When I read a book, I want to become involved emotionally. A book that does that is more likely to be highly rated. Such was the case with The Duke and I.

I have a sickness, an infatuation for tortured, dark, conflicted heroes. The happy-go-lucky guys don't capture my imagination nearly so much as their darker counterparts. Fortunately, Simon was tortured enough to keep me happy.

The beginning of this book was brilliantly done. I was already captivated with Simon, the future Duke of Hastings. My h More...

2.5
A lot of my GR buddies love this book, and a few have recommended it to me. So I ordered it, and up until a certain part in the end, I really was enjoying it.

I won't feel bad about the spoilers in here, because this is an older book, and a ton of people have read it.

I liked Daphne, and I really liked Daphne and Simon's interactions, witty reparte, banter. all of the above. Obviously they were meant for each other, and not in the sickeningly sweet sort of way. They were fun to watch together. More...

"Save your pathetic words," Anthony spat. "I'll see you at dawn."

Please let there be a duel. Pleeeeaaasssse let there be a duel.

One sec, flipping the page. *pause* Damn...no duel.

"I've always known that I wasn't the sort of woman men dream of, but I never thought anyone would prefer death to marriage with me."

3.5 stars. I would have definitely gone for a solid 4 star had there been a duel. What a missed opportunity that was! There are more brothers in this family; it wouldn't have been a b More...

Ah my Gentle Reader, this Reviewer is pleased to report, that one cannot argue against; I loved this book.

It was fun to read about Simon and Daphne finding each other through angry brothers, duels, crazy marriage mind mamas and a few misunderstandings along the way. The banter between the was laugh out loud funny as were some of the arguments .

Simon was a great hero, dealing with his past and the treatment his father dealt him at such an early age, making it his goal in life to prove his fathe More...

5 stars – Historical/Regency Romance

My introduction to author Julia Quinn was with the books The Lost Duke of Wyndham and Mr. Cavendish, I Presume, and I wasn’t at all impressed and found them really boring. Several GR friends told me they aren’t her best books or indicative of her other works and that I should give her popular Bridgertons series a chance. I’ve had several of JQ’s books on my TBR shelf for quite a while now, and after mourning the end of two of my favorite HR series, Lisa Kleypa More...

This is a really good 4.5 star read. It doesn’t make 5 stars because it’s missing just a little bit in the steam department I thought. It’s one of those books that has you smiling from beginning to end—so don’t read it in public unless you don’t mind having a dorky smile plastered on your face and people no doubt staring at you like you’re a bit weird ;-)

It’s well written, funny and you just can’t help but love the Bridgerton family but it’s not in the least bit hokey. You really want to read ab More...

Posted on Under the Covers

I have been ruined by Lisa Kleypas and all her wonderful historical that until now, I couldn’t find an author who could live up to the Kleypas craze. Julia Quinn is the answer.

THE DUKE AND I is such a charming story of Daphne and Simon! The story captured me with its prologue. It starts off with a story of a vulnerable young boy and his prideful father who wished to have the perfect heir. When he learns that his son has a speech impediment, he deems him as defective and More...

Simplesmente maravilhoso! Um lindo romance com muito humor à mistura, definitivamente uma série a seguir. Estou ansiosa pelo próximo livro, o do irmão protector e melhor amigo Anthony Bridgerton XD

Fantastic book! I read this one years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it but for some strange reason I never kept up with the series (I think I read 1 or 2). My library was recommended the series (they don't buy too many HR) and I remembered the Duke and I and decided to buy the series for myself. Of course me being me, I had to wait to get the whole series before starting to read it. Well worth the wait.
Quinn takes an old tired plotline and makes it literally sparkle. She uses wit to get her point a More...

My Review:

This was an entertaining read. I loved Simon, the ‘tortured from childhood’ soul, and Daphne Bridgerton, the one woman who could rescue him from his bitter, angry existence, and give him a future filled with happiness, family and the love he never dreamed he could have.

