Memories Schmemories, It's in His Kiss by Julia Quinn

September 14, 2016

The in-your-face Bridgerton
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At last it’s time for Hyacinth Bridgerton. Hyacinth has been a character in almost all of the books in the series. She is one of those scene-stealing secondary characters; one of those

characters that make us nervous about her own book. Will that book be good or will it be a dud? Will my expectations be met or will they be crushed under someones big old foot? Well, I'm happy to say It's in His Kiss worked for me.

Was Hyacinth a little bit over the top? Yes. Was she a character who some readers may not like? Yes. But for me she had all the ingredients needed to make me smile – even have some laugh-out-loud moments. It’s in His Kiss does justice to Hyacinth and Ms. Quinn writes her just how I imagined her to be.

Hyacinth is not married. She is not married because men run from her in fear. She is a younger version of the outrageous Lady Danbury, her idol. Hyacinth is outspoken, head-strong, competitive, intelligent, and honest. She knows no fear and she craves adventure. She does things that are outrageous, but because she is a Bridgerton she has never been condemned for her behavior. If she were an older woman, she would be called eccentric. She is a sparkling, dominating presence wherever she appears. I loved her.

Gareth on the other hand is the typical manly-man rake who inhabits Romanceland. Yeah, he has problems – his dad is the main one. For all of you people who love to make lists, maybe you could make a list of rotten dads in Romanceland. There sure seems to be a plethora.  Anyway, his father hates him. The reason for this hatred is Gareth really isn’t his son, so there is a strong dislike between the two of them, even more so now that Gareth’s older brother has died, leaving Gareth the heir. Gareth’s father-not-father has also cut Gareth off because Gareth refused an arranged marriage. The only one who Gareth cares for is his grandmother Lady Danbury.

Lady Danbury. When one applies the term character to Lady Danbury it means more than just a character in a book. She’s been in a number of stories and I would categorize her as a scene-stealer. She’s a pretty entertaining woman, but she’s also a matchmaker and she thinks Hyacinth and Gareth would make a great couple. And, she’s right.

This is pretty much a character-driven story. The only external conflict comes from Gareth’s paternal grandmother’s diary and that’s not all that much. Most of the story focuses squarely on Hyacinth overwhelming Gareth and Gareth allowing her to overwhelm. Even with all of Hyacinth's strong-willed, adventurous, sparkling, take-over antics Gareth never loses any of his alpha manly-manliness.

For me, this story was great fun. Yes Hyacinth had her nose in everything and Gareth found her hard to resist, but I didn’t care. I had fun reading this book.

Time/Place: 1830s England
Sensuality: Warm/Hot