[Livro] The Girl With The Make Believe Husband, de Julia Quinn

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Título em Português:--
Série: Rokesbys #2
Autor(a): Julia Quinn
Editora: Piatkus
Páginas: 352
Data de Publicação: 30 de Maio de 2017

Sinopse:

While you were sleeping...
With her brother Thomas injured on the battlefront in the Colonies, orphaned Cecilia Harcourt has two unbearable choices: move in with a maiden aunt or marry a scheming cousin. Instead, she chooses option three and travels across the Atlantic, determined to nurse her brother back to health. But after a week of searching, she finds not her brother but his best friend, the handsome officer Edward Rokesby. He's unconscious and in desperate need of her care, and Cecilia vows that she will save this soldier's life, even if staying by his side means telling one little lie...

I told everyone I was your wife
When Edward comes to, he's more than a little confused. The blow to his head knocked out six months of his memory, but surely he would recall getting married. He knows who Cecilia Harcourt is—even if he does not recall her face—and with everyone calling her his wife, he decides it must be true, even though he'd always assumed he'd marry his neighbor back in England.

If only it were true...
Cecilia risks her entire future by giving herself—completely—to the man she loves. But when the truth comes out, Edward may have a few surprises of his own for the new Mrs. Rokesby.

Opinião:
Depois de ler o primeiro livro da prequela, não aguentei e fui logo comprar o segundo. Porém, este ficou claramente atrás do primeiro livro da série.

Sou sincera, não gosto de um romance baseado em mentiras. É verdade que foi em parte por uma boa razão, mas não caiu desde logo muito bem.

Celia é uma personagem que ainda não sei muito bem se gosto dela ou não – estou mais inclinada para a negativa. Edward sim, agora Celia… Teve tantas oportunidades para dizer a verdade e no fim foge?!?!? Não, acho que posso dizer claramente que não gostei dela.

Não me ri com este livro, tirando um sorriso vago com uma ou outra piada que Edward tentava dizer.

Foi uma pena que o tenha lido logo a seguir a um livro que achei tão bom. Este nem lhe chega aos calcanhares. Não é mau, mas quase nem parece escrito pela mesma autora. Acabou por ser uma desilusão.

Title: The Girl With The Make-Believe Husband
Serie: Rokesbys #2
Author: Julia Quinn
Publisher: Piatkus
Pages: 352
Publication date: May 30th 2017

Synopsis:

While you were sleeping...
With her brother Thomas injured on the battlefront in the Colonies, orphaned Cecilia Harcourt has two unbearable choices: move in with a maiden aunt or marry a scheming cousin. Instead, she chooses option three and travels across the Atlantic, determined to nurse her brother back to health. But after a week of searching, she finds not her brother but his best friend, the handsome officer Edward Rokesby. He's unconscious and in desperate need of her care, and Cecilia vows that she will save this soldier's life, even if staying by his side means telling one little lie...

I told everyone I was your wife
When Edward comes to, he's more than a little confused. The blow to his head knocked out six months of his memory, but surely he would recall getting married. He knows who Cecilia Harcourt is—even if he does not recall her face—and with everyone calling her his wife, he decides it must be true, even though he'd always assumed he'd marry his neighbor back in England.

If only it were true...
Cecilia risks her entire future by giving herself—completely—to the man she loves. But when the truth comes out, Edward may have a few surprises of his own for the new Mrs. Rokesby.

Review:
After reading the first book of the Bridgerton’s prequel, I couldn’t wait to go and buy the second one. But this one was, clearly (and sadly), behind it.

I’m going to be honest with you, I don’t like romances based on lies. It’s true that this one had a real valid reason for its lies, but it didn’t start very well for me.

Celia is a character that I’m not sure I like…. I’m more inclined for the negative. Edward, yes, Celia… She had so many opportunities to tell the truth and in the end she runs away?!?! No, I think I can clearly say I don’t like her.

I didn’t laugh with this book, I didn’t have fun with it… I might have had a smile or two for Edward’s jokes, but that was it.

It was just bad luck that I read it right after such a good book like Because of Miss Bridgerton. This one doesn’t even come close to it. It’s not bad, it just didn’t seem written by the same author and the story didn’t do it for me.

It ended up being a disappointment.

