The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After (Bridgertons, #1.5-8.5; 8.6) in Fans of Eloisa James & Julia Quinn

Jan 17, 2013 Annie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: covers-to-covet, king-of-the-harem, genre-historical-romance, arc, read-in-2013, review-requests, ebooks, favorites, my-hottie-harem, for-fresh-fiction-review

Each story is an epilogue of sorts, updating readers on what is happening with their favorite characters after each of their books. That being said, readers who have not read all the books in the Bridgerton series would not fully appreciate the events and stories in this novel. I highly recommended starting with book one, to experience the magic that Quinn has created.

Before each story, Quinn pens a quick note on what the vignette is about and particularly why she decided to write the story. It' ...more

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Jan 21, 2013 Janga rated it really liked it

Shelves: a-z-reading-challenge

I鈥檓 sure the epilogue haters will have their usual snarky comments to make about the redundancy of epilogues, the price watchers will complain about the cost, and the cynics will sneer at the sentiment. But I don鈥檛 belong to any of those groups. I am an unabashed Julia Quinn fan who has happily read every book she鈥檚 published, beginning with Splendid, her debut novel, and I love having all the second epilogues in one book. Quinn has said that she wrote these for fans of her Bridgerton novels, of I鈥檓 sure the epilogue haters will have their usual snarky comments to make about the redundancy of epilogues, the price watchers will complain about the cost, and the cynics will sneer at the sentiment. But I don鈥檛 belong to any of those groups. I am an unabashed Julia Quinn fan who has happily read every book she鈥檚 published, beginning with Splendid, her debut novel, and I love having all the second epilogues in one book. Quinn has said that she wrote these for fans of her Bridgerton novels, often in response to specific questions they asked. Readers who have not read the Bridgerton novels may be frustrated by the second epilogues or they may view them as appetizers preceding the banquet of Bridgerton books, but they cannot approach these stories with the joy they afford the true Bridgerton aficionado.

I suspect that I鈥檓 typical of the latter group in that I have my favorites among the eight novels. I expected to find my favorites among the second epilogues matched my favorites among the novels. That was not always the case. While I loved seeing Daphne and Simon again and delighted in Eloise鈥檚 wedding and Posy鈥檚 romance, I laughed hardest at Hyacinth coping with a daughter cut in her own pattern and sobbed over Gregory and Lucy鈥檚 near tragedy even though It鈥檚 in His Kiss and On the Way to the Wedding are the Bridgerton novels I like least. And the second epilogue to When He Was Wicked vaulted to the top of my favorite epilogue list when I first read it several years ago.

Each second epilogue added a moment I could appreciate to the overall Bridgerton story, and collectively they allowed me to return briefly to a fictional world where I spent some of my most cherished reading hours, a world where true love is forever and families banter, badger, and bear one another鈥檚 burdens through the years. As for Violet鈥檚 story, it was the perfect ending. Quinn says Violet became her favorite character over the course of the series and that writing 鈥淰iolet in Bloom鈥� was a 鈥渓abor of love.鈥� I think that shows as Quinn gives us a look at almost the full span of Violet鈥檚 life, a life well-lived with long joys and deep sorrows but overall a life that proved happily ever after, even if it denied Violet the conventional HEA.

One quibble: I wish the second epilogues had been presented in chronological order, or, failing that, that the chronological order had been provided. I鈥檒l figure it out since I want to reread the full series in order, but it would be easier if someone else had done the work. Nevertheless, I鈥檓 so thrilled to add this book to my Bridgerton collection that I鈥檓 buying the print version in addition to the digital copy I have. I want the pleasure of seeing the full Bridgerton story on my bookshelf.

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Jul 18, 2019 Landslide rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: period-romance, fiction, bought, offered, coyer-summer-hunt-2019, epilogue

Having given us the stories of the eight Bridgerton siblings and their (sometimes bumpy) paths to love, Julia Quinn decided to give her fans a treat in the form of eight second epilogues, one for each of the books in the series, as well as a short novel about the Bridgerton parents, Violet and Edmund.

I really enjoyed reading them all, although my favorite was the love story that started it all, the story of Violet and Edmund.

