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The Splendid Trilogy #1
Splendid
There are two things everyone knows about Alexander Ridgely. One, he's the Duke of Ashbourne. And two, he has no plans to marry anytime soon...
That is until a redheaded American throws herself in front of a carriage to save his young nephew's life. She's everything Alex never thought a woman could be—smart and funny, principled and brave. But she's a servant, completely unsuitable for a highborn duke—unless, perhaps, she's not quite what she seems...
American heiress Emma Dunster might be surrounded by Englishmen, but that doesn't mean she intends to marry one—even if she has agreed to participate in one London Season. When she slipped out of her cousins' home, dressed as a kitchen maid, all she wanted was one last taste of anonymity before her debut. She never dreamed she'd find herself in the arms of a dangerously handsome duke... or that he'd be quite so upset when he discovered her true identity. But true love tends to blossom just when one least expects it, and passion can melt even the most stubborn of hearts.
That is until a redheaded American throws herself in front of a carriage to save his young nephew's life. She's everything Alex never thought a woman could be—smart and funny, principled and brave. But she's a servant, completely unsuitable for a highborn duke—unless, perhaps, she's not quite what she seems...
American heiress Emma Dunster might be surrounded by Englishmen, but that doesn't mean she intends to marry one—even if she has agreed to participate in one London Season. When she slipped out of her cousins' home, dressed as a kitchen maid, all she wanted was one last taste of anonymity before her debut. She never dreamed she'd find herself in the arms of a dangerously handsome duke... or that he'd be quite so upset when he discovered her true identity. But true love tends to blossom just when one least expects it, and passion can melt even the most stubborn of hearts.
396 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1995
1181 people are currently reading
12465 people want to read
About the author
Julia Quinn
185 books45.7k followers#1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn loves to dispel the myth that smart women don't read (or write) romance, and and if you watch reruns of the game show The Weakest Link you might just catch her winning the $79,000 jackpot. She displayed a decided lack of knowledge about baseball, country music, and plush toys, but she is proud to say that she aced all things British and literary, answered all of her history and geography questions correctly, and knew that there was a Da Vinci long before there was a code.
A graduate of Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, Ms. Quinn is one of only sixteen members of Romance Writers of America’s Hall of Fame. Her books have been translated into 32 languages, and she lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest.
The Bridgertons, her popular series of historical romance, is currently in production by Shondaland as a Netflix original series starring Julie Andrews, Phoebe Dynevor, and Rége-Jean Page.
A graduate of Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, Ms. Quinn is one of only sixteen members of Romance Writers of America’s Hall of Fame. Her books have been translated into 32 languages, and she lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest.
The Bridgertons, her popular series of historical romance, is currently in production by Shondaland as a Netflix original series starring Julie Andrews, Phoebe Dynevor, and Rége-Jean Page.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,649 reviews
August 27, 2012
This was Julia Quinn's first regency novel and it's really telling from the style. It's full of cliches, annoying characters, absurd plot turns, douchey male characters, douchey male characters who want to have sex with the female protagonist in a way that almost borders on harassment, anachronisms, dialogue inconsistent with the time period, a female American character that may be self-insertion etc. I found it really hard to finish this book, but I stuck with it.
Luckily, Quinn's style has improved immensely and I rather enjoyed her later books (especially The Bridgerton series) - even with the modern-sounding dialogue (which becomes sort of endearing.) This book could have been so much better and it's even hard to excuse the fact that it's her first novel. Still, everyone has to start somewhere and I am so glad Quinn moved on from this (mostly. Some of her books fall into the same traps but at least not having all of the problems.)For anyone wanting to read this, I would only suggest doing so after you've read her later works and still want to read something more.
Luckily, Quinn's style has improved immensely and I rather enjoyed her later books (especially The Bridgerton series) - even with the modern-sounding dialogue (which becomes sort of endearing.) This book could have been so much better and it's even hard to excuse the fact that it's her first novel. Still, everyone has to start somewhere and I am so glad Quinn moved on from this (mostly. Some of her books fall into the same traps but at least not having all of the problems.)For anyone wanting to read this, I would only suggest doing so after you've read her later works and still want to read something more.
January 14, 2010
Julia Quinn's first published novel, Splendid, was quite Splendid actually! I enjoyed this book as it was funny, easy to read, and fast-paced.
Our Heroine...
Emma, an American, goes to London to visit her cousins for a season. She looks forward to just enjoying her time with Belle and Ned, and NOT looking for a husband. She has plans to take over her fathers shipping company in America one day and will not be tied down to some titled gentleman in London. Her aunt plans an elaborate ball to introduce her to the ton and the last thing Emma wants to do is be involved in all the details that go into that process! So, in order to avoid her aunt, Emma and her cousin Belle dress in servants clothing and hide out in the kitchen. When Cook realizes they are out of eggs Emma immediately volunteers to go to the market to get the eggs. Of course she would, Emma is known for her not-so-bright ideas! While out and about in town, unchaperoned, and wearing servants clothing, who do you think she meets?
Our Hero...
Alexander Ridgely, the Duke of Ashbourne, was immediately drawn to the small red-haired woman he was holding in his carriage. She had acted so bravely by running out in front of a carriage to push his nephew out of harms way. She was unlike any other woman he had ever met, and he was definitely intrigued by her. Most women he knew cared about nobody but themselves and the fortunes they were after, especially HIS fortune and HIS title. Yes, this one had captured his attention, but who was she, this red-head dressed in maids clothing. He intended to find out!
The Ball in Emma's honor...
Alex was looking for that girl. He had been looking for an hour, so sure he would have found her there at the ball. As he was talking to his best friend Dunford, he saw her! And she was not a maid, she was Miss Emma Dunster, the American visiting, the one the ball was being given in honor of, and she was beautiful!
I loved what Alex said to Dunford about Emma, "Don't touch her, don't even think about her." Already he had become possessive of her, he didn't want any other man looking at her or trying to gain her attentions. He was so funny because he kept saying he was going to have to have a word with those men.
There was obviously an immediate attraction between Alex and Emma but because neither one wanted to marry at this time, they resigned themselves to becoming friends. For the next couple of months they would see each other every day and at the balls they would attend Alex would always dance with her. They enjoyed each others company very much and Alex thought Emma was wonderful. The more he got to know her the more he was convinced that she was indeed different from all the other women he had met. He was even starting to wonder if he could be married to her and Emma was having the same thoughts about him. It was obvious to everyone else that these two were meant to be together and so several members of his family and hers set about trying to force the two of them together, even hoping they might be caught in a compromising situation and have to be forced to marry.
There was sizzling sexual tension between them and eventually they could no longer deny it and they let their passions consume them, knowing they were stepping over the invisible boundaries as friends and into an uncertain future.
I liked that we spent time with Alex and Emma after they were married. Some books lead up until marriage and then end, but we able to enjoy them for a bit as a married couple.
I also thought that the conflict toward the end of the story was wonderful! It was exciting and made my heart race and I was on the edge of my seat until it was resolved. I loved that it was not a conflict between Alex and Emma, but a kidnapping situation involving Emma and her cousin. I get tired of plots that have the h/h at conflict with each other, this was refreshing!
There were many parts of this book that I loved. One being when Alex followed Emma up to her bedchamber without her knowing it. She had gone there during the ball because she had a headache and he went into her room and surprised her. She had only seen him the one other time in his carriage. It was very funny!
Probably my favorite quote from the book has to be this:
Alex planted his hands on his hips. "I have thoroughly compromised your niece," he declared. "Will you please insist that she marry me?" Caroline didn't bat an eyelash. "This," she announced, "is most peculiar."
So, I read many different reviews of this book, some good, some bad. But I loved it. I know it was Julia Quinn's first novel but I didn't even think about that. I just read the book and enjoyed it for what it was and didn't try to pick apart anything. I recommend it because it made me laugh out loud many times and was quite steamy as well! :)
Our Heroine...
Emma, an American, goes to London to visit her cousins for a season. She looks forward to just enjoying her time with Belle and Ned, and NOT looking for a husband. She has plans to take over her fathers shipping company in America one day and will not be tied down to some titled gentleman in London. Her aunt plans an elaborate ball to introduce her to the ton and the last thing Emma wants to do is be involved in all the details that go into that process! So, in order to avoid her aunt, Emma and her cousin Belle dress in servants clothing and hide out in the kitchen. When Cook realizes they are out of eggs Emma immediately volunteers to go to the market to get the eggs. Of course she would, Emma is known for her not-so-bright ideas! While out and about in town, unchaperoned, and wearing servants clothing, who do you think she meets?
