“For once she was going to stop thinking about everyone else. She wasn’t going to take what she was given and make the best of it. She was going to reach for her own happiness, make her own destiny.”

You go girl! Lucy’s character development is amazing. She has always been a rational and practical girl whose heart was governed by her head, but unexpectedly, meeting Gregory was all it took for her to discover that her heart had enough to say as well.
This is undoubtedly my favourite Bridgerton book! I was so invested. What I liked most about this book is the evolution of Gregory and Lucy’s love story. It’s definitely not love at first sight as Gregory initially falls head over heels for Lucy’s friend. Lucy’s matchmaking efforts lead to her friendship with Gregory which eventually blossoms into love. But, here comes the biggest hurdle… Lucy is engaged, soon to be married to another man! All the planning in the world couldn’t have prepared Gregory for the biggest challenge of his life. For someone who has never had to work hard to get things in life, the persistence and courage he shows to realise a future with Lucy is truly remarkable. He never gives up on her—isn’t that adorable?!

Another thing this book depicts well is the relationship between siblings. For all the bickering between Gregory and Hyacinth, at one point it becomes clear how much Hyacinth loves Gregory. She is there for him with unwavering support and stands up for him when he gets treated badly.

And at last, let’s not forget the character with a villain arc, shocking but not surprising. I loved how Gregory dealt with them.
“You,” he bit off, “may shut up. Immediately.”
 
Throughout the story, a lot of great advice can be found. For example, this moment between Lucy and Hermione:
“There is nothing wrong with doubting yourself, Hermione. Marriage is an enormous undertaking. The biggest choice you will ever make in your life. There is never any good reason to rush into marriage.”
I would rather say marriage is ONE OF the biggest choices you will ever make in your life, but I strongly agree that it should never be rushed.

4.75⭐️0.5🌶️(one non-descriptive scene)
I can’t believe I’m saying this but this book was the best in the whole series! I do wish we had gotten to know Gregory prior to his book so we had some backstory, other than his bickering with hyacinth. With the other brothers’ books (and most of the sisters as well) none of the men desired marriage, and pushed it off for as long as possible. Gregory on the other hand is a man who knows what he wants and is VERY good at expressing himself. There is no miscommunication trope here! Gregory is a hopeless romantic who has been searching for that lightning has struck me kind of love, when he meets hermione Watson (shoutout to hermione granger/emma Watson?). She’s gorgeous but has like no personality, and she’s in love with someone back home. Her best friend Lucy doesn’t approve of him so she teams up with Gregory to help him win hermione, only they start to realize they’re a much better match. EXCEPT Lucy is already engaged to another man and has been since childhood. She finds out later that he’s

gay, so he’ll be kind to her but she won’t have a love match or a large family like she wants.

Honestly, having a man express exactly what he wants is such a breath of fresh air. Gregory is only 26 also so he doesn’t have to marry now (all his brothers were over 30 when they finally settled down). But he’s a man learns if he wants something he needs to work for it. Lucy is a people pleaser and doesn’t even think to ask her cold uncle to be let out of her engagement until about halfway through the book when she discovers her voice. She doesn’t have a huge personality but I could relate to her people pleasing tendencies. This book was definitely the most dramatic in the series, with a few twists. I would recommend this book even if you haven’t read the others. I would consider rereading, especially bc I don’t think Netflix will ever get to Gregory’s season, although I hope they do!