The Duke and I - we learn the content of Simon's father's letters, a Having given us the stories of the eight Bridgerton siblings and their (sometimes bumpy) paths to love, Julia Quinn decided to give her fans a treat in the form of eight second epilogues, one for each of the books in the series, as well as a short novel about the Bridgerton parents, Violet and Edmund.

I really enjoyed reading them all, although my favorite was the love story that started it all, the story of Violet and Edmund.

The Duke and I - we learn the content of Simon's father's letters, and why he decided to read them. I really enjoyed seeing Simon and Daphne, as well as their offspring. We also get a glimpse of Colin and Penelope and their children.

The Viscount Who Loved Me - who doesn't remember the infamous Pall Mall game? Well, just because they are married and love each other, that doesn鈥檛 mean Anthony and Kate are no longer competitive... In fact, the game, with all the original players, is now an annual event. And it's still as fun as the original!

An Offer From a Gentleman - in this version of Cinderella, only one of the sisters was evil. In fact, not only was Posy good, she was instrumental in Benedict and Sophie鈥檚 happy ending. That's why the author thought that she also deserved a happy ending. So did I. And I very much enjoyed reading it.

Romancing Mister Bridgerton - the title of the Portuguese translation of this book says it all: The Great Revelation. In fact, this book reveals the identity of the infamous Lady Whistledown. However, because the revelation is only made at the end of the book, we never saw Eloise's reaction when she found out. And that is what the author gives us in this epilogue.

To Sir Phillip, With Love - when she married Phillip, Eloise became the stepmother of the twins Amanda and Oliver. Worthy opponents of Eloise, if anyone could reach them, it would be her. She did. Here we accompany Amanda, in the first person and as an adult, while she falls in love.

When He Was Wicked - my favorite book in the series could only have a second epilogue that answered the question that motivated its story: could Francesca finally have the child she so longed for? This one made me heartbroken... But I was so happy for Francesca and Michael in the end!

It's in His Kiss - Hyacinth and Gareth get together because they are seeking hidden diamonds in his house. In the end, it's their daughter who finds them but she hides them back where she found them and never tells anyone. In this second epilogue we learn that Hyacinth never gave up looking for them鈥�

On the Way to the Wedding - the second epilogue begins where the first ends: with Lucy giving birth for the last time. They鈥檙e twins and childbirth is difficult. And if the girls are born healthy, Lucy has postpartum complications. Fortunately Hyacinth is there to support her and Gregory. Obviously the ending is happy, but the journey is complicated.

Violet in Bloom - the story of how Violet and Edmund Bridgerton met and fell in love. We also see Edmund's early death, the birth of Hyacinth, catch a glimpse of the ball where Benedict meets Sophie (and where we realize that the Bridgerton brothers are as protective of their mother as they were of their sisters) and a final scene where Violet confides to Daphne that, although she has always missed her husband, she has been and continues to be happy with her children and her many grandchildren!

COYER Scavenger Hunt: Read a book that one of your goodreads friends has given 4/5 stars and that another goodreads friend had given 1/2 stars. ...more

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May 18, 2013 Jill rated it really liked it

Shelves: romance, kindle, 2013, alphabet-challenge

I LOVE series books. I love getting to know characters on a deeper level. I adore Julia Quinn.

I especially loved the story "Violet in Bloom" in this collection of epilogues. And I was touched to the core Francesca and Michael's second epilogue, as it very closely mirrored my own experience. {Sorry to be vague, but I'm not giving any spoilers away here}

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Jun 23, 2012 Shawna marked it as to-read

Shelves: anthologies-novellas-shorts, author-julia-quinn, best-endings-epilogues, historical-romance-regency, romance-erotica-tbr-mountzilla, favorite-romance-series, series-bridgertons-rokesbys, brothers-sisters-cousins-family, historical-romance, library-to-order-soon-next

From Julia Quinn's website:

All eight Bridgerton 2nd Epilogues have finally been gathered together in one volume, including the long-awaited 2nd Epilogues for The Duke and I and On the Way to the Wedding. And as a special bonus: "Violet in Bloom," a short story in which we finally meet Edmund Bridgerton. ...more

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