The Viscount who Loved Me by Julia Quinn

The Viscount Who Loved Me (With 2nd Epilogue) by Julia Quinn

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I have read 347 books this year (so far). 239 of those 347 books rest on my LGBT shelf (69% of total; 210 of those 239 books being lesbian fiction – 87% of LGBT)). There’s a point, of course, in me mentioning this in this review here instead of, say, some ‘end of year review’ type of review. Let me think, it’ll come to me – right, simple enough – my point is that I haven’t read many non-LGBT books this year, and three of those ‘not many’ (108 books) are by the author of this book (2.7% of the total).

Okay, I indulged myself because I have less to say about this book, this time, and was looking for things to say. That paragraph above filled in for my normal ‘I’ve read x number of books by author y’ I sometimes include. 3 books by Quinn, all read this year, all part of the extended Bridgertons series (first was the first book in a prequel series; other two are part of the earlier published 8 book Bridgertons series).

Violet and Edmund (brother of Billie – star of the first book in the Rokesbys series (Because of Miss Bridgerton - set in 1779) had 7 children before Edmund died in 1803 – Violet was pregnant at the time with Hynacinth . . . I think (or they had 8 children before Edmund died). Book 1 of the series, The Duke and I, was set in 1813 and involved the eldest female child of Violet and Edmund – Daphne. Book 2, this book here, deals with the eldest male child – Anthony, and is set in 1814 (no, the books don’t move 1 year in time, somewhere along the line, maybe with the fourth book, we leap to 1824). The rest of the books in the series follow the six other children (actually, that reminds me that technically there are 9 books in the Bridgertons series since there’s a short story collection at the end).

Anthony is fast approaching his death – at least he thinks he is; his father, you see, that being Edmund recall, died when Edmund was 38 (and Anthony was 18). And since he, Anthony, doesn’t believe he could surpass his father in anything, he ‘knows’ that he will be dead by at least the age of 38. If not earlier. For that reason and because he saw what happened to his mother after his father died, he has decided to not pursue a love marriage (since the father and mother were obviously in love). Most of his life that meant that he wouldn’t pursue marriage at all; instead he had been a rake. The kind who had many mistresses, but no loves, and no marriages. But at this late stage Anthony recalled that he is the eldest child, there is a title on the line, and so he’ll get himself a wife. He’d find one attractive enough to keep his interest, someone he can be friendly with, but by no means will he allow himself to fall in love with this woman. For that spells doom.

So that’s what he sets out to do at the beginning of this book – find himself a woman to marry and bred with. Which is how he ended up targeting one Edwina Sheffield – newly debuting into society, and declared by many (all?) as the . . . whatever they call the most attractive women – I’ve forgotten now. Edwina is sisters, younger, to Kate Sheffield. Kate being the other main character in this book.

Kate, for her part, is also debuting for the first time into society. Though already almost 21. The family, you see, isn’t exactly wealthy enough to launch two daughters in two different years. And so they waited. A little late for Kate, a little early for Edwina (who is 17). Kate has attractive features of her own, but being in the same family as, and in the same room with Edwina normally causes people to overlook these attractive features (she’s neither fat, nor plain, nor is she unsightly). Kate mostly doesn’t care about that, at least she either says or thinks, because her goal is to find her sister a good match.

And Kate knows, knows, that that man is not one Anthony Bridgerton. No, not because Kate fancies him for herself. No, it’s because Anthony is the biggest rake of the time. Naturally, then, this means that Kate and Anthony are on a collision course. Anthony could, of course, set his sights on someone else, but he’s both stubborn and lazy. He randomly, without ever even setting eyes on her, decided on Edwina for his future Lady Bridgerton. And the fact that she, at some point, mentioned that her sister’s approval was important to her, and that sister, Kate, clearly hates him does not move Anthony from his goal.

And so – bickering, humor, reappearance of the two leads from the previous book, a few of the other relatives from that book, parties in London, parties outside of London, walks in gardens, interactions with a dog, and much fixation on breasts proceeds to unfold before the readers eyes (the men in Quinn’s books seem much taken with breasts – dreaming of fondling and suckling on them; taking every opportunity to do more than dream of that action . . . etc. etc.).

I’ll leave with two last notes.
1) As I think I’ve hinted at, bluntly stated, or however it was conveyed before – there is a strong feeling of sinking into a Georgette Heyer/Jane Austen type of world when you read these books by Julia Quinn – but these books, the Quinn ones, do not hold back on the graphic nature of human relations – there’s much of that indeed. Graphically conveyed. Take it as a warning or inducement to read the books.
2) Two of the three Quinn books I have read came with ‘second epilogues’. These epilogues were written and released separately from the original books, but are now packaged with the books. I do not recall specifically why I skipped the 2nd epilogue the first time it came around, but I read it this time. Which lead me to certain information that I wished to not know yet – though it was heavily hinted at (that or I picked it up from the series books descriptions; actually it might be in the family tree). Plus – it left me with a bitter taste in my mouth – a feeling of dislike for more of the characters than just Anthony.
I, despite my vague dislike of Anthony, liked and enjoyed this book. I would rate the book somewhere in the four something range.

Rating: 4

December 8 2016




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