Bridgerton Prequels Collection: Because of Miss Bridgerton, The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband, The Other Miss Bridgerton, First Comes Scandal

Rokesbys #1-4

by Julia Quinn

An exclusive collection featuring the four novels of Julia Quinn’s Georgian-set Bridgerton prequel series, following the close friends and neighbors of the charming, powerful Bridgerton family—the Rokesbys. In her inimitable style – full of wit, wisdom, gossip, and romance – Julia Quinn introduces the charismatic Rokesby brothers as they maneuver through the scrutiny of London’s high society and secure matches worthy of their station – and their hearts. Adored by millions of fans worldwide, these timeless stories will transport you to a world of propriety, passion, and mischief—and love. In these four books, you will   Billie Bridgerton and George Rokesby, family friends who cannot stand the sight of each other, in Because of Miss Bridgerton. Cecilia Harcourt and Edward Rokesby, the handsome—and amnesiac—best friend of Cecilia’s brother, in The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband. Poppy Bridgerton and Captain Andrew James Rokesby, a reckless privateer for the Crown, in The Other Miss Bridgerton. Georgina Bridgerton and Nicholas Rokesby, childhood friends forced to marry to avoid social ruin, in First Comes Scandal.

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Audiobook, Regency

1305 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 2, 2023

About the author

#1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn loves to dispel the myth that smart women don't read (or write) romance, and and if you watch reruns of the game show The Weakest Link you might just catch her winning the $79,000 jackpot. She displayed a decided lack of knowledge about baseball, country music, and plush toys, but she is proud to say that she aced all things British and literary, answered all of her history and geography questions correctly, and knew that there was a Da Vinci long before there was a code.

A graduate of Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, Ms. Quinn is one of only sixteen members of Romance Writers of America’s Hall of Fame. Her books have been translated into 32 languages, and she lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest.

The Bridgertons, her popular series of historical romance, is currently in production by Shondaland as a Netflix original series starring Julie Andrews, Phoebe Dynevor, and Rége-Jean Page.

Reviews

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is better than the original Bridgerton. Is it a great work of literature? No. Is it a delightful, easy read? Yep.

[Amanda Guernsey-Cipili · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this collection!

I honestly think I liked these prequels more than the original Bridgerton books. Each story was so different from the other and beautifully written. If I had to pick a favorite, I would say it was The Other Miss Bridgerton but the first two in this collection were wonderful as well. I think First Comes Scandal was a perfect ending. I hope that the prequels continue & that Violet and Edmund’s story is included in the future!

[Karsyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, very much enjoyed. Getting a few glimpses into the Bridgerton family tree, seeing younger Violet and Edmund as they’ve only had the first 3 kids, plus the storylines and tropes themselves made it fun to listen to.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Novelitas perfectas para no pensar en nada y pasártelo bien. La segunda y la tercera me han parecido las más interesantes y diferentes dentro de lo que he leído de la autora, aunque repite siempre la misma fórmula y se vuelven predecibles.

[kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If your cup of tea is romance with great dialogue, these books are for you! Each story is unique and the characters are very engaging. I do like how the author has her female characters, not helpless, but often very intelligent in their circumstances. I have enjoyed all the books in this series. Pleasant happy reading!

[Kathleen Lancia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicholas and georiana

Steamy and fun...laughable at times...just enough curiosity to make you want to read more and yet...just the right amount of enticement!

[Julie Goodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love her books!

[H.A. Blackwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

So very good

I am so very impressed with Quinn. She’s kept every story fresh and unique, and after reading more than a dozen of her books that is saying a lot. I have not been able to get enough of her work!

[Keely Simpson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The one thing I didn’t enjoy is that I wanted more time with each couple

[Judith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few years ago I watched the first season of Bridgerton and immediately read all eight books. While they are not the most profound stories, I had a great time reading them. Last week I found the prequel series and fell into the same hole.

This series is about the Rokesby family, close friends of the Bridgertons, and it takes place a generation earlier. The series follows the four Rokesby brothers, George, Edward, Andrew and Nicholas, and each book is a different brother's love story.

🌸 Because of Miss Bridgerton
The first book is about George, the eldest brother, and Billie Bridgerton, who he known all his life but never really known (ifywim). I loved Billie as a character and I loved the family aspect in the book. I also have already forgotten everything else that happened in this book. Very cute, not all that memorable.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

🌸 The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband
Edward, the second Rokesby brother, has been deployed to America, where he was severely wounded. Cecilia pretends to be Edward's wife so she can care for him. Long story short, Edward has memory loss and doesn't know they're not married. I liked the story and the characters enough, but oh my god, the lying drove me INSANE.
Rating: ⭐⭐✨

🌸 The Other Miss Bridgerton
My favorite! Andrew is the third of the Rokesbys and captain on a ship. Poppy gets kidnapped onto said ship. Both Andrew and Poppy were just my favorite kinds of characters: smart and witty, Poppy takes absolutely no shit and Andrew is the Julia Quinn version of Sturmhond. The whole kidnapping aspect is a bit morally questionable - but I didn't really care. Loved it.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐✨

🌸 First Comes Scandal
The last book is about Nicholas, the youngest Rokesby, and Georgiana, the youngest Bridgerton. When Georgiana is involved in a scandal and is ruined for society, Nicholas decides he will marry her. I didn't dislike this book per se, but nothing really happened? I missed the plot.
Rating: ⭐⭐

Still, I really enjoyed reading these. If you're interested, I got all four books for 3 euros on Kindle!

[Kim]

Well... I wasn’t expecting to read the Bridgerton prequels, but the first one was included in the last collection of books I read, and it was such an enjoyable read! These stories are a bit different from the original series—they’re set outside of London, which gives the characters more personality.

