I will have to say that I am beyond glad that I decided to read the series. I absolutely love the Bridgertons and everyone who recommends this series for a reason. The family is large and boisterous and loving. The banter between the siblings is off the wall leading me to laugh throughout. Even if I didn’t love all of the romances in this series, I fell head over heels in love with the family. So here are the reviews for all eight of the books in the Bridgertons series by Julia Quinn!
This post features the reviews for the last two books in the series! Check out the end of the post for links to reviews of the entire series!
Meet Our Hero…I am so glad that It’s In His Kiss brought us back to the classic Julia Quinn banter filled story. After the rather serious When He Was Wicked, I wanted the lightness and hilarity of the first few books to come back. Hyacinth and Gareth’s love story, luckily, delivered in spades. I’m beyond devastated that there is only one more book left for me to devour in this series. I’m not ready to say goodbye to the Bridgertons.
Gareth St. Clair is in a bind. His father, who detests him, is determined to beggar the St. Clair estates and ruin his inheritance. Gareth’s sole bequest is an old family diary, which may or may not contain the secrets of his past… and the key to his future. The problem is—it’s written in Italian, of which Gareth speaks not a word.
Meet Our Heroine…
All the ton agreed: there was no one quite like Hyacinth Bridgerton. She’s fiendishly smart, devilishly outspoken and according to Gareth, probably best in small doses. But there’s something about her—something charming and vexing—that grabs him and won’t quite let go…
Meet Poor Mr. Mozart…
Or don’t. But rest assured, he’s spinning in his grave when Gareth and Hyacinth cross paths at the annual–and annually discordant—Smythe-Smith musicale. To Hyacinth, Gareth’s every word seems a dare, and she offers to translate his diary, even though her Italian is slightly less than perfect. But as they delve into the mysterious text, they discover that the answers they seek lie not in the diary, but in each other… and that there is nothing as simple—or as complicated—as a single, perfect kiss.
Hyacinth is unlike any of the other Bridgertons. She’s very blunt and honest and doesn’t always joke around like her siblings. We don’t know much about Hyacinth as her story comes to fruition but I’ll admit that I really liked her. She’s so herself and sure of who she is that I found it rather interesting how she forced others to handle their thoughts about her. You don’t like her? Sounds like your problem. All of her banter with Gareth was great because he could match her wit word for word and would often leave her speechless, which is not a position she finds herself in often. I ended up really liking Hyacinth even if I would have liked to see more of her in the previous books.
Gareth was also really great. He’s stoic and gruff and doesn’t get along with his father. He doesn’t always like being in society and would much rather be elsewhere. However, he loves his grandmother, Lady Danbury, and puts up with all of her shenanigans. He is such a perfect match for Hyacinth and I loved every moment of their situation. However, I am once again disappointed that Julia Quinn resorted to having one of her love interests use sex in the worst way possible. It felt cheap and unnecessary and I wish it hadn’t been included. (Gareth was going to seduce Hyacinth because she found out he might not be legitimate. He didn’t want her to back out of marrying him instead of just talking to her about his feelings.)
Overall, I love that Julia Quinn was able to once again deliver the banter she’s known for when it comes to this series. It’s In His Kiss is delightfully funny and shippy and just all around a fun read. No, it’s not my favorite of the series but one I would definitely read again. I also loved how much we got to see Lady Danbury. She and Hyacinth are so alike in their ways and I loved how Lady Danbury accepted Hyacinth in all her ways.
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Unlike most men of his acquaintance, Gregory Bridgerton believes in true love. And he is convinced that when he finds the woman of his dreams, he will know in an instant that she is the one. And that is exactly what happened. Except…I can’t even begin to express how disappointed I am in this book. I can’t believe that this is how this series ends. Once again let me be absolutely clear upfront: I really do not like stories that begin with love at first sight or anything of that variety. I was really hoping that I would love Gregory especially because I am also a diehard romantic, but this just was not the case.
She wasn’t the one. In fact, the ravishing Miss Hermione Watson is in love with someone else. But her best friend, the ever-practical Lady Lucinda Abernathy, wants to save Hermione from a disastrous alliance, so she offers to help Gregory win her over. But in the process, Lucy falls in love. With Gregory! Except…
Lucy is engaged. And her uncle is not inclined to let her back out of the betrothal, even once Gregory comes to his senses and realizes that it is Lucy, with her sharp wit and sunny smile, who makes his heart sing. And now, on the way to the wedding, Gregory must risk everything to ensure that when it comes time to kiss the bride, he is the only man standing at the altar…
I also want to make it clear that I didn’t hate Gregory or anything. He’s actually really sweet and kind but I just was not sold on him. I remember reading a scene where he was interacting with his mother that led me to realize that I didn’t care. I didn’t know enough about Gregory Bridgeton to care about the significance of the scene. I didn’t know enough about Lucy to care about why Gregory felt the way that he did.
Lucy was a character I felt more for but it still wasn’t enough. She didn’t believe in love and often felt overlooked as compared to her cousin Hermione Watson. (Y’all I couldn’t take it when I found out her full name.) She was never the girl men wanted. I felt for her when it came to this aspect but I also wanted her to speak up for herself. As much as I tried to be patient with her, I often found myself annoyed.
I don’t want to ignore the biggest flaw in the story in my opinion: do you love at first sight trip. I do not think that this was done well in the story considering the fact that Gregory essentially fell in love at first sight with two women. How am I supposed to root for his true love when he changes his mind every so often? How is one love at first sight more valid than the other? If I’m honest, too much of the story felt rushed. Even if I don’t like the love at first sight trope in general, I felt like there could have been a way that Julia Quinn could have really delivered a great story. But unfortunately that wasn’t the case with on the way to the wedding.
Overall, I’m extremely sad that this is how my journey with the Bridgeton ended. I think that Julia Quinn tried to have her signature charm back with this book but it ultimately failed. I’ve come to realize that I haven’t really enjoyed the latter books in the series which is extremely disappointing.
The Bridgertons Series
Book 1: The Duke and I
Book 2: The Viscount Who Loved Me
Book 3: An Offer From a Gentleman
Book 4: Romancing Mister Bridgerton
Book 5: To Sir Phillip With Love
Book 6: When He Was Wicked
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