The family interactions were highly amusing in the way Daphne’s siblings protected her honor even when she didn’t want it protected. Another fun side to this book was the inclusion of Lady Whistledown’s gossip columns wh More...

Why is there a stigma involved with reading a romance novel? I was embarassed to check this out from the library, even knowing that I needed a book for a goodreads.com challenge where the author started with the letter Q.

This author is Harvard educated. She writes well. The story was amusing and poignant. I should not be ashamed to enjoy the happy-ever-after story. I need to get over my prejudices.

I believe I will read another in this author's series. And, I will try to not be so red-faced when More...

Reviewed for THC Reviews
"4.5 stars" Up until I was about 150 pages into The Duke and I, I was beginning to think I had started my second much-lauded romance series in a row, only to be sorely disappointed with it, but somehow Julia Quinn managed to pull out all the stops during the second half of the book and make me forget most of my frustrations from the first half. The two halves almost seemed like they were written in completely different styles. The beginning of the book wasn't bad, but it More...

I loved this book! I read it several years ago, but I've read so many comments recently here on Goodreads about Julia Quinn's Bridgerton series that I just had to re-read them all.

This is Daphne's story. Daphne is the fourth of the eight Bridgerton siblings. As the oldest daughter, she is being pressured by her mother to choose a husband and get married. (The mother, Violet, is a wonderful character -- I absolutely love her!) Enter Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, who is a friend of Daphne's old More...

Tão lindooo *.* quero!

Este livro, foi até agora, o meu romance de época favorito a par de "Prazeres Proibidos".
Experimentei esta autora pela primeira vez devido às boas opiniões que tenho lido e não podia estar mais contente por isso.
O livro é fantástico. Tão envolvente que comecei a ler ontem à tarde e tive de o acabar de madrugada porque não conseguia parar de ler.
Quando um livro não me deixa dormir, e me faz ficar a lê-lo até de madrugada é porque o livro é viciante.
A escrita da autora é muito envolvente e alic More...

Já tinha lido opiniões muito positivas em relação a esta autora, especialmente Eno que concerne a este série. E por essa razão há já muito tempo que queria iniciar a série dos Bridgertons.
E após a leitura deste livro, o primeiro da série, posso afirmar sem sombra de dúvidas: em boa hora o fiz!
O livro é maravilhoso, com uma escrita envolvente e divertida, com uma grande dose de romantismo.
Os personagens são fantásticos, desde a mãe dos Bridgertons, o irmão mais velho da protagonista até as senho More...

4.5 stars

The Bridgertons are by far the most prolific family in the upper echelons of society. Such industriousness on the part of the viscountess and the late viscount is commendable, although one can find only banality in their choice of names for their children. Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory, and Hyacinth— orderliness is, of course, beneficial in all things, but one would think that intelligent parents would be able to keep their children straight without needi

More...

What a great story! It captured my attention right from the prologue and I had a very hard time stopping once I got started. It was one of those effortless love stories that keeps you up all night because you just want one page more.

Simon is a duke, of course. Who had a particularly bad childhood because he had a stammer and his father treated him as if he was dead. Daphne is the 4th child of the Bridgertons. Three older brothers, three younger sisters and one younger brother all have their own More...

**Audiobook Review below original review**
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This is another book that I decided I needed to reread to finally write a review. I'm glad I did because during the first time through, I must have had scrambled eggs for brains, because I thought that it was merely mediocre. In hindsight, I was young and naive, with only a few HR novels under my belt.

Daphne Bridgerton is nice, but hardly garnered the attention from the ton that any of he More...

April 3-4, 2012

What a great book!!! LOVED rereading it! :)

April 1, 2007

(#1 in the Bridgerton Series)

Another fine example of Julia Quinn's amazing prologues. This one was about Simon (another of Lady Danbury's nephews), who has a BIG ISSUE with his father. (His mother died during childbirth, so wasn't around to mediate.) You see, Simon didn't speak until he was four (although he could already write) and when he DID, he stuttered REALLY BADLY, and his father, who had been soooo excited to have an More...

