This book three of The Chances series is a regency historical romance novel that continues the Chance family drama. The characters are interesting and strong-willed. I found it very captivating and entertaining with the wit, humor, drama, secrets, lies, drama, and so many more engaging plots. I enjoyed the steamy romance and the happy ending. I highly recommend reading!

This book was amazing. I loved George and Doris and I was not expecting to like George. He has beef with my favorite Chance brother Pernrith which was delt with a little in this book and I wonder if it will be fully resolved in Pern's book which I am so looking forward to already pre-ordered. Now on to this book: Doris makes some mistakes along the way but I felt (personally) none were that egregious. They made sense for her back story. George was a surprise, I did not think I was gonna like him.. He is arrogant, entitled, rude, and presumptuous. He was still those things but loving, caring, and sweet as well. I could not help but root for this couple the entire time. They both seemed to understand each other and help bring out the best in each other. The part of the book where they are listening to the orchestra and he helps her enjoy it by speaking of the math behind music, it was just so sweet and showed a deep understanding of what made them a good couple.

No notes, I just loved this.

I did receive an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the Publisher in exchange for my honest opinion but I have also pre-ordered this book (since I first saw I could) and the next.

Each and every book in The Chances series tells a tale of one Chance brother. An Outside Chance is the 3rd book in the series and is about George and Dodo mathematics of the probability of them finding their happy ever after. Emily Murdock has a writing style I thoroughly enjoy. Her stories are well paced with flawed characters who manage to grow and yet retain their personalities which captivates you from the beginning until the very end, family unity with siblings who can bring chaos wherever they are but also he their backs when needed, witty and enjoyable dialogue and with an enjoyable plot that brings this read together perfectly.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

This story was about a young lady trying to earn money for her family at a time when respectable ladies did not work.
This review may contain spoilers.
A young lady is able to trick her parents in to letting her travel to Bath. She is a mathematical genius and can predict odds. Her family is not rich. Her father is a vicar of a small church. A fever swept the village the previous year and the heroine and the maid were spared. But the fever took her brother and her parents have not recovered yet. And they need money. The heroine chooses Bath because it is not as notorious as London, but still has places where she can go to play cards. She goes to a local party and meets the brother of the hero. The brother sees how well she plays cards and wants to teach his brother a lesson. So he escorts her to a gambling hall.
The hero is breeding race horses and he has his two best racers in Bath for the horse races. But he keeps losing because his horse is not coming in first. He goes to a gambling hall looking to make quick money when he sees the heroine come in looking as fresh a lamb in the spring. This is the lady he will be winning against. Imagine his surprise when she turns the tables on him and actually wins his pocket cash. Then, she disappears. He goes around Bath, looking for her in the Pump Rooms and the Assembly Hall and the popular salons, but no one has seen her. Then he sees her on the street, dressed in plain clothes eating a pastry. She tries to run away, but he catches her and convinces her to teach him how to win.
This was a 5 star story. It was well written, all the characters made sense, and because it is a series, we do see main characters from other books being support characters. The challenges they face are on par for the period in which the book was written.
If you haven't read this author, this is a good book to start. Since it is a series, the author gives you enough back story to where the reader is not lost. Each story is stand alone and can be read out of order. I recommend reading.

<b>I voluntarily read and reviewed this advanced copy from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.</b>

From how George was described in the previous books, I wasn't sure if he would acclimate well to the role of romance hero. Surprisingly, he ponied up and took it like a champ. He was incredibly charming and was beaten at his own game. Our heroine Doris, tragically nicknamed Dodo, was a great match who I liked until the doomed third act. I mean couldn't we call her Dorrie or Do? Dodo is such an insult and not cute at all. Despite her future betrayal and unfortunate moniker, Doris was a neat character. She was a card shark trying to earn money for her ailing parents and didn't even have to wear breeches to do it. I mean, can we please have more female characters be a hellion at the gambling tables?

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This was nearly hitting four stars until the dreaded third act. I've come to loathe the last section of books because more often than not, authors love whipping out the pointless breakup. There are far better conflict examples than a separation. There was a minor cleaving, but Dodo betrayed George in the most brutal, heart wrenching manner. I couldn't believe someone could be so cold towards someone they professed to love. Her diabolical actions continued through the course of their relationship and didn't end once she developed feelings for him. Anything for sick parents, I guess? I was repulsed and immediately docked a star. This is the cruelest betrayal I've read in a long time and I wasn't expecting it from a historical romance.

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I have enjoyed reading Murdoch's book these past few years, but An Outside Chance certainly threw me off guard. I loved George taking responsibilities and winning at the tables instead of losing all his brother's money. I was sucker punched by Dodo's betrayal as her nickname became more apt as the chapters unfurled. I'll definitely keep reading this collection because I'm so curious about the Chance brother who was born on the wrong side of the blanket. I hope it's not as brutal as this story, but there's definitely An Outside Chance.

She likes calculated risk, he’s a chance... all bets are off!

~ Doris & Georges ~
A country miss with an exceptional love of numbers on a mission to save her parents by playing cards and making the gentlemen of Bath’s purses a little lighter. If only that silly persistent lord would stop hounding her and side-tracking her plans.
An earl, a gambling fool with two unlucky racehorses and determined to never marry, who simple cannot get over the fact he’s been beaten by a woman. There’s something about her, and he’ll get to the bottom of her scheme - one way or the other.

