Queen Charlotte: Before Bridgerton Came a Love Story That Changed the Ton…

I've read all of the Bridgerton books and I do think I liked this better? Maybe? It has more going on than the typical Bridgerton story and I liked that we got perspective chapters from characters outside of the romantic couple, it made the scope of the story bigger and allowed the reader to see the stakes more clearly. I did find the story a bit repetitive and frustrating though.

One of the main plots is that the king "is mad" and has these "episodes" and he hires this super evil sadistic doctor (who literally tortures puppies) and the king repeatedly dismisses and then re-hires this doctor. If something goes well, he dismisses him, at the slightest conflict, he's back to the clearly horrible doctor to get tortured. Apart from that, there are two occasions of either the king or queen overhearing and misinterpreting something the other one said in conversation to the king's mother and then that causing a big conflict that they could have resolved by just telling the other person they overheard and asking what they meant. And they don't EVER talk about it! The queen eventually just gets over what she heard (even though it was taken out of context) and the king never finds out if the queen meant what she said either, she just eventually goes and rescues him from the doctor and he never brings up what he overheard.
I think the Lady Danbury chapters were my favorite, they had a good balance of humor and gravity. I liked the chapters from the perspective of the attendants for the King and Queen and their little romance I wish there had been more for them, though. I listened to this on audiobook and I thought the narration was good, but I did speed it up (1.25 I think). I have not watched the corresponding Netflix show yet, I wanted to read the novelization first, but I will say that the intros to the chapters that were like "[Character name][place][time]" reminded me of the headings of scenes in a script.

This book was no different from the show.

Merged review:

This book was no different from the show.

Merged review:

This book was no different from the show.

As a big fan of Julia Quinn and the Bridgerton series, I was very excited for her new novel and I knew I had to read the book before watching the Netflix series. And I'm very glad I did, because I felt it gave me a bit more knowledge towards the characters, making their motivations and actions easier to understand and root for. Watching Charlotte grow into her crown and develop the command and respect from those around her, whilst falling in love, was such an interesting and empowering read.

This book wrecked me! Granted, I had watched the show first, but that is beside the point! There were parts in the book that were not in the show, and it was those scenes that made the book even more enjoyable. However, do not misunderstand me, the actors chosen for the show were perfect without having need to read the book. I will forever love the actress that played young Charlotte and young Lady Danbury (Agatha)! I'm not sure if this book existed before the show, but oh my goodness it had some of my favorite lines such as a dog being referred to as a "deformed bunny". I am quite mad at the fact nobody told Charlotte about the different breeds a dog could be, come on! There was so much I had forgotten from the show since it had been a while, I enjoyed the surprise of when those parts came up again. I love the friendship between Agatha and Charlotte even though it certainly doesn't start that way. The devotion of Brimsley to Charlotte made me want to cry non-stop. I would read more if the author ever wanted to give readers more stories featuring Queen Charlotte. I would also recommend this book to anyone who enjoys witty banter while reading and characters with whom they have their own stories mixed in. 5/5 without a doubt. Go Read it!

Just beautiful