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cepbreed's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This may just be my favorite of the main Bridgerton series! I'm never to type to stick to a reading order if I don't have to so I picked this up because someone on TikTok ranked it as one of their favorites of Quinns. Like the sheep I am I loved it so much. Gareth and Hyacinth are so compelling as a couple; two sly troublemakers finding one another, it doesn't get better. I was more empowered to speed through this in one day because I had just finished season 3 of Bridgerton the show and was still craving the high of regency romance. I love to see a romance where both leads have a strong character and stick to it. I am so tired of unambitious female leads to swoon at the slightest touch. Thank you Hyacinth for being difficult and unabashedly so! The structure of this novel is nothing like the other Bridgerton books and I love it more for that. The introductions to each chapter were so fun; it was weirdly meta to think that Hyacinth, a character in a novel reading a novel, begins to think of her own life in terms of one. I also ADORED the added element of mystery! Histrom authors should take notes from this book and play with the genre more. As an avid reader of histroms I am getting so tired of the same old same old. This story combined two of my favorite genres and I hope to see that more often. Is there a histrom horror out there? I know that sounds antithetical but I'd pay so much to read a well-written one. I saw so much of myself in Hyacinth and maybe that's why I really loved Gareth St. Clair. All the male leads of Julia Quinn's books are wonderful, they have to be loveable, but so far they've all had glaring faults (cough cough book Colin I'm staring DIRECTLY at you), but in the wake of this novel I have yet to have any issues with Gareth (#needthat). I mean the way he said "She would make a fine wife. Not for most men, but for him, and that was all that mattered," ugh, it's so sweet I could die.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Abandonment, and Sexual content
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Miscarriage
prashiie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
“The hallmark of civilization is routine. But the sign of a truly advanced mind is the ability to adapt to changing circumstances.”
As with any Bridgerton book, we have likeable characters that are somewhat flawed.
Hyacinth is very smart and knows what she wants which is partially the reason why she’s on her third season and still unmarried. She spends a lot of time with Lady Danbury and might even be one of the few people that like her. Lady Danbury truly is an amusing character, owing to her brutal honesty. She does not shroom to play matchmaker and nudges Hyacinth towards her grandson, Gareth. Gareth is described to be a rake, just like any other gentleman in this series so far, sigh. Anyway, he dotes on his grandmother, Lady Danbury, who is the only person he has in his life. He does not have a good relationship with his father, the baron. Throughout the story, his father remains a one-dimensional character. Every time Gareth interacts with him, he leaves the scene fully distraught. It makes sense why his father is so angry all the time. He found out his wife cheated on him which led to the birth of Gareth. Whilst nobody in his situation would accept or ignore that, it’s unacceptable to take it out on a child.
When Gareth is in need of an Italian translator, Hyacinth offers to help. They slowly learn more about each other and fall in love. For Gareth this also means that he becomes part of the loving Bridgerton family. It was really heartwarming when Anthony mentioned this to him.
The superficial nature of this story makes it a good read when you are in need of something light and fluffy. What I didn’t really like is that, yet again, the male protagonist is convinced that he must compromise the female protagonist to ensure their marriage. I get that this might be the mindset of that time, but it just annoys me at this time of age.
As with any Bridgerton book, we have likeable characters that are somewhat flawed.
Hyacinth is very smart and knows what she wants which is partially the reason why she’s on her third season and still unmarried. She spends a lot of time with Lady Danbury and might even be one of the few people that like her. Lady Danbury truly is an amusing character, owing to her brutal honesty. She does not shroom to play matchmaker and nudges Hyacinth towards her grandson, Gareth. Gareth is described to be a rake, just like any other gentleman in this series so far, sigh. Anyway, he dotes on his grandmother, Lady Danbury, who is the only person he has in his life. He does not have a good relationship with his father, the baron. Throughout the story, his father remains a one-dimensional character. Every time Gareth interacts with him, he leaves the scene fully distraught. It makes sense why his father is so angry all the time. He found out his wife cheated on him which led to the birth of Gareth. Whilst nobody in his situation would accept or ignore that, it’s unacceptable to take it out on a child.
