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bzliz's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-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
2.5
Not my favorite. There were some aspects that I enjoyed- the jewel hunt and translating the diary- but the romance aspects felt like recycling previous books and Frankensteining them together. Most of the MMCs are reformed rakes and Gareth is no exception, his father isn’t really his father, he feels the need to trap Hyacinth into a marriage so his cruel father will be proven wrong, etc. I did like Hyacinth though. She has admirable tenacity and doesn’t hesitate to speak her mind. And getting more of Lady Danbury is fantastic. I genuinely think she’s my favorite character from the whole series.
On the other hand, I could have done without the other “engagement”. It’s heavily implied that Mary has some kind of mental disability so Gareth’s evil father trying to trap him into marriage with her to get his hands on her dowry is downright despicable. And just plain stupid. Even if he’s your second son, even if he’s technically an illegitimate child you’ve legitimized, something can always happen to your heir. For someone so obsessed with appearances, it would never make sense to put your family lineage in jeopardy. It feels like a cheap plot point made to show that underneath his exterior, Gareth has a kind heart. There were other ways that could’ve been done.
Unfortunately, the book’s biggest sin is that it feels incomplete without the second epilogue.The jewel search/heist was the most interesting part of the book so to leave it fruitless was deeply unsatisfying. It feels even weirder that in the original epilogue, their daughter finds the jewels almost by accident and doesn’t tell anyone. All I can say to sum it up is that it’s probably good that this is the second to last book in the series.
On the other hand, I could have done without the other “engagement”. It’s heavily implied that Mary has some kind of mental disability so Gareth’s evil father trying to trap him into marriage with her to get his hands on her dowry is downright despicable. And just plain stupid. Even if he’s your second son, even if he’s technically an illegitimate child you’ve legitimized, something can always happen to your heir. For someone so obsessed with appearances, it would never make sense to put your family lineage in jeopardy. It feels like a cheap plot point made to show that underneath his exterior, Gareth has a kind heart. There were other ways that could’ve been done.
Unfortunately, the book’s biggest sin is that it feels incomplete without the second epilogue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Emotional abuse
Minor: Ableism and Infidelity
abby_can_read's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
October 2023-⭐️⭐️⭐️
🎧
This was a light and cute book. It was an enjoyable read, like most of the series. My favorite character was probably Lady Danbury. To be honestly, she's my favorite from the entire series.
March 2022-⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📱
This was an adorable book. I enjoyed it. Hyacinth and Gareth were a cute match, though it didn't seem like love love to me. I like the subplot with Garett's father.
🎧
This was a light and cute book. It was an enjoyable read, like most of the series. My favorite character was probably Lady Danbury. To be honestly, she's my favorite from the entire series.
March 2022-⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📱
This was an adorable book. I enjoyed it. Hyacinth and Gareth were a cute match, though it didn't seem like love love to me. I like the subplot with Garett's father.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Child abuse, and Infidelity
Minor: Miscarriage
terrywho's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-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? It's complicated
4.75
Trust me when I tell you that only reason why I didn’t finish this in one day (like I did the other 4) is because life got in the way.
Anyways, hello Hyacinth bridgerton, move over Benedict and Colin, I have a new favorite sibling!
I truly adored this story, and I loved Hyacinth and Gareth. It was the perfect fun little romance, and the chemistry between these two was palpable for the first first moment and I loved it all so much!!
Gareth as the tortured kind man is a wonderful love interest for the most mischievous and fun loving of the Bridgerton siblings, and I really liked how this time yes the smutty scones were still there, they weren’t the focus of the story, but a spotlight had been placed on the fun of the blossoming love between these two. The only thing that makes this 4.75 instead of 5 is the bit where he decides to trap her into the marriage because he’s scared that she’ll break it off if she learns about his secret, but I can chuck that off to a momentary lapse of judgement driven by true love and fear of rejection so it’s all good.
Ahhhh!!! Anyways, this was too cute and I don’t have a lot of rational thoughts beyond “I loved it”
Anyways, hello Hyacinth bridgerton, move over Benedict and Colin, I have a new favorite sibling!
I truly adored this story, and I loved Hyacinth and Gareth. It was the perfect fun little romance, and the chemistry between these two was palpable for the first first moment and I loved it all so much!!
