The Viscount Who Loved Me

Author: Julia Quinn

Published: December 2000 (Avon)

Category: Historical Romance
Series: Bridgerton Family #2

Rating: 8/10

As romance sections in bookstores shrink, there's less and less to choose from. I'll go to the store looking for a particular popular author, but find that she doesn't have anything on the shelf. I did notice that there were a large amount of Julia Quinn books still available, so there must be something special about her if BN is still keeping her in stock.

By this time the gossip columnists have it wrong. Anthony Bridgerton hasn't just decided to marry - he's even chosen a wife! The only obstacle is his intended's older sister, Kate Sheffield - the most meddlesome woman ever to grace a London ballroom. The spirited schemer is driving Anthony mad with her determination to stop the betrothal, but when he closes his eyes at night, Kate is the woman haunting his increasingly erotic dreams.

Contrary to popular belief, Kate is quite sure that reformed rakes do not make the best husbands - and Anthony Bridgerton is the most wicked rogue of them all. Kate is determined to protect her sister - but she fears her own heart is vulnerable. And when Anthony's lips touch hers, she's suddenly afraid she might not be able to resist the reprehensible rake herself.

I love romances where the hero and heroine can't stand each other. It makes for much more entertaining dialogue. However, the characters almost made me doubt finishing the book. Anthony annoyed me a lot in the first third of the book, but the rest of the characters were entertaining, so there wasn't any real risk of DNF. He was so jerky towards Kate, who was just trying to protect her sister. He automatically assumed that she was being jealous and spiteful, even setting up her dog to knock Edwina into the Serpentine.

Kate Sheffield was my kind of heroine. She had a backbone and a heart, but wasn't perfect either. The way she valued her family, despite Edwina being a half-sister, made her even more suitable to join the raucous Bridgerton clan. Well, that and her croquet skills.

I had a good time reading this book, and it was oftentimes funny with the occasional heartbreaking moments. I was annoyed, yet again, at Anthony for thinking that he'd die in a few years because his father died young of a bee sting. But I've decided I like Quinn and her Bridgertons; as the Bridgerton series tells the story of each sibling, I must be on my way to find the rest of them, starting with the first book in the series, The Duke and I, which tells Daphne's story. I'm very interested in that because Daphne and her husband, the Duke of Hastings, were such a cute couple in the croquet game that I have to read their story next!