Faro's Daughter by Georgette Heyer

Faro's Daughter by Georgette Heyer ISBN-13: 9780099465591 Paperback: 288 pages Publisher: Arrow Released: 1941

Source: Borrowed from the library.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Lady Mablethorpe is aghast. Her young son Adrian is marrying Miss Deborah Grantham--a gambling-club wench! She sends her trusted nephew, the vastly wealthy, clever, and imperturbable Max Ravenscar, to buy the hussy off. To Ravenscar's surprise, Deborah is remarkably handsome, witty, and--he could scarcely believe it--well-bred. He expects she'll be grateful for the high price he offers her to give up her young suitor. After all, she and her aunt are deeply in debt.

Instead, Deborah decides to match her wits with his to get even for his low opinion of her--she's no fortune-hunter! She tries to entice Adrian with a more suitable girl while doing everything she can to convince Max that she's everything he accused her of being.


My Review:
Faro's Daughter is a Regency Romance. Deborah realizes from the start that her choice to act as a hostess in her aunt's gaming house has ruined her reputation as a respectable girl. Yet she's extremely insulted that Max tries to buy her off after his aunt tells him that Deborah is going to marry Adrian. Deborah doesn't care why there's a misunderstanding; she has no intention of marrying Adrian and everyone should be able to read her thoughts! So she decides to act exactly like the scheming hussy that Max assumed she was so that she can continue in her righteous fury.

Only Max realizes that she's playing a game. He matches his wits against hers in their game to get what they want. He gradually learns what Deborah is really like despite all her efforts at deception. Yet finally Deborah succeeds in a secret scheme that fools him into thinking he was wrong about her after all. Instead of correcting him, she plays along AGAIN. The girl is determined to cause herself as much pain as possible to sustain her prideful sense of outrage. I think I might have liked her story a little better if she didn't have my name...

The story had a number of funny incidents as the two match wits. I understood why Max liked her. But, oh, I just didn't get why Deborah--who started out sensible--was so determined to destroy herself and her aunt in her efforts to spite Max! The comedy was funny, but the romance was a little confusing to me.

The was some bad language (mostly the swearing use of "God"). There was no sex. Overall, I'd recommend this book to those who enjoy the comedy aspect of Heyer's novels.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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