When He Was Wicked (Bridgertons #6) by Julia Quinn

When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn

My Rating: ★★

Francesca Bridgerton found the love of her life, John Stirling, only for him to pass away early in their marriage. Years later, Francesca has decided it’s time to find a new husband when she realizes she doesn’t have a passing case of baby fever. Instead, she wants to finally have children of her own even if it means she must finally move on. Francesca doesn’t expect to find love as a widow, but she does hope to find a respectable match that she can come to care for. Insert her late husband’s best friend and cousin, Michael Stirling, who has been in love with Francesca since the moment they met. The only problem is that he feels like courting Francesca would be taking one last thing from John, and Francesca can’t see past his rakish reputation.

I was excited to finally read a book following Francesca only to find that she’s a rather forgettable character. Don’t get me wrong, I do like her, but I think she’s forgettable and doesn’t have much of a personality. While Francesca is rather bland, at least Michael is more interesting to follow even though he spends much of his time obsessing over Francesca and whether or not she or other people notice his feelings for her. If we got to see more of him before this book, he has an interesting personality, so it would’ve been nice to see him as a supporting character as Francesca and John fell in love.

Honestly, I wish we had gotten a book following Francesca and John even though he would eventually pass away. It would’ve made much more sense than skipping her all together and getting to know John for a few minutes before this book kicked off. Instead, I’m not seeing the great love that Francesca and John once held. They seemed like friends who were married in the glimpse we saw into their marriage. The rest of the book is Francesca and Michael in various states of pining for each other. Even then, Michael seems to really be into her and she doesn’t seem to be that into him outside of the bedroom even when she’s proclaiming she is.

All in all, it was an okay read, but I was just not feeling Francesca or her side of the romance. I did enjoy seeing the characters we all know and love, but this is probably the one true dud in what is otherwise a great series.