[Livro] Because of Miss Bridgerton, de Julia Quinn

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Título em Português:--
Série: Rokesbys #1
Autor(a): Julia Quinn
Editora: Piatkus
Páginas: 352
Data de Publicação: 29 de Março de 2016

Sinopse:

Sometimes you find love in the most unexpected of places...
This is not one of those times.
Everyone expects Billie Bridgerton to marry one of the Rokesby brothers. The two families have been neighbours for centuries, and as a child the tomboyish Billie ran wild with Edward and Andrew. Either one would make a perfect husband... someday.
Sometimes you fall in love with exactly the person you think you should...
Or not.
There is only one Rokesby Billie absolutely cannot tolerate, and that is George. He may be the eldest and heir to the earldom, but he's arrogant, annoying, and she's absolutely certain he detests her. Which is perfectly convenient, as she can't stand the sight of him, either.
But sometimes fate has a wicked sense of humor...
Because when Billie and George are quite literally thrown together, a whole new sort of sparks begins to fly. And when these lifelong adversaries finally kiss, they just might discover that the one person they can't abide is the one person they can't live without...

Opinião:
Because of Miss Bridgerton era um livro que eu já tinha debaixo de olho há algum mas que estava a tentar não comprar a pensar na edição portuguesa, mas depois de alguns livros que não me estavam a agradar e começar a sentir o início de uma reading slump achei que estava na altura de comprar o livro – e que bem que soube!!!!

Tenho de admitir desde já que sou uma gigantesca fã da família Bridgerton e por isso poder ler um pouco sobre esta família (ainda que na forma de uma prequela) dá-me a sensação de estar a voltar a casa.

E que bom que foi com a Billie Bridgerton! Acho que há muito tempo que não me divertia tanto com um livro. Tivemos o jogo do palamalho (o malho da morte!!! <3) e tantas aventuras divertidas, com as mães das nossas personagens principais a interferirem para juntar Billie e George, que tanto me lembram o Anthony e a Kate (Peripécias do Coração).

Billie é divertida, forte e destemida, enquanto que George sempre sentiu uma distância entre ele, os seus irmãos e os vizinhos Bridgerton , porque sabia que tinha de aprender tudo sobre a propriedade e como geri-la, etc.. E , de alguma maneira, inveja a liberdade deles mas também estava contente com a sua posição pois sabia que seria bom e feliz a cumpri-la. E quando ele e Billie finalmente se aproximam (com a ajuda de um gato arisco!) tudo começa a mudar. Para melhor, claro.

Talvez para algumas pessoas este livro e o Peripécias do Coração sejam demasiado semelhantes, mas para mim são praticamente perfeitos, não mudava nada.

Foi um livro que me fez rir e sorrir (o que me ganhou alguns olhares estranhos no café da livraria onde o estava a ler) – enfim , o livro ideal com um final perfeito.

Title: Because of Miss Bridgerton
Serie: Rokesbys #1
Author: Julia Quinn
Publisher: Piatkus
Pages: 352
Publication date: March 29th 2016

Synopsis:

Sometimes you find love in the most unexpected of places...
This is not one of those times.
Everyone expects Billie Bridgerton to marry one of the Rokesby brothers. The two families have been neighbors for centuries, and as a child the tomboyish Billie ran wild with Edward and Andrew. Either one would make a perfect husband... someday.
Sometimes you fall in love with exactly the person you think you should...
Or not.
There is only one Rokesby Billie absolutely cannot tolerate, and that is George. He may be the eldest and heir to the earldom, but he's arrogant, annoying, and she's absolutely certain he detests her. Which is perfectly convenient, as she can't stand the sight of him, either.
But sometimes fate has a wicked sense of humor...
Because when Billie and George are quite literally thrown together, a whole new sort of sparks begins to fly. And when these lifelong adversaries finally kiss, they just might discover that the one person they can't abide is the one person they can't live without...

Review:
Because of Miss Bridgerton is a book that I had in mind to buy for a while now, but was hoping to stay strong until the Portuguese version came up, however, after a few less entertaining books and starting to feel like I was in the beginning of a reading slump, I thought it was time to buy it – and it felt so good to do it!

I must admit I’m a huge fan of the Bridgertons so anything that involves this family (even as a prequel) gives me this feeling of coming back home.

And how good it was to start doing it with Billie Bridgerton! I have to say I hadn’t had such fun reading a book in a long time. We had the mallet of death (<3) and so many fun adventures, with the mums of our main characters interfering to try and get Billie and George together – and they remind me so much of Anthony and Kate (The Viscount Who Loved Me).

Billie is so funny, strong and fearless, whereas George always felt a distance between himself, his brothers and his neighbours, the Bridgertons, because he knew he had to learn everything about his dad’s estate and couldn’t afford to “loose” time playing around. In a way, he envied them, but he was also happy with his position because it made him happy to do his job and he was good at it. And when he and Billie become closer (with the help of a cat!), everything starts to change. For the best, of course.