I don't normally read "romance" novels, but I promised a friend I would give this one a try. I enjoyed the storyline: the widowed duchess with her eight lively children and her quest to find a husband for the oldest daughter; the stuttering son of the duke, who strives to best his cold-hearted father. I even liked the romantic pairing between Daphne and Simon. But, I just don't like all of the sex that runs through the story. Where Darcy admires Elizabeth's fine eyes, Simon is admiring other thi More...

Alguém me conhece explicar porque é que esta família não é real e eu não os conheço pessoal e intimamente?
Alguém me explica porque é que eu não sou a melhor amiga de Daphne para estar sempre rodeada por aqueles irmãos?

Desde o primeiro encontro deles, à cumplicidade entre mãe e filha, aos bailes até ao charme dos irmãos este romance é suculento até mais não. É de derreter uma leitora até ficar em estado liquido!
Pronto, dá para ver o quanto eu gostei deste romance, que começa de maneira muito car More...

'The Duke And I' relies on all romance and romantic comedies authors favourite premise - a pretend relationship. Somehow two people find themselves having to pretend they are in love with each other and inevitably, and to their own embarrassment, end up falling in love for real. Sadly this never happens in real life. Well, the falling in love for real part doesn't happen. Pretend relationships do. And they usually involve a significant sum of money and a passport.

[here be the spoilers]

Despite More...

Review posted: Happily Ever After - Reads

Talk about starting off a book and a series by making me love a young Simon immediately as we get a few snippets of his childhood told during the prologue. His mother died during child birth and all his father wanted was an heir; a perfect mini-me version of himself. He got Simon, a sweet young boy who didn’t speak until he was 4 years old, and struggled to overcome stammering. His father, mortified that his heir wasn’t perfect, called him every name imag More...

I really enjoyed this book. And I spent nearly all day today finishing it despite the fact that I had too many other things to do (that didn't get done, by the way). The banter between the hero and heroine was fabulous, and their chemistry was expertly crafted. Simon was a beautifully tortured hero whose story definitely tugged at one's heart. I liked Daphne, too. She was tough and feisty without being annoying. She stood up for herself and responded to conflicts and situations with thoughtfulne More...

The Bridgertons are a large loving family, containing eight children: Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory and Hyacinth, and their widowed mother Violet. As each approaches marriageable, Violet becomes the terror of the ton a matchmaking mama. First up is Daphne.

This is one of my favourite series, although it offers nothing new up in terms of plot, I find I am always drawn to the chaotic warmth of the Bridgerton family. What I find unique about this series is the well dra More...

Julia Quinn has the ability to write some of the funniest and most realistic dialogue. I've really enjoyed her Bridgerton series and the "Duke and I" is (so far) one of my favorites.

I really like the fact that Julia Quinn can take a predictable, over-used plot and put a spin on it, claiming it as her own. Simon Basset at first appears to be your typical cliched', tortured hero. Denied the love and affection of his father because of a childhood stutter, Simon eventually overcomes his stutter and More...

Still working on writing reviews for all my old reads. I have never been totally crazy about Julia Quinn, but some of her books are good, if formulaic and slightly self-aware. The Duke and I is horrifying.

Daphne marries Simon knowing full well that Simon does NOT want to have children. Ever. For a variety of reasons, some of which are misconceptions. But bottom line, he was honest with Daphne up front about not wanting kids.

So...about 75% into the book, she deliberately seduces Simon when he is More...

(Bridgertons,#1) I love the Bridgerton family! Daphne and Simon have great chemistry. Anthony’s head-of-the-house protector role was overdone. And, let’s be honest, did Daphne really deserve what Simon did to her? I like the mystery behind Lady Whistledown.

A sweet, romantic historical. I've read this series completely out of order, but they all work as a stand alone. This is one of the best in the series (Viscount Who Loved Me is another big fav)