Rating: 
Summary: Very Pleasing
Review: Even though I am an eclectic reader with a predilection for literary fiction, historical romance novels have been a pleasure of mine for quite some time. I was recently tempted, however, to give up reading them as I was unable to find any books that were of any interest to me. Luckily, I stumbled across Julia Quinn, who I am happy to report is not only literate, but writes entertaining romantic comedies with good characterization. An Offer From A Gentleman is charming and well worth reading. The heroine is strong and intelligent while the hero is vulnerable and appealing, a combination that I find greatly pleasing. The Bridgerton family is drawn realistically and Quinn makes the reader feel like a member of the family. The mother is particularly well done. Her interactions with her offspring, whom she is desperate to marry off, amused me vastly. I especially appreciate, however, that she supports her children to only marry individuals with whom they have a true connection. This is certainly not in keeping with the morays of the time period, but I like it anyway. The Whistledown commentaries are witty as well as operate as a fine device for filling the reader in on the plot without having to waste pages to do so. Whistledown's identity was plain to me from the first book, but I still enjoy that she has not yet been revealed. I only hesitate to give the book five stars because it contained several trite scenes with hackneyed dialogue, such as the scene where Benedict meets Sophie at the ball. Nonetheless, I wholeheartedly enjoyed the rest of the book, particularly the part where the nasty villainess gets her comeuppance. I further recommend the "Duke and I", which I consider the finest book in this series.
Rating:
Summary: 2 problems
Review: ...Julia Quinn has extremely good timing and wit. Her novels arealways (with one exception I've read) funny, and enjoyable toread. She can make you laugh out loud, not just giggle or smile, butactually laugh out loud, which is a remarkable talent. However, shehas two consistent problems, that are not only found in this novel,"An Offer From A Gentleman", but in many of them. The firstis her wish to make her characters "deep". If we are allhonest with ourselves, we do not read romance novels so that we canfeel the complexitiy of the characters, and frankly, making them too"deep" detracts from the story, which is going to endperfect anyway. If they had real life problems, it would not, andthen, it would not be a romance novel. Miss Beckett and Mr. Bridgertonmanage to escape most of the pitfalls of being too "deep"very nicely, but not completely. She is a servant, and so it takes hima while to come 'round to the idea of marriage. But, once he decideshe will marry her, he convientently learns that it's all right afterall, because she was the ward (and the bastard) of the late Earl ofPenwood. Whew. It was such a reflief. The second problem sheconsistently has, is her "copy editor". He sucks. As in herprevious novel, "The Viscount who Loved me", I found quite afew errors that are distracting, and frankly make me wonder how mucheffort [she] puts into her books. On page 141 they have Mrs. Brigertonspeaking when she has yet to be introduced, and it should beMrs. Crabtree. On page 227, I believe she got confused about who wasspeaking, because the way it's written Miss Beckett is sayingsomething she would not say. Finally, on page 242, Miss Beckett makesreference to Mr. Bridgerton showing her sketches he had done, when Idistinctly remember her coming across them when he was ill, andlooking at them uninvited. None of these problems affect the mainplot, or make the reader fed up with the book, but if they were notthere, the book would be a less confusing read. It would also showthat [the author] actually cares about her characters. "AnOffer from a Gentleman" begins as a Cinderella story, andquickly, within the first several chapters, moves beyond the confinesof the traditional story. It's sweet, and the characters are fairlyromantic, more so than they have been in the last few books she haspublished. I actually quite liked Sophie Beckett, but as with mostcharacters, she seemed a little over-the-top perfect. BenedictBridgerton was a much better hero than his brother Anthony, but Ithink that was because he was not quite as "deep". Ithink everyone should read Julia Quinn books, because she is a goodauthor, if careless at times. She manages to make her characterssomewhat new in each novel, while infusing the stories withhumor. Hopefully, she will publish a spectacular next novel aboutEloise, or perhaps Colin, the next two in line to get married. And Imust admit that perhaps my favorite part of the book had nothing to dowith the main characters so much as the tension betwen Colin andPenelope Featherington (another recurring character). I would not besad to see a book about them, althogh Colin has declared he will notmarry her...All in all "An Offer from a Gentleman" is agood romantic story, and certainly a step up from the last two novels[the author] has written about the Bridgertons. I hope she continuesit.
Rating: 
Summary: Happily Ever After!
Review: Julia Quinn's new book, "An Offer From A Gentleman" is my new favorite book! Usually my books go in one of two piles: The "I'm going to read this again!" pile or the "Gee, I'm gald it's over!" pile. "An Offer From A Gentleman" is definitely "read again and again" material.This new Cinderella revisited has some great moments including "love at first sight", a damsel rescued by a gallant hero, and loving family interference. The main characters are charming and the stepmother is suitably wicked! Ms. Quinn takes her readers through a classic fairy tale and adds a great story line and beautiful tender scenes. You'll love the "Happily Ever After" ending!