Our Hero...
Alexander Ridgely, the Duke of Ashbourne, was immediately drawn to the small red-haired woman he was holding in his carriage. She had acted so bravely by running out in front of a carriage to push his nephew out of harms way. She was unlike any other woman he had ever met, and he was definitely intrigued by her. Most women he knew cared about nobody but themselves and the fortunes they were after, especially HIS fortune and HIS title. Yes, this one had captured his attention, but who was she, this red-head dressed in maids clothing. He intended to find out!
The Ball in Emma's honor...
Alex was looking for that girl. He had been looking for an hour, so sure he would have found her there at the ball. As he was talking to his best friend Dunford, he saw her! And she was not a maid, she was Miss Emma Dunster, the American visiting, the one the ball was being given in honor of, and she was beautiful!
I loved what Alex said to Dunford about Emma, "Don't touch her, don't even think about her." Already he had become possessive of her, he didn't want any other man looking at her or trying to gain her attentions. He was so funny because he kept saying he was going to have to have a word with those men.
There was obviously an immediate attraction between Alex and Emma but because neither one wanted to marry at this time, they resigned themselves to becoming friends. For the next couple of months they would see each other every day and at the balls they would attend Alex would always dance with her. They enjoyed each others company very much and Alex thought Emma was wonderful. The more he got to know her the more he was convinced that she was indeed different from all the other women he had met. He was even starting to wonder if he could be married to her and Emma was having the same thoughts about him. It was obvious to everyone else that these two were meant to be together and so several members of his family and hers set about trying to force the two of them together, even hoping they might be caught in a compromising situation and have to be forced to marry.
There was sizzling sexual tension between them and eventually they could no longer deny it and they let their passions consume them, knowing they were stepping over the invisible boundaries as friends and into an uncertain future.
I liked that we spent time with Alex and Emma after they were married. Some books lead up until marriage and then end, but we able to enjoy them for a bit as a married couple.
I also thought that the conflict toward the end of the story was wonderful! It was exciting and made my heart race and I was on the edge of my seat until it was resolved. I loved that it was not a conflict between Alex and Emma, but a kidnapping situation involving Emma and her cousin. I get tired of plots that have the h/h at conflict with each other, this was refreshing!
There were many parts of this book that I loved. One being when Alex followed Emma up to her bedchamber without her knowing it. She had gone there during the ball because she had a headache and he went into her room and surprised her. She had only seen him the one other time in his carriage. It was very funny!
Probably my favorite quote from the book has to be this:
Alex planted his hands on his hips. "I have thoroughly compromised your niece," he declared. "Will you please insist that she marry me?" Caroline didn't bat an eyelash. "This," she announced, "is most peculiar."
So, I read many different reviews of this book, some good, some bad. But I loved it. I know it was Julia Quinn's first novel but I didn't even think about that. I just read the book and enjoyed it for what it was and didn't try to pick apart anything. I recommend it because it made me laugh out loud many times and was quite steamy as well! :)
January 31, 2022
This had everything I love in a historical romance. A super cute meet cute, a bantering relationship, an alpha hero, an independent heroine, a meddling family...I loved every second of this! From the moment Alex and Emma meet, I was obsessed with their dynamic. They bantered so much, but Alex is absolutely smitten with Emma and wants no one else. He never attends society events, but he attends every ball he knows she's going to be at. And there may be a secret garden tryst or two! Emma is American, though, and is going to inherit an American shipping company, so she wants to marry an American man she can take home and run her business with. Alex has determined he's never going to marry, so both of them don't want to marry each other, but they can't help but be infatuated with each other. I also really loved the family and friendships in this book and how strong they were throughout the entire story. Belle was such a great character and I loved how the parents were doing everything to push Emma and Alex together. This was just such a fun read and I loved it so much!
July 7, 2017
5 Fantastic stars!
Loved the chemistry between the two leads ! :D Really wished I could see the secondary chracters
For a change, I really did love the heroine Emma...She and I ? We both share our love for climbing different windows just as much as both our families despise it too ;D LOL
Would defiantly recommend !
Loved the chemistry between the two leads ! :D Really wished I could see the secondary chracters
For a change, I really did love the heroine Emma...She and I ? We both share our love for climbing different windows just as much as both our families despise it too ;D LOL
Would defiantly recommend !
April 19, 2017
When contemporary romance has disappointed me, I switch over to historical~~
---------------------
Sweet. Simply sweet.
I didn’t think I was going to like the book much because the main guy, Alex, was such a cocky asshole. And he had a mistress at the beginning of the book, so that brought up the cringe factor to 1000. However, as the book progressed, I started enjoying the romance.
Alex was presumptuous and arrogant in the beginning, but he got better when he softened and became more genuine after becoming friends with Emma. On the other hand, the protagonist, Emma – I liked her from the very first moment. I loved that she was ambitious and curious. She took action herself if she wanted something done, so props to that. For a woman of this time, she was progressive and I admired that she dreamt of taking over her father’s company (no matter that society probably wouldn’t allow her to do so). Also, she was not afraid to talk back to people, go on adventures, and try new things. Her only real flaw was stubbornness, but it was honestly amusing to see her and Alex butt heads because of her stubbornness and his need for control. By the end, they both learned to compromise and make it work, and I’m left here feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. *sighhh*
Julia Quinn is always on point with family dynamics in her books. You can really sense the bond and harmony, and it honestly makes me tear up a bit in some parts. I loved Emma’s relationships with her dad, John (only for the beginning scene), her Aunt Caroline (who was her mother figure), her Uncle Henry (another father figure), and her cousins Ned and Belle (her best friends – particularly Belle who was like her loyal sidekick in a way). Seeing her being so close with her family was just pleasant to read about. There were cute bantering, touching moments, funny dynamics – I loved it. A+ for a good support system with family/friends.
Overall, I’m giving Splendid (The Splendid Trilogy #1) 3.5 stars. This book got bumpy at times, but it was overall enjoyable, particularly in the 2nd half of the book. It was sweet, romantic, heartwarming, and funny, etc. etc.
Things that you might want to know (WARNING: Spoilers below)
Is there a happy/satisfying ending?
Love triangle? Cheating? Angst level?
Tears-worthy?
Humor?
Favorite scene?
What age level would be appropriate?
---------------------
Sweet. Simply sweet.
I didn’t think I was going to like the book much because the main guy, Alex, was such a cocky asshole. And he had a mistress at the beginning of the book, so that brought up the cringe factor to 1000. However, as the book progressed, I started enjoying the romance.
Alex was presumptuous and arrogant in the beginning, but he got better when he softened and became more genuine after becoming friends with Emma. On the other hand, the protagonist, Emma – I liked her from the very first moment. I loved that she was ambitious and curious. She took action herself if she wanted something done, so props to that. For a woman of this time, she was progressive and I admired that she dreamt of taking over her father’s company (no matter that society probably wouldn’t allow her to do so). Also, she was not afraid to talk back to people, go on adventures, and try new things. Her only real flaw was stubbornness, but it was honestly amusing to see her and Alex butt heads because of her stubbornness and his need for control. By the end, they both learned to compromise and make it work, and I’m left here feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. *sighhh*
Julia Quinn is always on point with family dynamics in her books. You can really sense the bond and harmony, and it honestly makes me tear up a bit in some parts. I loved Emma’s relationships with her dad, John (only for the beginning scene), her Aunt Caroline (who was her mother figure), her Uncle Henry (another father figure), and her cousins Ned and Belle (her best friends – particularly Belle who was like her loyal sidekick in a way). Seeing her being so close with her family was just pleasant to read about. There were cute bantering, touching moments, funny dynamics – I loved it. A+ for a good support system with family/friends.
Overall, I’m giving Splendid (The Splendid Trilogy #1) 3.5 stars. This book got bumpy at times, but it was overall enjoyable, particularly in the 2nd half of the book. It was sweet, romantic, heartwarming, and funny, etc. etc.
