The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After by Julia Quinn

June 26, 2013

The Bridgerton's are back!

http://www.juliaquinn.com/
If you are a big Bridgerton family fan, then The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After is for you.  The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After is a nice collection of second epilogues on each of the Bridgerton novels.  Before you go out and buy the book, only three of the selections are new, the rest you may already have. However, it was nice having the complete collection in one work and it was also nice revisiting one of my favorite romance families. Now, if you are like me, you may not remember each one of the characters or their stories, but Ms. Quinn has included a Cliff's notes of sorts at the beginning of each story along with the novel title the epilogue goes with. 

I actually enjoy having all of these epilogues lumped together in one group. Some of them were better than others and a couple of them were stand-outs.  One of my favorites, the epilogue for To Sir Phillip, With Love, was even in first person.  We all know that I'm not a big fan of first person, but this one was written in such a way that I didn't notice I was only seeing things through Amanda's eyes. Well done, Ms. Quinn - just don't get in the habit of doing first person.

While the rest of the epilogues were good, there were three other stand-outs that really delivered quite an emotional bunch. Francesca and Michael's epilogue from When He Was Wicked. Francesca desperately wants a child and being surrounded by a family of people who produce like rabbits compounds the problem even further.  The heart-warming moment in this book is not between Francesca and Michael, but between Francesca and her mother, Violet. This scene was a true mother-daughter moment and very close to a tear-jerker. 

The next one was Gregory and Lucy's epilogue from On the Way to the Wedding. In the process of delivering her ninth baby, something goes wrong and Lucy almost dies. Well, this is a romance story so we pretty much know that she's going to make it. However, on the way to waiting for her to wake up, there is a wonderful scene between Gregory and his eldest daughter. Another very touching parent-child moment. 

And, the last stand out was about Violet, the Bridgerton matriarch. This one is entitled Violet in Bloom. While I might have said this was a stand-out, it doesn't necessarily mean I loved, loved, loved it. We get to see flashbacks of Violet's childhood and her first encounter with Edmund Bridgerton, then the moment they fall in love, then his death, then her dancing with a mysterious stranger, and finally her 75th birthday surrounded by all her family. I enjoyed seeing her and Edmund when they were young, but all of that was tempered by the fact that I knew he was going to die. And, then we get to see him die. So, while it was a powerful epilogue and a stand-out, I'm not really sure I like seeing my romance characters as mortals.

Overall, this is a fast, fun read with some very dramatic epilogues. And, if you love the Bridgerton families then I do recommend you read this book.  The epilogues are for The Duke and I, The Viscount Who Loved Me, An Offer from a Gentleman, Romancing Mister Bridgerton, To Sir Phillip, With Love, When He Was Wicked, It’s In His Kiss, On the Way to the Wedding, Violet in Bloom.  Now, I want to go back and read the books again…but I really don’t have time.  I do think it’s sad to say goodbye to such an entertaining family.  Or is it goodbye?

Time/Place: Variety/England
Sensuality: Warm/Hot