Reviews with content warning for Domestic abuse - Romancing Mister Bridgerton

Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn

21 reviews

spootilious's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Read: May 22, 2024
Title: Romancing Mister Bridgerton
Author: Julia Quinn

Series: Bridgerton #4

Genre: Period Romance

Rating: 2/5
Review:

I will be completely forth coming in admitting that I have not read the first three books in this series and that I read this book after the first half of season 3 came out on Netflix. That being said, I read a few reviews prior to me reading this book and went into it with the mindset that these are not the characters I am familiar with and the storyline will be completely different and that I should treat this as a completely stand alone book unrelated, in its entirely, to the Netflix series.

For any reader planning to get into the book I recommend doing the same. The only thing these characters have in common with the characters in the show is name.

All that being said here are my thoughts:

I cannot tell you how much I hated this book. I have no words. Over the last five years I have only read a single book that I hated more than this one for entirely different reasons.

So why the two stars? Well, despite my feeling about this novel I have to admit that Quinn is very talented with the pen. The way she writes and captures the beauty of a scene is stunning in and of itself. I would gladly pick up another book in her style and cadence if it were on another subject or plot.

Which brings me to what’s wrong with the novel. Let’s start with the elephant in the room… Colin Bridgerton… The reviews I read prior to the novel were that this book changed Colin and that his temper was outrageous and childish. I tend to take these perspectives with a grain of salt. A character will always change (or rather should change) when an author shifts from an outside perspective to an inside one. I chalked it up to the readers having been stuck on his personality in previous books and did not expect to have the same problem… I was completely wrong.

Colin and Pen’s relationship is toxic through and through, from bruises to emotional manipulation and general (and societal abuse and gaslighting). It honestly makes me a bit sick. In fact, there was a point, at a specific party (which I will not name but I am sure everyone is aware of), that it was completely out of hand. I believe the worst part of it all is that portrayal of Pen suffered because of it. Not in the sense that I thought less of her but simply that she was built up as a strong independent and clever woman in the first half of the novel just to turn into the ‘he’s going to kill me but it’s okay cuz it means that he loves me,’ type of woman by the end. And I understand that this could be because of some of her own trauma but if that was the case it, if it were depicted as such then perhaps I wouldn’t hate it as much, instead she’s just as empty headed as everyone else (there is not ‘cleverness’ about her). Perhaps this is harsh, but I feel it needs to be said.

So, despite Quinn’s poetic talent, her characters are inconsistent and one dimensional. The plot leaves something to be desired and the spicy scenes (at least in this particular novel) are more toxic that alluring.

Still, I will admit I loved every scene with Lady D. Her and Pen’s friendship was a saving grace in this novel. And Daphne’s explanation (and Colin’s realization) of love was refreshingly relatable, especially as a woman’ who has been married to the love of her life for twelve years (not to show my age).

“And that was when he realized that Daphne had been right. His love hadn't been a thunderbolt from the sky. It had started with a smile, a word, a teasing glance. Every second he had spent in her presence it had grown, until he'd reached this moment, and he suddenly knew. He loved her.”

That is perhaps the most realistic portrayal of falling in love that I have ever read (though there is a particular episode of Doctor Who in which Amelia Pond talks about how people’s faces become their personality, and how beautiful they are… which is neither here nor there but is just as true and what I was reminded of when reading this section).

All of these things considered, I couldn’t give the novel more than two stars and the two that I gave it was more for talent and 2 specific characters than anything else in this novel.

QUOTES:

“And that was when he realized that Daphne had been right. His love hadn't been a thunderbolt from the sky. It had started with a smile, a word, a teasing glance. Every second he had spent in her presence it had grown, until he'd reached this moment, and he suddenly knew. He loved her.”

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j_day's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

Content Warnings

julesadventurezone's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

This is a pretty boring book with little plot and an unlikeable male lead. Plus points for Penelope because I do like her.

Content Warnings

empire_of_sun_and_nightmares's review against another edition

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emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

Just read on library audio, so it was free. Not my favorite, not much developed in characters.

Content Warnings

thevulpecula's review against another edition

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

2.0

Beginning, fine, cute even. Post-secret reveal? Basically, it describes aspects of abusive relationships.

Content Warnings

britwalsh16's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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

3.5

I was super excited for this book! & with the new season coming out of the show following them I wanted to read it beforehand & give me something to tide me over until then. There was a lot I loved, & a lot of scenes I can’t wait to play out in the show.

But I’m not going to lie & say Colin’s temper didn’t really bug me. I understand him getting angry, especially when he finds out about the Lady Whistledown secret or when she’s caught reading his journal. But what I don’t like is the physical abuse that goes along with it, & yes I know it’s nothing giant, he doesn’t hit her or anything that horrible, but the little things can be bad too. Like the scene at their engagement ball with him holding on to her to hurt her instead of letting his temper blow up to the whole room, that is not an okay reaction & I have loved Colin so much throughout the show & the books too, but reactions like that piss me off & Penelope doesn’t know that it’s not okay. What’s going to happen when they have kids & the kids make him angry, will the violence get worse through the years? It’s such a little thing, but it really gets me, & I hope they rewrote that for the show, I’d hate to lose my love for Polin in the show too!

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meroei's review against another edition

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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
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

My goodness I disliked Colin so much in this book.

This is the first of the Bridgerton books I’ve read, although I’ve watched the show in its entirety. As one would expect, a fair amount is changed between the books and the show. I do like the show better, but that’s besides the point and the book was still entertaining.

Colin though…oh my goodness. The way he would refuse to listen to Penelope throughout the book, the way he got so angry and treated her badly (especially when he found out that

she was Lady Whistledown, and especially in comparison to how everyone else reacted

), the way he made decisions for her (like

revealing her as Lady Whistledown

)…I’m glad I was listening to this book instead of reading it, as I’m sure I would have taken much longer with the number of times I would have stopped reading out of frustration.

Him making the decision about

revealing Lady Whistledown

was almost the last straw for me. Thankfully it was so close to the end…but then the epilogues showing that he hasn’t changed much? Gaaaaah. Penelope is such an interesting character, and I loved how she grew more confident over the course of the book. I really, really dislike the way that Colin runs over her. There are moments when Penelope is upset about it (moments where I’m cheering her on), but Colin somehow always gets out of it without actually apologizing or changing.

It’s a fine book for light reading.

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