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Bridgerton Book(s) vs. Netflix Show: Thoughts and Comparisons

Bridgerton Book(s) vs. Netflix Show: Thoughts and Comparisons
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Bridgerton is Netflix’s new, top watched original series. In it, Daphne Bridgerton and Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, start a false courtship, which quickly leads to real feelings.

However, Simon is determined to get revenge on his father for his difficult childhood by never having children. This causes problems, as Daphne is the fourth of eight children and wants nothing more than to marry and have a family.

As the show is based on a series of books by Julia Quinn, I thought I would read the books and write out my thoughts on how they compared to the show. Season one is based on the first book; you can find my review of The Duke and I here.

Time Spent on Different Characters

I didn’t like how the TV show had so little time focused on Simon and Daphne. Usually, romances spend the majority of the time looking at the hero and/or heroine and their relationship. Bridgerton filled a lot of screen time with the exploits of the other siblings.

In my review of The Duke and I, I said that I thought the first half of the book felt like a set-up for the rest of the series. Book-Simon and book-Daphne’s relationship doesn’t develop at a realistic pace, but other characters are expertly introduced. There’s space for TV-Simon and TV-Daphne’s relationship to develop more realistically.

It felt like the TV show also used this first season as a set-up for the rest of the series. The show told the other Bridgerton sibling’s backstories around the main story (didn’t leave much for future seasons, really). Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough time focused on Simon and Daphne’s story for me to feel invested in their relationship.

Lady Whistledown

In the books, we don’t find out the identity of Lady Whistledown (the scandal writer) until the fourth book (Romancing Mister Bridgerton). In fact, The Duke and I spends no time pondering Lady Whistledown’s identity. (Aside from the occasional “she must have a spy in the family” comment, of course).

However, the TV show characters spend quite a bit of time discussing who Lady Whistledown might be. Eloise even launches her own amateur investigation into the matter.

Actors of Colour

One of the major differences between the Bridgerton books and TV show is the numbers of coloured people. The book characters are all lilywhite English aristocrats typical of the genre. The Netflix show has been praised for “colour blind” casting.

There is a theory that the Queen at the time may have been part black. Evidence includes a rather unflattering comment made by a royal physician and a portrait where she has unfashionably full lips. Additionally, her family tree has been traced back to a Portuguese noblewoman who may have been coloured (the evidence for this is far from conclusive, however).

Apparently, the show is set in an alternate reality where Queen Charlotte was half-African and favoured other part-African people. Even in such circumstances, I highly doubt that the Queen would have been able to elevate so many people of colour to so many (usually hereditary) positions in the 50-odd years she was married to King George.

Queen Charlotte and Prince Frederik

The Queen doesn’t appear at all in The Duke and I. I didn’t particularly like Queen Charlotte, but she certainly added to the story. By all accounts, the real-life Queen Charlotte took an active interest in society, so including her was realistic. And her hair and gowns were generally magnificent.

Her presence also made it easy to introduce Prince Frederik to the story. Daphne’s relationship with Prince Frederik adds another dimension to Simon and Daphne’s relationship that I enjoyed. Additionally, it creates some interesting action for the time that Simon and Daphne grow closer.

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Anthony and Siena

In The Viscount who Loved Me, we find out that Anthony (Daphne’s eldest brother) is convinced he will die before his 39th birthday because his own father died aged 38. For this reason, he is afraid of falling in love. Apparently being in love would make his limited lifespan painful to live with.

On the TV show, Anthony appears to be in love with Siena (or at least thinks he is). This makes it look like Anthony’s problems with love are going to stem from previous heartbreak, not his father’s death.

At present, I don’t like this change, but we’ll see how they deal with it in season 2.

Simon’s Backstory

In The Duke and I, Simon’s backstory is told almost all at once in the prologue and first chapter. The show used flashbacks sprinkled throughout the episodes to tell the same backstory.

I liked how the show kept the backstory itself the same, but preferred the way the book delt with it. However, I loved how the show included a high-tension scene where Simon makes a vow to his father on his deathbed – so dramatic, and really highlighted just how much Simon hated the old duke.