Gareth as the tortured kind man is a wonderful love interest for the most mischievous and fun loving of the Bridgerton siblings, and I really liked how this time yes the smutty scones were still there, they weren’t the focus of the story, but a spotlight had been placed on the fun of the blossoming love between these two. The only thing that makes this 4.75 instead of 5 is the bit where he decides to trap her into the marriage because he’s scared that she’ll break it off if she learns about his secret, but I can chuck that off to a momentary lapse of judgement driven by true love and fear of rejection so it’s all good.
Ahhhh!!! Anyways, this was too cute and I don’t have a lot of rational thoughts beyond “I loved it”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
rafacolog's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Death of parent
kasialipa's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Infidelity, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Miscarriage
beckyyreadss's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
I wanted to read this book because of the Netflix show that hit on Christmas a few years ago and now Netflix has announced we are getting Polin’s story and I'm hoping we get the full eight seasons for each sibling. I wanted to get ahead and know what is going to happen, so of course I bought all nine books. I enjoyed the first two books in this series, I struggled with Benedict’s and Eloise’s story and didn’t mind Colin’s story and Francesca’s and Hyacinth's story have been adorable.
This novel follows two main characters. The first character is Hyacinth Bridgerton. She is the baby of the family and the eighth child in the Bridgerton household. All of the ton agree, there is no one quite like Hyacinth Bridgeton. She is fiendishly smart, outspoken to some and best in small doses. Her mother and oldest brother are desperate to marry her off, but after four marriage proposal that she has rejected, everyone is slowing giving up. Hyacinth just wants to find a man who doesn’t want to change her and can keep up her outspokenness and her attitude. The second character is Gareth St Clair, he is in London for his grandmother and the one family member that likes him – Lady Danbury, he has no intention getting married as his father is running up debt so that when he dies, the debt goes to his son (who isn’t actually his biological son). Gareth and Hyacinth cross paths at the annual Smythe-Smith musicale. To Hyacinth, Gareth’s every word seems a dare, and she offers to help him out with a knotty inheritance problem he’s facing. As they delve into the mysterious St Clair history, they discover that the answers they seek lie not in the past but in each other, and that there is nothing as simple or as complicated as a single, perfect kiss.
My favourite things about this book were Julia Quinn’s writing style. It didn’t feel like I was back in time. I mean, obviously they weren’t going on about Snapchat, but it just felt like a modern-day story with a bit of mystery. The only thing that kept me from remembering that it was set in the 1800s was the references of letters and carriages and that they couldn’t Google Translate the diary. The storyline was adorable and funny and heartbreaking, all at the same time. Gareth was a sweetheart and I felt for him for his daddy issues, but also a bit of a dick at the same time. I wanted to smack him for how he was thinking about Hyacinth and the original reason why he wanted to marry her. Hyacinth finally found someone who could deal with her dry humour and then she gets screwed over.
However, that’s not the reason I didn’t rate it five stars. The reason I didn’t rate it five stars was because I miss the Bridgerton gang – in the first four book, they were all together and causing mischief together. Besides Gregory and Anthony playing a small part in this book, they weren’t there. I wanted girl talk and all the sister to spill secrets, I wanted the overprotective brothers who wanted to hunt down Gareth. I just miss the sibling banter and I get that in those days when they got married, they had their own household and children to deal with it, but I just missed them. Also, I think because I've read these books in such a short span of time rather than when they were debut over the years, it was weird to picture little Hyacinth like in the TV show being this elegant and sexy woman and getting laid, it was like reading a young siblings diary.
I cannot wait for Gregory’s story and hopefully it will be all tied together nicely and we see more of the brothers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Infidelity, Death of parent, and Death
Minor: Miscarriage
insanebookperson's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Classism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, and Sexual content
haleysversion's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Sexism, Sexual content, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
madkatrob's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Child abuse
hecksbecks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Its in His Kiss gives us a little angst, quick wit and enough Lady Danbury to soothe the soul. Hyacinth’s inclusion to the Bridgerton franchise is a fun read, a little slow to get into but once we truly meet Mr. Gareth St. Clair we are ALL asking “Gareth more.” It could just be me but I saw the true identity of Gareth's father from a mile away, it could have been teased a bit better but no matter. These books are fun to read in a binge-it-all-in-the-bath sort of way. I believe I enjoyed it as much as Hy and Lady Danbury enjoyed their Buttersworth adventures. Highly recommend these books. :)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Infidelity