Things that you might want to know (WARNING: Spoilers below)
Is there a happy/satisfying ending?
Love triangle? Cheating? Angst level?
Tears-worthy?
Humor?
Favorite scene?
What age level would be appropriate?
June 24, 2015
He was a controlling asshole and she had purple eyes. This was not a good book.
July 4, 2022
"If someone loved you - someone decent and kind that is - you had a responsibility not to trample all over her heart. And while he had no intention of hurting Emma, he knew that he could injure her just by not loving her back."
°•*⁀➷
This was so very sweet. I love the way Julia Quinn writes so, so much.
It's been a long time since a romance book kicked me so thoroughly in the gut at that a little over halfway mark. I love when the miscommunication trope is used correctly. I'm so excited to get lost in another one of her series.
Especially because I love Alex and Emma just oh so much. They're dynamic was hilarious and sweet and so on par for Julia. I cannot wait to get into the next one.
- Paige
°•*⁀➷
This was so very sweet. I love the way Julia Quinn writes so, so much.
It's been a long time since a romance book kicked me so thoroughly in the gut at that a little over halfway mark. I love when the miscommunication trope is used correctly. I'm so excited to get lost in another one of her series.
Especially because I love Alex and Emma just oh so much. They're dynamic was hilarious and sweet and so on par for Julia. I cannot wait to get into the next one.
- Paige
September 18, 2019
“I have thoroughly compromised your niece," Alex declared. "Will you please insist that she marry me?"
This book was splendid indeed! Emma and Alex were adorable, and their story is very lovely, I loved every part of it. :)
I liked Belle and Dunford too, I'll be reading their story soon.
This book was splendid indeed! Emma and Alex were adorable, and their story is very lovely, I loved every part of it. :)
I liked Belle and Dunford too, I'll be reading their story soon.
April 20, 2022
This was my first Julia Quinn book and it didn't disappoint. I love Emma! She has a knack for getting into trouble when it comes to saving her loved ones.
I highly recommend this hilarious book. I've reread it too many times to count and enjoy it everytime.
Reread: 4/20/22
Still a great funny read.
I highly recommend this hilarious book. I've reread it too many times to count and enjoy it everytime.
Reread: 4/20/22
Still a great funny read.
June 19, 2022
Overall: 3.5 rounded (a bit reluctantly) to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥
Humor: Yes!
Perspective: Third person perspective from both hero and heroine’s point of view
(These are all personal preference on a scale of 1-5 (yours ratings may vary depending what gives you feels and how you prefer you sex scenes written, etc) except the Steam Scale which follows our chart from The Ton and Tartans Book Club )
Basic plot:
Disguised as a maid, Emma happens to save the Duke of Ashbourne’s nephew. And he knows she’d be entirely unsuitable for him, not that he wants to marry anyway...but when he comes across her again, this time as an American heiress, he’s intrigued.
Give this a try if you want:
- Lower to mid steam – 2 full scenes and plenty of kisses
- American heroine, English hero
- Duke hero, heiress heroine
- Regency (1816)
- Compromised (ruined) heroine
- Nice mix of humor, banter, and relationship development
Ages:
- Heroine is 20, hero is about 29
My thoughts:
I was a bit conflicted about this book! There were so many cute scenes, but the hero really came across as skeevy to me a number of times and was a bit of a jerk in certain instances.
I really loved the humor here. And I fell in love with the heroine fairly soon into the book. She was just fun, she had her own personality and didn’t have a problem holding her own. I will admit a lot of times I struggle with American characters in historical romance but I had no issues here. Emma was a complete delight!
Alex, well...he came off a woman hater to me. I never really felt his hurt or pain from the past that made him so determined never to trust a woman or marry. So while he struggles with falling in love with Emma, I did love some parts of it. But he kept just not giving me what I want as a romance hero in most of the scenes in the book and ultimately I was disappointed in him.
Still, I really loved a lot of the humor here. And it was wonderful watching Alex fall for Emma – he just couldn’t help it even though he didn’t want it to happen. And there were a lot of cute scenes with them together. I did love after she was ruined and was hesitant about marrying him (rightfully so after how he acted!), how he kept trying to get her to marry him. There was a lot of cuteness in this book and I can see why so many loved it.
I do think if consent is a deal breaker for you in romance, you will want to bypass this book. There’s a number of times Alex really pushes or even crosses this line and I don’t think you will love him/forgive his actions here.
A few other notes:
Content Warnings:
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥
Humor: Yes!
Perspective: Third person perspective from both hero and heroine’s point of view
(These are all personal preference on a scale of 1-5 (yours ratings may vary depending what gives you feels and how you prefer you sex scenes written, etc) except the Steam Scale which follows our chart from The Ton and Tartans Book Club )
Basic plot:
Disguised as a maid, Emma happens to save the Duke of Ashbourne’s nephew. And he knows she’d be entirely unsuitable for him, not that he wants to marry anyway...but when he comes across her again, this time as an American heiress, he’s intrigued.
Give this a try if you want:
- Lower to mid steam – 2 full scenes and plenty of kisses
- American heroine, English hero
- Duke hero, heiress heroine
- Regency (1816)
- Compromised (ruined) heroine
- Nice mix of humor, banter, and relationship development
Ages:
- Heroine is 20, hero is about 29
My thoughts:
I was a bit conflicted about this book! There were so many cute scenes, but the hero really came across as skeevy to me a number of times and was a bit of a jerk in certain instances.
I really loved the humor here. And I fell in love with the heroine fairly soon into the book. She was just fun, she had her own personality and didn’t have a problem holding her own. I will admit a lot of times I struggle with American characters in historical romance but I had no issues here. Emma was a complete delight!
Alex, well...he came off a woman hater to me. I never really felt his hurt or pain from the past that made him so determined never to trust a woman or marry. So while he struggles with falling in love with Emma, I did love some parts of it. But he kept just not giving me what I want as a romance hero in most of the scenes in the book and ultimately I was disappointed in him.
Still, I really loved a lot of the humor here. And it was wonderful watching Alex fall for Emma – he just couldn’t help it even though he didn’t want it to happen. And there were a lot of cute scenes with them together. I did love after she was ruined and was hesitant about marrying him (rightfully so after how he acted!), how he kept trying to get her to marry him. There was a lot of cuteness in this book and I can see why so many loved it.
I do think if consent is a deal breaker for you in romance, you will want to bypass this book. There’s a number of times Alex really pushes or even crosses this line and I don’t think you will love him/forgive his actions here.
A few other notes:
Content Warnings:
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:
April 29, 2023
1.5 stars - If this had been a KU historical that did not have professional line & developmental editing, I'd give this a 2 star. But even aside from the dated-ness of the relationship dynamics that were not to my taste, this was just poorly written all around.
July 22, 2014
I like the heroine, Emma, immediately. I disliked the hero, Alex, almost immediately. And I quickly grew to detest the two of them together.
Emma starts off as intelligent, mischievous, cheerful, loving with a willingness to speak her mind. Alex starts off as careless of how his actions affect others, arrogant, controlling and at times downright mean. For example, It might work if Alex improved over the course of the story. Unfortunately, he doesn't improve while Emma changes for the worse. At the beginning we're told Emma has been intimately involved with her father's business since the age of 7 and wants to take it over someday. Women don't generally run shipping businesses so it'll be difficult but Emma's determined. Until she decides she's in love with Alex and it's like, business? What business?
And Alex's deep-seated mistrust of women is irritating. He doesn't have any real reason for his beliefs, and he's had lots of proof that he's wrong.
The interactions between Emma and Alex alone are irritating, but when Quinn adds additional characters the dialog and interaction becomes quite amusing.
The Big Misunderstanding was more believable than I expected, although I was irritated by Emma's response. Alex was rude and hurtful and his words and actions revealed he didn't trust Emma at all. I was disappointed by how easily Emma let him off the hook for his behavior. She acknowledges his behavior was horrid, proves he doesn't trust her and that he hurt her deeply. But when he says, 'sorry' despite her saying things between them have changed she goes right back to the same behavior.
Overall, I'd say Quinn's writing has improved since this first novel. The characters, all except Alex, are interesting and promising. Most of the verbal repartee is amusing.