An unlikely pairing for certain, these two managed to keep me spellbound till the end!
For all his goofy enthusiasm - he’s like this tail-wagging overly happy puppy; a little impulsive and pushy, but with the biggest heart (not that he will admit to that) - she’s more sober, cautious and calculated - literally; she trusts numbers and logic, but she can’t deny how at ease he makes her feel. They take things slow; a considerate friends-to-lovers slow burn even though he falls head-over-heels (again, not that he will admit to that because he doesn’t do love. Ever!) and I like that for once it’s actually the woman who screws up - yet it’s still him doing the grovelling.

This story was both steamy and adorable, touching yet light and fun. It gave me all the warm and fuzzy with a few laughs, a splash of scandal, a thoughtful grand gesture gone astray, and a wickedly delicious diner invite. This was a wonderful read that perfectly fits in with this delightful series, and I can’t wait to read the next one!

I’m a sucker for good and strong main female characters and Dodo, Miss Doris Loughty is so good that she makes you want to stay in her story forever
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That's why I understand that a man blinded by the next bet to win only sees his attention diverted from his affairs when he sees her entering the gaming hell he is in.
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George Chance, the earl of Lindow, only has to win a hand or several to recover what he is losing in the races and when he sees Doris for the first time, in addition to seeing that she is very attractive, he thinks that she is an easy hand to deprive of some bills.
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But when he is proven wrong he tries to do everything possible to find out how she is doing it, because surely there is a trick behind it.
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But she has no tricks up her sleeve except that her brain loves math and can know exactly the odds of having a good hand. But with the Earl of Lindow chasing her, she can only accept the truce of teaching him how to play his cards.
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But of course, being so close, no matter how much she tries to stay firm and not give up anything personal, while trying to make more money betting it is quite difficult.
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I loved Dodo, George is good, but I adore strong female characters especially at a time when they were not favored and couldn't go far. A woman who looks for a gap and tries to make her way by challenging the ideas of society and especially the most famous Rake in the Ton.
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This is the second book I have read in this series and although each book is different like its characters, they are all so captivating that I end up thinking that the book is very short.
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Thanks to Emily E. K. Murdoch and Dragonblade publishing for give me a copy of this beautiful book in exchange for muy honest and voluntary opinion

For me, this third book in the series was a bit disappointing and I didn’t like either of the main characters and her name just annoyed me 🤷🏼‍♀️ I’m actually looking forward to book 4 and that brother seems the most interesting

A good addition to the series!

George the gambler of the family meets his match in Doris (Dodo). Doris is a maths genius who deals in numbers and George keeps trying to convince himself that his big day will soon come.

The sizzle between these two is felt throughout the story and the witty moments make this a really enjoyable read with some slight steamy moments.

Lessons learned soon lead to love and eventually their HEA.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Obsessions, Lessons, Discovering, Romance
The plot of the story other than finding romance is quite simple as Doris (aka Dodo) is a card expert with mathematic skills like no other. She needs to send home money to save her parents from losing everything.
Arriving on the scene is George one of the Chance brothers that is a compulsive gambler who loses more than he wins. 
George's meeting and losing to Doris sets the story into many full-blown card lessons along with a very strong attraction between them and we follow them through many frustrating ups, downs, and secrets before they reach a happy conclusion.
My enjoyment of this story was limited. I really didn't care for either of the characters much and the plot didn't captivate me like the previous Chance stories.
💖Favorite character: Viscount Pernrith the half-brother who adds some responsibility and depth to the Chance family
📖Story rating: 3.5 rounded up to 4.

Doris, aka Dodo, is a math genius who goes to bath to play cards to win enough to pay for debts her sick parents are accumulating out in the country. George doesn’t like to lose and desperately wants to understand Dodo and how she constantly wins. Spending time together they realize that winning isn’t everything. I received an ARC from NetGalley and Dragonblade Publishing for my honest review.

Dodo has come to Bath to gamble in order to earn money to save her parents.
She meets George, an Earl who is a gambler and horse owner for racing and betting.
Initial meeting over cards leads to contentious relationship as they each learn to appreciate each others flaws and good character.
Some twists and a betrayal add to the excitement.
A good addition to the Chance brothers series.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

I flew through this book after the reading the previous one - our main character is lovable, and written in not that characteristic "oooh, I'm a numbers genius and no one likes me" kind of way. First of all, she's clearly of the upperclass as far as being well-educated, but doesn't run in London society, the way we see in a lot of other historical romance books. Second, the author has taken clear pains to portray her as a lover of numbers, but not necessarily having that be a repetitive and only quirk, which I appreciated. Though I love a nerdy historical girly no matter in what context, to be fair.
Where I found this book semi-lacking was in our MMC, though through no fault of the writing- I think I'm just not a girl who likes male characters who are a bit childish and out of touch - and it felt like though he kind of learns a little bit of his lesson, he doesn't go through any particular personality changes. I respect that, because I don't believe that just falling in love changes a person so drastically - it's just not my particular partiality in men.

Definitely a great series, and I'm so excited to get our viscount's story!

I like this book so far. I just started listening to my arc.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher. Pub date is November 1, 2024 and full review to follow.
I am enjoying this book!