I am more than halfway through the Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn — and loving it. Who knew that I was a regency romance fan? I mean, I’m a romance genre reader through and through, but regency romance? Not my preferred romance to read. But ever since Bridgerton came out on Netflix, and Shonda Rhimes brought it to life, I dove to the books and quickly fell in love with the series.

That’s why this review is slightly painful to write. I went in reading Eloise’s story, book number five in the series, with hope. I thought this book was going to be my favorite, and rather, it was my least favorite. I sincerely hope that Shonda Rhimes uses her magic to turn the story around and switch things up (and I have complete faith in her that she will!). Still, the book did not measure up to its hype.

Synopsis:

Sir Phillip knew that Eloise Bridgerton was a spinster, and so he'd proposed, figuring that she'd be homely and unassuming, and more than a little desperate for an offer of marriage. Except . . . she wasn't. The beautiful woman on his doorstep was anything but quiet, and when she stopped talking long enough to close her mouth, all he wanted to do was kiss her . . . and more.

Did he think she was mad? Eloise Bridgerton couldn't marry a man she had never met! But then she started thinking . . . and wondering . . . and before she knew it, she was in a hired carriage in the middle of the night, on her way to meet the man she hoped might be her perfect match. Except . . . he wasn't. Her perfect husband wouldn't be so moody and ill-mannered, and while Phillip was certainly handsome, he was a large brute of a man, rough and rugged, and totally unlike the London gentlemen vying for her hand. But when he smiled . . . and when he kissed her . . . the rest of the world simply fell away, and she couldn't help but wonder . . . could this imperfect man be perfect for her?

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My Review:

Honestly, as I sat on this review and thought about it, I liked the whirlwind of it all. Eloise doesn’t strike me as the type to fall in love quickly and to quote Queen Elsa, “to marry a man she just met.” I like to think Eloise as thoughtful yet spontaneous with a touch of adventure. This book did have a whirlwind to it all. Eloise ran away from home to meet a man she’s barely met. We see her in earlier books that she does not want marriage, but after being a “spinster” (the ton’s words, not mine), and seeing her best friend Penelope get married, she is starting to reconsider. As most women do at a certain age. Instead of changing her ideals completely, we see Eloise slowly opening herself up to love and realizing she can fall in love and get married and not view it of being shackled to some man forever.

Now Philip. Let me take a swig of coffee before I dive into this one.

Okay, I’m back.

Philip is … interesting. The way he’s portrayed in the movie is going to be (and is already) different than the books. We see Philip as this sweet little brother who offers to marry Marina, the lover of his older brother, George. We see that in the book, but we see more of Marina’s depression in the books. (We haven’t seen that in the show, but I probably expect to see that in Eloise’s season.) But overall, in the books, he was alright. I liked his backstory enough, but sometimes I wish I read more of his backstory? Especially with his brother, George, who was supposedly the “golden child” of the family. But I get it — the story focuses on Eloise and Philip. Still … it would’ve been nice to read more about his family.

Overall, I did like it. It definitely wasn’t my favorite out of the series, but when I look at it as one book in the entire series, it did wrap things up for Eloise and I’m glad she got her happily ever after.