Emma starts off as intelligent, mischievous, cheerful, loving with a willingness to speak her mind. Alex starts off as careless of how his actions affect others, arrogant, controlling and at times downright mean. For example, It might work if Alex improved over the course of the story. Unfortunately, he doesn't improve while Emma changes for the worse. At the beginning we're told Emma has been intimately involved with her father's business since the age of 7 and wants to take it over someday. Women don't generally run shipping businesses so it'll be difficult but Emma's determined. Until she decides she's in love with Alex and it's like, business? What business?
And Alex's deep-seated mistrust of women is irritating. He doesn't have any real reason for his beliefs, and he's had lots of proof that he's wrong.
The interactions between Emma and Alex alone are irritating, but when Quinn adds additional characters the dialog and interaction becomes quite amusing.
The Big Misunderstanding was more believable than I expected, although I was irritated by Emma's response. Alex was rude and hurtful and his words and actions revealed he didn't trust Emma at all. I was disappointed by how easily Emma let him off the hook for his behavior. She acknowledges his behavior was horrid, proves he doesn't trust her and that he hurt her deeply. But when he says, 'sorry' despite her saying things between them have changed she goes right back to the same behavior.
Overall, I'd say Quinn's writing has improved since this first novel. The characters, all except Alex, are interesting and promising. Most of the verbal repartee is amusing.
April 20, 2024
Review from 2017
I've given this a C- for narration (seriously, it's BAD) and a C+ for content at AudioGals.
Such a disappointment when a long-awaited audio ends up getting assigned to a narrator who shouldn't have been let near it.
Splendid, the first book in Julia Quinn’s Blydon trilogy (the others being Dancing at Midnight and Minx) was issued in 1995 and is Ms. Quinn’s first published work. I’ve read many of her most recent books, but not her earliest ones, so I was interested to listen to this to find out how it would compare. Naturally, it’s not as polished as her later work, although the writing is confident and there are flashes of the humour for which she has become renowned. On the downside though, the storyline is rather predictable (and goes off the rails a bit towards the end), and the characters – outspoken American heiress, stuffy (but hot) duke, bluestocking cousin etc. – are rather stock-in-trade and never really transcend that. There’s nothing wrong with predictability in a romance – we know where it’s going to end up and who is going to end up with whom, after all – but there has to be something else that makes up for it, whether it’s characterisation, sub-plots or dialogue, but here, unfortunately, that’s not the case, and large portions of the book tend to drag while the hero and heroine – who are clearly crazy for each other – try to make up their minds about how they feel.
But by far the biggest impediment to the enjoyment of this story in audio is the narration. I don’t know what on earth Harper Audio was thinking when they engaged Lucy Rayner to narrate all three audiobooks in this series – were Rosalyn Landor and Mary Jane Wells unavailable? – but they’ve done themselves and one of their best-selling authors a serious disservice. I listened to Ms. Rayner a few months back in Kat Martin’s Bold Angel, and gave her narration a C grade, saying: sometimes her tone is overly harsh, and lacking in subtlety or expression. There were times I found myself wincing at obvious and painful overacting… and that her male voices were below par.
Sadly, those things are still true here, and the narration as a whole proved so difficult to listen to that it often distracted me from the story and I found myself having to rewind to listen to large chunks where I’d just zoned out.
Fortunately, however, the plot is fairly simple. Born in America to English parents, Emma Dunster is the heir to her father’s shipping empire and her dearest wish is to run the company someday. Given the story is set in 1816, that isn’t quite the done thing for a young woman, but Emma is clever, capable and determined to achieve her ambition. But for now, she’s just twenty and about to set out on a visit to her English cousins, the Blydons. Not long into her stay in London, she and her cousin Arabella (Bella) decide to avoid getting roped in to do the flower arranging for a ball by sneaking off to the kitchens. Both ladies are determined to help with the cooking, but before they can do that, Emma is despatched to fetch some eggs from the market, as they’ve run out. On her way back, Emma sees a young boy run into the path of an oncoming carriage and acts without thinking to push him aside. The little boy turns out to be the nephew of the Duke of Ashbourne, the wealthiest, handsomest and most eligible bachelor in the ton. Emma elects not to make the duke aware of her identity, seeing she’s dressed like a maid and doesn’t want her aunt to find out what she and Bella have been up to.
The duke, Alexander Ridgley, is naturally somewhat annoyed when he encounters “Meg, the maid” at the Blydon’s ball the next night and discovers Emma had lied to him. Having come in to wealth and title fairly young, he’s used to being a target for young ladies who want to become his duchess which has made him extremely cynical about women and their motives, and he is determined not to marry until he’s at least forty. But Emma’s fearless manner, her refusal to be intimidated by him and her fiery red hair and big, violet eyes (which are mentioned many, many times – too many) intrigue him and pretty soon, he’s head-over-heels in lust with her.
The development of their relationship is quite well done; they flirt and bicker, share stolen kisses (some of which are in her bedroom, which is a bit of a stretch of credibility for a Regency) and eventually both of them realise that they have fallen in love, but are not sure that their feelings are returned. Matters are precipitated however, when Emma’s cousin, Ned, incurs a large debt to the smarmy Lord Woodside, who has designs on Bella and a score to settle with Emma. Misunderstandings, burglary and a kidnapping ensue towards the end of the book, all of which feel rather rushed and contrived, and which caused me to lower the content grade somewhat. But to be fair, it was very difficult to grade this audiobook for content given the problematic narration.
I’ve tried to think of a better way to phrase it, but the best description I can come up with is that Ms. Rayner narrates with the slightly patronising tone that some use when reading to children. Her intonation is exaggerated and her enunciation is so perfect as to sound almost unnatural. Her tone is overly bright, she has an irritating “sing-song” inflection and many of her female characters are pitched too high, so they sound like excitable teenaged girls instead of young women. And she seems to think that injecting emotion into her voice equates with ascending to a pitch only audible by dogs and nocturnal animals. Her male voices are not very attractive either, and sound more like caricatures than characters. The secondary character of Lord Dunford (who is the hero of Minx) sounds rather like Eeyore and while she does a better job with Alex when he’s speaking normally, in moments that are meant to be romantic or sensual she makes him sound like a complete sleazebag. In chapter five when he and Emma are doing some serious face-sucking, Emma says: “What are you doing to me?” He replies “I’m making love to you” – and I wanted to crawl into a hole and cringe; the leer in his voice makes him sound like a pervert. When I got to the love scenes, I wanted to cover my ears – which wouldn’t have helped given I had earbuds in. In chapter twelve, Alex indulges Emma in a spot of *ahem* handiwork, and when she sighs her pleasure, she sounds like she’s hurt herself, and he, once more, sounds like a smarmy git. Then, during the first actual sex scene, Emma is almost screeching “Oh, Alex!” and sounds like she’s going to cry (not in a good way), and the whole thing is just… well, one of the most unromantic, cringe worthy sex scenes I’ve ever heard.
The reason I’ve given the narration a C- and not a lower grade is simply down to the fact that Ms. Rayner’s character differentiation is quite good and that the American accent she adopts for Emma sounds reasonably authentic and is consistent. Over the course of almost thirteen-and-a-half hours, I confess that I did get used to some of her less annoying vocal traits and found some portions of the book quite listenable, but her performance in so many of the key areas – the high pitch adopted for most of the female characters and the pervy portrayal of the hero in the romantic scenes for instance – is so off-putting that I really can’t rate it any more highly.
Fans of romance audiobooks in general and of Julia Quinn in particular have no doubt been waiting for these books to make it into audio format, but sadly, Splendid is the worst kind of disappointment and isn’t splendid at all. At least we can console ourselves with the fact that Recorded Books had the extreme good sense to employ the incomparable Rosalyn Landor to narrate the first five Bridgerton books. Do yourselves a favour; go and listen to those again and forget this ever existed.
I've given this a C- for narration (seriously, it's BAD) and a C+ for content at AudioGals.
Such a disappointment when a long-awaited audio ends up getting assigned to a narrator who shouldn't have been let near it.
