Fortune’s Lady is an average Regency offering. It has some interesting moments, but most of them will likely be forgotten as soon as the last page is turned.

Lady Althea is stunningly beautiful, and she’s a duke’s daughter. That makes her the catch of the season, and everyone likes to call her “the Incomparable of Incomparables.” She’s never sought any accolades, and would really prefer to live quietly in the country. She meets her match in Gareth de Vere, Marquess of Harwood. Gareth has his own nickname – The Bachelor Marquess.

Gareth has had a rough life. His mother was an incomparable herself, and her incessant demands for new clothes sent Gareth’s father to the gaming tables. When he died, he left the family estates heavily mortgaged. Gareth has managed to turn the family fortunes around with his spectacular card playing skill, and it is at the gaming table that he first meets Althea. Althea is quite a card expert herself, and Gareth is astonished when she manages to beat him. A few days later, he sees her crying in the garden and offers to help. She’s actually crying because she is sick of feeling like a horse at Tattersall’s, with men leering at her and sizing her up. When Gareth offers to help her, she asks if he will teach her how to win a fortune so she can buy her own estate in the country.

Gareth and Althea eventually realize that they have more in common than their aptitude for cards. Both love animals, and both have difficult parents who have high expectations for them. Neither has ever felt loved unconditionally. But all is not smooth sailing. Althea’s cousin wagers his family estate, and Gareth wins it. Althea ends up winning it back from Gareth, which causes a rift between the two of them.

That’s just about it for the conflict. It should be fairly obvious to both of them that they are destined for each other, but they both wait until practically the last page to admit it. Althea wants her independence, and she gets it when she wins the estate in a card game. This gives her the country life she’s always wanted, and she even gets yet another nickname when she doctors some horses – Angel of the Stable. (Richardson is pretty big on nicknames). Still, she’s not happy because she misses Gareth. Gareth should be happy with all his money and his gorgeous dancer/mistress, but somehow life lacks color without Althea.

The plot, like the conflict, is pretty lackluster. There’s no droll drawing room repartee, no horrible reprobate to outwit. Just a long wait for the hero and heroine to realize the obvious – they are in love with each other.

The characters also lack sparkle, although they did have moments where they were interesting. Gareth, unfortunately, is of the “my mom was mean and all women must be just like her” school. He’s the typical rude, arrogant hero seen many times before, and he brings nothing new to the role. Althea isn’t all that great either. She’s bored with the ton, tired of feeling like a piece of meat, etc. Yeah, it’s pretty rough when you’re the incomparable of incomparables – especially when you’d rather just be the Angel of the Stable.

Strangely enough, I found the card playing scenes to be some of the most interesting of the book, but they are mostly confined to the beginning. I couldn’t help wishing that Richardson had stuck to the gambling theme a little more; as it was, it seemed like she barely scratched the surface.

This isn’t a bad book, and fans of traditional Regencies might find it worth an afternoon. Its main problem is that it just isn’t terribly compelling. I’m not sorry I read it, but that’s about all I have to say in its favor.