The Duke at Hazard (The Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune Book 2)

Rating: 4.5🌈K.J. Charles has written another delightful novel in the Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune series, The Duke at Hazard. Here, a severely insulated Duke is robbed of his ducal ring during an anonymous encounter . To get it back, he makes a bet that he undertakes the task without use of his power and authority. For a month. If he loses, he forfeits his greys, his beloved horses.Charles does a fantastic job in establishing the personality of Severn at the beginning of the story, then as a man out of his depth on this mission, then again as one who is finally finding himself on the road. It’s an astonishing journey of development and growth. And it happens along with that of another person’s remarkable story, and their relationship.Severn becomes Cassian and journey companion to Daizell Charnage, a disgraced noble whose is helping him retrieve his ring . Along the way, each has experienced so much that they are able to recognize the men they both are , together and individually.It’s a terrific story, the characters are well written, the universe authentic, and the relationship that builds is one that feels believable in its growth and obstacles encountered.Additionally , Charles has included so many beautifully crafted side characters and well thought out elements here that together all add up to a truly satisfying experience for the reader. We enter into the story involved in Severn’s journey and then get fully invested until the final sentence.There were a couple of things that I had issues with. One was the character of Leo, Cassian’s cousin. He was the one who prompted the bet, but it was his gambling problems that were real reason behind Leo wanting Cassian’s greys. And his attitude of entitlement and expectations from Cassian was deplorable. It made Leo a “tiresome” personality throughout the story, even afterwards when things had been resolved. I wonder if Charles realizes how thoroughly obnoxious he came across.Lastly, the end feels too abrupt. We’re told what their future might look like but little is actually shown. It’s just cut off. I wish we might have been given a glimpse or two. That would have been very satisfying. But it’s a good ending and ties things together really well.If you want to know further about the details of this story, see the author’s notes on the development of that all important card game and why the term silhouette isn’t used here. If you’re thinking about authenticity, this is exactly why everything rings so believable here. Charles does the work and layers it into the narrative. It shows in the depth and details.I’m highly recommending this to all lovers of historical fiction and romance. And fans of this author, of course!Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune books:🔹The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting🔹The Duke at Hazard🔹Thief in the Night

KJ Charles is one of my favourite authors. I can honestly say I have enjoyed every one of her books and this, her latest - doesn’t disappoint. Engaging characters, a satisfying adventure and funny moments. If you are new to Ms. Charles sophisticated and intelligent books, you won’t regret diving in. Another one I will read multiple times!

Up to this point KJ Charles has very firmly eschewed dukes as protagonists. One might be forgiven for supposing, based upon Regency Romances in general, that Regency Britain was wall-to-wall dukes, and that they were all tall, dark, handsome and buff - but alas, Bridgerton notwithstanding, twas never thus.Instead Charles gives us the Duke of Severn: a small, reticent young gentleman of considerable reserve and extremely forgettable appearance who is brimming with responsibility and disarmingly wet behind the ears. He starts the story by tumbling into a most unfortunate scrape, gamely throws himself into an even greater one, and soon finds himself consorting with persons of very dubious respectability, and finding himself capable of all manner of things he has never tried before - like dressing himself, using public transport, ordering drinks at a public house, facilitating elopements, escaping kidnappings, outwitting scoundrels, falling in love and repairing reputations - and, most unlikely of all, standing up to his family.This is a delight from start to finish: firmly in the Heyer But Gayer camp, without any on-page corpses. There are cameos from characters in The Gentle Art Of Fortune Hunting, but this is very much a standalone.(I know that Cass looks nothing LIKE Stede Bonnet in Our Flag Means Death, and is a very different person too, but from the start of the book I still found myself struck by how much the *vibes* reminded me of that character? Because he’s such a sweetheart, and such a fish out of water, and meeting the right rogue at the right time really allows him to come into his own.)

5 stars. haven’t read one book by KJ Charles where I’ve thought that it was a little disappointing. Every one of her books has been well researched in the period in which it is written; the world building, the social norms for that time, the speech used - they all combine to give her books a real sense of the Regency period. Of course, and most importantly, her characters are all wonderfully written and all have heart. Well, apart from the bad apples. They do NOT have heart. Although they are sort of delicious in their evil-ness. And when they’re taken down? Sooo good 😈.Caspian is such a sweetheart, a little naïve in the ways of the world due to him being coddled for most of his life but after an unfortunate incident when he is robbed of everything, and I mean everything he has on him that night, he realises that he must venture out into the world and find the person who robbed him and retrieve a particular item that was stolen. He meets Daizell, clearly a gentleman down on his luck, who agrees to accompany Cassian to help him navigate his way in the real world and to help him in his search for this rogue.Both characters are delightful, with Cassian gradually gaining in confidence in finding his ‘voice’ and Daizell, for the first time in many years, finding someone who likes him and eventually understands just how and why his misfortune led him to where he is now. I so loved these characters.The denouement in the penultimate chapter which takes place in Lady Wintour’s establishment is so satisfying and it’s a happy surprise to be reacquainted with some characters from some of KC’s previous books.I had an absolute blast reading this book, it’s full of adventure, character growth and importantly, it’s a beautiful love story.

I love most books by K.J. Charles, but The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting was not my favorite, so I was worried that I'd be disappointed in this second novel in this story world. But I needn't have been -- this was a delight, one that gave my heart a workout while impressing me, as always with Charles, with its characterization, story construction, sensitivity to historical injustices, wit, and prose. Highly recommended! I'm sure I will reread this novel many times, and I've just pre-ordered the audio version.