Splendid, the first book in Julia Quinn’s Blydon trilogy (the others being Dancing at Midnight and Minx) was issued in 1995 and is Ms. Quinn’s first published work. I’ve read many of her most recent books, but not her earliest ones, so I was interested to listen to this to find out how it would compare. Naturally, it’s not as polished as her later work, although the writing is confident and there are flashes of the humour for which she has become renowned. On the downside though, the storyline is rather predictable (and goes off the rails a bit towards the end), and the characters – outspoken American heiress, stuffy (but hot) duke, bluestocking cousin etc. – are rather stock-in-trade and never really transcend that. There’s nothing wrong with predictability in a romance – we know where it’s going to end up and who is going to end up with whom, after all – but there has to be something else that makes up for it, whether it’s characterisation, sub-plots or dialogue, but here, unfortunately, that’s not the case, and large portions of the book tend to drag while the hero and heroine – who are clearly crazy for each other – try to make up their minds about how they feel.
But by far the biggest impediment to the enjoyment of this story in audio is the narration. I don’t know what on earth Harper Audio was thinking when they engaged Lucy Rayner to narrate all three audiobooks in this series – were Rosalyn Landor and Mary Jane Wells unavailable? – but they’ve done themselves and one of their best-selling authors a serious disservice. I listened to Ms. Rayner a few months back in Kat Martin’s Bold Angel, and gave her narration a C grade, saying: sometimes her tone is overly harsh, and lacking in subtlety or expression. There were times I found myself wincing at obvious and painful overacting… and that her male voices were below par.
Sadly, those things are still true here, and the narration as a whole proved so difficult to listen to that it often distracted me from the story and I found myself having to rewind to listen to large chunks where I’d just zoned out.
Fortunately, however, the plot is fairly simple. Born in America to English parents, Emma Dunster is the heir to her father’s shipping empire and her dearest wish is to run the company someday. Given the story is set in 1816, that isn’t quite the done thing for a young woman, but Emma is clever, capable and determined to achieve her ambition. But for now, she’s just twenty and about to set out on a visit to her English cousins, the Blydons. Not long into her stay in London, she and her cousin Arabella (Bella) decide to avoid getting roped in to do the flower arranging for a ball by sneaking off to the kitchens. Both ladies are determined to help with the cooking, but before they can do that, Emma is despatched to fetch some eggs from the market, as they’ve run out. On her way back, Emma sees a young boy run into the path of an oncoming carriage and acts without thinking to push him aside. The little boy turns out to be the nephew of the Duke of Ashbourne, the wealthiest, handsomest and most eligible bachelor in the ton. Emma elects not to make the duke aware of her identity, seeing she’s dressed like a maid and doesn’t want her aunt to find out what she and Bella have been up to.
The duke, Alexander Ridgley, is naturally somewhat annoyed when he encounters “Meg, the maid” at the Blydon’s ball the next night and discovers Emma had lied to him. Having come in to wealth and title fairly young, he’s used to being a target for young ladies who want to become his duchess which has made him extremely cynical about women and their motives, and he is determined not to marry until he’s at least forty. But Emma’s fearless manner, her refusal to be intimidated by him and her fiery red hair and big, violet eyes (which are mentioned many, many times – too many) intrigue him and pretty soon, he’s head-over-heels in lust with her.
The development of their relationship is quite well done; they flirt and bicker, share stolen kisses (some of which are in her bedroom, which is a bit of a stretch of credibility for a Regency) and eventually both of them realise that they have fallen in love, but are not sure that their feelings are returned. Matters are precipitated however, when Emma’s cousin, Ned, incurs a large debt to the smarmy Lord Woodside, who has designs on Bella and a score to settle with Emma. Misunderstandings, burglary and a kidnapping ensue towards the end of the book, all of which feel rather rushed and contrived, and which caused me to lower the content grade somewhat. But to be fair, it was very difficult to grade this audiobook for content given the problematic narration.
I’ve tried to think of a better way to phrase it, but the best description I can come up with is that Ms. Rayner narrates with the slightly patronising tone that some use when reading to children. Her intonation is exaggerated and her enunciation is so perfect as to sound almost unnatural. Her tone is overly bright, she has an irritating “sing-song” inflection and many of her female characters are pitched too high, so they sound like excitable teenaged girls instead of young women. And she seems to think that injecting emotion into her voice equates with ascending to a pitch only audible by dogs and nocturnal animals. Her male voices are not very attractive either, and sound more like caricatures than characters. The secondary character of Lord Dunford (who is the hero of Minx) sounds rather like Eeyore and while she does a better job with Alex when he’s speaking normally, in moments that are meant to be romantic or sensual she makes him sound like a complete sleazebag. In chapter five when he and Emma are doing some serious face-sucking, Emma says: “What are you doing to me?” He replies “I’m making love to you” – and I wanted to crawl into a hole and cringe; the leer in his voice makes him sound like a pervert. When I got to the love scenes, I wanted to cover my ears – which wouldn’t have helped given I had earbuds in. In chapter twelve, Alex indulges Emma in a spot of *ahem* handiwork, and when she sighs her pleasure, she sounds like she’s hurt herself, and he, once more, sounds like a smarmy git. Then, during the first actual sex scene, Emma is almost screeching “Oh, Alex!” and sounds like she’s going to cry (not in a good way), and the whole thing is just… well, one of the most unromantic, cringe worthy sex scenes I’ve ever heard.
The reason I’ve given the narration a C- and not a lower grade is simply down to the fact that Ms. Rayner’s character differentiation is quite good and that the American accent she adopts for Emma sounds reasonably authentic and is consistent. Over the course of almost thirteen-and-a-half hours, I confess that I did get used to some of her less annoying vocal traits and found some portions of the book quite listenable, but her performance in so many of the key areas – the high pitch adopted for most of the female characters and the pervy portrayal of the hero in the romantic scenes for instance – is so off-putting that I really can’t rate it any more highly.
Fans of romance audiobooks in general and of Julia Quinn in particular have no doubt been waiting for these books to make it into audio format, but sadly, Splendid is the worst kind of disappointment and isn’t splendid at all. At least we can console ourselves with the fact that Recorded Books had the extreme good sense to employ the incomparable Rosalyn Landor to narrate the first five Bridgerton books. Do yourselves a favour; go and listen to those again and forget this ever existed.
January 30, 2021
3.5 EASY STARS
Emma, an American heiress, goes to London to visit her cousins for a season. She looks forward to just enjoying her time with Belle and Ned, and has no plans for acquiring a English husband. She has plans to take over her fathers shipping company in America no matter what Boston society may think. Alexander Ridgely, the Duke of Ashbourne, was immediately drawn to the lovely red-haired woman he was injured saving his nephew's life. She intrigued by him, when he realises she is more than she said she was he finds himself even more curious and unable to keep away, even though he has no desire to marry.
It's been a fair few years since I've read this. Overall it remains a light and easy read that I enjoyed. I did want more from the hero but the heroine I really liked. Wish there had been a scene with her father in England.
There is a moment where the hero is a serious ass and much more grovelling was needed.
Secondary characters in here that amuse/entertain.
Emma, an American heiress, goes to London to visit her cousins for a season. She looks forward to just enjoying her time with Belle and Ned, and has no plans for acquiring a English husband. She has plans to take over her fathers shipping company in America no matter what Boston society may think. Alexander Ridgely, the Duke of Ashbourne, was immediately drawn to the lovely red-haired woman he was injured saving his nephew's life. She intrigued by him, when he realises she is more than she said she was he finds himself even more curious and unable to keep away, even though he has no desire to marry.
It's been a fair few years since I've read this. Overall it remains a light and easy read that I enjoyed. I did want more from the hero but the heroine I really liked. Wish there had been a scene with her father in England.
There is a moment where the hero is a serious ass and much more grovelling was needed.
Secondary characters in here that amuse/entertain.
December 28, 2021
It was truly splendid. I am totally blown away by Julia Quinn's debut novel - it was so good. It was one of the funniest books I have read and I laughed so much! It was tender, sweet and utterly hilarious. It was such a great start to this series and I pretty much loved every character in it (expect for the villain of course).
Plenty of balls - check. Rakish duke besotted with fearless beauty from 'the Colonies' - check. Lots of laughs - check. Pretty much angst-free romance - check.
I am so glad that I read this book! There was plenty of traps on the way where it could have taken a turn for the worse but Julia Quinn elegantly navigated us past them. There was just one tiny misunderstanding but that was resolved quick enough. And we got what I love most in historical romances - a lot of balls, interactions with the ton, rakish dukes, a house party in the countryside and plenty of time for Emma and Alex to be with each other.
