Want a little mystery with your regency romance? The Wicked Wager will satisfy both cravings, though the mystery falls past the halfway point in the book. There are little taunting moments of questionable clues before that but the full on mystery and the process of solving it are not immediate. Instead you get to enjoy the youthful hijynx of two young people in love.

Young Emma is thoroughly frustrated by her season and a lack of suitors. Believing she is simply not pretty enough it is a rather huge surprise when she finds herself willingly engaged to an Earl. Their planning hits a bump in the road when Emma’s uncle (to whom her father stands heir to) catches wind of the upcoming nuptials and wishes for them to wait a year instead of the projected 2 months!

What is a willful and somewhat bored Earl to do but come up with a rather complicated and foolhardy scheme to be close to his beloved OR compromise her and bring her home with him his wife? And from there hilarity, convolution and further complications arise.

I love the characters in this story. Once again Anya Wylde does not disappoint. Our main couple, Emma and her Earl George are hilarious in their absolute willingness to be together at whatever the cost of their silly and soon more and more outrageous wager. Each a bit outrageous in their own right together they are crazy and in love. One of my favourite lines (and you do know from my previous reviews on her work HERE and HERE  that I LOVE sharing those) is Emma’s…

She too looked forward to her wedding night, introspective of the horror stories she had heard from her married friends about the male dingdongs.

Right then and there you know this is not a traditional regency era historically correct piece. BUT it is hilarious! There is a house full of characters with issues and secrets, loves to be found and held onto, a mystery to solve.