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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
Fantastic. This is why I love Julia Quinn. I loved everything about this one, especially the pacing plus a bit of a mystery thrown in there?? That's right up my alley. The first in the first book was great, this was great, and based off the epilogue, the third book will be great too.
funny
sad
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
I am pretty sure this is my favorite of the Bridgerton and Bridgerton-adjacent books. I found this book to have stronger character development and more humor, as well as deeper grappling with real historical events, while also retaining the expected romance. A quiet enjoyable read!
I just think I don’t like the prequels as much as the core series.
Cecilia Harcourt travels from England to the Colonies during the Revolutionary War, fleeing a dicey situation at home and in search of her brother, a soldier who is missing in action. She doesn't find the brother, but she does find his wounded best friend, Edward. Cecilia and Edward have had a correspondence of sorts, and she's half in love with him, so of course she wants to nurse him back to health - but to do so she must tell his comrades she's his wife. When he wakes up, he recognizes her but doesn't remember anything, and he is surprised but willing to accept that they are, in fact, married. Cecilia continues the lie in order to get his help finding her brother - all the while fearing the moment he remembers that they aren't, in fact, husband and wife.
This book has taken a lot of heat on Goodreads for the lies at its center. Plenty of romances are based on one character hiding something from the other - but in this case, the lie wasn't all that interesting, and Cecilia's guilt used up nearly all of the story's energy. Interesting issues that could have been explored more thoroughly (the suspicious disappearance of Cecilia's brother and for that matter Edward himself; the difference in wealth and station between the pair; their feelings about the war) were neglected in favor of many repetitions of Cecilia's prevarications and Edward's confusion. Neither character was allowed to evolve very much, and although the book was a pleasant enough read and the ending was sweet, the plot and characterizations were both too shallow to be compelling.
3.5 stars, rounded down because Quinn is capable of so much more.
This book has taken a lot of heat on Goodreads for the lies at its center. Plenty of romances are based on one character hiding something from the other - but in this case, the lie wasn't all that interesting, and Cecilia's guilt used up nearly all of the story's energy. Interesting issues that could have been explored more thoroughly (the suspicious disappearance of Cecilia's brother and for that matter Edward himself; the difference in wealth and station between the pair; their feelings about the war) were neglected in favor of many repetitions of Cecilia's prevarications and Edward's confusion. Neither character was allowed to evolve very much, and although the book was a pleasant enough read and the ending was sweet, the plot and characterizations were both too shallow to be compelling.
3.5 stars, rounded down because Quinn is capable of so much more.
This was another super fun read from Julia Quinn. There’s just something I really love about the Rokesby family!
I was just waiting for the ball to drop the entire time waiting for one of them to get hurt. It was emotional, passionate, and all in all a great read!
I was just waiting for the ball to drop the entire time waiting for one of them to get hurt. It was emotional, passionate, and all in all a great read!
This was a fun one! The author hit a new level and different kind of descriptions with her sexy scenes, but more importantly, it was a totally different storyline from all the other Julia Quinn books I’ve read before this. There was a lot less “let’s hate each other til we fall in love” and a lot more in love from the start with this one. Definitely a good read.
I was very interested to see how this worked out - the fake-marriage trope but only one member of the marriage knows that it is fake. I was looking forward to the reveal, both parties sharing their true feelings and a happily ever after. However, that didn't happen.
Instead, her brother died, the mystery as to where Edward was when he lost his memory was that he got clobbered over the head by a fisherman (that is never really explained) and both characters lie to each other repeatedly over and over again. They mystery seemed to be building up to something much more exciting and then everything just fizzled out.
Even the ending left me cold - she runs away and he follows abandoning his spot in the British army (although he does give notice, it is out character). Then they get married on the ship. That's it. He even lies to her during the reconciliation scene.
The only reason I kept reading is because I love Julia Quinn's writing style (but even in this book found some anachronisms extremely distracting which is not usual for me at all). I don't imagine I will ever reread this one but I will still try out some others.
Instead, her brother died, the mystery as to where Edward was when he lost his memory was that he got clobbered over the head by a fisherman (that is never really explained) and both characters lie to each other repeatedly over and over again. They mystery seemed to be building up to something much more exciting and then everything just fizzled out.
Even the ending left me cold - she runs away and he follows abandoning his spot in the British army (although he does give notice, it is out character). Then they get married on the ship. That's it. He even lies to her during the reconciliation scene.
The only reason I kept reading is because I love Julia Quinn's writing style (but even in this book found some anachronisms extremely distracting which is not usual for me at all). I don't imagine I will ever reread this one but I will still try out some others.
Packed full of plot so delicious, I ate it up in a handful of days. Full of fun and (eventually) steamy, I found it started to waffle as it got past the halfway mark. This book is close to 400 pages and it really didn't need to be - there's only so long the central conflict in this kind of narrative can go on for and it died a slow death around the 300 page mark. Also - why didn't she just tell him, there were so many opportunities to tell the truth. One real gripe I have with Julia Quinn is even the complex heroines kind of turn into wet blankets after the romantic hero's had sex with them - give me the complications anew! It's the only reason for knocking a star off because otherwise, I loved it.