A review by bzliz
When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn

emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

This installment is so different from the previous five. The majority of the action takes place outside of London and the rest of the Bridgerton clan play very small parts, if they’re mentioned at all. The only one who really gets supporting role credit is Colin and his appearance is more like a fairy godmother (or fairy of common sense). 

I loved that because of her status as a widow, Francesca is afforded a pinch more freedom than the previous FMCs have been given. She also doesn’t have the same level of ignorance going into sex with Michael that creates such a power imbalance in the other books. (It also happens to be the steamiest of them, by a lot.) In addition, Francesca has bigger hurdles to clear: miscarriage, grief over her husband’s death, her own infertility, guilt over having feelings for someone else. The simultaneous timeline between Colin, Eloise & Francesca’s stories was fun. A lot less ‘okay, that’s done so now we can focus on the next child’ feeling. 

There was still some ick around some of the scenes that honestly just feels inevitable for historical romances. And these men just can’t control themselves! (The creep in the garden, the creeps at the club, and even Michael as he’s trying to coerce Francesca into marriage.) I enjoyed it but I still prefer Colin’s story to this one. 
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