Review: First Comes Scandal

First Comes Scandal by Julia Quinn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

So is it good or bad when nearly 400 pages feels like a novella?

I had totally forgotten that the Rokesbys series pre-dates the Bridgertons time-wise and was astonished that yet another Bridgerton bride had named her children alphabetically and with the same names until I realised that I was seeing Lady Bridgerton as a young woman!

This concerns the previous Georgiana Bridgerton. A impecunious rascal took her on a totally innocent date in central London then kidnapped her and tried to take her to Gretna Green in a forced marriage. Georgie escaped but he has spread rumours around town and she is soiled goods in the eyes of the world.

Nicholas Rokesby has known Georgie since they were children, her brother was his best friend and his father is Georgie's godfather. He is summoned back to Kent by his father and ordered to marry Georgie to save her from having to marry the cad who kidnapped her. Aren't we all grateful we don't live in that age?

I have read other reviews of this book (frankly looking for the name of the fortune hunter because my Kindle is charging downstairs) and I think they are mostly in line with my thoughts. It's a nice enough story but there just isn't much dramatic tension. We don't see the attempted abduction, we just see Georgie back at home with her family afterwards. Then, to be frank again, nothing much happens. Nicholas resists his father's command at first but then realises he must do this for Georgie. Similarly, Georgie rejects Nicholas' proposal initially because she hates people pitying her, but then she realises how kind Nicholas has been. I think this gives you a flavour of the blandness of this novel, there's nothing awful about it and Georgie and Nicholas are very nice but I kept waiting for something dramatic to occur.

View all my reviews