That is, as long as she doesn't get involved with the Edwards family's dramas. Emily refuses to care about her charges - Grace, who talks too much and loves too hard, and Aster, who is frankly terrifying but might just be the wittiest sixteen-year-old Emily has ever met - or the servants, who insist on acting as if they're each other's family. And she certainly hasn't noticed her employer, the brooding, taciturn Captain Edwards, no matter how good he might look without a shirt on . . . For those who *still* haven’t seduced their own retinas with Netflix’s most-watched tv show of all time (can’t relate), here’s your chance to redeem your virtue once and for all ahead of National Bridgerton day on March 25 – aka the day Season 2 premieres. Please endeavour to complete all eight episodes of the first series in a timely fashion or prepare to fall foul of Lady Whistledown’s pen. I’d only read the first couple of (impactful) sentences but I already knew I was going to enjoy Trouble - and I did, greatly, but perhaps not for the reasons I first thought. This all leaves you to think that this book is character-driven rather than plot-driven, but as I’ve already said, the characters are all two dimensional. Sure, Georgiana learns a lot and has her own growth as a person, but despite being the protagonist, I’m not sure I really even know that much about her… Handsome, wealthy, kind young men aren’t that easy to come by. Especially not ones who are . . . good with their hands.

Reputation is also fairly diverse. I don’t know much about the period, but the author has stated that this era is currently being whitewashed, and she wanted to have racial diversity that represented this time. There’s also queer representation. Clearly, in Mrs. Burton’s eyes, the process of becoming properly “settled” required a period of boredom and loneliness so excruciating that it rendered its subject broken in spirit, and therefore far less likely to rebel against the usual rituals of the house. There were only so many times a person could read the local advertisements, or arrange hundreds of embroidery needles by size, or discuss upcoming meals for three people as if they were feeding the five thousand. The morning when a neighbor’s horse had escaped and circled the garden, incoherent with freedom, was such a bright spot of excitement that she clung to the memory of it for days afterward.

6. My Fake Rake – Eva Leigh 

Bridgerton meets Gossip Girl with a dash of Jane Austen, in Reputation, a Regency-era historical romantic comedy with a deliciously feminist twist, from a hilarious new British voice, Lex Croucher. One of the worst things about being a Jane Austen fan is that once you've finished her handful of novels, perused her juvenilia and pored over the few remaining letters of hers we have, you can find yourself at something of a loose end. No wonder, then, that she has inspired such a huge number of novelists to try their hand at the regency romance. A recurring issue, I find, with these books, is that they can be rather formulaic and strait-laced in their interpretations of plot structures and tropes. The familiarity that these stories bring do have their value - many of us read Austen for comfort and warmth when things get tough - but sometimes it can feel like when you've read one Austen-inspired romance, you've read them all. Until that fine day graces us with its presence, we’ve rounded up the best Bridgerton-esque books to fill the Shondaland-shaped hole in our lives.

Not to say that this is a state-of-society novel, as it's very much a character study, and a character and relationship driven story. The reader is simply made aware of the society around Georgiana, and her role in it as both as both a helpless cog and an active agent. We watch Georgiana develop for both better and worse, and the development of her various relationships as she becomes entrenched within the Polite Society (which is in reality, very unpolite) to which she so aspires.Lex Croucher is a writer, producer and You Tuber based in London, with over 100,000 followers across her social media platforms.

I loved this arc for Georgiana. Even in my age and infirmity, it felt very relatable to me, although I think there will be some readers inclined to condemn her for her vanity (in wanting so desperately to run with the cool kids) and the MANY mistakes she makes over the course of his book. Personally, I would find that a bit unfair: she’s young and immature, and she acts like it, but she also learns. And, actually, I think one of the strengths of its book is its willingness to let its characters be both flawed, and nuanced in those flaws. Cecily, for example, is the Karen of the group: she is far from wise, and the most obviously kind of Frances’s clique. Except there’s an emotional carelessness to her that renders both her kindness and cruelty slightly arbitrary. For example, Frances observes: “Poor Ces is just too foolish to realize she’s hurting your feelings. I don’t think anyone has ever managed to hurt her, so she can’t empathize. She seems to float through life […] It’s charming […] but extremely aggravating when you’re collateral damage.” I thought this was a wonderful observation of a character type that is so often rendered comedically one-note. They’re called Gadforth,” said Georgiana, wondering why she was suddenly only capable of announcing names. Good God, that was so much worse. She couldn’t call him ‘Thomas’, as if they were already ten years married. She might as well send him a nude portrait of herself and be done with it. It’s a little under a year since I read @Lex’s first book and, honestly? They just keep getting better. Compulsively readable, hysterically funny, and touchingly relatable casting genuinely human characters who are clearly more than a little Neurodiverse chafing against the stifling manners of regency England. With a focus on female friendships and self-identity, Reputation is a fun, touching and terrifically improper novel, perfect for fans of Austen and romcoms.This book takes a great new look at historical romance that is inclusive, exciting but also romantic. I loved how Georgiana’s character unfolded and developed and how her aunt and uncles characters did too. I really enjoyed the romance too, it was really well written and played out well. The gentlemen in question was very respectable and a modern take on the Mr Darcy and Aaron Samuels. Overall, Reputation is a fun, historical romance, but it also includes some darker themes which were handled with care and added a lot to the book. Definitely worth a read! Book Description Of course, I don’t want to say that mixed race bisexuals can’t or shouldn’t be messy (either in life or in fiction) but chaotic bisexual is kind of a … well … it’s a trope isn’t it? Although, I think in this case it’s balanced out by the fact it’s a diverse book in general—there’s multiple queer characters, and multiple POCs. Your mileage may vary here, but to me stereotypes about marginalised people tend to become problematic when that is the ONLY representation (either in a single text, or in the world at large) available. But there’s scope in a book like this to allow someone like Frances to exist without it necessarily being wider contemporary on mixed race people, bisexuals, or mixed race bisexuals. Your mileage may, of course, vary. The first hour of the audiobook was pretty hard for me to make my brain focus on…but I was able to get on board with the second half of the book. Thomas really carried this book. Thank you my good sir. The side friends weren’t really that important to me and they maybe could’ve been given more space to grow.