An Offer from a Gentleman by Julia Quinn (2001, Paperback)

I loved this book. I was a bit skeptical over the retelling of the Cinderella story, and in one or two places I thought the similarity was a bit forced, but Julia Quinn writes such fun novels it was a great way to spend a few hours.

I was hooked from the start where our heroine, an illegitimate child of the aristocracy, is dumped on her father's doorstep and passed off as his ward. She grows up in a loveless home, and hopes things will be better when her father remarries, but instead she gets a wicked stepmother. She meets one of the Bridgerton boys, Benedict, and they fall in love. The story that evolves from that is funny, sweet, and touching.

I believe this is book 3 of the Bridgerton series and I have enjoyed every one of them.

I LOVE THIS BOOK! I AM A HUGE JULIA QUINN FAN AND THIS ONE TOTALLY LIVED UP TO MY EXPECTATIONS! IF ANYONE IS LOOKING TO FIND THE MOST ROMANTIC BOOK SERIES-YOU MUST READ THE BRIDGERTON SERIES FROM JULIA QUINN. THIS IS THE 3RD BOOK IN THE SERIES AND IT IS WONDERFUL!!!! NO OTHER AUTHOR EVEN COMES CLOSE TO THE BRILLIANT WRITING OF JULIA QUINN. THIS BOOK IS SO ROMANTIC! A REAL CINDERELLA STORY-BUT USE CAUTION- IT WILL MAKE YOU TOTALLY UNSATISFIED WITH YOUR HUSBAND/BOYFRIEND :) MY HUSBAND HATES WHEN I READ THESE BOOKS!LOL

This is one of the best historical romances I've ever read. It was so romantic. The best thing about it was the "Cinderella angle". The lady meets her gentleman at a masquerade ball, then has to run off at midnight, so that she can take the family coach home without being noticed, otherwise her wicked stepmother will make her life even more of a living hell than it already is. She leaves without ever telling the gentleman who she is, and he spends the better part of two years searching for her. When they finally get reunited, she has been reduced to working as an upstairs maid for some family, and had to cut her hair to sell it to a wig maker, so she could eat. He doesn't even recognize her, but falls in love with her anyway. This was a great book!

I bought this book because I am a longtime fan of Julia Quinn. While this one has the usual drop-dead handsome hero and beautiful heroine the plot is unique and it kept me riveted.

I recommend this book to all who read romance novels. You won't be disappointed!

This is probably my least favorite Julia Quinn novel but even then, that merits it an average rating because Quinn is so wonderfully witty and refreshing. It's a different twist on a Cinderella story and the reason I didn't like it was because it places the hero of the story, Benedict Bridgerton, in a surprisingly unsympathetic light that I did not feel was at all characteristic of Quinn's usual treatment of her male protagonists. Still, the story (as in, the manner in which it is written) is nice enough and it seems a shame to read the whole Bridgerton series and not this one. So if you're an ardent fan of the Bridgerton family, go for it by all means. I mean, I did.

this book is one of a series of 8. it is an awesome read, made me want to read the rest. the author makes the bridgertons very much in demand
i highly recommend the whole series