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Rating: 
Summary: disappointing--you'll have to be very patient indeed
Review: Elisabeth Fairchild was the author of the very first Regency I read several years ago (A Fresh Perspective), and I really liked that one. Her books do tend to have a unique voice, quite different from most authors, and it can take some getting used to. That said, A Game of Patience is not a book I would recommend. The book seems to take place almost entirely in the mind of its very young (17) heroine, named Patience. Patience thinks she is in love with one man, Pip, she has known her whole life, and that she is only "dear friends" with another man, Richard, she has also known her whole life. Of course, Pip is an unprincipled dandy who carelessly takes her for granted and worse; and the Richard is a nice, caring man who's been in love with her for years. And she is too blind to see that she would be far better off with the Richard than with Pip. You don't get to see the romance developing. It's a very abrupt ending, and unsatisfying. I finished this book mainly because I was sick and in bed with nothing better to do, and I kept hoping it was going to get better. However, it wasn't worth five bucks or two hours of my time, and I don't plan on ever reading it again.
Rating: 
Summary: an excellent read
Review: Elisabeth Fairchild's "A Game of Patience" reminded me quite a bit of Shirley Kennedy's "Lady Flora's Fantasy" -- there're both Regencies about young women who fall for a golden illusion that is not rooted in reality, while ignoring the real hero who happens to be in-love with them and to be right under their noses. However, that's as far as the similarities went: somehow "A Game of Patience" turned out to be a more poignant read, and was really about a lot more than Patience Ballard's idealized hero worship of her childhood friend, Philip Yorke (Pip), the Earl of Royston; and her other childhood friend, Richard Cavensdish's unrequited love for her. It is also about friendship, and the particular bond that holds Patience, Pip and Richard together. And it also about growing up, and the giving up of childhood-girlish dreams in order to realize better, more mature ones. Patience Ballard decided when she was 8 years old that she was going to grow up and marry her childhood playmate, the fun loving and flamboyant Pip Yorke. A grown up 17 year old Patience however discovers that her dreams are not so easy to accomplish, for Pip instead of waiting to discover that SHE is the woman for him, has gotten himself engaged to a rich society beauty. Now, however Patience is in London for her own Season, and it is her devout hope that somewhere along the way, Pip will discover his 'real' feelings for her. Patience hopes are further bolstered by Pip's odd behavior: he seems not to spend very much time with his fiance, and doesn't seem to be very interested in her either. But Pip seems to show very little interest in Patience as well (aside from being pleased that an old friend is in London at the moment). Patience soon finds herself treading a very fine line between euphoria and depression; and if it were not for her other childhood friend, Richard, Patience is sure that she would be quite sunk in despair. Dear, sweet, dependable Richard, who bolsters her ego and who is always taking care of her. What would she do without him? And then Patience discovers that Richard is hopelessly in love with someone who does not reciprocate his love. Patience cannot understand anyone not returning Richard's love, and is saddened for her friend's plight. But this also causes her to examine what her life would be like without Richard. As Patience slowly comes to realize the impact that Richard has had on her life, she also comes to see that she must more carefully consider the ties of friendship and affection that bind her to both Pip and Richard, and decided what (and who) it is she really wants... What I liked about "A Game of Patience" most was that there was no standout villain. Everyone was slightly flawed in some way or the other; and not everyone behaved very well either. So that I couldn't find it in me to outrightly disapprove of any one character (save Richard's elder brother, Chase) very much. For example, I was unable to feel irritated with Patience over her obsession with Pip, because she was after all only 17 when the novel opens. And as for Pip, while his behaviour left a lot to be desired, he wasn't an outright cad either -- merely weak and spoilt. Richard (the really dependable character in this novel) is the rock upon whom all his friends have come to rely. And Elisabeth Fairchild did a wonderful job of gradually showing us what a gem he was -- you cannot but help approving of a man who loves steadfastly and true, even when the object of his affections doesn't even realize that he has a pulse! I liked the pacing of the novel -- the events chronicled in this book took place over a period of a year, instead of a few weeks or months as is the case of most Regencies. And I think this longer time span added more texture to the novel. "A Game of Patience" is much more than the usual Regency read in that it doesn't merely concentrate on romance. And Ms Fairchild didn't unnecessarily pad her novel with a murder or spy or nefarious doings subplot. Rather, this is an intelligent novel about the coming of age of a young lady, and a story about the bonds of friendship and love. And is well worth a 5 star rating.
Rating:
Summary: Patience required to read the book to the end
Review: Fairchild can be an exceedingly good writer; she's not here. Her heroine, Patience, is not very sympathetic. The hero, Richard, is an excellent man, but the anti-hero and love of Patience's life, Pip, is spoiled and self-centered. It takes far too long for Patience's eyes to open...and too much has to happen for her to see him for who he is (and herself, too). She sees only what she wants to see because she is so wrapped up in her feelings for Pip and is always misunderstanding what she sees and hears.