Rating:
Summary: the best installment in the Bridgerton series so far
Review: "An Offer From a Gentleman" does indeed revolve around the Cinderella motif, but while Julia Quinn doesn't really veer very far from this plot device, she has breathed new life into the stock characters of Cindereall, the Prince and the Wicked Stepmother so as to make this novel really enjoyable and a fun read. Briefly, the plot unfolds as follows: the illegitimate daughter of the Earl of Penwood, Sophie Beckett, has lead a life of unrelenting hell at her stepmother's (Araminta) hands; and she decides one night to slip out of the house and to attend a masked ball. There, she attracts the attention of the very handsome and eligible Benedict Bridgeton. They spend a few magical (and romantic) moments together until Sophie spots Araminta, and decides to escape before Araminta discovers her presence. She leaves a very disappointed Benedict behind her as well as a glove with the Penwood insignia on it. Benedict tries to track his mysterious lady using this glove, but has no success in finding her. In the meantime, Sophie who has decided that she has had enough of Araminta's anger and hatred, decides to runaway. Two years go by -- Sophie has been working as a maid in the country; while Benedict, who has not forgotten his mysterious lady, spends his time attending balls and other social functions hoping to find her; when fate throws Benedict and Sophie unexpectedly together again. Benedict walks in on the attempted rape of Sophie by her employer's son and rescues her. Chivalrously, he then offers her a position at his mother's estate. Sophie is stunned and heartbroken at the same time: all her daydreaming has finally come true -- here's her prince, and he's just rescued her, and he doesn't even recognise her as the lady from the masked ball! Things take an even more ironical turn for Sophie when she discovers that Benedict has decided not to marry at all since he has lost all hope of finding his masked lady. In the meantime Benedict discovers that he has a dilemma of his own: his is growing more and more attracted to Sophie, but this seems to make a mockery of his feelings for the masked lady. How can he reconcile his desire for Sophie with what he feels for his lady? What will happen? Will Benedict discover that Sophie and the masked lady are one and the same? Unfortunately the path to their happiness doesn't only lie in Benedict's realisation that Sophie and the masked lady are one and the same. There's also the matter of Sophie's illegitimate birth, as well as Araminta. What will happen when Araminta discovers Sophie's whereabouts? Will her hatred for Sophie inspire her to scale new heights of malice? "An Offer From A Gentleman" is the third novel in the Bridgerton series, and it is the best to date. "The Duke And I" was rather good, and while "The Viscount Who Love Me" (the second book in the series) was not as good as the first one, it was still a goodish read. This novel however surpassed the first two in every way. Everything just gelled together really well -- character developments, the story line, manner in which events unfolded and were paced -- all this came together in such a way as to make for some really riveting and enjoyable reading. What was especially compelling and interesting (for me anyway) was the characters. For example, Cinderella/Sophie is not the meek and willing drudge from the fairy tale we're all familiar with; indeed when Sophie decides that she' s had enough of Araminta, she ups and leaves in order to start a new life for herself. And one cannot help but admire this character, who doesn't allow anyone or anything to curb her spirit, her sense of self worth or her principles. Sophie is someone who has experienced a lot of hard knocks, and yet she has not allowed her experiences to tarnish her in any way. I also liked that Benedict's mother, Violet figured more prominently in this novel than in the previous two, and that we got to see another side of the woman who is usually portrayed as hell bent on marrying off all her children. In this book we see the lengths that Violet will go to in order to defend and protect those she really likes and loves. I thought that the final showdown between Violet and Araminta was priceless. "An Offer From A Gentleman" is a really enjoyable read. If, like me, you weren't really blown away by the first two books in the series, don't hesitate. This novel is really worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Another great JQ novel
Review: Julia Quinn had never disappointed me in the past, and she didn't start with this one, either! The characters are great, and not just Benedict and Sophie, but everyone involved. We really got to know more about Violet Bridgerton and some of the younger children that hadn't been involved really in the previous books. As others have said, once the story broke away from the Cinderella plot and went with JQ's original work, it was fabulous. Not that it was bad before :-) I just can't wait for Colin!! I'd been waiting for Benedict's story for months, and it was truly worth it. Read any JQ novel you can get your hands on!
Rating:
Summary: Laugh and Sigh...Unforgetable!
