The second of Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton books is The Viscount Who Loved Me. It’s a little too similar to the first, The Duke and I, in that the conflict is principally from the irrational fear of the male protagonist. Also, it has a cringe-inducing forced marriage, even more so than the first one. Standing alone, though, it’s not too bad (though probably ahistorical like anything, which I appear not to have said about the first one).
I loved the whole book. The character’s are witty and very amusing. Kate makes an excellent heroine with her wry sense of humor. She thinks Anthony Bridgerton (The Viscount) is up to no good, courting with her little sister Edwina. But the truth is; Anthony “knows” he is going to die young and does not want to leave someone he loves behind to regret so he decided to marry someone pretty, witty, and who he cannot fall in love with. And Edwina Sheiffield follwos the rules. The only problem is Kate, her elder sister.
Their personalities deflect yet they match. Her prejudice towards Anthony disappears quickly after a brilliant scene where Anthony rescues a debutante from harsh critizism. And whiel Kate finds affections for the Rakish Viscount, Anthony feels he is in danger of falling in love. But he does not want to leave Kate like his father did his mother so he puts space between them. He also makes sure Kate knows that she is very important to him and that in his eyes, she is the most beautiful girl.
From a frist kiss in Anthony’s study, to a carriage mishap that ended with a broken leg, to a bee sting that resolved everything, the whole story is witty and fun to read (mostly the Pall Mall scene).