Plenty of balls - check. Rakish duke besotted with fearless beauty from 'the Colonies' - check. Lots of laughs - check. Pretty much angst-free romance - check.
I am so glad that I read this book! There was plenty of traps on the way where it could have taken a turn for the worse but Julia Quinn elegantly navigated us past them. There was just one tiny misunderstanding but that was resolved quick enough. And we got what I love most in historical romances - a lot of balls, interactions with the ton, rakish dukes, a house party in the countryside and plenty of time for Emma and Alex to be with each other.
August 31, 2020
3.5 Stars (I wish they would let us put in a half star ... as 3 stars looks a little mean but it just didn't make the "really liked it" level).
This is Julia Quinn's first novel. Can one tell? Mmmm, honestly, it is not a patch on the Bridgerton series and I think that was in my mind for a lot of the time I was reading it ... but it is unfair to make comparisons especially as I had just finished an absolutely favourite Bridgergon book a few days prior to starting this. So, after a while, I just went with it and started to enjoy the book ...
No plans to marry ... until he meets the fiery American who has no qualms about putting him in his place.
Overall, a good read although towards the end I thought I was watching a "Carry-On" film - it was all a bit slapstick and silly at times ...
Not her best, in my opinion but a good enough read.
This is Julia Quinn's first novel. Can one tell? Mmmm, honestly, it is not a patch on the Bridgerton series and I think that was in my mind for a lot of the time I was reading it ... but it is unfair to make comparisons especially as I had just finished an absolutely favourite Bridgergon book a few days prior to starting this. So, after a while, I just went with it and started to enjoy the book ...
There are two things everyone knows about Alexander Ridgely. One, he's the Duke of Ashbourne. And two, he has no plans to marry anytime soon...
No plans to marry ... until he meets the fiery American who has no qualms about putting him in his place.
Was she really worth the price of his freedom?
Was anyone?
“It's far easier to shut yourself off from people than to love them. If you keep your heart surrounded by strong walls, no one can get close enough to you to break it.”
Overall, a good read although towards the end I thought I was watching a "Carry-On" film - it was all a bit slapstick and silly at times ...
Not her best, in my opinion but a good enough read.
April 27, 2023
This is Julia Quinn's first book, and while a little rough in spots, it is a wonderful, lighthearted book. The American Heiress is a strong-willed only child with red hair and the temper that goes with that. She and the hero are well suited, even if there are all kinds of misunderstandings that get in their way. I love the supporting characters and look forward to reading the other books in this series. I listened to the audio by Lucy Rayner and while good it didn't add do the story.
Emma Dunster is an American heiress in London for the Season. She plans to have a grand time for the year she is there visiting her family, flirt with some eligible bachelors and then go home and take over her family shipping business, even though that was unheard of in 1816 Boston. While trying to avoid preparations for her come out ball Emma ends up saving the nephew of the Duke of Ashbourne, who is immediately entranced by her, but thinks she is a maid.
Alexander Ridgely, Duke of Ashbourne is quite the man about town. He has sworn not to marry for as long a time as possible, another ten years, at least. He is quite happy with his reputation as a dastardly rake. When he meets Emma at her ball, he is thrown more than a little off kilter to find that she is not a servant. He is captivated by her spirit, her humor and the fact she cares not a fig about his title.
Emma Dunster is an American heiress in London for the Season. She plans to have a grand time for the year she is there visiting her family, flirt with some eligible bachelors and then go home and take over her family shipping business, even though that was unheard of in 1816 Boston. While trying to avoid preparations for her come out ball Emma ends up saving the nephew of the Duke of Ashbourne, who is immediately entranced by her, but thinks she is a maid.
Alexander Ridgely, Duke of Ashbourne is quite the man about town. He has sworn not to marry for as long a time as possible, another ten years, at least. He is quite happy with his reputation as a dastardly rake. When he meets Emma at her ball, he is thrown more than a little off kilter to find that she is not a servant. He is captivated by her spirit, her humor and the fact she cares not a fig about his title.
March 10, 2022
3'5⭐
Para ser el primer libro que publicó Julia, estoy bastante impresionada. Ya tiene ese toque humorístico que la caracteriza (aunque no llega a ser tan gracioso todavía como en el futuro) y creo que la trama y los acontecimientos son bastante sólidos en general, aunque es cierto que hacia el final me han sobrado cosas.
Emma es una buena protagonista, cabezota y con las cosas claras, justo como me gustan, aunque a veces hace demasiadas tonterías y un pelín más de sensatez y de saber cuándo renunciar a la cabezonería no le vendría mal. Pero las actitudes de él me chirrían un poco en unas cuantas ocasiones, y aunque una ya está acostumbrada a estas cosas en los libros de este género, nunca se pierde la esperanza. Pero bueno, siendo el primer libro de la autora, supongo que tampoco se podía esperar otra cosa. Además, después de haber leído ya el segundo de la trilogía y ver otros comportamientos de él en esa misma línea... en fin, demasiado controlador para mi gusto.
Una cosa que me ha gustado es que nos ha dado tiempo a ver varias etapas de la relación, su especie de "amistad" inicial, el cortejo y también la vida de casados. Muchos de estos libros acaban cuando la pareja por fin se junta de forma definitiva y ha superado los obstáculos, pero aquí Julia Quinn nos deja ver un poco más allá.
De nuevo, me ha gustado mucho la dinámica familiar que nos presenta la autora, que creo que siempre es uno de sus puntos fuertes. La relación de Emma con sus primos y sus tíos es estupenda. Y también me gusta mucho que nos muestre una buena relación de amistad entre un hombre y una mujer que se dieron cuenta de que como pareja no funcionarían pero que se llevan a las mil maravillas.
Si no fuera por el final, que creo que se ha alargado un poco excesivamente con algún drama un poco innecesario, se habría llevado las 4⭐.
Para ser el primer libro que publicó Julia, estoy bastante impresionada. Ya tiene ese toque humorístico que la caracteriza (aunque no llega a ser tan gracioso todavía como en el futuro) y creo que la trama y los acontecimientos son bastante sólidos en general, aunque es cierto que hacia el final me han sobrado cosas.
Emma es una buena protagonista, cabezota y con las cosas claras, justo como me gustan, aunque a veces hace demasiadas tonterías y un pelín más de sensatez y de saber cuándo renunciar a la cabezonería no le vendría mal. Pero las actitudes de él me chirrían un poco en unas cuantas ocasiones, y aunque una ya está acostumbrada a estas cosas en los libros de este género, nunca se pierde la esperanza. Pero bueno, siendo el primer libro de la autora, supongo que tampoco se podía esperar otra cosa. Además, después de haber leído ya el segundo de la trilogía y ver otros comportamientos de él en esa misma línea... en fin, demasiado controlador para mi gusto.
Una cosa que me ha gustado es que nos ha dado tiempo a ver varias etapas de la relación, su especie de "amistad" inicial, el cortejo y también la vida de casados. Muchos de estos libros acaban cuando la pareja por fin se junta de forma definitiva y ha superado los obstáculos, pero aquí Julia Quinn nos deja ver un poco más allá.
De nuevo, me ha gustado mucho la dinámica familiar que nos presenta la autora, que creo que siempre es uno de sus puntos fuertes. La relación de Emma con sus primos y sus tíos es estupenda. Y también me gusta mucho que nos muestre una buena relación de amistad entre un hombre y una mujer que se dieron cuenta de que como pareja no funcionarían pero que se llevan a las mil maravillas.
Si no fuera por el final, que creo que se ha alargado un poco excesivamente con algún drama un poco innecesario, se habría llevado las 4⭐.
April 11, 2018
This is the WORST sort of drivel. Certainly not what I would’ve expected of Ms. Quinn, even if this is her first published work. The so-called “hero” railroads over the heroine’s consent over and over and over again, yet somehow she’s the one in the wrong. She’s the one that’s muleheaded and needs to be handled. I get that the society matrons of the time would’ve felt that way but surely the man who claims to be in love with her should actually give a fuck about her feelings. He treats her appallingly both immediately before and after taking her virginity, she somehow keeps forgiving him and making herself vulnerable to him - and then when he (true to form) lashes out, she’s the one accused of a temper tantrum. FUCK THAT. He should’ve been shot in the face multiple times so she could marry her cousin’s friend, who seems to be the only male with redeemable qualities in the entire book.
