From My Keeper Shelf

"The Viscount Who Loved Me" Julia Quinn 2000

I remember a time when I owned a copy of each of Julia Quinn’s published novels starting with “Splendid” and finally throwing in the towel at “When He Was Wicked.” Once an autobuy author for me – now only two survive on my shelf. I recently bought an old copy of “Splendid” with a clinch cover (typical of debut novels, but not at all suitable or typical of Quinn) and I never parted with “The Viscount Who Loved Me.” As I've already said in reference to the "Chicago Stars" romance novel series sell – the market is just flooded with them. Julia Quinn without a doubt contributed to this both by influence, and the sheer number of books she published about one family. The Bridgerton’s are like a Regency episode of “8 is Enough” or “Just the 10 of Us” Well, “Just the 9 of Us” is more appropriate – 8 children whose names go alphabetically by age (A – H in a rather annoying fashion), and their devoted matchmaking mama. The family’s patriarch died a decade or so before the start of the series, dying while the youngest (the H) Hyacinth was still in the womb and emotionally stunting our poor hero: Viscount Anthony Bridgerton.

Anthony’s father was killed by a bee, not the first time he was stung and at the young age of 38. Anthony was 18 and very close to his father at the time of his death, so he knows, he just knows he’ll never do anything better this his father, and that includes outliving him. He lives with the knowledge of his own mortality everyday, but needs and heir, so at the age of 29 he decides to take a wife, but he vows to choose one he will never fall in love with. So his choice is the lovely, Edwina Sheffield who will make a perfect Viscountess without interrupting his piece of mind or taking a piece of his heart. Too bad for Anthony his choice is looking to her elder sister for approval before accepting a suitor – and Kate most certainly does not approve of Anthony.

I love Kate and Anthony’s courtship, in fact I think they have one funniest, most antagonistic relationships in romance novels. While purists may blame Julia Quinn for the popularity of “wallpaper historicals” or the “Avonization” of the romance genre, there’s a reason she’s so damn successful – she’s really funny and very smart. I mean, she won an episode of the Weakest Link!! (one of the real ones with the British host, not the watered down half hour ones). Come on, that rules. I saw it by the way, and it was awesome.

Though sometimes bordering on over-sentimentality the Bridgerton’s are completely endearing during their vicious game of Pall Mall. (A game I don't fully understand, that seems like a cross between bocci ball and miniature golf to me) And Kate kills it, quite literally, wielding the “Mallet of Death.” Anthony can’t take his eyes off her – and his family loves her because she fits right in. No simpering miss or milksop maid here, she’s a very real and likeable heroine. And you don’t get much better than Anthony, he’s a supposed rake, only a little tortured, but charming and witty, clearly devoted to family and eventually equally devoted to Kate.

My only real qualm with this book lies with the forced to marry plot device. They were well on their way to falling in love when they were caught in a compromising position, but these stubborn sweethearts probably wouldn’t have made it to the altar on their own, or at least not nearly as quickly. After the marriage the tone shifts a bit from lusting and quarrelling to overcoming their respective fears and insecurities. Anthony, as I said is not afraid of dying but is afraid falling in love -making his inevitable premature death so much harder. Kate doesn’t believe she is attractive because she is so used to being (quite happily) in her beautiful sister’s shadow, and she also has a paralyzing fear of storms that stems back to her childhood for reasons she can’t quite remember.

“The Viscount Who Loved Me” is free from any last minute “big misunderstandings” or evil villains, just a little drama at the end, but it was totally necessary. It is a character driven story in which two people conquer their fears and find each other, and it’s pretty damn funny to boot.