Romancing Mister Bridgerton: Penelope & Colin's Story, The Inspiration for Bridgerton Season Three (Bridgertons, 4)

A New York Times Bestseller

The inspiration for season three of BRIDGERTON, a series created by Shondaland for Netflix, from #1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn: the story of Colin Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington in the fourth of her beloved Regency-set novels featuring the charming, powerful Bridgerton family.

COLIN AND PENELOPE’S STORY

Penelope Featherington has secretly adored her best friend’s brother for . . . well, it feels like forever. After half a lifetime of watching Colin Bridgerton from afar, she thinks she knows everything about him, until she stumbles across his deepest secret . . . and fears she doesn’t know him at all.

Colin Bridgerton is tired of being thought of as nothing but an empty-headed charmer, tired of the notorious gossip columnist Lady Whistledown, who can’t seem to publish an edition without mentioning him. But when Colin returns to London from a trip abroad, he discovers nothing in his life is quite the same—especially Penelope Featherington! The girl who was always simply there is suddenly the girl haunting his dreams. When he discovers that Penelope has secrets of her own, this elusive bachelor must decide . . . is she his biggest threat— or his promise of a happy ending?

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496 pages

Average rating: 7.76

245 RATINGS

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Courtasaurus Rex

Mar 22, 2025

8/10 stars

Contrary to popular belief, I am happy with how this book went. I am so glad we finally got to see some faults in Colin. Until now, everyone else has messed up, but Colin was absolutely perfect. Now, Colin is relatable.

That said, I do not care for the sudden slap in the face of feelings compared to watching them flourish and grow. It was as sudden as a carriage crash and seemed to not fit or just rush.

However, asshole moves by Colin were remedied in his caring nature and passion for his role to keep Penelope from harm.

ljzsreadsandreviews

Mar 05, 2025

7/10 stars

The time lapse in this series is like no other! So much time had passed between book one and this one so it made Penelope and Colin’s story more intriguing to me. I found their sudden romance a bit odd but there interests ended up matching each other more than I felt we see in the show. I hate comparing books to shows but in this case I almost can’t help it. I liked both of them a lot more in the book I think and I was honestly starting to think the show took larger creative liberties with the Lady Whistledown storyline. Although there’s a lot of bits I truly enjoyed, this one still is not a favorite. I’m starting to think the friends-to-lovers trope just isn’t one that I like all that much and I think it’s cause I just find them to be sudden and I prefer a lot more banter than they typically offer. Just like the show, I'm interested to see what the rest of the series is like without Whistledown because I think it adds a nice piece to the overall plot.

willowjgood

Feb 23, 2025

4/10 stars

⭐️⭐️ A Letdown for Penelope and Colin I was so excited for Penelope and Colin’s story—this was one of the most anticipated romances in the series for me. But instead of the swoon-worthy romance I was expecting, this book was surprisingly frustrating. Penelope has been in love with Colin for years, and I was hoping for a romance that felt earned and deeply emotional. Instead, Colin spends most of the book oblivious to her and then suddenly realizes his feelings in the most unconvincing way possible. His jealousy over her success felt immature, and his reaction to her secret identity as Lady Whistledown was over-the-top. Instead of feeling like a loving and protective partner, he came across as petty and insecure. Penelope deserved so much more than a romance that relied on Colin finally noticing her. Their friendship is the heart of this book, and there were some sweet moments, but overall, the way the romance unfolded was disappointing.

Bri_b

Nov 13, 2024

8/10 stars

Audio version!

Allisonbernhart

Oct 15, 2024

8/10 stars

This took me longer to finish than expected but still enjoyable. I think Penelope and Collins book is tied with Benedictâs and Sophieâs book for my favorite.
Now that Iâm done, I get to finally watch season 3 of Bridgerton!