The Snarker's Guide to Romance

Wherein we begin

Welcome to The Snarker’s Guide to Romance, my book-by-book recap of Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton romance saga. Every week, we are going to tackle a book from this 8-volume series, each of which covers the (love) story of one of the children of Viscount and Lady Bridgerton. We are not going to go in book chronological order because life is chaotic sometimes. Also, because I decided to embark on this project while I was reading Book 5. But! For what it’s worth, I read most of these books out of order with no impairment in enjoyment. It’s gonna be fun, I promise.

For those who have never read any of the books or watched the Netflix show (which deviates a lot from the books and is not my fave thing, apart from the eye candy), don’t worry. Here’s all you need to know:

Edmund and Violet fell in love at a young age, got married, and had a lot of babies. Eight of them to be precise, named in alphabetical order: Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory and Hyacinth. TLC would have loved this bunch. On second thought, maybe not; the Bridgertons were a very close and happy family, no dysfunction to be gawked at. That is, until, Edmund died in a freak bee sting incident just before Hyacinth was born. You will hear a lot more about this later. The series picks up about 15-ish years later, beginning with the coming-out of Daphne, the eldest Bridgerton daughter. The family is part of the ton in Regency-era England; they are wealthy, well-liked, attractive, and charming — and, please note, both collectively and individually. Not a dud among them. Dead father aside, the Bridgerton siblings have had a charmed life. And, with one exception (more on that next week!), will continue to do so while they fall in love and inevitably marry their soulmates.

Did I just spoil the whole series for you?

Come on, we are talking about the “coziest” of romance novels. Nothing truly terrible happens, and if it does, certainly not for very long. That’s why we (ahem, I) love this series; it’s the perfect escape from reality in this year of our Lord 2023.

Here is what you need to know about me: I love these books (I already said that, didn’t I) but I also enjoy picking them apart. We tease the ones we love, don’t we? As the Bridgerton siblings themselves like to do, by the way. As a rule, I do not read a lot of romance novels — Georgette Heyer excepted — and I am not especially sentimental. However, my snark is for entertainment purposes only so … umm, hopefully you are entertained. No promises but a heart full of hope. Oops, getting ahead of myself there.

Next week, we shall start our adventure with Francesca’s story: When He Was Wicked. 

---