Why can’t Daphne find a husband?

The reasons behind Daphne being unable to find a husband differed between the book and the show.

In the book, she’s a rather ordinary girl who becomes everyone’s friend but no one’s romantic heroine. Sure, Simon speculates that her overbearing elder brothers might have something to do with it, but it’s not the main reason.

In the show, Daphne is “flawless,” and every man wants to court her. Her inability to snag a husband has everything to do with Anthony scaring away potential suitors.

I preferred the book version. Book-Daphne was so much more relatable. The book also made Nigel Berbrooke more redeemable; he may be a minor character, but he does appear briefly in the book’s epilogue and The Viscount who Loved Me.

Favourite Scenes

I watched season one of Bridgerton before reading The Duke and I, and there were a couple of scenes that I hoped would also be in the book. I loved the scene where Anthony and Daphne try to turn on the stove so they can have warm milk without waking any of the servants.

As great as TV-Simon and Daphne’s conversation at the inn was, I preferred the book version of Violet telling Daphne about marriage, and the ensuing wedding-night conversation. It was just so funny. Daphne’s mother failed so completely to tell her anything useful and it led to such a hilarious misunderstanding.

Have you, also, watched Bridgerton on Netflix and read the books? How do you think they compare? Let me know in the comments below.

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Review: The Viscount who Loved Me by Julia Quinn

Book review of The Viscount who Loved Me by Julia Quinn, an historical romance novel set primarily in regency London.

The Viscount who Love Me by Julia Quinn book cover
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This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Please see our full disclosure for further information.

Synopsis

Kate Sheffield is determined to protect her younger sister, Edwina, from society’s rakes while they are in London for the season. This creates quite a problem for Anthony Bridgerton, who has decided that it’s time he found a wife. Edwina fits his requirements, so he pursues her.

As the sisters get to know Anthony, Kate realises that Anthony isn’t as terrible as she had thought. But just as she removes her objection to Anthony courting Edwina, Kate and Anthony are found in a compromising situation involving a bee.

Their ensuing marriage works out well, until Anthony realises he might be falling in love with Kate. Because of his certainty that he will die sometime in the following nine years, this terrifies him. Can he and Kate defeat their demons? Will they be able to love each other freely?

Review

The Viscount who Loved Me is the second of Julia Quinn’s books about the Bridgerton siblings. It tells the story of how Anthony, the eldest Bridgerton, finds love and marries the next viscountess.

I liked how Kate isn’t the ravishing beauty who is the typical heroine in romance novels. She has an inner beauty that Anthony eventually recognises, but she is always compared to the more fashionably beautiful Edwina. It’s such a refreshing change from the norm.

Kate is brilliant. She is intelligent, has a sharp wit, and cares for others. When Anthony is less than perfectly polite, Kate doesn’t hold back from being rude right back. And the way she delights in Anthony’s discomfort is hilarious.

I also loved the relationship between Mary and Kate. They have a really strong bond and I might have forgotten they weren’t mother and daughter if it wasn’t mentioned so much. Mary is so unlike the stereotypical evil stepmother I just had to like her.

My favourite scene has to be the scene where they all play Pall Mall. It showed Anthony’s devotion to his family and further built his relationship with Kate. Before this, Anthony was difficult to like (not great for a romance hero); his views on marriage and how he treated Kate were so annoying.  I also loved the glimpse of Daphne and Simon, the protagonists from the first book in the series (The Duke and I).

The Viscount who Loved Me is full of hilarious dialogues. Anthony and Kate have the best banter. They also exchange veiled insults and share tender moments. It was such fun to read.

Unfortunately, the steamy and tension-filled scenes between Anthony and Kate became a bit lukewarm towards the end of the book. Their banter is no longer fun and light, but grows serious.

Conclusion

Have you read The Viscount who Love Me? What did you think? Do you agree with what I’ve said about it? Let me know in the comments.

If you haven’t, you can buy it at Book Depository (they have free international shipping!) or Waterstones (free delivery on UK orders over £25, will ship internationally).

