4-STAR REVIEW: GAMBLE OF HEARTS by Virginia Barlow

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The Description

Publication Date: April 12, 2023

When a powerful duke arrives to collect his winnings from her brother, Lady Amora Hargrove discovers she is one of them. Following her brother’s arrest, she becomes the duke’s ward and falls for him hard and fast. Problem is, the duke has a violent hatred for gamblers, and she possesses a natural ability. Something he can never discover, or she will lose him forever.

The Duke of Ravencroft exacts revenge for his nephew’s death and gains a ward. Irresistibly drawn to the villain’s sister, he must play and gamble with their hearts or lose everything.

Excerpt The Review

Lady Amora Hargrove has a secret. She also has a fiend of a brother, Nathan, who exploits a special talent of Amora’s not only to his own detriment but to Amora’s as well.

Virginia Barlow’s Gamble of Hearts is a tumultuous ride from the very first page, where the Duke of Ravencroft, Alexander Remington, calls in the wee hours of the morning to collect the sizeable gambling debt owed to him by Nathan Hargrove. What the Duke didn’t bargain for was Lady Amora being a part of what he collected that night.

As the younger sister of Nathan Hargrove, Amora is subject to her brother’s whims and, more often than not, his beatings for no reason. Her only value is her mathematical and memory skills which he forces her to use to win gambling in a dreadful pub. He forces her to go in disguise, so no one knows her true identity. When the Duke of Ravencroft arrives unexpectedly to claim his winnings that morning, he encounters Lady Amora, out of disguise but beaten and dressed in rags.

Unsure of what to do with her, the Duke takes her to his home and is ultimately named her guardian and charged with finding her a suitable husband. Unfortunately, it eventually comes to light that Nathan Hargrove not only gambled physical possessions with London lowlifes, he also gambled his sister and her particular skill—and lost. Multiple men now seek out Madame Pari, Amora’s disguise name, to use for their own machinations.

While the Duke works to introduce Amora into London Society and the Ton, he finds himself more and more attracted to her with thoughts of marrying her himself. Amora is equally attracted to the Duke, but his hatred of gambling and the disgust he has for Amora’s brother and for what her brother did to his family, leaves Amora wondering what will happen to their fragile relationship if her secret identity should ever be revealed.

Tumultuous events swirl until the climax of a high-stakes game of cards brings Madame Pari and the Duke of Ravencroft face-to-face where, if revealed, her true identity could put many lives, including theirs, at risk.

Virginia Barlow has penned a sweeping tale in Gamble of Hearts that is far-reaching with its plot. While the main characters dominate each scene, the secondary characters prove to be just as interesting and strong. Some plot points are repeated a little too often, but overall, it is an interesting and adventuresome read.

Gamble of Hearts yanks the reader straight into its plot and doesn’t let go until a sigh of relief at the end of a thrilling, suspenseful, and yes—romantic ride. Buy Links

About The Author

I have always loved reading romance novels. I used to sneak them from my mom’s room as a young girl and read them while she was gone. As I grew older, my reading and tastes expanded to sci-fi, dystopian, paranormal, and fantasy.

I considered becoming an author in my late twenties but as a busy mother with toddlers, I didn’t have the time. Later, in my fifties, I decided to give it a try and have enjoyed every word of it since. I recently signed my thirteenth contract and am doing my happy dance as I type this. My husband of forty-one years is my greatest support as are all my kids. Most of them are grown and carving out lives for themselves. They are the beat of my heart and with every grandchild, the rhythm gets stronger. I enjoy every moment of my life.