In addition, Ms. Fairchild is repetitive (I got so sick of hearing Richard referred to as "dependable Richard") and the book is about twice as long as it needs to be. The constant and not-at-all-clever puns on Patience's name are irritating. On top of all that, social conventions are frequently cast to the wind on nothing more than childhood friendships. Most of the plot could not have happened if Patience had been even mildly chaperoned.
Annoying book, despite the stalwart Richard.
Rating:
Summary: Do save your money...
Review: I must say I do appreciate Miss Fairchild's novels but this one is really just dull...The dumb heroine is in love with the hero all the time and he doesn't notice her. There wasn't any tension at all and I was glad when the book was over. Highly NOT recommended. You better spend you money on another book.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting storyline but very repetitive verbiage.
Review: I was disappointed in this Fairchild Regency because she usually is a better read. Fairchild usually has very creative storylines in a genre that is full of the same old stories over and over. In addition, her characters generally have depth. Unfortunately, this is not the case with the lead character Patience and this proved to be the fatal flaw as far as I was concerned. I felt like the writer progressed into her story and found she had chosen the wrong leading lady. The hero was much more interesting and likeable although he was soooo perfectly good - the word saintly wouldn't be much of an exaggeration. I found the anti-hero so shallow as to be irritatingly unbelievable. Added to this was Patience's constant repetition of "dear, dependable Richard" (the hero). It grew old after the 4th time much less the 20th. In a nutshell, I felt this book had definite potential but failed to even approach it. That left me with a dissatisfied feeling at the end of it all. However, please do not be discouraged from trying other Fairchild books. This is not the book on which to base your opinion of her talent.
Rating: 
Summary: I loved it!
Review: Patience Ballard had grown up with Philip "Pip" Yorke, someday to be the Earl of Royston, and Richard Cavendish, a second son in the nobel Cavendish line. From the age of eight Patience thought of golden haired Pip as the handsome one she would someday marry. She considered dark haired Richard to be her most dependable, reliable, and closest friend. At seventeen, the way she viewed them had not changed. From the beginning, I, as the reader, knew of her feelings. I also knew Richard had loved Patience all those years without her ever suspecting. He hid it well. Being only a second son, Richard felt he had nothing to offer a wife, especially since his older brother was so irresponsible. Thus a love triangle was set up. Having read many such plots, I worried that this meant the heroine would be a spoiled, empty headed lady that I would want to strangle and the hero would be someone I would want to slap sense into before directing his attention to someone much more deserving. However, I was only around chapter three and recalled how much I enjoyed this author's previous books. So I decided to give it just a few more pages. That is the last thing I recall thinking to myself until I had finished reading the entire book! "The game we call Solitaire in the United States has been known in England for many years as Patience, the virtue most required for successful play." The story opened with that quote and I could not get it out of my mind during the whole book. How witty of the author, Elisabeth Fairchild! How delightful for me! Patience was NOT the idiot I thought she would be. She was just blinded by her childhood dreams. Many people have been that way over someone or something before. Instead of hating the book, I LOVED it! Be warned, if you HATE blind devotion, avoid this plot! Otherwise, enjoy! As for myself, I am happy I kept reading. I found myself reading the last chapter several times because of how marvelous it left me feeling. I plan to tell everyone to read this story!
Rating:
Summary: Well written with true character growth
Review: Patience Ballard has been in love with Pip since she was a young child. Now she's an adult, ready for her season, but Pip is already engaged to another. She resolves to find some way to win Pip's attention, to give herself a chance before Pip is snatched from her forever. The adult Pip is beautiful, purely sexy, and attacks life with a joy that makes everything a game. Still, does Patience really want everything to be a game, especially love? Patience's other childhood friend, Richard, is everything that Pip is not--steady, dependable, and thoughtful. Yet, Patience learns that Richard is also secretly in love--apparently with a married woman. What is a girl to do? Author Elisabeth Fairchild does a wonderful job depicting that odd moment in history known as the Regency Period. Aristocrats party while the masses go hungry and everyone is concerned about reputation and the risk of being ruined. Patience begins as a flighty aristocrat but gradually sees beneath the surface of society, becoming a more complete person--and a person capable of an adult relationship. Still, can she learn the difference between passion and love--before it is too late?
Rating:
Summary: I guess it's a matter of opinion...
Review: The plot really was a good idea and the hero of the story was wonderful, BUT (you knew a but was coming) I really did not like the fact that Patience was totally obsessed with another man until the last few pages of the book. I would have loved to have seen Patience and Richard's relationship develop, but I was left with the feeling that the end of the book was only the barest of beginnings of their romance. Most of the time I was reading this book, I was longing to hit Patience over the head for ignoring the man who was so desperately in love with her. The last straw for me was the scene (which was a tad much for a regency romance) where Patience came close to losing her virginity to her childhood crush, Pip. It was too detailed, if you get what I mean, and it was close to the end of the book, which made it worse some how. This book gets one star for poor Richard. Elisabeth Fairchild has written much better...
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