Also - WTF is it with calling her aunt and uncle by their names w/o the words “aunt” and “uncle” in front of them? It was odd and disorientating.
Also - WTF is it with calling her aunt and uncle by their names w/o the words “aunt” and “uncle” in front of them? It was odd and disorientating.
March 30, 2022
This was a delightful historical romance and a very solid debut, but it went on for too long. I was ready for it to be over by the 80% mark. I don’t think I’ll read any of the other books in this little series, but I’m glad I gave this one a shot. Alex and Emma’s romance was sweet and funny with a nice dash of steam and angst thrown in.
May 9, 2015
When a novel starts out with a disclaimer from the author that this was her first book so "it is, perhaps, not as polished as what (she) would publish today," it is hard to be too critical of it. It is true that this book isn't even close to "The Duke and I", or some of her other books. There is major insta-love, and the story is just okay.
But, Julia Quinn knows how to build great side-characters and funny situations. This book proves that she was doing this since the beginning of her writing career.
"Do tell me," she said. "Is it true that wild bears roam free in Boston? I understand that the Colonies are overrun with savages and wild beasts."
"Actually, Boston is quite civilized. You'd feel quite at home there...We even have dressmakers there...and milliners, too.....Of course they often get destroyed when the wolves come through town."
"Wolves! You don't say!"
"Yes, and they're so terribly vicious. Why, I lock myself in my home each year for weeks in fear of them."
Lady Humphries fanned herself vigorously. "Oh my. Oh my..."
The sister of the duke is also pretty funny as she keeps imagining what she will wear at the wedding as she is talking with Emma (the main character).
Emma herself seems to be slightly modeled on a Victorian Lucille Ball. She is a red-head and is always coming up with crazy schemes that may or may not fail. Her cousin, Belle, is the Ethyl of the duo. Then, there is the Duke, Alex, who could be kind of like Ricky Ricardo because he is a hothead who doesn't like her crazy stunts. But, my "I Love Lucy" comparison is a bit of a stretch, and this book doesn't have half of the brilliance of that old show.
In general, the book is just okay. It has its moments, and it's lighthearted, but it fails to deliver anything special.
But, Julia Quinn knows how to build great side-characters and funny situations. This book proves that she was doing this since the beginning of her writing career.
"Do tell me," she said. "Is it true that wild bears roam free in Boston? I understand that the Colonies are overrun with savages and wild beasts."
"Actually, Boston is quite civilized. You'd feel quite at home there...We even have dressmakers there...and milliners, too.....Of course they often get destroyed when the wolves come through town."
"Wolves! You don't say!"
"Yes, and they're so terribly vicious. Why, I lock myself in my home each year for weeks in fear of them."
Lady Humphries fanned herself vigorously. "Oh my. Oh my..."
The sister of the duke is also pretty funny as she keeps imagining what she will wear at the wedding as she is talking with Emma (the main character).
Emma herself seems to be slightly modeled on a Victorian Lucille Ball. She is a red-head and is always coming up with crazy schemes that may or may not fail. Her cousin, Belle, is the Ethyl of the duo. Then, there is the Duke, Alex, who could be kind of like Ricky Ricardo because he is a hothead who doesn't like her crazy stunts. But, my "I Love Lucy" comparison is a bit of a stretch, and this book doesn't have half of the brilliance of that old show.
In general, the book is just okay. It has its moments, and it's lighthearted, but it fails to deliver anything special.
May 4, 2021
3.5⭐
I don't have much to say. In the begging I wanted to hurt the hero for being so forward with an innocent, but then he turned out cute and the book ended up sweet.
I mean, if you want to read about stubborn people crashing into each other, this is the book for you. Plus, the heroine gets in so much trouble...
I don't have much to say. In the begging I wanted to hurt the hero for being so forward with an innocent, but then he turned out cute and the book ended up sweet.
I mean, if you want to read about stubborn people crashing into each other, this is the book for you. Plus, the heroine gets in so much trouble...
September 4, 2019
8/10
Ha sido una lectura sencilla y entretenida. Emma me ha encantado al igual que toda la familia Blyndon y Sophie, pero no he empatizado casi nada con Alex. Aun asi ha sido una buena lectura
Ha sido una lectura sencilla y entretenida. Emma me ha encantado al igual que toda la familia Blyndon y Sophie, pero no he empatizado casi nada con Alex. Aun asi ha sido una buena lectura
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October 7, 2021Googreads bilgisi doğruysa ilk basım 1995 yılında yapılmış. Ama okurken hiç yadırgamadım. Çok tatlı ve sevimli bir hikayeydi. Çiftin arası, etkileşimi, gelişen olaylar ve karakterler dozundaydı. Bir sahne dışında -ki o da Allah'ın emri artık- salaklık yapmadılar. Ben karakterlerin birbirlerine zıtlaşıp ayrı düşmelerini sevmiyorum. Dış etkenler sebebiyle çıkan sorunlar benim için daha tatmin edici oluyor. Zira kalp kırıldıktan sonra özür dileseler ne çare... Bana pek geçmiyor bu olay. Aman neyse 🤭
Ashbourne Dükü Alexander Edward Ridgely kısaca Alex ve Emma'nın ilk tanışması bir kaza sonucu olur. Ve aynı zamanda Emma hizmetçi kılığında olduğu için işler biraz ilginçtir. İlgisini cezbeden bu kızıl ateş liginin dışında olsa da, iyi olup olmadığını görmek için çalıştığı eve gider. Sohbet muhabbet, balo bahane Meg'i görse yeter. Ah ama karşısına Meg yerine şahane bir kadın çıkar. Emma 🤭 Bu küçük yanlış anlaşılmanın hemen çözülmesine sevindim. Hem karakterlerin hemde bizim darlanmamamız iyi oldu. Sonrası malum. Ufak kaçamaklar, nüktedan laf çarpmalar, gizli öpücükler, etkileşimler bla bla bla...
Açıkçası Emma biraz sivri dilli ama aynı zamanda yumuşak kalpli... Alex ise bir iki yer dışında iyiydi. Yani evlilik şimdilik söz konusu bile olamaz modunda yaşayan birisi. Ama Emma ile zaman geçirdikçe onu sevdiğini ve hep yanında olsun istediğini kafasına silah dayamadan öğrenmek güzeldi 🤭 Zaman zaman şeker davrandığı sahneler de oldu. Soft olup gülümsediğimi biliyorum.Çok fazla aksiyonu, farklı bir çizgisi vardı diyemem. Ama okumaktan zevk aldım. Beni aşırı sinirlendiren şeyler olmadı. Arka planda ki karakterler de fena değildi. Bence okunur.🙈
Ashbourne Dükü Alexander Edward Ridgely kısaca Alex ve Emma'nın ilk tanışması bir kaza sonucu olur. Ve aynı zamanda Emma hizmetçi kılığında olduğu için işler biraz ilginçtir. İlgisini cezbeden bu kızıl ateş liginin dışında olsa da, iyi olup olmadığını görmek için çalıştığı eve gider. Sohbet muhabbet, balo bahane Meg'i görse yeter. Ah ama karşısına Meg yerine şahane bir kadın çıkar. Emma 🤭 Bu küçük yanlış anlaşılmanın hemen çözülmesine sevindim. Hem karakterlerin hemde bizim darlanmamamız iyi oldu. Sonrası malum. Ufak kaçamaklar, nüktedan laf çarpmalar, gizli öpücükler, etkileşimler bla bla bla...