Maybe for some people this book and The Viscount Who Loved Me are too similar but for me they are practically perfect, I wouldn’t change a thing.

A book that made me laugh (really laugh, getting me some strange looks at the bookshop’s café where I was reading it) – well the perfect book with a perfect ending.

[Livro] Felizes para sempre, de Julia Quinn

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Título em Português:Felizes para Sempre
Série: Bridgertons #1.5, #2.5, #3.5, #4.5, #5.5, #6.5, #7.5, #8.5, #9.5
Autor(a): Julia Quinn
Editora: Edições Asa
Páginas: 304
Data de Publicação: 11 de Outubro de 2016

Sinopse:

Era uma vez uma família muito especial…
Sob a batuta de uma matriarca formidável, os Bridgerton são mais do que uma família, eles são uma força da natureza. Ao longo de oito romances, leitores de todo o mundo riram à gargalhada, emocionaram-se, choraram e apaixonaram-se por estes oito irmãos, pelos seus tios e tias, sogras, sobrinhos e amigos (sem esquecer o cão obeso). De tal forma que, no final, todos os leitores ansiaram por mais. E perguntaram à autora… E agora? O que acontece a seguir? O Simon lê as cartas do pai? A Francesca e o Michael têm filhos? Quem consegue a desforra no jogo de palamalho? Será que o “Fim” tem mesmo de ser o fim?
Também Julia Quinn ansiava responder a estas e outras questões. Por isso, decidiu continuar. Tudo o que ficou por contar é agora revelado em Os Bridgerton: Felizes Para Sempre… até mesmo a história secreta por detrás do amor perfeito de Violet Bridgerton. Até sempre, Bridgertons!

Opinião:
Este livro inclui os vários epílogos dos livros que nos contam a história da família Bridgerton. E é com imenso prazer que revejo personagens que tanto gosto.

O meu favorito foi aquele que está de acordo com o livro favorito da colecção, O Visconde e Eu, que nos conta mais um jogo de palamalho, que é uma diversão imensa, tal como no livro original.

Também gostei imenso de ler a (pequena) história de como Violet e Edward Bridgerton se conheceram e acabaram por se apaixonar, mesmo tendo um fim triste. Diga-se, apesar de triste mostra a importância de dar valor ao tempo que temos junto daqueles que amamos e, por isso, foi das histórias que mais valorizei.

Em geral, as outras histórias foram boas, usadas para matar saudades e responder a algumas perguntas que ficam em aberto no fim dos vários livros. Sem dúvida, um livro que agradará a qualquer fã desta família.

Title: The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After
Serie: Bridgertons #1.5, #2.5, #3.5, #4.5, #5.5, #6.5, #7.5, #8.5, #9.5
Author: Julia Quinn
Publisher: Edições Asa
Pages: 304
Publication date: October 11th 2016

Synopsis:

ONCE UPON A TIME, A HISTORICAL ROMANCE AUTHOR CREATED A FAMILY…
But not just any family. Eight brothers and sisters, assorted in-laws, sons and daughters, nieces and nephews, (not to mention an overweight corgi), plus an irrepressible matriarch who’s a match for any of them… These are the Bridgertons: less a family than a force of nature. Through eight bestselling novels, readers laughed, cried, and fell in love. But they wanted more. And so the readers asked the author… What happened next? Does Simon ever read his father’s letters? Do Francesca and Michael become parents? Who would win in a Pall Mall grudge match? Does “The End” really have to be the end?
Now, with The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After, Julia Quinn delivers eight sexy, funny, and heartwarming “2nd epilogues,” plus a bonus story about none other than the wise and witty Violet Bridgerton herself. So get to know the Bridgertons all over again—because Happily Ever After is a whole lot of fun.

Review:
This book is made of the several epilogues of the books that brought us the story of the Bridgerton family. And it’s with great pleasure that I find myself reading about them again.

My favourite epilogue is the one that matches my favourite book of the collection, The Viscount who loved me. It brings us, once more, a game of croquet and the famous mallet of death. It was just as funny as the game in the book, and it brought back so many good memories.

I also quite enjoyed reading Violet and Edward Bridgerton’s story, learning how they had fallen in love, even though there’s a sad ending to that story. However, even though the ending is not happy, it makes us appreciate the time we have with our loved ones – that’s why it was one of my favourite stories.

In general, these were good stories, that helped those who missed these beloved characters to reconnect with them again, as well as answering some questions that had left us wondering after the end of each book. With question, this is a book that will most certainly please any fan of the Bridgerton family.

