a different plan for establishing their independence. Marriage has never been a plan as they all feel their father’s actions sullied their reputations beyond repair.
As she is able to do so well, Cerise DeLand provides an enchanting story with lovable characters, swoon-worthy swains, a little skullduggery, some mischief and most of all a sweet passion between our two main characters. Definitely worth a read and a reason to continue the series.
Good read. All it takes are 3 women and 3 men to be thrown together at a Christmas House Party for all to find each other and love after being apart.
4.25 Stars
The Countess of Marsden invites you to her house party! Seven nights and days of frolic, gossip, dancing…and match-making for her three nieces.
Miss Marjorie Craymore wants to surprise her two sisters with a wonderful gift this Christmas. A home oftheir own. After their father gambled away their dowries and drank away the family reputation, the three young women have lived with their Aunt Gertrude. While that lady’s generosity is most kind, her charity chafes their pride. This Christmas at their aunt’s house party, Marjorie plans to employ the one talent she learned well from her notorious father. She’ll gamble at cards and dice against every wealthy guest and win. Then man she’s craved all her life appears on Aunt’s threshold and challenges her. Griffith Harlinger, the war-weary fourth Earl of Marsden, returns home from his duties in Paris with the Duke of Wellington to celebrate the joys of the Season.
An engaging delightful read which I read in an afternoon. The story flows very well & had me drawn in from the start & held my interest until the end. The characters are well fleshed. Griff is a lovely hero, Marjorie wants revenge on the people who gambled against her father but also is desperate for herself Bee & Del to be independent. However Griff & Marjorie have loved each other for what seems like forever they just need to admit it to each other. The road to their HEA was very entertaining & I loved their banter. I look forward to reading Bee & Del’s stories
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
Welcome to the house party! The Countess of Marsden plans a week of fun and games, conversation, entertainment, and a bit of matchmaking for her three nieces.
First up is Marjorie. She plans to gamble herself and her sisters to independence. What happens when the Countess’s stepson attaches himself to her to make sure her gambling doesn’t cause problems? Could this be part of Aunt Gertrude’s plan?
The Earl’s Wagered Bride is an entertaining introduction to the Christmas Belles. While we follow the story of Marjorie and Griff in this one, we see the end result for all three couples. The books to follow will tell how the others get to those results. This was a quick read filled with great characters, fun, romance, and a little danger. I enjoyed and recommend it.
I love this time of year, all of the Christmas-themed stories that are happy and light and just fun to read. Here we have three sisters who want to right the wrong of their father and three war veterans trying to integrate back into society. Marjorie and Griffith are the main characters in this story. It is a nice story that takes you away from everyday life to another world with lovely people and their story of happily ever after. Looking forward to Delphine and Belinda’s stories.
I received a complimentary copy from the author.
Sigh.. I just love Cerise DeLand’s stories. I know I am in for a wonderful tale full of her great characters and often some mischief, adventure and of course a sigh worthy romance! Griffith, the Earl of Marsden has just come back from the war and heads home. He brings two fellow soldiers with him and finds that a house party is in progress with a few delightful ladies attending. But his focus is strictly on Marjorie Craymore, who with her two sisters have lived with his stepmother, their aunt, since their father passed and left them penniless. But Marjorie has a plan and she intents to win enough money to buy a home for her and her sisters. Yes, she is really good at cards and dice, which she learned from her wastrel father who gambled everything away! What she doesn’t know is that her aunt had invited her stepson, Griffith to come save Marjorie from herself!
A delightful tale that will have you smiling and at the end make your heart warm. Cannot wait to read the next two in this series!!
I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed this Christmas novella and I plan to finish the series.. This will be my first book/series by this author but so far from this story I’m highly impressed.. It was so good
This is such a wonderful start to the Christmas Belles series in which three sisters find their lost loves at their aunts’ Christmas house party. In this first book, it is Marjorie and Griffith’s story. They have always had a close relationship but when he returns from the war, both have changed and passions get heated.
Marjorie is quite the card shark and she plans to have vengeance on those who had fleeced her late father and win the money back. She’s also desperate to have her own money, to buy a cottage for her sisters and herself, a place they can call their own and not have to rely on their aunt’s charity. Griffith intends to stop her and convince her that it’s too dangerous, not really knowing the real reason she’s doing this. I so enjoyed their banter and their steamy chemistry!!
Well written and definitely do recommend this book!
Marjorie Craymore, along with her two sisters, have been forced to live on their Aunt Gertrude’s wealth since their deceased father lost their dowries. Devising a plan of her own, Marjorie intends to surprise her sister’s by buying a home of their own. With the annual Christmas party approaching, Marjorie intends to gamble and win enough money from the wealthy guests to fulfill her dream. Little does she know that the one man she has always loved, Griffith Harlinger, will be in attendance to stop her. Will Marjorie win her fortune or will she lose more than she anticipated? I can’t get enough of author Cerise DeLand’s works!