The Choice

Enjoyed The Cad by Edith Layton? Wondered what happened to the urchin Gilly who masqueraded as a boy to protect herself? Well, The Choice is her story.It's set four years after The Cad; Ewen and Bridget have made Gilly and her little sister their wards, and are bringing them up as educated young ladies. (No-one claims that they are in fact 'eligible' by birth, and rumours circulate that they aren't of good family). At a ball one night, Gilly is attacked by a young aristocrat who, having heard the rumours, assumes that she's fair game. As he's standing nearby, Damon Ryder prepares to come to the rescue; but instead he finds himself having to pull Gilly off the young man! Just who is this young woman who can fight as well as any man?In revenge, Gilly's attacker tries to ruin her reputation, but Damon again comes to her rescue by claiming that they are long-standing acquaintances and are actually engaged. Thus begins what to Gilly is a pretend betrothal; Damon very quickly realises that he'd like nothing more than for it to be real, and sets about persuading Gilly of his intentions.But there are several things he doesn't know about Gilly. Readers of The Cad will be aware of her origins in the slums of London; to Gilly's surprise, Damon isn't at all bothered by that discovery. So she reveals her deepest secret to him: as we know from The Cad again, it is that she was raped as a very young child. Again, Damon is only sympathetic, not disgusted as she expected.So she agrees to marry him. But at the same time there are other complications. Drum, Ewen's cousin (minor character from The Cad), with whom Gilly has been in love ever since she met him, returns and, as the book jacket informs us, seems to see Gilly in a new light. Could he be in love with her after all?And what about the disreputable Hathaway Wycoff? A married man legendary for his affairs, he treats Gilly as a friend - and she returns the compliment - but he makes no secret of the fact that he would like her to be his lover. And that he is aware that being somebody's mistress might be the only option open to someone of her background.Three delicious men - all of whom will, I hope, eventually get their own stories: which one will Gilly choose?

Read The Cad and want to know more about the characters, especially the young street-urchin, Gilly? Well, don't miss this wonderful book. The story commences four years after the end of The Cad; Ewen and Bridget are still very happily married, with two children. In the interim, Ewen made Gilly and her young sister Betsy his wards, and Gilly cast off her boy's clothes and learned to live as an educated and ladylike young woman, taught by - among others - Ewen's friends Rafe and Drum (the Earl of Drummond). As the story starts, Damon Ryder - newly returned from America - is strolling in the garden at a ball, and sees a beautiful young woman apparently in danger of being embraced against her will by her companion. He rushes to her rescue, only to find that she doesn't need help; he ends up having to pull her off her attacker. Thus he discovers that there is a lot more to Gilly Giles than meets the eye. However, since her attacker then tries to destroy her reputation, Damon claims that they are secretly engaged.Gilly, although grateful, is anxious to free Damon from this obligation, but he is only too happy to make the engagement real; he fell in love with her the moment he saw her, and the more he learns about her only makes him love her more. Even when Gilly tells him the truth about her background - that she comes from the slums of London and that her father was a docker, *and* that she was raped as a small child - his feelings don't change.But Gilly still feels that she isn't good enough for him, or for his family. And what she hasn't told anyone is that she's been secretly in love with Drum, her old friend, for years. But he never saw her as more than a child... until he returns, and it seems as if he's beginning to see her in a completely different light.And as if having to choose between Damon and Drum isn't enough of a problem for Gilly, Lord Wycoff - married, but who lives apart from his wife - also makes it clear that he would take her any way he could have her.Can Gilly choose between three men, all of whom want her? Or will she leave it too late to work out who she really loves, and risk losing them all?Having read this, I now can't wait to read The Challenge, to find out how Hathaway gets on in America; and I sincerely hope that The Conquest is going to be about the last member of this little group of men!

Damon Ryder felt the magic of Miss Gillian Giles from the first time he saw her. He didn't care that because of her humble beginnings she was ineligible to become a nobleman's wife. She was his soulmate, his other half. But he was beginning to despair that he would ever convince HER of that!Gilly wanted desperately to believe him. But it was obvious that she was a disappointment to his family. Although she had learned to look and act like a lady, she was afraid she would never truly belong in that world. And she worried that she would never love Damon as truly as he deserved to be loved...because her first love would always take first place in her heart, even though he didn't reciprocate.Or did he? The Earl of Drummond never expected Gilly to turn into such a desirable woman. How could he let her marry Damon Ryder when there was just a chance that she might be the one for HIM?A poignant tale of a woman learning about love in its many forms, as well as her own value and purpose in life. And a man who learns to fight for the desire of his heart. A real winner!And, considering the existence of several luscious potential heroes in this book, I am eagerly looking foward to hearing more about these fascinating characters in future sequels.

When I read The Cad, I was bowled over by the depth of the characters created by Edith Layton. The story itself was complex and well constructed. As I closed the book, I wondered at the fate of Gilly and Bridget. Now, in The Choice we know.The erstwhile street urchin has made good and become a feisty lady. Who better to pursue her than Damon Ryder, the Season's most eligible bachelor? But there are two other suitors hovering in the wings. Who will Gilly choose? Will her past get in the way of true love?Edith Layton in the tradition of classic regency romance writers such as Georgette Heyer has succeeded where others have failed, in producing a sequel that stands on its own merit. Again the characters are well drawn, and given during the course of the book space to develop and reveal the many facets that make a person whole. These are definitely no cardboard cutouts, but characters that you can identify with. A spellbinding story.Well done. I can't wait to read her next book!

The youngest son of a powerful nobleman, his parents and siblings pampered Damon Ryder until one day he decided to prove to himself he can succeed without any help. He journeyed to America where he made a fortune as a businessman. After two years overseas, Damon returns home, seeking a spouse and ultimately a family. At a ball, he observes Gillian Giles beat up notorious rake Lord Dearborne in the nearby gardens. Dearborne claims to his peers that he interceded when Damon made illicit advances on Gilly, a ward of the dangerous Viscount Sinclair. Damon protects Gilly's protection by claiming to be her fiancé. As he escorts Gilly about the town, he falls in love. However, Gilly believes that her common blood is not good enough for an aristocrat. Another problem is that she still loves somebody else. Regency fans that choose an Edith Layton novel know they are in for an entertaining tale. Ms. Layton's latest novel THE CHOICE is a wonderful sequel to the poignant THE CAD. The story line is intriguing as Gilly represents a different type of lady then normally graces a historical romance. Damon is a warm hunk, who will garner much accolades and wishful desires by readers. Ms. Layton scores big time with a winning novel. Harriet Klausner