Açıkçası Emma biraz sivri dilli ama aynı zamanda yumuşak kalpli... Alex ise bir iki yer dışında iyiydi. Yani evlilik şimdilik söz konusu bile olamaz modunda yaşayan birisi. Ama Emma ile zaman geçirdikçe onu sevdiğini ve hep yanında olsun istediğini kafasına silah dayamadan öğrenmek güzeldi 🤭 Zaman zaman şeker davrandığı sahneler de oldu. Soft olup gülümsediğimi biliyorum.Çok fazla aksiyonu, farklı bir çizgisi vardı diyemem. Ama okumaktan zevk aldım. Beni aşırı sinirlendiren şeyler olmadı. Arka planda ki karakterler de fena değildi. Bence okunur.🙈
January 9, 2019
Miss Emma Dunster, an American heiress has no plans for marriage because she wants to run her father's shipping business in Boston. Persuaded to go to London to stay with her aunt and uncle, she masquerades, along with her cousin Belle, as kitchen maids to avoid helping with a party being hosted at their home. Emma is sent on an errand that has her saving the life of the son of Lady Sophie and nephew of Alexander Ridgely, the Duke of Ashbourne. He is considered a notorious rake and has no plans to ever get married until he comes face to face with Emma, the pretend kitchen maid. Deciding to attend the party to introduce Emma to London’s society, he beholds said kitchen maid and is angry with her becomes of the deception. He sets out to teach her a lesson but in turns finds himself falling for this American bred woman who is very much independent, outspoken and able to handle him in ways he never sees coming. As the days progress into two months, Alex finds that he can’t stay away from Emma and vice versa. What stars out as friendship in their minds turn to love…a love that either one refuses to express to one another.
The story starts off very good with all its quirks and humor. The twist of having Alex believe that Emma is a kitchen maid and then discovering that she is actually an heiress is funny. The introduction of the villain in the story could have been brought out much earlier showing a bit more interaction from him wanting to come after Belle a bit more. I tried to audio this story but the narration was just so awful, so I decided to read a fourth of the way to the end. For an earlier novel by JQ, I thought it was a delightful and funny story. Looking forward to reading the second in the series.
4- Stars
The story starts off very good with all its quirks and humor. The twist of having Alex believe that Emma is a kitchen maid and then discovering that she is actually an heiress is funny. The introduction of the villain in the story could have been brought out much earlier showing a bit more interaction from him wanting to come after Belle a bit more. I tried to audio this story but the narration was just so awful, so I decided to read a fourth of the way to the end. For an earlier novel by JQ, I thought it was a delightful and funny story. Looking forward to reading the second in the series.
4- Stars
April 15, 2022
Justo antes de la fiesta en que será presentada en sociedad, Emma sale a la calle vestida de sirvienta para que nadie la reconozca, sin embargo, durante esa escapada, conocerá al duque Alex Ridgely, guapísimo y rebelde, que le hace dudar de sus intenciones de no casarse. Cuando Alex descubre quién es ella realmente, sus ganas por conocerla y cautivarla aumentarán aún más, ¿podrán ambos resistirse al matrimonio, que tanto rechazaban?
Bueno, admito que al abrir el libro y leer que fue publicado por primera vez en 1995 me dio un poco de miedo pensar que al ser de hace tanto tiempo podría no gustarme tanto como los más "modernos". Pero para nada, no podría haber estado más equivocada, y es que he disfrutado como una enana de esta historia.
Me he encontrado con unos personajes que me han encantado, incluso si de primeras Alex no me acababa de convencer por lo lanzado y prepotente que resultaba, con el tiempo se le coge cariño, y realmente la historia da para mucho: es una de las tramas de Julia con más giros argumentales y en la que nos llevamos más sorpresas, con acción, drama y salseo a partes iguales.
Reseña completa: http://fiebrelectora.blogspot.com/202...
Bueno, admito que al abrir el libro y leer que fue publicado por primera vez en 1995 me dio un poco de miedo pensar que al ser de hace tanto tiempo podría no gustarme tanto como los más "modernos". Pero para nada, no podría haber estado más equivocada, y es que he disfrutado como una enana de esta historia.
Me he encontrado con unos personajes que me han encantado, incluso si de primeras Alex no me acababa de convencer por lo lanzado y prepotente que resultaba, con el tiempo se le coge cariño, y realmente la historia da para mucho: es una de las tramas de Julia con más giros argumentales y en la que nos llevamos más sorpresas, con acción, drama y salseo a partes iguales.
Reseña completa: http://fiebrelectora.blogspot.com/202...
May 30, 2019
3,5 Estrellas
Julia Quinn tiene facilidad para tejer historias plagadas de personajes secundarios entrañables.
Sin embargo, llega un punto al menos en lo que se refiere a esta historia, en que los personajes secundarios llegan a opacar a los principales. En ocasiones sentía que estos se estaban “robando” la historia, que la única razón de ser de los protagonistas era para darle sentido a todos los demás.
Aún así, como me gustaban tanto todos y cada uno de ellos no llegó a molestarme. Tal vez, se deba a que es el primer libro de la serie y buscaba abrir el apetito para descubrir las historias de los demás personajes. Si era eso lo que buscaba con esta historia puedo afirmar que lo consigue sin ninguna duda.
Julia Quinn tiene facilidad para tejer historias plagadas de personajes secundarios entrañables.
Sin embargo, llega un punto al menos en lo que se refiere a esta historia, en que los personajes secundarios llegan a opacar a los principales. En ocasiones sentía que estos se estaban “robando” la historia, que la única razón de ser de los protagonistas era para darle sentido a todos los demás.
Aún así, como me gustaban tanto todos y cada uno de ellos no llegó a molestarme. Tal vez, se deba a que es el primer libro de la serie y buscaba abrir el apetito para descubrir las historias de los demás personajes. Si era eso lo que buscaba con esta historia puedo afirmar que lo consigue sin ninguna duda.
November 27, 2011
An American woman posing as a kitchen maid rescues the nephew of a Duke while on an errand. Said Duke then proceeds to not only find her attractive but worries over her station in life and her well being. I just found the entire premise highly unlikely. I also didn't like the fact that Alex put the moves on Emma while she was still a bit stunned from the accident that led to their acquaintance. It just didn't sit well with me, and with so many other good books out there, I'm not going to waste time with this one.
DNF. Not recommended.
DNF. Not recommended.
April 27, 2023
Ok like 2.5 stars rounding up. There are some big yikes in this but I’ve got to admit the book is a lot more palatable after a couple drinks.
January 18, 2022
This was Julia Quinn’s debut novel and since I only have a handful of her early books left to read this was fun to see how far her writing has come. This was a solid 3 stars for me, making it just an okay read for me in the end.
Alexander Ridgely, Duke of Ashbourne, is a confirmed bachelor with no plans to marry anytime soon. That is until a red-headed American throws herself in front of a carriage to save his young nephew’s life. She’s everything Alex never thought a woman could be…smart, funny, principled, and brave. When he first meets Emma, she’s dressed as a kitchen maid but Alex soon realizes Emma isn’t all she seems to be…
American shipping heiress Emma Dunster has left Boston (per her father’s request) and has agreed to participate in one London Season…even if she has no plans to wed an Englishman. She slips out of her cousin’s home, dressed as a kitchen maid, for one last taste of anonymity when she meets Alex. She and Alex meet again later at a society event and he quickly learns who Emma actually is.
I did like how Alex and Emma become friends first, while still enjoying to banter and flirt with one another any chance they get. All of the ton are pushing for these two to get together and many bets were placed on how quickly they’ll get married. While the romance was lighthearted, sweet and fun…there was just some charm missing from this one for me. Other moments we get in this read: a house party, his mother and sister trying to get them together, the heroine proposing, a whole suspense plot thrown in at the end (didn’t really work for me), side characters up to some chaos.
Alexander Ridgely, Duke of Ashbourne, is a confirmed bachelor with no plans to marry anytime soon. That is until a red-headed American throws herself in front of a carriage to save his young nephew’s life. She’s everything Alex never thought a woman could be…smart, funny, principled, and brave. When he first meets Emma, she’s dressed as a kitchen maid but Alex soon realizes Emma isn’t all she seems to be…
American shipping heiress Emma Dunster has left Boston (per her father’s request) and has agreed to participate in one London Season…even if she has no plans to wed an Englishman. She slips out of her cousin’s home, dressed as a kitchen maid, for one last taste of anonymity when she meets Alex. She and Alex meet again later at a society event and he quickly learns who Emma actually is.
I did like how Alex and Emma become friends first, while still enjoying to banter and flirt with one another any chance they get. All of the ton are pushing for these two to get together and many bets were placed on how quickly they’ll get married. While the romance was lighthearted, sweet and fun…there was just some charm missing from this one for me. Other moments we get in this read: a house party, his mother and sister trying to get them together, the heroine proposing, a whole suspense plot thrown in at the end (didn’t really work for me), side characters up to some chaos.
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