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Review: The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

Review of The Duke and I, a regency era romance set in 1813 London by Julia Quinn.

The Duke and I by Julia Quinn cover
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This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Please see our full disclosure for further information.

Synopsis

After two seasons of minimal success on the marriage mart, Daphne Bridgerton is uncertain if she will ever meet a man she can marry. Then she meets Simon Basset, newly minted Duke of Hastings.

Simon was rejected by his father for having a stutter as a child. Because of this, he is determined never to marry or have children to carry on the family line. He suggests to Daphne that they pretend to be courting. Hopefully, this will keep the Ambitious Mamas of marriageable-aged daughters from bothering him and make her more attractive to potential suitors.

However, Simon is increasingly attracted to Daphne, and Daphne cares more and more for Simon. And after they are found in a compromising position in a garden, Daphne’s elder brother demands they marry. Simon eventually agrees, but his constant dedication to spite his father comes between them. Can Daphne defeat Simon’s hatred of his father?

Review

The Duke and I is the first of Julia Quinn’s novels about the Bridgerton siblings. It tells the love story of how Daphne, the eldest Bridgerton daughter and fourth Bridgerton child. It is also the inspiration for the first season of Netflix’s fantastic new show: Bridgerton.

The first half of the story almost seemed like a different book to the second half. I think the author may have used the first half to set the scene for the rest of the series. She introduced the large and lively Bridgerton family masterfully. Aside from some serious physical attraction, the relationship between Simon and Daphne didn’t develop much. This made the kissing in the garden scene feel a bit sudden.

The chemistry between Simon and Daphne was beautiful. I just couldn’t help falling in love with them as a couple. I liked how they have vastly different backstories but still have a connection and common purpose. And the banter between them was fun and adorable.

“Sir! Sir!”

With great reluctance, he dragged his eyes up to her face. Which was, of course, delightful in and of itself, but it was difficult to picture her seduction when she was scowling at him.

“Were you listening to me?”

“Of course,” he lied.

“You weren’t.”

“No,” he admitted.

A sound came from the back of her throat that sounded suspiciously like a growl. “Then why,” she ground out, “did you say you were?”

He shrugged. “I thought it was what you wanted to hear.”

Daphne is such an amazing young woman. She’s intelligent, friendly, and clear-headed. She has a sly sense of humour and a fantastic grasp on how to deal with men. I loved how she wasn’t afraid to interfere in things that affected her even though the men tried to exclude her.

Some parts of the story were repeated a bit often. These include the fact that Simon’s stutter is brought on by stress and anger and that Daphne is from a large and loving family with overbearing brothers. It keeps things consistent, but gets a bit overdone.

The Controversial Scene

About 80% of the way through The Duke and I, there is a controversial, potentially triggering scene. Some people would say that Daphne raped Simon. I’m not so sure – it’s very much more complicated than that.

Because of his problems with his father, Simon has decided that he will never have children. So before agreeing to marry Daphne, he tells her that he cannot have children. Daphne takes this to mean that there is something physically wrong with him and because she’s so innocent, she doesn’t notice the little thing he does to ensure that she will never conceive.

Two weeks into their marriage, Daphne puts two and two together and realises what Simon has been doing. They fight about it, and after a failed reconciliation, Simon gets very drunk. After a short nap, they have some apparently mutually consensual sexy times that becomes less mutually consensual at the end. Simon (understandably) becomes very angry and leaves.

I’m not going to get into the debate of who was right or wrong. However, I didn’t like the way it was delt with in the story. Simon and Daphne separate for a time, but come back together fairly easily.

Neither of them acknowledges their mistakes or apologises to the other. There’s very little discussion afterwards, and what discussion they have is centred around having children, not the issues they’ve had. I find it difficult to believe that a couple could get over something so major so easily.

Conclusion

Have you read The Duke and I? What did you think? Do you agree with what I’ve said about it? Let me know in the comments.

If you haven’t, you can buy it at Book Depository (they have free international shipping!) or Waterstones (free delivery on UK orders over £25, will ship internationally).