[Livro] A Caminho do Altar, de Julia Quinn

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Título em Português: A Caminho do Altar
Série: Bridgertons #8
Autor(a): Julia Quinn
Editora: Edições Asa
Páginas: 400
Data de Publicação: 10 de Maio de 2016

Sinopse:

Gregory Bridgerton procura a sua alma gémea. Acredita fervorosamente no amor verdadeiro, por isso não tem dúvidas de que saberá reconhecer a mulher da sua vida com facilidade. E, de facto, ao conhecer Hermione Watson, o jovem fica rendido. Mas, oh... que tragédia!, a estonteante Hermione está apaixonada por outro. É aí que entra Lucy Abernathy, a melhor amiga dela, sempre disposta a ajudar. Mesmo quando percebe que ela própria sucumbiu ao incurável romantismo de Gregory. Infelizmente, existe um outro “mas”... Pois Lucy está noiva, e tenciona colocar a honra acima dos seus sentimentos. Quanto a Gregory, no momento em que finalmente compreende que os desígnios do coração são mais intrincados do que pensava, já a sua amada vai a caminho do altar. Será que é demasiado tarde?

Opinião:
Chegámos ao fim da colecção dos Bridgertons. Esta família vai deixar saudades.

Este livro deixou algo a desejar na maioria do tempo, apesar de ser bom voltar a ver personagens que se tornaram tão queridas para mim ao longo do tempo. Aqui, Gregory, o homem mais novo dos irmãos Bridgertons (Hyacinth é a mais nova de todos os irmãos), anda à procura do amor que todos os seus familiares conseguiram encontrar. E pensa que quando isso acontecer, vai ser como se um raio o atingisse e puff!, ele e a sua apaixonada seriam felizes para sempre. Claro que não é isso que acontece, e foi muito interessante ver a mudança de perspectiva do Gregory, da Hermione e da Lucy, as três personagens que estão mais interligadas no livro.

Adorei rever Kate e ver que ela continua a mesma, com o mesmo humor e carisma que sempre a caracterizaram. É um prazer rever personagens como ela, o Anthony, e todos os Bridgertons, mas especialmente a mãe de todos eles, a nossa querida Violet.

É uma crítica pequenina porque não tenho muito mais a dizer. Estava à espera de algo mais, tendo em conta que era o último livro da série mas não foi, de todo, mau. Foi divertido, com tiradas inteligentes e, para ser sincera, foi diferente. A minha parte favorita foi o final – 9, uau!

Title: On the way to the wedding
Serie: Bridgertons #8
Author: Julia Quinn
Publisher: Edições Asa
Pages: 400
Publication date: May 10th 2016

Synopsis:

A funny thing happened...
Unlike most men of his acquaintance, Gregory Bridgerton believes in true love. And he is convinced that when he finds the woman of his dreams, he will know in an instant that she is the one. And that is exactly what happened. Except... She wasn't the one. In fact, the ravishing Miss Hermione Watson is in love with another. But her best friend, the ever-practical Lady Lucinda Abernathy, wants to save Hermione from a disastrous alliance, so she offers to help Gregory win her over. But in the process, Lucy falls in love. With Gregory! Except... Lucy is engaged. And her uncle is not inclined to let her back out of the betrothal, even once Gregory comes to his senses and realizes that it is Lucy, with her sharp wit and sunny smile, who makes his heart sing. And now, on the way to the wedding, Gregory must risk everything to ensure that when it comes time to kiss the bride, he is the only man standing at the altar...

Review:
We’ve reached the end of the Bridgertons’ books. We’re going to miss this family – at least I am.

This book wasn’t as good as previous books, even though it felt so good to see some of my favourite characters again. In this book, Gregory, the youngest of the Bridgertons brothers (Hyacinth is the youngest of all siblings), is looking for love – the kind of love his family members have already found. And he thinks that when he meets THE ONE, he’ll be struck be a lighting, so to speak, and puff!, he and his beloved will live happily ever after. Of course that’s not what happens. I really like watching Gregory, Hermione and Lucy’s evolution throughout the book, it was very interesting (these characters are connected through most of the book).

I loved to see Kate again, she was always one of my favourite characters and it's fantastic to see that after so long, she still kept her defining characteristics, like her wits and charisma. It was an absolute pleasure to see Anthony and the rest of the Bridgertons (even though most of them don’t have an active part in the book) and, most of all, I really liked reconnecting with sweet Violet, the mother of the Bridgertons.

I know it’s a short review, but I don’t have much more to say. I wanted more, considering this way the last book, but it was not bad at all, it was funny and clever, and different, to be honest. My favourite part was the end – 9, wow!