When Gareth is in need of an Italian translator, Hyacinth offers to help. They slowly learn more about each other and fall in love. For Gareth this also means that he becomes part of the loving Bridgerton family. It was really heartwarming when Anthony mentioned this to him.
The superficial nature of this story makes it a good read when you are in need of something light and fluffy. What I didn’t really like is that, yet again, the male protagonist is convinced that he must compromise the female protagonist to ensure their marriage. I get that this might be the mindset of that time, but it just annoys me at this time of age.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Sexual content, and Misogyny
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Death of parent, and Grief
cielosiluminado's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
gareth and hyacinth were very cute!! their story was really fun and refreshing in the bridgerton series.
my favorite thing was hyacinth never changing herself for a man despite that meaning less marriage prospects for her and despite all the warnings gareth got about her being “too smart” and “difficult to manage”, he still loved her. he loved her quirks, confidence, and brains.
there was just two things that made me not give it a perfect rating: (1) gareth’s glaring daddy issues led him to seduce and compromise her pre-wedding so she wouldn’t back out of the engagement. that was a very questionable action. but i wasn’t that bothered once i read when hyacinth learns that he compromised her on her purpose, she reaffirms that despite being peeved that he resorted to compromising her, she still enjoyed their first time together. and (2) there was also a little lull for me in the story shortly after their engagement.
but i was able to look past those two hiccups because i enjoyed the mystery aspect of the story. the betrothed couple breaking and entering the clair house was so funny to me. i laughed so hard at the imagining hyacinth wearing breeches and cackled when they scaled up the walls to climb into the windows was hilarious to picture. also, the scene between anthony and gareth had me cry laughing because they were both so unserious. i also adored lady danbury and hyacinth’s relationship in this book. it was so heartwarming, especially when lady d had been plotting gareth and hyacinth’s relationship for over a year!
this one is going to be a fun season for netflix to adapt tbh
my favorite thing was hyacinth never changing herself for a man despite that meaning less marriage prospects for her and despite all the warnings gareth got about her being “too smart” and “difficult to manage”, he still loved her. he loved her quirks, confidence, and brains.
there was just two things that made me not give it a perfect rating: (1) gareth’s glaring daddy issues led him to seduce and compromise her pre-wedding so she wouldn’t back out of the engagement. that was a very questionable action. but i wasn’t that bothered once i read when hyacinth learns that he compromised her on her purpose, she reaffirms that despite being peeved that he resorted to compromising her, she still enjoyed their first time together. and (2) there was also a little lull for me in the story shortly after their engagement.
but i was able to look past those two hiccups because i enjoyed the mystery aspect of the story. the betrothed couple breaking and entering the clair house was so funny to me. i laughed so hard at the imagining hyacinth wearing breeches and cackled when they scaled up the walls to climb into the windows was hilarious to picture. also, the scene between anthony and gareth had me cry laughing because they were both so unserious. i also adored lady danbury and hyacinth’s relationship in this book. it was so heartwarming, especially when lady d had been plotting gareth and hyacinth’s relationship for over a year!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, and Infidelity
Minor: Grief, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Death, and Death of parent
markedwithanm's review against another edition
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Miscarriage and Infidelity
kirbylover16's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I love the sense of adventure in this book. For once, I enjoyed both main characters in a Bridgeton book. Well worth the wait. I connect to Hyacinth's desire to solve the case and her struggle to find the right person. Gareth struggled with emotions around his father even long after his childhood. Lady Danbury is always a plus. As with any Bridgeton book, there's parent trama, the reformed rake and virgin, and other overused tropes which are getting super old. I also miss Lady Whistledown, which made this series so unique. The second epilogue wasn't satisfying to me. The first was fine, but the kid's actions didn't feel real. I would try to figure out how they got there and probably showed off to someone as a kid. Not let someone else take the glory or just put it back.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Child abuse, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Minor: Sexual content
urreadtome's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment
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