Title: On the Way to the Wedding (Bridgertons, #8)
Author: Julia Quinn
Publisher: Avon
Publication date: 2006
Length: 371 pages
Genre: Romance
Source: Purchased
Rating:
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 …
Another plane trip, another Bridgertons book… and this time, I’m done! I’ve now read all 8 books in the series, each one devoted to one of the Bridgerton siblings. This time around, it’s Gregory’s turn. Gregory is the 2nd youngest, and the youngest of the male Bridgerton’s. It’s about time for him to get his happily ever after, even though, once again, it’s disconcerting to read a romance about a character who looks like this per the TV series:
Never fear; In On the Way to the Wedding, Gregory is all grown up at age 26, but lacks a firm direction in his life. What he does know for sure is that he believes in love, even though he has yet to experience it himself. His own parents married for love, and he’s seen each of his seven siblings blissfully married off to the person they love as well. With that kind of family history, how could he settle for anything else?
Unfortunately, Gregory doesn’t really understand the difference between love and infatuation, so when he catches a sight of the gorgeous Hermione Watson at his sister-in-law’s house party, he’s instantly smitten and feel certain that Hermione is his destiny. Hermione, though, is absolutely bored to tears by the nonstop parade of men falling all over her. Her best friend, Lady Lucinda Abernathy, is used to running interference, and she steps in to divert Gregory from making a complete arse of himself.
All sorts of hijinks ensue, and before long, Gregory comes to his senses and realizes that the pragmatic, smart, funny Lucy is really the woman of his dreams. But there are complications, of course, leading eventually to a mad dash across London to try to stop her from marrying another man.
I don’t feel that I got a really good grasp of Gregory and Lucy as individuals, but maybe I just have Bridgerton fatigue and they’re all starting to blur together in my mind. I enjoyed the story, especially the dramatics that explode with an interrupted wedding, a case of blackmail, and a daring rescue… but I don’t think this book will stick with me the way some of the earlier Bridgerton stories will.
Once again, the plot is brightened by appearances of other Bridgertons, but those are few and far between (although author Julia Quinn really is superb at making the most of their brief cameos).
And finally, I’ve finished all the Bridgerton books! Eight siblings, all happily married! It’s a satisfying ending for an engaging romance series. And now I need season 2 on Netflix!
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Bookshelf Fantasies 
Congrats on finishing the series! Now on to season 2😁
I hope it comes soon — I’m going to have some serious Bridgerton withdrawal!
Congrats on getting so far in the series! I read Book 1 and have come to a stand still!
Ha, thanks! In terms of coming to a stand still — I don’t know that I would have read these books at all if not for the Netflix series. If I didn’t already have a sense of the characters, I doubt a straight-up romance series would have held my attention for so long! (And as I mentioned, they were great for when I needed airplane reading…)
Airplane reading is a must!!