Highly recommended!
---

No estaba en mis planes leer los libro de la precuela de Bridgerton, pero el primero de estos lo incluyeron en la última colección de la serie y la verdad es que fue una grata sorpresa, ¡disfruté mucho de la lectura! Las historias son un poco diferente de los que no tiene acostumbrados la autora de sus libros anteriores, están situados afuera de Londres, lo que ayuda que los personajes tenga más libertades y, por lo tanto, pueden tener más personalidad.

¡Muy recomendables!

[Sietske · Rating 4 out of 5]

My ratings per book. They’re a perfect read for when you’re stressed, at least for me. I read this book bundle during my final exams. They’re a read you don’t really have to think about a lot, if that makes sense. Not like with detective novels where you try to figure out what happened, these stories you can just read and relax. That’s how it works for me at least.

Because of Miss Bridgerton: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
And how did they get stuck on the roof you said? A Cat?!

The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Cecilia’s reasonings bothered me a bit. Though I did enjoy the story and especially the Dutch bakery with speculaas.

The Other Miss Bridgerton: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Well, you got to see Portugal I guess. And José.

First Comes Scandal: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I love Georgiana’s cats, and especially Cat-Head. Just because of what he did to that sucker in the tree.

[Floor · Rating 5 out of 5]

While Julia Quinn does not write a literary master, she does write fun books.
After reading the original Bridgerton series, several times in fact, I decided I wanted to read more.
And although the books are nothing new or inventive, they are a fun and easy read.
The books are always filled with men who love women in a respectful and complete way, not just for the way they look or what they can do for them. And overall the books are filled with love. Love for family, love for their country, love for each other and love for life itself.
Add a little steamy sex here and there and for me it becomes very enjoyable.

[Misty Larson · Rating 4 out of 5]

These books are by far much better than the shows they vomited up claiming the books as inspiration. Julia obviously wasn’t proud of her writing to allow such blasphemy to come to fruition. The books give you hope, love and respect. It’s not about throwing a boob over one’s should or masquerading as fake fine women. There was substance in the books & allowed you to care about the characters. Not about who the wanked later in the show.
Books=greatness. The show that she gave them to=crap. If you want to read these because you loved the show, move on. Your taste is obviously lacking.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think i enjoyed this collection more than the Bridgerton novels. The first novel was nothing spectacular to me even if the characters were fun. I really liked the change in storyline for The Girl with the Make Believe Husband and it taking place in the American Revolution. The Other Miss Bridgerton make have been the best one in my opinion. Taking place on the sea and more closed quarters than other novels in the series. First comes Scandal was neat that he is training to be a physician.
This was quite a fun selection of stories.

[Jill Allday · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was glued to each book, constantly wanting to read more. Each book had their own unique feel to them, the first more of a enemies to lovers, the second kept you on your toes both because of the lies and for the unknowingness of Thomas’ survival, the third was much more adventurous, and the last had me literally laughing out loud (this could be because I have travelled with cats and I felt every screech Cat Head screamed in my very bones) what a wonderfully well rounded series.

[Derri . · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just as charming as the Bridgerton novels, set a generation earlier. While the founding Bridgerton couple are off chasing their children Andrew, Benedict, and Colin (who we've already followed) the Bridgerton siblings and neighboring Rokesbys give us the origin of the Pall Mall black mallet, and prove that the spirits of duty, adventure, and integrity have been around a good long while.

[Kortney Menikos · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were only 2 sex scenes in it -- which less would be better. But I thought the characters were very interesting. I just wish that I didn't feel like Billie was so juvenile that it was weird that she was having sex. Also I think sex in books is gross regardless. The story was good overall but I just felt too weird reading this.

[Lilith · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 Part book I found in my library. I wanted to read it because I am a huge Bridgerton fan. I love that a younger Violet was present in the book as well as the first few sons, although they were small children. Each book kept me interested in this universe and made the Bridgertons a lot more interesting.

[Margaret Browder]

I loved these stories and Ms. Quinn's writing style. The only thing that could be better would be having different voices for characters. The narrator does a beautiful job; it's just that all men sound alike and some women do.

[Weldy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent collection of books! Some of Julia Quinn's best work

Book 1 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book 2 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book 3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ my favorite!
I Highly recommend buying this collection!

[MaryKay Keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Feeds the mind and the heart like a woven tapestry.

Loved the books. The details regarding the era and the romance combined with the intellectual perspective was perfectly engaging. Enjoyed every page!

[Tracy H · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved each of the stories

This was my first time reading Julia Quinn. I loved this book. Quirky and so much fun. My favorite story and characters were Poppy and Andrew in The Other Miss Bridgeton.

[Deanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute will-they-won’t-they kind of book! Honestly it was a slow read, and I often fell asleep to it, but Billy and George are super cute in the way that they taunt and care for each other, clueless to how much they really care… until the end.

[Alma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the third reading of these books. I read them first in 2021 when I bought them as individual books titled "The Rokesbys Series." Again they were engaging, humourous, and romantic. (I "read" the audible edition both times.)

[Smac · Rating 4 out of 5]

overall a great collection! contain both my favorite and least favorite books set in the Bridgerton world so far! This collection definitely leaves me wondering why we don’t see the extended Bridgerton fam more in the main series… I wonder if they will pop up in the show!

[Quinn McGowan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The collection on the books was nice, it was a fun quick ish read. It never took me long to get through one of the books but it took me awhile to get through all of them. The writing was good definitely a slow start tho. I enjoyed the books and that’s good enough for 4 stars from me.

[Kayleigh Huneycutt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Love this Era. Easy to visualize after watching the show. Book is great!

[Melissa Dice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good.

It was nice to see how the Bridgestone were early. I love the four short stories surrounding the two families.

[nicola smithers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fab - easy, fun great books.