Review: FINALLY! ...Like many of you, I too have been anxiously waiting for this book. I have loved both THE DUKE AND I (1st book of the series) & THE VISCOUNT WHO LOVE ME (2nd book). The Bridgerton's are all adorable LOT. I enjoyed each and every one of them... So naturally, I expected to love this book just as much. However, I am surprise that it has exceeded my own expectation. I read it late last night after I got home from work, 11:30pm and finished it just an hour ago, 7:30am. Try as I might, I just couldn't put it down. Embarrassingly, I still have that Tingle-Goosebumps feeling, not to mention a silly smile is still imprinted on my face! To think I haven't even slept yet...and I have duty at 3pm again today. HA! I will be daydreaming of Benedict and Sophie then. I will definitely read this book again tonight! I tell you this book is dreamy! Romance story telling at its best! It's been a long time since a book thoroughly affected me this way. Truly a heart quenching, heart warming read. The Editorial Reviews pretty much sums up the book synopsis so I'll just throw in my opinion of the book without summarizing it: At first, I thought this book is going to be another RETELLING of a CINDERELLA story, which I don't mind at all. I thought I'd pretty much know what will happened next and how this book will end but I was wrong. Ms. Quinn is truly such a gifted writer. She knows how to use the fairy tale Cinderella story we all know and love.... then she molded it with her own ideas, filling it with humor and hearty twists for a spunk of uniqueness. There is no "Dark-Past", "Bad-Boy", "Rakish-Rogue" image here for Benedict Bridgerton, which was a refreshing change of character from the books I've been reading lately. He is actually normal and very Gentlemanly-Decent and Proper. Sophia is no over-uppity, spunky-witty noblewoman. She struggled all her life. Struggled to find happiness. She does have principles and values yet she is also human, weak to a fault esp. when her heart is concern. She wanted to be loved and to be accepted all her life... She longed to BELONG... That was her weakness, of which she felt when she's with Benedict and his family. Oh, how she makes me teary. The confrontation, confession, revelations were all heart quenching. The ending was a great relief! I normally would prefer lots of updates and apprearances of the heros/heroines of the previous books in the series. In this book however, there is very few appearances of Anthony and Dafne... and even none of Simon and Kate yet I still give this book a 5 stars rating. You see, despite that small niggle, I still felt satisfied and complete with this book. There was updates of their children and that seems to be enough. Probably because Benedict and Sophie's love story caught me deeply, overwhelmed me that it made me forget about the others. Or probably it's just Ms. Quinn's style of writing that just leave her readers fully content in the end. The Lady Whistledown Gossip Column is as always the added intrigue not only in this book but all throughout the entire series. I tell you, the more I read, the more I know for sure who this person is. I can't wait to read the next book on this Bridgerton series. I am assuming it's Colin's and Penelope? Hmmm.... I honestly don't want this series to end! I fear it is close to its end. Ugh~ Well, I suggest you all start ordering Julia Quinn's BRIDGERTON SERIES. It is definitely a PLEASURE and a DREAMY read.
Rating:
Summary: Julia Quinn's best since Everything and the Moon!
Review: This has got to be Julia Quinn's best novel since Everything and the Moon, and perhaps it is even better than that one (my old favorite). I laughed at the younger Bridgerton's antics, and cried often toward the end. All in all, it will end up on my "keeper" shelf. One question, who does everyone think Lady Whistledown is? I bet it's a Featherington.
Rating:
Summary: JQ gets better everytime!!!
Review: Julia Quinn's novels seem to get better everytime!!! I believe this is the best one yet! This series started with the Duke and I, followed by The Viscount Who Loved Me. So far, this book is the best. The characters are sensitive and suffer very human dilemmas. In the end of course, love triumphs. Although some may find this tale, especially the comeuppance of the "evil" stepmother a little too "fairy tale-ish", the quandary of the characters seem all too real. I waited for this book to come out, and I cannot wait for her next book--maybe Colin's and Penelope's story this time?
Rating:
Summary: Julia Quinn Has Done It Again!
Review: In an updated version of Cinderella, we fall in love with Benedict Bridgerton and Sophie Beckett and learn what it is to hate with Araminta. How enchanting can life be when everyone knows you only as "Bridgerton" or worse yet, "one of those Bridgertons"? Simple, when the air is charged with excitement and you turn around to come face to face with your destiny! That's what happens when Benedict spies the Lady in Silver. Sophie Beckett is overjoyed when Prince Charming sweeps her off her feet and kisses her senselessly... who would have guessed that stealing away to a masquerade ball would change her life forever? Unfortunately for Sophie, bad luck holds true when her evil stepmother Araminta realizes she is the mysterious woman in silver. Turned away without a cent, Sophie must make her way on her own, for once in life happy that Araminta gave her hard lessons in servitude! Be careful what you wish for! After fruitlessly searching for his Silver Lady, Benedict tries to go on with his life and ends up becoming the savior to a servant when his vile host gets a little out of hand. Wouldn't it surprise Benedict to know he has just saved his Silver Lady? Not expecting his mystery woman to be part of the working class, recognition is not part of the deal, at least for Benedict. Sophie on the other hand, knows her savior immediately, and is more than a little concerned when he leaves her no choice but to let him "rescue" her with a job offer with his mother! If you've read the Bridgerton Series, you will love this latest installment. If you haven't had the pleasure, I urge you to read The Duke and I and The Viscount Who Loved Me. These characters come to life, and you will become part of the family! Sophie is strong, even when vulnerable and her beauty shines from within. Benedict, for all that he is the Second Son, has a presence that cannot be ignored. His charming wit and ability to persuade is astounding! When recognition finally dawns on Benedict and Sophie's past comes back to haunt her, will their fragile love survive? An Offer From A Gentleman is Cinderella at its best and reminds us yet again what a genius Julia Quinn truly is. Come fall in love with Sophie and Benedict, find out what's new with the Bridgertons and let's not forget Lady Whistledown! I bet I can guess her identity, but I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise!
Rating:
Summary: funny book
Review: this book deserves all the praise the other reviewers gave. and it was funny! I was giggling from beginning to end. The only reason i didn't give it a 5 star is that it was too mushy sometimes.
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